INVITING PEOPLE TO GOD…SLOWLY Lent3 As a child, I didn’t see my father going to church but merely waiting outside - and then, only for select, special occasions. Growing up, I frequently prayed for my father to re-discover his faith. When I entered the seminary he went with us to Mass when there were parent-meetings. But it stopped there. My heart pined for my father to go to church regularly. When I finished philosophy, he inquired what gift I wanted for graduation. I wrote a letter to him in his office, inviting him to the practice of his faith. And he did - every Sunday and Wednesday, even when there were typhoons. I was glad he slowly found his way back. I’m sure many of us regular church-goers feel a certain pain in our heart when we think of the people we want to bring to the Lord. There are members of our family or maybe close friends who have given up the practice of the faith. How we want to see our entire family or friends together at Mass or...
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NOT A SUPERSTAR BUT A FRIEND Lent2 The story of my experience with the soon to be Blessed Pope John Paul II landed on the front page of the country’s most popular newspaper, the Philippine Daily Inquirer some weeks ago. Maybe some of my parishioners have read it, as did many of my family and friends. When the late great Cardinal Jaime Sin, to whom I was private secretary at that time, announced that the pope granted my wish for an audience during his coffee break, I was ebullient, thrilled and awed by the prospect of a face-to-face meeting. But I was also nervous and afraid. Here was John Paul II, head of the universal church and I was just a simple priest. Here was a man oozing with holiness and I was a struggling sinner. Here was a worldwide superstar and I was a nobody from a third world country. But the moment the pope met me, the first thing he did was to grab my right arm and leaned gently on me, releasing his cane. I don’t remember how I felt. I do...
WHAT DOES THE DEVIL LOOK LIKE? Lent - 1 In horror films, devils are portrayed as hideous beings, ugly monsters, frighteningly disfigured and repulsive. This is also how we picture evil spirits in other media and in popular imagination. But does this picture jive with reality? What does the devil look like? My exoricst priest-classmate and friend, Fr. Jocis Syquia, once told me that the devil, truly the ugliest of all, conceals his ugliness. Otherwise he cannot even get near a person without terrorizing his prospects. The devil is a master of disguise. He wears beautiful masks to mislead us. In tempting us, the devil also tricks us with his bright-colored beautiful packages. Look at today’s gospel. The devil attempts to destroy Jesus’ mission with attractive temptations. He does not tell Jesus to commit sin or to do something wrong. No, he invites Jesus to try some seemingly harmless, nice comforts. The devil offers Jesus, already hungry in the ...
CAUTION AGAINST FAKES 9 th Sunday When a good friend died, I rushed to the mortuary to sympathize with the family. Preceding me there by ample time, was a man who claimed to be a priest. My internal radar told me to be suspicious of the man. He didn’t talk like a priest nor did he behave like a priest. I was sure he was a fake priest. And yes, he was asking a huge amount of money to celebrate a Mass for my friend’s soul! Indeed, he was a fake! The gospel reveals Jesus having a sort of internal radar. Jesus, surrounded by disciples, detected that some of the people around him were not really for him: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven… but did we not prophesy in your name, and did wonderful things and even expelled demons?” To these people Jesus has a stinging reply: I’m sorry, I really do not know you! Jesus is imparting to us today the marks of a true disciple. It is easy to say we are the Lord’s followe...
Warning against worry 8th Sunday What man or woman on earth does not have a worry or concern? A sick person is wondering why after lengthy medications, her back still aches and her throat is too painful and dry. A young man graduating from college is perplexed as to the next step he will take. Friends of a Filipino worker jailed abroad are concerned about his condition in that foreign hostile surrounding. A young husband is worried where to get money for his wife’s nearing childbirth. Waking up every morning, we meet an avalanche of personal problems and the problems of the people close to our hearts. There is a Filipino saying that only the dead and the mentally ill are free from worries. Jesus knows the complexities of human life. He is aware of the confusions in people’s minds and hearts. He was worried too, about the situations of others. His heart was troubled for the sick, the suffering and the poor. He too, shared in the human experience of ...
TOWARDS FORGIVENESS AND FREEDOM 7th Sunday We express anger in many different ways. Angry people have been known to kill their opponent. Others, while not killing their neighbor physically, instead malign them, killing them morally. Some people treat others with indifference. Others secretly pray for the death of their enemies. Anger is a natural, valid human emotion. In response to anger, people normally yearn to get even, to take revenge. Jesus’ audience could surely identify with the law He mentioned: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. This is one of the oldest human laws. Its original intention was to impose justice – return what you have taken away. Another intention was fairness – take only what was taken, nothing more. Still the law was insufficient to bring harmony among peoples. It did not remove the desire of men and women to retaliate when they are aggrieved. It did not resolve the root of conflicts or teach men and women the way...
LOVE MUST BE PURE 6th Sunday Most of us can speak of the experience of falling in love. As we are growing up we open our eyes to the beauty and goodness of people and we are attracted to these people, their qualities, their bodies, their attitudes, their persons – we fall in love! Are you in love today? Our gospel today continues the Sermon on the Mount, delivered by Jesus to his disciples and still a source of wisdom and inspiration for us today. In this part of the sermon, Jesus invites us not only to be good but to be “very good” in living out our faith. He encourages and empowers us to be live lives of virtue. Among the teachings in the gospel today Jesus challenges us to love authentically. As we are celebrating this month the secular feast called Valentines Day, it is good to see how we practice the art of loving in our dealing with each other. Jesus reviews our knowledge of the Old Testament: You must not commit adultery. But he goes beyond it and...
Panigan ang Buhay, Tanggihan ang RH Bill (Liham Pastoral ng Kapulungan ng mga Katolikong Obispo ng Pilipinas) Aming mga kapatid na Pilipino, Pinahahalagahan ng Estado ang dangal ng bawa’t tao at tinataguyod ang ganap na paggalang sa karapatang pantao (Art II, Seksyon 11). Kinikilala ng Estado ang kabanalan ng buhay pampamilya at ipagtatanggol at palalakasin ang pamilya bilang isang batayang institusyong panlipunan na may karapatang itaguyod ang sarili. Ipagsasanggalang din nito ang buhay ng ina at ang buhay ng di pa isinisilang mula nang ito ay ipaglihi (Art II, Seksyon 12). Bakit itong Liham Pastoral? Nagsimula tayo sa paghalaw mula sa Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas. Ginawa namin ito dahil nilalayon naming gawin ang sulat na ito batay sa saligang pinahahalagahan at mga hangarin ng sambayanang Pilipino at hindi batay sa mga katuruan ng Simbahang Katoliko lamang. Bilang isang bansa tayo ay nasa sangandaan. Hinaharap natin ang ilang bersyon ng isang panukalan...
5TH SUNDAY
Light is contagious 5th sunday Just a few days ago, we celebrated the Feast of the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple, a Christmas feast outside the Christmas season. Formerly it was called the feast of Candlemas because during the Mass, candles for devotion are blessed. A candlelight is amazing. A candlelight is contagious. A single candle can give light to a thousand people. A single candle can share its light to a thousand other candles, without itself diminishing. Such is the importance of a candle that is lit, blessed and shared. Today we again encounter the image of light in the Gospel. “You are the light of the world,” Jesus encourages us. What better way for Jesus to describe his disciples than by comparing them to himself, “the true light of the world.” Becoming light is a tribute to the faith of a true follower of Jesus. Jesus the light shares his light with us and then it is our turn to share this light with others. Today we ...