A LOVE THAT GIVE BIRTH TO PEACE

Sixth Sunday of Easter

National Labor Day in the Philippines

Acts 15: 1 – 2. 22 – 29 / Ps 67 / Rv 21: 10 – 14. 22 – 23 / Jn 14: 23 - 29 

The word “conflict” comes from two Latin terms, “con” which means “together” and “fligere” which means “to strike.” Conflicts happen when we strike together a single reality through different ways and means. For example, all of us here share a common desire for a better Philippines. So we strike together such a reality. However, conflicts arise because we have different ways and means to reach a common dream. With the elections just around the corner, in May 9, we want a better Philippines by choosing a candidate who has either a “blue blood, a high blood, a half blood, a cold blood, or a dinuguan.” With these differences, then, conflicts arise. And so, together with Fantine in Les Miserables, we dream a “dream in time gone by, when hope was high and life worth living, when men were kind, when their voices were soft and their words inviting.” We all want to have a better and more peaceful world.

If you would notice, there is a brewing conflict in our first reading today. Since Christianity was expanding, it has also admitted the Gentiles who do not share the Jewish tradition. A big question arose: If the Gentiles are not obliged to follow our laws like circumcision, then, should the Jewish Christians continue to follow the Jewish laws? Some said yes, others say no, and yet others want a compromise. But the story ended in peace because they were able to handle the conflict well. They were able to solve the conflict because they remained faithful to what Jesus told them in our Gospel today, “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.” Since love was greater than the conflict, then, the disciples were able to reach not their decision but the decision of the Holy Spirit. Through love, God’s presence became a present of peace to everyone.

My dear friends, after the May 9 elections, there will still be more conflicts. Disappointments, misunderstandings, and quarrels in both our country and families continue to happen. And so, our work for peace continue. Let us then remind ourselves of the words of Pope Francis, “true peace is not simply covering conflicts and divisions. Rather, peace calls for daily commitment which starts from God’s gift.”

This is therefore our challenge – in order to achieve peace not just as a nation but in our families, we must daily commit ourselves to love because when we love one another, our families become God’s dwelling place. When we love one another, we make God’s presence a present (or gift) for everyone. When we love one another, we achieve peace, a peace which only God can give.

After having lived a life of hope, mercy, and salvation, Jean Valjean, in Les Miserables, sang in the finale, “And remember the truth that once was spoken, to love another person is to see the face of God.” Jean Valjean was at peace in death because he has spent his life loving other persons. And such love made him see the face of God, the God of peace.

How about you? Have you achieved the peace which you have always longed for? Is there peace in your family? Is there peace in your married life? Is there peace in your personal life? If you want peace, then, learn to love the other. For in love, you make God’s presence a present of peace to your beloved. Amen.

OUR IDENTIFICATION CARD

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Acts 14: 21 – 27 / Ps 145 / Rv 21: 1 – 5 / Jn 13: 31 – 33. 34 – 35

What makes a Filipino, a Filipino? What distinguishes a Filipino from other nationalities?

A blogsite provided me with 115 ways to know if one is a Filipino. "You are a Filipino," the blogsite says, "if you point directions using your lips." Then it continues: "You are a Filipino if your reason for coming late is the traffic. You are a Filipino if you say 'Colgate' every time you buy a toothpaste." And I do not know if you agree with this, the blogsite suggests, "You are a Filipino if you suddenly smile for no reason at all." Indeed, one’s identity distinguishes him or her from the rest.

Our Gospel today took place on the night Jesus was betrayed. It happened a few hours before our Lord left his disciples in order to embrace his passion and death. And before they parted ways, he reminded them of their identity as His followers. 

“This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” No wonder for his disciples to remain faithful to their identity, Jesus made loving (or to love) as a commandment, something which they need to do in order to prevent an identity crisis.

And since this love is a command, then, such love must be something visible. It must be felt and experienced by others. Pope Francis in his latest book, The Name of God is Mercy, has this to say, “Mercy is God’s identity card. God of Mercy, merciful God. For me, this really is the Lord’s identity.”

My dear friends, love seen as being merciful is the Lord’s identity. Thus, as followers of the Lord, we too are called to remain faithful to our identity by making love concrete through our works of mercy. To be a Christian, it does not simply mean being able to pray all the novenas to the saints or being able to recite all the mysteries of the Rosary every day. To be a Christian means being able to love, to show mercy to others.

As we draw near towards the national elections, I hope and pray that our Christian identity is over and above our political identity. I know you must have chosen already your candidates. But I hope you will not allow your political ideology occupy your way of thinking and doing. It is sad to hear stories of friendships destroyed and families in trouble simply because one prefers to be yellow, or red, or blue, or black. Always remember, after May 9, some candidates will win while many will lose. I hope you will not lose your mind if ever your candidate will not make it because by then, you must have also lost your identity.

A priest from a northern parish of Cebu once shared to me a story of one of his parishioners. Despite being an active church volunteer, a wife was experiencing difficulty with her family life. She was a battered wife and her two sons were drug addicts. Even if her friends suggest that she leave her husband, she would simply say, “Ako man 'ni siyang gipakaslan, busa, ako sad 'ni siyang pakamatyan.” True enough, at the deathbed of her husband, she was there beside; she served him until his last breath.

My dear friends, such is an example of a person who has not lost sight of her identity. Despite the difficulty, she never let go of her identity to love and to be merciful even if others are not and will not.

Now, what makes a Filipino, a Filipino? But the more important question for us would be: “What makes a Christian, a Christian?”

“This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Our identity which is also our mission is to transform love into mercy, “for mercy is love that seeks to extinguish the pain of the beloved.”

So, if someone will ask you today, "What makes you a Christian?" What will be your honest answer? Amen!

THE GOOD SHEPHERD AND THE GOOD SHEEP

 

Fourth Sunday of Easter

Good Shepherd Sunday and the World Day of Prayer for Vocations

Acts 13: 14. 43 – 52 / Ps 100 / Rv 7:9. 14b – 17 / Jn 10: 27 – 30

What is your status in life? A status is your official position in a social group. That is why in our society, some are married. Some are single for a period of time while others are single forever and ever. To those who are neither married nor single, they would just say, “It’s complicated!”

Today is Good Shepherd Sunday. Let us no longer debate whether Jesus is a Good Shepherd or not. Rather, let us reflect on our status as the sheep of the Good Shepherd. Let us ask ourselves, “Am I a good sheep?” “Am I faithful to my status as a sheep of the Lord?” Jesus in our Gospel presents to us three qualities of a good sheep. “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” To listen, to know, and to follow the Good shepherd make us his good sheep.

“My sheep hear my voice.”

It is very difficult to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd today because the world is noisy. From the rising of the sun to its setting, we hear a lot of voices. However, to be a good sheep means being able to listen to the voice of the shepherd in prayer. Benedict XVI once reminded us that “only in silence is God revealed in our lives.” Thus, it is important that in our prayer we must allow God to speak so that we can listen to His voice. And so, let me ask you, “do you still pray?” “How often do you pray?” “And when you pray, do you allow God to speak to you?”

“I know them.”

There is no question about God knowing us. But do we know him? St. Paul reminds us that “faith comes through hearing.” Therefore, when we listen to God in prayer, then, we are also knowing who he is in our lives. It is important to know God because St. Augustine reminds us that “we cannot love that which you do not know.”

“They follow me.”

We live in a world of concrete and not abstract realities. And so, our knowledge about God must have a flesh. It must be seen in our lives. Thus, if we know that God is loving, then be loving. If we know that God is generous, then be generous. If you have not known God then you have not yet loved him.

Today is also the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. A vocation is different from a status. As I mentioned earlier, a status is your official position in a particular society. However, a vocation is your path to holiness. That is why to be a blessed single, to be married, or to be a priest or religious is your way to holiness. And you can only achieve holiness if you listen, know, and follow the way of the Good Shepherd.

A priest once shared with me the story of her former teacher. Mam Rose was a manager of the finance department of a big hospital in the city. She was so dedicated to her work that everything must be perfect for her. Since, she was working in the hospital, she was also able to meet and listen to the stories of the patients. Learning a lot from her stories, she came to a point wherein she slowly let go of her status as the finance manager and eventually ended being a volunteer in the chaplain’s office. Since she was already a volunteer, then, it came to a point that she was already begging for funds from other people. Indeed, it was a 360^O turn of her life. When asked about her present life she said these words. “When I was a finance manager, I had everything. I can buy anything. However, when I volunteered in the chaplain’s office, I can no longer have everything. I cannot buy anything. But I was happier than before.”

Mam Rose did not only change her status. Mam Rose lived well her chosen vocation. She heard God through the patients. She knew about God through the patients. She followed God by serving the patients. And such kind of life made her happy. Indeed, she was a good sheep.

What is your vocation in life? Have you lived well your chosen vocation? Have you listened, known, and followed the Lord through your vocation? Are you a good sheep? Or are you a ba-ba-black sheep? Amen!

DOMINUS EST!

Third Sunday of Easter

Acts 5: 27 – 32. 40 – 41 / Ps 30 / Rv 5: 11 – 14 / Jn 21: 1 – 19 or 1 –  14

“Where do broken hearts go? Can they find their way home?” asks the late Whitney Houston. When you lose a loved one, where do you go? When your friend became a traitor, where did you go? At kung pinaasa ka lang ng iyong minamahal na may forever pero wala pala, where do you go? Usually, when things are no longer bright and clear, we go back to our old way of life.

This is the case of Peter and the other disciples. Since Jesus, their Teacher, was no longer with them, they went back to their old way of life. Since Jesus, their Master, was no longer teaching, they went back to fishing, their original livelihood. Simon Peter said, “I am going fishing.” They replied, “We also will come with you.” Indeed, it was a life without Christ. However, despite their skill, they caught nothing all night. When it was dawn, Jesus standing on the shore gave them an instruction to cast their net on the right side of the boat. But him they did not recognize, not after that big catch, and the disciple whom Jesus loved recognize him and said, “Dominus est!” (It is the Lord!)

From the Gospel, we learn that living a life without God is nothing. Without God, our net of life catches nothing. However, living a life with God means filling our boats with a big catch. Pope Benedict XVI reminds us that “if we let Christ enter into our lives, we lose nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing of what makes life free, beautiful, and great. No! Only in this friendship are the doors of life opened wide. Only in this friendship is the great potential of human existence truly revealed.”

My dear friends, in life, when things become vague and life seem ordinary and routine, we easily fall out of love. Now that the Semana Santa is over and summer has begun, we go back to our old life. After having gone through Confession, now we go back to doing again and again our favorite sins. However, let us remind ourselves today that living a life without God is nothing.

This is our challenge: that we recognize the presence of the Lord amidst the ordinariness of life. That like John, we can also say, “Dominus est! It is the Lord!” Because to recognize him means having a big catch, fullness of life! Let us always remember that since the Lord has risen, he is already beyond time and space. Therefore, he is present not only every Semana Santa, but in every day of our lives. However, it is not enough to only recognize the Lord in our lives, as Christians, we should also become instruments, or witnesses for others to see the Lord in their lives. Kana ganing kung makakita sila nato makaingon sila, “It is the Lord!” Dili unta nga kung makakita sila nato makapanguros sila niya moingon pa gyud, “Sus naana na sad ang panuway!” (That similar situation that when they see us – how we carry ourselves in the things we say and do -- they can say, “It is the Lord!” Hopefully it is not the other situation, that upon seeing us – how we carry ourselves in the things we say and do -- they make the sign of the cross and exclaim: “Here is the devil once more.)

A story of a madre and Manong Estrelitto became viral in social media after the madre posted one of her experiences in Facebook. After the Visita Iglesia during the last 51^st IEC, the madre took a taxi back to her convent near Harisson Plaza. However, the road was getting dark and winding and so the madre reminded the driver that she is going to Harisson Plaza. And it was only there that the driver admitted his fault. He, all the while thought that the madre was going to Radisson Hotel. Admitting his fault, he turned the meter back to zero and went to Harisson Plaza. But the story did not end there. Upon disembarking at her destination, Manong Estrelitto did not accept the madre’s payment. “Sister, huwag na po. Tulong ko na po sa misyon ninyo (Never mind Sister, please accept it as my help in your mission)” But the sister insisted, “Manong, you need this for your family.” But again the driver said, “Hindi po ako makakasali sa IEC, at wala naman akong maibibigay na iba. Yan na lang po ang contribution ko para sa IEC (Since I cannot participate in the IEC, and there is nothing I can contribute to the event, please accept it as my contribution to the IEC)”

My dear friends, on the one hand, Manong Estrelitto recognized the presence of God amidst his ordinary life as a taxi driver. On the other hand, Manong Estrelitto became the madre’s reminder of God’s presence amidst the ordinary.

Now, “Where do broken hearts go? Can you find your way home? Can you recognize God in the ordinary scheme of things? Life without God is nothing. But a life with God is everything. Find him. See him in the ordinary. He is there and it is the Lord! Amen.

MERCY SEEN AT ITS BEST

Second Sunday of Easter

Today, the Octave of Easter, is also Divine Mercy Sunday

Acts 5: 12 – 16 / Ps 118 / Rv 1: 9 – 11. 12 – 13. 17 – 19 / Jn 20: 19 – 31

What do you fear most in life? When we are in fear, we tend to close ourselves from the object of our fear. Psychology today has a long list of phobias – the fear of heights, of closed spaces, of spiders, of darkness, of water, and even the fear of facing oneself in the mirror. Just as we cannot run away from utangs in life, we also cannot escape from the reality of fear.

This is the case of the disciples in our Gospel reading today. John tells us that for fear of the Jews, they locked themselves inside a room. Doors and windows were closed. You can just imagine how fear-filled that room was. However, amidst their fear, Jesus came and stood in their midst bringing with him the grace of peace. This time fear turned into peace with the presence of Jesus. Why such transformation? Because Jesus opened up himself to them; He also opened the closed and locked hearts of the disciples. And He went further as to allow Thomas to touch the marks of his wounds.

My dear friends, this Sunday is indeed a very special day because we celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday in the Jubilee Year of Mercy. What a double celebration of God’s mercy! Pope Francis in his book, The Name of God is Mercy, defines “mercy” from its Latin term, “misericordis.” The term “misericordis” contains two more Latin terms, “miseri” which means “wretchedness or misery” and “cordis” which means “heart.” Thus, for Pope Francis, mercy is the “opening of one’s heart to wretchedness.” And this is what Jesus did in our Gospel today: he opened up himself, his heart, to the disciples who were in fear.

However, it is not enough to open up ourselves to the sufferings of others. Jesus, because of Thomas’ doubt, offered to him the wounds of his body to be touched. Jesus’ openness however was not a mere show but it was something real, personal, and concrete. This is an important element of mercy. Pope Francis reminds us that mercy is not like a soap opera. No! God’s love, his mercy, is solid, strong, and concrete. “It is a concrete love made of works and not of words.”  

My dear friends: most especially this year, we are asked to be “merciful like the Father.” And we can only become merciful like the Father if, like Jesus, we open up our hearts to the suffering of others in the most real, personal, and concrete way possible. We must not only stand in the midst of fear and suffering. Rather, we should allow others to touch our lives. Or we should allow ourselves to be dirtied, bruised, and wounded so that others will believe; so that others will experience the peace of the Risen Lord.

In 1864, Damien, a Belgian priest arrived on the shores of Honolulu, Hawaii as a missionary. When leprosy became a health issue during that time, the island of Molokai became a leper colony. Seeing the need for pastoral care, Fr. Damien volunteered to be the chaplain of the lepers. While in Molokai, Fr. Damien administered not only to the spiritual but also to the physical needs of the lepers. He made coffins for them and even washed their bloodied linens. Such was his dedication until one day, he himself was afflicted with leprosy, and it led to his death in 1889. In a letter to his brother he said, “I make myself a leper with the lepers to gain all to Christ.” The story of Fr. Damien is a story of God’s mercy. Fr. Damien opened up himself to the suffering of the lepers in the most real, personal, and concrete way! This is a story of mercy seen at its best!

Now let me go back to my first question, “What do you fear most in life?” I hope you don’t include in your list the fear of being merciful to others. I hope you are not afraid of opening up yourself, your heart, in the most real, personal, and concrete way possible, to the suffering of others. Amen!

Special thanks to Kuya Chris Sagun for the editing of the text.