Peace! Kalilintad! Shalom!

Author: A Dose of God Today

  • THE POWER OF LESS

    THE POWER OF LESS

    July 25, 2021 – 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/072521.cfm)

    Our gospel today is surely something familiar and already known to us all. How could we miss one of the best stories of Jesus’ miracles ever told?  All four gospel evangelists (Matthew, Mark, Luke & John) have each own version of the story of this miracle. However one call this miracle-story – whether as “the multiplication of loaves & fishes”, or “the feeding of the multitude, these unique versions & diverse interpretations share the same plot.

    Basically it is about Jesus & His disciples with crowds of people gathered & now stranded in a far-distant mountain field, perhaps already during midday. Concerned about the people, Jesus ask his disciples for resources to tend & feed these multitude of people. With the less food-resources that they can collect & muster, Jesus instructed the disciples to organize people into small groups, took & blessed the less that they got, and have it broken & shared to the groups. People began to share what they got & have to each other, that in effect, had each other & one-another fed. And eventually made all filled & satisfied, and even able to garner twelve basketful of left-overs. Crisis-solved. Five thousand men (perhaps including or excluding women & children) were fed. A miracle happens. All are happy. Jesus saves the day.

    Perhaps there is more to the story than we may realize. Somehow the story have more lessons now to teach us than it has taught us before & always. Perhaps, we can learn here something about the Power of Less.

    What can Less do to All? What & how can the only Less we can have contribute for many (if not for all)? Ano at Paano ang magagawa ng kakaunti para sa karamihan at kalahatan? We may have something, but how it can help all? Like the man in our first reading, we also raised the practical question: “How can I set this (20 barley loaves & fresh grain) set up for a hundred people?” And somehow like the disciples, common sense tells us that “200 days’ wages worth of food is not enough for each of them to have a little.” And somehow in our pandemic times, we ponder: What & how can my little inconveniences (like wearing mask, face shield, quarantine, social distancing, or vaccine) can contribute in healing our infected & life-threatening world?

    Somehow our condition and reality of LESS may bring us to these realizations.

    First, with less resources, we come to grip with our vulnerability. Suddenly, we come to experience how poor, fragile, limited, dependent & needy we are & we can  be. When we get what we want & have what we need – Fast, easy, accessible, instant & convenient life gives  us an illusion of power, independence & invulnerability in life. But when resources are scarce & abilities are limited, we are humbled to realize our own poverty & neediness.

    With such humility, second, we begin to be thankful & to make the best of what we already have. We become “madiskarte sa buhay”. We learn to cope & live with what less resources we have. We get to know what is enough from what is too much. We know now what is essential & important things in life as well as what we can live & do without. In other words, with less, we become resilient as well as resourceful.

    Third, with less, we are moved to feel with & feel for one another. As we become conscious of our own poverty & our little resources, we come to empathize & sympathize with one another, and we try to help & contribute what little we have with others. In our gospel, Jesus did not only make a miracle of feeding the people. He also makes an example & witness of sharing the little we have with others. What meant to be a relief operation of feeding the people, now turned-out to be an agape, salu-salo because what they have received & got is also shared with others & one another. Less makes us kind & compassionate with one another.

    And yet still, fourth, less makes us rely on the help of others & trust in God’s mercy. In our poverty & humility, we come to realize that without God, we can do nothing. On our own we cannot live. We need God & each other to be & live in a much better & meaningful life.

    LESS can be powerful. It can humbly render us poor, bring us to resiliency & resourcefulness, make us kind & compassionate to share with others, and above all, impels us to rely & trust in God and one another. Though not much, LESS can make a BIG DIFFERENCE in life.

    Perhaps some of us are familiar with the 2007 comedy movie entitled: “Evan Almighty”. It is about a TV-anchorman turned politician Evan Baxter, not unlike Noah, inspired by God, built a big ARK to fulfill his promise campaign to change the world. The story-line evolved around how spectacular & comedic it is to literally build an ark in these modern times in order to change & save our world. Perhaps a primitive & crazy solution for our complicated world. At the end, Evan’s ARK may have saved his city (animals & people) from landslide & flooding. But he realized that what God meant for Evan to build an Ark is not literally a big physical structure of an ark, but as an acronym A.R.K., which means Acts of Random Kindness.

    ARK can change the world. Our little Acts of Random Kindness can make a Big difference. Less can change our world for the better.  With LESS, God can be & we can be.

    Take, Lord, the little resources we have. Bless & share these to others, as we are also needy of their help & of our Father’s mercy. Let these be our small contribution & acts of random kindness that we may have a share of our agape in God’s kingdom now & always.

    So Help us God, So may it Be. Amen.

  • SHARING

    SHARING

    July 25, 2021 – 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

    + Emmanuel T. Cabajar, C.Ss.R. D.D.

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/072521.cfm)

    A boy gets his lunch left-over boxed up to take home. As he leaves the restaurant he ignores an old man begging. Feeling a sudden guilt, he gives him some coins. “How about the box, I’m hungry?” the old man begs. To part with his burger isn’t that easy, but compassion prevails. The boy gives it to the poor old man who smiles with gratitude.

    In the gospel a boy gives his lunch to Jesus, which allows Jesus to do something extra-ordinary – feeding the crowd. This miracle is repeated at the Last Supper and at every Mass where Jesus gives Himself and makes us sharers in his body and blood. St. Ignatius of Antioch calls this “one bread that provides the medicine of immortality, the antidote for death, and the food that makes us live for ever in Jesus Christ.” This food unites us intimately with Jesus and heals us, body and soul. It gives us strength for our spiritual journey. Do we hunger always for this bread of life?

    The feeding of the crowd demonstrates God’s kindness to us. He gives generously. He gives more than we need so that we may also share with others, especially the most deprived. God multiplies the little that we have, like the boy’s lunch, for the good of others. Do we trust in God’s provision for us? Do we share freely with the poor? Jesus is still looking for simple people, like you and me, who are willing to make selfless sacrifices that He may convert small love offerings into His glory. May our hearts be open to such kindness and generosity!

             Lord, satisfy the deepest longings of our hearts and feed us with the finest food!

             Brothers and sisters, generosity makes us joyfully share our God-given gifts with others. Amen.

  • WHEN GRUMBLING BECOMES A PATTERN

    WHEN GRUMBLING BECOMES A PATTERN

    July 21, 2021 – Wednesday 16th Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/072121.cfm)

    How difficult and annoying it will be to listen to a person who grumbles every now and then. It will truly be. It sucks out every positive energy and even inner joy to both, to the one who grumbles a lot and to the person who is forced to listen to a person’s endless grumbles.

    Moses and Aaron must have felt this as they listened to the many grumbles and complaints of the people. The people already complained to God because of their poverty and slavery in Egypt. When they were brought out of Egypt and were chased by Egyptians armies, they grumbled to Moses for taking them out of Egypt. When they were finally free and were in the desert, they started to complain to Moses and Aaron because there was no food. They said to Moses and Aaron that it was much better to die in Egypt but full than dying in the desert because of hunger.

    Certainly, the people must have complained also of the situation they were in. They must have grumbled for having no water, of the hot weather during the day, of the cold wind in the night, of the blisters on their feet, of the diseases they encountered on the road, of the insects and wild animals in the desert, of their neighbors and companions in that exodus.

    Indeed, there seemed to be a pattern of grumbles of the Israelites. They must have been blaming God because of the discomforts and difficulties they experienced. Yet, they completely forgot how God showed the divine power to bring a powerful nation to its knees in order to save them. God showed the might of divine justice to show to the oppressors the wrong they did to the poor. God made wonders for the people and faithfully journeyed with them as he has promised. But then, the hearts of the people were just filled with grumbles.

    We could have become like this too. When grumbling becomes our pattern, we could easily grumble of the food on our table, of the gift given to us, of the traffic caused by a motorist, of the long queue in a supermarket, of the smell of the person next to us, of the slow internet connection, of the delay of delivery of our online purchase, of the outfit of our friend, of the mistakes of our sibling or child, of the work of our colleague, of the actions of your spouse, of our recurring illness, etc. We could have endless grumblings.

    Our grumbles, like the Israelites, are not just because of what surrounds us or of our environment where we are at the moment. If the Israelites were not in the desert, they would still find something to complain about. This means, no matter how comfortable we are in life, a person can still find reasons to grumble.

    Our grumbles are rooted in our heart that has turned ungrateful. No matter how educated we are, or no matter how much money we have in the bank or influence we have in our organization or community, our heart can still be sick of grumbling because of our ingratitude and unawareness of God’s grace and tremendous presence in us.

    When this happens to us, we are truly plagued by this sickness of the heart that consumes us and brings us away from the grace of God.

    Yet, God does not want this to happen to us. God desires the ultimate fulfillment of our heart. This is the reason why God sent manna and quail for the Israelites. This act of grace from God was not meant to condone the people’s grumbling but to remind them of God’s graciousness. Later Moses kept two jars of those manna that remained fresh and free of spoil. This reminds the Israelites that God provides and God sustains us.

    This is the invitation for us today – to remind ourselves, to remember and be constantly aware of God’s graciousness and loving presence. Gratitude in our heart grows when we also learn to remember, to store God’s story with us and the many wonderful things God has done for us, in the memory of our heart.

    The Eucharist that we celebrate is an act of remembrance of Christ’s memory. As a community of faith, we make Christ ever alive in us. This means that the Eucharist is not a mere remembering of the distant past, but making Christ alive and present in this very moment, in the here and now.

    This is how we are also called to make alive our memory of God’s gracious actions in us through our actions and words that express gratitude. Let our hearts be filled with gratitude then, to free our heart from the spoil and disease of complaints and grumbles. Hinaut pa.

  • A LOVING AND REDEEMING PRESENCE

    A LOVING AND REDEEMING PRESENCE

    July 18, 2021 – Solemnity of the Most Holy Redeemer

    Is 55:2b-6; Is 12:2-6; Rm 5:12-21; Jn 3:13-18,21

    How was your God-experience when you were a child?

    Certainly, each of us has our own experiences of God. Our God experiences and even image of God during our childhood would somehow paint the picture of God’s image as we grow older. Our early thoughts and ideas about God would somehow color also on how we relate with Him. Moreover, these thoughts and ideas were greatly influenced by our human experiences. How we were being brought up by our parents and adults around us will surely have an influence.

    In fact, this has been the personal experience of St. Alphonsus Ma. De Liguori, our holy founder of the Redemptorist Missionaries. As it was the culture and popular belief at that time, the young Alphonsus was introduced to a God who immediately would punish the sinner. God was believed to be too far and too high and remote. Yet, God was terrifying because God can put a person into eternal misery and damnation.

    St. Alphonsus Ma. de Liguori, Founder of the Redemptorists.

    This was in the consciousness of the young Alphonsus. Such belief in this kind of God was even reinforced because of his upbringing at home. His father who was a naval officer and a captain was a strict disciplinarian. One would just expect that Alphonsus must have been terrified by his father. If Alphonsus would commit any mistake, surely, Alphonsus would receive beatings or insults from his father.

    No wonder, Alphonsus became a scrupulous person who was overly concerned that something he thought or did might have been a sin. In modern language, Alphonsus could have suffered OCD or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Alphonsus was always terrified that he might have done something wrong, that he might have sinned and will be damned to the point that his guilt would haunt him.

    However, later on, slowly Alphonsus realized God’s true character. Experiences would actually tell him that God is kind and generous, loving and forgiving. Alphonsus felt this as he allowed himself to be at the service of the poor and the sick. This realization of Alphonsus was the very reason of the name of our congregation, the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer.

    Christ and his loving and redeeming presence and action brings out God’s true character. God does not condemn. God does not desire our death and eternal misery. God rather desires life that is free and filled with joy for us.

    This is the very message that Alphonsus preached, wrote and sang about that Jesus redeems us and liberates us from sin and death and to whatever that makes us miserable and lifeless. And this is God’s initiative because it is God’s desire.

    Our first reading and Psalm proclaimed about this. The first reading told us how Yahweh made an everlasting covenant with His chosen people. God makes the initiative to relate to us in love. Our Psalm reminds us about the faithfulness of God that we should rather not fear God but trust Him because God is our strength.

    This revelation tells us that God does not threaten us with God’s power to punish and bring us to eternal death. God rather related with us in the most personal and intimate way. This is what we affirm as we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Redeemer.

    The scriptures tell us that the God who created the world is a God who hears the cry of the poor and the entire creation. This God is neither apart nor alien to us but a God who is near and close to us. Our God is not “somewhere out there” but rather “here with us” who tirelessly journeys and lives with us from the beginning.

    Thus, despite our sinfulness, stupidity, and unfaithfulness, God never surrenders on us. St. Paul proclaimed in his letter to the Romans, “where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.”

    This is how the Gospel reminds us too that God “so loved” the world that he gave his only Son. In our pains and struggles in life, God stays with us. With Jesus, God walks and speaks to us. God even laughs with us and cries with us and to the point of suffering and dying for us.

    See, though God is almighty and all-powerful but God never threatened us with His power of control and dominance. God builds intimate friendship with us, showing care and compassion, offering healing and salvation.

    Hence, this feast of the Holy Redeemer is all about that relationship with a God who desires to be with us and to share life with Him.

    This is how we are invited to grow today – that we too will also live in friendship with others, by showing concern and love, offering healing and peace.

    We have to be watchful then, when we gain power over others and will tend to exercise control and dominance over them. With this tendency, we will be inclined to abuse the weak and that instead of building bridges, we build walls, instead of developing friendship, we promote fear. As a result, we will become indifferent to the struggles of others and intolerant to the mistakes of those who are around us. This is not what God wants us to be.

    God wants us to make friends, to show our affection and concern in the way Jesus makes us his friends so that we too shall learn to become individuals and a community with a loving and redeeming presence. Hinaut pa.

  • UPGRADING INTERRUPTIONS

    UPGRADING INTERRUPTIONS

    July 18, 2021 – 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/071821.cfm)

    A lady once went to visit a friend who is a public high school teacher. As they chatted at the school canteen, however, they were continually interrupted by students who came for his friend’s advice  or opinion on something. Eventually she asked her friend, “How do you manage to get any work done with these interruptions?” Her friend replied, “At first, I resented interruptions in my work. But one day, it suddenly dawned on me that interruptions are part of my teaching work. Educating students is not so much what I teach them inside the classroom, but moreso about how much time and attention I spent them outside the classroom.”

    That teacher could have devoted her time on her lesson plans. She could have attended much of her time to her private life and not be involved with her student’s lives. But being caring and generous that she is, she made her work consists of being available to her students’ needs. No wonder she was greatly loved and respected by the students.

    We do experience interruptions in our life. Especially people who are in caring profession like teachers, priests, social workers, government and bank employees, frontliners, doctors and nurses experience lots of disturbances at work. And usually these interruptions are particularly difficult especially when the request is not of our own choosing, when we don’t feel in the mood to help, when we are forced to respond and when it causes a lot of inconveniences. In such cases, a real sacrifice is involved. Most of the time, we have to forget ourselves and set aside our feelings and present plans to address the pressing needs of others than ourselves.

    Good for us to know that Jesus himself, like us, also had to cope and contend with disturbances & interruptions in his ministry. Jesus too had his plans upset and postponed because of other people’s needs.

    In our gospel today Jesus saw the need of his apostles for rest and recreation. After sending them on a mission to proclaim the good news, to heal the sick and to cast out demons, Jesus understood his apostles’ need to recharge their energy. They had been through a lot while on mission that they need the time to eat, enjoy, & process their experiences with Jesus & the people. With this, Jesus planned to take them off to a quiet place for a break because frontliner caregiver as they are, the apostles also needed caring.

    However, as we have heard, things didn’t work out as planned. The ordinary people sabotaged their rest and recreation. And how did Jesus react? Not with annoyance but with compassion. Jesus was moved with pity for them. Inasmuch as he attended and took care of his apostles’ need for a break, out of compassion for them, Jesus also responded to the pressing needs of other people.

    Nobody likes interruptions. We know how annoying & limiting interruptions are. However, there will always be interruptions in life. They are inevitable – cannot be avoided. Be as it may. Somehow our readings today may also teach us some lessons about our experiences of interruptions in life.

    First, interruptions can be God’s way of taking care of us. The Lord said in our first reading: “I myself…take care, gather, bring back, appoint..” Meaning, What God does Himself to us are His hands-on interventions in our lives that will definitely disturbs us. As Paul said, Jesus is God’s intervention in our lives, who totally can disturbs, change & renew our lives. Jesus is God’s cure to save & help us to live our lives for the better.

    Second, interruptions can be our way of taking care of ourselves. As interruptions happen, we are moved to give more attention & value to what is important and we really need. The disciples needed to rest, recreation & recharge, and the people needs God’s healing, care, inspiration & meaning through Jesus’ words & ministry. In crisis-disturbance, we are to adjust, adapt & cope with our bare necessities. We evaluate – we put value on what we have & longs for the better than the usual.

    Third, interruptions can be our way of taking care of one another. As it caused us to be conscious of our needs, life-interruptions make us also feel the needs of others & moves our hearts to compassion to help. It challenges us to do whatever we can to contribute & fulfill our mission in life for them & for us.  Life-interruptions moves us to sympathize & empathize with one another.

    Simply put, whatever, whenever & however it happens to us then, now & in the future, these interruptions can be the chance for our intervening, disturbing & interrupting God to take care of us, & can be our opportunity to take care & be a better versions of ourselves & of one another. Interruptions call us to faith, self-care, compassion & personal mission.

    If we really come to think of it, our present experiences of Covid pandemic is & has been indeed a great interruption to our lives. Needless to say, the disturbance, crises, & challenges, Covid pandemic has done and cost in our lives nowadays. However, somehow like a major medical operation or dialysis procedure, perhaps this pandemic is God’s intervention to save from our own sickness & destruction. The interruptions we are going through might be God’s way of saving, curing & healing us from usual our toxic & abusive-lifestyle that make us sick & has brought cancerous diseases & infectious viruses to our nature, environment, physical bodies & personal lives. As we cope with the challenges of the pandemic times, we come also to see & value more the need for us to reimagine our lives, be more clear with our priorities & steadfast with our values, purpose & principles in life.  And above all, we come to realize that we need each other, we feel for one another, & we contribute what we can for a much better life ahead.

    Somehow the pandemic, virus, quarantine, immunization we are going through are God’s evasive, interrupted, inconvenient procedure for our upgrade, from corrupted & infected system to a better version of our humanity & our world. With the Lord and our compassion for one another, somehow what we are going through nowadays is God’s way of care-giving & care-taking us now & always.

    Lord, Interrupt & disturb us, once in a while (if not always), … that we may realize how sick we are,…. how we need You & one another,…. how we can help & take care of one another and…. how God is working & intervening to protect & save our lives & world now especially during these trying pandemic times. Amen.