1Reflection for Sunday November 15, Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time: Matthew 25:14-30

Gospel: Matthew 25:14-30

Jesus told his disciples this parable: “A man going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one– to each according to his ability. 

Then he went away. Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. Likewise, the one who received two made another two. But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money.  

After a long time the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. The one who had received five talents came forward bringing the additional five. He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’ 

Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two talents. See, I have made two more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’ 

Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a demanding person, harvesting where you did not plant and gathering where you did not scatter; so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground. Here it is back.’ His master said to him in reply, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant and gather where I did not scatter?  

Should you not then have put my money in the bank so that I could have got it back with interest on my return? Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten. For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’”

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Reflection:

The story is told about an elderly woman who died. While her soul was on a journey he saw two portals which were near each other. One portal had the markings of heaven and the other had hell, the elderly woman chose the heavenly portal of course. When she was about to enter the heavenly portal she was asked by an angel about the things that she did while she was alive. And he rattled off her impressive worldly achievements.     

Then, the angel asked her again, “How about regarding your faith what have you done? The elderly woman said: “I went to Holy Mass every day” then, the angel said: “Have you shared your Catholic faith and have you helped those who were in need?” The elderly woman said: No.   

Do we recognize that the Lord has given us talent/s to help Him advance His teachings in this world? Many of us are not aware of it because we are busy investing our God given talents for this world alone. But truth be told, we are mandated by God to use whatever talents that we have not for this world alone. The Lord mandates us also to use our talents to grow and propagate our faith.  

Whether we like it or not our day of reckoning will eventually come. There God will ask us this question: What have you done to the talent/s that I had given you? Did you properly use it to help those who were in need? Did you use it to advance my teachings?  

Some of us will answer in the affirmative. Others will be on the negative for the reason that we only used our God given talents for our own self interest: To earn a living, to fulfill a lifelong ambition, to go online and get busy with facebook and so forth.  

Others would even have excuses like: How can I use my talents for the church when I don’t know anybody there? How can I give my talents for the church when I don’t even have enough time for my family? However, if there’s a will to be of service to God there would be a way. God will find that way for us. We simply have to initiate it first and God will be there to see us through. 

Someday God will ask you: What have you done to the talent/s that I gave you? How will you answer God during that time? – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

1Reflection for November 14 Saturday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 18:1-8

 

Gospel: Luke 18:1-8

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:

How persistent are we when we have prayer petitions before God? If God seems silent; do we easily give up that He will hear our prayer petitions? Do we lose our faith when we don’t hear/feel any signs from God about our pleadings?  

In the gospel Jesus gave the disciples a parable about a Judge who neither feared God nor respected any human being and a widow who was very persistent with her petition before the judge to grant her a just decision against her enemy. 

Initially it would seem that the judge would not grant her request but the widow was very persistent and she never gave up thus she continued on badgering the judge. Eventually the judge granted her petition for a just decision.  

We all have our own silent prayers before God, we may have been praying for weeks, months, even years and it may seem that God is absent and quite. Let us not lose hope let us continue to whisper to God our prayers.  For in His own time of choosing and when we least expect it He definitely will respond to our prayers. 

Are you always persistent when you pray to the Lord?  – Marino J. Dasmarinas  

1Reflection for November 13 Friday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 17:26-37

Gospel: Luke 17:26-37

Jesus said to his disciples: “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man; they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage up to the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building; on the day when Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all. 

So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, someone who is on the housetop and whose belongings are in the house must not go down to get them, and likewise one in the field must not return to what was left behind. Remember the wife of Lot. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it. I tell you, on that night there will be two people in one bed; one will be taken, the other left. And there will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken, the other left.”  They said to him in reply, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the body is, there also the vultures will gather.

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Reflection:

What would happen if we don’t anymore listen to God? We would have no qualms of committing sin. Sin becomes our wicked way of life until this kind of lifestyle destroys us. We would not fully comprehend the wickedness of sin until it’s too late already. 

This is how the devil actually works; it hides sin through eye-catching appearance and temptation filled situations that it becomes attractive to many of us. We therefore have to recognize the warning signs or the red flags that would tell us that we are slowly but surely falling for the devil’s many enticements. And what are these? 

When we begin to love this world more than we love God. When we indulge in hedonistic actions, when we don’t anymore give ear to meaningful advice and the like. All of these are the red flags that will warn us that we are self-destructing towards the devil’s den.     

We are self-destructing for the reason that God is not anymore present in our life.  And we all know what will happen to the life of a person when he shuns God: There’s no peace and contentment only temptations, sin and problems. Let us therefore avoid sin and let us listen to God..

Do you always listen to God?  – Marino J. Dasmarinas

1Reflection for November 12 Thursday, Saint Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr (M): Luke 17:20-25

Gospel: Luke 17:20-25

Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, “The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.” 

Then he said to his disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. There will be those who will say to you, ‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’ Do not go off, do not run in pursuit. For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation.

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Reflection:

The story is told about a man who was always busy with the things of this world, he was busy making himself rich for he thought that it would give him fulfillment and peace. But the more that he became rich the more that he became disturb with the things of this world. 

Where can we find the kingdom of God? We certainly cannot find it if we are always busy with the things of this world. We cannot find the kingdom of God if we continue to allow this world to dictate upon us. For example, can we find the kingdom of God if we are busy accumulating the things of this world which by the way we will leave behind someday? 

A woman was asked: “Where does the kingdom of God rest?” She calmly said: “it’s here and now in my heart.” This woman was a prayerful woman, she lives her faith and she was always a constant presence in the Eucharistic Celebration. 

The kingdom of God is ours for the taking if we learn to become prayerful, if we learn to live our faith and if we prioritize our one hour presence at Holy Mass over our many worldly undertakings. Worldly undertakings which only brings us further away from the Kingdom God. 

Do you feel the kingdom of God in your heart right now? – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for November 11 Wednesday, Saint Martin of Tours, Bishop (M): Luke 17:11-19

Gospel: Luke 17:11-19

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.”

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Reflection:

The story is told about a young woman who was diagnosed with a severe sickness. Her doctor told him that she needs to undergo a dangerous operation upon reaching the age of twenty- five otherwise she would die. Having nothing except her faith this woman relied on nobody except Jesus. 

As years passed by she eventually reached the age of twenty-five yet nothing serious has happened to her neither did she went through a dangerous operation. She is still alive and in the pink of health. In gratitude for the healing that she received from Jesus she entered a convent to become a nun. 

Do you believe in the healing power of Jesus? 

Our faith in Jesus can easily heal us of any sickness no matter how severe. We simply have to ask Jesus with faith and He surely would give it to us. Yet in every healing that we receive from the Lord there is also an unwritten responsibility that we have to do. And that is to give thanks and humbly share the healing experience we had.   

The ten lepers who were healed by Jesus obviously had faith otherwise they would have not been healed.  But amongst the ten it was only the Samaritan who did not forget to go back to Jesus to humbly express His thanksgiving. 

How about the nine who were also healed, where did they go? Perhaps they went back to their respective environments and quietly resumed their lives there. Whom are we going to emulate here the nine Jews or the humble Samaritan?  The answer is no brainer we have to follow the example of the grateful and humble Samaritan. 

Do you always express your humble thanksgiving to Jesus for all the blessings that you receive from Him? – Marino J. Dasmarinas  

Reflection for November 10 Tuesday, Saint Leo the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church (M) Luke 17:7-10

Gospel: Luke 17:7-10

Jesus said to the Apostles: “Who among you would say to your servant who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’? Would he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat. Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink. You may eat and drink when I am finished’? 

Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded? So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.

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Reflection:

What characterize a meaningful life? It’s a life in service for God and our fellowmen. God brought us into this world not to be served but to serve. However, to serve God is not easy it’s in fact hard and tiring. Nevertheless, we have to serve no matter how hard and tiring so that we can help Jesus spread the faith.    

But what does it require to become a true servant? We have to be humble at all times for this is the only way that we can become true servants.   But do we have humility when we serve? Many of us oftentimes serve because we want to look good in the eyes of our fellow men and women. 

 Many of us oftentimes want to serve the poor because we want to look good in the eyes of Jesus. But we cannot fool Jesus, we may fool our fellow men and women but Jesus? We can never fool Him and we cannot hide from Jesus the true intent of our service for Him.  

The moment we decide to follow or serve God He surely would reward us The first reward that He will give us is peace of mind. And surely many other rewards will follow. These rewards may not be like the rewards that we expect from this world. But there surely will be a reward which is more profound and greater than any reward that this world can give us. 

Our reward may even not come in our lifetime yet it surely will come after our lifetime in this world. -  Marino J. Dasmarinas  

1Reflection for November 9 Monday, The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica (Feast) 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:

What is a temple of God? 

A temple of God is a house of prayer. Therefore, it is sacred and Jesus has every right to be angry towards the people who were there. Because they used the house of prayer as marketplace.   

Our bodies are temple of the Holy Spirit what are we doing with it? Do we recognise the presence of the Holy Spirit in our bodies by nourishing it with prayers and by not defiling it? 

We must at all times feed our bodies with what is Holy and Godly; we must shun any form that deviates from what is Holy and Godly. God has created us for one sole purpose and that is for Him to always dwell in us. How can we invite the presence of God in our lives if we defile our bodies with sin?   

We would certainly grow in faith and wisdom the moment we always nourish our bodies with what is Holy and Godly. By Holy and Godly means that we nourish our bodies with the words of God this we can do best by reading our bibles so that we would know more about God.   

We always have to try our best also to make our bodies clean of any worldly and spiritual defilement. In doing so we always are ready to accept the Holy presence of God in our lives. 

Do you always nourish yourself with what is Holy and Godly? -  Marino J. Dasmarinas  

Reflection for Sunday November 8, 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:

What is the advantage of being prepared? We are always ready for what may happen during any time of the day. 

Jesus said to his disciples: stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour (Matthew 25:13). Indeed, nobody knows the moment of the Lord’s coming, that’s why it is a must that we are always prepared by following The Lord’s teachings. We must avoid doing things that would make us sin. 

It is very easy to say that we are always prepared for His coming but sometimes it is only lip service without real conviction to do so. We are easily tempted to sin again, to hurt people again, to ignore those who are in need again most especially the poor. And to be egoistic and have that superiority mindset again.  

Many of us are like that, we are only prepared for a short period of time and then we sin again. Why this is so and what must we do to avoid backsliding to our sinful behaviors again? We must have a continuous encounter with Jesus through our attendance at Holy Mass, through our prayers, through reading the Bible. For this is the only way for us to keep ourselves from backsliding into sinfulness again.  Hence, we would always be prepared. 

In the gospel, we read about the ten virgins, five of them were foolish and five were wise. Those who were wise came prepared by bringing along extra flask of oil. So that their lamps would be lighted if ever the bridegroom would arrive late. 

And true enough the bridegroom came in late for the wedding feast. But the five wise virgins had no problem because they had an extra flask of oil for their lamps.   For this reason, the five wise virgins were allowed entry to the wedding feast to witness the ceremony. What happened to the other five who were foolish? They were not allowed entry by the bridegroom. Why? Because they were not prepared. 

Our continuous engagement with sin makes us unprepared for the coming of the Lord. The same continuous engagement with sin will not allow us entry into heaven when our time is up in this world.  – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for November 7, Saturday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time: 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:

The story is told about a young  man that said: “I will work hard to become rich.  So that when I grow old and retire I will have all the material wealth that I need to sustain myself. Hence he worked really hard not minding if he engaged in corruption and stepped on the toes of others just to be rich. A few days after retiring he died and was immediately plucked by the devil for he was possessed by his greed for dishonest wealth when he was still alive. 

What is dishonest wealth? Dishonest wealth are the following: money, possessions, fame, power or anything that enslaves us in this world.  These dishonest wealth create a false sense of security for us. 

We cling to this dishonest wealth with the thought in mind that this would complete us and make us happy.  Only to discover that it can never complete or make us happy. In fact the more that we chase dishonest wealth the more that our lives become empty and barren. 

What then is honest wealth or true wealth? True wealth is Jesus Himself! If we have Him  in our lives we already possess the greatest wealth. Wealth than can give us peace of mind while we are still in this world. Wealth that we can also have beyond this world and wealth that is our passage to heaven. 

Do you already possess in your heart the greatest wealth? – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

Ang Mabuting Balita para sa Nobyembre 7, Sabado sa Ika-31 na Linggo ng Taon: Lucas 16:9-15

Mabuting Balita: Lucas 16:9-15

Sinabi ni Jesus sa kanyang mga alagad 9 sinasabi ko sa inyo: gamitin ninyo ang di-matuwid na Perang-diyos para magkaroon ng mga kaibi­gan para sa pagkaubos nito’y tanggapin naman nila kayo sa walang hanggang mga taha­nan. 

10 Ang mapagkakatiwalaan sa mali­liit na bagay ay mapagkakatiwalaan din sa malalaki, at ang di mapagka­katiwalaan sa maliliit ay di rin ma­pagkakatiwalaan sa malalaki. 11 Kung hindi kayo mapagkatiwalaan sa di-matuwid na pera, sino ang magtiti­wala sa inyo ng tunay na kayama­nan? 

12 Kung hindi ka­yo mapagkatiwalaan sa mga bagay na hindi talaga sa inyo, sino pa kaya ang magbi­bigay sa inyo ng talagang inyo? 13 Walang katulong na makapag­si­-silbi sa dalawang amo; siguradong kamu­muhian niya ang isa at mamahalin naman ang isa pa, o magiging ma­­tapat sa isa at mapababayaan ang ikalawa. Hindi kayo makapaglilingkod sa Diyos at sa pera.” 

14 Naririnig ng mga Pariseo ang lahat ng ito. Sakim sila kaya pinagtatawanan nila siya. 15 At sinabi ni Jesus sa kanila: “Gina­gawa ninyo ang lahat para mag­muk­hang mabuti sa paningin ng mga tao ngunit alam ng Diyos ang inyong mga puso. At kasuklam-suklam sa pa­ningin ng Diyos ang mataas sa mga tao.

1Reflection for November 6, Friday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time: 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:

Are you a good steward of the Lord? A steward in the context of our gospel is someone who manages properties on behalf of somebody else. The steward in our gospel did not measure up to his job so his master decided to replace him. 

What is the lesson for us, we who are mere stewards of the blessings of the Lord? We must always be good stewards of the blessings that the Lord has given us. For example, the riches that we have, we should use it not only for ourselves we should also share it most especially share it with those who can’t pay back our generosity. 

The same with our God given abilities and talents let us not only use it for ourselves. Let us also use it so that others may benefit from it. For example if we think that our God given ability is to write or to speak let us not only use it for our own profit. Let us also use it to advance the teachings of Jesus in this world.      

The mistake of the steward in our gospel is he squandered not only the property of his master. He also did not value the trust and confidence that his master gave him. Our Lord and Master is Jesus, let us not misuse whatever properties, abilities and talents that He gave us. And let us not ruin the trust and confidence that He gave us. 

Are we effective stewards of the Lord? – Marino J. Dasmarinas   

1Reflection for November 5, Thursday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 15:1-10

Gospel: Luke 15:1-10

The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So Jesus addressed this parable to them. “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it?  

And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance. 

“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? And when she does find it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’ In just the same way, I tell you, there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

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Reflection:

The story is told about a father who had already given up on his wayward son who was in and out of prison. He said to his son, “I already give up on you, I now give you to Jesus and I hope He finds you.” After ten long years the lost son who was given up by his father was found by Jesus and became a priest. 

Finding the lost is one of the most important reasons why Jesus walked on this earth. This is the character of Jesus, always searching and always reaching out to us who are lost. No matter who we may be, no matter the sins that we’ve committed and no matter how many we may be, Jesus desires to find us all and bring us once again to His loving embrace. 

These actions of Jesus of not giving up invites us to reflect about our own actions toward our fellow men and women. How many times have we given up or judged them simply because they are lost or wayward based on our judgment. But who are we to judge and give up on the lost and who are we to condemn them as good for nothing? 

Many times over we’ve been lost also because of our sinfulness yet Jesus has not given up on us even for a single moment. So we must also not give up on the lost and we should not also judge the lost. Let us rather reach out to them and let us make them feel the unconditional love of Jesus. 

We have wayward relatives and friends for the simple reason that we’ve judged them already. We gave up on finding them and we already gave up on showing them the unconditional love and mercy of Jesus. 

Let us never give up on anyone because Jesus has not given up on us. – Marino J. Dasmarinas 

1Reflection for November 4, Wednesday Saint Charles Borromeo, bishop (M): 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:

Would you follow Jesus based on His conditions stated in 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, can 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 the Lord. 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 faithfully follow and serve Jesus. 

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

Reflection for November 3, Tuesday of the 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:

The story is told about a young mother who 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 retired, 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 count anymore no matter how significant it is, it will not count anymore. What will count then is the personal relationship  that we’ve built with Jesus. 

We therefore  have to make time for Holy Mass let us not be afraid of covid-19. Because when we are at Holy Mass we partake of the Body and Blood of the greatest healer who ever walked this earth which is Jesus Himself! 

Do you always create time for Jesus at Holy Mass? – Marino J. Dasmarinas