My Views - Dr.Chris Anthony MBBS,MS,FRCSEd,AM

drchris April 19th, 2007

Forget the bad,remember the good of others

To forgive may be divine but to forget is human

Life these days is so competitive that it has become so stressful that many of us have lost the peace and tranquility of the innocent and care free childhood days. Most of the time the unhappiness in our inner self is due to our own making – taking to heart the bad others do to us and forgetting the good they have done. If we can reverse this situation then our lives may be more peaceful, contended and happier. The following story illustrates this fact very nicely. 

There were 2 good friends who set out on a journey across a desert to another town. As they were walking on the desert sands it was hot and they were getting tired and exhausted. There were some disagreements between them on a certain issue. In the spurt of anger one of them slapped the other for passing a sensitive remark. 

The man who received the strike took it calmly but he wanted to record his displeasure at what his friend has done to him. As they were all alone in the middle of the desert, there was nobody for him to narrate his displeasure of what his friend had done to him. All he could do was squat down and write on the sand the words, “My best friend slapped me today”.

They continued their journey not talking much to each other until they reached an oasis. There was a stream and they decided to take a bath and freshen up before proceeding with their journey. While they were in the stream a swift current swept the man who was hit before into the depths of the river and as the man could not swim he shouted for help. There was no one else in the vicinity except his friend who had earlier slapped him. His friend quickly without hesitation dived in and saved him. 

Soon when they had finished washing up they wanted to continue their journey. The man who almost drowned wanted to record the latest incident as well. He saw a large rock standing near by and he carved the following words on it, “My best friend saved my life today”.

They then continued their journey across the desert and reached their destination. After completing their business there they returned home along the same path a few days later. At the same oasis they noticed the words on the rock written earlier very clearly, “My best friend saved my life today”. On reaching the place where the man was slapped they could not see the words written on the sand, “My best friend slapped me today”. The winds had blown and erased those words away. 

The friend who slapped asked the other for the reason for writing the way he did. To that his friend answered, “the bad you did to me I wrote on sand which was blown away but the good you did I wrote on rock and that it will remain forever. You are my friend, I will keep to heart the good you do to me not the bad”.

This is what we should do in our own lives - forget the bad others do to us but remember forever the good they do. If we can do that life will be more peaceful and happy.

Let’s reflect on our lives to see whether we harbor any ill feelings against anyone. If   we do,we must act to heal those wounds in our hearts. Jesus forgave those who even tortured and crucified him. We may not reach up that level of magnanimousness in our hearts but, at least for a start, we can forget the bad others do to us. 

Dr.Chris Anthony

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drchris April 16th, 2007

He rose from the dead, lives in our midst, never die again.

A lawyer friend, a staunch catholic for many years, wanted proof for the resurrection of Christ. He subsequently left the Church as he could not be convinced of the truth of the resurrection. In fact the number of Catholics who “lose their faith” for these reasons is on their rise. What they have believed all these years out of faith does not seem logical to their mind anymore. Today man has   so advanced in science and technology that he insists on evidence before he accepts anything as the truth, especially those that are supernatural in nature.

Gone are the days when he is willing   to accept anything based just on faith and tradition? God’s gift to man – his inquisitive and intellectual mind had brought him great advancements to the whole human race but many a time it also worked to his detriment when he misuses it for his selfish needs.

The Resurrection, as we were taught, is Jesus Christ’s return to life on the third day after his death. To my mind there are two aspects to this resurrection, physical and spiritual. The problem is that from an early age we have been taught to believe that resurrection is just the bodily rising of Jesus after death. The image of Jesus majestically rising bodily into the heavens had been vividly imprinted in our minds since we were children. We have been carried away by the over-emphasis on these physical aspects of the Resurrection. Our ideas of resurrection should instead mature when we grow older in wisdom with Christ.

There is no way we can prove the physical resurrection of Jesus. We have to accept that from the teachings of the Church which is inherited from the apostles and to me that is the least important. In fact there are those bent on proving the resurrection wrong as postulated by new discoveries described in “The Lost Tomb of Jesus”.

On the other hand we can definitely beyond doubt testify the spiritual resurrection of Jesus. Yes, he died but yet we know for sure he is alive and present in our midst. We witness his presence daily in our lives. He is there in all the people we meet and all the problems we encounter.  

Very often we either do not recognize or we are too arrogant to ignore his presence in our midst. We expect Him to work miracles to help us overcome our difficulties and we become disappointed and disillusioned when he doesn’t. As a result we lose our faith in him. Little do we realize that we are his “miracle workers” among men.  

It is the experience of unselfish love for one another that resembles the mystery of the Resurrection of Christ.It is something that is beyond reason, beyond replication, beyond scientific fact? It is in this love that the risen Christ dwells and if we cultivate this love for one another in our hearts then His resurrection is true which needs no human proof.

Yes truly He has risen from the dead, lives in our midst, and never to die again.  

Dr.Chris Anthony

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drchris April 5th, 2007

Palm Sunday,courage to uphold the truth

We just celebrated Palm Sunday to commemorate the joyful entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. It also marks the beginning of the Holy Week when we will we relive the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus.

When we were children Palm Sunday was a day of joy and celebration as we witnessed the blessing of palm and the procession that followed. We were happy to wave the palms and many of us took them back to place in our homes and even cars. Is Palm Sunday all about blessing and waving of palms?

Today we are older and after going through the various experiences in life we tend to see Palm Sunday differently. Jesus entered Jerusalem to face his imminent torture and death on the cross which he was well aware of. He took it willingly and placed full trust in God. Jesus was willing to walk the path of truth knowing very well that it is going to cause him immense suffering and death on the cross.

Very few people have withstood bravely to defend their principles in life. The notable person in modern times who did that was Mahatma Gandhi. With full convictions in what he was doing was right and full in God, he refused to submit to the hegemony of the colonialist. He single handedly defeated the British Empire not by hate and violence but by his love and integrity. He practiced to the fullest every word he preached.

We too are very often asked to bear witness to truth in our daily lives. Are we willing to walk the path of righteousness in an environment of hostility and ridicule? Are we willing bold enough stand firm to our principles in facing up to the challenges in life? Many of us may think we would but only to succumb to the temptations of greed, lust and hatred.

The main reason we succumb to temptations is our lack of faith and trust in God. Real faith is tested not during good times but at times of great trouble and difficulty. It is easy to say we trust God when we have everything going our way but it is more important to hold on to that unwavering trust when we are encountered with failure after failure.

We are all well aware that even many hardcore Catholics, laity and clergy alike, have given up their faith in deep frustration as they feel God did not answer their prayers. They feel despite being steadfast in their faith, God did not come to their aid when they badly needed that. They fail to realize that God answers our prayers in ways we dot not recognize or comprehend. Whatever He gives what we deserve and is the best in the circumstances we are in.

Palm Sunday is not just about blessing and waving of palms and shouting “Hosanna, Hosanna” but it is a solemn lesson for us all. Like Jesus who walked bravely to face His death in the defense of truth, let us also try our best to emulate Him bravely, to uphold the truth, in our journey in this world particularly in times of hardship and pain.

Dr.Chris Anthony

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drchris April 2nd, 2007

We are His miracle workers among men

To overcome the numerous problems and challenges in life, all of us resort to prayer. Very often despite our earnest prayer our problems only seem to get worse by the day. Often we ponder whether God really answers our paryers.This a simple parable that is derived from the Jewish Mishmash may help to answer this question. 

A small village in Rural
Russia was beset by drought one year and all the crops failed. The village rabbi prayed to the heavens, “Why don’t you do something about this dreadful drought?” But the heavens remained silent. So the rabbi organised a charity food drive with the neighbouring villages to feed his people. 

When the rains came, they came in heavy and the local river flooded, killing all the livestock. The rabbi again prayed, “Heavenly Father, my people are suffering so much, save us from this flood!” But, again, no help from God seemed forthcoming. So the rabbi lobbied the government authorities to provide financial assistance to replenish the herds lost in the deluge. 

Finally, in the wake of the flood, infection and disease ran through the inhabitants of the village. The rabbi prayed once more, “Now surely God you will help us!” But the diseases ran their course. So the rabbi marshalled and organised the able bodied in the village to care for the sick. 

Months later reflecting on the tragedies of the past year, the rabbi turned to God and accused Him, “Why did you not answer the prayers of my poor villagers? Why did you not send help to them when we were beset by drought, floods and pestilence?” 

After many hours of anguished entreaty, a quiet voice answered the rabbi in the depths of his heart, “Of course I sent help; I sent you!”

Yes, God definitely answers our prayers and sends help with or without our knowledge. We need not even ask him to grant what we want. He knows what is best for us under the circumstances we are in. 

Very often he does not give us what we ask for and this may even lead us to despair. But be assured many years later we will realize what he did was indeed right and for our good. 

He does not perform miracles and magic to solve our problems. If we are waiting for such acts, we will be sadly mistaken and disappointed. Like the rabbi in the above story, we are his “miracle” workers among men. He has given us our intelligence, talents and skills to perform his “miracles” to help others. 

Dr.Chris Anthony   

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