Reflection for Monday November 13, Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, Virgin: Luke 17:1-6

Gospel: Luke 17:1-6

Jesus said to his disciples, "Things that cause sin will inevitably occur, but woe to the one through whom they occur. It would be better for him if a millstone were put around his neck and he be thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he wrongs you seven times in one day and returns to you seven times saying, 'I am sorry,' you should forgive him."

And the Apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith." The Lord replied, "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you."

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Reflection:

A woman wants her faith to increase she practically did everything to have it. She went to church regularly, read the bible and she did a devotion to the blessed Mother. However, she noticed that her faith did not increase.

She even shouted, “Increase my faith O Lord” but there was no increase in her faith. In fact she noticed that her faith was actually diminishing because she was more trusting on herself than the Good Lord. Why?  For the simple reason that she remained arrogant towards her relatives and friends. She always wants to have her way in everything that she does: in short there was no change in her egotistical behavior.

What must we do then for us to have an increase in our faith? We must be humble at all times, before God and before our fellowmen. We must trust God more than we trust ourselves. We attract graces (including the grace of faith) if we are humble and if we bow our heads before God.

When we’re humble and more trusting in God it simply means that we’re opening ourselves for heavenly graces. That God pours to those who are always ready to accept it with humility. What happens if we’re arrogant and we trust more on ourselves? We’re shutting ourselves from God blessings, that’s how plain and simple it is.

We cannot anymore fill a glass full of water, this is the arrogant and self-trusting person but we can certainly pour more water to a half-empty glass, this is the person who trusts and humbles himself before God. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Sunday, November 12, Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time; Matthew 25:1-13

Gospel: Matthew 25:1-13

Jesus told his disciples this parable: “The Kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked. Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

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Reflection:

Is there a magic word for a successful marriage? Yes, there is and the magic word is preparation. When a couple decides to marry they have to ensure that they plunge into the marriage covenant prepared.

They have to be prepared spiritually by putting God at the center of their lives. They have to be prepared for the emotional and financial stress that they will be going through. They have to be prepared to swallow their own prides/egos. If there are no preparations their marriage will break apart sooner or later.

In the gospel the five foolish virgins went unprepared to meet the bridegroom. They have no knowledge of the time of the bridegroom’s arrival yet they did not bring extra oil for their lamps.

So, when news came that the bridegroom had arrived.  The five who were unprepared went out for a while to buy oil. But upon coming back nobody was present anymore. For the bridegroom and the five wise virgins were already at the wedding feast. Despite knocking at the door and begging to be allowed entry the door was not opened for them.

Preparation is important in any event of life. For example, a student who prepares for an examination would be able to pass. A soldier who prepares for war will be able to fight properly.

A Priest who prepares for his homily will be able to touch and change hearts and minds.  And a person who has months to live and who prepares for his death will be able to die without excess baggage in his heart.

Should you also prepare for your ascent to heaven someday? – Marino J. Dasmarinas  

Reflection for Saturday November 11, Saint Martin of Tours, Bishop: Luke 16:9-15

Gospel: Luke 16:9-15

Jesus said to his disciples: “I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours? No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all these things and sneered at him. And he said to them, “You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts; for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God.”

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Reflection:

What is the true wealth that Jesus speaks about in the gospel?

The dishonest wealth such as money, possessions, power and the like are temporary, fake and passing. And if we are not careful on handling this dishonest wealth it may possess and eventually destroy us or we may destroy others just to possess it.

The true wealth is Jesus himself! Let us strive: To seek Him and to know more about Him. To have a personal relationship with Him and to share our knowledge about Him. We cannot have dishonest and true wealth at the same time we have to choose which one do we want.

If you would choose dishonest wealth it will certainly satisfy your earthly cravings which by the way is bounded by time. So you enjoy it until such time that you leave it or it leaves you. And then you end up with nothing but misery.

If we have the true and everlasting wealth that is Jesus; we will not anymore be looking for the temporary/dishonest wealth.  For the simple reason that you already possess the greatest wealth that one could ever have in this world and beyond this world. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Friday November 10, Saint Leo the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church: Luke 16:1-8

Gospel: Luke 16:1-8

Jesus said to his disciples, “A rich man had a steward who was reported to him for squandering his property. 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.’ 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. I know what I shall do so that, when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their homes.’ He called in his master’s debtors one by one. To the first he said, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 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.’ Then to another he said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘One hundred measures 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 the children of light.

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Reflection:
Do you think of creative ideas so that you could advance more the teachings of the Lord?

The steward in our gospel is creative enough to devise a scheme to ensure his survival after he is out of job. He discounted all the debtors payment, what a clever move but the downside is he did this to ensure only his survival.

What if he did the same but with the end in mind that he was doing this so that the debtors would know how generous and friendly is his master?  So that when his master eventually comes to visit his debtors they would warmly welcome him. But he did this for his own benefit.

This is a very good reminder for all of us who profess to follow Jesus. Who are presently doing the mission of Christ or who are aspiring to evangelize the teachings of Jesus. Let us do it not to serve our selfish ends; let us rather always do evangelization to serve the purpose of Christ. So that people would know Jesus more than they would know us.

Someday when our lives in this world is over and done with,  there shall be an accounting of what we have done in this world. God will ask us: What have you done during your lifetime? How shall we answer God by that time?

Shall we say then that we have shared the many gifts that He has given us? Or we will be mum and speechless because we have not lived a productive life in terms of sharing the gifts that God had given us.

Some of us will say that how can we share our time when we hardly have time for ourselves. This is a very self-serving statement because if we really desire to share we will be able to share.

It all boils down to desire; if we really want to share what we have we can make it happen. Let us all remember that there shall be an accounting of what we’ve done during our tour of duty in this world. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Thursday November 9, Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica: John 2:13-22

Gospel: John 2:13-22

Since the Passover of the Jews was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers seated there. He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables, and to those who sold doves he said, "Take these out of here, and stop making my Father's house a marketplace." His disciples recalled the words of Scripture, Zeal for your house will consume me. At this the Jews answered and said to him, "What sign can you show us for doing this?" Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up." The Jews said, "This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and you will raise it up in three days?" But he was speaking about the temple of his Body. Therefore, when he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they came to believe the Scripture and the word Jesus had spoken.

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Reflection:

Do you still revere and respect the church as the temple of God?

Nowadays the church is not only used solely for worship and prayer. Some churches sometimes are used for rumor mongering, for business opportunities and sometimes sad to say it’s used as a trysting place for lovers.

And who are they? Some of them are the people who are directly involved in the church. They are not the ordinary Mass goer but those who spend time and do volunteer work for the church.  

Another temple that Jesus wants to speak about is our very own bodies which is the temple of the Holy Spirit. What have we done to our bodies? What are the values that we feed and conjure in our minds? Those who could afford take medicines to change the color of their skin. They also go to the doctor to beautify some noticeable parts of their bodies for them to look attractive.

Jesus wants to remind us about the real purpose of the church.  It's always a temple of worship and a safe refuge for the poor, for those who are lost and losing hope. We also have to accept our bodies and the color of our skin as God gave it to us. 

Nevermind if you are not attractive outside what is important is you are beautiful and Godly inside. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Wednesday November 8, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 14:25-33

Gospel: Luke 14:25-33

Great crowds were traveling with Jesus, and he turned and addressed them, “If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. Which of you wishing to construct a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if there is enough for its completion?

Otherwise, after laying the foundation and finding himself unable to finish the work the onlookers should laugh at him and say, ‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.’ Or what king marching into battle would not first sit down and decide whether with ten thousand troops he can successfully oppose another king advancing upon him with twenty thousand troops? But if not, while he is still far away, he will send a delegation to ask for peace terms. In the same way, anyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.”

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Reflection:

How many of us could say that I will be willing to follow Jesus based on His conditions stated on this gospel?

Here are Jesus conditions: Hate your parents, children, siblings and even your own life (hate not as hate per see) hate which means that you choose Jesus over them. Very hard to do isn’t it?  Another condition of Jesus: carry your own cross and renounce all your possessions to be able to follow Him.

Jesus lays down to us the true cost of discipleship, could we measure to these standards of Jesus? Perhaps you and I can’t but this should not stop us from seeking HIM. Then hopefully by HIS infinite grace we would be able to prioritize HIM over anything else in this world.

It doesn’t matter how many times we stumble with our desire to faithfully follow HIM. What matters is we get up after we fall and once again try our very best to follow Him and hope for His eternal grace to strengthen and guide us.

Jesus conditions for us today are actually a contradiction on how other preachers preach Jesus. Jesus is preached by many as someone who is a cure all God and savior. They do this for the reason that this is the best way for them to immediately attract followers.

But the reality of it all is this: We have to sacrifice our comfort zones.  And we have to leave behind us our worldly priorities so that we would be able to sincerely follow and serve Jesus.

Are you ready to sacrifice your own comfort zone and leave behind some of your worldly priorities in favor of Jesus? – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Tuesday November 7, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 14:15-24

Gospel: Luke 14:15-24

One of those at table with Jesus said to him, "Blessed is the one who will dine in the Kingdom of God." He replied to him, "A man gave a great dinner to which he invited many. When the time for the dinner came, he dispatched his servant to say to those invited, 'Come, everything is now ready.' But one by one, they all began to excuse themselves. The first said to him, 'I have purchased a field and must go to examine it; I ask you, consider me excused.' And another said, 'I have purchased five yoke of oxen and am on my way to evaluate them; I ask you, consider me excused.' And another said, 'I have just married a woman, and therefore I cannot come.' The servant went and reported this to his master. Then the master of the house in a rage commanded his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in here the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame.' The servant reported, 'Sir, your orders have been carried out and still there is room.' The master then ordered the servant, 'Go out to the highways and hedgerows and make people come in that my home may be filled. For, I tell you, none of those men who were invited will taste my dinner.'"

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Reflection:

A young mother was always being advised by her father to always bring her children to church for Mass. The young mother would always reason out that they have many preoccupations. When her children grew up they became disrespectful to her. All of them did not finish their studies and were not successful in their personal lives.

The celebration of Holy Mass is always an invitation for all of us to be there. Nobody is barred from attending its celebration but unfortunately not everyone of us responds to this invitation. And our usual reason is we also have our many concerns. Thus our presence at Holy Mass becomes the least of our priorities.

Let us not wait for the time when we become old and sickly to make time for God through our attendance in the Holy Mass. Let us take advantage to always be there while we are still in the pink of health.

At the end of our lives, our worldly achievement will not matter anymore no matter how significant it is, it will not matter anymore. What will matter then is our personal relationship with Jesus. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for Monday November 6, Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 14:12-14

Gospel: Luke 14:12-14

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees. He said to the host who invited him, "When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or sisters or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

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Reflection:

Who are those that you normally invite to dine in your house? Of course your friends and relatives for this is our normal human nature and there’s nothing wrong with this. But Jesus points us to something that we often neglect, something that we often times purposely forget. And they’re the poor and unwanted; Jesus is pointing us to them for that is where He dwells.

Jesus’ contradicts you on how you normally invite people to dine in your house. Isn’t that you have not yet invited a poor stranger to dine for lunch or dinner? Yes, you have given food to the poor but you haven’t invited someone yet to dine in your house.

Why is it important to invite somebody who is poor to come and dine in your house? This is for the reason the you’re not only inviting the poor you are also opening your house to God. Hard to believe? Just try inviting someone who is poor to come into your house. Let him/her eat and give him/her whatever you could afford. And observe the unfathomable joy that it will give you.

In the story of the last judgment the King said: Whenever you did this to one of the least, you did this to me (Matthew 25:40). – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for Sunday, November 5, Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time; Matthew 23:1-12

Gospel: Matthew 23:1-12

Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying, “The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues, greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation Rabbi. As for you, do not be called Rabbi. You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers. Call no one on earth your father you have but one Father in heaven. Do not be called ‘Master’ you have but one master, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

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Reflection:

A father would always remind his wife and his young children to attend Sunday Mass. But the problem is the father would not lead the way. He commands his family to go to Mass yet he does not go to Mass. The father miserably fails in his leadership by not living what he preaches. 

How could you become an effective sharer of your faith? It’s by being a living example of your faith. You also have to be sincere by doing what you preach. For example, if you want your family to go to Holy Mass you first have to lead and show the way.

What does this mean? You yourself have to go to Mass, you should be the first to wake up and dress up. it’s through these acts of leadership that you would win the respect and cooperation of your family.      

In the gospel for this Sunday Jesus speaks about leadership by example and servanthood. This seems to be a contradiction for how could be a leader be a servant at the same time? However, there is no contradiction between these two. They go together like best friends for the simple reason that one cannot exist without the other.

The Pharisees and Scribes were chastised by Jesus for trumpeting themselves as leaders. However, they were leaders in name only for they did not walk their talk and they did not serve the people that they were supposed to serve.

You might be a leader today or you might aspire for a leadership position somewhere along the way. You have to remember that a true leader always shows and leads the way. And He/she is always ready to serve the people that he/she leads. – Marino J. Dasmarinas  

Reflection for Saturday November 4, Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop: Luke 14:1, 7-11

Gospel: Luke 14:1, 7-11

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully.

He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table. “When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the place of honor. A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him, and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then you would proceed with embarrassment to take the lowest place. Rather, when you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, ‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’ Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

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Reflection:

A story is told about a wise man who shunned publicity. He would speak every once in a while and when he speaks everyone listens to him. After speaking he would immediately hide away into his own private place. Yet there would be rare times that he grants interviews and when he does he would always point to God as the giver of whatever wisdom that he possesses.

Many of us may be tempted to own to ourselves the wisdom or material wealth that we presently have. But we should not allow ourselves to be possessed by that temptation, for who are we to own to ourselves what we have? We have to always remember that we are mere vessels of God, whatever we have comes from God.   

In the gospel, Jesus highlights the great virtue of humility. Jesus tells us to always be humble and not to crave for attention and adulation. Why? For the simple reason that the humbler we are the more that Jesus is seen within us. The humbler we are the more the we become His effective vessels in this world.

The humbler you are the more that you allow Jesus’ light to shine upon you. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

When I'm Gone: A Poem for All Souls Day

When I'm Gone
By: Lyman Hancock

When I’ve come to the end of my journey
and I have traveled my very last mile
Forget if you can that I’ve frowned
Remember only my smile...

Forgive unkind words I have spoken
Remember some good I have done
Forget I ever had heartache
And remember only our fun...

Forget that I've stumbled and fumbled
And sometimes fell by the way
Remember: I fought some hard battles
But had you at the close of my day...

Do not grieve for my going
I would not have you sad this day
But in time gather some flowers
And remember the place where I lay...

Perhaps in the shade of evening
When the sun paints the sky in the West
Come stand a few moments above me
Remembering only the best...

1Reflection for Friday November 3, Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 14:1-6

Gospel: Luke 14:1-6

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully. In front of him there was a man suffering from dropsy. Jesus spoke to the scholars of the law and Pharisees in reply, asking, “Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath or not?”

But they kept silent; so he took the man and, after he had healed him, dismissed him. Then he said to them “Who among you, if your son or ox falls into a cistern, would not immediately pull him out on the sabbath day?” But they were unable to answer his question.

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Reflection:

Is the observance of the Sabbath day wrong? No, nothing’s wrong with the observance of the Sabbath day. It’s ok for the simple reason that it shows a person’s faithfulness to his faith. The Sabbath observance becomes wrong when we prioritize it more than our acts of mercy.

This is the point that Jesus is driving at in the gospel towards the scholars of the law and Pharisees. They are very strict with the observance of the Sabbath law. They are very much willing to sacrifice almost everything so that they could strictly observe it.

It’s not wrong to violate sacred religious traditions for a greater need. For what is the use of strictly observing religious tradition if we forego doing acts of mercy? It doesn’t in anyway serve its intended purpose.

We therefore have to be careful not to be overly legalistic in our observance of our religious traditions. We should be more tolerant and understanding so that we could bring more people closer to Jesus. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Thursday November 2, The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed: All Souls: Matthew 25:31-46

Gospel: Matthew 25:31-46

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous* will answer him and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?

When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’ i And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’ * j Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’  Then they will answer and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?’ He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.’ l And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

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Reflection:

Jesus speaks about the last judgment today, the separation of those who are worthy in His eyes and those who are not. Those who are worthy will be at His right and those who are not will be at His left. 

Do we need to fear His last judgment? Of course not! We who truly follow Jesus should not fear the judgment of God. If it comes to us we would welcome it with open arms, we will not hide from it.

Why welcome the judgment of God with open arms? For the reason that we did what we have to do, we feed the hungry. We gave water to the thirsty, we welcomed strangers without any reservations. We clothed the naked, we took care of the sick and visited those who were in prison.

Put these virtues together and we could label it now as Devine charity. We give not a part of ourselves to help our fellowmen but our very selves. We give and help the marginalized without any hidden motives whatsoever for we are just doing what Christ Jesus told us to do.

Someday we will be joining the multitude of souls in the great beyond. We will now be the ones who will be visited and prayed for by those who love us. But the paradox of the end of our lives is we don’t know which side we would be. Would we end up on the right side or left side of God?

Nobody knows except God, for now we simply have to continue our journey of faith, love and obedience to Him. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Wednesday November 1, Solemnity of All Saints: Matthew 5:1-12a

Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12a

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,

for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are they who mourn,

for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the land.

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they will be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful,

for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the clean of heart,

for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

for they will be called children of God.

Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,

for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you

and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.

Rejoice and be glad,

for your reward will be great in heaven.”

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Reflection:

How does one become a saint in his/her own little way? To be saint is to embody the character of Jesus. To be saint is to embody the words of Jesus in our gospel today.

We can be saint in our own little way for as long as we aspire to follow the life of Jesus and for as long as we live the words of Jesus in the gospel. For example, if you’re a parent and you try your very best to rear your children according to the teachings of Jesus you are already a saint for them. If you’re a son or daughter and you try your very best to take care of your retired parents, you are already a saint for them.

In our gospel Jesus mentions nine blessed situations. The first is poor in spirit; how does one become poor in spirit? Does this mean that we are blessed because we lack the necessary spiritual vitality? No, the poor in spirit are those who are lacking in material possessions and whose reliance is in God. To be poor in spirit means that we continuously hunger for Jesus.

Nobody could fill this hunger than the words of Jesus in the gospels, we rely on Jesus more than we rely on ourselves and this world. To become poor in spirit is therefore a character that we must all aspire for as long as we continue to exist in this world. - Marino J. Dasmarinas