NBVM Novena Day 1: Mary, Queen of Peace
On the first day of the Novena Mass themed Peace and Reconciliation: Mary Queen of Peace; Fr. Dom, shared that reconciliation must come before peace. There will be no peace without reconciliation. We need to amend our relationship with God to have peace, otherwise it would be just an idea. He explained that reconciliation is relational: we must first be reconciled with ourselves, with God, and with one another. Only then, can we truly experience peace. And when peace is present, joy naturally follows. To illustrate this, he used the image of flowers blooming as joy when the roots representing peace are connected through reconciliation.
Fr. Dom also shared his own journey, saying that he began walking the road of reconciliation yesterday in preparation for the feast day, seeking to walk in holiness. After making his confession, he felt his heart filled with peace and was able to experience joy. He personally made peace with people and reconciled with them. He encouraged the parishioners to do the same emphasizing that the Parish Feast Day is a retreat for all parishioners – there will be sacrament of reconciliation through out the feast days during adoration and novena.
He then quoted Archbishop Desmond Tutu,- There can be no future unless there is peace. There can be no peace unless there is reconciliation.” “True reconciliation exposes the awfulness, the abuse, the pain, the hurt, the truth”. Tutu led the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa to help the nation confront its painful past and move forward. Tutu emphasized that there can be no peace without reconciliation. True reconciliation, he said, exposes the pain and hurt of the past and brings truth to light. For reconciliation to happen, one must forgive and break the cycle of resentment.
Fr. Dom noted how often we hear the phrase, “forgive but not forget.” Yet he encouraged us to take forgiveness seriously, reminding us that while we must not forget to the point of foolishness, we should also not take life so heavily that it keeps us bound in bitterness.
He further reflected on St. Paul’s words about the “thorn in the flesh,” saying that the true enemy is often within—whether in the flesh, in the heart, or in the mind. He said that the very thing “I don’t want to do is what I end up doing”. He prays consciously daily for the grace to overcome this thorn. He further explained the Gospel of Luke (5:33-39) that the conflict with the pharisees and scribes started because of perception. They thought that Jesus came to destroy the tradition; when instead he came to save all. They missed the point. The problems we have with one another often arise from perception. In our self-righteousness, we miss the true point. To experience genuine peace, we must first seek reconciliation
Desmond Tutu explained that peace will be be shallow and temporal without reconciliation. He lived his life for peace- he did not look for revenge. True peace is relational.- it is not absence of war or argument. But the presence of right relationship because it repairs what was broken.
Fr. Dom reiterated that the Feast day is a retreat and he urged the congregation to listen and take one point and see how we can amend our lives. True peace is relational. He said the 1st reading( Col 1:15-20) reminds us that we are all one body inn Christ, hence, we need to see how to strengthen this body through love, forgiveness and mercy.
Truth comes before peace and God knows us – so be truthful in front of God as true reconciliation needs honesty about past wrong and not denial.
The only way to move towards peace, he concluded, is to heed the words of Mary, Queen of Peace: “Do whatever He tells you” (John 2:5). Mary, is always directing us towards Christ. Asking us to be in prayer and interceding for strength to forgive. SR
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https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1xPQRwYQVVr7BsQCQqqPsqyftnmIhnaeP
