Ang Mabuting Balita para Oktubre 13 Huwebes sa Ika-28 Linggo sa Karaniwang Panahon: Lucas 11:47-54

Mabuting Balita: Lucas 11:47-54

Noong panahong iyon, sinabi ni Hesus, "Kawawa kayo! Ipinagtatayo ninyo ng magagarang libingan ang mga propetang pinagpapatay ng inyong mga magulang. Sa ganitong paraan, kayo na rin ang nagpapatunay na sang-ayon kayo sa mga ginawa ng inyong mga magulang; sapagkat sila ang pumatay sa mga propeta at kayo naman ang nagtatayo ng libingang puntod ng mga yaon.  

Dahil rito'y sinabi rin ng Karunungan ng Diyos, 'Magsusugo ako sa kanila ng mga propeta at ng mga apostol; ang iba'y papatayin nila at uusigin ang iba.' Sa gayo'y lalagpak sa lahing ito ang parusa dahil sa pagpatay sa mga propeta buhat nang itatag ang sanlibutan, magmula kay Abel hanggang kay Zacarias na pinatay sa pagitan ng dambanang sunugan ng mga handog at ng gusali ng Templo.  

Sinasabi ko sa inyo, lalagpak sa lahing ito ang parusa dahil sa kanilang ginawa. "Kawawa kayo, mga dalubhasa sa Kautusan! Sapagkat inalis ninyo ang susi ng karunungan. Ayaw na ninyong magsipasok, hinahadlangan pa ninyo ang mga nagnanais pumasok." At umalis si Jesus sa bahay na iyon. Mula noon, tinuligsa na siya ng mga eskriba at mga Pariseo at pinagtatanong tungkol sa maraming bagay, upang masilo siya sa kanyang pananalita.

Reflection for October 12, Wednesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 11:42-46

 

Gospel: Luke 11:42-46

“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.

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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       

Ang Mabuting Balita para Oktubre 12 Miyerkules sa Ika-28 Linggo sa Karaniwang Panahon: Lucas 11:42-46

Mabuting Balita: Lucas 11:42-46

Noong panahong iyon, sinabi ni Hesus, "Kawawa kayo, mga Pariseo! Ibinibigay ninyo ang ikapu ng yerbabuena, ng ruda, at ng iba pang gulayin, ngunit kinaliligtaan ninyo ang katarungan at ang pag-ibig sa Diyos. Tamang gawin ninyo ito ngunit huwag naman ninyong kaliligtaang gawin ang mga iba. 

"Kawawa kayo, mga Pariseo! Sapagkat ang ibig ninyo'y ang mga tanging luklukan sa mga sinagoga, at ang pagpugayan kayo sa mga liwasang-bayan. Sa aba ninyo! Sapagkat para kayong mga libingang walang tanda, at nalalakaran ng mga tao nang hindi nila nalalaman." 

Sinabi sa kanya ng isa sa mga dalubhasa sa Kautusan, "Guro, sa sinabi mong iyan pati kami'y kinukutya mo." At sinagot siya ni Jesus, "Kawawa rin kayo, mga dalubhasa sa Kautusan! Sapagkat ipinapapasan ninyo sa mga tao ang mabibigat na dalahin, ngunit ni daliri'y ayaw ninyong igalaw sa pagdadala ng mga iyon."

Reflection for October 11, Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 11:37-41

Luke 11:37-41

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.”

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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  

Ang Mabuting Balita para Oktubre 11 Martes sa Ika-28 Linggo sa Karaniwang Panahon: Lucas 11:37-41

Mabuting Balita: Lucas 11:37-41

Noong panahong iyon, pagkatapos magsalita ni Hesus, siya’y inanyayahan ng isang Pariseo upang kumain, kaya’t pumunta siya sa bahay nito. Pagdulog sa hapag, nagtaka ang Pariseo nang makita niyang kumain si Hesus nang hindi muna naghugas ng kamay. Sinabi sa kanya ng Panginoon, “Kayong mga Pariseo, hinuhugasan ninyo ang labas ng tasa at ng pinggan, ngunit ang loob ninyo’y punong-puno ng kasakiman at kasamaan. 

Mga hangal! Hindi ba’t ang may likha ng labas ang siya ring may likha ng loob? Ngunit ipamahagi muna ninyo sa mga dukha ang mga laman ng mga sisidlan at magiging malinis ang lahat ng bagay para sa inyo.”

Paano gumawa ng masarap na Kinilaw?

 

Reflection for October 10, Monday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 11:29-32

Gospel: Luke 11:29-32

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.”

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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 

Ang Mabuting Balita para Oktubre 10 Lunes sa Ika-28 Linggo sa Karaniwang Panahon: Lucas 11:29-32

Mabuting Balita: Lucas 11:29-32

Noong panahong iyon, samantalang dumaragsa ang mga tao, sinabi ni Hesus, “Napakasama ng lahing ito! Naghahanap sila ng palatandaan mula sa langit, subalit walang ipapakita sa kanila maliban sa palatandaang inilalarawan ng nangyari kay Jonas. Kung paanong naging isang palatandaan si Jonas sa mga taga-Ninive, gayun din naman, magiging isang palatandaan sa lahing ito ang Anak ng Tao. 

Sa Araw ng Paghuhukom, titindig ang Reyna ng Timog laban sa lahing ito at sila’y hahatulan niya ng kaparusahan. Sapagkat nanggaling siya sa dulo ng daigdig upang pakinggan ang karunungan ni Solomon; ngunit higit na di-hamak kay Solomon ang naririto! Sa Araw ng Paghuhukom ay titindig ang mga taga-Ninive laban sa lahing ito at hahatulan ng kaparusahan, sapagkat nagsisi sila dahil sa pangangaral ni Jonas; ngunit higit na di-hamak kay Jonas ang naririto!” 

Reflection for Sunday October 9, 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time: 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:

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  

Ang Mabuting Balita at Repleksyon para sa Linggo Oktubre 9, Ika - 28 na Linggo sa Karaniwang Panahon : Lucas 17:11-19

Mabuting Balita: Lucas 17:11-19

Sa paglalakbay ni Hesus patungong Jerusalem, nagdaan siya sa hangganan ng Samaria at Galilea. Nang papasok na siya sa isang nayon, siya’y sinalubong ng sampung ketongin. Tumigil sila malayu-layo at humiyaw ng: “Hesus! Panginoon! Mahabag po kayo sa amin!” nang makita sila ay sinabi niya, “Humayo kayo at pakita sa mga saserdote.”

At samantalang sila’y naglalakad, gumaling sila. Nang mapuna ng isa na siya’y magaling na, nagbalik siyang sumisigaw ng pagpupuri sa Diyos. Nagpatirapa siya sa paanan ni Hesus at nagpasalamat. Ang taong ito’y Samaritano.

“Hindi ba sampu ang gumaling?” tanong ni Hesus. “Nasan ang siyam? Wala bang nagbalik at nagpuri sa Diyos kundi ang dayuhang ito?” Sinabi sa kanya ni Hesus, “Tumindig ka’t humayo sa iyong lakad! Pinagaling ka dahil sa iyong pananalig.”

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Repleksyon:

Palagi ka bang magpapasalamat sa mga biyayang ibinibigay ng Panginoon sa iyo?

Pagkatapos pagalingin ni Jesus ang sampung ketongin isa lang ang bumalik para magpasalamat siya ay isang samaritano isang tao na hindi kasama sa relihiyon ni Jesus. Kaya sinabi ni Jesus, diba sampu silang gumaling, asan ang siyam?  

Marahil hinahanap ang siyam ni Jesus dahil sila ay kabilang sa kanyang pananampalataya. Pero  ng makuha na nila ang pagpapagaling ni Jesus ay hindi na sila nagparamdam  pa kay Jesus. 

Ganyan din ang ugali ng ilan sa atin, nananalangin at nag paparamdam  tayo sa Panginoon pag tayo ay may kailagan sa kanya. Pero pag naibigay na sa atin ang panalangin natin para bang nakakalimutan na rin natin ang Panginoon.

Kahit nga sa ating mga kapamilya, kaibigan at sa iba pang tao na nakagawa ng kabutihan sa atin ay nakakalimutan rin nating magpasalamat sa kanila. Pero dapat ay hindi po tayo nakakalimot na magpasalamat sa Panginoon at sa mga taong gumawa ng mabuti sa atin.

Halimbawa po kay Jesus, palagi po ba tayong nagpapasalamat sa mga biyayang ibinibigay nya sa atin? Tulad ho ng biyaya ng bagong buhay tuwing tayo ay gigising sa umaga? Sa lahat po ng bagay tayo ay palaging magkaroon ng pusong nagpapasalamat sa kabutihan ng Panginoon sa atin.

Palagi ka bang nagpapasalamat sa Panginoon? – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Reflection for October 8, Saturday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time: Luke 11:27-28

Gospel: Luke 11:27-28

While Jesus was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” He replied, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

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Reflection:

Who was the woman who said to Jesus, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed (Luke 11:27).” She obviously was so enthralled by the words and works of Jesus that she pointed to the Blessed Mother and gave her honor as the foundation of Jesus. 

Do we give the same honor and reverence for the Blessed Mother? Some Christian faiths don’t honor the Blessed Mother as much as we honor her. But why cannot we honor the mother of Jesus? Without the Blessed Mother Jesus would have not been born and we would have no savior.    

But thanks to the humility of the Blessed Mother Jesus was born into this world. She humbly accepted her sacred mission as the mother of Jesus when she said, I am the handmaid of the Lord let it be done to me according to your word (Luke 1:38).  

This gospel is an invitation for all of us to give more honor and reverence to the Blessed Mother. We honor her by asking her to always pray for us and by praying the Holy Rosary. This also reminds us of the role of our own mothers in our lives. The countless sacrifices that they carried on their shoulders so that they could rear us with honor and dignity.    

Do you always remember to ask the Blessed Mother to pray for you and to bring your prayers to Jesus? Do you pray the Holy Rosary even for only once a week? - Marino J. Dasmarinas

Ang Mabuting Balita para Oktubre 8 Sabado sa Ika-27 Linggo sa Karaniwang Panahon: Lucas 11:27-28

Mabuting Balita: Lucas 11:27-28

Noong panahong iyon, samantalang nagsasalita si Jesus, sa mga tao, may isang babaing sumigaw mula sa karamihan at nagsabi sa kanya, "Mapalad ang babaing nagdala sa inyo sa kanyang sinapupunan, at nagpasuso sa inyo!" Ngunit sumagot siya, "Higit na mapalad ang mga nakikinig sa salita ng Diyos at tumutupad nito!"

Reflection for Friday October 7, Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary: Luke 11:15-26

Gospel: Luke 11:15-26

When Jesus had driven out a demon, some of the crowd said: “By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he drives out demons.” Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven. But he knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house. 

And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons. If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own people drive them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you. 

When a strong man fully armed guards his palace, his possessions are safe. But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him, he takes away the armor on which he relied and distributes the spoils. Whoever is not with me is against me,  and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 

“When an unclean spirit goes out of someone, it roams through arid regions searching for rest but, finding none, it says, ‘I shall return to my home from which I came.’ But upon returning, it finds it swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and brings back seven other spirits more wicked than itself who move in and dwell there, and the last condition of that man is worse than the first.”

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Reflection:

Does Jesus deserve the accusation that He is a demon? Has he done any demonic actions to earn the accusation? No Jesus doesn’t deserve the accusation and He surely has not done any actions contrary to His mission. None at all. 

The crowd’s accusation originates from the deceit and envy in their hearts. And who planted that deceit and envy? It’s Beelzebul the prince of demons himself! So it was actually the accusers who were in fact possessed by the demon. 

We must be careful not to allow deceitful/envious and other negative emotions to take root in our hearts. Because these are temptations that originate from the devil. We should instead fill our hearts and minds with thoughts that are Godly.  And of course we must choose to be with Jesus for this is always the correct choice.  If we are not for Jesus, then we are against Jesus there’s no middle ground. 

Why should we choose to be in the company of the devil when it will not do any good to our lives? The devil will bring us nothing but problems and perdition.  Though he often times disguises his diabolical intentions and himself through the many attractive things of this world.   

We should therefore be discerning because the devil may already be enticing  us without us knowing it. How would we able to discern if the devil is already laying his enticement upon us? We have to be close to Jesus and should not walk away from Jesus. For this is the only way that we could discern the presence of the devil.  The same devil who always seeks to destroy us by trying his very best to snatch us away from the love of Jesus. 

Let us therefore always align ourselves with Jesus. And let us never compromise with anything that is wrong and evil no matter how tempting it may appear. Why? Because sooner or later it will only bring us unfathomable trouble. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

Ang Mabuting Balita para Biyernes Oktubre 7, Mahal na Birheng Maria ng Rosario (Paggunita): Lucas 11:15-26

Mabuting Balita: Lucas 11:15-26

Noong panahong iyon, matapos palayasin ni Hesus ang isang demonyo, nanggilalas ang mga tao. Ngunit may ilan sa kanila ang nagsabi, “Si Beelzebul na prinsipe ng mga demonyo ang nagbigay sa kanya ng kapangyarihang magpalayas ng mga demonyo.” May iba namang nais siyang subukin, kaya’t nagsabi, “Magpakita ka ng kababalaghang magpapakilala na ang Diyos ang sumasaiyo.” 

Ngunit batid ni Hesus ang kanilang iniisip, kaya’t sinabi sa kanila, “Babagsak ang bawat kahariang nahahati sa magkakalabang pangkat at mawawasak ang mga bahay roon. Kung maghimagsik si Satanas laban sa kanyang sarili, paano mananatili ang kanyang kaharian? Sinasabi ninyong nagpapalayas ako ng mga demonyo sapagkat binigyan ako ni Beelzebul ng kapangyarihang ito. 

Kung ako’y nagpapalayas ng mga demonyo sa pamamagitan ni Beelzebul, sino naman ang nagbigay ng kapangyarihan sa inyong mga tagasunod na makagawa ng gayun? Sila na rin ang nagpapatunay na maling-mali kayo. Ngayon, kung ako’y nagpapalayas ng mga demonyo sa pamamagitan ng kapangyarihan ng Diyos, nangangahulugang dumating na sa inyo ang paghahari ng Diyos. 

“Kapag ang isang taong malakas at nasasandatahan ay nagbabantay sa kanyang bahay, malayo sa panganib ang kanyang ari-arian. Ngunit kung salakayin siya at talunin ng isang taong higit na malakas, sasamsamin nito ang mga sandatang kanyang inaasahan at ipamamahagi ang ari-ariang inagaw. “Ang hindi panig sa akin ay laban sa akin, at nagkakalat ang hindi tumutulong sa kaing mag-ipon. 

“Kapag lumabas na mula sa tao ang isang masamang espiritu, ito’y gumagala sa mga tigang na lugar at naghahanap ng mapagpapahingahan. Kung walang matagpuan ay sasabihin nito sa sarili, ‘Babalik ako sa bahay na aking pinanggalingan.’ Pagbabalik ay matatagpuan niyang malinis na ang bahay at maayos. Kaya, lalabas siyang muli at magsasama ng pito pang espiritung masasama kaysa kanya, at papasok sila at maninirahan doon. Kaya’t sumasama kaysa dati ang kalagayan ng taong iyon.”