Joseph Osho

  Thursday of the 2nd week of Lent   Jeremiah 17:5-10 Luke 16:19-31 AN UNBRIDGEABLE ABYSS  How could a rich man who has everything allow a man, whose only possessions were the sores covering his body, to die right before his eyes? How could he not be sensitive to the starving neighbor sitting at his gate when he could fabulously feast every day on his table? Like the rich man in today's gospel story, nestled in the plump security of life we too can become so accustomed to making self-satisfying pleasures the driving force of our lives that we become comfortably oblivious to the poor and needy among us, the many who, like Lazarus, are so grievously deprived of what any human being basically needs to survive that they die a little more each day. In that way, the parable shows us that when we fail to help a neighbor in need, intentionally distancing ourselves from them, we likewise distance ourselves from God. After a while, that distance becomes an abyss. As the rich m...

  Wednesday of the 2nd week of Lent   Jeremiah 18:18-20 Matthew 20:17-28 “Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?” In the vision of Jesus, leadership goes beyond mere titles and even positions in a group structure. For Jesus leadership might have trappings, but they were not his concern, rather he speaks to the essential dynamic of leading – service.  “Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave”. Christ asks us today, how do we utilize the power and authority vested in us in the various capacities we function as leaders both in the Church and outside the Church? The lesson He gives us today is that no matter the post we occupy in the Church and outside the Church, the best and the greatest way of exercising our authority is not to lord it over people but in service for the good and wellbeing of the people. This is because God is the author of all power and authority who sets the tone for...

  Tuesday of the 2nd week of Lent   Isaiah 1:10,16-20 Matthew 23:1-12 LET YOUR THOUGHTS AND ACTIONS SHOW THAT YOU ARE CHRIST ‘S DISCIPLE A disciple humbly submits to be taught by the master to learn and teach others the truth learned. Christ is our master and without learning from Him we can only lead others into the pit; when we do not practice what we preach and do not live out what we profess.  So the Lord invites us today to shun hypocrisy and go into ourselves to evaluate the quality of our witnessing. We must each ask ourselves, how do I keep practicing what I profess? What must I do to get closer to Christ and have a better rapport with Him? What is that plank in my eye that I must remove so that I can see better and in what manner I can add value to the life of my brother and sister? What must I do to draw others closer to Christ?  In the end, it is not about the titles we held in society, but what we did for humanity. If our life and death are lessons, this ...

  Monday of the 2nd week of Lent   Daniel 9:4-10 Luke 6:36-38 TRUSTING IN THE LORD AND DOING GOOD DEEDS WILL SET YOU ON RIGHT PATH  The Book of Daniel, its stories and hero Daniel are about a man who trusted in God during the most difficult time of the Babylonian persecution of Israel and till he died he known to be a prophet full of wisdom and integrity. The faith of Daniel in God amidst great suffering gives its readers hope and perseverance.  In today’s first reading, Daniel is of great lament. He says in his prayer; “We have rebelled and not listened at all to God’s life-giving laws”. So we begin to consider our present situation as christians. What about the good works of lent we are asked to do humbly? We may feel at the bottom of the wave, becoming aware of our failures in this area more than how good our works have been. But in the lament that arises within us we know Our God who is compassion and forgiveness. He sets us on sure ground.   What better wa...

  Second Sunday of Lent (Year B)   Gen 22.1-2, 9-13, 15-18;   Rom 8.31-34;   Mk 9.2-10 IN GOD’S WILL LIES OUR PEACE AND SALVATION   Despite the irritations and aggravations that parents experience in bringing up their children, the urge to protect a child is a strong, inbuilt feature of human experience.  In times of crisis, the rule “women and children first” is still generally adhered to.  Numerous helplines and organizations have been set up to counsel and defend children.   In extremis , a mother’s or father’s instinct is to sacrifice themselves to save their child.  Perhaps it is this instinct that arouses feelings of unease and injustice in us when we hear the Old Testament reading at Mass today.  The book of Genesis tells us how God put Abraham to the test by instructing him to sacrifice his son, Isaac, on a mountain-top altar.  In the event it was only a test, so, at the moment when Abraham has seized the knife, God says,...

  Saturday of the 1st week of Lent   Deuteronomy 26:16-19 Matthew 5:43-48 ABIDE IN GOD’S PERFECT LOVE There are lots of meanings of what perfection stands for but we say that something is perfect when it is in its pure and complete state. It could also refer to the end of all that is good or be all of something. There is nothing more to add. It is a static, unchanging state of being. Jesus tells us today to be perfect like the heavenly Father. The God whom Jesus calls “Father” is superlative, and all-expansive in love. God’s perfection means there is always room for more!” Our God possesses us as His own; called to walk, daily, in God’s ways and be co-heir in heaven. Our God is ever-forgiving, ever-desiring, calling forth our love in every circumstance, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus deepened the Law, in contrast to the literal, perhaps even smug interpretation of the Torah by the scribes and Pharisees, and by extens...

  Friday of the 1st week of Lent   Ezekiel 18:21-28 Matthew 5:20-26 DEEPEN YOUR VIRTUOUS ACTS  To call a person a "fool" or "renegade" is certainly belittling & insulting.That is why in today's gospel (Mtt 5: 20-26) Jesus spoke about the way we should treat one another. When we use abusive names or treat ourselves wrongfully, it is also an insult and a reproval level at God who made all human beings in His image. Thus, let us be careful and on the value we bring to the words we speak. Our virtue must exceed beyond human wisdom.  To rediscover the path of righteousness that Christ tells us today, the righteousness that beyond human level of understanding and that requires faith, First and foremost, Jesus is not talking about the World but the Kingdom of God. As such, only godly virtues are reckoned here and this would necessarily clash with the values of the world.  Secondly, just as Christ though God, emptied Himself and became a servant for our sake (Philip...