Peace! Kalilintad! Shalom!

Category: Liturgical Year C

  • FORGIVEN

    FORGIVEN

    April 3, 2022 – 5th Sunday of Lent

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/040322-YearC.cfm)

    There was once a priest who was so envious of his wise and holy parishioner. Because of jealousy, he made every effort to test and ridicule this parishioner. One day, he confronted the parishioner and said, “Sir, you seem to be a pious & religious person.  I’ve heard that God is so pleased with you. Will you please ask your God what is my greatest sin committed?” The man was not able to reply right there and then, and eventually left sadly. Next day, the man came back, asked for the priest, and said: “Father, God said, not to worry about your sin. He has already forgiven you your sins and even forgot about it.”

    As we listen to our gospel today, we cannot help but hear loudly what Jesus said, “Let be among you who has no sin be the first to cast a stone at her”. Through these words, we can also look at ourselves, examine our own failures and sins committed against God and others. Yes, it is true. It is easy for us to see and be sensitive of the faults and sins of others than ourselves. It is easy for us to judge other, to cast a stone or smear dirt on others, likes the Pharisees and teachers of the Law would do. Because of our self-righteousness and over conscious of other’s faults and sins, many lives and relationships shattered and broken. Through these words of Jesus, we can reflect back on our own lives and see our own failures and sins – our sinfulness. And it is not for us to judge others because we are also sinners, and have also committed mistakes, failures, and sins in life.

    However, if we also reflect deeply, the gospel message today is more than just an instruction for us not to judge other, and to examine ourselves and be sorry for our own sins and failures. We are also challenged today in our gospel to recognize and trust in God’s forgiveness and mercy. Yes, it is easy for us to see the faults of other, and slow for us to look on our own sins, but we also know that in the midst of these faults and failures, God intervenes, forgives, and saves us.

    In our gospel today, the scribes and the Pharisees become aware and realize their own faults and sinfulness. But the story does not end there – admitting their sins. It ended when the woman receives the Lord’s mercy and forgiveness. Jesus said, “No one condemns you. Nor do I condemn you. You may go. But from now on, avoid this sin.”

    Like the Pharisees and scribes, it is not enough for us just to be sorry for our mistake. We must also receive God’s forgiveness and mercy. Meaning, the good news is not in the realization and admittance of our sins but in receiving God’s mercy and love. Reconciliation is not only about being sorry for our past faults and failures but also receiving again and anew God’s love and mercy in life. God’s forgiveness then is more than just about our repentance but also renewal of our faith in God. As Yahweh insists in our first reading, “Remember not the events of the past, the things of long ago consider not. See, I am doing something new!” In other words, stop condemning oneself & others, let go now of our past sin, & allow God do something new & better through you.

    We have started the season of Lent during Ash Wednesday with a call to “Repent and believe in the gospel”. This does not only mean that we are sorry for our sins and we are to change our ways, but that we must also deepen and strengthen our faith and trust in God, and for us, to recognize and receive the blessings and graces that God has done and accomplished for us.

    As St. Paul in proclaims: “I have come to rate all as loss in the light of the surpassing knowledge of my Lord Jesus Christ. For his sake I have forfeited everything, I have accounted all else as rubbish. I wish to know Christ and the power flowing from his resurrection” may our repentance leads us back to God and renew our faith in Him, who loves us always.

    So be it. So may it be. Amen

  • Chance to Be At Home

    Chance to Be At Home

    March 27, 2022 – Fourth Sunday of Lent; Laetare Sunday

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/032722-YearC.cfm)

    In the Gospels, Peter and Judas Iscariot are two of the outstanding characters in the life of Jesus and His disciples. Both are trusted leaders of Jesus: Peter as the manager, and Judas Iscariot as the treasurer. Both have also sinned and failed the Lord: Peter denied the Lord three times, while Judas Iscariot betrayed the Lord. But what makes him worse than Peter is that Judas Iscariot did not allow the risen Lord to forgive and love him again. By killing himself, committing suicide, Judas Iscariot remains far and away from the Lord, missing and not even giving himself the chance to be forgiven and welcomed by the Lord again and anew. Peter, on the other hand, though guilty of his own offenses, remains near and close waiting for the risen Lord, thus giving himself and the Lord the chance to welcome and love him again and anew. Simply put, the Lord forgives, welcomes, and loves those who are near, close, listens and believes in Him. 

    Once again, we hear the parable of Jesus about the Prodigal Son. Surely hearing and reflecting again the parable of the Prodigal Son could offer and bring us a lot of lessons, messages, and challenges in our faith-life as Christians. But among the good news we can learn from this parable, the main theme here is all about “Home-coming”.

    Jesus told us the parable of the Prodigal Son because many sinners were coming near to listen to Him, and he was even criticized for welcoming and eating with them. To make sense of the spirit of what is happening (sinners coming near and listening to him) and of His action (welcoming and eating with them), Jesus shared us the parable of Prodigal Son to teach us the message about Reconciliation: our homecoming or our coming home to God.

    Through the parable, Jesus reveals to us that our God has a special regard for the lost, outcast, and sinners. Our God is thus more concern about and especially loves those of us who are lost, least, and last in life. Like the Father in the parable, God waits, loves, and welcomes back those of us who experience being lost, last and least, as well as estranged, left-behind, marginalized, disregarded, and downgraded in life. At the same time, His love and concern for us can fully be experienced and enjoyed through our homecoming to God – by coming Home again and anew.

    Meaning, God’s love is and can be savored (taste and see) once again if and whenever we give ourselves as well as God a chance to welcome us again and anew. Like Peter, we are forgiven, welcomed, and loved again, if and when we give ourselves and God a chance to be reconciled and be in relationship and covenant with Him anew. As shown to us, the prodigal son enjoys the father’s love and home by coming home, and the resentful elder son may and could enjoy the father’s love and home again if and when he comes back home again.

    Jesus also teaches us how to come home with God. God welcomes and enjoys with those who come near to Jesus to listen. Coming near and listening to Jesus is our way of coming and being at home with God’s love. Homecoming to God is then all about believing and having faith in Jesus who will guide and leads us back to our Father.  Hence, by our homecoming to God through our faith in Jesus (near and listening to Him), we come to experience the promise of God’s love and salvation.

    The sacrament of Reconciliation or the Confession is our Church’s chance & way for us to be reconciled to God. By going to church, confessing our sins, asking and receiving forgiveness, we come back home to God our Father and be near and listening to Jesus in faith, and so be forgiven, welcomed, and loved again and anew. Like the Father of the Prodigal Son, God awaits for our homecoming, and most willing to forgive and love us again if and when we and God gives another chance to make things right with Jesus in life.

    In this Lenten Season, through confession of our sins, may we come nearer and listen to Jesus as He leads us and allow ourselves back to our Home with our Father. Amen.

  • BEING CALLED AND CHALLENGED

    BEING CALLED AND CHALLENGED

    March 20, 2022 – Third Sunday of Lent

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/032022-YearC.cfm)

    The first reading from the Book of Exodus tells us a wonderful story of the call of Moses. His call from God captures the invitation for each of us as we are now on the third Sunday of Lent. So, let us explore together our readings today and see how God invites and calls us.

    The first reading is a story of conversion of Moses. We have heard that it began through the “burning bush” which led to the encounter of Moses with God. But what really happened there? Let us take it step by step.

    When Moses noticed the flaming bush but was not consumed by fire, Moses became curious. His curiosity led him to come near to the burning bush. As he came near, it was at that moment too that Moses’ name was called. And when he responded, Moses was made aware of the holy presence of God as he was standing on a holy ground. Moses has to remove his sandals and to present himself in bare foot before God. When Moses did remove his sandals, it led him to a personal conversation with God because he became more grounded. By removing his sandals, Moses felt and became more connected with God.  It was an intimacy shared by Moses and the Lord. Moreover, this encounter brought Moses to a mission. God sent Moses, and that is to bring the Lord to his fellow Israelites.

    This encounter of Moses with God allowed Moses to know God and be more aware of God. God’s name is “I am who am” or basically means, “I am with you always, all the time.” This was how Moses realized that God is relational. This means that God does not remain remote or alien to human suffering. In fact, the Book of Exodus described God’s words in this way, “I have witnessed the affliction of my people in Egypt and have heard their cry of complaint against their slave drivers, so I know well what they are suffering.” This led Moses closer to God.

    This is indeed a conversion story because from the kind of life that Moses was so comfortable with, God disturbed him. That disturbance was God’s way of calling Moses to go beyond from his comforts and even from his fear of being killed by the Egyptians. Remember, Moses fled Egypt because he killed an Egyptian soldier who had beaten a Hebrew slave. The burning bush then, became the opportunity for Moses to encounter and know God, and being called and challenged by God as well.

    Moreover, the call of conversion is what St. Paul reminds us in his first letter to the Corinthians.  The history of unfaithfulness, of the grave sin committed by the people in the past must be a learning experience. That cannot be forgotten. St. Paul calls us, definitely, not to grow complacent and to just be secured with what we have in this world. He even expressed this in these words, “whoever thinks he is standing secure should take care not to fall.” 

    The same call of conversion that would bring us closer to the Lord is what the parable in today’s Gospel revealed. In the parable of the fig tree, Jesus tells us that the Father is a God of many chances. God gives us many chances to change our ways and to come nearer to him so that we may find fullness of life. This is described to us as Jesus expressed in the parable how the owner visited the fig tree. Yet, in the person of the gardener, Jesus tells us that indeed, God gives us another chance when we fail and commit mistakes, when we grow complacent and refuse to be life-giving. The gardener expressed hope to the owner as he asked him to give the fig tree another year. The gardener promised to cultivate it so that it may bear fruit. The gardener saw hope for transformation and hope of being fruitful in that tree.

    Indeed, God always sees hope in each of us too. This was how God saw hope in Moses who left Egypt to hide and to make him as God’s messenger. God also saw hope among his people who were made slaves in a foreign land to give them the fullness of life.

    Out of these things, there are three invitations that I want you to remember on this Third Sunday of Lent.

    First, to be more conscious of our own “burning bush.” This “burning bush” could be an experience were we also became curious about God but led us to a personal encounter with God.

    Second, let us remove our sandals, as what Moses did, and to remove anything that is not helpful and toxic and those that prevents our growth.  This means that we are challenged to remove and to let go those unnecessary things, attitudes, behaviors, opinions, beliefs and lifestyle that prevent us from becoming a life-giving person.

    Third, to go beyond. This is where we find the message of hope and the call of conversion. We are not limited by our failures and mistakes in life, not even by our sickness, struggles and difficulties that we have at this moment. God sees hope in us and it is God’s desire that we are able to enjoy life and celebrate life in its fullness. Thus, go beyond from our protected shells of pretensions and complacency by allowing ourselves to grow in our relationships. And also, go beyond  from our fears and sins by seeking peace and reconciliation, go beyond from our insecurities, anger, hatred, disappointment and trauma by making ourselves confident with God’s gift of healing and of his faithfulness to us. Hinaut pa.

  • Only IF & WHEN

    Only IF & WHEN

    March 20, 2022 – Third Sunday of Lent

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/032022-YearC.cfm)

    How do we make sense of a lot of things going on with our lives nowadays? Still adjusting with the life-threating Covid pandemic, we are also now amidst violence, terrorism, disasters, and killings along with the imminent threat of world war, oil price hike, dwindling geo & national politics. Is there and can we still hope in life?

    As some people reported to Jesus about disasters and killings happened in Galileans in our gospel today, the central issue raised is also about Hope in life. “Can we still hope for God’s salvation?  Is there still a hope and meaning in life?” Sometimes with a lot of miseries happening in our world today, like calamities, wars, poverty, disasters, exploitations, corruptions, and injustices, we do find life hopeless and meaningless.

    This reminds me of a story about a beggar who had a rice bowl to beg. Every time he asks for some food or money from others, he would just stick out his rice bowl and beg for something. At times, he is too ashamed to beg; he cannot even look at them. But many at times, he becomes too rude to force others to give some scraps of food or some coins. Like other beggars, he dreams that someday he will become a millionaire. But he knows that such dream is impossible and just a wishful thinking because he got nothing but a mere dirty battered rice bowl he inherited from his family of beggars. Sometimes he would blame God for his life’s misery. He considers himself a hopeless and useless case.

    One day, while begging, a merchant noticed his rice bowl and asked if he could have a look at it. The merchant then examined his rice bowl and concluded, “You must be stupid begging for some craps. You should not be asking for others help because you are one of the most fortunate persons in the city. This rice bowl of yours is a priceless antique made of pure GOLD. Just wash it clean and it will cost you a fortune. Why don’t you sell it to me? I could give you five million dollars for it.” But the beggar just laughed off what he heard from the merchant. He simply could not believe that his useless rice bowl is worth a fortune. He dismissed everything the merchant said and continued to beg for some food or money using his dirty battered but priceless golden antique rice bowl. What a waste, what a shame.

    Sometimes, we are like that beggar. God has already given us a lot of His graces. He almost gave up everything for us – His life, His love, His salvation, His only Son. God has already endowed each and everyone of us enough of His blessings. He has given us not only a chance but a lot of chances to live life, and a golden rice bowl of faith in Him. But like that beggar, we rarely recognize God’s precious gifts to us. We rarely recognize our Faith. Sometimes we are not contented with our simple faith. Instead, we look for signs. We look for other substitutes. We beg for other scraps of beliefs. We dream for miracles but in vain. Then, we find life useless, and get hopeless with life.

    Like in our gospel however, as the gardener assured his master that there is always a hope for a dry fig tree to bear fruits again – only if and when given a chance, Jesus also reassured us that there is always hope in life, if & when we change our ways. Jesus in our Gospel today reminds us that God has given each and everyone of us a chance to live life to its fullness. He calls us to see all life miseries are not signs of a vengeful God, but a constant wake up call to repent, to conversion and Christian Living. For Him, there is still hope for those who repent and believe in the Gospel. 

    We began the Lenten season last Ash Wednesday, with the words: “Repent and Believe in the Gospel.” It simply means that the season of Lent is the time for us not only to prepare ourselves for the Easter but also to examine and purify our rice bowl of faith, and then to recognize and accept the preciousness, fortune, and chance it brings. In other words, there is hope only if and when we repent, we change our ways and believe in the Gospel, in the good news, in the golden chance to live God has already given us. Otherwise, there is no hope and meaning at all.

    As we struggle with our life-journey nowadays during these trying times, help us O Lord to acknowledge & responsibly accept your Gift of faith in us, for us to discover meaning, hope, strength, & direction through the challenges ahead.

    So be it. Amen.

  • TAKING THE RISK THAT LEADS TO TRANSFORMATION

    TAKING THE RISK THAT LEADS TO TRANSFORMATION

    March 13, 2022 – 2nd Sunday of Lent     

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/031322.cfm)

    A friend shared to me how she took the risk of entering into a new relationship. She had been hurt in the past and the scar of betrayal still pained her. She became protective of herself by being suspicious of others. Obviously, she did not want another pain and disappointment. But then, another person came who promised to be with her. She was hesitant and fearful because she might experience another heartache. She will not be able to bear another pain and betrayal. At the beginning, she would not give any room for her suitor to occupy a space in her heart. Yet, the determination and patience of that man made her reconsider her position. At the end, she took the risk despite her anxieties and fears for a new relationship. Moreover, she discovered how that taking the risk transformed her, including her attitudes and perspective in life. In the process, as she took the risk, she became positive and grateful. A new person has emerged, a transformed woman ready to love and be loved again.

    Her story reminds me of the stories we have heard in today’s readings, which invite each of us to take the risk and be transformed. Together, let us explore these readings and see how God calls us on this Second Sunday of Lent.

    In the Book of Genesis, God called Abram to journey to a land God has promised. Abram was to leave the comfort of his homeland and people because God prepared something for him. God also promised Abram many children. Despite his uncertainties and anxieties, Abram took the risk of journeying to that strange land, and took the risk of putting his trust and faith in God.

    Indeed, as he took the risk of believing in God, God transformed Abram into a new man through the covenant that God made with Abram. Later, we knew that Abram’s name became Abraham, which means, the “father of many.” Certainly, this is a story of taking risk that led to a transformation of a person.

    We also find this in today’s Gospel. The transfiguration of Jesus is a manifestation of Jesus’ act of taking the risk to be vulnerable and powerless, to be sold and betrayed by a friend, to be deserted by his own disciples, to be persecuted, to suffer and to die. And because Jesus completely trusted his Father despite the uncertainties, “his face changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white.”

    What does it mean? It was a glimpse of the glory of his resurrection, which Peter, John and James witnessed with their own eyes. In that revelation, the Father assured Jesus of His constant presence. It was a covenant made by the Father to His son, telling the Son that he will not be alone.

    Moreover, to Peter, John and James it was also an invitation “to listen to Jesus” – that is to take the risk of following the Lord and be transformed according to the image of Jesus. Indeed, as they listened to Jesus, they took the risk of following the Lord despite their fears and doubts, and of the uncertainties of their life as disciples.

    Thus, these former fishermen became fishers of many people. The doubtful and fearful Peter became a pillar of the Church and a martyr for Christ. The innocent and young John became a respected old man whose wisdom was sought after by his disciples. And James became a devoted preacher of Jesus and was the first apostle to be martyred because of his devotion and faith.

    The invitation for us today is also to take the risk so that we will be transformed to be like Jesus. Remember, we can be very comfortable with our old ways and choosing to stay to what is only familiar to us. We could grow contented the way we live our life now to the point that we do not want to be challenged.

    Yet, God wants us to be renewed. Hence, we are called to get out from the comforts of being passive, complacent and indifferent, to get out from our self-centered ideas and attitudes, to let go of our biases against people, to let go of our fears and doubts that only prevent us from being free, honest and life-giving persons.

    Today, God tells us, “Listen to me!” God speaks in our hearts through the words in the bible and through this celebration that we are not to remain passive, not to remain complacent, not to remain self-centered, fearful and doubtful of ourselves but to become pro-active, to be self-sacrificing, to go out from our usual ways and to be confident in God’s words like Abram and Jesus’ disciples. Hinaut pa.