Cycle C - Year II:  

6 November 2016: Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Liturgical color: Green)

Gospel: Please read  Luke  20:27-38

A Life that is heavenbound!

Is your life earthbound or heavenbound? Does everything end on earth, or do we look forward to an afterlife? Sometimes, it is hard to recognize spiritual realities because we try to picture heaven like an earthly image.

Just few days ago the Christian world celebrated two important solemnities: All Saints Day on November 1 in honor of all the saints, known and unknown; and the Feast of All Souls Day on November 2, to pay respect and remember the souls of those who died ahead of us. Celebrating the feasts of the saints and departed souls is based in our belief that life on earth does not end in death but it is only changed.

Belief in heaven, and in the afterlife, is the message of this Sunday's liturgy. In the Gospel Jesus offers us a vision about the beauty of eternity.

St. Luke narrates an encounter between our Lord Jesus Christ and the Sadducees. The latter did not believe in the resurrection of the dead nor in afterlife. Their religion was based on an earthly image of heaven, based on their own experience of this world and what they see with their naked eyes.

The encounter was really to test Jesus with a question on marriage in

order to make His teaching in the resurrection look ridiculous. They pose a hypothetical question to Jesus purposely to trap Him: A woman who was a widow of seven brothers who died one after another but left her childless. "Now at the resurrection whose wife will that woman be?", they asked Jesus.

But Jesus told the Sadducees that eternity and this present life are very different. Marriage is for this earthly life and doesn't continue into the next life. In the resurrection, there is no marrying or being given in marriage. For God will be all in all.

In other words, in the next life our relationship is not with man or woman, or even with each other, but only with God Himself. Heaven is ultimately about seeing God, and we call this the "beatific vision". The beatific vision is more than simply "seeing" God. We will actually possess Him and He possesses us.  Thus, the beatific vision is about a complete and total union with God.

Now this does not mean that we will not see each other again in heaven. We will, and in heaven we will also enjoy the companionship of Mary and the all the saints and the angels, including our family members and friends who preceded us into that kingdom. Husbands and wives who have faithfully loved and served one another will be united with each other once again, and it will be a more perfect communion of life and love.

Our Lord Jesus Christ and His victory over death when He rose from the tomb is really the ultimate proof of our resurrection.  So Jesus asks us today, "Do you believe in the resurrection?"

In sum, today's liturgy invites us to reflect on death and the afterlife.

For non-believers, there is no afterlife. Death is the end of everything. No matter how wealthy or healthy you are, or how powerful, how famous, how many friends you have, when death comes, it becomes a disaster! Because everything is wiped away! We will fall into nothingness. So then enjoy as much pleasure as you can each day while you are still alive. For there is no tomorrow after death.

But for Christians, death is just a passage, a transition to a more perfect life, a life with God Himself. Because we are destined for eternal joy in the loving presence of the Creator. It has to be different from this life we experience now, so much better indeed. It is what we are originally created for from the beginning of time, until Adam and Eve sinned. 

The Good News is that at the end of the age, Jesus will redeem the whole of creation and everything will be good as it was from the very beginning. But we must watch out that in our earthly journey we follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ in order to be able to enter into the heavenly kingdom of the Father, and thus not fall into the pit of hell.

Let me end my reflection with my favorite mantra in philosophy: "The unknown of the known makes me tremble. But the known of the unknown gives me hope." My theology professor puts it differently but the same message, "The not yet of the already makes me tremble. But the already of the not yet gives me hope."

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!

Cycle C - Year II:

30 October 2016: Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Liturgical color: Green)

Gospel: Please read Luke 19:1-10

A burning desire for God!

Here is a story of a man in search of God:

A man whispered, "God speak to me".... and a meadowlark sang. But the man did not hear.

The man looked around and said, "God, let me see you"... and a star shined brightly. But the man did not see.

So, the man cried out in despair, "Touch me, God and let me know you are here"... whereupon, God reached down, and touched the man. But, the man brushed the butterfly away and walked on.

In the Gospel proclamation this Sunday, we will hear about Zacchaeus' search for God. He found God in a dramatic way.

On His way to Jericho, Jesus was surrounded by a big crowd of followers. A man of power and money by the name of Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus. He was the chief tax collector, and thus didn't have the best of reputation among his own people. In fact, he was hated for being a thief and corrupt. Nevetheless, Zacchaeus' heart, like any human heart, sought God.

Zacchaeus was physically short in stature so that it was impossible for him to see Jesus because of the

crowd surrounding Him. But that did not discourage him, and he was so determined to see our Lord that he climbed up a tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus, who was about to pass that way.

Why does Zacchaeus need to see Jesus face to face, we may ask? He is a rich man and doesn't he have everything he needs?

Well, Zacchaeus has heard many stories about Jesus and he knows deep in his heart that this Jesus does not promise a great worldly life but an everlasting one in heaven. That is why he was determined to do whatever it takes just to get a close look at God. His efforts were rewarded because Jesus notice him. And Jesus shocked the sensibilities of His own disciples and those of the crowd when He invited Himself to be the guest in Zacchaeus' house. The crowd murmured that Jesus was going to be the guest with a man who is a sinner.

But Jesus saw past Zacchaeus' crimes to his heart, which was open to the grace that prompted him to climb the tree just to see Jesus. So when Jesus invites Himself to Zacchaeus; house it meant an offer of forgiveness, mercy, and acceptance by God.

On the part of Zacchaeus, he knew that accepting Jesus into his house meant that his life will have to change for the better. He realized that his wealth had come at the expense of the people. Clinging to it would mean letting Jesus go. He had to choose, and he chose wisely. So Zacchaeus told Jesus, "Behold, half of my possession, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over." (Luke 19:8)

Thus, the story about Zacchaeus teaches us about determination and humbling ourselves before God. As Christians, we know that God is not about forced entry. He doesn't force Himself on us. The door must be opened from the inside. We must make the decision to yield to His mercy and receive the gift of forgiveness. To receive the gift means that our hands must be empty of worldly concerns. These are the things we must let go if we want to grasp the hands of God.

So going back to the opening story of a man in search of God, the lesson we can learn is that God is always around us in the little and simple things that we take for granted. Let us not miss out on a blessing just because it isn't packaged that we expect.

In sum, we can say that all religions are essentially about man's search for God. But Christianity is also about God Himself in search for man. That's the big difference. For we believe that God has not left us on our own. Rather, He has come in search of us. The closing statement of our Gospel reading says, "For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost." (Lk 19:10)

The Church also celebrates Prison Awareness Sunday. Let us pray for the spiritual transformation of inmates so that, like Zacchaeus, they may be open to find God a place in their heart.

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!

Cycle C - Year II:  

23 October 2016: Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Liturgical color: Green)

Gospel: Please read  Luke 18:9-14

Pray with a humble heart!

Do we still find time to pray, or do we still believe in praying?  In a busy and noisy world, sometimes we easily get distracted or find it hard to pray. But never give up on praying.  Even when the words are hard to say, God knows our prayer. For it is when we go down to our knees in prayer, that we stand tallest before God.

Prayer is the theme of the Gospel reading for this Sunday's liturgy, especially the proper attitude  when we pray.

In the Gospel Jesus paints a vivid story of two men in prayer. He tells a parable of a Pharisee and tax collector to teach about the nature of prayer and our relationship with God.  The parable presents contrasting and very different attitudes  towards prayer.  

The gist of the story: a Pharisee went up the temple area to pray. In

biblical times, the Pharisees take pride in their religious practices, often exalting themselves publicly at the expense of others.  In the parable, the Pharisee's prayer is a litany of prideful boasts of the good things he has done, as he compared himself with those he despised.

The other guy who went to the temple to pray is a tax collector, considered as a public sinner because of their corrupt practices. The tax collector "stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beats his breast..." and asked for God's mercy. The parable concludes that God heard this man's prayer because he sought God in humility rather than pride.

What is the lesson that Jesus wants us to learn from this parable?

We can reflect that this parable presents both an opportunity as well as a warning. We realize that humility helps us to see ourselves as we really are before God, weak and sinful and thus in need of His grace and mercy.

God dwells with the humble of heart who recognize their own sinfulness and who acknowledge God's mercy and saving grace. Even so, God cannot hear our prayer if we boast and despise others who are sinful like us.

In practical life, Jesus invites us to examine our hearts rather than looking at others' fault. Let us humble seek God's mercy in prayer, and show mercy and kindness as well to others, especially those who seem difficult to love and forgive.  Praying for God's mercy and forgiveness is our only hope when everything else seems to fail.

The Church also celebrates World Mission Sunday with the theme: "Missionary Church, Witness of Mercy."   Let us be generous with our prayers and material support to the mission. We also pray that we all become instrument of mercy here on earth, for the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!