But I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say,
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”
Often I wonder how it is to grow with no faith, often seen in my extended family outside my country. I am fortunate to grow in a family with very devout parents. My paternal and maternal uncles are priests, one Salesian and one Diocesan in India, and I have grown up watching them live the faith and never once being told that I am a sinner or condemned me for asking questions or having opinions!
Above is the link to the video of my maternal uncle (my mother’s younger brother), who is a priest back home leading a parish in the south of Goa in faith and his journey in this life of priesthood! As a child, my uncle was just the best uncle with the most awesome gifts and the most hilarious anecdotes. He ensured we all were very punctual and dressed appropriately for church always, and somehow when he celebrated the Sunday mass at my hospital while I was a student and intern, he realized how I pushed through sleep and duties to reach that chapel for a Sunday service with as minimal a delay as possible and would never reprimand me for it! The video shows us a wonderful side of priests in India, which is a minority, and the amount of effort it takes to promote the faith, especially with the current narratives! (Do listen.)
Today’s Gospel is about Jesus being threatened for His life and He responding appropriately, which makes me want to respond to all the wonderful blessings and wishes on my birthday, and secondly, whenever I feel I am being threatened, especially at work by frustrated coworkers or disgruntled patients, I always think, pause, and respond very carefully, as I am aware that a lot can be misunderstood. Reading the Gospel today, I realized I need to pray too for them and focus on the same.
Today let us pause and realise that we have a protector especially when we feel threatened and hurt – focus and respond with faith and how we know that we will be saved.
AMEN.
