Peace! Kalilintad! Shalom!

Author: A Dose of God Today

  • CHRIST’S GLocal Mission

    CHRIST’S GLocal Mission

    June 1, 2025 – Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/060125-Ascension.cfm)

    We remember that during His public ministry, Jesus summoned his disciples, gave them authority to heal every disease and sickness. He made his disciples share His authority and mission to preach the good news of salvation to all. He thus commissioned them and gave them the tasks to be preachers and evangelizers of God’s kingdom. Jesus added however, that they should start, not elsewhere, but at home. 

    Since then and until now, as followers of Christ, we share the same authority and commission with the disciples to preach and witness the reign of God’s kingdom to all in our world today. And in the same way, we are to begin in our own homes, families, communities, churches and society.

    In doing our tasks and mission as evangelizers and preachers of God’s kingdom, however there is always a tendency or even a temptation for us to blame the evil in the world on others, and to reach out to our poor brothers and sisters in need who are far-away from us.

    But as Jesus would insist, we start to live our faith and practice what we preach in our own homes, in our own neighbors, communities and in our local church. In other word, our charitable mission begins at home, for as He says: “repentance would be preached in His name to all nations (globally), beginning from Jerusalem (locally)… [since] You are witnesses of these things.”

    For who then are our neighbors? As the parable of Good Samaritan reminds us that our neighbor is the immediate person we live with, who needs our immediate attention and care. We don’t have to go out to help others outside out there. We begin then with people whom we are with – our kapatid, kasambahay, kapamilya. We start then to correct the evils and clean the sinfulness in our society within our homes before & as we deal with our wider world outside. 

    Remember it was only later, during Jesus’ ascension that the disciples where sent to all the nations of the world. After they have journeyed at home with Jesus in life, death & resurrection, at His ascension the disciples are now to share their faith to the world. Only after they have witnessed the life & resurrection of their faith in their own life at home, and during the Lord’s ascension that the disciples are able to proclaim & share their faith to us then & now.

    Same way with His disciples, as PCP II (Second Plenary Council of the Philippines) challenges us, Filipino Catholics today are to retell (to tell again & again) the Jesus’ story to ourselves (locally) so that we could tell (witness) – with authority His story to others (globally).

    Thus, in our mission to share the Good News of Christ, we are to approach Glocally, i.e. to start locally and then globally. Begin in your own homes nearby, and then… into the world, and so continue the Lord’s GLocal mission to people’s lives in today’s world. Our risen Lord has already done His part in God’s salvation. Now we are to do our part, beginning at home & into all nations in the world.

    As we celebrated today the Lord’s ascension, being called & sent to be His today’s missionaries, with Our Mother of Perpetual Help, let this be our prayer : “Lord, grant me the grace to be what You want me to be, and to do what You want me to do, not out there & later, but here & now at this very moment now & always.” 

    So May It Be. Amen.

  • Dare to Move, Respond and Care

    Dare to Move, Respond and Care

    May 31, 2025 – Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/053125.cfm)

    We find Mary, a person who is filled with so much love, because in her womb, is love itself. Love in human form. The surprise from God moved Mary. She carried in her womb God’s concrete manifestation of love. She became fully aware of that and it filled her with joy.

    That love that she carried completely transformed Mary, her presence, actions and her words and so her way of loving. On this Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, there are three responses of Mary that I want to bring out. This is how Mary responded in loving and in being loved.

    The first response of Mary was, “she set out in haste.” Mary realized the need and assistance of her old cousin Elizabeth. This response of Mary tells us that she is a person who loves and arises for the sake of others. She is a person who loves and moves out of the self. This is evident at how she traveled a long way from Nazareth to a town in the hill country of Judah. At that time, Mary possibly walked for about 130 kilometers to reach the house of Zechariah and Elizabeth.

    Mary responded because she was fully aware of the urgency of the need of her cousin. She was fully conscious of her capacity as a person. Indeed, she can be of help even though she was not asked to do it. She set out in haste not because she was expected or obliged. It was natural for her to help and express such love and concern.

    The late Pope Francis said in his message to the youth of the world, he said, “Mary did not hold back or remain indifferent. She thought more of others than of herself.”

    And so in our way of loving, “Do we also move in haste in order to respond to the needs around us? Do we take the risk to go out of our own comfort and concerns for the sake of others? Or do we remain unmoved, more focused on ourselves, on our pains and personal issues but indifferent towards others?”

    The second response of Mary was, “she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.” Mary cared to enter into the life of others, bringing love. This is how we realize that the very presence of Mary in that house, brought life! At the greetings of Mary, the infant in the womb of Elizabeth leaped. It was a joyful reaction of the infant. Even at that early moment, the infant John already recognized the fullness of life and love present in the womb of Mary.

    This reminds us of our own homes and of the homes that we visit. We know for a fact that there are many homes that are troubled and problematic. There are broken-homes because of abuses and irresponsibility. However, there are also homes that nurture and give space for growth and maturity of persons. As we go home and visit other homes, let us be conscious of what we bring and of the kind of presence that we share.

    And so in our way of loving, “Do our words bring comfort and assurance of love? Or do our words rather become forms of insults, harassment and bitterness or expression of anger and hatred? Does our presence gives confidence and love, warmth and joy to others or rather brings fear, trauma and pain?”

    The third response of Mary was, “Mary believed!” As to the words of Elizabeth, she said, “Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” This tells us that Mary’s faith brings forth life, concern and intimacy, care and gentleness. These become natural for Mary because first and foremost, her faith is motivated and inspired by love. Mary is filled with love. She is confident that the Lord loves her. Indeed, she believed! Love has been fulfilled in her and that love is slowly taking a human form in her womb.

    This also reminds us of our own faith, in the way we practice and express our faith in God. Being a Christian is not an affiliation to an organization. Faith is not just about doing religious practices and traditions in some occasions or events. Faith is a way of life, as our devotion to Mary is also a way of life.

    And so in our way of loving, “Has our faith been inspired and motivated by our love, of being loving and being loved? Does our faith also bring life, concern, care and gentleness? Or rather motivated by fear, guilt, fanaticism or superstition?”

    As we bring to mind all these points for reflections, we may all be filled with love and be assured of that love so that like Mary, we too shall dare to move, respond and care for others. Hinaut pa.

  • Your Sorrow will Turn into Joy

    Your Sorrow will Turn into Joy

    May 30, 2025 – Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/053025.cfm)

    One day, I got a call from a hospital. They asked for an anointing of the sick for a dying man in his 90’s. Honestly, I do not like going to sick calls for the dying. I may carry emotional baggage when I leave the room. Aside from the scary machines and tubes applied to the patient, it is heart-breaking to see a dying person. They are holding on to their last remaining breaths. The sorrow of the family members would creep into my heart. The grief of those who gather around the suffering patient would enter my mind. Yet, I have to appear “okay” in order to do the rites properly. It’s the way of accompanying the dying and the family in prayer.

    With this particular old man holding on to his last breathes, there was something different about him. Behind his transparent respirator, he was smiling as soon as I introduced myself to him. He was actually smiling during the whole rite while looking at me. He was fully conscious but cannot move. He was definitely in pain at that moment. He too must have been so loved by his family gathered around him. They were keeping to themselves, as much as possible their cries, as I did the rite and told him to go in peace.

    After the rite, he removed gently his respirator to tell me something. He told me with a smile (saying in the local language), “Father, thank you. I will go now.” The family members could not hide anymore their tears as they too heard those words. It was heart-breaking that I have to keep myself from breaking down in tears to assure him of my presence.

    Yet, I felt the confidence behind those words. This old man was confident that he was not alone. His loved ones were with him and the Lord was with him too. He was not afraid anymore despite the deep sorrow and pain at that very moment. He knew that after this, everything will turn into joy.

    As I left the room and bid my goodbye, the parish office received a call fifteen minutes later. The call informed me that the old man died in peace.

    This is a testimony that completely trusts in God’s presence and promise of joy. It describes a particular situation. It is a concrete human experience of struggle and confusion. There is fear and anxiety. There is also pain and sorrow. Moreover, such human experience paved the way for the Lord to intervene and bring comfort and confidence.

    The readings today convey this message to us. In the Acts of the Apostles, Paul was mistreated by those who refused to believe in Jesus. He was harassed and was accused wrongly to put him in prison and to death. With this kind of situation, Paul must have been so confused and afraid for his life. He must have started to question the Lord for sending him into this kind of trouble in his ministry.

    As a result, Paul’s difficult situation allowed Jesus to enter his life. Jesus assured him and gave him comfort and confidence. Jesus appeared in a vision. The Lord told Paul, “Do not be afraid, continue speaking and do not be silent. I am with you. No one will harm you.”

    In the same way, Jesus also gave this assurance to his disciples. This conversation with Jesus happened just before the Lord was betrayed and arrested in Chapter 18 in this Gospel of John. Jesus prepared his disciples for the horrible and unimaginable events to happen in the coming days.  Thus, the words of Jesus, “You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy,” are the Lord’s assurance to us.

    We might be struggling at this very moment. There might be some of us who experienced being humiliated, harassed, oppressed or abused. Or perhaps who are ill at the moment, or in trouble at work, lost a job or failed in business. There might be some of us too who are now having problems in relationships or in great sorrow for losing a loved one.

    With these difficult and painful human experiences, God also comes to us through this sacrament, through the scriptures, through the love and support of our family and friends and through the gift of the Holy Spirit abiding in us. God intervenes to bring comfort and confidence in us.

    Moreover, this calls us today to truly believe that God is the God of our life. Then, in that faith, we shall see the many good things we enjoy in this life. This is true despite the many difficulties and hardships we encounter. When we truly believe that God is the resurrection and the life, we begin to become true Christians. We see light in the midst of darkness. We find joy in the midst of sorrow. We capture a smile in the midst of pain. We embrace hope in the midst of impossibility. We find healing in the midst of so much sickness. Lastly, we find life in death. Hinaut pa.

  • Grace and Freedom in Letting Go

    Grace and Freedom in Letting Go

    May 29, 2025 – Thursday of the 6th Week of Easter

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/052925-thursday.cfm)

    When a thing or a person becomes important, essential and vital in our life, we also find it hard to let go of it when time calls us to. Moreover, there are also cases when a thing or a person, or an experience, though not so important and vital in our daily existence, that it becomes inseparable from us. Thus, when it becomes so attached to us emotionally, we find it so difficult to let go.

    When I was already about 6 years old, I still carried my baby bottle with me with milk, coffee, water or soda in it. Once, I brought it with me at school during my Kindergarten and my older sister found it out. The next day as I searched for my it in its usual place, I couldn’t find it. The baby bottle was gone. My sister threw it away. That was so cruel!

    I was so mad and cried hard for throwing that away. Perhaps, I thought the world was about to end at that time for losing my “dear baby bottle.” The day after that was just okay without it. The next day was fine too. The next days also seemed to be okay.

    Now, I realized, I must have been so attached to it that letting go of was surely difficult. In one way or another, others may find it challenging also those that have become so attached to them. These include not just material things. They also encompass our dreams and aspirations in life. Additionally, they include relationships and even our memories.

    Letting go is difficult. This is especially true with those we love deeply. We find it challenging due to emotional attachment. Our tendency is to keep those closer to us because we do not like them to leave from us. As a result, when we are confronted with the reality of loss, then, we experience pain. It breaks our heart. We become anxious and fearful.

    We may refuse to let go as a response. In the process, we become controlling and suffocating. We might manipulate those people we do not want to let go. We could become paranoid and obsessed. This happens because we linger and attach ourselves to a painful memory. We might also cling to a material thing, a desire, or a person.

    How are we invited now with this reality in life?

    Going into the process of letting go and the letting go itself is what makes life wonderful. It is in letting go that we actually find more life and express life, to find love and express love. This manifests grace and freedom in us.

    This is what Jesus asked from his disciples. The disciples who thought that they have lost Jesus when he was crucified rejoiced at his resurrection. When Jesus told them that soon, he will no longer be with them, they became anxious. He would go back to his father, and the disciples felt fearful. They wanted to keep Jesus closer to them. They believed that they were more confident if Jesus was nearby. They were not willing to let him go.

    However, this is not what God wants. Jesus had to leave to join his Father in heaven. He needed to become fully one with his Father. It will only be in this way that Jesus will be able to bring us closer to the Father. With the Father, Jesus opens a way for us to the heart of the Father. By this also, Jesus becomes ever closer to each one of us. Jesus becomes closer than what we can imagine because Jesus will be in our hearts and minds.

    Hence, the words of Jesus to his disciples, “A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me,” mean that Jesus becomes ever present in each of us.

    In this process of letting go of the Lord, then, the disciples also allowed God to work in them. This was how the early Church found grace and freedom in letting go.

    Today, we are also asked to let go whatever hinders us to encounter the Lord. We may ask ourselves, “What is it that I continue to linger? What is that attachment that I find difficult to let go for me to grow?”

    As we learn to let go, may we be filled with grace and freedom. Hinaut pa.

  • OUR IDOLS

    OUR IDOLS

    May 28, 2025 – Wednesday of the Sixth week of Easter

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/052825.cfm)

    To idolize someone because of their good qualities and characteristics as a person expresses our admiration. We admire a person as an affirmation. In today’s popular culture, such form of admiration would manifest in our efforts in following the person, copying how the person acts, talks and presents himself or herself in public. We too go on in becoming an avid fan.

    In fact, one of my nieces who is an avid fan of BTS, a South Korean Boy Band, collects posters, pictures, albums and music. She would spend a significant amount of her allowance to acquire some materials.

    Yet, such form of idolizing and admiring may also develop into a kind of blind loyalty and obedience. Our interest would start to negatively impact our life and relationships with others. We become aggressive and violent even in our words when we find other people not sharing the same opinion, belief or interest like ours. More so, such aggression would also manifest when we encounter people who express criticism to the person we idolize. This is a form of obsession in which we as people who idolize someone become close-minded and out of touch of our reality and the bigger picture of life.

    The readings today have something to teach us. They also challenge us in the way we live our lives today as Christians.

    In the first reading, we were told that Paul was in Athens and saw the many idols the Athenians had. The Greeks were known to have many gods and goddesses. Yet, Paul also realized how deeply religious the people were because of that expression. What touched Paul most was the shrine dedicated to the “Unknown god.” With this, Paul being a witness and apostle of the Risen Jesus had the responsibility to introduce to the Athenians the one True God.

    Paul preached to them the person of Jesus, the Son of God, who became like us, and who lived among us. For it is through Jesus that we are saved by dying on the cross and by rising from the dead. However, this is the very reason as well why many of the Athenians did not believe him, only few of them.

    Many could not accept that kind of God who died for us and was being resurrected. This was something beyond the imagination and any human explanation. What hindered them to believe was their own obsession towards their many idols, of their many gods. This was something they couldn’t give up.

    This form of “idolizing” was not a mere admiration. It was an obsession. Though this happened long time ago, yet, at present this reality is still happening. Idolatry still creeps in our culture today. We are still somehow captivated by some idols in one way or another that make God a lesser priority. This makes our Christian life and faith less significant. How does this happen?

    When a thing or a person is being loved, wanted, desired and even treasured and enjoyed “more” than God to the point that we have become obsessed, then this could be the “idol” that we worship. That could be your boyfriend or girlfriend or even your good looks. It could be the approval of other people, your attractiveness that tend to seek recognition from others. It could also be your successful career or business or work. Or could be your own passion in sports or any hobbies.

    Nonetheless, reflecting on these, they are actually not evil or bad in themselves. These things are good but they become bad when they do not serve the purpose – which is to be closer to God, by knowing him better, by being grateful to him and by being generous to others.

    In one way or another, these forms of idolatry are also forms of addictions in us. It means that we may tend to be selfish, prioritizing only our own satisfaction – as a result, we will become insecure and not free at all because we are imprisoned by our own obsessions.

    This is not what God wants us to be. God wants us to be free by knowing and loving him more and more. And so, let us remember what Jesus told us in the Gospel. “The spirit of truth will lead us; the spirit will guide us to discover God and know him better.”

    Jesus wants us to pray, to converse with God truly and that is not just to tell God what we “want.” Let us also ask God what God “wants” for us; not my own “selfish desires”, but to ask what is “God’s desire for me.”

    Let us invite the spirit of truth to enlighten us, and that is, to help us identify our actions, attitudes, belief or things that preoccupy us. This may hopefully lead us to recognize our “idols” that hinder us to know God better, to be closer to Him and that continually prevent us to be generous to others. Hinaut pa.