“What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you?” I find this condition to be so bold and shameless. It is equivalent in asking, “What can you give me? What profit will I gain in believing in you, God?”It is a condition filled with selfishness.
Accordingly, the people who asked this condition to Jesus were very concerned with what they can profit or gain from Jesus. They asked him a sign that they may believe in him, yet, what they were after was actually the works of Jesus that will be beneficial for them. The people were not concerned about who Jesus was, they are not even interested in his person but on what they can get, out from him.
Many times, we have also this kind of attitude. This is an attitude similar to a “linta” (leech), a blood sucking worm. We relate and make friends with others for the sake of getting something from them. Indeed, there might be many of us who would use other people, friends and even family members, to get money from them or any material things. There are also those kind of people who like to make friends because they just want attention and so that they will feel important. People like these only serve themselves and not others. These are forms of selfishness – attitudes that only think and enrich the self and only the self. Thus, we become a parasite that takes advantage of others.
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This is also true in our Christian faith. We might come into a point in our Christian life where we are more concerned with what God can give us, or we might be more focused on the rewards and blessings that we will receive from God. With these motivations in our mind, we tend to become more legalistic in our Christian faith. These motivations will make us people who are preoccupied with what we get from God.
Thus, this will blind us from becoming true Christians. We will miss the whole point of being a Christian too because being Christian is not about what God can give me or what our Church can give me but about a personal relationship with a person, with Jesus. Being a Christian, is first having the knowledge of God in our life that will move us to develop an intimate relationship with God through our prayer life and deeds with one another. Hinaut pa.
The Gospel reminds us today to recognize also the giver of gifts rather than the gifts and blessings only that we receive. We are called then to develop a deeper and personal relationship with God and not to material wealth and possessions to our successes and achievements or titles which will only fade away later in our life.
This is the reminder of Jesus to the Jews when they have failed to recognize him as the Lord and Messiah. The people were only after the bread but not to the person of Jesus. They were looking for him because their stomach were satisfied. Thus, they have failed to know Jesus and to believe in him.
This is what Jesus said to the people, “you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate the loaves and were filled.” Meaning, the people were merely looking for Jesus because they were more inclined on what they can gain materially from Jesus.
This is an attitude that only goes towards self-satisfaction, an inward looking relationship. The problem then of this attitude is that, the self does not venture towards taking risks or to let the self be challenged. It is rather more concerned of being fed, of being given attention like a baby. However, the self does not want to commit to go beyond comfort, or to go beyond what is familiar. It stays to what is only self-beneficial.
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Hence, having this kind of attitude and fostering this kind of self, prevent us to become who we are called to be by the Lord. As Jesus wants the people to believe in him as the one sent by the Father, Jesus also calls us to believe in him. Believing in Jesus is not just about making the sign of the cross, and saying our memorized prayers. To believe in the Risen Christ is more than that. It is about a relationship.
This is what the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles tells us. Stephen, who was one the chosen deacons to serve the orphans and widows of the Christian Community, was filled with grace and power. He did great wonders and signs among the people. To believe then in the Risen Christ is to be convinced of God’s power that transforms us. Moreover, Stephen’s faith and commitment to the Lord made him confident too in his ministry. This was how he exercised with grace and power because he did not serve himself, he served others.
Consequently, the Jewish leaders at that time hated him. The leaders created stories in order to condemn him. They twisted the truth because they refused to be challenged to go out from their comforts. Those leaders just wanted the community to serve them and to feed their ego.
However, through the person of Stephen, we are reminded that our faith and commitment to the Risen Christ will indeed transform us. This transformation in Jesus gives us grace and power as we allow ourselves to go beyond from our comforts and self-serving egos.
Indeed, Stephen’s friendship with the Lord became his source of strength and confidence in the midst of trials.
This is now the invitation for us today – we are called to build a closer relationship with Jesus, a friendship with Jesus, because faith is basically a relationship founded in a commitment. We do not believe in God just because we want to be treated like babies, feeding us and pampering our egos. This commitment in Jesus then, would hopefully lead us to into self-transformation that gives life to others, that works wonders in the lives of our brothers and sisters.
The very situation we are in now is an opportunity for us to work wonders in the lives of others particularly those who are in great need these days of Enhanced Community Quarantine and Lockdown. May the grace and power of Easter make us more creative and generous too in reaching out to our brothers in sisters
Having this awareness of God’s friendship in our life, this will hopefully bring us also into the assurance of God’s love and faithfulness that even in times of trials, of loss and poverty, of pain and loneliness, of illness and suffering and even death – we will be assured with our relationship with a God who is ever with us, faithfully journeying with us. Hinaut pa.
St. Mark was converted to the faith by Peter, who journeyed with Peter to Rome and served as his secretary or interpreter. When St. Peter wrote his first pastoral letter to the churches in Asia, he called him affectionately as “my son Mark.” Mark is considered as the author of the Gospel of Mark. According to tradition, he was sent to Egypt and founded the Church of Alexandria. One day he was seized by pagan authorities, dragged by ropes over stones and thrown into prison and died as a martyr. (Source: ibreviary)
Today is the Feast of St. Mark, believed to be the author or the person behind the Gospel of Mark. The Gospel of Mark is believed also to be the earliest Gospel among the four. One evident characteristic of the Gospel that would tell us about this, is that it is the shortest. The Gospel is more direct in telling the story of Jesus. There are less elaborations or if there are explanations, then, those are short and simple.
This tells us too that the community of St. Mark to whom this Gospel was addressed had that consciousness to preserve the story of Jesus through writing. It is through writing, then, that the memory of the Risen Jesus will be preserved and will be handed down from one generation to another. True indeed, that memory has been preserved and we today, share that memory of the early Christian community.
What actually moved them to do this? Or what made Mark to decide to write what had been told to him by his mentor St. Peter?
We will find the answer at the end part of the Gospel of Mark. Jesus said to the apostles, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”
The followers of Jesus were now ready. They have become firm in their faith and so were all sent by Jesus to share and proclaim the joyful message who is Jesus himself.
Yes, the Gospel that they were about to proclaim is the person of Jesus, the God-with-us, who died and restores us through his resurrection. Mark being an assistant to St. Peter had become a witness of such joy. Mark himself experienced the joy of being with Jesus and being loved by the Lord just like Peter.
This joy of being with Jesus is what made Mark and his community to write down their memory of Jesus so that others will also be able to experience the joy that they have tasted.
Today, for all of us who have been the recipients of this great joy proclaimed to us in the Gospel of Mark, each of us is also called to “proclaim Jesus to every creature.” Each of us who have been able to experience the “goodness of God is called to to sing it for ever,” as our Psalm proclaimed to us today.
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May I invite you then to be more aware of this invitation from Jesus – to go and share Jesus to every person we meet, to every creature that we will touch and encounter.
Despite the physical distancing, the call of staying home and enhanced community quarantine, sharing Jesus to our brothers and sisters in the most concrete ways is still very possible. Expressing concrete actions of kindness and generosity to your neighbors in need is a way of sharing Jesus. Comforting an anxious and troubled friend is a way of making Jesus alive too. We do share Jesus not just as a mere memory of the past, but making Jesus alive in flesh through us. Thus, go and share Jesus today! Hinaut pa.
Every day we receive updates of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the daily rising number of confirmed cases is frightening. Moreover, the number of recoveries is also very slow. As a response, our Government leaders both at the national and local levels, are planning to extend lockdown and Community Quarantine.
As much as this would be necessary to control the virus and prevent more infections, ensure recoveries and prevent deaths, such measure can also lead to other problems. One that would most likely be the biggest problem is the security of food and prevention hunger particularly of those who are most vulnerable now in our community. Construction and contractual workers, vendors, garbage collectors and other daily wage earners would surely continue to suffer.
What this Gospel tells us is the wonder when small act of generosity makes a difference to many.
Thus, there is a need for us that we too shall become aware of the hunger that our brothers and sisters around us are suffering during this time. We cannot be blind and indifferent to this need. Our Gospel would actually help us to be more conscious of such hunger and of other forms of hunger around us.
St. John told us that Jesus was aware of the needs of the people. He was not just conscious of the spiritual hunger of the people but even their physical hunger. This consciousness of Jesus impelled him to ask Phillip, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” Jesus was not simply seeing their hunger, he too felt their hunger. This urged Jesus to do something.
However, Jesus needed the participation of other people around him. Phillip could not think of anything since they did not have enough money to buy food for all.
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It was Andrew who brought to Jesus a boy who had five barley loaves and two fish. The appearance of the boy in the story was very symbolic. He was nameless and faceless and was just a boy and the small food that he brought to Jesus was something.
The nameless boy and his small share was the perfect offering that Jesus needed so that the people will be fed. Certainly, it was through that boy who had five loaves and two fish that Jesus did something which made everyone to wonder.
What this Gospel tells us is the wonder when small act of generosity makes a difference to many. Thus, the little food that the boy had, was transformed into many. That small share given became abundant.
This is where we find God’s invitation for us today. We are invited by Jesus to offer sincerely the little that we have. We might be thinking that the world’s problem on hunger is too big for us to respond and our share will only be insignificant. But let us remember, the five loaves and two fish of that nameless boy were actually insignificant compared to the five thousand men. However, that boy did not ran away to hide what he had, rather, he offered generously what he had to Jesus.
The boy and his action were symbols of our own vulnerability and weakness and at the same time the power behind a generous and kind action. To give away the little that we have, makes us insecure, yet, it is actually through the little that we possess that the Lord can work wonderfully. When we give something and then we feel vulnerable because that was all we have, no matter how small, is actually the fruit of our generosity. Let us not wait for us to be materially rich before we give, because even the poorest of us can give something to others.
This has been happening already these days. There have been individuals, families and groups, religious and private agencies who extended their generosity to others. Those many efforts done for the sake of others were perfect offering to the Lord to make wonders.
Thus, the Lord invites us today to be generous with what we have, no matter how small or inadequate it may be in our eyes and for others. Just like in the Gospel, the Lord needs our participation, our small contribution so that he too can work wonders through us and through our small acts of generosity and kindness.
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Jesus needs us to be generous with what we have today so that the Lord will be able to continue to feed the various hungers around us. These many hungers involve hunger for food, for shelter, for a home and family, for friendship, for acceptance, for love and intimacy, for healing, or for a deeper relationship with God.
Take time today to be that nameless boy who generously offered the little things he had, to make a generous action towards those people around you, no matter how small would that be as long as it is given in generosity and kindness, the Lord will surely make it wonderful. Hinaut pa.
The reading that we have heard from the Acts of the Apostles tells us of two different attitudes. We have the attitude showed by Peter and the other apostles and the attitude of the Chief Priest and other religious authorities in Jerusalem. These two groups of people expressed different attitudes towards the gift of the Spirit of God.
We have heard how Peter and his group showed their tremendous confidence to preach about Jesus. Peter who denied Jesus three times and the others who also fled and hid because of fear came out from their hiding places. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit they have been inspired. Though they have failed Jesus and were unfaithful to him at his most difficult moment, yet, these fearful and unfaithful disciples sought forgiveness from Jesus.
Hence, despite their fears and doubts, they allowed the Lord to enter into their lives and to give them peace. This openness from Peter and the rest of his group allowed the Lord to come in, to bring change into their lives and give the peace and joy that the resurrection brings.
Because of this, Peter and his group had become more grateful to God for the tremendous love and faithfulness that they have felt. This gratefulness in their heart moved them to be bold in words and deeds by preaching publicly the life of Jesus.
Fear no longer paralyzes them. It was peace and joy that overwhelmed their hearts because Jesus was with them.
Now, this is a manifestation how the gift of the Spirit transformed those who accepted it wholeheartedly. The gift of the Spirit, as the Gospel of St. John tells us, is not rationed, or limited or controlled as what is happening with the food ration distributed to many communities during this time. In God, there is no pandemic or any virus that can prevent the abundance of the gift of the Spirit.
We might be waiting for our food ration to arrive, but there is this vital gift that is waiting to be received by us. The gift of Easter, this gift of the Spirit that the Gospel tells us is abundantly gifted to us. God does not ration the gift of the Spirit. God gives the Spirit lavishly. Thus, our poverty and not even this pandemic should prevent us from allowing the Lord to fill our hearts with His Spirit. We might be having a financial or economic crisis today, but there should be no excuse of being spiritually destitute these days.
However, what can prevent the gift of Spirit to fill us and to transform our hearts into the likeness of the Risen Christ, is a hardened-heart. This is stronger than the virus and thicker than a concrete wall. As much as God wants every heart to be filled with the gift of the Spirit, but then God does not impose His power on us. God wants a willing and humble heart.
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Thus, the other group of people, the high priest and other religious authorities who remained close-minded, insecure and fearful to what Jesus can bring into their lives continued to reject Jesus. This rejection made their hearts stiff, unable to listen to the invitations of the Spirit. This rejection too prevented the Lord to enter into their hearts to bring peace and joy.
Consequently, these people continued to be filled with anger, bitterness, and insecurity. These attitudes towards God made them violent and corrupt. For this reason, they even wanted the apostles to be killed because they wanted to suppress the truth. They wanted to suppress the Gospel of life and of joy.
This too will happen to us when we continually resist God’s invitation for us to be free, to be renewed and to receive his peace and joy, that is, the gift of the Spirit. These authorities had so much possession, they enjoyed wealth, and influence and power to the point that they did not want to move away or let go of those.
We are called now that like the apostles we too will be able to let go of our fears and doubts and of those that whatever may prevent us from truly receiving Jesus in our life and in filling in, our hearts with the gift of the Spirit.
We may ask, “What are those attitudes, beliefs and even tendencies in me that makes my heart stiff and unwilling to receive the gift of the Spirit?”
Hopefully, by being able to let go of those, then, we too shall be filled not by ourselves but by the Spirit who will lead and inspire us to share and preach the Gospel of life and the person of Jesus through our words and actions today. Hinaut pa.
A DOSE OF GOD TODAY 