FIRST
DAY TRIDUUM IN HONOR OF ST. JOHN XXIII
27th
Week in Ordinary Time
Mal 3:13 – 20/ Ps 1/ Lk 11: 5 – 13
We are
living today in a world of instants! If you want to satisfy your hunger, you
can simply buy a cup of instant noodles or instant pancit canton. If you want
to have a lot of friends, you can instantly find them on Facebook or Tinder. Or
if you want to leave the seminary, you just instantly do a major offense and
you will instantly be sent away for good. We are living today in a world of
instants! And such culture of instants makes us lose the virtue of
perseverance.
Thus,
our Gospel today reminds us of the virtue of perseverance. In the parable, we
met the persistent friend who asked for bread from his neighbor. Not out of
friendship but due to the friend’s—perhaps annoying—persistence that the
neighbor gave him bread. We also heard in the Gospel three important verbs:
ask, seek, and find. These verbs simply invite us to persevere! Ask until it
shall be given to you. Seek until you shall find. And knock until the door will
be opened up for you. Persevere!
And
this virtue of perseverance we can find in the life of St. John XXIII. His long
life was one of constantly asking, seeking, and knocking. When he decided to
enter the minor seminary, his parents were at first apprehensive—where will we
get money for his tuition, his board and lodging, his books, his uniform? We
are only farmers. But Angelo Giuseppe kept asking, seeking and knocking, and he
received and found, not all that he wanted, but all that he needed, and doors
were opened. This attitude of persevering in asking, seeking, and knocking
deepened throughout his priestly ministry and especially when he was “exiled”
to Turkey. There he continued to ask, seek, and knock even among Muslims, Orthodox,
and atheists, and he received and found all he needed despite differences and
difficulties, and doors were opened. And so when he was elected Pope and many
considered him to be a transitional Pope who will keep things as they are, he
instead shook the very foundations of the Church, challenging the Church to
persistently ask, seek, and knock. This is the Church that we are part of, a
Church marked by St. John XXIII’s persistent asking, seeking, and knocking.
This is
also our challenge today especially to you, our dear seminarians. I know you
have your dreams in life today. Some of you are probably dreaming of becoming
the next Archbishop of Cebu or the next rector of Pope John XXIII Seminary. If
you want to make your dream come true, then persevere! “Ask and you shall
receive. Seek and you shall find. Knock and the door will be opened to you.” If
you really want to become a priest, then starting today, persevere in your
formation. Despite the many challenges and difficulties of seminary formation
and your own human weakness and limitations, continue to ask, seek, and knock
on the Lord who has called you. If kaya ninyo mag-persevere in playing Dota 2
from evening until dawn, I hope you can also bring such perseverance in your
seminary formation.
St. John
XXIII once said, “Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams.” As
you persevere in your chosen vocation, do not fear! Rather, hold on to your
hopes and dreams. Continue to ask, seek, and knock on the Lord’s heart so that in
the end, He will bring to fulfillment what he has begun in you. Amen!
St.
John XXIII, pray for us who have recourse to you!
Photo taken from frchriszugger.com
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