After celebrating the Sunday Mass, try watching “The Day After Valentine’s” starring Bela Padilla and JC Santos, the same tandem behind last year’s “Isang Daang Tula Para Kay Stella” both directed by Jason Paul Laxamana.   Without telling you the story, there are three beautiful things in the film that perfectly fit it with the final episode of Jesus Christ’s “bread of life discourse” we have been reflecting these past five Sundays:  first, the mystery and power of words, then the wounds and scars we all have in life, and finally, the temptation to walk away from our loved ones or to abandon a cause or a belief.

            Like in most romantic films, Lani (Bella) and Kai (JC) accidentally fell in love with each other.  Both are very interested with “Baybayin”, the ancient Filipino alphabet which they used to express many of their thoughts and feelings.  Both also have scars in their bodies:  Kai in his arm that are self-inflicted following his breakup with his last girlfriend and Lani on her whole back due to physical abuse by her own father while still a child.  And there lies the twist in the film:  Kai sought ways of erasing his physical scars and healing his inner pains that eventually led him back home in Hawaii to reunite with his family while Lani, on the other hand, kept her scars to herself, never allowing anyone to see or know them that made her ran away from home.

            Now, the gospel:  Many of Jesus’ disciples who were listening said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?”  Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, “Does this shock you?  What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?  It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail.  The words I have spoken are Spirit and life.  But there are some of you who do not believe.”  As a result of this, many of his disiciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.  Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?”  Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  we have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”(Jn.6:60-64,66-69)

            For the past four weeks, John has been telling us how the people were murmuring and then quarrelling among themselves over the words of Jesus in His bread of life discourse.  All along these commotions, the disciples of the Lord have been silent until today.  There were two groups of followers of Jesus:  the Twelve who composed His inner circle known as the Apostles and the other 72 referred to as disciples who have been following Him for some time.  For the first time in five weeks since the feeding of 5000, they would be expressing their unbelief in Christ’s words that eventually led to their walking away from Him along with the rest of the crowds.  Only the Twelve would remain with Jesus.

            In the film “The Day After Valentine’s”, Lani and Kai spelled out some significant words into “baybayin” like “paghihilom” or healing.  It is the usual problem with words that are easier said or written than done and proven in actions.  Like Lani and Kai, the disciples at Capernaum and us today, we all have a hard time living up to our words’ meaning and realities.  It is always so easy to say yes, to commit and pledge our love and support in words but when things get tough and rough, we back out and go back to our former way of life.  Sometimes, we really do not mean what we say for they are merely words, words, and words.  It is so different with God whose words are His realities that He only had to speak to create everything.  His very name in the words “I Am Who Am” is Himself, perfect.  Most of all, when He sent us His Son to save us, that was exactly the name given Him, Jesus, which means “God is my savior”.  As the Word who became flesh, Jesus revealed to us how much God loves us not only by speaking to us words of Spirit and life but fulfilling these on the Cross on Good Friday.  He had shown us that more than the indication of our thoughts and feelings, communication at its most profound level is the giving of self in love.  Here we find the great value of silence, especially during times of suffering and pain.  Silence is more than being quiet, but being open to God’s words in the scriptures and in our hearts to let its meaning and realities be fulfilled in us.  The crowd gathered with Jesus at Capernaum these past five Sundays have been murmuring and quarrelling over His bread of life discourse, refusing to allow His words to permeate them that they eventually left Him.  Just like us, not only with God but with our loved ones.

            Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, “Does this shock you?  What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?”  I love this part in the gospel which I also remembered at the end of “The Day After Valentine’s” when Lani visited her parents’ gravesites.  After laying flowers on them, Lani took off her shawl to finally expose her scarred back.  She then sat on the ground, looked into the horizon with the camera at her back zooming out until she is framed at the middle between the two crosses of her father and mother’s tombs like the crucified Jesus.  The scene was very symbolic, and shocking.  Seeing the scars on her back, one could imagine the terrible ordeal Lani had gone through from an abusive father, the shocking truth now happening in many families.

            Here at the end of the bread of life discourse, Jesus is asking us to stay, to remain in Him amid all the pains and sufferings of life for only Him can truly heal us and lead us to fullness of life.  This was the challenge posed by Jesus to the crowd at Capernaum and with us today when He spoke of His moment of death when He is “lifted up on the Cross”, His ascending to where He was before.  Christ’s crucifixion remains the most shocking scandal of all time when the all-powerful God was put to death in the most shameful manner.  This we make present in every celebration of the Holy Mass, when we reaffirm to Him like the people with Joshua at Shechem that we choose to stay and serve the Lord our God (Josh.24:18).  Staying with Jesus means taking concrete steps to prevent and stop all forms of human abuses especially against children and women.  But it requires patience on our part too.  There are no shortcuts that could only worsen the situation like retribution and executions.  The more wounds we inflict, the more healing becomes elusive.  Remain in Jesus, stay with Him.  After so many experiments, we realize deep inside like Simon Peter that there is no one else to go to except Jesus who has the words of eternal life.  Like Peter, we have to believe Jesus despite our many disillusions in life, in family, and with the Church, His Body.  By remaining in Christ, taking the painful path of believing and trusting Him to overcome disillusions, we can enter into joy when life finally blooms to its fullest meaning in love.  Too often, there is the temptation to always leave, to go back to our previous life of pains and darkness away from God and others.  Amen. Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Parokya ni San Juan Apostol at Ebanghelista, Gov. F. Halili Ave., Bagbaguin, Sta. Maria, Bulacan 3022

*Photo by Fr. Nick F. Lalog II, Sacred Heart Novitiate in Novaliches, 04 July 2018.