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Tag: A Dose of God Today

  • Tuloy po. 어서 오시요. Come In.

    Tuloy po. 어서 오시요. Come In.

    December 6, 2020 – Second Sunday of Advent

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120620.cfm)

    Homily

    Have you heard about the missing Bambino?

    A story once told that day after Christmas, after all the parties and celebrations, words came out that the Bambino – “the Child Jesus” in a parish church went missing. Parishioners became quite concerned then for nobody can account for the whereabouts of their beloved and now missing Bambino. Perhaps it has been stolen and worse – desecrated by some unbelievers. Days after the incident, resigned with the sad fate of their missing Bambino, a father with his crying boy came to the parish church and brought back with them the missing Bambino. Rejoiced for the return of their missing Bambino, they asked the boy what really happened. The boy said, “My friend and I visited the baby here last Christmas night. The Bambino was sad and all alone. Nobody was with Him except us. So we decided to invite and bring Him home, and brought Him in our chapel where together we could happily play and be with Him”…

    We may at times become so engrossed with & worried about the season of the celebration that we miss the Reason of the celebration itself. We at times concern ourselves more with the “how” that we fail the “why” we celebrate.

    We are now into Advent Season, at the 2nd Sunday of Advent. Advent is all about preparation, preparation for the coming event – the once again visit and arrival of our Lord Jesus Christ into our lives. Advent is then not the event but the preparation of the coming event. Our gospel today introduced us John the Baptist as the herald and messenger who prepares the way of the Lord. He was predicted to be the one who announces the coming of the Lord into our lives. He prepared his whole life and other people’s lives to welcome the Messiah into our lives. John the Baptist then is not the Gospel but only the precursor – the beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God. In other words, He is not the Groom but Best Man of the Groom who paves the way for the celebration of Wedding.

    Like John the Baptist, we Christians, followers and believers of Christ today are called to be heralds, messengers and announcers of the gospel of the Lord’s coming into our lives. We are to prepare ourselves and the world for the once again & anew visit and arrival of our Lord into our day to day lives. As last Sunday reminds us, we are to “Be alert, awake and aware” for the coming Event. This is the “How” we are to be for the Lord’s coming. And the very “Why” – the reason and gospel of Christmas is Incarnation.

    God is wanting to be with Us always. God choose to be like us so that He can come & visit us, stay with us and be with us in our lives forever.  How He wishes then that when He comes and arrives, we come prepared with our whole hearts and being to welcome Him to COME IN and allow Him to Be with us.

    However, like the story of the missing Bambino, we may become so engrossed with the preparation that we miss the event itself – bogged down with the season that we miss the reason of celebration. It is like leaving the expected guest all alone on his own in the living room while we just go back to our own affairs after joyfully welcoming him, – or the best man who is so engaged with his formal attire that he missed to bring the wedding ring for the weeding. Or like Martha, we become so concerned with what to do for the Lord as He visits that we fail to be with Him. Or worse, we might just left Him behind on His own, neglected – allowed only when needed.

    Christmas is not all about us welcoming the Lord but moreso about “Immanuel” God-being with Us – the Lord coming and staying into our lives. We may have been planning to joyfully welcome and celebrate His coming visit but do we allow Him to come in stay and be with us? Pinatuloy mo na, papatirahin mo ba Siya sa Inyo? Or will he just remain a guest and temporary settler/squatter of our home?

    2nd Sunday of Advent proclaims the message of God’s Love. This is to remind us that as active and passive verb, Love means both to love & be loved. God loves us & we are beloved by God. We should love God in return & God should beloved by us as well. Again like at the arrival area in the airport, We wait for God but God also waits for us to recognize & let Him into our lives now.  

    During this Advent season, may our hearts be more willing and open to welcome the Lord once again & anew into our lives, not just a visiting guest but a welcome member of our home & family, community & church to partner & accompany us to the coming challenges ahead during these pandemic times.

    Dayon, Tuloy po kayo. 어서 오시. Come in, Lord Jesus & Stay with us now and always. Amen.

    December 5, Fr. Mario was ordained to the priesthood. He has been a Redemptorist priest for 24 years. A HAPPY AND BLESSED ANNIVERSARY FR. MARIO! God is faithful, indeed.
  • Touch us Lord to Heal our Blindness

    Touch us Lord to Heal our Blindness

    December 4, 2020 – Friday of the First Week of Advent

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120420.cfm)

    Homily

    The miracle of making the blind see has been foretold by the prophets. This is even a recurring theme the Bible. Our first reading from Prophet Isaiah told us that the Messiah shall open the eyes of the blind. It says, “And our of gloom and darkness, the eyes of the blind shall see.” God grants healing to our blindness and insights to our spirit.

    In our gospel, what I find interesting was the perseverance of the two blind men. They had been following Jesus, crying and shouting, “SON OF DAVID, HAVE PITY ON US!” They did not just appear from nowhere but they had been following Jesus. And if you have noticed, these two blind men were one of those who truly recognized Jesus as the Messiah despite their physical blindness. These men did not see physically the face of Jesus or see personally his other miracles. They were dependent on others who conveyed to them the person of Jesus.

    It is good then for us to look closely at this particular scenario of the two blind men meeting Jesus. The two were very desperate. They have been crying out loud, saying, SON OF DAVID, HAVE PITY, HAVE COMPASSION, HAVE MERCY ON US! Yet, Jesus seemed not to hear them. But the two persisted and still followed the Lord. But, when Jesus was about to enter a house, they were able to catch up with him, and the two seized that opportunity.

    At that moment, Jesus himself asked them, “DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE THAT I CAN HELP YOU? THAT I CAN HEAL YOU?” Without their complete trust in the Lord, Jesus cannot do anything. Surprisingly, both of them were eager in responding, YES, LORD, WE BELIEVE IN YOU! AND WE TRUST IN YOU!

    The trust of these blind men allowed Jesus to TOUCH them gently and lovingly. And their eyes were opened. What they received was more than physical sight, they gained insight too by seeing the Lord. That experience overwhelmed their hearts with joy and gratefulness. Despite the command of Jesus not to tell others about it, they cannot but share to others what they have experienced.

    Jesus indeed is the Messiah and the two blind men taught us that we will only recognize the Lord through the eyes of faith, of complete trust in the Lord even if the Lord seems not to hear our prayers or seems to have not seen our difficulty in life. However, with fervent prayer and unwavering trust in God who loves us, God will also ask us, “DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE IN ME?” It is only when we put our complete trust in the Lord, that we allow him to touch and heal us.

    Today, we are reminded to be aware of our own blindness. I am sure, there can be areas of blindness in our lives that need healing. We all struggle with weakness and disability of one kind or another, in ways where we are broken and vulnerable. These can be in terms of our own relationship with friends, family members or co-workers and even within ourselves. It is good that we identify our own blindness and ask the Lord to touch and heal us. Let this be our prayer now, to be persistent in that, that the Lord will heal our own blindness so that we will see him and know him clearly.

    In this way, we will surely be able to celebrate Christmas with a heart filled with joy and gratitude in the Lord who touches and heals us. Hinaut pa.

  • Trust in the Lord Forever

    Trust in the Lord Forever

    December 3, 2020 – Thursday of the First Week of Advent; Memorial of St. Francis Xavier

    Click here fore the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120320.cfm)

    Homily

    Storms in life may struck us in the form of crisis in our family, friendship, with our health, career, or job or business. This can also be in the form of our personal struggles that we carry alone like the guilt that we hide in our hearts, our fears that paralyze us, our trauma that haunts us day and night.

    In this Season of Advent, we are reminded that as we wait for the Lord to come, we might be troubled and our hearts filled with fear. Thus, Isaiah proclaims to us today, “Trust in the Lord forever.” As Isaiah brought a joyful hope to the people of his time, and so he does again to us today. The Prophet, whose words echo until today point us how the very presence of God becomes our strength. Though we wait for God’s coming but God’s presence can be ever felt in the here and now. God sustains us. God strengthens us.

    That is why, Isaiah described God as our strong city. God surrounds us. God is beneath us. God is above us. And God is within us. This requires faith in us to trust fully the Lord who is always with us and for us. In trusting the Lord, we shall have peace because God will keep us in peace.

    Moreover, as Isaiah calls us to faith by trusting God. The Lord Jesus also calls us to action. To believe and to trust in the Lord is not a mere thought or idea and not a lip-service. This also needs action. Thus, Jesus reminds us today, “to listen to His words and acts on them.”

    By cherishing the word of God and imbibing the word into our life, thoughts and actions, then, we become a wise person, whose foundation is God, our eternal Rock. By loving the Sacred Scripture and receiving the Sacraments, we make ourselves more attuned to God’s presence. As we make ourselves available for God, this will mold us to become a person for others and with others.

    God invites us today to be with others, to allow others to be part of our life. We shall discover, then, the strength, love and support from our friends, families and communities. To trust in the Lord leads us to become confident that the Lord is with us through the people who surround us.

    As we are being tossed by the storm these days, whatever that may be, please take comfort by trusting the Lord who is with us, through our friends, families and the Church. Hinaut pa.

  • God’s Heart is Moved with Pity

    God’s Heart is Moved with Pity

    December 2, 2020 – Wednesday of the First Week of Advent

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120220.cfm)

    Homily

    My heart is moved with pity. The words of Jesus must have been ringing into the ears and hearts of his disciples. God is moved. God feels our pain. God feels the emptiness and longing of our hearts. The Book of Prophet Isaiah tells us about this too, “The Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces.” God shall take away our pain and sadness. Again, on this first week of Advent, we take comfort in this promise of God who is with us. The journey of this Advent is to make our heart and mind more confident in God, to be more assured of God’s abiding presence in us.

    Hence, the Gospel of Matthew reminds us how Jesus attended, welcomed and healed those crowds who brought the heaviness and hungers of their hearts and different illnesses to him. Jesus cured and satisfied them all. He made the mute speak, the deformed whole, the lame walk, and the blind see.

    Moreover, Jesus wanted his disciples to be also moved with pity. Jesus wanted that the hearts of his disciples will also experience the power of being moved by others. To be moved with pity allows us to feel the heart of another. This allows us to understand them, to be in solidarity with them and to journey with them. Such solidarity will lead us into healing and freedom, which is the very experience of those people healed and freed by Jesus.

    This means that the journey towards healing, freedom and fullness of life is not achieved when we are alone. It cannot be achieved when we distance ourselves from our friends and family, our community, and from the Church.

    That is why, as the heart of Jesus was moved with pity, he too asked his disciples to participate and join with him. His question, “How may loaves do you have?” must have been a question with a deeper meaning. Jesus was not just asking about the number of the physical loaves of bread, but also the availability of the hearts and presence of the disciples. Indeed, that question meant more than loaves.

    The disciples responded not just with seven loaves, but also with few fish. This food was all they had, yet, God asked everything. And they all gave them up for others. It must not be easy to give up all you have for the sake of others. That food, if one would think, would not have been enough just for the 13 of them. How could that little they have, feed hundreds of people?

    We usually think for ourselves and prioritize our own needs. However, the disciples, out of obedience to Christ, gave everything they had at that moment for the sake of those in need at that moment. This was the beginning of the wonder and amazement.

    Those seven loaves and few fish given out of generosity and obedience to Christ were blessed, given thanks, and broken. Those were distributed to all of those who were hungry, to satisfy them and fill their emptiness. Yet, what was blessed, given thanks and broken and was shared became abundant before the eyes of the disciples. As people partake with their bread and fish, people were satisfied and there was more than enough. This was how they collected the left-over that filled seven baskets. The number of fullness.

    What had been satisfied were not just those who were hungry but also the givers. Indeed, the journey taken by the disciples to fill the hunger and emptiness of the people became their own journey also to experience both physical and spiritual satisfaction and fullness of life with the people and with the Lord.

    Today, Jesus also invites us to be moved with pity that with him and with the disciples, we too shall bring out those little things that we have, and to offer them to God so that many will be able to receive. We shall see the wonder, then, when the small or little things from us are given generously because we will surely be able to respond to the different forms of hungers around us. Hunger is not just limited with physical hunger for food but also for love, for affection, for justice and for peace.

    The symbol of seven loaves and few small fish are not just limited with material possessions that we have. These also include our talents, capacities, expertise, our time and effort, our presence and our very person.

    While the Lord assures us and promises satisfaction from our own hungers in life, hopefully, we too will be like his disciples who became instruments of satisfying not just ourselves, but also our brothers and sisters. Hinaut pa.

  • See and Listen to His Silent Coming

    See and Listen to His Silent Coming

    December 1, 2020 – Tuesday of the First Week of Advent

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120120.cfm)

    Homily

    A growing seed makes no sound but a falling tree creates huge and echoing noise. (A quote I got from Pinterest). Creation, indeed, is silent while destruction is loud.  In the same way, God growing in us is silent. God’s coming and arrival can only be realized when we too learn to listen in God’s silent coming. The noise of our anger, of our bitterness and pain, of our desperation and anxiety, may prevent us from listening to God’s silent coming. Those noises will only bring us to destruction and not to growth and peace.

    The Book of Prophet Isaiah reminds us that a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom. It describes to us how the Messiah will come from the linage of Jesse, who was the father of King David. The coming of Jesus as prophesied by Isaiah will be silent as a shoot sprouts and as a bud blooms.

    What makes it more fruitful for us is on how such attentiveness to the silent coming of our God brings grace. The Spirit of the Lord shall also bless us with wisdom and understanding, with counsel and strength, with knowledge and fear of the Lord. As the Lord brings peace to us, so shall we also become peace.

    Indeed, to become loud, to overwhelm ourselves with distractions whatever that may be, will stop us to see and recognize the Lord.  This is how Jesus criticized the attitude of those people during His time who claimed to be the “masters of the world, the wise and the learned.” They make so much noise by claiming the knowledge that they have gained in many years of experiences. Yet, such arrogance prevented them to learn new things and to be welcoming. These attitudes prevented them to receive God’s revelations and invitations.

    Jesus reminds us how the Father reveals the mystery of salvation, of His gift of healing and peace to the childlike. Of course, God reveals His mystery to all but only the children and the childlike are blessed to receive God’s blessing, simply because of the qualities of being welcoming, humble and receptive. This is why Jesus said to his disciple, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see,” because God revealed Himself to the childlike.

    This is today’s invitation for us on this Season of Advent. We may have achieved many things in life, we may have gained many experiences already, or we may be carrying many things in our hearts and minds like our concerns and struggles, let us not allow them to overwhelm us in this season. We let go of them so that we will also learn how to see, to listen, to observe and be more attentive of God’s silent revelations in us.

    May our eyes that see and ears that listen bring us to peace. Hinaut pa.