Transformation

HOMILY
2nd Sunday of Lent (C) – 28 February 2010

Readings: Gen 15:5-12, 17-18; Ps 27:1, 7-8, 8-9, 13-14; Phil 3:20-4:1; Lk 9:28b-36


The Transfiguration event contains the transfiguration of Jesus, the apparition of Elijah and Moses, a message from the Father, and the religious experience of Peter, James and John.

The narrative of the event is rich in symbols. The transfigured Christ prophesies the glory of the Resurrection. The presence of Elijah and Moses solidifies the identity of Christ as Son of God, the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies and the fullness of the law. The high mountain, the cloud and the voice of God are traditional Jewish symbols of God’s presence.

What about the disciples? They represent us. They fall asleep despite their initial efforts to join Jesus in prayer, oblivious to the great event that is unfolding around them. When they awaken to the great spectacle before them, they could not hide their lack of understanding of what is going on. And then, they are expected to take in everything, keep it a secret until the divine embargo is lifted, and basically put ALL their trust in Jesus.

We are weak yet trusted; unfaithful to our promises yet rewarded with grace beyond telling. This is how God relates to us.

The Transfiguration event is a story about the God who intervenes in history, who makes promises and keeps them. God promises to transform Abraham from a childless wanderer to the father of many nations. God forges a covenant with Abraham to make his descendants God’s people, and He their God.

Another promise of transformation is found in Phil 3,21 (the Second Reading). St. Paul assures us that Jesus “will transform our lowly body to conform with his glorified body”. The Transfiguration event sends the promise of meaningful change, of transformation.

The Transfiguration of Christ is also about us: how we take for granted many times God’s love and grace manifesting in our everyday lives; how we fail to understand, forget, even distrust, all the many signs and invitations for transformation, healing and union with God.

Because of our weak nature and limited understanding, God’s call to transformation needs to undergo a process, a journey. The 40 days of Lent is itself a period of spiritual journey, a going back to God. Our journey of transformation from sin to grace, from death to life, from darkness to light, from the old person to the new, happens for as long as we heed God's voice from the cloud: "This is my chosen Son; listen to him" (Lk 9,35).

Listening to Jesus means not just appreciating the beauty of His words, but making them effective in our lives. It means following his life of prayer and obedience to the Father.

1. Prayer.

We can never overemphasize the value of prayer. Jesus went up the mountain, not to be transfigured but to pray. Prayer is our connection with God. When we pray we open our hearts to God’s transforming presence.

St. Teresa of Avila writes: “It is impossible for a person who prays regularly to remain in serious sin; because the two are incompatible, one or the other will have to be given up.” The desire to pray is the first step to transformation.

2. Obedience to the Will of the Father.

This is the natural consequence of prayer. By obedience we do not mean the kind exacted by a master to his servant, but the bond of trust between a father and child. The child obeys knowing that his father wants only the best for him.

Let me tell you a story...

After doing so many things and going to many places, an adventurer embarked on his greatest quest so far. He was searching for his life's meaning and for peace of mind. His quest finally brought him to an aged holy man sitting under the shadow of a great tree.

The holy man asked him: "You came looking for meaning and peace mind? Come sit here with me in the shadow of this great tree." The adventurer sat with him.

The holy man continued: "The trouble with modern man is that he fills his life with troubles and confusion. These are represented by his shadow. Man wants to escape his troubles. What does he do? He walks faster. Failing to rid himself of his shadow, he walks even faster, and then runs, which just makes him more tired, confused and angry. And still unable to rid himself of his shadow. Now I would like to ask you: Do you still see your shadow?"

The adventurer looked around and didn't find it. After all, he was sitting under the shade of a great tree.

The holy man concluded: "If you wish to find your life's meaning and acquire peace of mind, surrender yourself to the One who is greater than all your fears."

This is what obedience is about. Problems will still crop up, troubles may still abound, but we do not despair anymore. We are not prevented to life life to the full. For we are under the shadow of the Almighty. St. Paul in Rom 8,31 says: "If God is for us, who can be against us?"

After their mountain experience, Jesus and his closest friends will come down to face the terrible period of suffering and pain that lies ahead. The disciples may not know it yet but God has just given them spiritual food for the difficult journey they have to make. At their lowest moments they will remember this privileged encounter and be sustained with hope.

St. Paul sums up the lesson of the Transfiguration when he says in Rom 8,18: "I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed for us."

Temptations

HOMILY
1st Sunday of Lent (C) – 21 February 2010

Readings: Dt 26:4-10; Ps 91:1-2, 10-11, 12-13, 14-15; Rom 10:8-13; Lk 4:1-13


The Gospel on the First Sunday of Lent tells the story of how Jesus was tempted by Satan. The story also foretells who the Son of Man will become and what His mission will be.

Thus, Jesus will not be a benevolent patron who offers instant gratification or promises overnight solution to hunger, poverty, injustice, and all other problems of humanity. He will not be a powerful tyrant who demands submission from people in order to bring about peace and prosperity. He will not be a populist showbiz ruler who dazzles his subjects with eloquence and miracles.

Instead Jesus will model compassion, gentleness and humility. He will be a faithful prophet who will meet death like all true prophets before and after him. He will be a servant king who eats with sinners and washes His disciples’ feet. He will be a priest who makes Himself an offering so His friends may live.

Heb 4,15 says: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin.” As Jesus was tempted in every way, so will it be with us His disciples. As He was strengthened and informed by His triumph over temptations, so will it be with us.

What is the nature of temptation? Temptations are generally deceptions. Satan – whose name means “the deceiver” – wishes to distract us from our mission, confuse us from finding true happiness (or true love), stop us from discovering our real self, and draw us away from the source of life.

The devil does not ask us outright to do evil things, rather he persuades us to see a semblance of good in the things he tempt us with. It’s not about Adam and Eve disobeying God, it’s about their becoming like God. It’s not about Jesus getting distracted from His mission, it’s about Him doing an innocuously simple thing: turning stone to bread. After all he would be turning water into wine in a little while.

The problem with making “small” moral concessions “for a greater good” is that it makes the heart and mind comfortable with falling into little temptations, and paves the way for even bigger transgressions.

It’s the classic frog in a boiling water analogy. Drop a frog in boiling water and it will immediately react to save itself. Drop a frog in normal water, slowly heat it, and the frog won’t know it is being cooked till it is too helpless to save itself. This is how temptation works.

Let us identify some temptations -- which are deceptions really -- that we face today.

1. The temptation to choose the good over the better.

It is so tempting to choose the easy way and fall for the fake sense of contentment brought by blissful mediocrity. Mediocrity in spirit is the one great obstacle to being formed according to the image of God.

2. The temptation not to care.

Because loving makes us risk getting hurt and dreaming exposes us to failure and disappointment, and so apathy and simply living in the moment (forget about tomorrow!) seem to be the way to go. Then again, there is no other way to happiness but to love truthfully. You cannot truly love unless you are willing to take the risk of getting hurt.

3. The temptation to exercise power without accountability.

History and literature is replete with lessons on how unbridled power corrupts the best of intentions. A modern management dictum says: “Systems of accountability are in place to keep honest people remain honest.” It is a good rule to keep for those of us entrusted with responsibilities.

4. The temptation to equate happiness with absolute freedom.

Many people are fixated with an idea of freedom as being able to do what I want when I want to. They link their happiness to the achievement of this ideal, and resent any authority – government, religion, even God – who sets limits on what they can and cannot do. Sadly, they will only be disappointed. There is no absolute freedom in the first place. It is part of our nature to be limited, weak and prone to overstep boundaries especially when there are no clear markers. Ironically, there is a sense of liberation in accepting our limits. After all, it is our weak and limited nature that God assumed in order to save us.

5. The temptation to carve God in our own image.

Today the cult of the self has grown even stronger. Industries have been built to satisfy every imaginable vanity and desires of the flesh. The idea of God is accepted/tolerated for as long as it promotes the well-being of the self. There are those who think they can be simply “spiritual” or “saved” without belonging to the community of believers. There are those who think they can be moral while choosing only the precepts that are convenient to them. They carve an idol according to their own image and call him God.

6. The temptation to rely solely on our own strength.

This is the devil’s favorite. By perpetuating a culture that glorifies the self-made, self-sufficient person, we are lulled into assuming we can combat temptation by ourselves, or deal with our addictions our way, or change for the better by sheer willpower. It is when we think we are strong on our own accord that we are most vulnerable.

The whole season of Lent is a graced time to look inwards, examine our relationship with God, and review our lives in the light of the Gospel. As we reflect upon our inner demons may we also rediscover our graced self, the one redeemed by Christ, the one who longed to live in the life of God.

Heb 2,18 says: “Because (Jesus) himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.”

As we battle our temptations, we know that we are not alone. We have Christ with us. St. Paul cries out in Phil 4,13: “I have the strength for everything through Him who empowers me!”

Blessed are they who hope in the Lord

HOMILY
6th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) – 14 February 2010

Readings: Jer 17:5-8; Ps 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6; 1 Cor 15:12, 16-20; Lk 6:17, 20-26


The Gospel today contains Jesus’ “sermon on the plain”. This is Luke’s version of the “beatitudes” mentioned in Mt 5,1-12.

In Matthew, Jesus speaks on a mount imparting wisdom from on high. The people look up to him as students to their teacher. In Luke, He does his teaching on the plain, in the midst of the people, also imparting divine wisdom yet stressing more His being one with them, knowing their concerns and speaking about their condition. Luke doesn’t spiritualize much. In his version Jesus says: “Blessed are the poor”, compared to Matthew’s “Blessed are the poor in spirit”.

There are only four beatitudes in this Gospel passage, and four “woes”, four contrary propositions. Thus, the poor are called blessed and not the rich; the hungry are blessed, not the well-fed; the sorrowing, not the joyful; the unpopular, not the well-esteemed.

Now we ask: What is wrong with being rich, or well-fed, or happy or popular?

This teaching does need some explanation to avoid the misconception advanced by certain secular commentators, and erroneously held even by some people of faith, that Christianity/Catholicism or God wants the faithful to remain poor and dependent so as to keep the faith. This is simply not true. God certainly doesn’t want His people to wallow in poverty, hunger, sorrow or alienation.

A key to understanding this set of beatitudes and woes is a text written hundreds of years before the Gospel of Luke: the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah (the First Reading).

Jer 17,5: “Thus says the LORD: Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings, who seeks his strength in flesh, whose heart turns away from the LORD.”

Jer 17,7-8: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose hope is the LORD. He is like a tree planted beside the waters that stretches out its roots to the stream: it fears not the heat when it comes, its leaves stay green; in the year of drought it shows no distress, but still bears fruit.”

The words of the prophet raise two basic issues: “Where do you put your trust?” and “What is most important to you?”

If you put your trust in riches, what if they were taken away from you? Would you lose hope and say everything is lost?

Blessed are you if you don’t root your entire life on material wealth.

If you put your trust in your capacity to provide for your family, what if you become incapacitated, dependent upon others for help? Would you lose the drive to live and be happy?

Blessed are you if you don’t ground your life in your own strength.

If you put your trust on things that bring you joy, what if you are asked to face something difficult that needs to be done? Would you rather shirk from the responsibility and stay in the safety of your comfort zone?

Blessed are you if you are not afraid to take the risk of getting hurt in order to live life to the full.

If you put your trust in your good name, what if you become unpopular or hated on account of your faith? Would you become bitter in your relationships?

Blessed are you if you don’t put your faith in the approval of others.

A short story for Valentine’s Day…

A young wife met an accident while driving their brand new car. While she was generally unhurt, the car sustained some damage. Wild thoughts were racing in her mind about the cost of the repairs, the extent of the insurance coverage, how her husband would react to the news, and a host of other worries. When she opened the envelop that contained the pertinent documents concerning the car, she found on top a handwritten note from her husband: “Honey, in case of accident, remember: It is you that I love and is most important to me… not the car.”

What are the things that are most important to you?

It pays to know what is most important to us so we know why we do the things we do. St. Ignatius of Loyola proposes precisely this when he introduces his way of prayer by a contemplation on what he calls “First Principle and Foundation”:

“Man is created to praise, reverence, and serve God our Lord, and by this means to save his soul. This is his goal in life.

The other things on earth are created to help him in attaining this goal. Hence, man is to make use of them when they serve this purpose, and rid himself of them when they prove a hindrance to him.

Therefore, we must make ourselves indifferent to all created things, as far as we are allowed free choice and are not under any prohibition. We should not fix our desires on health or sickness, riches or poverty, honor or dishonor, a long life or a short life. The same holds for all other things.

Our one desire and choice should be what helps us more to attain our goal.”

Further, the saintly Fr. Pedro Arrupe, SJ, has this to say:

"There is nothing more practical than finding God, that is than falling in love in a quite absolute, final way. what you are in love with, what seizes your imagination will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you will do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, what you know that breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything."

Ps 40,5 (the response to Psalm today) says: "Blessed are they who hope in the Lord". If we are serving the Lord, how can we go wrong? If God is with us, who can prevail over us?

Blessed are they who love God enough to put their entire trust in Him. They will receive blessings from Him since they are open to His grace. This is the sum of the beatitudes.

Are we ready to live by them or do they just remain words to live by?

God's Call to our Nation Today

HOMILY
5th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) – 7 February 2010

Readings: Is 6:1-2a, 3-8; Ps 138:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 7-8; 1 Cor 15:1-11; Lk 5:1-11


The Gospel this Sunday recounts the story of the call of Simon and his partners, the brothers James and John, after a miraculous fish catch. Jesus told Simon (Peter) the iconic words: “from now on you will be catching men” (Lk 5,10).

The same theme of being called by God is found in the other two readings: that of Isaiah in the First Reading and of St. Paul in the Second. There is even a common pattern that runs through all three vocation stories.
1. First, God reveals Himself in an extraordinary experience of grace.
2. This evokes feelings of awe, and also sinfulness and unworthiness, in the one called.
3. Then God gives His assurance and
4. ...the call to mission.
5. Finally, the one called accepts God’s invitation.

The not so enthusiastic initial response to God’s call by Isaiah, Paul and Peter should not come as a surprise. Think about it: how would you feel if you were to be plucked out of your ordinary existence and presented by God Almighty Himself with an opportunity to work with Him closely, intimately, in the great task of building His Kingdom? Imagine the many life changes you have to go through if you would take the offer. Wouldn’t you feel honored and at the same time humbled – maybe even troubled (why me?) – by such an offer?

I know I would; I have gone through a similar experience myself. Same with most priests I know. There comes an inevitable point in seminary formation when we realize we are unworthy of the grace we are seeking. This, I believe, is what being “poor in spirit” means.

It is precisely this spiritual poverty that makes our eyes more open to, our hearts more accepting of, the reality of God’s love happening in many ways in our lives. In turn, this spiritual openness makes people more responsive to God’s call.

The experience is not the exclusive domain of priests and religious, or prophets of old. There was a wedding I officiated where I remember the groom earnestly declaring to his bride: “I don’t know what I have done to deserve a blessing like you.”

The realization of the gratuitousness of love makes us want to participate more in the experience, and share with others the joy we find in it. This, I believe, is what a “calling” means.

God calls everyone of us, each to his or her own mission and way of life. His call is always to participate in His life of grace ever more fully.

These days God has a common call for us as a nation: “God is calling us to participate in transforming our society, to ‘seek good and not evil’ (Amos 5,14)”. This is the opening line of the recent pastoral letter from the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), “A Call for Vigilance and Involvement”.

This coming Tuesday marks the start of the official campaign period for candidates running for national positions. As election fever mounts, our bishops remind us, especially our lay people, “to fulfill (your) responsibility in renewing the political order”.

Like Sts. Peter, Paul and Isaiah, we may feel unsure of accomplishing this crucial task. We may even feel jaded and cynical at the many disappointments we have had from our failed leaders and failed promises of elections past. Still every election is an opportunity to effect meaningful change for our country. St. Paul in Rom 5,20 assures us: “where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more”.

The bishops’ pastoral letter asks candidates:
1. to start by being honest and sincere in educating the people on the situation of our country in their campaign;
2. to not manipulate the perceptions of the people but to help them to make good choices for the sake of the country; and
3. to present their platforms and convictions rather than attack others.

The bishops also remind soldiers and police officers:
1. to be vigilant in bringing about peaceful elections, and
2. not allow themselves to be used by politicians or ideological groups.

Their message is directed foremost to the voters:

“Automated elections will not give us good public officials. Ultimately the leaders that our country shall have will depend on our wise choice of candidates. Do not be swayed by survey results or political advertisements. Follow the dictates of your conscience after a prayerful and collective period of discernment. ‘Winnability’ is not at all a criterion for voting! The vote you cast will be a vote for the good of your country and your children’s future. Serve the common good with your precious vote!”

I would like to conclude with a story that has been circulating in emails recently…

While walking down the street one day a Philippine politician is tragically hit by a truck and dies. His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance.

"Welcome to heaven," says St. Peter. "Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we're not sure what to do with you."

"No problem, just let me in," says the politician.

"Well, I'd like to, but I have orders from higher up. What we'll do is have you spend one day in hell and one in heaven. Then you can choose where to spend eternity."

"Really, I've made up my mind. I want to be in heaven," says the politician.

"I'm sorry, but we have our rules." And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell.

The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course. In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him.

Everyone is very happy and in evening dress. They run to greet him, shake his hand, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the people. They played a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster, caviar and champagne.

Also present is the devil, who really is a very friendly guy who is having a good time dancing and telling jokes. They are all having such a good time that before the senator realizes it, it is time to go. Everyone gives him a hearty farewell and waves while the elevator rises...

The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens in heaven where St. Peter is waiting for him, "Now it's time to visit heaven."

So, 24 hours pass with the politician joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and, before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns. "Well, then, you've spent a day in hell and another in heaven. Now choose your eternity."

The senator reflects for a minute, then he answers: "Well, I would never have said it before, I mean heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better off in hell."

So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell. Now the doors of the elevator open and he's in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage. He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in black bags as more trash falls from above. The devil comes over to him and puts his arm around his shoulders.

"I don't understand", stammers the politician. "Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and clubhouse, and we ate lobster and caviar, drank champagne, and danced and had a great time. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable. What happened?"

The devil smiles at him and says, "Yesterday we were campaigning… Today, you voted."

The bishops’ pastoral letter concludes with this appeal: “Let us vote wisely that we may have God-fearing and honest people as our leaders.”

God is calling us to do so.

Proclaiming Bravely the Truth of God's Love

HOMILY
4th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) – 31 January 2010

Readings: Jer 1:4-5, 17-19; Ps 71:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 15-17; 1 Cor 12:31—13:13 or 13:4-13; Lk 4:21-30


Our Gospel passage today is a continuation of the story last Sunday. Here we listen to the reaction of Jesus’ hometown crowd to His message. It went from condescending amazement to irate contempt to attempted murder. But it was not yet His time, and so – as the Gospel tersely puts it – He “passed through the midst of them and went away”.

The theme of the Readings this Sunday is that of “prophecy”. The First Reading describes the call of the prophet Jeremiah. In the Gospel, Jesus utters the infamous line: “no prophet is accepted in his own native place”.

For the ancient Greeks, prophecy is the gift of discerning the will of the gods. In the Judaeo-Christian tradition, prophets are chosen by God to communicate His message to the community. We Christians, at baptism, become sharers in Christ’s three-fold mission as king, priest, and prophet.

1. Prophecy is in the service of the word of God.

In the Old Testament, the message of the prophets usually begins with “dabar Yahweh”, “this is the word of Yahweh…”, “Yahweh says…”, “thus spoke Yahweh…” This signifies that the words of the prophets are not their own but God’s, and their mission is to transmit them faithfully to the people.

There is a common characteristic among prophecies in the Old Testament: they are constant reminders to the people. Prophecies generally offer not some new teaching but a reiteration of some aspect of the Law or the whole spirit of it, e.g., on true worship, on justice and love of the poor, on making right alliances , etc.

Here's a bit of a digression... These past few days were a time of great spiritual blessing and renewal for us priests in the Philippines. We gathered recently for the 2nd National Congress of the Clergy. The talks were great and relevant but in retrospect there was nothing much there that most of us haven’t known already. Still, we found much inspiration and consolation in them. What Father Cantalamesa and Bishop Tagle did was to remind us of the great gift of the priesthood and why we chose this way of life in the first place.

How many times have we heard, or even used these lines: "Habo ko nang pagtaraman iyan, aram na niya an tama asin sala." (I don’t need to talk to him/her about it, he/she already knows what’s right and wrong.) Or "Dai mo ako pagtaraman, aram ko an piggigibo ko." (Don’t tell me what to do, I know what I am doing.) If these were true, then there’s not much need for many of the books of the Old Testament.

The truth is we need God’s constant reminder on how to live meaningfully happy lives. Nobody is too young or old, too wise or dumb, too rich or poor, too mighty or weak, not to need constant reminders. And since God creates all things, He speaks to us through all things: through the wisdom of the young and the old, the ways of the rich and mighty as well as those of the poor and the weak, the lessons learned by the wise and the foolish; through the circumstances of our lives; and especially through Sacred Scriptures.

2. Prophecy is a work of love.

St. Paul in 1 Cor 13,1-3 (in the Second Reading) states: “If I speak in human and angelic tongues, but do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy, and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.”

Prophecy is all about truth-telling. But when truth is used without love, it can be a weapon of destruction. It can destroy self-esteem, reputation, even lives. Let us remember this when we feel compelled to speak about right and wrong to a friend or to a community in need of guidance.

God sent prophets to His wayward people because of His love for them. Prophets, even when their words sting, still transmit God’s love and guidance to His people.

3. Prophecy is expressed in the life of the prophet.

And the lives of the prophets are not easy. Almost always they are met with opposition, suspicion and persecution. Jesus several times reminded the Jews what their forefathers did to the prophets of their time: they killed them. Jesus the prophet follows the same path as the prophets of old.

The Gospel story this Sunday is but one of many instances that Jesus’ message and person met rejection. It is also a solemn reminder to his followers that engaging in prophetic ministry is fraught with difficulties. But this should not dishearten us.

When rejection comes, it has to be acknowledged – and analyzed. Maybe it happened because our truth-telling was lacking in love, and so more love is required. Or because our intended recipient or audience was not yet ready, and so more patience is required. But there are types of rejection that seek to discourage us from pursuing the good that we do or intimidate us into giving up.

Dr. Kent M. Keith wrote his “Paradoxical Commandments” as a way of dealing with the debilitating effects of rejection, thus challenging it in his own terms.

“People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered. Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds. Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs. Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them. Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you have anyway.”

There is another version, attributed to Blessed Theresa of Calcutta. It ends with:

"Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough, give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway."

In the First Reading, when God called Jeremiah, He was quite clear about the resistance and persecution His prophet will face in pursuing his mission. God was also quite clear about another thing: that He will be with Him all the way assuring his victory.

Jer 1,19 says:” They will fight against you but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD.”

Prophecy means proclaiming bravely the truth of God's love. God is calling. Are you willing to become prophets for our time?

Do you believe in Jesus?

HOMILY
3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) – 24 January 2010

Readings: Neh 8:2-4a, 5-6, 8-10; Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 15; 1 Cor 12:12-30 or 12:12-14, 27; Lk 1:1-4; 4:14-21


This Sunday is also National Bible Awareness Sunday. The readings are most appropriate to the celebration. Both the First and Gospel readings show the profound impact of the Scriptures on their listeners.

The First Reading from the Book of Nehemiah contains a heartwarming historical scene during the period of rebuilding after the return of the exiles. Among the first things the people did was to gather and listen to the Scriptures. The reading started at daybreak and extended till noon! All this time, the people listened attentively as Ezra read and interpreted the book of the law. They were also weeping as they hear the words of the law, prompting Nehemiah to exhort them not to weep for “Today is holy to the LORD your God.”

This Old Testament story has parallels with the Gospel passage this Sunday. The people were gathered at Sabbath in the Nazareth synagogue. Jesus read from the scroll of the Prophet Isaiah. All eyes were upon him. The people could feel something special about this man Jesus whom many of them knew. And then He said: “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Jesus has just identified Himself to his hometown as a prophet and more: He is the fulfillment of their prophecies about the Messiah who is to come.

Did they believe him? The succeeding verses recount the mixed reaction Jesus got: from acceptance and amazement to disbelief and agitation, until finally they attempted to kill him by trying to drive him over a cliff. But His death at their hands was not meant to be. At least not yet.

More importantly, the question to ask is: “Do we believe Him now?” Before we make a quick and easy response towards the affirmative, let us examine carefully first Is 61,1-2, the short verse that Jesus read:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”

Do you believe that this passage is already fulfilled? Maybe the part about Jesus being anointed by the Spirit. But what about the blessings promised to the poor, the prisoners, the blind and the oppressed?

Since the time Jesus proclaimed the Scripture passage to have been already fulfilled, there is still so much to be done. People are still poor, and not just materially. There are those who are lonely and rejected; those burdened with a mentality that keeps them poor and perpetually dependent upon some master or patron; those afflicted with an unquenchable desire to acquire, else they will always feel inadequate.

People are still captives, and not just those in jail for crimes. There are those imprisoned by guilt, by hatred, by their unmet needs for redemption, forgiveness and reconciliation.

People are still blind, and not just physically. There are those blinded by prejudice, ignorance, envy, pride and fear; those who have been so hurt and jaded they could no longer see the goodness of humanity or hope in themselves.

People are still being oppressed. Even oppressors themselves have their own far stronger oppressors to deal with. There are those overcome with self-pity and despair.

It is rather funny but my reflection on Is 61,1-2 has led me to associate it with the current slew of election campaign ads. Practically every candidate vows to help the poor in some way. Some are even in a mad scramble as to who could be identified the most with the poor.

Though many of these campaign ads may appear cheap and shallow, there is a striking similarity between them and Jesus’ declaration. For them to find fulfillment, one thing is required in both cases: we have to believe in them. The candidates and their PR team wish that we could believe enough to vote for them, and hopefully campaign for them among our circle of friends.

In a way, the same is true with Jesus and his Good News of salvation. Because we have free will no one could be saved who doesn’t choose to be saved or thinks he doesn't need any saving.

1. We need to believe in Jesus.

And belief is not only profession of faith, but living one’s faith. This is especially true during times when our friendship with Jesus entails that we turn our back on family and loved ones, or that we forsake some forms of income or livelihood.

For those in situations like these, St. Paul in Rom 8,28 has words of reassurance: “We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.”

2. We need to believe in the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ.

We are not saved as individuals. God intends to save us as a community of believers, as the body of Christ. St. Paul in 1 Cor 12,12 (in the Second Reading) says: “As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ.”

Being a member of Christ’s body entails more than just being baptized. It means opening the Scriptures and letting God speak through its inspired words. It means participating and promoting the Church’s Sacred Traditions, the other font of spiritual knowledge and grace. It means finding nourishment and support in the community of believers.

Conclusion

When we believe in Jesus and participate in His community this way, we bring about a transformation first from within us. As our will gradually becomes more united with God’s will we find that we are more and more enriched, freed, enlightened and empowered by His grace.

Then we will see the same transformation happening in the community. When that time comes, it will indeed be a year of favor from the Lord.

One last story…

A young man, his mind filled with ideals and good intentions, has been getting increasingly disappointed at the many wrongs he saw in society. There is poverty and crime, hunger and war, corruption begetting more corruption, etc.

One night he had a dream about God. Finally, he could ask the question he longed to ask Him. He said: “Lord, if you are all powerful, then why are there so many who suffer? Why are evil men allowed to hold on to power? Why are there so many wrongs in society? Why have you not done enough to take them all away?

God replied: “My child, but I have already done enough. I have sent my Son to save you and my Spirit to guide you. And then, of course – I made you.”

One of Us

HOMILY
Solemnity of the Santo Niño

Readings: Is 9:1-6; Ps 97: 1, 2-3, 3-4, 5-6; Eph 1:3-6, 15-18; Lk 2:41-52


On the third Sunday of January we get to have a set of readings and prayers different from most of the Universal Church. Today the Philippine Church celebrates the Solemnity of Señor Santo Niño.

The feast is symbolic of the founding of the faith in our country. The image being venerated is originally the gift of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan (sailing under Spain) to Hara Amihan, wife of Rajah Humabon of Cebu, in 1521 on the occasion of the couples' baptism as Christians. Many of their constituents were baptized with them.

After Magellan was killed in Mactan, the Spanish presence was not felt until 1565 when Miguel Lopez de Legazpi came and defeated Rajah Tupas, ruler of Cebu and nephew of Rajah Humabon. When the battle was over, the image of the Santo Niño was found by a Spanish soldier, relatively unscathed in a burnt-out hut.

Today, the center of this national fiesta is still Cebu, though there are major cities and local churches who celebrate this feast around the same time as well. In our diocese, it is the fiesta of the PNP Chaplaincy at Camp Gen. Simeon Ola.

What is the significance of celebrating the feast of the Infant Jesus?

1. It is a celebration of the God who is with us and became one of us.

The mood is fittingly expressed in how the Santo Niño is garbed in many different ways: in traditional robes, contemporary toddler clothes, police uniform, soldier’s uniform, basketball jersey (Barangay Ginebra!), etc. The costumes may be too much for some, but they do deliver the message: Jesus is one of us.

This is the mystery of the incarnation expressed in popular imagination. Jesus went through childhood like the rest of us. And surely suffered fools gladly like not many of us.

There is though an insidious tendency in the devotion that runs counter to the very idea of celebrating Christ’s incarnation. There are those who put the image of the Santo Niño in stores and homes mainly for the purpose of bringing in luck. When devotion turns into this, we degrade Christ and turn him into an idol, a lucky charm. We rank Him alongside the “laughing Buddha”, the jade frog with the coin in its mouth, and the golden cat with its perpetually waving right arm. This is not true devotion, this is idolatry and sacrilege.

As an aside, the image of the Santo Niño was recovered in a burnt hut, along with other wooden idols. The image was quickly put in a proper place of honor. Later a church was built on the site where it was found. Since then festivals around the country honoring the Santo Niño were celebrated to commemorate the rediscovery of the image and the reestablishment of the true faith.

2. It is a celebration of the God who invites us to grow with Him and in Him.

Lk 2,52 (in the Gospel this Sunday) says: “And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor before God and man.” Of course, the child Jesus grew into adulthood. Last Sunday, we celebrated the Solemnity of His Baptism. He was baptized when he was around 30 years old.

We too are called to mature in faith. The image of the Christ Child, given as a gift to the newly baptized Hara Amihan, renamed Juana, is symbolic as well of the infant faith of our people. How have we grown as a Christian people since then?

Let us take time to identify certain cultural traits that stunt our growth in the faith:

a. Nominal Catholicism. A great number of our people are Catholics in name only. However, not much attention is given to formation in the faith after baptism.

b. Folk Catholicism. Even now, non-Christian beliefs on the supernatural get mixed with the true faith. However, a contemporary – and more insidious – updating of this tendency is the corrupting influence of New Age beliefs and practices.

c. Cafeteria (or in our case should we say, Turo-turo) Catholicism. There are also many who prefer to choose which doctrine or moral teaching to believe and live by. Those that they find difficult or do not conform to their way of life are discarded in favor of more “convenient ways” of being Catholic, or so they think.

d. Split-level Christianity. The tendency to compartmentalize worship and practice, devotion and morals, pagsa-Dios asin paghanapbuhay, in my opinion, is the biggest obstacle to our maturing in faith.

God constantly invites us to grow from our simple faith as a child to a faith that seeks favors to get by the realities of life, then to a faith that puts complete trust in His love, and finally to a faith that is ready to offer oneself and everything one owns in doing God’s will, in imitation of Christ who is one with the Father.

3. It is a celebration of the God who identifies with the little ones.

I remember a story told by a parish priest during Christmas in 2006, right after typhoon Reming devastated Albay. He said he was walking along his parish patio when two brothers, both of grade school age, approached him. He could see they were arguing in hushed tones as to who should talk with him. He thought they would be inquiring whether there are still any relief goods left. The older one finally came up to him and said they would like to make a donation. Then he promptly produced a small plastic bag filled with coins. It was their savings the whole year. He said their parents told them to save so they could buy gifts for Christmas. Lately their parents also told them about the many people who were affected by the typhoon. So they decided to help in their own way.

The Santo Niño embodies the best traits of children: their goodness, trust and humility, their capacity and thirst for learning, their potential for greatness. The Christ Child leads us to rediscover our childlike trust in God, our faith in the goodness of humanity and in our capacity to change for the better.

The Santo Niño also reminds us to be kind to the little ones, and to come to their defense when needed. The little ones are not only the children. They are the last, the least and the lost. Mt 25,40 says: “Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.”

The Theophany of Jesus

HOMILY
The Baptism of the Lord (C) – 10 January 2010

Readings: Is 42:1-4, 6-7 or Is 40:1-5, 9-11; Ps 29:1-2, 3-4, 3, 9-10; Acts 10:34-38 or Ti 2:11-14; 3:4-7; Lk 3:15-16, 21-22


This Sunday we officially end the Christmas season with the Feast of the Baptism of Jesus Christ.

Our liturgy, reflecting the Bible, chronologically bypasses most of Jesus’ childhood and adolescent years, and sets the stage for the start of His public ministry. The readings tell of an adult Jesus, mature in grace and wisdom, ready to take on the mission reserved for Him from all eternity.

In Eastern Rite Churches, the Feast of the Epiphany is a commemoration not of the visit of the wise men but of the baptism of the Lord. They call it the Feast of the Theophany, “the appearance of God”.

The Christmas season is actually marked by three feasts celebrating the appearance of God: Christmas, Epiphany and Baptism of the Lord.

There is another "theophany" in next Sunday’s Gospel: Jesus’ first miracle at the wedding in Cana. But we here in the Philippines do not get to read this passage next Sunday. Instead we return to the incident of the child Jesus in the Temple, which is the text for the Feast of the Santo Niño.

1. The Baptism of the Lord reveals (sufficiently though never fully) the mystery of God.

a. The narrative offers a glimpse into the mystery of the Trinity. A fuller reading reveals the Persons of the Trinity, not fully defined but narrated as working in harmony with each other.

b. The story demonstrates the nature of the Incarnation. Christ need not undergo John’s baptism of repentance for He is in all things human except in sin. Yet he insisted to be baptized as well, thus choosing to be in solidarity with humanity’s sinful condition and yearning for redemption. John’s protestations (in the other Gospel versions) serve all the more to highlight the message.

Jesus need not become man, but He chooses to be one of us. Jesus need not suffer and be killed, but He chooses to die for us. This is how God chooses to reveal Himself to us and share His life with us.

c. The account defines the character of Christ’s mission. Isaiah 42,1 says: “Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased, Upon whom I have put my spirit…” Notice how Luke uses the same words to describe Christ’s baptism event.The evangelist points to Jesus as the very servant referred to in the prophecy of Isaiah.

Christ’s mission is thus revealed as Trinitarian. He is God with us. He is also the Father’s obedient Son. And His power comes from the Spirit. He will bring about justice with gentleness, and bring out those in darkness into His light.

2. The Baptism of the Lord reminds us of our own baptism.

Like John’s, ours is a baptism for the forgiveness of sins. But because of Jesus, ours is no less than a birth into new life in Christ. What might this entail?

…
First, a “sexist” story… One day, three men were hiking and unexpectedly came upon a large raging, violent river. They needed to get to the other side, but had no idea how to do so. The first man prayed to God, saying, "Please God, give me the strength to cross this river."

Poof! God gave him big arms and strong legs, and he was able to swim across the river in about two hours, after almost drowning a couple of times.

Seeing this, the second man prayed to God, saying, "Please God, give me the strength …and the tools to cross this river."

Poof! God gave him a rowboat and he was able to row across the river in about an hour, after almost capsizing the boat a couple of times.

The third man had seen how this worked out for the other two, so he also prayed to God saying, "Please God, give me the strength and the tools ...and the intelligence to cross this river."

And poof! God turned him into a woman. She looked at the map, hiked upstream a couple of hundred yards, then walked across the bridge to the other side.
…

Through baptism, God equips us with the strength of sanctifying grace, the support of the community of faith, and access into the wisdom and guidance of Scriptures and Tradition.

But baptism is not a self-sufficient, stand-alone sacrament that assures us of membership in the Church and forgiveness of sins. It is rather the beginning of our new life in the community of the Trinity and the Church.

By baptism, God expects us to grow, learn, love, serve, and flourish within this community of faith in order to enjoy fullness of life.

As we celebrate this great theophany of Jesus at His baptism, I would like to leave these questions for reflection:

a. How committed am I to live up to my baptismal promises which I renew yearly at Easter Sunday?

b. Have I devoted myself enough to growing in faith by reading the Bible, learning about the teachings of the Church, and discerning God’s will for me?

c. How much of my time, effort and resources have I given so that the Church, the community of faith I was baptized into, could continue to nurture me and others?

d. Have I reached out enough to my many "nominal Catholic" friends and family members, and journey with them back to the Lord?

The End of Christmas

HOMILY
The Epiphany of the Lord

Readings: Is 60:1-6; Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13; Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6; Mt 2:1-12


After the media noche and noche buena, the family gatherings and class reunions, the Misas de Aguinaldo, the Christmas parties and outreach activities, the gift-giving and decorating, we now come to the last week of the Christmas season.

May I draw your attention to the belen, the nativity set of our church. There is the Holy Family, the three wise men with their gifts, the shepherds, the manger, the star. Now days after the great childbirth, one would expect better lodgings for Mary and the newborn Jesus. And the shepherds should have left long before the magi arrived. But the belen is more about symbols than historical accuracy. Nevertheless, our Gospel today practically describes the traditional belen you are looking at right now. Finally, the story of the nativity, as told in the liturgy, is complete.

Epiphany comes from the Greek “epiphaneia” which means appearance or manifestation. In the Gospel this Sunday, Jesus manifested himself to the Gentiles (the non-Jewish world) represented by the “magoi” (wise men) from the East, who came looking for the newborn “king of the Jews” upon the appearance of a certain star, as foretold in their writings .

Jesus indeed is the fullness of revelation. His epiphany reveals to us what salvation is about.

1. Salvation is offered to all.

The history of salvation begins at creation with the couple Adam and Eve. During the great flood God saved the family of Noah. When the time came, He called Abraham to found His Chosen People. With the epiphany of Christ, no longer is salvation known to be offered only to a chosen couple, family or nation. The ultimate object of salvation is finally revealed: everyone.

Eph 3,5-6 (in the Second Reading) says: “It was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.”

Though Isaiah (in the First reading) prophesied it centuries earlier, still this was a revolutionary idea at that time. Even now, we are prompted by these words to read the Old Testament, indeed the entire Bible, in its "sensus plenior", in its fuller sense, according to the revelation of Christ. We are the Gentiles. The wise men from the east represent us in the nativity story. The Good News is to be proclaimed to all peoples. We are undeniably included in God’s plan of salvation.

2. Salvation comes in the form of man.

The coming of Jesus as man and His subsequent revelation as Son of Man, Son of God, the Word made flesh, overturned the old concepts of God. The all-powerful yet distant God is no more. He choose to reveal Himself to us in the form of man, subject to the conditions of the flesh, except sin. He is a God who choose to pitch his tent among us.

In Jesus Christ, we are saved. John 1,12 says: “to those who did accept Him He gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.”

This is one of the great distinctions of Christianity with the other world religions. They do not worship as God their human founders. We do. We worship Him as God and relate to Him as brother and friend. By this we are saved.

Pope Benedict XVI, speaking about the conversion of St. Paul, explained that “Christianity is not a new philosophy or a new form of morality, but an encounter with the person of Christ, an event that ignites a personal relationship with Him.”

3. Salvation is presented as a gift.

The gifts that the wise men brought are highlighted for their symbolic value: gold because Jesus is king; frankincense because He is God’s high priest; and myrrh, used in the preparation of the dead, because He is the greatest of the prophets, in reference to the common fate of prophets in Israel: they are killed because of their mission.

But the greatest gift at Christmas and Epiphany is salvation in Christ Himself.

Now gifts are either accepted or turned down, put to good use or not. The same is also true with salvation. What do we do with the gifts we receive at Christmas? We may use them, simply keep them, share them with others or give them away to somebody else.

Mary and Joseph, the shepherds and the wise men, all received the gift of Christ with gladness in their hearts. King Herod chose not to, preferring instead to narrow his view of Him as a threat to his power.

Our great and happy tradition of gift-giving at Christmas is but a reflection of the great self-giving of Christ. For one fleeting but memorable season we experience the warmth of family, the generosity of friends, the kindness of strangers, the joy of our community of faith. What do we do with the gift of Christ at Christmas?

For our reflection, I would like to share this well-loved poem by Dr. Howard Thurman, a theologian and civil rights leader, from his book “The Mood of Christmas”.

The Work of Christmas

“When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
To make music in the heart.”

May Christ and Christmas remain and grow in our hearts the whole year round.

Mary and the New Year

HOMILY
Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God (C)

Readings: Nm 6:22-27; Ps 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8; Gal 4:4-7; Lk 2:16-21


Today we celebrate Mary as Mother of God.

This feast is already celebrated in Rome on January 1 even before the 7th century. However, for much of the Universal Church and for centuries, the date of this feast falls on October 11. January 1, the Octave (8th day) of Christmas, was the celebration of the Feast of the Circumcision of Christ, since traditionally Jewish children are circumcised on the 8th day of their birth. The circumcision of Mary’s Child is also the occasion when He is formally given the name Jesus.

In 1974, following the reforms of Vatican II, Pope Paul VI replaced the Feast of the Circumcision with the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. The title Mother of God is the highest honor given to Mary. It is a rough translation of the Greek “Theotokos”, which literally means “God bearer”.

Theotokos is how the Council of Ephesus (431 AD) describes Mary, a logical conclusion to the doctrine of faith that Christ is fully human and fully divine. If Jesus Christ is God then Mary is the Mother of God.

There is also something to be said about celebrating Mary in her highest title at the start of the civil year.

1. Mary as Mother of God is spiritual Mother to us all.

In the novel “The Secret Life of Bees” by Sue Monk Kidd, one of the main characters, August Boatwright, narrates the story of Our Lady of Chains, and the extraordinary devotion to her among the slaves of South Carolina and their descendants:

"Back in the time of slaves, when the people were beaten down and kept like property, they prayed every day and every night for deliverance. On the islands near Charleston, they would go to the praise house and sing and pray, and every single time someone would ask the Lord to send them rescue. To send them consolation. To send them freedom.

One day, a slave named Obadiah was loading bricks onto a boat that would sail down the Aisley River, when he saw something washed up on the bank. Coming closer, he saw it was the wooden figure of a woman. Her body was growing out of a block of wood, a black woman with her arm lifted out and her fist balled up.

Obadiah pulled the figure out of the water, and struggled to set her upright. Then he remembered how they’d asked the Lord to send them rescue. To send them consolation. To send them freedom. Obadiah knew the Lord had sent this figure, but he didn’t knew who she was.

He knelt down in the marsh mud before her and heard her voice speak plain as day in her heart. She said, ‘It’s all right. I’m here. I’ll be taking care of you know.’

Obadiah tried to pick up the waterlogged woman who God sent to take care of them, but she was too heavy, so he went and got two more slaves, and between them they carried her to the praise house and set her on the hearth.

By the time the next Sunday came, everyone had heard about the statue washing up from the river, how it had spoken to Obadiah. The praise house was filled with people spilling out the door and sitting on the window ledges. Obadiah told them he knew the Lord God had sent her, but he didn’t know who she was."

The storytelling is punctuated with almost everybody in the room chanting over and over: "Not one of them knew".

"Now the oldest of the slaves was a woman named Pearl. She walked with a stick, and when she spoke, everyone listened. She got to her feet and said, ‘This here is the mother of Jesus’.

Everyone knew the mother of Jesus was named Mary, and that she’d seen suffering of every kind. That she was strong and constant and had a mother’s heart. And here she was, sent to them on the same waters that had brought them here in chains. It seemed to them she knew everything they suffered.

And so the people cried and danced and clapped their hands. They went one a time and their hands to her chest, wanting to grab on to the solace in her heart.

They did this every Sunday in the praise house, dancing and touching her chest, and eventually they painted a red heart on her breast so the people would have a heart to touch.

Our Lady filled their hearts with fearlessness and whispered to them plans of escape. The bold ones fled, finding their way north, and those who didn’t lived with a raised fist in their hearts. And if ever it grew weak, they would only have to touch her heart again.

She grew so powerful she became known even to the master. One day he hauled her off on a wagon and chained her in the carriage house. But then, without any human help, she escaped during the night and made her way back to the praise house. The master chained her in the barn fifty times, and fifty times she loosed the chains and went home. Finally he gave up and let her stay there.

The people called her Our Lady of Chains. They called her that not because she wore chains…"

The people in the room chanted: "Not because she wore chains..."

"They called her Our Lady of Chains because she broke them."

The image of Mary as mother evokes blissful feelings generated by memories of the goodness and generosity of mothers everywhere, multiplied a thousand times and more, for after all she is the Mother of God.

Because she is the Mother of God, she plays a part in our redemption. Because she is the Mother of God, she becomes a sacrament of grace. Because she is the Mother of God, she is mother to us all and companion in the way, especially in the darkest parts of the journey.

2. Mary reminds us that we too carry Christ in us.

Mary carried Jesus in her womb for nine months. She also kept in her heart all the things that were happening around her Son. She was Theotokos in so many senses of the word.

Her feast now reminds us that we too carry Christ in us. Gal 4,6 (in the Second reading) says: “As proof that you are children, God sent the spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying out, ‘Abba, Father!’”

The shepherds, the wise men and all who came to gaze upon the baby Jesus, left carrying with them not just a memory to keep but a good news and spirit to share. Christ’s spirit is in us, and like Mary, the shepherds and the wise men, we are tasked to share Him with others as well.

As we begin this new year, let us renew our commitment to grow closer to Jesus and share His presence and good news to others. May we be less cynical and more at peace, less angry and more forgiving, less self-absorbed and more passionate at helping others.

The popular Christmas carol goes: “Bagong taon ay magbagong buhay nang lumigaya ang ating bayan. Tayo’y magsikap upang makamtan natin ang kasaganahan!”

As we go about this task, our celebration of Mary as Mother of God on this very first day of the year, assures us of her maternal and constant protection and guide.

A blessed New Year to all!

What makes a family holy?

HOMILY
Feast of the Holy Family (C) – 27 December 2009

Readings: 1Sm 1:20-22, 24-28; Ps 84:2-3, 5-6, 9-10; 1 Jn 3:1-2, 21-24; Lk 2:41-52


The Sunday right after Christmas Day is celebrated as Holy Family Sunday. Today we honor the family formed by the birth of Christ, the “earthly trinity”: the family of Joseph, Mary and Jesus.

Here's an aside: as a child I had mixed feelings about the Feast of the Holy Family. Because when we get home we are sure to get a second sermon from our father on why and how we should be better children.

Since today we also remember our own family, the question almost begs to be asked: “What makes a family holy?”

The Gospel today narrates the presentation of Jesus in the temple, and their losing him in the crowd, and eventually finding him (after three days!) in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers and conversing with them. This story, apart from prophesying Jesus’ future ministry, also has a message to tell both parents and children.

1. The parents of Jesus brought him to the temple.

As devout Jews, Joseph and Mary made annual visits to the temple at Jerusalem during Passover. On this annual pilgrimage, they usually brought along their son Jesus from the time they formally presented him to God. The presentation of a newborn son 40 days after his birth is a way of acknowledging that he is God’s gift to them. Conversely, every time the parents brought along their son to the temple -- the place considered by the Jews as the symbol of God’s presence in their midst -- God was also introduced to the child.

Aside from providing for the welfare of their children, it is the responsibility of Christian couples to introduce God to their children by having them baptized, bringing them along to the church, teaching them our prayers and traditions, and witnessing to them what it means to live as Christians, in words and, especially, in deeds.

2. Jesus went with his parents home to Nazareth, and was obedient to them.

Sir 3:3-5 says: “The LORD sets a father in honor over his children; a mother's authority he confirms over her sons. He who honors his father atones for sins; he stores up riches who reveres his mother.”

Children have an obligation to obey their parents, especially when they are young and much in need of guidance. This, of course, also means that parents have the primary duty to be selflessly loving and concerned about their children. Consequently, when the children get older, they will then have the obligation to take care of their parents, at the very least, out of gratitude for the many sacrifices done for their sake by their parents.

Sir 3:12-16 says: “My son, take care of your father when he is old; grieve him not as long as he lives. Even if his mind fail, be considerate with him; revile him not in the fullness of your strength. For kindness to a father will not be forgotten, it will serve as a sin offering – it will take lasting root. In time of tribulation it will be recalled to your advantage, like warmth upon frost it will melt away your sins. A blasphemer is he who despises his father; accursed of his Creator, he who angers his mother.”

3. A Christmas story…

There was an old widow who has three grown-up sons. All of them were successful in life and loved their mother very much. But their jobs, businesses and many other concerns keep them from being with her as much as they should.

Now Christmas was the time when they would really find ways to be with their mother for a family reunion, together with their wife and children. However, this Christmas they were so busy that not one of them could come home for Christmas. So each of them just decided to gift their mother as lavishly as he could.

The eldest son gave her a new house and lot; the middle son, an expensive new car; and the youngest, a beautiful talking bird to keep her entertained.

The mother was naturally disappointed by the turn of events but still graciously accepted their gifts. However, she has something to say about each of their gifts.

To the eldest she said: “My son, I am old and happy with our old house. Besides I know all our neighbors, and they check on me and occasionally keep me company. So thank you but I cannot simply leave our house and our neighbors.”

To the middle son she said: “My son, I am old and the only places I frequent these days are the church and my doctor's clinicl, which are just nearby. So thank you but I don’t have any need for a new car.”

To the youngest she said: “My son, of all the gifts I received this Christmas yours was the one I like best. The bird you gave me was wonderful… The maid cooked it for noche buena, and it was delicious.”

Brothers and sisters, what makes a family holy?

It is the realization that every family member is a gift from God. Thus, life within the family should be more about caring for each other and building-up each other, and less about getting what each one wants over the others.

To those who have difficult family members or who happen to have a dysfunctional family, remember: You may not be able to choose your family, but you can choose what kind of family member you want to become.

To those gifted with a close-knit loving family, thank God and love each other even more. And remember: Charity begins at home, it means it should not end there.

Even as we pray for own families, let us remember the many families affected by Mayon's eruption and are now huddled in cramped evacuation centers. Let us think of ways on how we can be of greater help to them. Those of us who can may even choose to adopt an evacuee family and welcome them into their homes.

During Christian funerals, when we gather to pray for a loved one who passed away. The liturgy asks us to pray for the deceased family member as our brother or sister, no matter how he or she was related to us. In a way this is to remind us that indeed we only have one Father in heaven and we are all his children.

1 Jn 3, the Second Reading, tells us: “Beloved we are God’s children now… We have confidence in God and receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. And His commandment is this: we should believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another just as He commanded us.”

This is what makes families holy.

The Gift of Christmas

HOMILY
Christmas Day (C) – 25 December 2009

Readings: Is 52:7-10; Ps 98:1, 2-3, 3-4, 5-6; Heb 1:1-6; Jn 1:1-18 or 1:1-5, 9-14


After four weeks of advent, nine days of Misa de Aguinaldo, and last night’s noche Buena, Christmas is finally here, the most awaited time of the year.

The word Christmas originated as a compound meaning "Christ's Mass". It is derived from the Middle English Christemasse and Old English Cristes mæsse, a phrase first recorded in 1038. Its very etymology reveals the two most important elements of the celebration: “Christ” and attending “Mass”.

There are actually four sets of Masses for the Solemnity of the Lord’s Birth. The Vigil Mass & Midnight Mass on December 24, and the early Morning Mass and Mass during the Day on December 25. In the other three Masses, the Gospel passages are narratives centered on the birth of Jesus. However, for our Mass today, instead of a story, we get a theological assertion:

“In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God…” (Jn 1:1)

What is a word? A word is a jumble of meaningful letters, a symbolic representation of an idea. But this is no ordinary word we are talking about for it represents the very idea and essence of God. This Word creates, reveals, speaks through the prophets, becomes flesh, teaches, heals, forgives, calls to discipleship, sends to mission, suffers, dies and rises to new life.

Jesus as Word is the human symbol of the Father. The Preface for Christmas in the liturgy says:

“In Him we see our God made visible
and so are caught up in love of the God we cannot see.”

It is no wonder then that our Christmas celebration abounds with symbols: the nativity scene, Christmas tree, Santa Claus, parol, Simbang Gabi, and many other traditions that vary from country to country. All of them, even the most mundane and materialistic, signify in varying degrees the presence of God in the world. For such is the power of the Christ: he can turn even our imperfect thoughts and impure motivations into vehicles of the Good News.

1. Christ’s presence brings joy.

A couple of nights ago, police officers in Santa caps came to the evacuation centers and entertained the people there with song and dance numbers. There were also those who went to these centers bearing gifts and cheer. The local governments also went out of their way to help the evacuees celebrate noche buena.

This is the joy of Christmas, not a joy founded on the absence of loneliness, poverty, or fear – but one that is given us by God precisely because there is loneliness, poverty and fear. Jn 1: 5 says Jesus is “the light (that) shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it”.

Remember: the first Christmas was fraught with difficulties – Joseph and his pregnant wife were forced to go on a long journey, there was no room at the inn, they have to make do with a manger. But when Christ was born, an infectious joy spread in the heavens and on earth. Glad tidings were brought to the shepherds. The angels sang “Glory to God in the highest and peace to His people on earth!”

2. Christ’s presence brings transformation.

First a story… In 1914, during the darkest days of the First World War, in the Western Front, the British and the French soldiers were entrenched on one side and the Germans were on the other side. It was Christmas Eve and the weary soldiers thought they had enough of war and violence. They decided to hold a ceasefire, a Christmas truce.

The leaders of the French, British and German forces met in the center of the battlefield – while around them the bodies of the dead lay lying under cover of snow – and agreed upon their improvised rules for their improvised peace. Spontaneously, the soldiers from different camps started chanting: “No more war! No more war!”

It was Christmas, and after so many months of fighting, they felt a sudden rush of relief… and joy! They laid down their arms, buried their fallen comrades, then sang Christmas carols, exchanged gifts, and played football.

The scattered acts of friendship went on for several months till Easter. The superiors from the different sides didn’t like it. And the war still raged long after those incidents. But the memory of those brief breaks of joy was enough for the many survivors who were there to overcome the horrors of war and made their healing faster.

Christ’s presence this season transforms even the most jaded and bitter experience into a moment of triumph, a graced time to learn lessons in life.

The spiritual preparations of Advent and the Misas de Aguinaldo aim to transform us into a people ready and waiting for Christ’s coming. The call to repentance, the experience of light amidst darkness, the spirit of kindness and generosity all around – all of these seek to move us into becoming better Christians. The Tagalog carol says it for us: “…at magmula ngayon, kahit hindi Pasko ay magbigayan.”

3. A Christmas Prayer

To sum up our reflection, I would like to share this prayer written by Robert Louis Stevenson:

“Loving Father,
help us remember the birth of Jesus,
that we may share in the song of angels,
the gladness of the shepherds,
and the worship of the wise men.
Close the door of hate
and open the door of love all over the world.
Let kindness come with every gift
and good desires with every greeting.

Deliver us from evil
by the blessing which Christ brings,
and teach us to be merry with clean hearts.
May the Christmas morning
make us happy to be Thy children,
and the Christmas evening
bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts,
forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus' sake, Amen!"

Advent and the Little Things

HOMILY
Fourth Sunday of Advent (C) – 20 December 2009

Readings: Mi 5:1-4a; Ps 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19; Heb 10:5-10; Lk 1:39-45


The Gospel passage this last Sunday of Advent is the familiar story of the Virgin Mary’s visitation of her cousin Elizabeth to help during the latter’s pregnancy. Elizabeth called Mary “blessed among women”. There is something more about these small acts of kindness and gestures of affection between these two little women.

Little and insignificant is also how Bethlehem of Ephrathah is described in the First Reading from the Book of Micah. Yet from this place, the awaited Savior will come.

In the Second Reading from the Letter to the Hebrews, the grand sacrifices and sin offerings of Israel were described as not much delightful to God as the singular obedience of Christ, the once-for-all offering that consecrates us.

The readings this Sunday present to us the God of small things, one who turns our smallish human efforts into things big and monumental. Let me tell you three stories:

1. Glenn and Baby

Last Friday, I was privileged to concelebrate in a wedding of two friends, Glenn and Baby Palma-Miranda. In my homily, I explained that fidelity in marriage is not so much measured by the length of years spent together, as it is defined by the everyday instances of kindness, the daily gestures of affection, and the small acts of self-sacrifice the couple does for each other and their children. When these happen, the days turn into weeks, the weeks to months, the months to years, and then they will realize they have been sharing a lifetime of fidelity.

Little did I know how much fidelity has figured in this couple’s relationship. As the bride thanked everyone during the reception, she mentioned that in their 10 years (12 if you include the period of courtship) of being in a relationship, they also had their ups and downs, but that there was never any doubt in her heart that her groom was faithful to her.

She added that he was the one who prepared practically everything in their wedding. Since she was new at her job and still adjusting, he told her he didn’t want her to be further stressed out and anxious about the wedding. So he did most of the preparation and coordination himself. As I was listening to their story, I knew they were off to a good start.

Love and fidelity in marriage are made out of the little things couples do for each other.

2. The Roseto Mystery

In his book “Outliers: The Story of Success”, Malcolm Gladwell introduced the concept of an “outlier”, i.e., something that is situated away from or classed differently from a main or related body, by telling the story of the town of Roseto in Pennsylvania, USA.

Roseto is populated by Italian immigrants and their families, most of them came from the province of Foggia in Italy in a village called Roseto (they named the town after their village in the old world).

Here is what makes Roseto extraordinary. In 1961, a medical study was made on its residents. The results were astonishing. Virtually no one under 55 had died of a heart attack or showed any signs of heart disease. For men over 65, the death rate from heart disease was roughly half that of the US as a whole. The death rate from all causes, in fact, was 30-35% lower than expected. There was no suicide, no alcoholism, no drug addiction, and very little crime. They didn’t have any case of peptic ulcers either. In short, people were extraordinarily healthy and dying practically of old age.

There were several hypotheses as to how these came about. Maybe it was their diet and exercise. Then the researchers found out they were eating high fat, high cholesterol food on a regular basis. This was also not a town where people wake up early to jog or do yoga. The Rosetans were heavy smokers and many were struggling with obesity.

Next, they considered genetics. So they tracked down relatives of the Rosetans who were living in other parts of the US to see if they shared the same remarkable good health as their relatives in Pennsylvania. They didn’t.

They also looked at the region were the town is situated. However, a study of the medical records of the two towns closest to Roseto, and with roughly the same size, produced this result: for men over 65, the death rates from heart disease were three times that of Roseto.

So, it was not the diet, or exercise, or genetics, or location. A closer look at the town made them understand the phenomenon.

The Rosetans are friendly and warm to each other – visiting one another, stopping to chat on the streets, inviting each other over backyard dinners. Many homes have three generations living under one roof. Meals were eaten together. Grandparents command respect. Extended family clans underlay the town’s social structure. The researchers also acknowledge the “unifying and calming effect” of their parish church. The Rosetans have created a powerful protective social structure based on traditional values they have carried over from their old country.

The little things they do that define the good relationships they have with each other make them live healthier and happier lives – and turned them into a medical phenomenon.

3. Mayon Volcano Eruption

As Mayon Volcano started showing signs of erupting, the provincial government responded with a big goal in mind: zero casualty and no-rescue scenario. The success of this goal depends largely on the many contributions of various groups: the timely response of the PNP and AFP personnel, the careful planning of the various disaster coordinating councils (PDCC, CDCC, MDCC, etc.), the cooperation of barangay officials and residents of affected communities, the readiness of the schools turned evacuation centers, the prompt and regular provision of the evacuees’ basic needs by social welfare personnel, even those who decide to spend their Christmas parties cheering up and giving gifts to the evacuees.

Our cooperation and the many small ways by which we support those affected by the current eruption will enable us once more not only to cope with this calamity but to triumph over it. Not because we are stronger than the volcano, but because we know that our concerted efforts, strengthened by God’s grace, will make us overcome any adversity and enable us to accomplish our goals.

Our God is the God of little things. Mary said yes to the Lord. Joseph overcame his prejudices to accept Mary and the child in her womb. Zechariah and Elizabeth trusted in God. John witnessed to the Messiah since he first leaped in his mother’s womb upon hearing Mary’s greeting.

Then as now, God have been involving men and women, and using our little contributions, in order to bring salvation to all.

How have you cooperated with God lately?