Colossians 1:15-20 ><}}}*> ><}}}*> ><}}}*> Luke 5:33-39
Photo by Ms. Jo Villafuerte, Atok, Benguet, 01 September 2019.
Brothers and sisters, Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible… all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. For in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile all things for him, making peace by the Blood of his cross through him whether those on earth or those in heaven.
Colossians 1:15-16, 17, 19-20
What a lovely hymn in your honor, O Lord Jesus Christ! Truly in you we have experienced and proven indeed there is a God who loves us so much, and most of all, a personal God who relates with us, engages himself with us, one with us.
What a wonderful way to celebrate the first Friday of September 2019, a week of praying for important virtues we have forgotten in this modern world like the need to console those alone, to encourage so others may be whole again as a person, to be grateful for the person not the favor received, and to have knowledge to see God in everything by embracing the truths of faith.
In this age when God is just posited as a footnote in our daily lives, as a safety feature just in case things get off-hand or bad, you remind us to draw to you closer than ever in prayers, the Eucharist, and most of all, in fasting — something modern men and women frown upon and totally disregard.
Give us the grace O Lord Jesus to empty ourselves, to create a space within us for you to stay and dwell, and reign most of all.
We live today in the most trying times: everybody wants to be in control of everything, everybody wants to be heard and be seen alone as right with their twisted points of view about life and realities.
Bless us, Jesus, to find our way back to you, to be one with you again for you are the very reason why we are here. You are not just a person who had lived in the past we remember but the very reason of creation and redemption in whom the fullness of God is found. Amen.
Photo by Ms. Jo Villafuerte, Atok, Benguet, 01 September 2019.
Brothers and sisters: From the day we heard this, we do not cease praying for you and asking you that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, so as to be fully pleasing, in every good work bearing fruit and growing in the knowledge of God.
Colossians 1:9-10
Once again, you struck me today Lord through St. Paul’s letter to pray for another important grace we badly need these days — “knowledge”.
In this age of Google and Wikipedia, we have taken the gift of knowledge for granted, confusing it with information that often has no meaning and depth. As a result, we have “smart phones” and stupid people who justify everything without any qualms and sense of self-respect and decency!
Remind us, Lord, that knowledge is more than being reasonable and logical; knowledge is embracing the truths of faith, of seeing you in everything.
Like Simon Peter, bless us Lord with the gift of knowledge to enable us to make right judgments regarding earthly things and how they are related with eternal life and holiness.
Like Simon Peter, may we learn to set aside our human knowledge and expertise to take the leap of faith in casting the net into the deep upon your instructions after a night of catching nothing.
What a great gift of knowledge you have given Simon that day when he realised you are “Lord” and he is a “sinful man” (Lk. 5:8). Most of all, in obeying instructions from a carpenter like you, Lord!
Fill us with your knowledge, Lord, to realise the truth of Albert Einstein’s words that “everything in this life is a miracle”! Amen.
Colossians 1:1-8 ><)))*> ><)))*> ><)))*> Luke 4:38-44
Photo by Ms. Jo Villafuerte, Atok, Benguet, 01 September 2019.
Heavenly Father, I always thank you in my prayers. Early in life, I have been told to always say “thank you” and I have diligently kept that, always thanking people especially you for your goodness to me.
But, now I wonder if I have been “thanking” so much without being truly grateful?
There are “thank you’s” that come from lips and there are “thank you’s” that come from the heart which is what gratitude is all about. So often, I say “thank you” out of habit without really looking into the heart, the goodness of the one doing or giving me a favor. Too often, I thank for the thing or favor, not the person.
“We always give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jess and the love that you have for all the holy ones because of the hope reserved for you in heaven.”
Colossians 1:3-5
How lovely it is to dwell on St. Paul’s expression of his gratitude, his thanksgiving that is clearly directed to persons – including you, O God!
Like the people of Capernaum where you have healed Simon’s mother-in-law and others, they saw your person to thank that they begged you to stay in their town.
Remind me always, Lord, that whenever I say “thank you”, I may first try to feel the heart and experience the goodness of the person doing me good for a grateful heart always sees the loving face. Amen.
Tuesday, Memorial of St. Gregory the Great, 03 September 2019
1 Thessalonians 5:1-6, 9-11 ><)))*> ><)))*> Luke 4:31-37
Photo by Jo Villafuerte, Atok, Benguet, 31 August 2019.
“For God did not destine us for wrath, but to gain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live together with him. Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, as indeed you do.”
1 Thessalonians 5:9-11
Dearest God our Father: Yesterday your words moved me to pray for consolation, to accompany those “alone”. Today, your words call me to “encourage one another and build up one another.”
How beautiful and wonderful indeed are your words, so powerful and fulfilling, indicating your very presence!
In this highly competitive world, it is not enough that we encourage people but also to build them up. From the Latin words “en” and “cor”, literally meaning to hearten or strengthen the heart, there are times that encouragement without community can be misleading and even destructive too.
Encouragement is going within every person, right into one’s heart like in your Son’s exorcism of a man possessed by “unclean demon” who “left the man without harming him” (Lk.4:35). From the heart, true encouragement moves outward to touch others’ hearts to form a community. Every time you heal the sick, Lord, people are moved to build up their families and community.
Encouragement is not pushing people to do and achieve things. Encouragement is bringing others closer to you through Jesus Christ our Lord. It is actually Jesus Christ who encourages for it is him alone who touches hearts and moves them to build up a person, families, and communities.
Like your servant St. Gregory the Great he encouraged not only Christians but also pagans to work for unity and to pursue so many efforts that built up not only persons and families, nations and tribes, monasteries and churches but most of all, an entire civilization now slowly turning away from you.
Fill us with more courage and wisdom, holiness and patience in encouraging one another to build up communities as we await for your joyful coming again. Amen.
1Thessalonians 4:13-18 ><)))*> ><)))*> Luke 4:16-30
Yvoire, France. Photo by Fr. Gerry Pascual, August
“Therefore, console one another with these words.”
1 Thessalonians 4:18
Today, O Lord, I felt your words fulfilled in my hearing.
When St. Paul reminded the Thessalonians in the first reading of your resurrection and of your second coming any time, I felt a dash of hope and sense of joy within because I feel no longer alone because you are with me.
How sad, O Lord, that despite our many advancements in the sciences and technology, we are still alone, fragmented as a people where nobody seem to care at all with one another, always moving, going places, refusing to even stay in one place anymore.
Sometimes, our words are alienating than consoling.
From the ancient language of Latin, help us reflect on the true meaning of to console which is from “con” or with, and, “solare” for alone that together literally mean “to accompany someone alone” or to be with somebody who is alone.
We are no longer alone, Lord, in your presence especially in your words and the Eucharist. Problem is, like your own folks, we always abandon you, leave you alone or worst, even drive you out of our homes for various reasons.
Help us to console, to accompany those alone, by sharing your words of life by giving life to your words to those around us especially the sick, those going through many challenges in life, and those abandoned by family and friends and society.
Let us come to you, welcome you instead of driving you away. Amen.
The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Music, 01 September 2019
Showa Kinen National Park, Japan. Photo by Dra. Mai Dela Pena, 2016.
“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Luke 14:11
Our gospel this Sunday is very timely as our headlines lately with the case of a transgender insisting on using the female toilet. Immediately, politicians jumped into the controversy for the media mileage without really reflecting more on its nature.
And the sad part of it all is perfectly hit again by our gospel today: when people choose places of honour, the more the disadvantaged members of the society are pushed to the margins.
“Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Luke 14:13-14
It is for this reason we have chosen Cyndi Lauper’s 1986 hit “True Colors” written by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. The song was covered by Phil Collins in 1998 with a more jazzy beat which I prefer than the original.
Since its release, True Colors has become the unofficial music of the gay community especially with its message of showing one’s true colors.
But here we find the beauty of music that is always an expression of love, of what is good and true. True Colors speak so well of the gospel today which is about building our relationships with God and with others that starts with self-acceptance.
Jesus assures us that we all have “assigned seats” here on earth and in heaven; we simply have to accept who we really are for that is when we grow, when his grace and mercy work. True Colors is not about insisting on gays’ rights or the use of female toilets. It is about the gospel truth of accepting who we really are.
When Jesus said those who exalt themselves shall be humbled and those who humble themselves shall be exalted means be who you are and be your best self. If you are a father or a mother, be the best father or mother. If you are a priest, be the holiest priest. If you are a docotor, be the best doctor. If you are a husband or a wife, a brother or a sister, be your best self. If you are a male, be man enough to be your true self. If you are a female, be the loveliest woman.
In the end, everything and each one of us will be falling into our right places. No need to alter our bodies and everything just to insist who we really are.
And when we have become our true selves and better selves, that is when we are able to give ourselves to others in loving service.
See, when we choose other seats than those assigned to us and become an “epal” like most politicians, that is when we lost touch with those really in need among us. That is when we forget about humility which is being truthful to our very selves. It is only in being truthful to our selves can we truly be free to love and serve others to start building on our true relationships as brothers and sisters in Christ.
Instead of going to anybody for our concerns and problems, it is always best to come to Jesus always. And that starts right in our hearts first where we find our true colors, our true value as persons so loved by God inspite and despite of everything.
While praying over today’s gospel during the week, I came across this photo of Ms. Rosa Parks in my Facebook feed saying something like, “Rosa Parks made a stand for her rights by refusing to give up her seat in a bus 60 years ago.”
I love the caption and the play of words of the photo that convey the same message of our Sunday gospel: it is not where we seat but where we stand that matters most.
On a sabbath, Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully. He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table.
Luke 14:1, 7
For the next three Sundays beginning today while Jesus resolutely decided to journey to Jerusalem, he will be teaching us with some “table talks” as he spoke about the heavenly banquets as expressions of God’s vast ocean of mercy where everyone is welcomed. But, more than lessons on table manners and etiquette, Jesus is also teaching us of finding our own places in his kingdom here on earth where everybody is welcomed just like in heaven.
Key to appreciating our gospel today is found in the first reading:
My child, conduct your affairs with humility, and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts. Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find favor with God.
Sirach 3:17-18
From Google.
Remember that very central in the teaching of Jesus is the need to be like a child when he would always remind us that “unless you become like a child, you will never inherit the kingdom of heaven.” Being like a child is being humble and obedient, being open to learning new things that are all necessary in building relationships that lead to communion with God and with others. Heaven is the perfect communion of God and everyone but it has to start here on earth among us.
Jesus lived at a time when society and people were so fragmented, just like now. Everybody feels being entitled to heaven and on earth, to every position and honor everywhere even in the church.
While at a sabbath dinner hosted by a Pharisee, Jesus took the occasion to teach the people of the need to be humble to be accepted anywhere. According to St. Teresa of Avila, humility is walking in truth. Humility is being real!
“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Luke 14:11
Photo by Jim Marpa, 2018.
Jesus is telling us that for his grace and mercy to truly work on us, we have to be really who we are. In this age when life has been replaced with lifestyle and people have usurped the power and authority of God as well as the natural order of things, everybody feels entitled to everything insisting on their rights forgetting their responsibilities. Homosexuality is not a sin; what is sinful are homosexual acts. The challenge is for the person to accept his/her true self as a beloved child of God doing his/her best to be the bestest person. No need to alter one’s body nor be somebody else he/she is not. Homosexuality is not about insisting on something just for the sake of insisting or making a statement for one’s self regardless of others like in the use of toilets. We have a Tagalog expression that perfectly captures the Lord’s lesson, “lumagay ka sa dapat mong kalagyan”. Loosely translated, it means simply be where you are supposed to be.
Last Wednesday we celebrated the memorial of St. Augustine, one of the most famous and colorful saints of the Church. His life is a gospel in itself, showing us that nobody is too late to change and be a better person. Most of all, nothing is too late for God. Like St. Augustine, we must first accept who we are, be humble for our weaknesses for it is only when we accept that we start to grow and everything follows like acceptance by others. How can we expect others to accept us if we cannot accept first our very selves? This is the most beautiful mark of humility of children that make them so irresistible to adults: they have no guile, all-natural and no plasticity or synthetic fronts to be loved and appreciated.
More than table manners and etiquette, Jesus is teaching us that if we can be humble and accept who we are, we can definitely find our place in the kingdom of God, here on earth and in heaven. God loves us so much he has a plan for each on of us if we play our roles wholeheartedly. We will never experience his mercy and grace unless we become humble.
Photo by Reuters, 2018.
“Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Luke 14:13-14
To further ensure the lesson of his parable about each of us having a place in his kingdom here on earth, Jesus reminds us too while in the context of his sabbath dinner that for us to be able to establish a more humane society, we have to guard against stereotypes of peoples that we tend to box them into categories.
Jesus is asking us to radically change our prevailing social mores, suggesting a very different value-system in the here-and-now kingdom of God. Far from the cries of the communists for a classless society, Jesus tells us to see the value of every person rather than focusing on the few powerful, wealthy, and influential people we always deal with in exchange of so many favors.
It is a patronage system so prevalent everywhere especially in politics and in our social relationships like the compradazo system of getting ninong and ninang who are rich and famous to get influence and other perks and rewards. It is so unfortunate that some clergymen are so guilty of this that the Church’s credibility has eroded so much for the mistakes and sins of a few.
In this manner of patronage system, the poor and the weak are always left out to the margins, forgotten and even disregarded. What kind of Christianity do we have when we are so concerned with Christmas carols and counting the days before Christmas and be oblivious to the plight of the farmers and fishermen?
Lorenzo Atienza, June 2019.
What Jesus is telling us today is that those who have less in life should have more of God because, truly in the end, they are the ones who shall be exalted!
In these parable and admonition by Jesus, St. Luke our guide these Sundays is not only giving us an advice on how to prepare for the end times but also on how to live according to the Lord’s vision of a just and humane society in our imperfect world.
We in the Church play a very vital role in bringing about this change by witnessing the gospel that often brings about a reversal of fortunes in the end.
The author of the Letter to the Hebrews reminds us that the ultimate goal of our Christian life is communion with God made possible by Christ’s offering of himself on the Cross. Do our Sunday Mass celebrations and Parish set-ups witness to the gospel values of a just and a humane city of God here on earth?
Lauterbrunnen Valley, Switzerland. Photo by Fr. Gerry Pascual, August 2019.
This is the will of God, your holiness: that you refrain from immorality.
1 Thessalonians 4:3
On this last Friday of August while so many people today await September for their silly Christmas countdown and carols, I pray, Lord, that we may value your call to holiness which is simply to become wise and practical, of staying out of troubles by being close to you.
How absurd that while everybody is so eager for Christmas, nobody is interested with its message and essence of being like you, of being holy and divine that is now more doable since your Son Jesus Christ became human like us.
Teach us, Lord, to be wise like those five virgins in your parable today.
To be wise and holy is first of all to be “reasonable”, that is, to always search and follow and stand by what is true. In this age of fake news and misplaced nationalism and rights, it has become so normal to be carried away by emotions, totally disregarding facts and reason.
Secondly, teach us O Lord to be orderly in our living, not only in “decluttering” our rooms and drawers of so many trash but most especially our very being. Where there is reason, there is always order. Chaos and disorder, confusions and mess happen when we become unreasonable as we fail to see the more essential things in life.
Last but not least, Lord, give us the gift of vision of the future which is always a result of being reasonable and orderly in life. Not just the gift of sight, O Lord which is a mere ability to see things. Grant us vision which is the grace to see beyond time and physical realities, to project and work on the future now.
The wise virgins have vision that they brought extra oil as they have anticipated the delay in the arrival of the groom; the other virgins were foolish because they lived only in the present, on what is physical just like most of us today. Amen.
Today, O Lord, I pray for my hardening heart. I have a festering anger deep in my heart against some people who have hurt me. And I am harboring a grudge against them like Herodias, the mistress of Herod.
Herodias harbored a grudge against John the Baptist and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so. She had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday, gave a banquet for is courtiers, his military officers, and the leading men of Galilee. Herodias’s own daughter came in and performed a dance that delighted Herod and his guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you.” So she went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the Baptist.”
Mark 6:19, 21-22, 24
What is so shameful, O Lord, like Herodias, I want to have the heads of those people. I want to get even with the pains they have inflicted against me. I want revenge.
But more shameful, Lord Jesus, is, unlike Herodias, I have not done anything wrong against these people. And no amount of pain can justify my grudge, my anger, my hatred against them.
This is what makes it more painful with me: the festering anger in my heart is slowly poisoning my soul, my very being.
Teach me, Jesus, to bear all pains like John the Baptist, suffering for you, suffering with you.
Give me the courage and strength to “gird my loin” as you told the Prophet Jeremiah so I may be able to control myself and be on guard against becoming like Herodias or, worst, Herod, who beheaded John in prison.
Let me rise above my instincts and feelings to be not like the evil doers and fake people who fight and malign me because you have assured me that they will never prevail over me, that you will deliver me for you are always with me. Amen.
“The Severed Head of John the Baptist”, a sculpture by the French artist Auguste Rodin in 1875. This is probably a representation of a guillotined criminal’s head during that time. From Google.
1 Thessalonians 2:9-13 ><)))*> ><)))*> Matthew 23:27-32
O God our loving Father! Today we celebrate the feast of one of your greatest saints of all time, St. Augustine.
His life story itself is a gospel, a good news of your love and mercy, of your salvation in Christ Jesus!
It is never too late to love you, O Lord, for our hearts are restless until they rest on you!
Like the song of the psalmist today, “You have searched me and you know me, O Lord” that despite my many sins, my great pride, you patiently wait for me to go back to you like St. Augustine.
In him, we have found hope and and chances to be become better and holy.
Like St. Augustine, give us the gift of humility of accepting our humanity, our weaknesses and sinfulness to be converted into better persons.
Like St. Augustine, may we use our intelligence for your greater glory and not for our selfish ends and other evils.
Most of all, purify our hearts always that it may always seek you and follow you. Amen.
Funeral of St. Augustine by Bennozo Gozzoli at Florence. At the time of his death, St. Augustine was a towering figure in the Church and the entire Western world at that time with his hundreds of letters, treatises and books that shaped our thoughts and provided foundations for our many doctrines still very much in use these days.
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