PAG-IBIG AT KATOTOHANAN

Solemnidad ni Kristong Hari

Jn 18:33b-37 (Dn 7:13-14 / Slm 92 / Pg 1:5-8)

Ngayong araw pong ito, hindi lamang natin pinagpupugayan ang isang Hari.  Tiklop-tuhod natin Siyang sinasamba dahil hindi lamang Siya Hari ng mga hari at Panginoon ng mga panginoon.  Siya po mismo ang Anak ng Diyos: si Jesukristong Hari.

Subalit nililitis ang ating Hari.  O Siya nga ba ang  nililitis?

Sa lahat ng bersyon ng pasyon ng Panginoon Jesukristo, itong kay San Juan ang pinakamadrama.  Kaya nga po, ang bersyon niya ring ito ang paborito ng mga senakulo kapag Mga Mahal na Araw.  Sa katunayan, kung susuriin pong mabuti, ang buong Ebanghelyong isinulat o ipinangalan kay San Juan ay tila isang dula: ang mundo ang entablado; ang kuwento ay tungkol sa pagtutungalian ng liwanag at kadiliman, ng mabuti at masama, ng Diyos at ng dyablo; si Jesus ang hukom; at ang Espiritu Santong ipinangakong isusugo ang Tagapagtanggol ng mga kapanig ng liwanag, ng mabuti, ng Diyos.

Pero, parang hindi yata hukom ang dating ni Jesus sa Ebanghelyo natin ngayon.  Dakilang kapistahan pa naman Niya ngayon bilang Hari.

Tapat sa kanyang istilong tila panteatro, ang entablado ng kuwento ni San Juan sa atin ngayong araw na ito ay ang praetorio ni Pilato.  May dalawang tauhan: si Jesus at si Pilato.  Iisa ang tema: ang pagiging hari ni Jesus.  Sa mga pagtatanong ni Pilato, sa pagpuputong ng mga kawal ng koronang tinik sa ulo ni Jesus, at sa kahulugan ng ipinasulat ni Pilato para ipako sa ulunan ni Jesus – sa tatlong wika pa: Hebreo, Latin, at Griyego (ang tatlong pangunahing lenguahe noon), na ang kahulugan ay “Ito si Jesus na Taga-Nazareth, Hari ng Mga Judyo” – naku, wala pong kaduda-duda, ang isyu ay ang pagkahari ni Jesus.

Subalit, para kay Juan Ebanghelista, si Jesus ay hindi biktima ng kamatayang gusto sana Niyang takasan.  Hindi po.  Sa halip, hinarap ni Jesus ang Kanyang kamatayan nang buong-giting.  Sa hardin pa lang sa Gethsemane, nakipagtitigan na Siya sa kamatayan, mata-sa-mata.  At bagamat pinagpawisan Siya ng pinaghalong pawis at dugo dahil sa sindak at lumbay, hindi pa rin umatras si Jesus.  Sa halip, hindi po ba ang mga kawal, na dumating para dakpin Siya, ang napaatras at napabulagta pa raw sa lupa nang sagutin Niya sila: “Ako si Jesus na inyong hinahanap”?

Napakagiting ng Hari natin!  Palibhasa ang lakas Niya ay nagmumula sa Amang Diyos.  Nagtiwala Siyang kahit pa Siya ay maghirap at mamatay, hindi Siya Nito pababayaan.  At gayon nga po ang nangyari, hindi ba?  Tatlong araw, matapos Siyang mamatay sa krus, Siya ay maluwalhating magmuling-binuhay ng Ama.

Tayo, magiting po ba tayo?  Magiting po ba tayo sa pagsasabuhay ng pananampalatayang tinanggap natin mula sa mga apostol?  Magiting po ba tayo sa pagsunod sa mga yapak ni Jesus?  Magiting po ba tayong maninidigan para sa Diyos?  Kung hindi po, bakit?  Saan nagmumula ang ating karuwagan?  O baka baliw naman ang ating kagitingan: Iyon po bang hindi naman kailangang mamatay pero dahil hindi nangingilatis kaya napapahamak.

Tularan natin ang Hari natin: Ang Kanyang kagitingan ay bunga ng matibay na pananalig na mahal na mahal Siya ng Diyos Ama.  Wala Siyang bata-batalyong kawal pero Siya ang pinakamakapangyarihan sa lahat.  Wala Siyang mga ginto at pilak pero nasa Kanya na ang lahat.  Wala Siyang armas maliban sa walang-maliw na pag-ibig ng Diyos.

Tayo po, saan tayo humuhugot ng kapangyarihan?  Ano ang kayamanan ng ating buhay?  Armado ba tayo ng pag-ibig ng Diyos?

Bukod po sa pag-ibig ng Diyos, lakas din ni Jesus ang katotohanan.  Anupa’t hindi ba Siya mismo ang Katotohanan (Tg. Jn 14:6)?  Tingnan po ninyo ang tagpong ito sa Ebanghelyo:

“Ikaw ba ang Hari ng mga Judyo?” tanong ni Pilato kay Jesus.

Pero binato rin ni Jesus si Pilato ng tanong: “Iyan ba’y galing sainyong sariling isipan, o may nagsabi sa inyo?”

“Judyo ba ako?” bato ulit ni Pilato kay Jesus.  Pero sa punto pong ito, medyo nakakatawa na ang batuhan nila ng tanong.  Si Jesus ba talaga ang nililitis o si Pilato?  Si Jesus pa ba talaga ang tinatanong ni Pilato o ang sarili na niya ang tinatanong ni Pilato?

Ganyan po talaga kapag ayaw nating tingnan ang katotohanan, hindi ba?  Nakakalito.  Hindi na natin malaman kung ano ba talaga.  Minsan kakagatin na nga tayo ng katotohanan, hindi pa natin Makita-kita; pero mas mapanganib kapag kitang-kita naman natin pero ayaw pa nating tanggapin ang katotohanan.

Pagkatapos ng batuhan nila ng mga tanong, inilarawan ni Jesus kay Pilato ang Kanyang kaharian.  “Ang kaharian Ko’y hindi sa sanlibutang ito,” wika ni Jesus.  “Kung sa sanlibutang ito ang Aking kaharian, ipinakipaglaban sana Ako ng Aking mga tauhan at hindi nipagkanulo sa mga Judyo.  Ngunit hindi sa sanlibutang ito ang aking kaharian!”  Kaya ba ayaw tanggapin ni Pilato ang katotohanan tungkol kay Jesus kasi baka hindi niya ito talaga makita o baka nakikita naman niya pero hindi niya masakyan, hindi maunawaan, dahil ibang-iba ito sa kanyang nakasanayang kahulugan ng pagiging hari.  Para kay Pilato, ang Emperador sa Roma ang salamin ng tunay na hari at itong Jesus sa kanyang harapan – bubog sarado, duguan, may koronang tinik pero hari daw Siya -  ay mistulang larawan ng kabaliwan.  Bulag si Pilato sa katotohanan hindi dahil hindi niya ito makita; hindi niya ito makita kasi kakaiba ito sa karaniwan at nakasanayan niya.

Pero, may mga katotohanang hindi pangkaraniwan, hindi po ba?  Marami rin pong mga katotohanang humahamon at kumukwestyon sa ating mga nakasanayan.  Sa kasalukuyang “Taon ng Pananampalataya”, mabuti pong diskubrihin, suriin, at pagnilayan kung ano ang mga katotohanang ito – mapatungkol man sa Diyos o sa tao – sapagkat ang mga katotohanang ito ay nangangailangan ng pananampalataya para makita at matanggap natin.

“Kung gayon, Ikaw ay hari?”  Pansinin po ninyo, nagtatanong pa rin si Pilato!  Nakakatawa na siya.  At kung ilalagay po natin sa kasalukuyan nating paraan ng pagsasalita, sinagot siya ni Jesus: “Oo na nga!  Sabi mo eh.  Sabi mo ‘yan ha!”  Palagay ko po, kung kapanahunan pa natin si Pilato, baka nagtanong pa siya ulit: “Weh, di nga, hari ka?  Di kaya.”  Batid kaya ni Pilato na noong mismong sandaling iyon ay nagpalit na sila ng lugar ni Jesus?  Si Pilato na ang nililitis ni Jesus!

“Ito ang dahilan kung bakit Ako ipinanganak at naparito sa sanlibutan: upang magsalita tungkol sa katotohanan.  Nakikinig sa Aking tinig ang sinumang nasa katotohanan,” sabi ni Jesus.  Kaya pala: Pilate heard Jesus but he did not listen to Him.

Sayang, sinayang ni Pilato ang pagkakataon.  Nakilala na nga niya si Jesus nang malapitan pero hindi pa siya sumampalataya sa Kanya.  Puwede sana siyang manindigan para kay Jesus, pero hindi niya ginawa.  Nang iharap nga niyang muli si Jesus sa taumbayan, inamin na ni Pilato sa kanila: “Wala akong makitang sala sa Taong ito” (Tg. Jn 19:6).

Pero bakit ipinapako pa rin niya si Jesus?  Kasi binantaan nila siyang ipasisipa siya sa Emperador kung hindi niya hahatulan ng kamatayan si Jesus: “Kapag pinakawalan mo Siya, hindi ka kaibigan ng Cesar, sapagkat sino mang nagpapanggap na hari ay kalaban ng Cesar” (Jn 19:12).  Iyan, iyan po!  Para kay Pilato, ang katapat ng katotohanan ay ang pananatili niya sa poder!

Para sa atin po, ano ang katapat ng katotohanan?  Tayo po, sa ano o kanino natin kayang ipagpalit si Kristo?  Kaya ba nating ipagpalit si Jesus sa iba?  Please, huwag po nating ipagpapalit si Kristo sa kahit ano at kahit kanino.

Pag-ibig at katotohanan – ito ang armas ni Kristong Hari.  Pagsikapan po nating laging mamuhay sa pag-ibig at katotohanan.  Papaghariin po natin sa mundo ang pag-ibig at katotohanan ni Kristo.  Makita nawa ang ating katapatan kay Kristong Hari sa ating pagiging mapagmahal at pagiging tutoo.  Kung hindi po, Hari pa rin si Kristo, pero baka tayo po ang mga payaso ng dyablo.

THE SON OF MAN WILL COME BACK FOR US

33^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Mk 13:24-32 (Dn 12:1-3 / Ps 16 / Heb 10:11-14, 18)

We are very familiar with the readings today, especially the Gospel, or are we?  Really, how familiar are we with the thoughts of Jesus regarding the end times?  Do we really understand them?  Do we take them to heart?

The Gospel today ends with this declaration from Jesus Himself: “But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”  Do we really hear Jesus?  As regards the exact day and hour when the world will end, no one knows – not the angels, not the Son Himself, only the Father.  Are we listening?  Do we believe Jesus?  If we do, how come on the one hand there are self-proclaimed prophets who predict the exact day of the end of the world and on the other hand there are many who unwittingly believe them?  No one knows the day nor the hour when the end of the world will be.  Period.  I am even very intrigued that, based from this statement of Jesus, even Him seems to know not.  “…only the Father,” Jesus said, knows when the end will come upon His creation.  If someone claims to know the exact date and hour of the end of the world, does he more know than Jesus?  If you believe so-called “doomsday prophets”, are you not guilty of sinning against the Faith?

We do not know when the world will end.  But we know it will.  We do not know where the end will begin.  But we know how.  We simply have to read Scriptures to refresh our knowledge about the end times.  And the Word of God today reminds us what we already know.

The first reading from the book of the Prophet Daniel is an example of an apocalyptic writing from the Old Testament.  It was written during the exile of the Israelites to Babylon.  The Jews were under the Chaldeans and forced to worship idols.  Those who refused were persecuted, tortured, and countless were martyred.  The Faithful of Yahweh prayed with tears for the day of their liberation and return to God’s holy city, Jerusalem.  The Prophet Daniel funded his people’s hope with the visions that God granted him.  He spoke about the victory of Israel over her enemies, but not without the help of God.  He wrote about the reward of the just and the punishment of the wicked.  In short, the Prophet assured his people that there would be an end to their unspeakable suffering.  Peace would come and the righteousness of Yahweh, the one and true God, would reign over all.  The end is not the end of the Jews but the beginning of a new Israel.

The same is true in the Gospel.  Jesus’ vision of the end times is not really the end of the world but its transformation into a new heavens and a new earth.  Ask anyone what they know about the end of the world and most, if not all, will mention only the horrors and tribulations that shall come upon creation prior to its transformation.  But we miss the whole point about Jesus’ vision of the end times.  Listen: “Jesus said to His disciples, ‘In those days after the tribulation the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.’”  Quite often, we end here and point to this dreadful prediction as the “end of the world”.  But Jesus did not.  He declared further, “And they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in the clouds’ with great power and glory, and then He will send out the angels and gather His elect from the four winds, from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.”  For Jesus, the end of the world is not so much about horrific tragedies as it is about the glorious reign of the “Son of Man” over all.

The phrase and title “Son of Man” originally comes from the book of the Prophet Daniel, from where the first reading today also came.  This seems to be Jesus’ favorite self-designation, taken from the Daniel chapter 7.  The “Son of Man” is a very exalted figure who shall come to set Israel free and reign over all.  More than the phrase “Son of God”, interestingly, Jesus used the title “Son of Man” in referring to Himself quite often in the Gospels, but, as in Mk 10:45, as one who came not to be served but to serve.  Thus, when we, Christians, call Jesus “the Son of Man” we do not only profess that Jesus is truly human but that He is the Promised One, the Messiah and Lord, the Son of God, who already came when He was born and served us by His death and rising but will come again at the appointed time to free us from all the tribulations of our present existence.  When that second coming happens, there will be a new heavens and a new earth which St. Peter the Apostle speaks about in his second letter, chapter 3, verse 13, and St. John the Evangelist writes in Revelation 21:1, for example.  Obviously, the former heavens and the former earth have to pass away for the new ones to come with the Son of Man.

This coming “Son of Man” – Jesus the Christ – is also our High Priest, by whose self-oblation, the Letter to the Hebrews, our second reading today, testifies the forgiveness of our sins had been accomplished.  The same letter further says that Jesus Christ, our High Priest, the “Son of Man” in the book of Daniel and in the Gospels, already seated at the Father’s right hand, consecrates us and perfects us.  Thus, we pray that when He comes again at the end of time He may find us worthy to be counted among His elect.

So, are we really familiar with the thoughts of Jesus about the end times?  If we are focused only on the sun darkening, the moon not giving its light, the stars falling down from the sky, and the powers in the heavens being shaken, then we really do not understand what Jesus taught us about the end times.  The end of the world is not about the wrath of the “Son of Man” but about the fidelity of Jesus who, in Jn 14:3, promised that He shall come back to take us with Him so that we may also be where He is.  This world will end precisely because a new heavens and a new earth shall be established with the coming of the “Son of Man”, and when that happens we shall all be truly free.

Next time someone asks you believe about the end of the world, do not enumerate the horrendous tragedies that, after all, are already happening in our midst, but instead testify about your expectant hope that is funded by the Christian Faith: Jesus will come back for us!  A very inspiring song captures well the attitude we ought to have as we wait for the return of the Lord: “We remember how You loved us to Your death, and still we celebrate for You are with us here.  And we believe that we will see You when You come in Your glory, Lord.  We remember, we celebrate, we believe.”  Let us therefore love like Jesus if we truly remember how He loved us; let us consider all things as grace and thus be thankful at all times if we really celebrate Jesus’ love for us; and if we actually believe that Jesus loves us then let us trust Him and not fear His coming again at the end of time. 

SHE GAVE NOT BECAUSE SHE KNEW HE WAS LOOKING

32^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Mk 12:38-44 (1 Kgs 17:10-16 / Ps 146 / Heb 9:24-28)

After preparing for this homily, I sat in front of my computer to start writing my reflections.  But instead of the usual ease with which I write my thoughts, this time, I seemed to struggle through.  It seemed to me that I could say nothing really new about the theme of today’s readings.

We all know the story of the poor widow in the Gospel today.  She gave not from her surplus but from her want.  She offered to God everything because she gave Him all that she had.  She had two coins.  She could have offered only one and kept the other to herself, with the reasoning that she also needed it for herself.  If she did so, she would not be blamed neither should she be condemned.  But she gave both her coins, she gave her all.  Hence, Jesus praised her and exalted her before His disciples as the epitome of generosity.  With this incident, Jesus clearly set the standard for generosity.

Generosity is not measured by the quantity of what is given but by the quality of the giver’s heart.  We are therefore mistaken to immediately regard someone who donates a handsome amount of money to the church or to some charitable institution as generous.  That person is indeed kind, but a truly generous person is one who gives all that he or she has.  Of course, one who has two million pesos, for example, can give away one million pesos because he still has another million in the bank which, by the way, over a period of time, may not only double but even triple.  That same person becomes generous only when he gives his two million pesos rather than half of it, when he gives all that he has and not just a part of it.  Certainly, the world cannot understand such a definition of generosity and, given such a definition, judges the truly generous as foolish.  Thus, by the standards of the world, both the widow in the Gospel and the widow of Zarephath in the first reading today are not only imprudent with their resources but are foolish.  How much more foolish, in the eyes of this world, are those who strive to follow their examples!  Are we foolish enough to be like these two widows?

The original fool is the One who once hung on the cross but is now gloriously alive: Jesus, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to His own advantage; rather, He made Himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross!” (Phil 2:5-8).  As the second reading today reminds us, Christ Jesus offered to God, to take away the sins of many, not some sacrificial animal, but His very own blood instead.  Indeed, Jesus is our ideal for generosity.  He gave us everything: His life.  We, disciples of Jesus, if we are truly honest with our desire to become like Jesus, are called to give until it hurts, until nothing is left to us, until like fools we have squandered all for God, because Jesus Himself was the first to have emptied Himself for love of us and of God His Father.  This is very crucial for us because the ultimate joy of any disciple is to become like his master, and Jesus is our Master.

Am afraid that, for most of you, I have said nothing new so far; but the blame is only on me and never on the Word of God that is always alive and fresh.  I have limitations, too.  But before I end, let me point to one thing in the Gospel which may have escaped our keen attention and, thus, prove to be something new for all of us.

When the poor widow dropped her two small coins, I wonder if she was aware that Jesus was observing her.  Did she notice that Jesus noticed her?  Did she see Jesus looking?  Am sure that she was conscious of what she gave – for why would she not be when what she gave was all that she had to live on – but was she mindful of Jesus praising her for her gift?  Did it even matter to her that her generosity would put her above the other contributors to the Temple’s coffers?

Apparently, the Gospel does not answer my questions.  But for whatever answers the Gospel may provide, the poor widow nonetheless gave what she intended to give and, as already stressed, she gave all she had.  Whether seen or unseen, whether she is being observed or not, whether she would be praised, thanked, and appreciated or not, whether she knew Jesus or not, whether she would appear better than others or not, the poor widow simply offered her gift.

For those who enjoy being adulated for their kindness, for those who glorify in holding their beneficiaries eternally indebted to them, for those who would give better when observed but not when unnoticed, for those who are bent on comparing their so-called “generosity” with that of others’, this point is, for me, worth mentioning and, for us all, worth pondering on.  Were it the only point of my homily, still it is worth preaching: the poor widow gave everything she had even without knowing that she was being observed.  She gave not because she knew Jesus was looking.  In fact, she probably didn’t know.  But she gave nonetheless.

EXCITED TO BE IN THE KINGDOM

31^st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Mk 12:28-34 (Dt 6:2-6 / Ps 18 / Heb 7:23-28)

I grew up counting days.  I counted the days before my birthday, before school starts and then before it ends, before Christmas and New Year, before my loved ones' birthday, before any occasion I considered important.  Prior to my diaconal and presbyteral ordinations in December 1994 and June 1995, respectively, I counted years, months, weeks, days, and hours, too.  Each day closer to any awaited date was a step closer to a joyful, even if simple, celebration.  The closer the date got, the more excited I was.  Even now, in my mid-forties and with a childlike heart, my excitement still grows more and more as I get nearer to any important occasion, any special gift, or any person I wait for.

I wonder if the scribe whom Jesus referred to in the Gospel today as “not far from the kingdom of God” got excited at all upon hearing thus.  How did he react to such a high compliment from the Lord Himself?  It is important to me to know how this scribe responded to the divine accolade given him by Jesus because, for me there can be nothing more exciting than to know that I am already very near heaven, perhaps even just a step away.

If you were that scribe, how would you react?  Wouldn’t you be jumping up and down for joy?  You would be so excited, wouldn’t you be?  If you were overjoyed and very excited, so what would you do?  Now that you know which of the commandments is the greatest and, if you were indeed that scribe, even made the excellent commentary that to love God and neighbor “is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices”, what would be your next step?  That “next step” is very crucial because it may well be the step needed for you to take that you may enter the Kingdom of God.  For no matter how much you are well versed with the commandments of God and how brilliantly you expound on them, unless you are in the Kingdom of God, you are still outside it.

Did the scribe in the Gospel today make it to the Kingdom?  The Gospel is silent about it.  The evangelist already decided that such a detail is no more important to us.  What is truly essential is that we ourselves are not only a step closer to the Kingdom but are actually in it.  We ought to strive be there, to be counted among God’s chosen ones.

But knowing how to get to the Kingdom of God will never get us there.  While knowing the way is indeed inevitable for us to arrive at the Kingdom, we ourselves must tread the path that we know leads to it.  Knowing the way and walking through it are indeed inseparable but they are clearly not the same.  So, do we know the way?  But do we walk the way?

As we are in the Year of Faith, it will do us well to consider that many of us know the Faith, but still many do not live according to it.  Many know the way but do not walk it.  What we know is the content of Faith; it is the act of Faith where many of us falter.

We learned from catechism that the First Commandment orders us not to have strange gods other than God Himself, and yet many of us subscribe to superstitious beliefs, fortune tellers, and syncretism.  We also know the Sixth Commandment – “You shall not commit adultery” – and the Ninth – “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife” – but many Catholics are living in with someone else’s spouse, not a few of them are even glorified by Mass media.  We, Catholics, believe that marriage is one of the Seven Sacraments, but there are many Catholic couples who settle with civil wedding rather than the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony, reasoning that they are running on a low budget when, in fact, church-wedding can be more simple but still grace-filled.  We know as well that “You shall not steal” is the Seventh Commandment, but how many Catholics cheat from the classroom through the marketplace to the government offices?  And the Eight in the Decalogue commands us not to bear false witness against others, but we lie and we rumormonger and we testify untruthfully even under oath.

We accept the content of Faith but do we practice the act of Faith?  Many of us, Catholics, are restless until our babies are baptized and yet many, as well, take the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony very lightly.  Many Catholics love the Holy Eucharist and receive It so frequently, but only a few go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, declaring, even with haughtiness, that they rather confess directly to God than through priests who, like the rest of humanity, are sinners, too.  How many profess to be saradong Katoliko (devout Catholics) but are not obedient to the pope or are disrespectful of the hierarchy, even sometimes ridiculing them in public.  (I was so disgusted one evening, when I saw on national T.V. a Maryknoller nun badmouthing our bishops over the issue of the Reproductive Health Bill.)

Indeed, as the Holy Father, Benedict XVI, in his Apostolic Letter, Porta Fidei, declaring the Year of Faith, said, “We can no longer presume faith nowadays”.  For people may know but may not live according to what they know.  Knowing is not necessarily believing, and believing is not always obeying, but faith demands the three: knowing, believing, and obeying.  This is the crisis of our times.  This is the crisis of Faith.  Unless resolved, our faith may indeed bring us not far from the Kingdom of God, but still not fully in it.

The past week, celebrating All Saints Day and commemorating all the faithful departed, we have been reflecting on holiness as our origin and destiny, as our blueprint and vocation, as God’s gift as much as our task.  Our thoughts today lead us to consider that holiness is not only the perfection of charity as demanded by God’s commandments but is also wholeness of life.  Holiness is wholeness.  A holy person is a person whose life is integrated, not dichotomized.  A holy person is one who knows the content of Faith and does the act of Faith.  A holy person knows, believes, and obeys.  A holy person is not far from the Kingdom of God precisely because he or she is in it.

Are we not excited that we are not far from the Kingdom of God because we know the Faith?  If we are, then let us practice the Faith so that we may actually be part of that Kingdom where holy, happy, and loving people live forever.

Did the scribe in the Gospel today make it to the Kingdom of God?  We don’t know, but we hope he did.  It matters little to us now if he did or did not make it to the Kingdom though.  What we should be more concerned about is our entering that Kingdom, for though we may be not far from it, unless we are in it, we are still outside of it.