SPRINGBOARDS and WALKING STICKS

  To be a person of integrity means to be whole and undivided. It is the quality of having internal consistency, lack of corruption, being honest; thus the reality of one's life matches the claims one makes of one’s life. Integrity of life is purity of heart. “Blessed are those with a pure heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8). The obvious opposite of integrity in the Gospels is hypocrisy. Read Matthew 23, and see how Jesus campaigns against hypocrisy. He utters, “woe to you teachers of the Law and Pharisees…” seven times. For Jesus being spiritual is to be whole and undivided.   Integrity of being a leader, or having authority in some capacity, is to have that internal consistency, which in other words, objectivity in the measures and scales used while dealing with people of different strata, like, economic class, religious and caste identities, people of varied sexes and sexual orientations, individuals and groups of varied ethnicity and languages, etc.  Failure ...

  What was Jesus doing with the apostles for three years? Going by Matthew 18: 1-6, Jesus was teaching them to become children, for if they have to enter heaven they must become like little children. Jesus deconstructed their idea of greatness. Jesus subverted / overturned their idea of greatness. In the world to be great is to be an adult, not just an adult but one with influence, power, money, win a Nobel prize, etc. Jesus subverted this idea and categorically said if you want to be great become a child, if you want to enter the Kingdom of God, become a child. Children are not prejudiced, they are original, free, creative, spontaneous, and take initiative, etc. Why did Jesus choose Peter as his first vicar on earth? There were Judas, who was competent with money, John, who was much more learned, Thomas, who was much more courageous, James and John who were much more ambitious, etc. Peter was the most child-like among the apostles. Look at Peter who jumped on to the water to walk,...

  Jesus operated from an all inclusive love; something he imbibed from his Father. Jesus made Father's love his love. Make God's love our love. It is an all inclusive love. In that love’s preview no one is excluded and no one is special. In spite of differences all are included. In spite of differences no one is treated specially. Thus marriage becomes impossible. “A man leaves his father and mother and becomes attached to his wife, and they become one flesh” (Genesis 2: 24). Though marriage is considered the most noble relationship on earth, which Jesus himself upheld, and commanded that let no power on earth separate it (Matthew 19: 4-6). They become one in mind and heart; and then get united as one flesh. Marital love is exclusive, selfish, jealous, and of a special nature. This exclusive attachment is not possible in all inclusive love. In living chastity, one is not giving up marriage, rather marriage becomes impossible.  Some, to keep their chastity, become so reserved a...

  Poverty is a renunciation of prioritising worldly riches; and a radical prioritising of divine riches. Poverty is total dependence on God for divine riches. Jesus made father’s riches his riches; poverty is making God’s riches my riches. What are God's riches? Mercy, love, charity (heart to give), inclusivity etc. Earthly riches and heavenly riches are diametrically opposed. Think of the rich fool in the gospels, or the rich man who came to follow Jesus. In earthly poverty, and in heavenly riches we share a position with God. We have the richest father and mother, and we are heirs to those riches as children. “All I have is yours, and all you have is mine” (John 17: 10). God is not running a real estate enterprise on earth. I would think that God is not even bothered about who has what on earth; but definitely he is concerned about those who lack the basic necessities, like Lazarus, like man robbed and abandoned by robbers, etc. God’s riches are not in conformity with the world. ...

  Obedience is the process of nurturing the same mind of God in us. For Jesus to be obedient was to make God’s will his will. It looks like submission, it looks like giving up, yes, it is to a large extent submission and giving up; but in the spirit of obedience, one is identifying with Jesus, trying to live like Jesus. Jesus met doubt and confusion in moments of greatest pressure. The Gospels are not silent about it. He withdrew to be with the Father: Before every major decision he went away alone: before choosing the Twelve (Luke 6:12, a whole night in prayer), after the crowds wanted to make him king (John 6:15), and in the early morning when everyone was looking for him and he refused to be pinned down by their expectations (Mark 1:35-38). Prayer was not a ritual for him. It was where he recalibrate whose voice he was listening to. He tested every temptation against Scripture: In the wilderness (Matthew 4), the tempter offered him bread, spectacle, and power, all of them plausi...

  Religious life is casting the net in deeper waters. Jesus tells the disciples who were at shallow waters and catching nothing, “caste your net into deep waters for a catch” (Luke 5: 4-11). There one would find all different sorts of fishes. To begin with, it is moving away from our comfort zone.  What is religious life? When marriage and ordination are considered sacraments, religious life is not a sacrament, why? It is our baptismal consecration lived fully, radically and totally ( Perfectae Caritatis 5 ). In other words, it is moving out and casting our net into deeper waters.  To understand religious life fully we must understand our baptismal consecration. Baptism is an indelible mark, character, seal placed on us. The Roman Empire and most empires of that time had slaves. Slaves like objects could be stolen from their masters. So each master had developed a seal and put that on slaves indelibly with the help of a burning iron. That mark stated to which master the s...

  The woman who suffered from bleeding for twelve years (Luke 8: 42–48) teaches us what it means to truly participate, engage, and remain open to receiving. While a large crowd pressed in around Jesus just to see a spectacle and witness what He would do at Jairus's house, they remained mere observers. It is always safe to be a spectator, but a spectator receives nothing from the Master. This woman, however, decided to step out of her fear and doubt. She chose to believe, have faith, engage, take a risk, and make the situation work in her favour, and that choice made all the difference. Sometimes our stubborn reluctance to engage goes even further, turning us into the "dog in the manger" who neither eats the grass provided nor allows the cows to eat it. In these moments, we refuse to engage and discourage others from doing so as well, lest they grow and improve. Philippians 3:2 warns, "Beware of the dogs, beware of the workers of evil, beware of the mutilators". ...

  Humans cannot not live on bread alone, but on every word that God speaks (Matthew 4:4). Observe a growing up infant; it does not grow up on milk alone, but every word that comes from the mouth of the Mother. The child keeps looking at the mouth of the Mother. Jeremiah 15: 16 and Ezekiel 3: 1-3 talk about them literally eating the Word of God. And Luke completes it saying, from its fullness and abundance they speak (Luke 6: 45).  Christians have a ‘mouth to ear’ relationship with their God. Like sheep listen to the shepherd, God speaks and we listen. The Word of God is the mouth of God. The first definite action of God in Genesis 1 is to speak, “God said…” and the primary action of a Christian must be to listen, “those who have ears, listen”.  Listening needs mutual presence. God is ever present to us in the Word of God, but are we present to the Word of God? If you come to the Word of God dead, the Word of God remains dead to you. So be alive to the Word of God; then it...

  The Lord called me because he wanted / desired / liked me (Mark 3: 13). If you know that someone likes you, what would you want to do? You will want to spend time with that person (Luke 3: 14). Thus, like the apostles, we have responded to His call. Once we are with him, abide with him (John 15), he will prune us that we bear much fruit.  We often look at a calling as a list of tasks to accomplish, but the deeper truth is much simpler: we are called simply because we are wanted. When you know someone truly enjoys your company, the natural response is to want to spend time with them. That simple closeness is where everything begins. By choosing to stay and abide in that presence, a natural transformation takes place. Just like a gardener trims a branch, gentle pruning happens so that goodness and real purpose can grow in our lives. Think of it like the relationship in Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince , where the fox explains that to "tame" someone is simply to cr...

  Work is a profound grace; it is good, life-affirming, and transformative. Yet, within it lies a quiet danger when we become consumed by endless activity. Exhaustion inevitably follows, breeding murmuring, complaint, and grievance. In turn, grievance curdles into resentment, and resentment isolates us, turning others into adversaries. This hostility can easily harden into a form of destruction—whether physical or through the chilling weight of critical words. Tiredness / burnout > anger > hatred > murder. Consequently, what was once a grace transforms into a heavy curse. As Karl Marx noted regarding alienation, a worker can become profoundly detached from the fruit of their labour. When toil loses its meaning, how do we reclaim a genuine sense of satisfaction and fulfilment? The answer lies in a fundamental realignment: we are not primarily called merely to work; we are called to serve. True service is simply work infused with love and passion. Often, we busy ourselves wi...

  At our genesis, our affection was pure, and our fascination was untainted. We are continually summoned to retrace our steps to this primary devotion—the wellspring from which true courage, justice, and selfless service flow. What really captures our attention today? Take King Herod from the story of John the Baptist. At first, Herod respected John, listened to him, and was moved by his goodness. But over time, his heart shifted toward other things, like messy relationships and a craving for power. In the end, his actions weren't guided by his early conscience, but by whatever obsessed him at that moment. Herod’s heart was hijacked by lesser devotions: illicit entanglements and the intoxicating pursuit of political power. Ultimately, it was not his initial conscience that dictated his actions, but his reigning obsession of the hour. This demands a quiet, unflinching audit of our inner lives. What are the unspoken ideologies, ambitions, projects, and compromises we currently harbou...

  Understanding human nature has long preoccupied philosophers and spiritual leaders, serving as a path to self-awareness and enlightenment. Through his epistles, St Paul identifies three distinct categories of human existence: Carnal People (People of the Flesh) Driven entirely by base instincts and physical appetites, carnal individuals prioritise immediate gratification above all else. Whether seeking power, wealth, or the fulfilment of sensory desires, they pursue these ends with little regard for the consequences or the well-being of others. “Their belly is their god, and they are proud of what should be their shame. They only think of earthly things” (Philippians 3:19). “You are still of the flesh. As long as there is jealousy and strife, you are at the level of the flesh” (1 Corinthians 3:3). “They did shameful things and dishonoured their bodies” (Romans 1:24). “What the flesh seeks is against God” (Romans 8:5). “Those who live according to the flesh cannot please God” (Rom...

  Why retreat? This is a question like, why prayer? Mark 6:31 answers this gentle invitation: “Come away to a lonely place by yourselves, that you may have some rest.” A retreat is more than a physical break; it is a sacred pause for the mind and soul. Jesus is the host, inviting us simply to be available to Him. The apostles returned from their labours and shared all they had done and taught (Mark 6:30). In the same way, a retreat is a time to lay our stories before Jesus and listen to His gentle guidance. When we step away to a week of retreat, we essentially carry two books with us: the Bible—the story of God—and the book of our own lives. Consider the Emmaus Journey (Luke 24: 13-35). The apostles were walking away from Jerusalem with their own stories; Jesus intercepts their journey with His story. Their hearts burned within. They return back to Jerusalem.  Reading only our own story in isolation can be perilous. Left entirely to ourselves, we might drift into pride or sin...

 There's a particular kind of grief that devastates you more than the real tragic happening, it's the grief of realising that you were told, warning was given, quietly, early, and you were simply not listening to it. Greek tragedy built an entire mythology around this exact wound. Cassandra was given the gift of true prophecy and, in the same breath, cursed so that no one would ever believe her. She stood in the halls of Troy and said, plainly, that the wooden horse would be the city's death. She wasn't ignored because she spoke too softly. She was ignored because by the time a warning becomes urgent enough to be heard, it has usually already been dismissed a hundred times as nothing. The curse of Cassandra isn't really supernatural. It's the curse of every early warning ever given: the first time is too soon to be believed, and by the time it's believed, it's too late to matter. You can find this same structure in the Challenger disaster. In the winter...

 When Sundar Pichai, the Indian-American CEO of Google, first arrived in California for studies, he looked out at the hills and saw them burnt brown, a landscape that seemed tired, drained, and waiting for rain. His host looked at the same hills and called them golden. Same hills, same light; two different perspectives, and thus two different worlds. In his commencement / graduation address to the graduating class of 2026, Pichai returned to that moment and drew from it the first of three things worth carrying: learn to see the gold. Optimism Is a Way Of Seeing Optimism is not the belief that everything will go well. It is closer to what Proust meant when he wrote that the real voyage of discovery lies in having new eyes. The facts of your life will often be brown and unpromising. Whether they are also golden depends on the quality of your attention. There is an old story from the Franciscan tradition about Brother Juniper, who was so incapable of seeing malice in anyone that he wa...

 Jesus was born, and he lived in a fractured world, like we find our world often times. How do we keep our hearts open in a world that often feels fractured, competitive, and overwhelming? Ancient Buddhist philosophy offers a practical framework known as the four Brahmaviharas , could be translated as the heavenly homes, divine dwelling place; a place from we must operate from. These four psychological states: Metta (Loving-Kindness), Karuna (Compassion), Mudita (Sympathetic Joy), and Upekkha (Equanimity)—are not passive emotions. They are active, limitless qualities of the heart that shield us from anger, pity, envy, and anxiety. Across historical traditions, global literature, and the Bible, we can see these universal virtues vividly brought to life. 1. Metta : Universal Loving-Acceptance Metta is the baseline of the Brahmaviharas—a boundless, unconditioned goodwill toward all living beings. It operates without transaction; you do not offer Metta because someone earned...

 The video, a scene featuring comedian Louis C.K. and his television daughters, offers a surprisingly profound and poignant lesson in parenting, specifically addressing the concept of "fairness" and how to guide children away from envy and towards empathy. It dismantles the common parental instinct to artificially construct a perfectly equitable world for their children, advocating instead for a crucial lesson in reality. The Illusion of "Fairness" From a young age, children possess a hyper-sensitive, almost innate radar for what they perceive as "fair." When a sibling gets a slightly larger piece of cake, a new toy, or, in this case, the sole "mango pop," the immediate cry is one of injustice: "That's not fair!" Watch this video  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAgdo6-GJcs&t=4s As parents, the instinct is often to immediately rectify this perceived imbalance. We want our children to be happy, and we want to avoid conflict. We m...