Celebrating the Memorial of St Ignatius of Antioch

Gal. 5:18-25, Lk. 11:42-46. The basic fruits of the Holy Spirit are: joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trust, gentleness and self-control. Sensing the absence of these values in Galatians' community, St Paul in today's first reading warned the people about the imminent punishment for self-indulgence. If we belong to Christ, we have to crucify all self-indulgence and be led by the Holy Spirit. Jesus found such attitude of self-indulgence among the religious leaders of His time and chastises them for demanding from others the standards they refused to follow. They expressed their admiration for the Prophets by building tombs, yet they killed some for their reproach.

Such attitude is not far fetched amongst us. We advocate a life based on the Gospel for others, but refuse to allow the Gospel value find a place in us. Jesus wants us to shed our hypocritical and self-deception away and live a sincere life. Let us learn from St Ignatius of Antioch who lived a sincere life. In the cause of his journey he wrote seven letters to various Churches, in which he addressed the organisation of the Church and the Christian life. He was arrested, condemned to death and transported to Rome to be thrown to the wild beasts in the arena.

May the Lord help us in our journey of faith, so that the martyrs may be constant source of strength for us! Amen!! Good morning, Peace be with you!!!