16th
Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B
Jer 23: 1-6/ Ps 23/ Eph 2:13-18/ Mk 6: 30-34
We have
different reactions every time we meet poor people begging along the streets.
“Professor Effect” – instead of giving help, we lecture them about diligence,
hardwork, and creativity even if in the very first place we are guilty of
mediocrity, procrastination, and laziness. “The Invisible Effect” – when these
people come, we suddenly become blind. We do not see them. They are invisible!
“The mediaman effect” – Yes, we entertain their presence. We ask a lot of
questions and in the end give them nothing at all. A priest once shared with us
his experience after his Mass, he was met by street children begging for food.
Deep in his mind, he was analyzing how authentic the statements of the children
were. Then suddenly a car parked in front of the priest. The children then told
the priest that it was the car of the attorney who helped one of them who had a
problem with a security guard. Then turning to him, the children said, “Pero ikaw Fr., hanggang ngayon hindi ka pa
nakatulong sa amin.”
Our
Gospel today narrates to us the many people who were following the Lord. They
were so many that some of them arrived first in the place than Jesus. It is to
be noted however that Mark did not give us the reasons of the people’s
following of Jesus. We can assume however that some of them were simply curious
of this miracle worker. Some of them were probably asked by the teachers of the
Law to look after this Jesus. Some of them probably needs healing. However,
despite the varying reasons, Jesus, after disembarking from the boat, saw them
and his heart was moved with pity for they were like sheep without a shepherd.
Such
act of Jesus fulfills the prophecy in our first reading today when the Lord
will send someone who will gather the people; who will reign in justice. Such
act of Jesus is the reason why Paul in our second reading today tells us that
through Jesus we became nearer to the Father; we gain access to the Father.
Thus we
ask ourselves, what moved Jesus to pity? Pope Francis in Misericordiae Vultus explains that “what moved Jesus in all of
these situations was nothing other than mercy, with which he read the hearts of
those he encountered and responded to their deepest need.” Mercy! Misericordia! Kaluoy!
In this
Mass, let us then beg the Lord for mercy! Let us ask the Lord for his mercy
because it “fills our hearts with love and consoles us to pardon.” Only when we
take away our biases and put on the eyes of mercy can we feed the hungry; give
drink to the thirsty; give shelter to the homeless; and visit those who are
sick and in prison. Only when we are filled with God’s mercy can we relate well
with one another.
However,
it is not enough to relate with mercy. In our Gospel, after Jesus’ was moved to
pity, he began to teach the people about many things. And what made his
teaching more effective was that he himself practiced what he taught.
This is
also our challenge today. As we see the rest of humanity especially the poor
and marginalized with the eyes of mercy, we must also do something. We must
also teach them about God. And how do we teach people? By simply “walking our
talking.” We practice what we preach! Pope Francis once said, “you pray for the
hungry then you feed them. This is how prayer works.” All our prayers in this
Mass can only work if we put on the eyes of mercy and be moved to service.
A
priest once narrated his experience about listening to an old man narrate his
life story. While the poor man was speaking, the priest’s mind was already
grumbling. He was saying to himself why this man can’t simply tell me that he
is asking for money. However, the encounter ended differently. The poor man
told the priest, “Padre, sorry if I took your time. I am not here to ask money
from you. I am just here to simply thank God through you for all the blessings
which I receive despite my poverty. All that I would ask from you is to
continue praying for me.”
How about
you? How do you look at other people? What do you see in them? However, before
looking at others, try to ask yourself, how does God look at me right now?
Amen!
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