Peace! Kalilintad! Shalom!

Category: Homilies

  • To become attentive of God’s presence

    To become attentive of God’s presence

    August 11, 2019 – 19thSunday in Ordinary Time

    From the Book of Wisdom (18:6-9)

    The night of the Passover was known beforehand to our fathers,
     that, with sure knowledge of the oaths in which they put their faith,
     they might have courage.
     Your people awaited the salvation of the just
     and the destruction of their foes.
     For when you punished our adversaries,
     in this you glorified us whom you had summoned.
     For in secret the holy children of the good were offering sacrifice
     and putting into effect with one accord the divine institution.

    From the Letter to the Hebrews (11:1-2,8-12)

    Brothers and sisters:
    Faith is the realization of what is hoped for
    and evidence of things not seen. 
    Because of it the ancients were well attested.

    By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place
    that he was to receive as an inheritance;
    he went out, not knowing where he was to go. 
    By faith he sojourned in the promised land as in a foreign country,
    dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs of the same promise;
    for he was looking forward to the city with foundations,
    whose architect and maker is God. 
    By faith he received power to generate,
    even though he was past the normal age
    —and Sarah herself was sterile—
    for he thought that the one who had made the promise was
    trustworthy.
     So it was that there came forth from one man,
    himself as good as dead,
    descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky
    and as countless as the sands on the seashore.

    From the Gospel of Luke (12:32-48) 

    Jesus said to his disciples:
    “Gird your loins and light your lamps
    and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding,
    ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. 
    Blessed are those servants
    whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. 
    Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself,
    have the servants recline at table, and proceed to wait on them. 
    And should he come in the second or third watch
    and find them prepared in this way,
    blessed are those servants. 
    Be sure of this:
    if the master of the house had known the hour
    when the thief was coming,
    he would not have let his house be broken into. 
    You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect,
    the Son of Man will come.”

    Homily

    Do you have dogs at home? Are you also aware on how your dogs would react whenever you come home? Once the dogs are left at home they can be anxious without the presence of their humans. Yet, dogs display patience and attention to wait for their humans to return home. Their attentiveness allows them to be more conscious of their surroundings. And when our dogs would sense our coming and smell our presence even at a distance, they begin to get excited. Dogs would wiggle their tails as a sign of excitement. And when they finally see us, they would make terrible sounds as their expression of joy, or lick us, jump on us and run around us. This shows us how our dogs can be intimately connected with us.

    Moreover, the attentiveness of our dogs of our presence has something to teach us this Sunday.

    The first reading from the Book of Wisdom tells us how the people patiently waited and hoped the coming of the Lord. They had been suffering for many years from the Egyptians. Their children were massacred, properties confiscated, and made slaves until their death.

    We could imagine their fears and anxieties and the feeling of being abandoned by God. But through the presence of Moses, the people realized God’s presence among them. God’s promise was to be fulfilled after all. As a result, we were told how the people prepared themselves for the Lord’s coming to free them from that suffering. As a community, they became much more attentive to God’s presence.

    In the same way, the second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews allows us to recall the attitude of our grandfathers in the faith particularly of Abraham. Abraham was indeed a man who put his trust and faith completely to God. Abraham left the comfort of his family and friends, to journey to a land that God promised to him. 

    Surely, Abraham also felt anxiety and insecurity as he journeyed with God especially when God gave him Isaac and later demanded that Abraham should sacrifice his son. That was Abraham’s most vulnerable moment in his life. Yet, he realized too that everything he had were all from God. With that, he was grateful to God. That gratefulness made his faith even stronger, despite the pain of sacrificing his son. Indeed, he allowed God to surprise him and to unfold God’s plan by completely trusting the wisdom of God.

    The surprise was to receive Isaac back and to become our father in faith today. His close relationship with God allowed him too to go beyond his fears and anxieties making him more attentive to God’s presence and invitations.

    This is what Jesus taught to his disciples. Jesus reminds us to grow in our attentiveness of his presence. The parable is an affirmation to a person who consciously makes himself/herself attuned to God’s presence. It is when we are attuned to God’s presence that we also become aware of the presence of other people around us. As a result, this makes our faith active and alive by being able to give life.

    However, the parable is also a warning to those who have become mediocre or complacent and procrastinator. These are attitudes of a person who is not attentive of God’s presence and has taken advantage the gifts given by the Lord and therefore, is only concerned of himself/herself. This person would become the most insecure person, most anxious and at the same time most vicious and abusive of others.

    Hence, a mediocre or complacent person is only contented in doing things below his/her potentials. It means that we do not really give the best in us but settle to what is only lesser and comfortable for us.

    Thus, when we become so caught up with our comforts but then refusing to go beyond by giving ourselves for others, by letting go of our grudges and hate, and by actively opposing the evils and unjust systems in the community, then, we have surely grown to become mediocre and complacent. We do not want to be challenged. We do not want to go beyond from ourselves and to give our full potentials for God and for others. We only give what is small and minimal. This is a life that refuses to recognize God’s presence and invitations.

    Moreover, a person who procrastinates loves to delay things like in making decisions and actions. This person does not see the need to respond because he/she is caught up with his/her own mood. Consequently, when we procrastinate towards our faith, we feel bored, empty, and lifeless and so we see no reason at all to become life-giving. 

    What is common with these attitudes is the fear to take risks. Remember, trusting God and believing in Him requires risks. Faith is a risk as what the Hebrew people showed in waiting for God to free them and for Abraham to journey outside his comfort and in sacrificing Isaac. Yet, it is in taking risks that God makes wonder in us. It is in taking risks that we grow in our consciousness of God’ presence in our life. And it is also in taking risks that we grow deeper in our relationships.

    Our dogs who patiently await for our coming every time we leave home, put their trust on us and so have taken the risk to trust us in providing them an emotional assurance. Hopefully, we too in our journey with God will grow in our attentiveness of God’s presence by taking the risk in believing in him and trusting God’s wisdom by avoiding from our tendency to become mediocre and complacent and procrastinator in our faith. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • God loves a grateful and cheerful giver

    God loves a grateful and cheerful giver

    August 10, 2019 – Saturday 18th Week in Ordinary Time

    From the Second Letter of Paul to the Corinthians (9:6-10)

    Brothers and sisters:

    Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,

    and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

    Each must do as already determined, without sadness or compulsion,

    for God loves a cheerful giver.

    Moreover, God is able to make every grace abundant for you,

    so that in all things, always having all you need,

    you may have an abundance for every good work.

    As it is written:

    He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor;

    his righteousness endures forever.

    The one who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food

    will supply and multiply your seed

    and increase the harvest of your righteousness.

    Responsorial Psalm PS 112:1-2, 5-6, 7-8, 9

     

    R.(5) Blessed the man who is gracious and lends to those in need.

    Blessed the man who fears the LORD,

    who greatly delights in his commands.

    His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth;

    the upright generation shall be blessed.

    Well for the man who is gracious and lends,

    who conducts his affairs with justice;

    He shall never be moved;

    the just one shall be in everlasting remembrance.

    An evil report he shall not fear;

    his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD.

    His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear

    till he looks down upon his foes.

    Lavishly he gives to the poor,

    his generosity shall endure forever;

    his horn shall be exalted in glory.

    From the Gospel of John (12:24-26)

    Jesus said to his disciples:

    “Amen, amen, I say to you,

    unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies,

    it remains just a grain of wheat;

    but if it dies, it produces much fruit.

    Whoever loves his life loses it,

    and whoever hates his life in this world

    will preserve it for eternal life.

    Whoever serves me must follow me,

    and where I am, there also will my servant be.

    The Father will honor whoever serves me.”

    Homily

    The attitudes of gratefulness and cheerfulness in giving are what our readings would like us to reflect today. This calls us to recognize the many gifts that we have received from the Lord and in return, through our gratefulness we are moved to share to others cheerfully what we have received. Our Psalm proclaims to us, “Blessed the person who is gracious and lends those in need.” This calls us now not to become anxious of tomorrow but to be confident of the blessings of today.

    Certainly, God loves a cheerful giver, as St Paul affirms, because it is an expression of our deep understanding of God’s gifts and of our deeper intimacy shared with God. We become Christ-like who in today’s Gospel is the seed that falls to the ground and dies and bears much fruit.

    This is an invitation also for us today. A person who joyfully shares his/her recourses and gifts and even his/her life for others, is a seed who takes the risk of giving oneself for others so that others may have life. This is an expression that our faith and relationship with one another becomes life-giving by becoming grateful and generous.

    Indeed, it is when we realize how blessed we are, that we too grow in our gratitude to the Lord. It is essential for us to accept and appreciate the things that have been given to us. They may include not just the material things that we possessed but also our relationships, the many people who are there to love and support us, the gift of our person, our talents and abilities, our vision and dreams. Thus, when our heart is contented of what we have at this very moment, we will remain assured and secured in our life.

    However, when our heart grows unsatisfied, no matter how much we have, we will surely seek for more. This will happen to us when we keep saying that we don’t have enough.

    Jesus invites us today to recognize the blessings that we have. Counting those things that we don’t have will only make us bitter and complaining. It will only make us seek for more making us greedy; who would always seek for more attention, recognition, praises, and entitlements from others. If we allow ourselves to turn into greedy and bitter persons, then we will make ourselves as the unhappiest person.

    Thus, instead of being anxious on what we can profit, let this day and the days that will come as the right time to be grateful to God. Recognize and count every blessing that you have received. Hopefully, through this, it will mold us to become grateful persons and generous in our actions and words. And may our generosity express the cheerfulness in giving despite the little things that may remain in us or despite the nothingness once we give up something for others and for God. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • Be welcoming, God’s grace and mercy is without borders

    Be welcoming, God’s grace and mercy is without borders

    August 7, 2019 – Wednesday 18th Week in Ordinary Time

    From the Gospel of Matthew (15:21-28)

    At that time Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.
    And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out,
    “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David!
    My daughter is tormented by a demon.”
    But he did not say a word in answer to her.
    His disciples came and asked him,
    “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.”
    He said in reply,
    “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
    But the woman came and did him homage, saying, “Lord, help me.”
    He said in reply,
    “It is not right to take the food of the children
    and throw it to the dogs.”
    She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps
    that fall from the table of their masters.”
    Then Jesus said to her in reply,
    “O woman, great is your faith!
    Let it be done for you as you wish.”
    And her daughter was healed from that hour.

    HOMILY

    Have you ever been insulted, discriminated and rejected by the people whom you thought would help you and show you mercy?

    Certainly, we would feel hurt, broken-hearted, ashamed or even angered. I expected such feelings also from the Canaanite woman  who approached Jesus. And he seemingly gave a cold and harsh treatment towards her. However, the persistence of the woman and Jesus’ indirect teaching to his disciples make the story more interesting. Let us see a bit deeper, then, the Gospel today.

    This Gospel story tells us that Jesus with his disciples withdrew to Tyre and Sidon, a region of the Gentiles. Gentiles were considered by the Jews at that time to be unclean. However, Jesus went there on purpose to teach something to his disciples.

    That purpose of Jesus culminated in the appearance of the Canaanite woman who sought healing for her daughter. The woman, as a gentile was considered like a dog to the Jews. Even though Jesus reminded her of this discrimination from the Jews, the woman did not lose any courage and faith to approach Jesus. The woman believed that though she was undeserving of God’s mercy, but she asked for it anyway not for herself but for her sick daughter.

    This was what Jesus wanted to teach to his disciples that God’s mercy is beyond race, culture or even religious tradition. By going to that region, Jesus made a statement. By healing the daughter of that woman, Jesus broke down the cultural and religious barriers that prevent people from reaching out. Jesus tore down the walls of indifference and lack of compassion.

     This is what the Lord is inviting us to reflect today. Just like his disciples, we are called to expand our perspective and understanding of God’s mercy. God is no doubt not limited to few people or selected and favored people. Our God is God of everyone regardless of belief, culture, background or history. God’s grace and mercy is without borders.

    Now, you and me who believed in Jesus as Lord and savior are called to be like him. We are, therefore, called to widen our circle of friends, to include those even outside our family, relatives and old friends. We are called to reach out to others, to be more welcoming and accommodating of people in need even if we are different, even if we come from different regions, or religion, or race or dialect, or status and position in life.

    This calls us too to be true to our Catholic identity, and that is to be universal and inclusive in the way we deal and relate with people, showing kindness and mercy.

    Yes, we are called to build bridges rather than walls, to extend our hands rather than closing our doors, to open our eyes rather than pretending not to see.

    Thus, as we would all go home (or go back to your office and workplace, or school), I would like to ask you to recognize those people who need a welcoming presence and accommodating heart. Extend our generosity to them so that we may able to bring the Lord closer to them. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • It is through prayer and listening that we allow God to transform us

    It is through prayer and listening that we allow God to transform us

    August 6, 2019 – Feast of the Transfiguration of Jesus

    From the Gospel of Luke (9:28b-36)

    Jesus took Peter, John, and James 
    and went up a mountain to pray.
    While he was praying his face changed in appearance 
    and his clothing became dazzling white.
    And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah, 
    who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus 
    that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem.
    Peter and his companions had been overcome by sleep, 
    but becoming fully awake, 
    they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.
    As they were about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus, 
    “Master, it is good that we are here;
    let us make three tents,
    one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
    But he did not know what he was saying.
    While he was still speaking, 
    a cloud came and cast a shadow over them,
    and they became frightened when they entered the cloud.
    Then from the cloud came a voice that said, 
    “This is my chosen Son; listen to him.”
    After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.
    They fell silent and did not at that time 
    tell anyone what they had seen.

    HOMILY

    In the biblical tradition, mountains were known to be sacred places where one can encounter the divine or feel the presence of the Lord. In the time of Jesus, this belief was very strong and thus, the gospels would tell us how Jesus spent his time despite his hectic schedule in teaching and healing the sick just to go up to the mountain to “pray.” Yes, Jesus would go up to the mountain to pray, to commune with God, to relate with God more intimately. Mountains became a powerful symbol of the divine, of an encounter with God. This is a tradition handed down to us as we would usually find our retreat houses on the mountaintops. Because of our experiences of being there to encounter the divine, we are renewed and refreshed, energized and strengthened in responding to what God is inviting us to do as Christians.

    Indeed, this is the very experience of Jesus and his three disciples – Peter, James and John. That experience on the mountain was in fact an extraordinary experience. What had been revealed to the disciples was the “transfiguration” of Jesus. The face of Jesus was changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white. The three of them were more surprised when a cloud, a symbol of a holy presence, covered them. They were more terrified by that event. Only later that realization came, that that experience was a holy and privileged one. It was a glimpse of the true identity of Jesus as true God and a preview of his glorious resurrection.

    But one could wonder, why would Jesus allow the three to see in advance or have a foretaste of the glorious resurrection? The voice that came from the clouds would tell us something. That mysterious voice says, “This is my chosen son; listen to him.”

    That voice tells the three that Jesus is indeed the chosen one, he is the Christ, the Messiah that they have been waiting for – the BELOVED ONE to whom they should LISTEN! The disciples are told to LISTEN to Jesus and to follow him in this life. They are told to listen to the life that Jesus will show them and that life entails struggles, suffering, pain and even death but there will be also joy, happiness, and peace in the glorious resurrection.

    And indeed, as they listened and followed Jesus, these fishermen turned into fishers of men. From being fearful and doubtful followers of Jesus they have become dedicated apostles and preachers of the Gospel. By listening to the Lord, they were transformed and converted into new persons.

    THIS IS NOW THE MESSAGE, THE CALL THAT IS BEING OFFERED TO US – that each of us and as a community we are called to JOURNEY WITH GOD. And by journeying with God, it is very essential that WE LISTEN TO GOD, in listening to his Word. God is telling us now, “Hey, listen to me and be my herald of the good news, be my gossiper of the gospel to others!”

    We are able to do that when we truly learn how to “pray and listen.” Remember, Jesus went up to the mountain to pray and through prayer he was transfigured. The disciples too where praying and it was through their prayer that they were made aware of that mysterious event in their lives. So it means that we too, are called to “pray and to listen,” to commune with God and to relate with God more intimately through our prayer. It is only when we become reflective and prayerful that we also become aware of the people around us. We become more connected with God and with others.

    Transfiguration becomes a reality in us when we see and recognize the face of God in our brothers and sisters, when we learn and take the courage to watch out for those who feel unrecognized, to give a room for the stranger, to listen to those who are troubled and hear the cry of those who are desperate in life, to walk with those who are afraid and those whose hearts are broken and to give a helping hand to those who stumbled. Through these, we become a community centered on the Eucharist that is welcoming, embracing, loving and forgiving that may hopefully move to gradually transform ourselves into the way God wants us to be. Hinaut pa!

  • Our possessions can possess us

    Our possessions can possess us

    August 4, 2019 – 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

    From the Book of Ecclesiastes (1:2; 2:21-23)

    Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth,
    vanity of vanities!  All things are vanity!

    Here is one who has labored with wisdom and knowledge and skill,
    and yet to another who has not labored over it,
    he must leave property. 
    This also is vanity and a great misfortune. 
    For what profit comes to man from all the toil and anxiety of heart
    with which he has labored under the sun? 
    All his days sorrow and grief are his occupation;
    even at night his mind is not at rest. 
    This also is vanity.

    From the Letter of Paul to the Colossians (3:1-5,9-11)

    Brothers and sisters:
    If you were raised with Christ, seek what is above,
    where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
    Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. 
    For you have died,
    and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 
    When Christ your life appears,
    then you too will appear with him in glory.

    Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly:
    immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire,
    and the greed that is idolatry. 
    Stop lying to one another,
    since you have taken off the old self with its practices
    and have put on the new self,
    which is being renewed, for knowledge,
    in the image of its creator. 
    Here there is not Greek and Jew,
    circumcision and uncircumcision,
    barbarian, Scythian, slave, free;
    but Christ is all and in all.

     From the Gospel of Luke (12:13-21)

    Someone in the crowd said to Jesus,
    “Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.” 
    He replied to him,
    “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” 
    Then he said to the crowd,
    “Take care to guard against all greed,
    for though one may be rich,
    one’s life does not consist of possessions.”

    Then he told them a parable. 
    “There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest. 
    He asked himself, ‘What shall I do,
    for I do not have space to store my harvest?’
    And he said, ‘This is what I shall do:
    I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones. 
    There I shall store all my grain and other goods
    and I shall say to myself, “Now as for you,
    you have so many good things stored up for many years,
    rest, eat, drink, be merry!”’
    But God said to him,
    ‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you;
    and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’
    Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves
    but are not rich in what matters to God.”

    HOMILY

    According to the study of OXFAM International, an independent non-governmental organizations, one in three persons lives in poverty[1] and in their 2018 report on the Word’s wealth, Oxfam found that the richest 1% people in the world have 82% of the world’s wealth. Moreover, Oxfam also reported that the 26 wealthiest people in the world possessed 1.4 trillion USD and this is just equivalent to the wealth of the 3.8 billion poorest people in the world.[2]

    The world has so much wealth and resources for all of us but then only few are possessing them. To possess material wealth is not in itself evil. Material wealth is God’s gift to us. However, material wealth becomes a problem if we would allow this to possess us. We might believe that to possess so much wealth will give us security and joy.

    However, this is not the case because the more we possess things, the more we also become insecure and anxious. Just observe ourselves. The more a person possess wealth, the more the person also becomes defensive. High walls are built to protect a rich house, sometimes with electric current running 24/7 on barb wires and with a 24-hour security personnel. And when the person becomes unaware of his/her unquenchable desire to possess more, then the heart turns greedy and insecure, and even corrupt and oppressive.

    Our readings this Sunday have something to tell us. The Lord invites us to examine our attitudes towards our material wealth, the resources that we have gained and received, and the riches that we possessed. Even though we may not be part of that 1% wealthiest people in the world, but then, the possessions that we have may have already possessed us. This may prevent us from being grateful to the source of blessings and generous to those who are in need. Let us explore then our readings and see how God unfolds his invitations for us today.

    The author of the Book of Ecclesiastes tells us that what we possess now and our worldly achievements could not guarantee satisfaction to our desires. Qohelet says, “Vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!” Indeed, everything will be in vain when we become too focused on material possessions and when our heart becomes materialistic. With this attitude, we will lose the essential things in life and that include our relationships.

    This is the reason why Jesus warns us of our tendency to be greedy. Greed comes from a heart that believes in self-containment and self-satisfaction and that desires total independence from God. But then, material things could never quench our greatest desire to be satisfied and fulfilled. Thus, a person will tend to accumulate more and possess more even at the expense of others.

    This is how the cycle of corruption and oppression happen. When our desire becomes unsatisfiable, we become greedy of many things, who will tend to collect as many material things and wealth us much as possible.

    Such attitude will not just appear in our heart out of nowhere. Sometimes, this has something to do from our childhood memories. A child who has been deprived from many things particularly of essential things in the child’s development such us food, shelter, toys and clothing and even affection and love from parents may become a form of emptiness in the heart of a child. When the child becomes adult, that kind of experience could give the person the anxiety to be deprived again. Hence, in order to gratify such anxiety the person could become a hoarder who accumulate things and possessions.

    When this happens too, a hoarder or a greedy person is blinded to see the needs of others. It will be difficult for the person to open up and be generous to those who are in need around him or her because the person feesl insecure every time he or she gives.  The person would only look at his/herself and never to others. This is now an attitude of the heart that is truly being possessed by possessions.

    Thus, Jesus said, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” Jesus tells us that our life is more than our possessions. Consequently, St. Paul in the second reading calls us “to put to death parts of us that are earthly.” These are attitudes that are driven by greed.

    Be mindful, then, of our possessive attitudes because these may affect and endanger our relationships with our families, friends and colleagues.

    We may ask, what is it that possessed me? What are those that kept me from being free? We do not have to think of millions of pesos because even a single smartphone may possess us. Remember, when we put so much focus and attention to a material thing, it could make us indifferent, ungenerous and unkind towards others. Our attachment to a single smartphone may indeed, prevent us from giving more time, attention and focus towards our studies (for the students), or may prevent us from giving our affection and presence to our loved ones.

    We believe that what gives us true satisfaction, freedom, joy and contentment is a life with God. Thus, Jesus calls today to have a life with Him and to let go of whatever that possessed us because this is the way of making ourselves free for Jesus. Then, by being free for Jesus, we shall be able to let ourselves be satisfied truly by the Lord himself. And in response, our self-satisfaction from the Lord will lead us to recognize that everything we have is God’s blessing that must be shared to others. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

    [1] https://www.oxfam.org/en/about)

    [2] https://time.com/5508393/global-wealth-inequality-widens-oxfam/