debater

Simon of Cyrene has a particular attraction for me whenever I read Matthew 27: 32. We all know the cruel journey that our Blessed Lord undertook to Calvery to redeem us with a burden of the cross. Simon of Cyrene, a youth who returns from the countryside is forced to carry our Lord's burden for a while. I think that the disciples of Christ can learn an important lesson from this person. Simon wasn't the one who began the mission of redemption but our Blessed Lord. He only intervened rather called to carry forward the mission for a while. The mission itself was completed by our Lord. Likewise we aren't the ones who began the mission of salvation but the interveners or helpers called by our Lord to carry forward the mission for a while, that may be during our life on earth. Hence, it is our privilege to carry on the work of redemption for the few years we are put here on earth.

Today's gospel reading taken from Luke 15: 11-32 is a wonderful story of a son who decides to go away from the father to live by himself, trusting the resources he has got as his share. This parable perhaps is one of the famous ones told all over the world. At first, when the priest began to read I said to myself, 'oh, the story of the prodigal son.' But the words of the father, "this son of mine was dead and has come to life; he was lost and now has been found," made a deep impression on me. God as a loving Father awaits our return patiently. Lent is the time that we come to life and find the right meaning for our existence by turning our focus to God. There is nothing as satisfying as living in the hope that God loves us and desires our well being. No matter how stupid we are, we are his children. By turning to Him, we come to life and find ourselves, the meaning for our existence.