Cycle A - Year I:  

25 December 2016: Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord

(Liturgical color: White)

Gospel: Please read: John 1:1-18

A blessed Christmas to us all!

Let us proclaim: "Glory to God in the highest!" For today the Almighty gives His greatest gift to us all, the gift of His beloved Son!

The even of the nativity of our Lord is the reason for all the preparations during our Advent pilgrimage, and the nine-day novena Masses or Misa de Aguinaldo. Indeed, let us rejoice and be glad for the Messiah is born!. We are overwhelmed with joy in the hope  that lights up our darkness.

The Gospel reading is the Prologue of the Gospel of John. In this

simple introduction, John summarizes for his audience everything that he wants to convey about Jesus of Nazareth. John expresses the divinity of Christ: He was there in the beginning (that is to say, the beginning before anything else has been begun); in that time Jesus was with God, and He was God; nothing was made without Him because it was all created through Him; in Him is life for all men.

John writes about Jesus as God's creative, life-giving and light-giving word that has come to earth in human form. For Jesus Christ is indeed truly man while remaining truly God.

It is only through Jesus Christ that we can behold the glory of God. Jesus became the partaker of our humanity so that we could also be partakers of His divinity.

We reflect on the significance and importance of the Christmas event in our lives. Today we continue proclaiming anew the wonder of the Incarnation. "The Son of God assumed a human nature in order to accomplish our salvation in it. The Son of God... worked with human hands; he thought with a human mind. He acted with a human will, and with a human heart he loved. Born of the Virgin Mary, he has truly been made one of us, like us in all things except sin. (Gaudium et Spes).

As we gather together on this Christmas Day to celebrate the Eucharist around the infant Child in Bethlehem, it is my joy to wish everyone of my family and friends a "Blessed and Merry Christmas!"

Let us pray: Almighty God and Father of light, Your eternal Word leaped down from heaven in the silent watches of the night. Open our hearts to receive His life and increase our vision with the rising of dawn, that our lives may be filled with His glory and His peace. Amen.

Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus!

Thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!

Cycle A - Year I:

18 December 2016: Fourth Sunday of Advent
(Liturgical color: Violet) Gospel: Please read Matthew 1:18-24

Trusting in God, obedience in faith!

We are almost done with our Advent pilgrimage.

In all churches and chapels we light the fourth candle in the Advent wreath, the candle of love. For today is the last Sunday of our Advent walk. In few more days we will witness the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ the Light of the world.

As we wind up our spiritual preparation for His coming, the Gospel reading focuses on St. Joseph, the legal father of the Holy Child and protector of the Holy Family.

Joseph faces a heart wrenching predicament: he is betrothed to a uniquely wonderful woman who is pregnant. Yet he knows that he is not the biological father. Since he is a "righteous man", he plans to leave Mary quietly. It is at this point that God intervenes and sends an angel to appear to Joseph in a dream. Joseph listens to the message of the angel and responds with deep faith and admirable obedience. He then willingly embraces his role as the foster father of Jesus.

Let us reflect that both Mary and Joseph came before God, at different moments, facing the decision to believe in the Almighty and trust in His unfathomable plan. The radical "yes" of Mary and Joseph to God's plan brings fulfillment to their lives and enables them to participate by their own free will in the marvelous, saving work of God.

In historical perspective, the Incarnation of Jesus will not happen again. (Although we know and believe that He will come again in glory, as Judge and King of all creation in the second coming, it is no longer as an infant Child.) So in this sense, none of us will ever be asked to do anything quite like Mary and Joseph in their obedience to God's will.

But in practical life, everyone of us is called to make a similar act of faith. Because we too stand alone before God and are asked by our Creator and Redeemer to place our lives in His hands, and to trust in His loving plan for us.

During these most trying times again in our history, it is our faith in God that is really the foundation of the Filipinos' spirit of resiliency in the midst of fear and trials. Because we know it is the Holy Spirit dwelling within us that gives us the strength to overcome our fears and doubts, and like a trusting child make the leap of faith into the loving arms of our loving Father in heaven.

As we conclude our Advent pilgrimage, let us pray that the grace of Jesus Christ, the examples of Mary and Joseph in their trust and obedience to God, and the blessing of the Advent season lead every one of us to respond freely to God with the obedience of faith, even if sometimes we do not understand immediately God's will for us, and what is happening in our lives.

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

Ad Jesum per Mariam!

Cycle A - Year I:  

11 December 2016: Third Sunday of Advent

(Liturgical color: Pink or rose)

Gospel: Please read  Matthew 11:2-11

Anticipating joy!

We are mid-way in our Advent pilgrimage, and the liturgy for this Sunday wants us to rejoice because it is very near to the big event that is Christmas day.

The Church celebrates Gaudete Sunday or the Sunday of rejoicing (from the Latin word "gaudete" meaning "rejoice!") The entrance antiphon in the Mass begins with St. Paul's exhortation: "Rejoice in the Lord always!" (Phil 4:4) The liturgical color for this Sunday is either pink or rose, a break from the Advent color of violet.

The theme of joy pervades the liturgy and the readings, as we faithfully await the feast of the Lord's Nativity.

In the first reading, the prophet Isaiah reminds us that the presence of the Lord brings joy to the whole creation. St. James, in the second reading, exhorts Christians to endure with patience all hardship and trials until the coming of the Lord. This is a timely message in the midst of disturbing and challenging political and social situations in our country at these times.

In the Gospel account, John the Baptist is in prison because of his

preaching about the Messiah.  But although incarcerated John showed joyful spirit as he continued to give witness to Jesus, to point others to the Lamb of God. His zeal for Jesus would not be contained by prison walls. He lived his life entirely to prepare the people for the coming   of the Lord, although he never received the earthly consolation of having seen Jesus complete His earthly ministry.

While in prison John knew that his death was imminent. But rather than in despair, he wanted his disciples to come into the care of Jesus when he is gone. So John sent them to Jesus with this question: "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?" (Mt 11:3)

Jesus did not give them a direct answer but points instead to His public ministry.  Jesus said to John's disciples in  reply: "Go and tell John of what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them." (Mt 11:4-5) Our Lord was really saying "The works that I am doing are my witness!"  In other words, Jesus confirms by His deeds that He is indeed the awaited One, the Messiah who has brought good news to the poor and the oppressed. 

As we near the end of our Advent journey, let our hearts rejoice in gladness as we anticipate with great joy the Lord's coming on Christmas day. Especially on this Gaudete Sunday, let us begin the rejoicing because the birth of our Messiah is so close at hand.

In sum, let us invite God's people. in the Eucharist at Mass,  to meet the Lord with joy and gladness, and offer as well the gift of Christian hope and joy to all our brothers and sisters.

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

Ad Jesum per Mariam!

Cycle A - Year I:

4 December 2016: Second Sunday of Advent

(Liturgical color: Violet)

Gospel: Please read Matthew 3:1-12

A Call for Repentance!

On the second Sunday of our Advent journey we meet John the Baptist, whom we can call a "man with a mission". Because his whole life was fueled by one burning passion, which is to point others to Jesus Christ and the coming of His kingdom.

Who is John the Baptist and what is the significance of his message for our lives today?

Scripture tells us that John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother's womb (Lk 1:15, 41) by Christ Himself, whom Mary had just conceived by the Holy Spirit. When Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, John leaped in her womb as they were filled by the Holy Spirit. (Lk 1:41)

John the Baptist was the last of the prophets who was sent by God with a special mission: to prepare

the way for the Savior. His appearance completed the cycle of prophets began by Elijah. (Mt 11:13-14) John makes the way ready for the coming of the Messiah, God's anointed Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. He announced the coming of the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Thus, the role of John the Baptist in our salvation history was very important because it was he who opened the way for Christ to start His public ministry. And John was fiercely determined to complete his mission in this regard.

St. Matthew wrote in this Sunday's Gospel: "John the Baptist appeared preaching in the desert of Judea saying, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!'" (Mt 3:1-2) He is the voice in the wilderness calling all to prepare the way of the Lord by baptizing his followers in the river Jordan as they acknowledged their sins. John gives testimony to the light and truth of Jesus Christ: "...the one who is coming after me is higher than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." (Mt 3:11)

Like John the Baptist, we, too are called today to give testimony to the light and truth of Jesus Christ. But first, we need to prepare ourselves for His coming through conversion and repentance of our sins, so that we can point others to Christ in the way we live, work and speak.

Repentance is like a door that opens to allow God's visit to our soul. While God's throne is in the highest heaven, surrounded by majesty, glory and splendor, yet God's dwelling place on earth is found in a humble and contrite heart that repents sincerely. But conversion is a continuous process, which starts with a decision to come into a personal and intimate relationship with the Lord.

In sum, the Church teaches that everyone who is baptized is a "man of mission", and our mission is to proclaim the Good News of the kingdom of heaven through our faith, good examples and words. In other words, our mission is to prepare the way for Christ's coming on His birthday on Christmas day, His coming in our lives through the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, and His final coming at the end of times.

During this Advent Season, then, let us pray: Lord, let your light burn brightly in my heart that I may know the joy and freedom of Your kingdom. Fill me up with the Holy Spirit and empower me to witness the truth of Your Gospel so that by words and examples I can point others to Jesus Christ in my home, workplace and wherever I may be. Amen.

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

Ad Jesum per Mariam!