Category: Weekday Homilies

July 18, 2019 – Tuesday 11^th Week in OT

Mt. 5:43-48

“love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” – Mt 5:44

To hit back when we are hurt can sometimes be our immediate response. Even without thinking, a child may hit a playmate when he or she is hurt. Among us adults, this kind of attitude is also evident, as simple misunderstanding would lead to endless quarrels, lawsuits and even violence. This sounds actually simple and natural yet this has big implications in our relationships. We may ask now, is the attitude of taking revenge a Christian way?

In today’s Gospel, Jesus taught his disciples to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Is it not ridiculous? Our natural response is to hit back thinking that hitting back takes away our pain. Yet, Jesus teaches the other way around, to love our enemies and pray for those who have hurt us.

But, how could we love those who have hurt us, those who have abused us, those who betrayed us and caused so much pain in our life? Our immediate response is to take our sweet revenge. If we cannot express physical violence against them, then, we express it in our words and on how we treat them. But most of all, we linger to hatred, to pain and anger.

Yet, we do not realize that once we let aggression, violence, hatred and anger rule in our hearts and minds, we become prisoners of our own pain. Then, the pain that we endure leads us to feelings of anger, hatred and bitterness. When we linger to these they will lead us to a heart that seeks only revenge. This will be our tendency from our belief that by hurting the person back, our anger and hatred will be satisfied. But then we are wrong because anger and hatred will never be satisfied by violence. Violence will only make us angrier, hateful and bitter. The more we linger to our pain, anger and hate; they become a cycle that never ends.

However, we when find love and forgiveness in our hearts that begins with accepting and embracing those painful experiences and go on with life, then, we will be free. Loving one’s enemies or those whom we hate is an expression of mercy and forgiveness that will make us free. It will not erase the scar of betrayal or abuse or pain that we endure but we will be able to stand up, to wipe our tears, go on with life and transform pain into kindness.

This is what Jesus wants for us. Jesus wants us to be free and not to be prisoners of anger, hatred, bitterness and violence. It is in showing love, kindness and mercy that we actually find peace and reconciliation, justice and freedom

Showing love then, is not about telling the person, that what he/she did was okay and pretend as if nothing happens. No! Love and forgiveness bring healing to our wounded heart that will make us say to the person, “I forgive you not because of who you are but because of who I am” as the Dalai Lama said. It means that I choose to be free and at peace. I choose love and not anger and hatred and I choose God and not evil. Hinaut pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR

June 15, 2019 – Saturday 10^th Week in OT

2 Cor 5:14-21; Mt 5:33-37

The letter of St Paul that we have heard today reflects the reality that Paul himself experienced. Through his encounter with the risen Jesus, Paul saw new things in his life. Paul realized too how Jesus renewed him and his spirit. It was through forgiveness of the past that Paul was able to receive the wonder of being made new.

Through his personal encounter with Jesus, he too experienced “a makeover” by Jesus. It started with the makeover of the heart of Paul. Paul became welcoming of Jesus and of the many revelations that Jesus gave to Paul. Paul also became more familiar to the words of Jesus, and thus, of the will of God, of what God desires rather than his personal desires.

As a result, that makeover of the heart of Paul overflowed to his actions and words. Paul began to see new things. From being persecutor of the Christians, he became an apostle. From treating the Christians brutally, Paul became accommodating, generous and kind not just to Christians but to all. Paul began to see the world differently; from his anger and hatred, Jesus made Paul’s heart and mind to see the world as Jesus sees it. Thus, Paul saw and found his true self before Jesus. He also realized the goodness of others, the beauty of God’s creation.

This complete change or “makeover” in the life of Paul was made possible because he was reconciled with his dark past and with God. This brought Paul to fully believe in the transforming love of Jesus for him.

This tells us now that when we also become reconciled with our dark and painful past, then we begin to see new things. By accepting that we are loved and forgiven, we shall also find our true self that is treasured and cherished by God.

To have that experience of makeover in our life, then, this will surely be translated into our words and actions. Though, the makeover in our life will be on our spiritual and emotional aspect, but then, it will overflow in the way we relate with others.

This is what Jesus reminds us in the Gospel today. In the life of Paul, he became a man of integrity and generosity. He was indeed an honest, kind and generous person that is why, people believed in his testimony about Jesus. The people, certainly, had witnessed personally how the words of Jesus were manifested in the life of Paul, not just in his preaching but also in the way he treated the people around him.

This is the invitation for us today. Jesus calls us to be reconciled with our past so that we will be able to find and realize the beauty of being renewed, of being forgiven and loved.

Seek now the grace of reconciliation by being daring enough to confront our sinful and selfish ways, by being bold enough to be reconciled with the person to whom our relationship has become cold and sour, and by being open enough to allow God to transform us through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

And hopefully, this experience of makeover by Jesus in us will also lead us to become persons with integrity, of generosity and kindness not just in our words but also in our actions. Hinaut pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR

June 14, 2019 – Friday 10^th Wk in OT

2 Cor 4:7-15; Mt 5:27-32

“If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away… if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away.” – Mt. 5: 29-30

Paul reminds us that each of us is mere earthen vessel or clay jar. Yet, as simple jars made of clay, God blesses us. This reminds us that we are vulnerable and can easily be broken. However, St. Paul also tells us that even though we are suffering, but we are not constrained, we remain free. We might have been persecuted and insulted but we are not abandoned because God remains faithful to us. We may be struck down by our failures and sins but not destroyed because God remains merciful to us.

Human as we are, we fail and sin. However, this is not an excuse not to desire perfection and holiness before God. In fact, the Gospel reminds us to be more aware of our selfish tendencies so that we will be able to respond to the temptations that may come to us.

What Jesus told us in the Gospel is not meant to be understood literally. “If your right eye causes you to sin, then, tear it out and throw it away,” or “if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away” – if this is to be understood literally, then, each of us here will have no eyes and hands or even more than that.

Remember, our bodies are also temples of the Holy Spirit, vulnerable like the clay jar but blessed and consecrated by the Holy Spirit. Jesus actually wants us to cut off sin from our system that only separates us from Him and from others.

Thus, if our thoughts are filled with lust and evil thoughts, then, Jesus wants us to stop that, and instead fill our thoughts with God’s word. Read the bible, then.

If our heart is filled with anger and hate, fill it with God’s forgiveness and peace in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

If our hands remain close to those who need our help, then, open them and express your gratefulness to God by extending help and kindness to people around us.

If our feet remain tangled with fear of taking risks, then, free your feet from fear and take the risk of building close and intimate relationship with others. Go and come nearer to your loved ones, spend more quality time with them.

If our eyes will only tend to see what is ugly, negative and imperfect, then, open our eyes wider to see and realize the beauty of others, the wonders of the world and the goodness of our neighbors.

In this way, then, we lessen our tendency to feed our insatiable desire for self-gratification. We begin to see others rather than ourselves alone. We become more self-giving rather than self-serving.

This will allow us to deepen our relationships, whether in marriage, or in the context of a family with children, or among friends and colleagues.

Indeed, Jesus calls us to become persons not driven by selfish desires, but to become persons driven by the desire to love and to give one self for others, like Mary, the mother of our Lord. Mary is a person who truly desires to love give herself for God and for others Hinaut pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR

June 12, 2019 – Wednesday of the 10^th Week in OT

2 Cor 3:4-11; Mt 5:17-19

“I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” – Mt 5:17b

What brings you to life? What drives you and keeps you everyday? What fulfills your day? Our answers might range from God, family, children, wife or husband, community, or our job and precious career. There is always a reason why we get up in the morning and continue to live on. We get inspirations from people around us, and that keep us going.

For most of us, it is very important that at the end of the day we feel fulfilled in our life. However, when we find ourselves unfulfilled, we feel disappointed and depressed.

That’s is why it is very important too that we are aware of the things that motivate and inspire us. By being able to know the reason why we do things, do sacrifices and make decisions, we become grounded and mature in our relationships.

In the Gospel, we have heard an argument between the Jewish leaders and Jesus. They thought that Jesus abolished the Law and Prophets, which composed the whole tradition of their people. For them, the Law and the Prophets, and all those teachings were the fundamentals of their faith. The commandments written in the scriptures motivated them to live as faithful Jews.

However, Jesus himself denied that he abolished the law and the teachings of the prophets and the whole tradition of the Hebrew Scriptures. Jesus is actually the fulfillment of the promises in the whole Hebrew Scriptures. The person of Jesus is the very inspiration of the scriptures.

But then, the Jewish leaders missed the whole point. They were not able to recognize Jesus, the true inspiration. They focused more on themselves, on what they can gain and on their privileged status.

This will happen also to us when we think that our achievements, awards, and titles are our main inspiration. Or when we believe that pleasing people around us will make us fulfilled. But, these will only make us anxious, fearful and unsatisfied.

We are rather called to anchor ourselves to the most important part in our life, and that is, our relationships. These include our relationship with God and with one another, with our family and friends.

Be grounded then with your relationship with God. The Bible will help us to have a good foundation of our relationship with Jesus. The Bible is truly alive with Jesus. Now, when we open our bible and pray with it, be aware that Jesus is certainly present in those words. Hopefully, we will be animated by Jesus who will give us life and fulfill our life. Hinaut pa.

Jom Baring, CSsR