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Category: Sunday Homlies

  • Again OR Anew

    Again OR Anew

    November 21, 2021 – Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/112121.cfm)

    “If & when given another chance, would you do it again or anew? Would you do it as before or better than before?”

    2014, before going to Korea to minister our Filipino Migrants & workers, I was assigned as a parish priest in our big Redemptorist parish found at the very heart of Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental Philippines. However, amidst the busyness and burdens of my responsibilities then, I was more drawn to the challenging life-question: “At this stage of your life, if and when given another chance by the Lord, would you do it again or anew? – would you do it as before or better as before?” These questions challenged me to review (to look again) my life as it, to think outside the box and out of my comfort zone, and to openly consider once again another vocation God is challenging me to be at midway of my life. While I responsively considered “a life not again but anew, and a life not as before but better than before”, eventually I found myself in Gwangju Korea, serving God and the Church as Redemptorist missionary in an entirely unique culture, working with new set of people, both fellow Filipinos and foreigners, doing migrant ministry, which specifically distinct from what I was used to do in parish work. Because of this and since then, my life is never the same again. Never I could imagine then to live my life in Korea for five years then because I reconsidered a life anew and better than before with our Lord. Difficult it may be but surely my life has been more fruitful, enriching and blessed than as before.

    Sharing you my life-experience somehow give and offer you a glimpse of the spirit and meaning of our celebration today of the Solemnity of the Kingship of Christ.

    Today on the Solemnity of Christ the King, we celebrate the reign of Jesus Christ in our Christian life. We, the whole Christian world proclaim and witness today to Christ’s leadership and sovereignty in our Christian lives. Jesus Christ our King is our Way, Truth and Life who is our leader, guide, and force in faith & life as it was, as it is, and as will always be. Also, today on the Solemnity of Christ the King marks the end of our liturgical year. For the past year of Christian worship, we have followed and journeyed with the Lord in our life as we praise, believe, proclaim, serve, love, and live our faith in God with Jesus. Our recent past year with the Lord amidst pandemic does have its own challenges, difficulties, sufferings as well as blessings, growth, and opportunities.

    As we bid farewell to liturgical year B (reflecting mostly on the Jesus story as told to us through the gospel of St. Mark), better also for us to review our life with the Lord this past year, and be more open to consider another and a new chance to journey in faith with our Lord. Perhaps also consider the question: “At this stage of your life, if and when given another chance by the Lord, would you do it again or anew? Would you do it as before or better as before?” – “Sa buhay ko ngayon, kung at pag-binigyan ng muling pagkakataon ng Panginoon, gagawin ko bang muli o panibago ang aking buhay? Gagawin ko ba gaya ng dati o mas Mabuti pa ang aking buhay?”

    https://reasonabletheology.org/jesus-christ-our-king/

    These questions take into account two important considerations: the role of Jesus in our life and our choice to follow and journey with Him in our life always. On one hand, these challenges give importance to the role of Jesus in our life. The life that we have and live now is a life of chances and opportunities God has given and shared us. In simple words, our life is a gift from God – not made, built, and programmed by us. Now, consider how we live our life now. Do we recognize, believe, and worship our life-giver and life-sharer God who gives us the chance to live our life now? Does Jesus have a part, a role in our daily lives? Or rather, we recognize, believe and worship only ourselves &/or our life now with others than God? So, in humility, healthy for us to reconsider our life as “If and when given another chance by the Lord” for we don’t really know how this God-given life could and will be.

    On the other hand, these challenges give importance to our choice to follow and journey with Jesus in our life always. As we consider our life as God-given chances and opportunities, we should also have to make a choice and commitment to live, lead and journey our lives in accordance and in faith with our Lord Jesus Christ.  Here we are to live our lives as Christians disciples – following and journeying with Lord in life creatively. Being Christian is our choice of lifestyle – our way of being & living our life as human in the world, and participating in God’s recreation of our world. Living our life as Christian then gives meaning, spirit, and direction to live our God-given life anew and better than before, as well as fully reveals to us the leadership and sovereignty of the Lord’s kingship through our lives to the world.

    Our gospel reminds us our Lord Jesus Christ is a rejected and persecuted King and Leader. His kingship then is not based on his command and authority with us His disciples, but on our choice to follow and journey with Him in life – living our life with Him. More than honor, praise, prestige due for Him as our Lord and King, Jesus desires our companionship, participation, and commitment to be and live with Him in our journey of life. Ask not the Lord like Pontius Pilate: “Are you the King?” but rather “Is Jesus my King?” Rather than probing on His kingship, anew and better then recognize, believe, choose, and live our lives with Jesus as our Way, Truth and Life in our world.

    Again, as we say Goodbye to Year B and say hello to another chance, but a new year of living with and in the Lord’s kingship, healthy for us to reconsider this question: ““At this stage of your life, if and when given another chance by the Lord, would you do it again or anew? Would you do it as before or better as before?”

  • LIFE-lived In & With CHRIST

    LIFE-lived In & With CHRIST

    November 14, 2021 – 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/111421.cfm)

    Corrie Ten Boom, a Nazi concentration camp Christian survivor, now a well-known inspirational writer, once said: “If you look at the world, you will be distressed. If you look within yourself, you will be depressed. If you look at God, you will be at rest.” These words of wisdom are learned from her life-experience of the cruelty of war and racism, not only before her captivity in Amsterdam while her family were helping in hiding escaping Jews, and during her captivity in the concentration camp of Germany, and after her release and liberation, but also based from her experience of life struggles and faith journey in general, as Christian.

    If and whenever we reflect on these words, we somehow can relate with her on how we also experience our life-struggles and faith-journey as Christian in general. Though we may not share the same experience of life with her, but her words offer us a realistic but still hopeful view of our Christian life: “If you look at the world, you will be distressed. If you look within yourself, you will be depressed. If you look at God, you will be at rest.”

    True indeed, distressing it is to look at world today. With a lot of things going on – war, racism, discrimination, alienation, poverty, moral decadence, corruption, crisis, natural and human disaster, migration, pandemic and other, we cannot help but be distressed, upset, worried and be bothered with life nowadays and in near future. And while looking at our world today with distress, we cannot also help but be depressed, helpless, and hopeless within ourselves as we try to adjust, adopt, and respond to our troubling world. Addiction, crimes, sex, violence, drugs, suicide, abortions, marital breakdowns are just mere manifestations of how depressed we are and we can be within ourselves, due to the reality of our world outside and our life within. These are the common pains we are experiencing life nowadays as it is.

    Worse, Jesus in our gospel today even warns us of these on-going and coming distressing and depressing realities of life in the world to happen. We cannot help but be bothered of Jesus’ cosmic depiction of the end-time, “Sun will be darkened, moon will give not its light, and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.” We may not have yet experienced end-time as Jesus described it, but with our experience of our life’s common pains nowadays of increasing fatality & sickness, easy for us to see that at most we are already on our way towards destruction and end-game of life.

    We might have been experiencing life at its worse nowadays, however, Jesus promises us a life, not as how we look and experience it, but Eternal Life with God. Jesus proclaims and promises us: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” (Lilipas man ang Langit at Lupa, ngunit ang aking mga salita ay hindi lilipas: Mahanaw man and langit ug yuta, apan akong pulong dili gayud mahanaw).

    Here Jesus is teaching us that eternal life is not about life without end, or endless life, or our life/world now not passing away. Eternal life with God is not the extension and expansion of our life as we look and experience it. Surely, we desire not the extension and expansion of our common pains & struggles in life. But what Jesus promises us is eternal life that gives us meaning and purpose as we experience life’s common pains.

    In & with our experience of life’s common pains, Jesus is thus offering us eternal life of common purpose. He is offering us Himself as our Way, Truth and Life that would give us meaning, direction and purpose as we struggle with life and journey in faith amidst our common pains of life. Jesus wants us to live our Life In & With Christ.

    In other words, Jesus offers us Common purpose and meaning amidst common pains of life. Common pains thus take place and will happen in our life here on earth, but rest assured, Jesus, God’s word, and love for us remains for us and with us forever. Ika nga: (Matupok man lahat ang buong daigdig, hindi magmamaliw ang aking pag-ibig.

    So, whenever we find our life distressing and depressing, and as we long for rest and peace in life, just be reminded of and learn from the wisdom-shared to us by Corrie ten Boom: “If you look at the world, you will be distressed. If you look within yourself, you will be depressed. If you look at God, you will be at rest.”

    Siya Nawa. Hinaut pa unta. Amen.

  • GENEROSITY IN OUR POVERTY

    GENEROSITY IN OUR POVERTY

    November 7, 2021 – 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/110721.cfm)

    At the beginning of this pandemic, if you can remember, there was a kind of panic buying that happened. When the government announced to impose ECQ then MECQ in major cities, people lined up in markets and supermarkets to secure their food supply as well us vitamins and sanitizers. There was even a time that it was too difficult to buy alcohol, even bread and canned goods. Malls, supermarkets and pharmacies have regulated the purchase of food and medical supplies. There was even a time here in Cebu when the Provincial Government regulated the purchase of oxygen tanks because of panic buying.

    What really drove people to panic buying? What also made people to hoard things? It must be the thought of running out of supply and of fear for not having enough. There might not be enough for us that leads us to get what we need as much as we can, but not minding the needs of others.

    Such attitude can actually still exist even without a crisis. We could believe that we always need to secure something for ourselves. Thus, people who tend to accumulate things, whatever that is, whether food, toys, clothing, gadgets or even attention and acceptance from others could suffer from a feeling of inadequacy and endless insecurity. Because of that feeling of being insufficient and insecure then, it would lead us to accumulate more and even to the point of becoming a greedy hoarder.

    Yet, this attitude of the heart prevents us to become generous and to become persons God desires us to be. However, our feeling of inadequacy and insecurity should not even prevent us. These are ways for us rather to become life-giving and to be truly generous.

    As a matter of fact, true generosity is expressed out of our poverty, out of our insecurities. This is what we have heard in today’s readings. So allow me now to bring you a bit deeper into the scriptures revealed this Sunday.

    In the First Book of Kings, Elijah asked for water to drink and bread from a widow. Remember, at that time, there was famine. Food was scarce. In fact, the widow expressed to Elijah her food insecurity. She only had a handful of flour and a little oil in her jug. Those must not even be enough for her and her son to be fully satisfied. She knew that after consuming that, there will be none anymore. This was the reason why she said to Elijah that their death was coming. Meaning, that will be their last meal for food has gone out.

    But the surprising event was, the widow out of her poverty and food insecurity did not even complain but gave her last bread to Elijah. And a miracle happened, the Lord repaid her generosity. Her flour never ran out and her oil never ran dry. For a year, they were able to eat and they survived from the famine.

    The same expression of generosity was told to us in the Gospel of Mark. Jesus observed how people gave their offerings or tithes and saw the difference between scribes, the rich and powerful people in contrast with a poor widow.

    The scribes or the scholars of the law were merely concerned of getting attention and praise. They want people to recognize and honor them. They sought for that, expressed in their lengthy prayers yet they would amass the remaining properties of the widows and indifferent to their struggles. These people just wanted and desired power, control and dominance. Hence, their contribution to the Temple was something of a show. What they gave was only something from their excess, not from the heart. They were concerned on what they can get and on what was beneficial for them. This was the warning Jesus gave to his disciples. Jesus, actually, denounced the three attitudes of the scribes and the powerful in that society.[1]

    The first attitude Jesus denounced was the desire for prominence and influence rather than the value of giving oneself to serve others. The second was the desire for recognition, esteem and control rather than promoting the good of others through humble service. And the third that Jesus denounced was the desire in attempting to use one’s position, one’s power for self-gain and self-promotion.

    However, in these three desires and attitudes of the scribes and the powerful at that time, there was no true worship of God. They could have been faithful in their attendance in the Temple and in their daily devotion, but then, their hearts were filled of themselves.

    They were not worshipping God. They worshipped themselves. They were not giving something to the Lord. They were investing to get something out of it.

    True generosity and true act of worship can be found in the person of that widow who offered her last two coins to the Temple. Her coins were greater in value than the many given by the rich and powerful.

    Why? Because what she gave was not an excess of her wealth. What she gave was her everything. She just gave all she had. That poor widow gave back to God what she has and gave out of her poverty, completely trusting God’s providence and being contented of what she has on that day. This is God’s invitation for us today that we grow in our desire not to accumulate more, not in our desire to be honored or to gain power and dominance over others, but to grow in our capacity to go beyond ourselves, beyond our poverty and insecurity by giving from our heart.

    Thus, share generously what we have now to those who are most in need and give to God out of our gratitude. We do not have to wait to become materially rich before we give, because even the poorest of among us can give something to others. A gift given out of our insecurity is our best act of generosity. Hinaut pa.

    [1] From the Homily of Bishop Manny Cabajar, CSsR, DD.

  • GENEROUS HEART

    GENEROUS HEART

    November 7, 2021 -32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/110721.cfm)

    I remember once on a Sunday mass, after preaching about the boy (our so-called accidental hero) in the gospel about the Multiplication of Loaves, a small boy went up in the sanctuary during the offertory bringing with him his offering. He did not quite know where to put his five pesos offering. So, when I noticed him coming up, I postpone preparing the altar. Instead, I fetched the boy and led him to our collection box.

    For me, it was a moving experience. Here I was, preaching about the boy in the gospel who gave everything (his two loaves of bread and five fishes) to Jesus as his generous contribution for the people’s need, and calling people to share something themselves for the church mission.  And right there after, a little boy coming up in the sanctuary, offering his everything (n.b. for a three or four year old boy, a five peso coin is not only something but everything) for the mission of the church. Such gesture for me is not only something (because that little boy and his family heard my homily and responded to it), but EVERYTHING because it is Good News manifested right before my very eyes. Gospel as witnessed.

    As you might notice, for the past Sundays, we have been reflecting about Christian values fitting for Christian discipleship. Blind Bartimaeus reminded us of the importance of seeing again God’s will in our lives. Then, Jesus emphasized the commandment of Loving God, others and ourselves as our right faith response to God’s grace.  Then, particularly today, we reflect about Generosity.

    Moving from the whole issue of what is the greatest commandment, here in our gospel today, Jesus discussed with his disciples about the whole issue of who or what can truly please God. By comparing the rich and the widow’s offering, Jesus pointed out to his disciples that what matters most is not What but HOW we give our offerings to God. The rich people gave from the excess or surplus of their plenty so that others may notice them, while the poor widow contributed from her poverty and helplessness everything that she has as her sacred offering. As Jesus upholds, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more that all those who gave offerings. For all of them gave from their plenty, but she gave from her poverty and put in everything she had, her whole livelihood.”

    For Jesus then, what could truly please God is Generosity. God is pleased with generous people who wholeheartedly contributed and gave up everything they got for the betterment of others, (if not all). This is clearly portrayed by the poor widow who gave her family’s food to Elijah in our first reading; by the temple offerings of the poor widow in our gospel, by that boy in the multiplication of loaves, by that little kid who offered his five pesos for the mission and by Jesus who laid down his life for the redemption of many. They all wholehearted gave up and shared everything they got to the point of denying themselves for the good of others. Well, that is Generosity, that is Christian charity and love.

    And generosity usually happens whenever we have sympathy & empathy towards others. Whenever we have the heart to feel with others (sympathy) & to feel for others (empathy), Generosity happens in our lives & grace abounds. We give credit to the spirit of generosity nowadays as we face the challenges of pandemic times. In our generosity via our sympathy & empathy with one another, somehow we are able to withstand in faith these trying times.  

    We pray then with St. Ignatius of Loyola as he described what Generosity is, through his Prayer for Generosity. 

    Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve you as I should. To give and not to count the cost. To fight and not to heed the wounds. To toil and not to seek for rest. To labor and ask not for reward. Save that of knowing that I do Your Most Holy Will. Amen. Hinaut pa unta.

  • HOW IS OUR WAY OF LOVING?

    HOW IS OUR WAY OF LOVING?

    October 31, 2021 – 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/103121.cfm)

    HOW DO I LOVE? WHY DO I LOVE?

    Have you asked yourself this question? Or have you asked how is your way of loving?

    Kyle (not his real name) seemed to be so kind and warmhearted around his friends. He would always be there when someone would be in need of help. He was always filled with smiles. He was generous of his resources and time. Yet, he also tended to just please everyone around and very afraid of any conflict and tension. As a result, his pleasing personality would turn to become submissive to his friends and family members.

    Deep within, Kyle was filled with insecurities and fear of being left alone and abandoned by people whom he valued. Kyle, at a very young age was abandoned by his mother and left by his father at the care of their relatives. Kyle grew up believing that he has to earn the love of people around him so that he would never be lonely and alone again. This was the reason why Kyle would do anything, please his friends and as much as possible cling on them. However, his goodness and kindness was easily abused by opportunists.

    Like Kyle’s pleaser-submissive way of loving, we may also have our own ways of loving and reasons of loving. Thus, we may find ourselves loving others because we seek a similar response from them. This happens when we think that loving is like making investment and expecting many returns of investment. This is Love-Investment form of loving.

    Others may find themselves loving for the sake of self-satisfaction and self-gratification that a person receives from being kind and generous. Yes, it is possible that we can be loving to people around us to boast our ego. Yet, this is a ego-centered form of loving and an attention-seeker form of loving.

    There is also another way of loving that seeks control towards others. This way of loving believes that our ways, our values and our perspective are always better and superior than the one we love. For this reason, our way of loving does not give space for dialogue, does not welcome suggestion and uncompromising because we tend to control people and submit our loved ones according to our own ways. However, such kind of loving is controlling and suffocating.

    Another way of loving also can be in a form of a guilt-driven love. This means that our way of loving induces guilt or makes people around us to feel guilty if we are not loved. Such way of loving can make threats to people just like saying, “if you won’t love me or if you will leave me, I will kill myself.” Yet, this way of loving is manipulative and destructive.

    There might be more other reasons of loving but these forms of loving are called, “REFINED SELF-LOVE.[1]” Yes, merely for self-love and has nothing to do with others or with God.

    Indeed, when our way of loving is one of those refined self-love, our way of loving others, is devoid of love of God. In fact, God has no space in there because what we are after is just ourselves – “me, myself and I.”

    Nevertheless, such forms of loving are not ways of being free, of becoming who we really are and meant to be. We only become prisoners of our fears and insecurities in life.

    What God wants us is that our way of loving will become free which requires loving beyond our comforts even beyond our fears and insecurities. This is what we have heard in our readings this Sunday.

    Moses reminded the Hebrews how God saved them from their oppressors, defended them from their enemies and favored them as God’s chosen people. What Moses wanted was to allow the hearts of the people to grow in gratitude to the Lord God because God is faithful. It is in growing in gratitude that the people also shall find themselves to be transformed in love. Loving the Lord God, then, with all our heart, soul and strength is the expression of our gratitude to God.

    Gratitude to God in our heart heals our fears and insecurities because we become convinced and confident just as the author of the Psalm proclaimed to us today, “I love you, Lord, my strength.” Yes, it is when we find our true assurance of support and comfort in God that we are also able to build a healthy self-image who is being cherished and loved first by the Lord.

    This brings us concretely to love the Lord in return not because out of fear or out of obligation, but out of gratitude which is a free response of loving. Such response of loving has been deepened by Jesus in today’s Gospel of Mark.

    Thus, Jesus reminded us of the immediate result of loving the Lord. The love of neighbor is the concrete manifestation of loving the Lord. Remember, God’s image is in each of us. Therefore, if we love God, then, it also means that that love is being expressed towards ourselves and towards our brothers and sisters who are created in God’s image and likeness. The two commandments of love cannot be separated from one another. They co-exist with one another.

    Loving God calls us then, to love one another with all our heart, our soul, mind and strength. And we can begin today by being, first, grateful to God which would hopefully make us joyful persons. When we are joyful, then, God transforms us to be generous to others, both in our words and deeds. Remember this, joyful and grateful persons are truly generous because true generosity springs forth from those attitudes of gratitude and joy.

    However, like the pretentious scholars of the law and some Pharisees who wanted to trapped Jesus, we could also pretend to be generous but then having an impure motive, and that is to advance our personal interests. This is then, not a true expression of love towards others, but selfishness.

    We should also be very careful when we tend to become so stiff with our religious practices but having a growing indifference and malice towards people around us, then, our devotion to God is empty and merely motivated by fear. Going to mass and going to confession regularly may become a mere appearance of our ego-centered devotion when we deny what is truth and factual, and when we tolerate dishonesty and corruption.

    Our revered sacred images at home and daily rosary shall only become merely devotional show when we also refuse to recognize abuses in our community and choose to be silent and neutral amidst oppression and injustice committed against the powerless and the weak.

    We ask for the grace today, that our way of loving will be transformed into Jesus’ way of loving, that is free, grateful and self-giving. Hinaut pa.

    [1] https://www.associationofcatholicpriests.ie/2021/10/sunday-october-31-2021-thirty-first-sunday-in-ordinary-time/