Our Cross Brings Us Closer to Jesus

22nd Sunday A Mt.16:21-27 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”(Mt. 16:24). Little Tommy was doing badly in math. His parents had tried everything; tutors, flash cards, special learning center etc. Nothing really worked, and as a last ditch effort, they enrolled him in a Catholic School. After the first day, little Tommy came home with a very serious look on his face. He did not even greet his mom with a kiss but went straight to his room and started studying. This went on for sometime and his mother was so happy for his diligent studying. Finally, little Tommy brought home his report card. He gave it to his mother and her mother opened it a bit nervous. To her surprise, Tommy got an A in math. She couldn’t contain hold her curiosity anymore, so she asked her son what encourage him to study hard. She asked, “Is it the nun? Is it the discipline or the methodology that they used?” Tommy responded, “Well, on the first day of school, when I saw that guy nailed to the plus sign, I knew they were not fooling around.” Jesus said to His disciples, “Whoever wants to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me” (Mt.16:24). If someone is going to invite us to a party or a picnic we want it to be fun and enjoyable. The idea of taking up the cross doesn’t seem very appealing and absolutely not fun. In our hi-tech society everything should be easy: EZ pass, EZ open, EZ access; in short, easy way for everything. There is so much emphasis on seeking what is pleasurable and avoiding what is painful. Our minds are conditioned with the thought that suffering is detestable and should be rejected. Coming from this milieu, how can the message of Jesus be relevant to us? Who would be willing to take up His cross and follow Him? The truth of the matter is that there is something we have to discover in the cross. Unless we understand its mystery, Jesus’ invitation to carry it and follow Him will always be unattractive. To unravel the mystery of the cross, it would be helpful if we change our perception of suffering. Suffering can be classified as unnecessary and necessary. Unnecessary sufferings refer to those which we experience because of our selfishness, negligence, abuse, irresponsibility and misuse of human freedom. For instance, children are suffering because their father left their mother for another woman. A teenager is suffering because of his addiction to drugs. Someone loses his job because he was caught stealing from work. A country is suffering because of bad leadership. Necessary sufferings refer to those which involve loving. Love includes sacrifice. Many sacrifices bring a lot of good results. We work hard to provide the best for our loved ones. Sometimes we sacrifice being with them just to give them a good future. We endure hardship to support our sibling’s college education. We suffer when we see our loved ones in pain when they are sick. Suffering is also part of growing towards spiritual maturity. It is hard to admit our own faults or confront our limitations, but this can make us humble. It might be painful to face our problems, but our courage to overcome them can make us stronger people. It might be inconvenient to do household chores, but it can teach us to become more responsible. It is hard to let go of our inordinate attachments, but it can give us more freedom. It is not easy to avoid temptation, but we keep away from them because we don’t want to sin. Indeed, there are many sufferings that we need to endure and they are essential part of growing. We learn to pray when we are suffering. Let us look at Jesus. He suffered a lot. In fact, not only did He take up the cross, but He was also nailed to the cross. He showed the greatness of His love through His suffering. In His death we obtained our redemption. Jesus tells us to take up our cross because He knows our ncross will lead us to life. Little Tommy may think of Jesus as a guy nailed to a plus sign, but that transformed him to become studious. The cross can also transform us if we carry it with love looking not only at our present suffering but the glory that will be revealed to us. Our crosses are God’s blessings to us. They may be difficult to bear, but they can bring us closer to Him. May God bless you all! Fr. Nony S. Villaluz, CRM

Meeting Jesus Up Close and Personal

21st Sunday A
Mt.16:13-20

He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter said in reply, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God" (Mt.16: 15-16).

There was a young nun who began her apostolate in the hospital. She was nervous and anxious, but seeing other sisters moving from bed to bed, giving medicine to the patients, assisting them, giving them kind words, and touching them with tender loving care eased her a little bit.

Suddenly, Mother Theresa came to her and said with a smile, “Come with me Sister, I want you to meet someone.” She followed her and soon they arrived at a bed in the far corner of the ward. There lay a skinny man whose eyes were sunk deep into his head. His hair was gone, and he only had one tooth in his mouth. Mother Theresa took the old man’s face in her two hands and knelt down by the bed. “Sister Anna.” She said to the young sister, “I want you to meet Jesus.” (Bro. Brian Morton, FM).

Have you met Jesus already? If He asked you, “Who do you say that I am?” how would you respond to Him? When Jesus asked Peter, “Who do you say that I am?” he passed His test with flying colors. He confessed Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of the living God. Jesus called Peter “blessed” because it was heavenly Father who revealed this to Him. But how can we answer Jesus if we do not have first-hand experience of the earthly and historical Jesus of Peter? Where can we meet Him up close and personal and have a deeper knowledge of Him? The historical and earthly Jesus may no longer be with us, but with our faith we believe that He is with us and we can still recognize His presence in our midst. When we were baptized we entered into divine life with Him together with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus is with us in the sacrament. Jesus is with us in the Eucharist. Jesus is with us in the church and in the community. He Himself said, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”.

When we are happy and joyful, or even depressed, upset, frustrated or broken-hearted, and we reach out to Jesus in prayer, we can experience His presence. When we sin and ask for His forgiveness, we can feel His love. When we extend our forgiveness to our wrongdoers we let them experience the love of God. When we are asked who Jesus is, perhaps there are too many things that we can say about Him. However, we can confess Jesus as our Messiah, the Son of the living God as revealed to us by the Father, when we recognize and feel His presence in the celebration of the Liturgy, when we experience His love (especially in the sacrament of reconciliation), when we meet Jesus up close and personal while reaching out to Him in the poor, the prisoner, the sick, the aged, and those who live in sorrow. (Mt.18:20).

Meeting Jesus happens in the family when they hold hands as they pray together. Jesus is also present in the poor, the hungry, the naked, the sick, the prisoner, and the economically marginalized. He identifies Himself with them, and when we reach out to them we reach out to Christ who said, “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers or sisters of mine, you did it for me”(Mt.25: 40). When we are happy and joyful, or even depressed, upset, frustrated or broken-hearted, and we reach out to Jesus in prayer, we can experience His presence. When we sin and ask for His forgiveness, we can feel His love. When we extend our forgiveness to our wrongdoers we let them experience the love of God. When we are asked who Jesus is, perhaps there are too many things that we can say about Him. However, we can confess Jesus as our Messiah, the Son of the living God as revealed to us by the Father, when we recognize and feel His presence in the celebration of the Liturgy, when we experience His love (especially in the sacrament of reconciliation), when we meet Jesus up close and personal while reaching out to Him in the poor, the prisoner, the sick, the aged, and those who live in sorrow.

God Bless you all!

TGIS

20th Sunday A Isaiah 56:1, 6-7
Thank God It’s Sunday (T.G.I.S.)

And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, ministering to him, Loving the name of the LORD, and becoming his servants -- All who keep the Sabbath free from profanation and hold to my covenant, Them I will bring to my holy mountain and make joyful in my house of prayer; Their holocausts and sacrifices will be acceptable on my altar, For my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples (Is.56:6-7).

It was Christmas morning. A priest stands at the door of the church after the mass to shake the hands of the people as they leave. He grabbed the hand of one of the parishioners and pulled him aside. He said to him, "You need to join the Army of the Lord!" The man replied, "I'm already in the Army of the Lord, Father." So the priest questioned, "Then how come I don't see you except at Christmas and Easter?" He whispered back, "I'm in the Secret Service."

The fourth commandment of the Decalogue states, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Sabbath is from the Hebrew word šabbât, which means, to rest. Fr. Kevin O’Shea, C.Ss.R. described Sabbath as getting to the root of everything or getting to the reality at its deepest level. Entering Sabbath allows us the opportunity to be aware that God and us are bonded together in a covenant. This is our time of “togethering” with God. In the first reading, God is concerned that His people and the foreigners (Gentiles) hold on this, His covenant, and do not profane or defile the Sabbath (Is.56:6). Profane means to treat with irreverence. Sabbath is the barometer of our relationship with God. Our Sabbath as Christians is Sunday. "Sabbath" means "Rest" not "Saturday" or "seven" or "week," so even if the Mosaic Laws were binding on Christians, there is no need for it to be kept on Saturdays instead of Sundays. We gather on Sunday because this is the Lord’s Day for us. In the Letter of Barnabas 15:6-8, written in A.D. 74, at the end of a few paragraphs on the old Jewish Shabat vs. the Christian Lord's Day, wrote: "We keep the eighth day [Sunday] with joyfulness, the day also on which Jesus rose again from the dead."

What should be our disposition on the Lord’s Day? Just like in Isaiah, one of the earliest Christian writings Didache chapter 14 says, “But every Lord's day, gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure. But let no one who is at odds with his fellow come together with you, until they be reconciled, that your sacrifice may not be profaned.” Both Isaiah and Didache speak of the importance of Sabbath and not profaning it. If we are going to check honestly what’s going on in our church, without any doubt we are guilty of not keeping the Sabbath holy. How many of us would miss Sunday liturgy for no valid reason at all? How many of us go to church not reconciled with their wrongdoers of harboring grudge in our hearts? How many of us would go to church not properly dressed, with cell phones on, coming late, and not actively participate in the liturgy? God blesses us abundantly and we must be grateful to Him. Don’t forget: “Thank God It’s Sunday (T.G.I.S.)”.

Let us not stay in the Secret Service because the CH- -CH is nothing if “UR” not in it. God bless you all batchmates!!!!

Trust in Jesus

19th Sunday A (Mt. 14:22-33)

Jesus spoke to them, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid." (Mt. 14:27).

A group of botanists were exploring a mountain in search of new species of flower. One day they saw a flower of great rarity and beauty. However it lay in a deep ravine and to reach it someone needed to be lowered by a rope and a dangerous undertaking. They saw a boy watching them and offered him money if he would be willing to be lowered down to pick that flower. The boy looked down at the ravine and said, “I will be back.” When he returned he was accompanied by an older man. He said to one of the botanists, “I’ll go over the cliff and get the flower for you if this man holds the rope. He is my father”. (Mark Link)

Our lives are confronted with different challenges. Sometimes the challenge is so tough that we feel as if our lives were being tossed about by waves. We have a good reason to fear it. But holding on to the words of Jesus, “Take courage, It is I, do not be afraid,” which means, “I am here to save you,” we can conquer all our fears. Just like the boy who put his trust in his father, we need to put our trust in Jesus because He cares for us and will not allow us to sink.

There are times, however, when the challenge is not equal to our faith. Though we believe in God’s saving presence, our trust at times becomes conditional. We tend to panic when things get out of control. Peter requested to walk on the water and Jesus invited him to come. Peter started off with confidence. He was able to walk on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw how strong the wind was, he became frightened and began to sink.

Often times our confidence also turns to fear when we start to focus on the wind. When life’s challenges come along our way, we tend to concentrate on the problems, and we sink into frustration and despair. Look at what happened to Peter when he stopped trusting in Jesus: he sank. This too happens to us when, instead of trusting in Jesus, we begin to trust in ourselves. We worry too much and our anxieties become unbearable. Yet let us not forget that Jesus is here to stretch out His hand to save us.

Our faith is a gift from God. If we truly believe that He loves us we know He will not let us sink. Jesus is here to save us. If we believe in His love we will put our trust in Him.

May God bless you all!