7/5 - 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Dear Parish Family,

There are a lot of inevitable givens in life, including suffering, pain, unfairness, disloyalty, infidelity, and the present condition of being vulnerable. We find explanations in some of these situations but find none in others. When we experience sufferings and pains, we look for answers. Others people seek and ask God why He allowed bad things to happen to them. Some turn to God for relief and refuge, some distance from God. It is very essential for us to see and know God and see Him as our protector and comforter. A God who listens to us when we call on him; who shows mercy and compassion when we are in despair; and who gives strength when we are tired. Truly, He is our only hope, our salvation. That is why we have to know our God and establish a good relationship with Him through prayer and service for others.

Our Lord Jesus Christ is sent by God who is the Father of Jesus so that everything will come into fulfillment. The promise of salvation of the Father is completed in Jesus Christ. The Father has entrusted everyone and everything to Jesus and by his coming, our severed relationship with God is now restored. That is why we have now have life in God. In Jesus we have a realistic understanding of who God is. Through Jesus, the love of God has been manifested concretely among his disciples and to the world. His dying and rising from the dead had summarized it all the love of God in its maxim.

Following the Lord Jesus Christ does not guarantee that there will be no more suffering, pain, and injustice. Unless everyone is transformed in the Lord, people will always cause other peoples’ sufferings and pains. This is why following the Lord means taking one’s yoke and expecting that life will be less burdensome and there will be rest. When Christ appeared to his disciples after the resurrection, he greeted them with the words, “Shalom” which means peace. Shalom is not the absence of problems, but rather strength to overcome them and find meaning to grow through them. God becomes our help not to escape but to triumph.

To follow the Lord means we accept His very words to His disciples: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” There is still a yoke and burden to carry although it is light (or even lighter). We carry our yoke and burden trusting in the Lord’s heart of gentleness, meekness, and humility as we carry it in Him and with Him.

Fr. Tom Kunnel C.O.