Advent is the Time for Exiles

3 December 2006. First Sunday of Advent
Jeremiah 33, 14-16; 1 Thess 3,12 – 4,2 and Luke 21, 25-28, 34-36

At 37, I realized that half of my life has been spent away from home. But then, even my childhood centered on days at school and nights with my friends. I was hardly home. A scene from the movie, Cinema Paradiso by Guiseppe Tornatore, shows the return of Salvatore (Jacques Perrin), a renowned film director, to his hometown in Giancaldo, Italy. He returned to attend the funeral of Alfredo (Philippe Noiret), his long-time friend, confidante, and mentor. As he returns, he reminisces about his childhood and adolescence, going back to the places and people he has not seen for decades.

Advent is a season for those who have been away from home for decades. It is a time for exiles. A time of yearning to come back home. The atmosphere of Advent revolves around the experience of the Hebrew exiles, their cries of repentance, regret, and pleading. Our homelessness may also mean a spiritual, psychological or emotional separation: when we know that we are not true to ourselves, or that we have been exiled by others. Many have been exiled from themselves because they anguish over some things in them that they cannot yet accept. Members of families are separated from each other; others live together but are emotionally distant from each other. Some people have been refused admittance in some societies because of their marital status, sexual preference, ideological stance or organizational affiliations. There was a time when no fraternity/sorority member could join UPSCA and ICTUS. In addition, some are not yet at home with their past. If we find ourselves displaced and transplanted like many of the students who have left their hometowns to study here at the University of the Philippines; if we find ourselves in a strange setting as discovering a sub-culture in a university; and if we find ourselves in exile, Advent is the season for us.

In one of the flashbacks of the movie, Salvatore falls for a girl named Elena (Agnese Nano), but his deeply-felt passion isn't reciprocated. So he agonizes over the situation, seeks out Alfredo's advice, then makes a bold decision: he will stand outside of Elena's window every night until she relents. In the end, love wins out, but Salvatore's joy is eventually replaced by sadness as Elena vanishes forever in his life. Alfredo advised Toto, as Salvatore was called, not to return home. When Alfredo died, he left Salvatore a montage of all the kissing scenes edited at Cinema Paradiso. And as he watched them all, he realized what has been lacking in his life: his true love.

Something in us always needs to be called home. Advent is a time for us to be aware of what we lack and who’s not home: to see who our true love is. We need to see what or who we lack inside. Advent is a time to reclaim what we have lost in our lives. Advent focuses on our own place of exile and whether or not this Jesus who was born on earth has made a difference in our lives. Do we have a great desire and yearning for God to fill the void inside of us? Advent focuses us on the empty spaces in our hearts.

Cinema Paradiso connects with people through memories. Advent connects us with people and with the past; and be reconciled with it. Advent is a season to remember that Jesus has already come, and that he has offered us many insights and examples for our own homecoming. As we enter into our desires to return home, we also hold the consolations of God close to our exiled hearts: the God who assures us of hope and comfort, peace and security, when we return home. Advent is a homecoming, a time of joy and a renewed enthusiasm as we hear God’s promises again to be with us and to resettle us back in love. Though we hear the songs of Advent, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” and “O Come Divine Messiah” as if the Lord has been absent and is still to come, we see, on the other hand, that it is us who have been away, and that the Lord waits for us to come home.

Finally, Advent has always been a season for waiting. It is indeed tough when we are currently waiting for something painful to occur or to change. I know many people who are waiting. Some are terminally ill and are waiting to die. There is a family waiting to be healed of all the pain of a divorce. Another is waiting for the job after his interview; another is waiting for the results of the bar exams. And yet, the waiting is hopeful and patient. One can expect the arrival of those we wait. It is illustrated by the image of my mother who waits outside of our house to welcome me back. And so as we wait, we patiently pray that God welcomes us back in his heart once again.

*This Italian movie won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 1989 and a Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

St. Andrew the Apostle

30 November 2006: St. Andrew, the Apostle
Matthew 4, 18-22: The Call of the Fishermen

The feast today provides a respite from the apocalyptic literature following the last week of the liturgical year. The gospel does not speak of fire and brimstone, but of gentleness. It does not speak of the desolation of Jerusalem and captivity, rather, it speaks of men consoled and captivated by Jesus. But more importantly, it speaks of two things: that discipleship is borne out of companionship and the appeal of Jesus’ person; and second, that the mission of Jesus is shared.

Matthew’s gospel introduces the disciples who will form Jesus’ inner circle. Today we focus our attention to Andrew, Peter’s brother. First, Andrew like the others was simple and ordinary. They were not learned nor taught under the mentorship of a rabbi. Second, Andrew was at sea, fishing like the hundreds of fishermen plying Lake Galilee. Josephus, the governor of Galilee and a great historian said that three hundred and thirty boats sailed the lake. Third, Andrew, at Jesus beckon, left his net and followed him.

We take the cue from here. We are indeed learned. We are products of good schools and we have undergone the rigors of application and training in top universities or companies. Intellectual arrogance can be our downfall. The political climate today calls us to learn from the ordinary folks to whom we pledge our service.

Second, we are in a crisis. We must be ready to drop our nets anytime we are called to action. The world does not revolve on our world and our schedules. I guess this is where many student leaders or organizations meet their challenge. In a call to be flexible, they become rigid owing their allegiance to tradition and history (they have been singing for years at this definite time and date; since time immemorial they have been the pillars of this parish) and forget that the dynamism and life of an organization lies not in their history, but in their ability to respond to present situations and present crisis. Not the past crisis. Not the past challenge. To respond to the call of the Lord at this point in our lives. Furthermore, in the present call to unity --- to synergize and develop the ability to work together--- we find ourselves more concerned about ourselves. If there is a personal selfishness, there is an organizational selfishness. We forget that love means cooperation. We forget that Jesus called people to mission: to go out to the world and tell the good news. To bring people together is precisely the gift of the Holy Spirit. If an persons and people and organizations claim that the Holy Spirit is with them, there is a way to know whether it is true: do they bring people together--- again not in an exclusive way? The Church was born at Pentecost, because people were brought together in the love of the Lord and one another. We cannot determine other people’s lives. Instead, our life must be determined by our ministry and the people we serve. And our response must be quick and urgent.

A final word: in the Gospel of John, Andrew was the one who brought Peter to Jesus. He said, “We have found the Messiah, the Christ.” May our lives show that we indeed found the Messiah, and allow people to see Christ living in their midst.

Our Dignity, Our Priesthood and Our Hope

26 November 2006: Christ the King
Revelations 1, 5-8: Our Dignity, Our Priesthood and Our Hope

Many of us are crazy about everything ‘Idol’. We watched the four episodes of American Idol, and now, we watch our very own Philippine Idol on Channel 5. Even in the Ateneo, there is a contest called, “Ateneo Idol.” In world religions, an idol is an image of a divinity used as an object or medium of worship. In the Christian and Jewish tradition, an idol is a false image of a god that does not exist. In common jargon --- the way we used idol in the Philippine idol --- an idol is a person loved or adored excessively. This Sunday, we are introduced to someone real and deserving our excessive love and adoration: Christ the King. Why? A true king is someone who serves his people. What are the things Christ has given us?

First, Christ has given us royalty. The reading from the book of Revelation says that Christ has given us a kingdom, and made it a kingdom of priests. Taken from the Exodus 19, this verse tells us about our status and our dignity.

A person with a kingdom is royalty; that he or she is descended or related by blood to a king or queen. With Christ, the King, we are indeed royalty. With Christ, we become sons and daughters of God --- not just the highest specie in the animal kingdom. This is the reason why the church protects the rights of human beings and condemns any form of oppression. From the rights of the unborn to the criminal sentenced to death, the Church has not wavered in its stance on human life. Science see a human being as the highest form of animal --- animal nevertheless --- thus, human beings can be experimented on. Any form that curtails our dignity as children of God is condemned by the Church as immoral.

Second, Christ has given us priesthood. You see, in the olden days, the priest has the only right of access to God. Thus, the priest mediated prayers of the people to God. In the Jerusalem temple, any Jew can enter from the outermost court to the Court of the Israelites. The outermost is the Court of the Gentiles, followed by the Court of Women, and then the Court of the Israelites. But only the priest can enter the Court of the Priests, leading to the sanctuary, the Holy of Holies. With Jesus, everyone is now a priest: someone who has direct access to God, and to go closer to his presence. And this is a new way of living as Hebrews 10 tells us; that we now share a common priesthood, which was endowed to us in baptism.

Thus, it gives us a new way of regarding the church: an ecclesiology. Sacrosanctum Concilium or Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (SC) and the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) tells us that “Catholics need to have a strongly developed liturgical spirituality that makes them more aware that at the Eucharist they join with the presider in the offering that Christ, the one and only high priest, makes to his Father for the life of the world. The royal priesthood of baptism consecrates the assembly of believers to a life of worship that finds its ‘source and summit’ in the Eucharistic gathering.” Therefore, when we participate at mass by singing and responding with our whole heart and attention, we are practicing our common priesthood. The mass therefore is not just the presider’s (or the priest’s) mass, but our mass. SC said that the best Eucharist is when there is ‘full, active, and conscious participation by everyone during mass.”

Third, Christ has given us hope. With the promise that the Lord will come --- na Siya ang maghahari kailanman --- we are given hope, strength and comfort when life is difficult. When John was writing the book of Revelations, he was writing at a very difficult time for Christians. They were hunted and persecuted in the Roman Empire. Many became martyrs. They knew that to believe in Christ, and to become a Christian, can also mean death. To believe that eventually, the Lord Almighty, is Lord of all, then any type of suffering and dying is worth it. Because nothing can destroy faith.

Eating the Scroll

24 November 2006: Friday of the 33^rd Week in Ordinary Time
Revelations 10, 8-11: Andrew Dung-Lac and companions

The first reading from the book of Revelation tells us that the visionary was told twice by God to take the scroll from the angel’s hands. It is not handed to him, even when he asks the angel to give it to him: he must take it. The picture of taking the scroll and the being commanded to eat it comes from Ezekiel (Ezekiel 3: 1, 3). The messenger of God has to take God’s message and live it.

For example, in a fruit basket, we take an apple out of the many fruits available because we want --- and like --- the apple. When we eat it and it is digested, the apple nourishes us; it becomes part of our bodies. We can say that we are, in fact, what we eat.

Thus, God’s word becomes part of one’s being. Taking the scroll tells us that God’s message is not forced on us; God’s invites us to be part of His life. Just as St. Paul said, “It is not I who longer lives, but Christ who lives in me.”

The taste of the scroll is sweet. In Scripture, the psalmist always refers to God’s word as sweeter than honey (Psalm 19). What is behind this imagery? Eating, honey, sweetness are culinary terms. Have you ever had alphabet soup when you were a kid? Or, alphabet cookies or biscuits? In those days, kids were taught the Hebrew alphabet. Mothers baked the letters from flour and honey and placed the alphabet on a slate. The child was asked to identify the letter and tell them its sound. If they are able to guess the letters and the sound, they are given a prize: they can eat the letter!

Back to Revelation: the visionary eats the scroll and declares its sweetness. However, it turns sour when it reaches his stomach. Meaning: it is at first sweet to be chosen as God’s messenger. But the prophet is not just chosen, he must act on God’s word. Acting on God’s word will always be met by heartaches and challenges, painful and unpleasant experiences. A prophet forecasts doom.

In life it is simple: it is sweet that we have been baptized Christians. But when we have to apply it: the sweetness turns into something unpleasant. To give feedback to a friend is unpleasant. To lobby for human rights is a long, arduous endeavor. To bring peace among friends who had a falling-out is not a nice thing to do. But we all know that we are willing to undergo this painful tasks, because it is rooted in our love and concern for our neighbors.

By understanding the imagery and the symbolism in the book of Revelation, we are able to see why in the time of its writing it has inspired many martyrs during the Roman persecution of Christians. And we see now, that the book of Revelation is not something to be frightened about --- like horror movies who take Revelation as its theme. The book of Revelation teaches us in a very deep way the Christian life and its aspirations.

The Lamb of God

23 November 2006: Thursday of the 33^rd Week in Ordinary Time
Revelation 5, 1-10: The Lamb of God

In the book of Revelation, Jesus has been always called twenty-nine times as the Lamb. He was heard John the Baptism call him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1, 29, 36). The word John uses in the book of Revelation is arnion, which Jeremiah used, “I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter” (Jeremiah 11, 19). And thus in the first reading we notice this type of lamb who was led to the slaughter: it still bore the marks of having been slain. But it has with it seven horns and seven eyes.

Let me explain the horns and the eyes. First, the horns are symbols of omnipotence, with a special focus on power and honor in the Old Testament. In Deuteronomy 33, 17, it is said that Moses blessed with the horns of Joseph... who will push the people together to the ends of the earth. The Psalms says that good man’s horn shall be exalted with honor (Psalm 112, 9). Second, the eyes stand for omniscience. In the book of the prophet Zechariah 4,10, he saw seven lamps like “the eyes of the Lord, which range through the whole world.” Perhaps, we Filipinos can understand this if we have a picture of the Sacred Heart. Wherever we stand, we feel that the eyes of Jesus in the picture keep staring at us! Thus, with the horns and the eyes, we take two meanings. That Jesus, as the Lamb, now has all power and honor, and that nothing escapes from him. He sees all that we do.

Surrounding the gentle Lamb are the four living creatures, which we explained yesterday, and the twenty-four elders in white robes and crowns (stephanoi). There are different explanations of the twenty-four elders, ranging from the twenty-four stars in the Babylonian religion, adapted by the Jews into twenty-four angels in the council of God, or the twenty-four works in the temple of Jerusalem. It is written in the book of Revelation that the 12 Patriarchs are written in the gates of the New Jerusalem and the 12 Disciples in its foundations. But many exegetes affirm that the twenty-four elders symbolized the whole of the Church: the twelve tribes of Israel (the Jews) and equally another twelve for the Gentiles. And all these, together with the angels and the saints, sing praises to the Lamb who was led to the slaughter. The four living creatures and the twenty-four elders were singing praises to the Lamb.

And what are they singing? They were singing a new song of praise. The idea of a new song can be seen in all of Scriptures. We sing a new song in the Psalms (Psalm 33, 40, 144, 149) and the prophets such as Isaiah. The book of Revelation is about new things --- new heavens, new earth, and a new Jerusalem. And thus it assures as that in the life to come everything else will be new, including a new quality of life.

What is the whole vision telling us today? It tells of our destiny: we are destined to praise and give glory to Jesus Christ, our Lord. In fact, this leads us to the celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the King this coming Sunday. We affirm that goal of all of creation is the ‘praise, glory and reverence’ of God. And the quality of life will forever be new.

Mass for the Victims of the Disappeared

Ika-23 ng Nobyembre 2006
Misa sa ika-21 Annibersaryo ng Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND)
Kasama ng UP-College of Social Work and Community Development

Ang ating mga kuwento ay isa sa mga nagbibigay kahulugan at pagkakakilanlan sa ating buhay. Ang isang pamilya ay nabubuo at nagkakaisa dahil sa kanilang kuwentong pampamilya. Halimbawa, naging tradisyon sa aming pamilya ang magtipon tuwing kaarawan ng aming nanay. Dito nagdadala ng iba’t ibang pagkaing kinagigiliwan ng nanay. Ngunit, hindi ito kumpleto kung walang laing at pochero na luto mismo ng nanay. Habang dumadaan ang panahon, pinagkukuwentuhan ang ganitong tradisyon at ito’y nagiging bahagi ng alaalang Gonzales. Kung buburahin ang ganitong alaala sa Gonzales, mawawalan ng kahulugan ang aming pagtitipon at pagkakakilala.

Sa ating pananampalatayang Kristiyano, ang kuwento na nagbubuklod sa atin ay ang kuwento ni Hesus. Nagtitipon-tipon tayo dahil sa kuwento ng ating Panginoon na dumanas ng karumaldumal na paghihirap at pagpaslang sa pagpako sa krus. Isang biktima ng karahasang naka-ugat sa kasalanan at kasamaan. At ang kuwento ni Hesus ay sinundan pa ng sari-saring kuwento ng mga martyr ng pananampalataya. Inaaalala natin sila sa araw ng kanilang pagpaslang alang-alang sa kanilang pananinindigan. Sa simbahang Katoliko, libo-libong mga martir na ang nagbuwis ng buhay kasama ni Lorenzo Ruiz at Pedro Calungsod. Ang kanilang kuwento ang nagpamulat sa atin ng bunga ng masama sa ating lipunan at kasalanan sa ating mga sarili.

Subalit ang kabanalan ay hindi lamang nakikita sa ating mga martir. Kasama na dito ang ating mga bayani ng bayan, at ang ating mga kapamilya, kamag-anak at kaibigan na hindi na bumalik sa atin. Sila ang tinatawag nating desaparecidos --- mga nawawala, mga biktima ng kasamaan o ng masasamang tao sa lipunan. At hindi natin pinagkakaila ang ating lungkot, galit, kahungkagan, at kakulangan sa ating buhay.

Ngunit, kailangan nating itanong uli sa ating sarili kung bakit tayo ay naririto. Sinabi natin, naririto tayo dahil ipagdiriwang --- opo, mga kapatid --- IPINAGDIRIWANG at PINASASALAMATAN natin ang Panginoon dahil sa dalawamput-isang (21^st) annibersaryo ng Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND). Bakit tayo nagdiriwang at nagpapasalamat? Hindi ba’t nalulungkot tayo, nagagalit, nawawalang pag-asa na makita pa muling buhay ang ating mga minamahal?

Sa pananampalataya, ang kuwento ng Panginoon, ng mga martir at ng mga bayani ay hindi kailanman kinakalimutan, kundi pinagdiriwang. Unang-una, ang kuwento nila ang nagsilbing sanhi ng ating pagbubuklod, ng pagsasama ng lahat ng pamilyang naririto. Pangalawa, ang kuwento nila ay nagbibigay-lakas sa atin upang patuloy ang pakikibaka sa kabila ng kahirapan. Pangatlo, ang buhay nila, ang kanilang kuwento, ang nagmulat sa atin sa epekto ng kawalang respeto sa karapatang pantao. Panghuli, dahil sa pananampalataya natin sa Diyos, alam natin na hindi kailanman masusupil ang alaala natin. Naniniwala tayo, tulad ng mga martir, patayin man nila ang ating mga katawan, pero hindi nila mapapatay ang ating kaluluwa.

Samakatuwid, nagdiriwang tayo dahil ang mga minamahal nating di na nagbalik, ay bumalik na sa Panginoon at naghihintay sa atin. Ang mga nawala ay hindi talaga nawala. Sa pananampalataya natin, ang kamatayan ay hindi katapusan ng buhay. Ang kamatayan ay simula ng mas magandang buhay. Sa Diyos, walang nawawala. Sa Diyos, lahat na nawawala ay nahahanap.

Dahil ang kuwento ni Hesus ay hindi nagtapos sa pagpako sa krus, kundi nagtapos sa kanyang muling pagkabuhay. At pangako ni Hesus sa atin, ang sinumang nananampalataya sa Kanya ay magkakaroon ng buhay na walang hanggan.

Dahil dito, maaari nating sabihin: ayos na sila. Ngunit, tayo ay hindi pa ayos. Kaya, dalawang bagay ang maiiwan sa atin: Una, ang tunay na PAG-ASA, na may kahihinatnan ang ating pakikibaka, at pangalawa, ang responsibilidad na ipagpatuloy ang pagKUWENTO upang maaalala ng lahat ang kuwento ng mga taong isinalamin ang kuwento ni Hesus sa kanilang buhay. Naniniwala ako na ang gagawin natin pagkatapos ng misang ito, ang pagbubukas ng website ng FIND, ay para hindi makalimutan ng ating bayan --- at ng buong mundo --- ang kuwento ng kanilang mga bayani.

The Four Living Creatures

22 November 2006: Wednesday of the 33^rd Week in Ordinary Time
Revelation 4, 1-11: The Four Living Creatures

I have always been fascinated by Church art. In many churches with paintings on its roof or dome, we see the four evangelists being represented by four creatures: Matthew the Lion; Mark the Man; Luke the Ox; and John the Eagle. And the four living creatures we just read from Revelation in the first reading has described a vision of these four creatures praising God, “night and day, they never rested from saying: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord, the Almighty, who was, and who is, and who is to come.’” Is there a connection?

First, we meet these four creatures in the Old Testament as part of the vision of Ezekiel. In the vision of Ezekiel, there were four creatures, each with four faces: the face of a lion, a man, an ox and an eagle. And these creatures were identified with cherubs and seraphs whose images are placed in the Ark of the Covenant depicting a common image of God sitting between cherubims. Thus, cherubims --- or these four creatures --- are angels who guard God’s throne. Every Jew – thus, John who wrote the book of Revelation – knew this imagery as part of heaven.

Second, we can expand its meaning with an environment theme. Each creature is great in its own genre or group. The lion is the strongest among the beasts; the ox is greatest among cattle; the eagle among birds; and man among all creatures. The reading tells us that these creatures constantly praise God. In the Old Testament, the imagery that all of nature praises God is common. Psalm 19, 1-2 says “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims His handiwork. Day to day pours forth speech and night to night declares knowledge.” There are other psalms such as Psalm 103 and 148 who call all of nature to praise God.

The Stoics believed that if any creature fulfills its function for which it was created, then it praises God. Seneca, the famous Stoic, said that each creature holds a spark of God (scintilla). Thus God is ‘near you, with you, within you; a holy spirit sits within us.’ St. Ignatius holds the same truth in his Principle and Foundation in the Spiritual Exercises: “Man is created to praise, glorify and reverence God.” The Sceptics made fun of this thought: “What? God in worms?” Why not? Can’t a worm serve God? Can’t a plant serve God? Can’t a lowly chicken serve God? It tells us that any creature, any function serves God. Thus, the lowliest of functions as washing plates is a concrete work, praising God. And thus, we are indeed worshipping God by doing our work with the best of our abilities, according to our nature and strength. Work and worship are never separate acts, but one and the same.

Finally, the connection with the evangelists. The early church found these four creatures symbolizing many things. Irenaeus in 170 AD, said that the four creatures symbolizes aspects of Jesus: the lion, in His divine leadership and power; the ox, in his priestly work since the ox is the animal of sacrifice; man symbolizes the incarnation and the eagle, as the Holy Spirit over the church. Associations were then made, until it reached St. Augustine whose imagery become more acceptable. Let’s see the development:

Thus, Irenaeus connects the four Gospels from their beginning texts: John, who talks about how all things were made by Jesus, -- the lion; Luke, begins with the story of Zaccheus, the priest – the ox; Matthew begins with the genealogy of Jesus – the man; and then, Mark, begins with a reference to the Spirit – the eagle. There are others:

Athanasius: Matthew, the man; Luke, the lion; Mark, the ox; John, the eagle.

Victorinus: Matthew, the man; Luke the ox; Mark the lion; John, the eagle.

Augustine explains: Matthew, the Lion because it depicted Jesus as the Lion of Judah, the fulfillment of the prophetic expectations; Mark, the man because Mark depicted Jesus as He is, factual and simple; Luke, the ox because it depicted Jesus as the sacrifice for all people; and finally, John, the eagle, because of the Gospels highly theological reflections of Jesus.

What have we learned from the four creatures in the book of Revelation? First, the creatures guarded the throne of God. Second, the creatures symbolized that whatever we do – day and night – should praise, glorify and reverence God. Finally, the creatures symbolized ways or approaches to know Christ – whether according to aspects of his life or according to the views of the four evangelists. In whatever way, all these tells us that in order to truly praise God forever, we first truly know Jesus through Scriptures.

Presentation of the BVM

21 November 2006: Presentation of Mary
Zechariah 2, 14-17; Luke 1, 46-55; Matthew 12, 46-50

The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is from a pious tradition based on the apocryphal Proto-Gospel of James. It holds that Mary, as a child, was presented and educated near the Temple in Jerusalem. Although this is not historical, it reminds us of the Church’s dogma of the Immaculate Conception, that God has granted her the grace to be free from original sin, in view of her future role as the Mother of His Son, Jesus.

The tradition carries with it a great consolation. It means that it is also possible for us, human beings to be in union with God. In the Gospel today, Jesus presents to us a practical truth: that what constitutes our being truly brothers and sisters is not our blood relations, but what we share in common Thus, for Jesus, whoever would like to be brothers and sisters to Him, must obey the will of God, the way Mary said ‘yes’ to God’s invitation to be Jesus’ mother.

Our daily lives teach us this truth: we actually find ourselves closer to people who do not belong to our kinsfolk. The reality is that sometimes the deepest friendships are not blood relationships. They are our relationships with whoever connects with us: mind to mind, heart to heart. They are with people who share our common interests, common goals, common principles, or those who compliment them. Thus, it is possible for friends to like each other’s company because they are of opposite poles, but they share a common affection for each other. It is in this sharing that they become truly kith and kin.

There is reason why Jesus calls us his friends, his “mother and brothers and sisters to him.” St. Robert Southwell SJ once wrote as follows:

“If you love a friend so much, if he or she is so attractive that everything he asks of you, you would agree to; and if it is so sweet to sit and talk with him, describe your mishaps to him--- then with ho much more trust should you betake yourself to God, the God of goodness, converse with him, show him your weakness and distress, for he has greater care of you that you have of yourself, indeed he is more intimately you than you are.”

St. Robert Southwell SJ affirms that there is indeed something in our experience of friendship that brings us closer to the Lord, for every experience of friendship provides us with a taste of heaven --- just as Jesus said, “whoever does the will of the Father is brother, sister and friend to me.” And the greatest example of this, is our very own Mother.

The End of Time

19 November 2006: 33^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Daniel 12, 1-3. Psalm 16. Hebrew 10, 11-18. Mark 13, 24-32

As the feast of Christ the King draws near, marking the end of the liturgical year, we hear passages from Scriptures about the end of time. This we have been fascinated. Every turn of the century, every strike of a disastrous event, or the advent of war, we hear predictions of the end of the world. In faith, we call it the second coming of Christ, or the parousia. So, today, I would suggest that we face this difficult passage squarely, so that we can understand what it means more fully.

First, Jesus used images of his time; images Jews knew fully well. The book of Ezra in the Old Testament tells us that the coming of the Lord will be preceded by a time of war, earthquakes, rebellion, scheming of nations, and the confusion of leaders (4 Ezra). An oracle called the Sybelline Oracle and the 2^nd Book of Baruch (27, 5-13) says the same thing: “And it shall come to pass that whoever comes safe out of the war shall die in the earthquake, and whosoever gets safe out of the earthquake shall be burned by the fire, and whosoever gets safe out of the first shall be destroyed by famine.” Moreover, the prophets Amos, Joel, Ezekiel, Isaiah, Ezra, and Baruch added that the coming the Lord will be preceded by the darkening of the sun and the moon.

In the Gospel passage, Jesus predicted certain signs of war, famine, and strife. We know from history that the Roman Empire was plagued by war. He predicted the Destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem in 70 AD. He prophesied about earthquakes, and forty years after, an earthquake devastated Laodicaea and the eruption of Vesuvius buried Pompeii in lava. There were famines in the time of the Emperor Claudius. Tacitus, the famous historian, preserves the memory of these disasters. And even after these predicts, Jesus did not come for the second time. The present age experience various wars, from World War I and II, to Iraq, and various local conflicts within nations, but there was no second coming of Jesus.

But the Gospel tells us of a permanent truth: that He will come. When? Even Jesus during his time did not know. He said, “But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” And therefore, even Jesus is saying that there are many things in our lives that do not have answers; that should be left without question in the hand of God. Thus, no one has the credibility to work out dates or predict the end of time.

Second, if no one knows when He will come, what’s next? If the basic truth that the Lord teaches us is that our lives are in the light of eternity, then it tells us many things. In the Old Testament, the Jews believed that the end of the world will be marked by a gathering of all who were scattered. The Testament of Asher (7, 5-7) tells us, “The Lord will gather you together in faith through His tender mercy, and for the sake of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.” Thus, the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God is the time when we all gather as one body. It is a work of unity.

The Kingdom of God is a like a banquet, when all are gathered around the Lord. The floor of the UP Church should remind us of our goal. When National Artist for the Visual Arts, Arturo Luz made the River of Life flowing in and out of the altar, he has made the statement that in the end, wherever we are, whoever we are --- students, university personnel, alumni, parishioners, even those who do not live in UP but comes to mass here---- we are to be gathered around the Lord. And that our lives, must also flow out from this gathering at the altar, to our daily lives.

When we come from our busy days to celebrate anniversaries, we gather in order to be renewed. When Jesus comes to our daily life, we become whole. Nabubuo tayo uli. Kung, sabog-na-sabog at litong-lito ang isip bago pumunta sa simbahan, nalulunas ang ating pagkakalat pagkatapos manalangin.

And therefore, when we come to think of the end of days, we come to celebrate unity. We come to gather. We gather because the Lord promised that when we celebrate community, He will come. You can think even, that if you want to taste the end of time, come to mass, come to Jesus, and you will live forever.

The Story of Onesimus

16 November 2006: Thursday of the 32^nd Week in Ordinary Time
Paul’s letter to Philemon

The letter of Paul to Philemon is unique, because it is the only personal letter of Paul which we possess. Paul may have written a lot of personal letters, but this is the only one we’ve got. The letter is addressed to his friend Philemon who owns a runaway slave named Onesimus. Onesimus found his way to Paul in Rome and was baptized a Christian.

The ancient world was a society that accepts slavery. A slave was not a person but a tool. They were at the mercy of their masters who can do anything to them. For a little offense such as dropping a glass of water, the slave can be branded with a hot iron, put into chains and hard labor. The Roman Empire had numerous slaves. Aristotle even said that it is but natural that some men become slaves to serve the higher classes of men. So, Paul writes to Philemon to accept Onesimus as “one like us” --- to receive him “as a brother receives another brother.” By doing so, Paul actually risks his life. He was protecting a fugitive, a criminal. But he appealed to Philemon, and his appeal was an appeal of love; an appeal not to his pagan origins, but to his new Christian life.

The ancient world like distinctions: the Greeks classified people into two --- the Greeks and the rest are barbarians. What Christianity did in ancient society was to introduce a new relationship between people, in which all range of status was abolished. Christians became one body in Christ, whether Jew or Gentile, slaves or free (1 Corinthians 12, 13). In Christ, there was no distinction. In Paul’s letter to the Colossians (3,11), he said, they were no longer Scythians, barbarians, uncircumcised, circumcised, slaves or free. All were brothers and sisters. No one was master and slave. With this in mind, Paul appealed to the heart of Philemon.

We can imagine how difficult it was for Philemon to accept Onesimus. It would require of him, a great love for Christ. Perhaps a test to his new faith. By running away, Onesimus had insulted Philemon, his master. And Philemon would have all the rights to kill him, flog him, and put him in chains. But Paul made a pun of Onesimus’ name, “once he was useless to you, now, he is profitable to me and to you.” In Greek, Onesimus means profitable. And he was Onesimus by name, Onesimus by nature. He said that just as Onesimus had been profitable to Paul in spreading the Gospel and accompanying him in prison, he would also be useful to Philemon. Paul said in verses 13 & 14: “I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel; but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own free will.” And with these words of Paul, Philemon may have returned Onesimus back to him with his blessing.

Let me give you a happy ending. Fifty years later, St. Ignatius of Antioch, one of the great Christian martyrs, was taken to be executed in Rome. As he went, he wrote letters which still survives until today. He wrote letters to the churches in Asia Minor. He stopped at a place called Smyrna and wrote to the Church in Ephesus. And in the first chapter of his letter, he addressed the bishop of Ephesus. And the bishop’s name was Onesimus. Ignatius wrote to him, the way Paul wrote: making a pun out of the bishop’s name: Onesimus by name, Onesimus by nature.

It is now an accepted explanation, why among all Paul’s personal letters, it is this letter to Philemon that survives. In the early church, when they were collecting Paul’s letters at the turn of the century, they collected first at Ephesus, where Onesimus was bishop. With that letter, Onesimus witnessed and tells the whole world that he was once a runaway slave and that he owed his life to Paul and to Jesus Christ.

I got a text message today with a question: If all of us will be saved in any religion, why should we be a Catholic Christian? I would perhaps tell him Onesimus’ story. And tell him, all other stories of this magnitude. A witness story is more convincing.

Today, at mass, let us ask ourselves this question: What has Christ done to my life?

Our Desire to Be Close to God

16 November 2006: Thursday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time
Luke 17, 20-25

In the Gospel, Jesus tells us that the Kingdom of God is among us, but ‘it cannot be observed’ and ‘we will not be able to see it’. Some translations will substitute the ‘kingdom’ with ‘Spirit’, but both of them are different ways of talking about God who ‘renews everything’ as the First Reading from Wisdom has it. If the Spirit of God is among us and it renews everything, why can’t it be observed? What prevents us from seeing it?

Let me thus embark on a quest to see the Spirit of God. First, observation can mean believing only that which is empirical: what one sees, hears, tastes, touches, and feels. We often say, ‘to see is to believe’. Employing the scientific method, it would indeed be difficult to see God.

Second, we all express our desire to be close to God, but there is a certain reluctance and fear in seeing God. Psalm 27 expresses this deepest desire: “It is your face, Lord, I seek. Do not hide Your face from me.” Psalm 84 distinctively expresses this: “My soul longs, indeed it faints for the courts of the Lord.” Richard Otto in his book, The Idea of the Holy, says that the experience of the Holy evokes in us awe (tremendum), but also fascination (fascinans); a mystery which both evokes attraction and fear.

We are afraid when we see God we will see the truth about ourselves: our illusion that we are self-sufficient and immortal, and that we are in control of our lives. It is like meeting a movie actress whom you idolize so much: you want to shake her hands and introduce yourself, but at the same time, fear the meeting--- you do not know what to say or even worse, to sustain the conversation. In her presence, you find yourself of smaller stature. In Filipino we say, kapag kasama ko siya, nanliliit ako. Same thing with God. When we are with God, the truth about ourselves naturally comes out: our sinfulness, our insecurities, and our false self-image.

Moreover, being with God might lead us to an unfamiliar terrain where we might die. Being with Him makes us realize that we are not God, that God alone is God, and that He doesn't need us. When we are with God, we ‘faint’, we die to ourselves and our illusions. Death reminds us that we are not in control of our lives. That is why we fear it: the experience of realizing the lies of our lives is painful; the false self-image which we have built throughout our lives suddenly meets its death.

But the fear we experience is productive and beneficial. On the contrary, when we experience God, we are renewed: the untruths about our lives are revealed, and we begin to see what we truly are. Psalm 111 and Proverbs 1 say that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, knowledge and instruction. We can thus say that if we begin to see the Spirit of God, we will be able to see the miracle of renewal in the world—what Gerald Manley Hopkins SJ calls the ‘freshness deep down things.’

The Jesuit Music Ministry produced a song composed by Frs. Johnny Go SJ and Manoling Francisco SJ that illustrates that the Spirit of God is here:

Far Greater Love

1. Who would have known this would be a history so torn with wars, the sky, seems grayer in our hearts. It’s grayer in our hearts.

2. I could have sworn it would end in misery, but the world is turning still, and we’re also learning, somewhere hidden out there, something’s greater than our hearts.

Refrain. The storms of life might shake our ground, a greater peace still dwells in our hearts. The dreams we build may fall apart, a deeper hope still runs in our hearts. Fear no harm, we are ruled by a far greater love, a far greater love.

3. Who would have known life would be such a mystery? For the world is yearning still and our hearts keep burning. We dare to believe there’s something greater than our hearts. Refrain.

Coda: We’re never alone. All else may go wrong, still will there be a love far greater than our hearts.

Thus, the Gospel challenges us to seek the face of God in the thousand and one features in our lives and in the world. It means that employing a different way of seeing, we have to actively search for the different presences of God in history and in the present milieu. St. Ignatius teaches Jesuits to always see what is good in the world, to read the signs of the times, and to see God in all things. To realize that "all else may go wrong, but there is still a love far greater than our hearts."

Rebirth and Renewal

15 November 2006: Wednesday of the 32^nd Week in Ordinary Time
Titus 3, 1-8: Rebirth and Renewal

The first reading teaches us that God’s love and grace is felt through the mediation of people within the Church, but behind its power is the Holy Spirit. For example, St. Paul uses two words, rebirth and renewal. The Greek word used for rebirth is paliggenesia. It used in many ways. If one is newly baptized in the Jewish religion, he or she is treated like a child signifying that the new convert has began a new life. Many people believed in re-birth or re-incarnation, such as the Pythagoreans, the Mystery Religions, Hinduism, and the Stoics. The point however is simple: that a person, who has entered into a new faith, acquires a new life. Thus, when Paul said that a person who accepts Christ as His Savior, that person experiences a rebirth. The person is cleansed of his/her sins, and then, God re-creates the person. Renewal takes on a daily meaning. Once given a new life, as in baptism, when we are reborn, we strive to become what we have become --- a child of God. However, we all know that the struggle involved in trying to be one has with it failures, disappointments, and yes, sinning. The Sacrament of Reconciliation, in the mediation of the priest, gives us the chance to move on again, the change of renewal. Therefore, renewal connotes the daily appropriation of our faith, when we have digressed to what we are not. The absolution that the priest gives illustrates the Church’s mediation in giving each member the chance of renewal. He says, “Through the ministry of Church, may God grant you pardon and peace. And I absolve you from your sins, in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

Mediation of the Church in God’s grace and love is witness in the baptism. The priest may do the pouring of water on the heads of the children/adults to be baptized, but it is through the power of the Holy Spirit that they become Christians. In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the priest may hear the penitent’s sins, but it is the Holy Spirit who cleanses and forgives them. When you have hurt someone and has reconciled with him, you feel a certain peace and lightness of heart. The person may have said the words, “I forgive you,” but it is the Holy Spirit who lifted up the burden and guilt. Rebirth and renewal in God is made possible through the instruments of human beings.

In our lives, the same thing happens. We first experience the love of God through our parent’s care and concern. And then, we find ourselves being taken cared of by God after we leave our homes to study and to work through the friends that we find. When we celebrate our birthdays, we thank the Lord for the grace of friendship and the years of blessings and challenges. God’s grace is indeed mediated through people.

Therefore, we can reflect on our lives. How do we mediate God’s love to others? What aspects of our lives need renewal? We pray that as St. Paul teaches us today that as children of God, we mediate God’s love to others. We hope that we may recognize God in the faces of our neighbors, and at the same time, recognize God working through our lives.

*I took this at Mirador Villa, Bagiuo City.

Characteristics of Christian Life

14 November 2006: Tuesday of the 32^nd Week in Ordinary Time
Titus 2, 1-8.11-14: St. Joseph Pignatelli SJ

The first reading outlines the Christian character expected of Christians from all ages. Let me explain what is expected of each age according to St. Paul. Later, we may just categorize them into two bigger groups: the senior citizens and the young. What Paul says of older men and women, will now apply to all seniors. What Paul says of younger women and men, will now apply to all the young. Nevertheless, it is good in understanding the bible to put it in its context -- time, place, culture--- and then, apply what can be values to our present generation.

First, the older men. It is expected that senior men must be “sober, serious, and prudent” and should be “healthy in faith, love and fortitude.” Let me explain each. The Greek word for sober is nēphalios which means that an older person should have learned from his past what are true and false pleasures. It is the opposite of over-indulgence which is a characteristic of the young. For serious, the Greek word is semnos, which does not mean the rigid, dark, gloomy and killjoy type. It describes the behavior of a person who knows what is right and what actions are appropriate for a mature individual. For prudent, the Greek word is sōphrōn, used for a person who has control over his passions and instincts and discerns appropriate words and behavior at the proper place and time. For Paul, to have faith means to trust God. To have love is to acquire a warm care for people, and to have fortitude is to possess that strength of character that helps overcome difficulties.

Second, for older women. The early Church places an important role to older women. Paul said that they should act as people in charge of sacred things --- like priestesses in temples. It is a life lead remembering that a Christian life is meant to be holy. Moreover, the older women should not engage in slanderous talk or gossip. Though, gossip has been elevated nowadays as a favorite pastime. Paul however advises against it. Furthermore, Paul exhorts the older women to teach and train the young.

Third, for younger women. The Greek society puts young women in charge of their husbands and the making of their home. As mothers, they were expected to do their duties for their children. Let us adapt this to the present culture knowing that many women now are not confined to the home. We may say that young women must now learn to be responsible for people given to their care – whether in the home, office, or school.

Fourth, for young men. The first reading tells it all in one sentence, “In the same way, urge on the younger men to be prudent. The Greek word for prudence is the same as that used for the older men, sōphrōn. But it has a different context. The young has overflowing and uncontrollable passions. Often they yield to temptations easily. They can be reckless and thoughtless most of the time. They have the adventurous spirit that enables them to take risks without much experience, deliberation and calculation. To be prudent therefore means that the young must learn to have the sufficient self-control and presence of mind when they make decisions and maintaining relationships. The book of Proverbs tells us that “He who rules his spirit is greater than he who takes a city” (Proverbs 16, 32). Thus, a young man must learn to discipline himself. When the young with energy and vigor is supported by a strong backbone, he or she becomes a great person.

So, let us reflect on our lives and use these parameters to evaluate our character. If you are a senior citizen (40 years old and above, according to the McCann-Erickson Survey), are you growing in sobriety, seriousness, and prudence? Are you becoming healthy in faith, love and fortitude? Are you getting older gracefully and warm, than cranky and cold? If you are young (39 and below, McCann-Erickson 2006), are you getting more disciplined and responsible? Are you able to temper your passions and strong emotions? Are you getting to be responsible and prudent?

*members of the UP Concert Chorus, in thanksgiving for a successful world tour. They had masses for this dinner.

Real Generosity

12 November 2006: 32^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mark 12, 41-44: The Widow’s Mite

The Temple is divided into courts. Each court as it nears the central and most significant Holy of Holies, is elevated. The outermost court is called the Court of the Gentiles, followed by the Court of Women, then the Court of the Israelites, and then the Court of the Priests --- the nearest to the sanctuary. Between the Courts of the Gentiles and the Court of Women was the “Gate Beautiful.” It was 60 foot wide, and was referred to also as the “Gate Susan” because it contained a beautiful sculptural relief of the city of Susa. During the morning and evening sacrifices, this great entrance was the place of public worship. In the Court of the Women were thirteen collection boxes called “Trumpets” because of their shape: narrow at the mouth, wide at the bottom. Eleven chests were for voluntary offerings of money; two at the Gate Susan, for the half-shekel tax. Each trumpet has a special purpose --- eg. for corn, wine, or oil for sacrifice. Contributions were done daily, and many affluent individuals gave sizable contributions. Jesus was sitting ‘opposite the treasury’ when he saw the widow put into one of the containers the two copper coins called “leptons” which means ‘a thin one’. It was the smallest of all coins and it was all that she had (Mark 12, 41-44; Luke 21, 1-2). Jesus said that her tiny contribution was greater than the others, for the others had given what they could spare easily enough, and but still have plenty left, while the widow had given everything.

I have three points. First, real generosity is sacrificial. The price of the gift, its cost or its size does not matter. What matters is how much of one’s spirit and sacrifice has been put into it. Fr. John P. Delaney SJ who built the Holy Sacrifice Church here in UP said to the students, faculty and staff of the university to “give till it hurts.” He discouraged students from asking contributions from the rich and the politicians, because the church is for the community of UP, and the community should build it from themselves.

Second, real generosity has some kind of thoughtlessness in it. When one gives all that he or she has, she recklessly gives it. In our lives, we know that some parts of our lives, some of our activities, some aspects of ourselves are not given to Christ. We hold back something. We rarely give the final surrender. St. Ignatius gives us the Prayer of Generosity that illustrates this total selflessness, recklessness and thoughtlessness in a magnanimous heart:

“Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous, teach me to serve you as you deserve, to give and not to count the cost, to fight and not to heed the wounds, to toil and not to seek for rest, save that I am doing your most holy will. Amen.”

Finally, Jesus makes a point when He makes the widow the symbol of generosity. In ancient times, the widow is an object of pity, recipients of favor because, in a patriarchal society, the do not have a protector --- the males. In the Israelites’ system, the widow does not have inheritance rights. Thus, Jesus exalted someone who has given only a little amount into a symbol to be emulated. In our lives, we may feel that we may lack in material possessions or talents, but if we put all that we have and are at the Lord’s disposal, He can do things with our lives that are beyond our imaginings.

To conclude, I have a story: A monk who was traveling in the mountains found a precious stone in a stream. The next day he met another traveler who was hungry, and the monk opened his bag to share his food. The hungry traveler saw the precious stone in the monk’s bag, admired it, and asked the monk to give it to him. The monk did so without hesitation.

The traveler left, rejoicing in his good fortune. He knew the jewel was worth enough to give him security for the rest of his life.

But a few days later he came back searching for the monk. When he found him, he returned the stone and said, “I have been thinking. I know how valuable this stone is, but I give back to you in the hope that you can give me something much more precious. If you can, give me what you have within you that enabled you to give me the stone.” Elizabeth Bibesco said about generosity, “Blessed are those who give without remembering and take without forgetting.”

*taken from the internet: bible-history.com

The Crown of our Lives

10 November 2006: St. Leo the Great
Philippians 3, 17 -4,1; Luke 16, 1-8

St. Paul in his letter to the Philippians said, “Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, beloved” (Phil 4,1). Paul did not hide his affection to the Philippians whom he longed for and loved. He called them his “crown.” What does crown mean?

There are two words in Greek that refers to a crown. First, the diadēma. The diadēma is the king’s crown, the symbol of kingly rule and leadership. Second, the stephanos. The stephanos is the word Paul used. The stephanos has two usages. It is the crown that athletes aspire for. It is made of olive branches, parsley, and bay leaves. The stephanos is also the crown given to guests by hosts in a celebration.

When Paul used stephanos to refer to the Philippians, he is saying that the Philippians are the cause of his rejoicing. He celebrates their faith and their friendship. It is the feeling of parents, when they learn of their child’s achievement, and the say, “Anak ko ‘yan” (He is my son/She is my daughter). I am proud of him/her. Or, it is the feeling of a teacher who learns that one of his students have been recognized for exemplary work. It does not mean that Paul or parents or teachers attribute their success to themselves, but that they celebrate because they have been instruments to their virtue. For Paul, the Philippians are the people he gained for Christ. As many saints would attribute their glory: St. Francis Xavier might have poured water on the heads of many children in baptism, but it was God who made them Christians.

So today, let us reflect on our lives and ask who are our ‘crown.’ Who are the people whom we have gained for Christ. And then, we rejoice and celebrate because somehow, despite our sinful lives and our imperfection, God has used us to bring people to salvation. As St. Paul rejoiced even in the prisons of Rome, we too should find all cause for celebration. Because our faith is a faith of joy and hope!

Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica

9 November 2006: Thursday of the 31st Week of the Year
John 2, 13-22: Reclamation of the Temple
Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica

During the time of Archbishop Romero, the national guards used a local church as their barracks. And when he tried to reclaim the Blessed Sacrament, the soldiers blocked him. So, he dons his stole and leads the local people in a procession back to the church.

This illustrates the feast we celebrate today. We emphasize the sacredness of the temple. In the Old Testament, the temple was a symbol of the presence of God. However, the Temple of Jerusalem was destroyed in AD 70 and Josephus, the historian, said that one million people perished, and 97,000 were captured.

In the Gospel today, Jesus reclaims the temple’s sacredness and announces its replacement. That the Temple of the Jerusalem, the symbol of God’s presence, will no longer be a concrete building, but would eventually be the body of Christ. The New Testament reading tells us then that we are now the body of Christ, and we are now the temple of the Holy Spirit. Each one of us manifests the presence of God, and thus, each of us is indeed holy.

However, we seldom experience and see the presence of God in our lives. Why? Our lives are like business stalls in the marketplace; our pre-occupation is selling our wares and minding our own businesses.

Bishop Henri Nouwen tells us about the restlessness of our contemporary lives: First, our days are filled with things to do, people to meet, projects to finish, letters to write, calls to make, appointment to keep, prayers to recite. Second, though we are satisfied with many things at parang walang katapusan ang trabaho, we seldom feel satisfied and at peace. Ironically, we see that when we are filled, we become unfulfilled. There is never a space, a time to stand behind our own lives and reflect.

Jesus tells us to drive and whip out all of our sheep and oxen, our daily businesses; to over turn our tables; to stop our work so that, the temple of our lives is reclaimed, and its sacredness becomes apparent again.

*Photographs of the Lateran Basilica today.

Knowing One's Resources

8 November 2006: Wednesday of the 31st Week in Ordinary Time

Luke 14, 25-33: The Tower Builder and the King Going to War

The Gospel today holds with it two stories: the Tower Builder and the King going to war. In itself, these two parables convey a clear meaning: Before undertaking an important project, a person must consider whether he has sufficient resources to carry it out successfully; otherwise he should abandon the project.

First, this applies to life. It is important not to miss the word, necessary. The tower builder and the king both take the necessary steps in order to ensure success. Gawin ang lahat na makakaya. We are therefore not talking about the person who is sigurista; and does not move or dare unless he or she is very sure of success. No, the tower builder and the king do not know the outcome, but they have the graphic earnestness to do all they can in order to finish their plan; they are not paralyzed by the fear of the unknown, but face the challenge headlong and deadset.

Many of us plunge into many things before thinking or planning. As our parents and teachers say, pag-isipan mo muna. This is true. In school, many student leaders embark on a huge, bonggacious project at the beginning of the year, without calculating its necessary cost on themselves and their studies, and end up half-done or partially successful. Many of us when we were young dreamt of big things for ourselves, but because of the lack of proper and necessary assessment of resources, those dreams remained until now just mere dreams. Many have entered into serious relationships such as marriage without necessary preparations. The relationship either goes through rough roads or ends in estrangement, break-ups, and separation. In the marriage ceremony, the minister says that “marriage is not to be entered upon lightly or unadvisedly, but thoughtfully, reverently, and in the fear of God.” Included in the necessary preparation is our emotional and psychological state: are we emotionally ready to commit ourselves to another person?

Second, this applies to discipleship. Thus, just as one should not attempt a plan without having sufficient resources to complete it, but will need to put in everything into it in order to complete the project, so too should the disciple be ever and continually ready to give up what he has in order to follow Jesus. This tells us what we should do before we commit ourselves to God: we need to reflect on our lives whether we are indeed willing to take everything it demands of us. And for most of us who have committed ourselves, we must adopt all necessary measures, be ready to give up everything, rather than back out and find ourselves in the ridiculous position of one who has begun something and is unable to finish it. Might it be possible to focus ourselves on the purpose we wish to serve like a plane that is focused on its destination?

It is like Moses and the Promised Land. We know that Moses never made it to the Promised Land. Though he was able to see it, he died before his people marched into it through the leadership of Joshua. Before I always saw Moses plight as a very sad story of a great leader. You see, I have committed myself to having good grades and acquiring rewards that my parents would be proud of. I worked very, very hard for the things I would like to have and to achieve. I wondered why Moses, after all his hard work, only got to see the Promised Land. All the Israelites got their dream. It was only after I was assigned back to Manila that I realized that Moses did get his dream. You see, when I was sent to Cagayan de Oro, I dreamt of putting up a play where students are able to hone their talents and their skills. Just as I had put up my first school play, I was assigned back here. I did not realized that what I asked of God is this: that I would see my students hone their talents, that they acquire a confidence and appreciation of God’s gifts to them, and that they will be able to share it with others. God did answer my prayers. It was just that I would not be able to put up another play. Moses was a leader, and a leader always had a different dream from the others. Moses’ dream was to see his people free from slavery. Moses saw it happen; I saw my dream happen.

Serving anything worthwhile is a commitment to a direction over time and may require us to relinquish many moment-to-moment attachments, to let go of pride, approval, recognition, or even success. This is true whether we be parents, researchers, educators, artists, or heads of state. Serving life and God may require necessary preparations and faithfulness to purpose that lasts over a lifetime. It is less a work of the ego than a choice of the soul.

The Wedding Banquet

7 November 2006: Tuesday of the 31^st Week in Ordinary Time
Luke 14: 15-24: The Wedding Banquet

In Palestine, when a man plans a party, the date was announced long beforehand and invitations were sent and accepted. But the hour of the party was never announced. When everything was prepared, the servants were sent to the invited guests. Thus, to refuse the invitation on the day itself was a great insult.

The master in the parable is God. God has prepared a banquet for all and promised sinners a seat in the dining table. But the excuses of the guests are as relevant and true today. Like the first man who bought a field and wanted to see it, it is possible that we can be so immersed in our own businesses, our own activities and personal concerns that we forget to pray and to find some time for God. Or like the second who bought five yokes of oxen and wanted to try them out, that new friendships, new hobbies, new possessions can take away what should be kept for God. And finally like the third who just had a wife, that something as beautiful as family can defocus us from the ultimate source of our happiness. We can get caught up with the gifts, and forget the giver.

Second, preparation is indeed very important in the Parable of the Wedding Feast. In Jewish custom, the date of the wedding is announced, but the hour is never announced. This means that the guests are given ample time to prepare for the feast, and that the feast becomes the event of the day. The wedding is therefore special to everyone. It is the highlight and the most significant celebration of all times. And furthermore, the host of the celebration becomes the central figure of their lives. That is why the King threw the man without a wedding garment. Not that garbs are important. It is because what we wear displays our inner disposition. We come to a party in party clothes. We come to mass appropriately dressed to show that the Eucharist is central in our lives. We wear uniforms because we believe in the dignity of education. We garb ourselves in formal wear when we meet somebody important to show our esteem for them. By not wearing a wedding garment, the guest showed that he did not respect the King.

A final word: it is indeed interesting that Jesus thought of the Kingdom in terms of a feast. There is a form of Christianity that is dark and gloomy, a Christianity that takes away the colors from life. There is indeed a danger for most of us to view our religion as a religion of sorrows. We remember our Good Fridays but we forget our Easters. We remember our helplessness but we forget hope. We celebrate because we believe that there is always hope. That there is heaven. Healthy laughter is very Christian. Hope must permeate the very core of our faith. To attend mass is to feast. Conversely, to refuse God’s invitation is to refuse to feast. It is to refuse to celebrate. We Christians should show the world that we are forever at a wedding feast.

*UP-CLC salu-salo in Tagaytay City, 27-28 October 2006

Loving Someone is Simple and Cheap

5 November 2006: 31^st Sunday in Ordinary Time
Deuteronomy 6, 2-6; Psalm 18; Heb 7, 23-28; Mark 12, 28-34

There are two things I want to say about love. These things are simple, almost stating the obvious. But when done, it requires some effort. First, you don’t have to say something to express love. A lot of love-expressions do not involve words. St. Ignatius of Loyola said that love ought to be expressed more in deeds than in words. It is easier to say or text ‘I love you’ but when you are in the middle of a busy week or you just had a fight with your wife, to say ‘I love you’ might come harder, much more so, to do things that express love. One of the commonly expressed difficulties is visiting the sick. I myself find it difficult to start a conversation to a sick person especially when I don’t know them. People come to request for hospital visits for anointing and many them I personally don’t know. Usually we open conversations with “How are you?” --- “Kamusta po kayo?” in Filipino. One time, the patient said, “Isn’t it obvious, Father?” I guess we think that we need to say something. There is a story told by Marcia Schwartz in Guideposts magazine. It’s about a visit to her grandmother in a nursing home:

“Nice you’ve come,” my grandmother whispered weakly from the bed. Just the night before, we had brought her to the nursing home because it not took several people to move her large-boned, crippled body. Her complexion looked pasty in the morning light and her colorless hair was wispy against her pillow. Grandma, always so active, always doing for others. Now her hands lay limp on the sheets --- hands that once served heaps of potatoes and fried chicken on blue willow plates, kneaded bread, patched overalls, gathered eggs, and churned butter.

I shoved my hands into the pockets of my coat. I felt helpless and awkward, not knowing what to say.

Several days later, I went to a doctor for a routine treatment. My three-year-old son stood wide-mouthed with fear and concern as we waited.

“Don’t worry,” I reassured him. “I’m all right."

Then he took my hand and held it quietly in his two small ones. My heart flooded with warmth and thankfulness. And suddenly with my little boy holding my hand, I knew what I would do the very next time I visited my grandmother.

Second, we need people, and thus, we need love. People need people. There is a story about a father who has a three-year-old daughter, who, one night, requested his aid to get her undressed. The father narrated, “I was downstairs and she was upstairs and, I said, ‘Well, I have taught you how to undress yourself’ I reminded her.”

“Yes,” she explained, “but sometimes people need people anyway, even if they do know how to do things by themselves.” As I slowly lowered the newspaper a strong feeling came over me, a mixture of delight, embarrassment, and pride. Delight, in the realization that what I just heard crystallized many stray thoughts on interpersonal behavior; anger, because she stated effortlessly and straightforwardly what I had been struggling with for months and years; and pride, because after all, she is my daughter.”

Many of us think that we have to talk all the time, think of the proper advice to give to our loved ones in moments of difficulty and grief. But a lot of times, they already know what to do and how to handle it. They know that what are lacking are two things that cannot be bought: first, deeds like being held on one’s hands, being embraced, being listened to; and second, being just there. A student of mine when asked, “Why don’t you have a girlfriend?” answered back, “Loving someone is expensive.” I disagreed. Loving some is actually simple and cheap --- just like faith: love God and love neighbor. Nothing else.

The Tension between Trust in God and Reliance on One's Gifts

4 November 2006: Saturday of the 30th Week in Ordinary Time
Luke 14, 1, 7-11: St. Charles Borromeo

The Gospel today teaches us about humility by choosing a simple illustration. If an undistinguished guest arrives early and chooses the top place, and soon after, a distinguished guest arrives and the man who took the top place is asked to step down, the situation will be very embarrassing. On the other hand, if a person who deliberately occupies the lower place, and then is asked to occupy the distinguished place, the humility of the person then gains him all the more honor.

For Filipinos, this is what humility is. We do not occupy the front pews at mass. We do not volunteer ourselves when we all know that the task to be given is very much within our competence. We would rather that others volunteer for us, lest we will appear to be mayabang, or proud. When we come to a party, the hosts has to invite us several times before we raid the buffet table; and pretend not to be too eager to eat. All these things show we are humble though in reality we are foolish.

The key towards humility is to know the facts: that all things come from God. All things are God’s gifts to us. Therefore we do not own what we have. And finally, the key to humility is know God’s gifts and share it with others. However, when should we trust God, and when should we hone our skills? It is indeed a tension between trusting in God, and the use of our talents.

Our life should begin with a trust in God. But it does not end there. It is not easy to keep that primacy before one’s eyes, especially if one has spent a great deal of time and effort in honing skills and imbibing knowledge. You see we might justify our laziness as pure trust in God. It might be easier to forego study and training in order to put all one’s trust in God. One might say: “If I avoid studying and training, then I will not be tempted to take pride in my accomplishments.”

But on the other hand, we need to participate in God’s grace, by honing our skills and talents. In a way, we are to rely on our talents, skills and training. Even if we have prayed several times that the Lord will make you a good singer, but if we ourselves will not practice, we will never become one. To be a good singer, one has to sing. To be a good instrumentalist, one has to practice playing musical instruments. To be a good engineer, one has to study.

Thus, the tensions involved in trusting and God and in one’s talents and insights can only be creative and life-giving if they are present in the person. They say we pray because what we will do is important; our actions can be in tune with God’s intention or not. We want to make sure that our actions are in tune with God’s project; we want to get it right, in other words. So, we pray for god’s light and guidance as we ponder what to do. After we have discerned how to act in tune with God, then we can engage in that action with complete trust in god to bring about what God wants to effect.

The Epistle of Joy

3 November 2006: Friday of the 30^th Week in Ordinary Time
Philippians 1, 1-11: St. Martin de Porres

The city of Philippi in Macedonia was founded in 368 BC by Philip, the father of Alexander the Great, and it is his name that it bears. It was built on an ancient city named Krēnidēs or the Well of Fountains. Surrounding the city were gold and silver mines that made it a commercial center of the ancient world. It was located strategically between Asia and Europe so that everyone who travels between the continents passes through the road to Philippi. It was here that Mark Antony defeated Julius Caesar's assassins, Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus in AD 42, deciding the future of the Roman Empire.

Paul chose cities as great as Philippi to preach the Gospel. Paul reached Philippi in AD 52 in his second journey, and established close friendship with the Philippians than any other church he had visited. Paul had been proud that in his ministry he had never taken any help except from his own hands, except the Philippians. Paul received gifts from them even if he has left them for Thessalonica, Corinth and even when he was in prison in Rome. When they alone remembered him with a gift, Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians which we heard today, “My brethren whom I love and long for, my joy and crown in the Lord” (Phil 1, 1). Paul’s letter to the Philippians had been regarded as the loveliest letter Paul had written, and they called it the Epistle of Joy because the word joy and rejoice recurs a lot of times, perhaps, like the joy that we feel when we remember friends. The point of the letter of Paul to the Philippians then is joy and rejoicing.

This epistle of Paul lists down things that made him happy. First, the joy in prayer (1: 4): the quiet happiness we feel when we pray for those we love and when we are able to teach someone how to pray. For many parents, how did you feel when your children first recited a prayer which you taught them? Do you remember the first time they made the sign of the cross or even call God, Papa Jesus? Second, the joy of faith (1: 25). Christianity makes people happy: it gives peace, love, courage and hope when it is difficult to hope. It makes people live life better and see their sacrifices worthwhile. It gives people the meaning they search for. If Christianity does not make us happy then our faith is not authentic. Third, the joy of seeing fellow Christians together in fellowship (2: 2). We are happy when we see gatherings of people; when friends come together for coffee; when classmates flock together to discuss a difficult topic. When people are together, Christians rejoice. Fourth, there is joy in the news of a loved one (2: 28). Separation and departures are very much part of our lives. Goodbyes mark many of our days. How many times did we rejoice that a loved one who left the country has sent an email that he or she arrived safely? Or the times that after a great movie, one receives a text that he has arrived home and enjoyed your company? The joy of friendship between Paul and Timothy and the Philippians is manifested in Paul’s greeting. Fifth, the joy in a gift (4: 10). This joy is not just in the gift itself, as the thought that we were remembered and that someone cares.

Robert Louis Stevenson suffered poor health from childhood, and he died at 44. But he never allowed his sickness to overpower his spirit. He has a number of things that he does to make his life happy.

1. Make up your mind to be happy. Learn to find pleasure in simple things.
2. Make the best of your circumstances. No one has everything, and everyone has some sorrow mixed in with the gladness of life. The trick is to make the laughter outweigh the tears.
3. Don’t take yourself too seriously. Don’t think that somehow you should be protected from misfortunes that befall other people.
4. Don’t let criticism worry you. You can’t please everybody.
5. Don’t let others set your standards. Be yourself.
6. Do the things you enjoy doing, but don’t go into debt in the process.
7. Don’t cherish enmities. Don’t hold grudges. Hatred poisons the soul.
8. Have many interests. If you can’t travel, read about many places.
9. Don’t spend your life brooding over sorrows or mistakes. Don’t be one who never gets over things.
10. Do what you can for those less fortunate than yourself.
11. Keep busy at something. A very busy person never has time to be unhappy.

So we are left with a question: If Paul has reasons to rejoice, and Robert Stevenson has ways to make him happy, what’s yours?

Feast of All Souls

2 November 2006: All Souls Day

Remembering all the faithful departed in a liturgy can be traced around 988 AD when St. Odile of Cluny came up with a memorial for the dead. Tertullian in the 2^nd century also came up with a liturgy. But only in the 13^th century that Rome approved of the memorial. Since then, we, Christians, have celebrated All Souls Day. The ordo (the book that contains the readings and feasts of the day) tells us that the whole month of November is dedicated to the dead, and thus visitation of the grave as we do on their death anniversaries can be done during this month, especially on November 2^nd. Thus, for many of us who were not able to visit the graves of our loved ones, especially those from the provinces, we may visit them during the month, if not offer prayers, masses and candles for their souls wherever we are.

What does All Souls Day mean for us? Charles Swindol tells us in his book, The Finishing Touch, that when Dan Richardson, an enthusiastic believer in Christ, lost his battle with cancer, the following piece was distributed at his memorial service.

Cancer is limited...

It cannot cripple love,

It cannot corrode faith,

It cannot eat away peace,

It cannot destroy confidence,

It cannot kill a friendship,

It cannot shut out memories,

It cannot silence courage,

It cannot invade the soul,

It cannot reduce eternal life,

It cannot quench the spirit,

It cannot lessen the power of the resurrection.

The practice of visiting the departed and remembering them on All Souls Day illustrate the piece from Dan Richardson. Wives visit their husband’s grave --- or vice versa --- to disprove in the marriage ceremony the phrase till death do us part, is a misnomer: death does not part or destroys love and friendship. Love continues and conquers death. When we visit our loved ones, even perhaps, our ancestors, we say that their spirit literally lives in us --- we get a sprinkling of grandfather’s stubbornness or an aunt’s fashion sense; we get to inherit the courage of a great grandfather. Death cannot eradicate what is in our blood. A few of us would bring pictures of those who passed away and place candles to remember them. With each lighting of a taper or a vigil candle, the memories of their lives flood our minds and we are moved with affection and longing.

When we come to the grave of our loved ones, together with all the others, we are reminded that in death, everyone is equal. The farmer and executive live in the shadow of death; the prize-winner and the pickpocket, the nun and the prostitute, Fernando Poe Jr. and his aide, Ninoy and Marcos, children, teens, and the elderly are not spared from death. The door of the hearse is always open. We may postpone it, or tame it, but death will still be there. It must remind us that on All Souls Day, we are asked to evaluate our lives according to death’s door. That which you cannot bring --- those that obsessed us during our lifetime --- might not be the most important thing in life.

The graveyard reminds us of things that last: love, faith, peace, confidence, friendship, memories, courage, the soul, our spirit are the things that accompany us to eternal life. After the throes of death, the change that happens to all of us is called our resurrection. And the life that follows is forever.