Peace! Kalilintad! Shalom!

Category: Liturgical Year A

  • Following ones dream

    Following ones dream

    January 5, 2020 – Epiphany of the Lord

    Click here for the readings http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/010520.cfm

    Homily

    What is it that drives you most?

    Or are you looking for someone who will make you happy, or looking for something that we will give contentment in your life?  

    Are you in search for someone who will fill your emptiness and sadness or of something that will give you the success that you have been dreaming of?

    Somehow, each of us is looking or searching for something that will truly make us joyful, peaceful and fulfilling. We aspire for that and hope for it. Thus, we take risks to achieve our dreams and hopes. These risks include venturing in other places, investing our time and energy, developing and forming new relationships. And we know that in every venture, trials and difficulties are also present.

    With this in mind, this brought me to what we celebrate today which is the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord or the manifestation of the Lord Jesus. This solemnity tells us also of the story of the three magi or wise men who have been in search of the shining star. These three men who were probably, astrologers, had the same goal. They have been following and searching for this mysterious star that had appeared in heaven. The star that they had seen could have been their dream too. 

    Indeed, that star filled them with dreams and hopes. They followed it from where they came from. They took the risk of journeying into unknown territories to find that something that will truly satisfy their thirst of knowledge or hunger for wisdom. True enough, the three men found the best gift in their life and found the fulfilment and joy that they have been looking for. In their search, they have found and encountered the Lord who manifested Himself to them. 

    Little did they know, it was the Lord who invited them. It was through that star that the three were invited by the Lord. And because they were open to God’s revelation, the three were led to the family of Mary, Joseph and Jesus. Behold, through the baby Jesus, they have seen the face of God.

    On this feast of the Epiphany the focus is not really the three kings, the main character here, is the baby boy Jesus. God reveals himself as a vulnerable baby, a powerless little boy in the arms of Mary and Joseph. It is very interesting to remember this. The three magi did not find the little King in the home of the royalties or powerful politicians; not even with the rich merchants and businessmen or with an influential family. The little king was with an insignificant mother and father from the almost unknown town of Nazareth.

    This image of the baby made the powerful and corrupt king Herod to be troubled. Thus, king Herod got afraid upon hearing the birth of a new king. He was threatened not by a powerful army or civil insurgency or a possible assassination but by a small and vulnerable baby.

    This tells us that God manifests Himself in a humble way, in the most vulnerable way of being a baby, born in a family. This tells us too that strength is not with the powerful and rich, it is with those who are weak. Greatness is not with the popular, influential and corrupt but with the humble and poor.

    This is God’s invitation for us this Sunday – to seek the Lord always who shall give us the true joy and contentment in life, who shall fill and satisfy our hunger and thirst for love, for healing, for peace.

    Let us be discerning then. Discernment made the three men, wise. They discerned well and became committed to follow the star, to follow the Lord. Discern to follow the Lord by being open to his invitations and revelations. But let us remember, God reveals Himself in places where we do not expect Him to be. God makes himself more known with the weak and the powerless, with the insignificant and the poor.

    Like the three wise men, let us also offer the Lord our gifts as symbols of our love and devotion to Him. The three men offered him gold because He is King, frankincense because He is a Priest, and myrrh because He is a prophet. Let us offer the Lord our willingness to serve others that does not ask anything for a return, with our sacrifice that does not seek any payment or make complaints, and with our commitment to live an honest and compassionate Christian life that does not discriminate the weak and the poor, that does not condemn the sinners but to be merciful, upholds what is true and just and is not afraid to stand up against the bully, the corrupt and unjust powerful figures like Herod.

    Hopefully, by seeking the Lord who is everything in our life, we too shall grow in our faith and commitment as Christians today, humble and honest, wise and discerning of God’s marvellous manifestations in us. Hinuat pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • Allowing the Lord to look at us intimately

    Allowing the Lord to look at us intimately

    January 4, 2020 – Saturday before Epiphany

    Click here for the readings http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/010420.cfm

    Homily

    Jesus began to call his first disciples. The first two of them were John (the beloved) and Andrew who later introduced his brother Simon to Jesus. Simon has been called by Jesus as Cephas or Peter, which means the rock.

    John and Andrew were disciples of John the Baptist. Hence, because of John, the two have been hearing about John’s prophecy of the Messiah who is to come. They have actually been waiting for him to arrive.  Perhaps, when they finally met Jesus, they too were astonished at the appearance of Jesus. They were surprised not because of the grandiosity of Jesus but because of his simplicity. Jesus was just an ordinary Jew, dressed in an ordinary way as common people did at that time. His physical feature was not that astounding, like a “model or artista,” no! However, there was something in Jesus that they have deeply felt.

    Jesus was a man who when he looks at you, you will be captivated by him. Yes, when Jesus looked at them, he did not just look at them in the eyes but through their heart too. When Jesus looks, it is nothing casual because he looks at us with love and concern.

    This experience of the two led them to see and recognize the Messiah! And this prompted them to follow Jesus. 

    Each of us also is invited to look at Jesus, look at his eyes, and also allow the Lord to look at us so that we may see how he loves us so much. The look of Jesus is neither condemning nor terrifying because of the sins we have committed. Jesus’ look will always be loving and merciful, inviting us to come closer to him. Thus, let Jesus look at us intimately today.

    When we are able to do that, surely Jesus will also say to us, “Come!” –that is to follow the Lord in the way we live our lives and perform our duties as parents, as children, as students, as professionals, as workers and as person. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • Bringing others to Jesus through us

    Bringing others to Jesus through us

    January 3, 2020 – Friday before Epiphany – Memorial of the Most Holy name of Jesus

    Click here for the readings http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/010320.cfm

    Homily

    At first, John the Baptist was not actually aware that it was his cousin Jesus who was the Messiah. Before the appearance of Jesus to the public, John has become popular among the people. He already had followers with him. People gathered wherever he went. People were amazed at what he proclaimed and were captured by his own charisma as a prophet. And so people flocked to be baptized by John.

    John had all the fame if we would look at it in modern times. He had followers or likers. Yet, the fame that he was gaining from the people did not distract John. He remained humble and continued to seek the one greater than him, who was ahead of him for he was before him . The humility of John, his self-awareness and confidence in God actually led him to recognize God in Jesus, and recognized him as the Lamb of God.  

    If John had been self-absorbed, insecure and self-assuming, he could have claimed that he was the Messiah that the people had been waiting for. But no, John was faithful to his mission and was ready to disappear from the picture once the Messiah would reveal himself to the public.

    Indeed, this was how John brought the people around him to also recognize God. As we have celebrated the birth of our Lord, hopefully, our Christmas has become an encounter with God. And in that encounter, we are called to bring God to others, to let others recognize God too through us.

    This is the invitation for us today, that through us, our brothers and sisters, will recognize God’s presence in our life. That through us, people will feel God’s presence; through our actions and words people will be drawn not to us but to God.

    And so like John, let us always be aware of ourselves. Let us be conscious when we turn to be selfish and self-absorbed because that will only reveal how insecure we are with ourselves. Let us be confident in God instead and recognize that what we have and that what we enjoy in this life are all coming from God.

    Our mission as Christians, like John the Baptist, is to be the herald or the messenger of God to others – to bring others to Christ. So it means that we too first should be close to God by being sincere, humble, compassionate and loving to others even to those we do not like and people we hate. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • Knowing who we truly are

    Knowing who we truly are

    January 2, 2020 – Thursday before Epiphany – Memorial of Sts Basil the Great and Gregory of Nazianzen

    Click here for the readings http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/010220.cfm

    Homily

    What is easier? To pretend who we are not or to be who we are truly? 

    With the phenomenon of social media sites, it has become easier to pretend who we are not and to portray to others a self filled with icing. A person can just create multiple accounts on Facebook or Instagram and portray a different image of himself or herself. Others also can just display an image of himself or herself on social media sites different from what is real. 

    Why is that? This comes from a deep longing of fulfilling a person’s desire to be recognized or praised by others. The space provided by the social media allowed such persons to be recognized and praised, that is, in gaining likes or shares and followers. Others would portray happy occasions through their pictures and videos to hide a painful and traumatic background of their life. Others would show how affluent and comfortable they are in life to hide their insecurity due to poverty. However, such attitude can also become problematic. Portraying to others whom we are not, distances us from our real self and thus, from recognizing who we are before God.

    In today’s Gospel, John reminded us of the importance of recognizing our true self before God and before others. People were asking John if he was the Messiah or Elijah or some great prophets from the Old Testament. John could just easily pretend that he was someone else of great importance. However, John was honest enough to say that he is not God nor a great prophet. He was just a simple and humble friend of God, whose voice cries out in the dessert to bring people closer to God.

    Thus, we are called today to be more accepting of ourselves with all our weaknesses and problems as well as our strengths and potentials. Being honest with ourselves is also being honest with God and with others. In that way, we become an authentic person who is not bothered of any pretension and insecurity. Hinaut pa.

    Jom Baring, CSsR

  • God bless you

    God bless you

    January 1, 2020 – Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God

    Click here for the readings http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/010120.cfm

    Reflection by Fr. Mar Masangcay, CSsR

    God bless. God bless you.

    In our world today of texting, almost everyday we read, hear and say those words: God bless, God bless you. But what does it mean? How do we understand it?

    Sometimes we use those words to express what we really refer to mean as “May God bless you”. With this, we imply that it is God who is to give you blessings at the same time we hope that God will grant you the blessings you need or expect from him. 

    Truly, it is really God who grants us his blessings, but we must not forget that his blessings are given to us but also through us. When Jesus gave his blessings to the people our gospel, he does not only assure them of God’s blessing but preach to them that God’s glory and blessing may be revealed through them. The poor, hungry, weeping, hated, rejected, insulted are fortunate not only they receive but make manifest God’s blessings and graces. Meaning, God grants everyone his blessings by making you, me, us and others not only receivers but also sharer and giver of blessings. In as much as God is the author of our blessings, by our words and actions, we can also agents of God’s blessings to others. 

    Our readings today are all about blessings. St. Paul describes how blessed we are for thru Jesus we have now come to acknowledge God as Abba, our Father. And in our gospel today, Mary recognizes not only how blessed she is and we are through her child Jesus, but she cherishes all these graces as she “kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart. And lastly in the first reading, the Lord teaches us how to bless others. Meaning, we should be grateful for we are blessed, and should cherished, savor, and ponder our blessings in our hearts at the same we must learn how to give and share our blessings to others. Blessings are ours to joyfully receive and celebrate, at the same time blessings are ours to share with others. As we begin a new year in our life with the Lord. We must then be a sacrament of God’s, an instrument and sharer of God’s blessings to others by our good words and deeds.

    Here, we must also never forget 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, not only the reward that we expect and need from him, for what we receive from Him is more than just what we need and expect from Him. Usually it comes as a surprised Gift which is beyond our expectations. As a text message I received this morning say: 

    God’s blessings may come as a surprise and how much we receive depends on how much our heart can believe. May you be blessed beyond what you expect.

    Another year of Blessing has begun. We greet each other not only with a Happy New Year but a Blessed Year ahead. May God bless me. God bless You. God bless us. Nawa’y pagpalain kayo at tayo ng Panginoong Dios.