GOD IS OUR POWER!

27^th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Hab 1:2-3, 2:2-4; Tim 1:6-8, 13-14; Lk 17:5-10

If we look around our house, we have T.V., radio, rice cooker, refrigerator, washing machine and light. We watch television to recreate ourselves and to watch the current news. We have refrigerator to preserve our food and to have cool drinks. We have rice cooker to prepare food easily. In the offices, in the banks and in the school they need air-con and computers. Electrical appliances are very relevant for our better living. They are here to serve us. What if there is no electricity?

I remember last month, there was a brown-out in our place. Our laundry could not use the washing machine. There was no light. It was dark. Very hot in my room. I could not use computer. I could not use any electrical appliances and instruments. It was difficult!

Think about the big institutions like the banks, malls, schools and other business firms. Without electricity, the business will collapse. Without electricity, those instruments like computers, television and other important instruments and gadgets will be useless!

Without God, like these electrical things, we cannot follow Jesus. Without God, we cannot live. God alone gives us power. Indeed, God is our power. He alone gives us his energy, his spirit. Paul, in his letter to Timothy, reminds us that God gives us the “spirit of POWER and love and self-control.” This is the final letter of Paul before he died. He is lonely, but he is not discouraged. He is full of energy and strength from God. Today he encourages us to persevere like him, to be more faithful like him.

Faithfulness is the key thing to live our lives in the power of His love. Faithfulness is the call for all of us to gain the power of God. He said, “If you have faith the size of mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” It is an image of a faithful person who wants to grow in faith. Like the apostles of Jesus, they said, “Increase our faith.”

The Prophet Habakkuk feels frustrated, “there is strife, and clamorous discord.” But God asks him to increase his faith. “Increase our faith.” This statement is intended for us. This is an invitation for us to tireless work – to be full of fire, to be full of spirit – to be full of power!

God is our power. He gives us His spirit. He gives us energy. God has given us the gift of faith to ignite this power, the power to serve Him, and to serve others. We must remember that He honors the faithful servant who serves generously. With our faithfulness, we always give our best in the service of God. With His power, we always give our best for the sake of others.

Be faithful… we’ve got the POWER! Give our best to serve Him and others.

“TRUST IN GOD”

Feast of St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
Eph 4:1-7, 11-13; Mt 9:9-13

There was a man in France named Charles de Foucauld. He lost his faith as an adolescent. He was a young military. When he went to Morocco, he saw the way Muslims expressed their faith. And, he began to question, “My God, if you exist, let me come to know you.”

Finally, he discovered God and he felt that God called Him. He became prayerful. He became a Trappist monk. And when he was ordained as priest he went to the desert as hermit. He lived a holy life.

He wrote a beautiful prayer as an expression of his great trust in God. It says: “Father, I abandon myself into your hands; do with me what you will. Whatever you may do, I thank you: I am ready for all, I Accept all. Let your will be done to me, and in all your creatures – I wish no more than this, O Lord.”

Today, we celebrate the feast of St. Matthew. He was born at Capernaum. He was called by Jesus to be one of the twelve apostles. He became the author of the first gospel in the bible. The story of Charles de Foucauld is very similar to the story of Matthew. It’s the story about following Jesus without any condition. It is the story of TRUST.

Matthew is telling us of his own story in the gospel he wrote. He is sitting at his office when Jesus calls him, “follow me.” He stands up and leaves his work behind and follow Jesus. We know that Matthew is a tax collector. He can stay there in his office and enjoy his wealth. But, he leaves his good position as tax collector and joins the group of Jesus who has no money at all. Matthew follows Jesus without any condition. Matthew trusts Jesus. In his great trust, he responded to God’s call.

Jesus came to save us because he loves us so much just like how he loves Matthew. He came to call us. He came to call us back to God. He calls us to abandon ourselves to God, to put our trust in God, to surrender ourselves to God. St. Paul urges us to recognize this call “to live in a manner worthy of the call we have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience…”

God loves us and he constantly calls us - to trust in Him. Matthew is our model of trust in God. And now, Matthew challenges us to follow Jesus with our whole heart, with great trust. Matthew is an Apostle, who followed the call of Jesus. He is an Evangelist, who proclaimed Jesus. As an apostle and evangelist, he is grounded in our deep trust to God.

So, like Matthew, we will stand up and leave our sinfulness behind to follow Jesus. We have to trust God - trust in His love. With our deep trust, we can offer ourselves and entrust ourselves to God. The prayer of Charles de Foucauld will become ours too as it saying, “Into your hands I commend my soul, I offer it to You with all the love of my heart, for I love You, Lord. So need to give myself, to give myself into your hands; without reserve, with boundless confidence; for you are my Father.”

THE SIGN OF THE CROSS

Feast of the Triumph of the Cross
Nb 21: 4b-9; Phil 2:6-11; John 3:13-17

Everyday I take a public transport from our place in Matina-Dumalag to the Redemptorist Church. Going back to Dumalag from the Redemptorist Church, I have to wait first for some jeepneys going to the SM mall. But, there are only few jeepneys going to SM. So, I have to wait for quiet a long time. Oftentimes, the jeepneys are full.

One day, I was bored of waiting. The weather was so hot and I was tired. Just to make myself feeling okay, I tried to observe the people in the jeepneys and cars passing the Church. I observed that most passengers made a sign of the cross. I told myself, “Look! Most people making a sign of the cross every time they pass by. They are Catholics for sure. Wonderful!” I was very happy to see them showing their identity as Christians. They reminded me of my own identity as Christian.

To make a sign of the cross is a treasure for us Catholics. We begin and end our celebration with that gesture. We use it even without thinking. For some, they make a sign of the cross before and after eating, before leaving the house and before driving, before sleeping, or even before taking a bath. Some athletes are also making the sign of the Cross before the game. And we can identify them that they are Christians.

The sign of the cross – what does it mean for us? Today, in this feast of the Holy Cross, I want to point out that every time we make a sign of the cross we are remembering the meaning of the Cross of Jesus Christ. We are remembering that we belong to Him. Our entire life belongs to Him. We are remembering the unconditional love to us.

The cross tells us of God’s love. God’s love is visible in Jesus. Jesus emptied himself, took the form of a slave, and came in the likeness of human. He humbled himself, and, died on the cross. His death on the cross is outpouring of love and compassion for us.

The gospel of John tells us today that through His death on the Cross Christ is lifted up. Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. The Father sent His Son not to condemn us, but to save us.

The cross is a constant reminder of God’s love for us. The cross is a constant reminder of Jesus Christ, His life, death and resurrection. For me, when I make the sign of the cross it reminds me of the Holy Trinity – the Father - who highly exalted Jesus, the Son, Jesus – who redeemed us, and the Holy Spirit – who made us holy. So we trace this sign on our forehead, our hearts and our shoulders as symbol of our faith. It reminds our identity as Christian.

The sign of the cross is wonderful gesture. It’s a wonderful expression of our relationship with God. When we make a sign of the cross, we are embracing our God with all our mind, with all our heart and with all our strength.

Each day, by making the sign of the cross, we remind ourselves with the sign of God’s unconditional love. It reminds us each day, in good times and bad times, that God is never far from us.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“OUR VOCATION IS LOVE”

Wedding Homily
1 Cor 12:31-13:8; Mt 22:35-40

My brothers and sisters, we gather here today to witness the wedding of Jec-jec and Raul. I think it was eight years ago when I first met Jec-jec at the Campus Ministry Office in the University of Mindanao. That was when I joined the Christian Students Organization or CHRISTO. She was very friendly to me. And soon, we became close friends.

One year later, Raul came in the scene. He asked us to join the CHRISTO. So we accepted him. We became friends easily. We have the same interests. We both wanted to become priests. Actually, we planned to join the religious congregation together. (Was it Marists, Raul? No, it was Jesuits.) We were searching for our vocation.

Fortunately, Jec-jec was so in love. She couldn’t think enough him… She was in love with - Raul. And Raul was the same! He was very silent at the beginning. But just heard the name of her, it made him – thrill… He was in love with - Jec-jec.

Now Raul has finally found his vocation. And Jec-jec too! She thought once to become a religious sister. (You told me that, Jec-jec!) See now how happy they are to find a love of a lifetime!

Raul and Jec-Jec, you were thinking and planning to get married for years and years. Now, the time has come. The time has come to decide. The time has come build a committed relationship. This time is not that easy… even it takes time. It is a big decision you’ve made in your life. Decisions like this cannot be made overnight. It takes time. Like myself, I decided to be a Marist, and it’s not automatic. Once decided, it would demand something. My decision to be a Marist took me into another way of life. In the same way, in your decisions God is calling you to another way of life – a vocation of marriage life. It is indeed a sacred calling. So it demands a deepening of commitment your love everyday – to commit to love each other. Today, you begin to learn, and to re-learn, to love each other in a deeper way.

St. Paul reminds us today to learn to love – to be always patient, to be kind, never jealous, never rude, never seeks its own advantage… To learn to love is not simple. It demands hard work. It is like learning a new language. I had been in Thailand-Myanmar border. I tried to learn Thai and Burmese language. To learn is so difficult! It demands so much hard work. To commit to love means to suffer. We have to sacrifice.

This is central to the teaching of Jesus today – to commit ourselves to LOVE, to love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind… And love your neighbor as yourself. True love is a commitment, sacrifice. Jesus suffered and even died for us because of his great love, his unconditional love for us, for the Church.

Jesus, too, in my favorite Gospel, said, “Love one another as I have loved you, no one can have greater love than to lay down his life for his friends.” True love is a sacrifice. And it’s our calling.

My favorite saint, St. Therese of the Child Jesus said, said, “My vocation is love.” This is my motto in life. And it may be it would be yours too. Raul and Jec-jec, you’ve find your vocation, that is, to love.

Remember, Raul and Jec-jec, you are the reminder, a living reminder of God’s love. Jesus so loved the Church so much and He gave his life to her until His very last breath. So, Raul, you are called to love Jec-jec with all your life just as the way Jesus gave His life for the Church. And, Jec-jec, you are called in the same way like Raul. Your love each other actualizes and concretizes the love of God to the Church and the Church to God.

You are the sign of God’s love.

(Raul and Jec-Jec are my good friends since my college years. I know them well. We were members of the Christian Student Organization known as CHRISTO in the University of Mindanao. In that organization we built our friendship. We’d shared wonderful memories. We still keep in touch and they visit me sometimes. Raul is now a policeman and Jec-Jec is now managing the hotel and restaurant. They live together in Matina, Davao City. They are praying, wishing and still waiting to have children.)

“OUR FAITH GIVES US HOPE”

Funeral Homily
Romans 6:3-9; John 11:17-27

I was ten years old when my father passed away. Even I was just a little boy I can still remember when we heard the news about the death of our father. All of us in our home burst into tears. We couldn’t hold back our tears. It was the darkest moment happened in our family. It was very sad. We lost our loved one. We lost our father, our loving father. We cried, “Lord, you know we love him, why he had to go away?

Losing a person we love is so sad… really sad. It really hurts. It breaks our hearts into many pieces. And it is not easy. I experienced how is it losing of someone I love. I know the feeling. So we are united with you today in sorrow at the death of your beloved.

The reality of death confronts us. And this reality brings us pain and sorrow. But we are also confronted with something else… our faith. And we have to allow ourselves to be confronted with this faith. Our faith gives us hope. Our faith gives us light. Our faith opens our hearts and minds to understand why it happened to us. It opens our minds why our love one has to go away.

We believe that “if we died with Christ, we shall also live in Him” and “if we have grown into union with him through a death like His, we shall also be united with Him in the resurrection.” We believe in the resurrection. This is the very core of our faith as Christian - the resurrection. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, our faith is useless.

Jesus Christ gives us an assurance. He says "I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” Jesus is the resurrection. Jesus is life, our life. He gives us hope. Our death here on earth is not the last chapter of our lives. Death is not last period. It is not the end. Jesus conquered death. Through His resurrection we will live in a newness of life.

I would like you to just fix your eyes on the crucifix. Just look at Jesus now on the cross. He was dying. He was dying so that we might live. “Dying, He destroyed our death. Rising, He restored our life”. Jesus did not remain on that cross. He is risen. Death is conquered. Do we faith in Jesus Christ? Do we believe that He is the resurrection?

Now we are grieving. The death of our love one made a hole in our hearts. It is very sad to say that we do not see our love one anymore. It is natural for us to grieve. We are just human. But our faith gives us hope. Now we are grieving with hope. We are grieving but never despair. We will see him again because we believe in the promise of Christ. We pray for our love one for the complete journey to heaven. We pray also for ourselves that we may grow in faith. Our faith makes us strong. Our faith gives us hope that our love one who gone ahead of us, and all of us, will rise again and we will live forever.

“OUR FRIENDSHIP WITH JESUS”

21^st Sunday of the Ordinary Time
Lk 13:22-30

“When you need a friend that you can depend/ you can count on me because you're my best friend. / When you're feeling down and your heart is hurt. / You can call on me and I'll be there for you friend.”

This song is song of a true friendship. A friend knows the heart of his friend. They have a very deep personal relationship. Do you have best friend? Who is your best friend? We all have best friends.

Here, I want to point out that Jesus must be the center of all our friendships. He is the center of our life. Indeed, He is our friend, our best friend. He knows us deeply. He journey with us in the difficult times. Likewise, as His friends we know Him personally just like we know our best friend.

Jesus was making His way to Jerusalem. There was someone asked a question, “Lord, will only a few people will be saved?” Will be only a few will enter in Heaven? He said that it’s not easy to get there. It’s not automatic. It’s a hard road. It’s a narrow gate. Many people wish to enter. But they will not able to.

The Gospel is telling us why people will not be able to enter. It is because they don’t have a deep relationship with Jesus. They have thought that it’s just enough to have Jesus. They are knocking at the door and saying, “Lord, open the door for us… we ate and drank in your company.” Is being in the company with Jesus enough? That’s not the point. Do we really know Jesus? Do we have an intimate relationship with Him? Are we accepting Jesus? Do we depend on Him? Are we taking His words to our hearts? And living them out? Do we believe in His words?

We may say, “Well, I am a catholic… I am an active member of CFC… I attend the Bible Study regularly… I have many friends who are religious, priests and bishops… I am a student of the Catholic school here in Davao… I am a Lay Minister… I am a good Catholic… I have no problem.” So what?

To be just being here is not that matter. It’s just plain external. What matters is that what’s happen inside of us. Our personal and deep relationship is what matter most in our lives. Our friendship with Jesus is what it counts. If we want to be with Him forever, we have to treasure the words of Jesus in our hearts. And live in it day by day.

To live the gospel in our lives is not easy. We have to strive for it. This is the invitation to us - walk in the narrow gate with our friend, Jesus. And we will be with Him forever. Amen.

“MARY, MOTHER OF HOPE”

Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary
Luke 1:39-56

Recent News: Mother Loses 4th — and Last — Son to Davao Death Squad (DDS). “Clarita Alia, a vegetable vendor in Bankerohan, Davao City, called members of the Davao media this morning to report that her son, Fernando, 15, was stabbed dead. Before this, she already lost three other sons to the so-called Davao Death Squad. Fernando was her last remaining son.”

It was very sad news… so sad! But killings still continue. Some don’t want to hear this kind of news anymore. They have enough of it. There has been no single case of summary execution solved. There’s no more hope.

People lost hope. But it’s dangerous! Losing hope is dangerous. In losing our hope, we become depressed. There are some people committed suicides because of depression. There are some people became problematic for they don’t find hope for the future. Seems the world stops turning. Hopeless!

Mary as a mother of Jesus was hopeful. She nursed and cared for her baby Jesus. She loved Jesus so tenderly, so deeply. Jesus was her precious child. Imagine how the mother ran to her child and picked him up from falling. She was worried and concerned for her missing son. She found her son with full of hope. She heard the word and kept it with full of hope.

Mary’s son was persecuted. Jesus was suffered and died on the cross. It was so terrible! It was so terrible for a mother to see her son suffered and died. She lost her son. But in her deep sorrow, she was still strong. She was still full of hope.

Her hope was fulfilled. Jesus was resurrected. His ascension to heaven is the fulfillment of her hope. As a mother of hope she was assumed to heaven. Now, she’s with her son through God’s power and grace. She’s now with her Son because she was not discouraged.

The Assumption of Mary reminds us and encourages us not to lose hope. We always love this Feast, because we believe that Mary assumed to Heaven, body and soul. Mary is always a mother to us. She wants us to be filled with hope. She loves us that she wants us to follow her, to be like her, to be hopeful.

This feast is a source of great hope for us. It gives us hope and courage to go on, to continue to live like Mary – to be obedient to God, to be gentle to others, to be humble, and, above all, to be concern to what’s happening in our society today.

. The Assumption is a sign to us that there is hope. And someday, like Mary, we too may join with Mary to sing her song: “My soul glorifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my savior…” in Heaven.

“BE FAITHFUL AND BE PATIENT.”

19^th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Wis 18:6-9; Heb 11:1-2,8-19; Lk 12:32-48

A few years ago, I volunteered to work in the Centre called “Home for the Sick and Malnourished Children” of the Missionaries of Charity Sisters in Matina, Davao City. The very poor parents, who can’t afford to take care for their sick children, can bring there kids there. The children are mostly infected with tuberculosis or TB. They can take their children from there when they are already well.

I went there three times a week. During those times, I really enjoyed my time with the children playing and singing. Most children came from far places that their parents could visit them only sometimes.

The most common questions that they asked and cried out from their mouths were, “When is my father coming?” “When is my mother coming?”

To ease the pain of these little ones, I said, “Your father and your mother will come soon.” I told them to believe and have patience. Just wait and see. And you will see them face to face.

In a similar way, we cry out for the time when we will meet God face to face. We cry out for the day when we share the fullness of life, when we stay with God forever. However, for the meantime, we must trust in the promise of God to us in the future. We must believe and have patience. We just wait and see!

We heard of the faith and patience of the people of Israel in the first reading. God’s people waited and prepared for the Lord’s coming to free them from slavery of Egypt. They offered sacrifices in secret. And they lived according to God’s Law. Indeed, God came and delivered them from slavery.

We also heard of the faith and patience of Abraham in our second reading. Abraham obeyed God and left his homeland for the Promised Land. He just lived in tents with his family, all of their lives. They were looking forward to the city with foundations whose architect and maker is God. Abraham died in faith even without receiving what had been the promise. But in his heart Abraham desired for the Promise Land. He patiently waited for it. And now, he is rejoicing with God. He inherited the promise of God to him. He shined in faith and patience.

Our Gospel today tells us to be faithful and patient. Jesus said that blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant. The servant will become great in the eyes of the master because of his faithfulness and patience. Then, the master will sit down with him and eat with him.

The Gospel invites us to persevere in our faith like of the people of Israel. It invites us to be faithful and patient like Abraham. It is through faith and patient that we become great.

We take a few moments to review our own personal faith and patience. Are we faithful to our Divine Master, our God? Do we trust in His promise? Are we faithful and patient to do His commandments? If so, we are longing to see Him face to face. We are prepared to welcome Him. We cry out in our hearts that “we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our savior Jesus Christ, our Lord.”

“NO TO GREED”

18^th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Eccles 1:2; 2:21-23; Col 3:1-59-11; Lk 12:13-21

I watched a “Discovery Channel” on the television. I have learned how the natives in Africa catch monkeys. They made a little hole on the tree. They put some food inside it. After maybe an hour the monkey came by. And the monkey found the food inside the hole. That must be a delicious food! So the monkey put its hand into it. It took the food in the hole and grabbed it. But, the monkey couldn’t withdraw it! It tried its best but it was all in vain! The monkey cannot open its hand and let go of the food on his hand. It can’t put its fingers out, because if it did, it would drop its food. So then, a native African came and catch the monkey!

Thousands of us are like that monkey, so busy holding on to our own possessions. We can’t let go of the material possessions. We have experience many moments of greed in our life. We have something but we don’t give it to those in need. We have some money in our pocket but we don’t want it to lend to others. We also need it and we need even more. We may think, “I really work hard for it. Why give it to others?” We can afford but we refuse to spend. We become selfish. We become greedy!

All three readings of today referred to material possessions. Money, property, possessions are very important for the living of our human lives. But a wrong attitude to these things can have terrible consequences - the consequences of greed. The first reading says, “Vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!” For the writer, looking at things from a merely human point of view, life seems useless. Abundance of material doesn’t make our life meaningful. Human fulfillment will not be found in the things that are on the earth alone. We can only be found in 'the life we have with Christ in God' as Paul mentioned in his letter to the Colossians. Paul said, “Think of what is above, not of what is on earth.”

Jesus warns us to “take care to guard against all greed.” Greed is the sign of lack of love of God in our lives. A rich man thinks he can control his own destiny by money, wealth and possessions. He has no thought of sharing it with the poor and less fortunate. Such a man is not rich in the eyes of God.

Money and possessions are important for our benefit and of our family. However, we are reminded that these material possessions don’t make our life meaningful. We have to learn to share it and give it to others.

Take a look at your hands. Are they closed like the monkey that can’t let go of the food? Closed hands cannot pray. Closed hands cannot care. Closed hands cannot give. Closed hands are greedy. God invites us now to open our hands – to become rich in the eyes of God by giving and sharing. We must learn to say, “No to greed!”

“PRAYER”

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lk 11:1-13

Every Sunday in our place, in Dumalag, I visit the sick people and give communion to them. One of them, she’s a paralyzed woman, had a stomach pain, and it was extremely painful. But she called God in prayer.

Just yesterday, I went to our dying neighbor. She was crying. She was not relaxed, afraid. But when we prayed, she became peaceful. And she prayed.

I have seen some people who are sick and suffer, and dying. Some of them have already passed away. They are very sick and they suffer very much. In their sickness and pain, I could see that they really pray with all of their hearts. I could see that their prayer is true.

The gospel of Luke is the gospel of prayer. The gospel of Luke speaks of prayer many times. Jesus prayed at his baptism. He went to the desert to pray, He spent the whole night in prayer before choosing his disciples. He prayed in the transfiguration. He prayed while he suffered on the cross.

Jesus was prayerful. It moved his disciples to ask to be taught to pray. Jesus recommends that the quality of our prayer should be persevering. It is necessary to pray, pray, always pray, without ever ceasing. Prayer must be true and coming from the heart.

Jesus assured us that God hears our prayer. Ask and it will be given. Search and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened. When we pray, what God expects to us above all is our trust, that is - a prayer from the heart and a prayer that is true. He may choose not to answer in the way that we would like. He has a better plan for us. God knows best for us for he sees further than we do.

So, we keep on praying and trusting God for He loves us. During this Eucharist, we shall all pray together to our Father, who is in Heaven. We pray not just today but always.

Let be our prayer like a prayer of the sick and dying people who pray to God with all hearts.

LISTENING

16^th Sunday of ordinary Time
Lk 10:38-42

Out of a hundred percent, we listen only about 25 percent of what we hear. 75 percent of what we hear is forgotten, ignored, and misunderstood. It is according the report of Diane Bone in her book called “The Business Listening.” Perhaps, it is true to our own life. There was little child wanted to talk to his parents. He just wanted to ask something. But his parents were busy texting with there cell phones A little innocent child was deeply hurt and felt rejected. He felt unloved, unimportant.

The experience of this child may be also the experience of the persons we love – our family, our friends, our children, our neighbors. We don’t have much time to listen to them. We don’t even look to the person we love. We cover our face with newspaper or just pretending that we are listening while watching TV.

The expression of true love is listening, a deep listening. The story of Martha and Mary is very connected to the theme last Sunday, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart… and love your neighbors as yourself.” Mary who sat beside Jesus and listening to Him is meant to explain this true love. Mary was just being there for Jesus. She was recognizing his presence. She gave Jesus her full attention. She fulfilled the greatest commandments – “To Love God and neighbors.” Indeed, the one who loves is the one who truly listens. Without listening, true love is impossible. If we truly love God, we would listen to Him in prayer. When we really love others, we would listen to their needs – and in listening, we can understand and ease the pain of others. In this way we have chosen the better part that nobody can take away from us.

But listening is not easy. We don’t want to listen. We have our own problem. We are too busy. We feel bored to what we heard. We are just proud. Listening demands our full attention, our “all-ear,” our loving presence. Like Mary, we should be able to listen to the people we love in a very simple way – to recognize their presence, to listen to their stories, to listen to their feelings, to listen to their needs and wants.

Listening is our commitment to love! Do we have enough time for it?

“TRUE LOVE”

15^th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Deut 30:10-14; Col 1:15-20; Luke 10:25-37

We have heard these three sweet words - “I love you.” When you want to express your love to someone, you’ll say these words “I love you.” What a sweet words! What is this thing called love? How do we define it? Love is trusting… Love is helping… love is caring… love is giving… love is sharing… more? We know all these things. But do we really mean it?

For us, the law of love is just plain and simple: “Love your God and Love your neighbor as yourself.” It’s easy for us to say it. It’s very clear to us. We know love in theory, but not in action. There are some people say, “I love my friends. I love my parents. I love my children. I love my neighbors. I love every people I’ve met. However, I am very busy now. I have no time for them yet.” We only know love just in our head but not in our heart.

A Jewish scholar in the law wanted to test Jesus. He tried to see if Jesus correctly understood the basic commandment. When Jesus asked what was written in the law, the scholar had a great answer – he had studied! But had he lived it? Jesus challenged him to see that Jesus’ view of neighbor went beyond his narrow definition. Jesus tells us the story of the Good Samaritan, a story about true love for one's neighbor. A Samaritan is willing to help even if it brought him trouble. He is not just willing to help but he is practical, he just do it. His compassion leads him to action – that’s a true love!

Jesus is the perfect image of true love, an unconditional love. He is the image of God who is Love. He laid down his life because of his great love for us. He wants us to experience the love that is in Him, and let it grow in our hearts. We have experience this love. True love is not just in our head, not up there in the sky or in the sea. It is something very near to us, very close to us. It is something in our hearts, something that we carry out – in our hearts. Our hearts are bigger than our minds.

If we would say, “I can share this love to my parents, to my children, to my friends, to strangers and even to my enemies,” it would mean “I am willing to help, to care, to understand, to give and ready to do good to others.” To feel pity and empathizing is not enough. True love must have the ability to do so. It must be internalized.

To love is not something that we know. It is something that we live. It is something that we do.

GOD'S MOTHERLY LOVE

14^th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Is 66:10-14; Gal 6:14-18; Lk 10:1-12, 17-20

I was alone in Thailand when the superior of our community emailed from the Philippines to go to Ranong, the border town in the south of Thailand. He asked me to look for a house to be our base. I said “yes” and took the risk. I was alone, unable to speak either Thai or Burmese. Very few could understand English. I was a foreigner. Sometimes I felt rejected and ignored by people. I felt lonely and abandoned. I felt like I was a lamb among lions - so afraid and helpless. In trusting God I realized that He did not abandon me. I felt his comfort and his care. He answered my prayer and found a house. God is not only a father to me, but a mother as well.

There times in our lives that we feel hurt by other people. But also sometimes we feel abandoned by our loved ones. Sometimes we feel rejected by our friends. And we feel afraid and helpless. Those difficult times, do we think we are alone completely? Can we trust God? Do we believe in His motherly love? We need not to worry even in the midst of most painful experience. It is the motherly love of God that holds us close.

This is the same experience of Paul when he said, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” He is utterly rooted in his great trust in God’s motherly love. So he said, “From now on, no one make troubles for me, for I bear the marks of Jesus on my body.” Yet troubled as we are in our life, the Gospel assures us that there is no need to worry. Carry no money, no bag, no sack, no sandals. God will provide. I remember when I went to Ranong, I was so worried what to take and what to bring. I had to take my passport with me. I had to bring enough money for the hotel, for food and transportation, and for emergency. I had these things but did I trust God? Did I bring peace to the people I met? Did I share this motherly love of God?

The harvest is abundant! So we need to trust in God. Let us offer our troubles and most painful experience to Him. We can rely on Him for He loves us so tenderly. I encourage you to pray to God. He is the God who would carry us in her arms, and fondled in her lap. If we cannot trust His motherly love, what else is there we might trust? “As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you.”

“MOVE FORWARD”

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lk 9:51-62

Following Christ is like climbing the highest mountain.

I remember when our community climbed Mt. Apo. We were very interested to climb the highest mountain of the Philippines. We hired a guide to lead us the way to the peak of the mountain.

On the way, I found it so difficult. I was not familiar of the trail. So I had to follow the man ahead of me. I had to look ahead. I didn’t want to be lost. But I was so tired and walked very slow. I was hungry and thirsty on the way. Then, it was raining. The path was muddy and slippery. There was no place to shelter. No place to lie down comfortably. No place to sleep. So difficult!
In my mind I wanted to go back. I wished I could bring much food and water. I wished I could bring some of my favorite heavy stuffs, my CDs, my books and others. I wished I could stay longer in a relaxing place. But I had to move on. I should look ahead and move forward to reach the peak of the mountain.

In today’s Gospel Jesus advices us to “look ahead” and “not back.” The deeper meaning of discipleship, of following Jesus, is to look ahead or to move forward. That’s where Jesus is. And its direction one should move also. To look back means we have yet not let go of the past. We are still living in the past. We long to return. We want to hang on to our negative feelings like our resentment, blame, hate and anger against one another. We want to cling to the memories of the past. We are also attached to things that we can hold - our money, gold, silver and even our fortune, our fame, our power.

Jesus asks to a man who wants to follow him not to return to his home, and even to attend his father’s funeral. It’s an overstatement – but it makes the point that we are pilgrims. We are constantly moving forward. For Jesus, “there’s no place to lay His head” in this world. His true home is found on the other side of time, not in this world. His home is ours. So we have to move forward.

Our journey on earth, as following Jesus, is but a place to pass through. Like climbing the highest mountain let us look ahead and move forward. Don’t let ourselves be stuck by the material things of this world. Don’t let our feelings of blame and anger against one another blocked us. We are not living in the past. They are the baggage in our journey. When we think of the future, we should leave these things behind and let go of our negative feelings.

Let us now fix our eyes on Jesus. Move forward. And let Jesus be our guide in our journey to the Father’s home, our true home.

“OUR NAME AS CHRISTIAN”

Solemnity of St. John the Baptist
Lk 1:57-66, 80

I met numbers of people with the nickname called “Jun” or “Jun-jun.” The name “Jun-jun” means junior. They usually named after their fathers. In my family, my parents, my brother and sisters, and my neighbors call me “Jun-jun”. My friends in our village call me “Gil-jun”. My name is Gil. This name is taken from my father’s name Herminigildo. Some people may say I am a junior but I am not really a junior. My father did not name me after him.

Name is very important for us. It’s our identity as a person. It a nice feeling to hear when people call us with our names. Some people want their names to be known and famous. We are grateful when someone knows our name. We are calling with each other with our names.

We don’t want others to make fun with our names. We don’t want it to be destroyed, to be labeled with a “bad” name. Our name is our identity or we may say our dignity. We protect our names. Some of us love our names.

In our Gospel story, Zechariah did not name his son after him. Both Elizabeth and Zechariah said, “He will be called John.” They named him after God’s choice. It was God who gave this name. They were happy with that name and praised God for giving that name.

In the bible, giving the name is giving the role or mission. Abram became Abraham, Jacob became Israel, Simon became Peter, Saul became Paul. God gave them a new names and He chose a person for a special role. The name John means “God’s graciousness.” John’s name was about God’s graciousness. He brought about God’s graciousness to the people. And John fulfilled that.

We are not named “John” but we have our own names. We are named “Christians.” This name is very meaningful for us. With this name we have given a special role, our mission, that is, to live up to that name as Christian.

We call ourselves as “Christians.” We identify ourselves as “Christians.” God calls us now by that name. God asks us now to recognize ourselves, to identify our role or mission and to live up to our name as “Christians.”