Am I following the Tomb Spirituality?

 

GOSPEL THOUGHTS

21^st Week – Wednesday

Gospel – Matthew 23: 27-32

 Am I following the Tomb Spirituality?

You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of filth

1) Tombs are the place which are used to bury the dead things

Tombs are found in the cemetery.

First of all tombs are used to bury the things

Something which is buried will not come up

That is the end point of something. Burial is the final thing that happens to a material things, which shows the end of the existence of particular thing

Secondly tomb is used to bury the dead thing and not the living things

Living things cannot be buried. Only the dead things are buried.

So tomb is a place of dead things and not the living things.

2) Something which is put in the tomb gradually decays

Anything that is put in the tomb decomposes itself and gets rotten within no time.

Once it gets rotten, one can find only bad smell, stinking sensation, filth,  dry bones, nauseating feeling and sad feelings

So it is a place of rotten things which no one wants to see or experience.

Usually people run away from such a situation

3) Tomb creates a kind of fear and anxiety in us

Usually for us tomb is a place of fear. This may be because of our wrong perception about dead people and place of burial.

Even then psychologically tomb automatically creates a uneasy feeling and fear with in us

The fear and anxiety is because of the nature of the tomb. The nature of the tomb is decay, place of burial, bad smell and other various things

Some people even during the day time are scared to visit the tomb and to remain there for a moment

4) Inside scene of the tomb is very scary

First of all tomb is deep and it creates a kind of drakness within the tomb

Secondly inside the tomb we see bones and specially the skeleton.

To see such things inside the tomb is not very easy. Many of us do not want to see the inside scene of the tomb, because it is very scary and frightening.

5) In order to hide the rotten things, tombs are covered and times they are beautified

The purpose of burial is to hide the bad things. There is no other possibility with the dead things

We have to bury so that they are hid under the mud so that, bad things may not appear in the public.

Tombs are beautified in order to change the impression of the tomb. Out worldly one can try to change the appearances of the tomb, but the reality remains the same.

External beautification does not change the internal reality. This is the fact  

6) Life is not to be considered as Beatified tomb

Jesus says about scribes and Pharisees and their life is like a whitewashed tombs

It is very clear that externally they appear beautiful but from inside full of bad things.

Therefore one should not allow his life to become a external beautified tomb

7) Life is not a tomb to bury bad and rotting things

Many people bury bad and rotting things in their life as if their life is equal to tomb which is used for burying dead things

In our life these things represent as bad or dead things

• Jealousy,
• Revenge
• Pride
• Arrogance
• Enmity
• Gossip
• Un-forgiveness
• Indifference
• Individualism
• Materialism
• Gluttony
• Sensual Pleasures

When a person fills his life with these stinking things, life becomes a tomb. Such tombs are in however way one beautifies it is useless. Inside reality can't be changed?

8) Tomb comes after our death, not before

To a person’s life tomb has reference only after the death of the person

When a person is living no one takes about tomb for the person who is still living

Even then a living persons can become life a tomb. That is the tragedy of his life.

When the living things such as hope, love, forgiveness and values are dead a persons life becomes like a tomb which is meant for dead things

So when you are still living do not allow your life to become like a tomb.

9) What about my life?

• Is it a scary tomb?
• Is it a abandoned tomb?
• Is it a beautified tomb?
• Is it equal to a living tomb?
• Is it like a open tomb from where the foul smell comes out?

10) Life: is it a place of burial or planting

• One can use one’s life to burry bad things
• Or one can plant or sow the seeds of good things.
• Think about it

 God bless you and your family. Praying for you and your dear ones.

Fr Maxim D’Souza

Jeppu Seminary

Mangalore