Believe in God, Not Idols (Leviticus 19:4)

Found this awesome article by Alvin Teoh online.

**Leviticus 19:4 - 'Do not turn to idols or make gods of cast metal for yourselves. I am the LORD your God.'


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The ‘apparition’ of Mother Mary at SJMC has gone viral. And some who went to see it at SJMC reported it felt like a Church Feast Day.
I didn’t go, so I assume there’s like a mini fanfare there. And a few probably praying the Rosary.

Do I believe in apparitions?

Yes. For sure.

Do I believe that what’s happening in SJMC is authentic?

I don’t know and I am not really bothered.

But this I know. I am disturbed that so many are making a big deal out of it and calling it an apparition already.

I saw the pictures. It’s beautiful. Even has a faint image of a black string between the chest and the belly, which is
a Jewish custom announcing that a woman is with child. You can see that in Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Yes, it’s stunning. But for all I know, it could be dirt, grime, a stain caused by natural elements.

Like other Mary or Jesus pictures on a toast.

On a patch of oil.

On the tree bark.

On a baby’s bottom as a birthmark.

And it attracts throngs of Catholics and curious seekers.

Ok, here’s something to think about.

In 2000 years of the Church’s history, only two images are considered beyond scientific explanation.
(I am avoiding the word ‘miraculous’ here on purpose.)

One is the Shroud of Turin. (the latest tests keeps revealing new things which continues to baffles the scientists)
And the other is the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. (and this one is even more amazing than the above. No disrespect intended, Lord)

Every other patch of image, and there are thousands, have come and gone. So why all this big hoohaa over this one at SJMC?

Here’s why I find all this attention disturbing.

And I’ll use 2 sources to explain. One is the Bible. And the other is the words of Pope John Paul 2.

I understand sometimes, we have a desire to see something ‘miraculous’ cause we want a confirmation that what we believe is real. Like say, a blind man regaining sight at a healing service (as in places like Potta), the multiplication of food to feed the poor (as in El Paso), and, er, an image from heaven, (Guadalupe, Turin, ect). Which is ironic, cause the Bible clearly states that ‘Faith is believing in things unseen, and the reward of faith is seeing what we believe.’ And of course, the other famous line; ‘Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.’

Anyway, I have digressed. Back to my two sources:
We want to see the divine. Me included.

So the Bible says… Feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, comfort the sick, clothe the naked… and so on…
because Jesus said, what you’ve done unto one of these, you’ve done unto me.

Pope John Paul 2 repeated that teaching more clearly;
“You want to see Jesus? Go to the poor!”

So, this is it.

The Divine is found in people. Poor people, to be more precise.

The orphan.

The homeless.

The refugee.

The widowed.

The battered.

The lost.

The ones in despair.

The ones in prison.

The single mother.

The persecuted.

The ones suffering in hospitals.

Do we run to them like we run to an image on a window?
And speaking of the ones suffering in hospitals, we run to SJMC to snap a picture of some stain on a window
and call it an apparition, a reminder of the divine in our midst, but we don’t see the ones behind that window,
the ones who are ill, or lonely, or afraid, or in pain.

We get all excited about a stain on a glass.
But the Living God who is all around us in people, we forget to see.

Here’s one last thought.

Say, this image is an authentic one.
(And if so, I want to ask God one day why he chose a tiny window on some hospital to do this. I mean, why not a clearer
image in a window in Putra Jaya that cannot be washed away or something.)

Ok, it’s authentic. You saw it.

Did it increase your faith?

Are you more prayerful?

And make prayer concrete by;

Feeding the hungry?

Giving drink to the thirsty?

Clothing the naked?

Comforting the sick?

Visiting the imprisoned?

Did it make you wanna fight for justice?

Banish selfishness from yourself and be a witness?

Evangelise?

Use your gifts for the Kingdom?

If yes, praise God.

If no, then what’s all the big deal with an image of Mary on some window?

Anyways, if this image is indeed a message from Heaven, we don't have to try too hard to figure out what that message is:

In the Bible, Mary's one single recorded command: Do whatever my Son tells you.

And in Fatima and Akita, it's 'Pray, Repent, Go back to God'

It's a call to holiness. And holiness is rooted in God. And God is love.
And love is action:

- Feed the hungry!

- Give drink to the thirsty!

- Clothe the naked!

- Comfort the sick!

- Visit the imprisoned!

I want to end with a story. During the earliear renewal days, I was 10 times more hungry for God than now. If there was one time I dare claim that I really tried to put God in the center of everything, it was then.

I started evangelising at every opportunity. Started cell groups, prayer gorups, that sorta thing. I saw people healed of cancer, depression, oppresion, and a life enslaved by crime. It was really exciting. Most of all, I wanted to see Jesus. I want to see His face, hear His voice and all that.

I was depressed when that did not happen. But I kept it a secret. Kept running prayer meetings week after week, month after month. Outside, I was all hallelujah-like. Inside, I was all confussd.

Around the same time, Mother Mary started speaking to a lady in my Church. It's a long story I won't bother to bore you with. In brief, she dictated letters to 12 people. Very personal ones, revelaing little stories from their past that they only would know. Anyways, that made these 12 form a group that serves the neglected.

One fine Sunday, this lady, with great humility, approached me and started with an apology. She then presented me a letter which was from Mother Mary. She was afraid I'd laugh at her or call her a religious freak, but she passed it to me anyways.

That letter hit me hard. I'll only share one line here:

'You are sad because you cannot see the face of my Son. So you look everywhere. But don't you know you see His face all the time? You see Him in the faces of the people you serve.'

Well that did it for me. It changed me forever.

From then on, I stopped looking for sign and wonders. I looked at people. And I hope I've not let God down too much.