Reflection for May 25, Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter: John 16:12-15

Gospel: John 16:12-15

Jesus said to his disciples: “I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth. He will not speak on his own, but he will speak what he hears, and will declare to you the things that are coming.  

He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. Everything that the Father has is mine; for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.”

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Reflection:

The story is told of a prayerful wife who would always make the first move to reconcile with her husband whenever they had misunderstandings. In their twenty-five years of marriage, it was always she who humbly initiated reconciliation. And each time, by the grace of God, she was successful in her peace offerings toward her husband.

Who moves her heart to reconcile? It is the Holy Spirit. He gently guides her, speaks to her soul, and whispers to her mind, urging her to be humble and make the first move. Why does she listen? Because she is prayerful. In silence and in prayer, she discerns and recognizes the voice of the Holy Spirit.

God the Holy Spirit is our Advocate, our Comforter, our Divine Companion—ever present with us since the moment of our Baptism. His presence was sealed and deepened within us during our Confirmation. Yet sadly, not all of us are aware of His loving presence dwelling in our hearts.

The Holy Spirit is always there—ready to guide, to console, to lead us back to the path of peace and holiness. But why are we often unaware of Him? Because many of us do not live prayerfully. A heart that prays is a heart that hears. It is through a life of prayer that we begin to recognize the gentle stirrings of the Holy Spirit within us.

Are you living a prayerful life? Are you aware of the sacred and constant presence of the Holy Spirit in your life? If not yet, begin today. Start praying, even in small, quiet moments—and slowly but surely, your heart will awaken to the beautiful awareness of the Holy Spirit’s presence and guidance in your life. — Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for May 24, Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter: John 16:5-11

Gospel: John 16:5-11

Jesus said to his disciples: "Now I am going to the one who sent me, and not one of you asks me, 'Where are you going?' But because I told you this, grief has filled your hearts. But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you.  

But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes he will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and condemnation: sin, because they do not believe in me; righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no longer see me; condemnation, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.

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Reflection:

Are you afraid of separation? 

There’s a sense of melancholy in the words of Jesus in our gospel for today. He tells the disciples: “Now I am going to the one who sent me.” Just imagine the effect of these words to the disciples. Their teacher, leader, healer, father figure and close confidant would suddenly be leaving their presence? 

But Jesus will not be leaving them holding an empty bag because He is promising them the abiding presence of the Advocate or the Holy Spirit. The advocate who will always be there to guide them in every step of the way as they do their mission.  

Someday we will also be leaving this world. Through death our mortal being will vanish from the sight of our loved ones and friends. And surely there will be grief and loneliness as well. But our legacy would hopefully remain enduring and we hope that we would leave a lasting imprint in the hearts of the people whom we have been acquainted.  

This is the reality of life. There’s a time for everything in this world but we need not worry. For so long as we believe in Jesus we have nothing to worry. – Marino J. Dasmarinas  

Reflection for May 23, Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter: John 15:26-16:4a

Gospel: John 15:26-16:4a

(Jesus said to his disciples) “When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, he will testify to me. And you also testify, because you have been with me from the beginning. 

“I have told you this so that you may not fall away. They will expel you from the synagogues; in fact, the hour is coming when everyone who kills you will think he is offering worship to God. They will do this because they have not known either the Father or me. I have told you this so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you.”

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Reflection:

Who is the advocate of your life? 

We know that the Advocate is the Holy Spirit, It moves our lives; it whispers to us to always do good. And we listen to what it tells us for what it tells us is for our own good. However, not everyone knows the Holy Spirit, not everyone listens to it and not everyone feels its presence. 

We have a role to accomplish to those who don’t know and feel the presence and role of the Holy Spirit/Advocate. And what is our role? Our role is to introduce the advocate to them. We gently  educate and guide them we gently advice them about the advocate. 

Thus, we give them something that they could hold on forever no other than the Holy Spirit. And when they already have an awareness we take a backseat and let it move in their life. 

We are the visible representation of Jesus in this world. Our fellowmen will know Jesus through our exercise of love, gentleness and humility. By these acts we give them an awareness of the presence of the advocate. 

We therefore have to always be like Jesus. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for Sunday May 22, Sixth Sunday of Easter: John 14:23-29

Gospel: John 14:23-29

Jesus said to his disciples: “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me.

“I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. 

Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. You heard me tell you, ‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe.”

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Reflection:

How deep is our love for Jesus?

Do we express our deep love for Jesus by sacrificing our own needs and ambitions for the sake of the propagation of the teachings of Jesus? Do we love Jesus by way of allowing Him to take the center stage and we are simply content to be in the backstage? Do we love Jesus by doing things for His glory and not for our own earthly glorification?

If we truly love Jesus we would be willing to forgo whatever this world demands from us for the sake of Jesus. For example the demand of this world to be materially successful or to be powerful and influential. Because the truest form of love for Jesus is when we have already accepted to follow His demands and desires for us. Instead of us following our own desires and our own demand for ourselves.    

There’s always a struggle for supremacy within us, should it be our own supremacy or the supremacy of Jesus. The wisdom filled choice is to allow Jesus to reign supreme in our life by doing so we show Jesus the depth of our love for Him.

However,  there would be times that our love for the Lord will bring us hardship and challenges. Let us not worry about that because God will send us an advocate or helper who will always be there to guide and help us. For the reason that we are never alone in this world as we do our part for the mission of Jesus. 

There is always that ethereal being who will suddenly come into our lives to make things easy for us when it seems hard. To bring sunshine into our lives when cloud of darkness are before us and who will bring us to the right way when we seem to have lost our way. And that somebody is the advocate which God generously gives to those who are faithful to Him.    – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for May 21, Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter: John 15:18-21

Gospel: John 15:18-21

Jesus said to his disciples: “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you.  

Remember the word I spoke to you, ‘No slave is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. And they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me.”

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Reflection:

There were two brothers who had two different motivations in life. One aspired to become rich and the other one had simple aspirations. His only aim was to serve God in whatever capacity and then live a simple and quite life.  

After forty years both of them were retired already the one who became worldly was very envious of his brother. This is for the reason that the brother who served the church had a settled and peaceful life than him.  

Jesus in our gospel gives us the two pathways of life that we could choose: The worldly life or a peaceful life with Him. By virtue of our baptism Jesus had already called us to tread the peaceful and simple life with Him.  

This has always been His desire for all of us but many of us chose not to follow this plan of God. Thus, we create our own selfish plan for ourselves and we embrace the chaotic and problematic life of this world. We all know what will happen to all of us once we chose to embrace the life of this world. - Marino J. Dasmarinas 

1Reflection for May 20, Friday of the Fifth Week of Easter: John 15:12-17

Gospel: John 15:12-17

Jesus said to his disciples: “This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. 

I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another.”

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Reflection:

What would happen if we follow this love commandment of Jesus?  

There would be no more betrayal, hatred and separation amongst married couples only love. But the sad reality is we choose to turn a deaf ear to this love commandment of the Lord. For the simple reason that we love ourselves more than we love Jesus and our fellowmen.  

There’s a saying that before we give love we have to love ourselves first. For how would we know how to give love if we have not experienced loving ourselves first? However this statement does not jibe on how Jesus interprets love or on how Jesus gives the purest meaning of love.  

For Jesus to love is not to love oneself first, to love is to lay down ones life for the beloved, for Jesus to love is to forgive the many hurts that has been hurled and inflicted upon us by our beloved. For at the end of the day if we love the way Jesus loves us what would remain is love no hatred but only love.  

But how do we love? We love selectively and we love with measure, we calibrate the love that we give by the love that we receive. And we oftentimes do not love our fellowmen when they do not fulfill our selfish expectation for them. Let us love without condition and let us love without expecting love in return for this is how Jesus loved us.  

 How do you love?  -  Marino J. Dasmarinas  

Reflection for May 19, Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter: John 15:9-11

Gospel: John 15:9-11

Jesus said to his disciples: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.  

“I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete.”

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Reflection:               

How can we remain within the loop of God’s love? It’s by doing good all the time and by not going against the commandments of God (Exodus 20:1-17) (Matthew 22:36-40).  When we break the commandments we momentarily are cut-off from the love of God. Until such time that we repent for what we did.  In the church repentance is done by humbly submitting ourselves to the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  

It’s very important for us to remain in God’s love because this is the ideal life or perfect life so to speak. But there’s no ideal life for we are all imperfect beings created by a perfect God. So what should we do when we sin? We have to make amends immediately we have to humble ourselves before God and to the person that we have offended.  

We can just imagine a life cut-off from the love of God or cut-off from the person that we love. What kind of life would that be? It’s a life without peace and tranquility and a life open wide for the devil to create havoc in our life.  

Let us take advantage of this healing love of God, because this is always available for us. Who would not want peace and tranquility in his/her life? We all want it certainly! Therefore we should try our very best to remain within the loop of God’s love. If we transgress it we should have the humility to ask for forgiveness from God and from the person that we have offended. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for May 18, Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Easter: John 15:1-8

Gospel: John 15:1-8

Jesus said to his disciples: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you.  

Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.  

Anyone who does not remain in me will be thrown out like a branch and wither; people will gather them and throw them into a fire and they will be burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you. By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”

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Reflection:

There is a story about a rich man who does not believe in Jesus, he is a self-made rich man so to speak. He attributes every success that he has to himself alone never on Jesus. His friends believed him for they saw how he worked very hard to achieve his vast fortune. Until he went through a severe financial misfortune wherein he lost everything that he owned.  

In his lowliness and nothingness he suddenly thought of his relative who was a man of God. He went to him and asked for his wise counsel. He was advised to always connect with Jesus through his frequent presence in the Eucharistic celebration/Holy Mass and by regularly reading the bible.  

This man who once was very averse to the Holy Mass and the Bible became a regular Mass attendee and has formed a habit of regularly reading the bible. True enough, he regained and eventually surpassed everything that he lost.  

Jesus in this Sunday’s gospel exhorts us to remain in Him. Why?  Because apart from Him we are nothing, no matter how rich and learned we are. We are still nothing because we are not connected with Jesus.  

The money that we have it can fly away from our possession anytime. The learning/knowledge that we have, it will escape our mind once we become senile. But if we remain with Jesus we are assured with something that is way beyond possession and learning. Time will come that we will leave this world, our possession neither our knowledge no matter how vast will not be able to give us eternal life.  

There are those who live for today only and for this world only. They work hard to amass wealth; they seriously study to accumulate learning. Only to discover that something very important is still lacking in their lives. They search and endlessly search for it until they end up holding an empty bag because they’ve not found the true vine that is Jesus.   

Let us seriously think about what Jesus wants to convey to us through our gospel: “Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.” (John 15:4-5) – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for May 17, Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter: John 14:27-31a

Gospel: John 14:27-31a

Jesus said to his disciples: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. You heard me tell you, ‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’  

If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe. I will no longer speak much with you, for the ruler of the world is coming. He has no power over me, but the world must know that I love the Father and that I do just as the Father has commanded me.”

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Reflection:

What is the peace that Jesus speaks about in the gospel and can we also have this peace within us?  

The peaceful feeling that Jesus is talking about in the gospel is already within many of us, we feel it in the deepest recesses of our being. This is the reason why we are very much ready for whatever that may happen to us. We are not even afraid anymore to die because we acknowledge this gift of peace by Jesus.  

But while we are still alive and kicking in this world Jesus is entrusting us with a mission. And this mission is to help Him extend this gift of peace to those who do not have it yet.  Many are still not aware of this gift of peace by Jesus thus we must not sit idly. We must do something so that our fellowmen will know this wonderful gift by Jesus.  

Where would we start? Start within our domestic church that is our very own family circle. Let us strengthen their spirits and give them hope by sharing Jesus with them. We may not know it but there may be members of our family who are losing hope already because of their life struggles.  

We have everything to gain and nothing to lose if we would share and live Jesus with them. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for May 16, Monday of the Fifth Week of Easter: John 14:21-26

Gospel: John 14:21-26

Jesus said to his disciples:“ Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.” Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him, “Master, then what happened that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?” 

Jesus answered and said to him, “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me.  

“I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.”

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Reflection:

How do we convey our love for Jesus? Do we love Him through our words alone or through our words and deeds? The ideal expression of love for Jesus is love through words and deeds. By loving Jesus we also receive love from Him love that is far more than the love that we give Him.  

For example in marriage, if a man or a woman would express his/her love through words and deeds. He/she would receive more love than what he/she gives. This is the miracle of love that originates from God’s love for His only begotten Son which Jesus channels  to us.  

As we express love to our spouse, relative, friend or to a stranger. Let us not only convey it with words. Let us put deeds into it for this is how Jesus loved us. Jesus did not only express His love for us through His words. He reinforced it by giving His very life for us on the cross. 

Let us be assured that when we give love we would also receive love. Love that is more than the love that we give. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for Sunday May 15, Fifth Sunday of Easter: John 13:31-33a, 34-35

Gospel: John 13:31-33a, 34-35

When Judas had left them, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and God will glorify him at once. My children, I will be with you only a little while longer. I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

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Reflection:

A Wife was distraught upon discovering that her husband had fathered a child outside of their marriage. She confronted him, the husband admitted his sin and asked for forgiveness but she never forgave him for what he did.  

There’s an absence of true love in this story otherwise the wife could have forgiven the  betrayal of her husband. And they could have started afresh as if nothing happened. But such is our attitude we oftentimes harbor in our hearts hatred instead of love and forgiveness.  

When Jesus told the apostles to love one another He meant that their love for each other must be like His love for them. And what is the love of Jesus? It’s a love that forgives, a love that is not dependent on the love that it receives. A love that doesn’t count the cost of loving and a love that is very much willing sacrifice.   

Perhaps, what Jesus wants to convey to us is we should try our very best to love as He loves. To love without counting the cost of loving and to love by being ready to suffer for the person that we love. Some of us may say that this kind of love doesn’t fit anymore our social media driven times today where love and sex are not anymore regarded with sacredness by many. But it’s still relevant today as it was relevant during Jesus’ time in this world. In fact, this love commandment of Jesus to His apostles is not hindered by the limitation of time.

When you love as Jesus loves you would also be willing to forgive no matter how deep the wound that it caused you. You would be willing to bury the past and let bygones be bygones. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Ang Mabuting Balita para sa Linggo Mayo 15, Ikalimang Linggo ng Pasko ng Muling Pagkabuhay: Juan 13:31-33a, 34-35

Mabuting Balita: Juan 13:31-33a, 34-35

Pagkaalis ni Judas mula sa Huling Hapunan, sinabi ni Jesus, "Ngayo'y mahahayag na ang karangalan ng Anak ng Tao; at mahahayag din ang karangalan ng Diyos sa pamamagitan niya. At kung mahayag na ang karangalan ng Diyos, ang Diyos naman ang maghahayag ng karangalan ng Anak, at gagawin niya ito agad. Mga anak, kaunting panahon na lamang ninyo akong makakasama.

Isang bagong utos ang ibinibigay ko sa inyo: mag-ibigan kayo! Kung paanong inibig ko kayo, gayon din naman, mag-ibigan kayo. Kung kayo'y mag-iibigan, makikilala ng lahat na kayo'y mga alagad ko."

Reflection for Saturday May 14, Feast of Saint Matthias, Apostle: John 15:9-17

Gospel: John 15:9-17

Jesus said to his disciples: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.  

“I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing.  

I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another.”

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Reflection:

What is an ideal life in this world? It’s a life that is forever attached to the love of God. Without attachment to the love of God life would simply be empty, barren and meaningless. The love of God is the essence of life for we were not born to love this world. We came into this world to live and love God.    

Let us think about loving this world more than God and we only create emptiness in our lives we end up with nothing except emptiness. It’s a fact of life that everything that is in this world is temporary: wealth, power and the like. All of these we will leave behind or will eventually leave us, but the love of God will always be there for us.  

What matters is the love of God nothing else but the love of God. It’s no brainer therefore why Jesus is telling us to remain in His love. For if we always remain in the love of God we would be able to hurdle whatever trials that may come our way. And we would be able to conquer whatever fears that we may have even the fear of death.  

Would you embrace this love that the Lord is offering you? – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for May 13, Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter: John 14:1-6

Gospel: John 14:1-6

Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.  

Where I am going you know the way.” Thomas said to him, “Master, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

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Reflection:

There were two senior citizens who were near death one was a believer the other was not. The non-believer was deeply troubled on what would happen to his soul when he dies. The believer was very calm and was not afraid to die. 

There are those who dread the mere mention of death as if it’s a plague that needs to be avoided. But no matter how hard we avoid death using our wealth and power we cannot escape it because it’s a certain fact of life and it’s the rite of passage for the next life.  

In the gospel Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places (John 14:1-2).” Therefore, Jesus is assuring us that we already have a place reserved for us there someday.  

But we are still here in this world and the big question is can we be there someday to be with our Lord? Nobody knows about it except the Lord, what we have to do is to simply follow His teachings.  

We do it not to buy our way to His Father’s house; we follow His teachings because that’s what the Lord wants us to do. Then, when our time comes we simply submit our fate to Him.  – Marino J. Dasmarinas