Reflection for May 7, 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 or Confession.

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 could 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 it be? It’s a life without peace and tranquillity and a life open wide for the devil to create havoc.

Let us take advantage of this healing love of God, because this is always available for us. This is not something that God keeps away from us for us not to have it.

Who would not want peace and tranquillity 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 6, 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:

How does it feel without connection to the internet? It seems that something important in our lives is lacking. We cannot function properly most especially if our job is reliant on the internet, say for example medical transcription or a call center related job.

Somehow our lives now is associated with the internet be it wifi or cable based internet connection. When we are outside of our respective houses our smart phones are ever ready to find wifi connection. We look for it because we need or we want to be connected.

How about our desire to be connected with Jesus and God? Do we always seek a connection with Jesus and God? Is our desire for Jesus and God as intense as our desire for a wifi or internet connection?      

In our gospel for this Wednesday Jesus tells us that He is the vine and we are the branches (John 15:5) and as such we must always be connected with Him and God. Life without connection with God is meaningless, even if we have all the material wealth and power it’s still meaningless without God!

If only we would always desire connection with God more than we desire wifi or internet connection. If only we would invest more time with God as much as we invest time connected in the internet. Let us therefore always seek connection with God through our prayers, presence at Holy Mass. And by reading and reflecting upon His life transforming worlds in the bible.

The best is yet to come for us if we would seek a permanent connection with our vine and our vine grower no other than Jesus and God. – Marino J. Dasmarinas   

Reflection for May 5, 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:

Can we be vehicles of peace in this world? Yes we can certainly be! This could happen if we are not quick to pass judgement. If we are forgiving, if we are ready to reach out and let bygones be bygones.  We are free when we are always peaceful. We are free from the devil’s control who is the primary sower of hatred in our lives. And we are free from anything that is not good.  

The beauty of being vehicles of peace is we allow Jesus to become an active part of our lives. This is for the reason that Jesus Himself lived a life of peace. Jesus choose peace instead of hatred and Jesus choose peace instead of revenge.

In the gospel for this Tuesday, Jesus said to His disciples; peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you (John 14:27). Let us own and accept this peace being offered by Jesus because this peace is also for us.

Prayer:

Thank you O Lord for the gift of peace: Heal my family, deliver me from hatred and fear. Let your peace take root and grow in my heart. So that through you I could also become a vehicle of peace. Amen. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for May 4, Monday, 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 May 3, Fifth Sunday 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 every one 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:

Where does life lead us without Jesus? It leads us to nowhere and nothingness. Our life is without meaning without Jesus. We are like a boat being buffeted by waves that has nowhere to go.

Life is meaningless without our connection with Jesus, we may have an abundance of everything that this world could give us. But these are all temporary, all of these we will leave behind someday. All of these worldly things will not give us peace of mind, it will even create emptiness in our  lives.

Jesus through the gospel for this Sunday tells us: You will never bear fruit unless you remain in me (John 15:4). Yet Jesus tells us also that we will bear much fruit if only we would decide to remain in Him.

Therefore let us always decide to be connected with Jesus, through our presence at Holy Mass, through the Sacraments and so forth. Let us not let go of Jesus even if life brings us tons of trials. For no trials are insurmountable with Jesus, if we are connected with Him nothing can bring us down. Nobody could tear us apart for His abiding presence is with us.

As the branch cannot survive without its connection to the vine. We too will not be able to survive without our connection with Jesus. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for May 2, Saturday, Saint Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church; John 14:7-14

Gospel: John 14:7-14

Jesus said to his disciples:“If you know me, then you will also know my Father. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” Philip said to Jesus, “Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father. And whatever you ask in my name, I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it.”

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Reflection:

Do we believe this pronouncement of Jesus that He is one with God? Of course we do, then what’s next after believing? Next after believing is to put into concrete actions what we believe.

Belief only is not enough, we have to translate this into living faith. Faith that is seen though our deeds, because if we only say that we believe. Yet we don’t translate it into actual acts of mercy and compassion, then it’s empty.

Jesus in our gospel tells us, “Whoever believes in me will do the things that I do (John 14:12).” Let us pause and reflect if we are able to somehow measure-up to this challenge of Jesus. Do we do the works of Jesus? Do we volunteer to help someone in need? Do we always say words that heal a broken person? Are we quick to throw judgment and condemnation?

 It’s so easy to say, I believe in the oneness of Jesus  and God.  Yet we are always challenged by Jesus to always prove it by our words and actions. - Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for Friday May 1, St. Joseph the Worker; Matthew 13:54-58

Gospel: Matthew 13:54-58

Jesus came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue. They were astonished and said, "Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds? Is he not the carpenter's son? Is not his mother named Mary and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? Are not his sisters all with us? Where did this man get all this?" And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house." And he did not work many mighty deeds there because of their lack of faith.

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Reflection:

Rejection is always hard to accept, but why are we being rejected in the first place? Perhaps we have done a wrongdoing or we have offended the sensibilities of the person who rejected us.

Jesus was rejected when He returned to Nazareth: His native place. Jesus did not do anything offensive, He even taught at their synagogue. Yet He was rejected and the sole reason for His rejection is they know who He was. His town mates were too familiar with Him and His family.

His town mates couldn’t accept the fact that His wisdom was extra-ordinary and for this they rejected Him. But why reject when they could have welcomed Him with open arms? They rejected Jesus because they were envious of Him. Envious of His intelligence and the adulation given to Him by the people.

We will not get anything good if we have envy in our hearts. We are in-fact closing our hearts to the many blessings that Jesus wants to shower us. Instead of being envious, why not simply be happy with our fellowmen’s success?- Marino J. Dasmarinas