It is very enlightening and gives a good feeling whenever we
have a chance of talking to people who are full of God’s wisdom and love. Being
able to connect with people of the light who really live up to God’s call is
such a blessing and gift. This reminds me of the time when I went to the Kolbe
Missionary House and had a good talk with Anne. Thinking of it makes me want to
tell her what is stated in today’s 1st reading. It also brings back
memories of our bible study about the Gospel of Jesus according to Matthew. We were
so blessed that after having the opportunity to study about Mark's gospel under
the guidance and direction of Bro. Willie we were once again blessed by not
just a knowledgeable speaker but a priest, Father H (Hyacinth Kalu). If we were
able to gather a vast amount of information about Jesus as written by Mark we were
guided to a different angle of the life and history of Jesus based on Matthew.
He wrote the gospel of Christ according to his own plans and aims, and from his
own point of view. The life of Jesus is so rich and full of various things that
we can and need to learn from. It is indeed a blessing for us that we had this
privilege to listen to Father H's preaching about the gospel of Matthew which
offered us an array of resources where we can learn more about Jesus. He gave
us an outline and overview of what we studied about the gospel of Matthew. He
said that Matthew is a 1st hand witness of the life history and tradition of
Jesus since he is a true Jew. He is an apostle of Jesus, a Galilean and a witness
of the Resurrection and the Pentecost. Being the 1st gospel of the New
Testament it has a lot of references and allusions to the Old Testament since
it centers on the Kingdom of God : its transition from the Old to the New Testament
to its eschatological realization in the Heaven where Christ reigns as King in
the glorious Kingdom
of God Church
of God
Romans 15:14-21
14 I myself am convinced about you, my brothers and sisters,
that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able
to admonish one another... In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to boast in
what pertains to God. 18 For I will not dare to speak of anything except what
Christ has accomplished through me...Thus I aspire to proclaim the gospel not
where Christ has already been named, so that I do not build on another’s
foundation, 21 but as it is written: “Those who have never been told of him shall
see, and those who have never heard of him shall understand.”
Is there any other place we would like to be other than in
the loving presence of God? This, I'm sure we can and should have a straight
answer without delay. No one should ever claim that they haven't heard or known
about God since it is our prime duty to spread and make it known throughout the
whole world. There is no denying to the truth that all of us are given the
chance to know who our God is and it is also our duty and responsibility to
take part in this mission of spreading the good news and make known to everyone
to the best of our ability the saving power of God. We should consider each day
as an opportunity to know and learn more about our God. Whether it be an
ordinary or special day in our life nothing should be amiss and should be spent
in giving glory to God our Savior and Master. We can never ever deny the
greatness of our God even just by looking at the simplest part of God’s
creation like the tiniest grain of sand to the largest ocean in the world. As
in Jeremiah 5:22, “Will you not tremble before me who set the sand as limit to
the sea, as an everlasting barrier it can not pass? Its waves may toss but not
prevail, they may roar but can not pass beyond.” We ask ourselves how in the
world can a tiny grain of sand hold the vastness of the ocean in the same way
we know that we have a God whose saving power is known throughout the earth. It
is our duty to ourselves to aim for the ultimate good which is the will of God
in our lives. This is not something that we still have to search and look for.
It is already programmed in us and made known to us by the Lord. If by any
chance this is not the case especially for those people who have not heard or
known about our Lord Jesus since birth then the Lord Himself knows how to deal
with them in accordance to His Divine Wisdom and Mercy. For us who have been
blessed and endowed with the privilege of hearing and knowing about Jesus, this
is coupled with a responsibility. The principle that to those who have been
given much, much is also expected definitely applies to it. We have a
responsibility in our hands to make known to everyone we meet about this vital
truth that could spell the difference between life and death. It is always for
our good to attend activities that nourish our soul. We are enlightened and
inspired because of the many good things we can learn from it. Whenever we hear
words of wisdom it could always help us make sense of the things happening
around us even suffering. It gives a feeling of special joy and gladness in
every person’s heart. If we continue to stand by the principles of God then we
will come to know that there is no truth in the saying that faith is against
reason. We can truly appreciate the relevance of the truth as explained by Pope
John Paul II that true faith come together with true reason. It is the same
thing as saying that Theology tells us that God created the world while Science
tells us how God created the world. The problem is that there is a great propaganda
out there. It makes sin appear with all its fun, excitement and glamour. It
makes virtue appear boring, lame, bland and unexciting. But the truth of the
matter is, it’s not. The pleasures that God created in this world are enjoyed
the most by those who don’t abuse them and use it simply. Who do we think
enjoys food most? The person who doesn’t know how to fast and engorges all the
time or a person after a fast experiences a feast? The virtuous person enjoys
life the most. The person who uses creation and all things according to God’s
plan enjoys it the most. It is because pleasure is God’s idea. All the good
things in the world that people want are God’s idea. Satan can’t invent even
one bit of pleasure. But God commands
them to be used so that it leads to life and a part of life is joy. The way to
enjoy life is to follow God’s commands. Life is not all about rules and
regulations. God did not just give us a bunch of rules and regulations that we
are supposed to obey like machines. What we do does not just proceed from who
we are but also makes us who we are. The
actions we engage, the words that we say and the things that we do have an
impact on us. We are making ourselves all the time. We, Catholics believe that
God gave human beings reason although it sometimes gets darkened by sin but
still human reason can figure out some things. One of the things that human
beings figure out without God having to reveal it, is that human beings need to
meet 4 qualities to be deemed a human being. The philosopher, before even
Plato, Aristotle and Socrates, had this figured out. We find it mentioned in
Wisdom 8:7, the 4 virtues or qualities are also called the hinge virtues
because it is where all the other virtues or qualities of good people would
hinge. The word cardinal means hinge. The Cardinals who surround the Pope are
the doorway to the Pope. They are also the ones whom he rely the most for
advice. Everything else depends on the cardinal virtues. (Prudence or wisdom,
justice, temperance and courage or fortitude) We can also find all the cardinal
virtues, like justice which means giving each person his or her due in the Book
of Proverbs, Sirach, Ecclesiastes and all the wisdom literature in scriptures.
We all know even as kids instinctively how important justice is. The first
thing that a kid cries out as soon as he learns how to talk if he has brothers
and sisters is “Not fair, he got more than I did” or “You ask me to do more
than what that person is doing.” This is because we have instinctively or
natively offensive justice. Each person has rights and ought to get their due.
There’s also another part of justice that we forget, that is, we have
obligations and duties to everyone. A person who is unjust is not a good
person. To be just, we need to control our passions. Temperance is a virtue
that balances and controls our passions. It is like controlling our desire for
that last piece of cake if we know that it belongs to our sister. In order to
be just, we’ve got to control our appetites. Make our appetites come into line
with justice, truth and goodness. We’ve got to have that balance in our life in
order to be a good and effective person. Temperance makes this happen. We also
have to be courageous. If we are not courageous then every time a difficulty
arises we’re going to shrink back. If there’s any danger involved in doing the
right, just and wise thing then we’re just going to crack out and find an
excuse because we’re afraid. Courage or fortitude helps us to master fear and
not let fear keep us from doing what’s right. In the same way that we want
justice to prevail always since it is very frustrating when we encounter
situations that are very unjust. We are reminded in today's psalm that we can
all be assured of the truth that the Lord rules the earth and He rules with
justice there is no doubt. We've got to take hold of the marvelous things that
God has done. Nothing else matters than the truth that we are all loved by God
and given the privilege of taking part in His great kingdom in heaven. God
revealed to us Himself in various different ways. In the gospel of Mark:
"the gospel of Jesus Christ, the son of God" (Mk 1:1) is summarized
by the phrase - The person of Jesus, and the gospel of Luke:"The gospel of
glory to God in high heaven and peace on earth to those on whom his favor rest
(Lk 2:14) is summarized by the phrase - Joy to the world, while the gospel of
John:"the gospel of the Word that became flesh and made his dwelling among
us and we have seen his glory" (Jn 1:14) is summarized by the phrase -
Eternal life then the gospel of Matthew is where all this happened to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet (Mt 1:22) and is written almost 55x
in this gospel and summarized by the phrase - The Coming of the Kingdom. God's
saving power is manifested in this treasury of books that have been preserved
and handed to us from generation to generation. No one can deny the fact that
to all God has been gracious and loving with no exception at all. God's
faithful love should compel us to do the best we could ever do. There was a
time when my computer got bugged down and happened to be the same time that I
heard and was touched by the homily of Fr. Joseph Magdaong in the healing mass
at St. Christopher where Hendrie who fixed my computer was serving as a member
of the choir. It had been several years since I heard about this story of a
tailor and his needle but I would never forget and always remember it
especially the perfect timing and situation when I heard it. This tailor who
was about to die spoke his last and they were these words, "Give me my key
to heaven." At first those people who were there and heard him did not
understand what he was talking about until they realized that he was asking for
his needle. In the same way we must have our own keys in heaven as we try to
examine ourselves and find out what is it in our life that can be compared to
that needle in a tailor's life or our special talents that we can offer to God.
I could still very well remember that I was on the verge of tears upon hearing that
because I immediately thought of this computer that I am using to spread the
word of God through my everyday reflections on the word of God that I write and
share to others through e mail. I am just full of gratitude and joy in my heart
for all the amazing things that God had done especially of the fact that this
computer which I consider the needle in my life remained in perfect condition
since that time on. There is a need for us to respond to God's call to each one
of us to become channels of His blessings as His power is revealed in us. We
will just run out of excuses and alibis why we should not give honor and praise
to God. There is really nowhere to go but to God and that we would have to
realize not sooner or later but right now and act on it. But we have to trust,
hope and rely on God rather than our own power. Let's face it we sometimes rely
too much on ourselves and too little on God. We are troubled about a lot of
things when sometimes there's really no cause for it. There are levels of anxiety.
Exaggerated anxiety and discouragement are one of the greatest obstacles to
holiness. There is a level of anxiety that we just have to trust in God's Grace
and Goodness. We should not disturb our inner peace not even momentarily. Life
on earth is a great struggle indeed for God's Kingdom. A lot of things can
bother and bring us down but we do not have to stay that way. We have to
exercise our minds and wills to put our confidence in God. He is the one whom
we can totally trust and depend on to save us. Our life is much about the daily
revelations of God to us through all the circumstances that surround us which
points to only one truth, He is victorious. Victory is surely in our hands once
we've made the right move and choice. Let us take our stand and know that God's
grace is sufficient for us. We will not be put to the test beyond our strength.
Things are bound to get better for as long as we hold on to God's promises.
Today's psalm, kind of remind me of this preaching about this wise man from the
East in the Old Testament (OT), he is a prophet named Balaam and served an evil
and wicked king. King Balak wanted Balaam to exact a curse upon Israel
but from his mouth came forth a blessing. He prophesied in Numbers 24:15,18
that there shall come a Star out of Jacob and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel who will dispossess Edom . A star and a scepter
signifies kingship. In parallel, it was also the 3 wise men in the New
Testament (NT) during the time of King Herod an Edomite who were looking for a
star that would direct them to the newborn King of Israel, Jesus. He is truly
our King and the fulfillment of God's promise. We are all called to respond
with gratitude to the Lord who has revealed His saving power to us. There is no
doubt that the God of the house of Israel is still the same one true
God of today. The same privilege is handed over to us as the chosen people of God , Israel
Psalms 98:1, 2-3, 3-4
R: The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
1 Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done wondrous
deeds; his right hand has won victory for him, his holy arm. (R) 2 The LORD has
made his salvation known: in the sight of the nations he has revealed his
justice. 3 He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness toward the house
of Israel .
(R) All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation by our God. 4 Sing
joyfully to the LORD, all you lands; break into song; sing praise.
We should dismiss this wrong notion that if we are holy and
pure then we are automatically boring and dull. It is actually all up to us if
we want to be this way. Being a child of light should come with all the
goodness that goes with it. Instead of blowing out of proportion the real
situation we should work our way out to become prudent. Prudence is the ability
to make right decisions in complex situations, decisions that lead to the best
and right thing. Without this we can be in big trouble. We’ve got to be able to
decide in a situation that we’re in what the right thing to do which is the
best thing to do. How do we get something done? There are some folks who
probably just can’t figure out what to do. There are other folks who look at
the problem and they can figure out a solution. It’s a core and they execute
that core. It’s practical wisdom. We’ll find in the Book of Proverbs a lot of
things about wisdom even in Sirach, Ecclesiastes and all the wisdom literature
in scriptures. As the children of this world claim to be full of worldly wisdom
so should we children of the light, if we believe and say so, should be full of
heavenly wisdom and truly be smart and wise. In today's gospel, our Lord said
that the people of this world are much smarter in their dealings with each
other than are the children of light. This man was a scoundrel and he was a
scoundrel all the way. His god was himself and his ideal was financial security
and he served self well all the way. My dear friends what one has to say about
this man and the people of this world and what our Lord is trying to get over
to us is that they are consistent. Are we? We say we believe in God, not some
vague deity above the tower but the God of love who took us out of nothingness
in love. Who came down, died for us and sustains us in love. Who has destined
us for an eternity of love? Do we really believe in Him? When trouble comes, we
wring our hands and furrow our brows. We have sleepless nights and headaches.
There is this little piece of doggerel, about the sparrow saying to the robin,
“Do you really like to know what motivates those foolish mortals as they rush
around and worry so? The robin responded to the sparrow, “I think that it must
be they have no Heavenly Father such as one that cares for you and me.” In the
official thanksgiving of the priest after mass every morning, there is the use
of the Canticle of Daniel, when Daniel calls all creation to praise and worship
God, the sun, the moon, the stars, the valleys and the hills. We can find this
line that every bird in the sky blesses the Lord. Outside the window in New York where Fr. Leo
Clifford lives, birds fly by very often. He said that sometimes one will alight
in his window sill and peck the glass in the window to remind him that we
neither sow nor spin nor gather into barn and our Heavenly Father takes care of
the birds. How much more will He take care of us? We say we believe in eternity
but if we examine ourselves, don’t we live as if time were to go on forever.
One should think of the little flower saying that there had never been more
than 3 minutes in her whole life when she was not thinking of our Lord with
whom she was going to spend through eternity. When we say we believe in people
that everyone of us is a child of God that we are going to be together in
paradise do we realize how we treat people as our brothers and sisters in the
Lord? Remember He told us that what we do to them, we do to Him. Sometimes we
don’t like others because of our sophistication, because of their background,
because of their lack of education. My dear friends we say that we believe in
spiritual values, that it isn’t what we have but what we are inside. But look
at the way we go to the mall and spend money and buy material things. Where is
our conviction? Where is our consistency? Well, my dear friends all that we can
do is keep trying and begin again. And then the poem and psalm that we say,
after mass everyday is surely true. Oh God, You are my God. For You I long, for
You alone my soul is thirsty. My body pines for You like a dry, weary land
without water so I gaze on You in the sanctuary for Your love is better than
life. On my bed, I remember You, on You I mused through the night for You had
been my help, in the shadow of Your wings I rejoice. My soul clings to You,
Your right hand holds me fast. Amen. Hallelujah!
Luke 16:1-13
1 Jesus said to his disciples, “A rich man had a steward who
was reported to him for squandering his property. 2 He summoned him and said,
‘What is this I hear about you? Prepare a full account of your stewardship,
because you can no longer be my steward.’ 3 The steward said to himself, ‘What
shall I do, now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me?
I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg. 4 I know what I shall do
so that, when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their
homes.’ 5 He called in his master’s debtors one by one. To the first he said,
‘How much do you owe my master?’ 6 He replied, ‘One hundred measures of olive
oil.’ He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note. Sit down and quickly write
one for fifty.’ 7 Then to another he said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’ He
replied, ‘One hundred kors of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory
note; write one for eighty.’ And the master commended that dishonest steward
for acting prudently. “For the children of this world are more prudent in
dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.
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