It was the month of October in 2015 when I had for the first time attended a class by Fr. Anthony Kakkanadu. It was a part of the Suvishesha Sangham prayer meeting. Taking part in it had happened by chance: a senior member of my parish had requested me to attend it because of very low representation (But there are no accidents! Everything happens for a purpose). It was his hypnotizing baritone that had caught my attention initially. Now, while writing this article, I quite clearly remember few of his many points that had calmed an unknown tempest in the depths of my heart.
He had narrated the story of a man who was shoved while he was waiting for a train. He fell on the tracks of the fast approaching vehicle. Suddenly, he was pushed aside by another person. He was saved. But at the cost of his saviour's legs. Now the man cannot just move on, tapping on his saviour's shoulder and commending on his bravery. He, from that moment onward, owes his life to him. Similarly, we all were in a deep, dry well when Christ held out a rope to us. The only effort that we had to put in was to hold on to it. He was the one who pulled us out. The "power of attorney" of our body- our thoughts and feelings, our five senses- as well as of our material belongings is His. Out of His boundless mercy, He has bought us with a ransom. The price that He had to pay was His own body and blood. So, what we do, what we see, what we hear, and what we feel, everything should be done with his prior permission. He is our MASTER. Next time when we withdraw cash from the ATM, it should be done with his prior permission. When we plan to spend money on something, it should be done with His prior permission. He is the LORD. 'Lord' means the one who has authority. He has authority over everything that we own. We are only the caretakers.
He is a FRIEND. Often we divulge our secrets to and share our problems with our closest friends, not our parents. Christ is our friend, who is ever ready to lend His ears to us. He had addressed his disciples as friends. Jesus had said to them, "I do not call you servants because a servant does not know what his master is doing. I call you friends because I have told you everything that I have heard from my Father" (Jn. 15:15).
He is our FATHER. Just like a father, he would punish us when we do something wrong. But we need to understand that it is for our own good. For it is written, "Do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you because the Lord rebukes the one He loves, and He chastens everyone he accepts as His son" (Prov. 3:11, 12). And St. Paul also says,"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined- and everyone undergoes discipline- then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought the best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it" (Heb.12:7-11). Therefore, there are two kinds of pain, but we all will have to endure either one of them- the pain of discipline, or the pain of regret.
He is the GROOM, and the Church, therefore we, the members, are his bride. A wife always delights in being close to her husband, listens to him, and makes him happy in every possible way, irrespective of whether she would get anything in return or not. She finds it as a burden, however, when she doesn't love her husband. Similarly, when we don't love Christ, we find going to church, reading the Holy Bible and daily prayers as burden. We may do it but for material gains. It thus becomes spiritual adultery. We become harlots and not his wives.
But what reason do we not have to love Him and to follow His statutes? "Even if my father and my mother forsake me, the Lord will take care of me" (Psalm 27:10). Again, it is recited during the Holy Qurbono of the Syro-Malankara Catholic rite- "just like a father has mercy on his children, Alleluia! The Lord will have mercy on His devoutees." When God felt that Abraham's devotion to Him was dwindling after He gave him a son, he tested him by commanding Abraham,"Between you and me, let there be no Issac." In our lives, we will definitely encounter Issacs in different forms- studies, career, money, cell phones, different forms of media, or some persons. Let such Issacs never shatter our relationship with God. His mercy for those who delightfully follow His commands is so infinite that He is slow to anger and quick to forgive. He punishes us for our own good and for His greater glory, just like a father would do to his children. Today we may suffer. But with the passage of time we will understand the reason behind it. "Wait on the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage. Wait on the Lord" (Psalm 27:14).
