Don't Die Buried in Debt!

By Father Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
(St. Anne Catholic Church - Columbus, GA)

EASTER SUNDAY - Year B - (2009)
Acts 10:34, 38-42 Colossians 3:1-4 John 20:1-18

First of all, Happy and Blessed Easter to you and to your families. For those visiting today, my name is Fr. Martino. I have been a priest for 5 years and this is my first Easter at Saint Anne! - And it is a joy to wish Easter Blessings on all of you.

In this past week I have spent a lot of time meditating about life and death! And today, Easter Sunday - The day Our Lord Jesus Christ rose from death - to conquer the darkness of sin, I will talk about death! That is right, you heard it right! I will talk about death! Because, if we do not die with Christ we will not rise with Christ!

There are a few things we see, touch, smell and talk about but we do not use! And when we use, we do not see, touch, smell or talk about them! What are they? - The coffin and the hearse! Isn't that right, when we use them, we do not know!!! And there is one thing in life we don't want to talk about, "death - our own death." Even though we know death is a must! No one can avoid it! But we try our best to avoid talking about it! I think we are afraid of death because we know we are not ready for it! By ready, I meant we are not "as good as God intended us to be!" So wemptytoom1.jpge push it as far away as we can! But then one day we will have to face it! Young or old, healthy or sick, rich or poor. We all will die!

If you drive down Macon road, you will see a big billboard from one of the funeral homes saying, "Do not be buried in debt - prepare your funeral today!" Wow, that my dear friends, is what Easter is all about! Jesus does not want us to die and be buried in debt - So He paid all of our debts!

You might know that as an ordained priest, in some way I have responsibility before God for the salvation of each baptized person and you know I take that responsibility very seriously. To seek the lost sheep, I would even go to the taverns. (J/K you know I do not drink!)

Well, brothers and sisters, as we celebrate Easter 2009, I want you to know that I am getting a group together who want to prepare for our death so that we can go to heaven - right now. And I want you to be part of that group because eternal life begins now.

Now, I do not want you to get too far ahead, so let's get back to the present! As I have said, many of us do not want to talk about death because we know we have failed God many times! Because we have not lived up to His expectation for us. And maybe because the burden of life weighs heavily upon us! So my dear friends, if you feel burdened today, I ask you to think about these words of Pope John Paul the Great: "We are not the sum of our failures. We are the sum of the Father's love for us - and our real capacity is to become the image of his Son Jesus." What a difference it would make if we defined ourselves by God's love - not by our failures! And you all know how much God loves us! He gave us his only Son! (John 3:16) and His Son died to pay our debts to sin!

Brothers and sisters, Jesus Christ is risen from the dead. By prayers and sacraments, He wants us to have His life now. Do not let your failings define who you are. God has a plan, a purpose for you. It may involve some deprivations and disappointments, but whatever the cost, it will be worth it. Jesus Christ is risen from the dead. Where He is, He wants you to be. Eternal life begins now. "I am the Resurrection and the Life." No one comes to the Father except through Jesus.

One day while Mitch was at the horse track, placing bets and losing everything, Mitch noticed a priest who stepped out onto the track and blessed the forehead of one of the horses lining up for the 4th race. Lo and behold, that horse - a very long shot - won the race.

Before the next race, as the horses began lining up, Mitch watched with interest as the old priest step onto the track. Sure enough, as the 5th race horses came to the starting gate the priest made a blessing on the forehead of one of the horses. Mitch made a beeline for a betting window and placed a small bet on the horse. Again, even though it was another long shot, the horse the priest had blessed won the race. Mitch collected his winnings, and anxiously waited to see which horse the priest would bless for the 6th race. The priest again blessed a horse. Mitch bet big on it, and it won. Mitch was elated. As the races continued the priest kept blessing long shot horses, and each one ended up coming in first.

By and by, Mitch was pulling in some serious money. By the last race, he knew his wildest dreams were going to come true. He made a quick dash to the ATM, withdrew all his savings, and awaited the priest's blessing that would tell him which horse to bet on. True to his pattern, the priest stepped onto the track for the last race and blessed the forehead of an old nag that was the longest shot of the day. Mitch also observed the priest blessing the eyes, ears, and hooves of the old nag.

Mitch knew he had a winner and bet every cent he owned on the old nag. He then watched dumbfounded as the old nag come in dead last. Mitch, in a state of shock, made his way down to the track area where the priest was.

Confronting the old priest he demanded, "Father what happened? All day long you blessed horses and they all won. Then in the last race, the horse you blessed lost by a Kentucky mile. Now, thanks to you - Father - I've lost every cent of my savings - all of it!" The priest nodded wisely and with sympathy. "Son," he said, "that's the problem with you Non-Christians, you can't tell the difference between a simple blessing and . . . the last rites."

My dear friends, now you cannot say you don't know the different between eternal damnation and heaven anymore - you can only say you don't care; because I have just told you! Don't die buried in the debt of sins - Prepare your eternal life now! Because Alleluia, He has risen! Alleluia!

Father Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
http://www.fathermartino.org/

Love - What is That?

4th Sunday of Lent - Year B - Love, what's that?
Written by Fr. Martino Nguyễn Bá Thông (St. Anne Catholic Church - Columbus, GA)
Friday, 20 March 2009

One of our neighboring churches had this message on their billboard: "God so loved the world that he did not send a committee." Well, committees have their place and we have plenty of them at St. Anne, but all of us recognize that things happen not so much because people sit around a table, but because of some person's passion. The committee itself only succeeds because one or two members have a burning care in their heart.

However, before anything can be set in motion there must be LOVE! But what is love? What does it mean to say God loves us? To understand what the Bible means by God's love we must bear in mind that whereas the Greek language has three different words for three different types of love English has only one. In Greek we have (1) eros meaning romantic love (like the love between a man and a woman that leads to marriage), (2) philia meaning fellowship love (like the love for football which brings people together to form a fan club), and there is (3) agape or sacrificial love (like the love that makes a mother risk her own life for her yet unborn child).

In romantic love we long to receive, in fellowship love we long to share, in sacrificial love we long to give. Now, with what kind of love does God love us?

God loves us with agape; or sacrificial love. "God loved the world so much that

He gave..." That is one big difference between God and us: God gives and forgives, we get and forget. Giving is a sign of agape. This is the kind of love God has for us. This is the kind of love we should have for one another. This is the kind of love that is lived in heaven. And where this kind of love is absent, what you get is hell.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, God has given us His only Son, How do we respond to God's gifts? For the gifts God so generously gives to us, what are we called to do in return?

Paul tells us we are "created in Christ for good works." The Apostle James wrote, "faith without words is quite dead" (James 2:26). Good works naturally flow forth from our faith. Our gift back to God is to give with a heart of love, just as God gives to us. A good place to begin giving is with the family. Praying together, perhaps the whole family coming to Stations of the Cross during Lent; or to support each other, the whole family attending the soccer game to cheer for a son's team. Giving is for the student to be a tutor to help others and for a parent to be active with the Parent Teachers' Association. Giving is to be involved with your church, helping with landscaping or the teen program or a liturgical ministry. To give as God gives.

A certain saint asked God to show her the difference between heaven and hell. So God sent an angel to take her, first to hell. There she saw men and women seated around a large table with all kinds of delicious food. But none of them was eating. They were all sad and yawning. The saint asked one of them, "Why are you not eating?" And he showed her his hand. A long fork about 4ft long was strapped to their hands such that each time they tried to eat they only threw the food on the ground. "What a pity" said the saint. Then the angel took her to heaven. There the saint was surprised to find an almost identical setting as in hell: men and women sitting round a large table with all sorts of delicious food, and with a four-foot fork strapped to their arms. But unlike in hell, the people here were happy and laughing. "What!" said the saint to one of them, "How come you are happy in this condition?" "You see," said the man in heaven, "Here we feed one another."

Can we say that of our families, our neighborhood, our church, our world? If we can say that, then we are not far from the kingdom of heaven.

Today the Church invites us to reflect on God's love for the world and to be joyful because of it. God loves each and everyone of us, so much so that He give us His only son. Today we are invited to say yes to God's love. It is sometimes hard to believe that God loves even me, but I believe it because I know that God's love is unconditionally; no ifs, no buts.

Then we can love God back and enter into a love relationship with God. Then we shall learn to share God's love with those around us. Then we shall learn to give to God and to one another, just as God gave us. Do remember this line, and it is it good to begin to do it as part of lent: "The world begins where your front yard ends."

Father Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
http://www.fathermartino.org/

Fighting Off Temptation!

Fighting Off Temptation!
Father Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
(St. Anne Catholic Church - Columbus, GA)

1st Lent - Year B - (2009)
Genesis 9:8-15 1 Peter 3:18-22 Mark 1:12-15

The name of the game is: use what you have to get what you want. I am sure you have heard that before. Many people indeed take it as their philosophy of life. I remember visiting a family one day and watching two little boys fighting over who gets the last cookie. The mother sees this as an opportunity to teach her children a lesson. She stops them and explains to them that if there was only one cookie left then Jesus would give up the cookie and offer it to his disciple. The older brother ponders what his mother has just said, and his face lights up with understanding. He turns to his younger brother and says to him, "I will let you . . . be Jesus!" In our Gospel reading today, however, Jesus shows us that the principle of using whatever you have to get whatever you want is not always right. In fact, when that principle is applied without putting God first, it becomes a philosophy of the world, of the devil, a philosophy that must be rejected as Jesus did - Fighting against temptation!

The First Sunday of Lent always presents the temptation of the Lord. This makes sense because the Lord fasted for 40 days, rebuffed the temptations of the devil and then began His public ministry. We spend forty days fasting, in self denial, forty days doing everything we can to come closer to God so we also can do the work of the Kingdom

Temptations are always there and are difficult to overcome. As I often say, the day we feel that we are no longer subject to temptation, we really should take our pulse because we will probably be dead.

We all know, temptations are out there - waiting to catch us any time! So it is so easy for us to say to others, "Just say no," but it is difficult when we are the ones who are tempted. The complex aspect of temptations is that they all contain an element of attractiveness, an element of good. All of God's creation contains beauty. We human beings pervert that beauty and turn something that is good into bad. For example, the human body is beautiful; pornography is a perversion of the beauty. Another, example, there are wonderful medications to help people who suffer from anxiety attacks, depression, etc. The same medications are used by addicts to destroy their lives and the lives of those around them.

Believe it or not, all sin is attractive, if it weren't attractive we wouldn't be tempted by it. When someone says, "If it feels good, do it," what they are saying is that sin is acceptable as long as you are getting selfish pleasure from it. That is the way of the world. That is not the way of Jesus. Nor can it be our way.

Jesus is the conqueror of sin. But the battle was not a simple task. Jesus was tempted to save His own life and to give up and not go along with the Father's plan. But His love for the Father and His love for us were more powerful than anything the devil or the world could must up.

He beat off temptation, and then told us: "entrust your pain, your temptation and even your sin to me. I have conquered and will continue to conquer evil." When we choose Christ, the devil really doesn't stand a chance. In the Battle for the Kingdom, Jesus fights with us, finding a way for us to win, even though we are weak and often sinful.

God refuses to give up on us. Even when evil makes inroads into our lives. "See I have set my bow in the skies as a sign that I will never destroy my people." That was the promise made to seal the covenant with Noah after the flood. The bow, by the way, is the rainbow. For people of faith, the rainbow is not just a beautiful natural occurrence. It is a sign of our hope in God. When we are overwhelmed with our own human weakness, our own continual sinfulness, the rainbow reminds us: God refuses to give up on us. We can't give up on ourselves. Look at the rainbow. God is the Compassionate, the Merciful One.

The 40 days of Lent are really about loving Jesus. We spend this time looking for ways to grow in our love for our Savior. We fight off temptation with Him. We give Him our sins in confession. We unite ourselves to Him through the Eucharist and all forms of prayer. We do everything possible to allow His grace into our lives. And we recognize, as the praise and worship song goes, "His grace is enough for us."

On this First Sunday of Lent I would like to offer you a prayer that I think might help all of us to fight off the temptation to be closer with God! And here it is - entitled Heaven's Grocery Store

As I was walking down life's
highway many years ago
I came upon a sign that read
Heavens Grocery Store.

When I got a little closer
the doors swung open wide
And when I came to myself
I was standing inside.

I saw a host of angels.
They were standing everywhere
One handed me a basket and said
"My child, shop with care."

Everything a human needed
was in that grocery store
And what you could not carry
you could come back for more.

First I got some Patience.
Love was in that same row.
Further down was Understanding,
you need that everywhere you go.

I got a box or two of Wisdom
and Faith a bag or two.
And Charity, of course,
I would need some of that, too.

I couldn't miss the Holy Ghost
It was all over the place.
And then some Strength and Courage
to help me run this race.

My basket was getting full but I remembered I needed Grace,
And then I chose Salvation for
Salvation was for free
I tried to get enough of that to do for you and me.

Then I started to the counter
to pay my grocery bill,
For I thought I had everything
to do the Masters will.

As I went up the aisle I saw
Prayer and put that in,
For I knew when I stepped outside
I would run into sin.

Peace and Joy were plentiful,
the last things on the shelf.
Song and Praise were hanging near
so I just helped myself.

Then I said to the angel
"How much do I owe?"
He smiled and said
"Just take them everywhere you go."

Again I asked "Really now,
how much do I owe?"
"My child" he said,
"God paid your bill a long, long time ago."

Father Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong

http://www.fathermartino.org/
http://hayyeuthuongnhau.org/site2008/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=524&Itemid=1

Baptism of the Lord - The RITE or RICE of Baptism!

Written by LM Martino Nguyễn Bá Thông
January 11, 2009

Bottom Line: The Teacher is a doer, not a talker. He wants action, not pious platitudes or vague resolutions.   We read that soon after Jesus' baptism, John was arrested and the Kingdom of God movement needed a new leadership.  

The RITE or RICE of Baptism!

Last week I preached on how we need to be the LIGHT for Christ and we must keep our Baptism light burning brightly!  This week, the feast of Christ's baptism - I want to continue on that theme - Keep our light burning!

Let me begin with a story!  Johnny Moses, from the Nootka Indian tribe, told the story of what happened in his tribe when the first British missionaries tried to take over and convert the Indians back in the 1800s. It took the priest years to learn the language. And when he did, he began to preach about the Good News! He told our people about hell. No one knew what hell was. They asked the priest where hell was, and he told them it was the place where bad people went. Well, our elders told the priest that our ancestors had never given us directions to hell, so none of us had ever been there.  Then the priest told us that he would baptize us and that we would have to go to confession once a week and eat fish on Friday.

There was a very old man in our village. The priest baptized him and named him Anthony. The priest told Anthony that he would have to go to confession once a week and eat fish on Friday.  Some time later, the people of the village said Anthony was not going to confession. So the priest went to see him. It was a Friday.  When he found Anthony, the old man was cooking deer meat.

The priest asked him why he was eating deer meat, and Anthony told the priest that he was a very old man, and that he had shot the deer with his bow and arrow. He told the priest that although he was very sick, he dragged the deer to the river. There, he baptized the deer. And named him Fish in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Now my dear friends, how often you and I we do the same thing - baptize our problem and remam them to make it looks good?  Quite often!  We have turn off the light of our baptism.  An atheist said, "If Christians are the light of the world, somebody has forgotten to turn the switch on."  Now it is time that we turn on the switch!

I came from the culture that every meal must have rice!  Even the baptismJ  Have you ever heard some Asians call it the "rice" of baptism rather the RITE of baptism!  Though the connection between baptism and rice is altogether accidental, one can use it as a memory aid for the meaning of baptism.

The meaning of baptism can be found in the four letters of the word RICE. R stands for Rebirth. In baptism we are born again by water and the Holy Spirit. We are cleansed from original sin and become sons and daughters of God in a special way. I stands for Initiation. At baptism we are initiated or admitted into full membership in the church, the community of the children of God in the world. C is for Consecration. In baptism we consecrate and dedicate ourselves to seek and to spread the kingdom of God. We commit ourselves to be servants of God, to do God's will and serve God with our whole lives. And E is for Empowerment. At baptism the Holy Spirit comes into our lives and empowers us, equips us, gives us the moral strength to say no to evil and to live as God's children that we have become.

These four effects of baptism help us to be doers for Christ. But there is one problem did Jesus need to be baptized.  Wow, Jesus is telling us that we must first direct our attention to our own personal lives with little ceremony and less pomp. We must cleanse ourselves with rough brown laundry soap in clean waters as He did. Then and only then can we properly address ourselves to the many human problems. Every reformation must first begin in one's own home and with oneself. It must be done as simply and quickly as possible.

It was St Paul who told us that "He was like unto us in all things except sin." And yet that sinless Christ took it upon Himself to enter the waters and wash Himself before He set out to reform anyone else. Can anyone of us do less?

The Teacher is a doer, not a talker. He wants action, not pious platitudes or vague resolutions.   We read that soon after Jesus' baptism, John was arrested and the Kingdom of God movement needed a new leadership. When Jesus heard it he went up and took on the task, in this way implementing the commitment he made at his baptism to promote the kingdom of God. We can see that for Jesus baptism was not just a question of what he could receive but very much a question of what he could contribute to the cause of the kingdom of God on earth. John F. Kennedy's saying, "Ask not what your country can do for you, rather ask what you can do for your country" can also be applied to our relationship with God and the Church.

What are we doing, each one of us, to promote the kingdom of God? Are we ready to consecrate and dedicate ourselves wholly to the service of the kingdom of God just as Jesus did? If not, what are we doing to support those who have consecrated themselves to doing this work in the name of us all? My dear friends, we need to live our lives in the LIGHT of our baptism so that at the end of our life a voice came from the heavens, "You are my beloved sons and daughters; with you I am well pleased."

Father Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
http://www.fathermartino.org/
http://hayyeuthuongnhau.org/site2008/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=448&Itemid=1

What Made John the Baptist GREAT?

LM Martino Nguyễn Bá Thông
15/01/2009

Can I have a show of hands of those who want people in the same business as you to be better than you? I know you are not going to raise your hand so let me tell you if John the Baptist was here today, I know I would see his hand!  What makes me so confident about this?  Because I found the answer in today's reading, John said to his followers about Jesus and I quote: "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, "After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me" (John 1:29-30).

Looking at the way things are in our world today, either in politics, business, or any place, it would seem to us that envy and jealousy are normal human traits.  But what is envy and jealousy?  Let us discuss the difference between envy and jealousy.  Envy is dissatisfaction with what belongs to us and coveting what belongs to others. We can envy people for their looks, their possessions or their relationships, wishing we could take their place. Jealousy, on the other hand, is the fear that what is ours may be lost to another. No matter the difference between the two, both envy and jealousy rob people of their inner peace as they devise ways to eliminate the person they perceive as standing in the way to their personal fulfillment.

My dear brothers and sisters, forgive me of what I am about to tell you if it offends you.  I have prayed over it, and decided to tell you what I believe.  However, it is not my intention to harm or disgrace anyone or any religion.

Edward Harris, an Associated Press Writer wrote: "A senior Islamic leader warned foreign relief workers Friday of a serious backlash from Muslims if they bring Christian proselytizing to tsunami-struck area along with humanitarian help.  'All non-governmental organizations, either domestic or international, with hidden agendas coming here with humanitarian purposes but instead proselytizing, this is what we do not like,' said Dien Syamsuddin, secretary-general of the Indonesian Council of Ulemas, or religious scholars.  He also condemned reports the U.S.-based welfare group World Help had planned to adopt 300 Acehnese children orphaned by the disaster and raise them in a Christian children's home.  The group told The Associated Press on Thursday it had dropped the idea.  'This is a reminder. Do not do this in this kind of situation,' Syamsuddin said. 'The Muslim community will not remain quiet. This a clear statement, and it is serious.'"

My dear brothers and sisters, what bothers me is:  For whatever reason unknown to me, the Muslim world and communities do not reach out and help what they call "their people".  While almost every nation pours in billions of dollars to help the people, the Arab world basically does nothing.  Saudi Arabia, the world's richest Arab country, gave only 10 million dollars.    

Let me quote what Colin Power said when he landed in Indonesia and responded to what other have said about the Americans: "I think it does give the Muslim world and the rest of the world an opportunity to see American generosity, American values in action".  I am proud to be part of the Melting Pot in America, and an American.  

It is good to compete, but it better to share; it is good to have rules, but it is better to show love; it is good to be an American Citizen, but it is GREAT to be God's Citizen.  How many people like to hear that the person who succeeded them is doing better than they did? Nobody.  John is a rare example.  John started the Kingdom of God movement. Jesus succeeded him as leader of the movement after Herod imprisoned John and had him executed. Yet whenever John speaks of Jesus he speaks of Jesus as better than him.

My dear brothers and sisters, Christian or Muslim, Buddhist or Hindu, let us not care who is greater or who has more followers, but let us love and care for one another.  The fact is, there is much greatness in being ordinary. Even though John felt he was not worthy to untie Jesus' sandals, Jesus turned around to say of him, "Among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist" (Matthew 11:11).  Listen! Listen carefully!  What is Jesus saying of you?

Father Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
http://hayyeuthuongnhau.org/

You Don’t Get It, Do You?

A young priest decided that a visual demonstration would add emphasis to his Sunday sermon.
Four worms were placed into four separate jars.
The first worm was put into a container of alcohol.
The second worm was put into a container of cigarette smoke.
The third worm was put into a container of chocolate syrup.
The fourth worm was put into a container of good clean soil.
At the conclusion of the sermon, the Priest reported the following results:
The first worm in alcohol - Dead.
The second worm in cigarette smoke - Dead.
Third worm in chocolate syrup - Dead.
Fourth worm in good clean soil - Alive!
So the Minister asked the congregation - What can you learn from this demonstration?
All was quiet until a little old woman in the back slowly raised her hand and said,
“I guess as long as you drink, smoke and eat chocolate, you won't have worms!” Now, put yourself into the Priest’s shoe – what would you tell the woman? May be you will say: “buzz, wrong answer” Or if you want to be nicer you would say “That is right, but not the answer I look for!” or if you are having a bad day, you would say “You don’t get it, do you?”

Believe it or not, we might be laughing at the 3rd answer. However, in reality, it is the one we hear more often than we want to. And probably, it is because we want to show others that we are better than them. Or at least we are “smarter”.

Jesus shows us the “how” to correct others in today’s gospel! “If another member of the church sins (against you), go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one” (Matthew 18:15). You see my dear friends, it is not about us - individually. What is at stake is how to bring an erring member back into the fold, to full reconciliation and communion with God and with us. The motivation for this kind of Christian action is to "regain" your brother or sister, to restore the broken relationship, not primarily to denounce or find out who is right or wrong.

The passage recommends a procedure in three stages: (1) Approach the defaulting brother or sister person-to-person. (2) Go a second time accompanied by one or two trusted companions. (3) Bring the case before the local church. This may sound like a daunting procedure, but the good news is that in nine cases out of ten, we may never need to go beyond the first stage. An erring member approached in a personal and courteous manner is happy to come back without much argument.

An unknown author wrote: “Kindness is a language that the dumb can speak and the deaf understand. Correction does much. Encouragement does much more. It is sun to the soul. One word of praise can speak volumes. The smallest word of encouragement today is better than the largest intention to compliment tomorrow. Encouragement is oxygen for the soul. People who say something is unforgivable should get out of the way of people who forgive.”

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I am not say that you always have to “praise” people even when they do wrong, but you do not have to “smash” them. Putting others down should be but a portion of the punishment. For us - Christian, the dressing down should be accompanied with forgiveness and, as Abraham Lincoln advised, the offer to help the other start again.

Now let take a quick test! Count the number of people who encourage you. Don't worry. It won't take long. Then count the number of people you encourage. That won't take long either. We tell people to have a nice day, but we are reluctant to make it a nice day for them by paying a compliment or encouraging them. Why is that? I do not know the answer. May be, just might be we are too “good” to do some thing for someone? I do not know! In any case, the message on the couch pillow correctly reads, "Praise loudly and blame softly."

After daily mass, I stop by the “drive way” where parents drop of their children! As they “run out” of the cars, I always tell them, “I do not hear you say ‘I love you mom’!” they turn around and said “I love you mom!” then I complement them “That is very good! That is what father Martino wants to hear! And now you need to go to class and make your mommy proud!”

My dear friends, I know there are times we cannot allow ourselves to complement others, or correct them kindly. Because we always “blame” on them for what they had done! In other words, we are pointing our finger at them! Remember, when you point one finger that them, you are pointing other 3 at you! So stop the pointing – especially in your family, but being counting your blessings. I read in a counseling book “that in every argument, the woman has to say the last words. If the man says anything after that, it starts a new argument!”

Let us thank God for the clear and practical message of today's readings. As good hearers of God's word, the next step is for us to now go and put it into practice.

Fr. Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
http://www.fathermartino.org/

My Church? Your Church? or JESUS’ Church?

Bottom line: Each one of us is called to be a rock, little or big to build the church that Jesus had laid the foundation on the corner stone rock – Peter. Some of us, like me, might not even be a small rock but rather the sand or cement to keep the rocks together. The way we live our lives in words, deeds, and actions are how we contribute to build Jesus’ Church!Remember my homily on “assumption of Mary’s” – Who want to be a celebrity? – Wow, today I like you introduce you to another one! Not Michael Phell nor the Basketbal dream team. The name is…. No, I am not telling you! You have to guess as I am preaching!

It was during the turbulent 1960s when it seemed that everything was falling apart. The priesthood was in crisis, religious life was in crisis, marriage was in crisis, faith was in crisis, the church was in crisis. One night, pope John XXIII after a long day of hard work trying to address these problems, he went to his private chapel to do his daily Holy Hour before retiring but he was too exhausted and too stressed out to focus or pray. After a few minutes of futile effort, he got up and said, “Lord, the church belongs to you. I am going to bed.” Now you might think the celebrity I want to say is Pope John XXIII – Not it is not him! So keep focus! He will be revealed shortly! (Don’t you fell like trying to figure out who is Obama’s or McCain’s running mate?)

You see my friends, difficulties might have driven the Pope to acknowledge that the church belongs to Christ. But Jesus himself said it 2000 years ago:

You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it (Matthew 16:18).

This passage is crucial for a proper understanding of what the church is, and our role in the church. For this is the most explicit statement that Jesus makes in the Gospels about the church.

Firstly and foremost, Jesus calls the church “my church.” This tells us that Jesus is the owner of the church. Neither Peter nor the disciples owns the church. Pastors and church leaders who think and act as if they own the church are like farm workers who go about posing as if the farm belongs to them. All God’s people have been called together as co-workers in Christ's vineyard, though some work as foremen overseeing others. But we do not own the church. We belong to the church. The owner/founder of the church is Christ.



Secondly, the passage tells us that Jesus is the one who builds his church. He is the master builder who has the building plan in his hands. Human co-operators are like masons and carpenters employed by the master builder to help him with the building. Our role is to listen and follow his instructions, doing our own small part in the grand design of the master. Workers who stick to their own ideas of what the building should look like rather than follow the directives given by the master may find themselves working at cross purposes with the master.

I read a story sometimes back about a Minister, an Episcopalian Priest, and a Catholic priest were sitting on the Lake of Galilee discussing the issue “Are you saved?” As you all know, a typical Christian non-Catholic answer would be: “I am, because I take Jesus as my personal savior!” I will show you that I am saved by walking on the water just as Peter did 2000 years ago.

He stepped out of his chair and began walking on the water. 1-2-3 he went down to the bottom of the lake. The Episcopalian Priest saw what happened and said: “He is not saved, but I am. I will show you that!” So he began to take steps on the water. 1-2-3-4-5 and then went down as well!

The Catholic Priest then said: “I know that not only am I saved, but all those who believe in Jesus and do what he commands will be saved as well.” He then stepped out and walked on the water. As he was moving the other two Ministers were amazed that a Catholic Priest “could do that!” When he came back the other two asked: “How could you do that?” The Catholic Priest answered: “I stepped on the ROCK!”

Brothers and sisters, we heard Jesus say to Peter today, “you are the ROCK and on this ROCK I will build my church and the gate of Hades will not prevail against it.” Mt. 16:18. Clearly Jesus said: “Upon Peter the Church will be built and not others.” Nowadays, you hear many evangelists rise and claim that they either have the personal revelation from God to evangelize, or that the Church that they found is the “right” one!

My dear friends in Christ, evangelization is what each one of us are called by GOD to do; living and preaching the good news are part of it as well; building the new church is also a way of evangelization, but IT MUST be in COMMUNION with the Church that Christ built/found – upon Peter, the Rock! Because if it is not part of Jesus’ Church, then we are building my church, your church or our church!

If Jesus is the owner/founder and builder of the church, then you begin to wonder: “where then do I come in?” We come in precisely where Peter comes in. Together with Peter we are the building blocks of the church. Peter is the foundation rock and we are the pieces of stone with which the church is built.If the priest was able to walk from one side of the lake to the other, and he claimed that he walked on rock, then it must be that there were many rocks that he stepped on!

Each one of us is called to be a rock, little or big to build the church that Jesus had laid the foundation on the corner stone rock – Peter. Some of us, like me, might not even be a small rock but rather the sand or cement to keep the rocks together.

The way we live our lives in words, deeds, and actions are how we contribute to build Jesus’ Church!So my dear friends, what do you have to contribute? What have you done to contribute into building your own family? Have you place some “rock of love, compassion and gentleness as the foundation?” But the most important question is: What have you contribute to build Jesus’ Church?

Fr. Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
www.fathermartino.org

Bên Đống Rác - Dưới Chân Cầu

Tôi bừng tỉnh và như quên đi cái hôi thối, tôi lao vào trong đống rác như bao đứa trẻ khác. Khoảng hơn hai tiếng, chúng tôi đã “quần nát” cái đống rác. Tôi lượm cũng gần đầy cái bao bố.

Thế là tôi đã lẽo đẽo theo các em để bán vé số và ăn xin trên các đường phố Sài Gòn được hai ngày! Không biết bao nhiêu lần giở khóc giở cười. Có lẽ giờ này nếu bạn bè hay gia đình có gặp tôi thì họ cũng không thể nào nhận ra được. Tôi đã biến thành một người nghèo nàn, đen đủi, đơ dáy và hôi hám như những mảnh đời bất hạnh lê lết hết từ quán ăn này đến quán ăn khác.

Để được theo các em đi ăn xin và bán vé số không phải là dễ. Tôi đã phải lân la làm quen và giúp các em rất nhiều, tôi đã lấy được niềm tin của các em và gia đình các em. Tôi đã đã ăn và ở chung với họ. Tôi đã cho họ thấy được tôi thực sự muốn sống cảnh màn trời chiếu đất với họ để có thể hiểu và cảm thông nỗi khổ của họ!

Tối hôm nay là tối cuối cùng tôi theo các em, như dự tính ban đầu, hôm nay tôi sẽ không ngủ trong các ngôi nhà bằng giấy, trong thế giới của kẻ chết, mà tôi đã chia xẻ ở trên (Bài “Tôi Đến Thăm Em”) nhưng tôi sẽ theo một nhóm trẻ mồ côi lang thang về ngủ ở khách sạn “ngàn sao” toạ lạc dưới chân cầu Chữ Y bên Khánh Hội. Chiều hôm đó tôi đã được phép theo nhóm trẻ mồ côi lang thang. Dẫu tôi cũng đã biết các em từ trước qua hai ngày đi bán vé số và ăn xin, tuy nhiên trước khi tôi đi cụ trưởng làng dặn tôi:

- “Cháu cẩn thận nhé, tụi nó không có hiền giống như tụi nhỏ bên này đâu”!

Khoảng 3 giờ chiều, tôi hoà nhập với các em tại công viên bên cạnh nhà Thờ Đức Bà. Tôi nhập ngay vào với bọn nó một cách dễ dàng. Bọn trẻ đang bàn kế hoạch cho tối hôm nay, chúng quyết định sẽ không đi ăn xin nữa mà sẽ đi lượm ống lon, và ve chai tại đống rác bên quận 4. Nghe chúng nói đến đó tôi đã rùng mình run sợ, tôi thật sự sợ cái mùi hôi thối bốc lên từ rác, nhất là tim tôi thì yếu, không biết có thể sống nổi không. Tôi ngước lên nhìn tượng Mẹ trước nhà thờ đọc một kinh Kính Mừng xin mẹ cầu bầu cùng Chúa cho con.

Trong bóng đêm, cảnh đống rác thật hãi hùng, cao như dãy núi. Tiếng người cười nói, tiếng cãi nhau, tiếng chửi rủa hoà lẫn vào nhau, cả hàng trăm người cứ như là những bóng ma di động. Mùi hôi thối nồng nặc, tôi rùng mình run sợ. Lại đọc thêm một kinh Kính Mừng. Thấy tôi tỏ vẻ ngần ngại, con bé đứng cạnh tôi thét lên:

- “Nhảy vô đi cha nội, đứng đó là đói, lấy gì ăn.”!

Tôi bừng tỉnh và như quên đi cái hôi thối, tôi lao vào trong đống rác như bao đứa trẻ khác. Khoảng hơn hai tiếng, chúng tôi đã “quần nát” cái đống rác. Tôi lượm cũng gần đầy cái bao bố.

Bọn trẻ đã tập họp lại với nhau và bắt đầu khoe những thứ mà chúng đã lượm được. Ngoài những cái bọc nylông thông thường, có đứa khoe lượm được cái chân gà, hay một món đồ ăn được gói kỹ. Bỗng dưng có con bé khoảng 10 tuổi la to:

- “Hôm nay nhà tao không phải đói rồi.”!

Nói xong nó lôi trong cái bao của nó ra một cái đầu chó! Tôi đứng đó mà nước mắt tuôn trào, cứ như là trong mơ. Đến phiên tôi, tôi không kể gì mà chỉ đưa cho thằng bé “trưởng nhóm” cái bao bố và nói là cho hết tụi nó.

Chắc cũng khoảng nửa đêm, khi chúng tôi trở lại chân cầu chữ Y bên Khánh Hội. Các em chắc mệt mỏi, lăn ra ngủ ngay. Riêng tôi không biết vì quá mệt mỏi hay là qúa xúc động không tài nào ngủ được. Tôi cứ nằm nhìn trăng chiếu xuyên qua các khe hở của thành cầu. Trăng đêm nay sáng quá, nhưng đời các em thì thật tối! Đêm nay là đêm đầu tiên trong đời tôi hiểu được ý nghĩa của “màn trời chiếu đất.” Tôi trằn trọc, nước mắt cũng không còn để mà rơi. Tôi muốn thét lên, thét lên thật to, nhưng lại dằn lòng đau xót.

Sáng hôm sau, tôi thật sự mỏi mệt và kiệt sức. Tôi đứng dậy, lê từng bước nặng nhọc ra khỏi gầm cầu, đón taxi để quay về Khách Sạn, nhưng không một chiếc nào ngừng. Nỗi mệt mỏi và đau nhức trong thể xác tôi, không tài nào so sánh với nỗi đau tinh thần, nước mắt tôi cứ tuôn trào. Nếu như mọi khi, tôi ăn mặc lịch sự thì Taxi đã nối dài thành hàng để chào mời tôi rồi, nhưng hôm nay tôi tiều tụy và nghèo nàn. Cũng chẳng trách gì được những anh lái Taxi, vì họ cũng làm thuê cả mà. Cuối cùng tôi cũng đã thuyết phục được một cụ già chạy Honda ôm chở tôi về.

Honda dừng trước cửa khách sạn, tôi vừa bước xuống đã bị anh bảo vệ xua đuổi, nhưng khi nhận ra tôi là khách quen, anh ta cười bẽn lẽn và xin lỗi. Cụ già đứng ngoài chờ tôi vào Khách Sạn lấy tiền. Tôi đến bàn tiếp tân, xin chìa khoá phòng 205. Cô tiếp tân mọi ngày niềm nở với tôi lắm, bỗng dưng hôm nay cáu gắt lạ thường, cô nói và liếc nhìn tôi thật khó chịu:

- “Ông tìm ai! Chủ nhân phòng 205 đi ra ngoài rồi!”! Tôi giở chiếc mũ lụp xụp ra, mùi hôi bốc lên, và mỉm cười nói với cô bé,

- “Thưa cô, tôi là chủ nhân của căn phòng 205 đây!”!

Cô nhìn tôi, tí nữa thì té lăn ra khỏi ghế, cô đứng bật giậy và hỏi tôi:

- “Anh Thông, anh có sao không? Bị cướp giật à?”!

Tôi nói cho cô biết tôi không sao, chỉ mệt mỏi và muốn lên phòng nghỉ. Cô cầm chìa khoá phòng và còn dẫn tôi lên đến tận cửa. Tôi nhờ cô lấy 50 ngàn trả cho cụ già chạy xe ôm. Tôi lao vào phòng cởi quần áo và lăn ra ngủ! Một giấc ngủ bình yên và hạnh phúc!

Lạy Chúa, không có khoảng cách nào lớn hơn giữa lòng người với người, giữa các con tim của nhân loại. Cái hố sâu ngăn cách giữa giàu sang và nghèo đói đã làm cho lòng người chai đá, làm cho con tim họ dửng dưng trước những đau khổ và bất hạnh của người khác. Xin Chúa hãy thay thế quả tim bằng đá khô cằn của chúng con bằng quả tim bằng da bằng thịt, trái tim với những vòng chảy không ngừng của những giọt máu yêu thương. Xin cho chúng con biết chia xẻ với anh em những ân huệ chúng con lãnh nhận từ Chúa, Amen.

Tháng 6 năm 2000

Rev. Martino Nguyen Ba-Thong
http://www.fathermartino.org
http://hayyeuthuongnhau.org/site2008/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=23&Itemid=28