Category: Sunday Homlies

November 10, 2019 – 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

A reading from the 2nd Book of Maccabees (7:1-2,9-14)

It happened that seven brothers with their mother were arrested
and tortured with whips and scourges by the king,
to force them to eat pork in violation of God’s law. 
One of the brothers, speaking for the others, said:
“What do you expect to achieve by questioning us? 
We are ready to die rather than transgress the laws of our ancestors.”

At the point of death he said:
“You accursed fiend, you are depriving us of this present life,
but the King of the world will raise us up to live again forever. 
It is for his laws that we are dying.”

After him the third suffered their cruel sport.
He put out his tongue at once when told to do so,
and bravely held out his hands, as he spoke these noble words:
“It was from Heaven that I received these;
for the sake of his laws I disdain them;
from him I hope to receive them again.”
Even the king and his attendants marveled at the young man’s courage,
because he regarded his sufferings as nothing.

After he had died,
they tortured and maltreated the fourth brother in the same way.
When he was near death, he said,
“It is my choice to die at the hands of men
with the hope God gives of being raised up by him;
but for you, there will be no resurrection to life.”

A reading from the Second Letter of Paul to the Thessalonians (2:16-3:5)

Brothers and sisters:
May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father,
who has loved us and given us everlasting encouragement
and good hope through his grace,
encourage your hearts and strengthen them in every good deed
and word.

Finally, brothers and sisters, pray for us,
so that the word of the Lord may speed forward and be glorified,
as it did among you,
and that we may be delivered from perverse and wicked people,
for not all have faith.
But the Lord is faithful;
he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.
We are confident of you in the Lord that what we instruct you,
you are doing and will continue to do.
May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God
and to the endurance of Christ.

A reading from the Holy Gospel to Luke (20:27-28)

Some Sadducees, those who deny that there is a resurrection,
came forward and put this question to Jesus, saying,
“Teacher, Moses wrote for us,
If someone’s brother dies leaving a wife but no child,
his brother must take the wife
and raise up descendants for his brother.
Now there were seven brothers;
the first married a woman but died childless.
Then the second and the third married her,
and likewise all the seven died childless. 
Finally the woman also died. 
Now at the resurrection whose wife will that woman be?
For all seven had been married to her.”
Jesus said to them,
“The children of this age marry and remarry;
but those who are deemed worthy to attain to the coming age
and to the resurrection of the dead
neither marry nor are given in marriage.
They can no longer die,
for they are like angels;
and they are the children of God
because they are the ones who will rise. 
That the dead will rise
even Moses made known in the passage about the bush,
when he called out ‘Lord, ‘
the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob;
and he is not God of the dead, but of the living,
for to him all are alive.” 

Homily

Are you living to die? Or are you dying to live?

Few weeks ago, I was in a funeral wake of a young professional in his mid-twenties. Because of so much pain and hurts that he was experiencing in his young life, he couldn’t endure them anymore. He felt helpless and hopeless. He felt alone and lonely. All of these directed him to depression until his depression clouded his mind and heart which also led him to kill himself.

Without judging or condemning him, such situation brought me to ask myself, how am I living my life right now? Am I living to die, letting hopelessness and despair to deprive me to live fully and meaningfully?

Back in college, I met a leper in Cebu, an 80 plus year old woman, who was abandoned by her family in her teen-age years when leprosy began to manifest in her body. Yet, despite being abandoned and left alone in the hospital for lepers, she remained hopeful in life by resisting to be eaten up by despair, by emotional hurts, by abandonment and by the very suffering she was enduring. Thus, she even adopted an abandoned baby girl whom she named Nancy. She found Nancy in a garbage bin in Cebu. Despite her poverty, she accepted Nancy in her life and let Nancy feel a mother’s love, affection and care. Yet, as Nancy grew up and due to her failing eyesight and old age, she has to let go of Nancy and bring her to a group of Sisters who could provide better the needs of Nancy. Despite the pain of separation and of the loneliness she would endure by losing Nancy beside her, she let her go for the sake of her beloved daughter. In that way, she gave life to Nancy even though she herself struggled to live.

With this encounter, I also asked myself, am I giving life? Have I tried to die from my selfish desires in order to give life to others?

Such situations and questions that have come up invited me to dwell deeper also into the readings proclaimed to us this Sunday. Thus, I would like to invite you that we discover together God’s invitation for us today.

The 2nd Book of Maccabees tells us of the story of the seven brothers and their mother who were persecuted and killed. Despite the persecution, they did not fear of dying and to give witness to what they believed. They remained faithful to the law of God until the end. Were they wasting their life for the sake of faith? No, their very life became an inspiration to the many generations after them. Through their witness, the people found assurance in God’s promise of eternal life.

By dying they have given life. However, those who tortured them who deprived others to live, were eaten up by malice, greed and evil. The torturers learned and knew how to kill but also they never learned how to live and give life. This was the reason why they too will be deprived of the resurrection because only to those who have lived life and given life will be given new life at the resurrection.

In the Gospel, the Pharisees and teachers of the law who were so concerned of what they could get from others in this life, asked a malicious question to Jesus, to trick him and embarrass him. Yet, Jesus knew their hearts. They too were filled with malice and selfish desires. This attitude reflected in the very situation they presented to Jesus of a woman marrying the seven brothers when one after another died without having any child.

Life, then, is not about accumulating things from others, or securing something for oneself. Life and living life is to be able to give life to others. This is what St Paul has told us in his letter to the Thessalonians. God’s love and faithfulness makes us alive. God strengthens us in our weakness. Through this, then, God moves us to share to others what we have received and experienced by living together as brothers and sisters by encouraging and praying for one another and showing good deeds and words to all.

Let us be confident in this then, for God loves us and he is faithful to us. Despite the bad experiences that we may have now, the ugly and painful environment we may have, or our messy and traumatic past, the persecution and suffering caused by others to you – never lose hope in living your life fully. Be reconciled with your past embrace whatever there is in life and whatever you don’t have too. Discover the wonder and beauty of living now with others and with Jesus. Never stop giving life to others, in sharing your very life to people who are dear to you, because it is in this way that we become more hopeful to a life with Jesus. Living our life fully today and giving life to others is already a foretaste of what is to come after. Kabay pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR

November 3, 2019 – 31^st Sunday in Ordinary Time 

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke (19:1-10)

At that time, Jesus came to Jericho and intended to pass through the town. 
Now a man there named Zacchaeus,
who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man,
was seeking to see who Jesus was;
but he could not see him because of the crowd,
for he was short in stature. 
So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus,
who was about to pass that way.
When he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said,
“Zacchaeus, come down quickly,
for today I must stay at your house.” 
And he came down quickly and received him with joy. 
When they all saw this, they began to grumble, saying,
“He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner.” 
But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord,
“Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor,
and if I have extorted anything from anyone
I shall repay it four times over.”
And Jesus said to him,
“Today salvation has come to this house
because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. 
For the Son of Man has come to seek
and to save what was lost.”

Homily

Have you been a victim of bullying and of rejection?

To be bullied or to be rejected could create a deep emotional wound in us. Because of being helpless, we could not protect ourselves from people who hurt us emotionally such as bullying and rejection at school, in our neighborhood or even at home. As a result, we do not only begin to hate those people who were bullying and rejecting us, but we also hate ourselves  for being who we are. We hate ourselves because of the imperfection that people find in us.

Thus, we also begin to think that if only we are not like this, then, people might accept us and love us. This consciousness begins to develop in us until we become a person whom we are not, just for the reason of being accepted, recognized, respected and loved by people around us.

Take for example of the story of Zacchaeus. This man was surely a victim of terrible bullying and rejection. St Luke described Zacchaeus as short in stature and a wealthy tax collector. His fellows Jews hated him for being a tax collector and someone who was affiliated with the Romans. Remember, at that time, Israel was under the a foreign invader, the Roman Empire who imposed tax on them.

However, we could also ask, how Zacchaeus, a Jew, ended to the side of the Romans, working for them as a tax collector. We could actually imagine the life of Zacchaeus. Thus, being short in height, Zacchaeus as a young boy must have been a subject of bullying. Even until now, among our friends we actually make fun of people who are short or those people who do not belong to the standard of the majority like those who are too tall or too dark, etc.

Because of the physical limitation of Zacchaeus, people looked down on him. It must have been so terrible for Zacchaeus to be bullied publicly and to be hurt emotionally. Zacchaeus must have felt the pain of rejection and disrespect towards him as a person. However, he was helpless against those playmates and other people who had bullied him.

That emotional pain in him must have created a deep emptiness also within him. Thus, being bullied and rejected, Zacchaeus was in search of respect, of acceptance and of affirmation. But then, he could not gain those by just being who he was because people disrespected him for being who he was. Zacchaeus needed a way of getting his revenge. He won’t be able to get what he wanted if he would remain helpless and meek. He needed power and wealth to make those people who have bullied and rejected him to bow down to him.

Zacchaeus grabbed the opportunity the Roman Empire could offer him. The Romans were feared, though hated by the Jews, but were forced to show their respect. People had to bow down to the powerful Romans. Thus, Zacchaeus made himself available in the service of the Romans. This was how Zacchaeus got his revenge against his fellow Jews. He became the chief tax collector and becoming one also meant becoming powerful and wealthy. 

Now, Zacchaeus was above those who have bullied him. Zacchaeus could now play the bully himself. As a chief tax collector, he could get his revenge by raising the tax against those people whom he also despised. Because of this, people would now please him, affirm him, and show their respect to him because he had power over them.

Perhaps, Zacchaeus would love to see the faces of those who have abused him emotionally to beg for mercy. He could now demand what he needed and force the people to accept him and pay respect to him.

However, Zacchaeus was never peaceful. He was always restless. At the beginning, this was not what he wanted but because of those pain of rejection and emotional wound, he turned out to be corrupt and a monster in the eyes of the people.

In the depths of his heart, what he wanted was complete acceptance from people which he never experienced. But then, he heard about this man Jesus. Jesus was a miracle worker, a famous preacher who healed the sick, raise the dead and forgave sinners. St. Luke described to us how Zacchaeus became curious about Jesus. This curiosity actually showed the desire of a human heart to see and encounter God. Yet, we are also confronted by the fact that it is the Lord first who tenderly seeks for us.

 However, because of the limitations Zacchaeus had, not just his physical limitation of being a short man but also because of his hardened heart, his emotional wounds, his corrupt practices and insecurities, these prevented to him see the Lord. But, these limitations of Zacchaeus did not discourage him to seek further the Lord. What Zacchaeus did was to ran ahead and climbed a tree that he may see Jesus. And truly, Zacchaeus saw the Lord. And Jesus saw him and called him.

For the very first time in the life of Zacchaeus, he felt accepted and welcomed, the way he was, thus, he felt being loved. Jesus addressed him with respect and with dignity without condition, without pretensions, and without questions. This encounter with Jesus, changed Zacchaeus completely.

This attitude reminds us of every human heart’s desire to encounter the Lord. We are made for God. God is imprinted in our hearts as we are created in God’s image and likeness. Let us be conscious on that. Let us be aware that we desire God.

Yet, in our desire for God, there will be things that will prevent us to see and encounter God. This is what we find in the story of Zacchaeus. 

What are those that prevent us to truly encounter God? 

Perhaps, our fear and shame of admitting that we have sinned prevent us in truly meeting the Lord. Fear causes us low self-esteem and to hide because we are afraid of being judged by others, and by the people around us. Shame also prevents us to hold God’s love in our hearts and his forgiveness because we feel that we are not worthy. Our emotional hurts from the past could also hold us back especially when they hardened our hearts to be welcoming of others like that of Zacchaeus.

Our arrogance can also prevent us in meeting the Lord. Our indifference stops us from true conversion. Let us ask then, ourselves,

 what are those things, addictions, or attitudes that may hinder us from truly seeking God?

The story of Zacchaeus reminds us that we have actually the capacity to overcome anything that holds us back to see God. We are called to ran ahead and overcome those attitudes that prevent us from seeing Jesus. Let us look for a tree where we can climb over our sins and fear. Look for a friend whom you can share you own problems and struggles, come to the sacraments with a heart that truly desires the Lord, only then, that we are able to overcome those that prevent us from being near the Lord.

We too are reminded in the story that though our heart desires for God,

but God desires more to see us, to be with us.

Thus, the Lord is constantly looking and searching for us. Jesus was in fact searching for Zacchaeus, searching for a sinner, indeed, we are all the Zacchaeus in the Gospel that Jesus has been searching for. Jesus desires to be with us and that we will be reconciled to him and will be healed from our past hurts and pains. Let us allow then the Lord to search us, to find us and to heal us.

Hopefully, our encounter with Jesus will bring us also into that joy of forgiveness and assurance of love from God that we are forgiven, accepted and respected. This may hopefully lead us too to repair the damage that we have caused and to make amendments for our sins like Zacchaeus who promised Jesus to give to the poor half of his possessions and repay four times over those he extorted. Hinaut pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR

October 27, 2019 – 30^th Sunday in Ordinary Time

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke (18:9-14)

Jesus addressed this parable
to those who were convinced of their own righteousness
and despised everyone else. 
“Two people went up to the temple area to pray;
one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. 
The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself,
‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity —
greedy, dishonest, adulterous — or even like this tax collector. 
I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.’
But the tax collector stood off at a distance
and would not even raise his eyes to heaven
but beat his breast and prayed,
‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’
I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former;
for whoever exalts himself will be humbled,
and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Homily

Have you ever been judged because of what you have done before, of a mistake, or failure or sin that you have committed and the people around you seemed to consider you hopeless and beyond redemption? It is very devastating to be judged by others especially when we are “put in a box,” that, as if there is nothing more in us except our sins and failures.

Aside from being judged by others, each of us too can be the one who judge others because of their mistakes and failures in life. We could have played to be the righteous individuals who scrutinize people searching for their faults. We could be that mean person whose main intention is to bring other people down by shaming and gossiping their  weaknesses in order to hide our own sins. This happens among our families, circle of friends and even in our workplaces.

This Sunday, I would like you to listen to one of the members of the Redemptorist Youth Ministry. Ella Mae Aguda will share her reflections to us and let us discover together on how the Lord invites us today. And so let, us welcome Ella Mae.

Good afternoon everyone.

I would like to start my reflection with a famous quotation “Never judge a book by its cover.” It is so easy to utter these words but it is really so hard to put them into action . It’s so easy to judge people by their mistakes, their ugly past and their wrong decisions. It’s so easy to call others with degrading names and tagging them with hurting words. I will not deny this kind of attitude because I myself have tried and judged people based on how they look liked and of their past. 

Let me tell you a short situation where I have judged people but later on I was confronted by that attitude of mine which helped also to change my perspective, to change the way I relate with others and to change my life. 

I met friends in an unexpected situations. At first I thought they were just living to enjoy their life but then I realized they were not thinking  about others but only themselves. These friends drowned themselves into different vices. Seeing them, I realized I have developed hatred towards them. Looking at them, I have already despised them for being like that. Thus, I believed that they were people whom, I think, don’t care about their parents or family. These friends would only rather drink, smoke, party than go to school and to the church. 

Because of that feeling of despise against them, I also began to feel superior than them. I even began to feel grateful that I am not like them. In mind, I have completely separated myself from them. Them as the bad guys and me the good girl. I have become condemning.

However, as time passed by, slowly I realized how I misjudged them completely. When I got to know them deeper, I was made aware of their stories. Behind those actions were stories about their struggles in their families and their painful experiences. I was made aware that those actions were only façade to escape from their painful reality. Those actions have become their coping from so much difficulty. 

From that deeper knowledge and awareness about them, it led me to confront my self-righteousness.  I began to see my own failures and sins and so I started to ask myself, “Who is the sinner now?” “Kinsa ang mas makasasala sa amua?”

​As realizations sink in to me, I asked myself why was I like that? Why did I judge them? I felt my conscience eating me and I realized how my judgment can ruin someone’s life. I realized how my judgment buildtan invisible wall between me and those people. I realized how I failed as a servant of God. I know that my God is a forgiving God so why would I judge and condemn others when the Lord would love to forgive them readily?

Being part of the Redemptorist Youth Ministry helped me understand and made me realize my own failures and sins that brought me to humble myself yet recognizing also how beloved, gifted and empowered I am. 

I realized that this experience of mine is another opportunity for me to deepen my relationship with God and purify my heart. I myself have experienced the acceptance that I needed most with my co-youth ministers.  Despite my insecurities I was accepted and loved. Because of that, my co-youth ministers have inspired me to become a better version of myself. Thus, through the Redemptorist Youth Ministry, I was taught that to judge a person is to miss an amazing and wonderful story of life and salvation.

In conclusion, I could say now, God made each one of us in a very unique way. Each one is beautiful inside and out in God’s eyes, and this is something we need to recognize too. Someone said that when we stop judging other people, we start opening our hearts and we start realizing how blessed, how lucky and how beautiful life is.

Ella Mae shared to us her wonderful experience that led her to her personal conversion. I myself also have a similar experience like Ella. 

I had this classmate who appeared to be always untidy, late and worst would usually fail his exams. Yet, when we moved up to a higher year, there was something that surprised the class about him. Though he still looked untidy and sometimes came late, but, his exams got higher and better results. Every time he passed an exam there was malice in our minds. Everyone suspected him that he cheated. Most of us, even our teacher couldn’t believe that he had the potential. Others became indignant and felt bad whenever he got a higher score than those who usually got high scores.

Most of us judged him that he did not have the capacity. We judged him of his past behavior and of his failures. Thus, we have failed to recognize that he had actually that capacity. We refused to believe in him because we felt insecure of his capacities and potentials.

The Gospel story that we have heard today conveys this message to us. To become self-righteous only blinds us. Thinking highly too much of ourselves will even prevent us from asking God to show his mercy upon us because we already think that we do not need God’s mercy. Therefore, the self-righteous attitude of the Pharisee is basically a denial of God. Moreover, this attitude also leads us to build invisible walls that separate us from others, as what Ella Mae shared to us.

Thus, we might still have that idea of condemning our brothers and sisters who were considered terrible sinners. We too might have that attitude of separating those people whom we consider as unclean for fear of being contaminated and be associated with them.

Thus, Jesus invites us now to rather look closely at ourselves and to examine better our intentions, thoughts and actions so that it may also lead us to that recognition of our failures and sins. This realization will hopefully lead us to also join the tax collector in praying, “O God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” 

Certainly, we are invited also to be more understanding of those who failed but not in the sense of condoning such failures and sins. We are invited to be merciful rather than condemning.

Let us remind ourselves too, that to both the righteous and the sinners, God does not condemn but God rather desires healing, reconciliation and fullness of life for all.

This calls us, then, to see more in the person of our brothers and sisters, to stop our harsh judgments and condemnations, to stop our gossiping and image shaming that only destroy the image of our brother or sister.

I would like to invite you then, to embrace a family member, or a relative or a friend whom we know have sinned against us so that reconciliation will also begin in us. In this way then, we will hopefully become witnesses of God’s mercy and forgiveness. Hinaut pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR

October 20, 2019 – 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

A reading from the Book of Exodus (17:8-13)

In those days, Amalek came and waged war against Israel.
Moses, therefore, said to Joshua,
“Pick out certain men,
and tomorrow go out and engage Amalek in battle.
I will be standing on top of the hill
with the staff of God in my hand.”
So Joshua did as Moses told him:
he engaged Amalek in battle
after Moses had climbed to the top of the hill with Aaron and Hur.
As long as Moses kept his hands raised up,
Israel had the better of the fight,
but when he let his hands rest,
Amalek had the better of the fight.
Moses’hands, however, grew tired;
so they put a rock in place for him to sit on.
Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands,
one on one side and one on the other,
so that his hands remained steady till sunset.
And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people
with the edge of the sword.

Responsorial Psalm 121

R.(cf. 2)  Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
I lift up my eyes toward the mountains;
whence shall help come to me?
My help is from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
May he not suffer your foot to slip;
may he slumber not who guards you:
indeed he neither slumbers nor sleeps,
the guardian of Israel.
R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
The LORD is your guardian; the LORD is your shade;
he is beside you at your right hand.
The sun shall not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
The LORD will guard you from all evil;
he will guard your life.
The LORD will guard your coming and your going,
both now and forever.
R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

A reading from the Second letter of Paul to Timothy (3:14-4:2)

Beloved:
Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed,
because you know from whom you learned it,
and that from infancy you have known the sacred Scriptures,
which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation
through faith in Christ Jesus.
All Scripture is inspired by God
and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction,
and for training in righteousness,
so that one who belongs to God may be competent,
equipped for every good work.

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus,
who will judge the living and the dead,
and by his appearing and his kingly power:
proclaim the word;
be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient;
convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke (18:1-8)

Jesus told his disciples a parable
about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.
He said, “There was a judge in a certain town
who neither feared God nor respected any human being.
And a widow in that town used to come to him and say,
‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary.’
For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought,
‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being,
because this widow keeps bothering me
I shall deliver a just decision for her
lest she finally come and strike me.’”
The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.
Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones
who call out to him day and night?
Will he be slow to answer them?
I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily.
But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

Homily

Talking with my generation or with my co-millennials and even those who are younger than me, they commonly express their difficulty in being consistent in praying. Despite the busy environment of the city and of the many distractions that we may have like our gadgets, the internet and the need to socialize and be with others, young people also desire to have deeper grounding. This means that there is really a deep desire among the young to connect with God and to be one with him. However, the circumstances that they were in would sometimes prevent them to be consistent in relating with God through prayer. Other circumstances could be the personal struggles young people are facing in their studies or work, or problems in their relationships with their family and friends.

Hence, prayer is believed to be time-consuming and demanding as well as tiring. Well, yes, prayer can be tiring and it can even be lonely especially when we feel alone and feel that nobody understand us. 

Being the Youth Director in this Parish, I took the opportunity to be with the youth. Since October is a Rosary Month I had this chance to join with them. Every night since the 1^st of October, our youth are visiting the homes of their co-youth in our parish. We have visited one house after another and prayed together. But what touched me deeply is the very presence of the youth. During the processions going towards another home to visit, I have noticed that whenever we pass by men who were drinking on the streets, they too join us even by just making the sign of the cross and observing silence while we were passing.

I find this a moving experience. This tells me that prayer changes people not just those who are praying but also those who are affected by the prayer in one way or another. What I find more interesting also is by witnessing how powerful prayer can be when we are with others.

This reminds me of the readings we have heard today. Remember, in the first reading Moses raised up his hand in prayer to God. Moses prayed for Israel because an enemy waged war against them. The Book of Exodus recalls how Moses in the long run grew tired. Whenever he let his hands rest, the enemy, Amalek had the better of the fight.

Yet, what is more interesting was the presence of Aaron and Hur. Seeing Moses growing tired in praying, the two helped him by supporting both hands of Moses. Through their support, Moses’ hands remained steady till sunset.

This tells us that we find more strength in praying with others. When we too are with others even though we feel tired and lonely, the very presence of our dear friends and loved ones could uplift us and inspire us.

The presence of Aaron and Hur reminded Moses that he was not alone in asking favor from God. Moses became persistent and consistent in praying because Aaron and Hur also joined with him.

Jesus, in the Gospel, reminds us also of the need to pray always and never to give up. The parable of the persistent widow captures that message of Jesus. Moreover, Jesus also emphasized that character of God who pays attention to us and to our prayers. The dishonest judge who gave in to that persistent widow just highlighted the compassionate Father that we have. Indeed, God is most willing to listen to our prayers and grant the deepest desires of our hearts. 

Thus, the message for us today is summed up into two points. 

First, be persistent in praying. Even though the Lord knows already our desires before we open our mouth, but he wants us to communicate with Him consciously. He wants us to name our desires because it is in that way that we also become more aware of ourselves, of our need and of God’s desire for us. Thus, by constantly communicating with God, this also becomes an opportunity for us to seek God’s for us. This tells us too not to be discouraged when what we have been asking is not yet granted or not granted at all. This is invitation for us to grow in our confidence with God and to trust him better because God would always have something better for us.

Second, pray with others by seeking the company of your friends and loved ones in praying. Never be shy by asking the help of your friends and loved ones to pray with you. Friendship or family relationship grows and deepens when we pray together. Praying with those who are close and special to us creates more bonding and relationship-building than any other form of recreation.

In this way of praying, we may also realize that as we ask others to pray with us, we may also learn how to pray for others, to be generous in praying and interceding to those who need most our concern, affection and prayers. Hinaut pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR

October 13, 2019 – 28^th Sunday in Ordinary Time 

Indigenous People’s and Extreme Poverty Sunday***

***Today’s celebration invites us that the Lord is ever present with our brothers and sisters who may appear different from the majority. The connectedness and intimate relationship of the indigenous peoples with the creation reminds of our basic relationship with the Creator to whom we should be grateful. The poorest of the poor that despite their poverty are the most generous people. They too express their deep gratitude to God, the giver of everything.

A reading from the Second Book of Kings (5:14-17)

Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times
at the word of Elisha, the man of God. 
His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child,
and he was clean of his leprosy.

Naaman returned with his whole retinue to the man of God. 
On his arrival he stood before Elisha and said,
“Now I know that there is no God in all the earth,
except in Israel.
Please accept a gift from your servant.”

Elisha replied, “As the LORD lives whom I serve, I will not take it;”
and despite Naaman’s urging, he still refused. 
Naaman said: “If you will not accept,
please let me, your servant, have two mule-loads of earth,
for I will no longer offer holocaust or sacrifice
to any other god except to the LORD.

A reading from the Second Letter of Paul to Timothy (2:8-13)

Beloved:
Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, a descendant of David:
such is my gospel, for which I am suffering,
even to the point of chains, like a criminal.
But the word of God is not chained.
Therefore, I bear with everything for the sake of those who are chosen,
so that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, 
together with eternal glory.
This saying is trustworthy:
If we have died with him
we shall also live with him;
if we persevere
we shall also reign with him.
But if we deny him
he will deny us.
If we are unfaithful
he remains faithful,
for he cannot deny himself.

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke (17:11-19)

As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem,
he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him.
They stood at a distance from him and raised their voices, saying,
“Jesus, Master!  Have pity on us!”
And when he saw them, he said,
“Go show yourselves to the priests.”
As they were going they were cleansed. 
And one of them, realizing he had been healed,
returned, glorifying God in a loud voice;
and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. 
He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply,
“Ten were cleansed, were they not?
Where are the other nine? 
Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” 
Then he said to him, “Stand up and go;
your faith has saved you.”

Homily

In the course of our life, we have been asking many things from God. We make sacrifices so that God may grant our prayers for healing, for success or for material graces that we need. We take time to light a candle, to make a mass intention, say our novenas and rosaries, even visit churches and shrines, and touch every statue of a saint so that God will grant our prayers and desires. 

We are not far from the experience of the ten lepers who begged Jesus to heal them. They took the time to cry out loud to Jesus and expressed their desire to be healed. Indeed, Jesus heard them. When they were on their way to present themselves to their priests, they were healed, but only one came back, a Samaritan, to praise God and give thanks to Jesus. Jesus wondered on what happened to the nine.

In today’s Gospel Jesus reminds us to show explicitly our gratitude to God. God’s generosity is endless yet our memory can sometimes become very short. We always remember to ask, but we tend to forget to give thanks. This is what happened to the nine lepers. They were healed and have been a recipient of God’s healing. However, the nine of them were not able to remember the God who brought healing to them. They became too focused on themselves and on the gift of healing that they have received. And so, they forgot about the Giver. They have become ungrateful.

Nonetheless, one leper who was a foreigner remembered the Giver. When he realized that he was healed, he rejoiced and remembered the Lord. That is why, he came back to praise God and thank Jesus. He might have not realized yet that Jesus was God but he was sure that God was at work in Jesus.

This healed leper’s act showed how grateful his faith was. He was not just healed physically but also spiritually. This healed leper teaches us today to show our gratitude to God. And the challenge lies here in giving thanks to God.

This is what we find also in the story of a Syrian leper in the Second Book of Kings, named Naaman. This foreigner, a stranger was also healed from his leprosy through the prophet Elisha. Naaman, despite being a stranger, recognized the power of God. His healing experience moved him to be grateful to Elisha and to God. In fact, Naaman wanted to offer a gift not out of obligation but out of gratitude. Hence, the gratitude felt by Naaman and by expressing it changed his life by becoming a believer of God.

Himself and the Samaritan leper became more alive as they have encountered God.

Moreover, to thank and praise God is time and energy-consuming. Remember, the Samaritan leper came back to Jesus as Naaman also returned to Elisha. Thus, when we thank God, sometimes it requires us to go out of our way, to stop from what we are doing at the moment or to delay our important appointments with others in order to say thank you to the Lord. 

A life filled with gratitude to God is indeed a life of prayer. Just like the healed leper, it will lead us to bow in humility to God, to pray to Him. Hence, before we go out from our room and start our day filled with activities, 

pray first and thank God;

before we do the things for our family, pray first;

before we go to work, pray first;

before you leave home, pray first;

before you enjoy a good meal, pray first;

before you end the day and go to bed, pray first and say a big thank you to the Lord who has been so good and generous to us.

Please take the time today to express your gratitude to God and to all the people who are there for you to be able to express also the joy within us. In this way, we may become more conscious of the Giver of gifts who remain faithful to us even despite our ungratefulness and unfaithfulness. Hinuat pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR