Have you ever experienced doing something that you have not planned or intended to do and just happened before you know it or without you knowing it as if you had no other choice so to speak. This was what happened to Amos, the prophet whom today’s 1st reading is taken from. Our bible study teacher, Bro. Willy Santa Maria was so on fire in his presentation of the Book of Amos since he said that Amos is his favorite prophet. He even tackled about who Amos really was and gave us a broad and clear picture of what it was like when God called Amos to prophesy. Which is also why it remained clearly etched in my mind and was always reminded of it whenever encountering a reading from the book of Amos. Amos apart from what is written in today's reading is not just a shepherd and dresser of sycamores. He is a herdsman, rancher and a wealthy person. He lives in the garrison city a place dominated by people of power who live in luxury. He lived in affluence and belonged to the clan system which is a guild or crusade to maintain the purity of the tradition of the temple (Ark of the Covenant). He was well educated and embraced the clan wisdom. Although he experienced a luxurious life he was also aware of the injustice and plight of the people being a sycamore dresser who worked in close contact with the people. When God called him he was already aware of both worlds. And the Lord took him from what he was doing and summoned him to prophesy to the people. He came to a point when he no longer owned the choices and decisions he made. This is given once a person takes upon one’s self the duty of a prophet and the same is true when we put the will of God in our lives over our own. Atty. Moya said in his talk on Family and Social Morality that there should be no confusion between authority and power or obedience and inferiority. This really makes sense in as far as what Amos did is concerned. He mentioned that Amos clearly demonstrated to us obedience to God's authority over power and inferiority owing to the inappropriate situation he was in and status in life. Amos was able to differentiate the highest authority of God over the power of the priest of Bethel and his obedience which can never be taken as inferiority since he is also a man of power and wealth during his time. In the same way but definitely based in our present status in life, whoever, whatever, wherever and whenever, we are also being led to do something in response to God's call to apostleship. It should clearly be well established that our response is based on the authority of God and out of obedience. May we like Amos also get over our own personal idiosyncrasies and really get down to the real business of God. Let us not be deceived by the false misrepresentations of the world thinking that we can get away from our accountabilities or attempt to merge opposing worlds or acquire a little of both. It is either heaven or hell, God or Satan. There is no in between. For no one is above or over, exempted or excluded from the power of God. He will see to it that justice is served. Amen. Hallelujah!
Amos 7:12-15
12 Amaziah, priest of Bethel , said to Amos: “Off with you, visionary, flee to the land of Judah Bethel ; for it is the king’s sanctuary and a royal temple.” 14 Amos answered Amaziah, “I was no prophet, nor have I belonged to a company of prophets; I was a shepherd and a dresser of sycamores. 15 The LORD took me from following the flock, and said to me: Go, prophesy to my people Israel .”
It always pays to be watchful and alert at all times. Although we sometimes fail to measure up due to our own shortcomings or could be the doing of another, God assures us in today's psalm that if we fall into the trap of the enemy we can always repent with a deep remorse for our sins and resolve to make the precepts of the Lord the joy of our hearts. In doing so, we find ourselves naturally restrained from sin and maintain our innocence. It is so hard to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord if we do not know exactly how to go about with it. It's just like when we have to comply to certain requirements in school and follow the standard set by it. We need to have a pattern or outline from which we can base our work. Just as it is so in other things, the more we are all in need of God's precepts. The absolute bedrock of spiritual life is to follow the 10 commandments. We are sometimes misled into thinking that when we have a type of prayer then we think that we already have a spiritual life. We’ve got to have the humility to admit that God is smarter than we are and we need to follow and obey what we are told in the 10 commandments. We should be totally and absolutely convinced that He knows best. Satan uses half truths and half lies in his devilish tricks. Satan’s claims seem to come true in one level. Take the example of our 1st parents after eating of the forbidden fruit their eyes were opened and did become in one sense like God. The fallen angels made their free choice by radically and irrevocably rejecting God so in turn they seduce and mislead Adam & Eve. It was through sin that humanity was afflicted by death. Because of one man’s disobedience many were made sinners. When tempted in the Garden, Adam failed to remain faithful to God and His commands. Jesus, the New Adam, is God’s servant totally obedient to the Divine will. Jesus is the devil’s conqueror and takes back the plunder. What the devil has stolen from us, Jesus has recovered for us. Pope Benedict XVI commented about what the Lord experienced in the desert and said that at the heart of all temptations is the act of pushing God aside because we conceive Him as secondary. It is an act of constructing our world with our own lights and building our own foundation and setting God aside as an allusion. Temptations come in many varied forms but one thing is sure, it does not invite us to directly do evil because it is too blatant and would outright turn us off. It is very subtle and yet an act of pushing God’s commands aside and placing the devil’s temptation as primary. If we want to remain victorious throughout life, we have to keep Him in the center of our life and hold on to His words which are Spirit and life. God’s ever present help can be found in the scriptures. It's just like a soldier going to battle wearing the armor of God. It never fails and always there to defend and protect from the snares of the evil one. So always take up our sword which is the word of God. God's perfect word can refresh the soul. Have you ever wondered really how it feels to be refreshed? Whenever we take a shower or a warm bath and put on clothes that are well fitted and comfortable it refreshes our body. It could also be whenever we go to a place where we can unwind, relax, be away from the tensions, stresses, noise and turmoil of the fast paced lives that we lead and just appreciate the beauty of nature that surrounds us and the peace and quiet it offers to our tired bodies in order to be more in touch with God's voice in us. It is so refreshing it gives our minds and hearts a better view and perspective of how to live our lives. The same thing with our souls, we should always keep it clean, healthy and clothed with maximum security, protection but comfortable enough we don't even know it's there. Like it has become fused in us, there's nothing more right than following and obeying the law of God. Today's psalm reading guides us on how we should go about with our lives by always keeping in mind God's laws. None of us is perfect but through our imperfections we can always run to God for help and guidance. He will never refuse nor forsake us for He can only love and care for us. There are people who have alienated themselves from God and we can’t just force them to go back. God does not do that, it’s not how the Lord works, instead we pray and pray for them. If we wait long enough and adhere to God’s precepts then we will finally obtain joy in our hearts. As water prevails over the rock throughout the course of time so does the Holy Spirit that is continuously flooding or washing over the man’s heart. The Holy Spirit moves in and continues to work upon us and tenderizes us. The song entitled, "Your Words Are Spirit and Life" by Bernadette Farrell was impressed to me. It is a beautiful song that I have always loved to sing and I just realized that the words of this song are taken from this psalm which made me start singing it. Well, we just have to fully discover what the words of God can make us do. When things get out of hand we have no one to blame but ourselves for God is surely not lacking in everything that He has given us for our own welfare. We've got everything we need because there's nothing more that God could and should do for us that He has not done. All we have to do is completely trust and obey the judgments of the Lord. GOD'S LAW MAKES US LIVE A VIRTUOUS LIFE (CCC 1803 "Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.") May we truly recognize the genuine and precious treasures that we should all strive to achieve and work for which is none other than these things spoken of in today's psalm. Amen. Hallelujah!
Psalm 19:8, 9, 10, 15
R: The judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are just.
7 [8] The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul; the decree of the LORD is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple. (R) 8 [9] The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the command of the LORD is clear, enlightening the eye. (R) 9 [10] The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances of the LORD are true, all of them just. (R) 10 [11] They are more precious than gold, than a heap of purest gold; sweeter also than syrup or honey from the comb.
The gospel for today urges us once again to look beyond not only what the situation suggests but beyond the words being said to us by Jesus. The scribes were not only very shortsighted and but also short of hearing in the sense that they chose to entertain evil thoughts rather than on the most essential and most important things which are the only ones that could bring healing and fulfillment in our lives. Sometimes we fail to understand and see what the situation or words being said to us really meant. We should always think that God who is Holy and All Good can never be capable of willing something bad to happen to us. Although it is a truth that almost all Christian believers would agree to, it is not always the case when it comes to the kind of life we live. Sometimes our own lives do not reflect the faith that we profess. Just like the scribes in today's gospel who are supposed to be the learned and well versed when it comes to the word of God but failed to live it in their lives. We are also guilty of this despite our frequent attendance to prayer meetings, bible, Catholicism studies and having experienced and witnessed the wonders and miracles God has done in our life, still there is a moment when we succumb to despair and doubt. May we always focus on the goodness of God and disregard the evil tendencies and inclinations that we often harbor in ourselves. 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. God created us when we came out of the womb, our mothers and father have a great role in that but our creation continues every single day of our lives. We’re even becoming someone more beautiful, mature and stronger or someone weaker and more despicable. There’s no middle ground. We’re going one way or another. Life leads either to heaven or to hell. That’s what the acts that we commit do. Virtuous acts build in us strength. The word virtue comes from the word manly which is strength and power. Virtue is a habit that makes it easy and pleasurable to do the right thing. Golden virtue isn’t always easy. It is hard. But what is vice, it is a habit that makes it easy to do the wrong and evil thing. Let’s take exercise as an example. People make it their New Year’s resolution and people who go to the gym noticed that it’s packed on January but they’re gone by the 3rd week. If we’ve ever engaged in an exercise program for the first time, we know that we feel bad, tired, exhausted and wake up sore. This is because we do not have the habit of exercise. We have not trained and our bodies are not used to it. It hurts and it’s hard the first time we work out. If we persevere past the first few weeks and developed a habit of regular exercise then we end up getting used to it and become easy that when we don’t exercise we feel bad. What happens is that we build up the power or the virtue. We’ve conditioned ourselves so that it becomes second nature to us. If we want a progressive course we need to do something hard. No pain no gain. The next time we work out we add up a little bit more since we are stronger. We can move forward and grow in our ability to lift weights. This is the deal. The actions we do have an impact of what we are. It’s like when we start lifting weights we start to change and look different. We look like someone who has strength, power and endurance. This is the point, God is about building champions. The goal of the Christian life is to build champions. Well, not necessarily athletic champions but spiritually. A real champion in every aspect of life. God wants us to be strong, loving, wise and to have the power to live. It’s not so much what we do that counts but it’s who we become. That’s what the commandments, teachings and God is all about.
Heaven is the realization of being a champion. In heaven we will be glorified magnificently. We will live forever with strength, power and beauty sharing a new humanity with Jesus. What about hell? Let’s look what vice is about. A habit that instead of building up, deteriorates us. It starts small just like exercise. There was a guy named Ted Bundy, who was executed in the State of Florida for horrible sexual crimes, murder and all sorts of perversion. He was sorry for what he did. He didn’t ask for mercy but he warned people before he died. He was interviewed and narrated how did this road begin. It began with looking at pornographic books which incited in him the wrong kind of attitude towards other human beings and the opposite sex. It became in his mind, instruments and play things. One thing led to another and just gradually led him to murder, rape and all sorts of horrible things. That’s the way it is with every sin. Sins that we commit are traps and tricks that will lead us to habits and patterns of behavior that will change us. When we tell the first lie we may not be a liar yet but it makes a lot more prone to lie again. We start with kids maybe stealing a pack of candies from the store. If we don’t stop that, the next time it will be bigger. Maybe for teens it may be something like breaking in to a house and steal things. It just keeps on going and it becomes easier and easier to do more horrible things. Then we become a thief, an unjust person with just one little act. There’s a little thing that illustrates all these. Sow a thought, reap an act, sow an act, reap a habit, sow a habit, reap a lifestyle, sow a lifestyle, reap a destiny. It all begins with a decision or thought, an act and then it becomes a pattern. It has dared us to become who we are. There are 7 habits that have been identified for the last 2000 years that will lead us to success, excellence in every aspect of human life and holiness. The most important of human life is our relationship with God. But every other aspect like our relationship with other people, family, the way we are in the work place and all these things are governed by these 7 habits, patterns or qualities. These habits we can find in scriptures and see it in the life of saints. Even before God begin to reveal Himself to His people in Israel , human nature is smart and wise enough to see some things on its own. 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) 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. We can also find all the other 3 cardinal virtues, like justice which means giving each person his or her due. 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. We’ve got have all these things but here’s the problem. When Adam & Eve decided to sin they let loose a weakness into our race and nature that impacts all of us. We call it original sin. Sin is not so original, we just copy what other people have done. There’s nothing creative about sin. Adam & Eve’s sin was the only original sin. What they did has an impact on us. By weakening their own nature, sin weakened man’s nature. They passed on to us a weakened nature. They separated themselves and the whole human race from friendship with God and were born into that. There’s a tendency in our nature to go on a downward drift, a drift off course and a tendency to a great degree is dealt with through grace. How do we get grace? Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, God has made possible for us, healing of our humanity. He gives us other gifts, faith, hope and charity that make it possible for us to really have wisdom, justice, temperance and courage. Without faith, hope and charity in this life, no one can really become truly wise.
All throughout human history we see people who exercise these gifts. They may not be Christians, deeply spiritual people, or in a state of grace and can exercise some of these potentials here and there. But ultimately original sin means we are going to sin seriously and mess up. We need God’s grace for those 4 great virtues to be perfected. Faith, hope and charity are supernatural. These are things that human beings would never know that they need or could have without God giving them supernaturally that’s why they are called the theological virtues. We only know about them through divine revelation and we couldn’t know about them by reason. We can only have them through God’s grace. The theological virtues, faith, hope and charity are the crown of the first 4 cardinal virtues that transform and make them possible. God doesn’t want us just to be whole human beings and restore us to what Adam & Eve were when they blew it in the Garden. God wants us to be more than that. He wants to elevate our human nature and divinize it. He wants us to share in His own Divine nature. Charity is all about loving with God’s love. Loving as the 3 persons of the Holy Trinity love each other and sharing in that goes way beyond human nature. This is an incredible thing and call. It was only possible because God became man and we can share in his virtue. This is what the real Catholic life is all about. It’s not just about making it or going to heaven by the skin of your teeth after struggling. It’s about growing in holiness and becoming like Jesus all throughout our life, a champion not without struggles. As a matter of fact without the struggles we can never become a champion. But with victory and excellence not with hopelessness, despair and frustration. This is God’s desire for us which is a fantastic calling. The power to do this is given to us. It is by knowing the virtues and the habits of a champion. Amen. Hallelujah!
Matthew 9:1-8
...When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven.” At that, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said, “Why do you harbor evil thoughts? ...
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