Noong
panahong iyon, si Hesus ay nagtuturo sa isang sinagoga sa Araw ng Pamamahinga.
May isang babae roon na labingwalong taon nang may karamdaman, gawa ng masamang
espiritung nasa kanya. Siya’y hukot na hukot at hindi na makaunat. Nang makita
ni Hesus ang babae, tinawag niya ito at sinabi, “Magaling ka na sa iyong
karamdaman!”
At
ipinatong ni Hesus ang kanyang mga kamay sa babae; noon di’y nakaunat ito at
nagpuri sa Diyos. Ngunit nagalit ang tagapamahala ng sinagoga sapagkat
nagpagaling si Hesus sa Araw ng Pamamahinga. Kaya’t sinabi niya sa mga tao,
“May anim na araw na inilaan upang ipagtrabaho. Pumarito kayo sa mga araw na
iyan upang magpagaling, at huwag sa Araw ng Pamamahinga.”
Sinagot
siya ng Panginoon, “Mga mapagpaimbabaw! Hindi ba’t kinakalag ninyo sa sabsaban
ang inyong baka o asno at dinadala sa painuman kahit Araw ng Pamamahinga? Ang
babaing ito na mula sa lipi ni Abraham ay ginapos ni Satanas sa loob ng
labingwalong taon. Hindi ba dapat na siya’y kalagan kahit na Araw ng
Pamamahinga?” Napahiya ang lahat ng kalaban ni Hesus sa sagot niyang ito; at
nagalak naman ang madla sa mga kahanga-hangang bagay na ginawa niya.
Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their
own righteousness and despised everyone else. “Two people went up to the temple
area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The
Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, ‘O God, I thank
you that I am not like the rest of humanity — greedy, dishonest, adulterous —
or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes
on my whole income.’ But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would
not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, ‘O God, be
merciful to me a sinner.’ I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the
former; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who
humbles himself will be exalted.”
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Reflection:
Have you ever tried conversing with
those who are humble? What do you notice about them? They rarely talk about
themselves, if they even talk about themselves they see to it that it’s done
not for the purpose of raising their own self-image. So, we naturally gravitate
towards them and we love to be with them because they somewhat carry an aura of
holiness.
Have you tried conversing with those
who are so full of themselves? Of course, they always talk about themselves:
their accomplishments, their riches, things that they do and it goes on and on:
all about themselves. Truth be told, we don’t want to hear these self-serving
words that only feed their egos.
God would prefer also that we at all
times become humble. To talk less and less about ourselves and our
accomplishments for the simple reason that it’s all geared to feed our
superficial image. God already knows everything about us. He
would very much prefer that we simply practice our faith and humbly walk in
this temporal world with Him in silence yes in silence. Never
worrying if others would notice us or not. Simply content to do things for the
greater glory of God and not to serve our own glorification.
Many of us are like the Pharisee in
our gospel, we love to talk about ourselves and we love to boast about the
things that we do. But that will not serve us any good for the simple reason
that we will not gain the favor of God if we always point to ourselves as the
lead actor.
The Lord always favors the humble as
subtly stated in the gospel. The humble ones are those who talk less of themselves
and those who do not let success go to their heads. Because they are very much
aware that whatever they have is a gift from God that they must not brag about.
– Marino J. Dasmarinas
Noong panahong iyon, sinabi ni Jesus ang talinghagang ito sa mga
taong ang tingin sa sarili'y matuwid at humahamak naman sa iba. "May
dalawang lalaking pumanhik sa templo upang manalangin: ang isa'y Pariseo at ang
isa nama'y publikano. Tumindig ang Pariseo at pabulong na nanalangin ng ganito:
'O Diyos, nagpapasalamat ako sa iyo pagkat hindi ako katulad ng iba -- mga
magnanakaw, mga mandaraya, mga mangangalunya -- o kaya'y katulad ng publikanong
ito.
Makalawa akong nag-aayuno sa loob ng
sanlinggo; nagbibigay ako ng ikapu ng lahat kong kinikita. Samantala, ang
publikano'y nakatayo sa malayo; hindi man lamang makatingin sa langit, kundi
dinadagukan ang kanyang dibdib, at sinasabi: 'O Diyos, mahabag po kayo sa akin
na isang makasalanan!' Sinasabi ko sa inyo: ang lalaking ito'y umuwing
kinalulugdan ng Diyos, ngunit hindi ang isa. Sapagkat ang sinumang
nagpapakataas ay ibababa, at ang nagpapakababa ay itataas."
Some people told Jesus about the Galileans
whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. He said to
them in reply, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way
they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? By no means! But I tell
you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did! Or those eighteen
people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them–do you think they
were more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem? By no means! But I
tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!”
And he told them this parable: “There once
was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in
search of fruit on it but found none, he said to the gardener, ‘For three years
now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. So cut
it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?’ He said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave
it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize
it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.’”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
The story is told about a sinful man who
was counseled to repent from his sins and walk away from it completely.
However, the man did not listen to the wise counsel, he persisted on doing his
sinful ways until he met a sudden end.
What will happen to us if we would not
walk away from our sinfulness? Sooner or later there will be punishment and
there will be reckoning or payback. This is the normal cycle of life; if we
refuse to walk away from all of our sinfulness there shall be punishment. If
punishment will not catch up with us here in this world it will surely get hold
of us in the afterlife.
In our gospel, Jesus told those who were
listening to Him to repent while they have the luxury of time. Because if they
would not repent something very bad may happen to them. Same as what happened
to the Galileans who were killed by Pilate and the eighteen people who perished
when the tower of Siloam fell upon them.
This is how great the love of God for us,
He will continuously call upon us to repent from all of our sinfulness. Why?
Because as much as possible Jesus wants us to be saved from the severe
punishment of hell. Jesus will give us every opportunity to come back to Him no
matter the sins that we have committed.
But at the end of the day, it’s still in
our hands if we would listen to this call of Jesus or not. Let us say we
listened to this call of repentance, what would happen to our lives? There
would be essential transformation in our lives: From a chaotic to a peaceful
life and from a life of sin to a peaceful life free from sin.
Would you listen to this call of Jesus? -
Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus said to the crowds, “When you see a
cloud rising in the west you say immediately that it is going to rain–and so it
does; and when you notice that the wind is blowing from the south you say that
it is going to be hot–and so it is. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret
the appearance of the earth and the sky; why do you not know how to interpret
the present time?
Why do you not judge for yourselves what
is right? If you are to go with your opponent before a magistrate, make an
effort to settle the matter on the way; otherwise your opponent will turn you
over to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the constable, and the
constable throw you into prison. I say to you, you will not be released until
you have paid the last penny.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
A philandering and irresponsible husband
was always being advised by his mother to change his ways and focus his sole
attention to his family. But the lure of temptation was too attractive to let
go, so he did not listen to his mother. After some time the limits of his
wife’s patience had finally reached its boiling point. So she and her
children left Him, being alone he finally realized how irresponsible he was.
This is who many of us are we keep on
sinning .We are numb to well meaning advice because by its earthly nature sin
is attractive. And the devil will keep pushing sin to us (disguised as
pleasures) until it destroys us completely.
However, Jesus has a message for us in the
gospel. It’s for us to completely walk away from our sinfulness before it
destroys us. For the reason that the moment we allow sin to take hold of us it
will destroy not only us but even those that we love dearly. This may take time
before it happen but it will surely happen.
In our gospel Jesus denounced the crowd
for their hypocrisy, they could predict the clouds and the weather. However
they were purposely deaf to His call of repentance, aren’t many of us are like
them? We only listen to the dictates of this world but we shut our ears when it
comes to Jesus!
Let us listen to Jesus who always
call upon us to repent because this is the right course of action to take.
Jesus teachings may be unacceptable to us initially because it will entail
painful purification and a change of lifestyle. But purification with Jesus
always involves temporal difficulties that will eventually translate to a life
of tranquility and contentment.
Would you care to listen to Jesus? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus said to his disciples: “I have come
to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! There is a
baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is
accomplished! Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth?
No, I tell you, but rather division. From
now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against
three; a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a
mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law
against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
The story is told about two childhood best
friends who grew up and went to the same university in college. Best friend
number one noticed that something was not right in the behavior of his best
friend. So, he asked his best friend if something is wrong best friend number
two replied that nothing to worry because everything is fine.
After a few days best friend number two
was caught by the school authorities using illegal drugs. Best
friend number one who was a devout follower of Jesus told his best friend to
straighten his life otherwise he would cut his ties with
him.
All along we have this impression of Jesus
as a unifying factor, as a man of peace. But what the gospel presents to us is
contrary to these images of Jesus. Because what we have in the gospel is a
divisive Jesus that creates conflict amongst family members.
Indeed, Jesus creates conflict amongst
family members’ even friends. That is who Jesus is, He is not afraid to create
a wedge amongst us so that we would straighten our crooked ways. For example,
if some members of your family don’t want to go to Sunday Mass, what would you
do? Would you simply keep quiet and just let it be? Of course not!
You have to speak and gently remind those
members of your family who don’t want to worship God at Mass. Another example,
let us say that a member of your family had a pregnancy out of wedlock and a member
of your family is suggesting an abortion. Will you simply keep silent and agree
about that evil suggestion? Of course not, you have to speak out against the
offer of abortion.
A true follower of the Lord is someone who
is not afraid to say what is in his mind even if it is unpopular. Even if it
creates temporary division and separation among members of family and friends.
As followers of Jesus it is always our responsibility to gently correct those
whom we feel are going astray or walking into the darkness with the
devil.
If they would listen to us well and good,
if they won’t and it results to division or even conflict. That’s
fine at least we have done something to redirect their lives to the right way
of life. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus said to his disciples: “Be sure of
this: if the master of the house had known the hour when the thief was coming,
he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be prepared, for
at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”
Then Peter said, “Lord, is this parable
meant for us or for everyone?” And the Lord replied, “Who, then, is the
faithful and prudent steward whom the master will put in charge of his servants
to distribute the food allowance at the proper time? Blessed is that servant
whom his master on arrival finds doing so.
Truly, I say to you, he will put him in
charge of all his property. But if that servant says to himself, ‘My
master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the menservants and the
maidservants, to eat and drink and get drunk, then that servant’s master will
come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour and will punish the servant
severely and assign him a place with the unfaithful.
That servant who knew his master’s will
but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten
severely; and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a
way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly. Much will be
required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of
the person entrusted with more.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Are you prepared for the coming of the
Lord?
In our gospel Jesus tells us to be
prepared for we do not know the time of His coming. Aside from being prepared
Jesus gives us another responsibility none other than to share whatever we know
about Him. It’s not enough for Jesus that we know Him. He wants us to
move and do the next step and this is to share what we know about Him.
The Christian faith that God has given to
us is not to be kept to ourselves. We must share and live it for it is in
sharing and living our faith that we are able to completely follow Jesus. To
whom we would share? Start within your family most especially your children. If
you are able to successfully evangelize you will have no problem of what will
happen to them when they become adults.
But the dilemma of many of us is we don’t
share with our children what we know about Christ. Not because we know nothing
about Jesus, many of us actually don’t have a shortage of knowledge about
Jesus. In fact many of us know abundantly about Jesus but the problem is we
don’t live and practice what we know about Christ and His teachings. This is
one of the major reasons why we are not able to share Jesus with our children
and with our friends.
We must aspire to learn more about Christ
Jesus and after learning more about Him. We must live what we’ve learned from
Him, thus we become prepared for His coming anytime. – Marino J.
Dasmarinas
The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two
disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he
intended to visit. He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers
are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.
Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.
Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals;
and greet no one along the way. Into whatever house you enter, first say,
‘Peace to this household.’ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will
rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. Stay in the same house and eat
and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer deserves payment.
Do not move about from one house to
another. Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before
you, cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The Kingdom of God is at hand for
you.’”
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Reflection:
A young man decided to become a follower
of Jesus but he did not leave behind his worldly lifestyle. He still was living
his sinful and hedonistic life and he did not cut his ties with his friends who
loved this world more than God. After a few months he noticed that he was not
able to convince anyone to follow the Lord.
How could we become effective bearers of
the teachings of Jesus? We must live simply, avoid any form of sin and we
should depend on Jesus in everyday of our lives. This doesn’t mean that we just
lay idle and wait for the manna from heaven to fall upon us in a silver
platter. This means that we still have to work hard but at the same time we
have to live simply. And let the values and teachings of Jesus take control of
our life.
Is it still possible to live simply today
where the culture of greed, materialism and accumulation rules? Of course it’s
still very much possible it’s actually upon our hands on how we would live in
this world. Would we let the culture of greed, materialism and accumulation
rule over us? Or we let the simple lifestyle of Jesus take control of us?
When Jesus sent the seventy-two disciples
to their mission He advocated simple living and total dependence on Him. Why?
Because it’s only through this that they could become effective bearers of the
good news of Jesus. It’s only through this way that they would be able to
convince others to follow Jesus.
If we want to become effective and
fruitful laborers of the Lord we have to learn to live simple lives. And we have to learn to trust in
the providence of the Lord rather than trust in our own selves. For the simple
reason that this is the lifestyle of Jesus: He lived a simple life and Jesus
did not trust on himself He trusted on the guidance and goodness of God.
How are you living your life today? –
Marino J. Dasmarinas
Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher,
tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.” He replied to him, “Friend,
who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” Then he said to the crowd,
“Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life
does not consist of possessions.”
Then he told them a parable. “There was a
rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest. He asked himself, ‘What
shall I do, for I do not have space to store my harvest?’ And he said, ‘This is
what I shall do: I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones. There I
shall store all my grain and other goods and I shall say to myself, “Now as for
you, you have so many good things stored up for many years, rest, eat, drink,
be merry!”’
But God said to him, ‘You fool, this night
your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom
will they belong?’ Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves
but are not rich in what matters to God.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
A rich woman unexpectedly died without
leaving behind a last will and testament. Her children were bickering since
each one of them wanted to have the biggest share of the wealth. Therefore the
once strong and loving sibling relationship became divided and distant and the
reason behind was their greed for material wealth.
There are people who feel secure with
material wealth as if it could save them from the certainty of death. There are
people who think that because they have material wealth they can now buy even
the soul and honor of their fellowmen. These are all false notions for the
reason that material wealth is temporary and it is not the be all and end all
of life.
Material wealth by itself is not bad
because this can sustain our life in this world. This can also be our
instrument in spreading the love and mercy of God. For example, we help
somebody in need using our material wealth which is surely not bad. Material
wealth becomes evil when we become greedy that we allow it to possess and
dictate upon us.
In the gospel Jesus tells us that life is
not about material possession. If life is not about material possession what is
life all about? Life is about God! If we have all the material wealth in this
world yet we don’t have God in our life our life is still empty and barren.
This is for the simple reason that
material wealth can be swiftly taken from us anytime. And it surely cannot
bring us to heaven when our time of departure in this world comes. On the other
hand if we choose to have God, God will be with us until eternity.
What is your priority in this world: To
have material wealth or to have Jesus in your life? – Marino J.
Dasmarinas
Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to
pray always without becoming weary. He said, “There was a judge in a certain
town who neither feared God nor respected any human being. And a widow in that
town used to come to him and say, ‘Render a just decision for me against my
adversary.
For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he
thought, ‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being,
because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her
lest she finally come and strike me.’
The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says.
Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day
and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that
justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find
faith on earth?”
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Reflection:
Do we always pray with persistence? Meaning, we pray and pray and
we never lose heart until we have what we’ve been praying for. Jesus in our
gospel is teaching us that we must be persistent in prayer. Even if what we’ve
been praying seems impossible we still have to persistently pray because the
impossible becomes very much possible with God.
In our gospel there’s the presence of a heartless judge who feared
and respected no one. Yet when he was pestered by the widow for a just decision
he gave it to her. Why? Because the widow did not give up.
If we are in the shoes of the widow and we know that this judge is
impertinent would we still pursue our request for a decision or we
simply give up?
When we have a prayer request before God we must always have the
motivation to humbly request God again and again to grant us what we want to
have from Him. Never mind if it will take time before God answers what is
important is we continue to pray and we never give up.
Because those who never give up in whatever aspect of life’s
endeavor will always get what they want. And this is evidenced by the
persistent widow in our gospel.
Do you easily give up when God does not answer your prayer? -
Marino J. Dasmarinas
Noong panahong iyon, isinaysay ni Jesus ang isang talinghaga upang
ituro sa kanila na dapat silang manalanging lagi at huwag manghinawa.
"Sa isang lunsod," wika
niya, "may isang hukom na hindi natatakot sa Diyos at walang taong
iginagalang. Sa lunsod ding yaon ay may isang babaing balo na punta nang punta
sa hukom at humihingi ng katarungan. Tinanggihan siya ng hukom sa loob ng ilang
panahon.
Ngunit ng malaunan ay nasabi nito sa
sarili: 'Bagamat hindi ako natatakot sa Diyos ni gumagalang kaninuman, igagawad
ko na ang katarungang hinihingi ng babaing ito sapagkat lagi niya akong
ginagambala-- baka pa ako mainis sa kapaparito niya.'"
At sinabi ng Panginoon, "Narinig
ninyo ang sinabi ng masamang hukom. Hindi ipagkakait ng Diyos ang katarungan sa
kanyang mga hinirang na dumaraing sa kanya araw-gabi, bagama't tila nagtatagal
iyon. Sinasabi ko sa inyo, agad niyang igagawad sa kanila ang katarungan.
Ngunit pagdating ng Anak ng Tao sa daigdig na ito, may makikita kaya siyang mga
taong nananalig sa kanya?"
+ + + + + + +
Repleksyon:
May kasama bang pag titiyaga ang
iyong pananalagin? Ang ibig sabihin ay hindi ka nawawalan ng pag-asa hangang
ang iyong mga panalangin ay iyong makamit. Sa atin pong mabuting balita tayo ay
tinuturuan ni Jesus na manalagin ng may pag titiyaga.
Dahil pag ang tao ay matiyaga sa
kanyang pananalagin ang imposible na makamit natin ay nagiging posible dahil
walang imposible sa Panginoon.
Sa atin pong mabuting balita ay may
isang hukom na hindi natatakot sa Diyos at walang taong iginagalang. Sa lunsod
ding yaon ay may isang babaing balo na punta nang punta sa hukom at humihingi
ng katarungan.
Tinanggihan siya ng hukom sa loob ng
ilang panahon. Pero sa kalaunan ay iginawad din ng hukom ang hiling ng babaeng
balo dahil siya ay nag tiyaga sa pag hingi ng katarungan sa hukom.
Kung tayo po ang nasa kalagayan ng
babaeng balo at alam din natin na masama ang ugali ng hukom. Tayo po ba
ay mag titiyaga pa din sa pag hingi ng katarungan sa hukom?
Pag tayo po ay may gustong hilingin
sa ating Panginoon kailagan po na tayo ay matiyaga na mananalagin sa kanya na
ibigay ang mga panalagin natin. Hindi na bali kung magtagal bago nya ito ibigay
sa atin basta ang importante ay tayo ay mag tiyaga.
Dahil sa anumang larangan ng buhay
ang lahat ng nag titiyaga ay nakakamit ang gusto nya at
ito po ay pinatutunayan ng matiyagang babaeng balo sa ating mabuting balita.
Matiyaga ka pa rin bang nananalagin
kahit hindi ka sinasagot ng Panginoon? – Marino J.
Dasmarinas
Jesus said to his disciples: “I tell you
everyone who acknowledges me before others the Son of Man will acknowledge
before the angels of God. But whoever denies me before others will be denied
before the angels of God.
“Everyone who speaks a word against the
Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will not be forgiven. When they take you before synagogues and before rulers
and authorities, do not worry about how or what your defense will be or about
what you are to say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you
should say.
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Reflection:
Are you aware of the presence of God the
Holy Spirit in your life?
The Holy Spirit is the initiator of our
faith. Before we know God the father and Jesus the Son it is first the Holy
Spirit that is first introduced to us. This is made possible through our
Baptism and its presence within us is strengthened thru the sacrament of
Confirmation. This is how important the Holy Spirit to all of us. Perhaps this
is the reason why Jesus said, the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will not be forgiven.
But it’s also ironic that among the three
persons in one God it’s the Holy Spirit that is least known. Then, how could we
have that special awareness of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives?
And how could we develop that deeper friendship with the Holy Spirit? How could
we unleash its presence within us?
It’s through prayers that we can have
awareness of its presence in our lives. If we develop a very prayerful life
it’s second nature for us to be aware of the presence of the Holy Spirit. It
would not introduce itself to us for the simple reason that it has been with us
ever since our Baptism.
Be prayerful, live a holy and righteous
life and always invite God the Holy Spirit to be an active presence in your
life. He will surely not fail you if you live a life worthy in God’s eyes and
if you ask with faith.
Do you want to have a deeper awareness of
the Holy Spirit in your life? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
So many people were crowding together that
they were trampling one another underfoot. Jesus began to speak, first to his
disciples, “Beware of the leaven–that is, the hypocrisy–of the Pharisees.
There is nothing concealed that will not
be revealed, nor secret that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have
said in the darkness will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered
behind closed doors will be proclaimed on the housetops. I tell you, my
friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body but after that can do no
more.
I shall show you whom to fear. Be afraid
of the one who after killing has the power to cast into Gehenna; yes, I tell
you, be afraid of that one. Are not five sparrows sold for two small coins? Yet
not one of them has escaped the notice of God. Even the hairs of your head have
all been counted. Do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Mario is a married man who works abroad.
While there he was tempted to have an illicit affair with his female
officemate. The forbidden affair bore fruit to a baby boy; since he was abroad
the philandering husband was very confident that he will not be caught.
However, the wife was already suspicious
of him so she decided to ask the help of their friends who works with her
husband. To make a long story short; the illicit secret was eventually
discovered by the wife.
The gospel tells us this: There is nothing
concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known (Luke
12:2). What we think we can keep forever God will unravel, God will do this not
to embarrass us. He will do this to give us a chance to straighten out our
lives.
God works in mysterious ways; no matter
how we try to conceal our sinful secrets. God will do something about it for it
to be uncovered. Why? So that we can repent and leave our sinful past,
thus we live an upright life once again. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Noong
panahong iyon, samantalang dumaragsa ang libu-libong tao, anupa't
nagkakatapakan sila, nagsalita muna si Jesus sa kanyang mga alagad,
"Mag-ingat kayo sa lebadura ng mga Pariseo-- ito'y ang pagpapaimbabaw.
Walang natatago na di malalantad, at walang nalilihim na di mabubunyag. Anumang
sabihin ninyo sa dilim ay maririnig sa liwanag at anumang ibulong ninyo sa mga
silid ay ipagsisigawan."
"Sinasabi
ko sa inyo, mga kaibigan, huwag ninyong katakutan ang mga pumapatay ng katawan,
at pagkatapos ay wala nang magagawa pa. Sasabihin ko sa inyo kung ano ang dapat
ninyong katakutan: katakutan ninyo yaong pagkatapos na pumatay ay may
kapangyarihan pang magbulid sa impyerno. Sinasabi ko sa inyo, ang Diyos ang
dapat ninyong katakutan!
"Hindi
ba ipinagbibili sa halagang dalawang pera lamang ang limang maya? Gayunman,
kahit isa sa kanila'y hindi pinababayaan ng Diyos. Maging ang buhok ninyo'y
bilang na lahat. Kaya, huwag kayong matakot; higit kayong mahalaga kaysa mga
maya."
The Lord said: “Woe to you who build the memorials
of the prophets whom your fathers killed. Consequently, you bear witness and
give consent to the deeds of your ancestors, for they killed them and you do
the building.
Therefore, the wisdom of God said, ‘I will
send to them prophets and Apostles; some of them they will kill and persecute
in order that this generation might be charged with the blood of all the
prophets shed since the foundation of the world, from the blood of Abel to the
blood of Zechariah who died between the altar and the temple building.
Yes, I tell you, this generation will be
charged with their blood! Woe to you, scholars of the law! You have taken away
the key of knowledge. You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying
to enter. When Jesus left, the scribes and Pharisees began to act with
hostility toward him and to interrogate him about many things, for they were
plotting to catch him at something he might say.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Who are the modern day prophets that we
encounter today? It’s anyone who speaks about God, the truth and anyone who has
so much concern for our welfare.
But we normally don’t listen to them most
of the time we instead listen to the fleeting dictates of this world. There are
even times that we label them as people who are out of this world. Until we
encounter problems because we did not listen to the meaningful
advice of these modern day prophets who have so much concern for us.
Next time, we have to listen when we are
given meaningful advice about God and life. For they are not doing it on their
own accord, they were sent by God to us for a very meaningful and valid reason.
None other than to bring us closer to God.
Do you always listen to the Prophets sent
by God to you? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
“Woe to you Pharisees! You pay tithes of
mint and of rue and of every garden herb, but you pay no attention to judgment
and to love for God. These you should have done, without overlooking the
others. Woe to you Pharisees! You love the seat of honor in synagogues and
greetings in marketplaces. Woe to you! You are like unseen graves over which
people unknowingly walk.”
Then one of the scholars of the law said
to him in reply, “Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too. And he
said, “Woe also to you scholars of the law! You impose on people burdens hard
to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them.
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Is Jesus angry in the gospel?
Seldom do we see Jesus angry and this
gospel episode is one of the rare ones. What made Jesus angry? He was angry
with the Pharisees, (the learned ruling class during that time) for the reason
that they imposed so much religious requirements to their people.
However, they were only good on imposing
those requirements. They were not actually willing to live what they wanted their
people to do. The Pharisees were religious leaders in name only, they love to
display their religiosity. But they did not live their religiosity, it was
simply a superficial display of faith.
Some if not many of us are like the
Pharisees. We love to give orders: do this and to that but it ends there. We
don’t lift a finger to do it ourselves, we want others to do things for us while
we watch and relax. How can we become good examples, good leaders and ideal
followers of Jesus if we are not willing to walk our talk? How can we make
Jesus happy if we are not living our faith?
Effective faith in Jesus is faith that is
alive and kicking and faith that is leading and working. This is the most
effective faith, let us therefore live our faith. Not because we want others to
see us living it. We live our faith because this is our obligation as true
followers of Jesus. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
After Jesus had spoken, a Pharisee invited
him to dine at his home. He entered and reclined at table to eat. The Pharisee
was amazed to see that he did not observe the prescribed washing before the
meal.
The Lord said to him, “Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, inside you are filled
with plunder and evil. You fools! Did not the maker of the outside also make
the inside? But as to what is within, give alms, and behold, everything will be
clean for you.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Maria is very particular with external
appearance she would always dress well. The exterior of her house is always
refreshing to the eyes. Her neighbor was wondering how come she’s able to
afford such luxuries considering that she had no job to speak of?
One morning a rich woman was
shouting in front of her house telling her to leave her husband alone otherwise
she would be forced to bring her to court for having a relationship with a
married man.
Many of us are very particular with what
others will see from us. As much as possible we would always try to paint a
good picture of ourselves. This is who many of us are, very much driven with
the exterior, fleeting and those that do not last for a lifetime.
Jesus is not taken with this show of
misleading exterior appearance. What counts for Jesus is our inner
selves and the things that we do especially when nobody sees us. For example,
how do we react when we see the poor begging for alms? Do we do something to
help them? Or we simply don’t care; anyway no one is looking at us, so might as
well not mind the poor.
Jesus knows everything about us, we cannot
keep anything from Him. He knows our hidden secrets, our double talk and the
façade that we try so very hard to display so that we could create an
impression of righteousness, power, wealth and extravagance. - Marino J.
Dasmarinas
While still more people gathered in the
crowd, Jesus said to them, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a
sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah
became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.
At the judgment the queen of the south
will rise with the men of this generation and she will condemn them, because
she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and there is
something greater than Solomon here. At the judgment the men of Nineveh
will arise with this generation and condemn it because at the preaching of
Jonah they repented, and there is something greater than Jonah here.”
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
A sinful man had a conversion, when he was
asked what moved him to be good and Godly. He replied this, “I have a terminal
sickness so I don’t want to be in hell when I depart this world. Hell is real
as well as heaven and those who continue to sin and continue to ignore God’s
call to conversion will certainly end up in hell someday.
Some of us may ask, is heaven and hell for
real? Yes, it’s both real and it’s already here in our midst. If we
always do good our life would be like heaven on earth, yes there would be
problems from time to time. But we will always overcome these problems because
Jesus is always at our side to help. On the other hand, if we continue to do
bad we can expect our lives to be in a hellish situation today. This is the
practical reality of heaven and hell.
However, God loves us so much that He also
wants us to repent and permanently walk away from our sinfulness. This is for
the reason that the good Lord wants us to experience heaven while we are still
here in this world. And He also wants us to be in heaven after our passing in
this world. This is the great love of God for us, He always calls us to
repentance in everyday, every hour, every minute and second of our lives.
Someday when we die some of us will say,
if only I listened to Jesus’ call of repentance. I would not be in this hellish
environment right now but I did not. I instead continued to enjoy the many
pleasures that were brought to me by the devil.
Nonetheless all is not lost yet, because
there is still ample time for us to repent and walk away from anything that
make us sin. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled through Samaria and Galilee. As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him. They stood at a distance from him and raised their voices, saying, "Jesus, Master! Have pity on us! And when he saw them, he said, "Go show yourselves to the priests.
As they were going they were cleansed. And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan. Jesus said in reply, "Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God? Then he said to him, "Stand up and go; your faith has saved you."
+ + + + + + +
Reflection:
Do you always thank the Lord for the countless blessings that He showers upon you?
After healing the ten lepers only one returned a Samaritan, a person who is not a member of Jesus faith. That’s why Jesus said: Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? (Luke 17:17) Indeed, what happened to the other nine who were members of Jesus faith?
Jesus was looking for them perhaps being one in faith with him. He was expecting them to also return back and signify their gratitude to Him. But the nine were missing they were good only in soliciting favors from Jesus. After they got what they wanted they were nowhere to be found already.
Such is the behavior of many of us, we earnestly pray when we need something from the Lord. After getting what we want, Jesus is sometimes forgotten or Jesus is not given importance once again. Actually, it’s not only through Jesus that many of us fail to acknowledge the favor that is done to us.
Even to our family members, friends and random people who’ve done us good we sometimes forget to acknowledge their goodness. Such is our behavior forgetful or even ungrateful. But we always have to be thankful for all the blessings that we have from the Lord.
Let us think of Jesus, have we thanked Him for the many blessings that He has been giving us? For example, the blessing of life every morning, do we always thank the Lord for the blessing of life every morning? Is gratefulness to the Lord the first order of business for us in the morning?
In everything let us be grateful to Jesus, for our life, for our health and for all the blessings. We thank the Lord not because the Lord needs it we thank the Lord because we greatly value the Lord’s goodness towards us.
Do you always thank the Lord? - Marino J. Dasmarinas
