Peace! Kalilintad! Shalom!

Category: Fr. Mario Masangcay, CSsR

  • Convicted Judge

    Convicted Judge

    March 2, 2025 – Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/030225.cfm)

    Once in a monastery, the whole community of monks gathered together for a meeting in order to give their final judgment on a particular monk who made a mistake. Each one of them expresses their own different opinions and verdict on the monk on-trial. They even have some conflicting opinions as to what would be the proper verdict for the monk on-trial,…while Bro. Felix, the oldest of them all remained silent.

    When they finally asked for his opinion, Bro. Felix quietly came forward with a sack and a basket, and filled both with sands. They were all shocked and asked Bro. Felix to explain himself. Bro. Felix finally say: “This sack of sands are my sins, which are full and heavy. I carry this on my back so that I could not see, be mindful and be sorry about my own sins and mistakes I am guilty of. While this basket of sands are the mistakes of our brother on-trial in front of us so that I could easily see, condemn, and judge him. But this is not right and just. Better for me to carry and mind my own mistakes and ask the Lord’s pardon, mercy and forgiveness than to mind and judge the mistakes of others.” Eventually all came to realize their own sins and mistakes in life, and became forgiving to their brother on-trial as they also needing God’s mercy and forgiveness.

    Try to be more a forgiven convict, than to be a convicted judge.

    Why is it that it is easy for us to see the shortcomings and limitations of others, but we are blind in seeing our own wrongdoings? Usually, it is easy for us to blame others than ourselves. Easy for us to criticize the faults of others. Not difficult for us to look for the sins and dirt of others, but only ourselves to blame.

    In our life-difficulties, like during election campaign period, easy for us to blame others and say, “Because of my parents… our leaders… our government… our church.” We are however blinded or hard for us to accept that we are part of the problem because we don’t care and take responsibility of our own actions for the common good of our community and our country. Easy also for us to elect corrupt popular politicians and leaders as we allow ourselves to be deceived by their promises and to sell our own rights to vote. Blaming, judging, and condemning others than ourselves, make us unconscious and blind of our own mistakes and accountability.

    Our gospel today reminds us of the song “Lupa” of Rico Puno, “Bago mo linisin ang dungis ng iyong kapwa, hugasan mo ang putik sa mukha”. (Before you clean the dirt on other’s face, wash the clay in your face first.) As Jesus would say “Remove first the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye. This is the advice and direction Jesus have given us all His disciples. These are His words and message not only for others but for all of us, you and I, as His disciples.

    True indeed, as Christians, we are challenged to preach and share the Good News of Jesus to all people. But these Good News are not only for others or all who have not heard of Jesus, but moreso, onto ourselves who are already believers of Christ. God’s word is intended for the salvation and transformation of all people, but above all for ourselves who are Christians, His followers.

    Meaning, we have first to practice what we preach, live what we believe God’s words and messages in our own lives, before and so that we can proclaim and share it to others. Good News is thus Jesus’ message if and when we practice and live its command in our own lives rather than using it as a standard in judging others.

    As PCP II reminds us that for us to be Filipino Christians today is to re-tell (tell again & again) the Jesus story into ourselves so that we can proclaim Jesus Christ with authority to others. In other words, “Kung gusto mo ng pagbabago, simulan mo sa sarili mo.” If you want change in life, begin with yourselves. Thus, have a good look at yourselves first before judging, condemning and blaming others. Remember, never is it the intention of Jesus to preach us the Good News of God’s salvation to mind and judge others & ourselves but to change ourselves for the better.

    In tune with examples and message of our Lord Jesus Christ, may His Gospel first reign in our hearts so that we may become worthy to be called followers and disciples of Christ and proclaimers of His Good News of salvation, and thus, less becoming judging & condemning of others.

    So Be it. Amen.

  • For-GIVE

    For-GIVE

    February 23, 2025 – Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/022325.cfm)

    “To err is human. To forgive is divine.” Surely  we have heard & familiar with this quotation before and could easily agree and resonate with it. “To err is human.” This is true for us, especially whenever we have hurt others, whenever we cannot forgive others, or whenever we have failed others. And our usual excuses are: “what can I do, I’m but just human”, or “I’m sorry. I’m not God who forgives. I’m just human and a sinner”.

    True, human as we are, we do wrong and commit sins and mistakes, through which we could easily hurt others. Due to our human weaknesses, we can hurt others, and others could also hurt us. Most of us could attest that it is but human and normal for us to do wrong and commit sin, thus can hurt and be hurt by others. And in the midst of this, we do need ourselves consideration, understanding, forgiveness and love.

    However, based from our own experience, it is difficult to forgive others, especially our enemies who have hurt us. Just like Abisai in our first reading, usually when opportunity comes, it is normal for us to take revenge or even in return hurt our enemies. Usually, it is not easy for us to forgive people who have hurt and wronged us. And we recognize we do need God’s Help and Grace for us to forgive them. For us then, to forgive is a divine or holy or godly behavior and action.

    Jesus said in our gospel today, “Love your Enemy. Do good to all those who persecute and hate you. Forgive them and God will forgive you”. Hearing these words, easy for us reply: “Yes. Easier said than done”. Nice words, good to hear, easy to say but hard to heed. It would be easy for Jesus to say and do those things because He is holy, godly and divine, but for us human, that difficult.

    We must consider that when Jesus said these words, he also experienced and felt the pain, hurt, and suffering caused by his enemies. Like us, Jesus also has his own enemies, who have wronged & hurt him. There were also people who hated him, rejected him and even caused his death. And for Jesus, it is also difficult to love our enemies. He knows and understands how difficult to heed these words – to practice what he preached.

    But still, Jesus challenges us to carry out this command because he knows that human as we are, we can and are capable of forgiving others. Though difficult, it does not mean that we are not capable of loving our enemies. Though difficult, we can and it is possible for us to love and forgive so because we have the ability to forgive and love others. Human as we are, we also have the freedom and potential to forgive others. Though difficult, compared to animals, we human do have the freedom and option to forgive or not to forgive those who have hurt us. Meaning, to forgive and love our enemies is not only divine but also human.

    God indeed is the source of love and forgiveness. It is divine and godly to forgive and love our enemies. But God’s forgiveness and love is revealed through us – in and by our own decision and openness to receive and share God’s love to others. Meaning, though we are weak and slow to forgive others, like David, we can still decide and offer love and forgiveness to them by also accepting their own weakness and limitations, and by giving them the opportunity to repent and change their ways.

    As Christians, we believe Jesus has saved us from our sinfulness. By His birth, death, and resurrection, he redeemed us and has forgiven us of our sins and wrongdoings. We are now then called to also forgive those who have sinned against us, as we have also been forgiven. Human and Christ as he is, Jesus forgives us. Human and Christian as we are, we can also love and forgive our enemies.

    Whenever we are hurt and are suffering from the sins caused by others, it is better for us to reflect and ask ourselves: “If God can grants me His mercy and forgiveness, how come I cannot forgive my enemies? God loved and have forgiven me, a sinner, how can I not love but hate my enemies?

    If of any consolation, consider that forgiveness is not only given to us & what we receive from others, but also forgiveness is something we give to others. Forgiveness then is something more we GIVE For ourselves, and To ourselves than giving to others, for as we ask Our Father to forgive us our sins, we are also to forgive those who sinned against us.

    Remember as our Lord said  “For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.”

    May we forgive others as we are forgiven.

    So May It Be. Amen

  • BY Our Faith & Trust in Him

    BY Our Faith & Trust in Him

    February 16, 2025 – Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/021625.cfm)

    Who do we consider nowadays the fortunate lucky people who seems to be more blessed by God? And who do we consider nowadays the unfortunate, unlucky people who seems to be cursed by God?

    For us nowadays, people who are rich, affluent, and wealthy, who got and has everything they need and want in plenty are the fortunate. Fortunate also are those who are popular, powerful, and influential – who can control and trick people for their own advantage at their beck and call. We also consider fortunate those people who are smart and knowledgeable who knows too much and can outwit and outsmart others by getting the best and extra from the situation like rewards, prizes, money, “pogi” points, power, or media coverage. In other words, maabilidad ug marunong o maru (shrewd) are seemed to be blessed by God.

    And for us today, people who are poor, deprived, and marginalized are unfortunate. Unlucky are those who have less or nothing at all, in terms of food, education, power and influence. Those who are ignorant, innocent, mayukmok (the lesser ones) – easily fooled and deceived by others are seemed to be cursed by God.

    In other words, in the eyes of the world, the rich – the “haves” and “well-to-do” seems to be blessed by God, while the poor – the “have-nots” and “nothing-to-do” seems to be cursed by God. However, the fortunate, lucky, and blessed as well as the unfortunate, unlucky, and cursed people of our world today are the exact opposite of the blessed and cursed people of our Lord Jesus Christ.

    Contrary to our popular notion today, the fortunate, lucky, and blessed people, for Jesus is not the rich, affluent, wealthy, popular, powerful, influential, smart, and knowledgeable people of today – but those who are poor, hungry, weeping, hated, rejected, insulted, deprived, deceived, marginalized or ignorant people of today. And for Jesus, those who are rich, full, happy, and praised by others whom we considered today as fortunate, lucky, and blessed are the unfortunate, unlucky, and cursed.

    Well, what does it mean? Does it mean Jesus uphold poverty, starvation, deception, oppression, discrimination and suffering of today? Does it mean that for us to be fortunate and blessed before God we have to be poor, hungry, weeping, suffering – in silence, hated, deprived and discriminated by others? NO. This is not about being fortunate or cursed but about our Faith and trust in God. At the heart of today’s reading is not about being fortunate and cursed but the theme of Faith & Trust in God.

    Our first reading today gave us a contrast of the fate of those who trust in human beings with fate of those who trust in God. Those who trust in human beings are like a barren desert shrub; whereas those who trust in God are like a fruitful tree planted beside a flowing river. Jesus in our gospel today is telling and teaching us that those who trust in God are righteous and finds favor in God, but those who trust only in human beings and in themselves are wicked and unfortunate.

    What makes then a person blessed or cursed, lucky or unlucky, fortunate, or unfortunate is not on the condition where he is in, but in His faith and trust in God. What counts and matters most, then, is our faith and trust in God. And to trust in God is to rely on God as to be the one source of life. This would mean that in life and whatever happens in our life, we must trust and rely not on our way, our will, and our accomplishments but on God’s Way, God’s will, and God’s mercy.

    For Jesus, then, blessed are those who trust in God and cursed are those who trust only in others and in themselves. Blessed are the poor, hungry, weeping, hated, insulted because they trust in God. They have faith in God, they have nothing else but God. Cursed are the rich, full, happy, and praised by others because they have everything else but God. In other words, by our trust in Him we are blessed & by relying only on others & oneself we are cursed. As St. Theresa of Calcuta would remind us, “God does not call us to be successful but to be Faithful in Life”.

    Here, we must also see that God’s blessings are not only “yet to come” but are “here and now”. It is not only a promise but a reality. It is His gift to us now who trust in Him – not as the reward that we expect and need from him, for what we are receiving from Him is more abundant than just what we need and expect from Him. And usually God’s blessings come as a surprised Gift which is beyond our expectation.

    As a text message I once received say, which could be our today’s prayer: “God’s blessings may come as a surprise and how much we receive depends on how much our heart can believe. May we be blessed beyond what we expect, as we believe and trust in Him. God bless.”

    So May It Be. Amen.

  • INTO THE DEEP

    INTO THE DEEP

    February 9, 2025 – Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/020925.cfm)

    Although he was despised by his own people in his own hometown, Jesus continues on to proclaim God’s presence in us. Rejection did not deter and discourage him to move on with His mission of making God known and share Good News of God’s kingdom to all. Instead we hear him now going to other villages and inviting people, calling them to follow and join him in his mission.

    Particularly we hear today how he called Peter. He challenged Peter: “Put out into the deep, and lower your nets for a catch”. Now here is Jesus, an ordinary man – a carpenter himself, who knows God but nothing about fishing, telling Peter – a seasoned fisherman who is having a bad day, to go fishing again.

    Peter may have normally reply: “Naunsa ka? Ano ka, hilo? Been there, done that. Time to pack up and leave.” But still Jesus challenged him, “Go out into the deep”. Surely there is more to Jesus’ words than merely about fishing. It also means: “don’t give up/ sail on/ try anew/ please, give oneself, others and me anew chance/ go deeper”. These words also tell and teach Peter and us now about our life and faith as His followers & believers

    For why “go into the deep”? What is special about the deep? We don’t like deep waters because it is mysterious, dangerous, and risky. We rather go to shallow waters because we are safe, manageable and in our comfort zone. Shallow waters however are usually dirty and unclear, noisy, and loud, and above all, less possible catch, if none at all. Deep waters instead are usually clear and clean, calm, and soft, and above all, more possible catch. In other words, there is more life and faith in our deep than in our shallow fishing journey-expedition of life.

    Somehow Jesus challenges us here to explore three depths in our experience of life.

    First, we are invited to explore the depth of our poverty, hopelessness, and helplessness. Peter was in a crisis situation, “no catch”, and about to give up. But with Jesus’ challenge, he goes beyond his misery and dare to do the unusual and unknown: “go again and deeper”, because of this, he never missed but instead have witnessed another life-opportunity ahead and anew. In the same way, in our hopelessness, helplessness, misery and crisis-situation, we are called to go beyond our comfort zones, and dare to try the unusual and unknown, and see better opportunities and possibilities than before. Again the invitation is, “if and when given another chance, would you do it again or anew, as before or better than before?”

    Second, we are invited to go beyond the depth of our self-centeredness and explore the depth of our feeling and concern for others. Despite the possible threat of failure again and ridicule, Peter became self-less and still gave in to the somehow nonsense request and crazy challenge of Jesus. Along with that, he also selflessly shared his great catch with others as he called his partners to help him and Jesus. In the same way, whenever we consider ourselves less, we become aware of others.

    And third, we are called to go beyond our unworthiness, and discover the depth of our faith in God. After the miracle of great catch, Peter fell down at his knees and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man”.

    Although we know how blessed we are, at times we cannot help but feel unworthy and undeserving of God. Even St. Paul and prophets felt the same way – that with God’s grace, we feel that we are weak, wrong, bad, unworthy, not fit or qualified and worthless. We may have felt this way, but we should also realize that all these blessings are not about us, you and me, but all about Him with us and us with Him. It is all about having faith in Him – being in relationship with Him for direction, resource and meaning.

    Yes, we may say: “I am not fit, unworthy, undeserving, and unqualified, BUT STILL I am called, invited, blessed and sent to be His fishing and life partner – “By God’s grace With Us, We are blessed and graced, undeserving we may be,” as St. Paul would say.

    Thus, there is more to our helplessness, self-centeredness, and unworthiness, but better opportunities, more concern for others and deeper faith in God. So now, whenever we hear Jesus’ word “Put out into the deep and lower your nets”, His message, call and challenge to you and us, is to TRY ANEW: go deeper and give faith and life another new chance, for a great catch and better life ahead for you and to all.

    Consider moreso that Jesus meets us half-way. He takes & choose us as we are now in our limits & potentials (not what we were & should be). But he also sees the better & best in us for there is more to us than what it seems. He recognizes Ours Gems deep within us – hidden, sinister, mysterious & obvious it maybe. All He wants from us is to follow Him into our depths within as our mission & contribution for God’s abundance catch of graces to happen before all.

    As we are beginning another New Year: a new chance again to make Life Better for You, for others and Him, may we be trusting and daring enough to heed Jesus’ challenge for us to: “Put out into the deep and lower our nets” to the great catch of blessing offered ahead of us.

    So May It Be. Amen.

  • Our Defining Moment

    Our Defining Moment

    February 2, 2025 – Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/020225.cfm)

    Usually every Sunday some families gather together in the church not only to celebrate Eucharist but also to attend and witness the baptism of children to become new members of their respective family, parish and of the church. Yes, during Sundays, countless children are also being baptized in the church while being witnessed by their parents and family with relatives and friends. For us priest, Sunday children’s baptism is just part of our duty and extra job besides the hectic Sunday masses schedules. For others, it might be a usual Sunday occurrence, but for the child’s respective parents, godparent and families, the baptism of their child can be, is and should be the defining moments of their own lives as well as of the child.

    Yes, defining moments for all involved with the child. Because during baptism, the child does not only take on the identity and dignity of being Christian, the young parents of the child have suddenly grown up as well from just being two people in love to being parent to the child with a lot of responsibility for the future of the child. Along the parents, the child’s godparents, maninoy and maninay, extended families, relatives and friends also take on the responsibility and mission to help and support in the growth in the Christian faith and life of the child.

    It is indeed, defining moments for everybody, for as the child is being consecrated, the parents, godparents, families and the Christian community and the Church are commissioned to be responsible caretakers and formators-parent of the Christian life and faith-growth of the child.

    Mary and Joseph as well as Simeon and Anna must have experienced and felt the same during the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple, same as young parents and families during child baptism. Here they are, presenting and consecrating the child Jesus in the temple as required by their Jewish religious tradition, conscious of the tasks, responsibility as well as the still-unknown and yet-to-be-revealed promise the child Jesus may offer to our lives.

    Joseph and Mary not only became the parent of the child Jesus, but through their testimony, Simeon and Anna also became the caretaker, formator & godparents of God’s light and glory for all. Same way as Joseph and Mary consecrated the child Jesus, Simeon and Anna became not anymore passive-expectators but now active-witnesses of God’s light and glory being revealed before them.

    The Presentation of the Lord in the temple is indeed defining moments for Mary and Joseph as well as Simeon and Anna for they take on the responsibility before God for the child Jesus. In the same manner, the baptism of a child is the defining moments for the young parents, godparents, families and the whole church for we all take responsibility for the formation and growth of the faith and life of the child.

    Simply put, as the saying goes: “When a child is born…. The mother is born” as also the parent, the family & church are also born. In other words, no mother, parent, family, or church, if there is no child.

    Our celebration today of the Presentation of the Lord is more than just about having our candles blessed. It is actually more so about ourselves as Christian especially during our celebration of Sacrament of Baptism. When we were baptized as a child, like the child Jesus, we were presented and consecrated (made holy) to God by our Christian family and the church to be God’s children. And whenever we attend and witness child baptism, we make holy ourselves to be responsible parents and formators-witnesses for the faith-growth of the child.

    Today’s celebration and our celebration of children’s baptism are all a reminder that each and every one of us, baptized Christians are lighted candles, taking on the light of Christ, the Christian dignity and responsibility for the fulfillment of God’s promise of salvation in our lives forever in our children now and for the future Christian generation.

    Taking on the dignity and mission to be parents and witnesses of God’s salvation as revealed to us always through Jesus and our today’s Christian children, are and remain to be our defining moments as Christians. God is already doing his part for our salvation by revealing us his glory through his Son.

    Now we have to do our part by making and remaining true to our defining moments of becoming blessed lighted candles – taking part to be active parents and witnesses for the growth of the Christian life and faith of our baptized children.

    Now consider, when was the last time you become a witness to a Child’s baptism? When was the last time you light a candle publicly and privately? Be reminded Jesus said: “You are the light of the world”. May we, as today God’s lighted and blessed candle, be always responsible parents and witnesses of God’s light to our world now and forever. Amen.