DAILY HOMILIES #kindness

There are so many essential points in Archangel Raphael’s message today: 1. Always acknowledge and reveal the works of God. 2. The Importance of kindness to others. “Do good and evil will not overtake you.” (Tobit 12:7). 3. Effective Prayer. “Prayer is good when accompanied by fasting, almsgiving, and righteousness.” (Tobit 12:8).

Truly, when our desire to know God increases in our hearts when we are open to His Word and make efforts to read the Bible, we should bear in mind that such actions do not go unnoticed in heaven. God takes note of every firm resolution we make.

Be an agent of Divine Mercy; show love to that brother or sister that is genuinely in need. God blessed you not to “pepper others” (show them that you have arrived) but to be a blessing to others. that which you have in excess belongs to the hungry, the less privileged, the hopeless, etc.

Christian perfection is operating not by the standards of the world but by the standards of God. St. Paul says the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. Again, to remind us of what Jesus taught us two Sundays ago, as Christians, we are the salt and the light of the world. We are meant to show good examples rather than copy that which is popular.

Never think your problems are the biggest. We all are carrying various crosses. We need each other. No one is too poor that he has nothing to give and no one is so rich that he has no need for help. Look beyond your challenges, and listen to the cries all around you. Be a good Samaritan, don’t just pass by. Don’t just point fingers. Help someone.

If making money stops you from your daily prayers or stops you from attending church as you would normally do before, if you find yourself doing things that are against your conscience just for the sake of making money, the truth is that money has become your master.

Consider a privilege each time you meet someone poor or in need of your help, and treat them with kindness even if they are not strong enough to ask for your help. If you have what you need, remember that whatever is extra doesn’t belong to you. You are blessed to bless others.

There are countless blessings that come to us from being kind to strangers. Many have lost golden opportunities in life just because they refused to help when they came across people with genuine needs. Our help, however, must not be forced, pretentious, nor come from a bitter heart. The story of Mary and Martha has often been explained in terms of the two types of spirituality (the active versus the contemplative) but beyond that, Jesus used this occasion to highlight the dangers of distraction and anxiety. Only one thing is needed: Seek first the Kingdom of God!

Whatever may have caused the priest and the Levite to pass this man by, Jesus did not tell us but Jesus only mentioned that they failed to help the man. When it comes to helping the needy, no excuse is valid. Think of this, that person you see in need of your help today may just be your last chance. He or she may have been sent your way to test you. Do not keep on till tomorrow what you can do today. One thing that tends to prevent us from helping others is bitterness. You may have been hurt in the past, perhaps in your attempt to be kind to others, they repaid your good with evil, and so on. Remember, that person may just be you and you too would expect someone to help you. As Moses tells us in our first reading, we don’t need somebody to go to heaven to bring down God’s commandments, they are right in our hearts. Listen to your heart. Follow your conscience. Help, don’t hinder. Go and do like the Samaritan.

In asking us to be perfect, Jesus wants us to be like God who takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked but rejoices at their repentance. Jesus wants us to pray for our enemies, that God would touch their hearts and bring about their conversion.

If in the course of this week or sometime in the future, God gives you an opportunity to revenge on what your enemy did (or is still doing) to you, what would you do? Crush them with delight or show to them the kindness that they refused to show to you when they had the chance?

“If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.” (James 2:15-17)