Today’s gospel speaks about the end of time, the Second Coming of Jesus Christ when he predicted the fall of Jerusalem and destruction of its Temple in 70 A.D.
Every coming of Jesus Christ is a day of judgment and salvation, a call to love, love, and love.
When Jesus comes again at the end of time, he won’t be asking us how much money we have but how much do we share?
He won’t be asking us what car do we drive but how we move people with our kindness and warmth?
Jesus will not ask us those questions we are so preoccupied in this life but instead ask us the basic question we have always avoided answering, “how much do you love”?
Everything follows from that question because only those who truly love are the ones willing to suffer and sacrifice, even give life so others may live.
And that is why we have chosen this very poetic song, When It Was Done by the famed American composer Jimmy Webb in 1969 and first recorded by Winter Wanderley that same year.
There are other artists who have covered this beautiful song but Hugo Montenegro’s version is the best, giving it a more ethereal quality despite its poignant character.
It is a story of a man’s love presumably to a very lovely woman he never had the chance to express his feelings because she had been taken by somebody else.
If I could bind your mind to mine in time, to keep you from that world of his If I could change the strangers in your kind, then I’d know where your soul is Then I’d know what song I’d have to sing, to touch that chord within you Then I would weave such wondrous songs, and when it was done, I’d win you
If I could stand with the stars on either hand, and say girl this ain’t the answer If I had been where you’re going, but then I’ll never be no dancer If I was I’d know what step to take, and laugh at what had freed me And smash the great wall down girl, and when it was done, you’d need me
Too late… but the gentleman pins his hopes to the end of time when probably on judgment day he could have the chance to finally have that lovely woman.
If I can face the fate that waits to cast me into shambles And sit across the velvet boards from God then I would gamble And if I could, I’d know what chance to take and before the devil sold you I’d bet my soul against the stars, and when it as done, I’d hold you
Of course, it is all wishful thinking. And that is why – “when all was done” – there’s no more going back because it is judgement day. So let’s do whatever good we can in the here and now where Christ comes again.
Meanwhile, enjoy this lovely piece and shower your loved ones with all the love you now have.
Malaci 3:19-20 ><}}}*> 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12 ><}}}*> Luke 21:5-19
The Wailing Wall of Jerusalem Temple, May 2019.
We are now at the penultimate Sunday of the year as Jesus continues to summarize his teachings today at the Temple area in Jerusalem about his final coming at the end of time.
While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, Jesus said, “All that you see here — the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.” Then they asked him, “Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?” He answered, “See that you not be deceived… “
Luke 21:5-8
On the surface, Jesus seemed like to be a “kill joy” in making those bold assertions about the coming destruction of the Temple while everybody was admiring it. But notice how the people reacted: instead of being worried, they asked when it would happen and what would be the warning signs before it takes place as if it is just an ordinary thing!
“Wala lang…” as the young would say these days. Nothing, duh…?
View of Jerusalem from the Church of Dominus Flevit where Jesus wept upon seeing the city from the Mount of Olives.
St. Luke tells us that before Jesus entered Jerusalem, “he wept over it” at the thought that it would be destroyed and that its enemies would not “leave one stone upon another” (Lk.19: 41-44).
If there is anyone deeply hurt and saddened with the Temple’s destruction, it is not other than Jesus Christ our Lord. He certainly shared the people’s admiration for the Temple which he had also claimed as “my Father’s house” (Lk.2:49) when he was accidentally left behind there by Mary and Joseph when he was 12 years old.
Imagine what Jesus must have felt when he spoke of the destruction of the Temple which is the heart of Jerusalem, the jewel of the city, and most of all, the sign of God’s presence among his chosen people!
There must be something deeper with his warning words of the Temple’s destruction that pertains not only to his people at that time but also to us today.
Wailing Wall of Jerusalem, may 2019.
For the Jews at that time, the destruction of the Temple is the end of the world, the signal of the apocalypse. More than a catastrophe involving the destruction of buildings and almost everything including life, it is judgment day that must not be taken lightly.
It is a day calling for conversion as the prophet Malachi in the first reading reminds us that every coming of God is a day of judgment and salvation.
Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire… But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.
Malachi 3:19-20
Christ had already come and will come again.
This was his promise and this is what he meant at the cleansing of the temple, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up” (Jn.2:19). At his Passion, Death, and Resurrection, Jesus Christ had replaced the old Temple worship with himself!
This is what we celebrate in every Holy Mass, God’s coming to us in Jesus Christ his Son.
Jesus comes in every here and now, and his every coming is a process of destroying our old temple of self to give rise to a new temple in Christ. Our concern need not be about a future date of his Second Coming or specific signs of its fulfillment.
Every day Jesus comes again and the challenge is for us to live authentically as Christians daily and not be bothered about the future. He warns us not to be deceived by all of these apocalyptic predictions and statements.
The key word is conversion, of living in the present. Jesus tells us so many things that can be very frightening and scary because what he wants us to do in preparation for his Second Coming is to love, love, and love.
And to love is to always suffer in Christ, with Christ.
He answered, “See that you not be deceived, for many will come in in my name… Do not follow them! When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end.” Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky. Before all this happens, however, they will seize and persecute you… You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but not a hair of on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives.”
Luke 21:8-19
From I.REDD.IT.
Yes, Jesus will definitely come again at the end of time. Like last Sunday, definitely, there is a resurrection of the dead and life everlasting. But both must be seen in the context of the present time, of the here and now.
When Jesus comes again to judge us at the end of time, he won’t be asking us about the things we have been so preoccupied with in this life like how much money we earn, what car do you drive, or how big is your house?
When Jesus comes again, he will be asking us questions we have always refused to answer in our daily lives like how much have you loved, how much have you sacrificed and suffered for a loved one, or how much have you shared to a stranger?
These are the questions we must be asking ourselves as we near towards the end of the year: how close have I followed Jesus Christ in his Passion and Death so I may be with him in his Resurrection?
May we imitate St. Paul in his second letter to the Thessalonians today to faithfully and calmly fulfill our daily tasks in this life, avoiding being idle for each day is the day of the Lord. Amen.
A friend from the mid-80’s recently invited me for lunch when in the midst of our conversation she asked me how I unwind and take breaks as a priest considering my toxic schedules.
Suddenly, I just felt so light inside being filled with joy when I answered, “good old friends like you”!
We had a hearty laugh together as we remembered those good old days and nights with our other friends, wondering together how far we have all come in life, hurdling all those many struggles of our younger years.
When I was ordained priest in 1998, I promised to “leave behind” my family and relatives as well as friends to give myself totally in serving Jesus Christ among those people entrusted to my care.
I am so glad when I recently found out that I have not really turned away from them when I embraced a lifetime service to God because they have continued to keep me too as friend!
Old friends are always special because they have stood the test of time, standing by our side, believing in us during those many dark nights we have gone through even without us knowing it!
True friends are indeed a treasure especially those we have known and kept over the years because even if we no longer see each other so often or even communicate with them despite the suffocating social media around us, we have remained good friends deep in our hearts.
It is something we mutually feel deep inside for each other because despite our separation from college and from work or residence, we have never grown apart from each other as if there is an invisible thread that links us together.
I used to tell young people in my recollections that friends are always a gift from God. Each friend is unique, each with his/her own strengths and limitations. There are no perfect friends but if we can allow our friendships to have spaces for love and kindness, respect and understanding, mercy and forgiveness, friends can truly be the best gifts we can have in life.
Friends are a gift because they are always wrapped in mystery: the moment we receive them, we really do not know what is in store for us. In a similar manner like the lyrics of a song we loved singing in our daily Masses in the Minor Seminary (high school), friends are “gifts of God to me, who come all wrapped so differently: others so tightly, others so loosely, but wrappings are not the gift.”
Our task in every friendship is to uncover a friend’s “giftedness” to us, something which we cannot change. We can nurture and cultivate our friendships but we cannot force our friends into becoming someone they are not meant to be.
Every friend’s giftedness is from God because every friend is a signpost for us to be closer with God: some eventually become partners in life as husband and wife while others become the bestest of friends as “emotional shock absorbers” or a inspirations to another.
That, my friend, is something we cannot and must not dare alter because as the saying goes, people come to our lives for a reason, for a season, and for love.
Lately I have been seeing – “catching up” – some good old friends. What I like best when we are together is the ability and gift to laugh our hearts out like never before. There is something so deep with old friends laughing together not only with old jokes and anecdotes we cannot forget but also with some new realizations that come with our age.
And we laugh together, we realize we are not alone after all. There is still somebody very much like us, somebody we continue to grow up with, somebody who understands our fears and anxieties because he/she is also going through the same phase in life or have just gone through something similar.
That is why good old friends are the best because despite our long separation, we still find each other traveling, walking through the same path albeit for sometime in parallel manner.
They are the best because good old friends eventually teach us to be more appreciative and grateful with life and with friends who continue to journey with us no matter how slow and cranky we have become.
Cheers to all our old friends! Make time to reach out to them. Your message or text or call could mean so much to them!
Friday, Memorial of St. Albert the Great, 15 November 2019
Wisdom 13:1-9 <*(((>< ><)))*> Luke 17:26-37
A street performer in Tamsui, Taiwan delights tourists and residents alike, January 2019.
How true are these words by Shakespeare and other men of letters: we have all to be careful because not all that is shiny and impressive is valuable.
Looks can always be deceiving that we must always probe deeper until we find the Ultimate Good, God.
For they search busily among his works, but are distracted by what they see, because the things seen are fair. But again, not even these are pardonable. For if they so far succeeded in knowledge that they could speculate about the world how did they not more quickly find its Lord?
Wisdom 13:7-9
From Google.
May the Universal Doctor, St. Albert the Great, guide us and enlighten our minds and our hearts to seek first Jesus Christ in the most Holy Eucharist “because it bestows the fullness of grace on us in this life” (Breviary, November 15, commentary by St. Albert the Great on the gospel of St. Luke).
I also thank you Most Sweet Jesus on this day as we celebrate our 22nd anniversary of ordination as Deacons. I still remember the great fear and fright I felt thinking of the immense responsibilities as a Deacon in preparation to our ordination to the Priesthood.
And yes, Lord Jesus, there were many occasions since then until now when we are blinded by so many shining things in the ministry that are not really you nor the Father.
Send us your Holy Spirit that we may seek you always and follow you by lovingly serving others in your name. Amen.
We keep on searching for so many things in this life to make us more “upwardly mobile” in life: knowledgeable and affluent, healthy and everything.
Nice.
But in our pursuits, we miserably fail becoming better persons for eventually, everything ends up with about money and material things, prestige and fame.
We forget you, O God who is Wisdom beyond compare.
For Wisdom is mobile beyond all motion, and she penetrates and pervades all things by reason of her purity.
Wisdom 7:24
Let us find you right here in our hearts, in Christ Jesus who had come to dwell within us. Amen.
Nasaan na mga liham ng ating mga samahan at pagkakaibigan na ngayo'y napalitan ng maramihang balanang kaisipan at mga larawan pati katatawanan?
Walang umiiral na ugnayan bagkus mga palitan at pasahan na lamang ng sari-saring nararanasan at nararamdaman; mabuti kung iyong masasakyan maski mga kababawan.
Iba pa rin ang karanasang mararamdaman na higit mapagyayaman ng sino mang sumusulat at tumatanggap ng liham mula kay Mister Postman.
Maraming kabutihan at mga kagandahan ginagawa nating usapan sa pamamagitan ng internet kagaya ng e-mail, messenger at viber na sadya namang super ang bilis.
Ngunit kailanman hindi kayang palitan ng mga makabagong pagsusulatan ating kinagawiang mga liham na laging kinasasabikan, inaabangan.
Hindi agad binubuksan mga kamay pinupunasan at baka marumihan mamantsahan tinanggap na liham mula sa kanino man na turing ay isang kaibigan.
Itong pagsusulat maging pagtanggap ng liham maituturing nating ritwal ng ating pagkakaibigan: walang minamadali bawat sandali kinakandili pilit pinanatili sana'y kapiling kang lagi.
Nakakahinayang itong kaugalian ng pagliham napalitan, pati ating pagkakaibigan, mga ugnayan tila nakalimutan; balikan mga lumang liham nasaan hindi ba't nakatago, iniingatan upang basahin, sariwain, palalimin ating samahan?
Altar of the Carmelite Monastery, Guiguinto, Bulacan, 12 November 2019.
Lord Jesus Christ, forgive us when most of the time we are more like the nine other lepers you have healed than the lone Samaritan who returned to thank you.
How easily we could forget your goodness and kindness to us!
Worst, when we are strong and powerful, in total control of almost everything in life, we deliberately forget that we share only in your authority.
Let us heed your reminder today:
Hear, O kings, and understand; learn, you magistrates of the earth’s expanse! Hearken, you who are in power over the multitude and lord it over throngs of peoples! Because authority was given you by the Lord and sovereignty by the Most High, who shall probe and scrutinize your counsels!
Wisdom 6:1-3
May we come out clean and pure before you in our exercise of your power and authority. Amen.
Tuesday, Memorial of St. Josaphat, 12 November 2019
Wisdom 2:23-3:9 ><)))*> ><)))*> ><)))*> Luke 17:7-10
Our altar at St. John Evangelist Parish, 12 Nov. 2019.
Let your mystery embrace me, Lord.
Better, let me be wrapped in your mystery, Lord!
So many times, I have always tried to analyze everything – myself, my life, including you, O God.
And I have realized that most of the time, this is because I cannot trust you completely.
I am afraid of being lost, of being hurt, of failing.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth, and the faithful shall abide with him in love; because grace and mercy are with his holy ones, and his care is with his elect.
Wisdom 3:9
Dearest God, help me to live life, instead of analyzing it.
Reflect on its wonder and mystery but eventually, let me be wrapped in their beauty despite its incomprehensibility, knowing you will never abandon me.
Remind me always that I am just like “the unprofitable servants” of the Gospel today who does what we are obliged to do. No need to please or be affirmed by anybody for you alone is our life.
Give us the courage, Jesus, to be like St. Josaphat to strive working for unity in ourselves, in you and with one another. Amen.
St. Josephat (+1623) was an Orthodox bishop who worked hard to unify the Ukrainian Church and Rome for which he was attacked and shot to death by local fanatics while he was praying. We pray for his intercession this coming 2020 dedicated by the CBCP as the year of ecumenism and inter-religious dialogue in preparation of our 500th year of Christianization in 2021.
Lawiswis ng Salita ni P. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Ika-11 ng Nobyembre 2019
Larawan mula sa Google.
Madalas ilarawan itong dakilang kawal ng Diyos si San Martin ng Tours sa France hinahati kanyang kapa upang bihisan dukhang matanda nakasalubong sa daan.
Kinagabihan kanyang napanaginipan Panginoong Hesus sa kanyang paanan tangan-tangan kapang ipinahiram sa matandang tinulungan.
Ito ang katuparan ng Ebanghelyong sa atin ibinalita mismo ni Hesus na ano man ang ating gawin sa kapwa natin siyang ginagawa din natin sa kanyang Panginoon natin.
Kapilya ng Santisimo Sakramento sa UP-Diliman. Kuha ni Bb. JJ Jimeno ng GMA7 News, 2019.
Kay gandang pagnilayan isa pang aral nitong kapa ni Martin na Banal: lingid sa kaalaman ng karamihan, dito rin nagmula kataga ng pook na munting dasalan.
Sinasabi sa kasaysayan, noong bagong Kristiyano si Martin kanyang iniiwan mga tauhan para manalangin sa kagubatan; hinuhubad kanyang kapa upang makapanalangin ng taimtiman.
Kaya tuwing siya ay hahanapin, tanging tutuntunin saan nakasampay o nakalagay hinubad niyang kapa, na kanilang tinuring sa wikang Frances na "chapelle" na naging chapel, o kapilya sa wika natin.
Ang “Ecce Homo” ni Murillo. Larawan mula sa Google.
Hindi ba natin pansin itong Panginoong Hesus natin nang siya ay dumating sa atin hinubad kanyang pagkadiyos upang makatulad natin, matubos sa mga pagkakasala natin?
Hari ng mga hari, tunay na makapangyarihan ngunit nang nilibak sinuutan ng purpurang kapa, pinutungan ng koronang tinik at hindi umimik hanggang makamit kaligtasan natin.
Kay sarap pagbulaybulayan halimbawang iniwan sa atin nitong si San Martin: ating kapa ng kapangyarihan at pangalan ating hubarin upang ang Diyos ay ating makamit at siya ay makatulad natin.
Thank you for our jobs, thank you for our schools, thank you for the food and clothes we have.
Thank you very much for the gift of self and most especially for the gift of others.
Unfortunately, O Lord, they are the ones we always hurt with our painful words, and yes, with all sorts of profanities.
If our words were like swords or clubs, or even at least like thorns of the cactus, everyone of us would be beaten black and blue or worst, mangled.
For wisdom is a kindly spirit, yet she acquits not the blasphemer of his guilty lips; because God is the witness of his inmost self and the sure observer of his heart and the listener to his tongue. For the spirit of the Lord fill the world, is all embracing, and knows what man says.
Wisdom 1:6-7
Bless us today, Lord, to be like St. Martin of Tours who always spoke with humility and gentility, full of wisdom and kindness to everyone. Most of all, bless us to be like him to see you Lord among everyone and treat them with respect and dignity always.
Fill us with your wisdom, Lord, especially our public figures that they may never let speak evil of anyone and be an occasion of sin as you warned in the gospel today.
Help us to bring back decency and kindness especially in our language for indeed, “from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Mt. 12:34).
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