Cycle A - Year I:

27 November 2016: First Sunday of Advent

(Liturgical color: Violet)

Gospel: Please read Matthew 24:37-44

Let us prepare!

The cool breeze in the morning heralds the coming of the month of December very soon. And it is likely that our thoughts are on the Christmas holidays already.

But not so fast though. For today in the Christian world we greet each other a "Happy New Year!" That is not a joke, because this Sunday the Church begins a new liturgical year, a new year's day in our life within the Church, as we welcome the Advent Season.

[A note on the new liturgical year: The start of a new liturgical year also marks the transition from one lectionary cycle (A, B, and C) to the next. These cycles are the results of the Second Vatican Council which ordered a change in the Sunday readings at Mass so that Catholics would become more familiar with the text of the Bible. Thus, we have a three-year cycle of readings built around readings from three synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Today we go back to Cycle A, and thus Sunday readings will be taken from the Gospel of Matthew.]

What is the meaning of "Advent"? The Advent Season is a period of preparation, extending over 4 Sundays before Christmas. The word "advent" comes from the Latin "ad-venio", which means "to come to", and it refers to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The liturgical color for the season of Advent is violet, the bluer hues of violet.

The Church wants us to make use of the Advent Season as a period of spiritual preparation in three ways: the first and most obvious, in celebration of Christ's birth on Christmas day; second, the coming of Christ in our lives through grace and the Sacrament of the Eucharist or Holy Communion; and finally, the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ at the end of time.

Advent Season, therefore, is the start of a new stage in our worldly pilgrimage to the house of our Father in heaven.

The theme of the Gospel reading from Matthew is being ready and prepared. Jesus tells His disciples, "So, too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come." (Mt 24:44). He says the same thing to each one of us now: be ready and be prepared!

As members of the Church, our preparation includes taking the opportunity to focus on the great event of the Incarnation, Jesus' own choice to take on our human flesh by being born of the Virgin. It is an event that demonstrates God's amazing humility and His incredible care for us, His children.

As Christians, we hope for the Lord's coming, because we are sure that He is coming again; there is no doubt about that. The Season of Advent provides us the opportunity to deepen our waiting in hope for the realization of God's saving promise in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

When we encounter the living Jesus today, the same Lord who crashed into our world to become an Infant Child, we come to trust that He cares for us radically, that He is constantly looking for ways to draw near to us. So that we become able to see Him and His loving hand in our daily lives.

In sum, Advent is a time to wake up from the daze, to focus on what is more important in life, and to live in hope. Let us start the new liturgical year with positive disposition. The best time for new beginnings is now.

So, let us prepare now and always. For our Lord Jesus warns us: "Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come!" (Mt. 24:42)

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

Ad Jesum per Mariam!

Cycle C - Year II:  

20 November 2016: Solemnity of Christ the King

(Liturgical color: White)

Gospel: Please read  Luke 23:35-43

King of the Universe!

This Sunday we end the liturgical year with the celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the King. This is fitting because our Lord Jesus is the Alpha and Omega of creation: He is the beginning and the end of human history and of the created world, and through Him "all things were created and by whom the world is being restored to the Father."

Pope Pius XI instituted the Feast of Christ the King on December 11,

1925 as a way for human beings to proclaim a truth about God that indeed He is the King of kings and Lord of all creation. Of course, it is a limited concept but it is the highest title human beings can use to refer to Jesus.

How do Filipinos relate to the celebration of Christ the King?  Since we are a democratic country, we have no experience of being under a king as a nation.

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Turning to the scriptural reading, we find it not much of help either, so it seems at first glance, in trying to understand Christ as King. Because the Gospel reading from St. Luke presents to us Jesus as He was dying on the cross. In other words, He sat not on a kingly throne but nailed on a wooden cross with a crown of thorns; he wore no royal robe but stripped to His loin clothes. How can He be a king in this way?

Also, our knowledge of kings is usually associated with power and authority. And in the real world, particularly our own experience with our political leaders, all too often what comes to mind when we talk of power and authority is dominion over the weak, and worst, associated with deception, corruption and exploitation.

Yet for Christians we know that it is not so with Jesus' kingship. For He is a King who exercises a totally different kind of power.

Let us reflect deeper on the Gospel passage to know about Jesus' brand of being a King.

Jesus is not a king in the usual, earthly sense that we are familiar with. He did not come to establish political or military power. He did not come to govern a country or raise an army. He Himself said so that He was not an earthly king: "My kingdom is not of this world." (Jn 18:36)

How do we uncover the real dimension of Christ's kingship? The Gospel account on Christ on the cross presents to us a glimpse into the mystery of our Lord's kingdom where His kingship is not through dominion but made of service by love. On the cross before His last breath, Jesus forgives and saves the repentant thief, Dimas, who asks for His forgiveness. Thus, Jesus is a King who welcomes to His kingdom all those who need most of His mercy.

But when our faith is shaken by what is happening to our nation lately, we ask whether Christ still reigns in our world today?

It is a challenging question but we find the answer in the very example of Dimas as he himself was dying on the cross. Even though his life on earth was about to end, Dimas realized in his waning moments that Christ's kingdom was not best understood by earthly standards. Rather, it is a kingdom that begins within, with a complete surrender in faith to the One ho truly saves, Jesus Christ Himself. In other words, it is a remarkable act of faith that Dimas recognized that Jesus has a kingdom and that He is King of that kingdom.

Perhaps, in the same context that Dimas pleads with Christ for forgiveness ad mercy in his most desperate hours, our Holy Mother Church wants to bring us to the cross of Christ's throne, as the liturgical year closes, where "God rules" over us and the whole world. So that as we begin a new season of hope and joy in the coming of Advent Season and Christmas, we keep the faith, in spite of our trials and suffering, and like Dimas we entrust ourselves completely to Christ, our King, who will set us free from bondage of sin and death in the resurrection to come. For our Lord Jesus Christ is a victorious King, who defeated the moral enemy of human existence -- sin, death and the  evil one.

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

Ad Jesum per Mariam!

Cycle C - Year II:

13 November 2016: Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Liturgical color: Green)

Gospel: Please read Luke 21:5-19

Looking forward with hope!

Do you know that the Catholic Church changes its liturgical calendar in November?

And as the liturgical season comes to a close, the Gospel readings deal with the last things... death, judgment, reward and punishment, or the end of the story of our salvation.

The Gospel account from St. Luke in this Sunday's liturgy takes a more apocalyptic tone. The narrative about the end of times --- with occurrence of natural disasters, stories of wars, insurrections, persecution of believers, division among families, and awesome sights in the sky --- all these tell us that the end of the would will be everything but a joyful event, so it seems.

And yet Christians should look forward to the end of times with anticipation and joy! Is that not a contradiction? Well, not really, because for Christians the end of times will mark the fulfillment of everything that we long for, that is our union with the Trinity and eternal glory in heaven. Those who believe look forward with hope in their hearts for the time in history when the just will receive their rewards and the evil one will be cast away and punished forever. However, Jesus also warns us that the realization of that beatific glory with God will be preceded by a period of tribulation, purification and suffering for His followers.

In the Gospel, Jesus speaks of the destruction of the temple of Jerusalem, and He used this prediction to warn us about the end of the present world or reality with the Lord's Second Coming.

Let us reflect on the deeper truths that this Sunday's liturgy wants to convey as our guide in Christian living, so that when the end comes we are ready for it.

The first truth is that our world as we experience it is destined to end someday. Well, it's not necessarily because the world is getting sinful, but because God has a bigger and better purpose for creation. From the beginning of time God has destined us for something much better than our present world, had our first parents did not sin. That is why whatever blessings we receive now in this world are just a prelude to greater blessings for us in the life to come, if we keep the faith. Thus, we look forward to the end of times as just a passage to a better reality.

The second truth: Jesus' kingdom will be brought to completion in His Second Coming. In the first time that our Lord Jesus came it was in simplicity and humility as He chose to be born in a manger. Because Jesus does not want to force His kingship upon anyone. Instead He wants that it be our personal choice to accept or reject Him as He comes like us in all things but sin.

But it will be a different story in the Second Coming. At that time there won't be any doubt as to who is the King of kings and Lord of lords. In other words, no one will wonder or question about the identity of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The third truth: Jesus will render final judgment at the end of time. He will gather the people of every time and place for judgment day. He will call to Him those judged worthy of heaven. It will be a great and glorious day for His faithful followers. And the joy, peace and union with God will be beyond our wildest imagination. But it will be the opposite for those who refuse to believe in God until the very last moment and reject His offer of mercy, love and new life.

In sum, the apocalyptic nature of the Gospel reading presents us with the sobering fact that not only is there life beyond the present existence, but that suffering is a necessary component of reaching our final destiny. Christ Himself had suffered before His glorious Resurrection.

The parting words of our Lord in this Sunday's Gospel reading are encouraging and inspiring. He assures us that in spite of sufferings and trials for His sake, "... not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives." (Lk 21:18-19)

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

Ad Jesum per Mariam!