MARTYRDOM IS LIVING, NOT DYING

3rd Sunday of Easter
Lk 24:35-48

To be a martyr does not mean to be killed on account of Jesus. To be a martyr means to be a witness to Jesus. Sometimes giving witness to Jesus, however, leads to being killed on account of Jesus. But one does not have to die for Jesus to be a martyr in the real sense of the word. Give witness to Jesus, be a martyr.

When Jesus told His disciples, “You are witnesses to this”, He was like conferring the title “martyr” to them. Every follower of Jesus is a witness to all about Jesus. Every authentic follower of Jesus is a martyr.

Nowadays, “martyr” is mistakenly understood. A battered wife who chooses to remain co-habituating with her husband is called a “martyr”. An employee who endures a bad employer is said to be a “martyr”. A volunteer who does most, if not all, the difficult tasks is labeled a “martyr”. “Martyr” is so loosely used. And not seldom is the usage wrong.

A woman may be a battered wife, but to whom does she give witness to? A person may be an ill-treated employee, but to whom does he give witness to? A volunteer may be exploited, but to whom does he give witness to. It is the witnessing that makes a man or a woman a martyr. It is witnessing to Jesus that makes us martyrs for Christ.

Martyrdom is first of all about life, not death. It is the kind of life we live that qualifies us to be called a martyr even as death may conclude our martyrdom. Martyrdom is not a matter of dying in the first place. It is a matter of living.

No one becomes an instant martyr. A martyr’s death may come suddenly, but martyrs are not born overnight. A person is able to accept a martyr’s death because he has lived each day by dying to himself, by giving witness to Jesus who died so that others might live, by dying little deaths as St. Therese of Lisieux would put it.

When Jesus invites us to martyrdom, He means we must live for Him before we die for Him. Have we started living for Him?

GOD NOT GHOST

Saturday in the 2nd Week of Easter
Jn 6: 16-21

If you see someone walking on the water, you would think you are either dreaming or seeing a ghost. But Jesus is no ghost and seeing Him walk on the water is not a dream. Jesus, of course, can walk on the water; He is God. To see Jesus walk on the water is not to dream about Jesus but to witness something rather ordinary for Him do.

Recognizing Jesus as the one who walks on the water, however, is a different matter. It is an act of faith.

Interestingly, the disciples, who spent many days and many nights with Jesus, while seeing Jesus walk on the water, failed to recognize it was actually Him. Instead, they thought He was a ghost.

Water is a very powerful symbol for the disciples who were Jews. It symbolizes chaos as it was prior to the creation story in the book of Genesis. It reminds the Jews of the great flood during Noah’s time and, therefore, of death. It brings to mind slavery as well because the Jews had to cross the Red Sea to escape the Egyptians. For the Jews, water represents chaos, death and slavery. In all instances that made water a very powerful symbol for the Jews, it was God who hovered over the water, caused the water to rise, and divided the water. God alone walks on water as God alone has power over chaos, death and slavery.

To see God, for the Jews, is to die. They believed that anyone who sees God dies. Moses himself saw only the back of God. And because he was in the presence of God on top of Mount Sinai, Moses had to put a veil over his face when he went down from the mountain because the Israelites could not look at the radiance of his face.

Because Jesus walks on the water and only God can walk on the water, Jesus, therefore, is God. Could it be that the disciples were afraid that they were actually seeing God face-to-face and therefore they would die? We cannot ascertain now. But if we were to see Jesus face-to-face today, it requires faith to believe that He alone can change chaos to order, death to life, and slavery to freedom.

Jesus is not a ghost. He is God Himself.

GOD KNOWS WHAT TO DO

Friday in the Second Week of Easter
Jn 6:1-15

During the Jubilee Year of the Son, there was a big gathering held at the Quirino Grandstand, Luneta, which involved the Ministry of Youth Affairs (MYA) of the Archdiocese of Manila. I was then part of the MYA team working with Bishop Soc. Realizing that we had very little fund for a presentation that the MYA planned to contribute to the celebration, I wondered from where we could source out the needed amount of money. Bishop Soc, with his usual, assuring smile said, “Kung gusto ng Diyos, matutuloy yan. Pero kung ayaw ng Diyos, kahit anong gawin natin hindi iyan matutuloy. (If God wants it, it will happen. But if God does not want it, whatever we do, it will not happen).” And, as experience showed, the Bishop Soc was always proven correct. Even in the parishes where I was assigned, the same reminder always the good Bishop had for me. By now, I learned to live by those words.

I hear the same advice again as I listen to the First Reading (Acts 5:34-42) today where Gamaliel, in reference to the ministry of the apostles, told the Sanhedrin, “If this enterprise, this movement of theirs, is of human origin it will break up of its own accord; but if it does in fact come from God you will not only be unable to destroy them, but you might find your selves fighting against God.” Gamaliel said it so rightly because anything that does not come from God eventually dies while anything that God desires happens no matter what. And it is indeed terrible to realize that we are actually fighting against God as we fight something we mistakenly thought to be not from Him. Worse when we realize it already too late.

We worry a lot about many things. It can be a leap of faith to embark on a project with a very modest funding. Faith tells us that God provides. It can be a mark of faith to allow organizations and movements other than our own to flourish and not be threatened by their growing popularity. Faith tells us that God decides.

Today let us pray for an increase of faith in God, faith like the faith of Bishop Soc, a faith like that of Gamaliel’s. With the same faith, more baskets can be opened and less people will go hungry. It is that faith that can feed the multitudes as in the Gospel. It is that faith that satisfies the hunger of people who may not belong to your own movement. It is the faith that says, “Relax, God knows what He is doing!”

THE SPIRIT OF COURAGE

Thursday in the Second Week of Easter
Jn 3:31-36

“I am the king’s loyal servant, but God’s first” – these are words of St. Thomas Moore who was martyred under Henry VIII in 1535 for his refusal to consent to the king’s adulterous relationship.

Something similar to St. Thomas’ proclamation of faith in God is heard in the First Reading today (Acts 5:27-33). Peter and the apostles told the high priest who demanded an explanation for their not heeding his warning, “Obedience to God comes before obedience to men.” History has taught us that persons who make such a daring claim can be easy candidates for martyrdom.

We may wonder where Christians, like St. Thomas Moore, St. Peter and the apostles, get the courage to boldly run the risk of dying rather than disobey God. The Gospel today tells us where. From heaven. He who is born from above through baptism is given the Spirit without reserve. The Holy Spirit is not only the Giver of courage; He is the very Courage of those to whom He has been given.

We have been given the same Holy Spirit. Baptism does not only make us children of God. It also makes us His temples, His dwelling places. Should we not have the same courage that St. Thomas Moore, St. Peter and the apostles had?

But why do we sometimes compromise our faith in God in favor of our faith in earthly things? Why do we easily obey men but find obedience to God a bitter sacrifice? Can we be slaves of worldly powers and yet remain God’s unfaithful servants?

FREED BY LOVE, FREED TO LOVE

Wednesday in the Second Week of Easter
Jn 3:16-21

I am not in the position to contest the historicity of the First Reading today (Acts 5:17-26). Were the apostles actually freed by an angel of the Lord after the chief priest and his supporters threw them into prison? Did an angel of the Lord really came in the night, opened the prison gates, led the apostles out, and gave them the instruction to stand in the Temple and preach their new life? The First Reading today may be historically accurate or not, but let us try to reflect on the account from a deeper perspective.

Prior to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, the latter were a band of fearful men. They were found by the Holy Spirit locked up inside the Upper Room, just as Jesus found them immediately after His Resurrection; yes, in prayer, but perhaps also in fear of those who put Jesus to death. If they killed the Master, could His disciples we safe? And because misery loves company, the apostles stick together and hid themselves in the Upper Room.

Of course, the Acts of the Apostles tells us that the Blessed Mother was with them. I believe she was there not because of fear but because of her role to console and strengthen them in their hour of weakness. Such has always been and still is her role in the midst of the followers of Jesus. She was praying with them and for them to receive the promised Paraclete.

When the Paraclete came, there was not only a sudden change in the apostles. A radical transformation happened in each of the persona of the apostles: from cowardice to boldness, from timidity to spontaneity, from fear to freedom. The Holy Spirit freed the apostles even before the angel of the Lord opened the prison gates for them later on.

True freedom is a gift of the Holy Spirit. The gates that imprison us because of our fears, insecurities, confusion and guilt cannot withstand the impact of the force of the Spirit of God. Locks are shattered. Chains are broken. Hearts are set free.

The Holy Spirit is the love of God. Eternal life means authentic freedom. God so loved us that He gave us His only Son, the Gospel today reminds us. To welcome His love into our hearts is to be truly free. To share the same love with others is to set them free. We become like the angel that led the apostles out of their prison when we love others with the love of God, with the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.

OUR MARK ON THE FEAST OF ST. MARK

Feast of St. Mark, the Evangelist
Mk 16: 15-20

Today is the feast of St. Mark, the Evangelist. We know very little about Mark. The little we know about him is from his work for the Lord.

The First Reading today (1 Pt 5:5-14) tells us that Mark was like a son to the Apostle Peter. He was Peter’s loyal aide and Paul’s reconciled friend.

We also know that Mark wrote the shortest, oldest and bluntest of the gospels. He wrote the Gospel for Christians who were restless over the delay of the Second Coming of the Lord and were frightened by the virulent persecution waged against them. If you cut the gospel written by Mark into equal halves, you will discover that its very center is the verse where Jesus says, “If a man wishes to come after me, he must deny his very self, take up his cross and follow me.” Discipleship and the cross form the heart of Mark’s gospel. Discipleship is his response to the Lord. The cross is his Good News to the world.

I wonder, after hundreds of years from now, if someone accidentally comes across anything that would identify us, what would that be? How would we be known to generations we will never know? Would they also say, “We know very little about this person, but we know what he did for the Lord and what the Lord does for us now because of him.” This we now say about Mark. Could they say the same about us even long after we are gone?

It depends on what mark we leave behind.

NOW YOUR FATHER, ALWAYS GOD'S SON

Monday in the Second Week of Easter
Jn 3:1-8

When I became a priest, people started calling me “Father”. Funny the first time I heard my dad and mom called me “Father”. With my mom and dad, whose ages are twice mine, calling me “father” I suddenly felt like a grandfather instead!

But why do we call a priest “father”?

A father begets a child. A father helps a mother to give birth. The same may be said about priests, but be careful not to get me wrong.

Priests are called “fathers” because they are “married” to the Church, our Mother in faith. Priests are fathers because they beget us in baptism. In baptism we are born from the womb of the Church. Priests baptize us. They are our fathers, too.

When we were born into this world, we were children only of our parents. But when we were reborn through baptism, we became children of God. Without baptism, we are human beings only. Through baptism, we are destined to divine immortality.

It is a great honor to be a priest. But it is the greatest gift to become a child of God. It is very humbling to be addressed to as “Father”. But it is totally overwhelming to know that God is my Father. It can be moving to hear my parents call me “Father” and kiss my anointed hands. But it is always heaven to hear God call me “son” and allow me to kiss His loving heart.

Once a friend asked me, “Which is the most important date for you: your ordination day or your day of baptism?” “The day I was baptized,” I replied. In fact, I remember the date so well: April 30, 1967 – twenty-eight years and forty-two days before I became Father Bobby.

MERCY NOT JUSTICE

2nd Sunday of Easter (Divine Mercy Sunday)
Jn 20:19-31

Today is Divine Mercy Sunday. Jesus appeared to St. Faustina and revealed to her the infinite font of His mercy, inviting all of us to draw out, without fear, mercy from the ocean of His inexhaustible love. “Mercy,” St. Faustina said, “is God’s greatest attribute.”

Which do you prefer: God’s justice or God’s mercy? What do you ask of Him: justice or mercy? If you pray for justice, then you have already been found guilty and are doomed to the punishments your sins deserve. If you beg for mercy, then you have also already been found guilty but are undeservedly justified.

During the reign of Alexander the Great, a soldier broke the ranks in the middle of a battle and fled for his own life. Death was the punishment reserved for soldiers who would escape the battlefield. When the fleeing soldier was caught, the verdict was immediately handed down: “Guilty!” The punishment was death by the sword. The mother of the condemned soldier went to Alexander and pleaded.

“Mercy on my son, Great Emperor,” the mother begged with tears.

“Mercy? But your son does not deserve mercy!” shouted Alexander.

“Yes, Great Emperor,” the mother dared to speak again, “my son does not deserve mercy. For if he does, then it is not mercy at all.”

Amazed at the mother’s wisdom and love, Alexander spared the soldier his head.

Yes, mercy is God’s greatest attribute. But who deserves it? Not me. DO You?

Which do you prefer: justice or mercy?

LIGHT THAT CANDLE!

Saturday in the Octave of Easter
Mk 16:9-15

Today is the last day within the octave of Easter. It is, however, not yet the end of the Easter Season. The Gospel today appears to be an attempt to summarize the major events that immediately followed the resurrection of Jesus.

The Gospel today has three paragraphs. The first is a recall of the meeting between Jesus and the group of women led by Mary Magdalene at the Lord’s tomb on Easter morning. The second is Jesus’ meeting with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus and the breaking of bread through which the two disciples recognized Jesus. The third is the meeting between Jesus and the Eleven in which Jesus commissioned the Eleven to “go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation.” These appearances of Jesus, however, do not mean that encounters with Jesus already ended. The Gospel today is not a conclusion.

Jesus continues meeting us today, tomorrow, and always. He meets us when, like Mary Magdalene and the other women, we linger in the “tomb”. He journeys with us when, like the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, we travel with the heavy burden of regrets and confusion in our hearts. He appears in our midst when, like the Eleven locked up inside the Upper Room, we hide in our own “Upper Rooms” because we are afraid or we feel guilty. Because Jesus is risen, He meets us anywhere, anytime and even at the same time at different places and circumstances in life.

There are no more unvisited places in human life. Even death has been visited by God and He conquered it once and for all. When Jesus became human like us, it was as if God placed a candle in every corner of human life. The resurrection of Jesus lights up every candle God placed in our life. As the gift of the resurrection of Jesus is the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit is the Flame that lights every candle of God in every corner of our life. Thus, because of the Resurrection, there are no more tunnels in our life that are too dark for us to go through. All it takes is to light the candle that God already placed there and, lo and behold, we see Jesus, we meet Jesus, we embrace Jesus. Then our hearts themselves start burning.

Share this reflection with someone; be a missionary of the Good News. Help someone, who is going through a dark tunnel, to light his or her candle; keep hearts burning for Jesus. Continue the Resurrection story in your life; meet Jesus who rose to life again for you.

Redemption is about the Resurrection. The Resurrection is about the Holy Spirit, the Fire that lights every candle God already placed in our lives.

A MEAL WE MUST NEVER MISS

Friday in the Octave of Easter
Jn 21:1-14

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You should never miss it. But perhaps there are times when for one reason or another you are missed by the breakfast table.

Breakfast is not simply eating anything at the start of the day. Nutritious meal should be what your breakfast is. Fruits and cereals are my favorites. But sometimes they are not available at the breakfast table.

Breakfast is not at eleven o’clock in the morning or anytime beyond that. If you have your breakfast too late in the morning, quite certain you will forgo lunch because you simply have lost your appetite. But we know what “brunch” means and how it has changed the breakfast table.

Bible scholars and theologians say that after the Resurrection, all the meals that Jesus took with His disciples were Eucharistic. In short, Jesus was actually celebrating Mass with His disciples.

As Jesus prepared breakfast for His disciples, we may well remember three things. First, the Eucharist is the most important meal of the day. Never spend the day without it. Second, the Eucharist is the most nutritious meal there is. It gives us eternal life. Third, whenever possible, the Eucharist is best to be the first schedule of the day.

Everyday the Risen Lord waits for us at the table. We may come in the morning, at noon, or in the evening. Whatever time we come to the table of the Lord, it is always like breakfast because it is the most important meal of the day, it is the most nutritious meal for our immortality, and is the meal of all meals.

Did you have breakfast with Jesus today?

IMAGINE NOT

Thursday in the Octave of Easter
Lk 24:35-48

Imagine this. You had a friend who loved you more than anything. Just when he needed you most, you betrayed him, denied him, and deserted him. He died. You did not have the chance to explain to him why you betrayed him, denied him, and deserted him. He was buried and with him was buried not only the wounds that caused him his death but also the betrayal, the denial, and the desertion you stabbed him with. One evening he suddenly appears to you. Would you not shudder in fear?

Jesus tells you, “Peace be with you.”

Imagine this. There you are standing before the friend you betrayed, denied, and deserted. There is no sight of decomposition in his body. There is not stench. His body is luminous. His voice rings a different tune. Would you not think his ghost is haunting you?

Jesus invites you, “Look at my hands and feet; yes, it is I indeed. Touch me and see for yourselves, a ghost has no flesh and bones as you can see I have.”

Imagine this. You are shocked. What you see and what you hear are totally unexpected, illogical, and out-of-this-world. You have many things going on inside your mind. If not fearful, perhaps you are overjoyed. You may want to say something but you cannot speak. You are dumbfounded. Would you not simply faint?

Jesus asks you, “Have you anything here to eat?”

Peace that tells forgiveness, invitation that leads to faith anew, and a question that evokes action to move on – do not imagine these. They are real proposals from the friend we all have transgressed. Tell this to the rest of our brethren who still seem to be haunted by their past sins.

Stop imagining. The risen Lord is real!

THE DIFFERENT "NEW"

Tuesday in the Octave of Easter
Jn 20:11-18

Easter is not only about life. It is not only about a beginning. Rather, Easter is about the gift of new life and new beginning from the Lord. Were Easter is only about life, why be excited over it when it is nothing but a humdrum of the usual? Were Easter is only about beginnings, what do we gain; it is the same as the other beginnings heretofore? No, Easter is about new life and a new beginning. It is the new that makes the difference, neither the life nor the beginning.

But “new” does not mean a mere polishing of the old so that what is claimed to be new is actually the old. “New” means being ontologically different from the old, not a recycled form of what once already there.

When Jesus rose from the dead, His resurrected body was not the old one given a new luster. Resurrection is not recycling. The empty tomb that welcomed Mary Magdalene on Easter Sunday was not a previous receptacle of the dead Jesus. It had become the very remains of the new Christ. The former body of Jesus was not there because there was no more former body to talk about in the first place. When Jesus stood before Mary Magdalene after the resurrection, Mary Magdalene failed to recognize Him immediately because there were no signs of the old in the new. The resurrected body of the Lord was totally unfamiliar to Mary Magdalene. The resurrection rendered the presence of the Lord radically new. Jesus had to make Mary Magdalene “see” Him by calling out her name, “Mary.”

The Resurrection of Jesus is not a mere continuation of the usual life of Jesus before His death. It is the fulfillment of His life. And through it, all human life finds its fulfillment. Thus, we may say that the Resurrection of Jesus changed the tomb into a womb. For the dead rises from the tomb but the new man comes out from the womb.

OUTPOURINGS

Monday in the Octave of Easter
Mt 28:8-15

There are three outpourings in the readings today.

In the First Reading, Peter, the leader of the Twelve, having been filled with the Holy Spirit, stood up and addressed the crowd. He boldly proclaimed that Jesus, whom the people put to death, had truly risen. His newfound courage to give witness to Jesus and the wonderful things that the people of Jerusalem had witnessed that day done to the followers of Jesus were attributed by Peter to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit made the disciples of Jesus proclaim the truth with courage.

In the Gospel, we read the other two outpourings. First, there was an outpouring of joy from the hearts of the women who went to the tomb and met the risen Lord. Immediately, they went to the disciples to share with them the joyful news. Second, there was an outpouring of money from the coffers of the chief priests. Told by the soldiers about what had happened and how Jesus rose from the dead, the chief priests consulted the elders and handed a considerable amount of money to the soldiers to tell a lie. They were to say that the disciples of Jesus came during the night and stole His body.

The outpouring of the Holy Spirit proclaimed the truth. The outpouring of joy brought greater joy. The outpouring of money circulated a lie. Because the Holy Spirit had been poured out upon the apostles, they became courageous. Because their hearts were outpouring with joy, the women became the first Easter missionaries. But the soldiers circulated a lie about Jesus’ resurrection because money had been outpoured from the chief priests’ treasury.

What are the outpourings in your life? What have they led you to? Do they proclaim the truth or circulate a lie? Have you become a courageous disciple or a lying soldier?

INSIDE THE TOMB AND IN THE DARK

Easter Vigil
Mk 16:1-7

If you were given divine revelation that your departed loved one would come back to life tomorrow, would you stay up all night and eagerly wait for the appearance of your departed loved one from the grave? Would you hurry to your departed loved one’s tomb early tomorrow, even when it will still be dark, to be the first one to see and welcome your resuscitated beloved? I do not think so. I suppose, you would rather stay home, shudder even by the thought of the dead coming back from the grave, and hide your self underneath a pile of blanket when you go to bed tonight. You would not want to have a date with a zombie. No matter how much you loved your departed in life, you would never want to see your dearly departed in death.

But Jesus was not resuscitated. He resurrected. He is not a ghost. He is flesh and blood. He is not a zombie. He is risen into a radically new life that will never qualify for a horror story. That is the reason why we are excited to meet Him from the grave. That is the reason why we stay up all night and welcome Him as soon as the first streaks of light cut across the sky. Darkness has become brightness by His resurrection. Jesus is making another miracle. The miracle is Jesus Himself. And we are all excited to behold Him risen!

It is interesting to reflect on the fact that Easter begins inside the tomb, not outside it. It is the Resurrection that opened the tomb. Easter starts in the dark, not in the light. The Resurrection is the light that conquers darkness. I heard it said that the world is at its darkest just when the first streaks of light cut across the sky.

Our tomb may be our place of rising and in our darkness may be the beginning of another day.

THIS FRIDAY IS GOOD

Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion
Jn 18:1-19:42

Today is Good Friday. Jesus died today. It is Good Friday. The Son of God was murdered today by His own people. This Friday is good.

Sounds almost blasphemous, huh? Yes, it does. But it is not blasphemous.

In the Exultet, which will be sung or proclaimed tomorrow evening during the Easter Vigil Mass, you may also find this phrase blasphemous: “O, happy fault, O necessary sin of Adam, which gained for us so great a Redeemer!” But it is not at all blasphemous; otherwise, why is it part of the sacred liturgy? It is even at the core of the Easter proclamation!

Today we see the ultimate goodness of God. As St. Paul said, “God died for us not when we were His friends but when we were His enemies.” God loves us even when we do not love Him, even when we are not lovable, even when we are not loving. Only God can love this way naturally. Only God can knock us out of our seats with this surprise.

Today is good because today good triumphed over evil. The Lord turned the evil done to Him into the source of our ultimate good, into our redemption from evil, into our freedom from death. The cross became the source of grace.

Today is good because we, who follow the crucified and risen Lord, are commissioned to be good people and to do good deeds to others. The Lord showed us how to live by showing us how to die. Goodness should never shy away from persecutions. Goodness should not cow in fear before death. Goodness is the path from life to death to life eternal.

Yes, Jesus died today but this day is good because today we see the ultimate goodness of God, because today good won over evil, and because today we are called to follow the example of Jesus’ goodness to us.

But when Easter comes, the day will be even better!

FEET OVER DINNER

Maundy Thursday
Jn 13:1-15

When we were kids we were taught that there are things we should not discuss over a meal. Table etiquette dictates that we should not talk about anything that can make someone throw up. The list of what should be censored during meals varies, depending on the sensitivity and breed of those who sit at table together.

Today, our attention is focused on a meal. Yet the Gospel that blesses this meal talks about washing feet just before eating. Before dinner was served, Jesus served His disciples. The main course was kept until a course on servanthood was given. The meal after all immortalizes the lesson given.

Feet are not welcome topics in an “over-a-meal” conversation. Feet are not washed before eating; hands are. The host does not bend to wash the feet of his guests. That is his servants’ duty. This is our duty, too, as servants of the Lord. And lest we forget, it is the topic each time we sit at the table of the Lord. It is our mandatum, a mandate from the Lord. That is why today is called, “Maundy Thursday”.

Remember the topic that made you throw up at table? Recall that story that made you lose your appetite? When we remember the feet that were washed during the Last Supper, may it make us throw up all our pride and self-glorification. When we recall the story about Jesus washing the feet of His disciples, may we also rise at table to serve one another.

Highlighting the washing of feet during this most important meal for us is good. It helps us not to forget the real meaning of this meal. When Jesus said, “Do this in memory of Me”, He certainly meant more than making the bread His Body and the wine His blood. His memory includes the example He gave by washing the feet of His disciples, an example He gave even when table etiquette dictated otherwise.

SURELY, IT IS I

Wednesday in Holy Week
Mt 26:14-25

When a priest preaches, he often talks about lessons derived from actual lives of actual people. In a homily, the priest not only talks about people’s lives but talks to all the people as well…yes, including himself. The truth is that the priest preaches to himself even as he preaches to his congregation. In the same vein, the priest refers to himself even as he refers to others. An honest homily convicts both the preacher and the preached to. The word of God, Scriptures say, is a two-edged sword, does it not?

Sometimes when I preach, some people immediately react negatively against what I say. Most of those who react negatively are polite while some, experience taught me after ten years of preaching, can be violent. But whether I please or displease people, I continue to preach. Preaching is my life, my ministry, and my accountability to God. I am a priest. I preach to others and preach to my self, too.

Quite often even as those I preach to feel alluded to by me in my homilies, I ask my self at the end of the day, “Was I not referring to my self today when I spoke about that hypocrite, about that liar, about that glutton, about that sloth, about that proud and unforgiving man?” “Not I, Lord, surely?” I say. But the Lord answers me when I pray, “They are your own words.” Then my preaching turns to praying, my praying turns to begging: “Forgive me, Lord, I am a sinful man.”

The most difficult homily to preach is the one that convicts the preacher himself. The most difficult question to ask is the one that confronts the self. The most difficult answer to give is the one that pleads guilty.

And we are all guilty.

THE TRAITOR'S MORSEL

Tuesday in Holy Week
Jn 13:21-33.36-38

It was supposed to be a meal of friends but one of them turned out to be a traitor. He who took the morsel from the hand of his Master delivered his Master into the hands of His foes. He who sat at table with his Lord would have thirty bloody pieces of silver in his fold. The feast of friendship turned out to be their last supper with Jesus.

We have tasted this kind of meal. We have known this kind of feast. He who rose from the table raised his hand against his host. Sometimes we are the ones who rise from the table; other times we are the host. We have betrayed and have been betrayed. We have all shared this kind of meal. We have all partaken of this kind of feast.

It was night when Judas exited from the upper room; it was night when Satan entered him. It was night when Jesus fed Judas with the morsel He dipped; it was night when Judas fed Jesus to the bloodthirsty men. It was night when Judas left; it was night when the temple guards came to arrest Jesus.

We have gone through this kind of night. We have seen its darkness. He who came during the day escaped when night arrived. Some stay with us while the sun is up; others desert us when it begins to set. On the reverse, we brighten up some people’s lives while sometimes we also darken others’. We all have feared this kind of night. We have known this kind of darkness.

For whatever reasons we have, should we also rise from the table as traitor or as friend?

CRITICISMS

Monday in Holy Week
Jn 12:1-11

Criticisms are good. They help improve our lives. Criticisms are needed. They are like signposts so that we do not get lost. Criticisms are important. Without them, we can be complacent and, worse, mediocre. But criticisms are good, needed, and important when and only when they are constructive criticisms.

Criticisms are constructive depending on a number of things. Among them is the motivation of the critic. Why does the critic criticize? Where do the critic’s criticisms come from?

Mary, anointing the feet of Jesus with expensive perfumed oil, was criticized. She was thought to have wasted such a costly ointment when it could have been used to help the poor. She was judged to have been inconsiderate of the poor while overwhelmingly concerned about Jesus. Judas Iscariot was Mary’s critic.

Judas Iscariot, though one of the Twelve, betrayed Jesus for the price of thirty pieces of silver. He held the common fund of the group and would, according to John, sometimes help himself with it. He was, John bluntly says in the Gospel today, a thief.

We have two disciples. One is in loved with Jesus. The other is in loved with money. The “money-lover” criticizes the “Jesus-lover”. Should the criticism hold water? Must the criticism be taken seriously?

When Judas criticized Mary for not selling the expensive ointment and giving the profit to the needy, could he really be sincere in his sudden concern for the poor? Concern for the poor is not developed overnight. Concern for the poor comes with regular immersion in their actual poverty. When Judas criticized Mary for anointing the feet of Jesus rather than helping the poor, was he himself really convinced of what he was protesting against? Bad habits are hard to break and stealing seemed to be one of Judas’.

Judas had no love for the poor. If he had, he would not have helped himself with the group’s resources for helping the poor. Judas had love for money though. In the light of his ill repute, Judas could have had his eyes more on having a share in the sales of the ointment rather than on sharing the sales with the poor. If given the chance, he might have stolen even that which he claimed to have been better used for the needy.

We are suspicious of Judas’ criticism. His motives had always been suspicious. But we should not be quick and self-righteous in condemning Judas. For all our criticisms against one another, Judas may be just as quick to condemn us all. He could be suspicious of us, too.

THE PASSION THAT CAUSED HIS PASSION

Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion
Mk 14:1-15:47

Who killed Jesus? The Sanhedrin? No. The Roman colonizers? No. Neither the Sanhedrin nor the Roman colonial power killed Jesus. Did not Jesus said that He had the power to lay down His life and the power to raise it up again (cf. Jn 10:18)?

What killed Jesus? His open conflict with the scribes and the Pharisees? His teachings and mingling with the tax collectors and the sinners in public? His claim of who He was? While these proposed answers are not totally wrong, they do not hit the core response.

Love, not hatred, killed Jesus. He was passionately in loved with the Father. His love for the Father did not stop at anything, including death.

I remember a song, which goes, “Too much love can kill you.” This was what happened to Jesus. He was too much in loved with the Father. He faced and endured death for love of the Father. Nothing and no one could diminish His love for the Father. He was on fire with love for the Father. He was the Father’s passionate lover.

More than just “Palm Sunday”. Today is also referred to in the liturgy as “Passion Sunday”. Commonly this reference is explained by the reading of the Lord’s passion in the Gospel today. A deeper reflection, however, highlights the fact that it was His passionate love for the Father that caused Jesus His passion on the cross.

It is this kind of passion that we must learn from Jesus and copy in our lives. We must be passionate lovers of God and one another. Our love for God and one another must be truly passionate that it will never not stop at anything, including death. The fire of our love for God and one another may bring us the fire of suffering but it is the same fire that will warm us up again just when our enemies think we are nothing but cold meat. Let us be inflamed with love for God and one another.

Love for God can kill us. But the same love is returned to us in the form of Easter glory. Love cannot die because love, true love, is God Himself. “Deus caritas est” (1 Jn 4:16), our present Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, reminds us eloquently in his first Encyclical Letter.

Let us not be mere palm branches for God. Let us be passionate lovers of God instead. Commemorating Palm Sunday must never be reduced to mere waving and blessing of palm branches. Palm Sunday must highlight the Lord’s Passion – His kind of loving, not merely the kind of suffering He endured – and embolden us with childlike faith to allow our selves be caught up into the Lord’s passionate love.

Palm branches wither. But passionate love endures.

AN INDISPENSABLE LESSON TO LEARN

Saturday in the 5th Week of Lent
Jn 11:45-57

I have a confession to make today. There was a time in my ministry when I used to say, “No one is indispensable.” Having grown into the ministry after ten years now, I humbly recognize my arrogance in making such a claim. The Lord showed me that I was wrong. Every one is indispensable. No one is worth spending in favor of anything. We are all precious, irreplaceable, important, special. No one is dispensable.

It was a pity, Caiaphas, the high priest during the time of Jesus, did not learn this indispensable lesson. “It is better for one man to die for the people, than for the whole nation to perish,” he said. Worse majority of the Sanhedrin agreed to Caiaphas’ arrogant claim. This claim claimed the life of Jesus.

Many times, we are confronted with a choice between one life and another. Many times, we want to win over another. Many times, we say, “It is okay to dispense with this guy in favor of the other.” Many times, we approach dialogue not as a win-win situation but a win-lose battle, and we do anything to win. Many times, we sacrifice the life of another to preserve ours. We have not yet learned the lesson. No one is dispensable. Life is indispensable…no matter whose life it is.

As Holy Week begins tomorrow, we should realize that the characters in the Holy Week story mirror each of us. The call to reflection during these days reflects to us our own selves in the story of every character. Their stories are our stories. Their mistakes are our mistakes, too. The lesson they failed to learn, we must learn.

LOOK WHO IS TALKING!

Friday in the 5th Week of Lent
Jn 10:31-42

Blasphemy is any sacrilegious act done against God. Taking the name of God in vain is blasphemy. Attempting to make God an accomplice to do evil is blasphemy. Using the things of God for evil ends is blasphemy.

But should not taking up rocks to stone someone to death be considered blasphemous too? It is God who gives life to everyone and He alone, therefore, has the right to take it back. Should not persecuting someone under the guise of religious fervor be understood as blasphemous also? Religion falls under the category of “things” of God. Is not manipulating God to preserve the status quo blasphemous, too? God should never be manipulated and exploited for whatever purpose.

When we are concerned about the sanctity of God but are neglectful of the sanctity of human life, we blaspheme. When we are on fire for God but are cold-hearted toward those who do not share our faith, we blaspheme. When we are preoccupied with our causes – no matter how praiseworthy they are – but are manipulative and exploitative of God, we blaspheme.

Blasphemy should include all sacrilegious acts done against God towards man. When we love God but hate one another, we are guilty of blasphemy because God dwells in each of us. When we persecute and kill in the name of religion, we are very guilty of blasphemy because godly causes have nothing to do with oppression and murder. When we manipulate and exploit God for anything, we are guilty of blasphemy because in doing so we are playing gods.

Because He claimed to be the Son of God, Jesus was hung on the cross. While sedition was the crime that His enemies accused Him of before the Roman Procurator, their primary allegation against Jesus was blasphemy. But if calling Himself “the Son of God” was the crime His enemies accused Jesus of, they were just as guilty as Jesus was, for in their heart of hearts they all long to be a child of God and even called their nation, Israel, God’s first-born. Look who is talking! They had a totally twisted understanding of blasphemy to suit their own agenda. Blasphemous!

ACCEPTED BUT NOT WELCOMED

Thursday in the 5th Week of Lent
Jn 8:51-59

Why could many of the Jews not accept Jesus? Here are three possible answers to reflect on.

First, the Father has not shown Himself to the Jews prior to the appearance of Jesus. His voice was heard and His presence felt by Moses through the burning bush, by the Israelites through a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night and through thunder and lightning in the desert. But no one has seen God. The Jews, in fact, believed that no one could see God and live.

Second, the Jews expected the usual kind of Divine Revelation as against the new and unique revelation made by Jesus who claimed to be the Son of God. Jesus was too ordinary for the Jews. Where were the smoke, the thunder, the lightning and the trembling of the earth when Jesus walked through the streets of Jerusalem and the shores of Galilee? There were none. Jesus looked just like any of them. The Jews even knew His ancestry. He was pretty ordinary to be the Absolute Other. Moreover, Jesus was very much provincial.

Third, Jesus proved the Jews wrong with their ideas about God. In doing so, Jesus came into open conflict with those who made their ideas about God their gods. He called them hypocrites and brood of vipers in public. Most of them were scribes and Pharisees, the religious leaders of His time. Many of them were elders in the community. Jesus was simply too much for those who refuse to acknowledge their own moral deficiencies.

Today, Jesus is more widely accepted. But that does not mean He is more welcomed into the hearts of many. There are still “scribes” and “Pharisees” around us and inside us. There are still elders in the community who refuse renewal and commit subtle idolatry by making their ideas about God their gods.

Stubbornness of heart captures the three reasons mentioned above and all other possible reasons why people cannot accept and welcome Jesus into their lives. When the heart is stubborn, it cannot be reborn.

LET US BE ADDICTED

Wednesday in the 5th Week of Lent
John 8: 31-42

All forms of addiction are based on a lie. Alcoholism, among many other definitions, is based on the lie that alcohol makes us forget our problems. But how can we forget our problems when it is precisely our problems that urge us to drink alcohol excessively? Alcoholism is, in fact, an added problem.

Addiction to nicotine is based on a lie, too. Its lie is that we cannot survive a day without a cigarette. But a day without a cigarette actually makes us live better and longer. Nicotine does not pacify; it immobilizes us because it kills – and that is the truth.

Drug dependency is based on a lie. Drug dependents or dependents on prohibited substances think that they need prohibited drugs or substances to function normally. We function normally only when we are not abnormally dependent on any chemical or substance. Addiction to prohibited drugs and substances is an abnormality. It is based on a lie.

Sin is also based on a lie. We sin because believe in Satan, the father of sin and prince of darkness, the author of all lies. When we say we do not need God, we lie. When we live as if we did not come from God and will not return to Him, we lie. When we think we can survive isolated from God and others, we lie. When we are convinced that we do not need to consider the good of others so long as our good is secured, we lie. When we tell God that we need His forgiveness and yet are deaf to the pleadings of those who need our forgiveness, we lie. When we say that we love God, whom we cannot see, but yet hate our fellow human beings, whom we can see, we lie. When we care for the sanctification of people and yet are indifferent to the violence done to Mother Nature, we lie. When we are pious but are not generous, we lie. When we are generous but we give with strings attached, we lie. When we lie, be it black, gray or white, we sin. And when we sin, we are not free; we are slaves.

If we want to be free, let us be truthful. No matter when, no matter where, let us be on the side of the truth always. No matter how painful it may be, be truthful always. The truth shall set us free.

If we want to be truly free, let our freedom be truthful, too. True freedom is freedom for the good of everyone. To be truly free is to be free so as to serve and to love both God and man. Our freedom is true when we are free to be truthful.

Look at the cross; it has the figure of the letter “t”. Is it merely coincidental that the word “true” begins with the figure of the cross? “T” for truthfulness? “T” for the figure of the cross?

Each time we look at the cross, may we always remember to be truthful. Each time we meditate on the cross, may we strive all the more to be truthful. Each time we pray before the cross, may we also examine our selves how truthful we really are. Each time we venerate the cross, may we be blest with more truthfulness in our lives.

The Gospels tell us that Jesus’ truthfulness was both a permanent decision and an enduring action. Thus, no one who ever walked on the face of the earth is more free a man than Jesus. For only the truth sets us free.

But Jesus was not only truthful. He was compassionate as well. Truth without compassion can be very brutal. Bereft of compassion, truth can be an easy alibi for violence. Jesus showed us how to be truthful and compassionate at the same time. We behold in His very person the marriage of truth and compassion. In Jesus, we see that the union of the two produces love.

Truth is the antithesis of all lies. But it is love that makes truth effectively heal all forms of addiction. Let us be addicted to love like Jesus; it is the only addiction that is not based on any lie.

THE MARK OF JESUS

Tuesday in the 5th Week of Lent
John 8: 21-30

The Father did not leave Jesus and yet trials did not leave Him, too. The Father did not abandon Jesus and yet His persecutors did not abandon Him, too. The Father did not depart from Jesus and yet temptations did not depart from Him, too.

Closeness to the Father does not in anyway mean separation from trials in this life. Being on the side of the Father can oftentimes be a reason for our persecutions. Intimacy with the Father does not mean unfamiliarity with temptations.

Are you experiencing trials, persecutions and temptations in your life? It can be because you are close and intimate with the Father. The more you are on His side, the more you may be persecuted and the more persecutors you may have. Rejoice and be glad because you are in the image of His Son, Jesus.

Because Jesus did not leave the Father despite all the trials He had, He endured everything, including death, death on a cross. Because Jesus did not abandon the Father despite the persecutions He suffered, He found grace even in His cross. Because Jesus did not depart from the Father despite the temptations He experienced, He triumphed until the end.

If we remain with the Father, we shall also endure with Jesus. If we stay on His side, Jesus remains with us. If we are intimate with the Father, we shall conquer everything with Jesus the Christ.

Ask not why you have trials. Complain not why you are persecuted. Wonder not why you are tempted. You are a child of God.

WHO CAUGHT WHO?

Monday in the 5th Week of Lent
John 8: 1-11

This Gospel episode always intrigues me. The accusers of the adulterous woman claim that they caught the woman in the act of adultery. I wonder: Were they spying on her with the intention of imposing on her the death penalty or were the accusers peeping at the keyhole of the room she was in with her client because, in truth, they themselves really desired for her, too? If the scribes and Pharisees really caught the woman in the act of adultery, either they must have really intended to catch her so that she may be stoned to death or she must have actually caught them in their own lust for her. Who caught who?

If they intended to catch her so that she might be stoned to death, the scribes and Pharisees were not really after her conversion to God and the salvation of her soul. Like mad dogs thirsting for blood, they were after her death. Such is man’s inhumanity to man.

If she actually caught her accusers in their own lust for her, they were guilty of adultery as much as she was. For Jesus said, “…everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28). Adultery is not only in the act; adultery begins with the ill desires of the heart.

When we are rather too quick to point an accusing finger at someone, let us pause for a really long while and see what Jesus writes on the ground with His finger. He may be writing down a litany of our sins instead. Then the fingers we point at others are actually fingers pointed to us.

Jesus, tell us, who caught who?

WORTH RISING FOR

5th Sunday of Lent
Jn 12:20-33

A great hero once said, “The Filipino is worth dying for.” He was very much convinced of his words that Senator Benigno Aquino gave his life so that we may be free again. Is the Filipino really worth dying for?

A greater hero, the greatest of them all in fact, showed us that we are not only worth dying for. Jesus Christ died for us and rose to life again. For Jesus, we are worth rising for. Are we really worth rising for?

Anyone, from the bounty of his love for us, may die for us. But no one, despite the abundance of his love for us, can rise to life again for us. Only Jesus, always Jesus.

The question of whether you and I are worth dying for is totally immaterial for Jesus. Worthy or unworthy we are, still He died for us. The question of whether you and I are worth rising for is totally trivial for Jesus. Worthy or unworthy we are, still He rose to life for us.

As the week that is called holy approaches, let us stay with Jesus who makes the week holy. It is Jesus, not us, who makes the Holy Week holy. Apart from Him, the Holy Week can be anything except holy. Without Him, there is no Holy Week.

With whom will you spend the Holy Week? Let it be with Jesus. Where will you spend your Holy Week? Let it be in silence, in prayer and in reflection. How will you spend your Holy Week? Let it be holy and loving.

As Holy Week approaches, consider first what Jesus did for you before planning what you can do for Jesus. When Holy Week comes, give more than enough time to reflective silence before engaging in any active charity. After Holy Week, your week that is most holy ends but your life that should really be holy must proceed.

Do not think that because it is Holy Week, we need to pray more. No, we need to pray better instead. Do not think that because it is Holy Week, we must sacrifice more. No, we must sacrifice better instead. Do not think that because it is Holy Week, charity obliges us to give more. No, charity obliges us give better instead. It is “the better” that counts more and not “the more” that means better. For if we want to thank Jesus for His love for us, we need not be more; instead, we need to be better persons.
To be better persons, we must be true disciples of Jesus. Jesus tells us that, as His disciples, we should be where He is. And where is Jesus? Jesus is in the Most Blessed Eucharist. Gather in the Eucharist. Jesus is in communities nourished by His Word. Celebrate the Word with your community. Jesus is in the poorest of the poor. Serve the poor as if it is Jesus whom you serve.

In the Holy Eucharist, we break bread. With our communities, we eat bread. To the poor, we become bread…offered and broken for the life of the many.

“Unless a grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat. But if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Let us fall to the earth; let us be humble. Let us die on the earth; let us live for Jesus. Let us bear much fruit; let us live as Jesus lived.

It is better to die a meaningless death rather than live a meaningless life. But it is best to die a meaningful death after living a meaningful life. In life and in death, in dying and in rising to life again, we are the Lord’s.

We are worth dying for. We are worth rising for. It is Jesus who makes us worthy. Let us die with Jesus. But let us not forget to rise with Him, too.

FOOLS FOR CHRIST

Saturday in the 4th Week of Lent
John 7:40-53

Today is the first of April. It is “April Fools Day”. Let me remind everyone that “April Fools Day” is not a liturgical celebration. But let me invite all of you to be “fools” today and always. Yes, let us be “fools” for the Lord.

To be “fools” for the Lord is to live our lives according to the values of an upside-down kingdom, where the first is last and the last is first, where forgiving does not mean seven times but seventy times seven, where when slapped on one cheek the other cheek should be given, too, and where death means life. This is the kind of kingdom that Jesus preached. This is the kind of kingdom that Jesus offered and still offers today. This is the kind of kingdom that Jesus brought and threw His hearers out of their seats while laughing at Him in scorn. And Jesus was even “foolish” to die for this kind of kingdom.

Like a lamb led to the slaughter, Jesus was meek and silent. He offered no resistance. Resistance to suffering on account of His Gospel was not a by-word in the kingdom His Gospel preached. Submission to God’s will is. Resignation to God’s will is. Faith in God is.

Looking so “foolish” in the eyes of the world, Jesus became the Lamb of God because it is He who takes away the sins of the world. And this “foolish” Lamb is no laughing matter. He alone knows how to get to heaven where both the foolish and the wise dream of residing permanently someday.

All saints are “fools” for Christ. But today, “April Fools Day” is not their feastday. Everyday is “Fools Day” for saints. The world is always fooled by the “foolishness” of saints. The world never understands the ways of heaven. The world is never meant for one as wise as the saints.