Today's 1st reading tells us of the murder of Stephen, a holy and righteous man. What a way to die! Stephen did not have the slightest trace of anger and is full of forgiveness for those who stoned him. We should long to have this kind of disposition in life that even at the point of death he still begged for mercy and forgiveness not on his own behalf but for the very people who caused his death. It is an act of forgiving people even if they don't ask for it. The memory of Stephen's great love, faith and devotion to God has become a legacy to us, Christians. May our lives become an inspiration too for others to draw strength and courage the way Stephen did for Christians and non believers like Paul. Most especially for Saul who was later on called Paul since he was not a believer of Jesus yet during that time, in fact he was one of the feared persecutors of Christians. St. Paul or Saul as he was called originally was a part of it. It must have been a sight, just imagine he was being stoned to death and yet he visualizes and shouts of the glory of God. We have a lot to learn from the example of the life of Stephen especially during times when we encounter trials and hardships that may not even get close to losing our lives and dying a very cruel death like what happened to Stephen. We can learn a lot from our Church and Salvation History. In fact 1/2 of the people who became Catholic converts have delved into the study of History. It is His story, her story and our story. It has patterns, though it surprises really well. We have to discover the past, learn from what happened and be open to it. We need to know the faith and not be susceptible to lie. We are witnesses of what evil can do to people but behind all of those things, God is behind it. The gates of hell did not prevail, the Church remains protected. We have to know what can be learned from this to prevent similar things from happening again. Paul was a persecutor of Christians but he became a saint. His life progressed with his testimonies because he admitted to the killing of Christians and repented. He bore witness to Jesus Christ and revealed how great a Savior we have in Him. Have you ever seen anybody so peaceful and undisturbed even in the face of adversity? We still need to learn a lot from Stephen from today's 1st reading. He has shown us a perfect example of total trust in God. He did not just speak the works of God, he also worked with great wonders and signs. His entire being shows forth the glory of God that no one can deny. This reminds me of Fr. Arnel Celis whom I showed him my petal with the face of a cherubim, he said that I look like it. Whether it's true or not, is no longer important. What matters most is that we should all strive to be like Stephen who reflects the glory of God in his face. This makes me think that we should not only be conscious of our physical appearance which most of us are too concerned about. Although it is also right that we care for our temporal needs while we are still residents of this temporary world, all the more should we be conscious of looking after our spiritual needs to nourish and sustain our souls which is lasting and will enter into eternity. We wouldn't want to look deformed or ugly permanently when we come face to face with God our Creator. Physical beauty is fleeting and can only last for a lifetime or while still young whereas the beauty of our souls can withstand endless lifetimes and last for eternity. It should be our goal that someday people who look at us will be drawn to us because we have become living models of Christ before our fellowmen, beautiful inside and out. I pray that just like Stephen we will be filled with God's grace and power, show forth great wonders and signs and resemble the face of an angel. If we go through a lot of trouble just to look beautiful and handsome in the eyes of men how much more in the eyes of God. Amen. Hallelujah!
Acts 7:51-8:1a
Stephen, filled with grace and power, was working great wonders and signs among the people...filled with the holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, 56 and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” 57 But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together. 58 They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them”; and when he said this, he fell asleep. 8: 1 Now Saul was consenting to his execution.
God the Almighty has the power and final verdict over all things. Let us just trust God to allow things to happen in our lives whatever He deems best for us. Though the cross in Mt. Calvary Philippines as Pabasa give a sense of unexplainable joy. It made me realize that we are all so blessed to have a rich tradition to express our faith, hope and love in God. Although none of these things can ever be enough for a God who gave up His only Begotten Son to die on the cross. It helps develop a deeper faith just by being able to take part in such activities and see people still hold on to these practices to enrich their faith despite the cultural differences and the hectic schedules that so often get in the way. All of these devotions are done in the desire to honor God for what He suffered for our sake. The confidence of the martyrs in God did not waver up to the end. They stood firm in their faith and remained steadfast. I have read that the most critical point in our life is during the time of death because it is when a battle between good and evil is being waged over our soul. We might have heard of different stories of people about to die who were reported to have seen all sorts of vision. As we read the psalm for today may we find ourselves truly internalizing and believing the words thus visualizing the glory of God the way the saints and martyrs demonstrated for us during the critical hour of their life. We are a work in progress and we need to acknowledge our sins, mend our ways and surrender our life to the Lord. The world believes that it is foolish to believe what we can not see but we have to believe in what we do not see and face them all with faith, this is according to St. Thomas Aquinas. The testimony of those who believe help to build up our faith and the more witnesses we have the more solid it becomes. We look to the Gospel and see that there are so many witnesses and testimonies with very little variation. They speak of the truth of the life of Jesus. We have to accept everything that the Gospel tells us. With this great love that He offered to all of us, there is no doubt that God will make all things beautiful in our lives in His time. Our persistent cries and tears to God are always heard. God has given us very clear instructions from the very start. If only we will stick to it then we can be assured of a life lived to the full. We’ve got to have faith that of Abraham who believed even though his wife is with age that the one who made the promise is trustworthy. What God says is true and He does not lie. Padre Pio said that the most beautiful act of faith is one made with sacrifice and effort even in the presence of darkness. We have to believe that God has the best things in mind for us. If He allows some things that are not pleasant in life this is only to bring about the best. Although faith is not the best of the virtues, it is the rarest. Real faith inspires all actions and reveals God in everything. How rare is real faith next to danger. We sometimes feel that we do not see so much evidence of the reality of God. God does not give us so much light so that we are not forced to accept Him nor does He give too little that we can not find Him. He gives us just enough light so as to put to practice our faith. Nothing can ever frighten or scare us not even death if God is our stronghold. We can rely on so many things in this world like wealth, fame, power and success but only in the Lord can we find true security and satisfaction. There is no denying to the truth that we have a God who is always there for us whether in good or bad times. We can be assured that we can take comfort and hope in the Lord. Our enemies may be lurking from every side but we don't have to worry or be afraid. God is our refuge and strength. He can rescue us from the clutches of our persecutors and set us free. We should never have any doubt that God is able to do all things for our good for there is nothing more that He could do that He has not done. We should always be praising and thanking God in all circumstances knowing that God will always be there for us. He knows and sees all things much more than our limited points of view and angles of reference. God can view things in a multidimensional level while we can only see a single or at most double dimension. If we are looking at a not so pleasant view trust that God can see a better view than what is before us. If we have experienced an almost dangerously impossible situation wherein escape and deliverance seemed to be farfetched then we are in a worst case scenario. Believe it or not, this kind of situation could drive anyone to panic. Even the most steadfast in the faith community could succumb to anxiety and fear with regards to such situation. In fact, it could even come to a point where the most steadfast may go to a certain extent of negotiating for the sake of the lesser evil. It is this type of experience that could turn out to be unforgettable and could forever be etched in our mind not only because of the trouble and difficulty we went through but most of all the love and concern we experienced and witnessed from people in the community. Although it could indeed be a frightening experience when we could have just chosen to give up and succumb to the obviously convenient option for the sake of getting it over and done with but didn't for the sake of the truth of God. If we do then we would find that it is all worth it even though we have to learn some lessons in life the hard way. It is evident that the harder the situation we are in all the more could we feel God's ever reliable and strong hands secured all around us. We can not deny it and should always believe that God's truth and saving power prevails at all times. We look to God always in the midst of all the turmoil. No matter how long and hard we try to search for happiness outside God we can only find it in Him as St. Augustine says, “My soul is restless until it rests in Thee." Only with Him do we find rest, fulfillment and satisfaction. Let us trust God in His divine providence and goodness that He will never abandon nor forsake us. He will rescue us at all times for He can turn back or fast forward the hands of time for everything is right on time with God. He is the God of the eternal now. With this great love that He offered to all of us, there is no doubt that God will make all things beautiful in our lives in His time. Amen. Hallelujah!
Psalm 31:3cd-4, 6, 7b, 8a, 17, 21ab
R: Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.
2 [3] Be my rock of refuge, a stronghold to give me safety. 3 [4] You are my rock and my fortress; for your name’s sake you will lead and guide me. (R) 5 [6] Into your hands I commend my spirit; you will redeem me, O LORD, O faithful God. 6 [7] My trust is in the LORD; 7 [8] I will rejoice and be glad of your mercy. (R) 16 [17] Let your face shine upon your servant; save me in your kindness. 20 [21] You hide them in the shelter of your presence from the plottings of men.
What Jesus said in today's gospel is very true. If we always draw near Him, seek Him and come to Him then He in turn draws near to us, makes Himself available to us and stays with us. If this is so then there is nothing more we need for we will never thirst nor hunger for anything else. It is just like we are sitting at the right hand of God and someday we will. Only Jesus can satisfy our souls. He is fortified with all the essential things we ever need in our lives for everything that we long for can only be fulfilled by Him. He who has God wants nothing. Every human heart longs and desires for something that can satisfy us. A sick person follows what the doctor says in order to prolong his or her life. Fr. Leo Clifford in his reflections in EWTN narrated the story of "My Fair Lady" or the famous play "Pygmalion". Pygmalion is the legendary Greek story of a sculptor who fell in love with his sculpture which was turned into a play and inspired George Bernard Shaw to write a similar story. It was about a young lady named Eliza who was taken out of the rut and placed in a pedestal. We should realize that like Eliza we have also been taken out of the rut and made partakers of the Divine Nature of God in Baptism. God created us and fell deeply in love with us. If there's one truth that should never leave our minds then this is it. We are placed in a pedestal and sharing God's own life through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. The nature of Jesus’ death on Calvary is a sacrifice. All Christians recognize this sacrifice as a mystery. That Jesus offered His life on the cross as a supreme sacrifice but most Christians don’t realize how difficult it would have been for 1st century Jewish Christians to come to that conclusion. Why? If we were there on Calvary on Good Friday even the most devout Jewish disciples would have been unable to describe that experience as a sacrifice because for them there’s really nothing more to it than a Roman execution. It took place outside of the walls of Jerusalem , far from the place where there were no burnt offerings, odors and no priests and thus there is no sacrifice. And yet in one generation all Christians came to conclude that indeed what Jesus suffered on the cross was the supreme sacrifice. How did they reach such a conclusion? Only by looking at Good Friday in a light of what Jesus did on Maundy Thursday. When He instituted the Eucharist He didn’t simply celebrate the feast of the Passover He established the Passover of the New Covenant and it was more than just words. He took bread and said, this is my body which is given up for you and then he took the chalice and spoke about how His blood of the new and everlasting covenant will be poured out for the remission of sins as we do this in remembrance of Him. Was this just a rhetoric and ritual or is there a reality and truth to what Jesus said and did? The proof that Jesus really gave us His body and allowed his blood to be poured out for the remission of sins is precisely given to us there on the cross. But the nature of Jesus’ death on the cross is illuminated as a sacrifice only by retracing and looking at it in the light of the Passover of the new covenant. The Eucharist and Calvary are inseparable. There are 2 sides to the same sacrifice. Jesus shows us that in His death He did not lose His life for in the Eucharist He already made His life a gift of love. This love is what conquers death and the conquest of death is what occurs on Good Friday. As Catholics we have a lot to teach other Christians who do not understand the mystery of the Mass. For indeed it’s the Eucharist that illuminates the mystery of Jesus’ death as a sacrifice just as Jesus’ death shows us that the Eucharist is more than just mere ritual but is the mystery of Jesus high priestly act of self giving love. Amen. Hallelujah!
John 6:30-35
...So Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” So they said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”
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