Reflection for Friday September 2, Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time; Luke 5:33-39

Gospel: Luke 5:33-39

The scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus, “The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers, and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same; but yours eat and drink.” Jesus answered them, “Can you make the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them, then they will fast in those days.” And he also told them a parable. “No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one. Otherwise, he will tear the new and the piece from it will not match the old cloak. Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined. Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins. And no one who has been drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.’”

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Reflection:

A lady was giving her personal testimony on how Jesus made a big impact on her life and how Jesus filled her life with joy and contentment. She said further that now that Jesus is in her heart. She now will always ask Jesus to take over her sadness and other trials.

Whether we admit or not sadness and other lonesome emotions will once in a while visit us. This is normal for we are all beings with emotions. However if we have Jesus, we have nothing to worry even if these lonesome feelings will come to us.

We would know how to handle it for the simple reason that we already have Jesus in our lives. We have nothing to worry about anything that may come to us. Thus, we continue to move ahead with hope because Jesus is by our side.

Assuring us that no human affliction and emotion no matter how severe could bring us down anymore. Not even the saddest moment in our lives for we have already been renewed and poured into the fresh wineskin which is Jesus. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Thursday September 1, Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time; Luke 5:1-11

Gospel: Luke 5:1-11

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God, he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret. He saw two boats there alongside the lake; the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.” When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come to help them. They came and filled both boats so that the boats were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him and all those with him, and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners of Simon. Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed him.

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Reflection:

A married couple was being convinced by their neighbor to join them in their weekly bible sharing. The couple said that they are not worthy to be with them because they are sinners. However, the persistent neighbor told them that, nobody is perfect. He further said that all of us are sinners. For we have offended God for so many times yet God in His infinite love and mercy is persistently calling us to follow Him and eventually serve Him.

In our gospel Simon was told by Jesus to go into deep water and lower their nets. Then Simon said, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.”

Soon after they’ve caught hundreds of fish that their nets were breaking already, Simon felt that he was unworthy of the Lord and the bountiful fish that they’ve caught. So he said to Jesus: “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”

Who is worthy before the Lord? Who is qualified to follow Jesus? None of us are worthy; none of us are qualified for we are all sinners. But our sinfulness should never be an excuse for us not to follow the Lord and leave behind our life of sin.

Jesus always qualifies the unworthy, He always purify the unworthy to become worthy before His eyes. The infinite love and mercy of Jesus is always there for us ever ready to purify us no matter who we are, no matter how sinful we are. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Wednesday August 31, Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time; Luke 4:38-44

Gospel: Luke 4:38-44

After Jesus left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon. Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever, and they interceded with him about her. He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up immediately and waited on them.

At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases brought them to him. He laid his hands on each of them and cured them. And demons also came out from many, shouting, “You are the Son of God.” But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Christ.

At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place. The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him, they tried to prevent him from leaving them. But he said to them, “To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent.” And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

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Reflection:

Have you asked Jesus to heal somebody close to you? Have you brought to Jesus a relative or a friend? Your faith and relationship with Jesus becomes more meaningful when you are able to bring/introduce someone to Him. For the reason that this means that your faith has already matured and is bearing fruit already.

In the gospel for today, Simon’s humbly asked Jesus to heal his mother in-law who was sick with fever. And right there and then Jesus went to her and immediately healed her. What if Simon did not asked Jesus to heal his mother in-law? Of course his mother in-law would not been healed but she was healed courtesy of Simon’s prayerful and humble intercession.

This act of Simon of asking Jesus to heal her mother in-law is a very good reminder for us. That we too must see to it that we also pray to Jesus to heal and enlighten someone. Many are very much in need of enlightenment and healing from Jesus. Let us not take for granted the power of our prayerful intercession for others most especially for the sick and for those who are not enlightened yet about the love of Jesus.

This is for the reason that our prayerful intercession for them can heal and change them. For example Saint Monica (the mother of Saint Augustine) she was forced to marry a non-believer but through her unceasing prayer she was able to convert her husband to the catholic faith. Saint Monica also unceasingly prayed for 17 long years for the conversion of her son Augustine who was living a life of sin at that time. And through her humble and persevering prayers she was eventually heard by God.  

We are being challenged by our gospel for today to bring someone closer to Jesus though our intercession and prayers.

Have you already brought somebody closer to Jesus? - Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for Tuesday August 30, Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time; Luke 4:31-37

Gospel: Luke 4:31-37

Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee. He taught them on the sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching because he spoke with authority. In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are–the Holy One of God!” Jesus rebuked him and said, “Be quiet! Come out of him!” Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him any harm. They were all amazed and said to one another, “What is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.” And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.

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Reflection:

Do you recognize the authority of Jesus over you?

When Jesus speaks He speaks with authority and being so we have to listen to Him. For example, His teachings about love, forgiveness and humility. Do we love and forgive the way Jesus loves and forgives? Do we live the virtue of humility? For example if there’s misunderstanding in the family, are we humble enough to extend our hand of forgiveness even if we are not the culprit?

In our gospel even the demon recognized the power and authority of Jesus. If the demon listens to Jesus why can’t we listen to Jesus? We don’t listen to Jesus because we prefer to listen to our own selves.

The aspect of forgiveness and humility is where we are usually weak. We usually find it hard to forgive and we find it very hard to humble ourselves. Why? Because we override the teaching of Jesus with our ego driven teachings.

We must listen to Jesus if we want peace and quiet in our lives. Otherwise there would always be an absence of peace within us and absence of harmony within our own homes. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Reflection for Monday August 29, the Passion of Saint John the Baptist; Mark 6:17-29

Gospel: Mark 6:17-29

Herod was the one who had John the Baptist arrested and bound in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, whom he had married. John had said to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” Herodias harbored a grudge against him and wanted to kill him but was unable to do so. Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man, and kept him in custody. When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed, yet he liked to listen to him. She had an opportunity one day when Herod, on his birthday, gave a banquet for his courtiers, his military officers, and the leading men of Galilee. Herodias’ own daughter came in and performed a dance that delighted Herod and his guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you.” He even swore many things to her, “I will grant you whatever you ask of me, even to half of my kingdom.” She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the Baptist.” The girl hurried back to the king’s presence and made her request, “I want you to give me at once on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” The king was deeply distressed, but because of his oaths and the guests he did not wish to break his word to her. So he promptly dispatched an executioner with orders to bring back his head. He went off and beheaded him in the prison. He brought in the head on a platter and gave it to the girl. The girl in turn gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

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Reflection:

How would you react if you see an adulterous relationship? Would you simply keep your mouth shut for fear of the consequence once you speak against it? Or you courageously correct it never minding the consequence that it may bring you?

Saint John the Baptist chose the road less travelled, he denounced the adulterous relationship of King Herod and Herodias. Thus, he dearly paid for it with his life. John could just have pretended to see no evil and hear no evil. But John did not let their adulterous relationship pass by him quietly, he made noise by denouncing it.  

What if we are John?  How would we react? Would we just let it happen, be indifferent and do nothing? The problem with this kind of attitude is we are perpetuating and consenting with evil. And we all know that evil will not bring us any good. So the moral action that we must do is to correct any form of evil and immorality.

Just like what John did, this is very difficult to do but we have to do it otherwise we are consenting with evil. By correcting them we are actually leading them to the right and moral path of life. – Marino J. Dasmarinas