1. 3rd Sunday of Advent-Year B
    Is 61:1-2a, 10-11

    Lk 1:46-48, 49-50, 53-54


    1 Thes 5:16-24


    Jn 1:6-8, 19-28

     

    REJOICE IN THE LORD!  ALWAYS REJOICE! 
     
       

    Beloved in Christ, two weeks ago, I went to Meijer to buy a gift for one of my friends who was celebrating his birthday but I ended up buying two copies of a book. The title is “God has a plan B”; and is edited by Todd Hafer. What a title! After reading this book, I concluded that the title should rather be “God always has a plan A” because the book talks about how even in the most difficult moments of our lives, even when everything seems to fall apart, God somehow always has a way of bringing good out of evil for those who hope in him.
    Beloved, in the responsorial psalm today, we sang the Magnificat, “My soul rejoices in my God”, the song that Mary sang at a time that, humanly speaking, things seemed to be falling apart in her life. In the second reading, St. Paul tells us to rejoice always, pray without ceasing and give thanks to God in all circumstances because the God who has called us is faithful and will accomplish everything he has begun in our lives. My brothers and sisters in Christ, you and I know that it is easy to rejoice when things are good, when things go according to our plans, and dreams get fulfilled. However, it is not easy at all to rejoice when things get tough! Life is not always easy. There are broken dreams, broken marriages, broken relationships, lost of jobs, lost of loved ones, and at times, evil seems to triumph over good, such as the killing of innocent people all over the world. In the face of all these challenges, difficulties, and evils, how does one rejoice at all times?
    In order to experience what St. Paul is taking about we need to understand what he means by joy! St. Paul’s understanding of joy is different from the way the world defines joy. To the world, joy is the absence of pain and suffering, absence of all troubles and problems. The world sees joy as something that provides an “escape” from all pain and troubles. For St. Paul, joy is the inner peace and satisfaction that we have regardless of what is going on in our lives. The kind of peace that only Jesus Christ can give. Christian joy is therefore not an escape; it is the type of joy that can exist together with pain, failures, and contradictions of life.
    In our first reading, the prophet Isaiah talks of a “Jubilee” that God is about to bring to his people and calls on the people in exile to rejoice because of what God was about to do in their lives. God was going to bring them a savior and free those who are oppressed by sin, despair and brokenness. The prophet uses many images to communicate this good news. One image that touched me is the image of how a garden makes things grow: “As a garden makes its growth spring up, so will the Lord GOD make justice and praise spring up before all the nations” (Isaiah 61:11). Beloved, if you plant anything, there is a time when that seed must die in order for new life to come out of it. If you uproot the seed at that time, you are making a mistake because even though it seems dead and looks like nothing good can come out of it, God is going to surprise you. New life will come out of that seed which seems dead. God is not done! He is still working to make all things new so don’t give up! Rejoice and praise God for what he is yet to do for you, your family, friends, community, and the world.  
    In the gospel, John the Baptist tells us true peace and joy come from allowing God to be God!, Peace and joy come when we look at things the way God sees them and acknowledge that we are not in charge of life but God is. We cannot wrestle with God. That is what John the Baptist means by “I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandal”.  Beloved, I do not know what you are going through but I want to repeat the word of God to you: Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS. REJOICE because "God will make a way even where there seems to be no way. He works in ways we cannot see. He will make a way for us. He will be your guide and hold you closely to His side. With Love and Strength for each new day, He will make a way!"





























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  2. 2nd Sunday of Advent-Year B
    Is. 40: 1-5, 9-11
                                                    Ps. 85                                                   
    2 Peter 3: 8-14
    Mark 1:1-8
    Comforting God’s People
    Beloved in Christ, as we continue our preparation to welcome our Lord Jesus Christ at Christmas, our readings today call our attention to the purpose of the Christmas celebrations: To make life better for God’s people. In the first reading, God invites us to bring comfort to his people. This goes beyond telling people that things will get better. It means accompanying them in their preparation in such a way that they can feel, in a practical way, the joy and peace that God wishes to bring to the world once again at this Christmas. “Glory to God in the highest, Joy to the world, and peace on earth” should be more than a song. It is when we work together to make life on earth as it is in heaven that God is glorified because God’s glory is the flourishing of his creation.
    Like the people of Israel in our first reading, our world is hurting! When you look at the wars in the world, the unrest here in our country and other parts of the world, the economic and political problems, the world at times looks like a desert. We live in a world where people don’t feel safe, a place where millions still die of hunger and thirst. As Pope Francis keeps reminding us, we live in a world where people have lost hope. In our individual lives, sickness can make us feel like we are in the desert. The lost of a dear one, a broken relationship, lost of a job, disappointment from those you trust, dreams that do not come true, etc. can all make you feel like being in a desert.
    However, regardless of all these problems in the world, we, Christians, believe that if we cooperate with God, he can make all things new. This is the comforting news that we need to proclaim and make concrete for God’s people. In the first reading, God is telling us to bring comfort to his people. St. Peter in the second reading tells us never to forget that our God can make all things new. The problems in the world are not beyond our God, because for him thousand years are like a day and a day can be thousand years for him. If all Christians will truly put others first and lay down our lives so that others will have life, if we will go beyond mere rituals of Christmas: the decorations of lights and buying of gifts (which are important but not sufficient), and begin to decorate our hearts and help others do the same, we can transform this world by God’s grace. That is why St. Peter is telling us that we should not just announce God’s salvation to the world, but also hasten it.
    My Dear People of God, what the world needs today is not so much the announcement of the goodness through words; rather they need practical actions that bring about the realization of the kingdom that we Christians believe in. That is what John the Baptist did in the gospel. He did not just announce the day of God’s salvation; he also made concrete life choices that helped the people to experience the power of God’s love and mercy, a new life. He went beyond the ritual bath and had honest conversation with the people, helped them acknowledge their sins, and accept God’s mercy. He helped them change their ways and become better human beings. That is what made the people ready to encounter Jesus Christ and receive them peace and joy through the transforming power of the Holy Spirit!
    Beloved, we need to ask ourselves will our family become more peaceful because of this Christmas we are about to celebrate? Will our families, relationships, communities, and world become more joyful because of this Christmas we are about to celebrate? I propose that you find some time to do a Novena to the Blessed Mother as a family and friends and be John the Baptist for one another having those honest but difficult conversations that will help each member of our family become a better person.
    Beloved, God is calling you and I, in our own small ways, to bring comfort to our families, friends, and communities and help make the promises of God real for them. Millions of people in the world today are crying the same cry we cried to God in our responsorial psalm: “Lord, let us see your kindness, Lord grant us your salvation!” Will you allow God to answer their cry through you?

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  3. First Sunday of Advent-Year B

    Is. 63: 16b-17, 19b, 64:2-7
    Ps. 80: 2-3, 15-16, 18-19
    I Cor. 1:3-9
    Mark 13: 33-37

    Acknowledge Your Need of God and Live in the Moment

    Beloved in Christ, I wish you a Happy New Liturgical Year! Today we begin a new year as a Church with the Season of Advent. We continue to prepare our hearts and minds for the coming of God at Christmas and at the end of our lives. How did the past liturgical year go for you? Did you get a little closer to God? Did you get a little closer to your family, friends, and neighbors? As we come to the end of one liturgical year and the beginning of another, we need to celebrate what we did well, find ways of avoiding the mistakes we made, and become more open to God’s grace so that we can do better. St. Paul, in our second reading, reminds us that God appreciates every little good thing that we have done for his glory in the past year. With St. Paul, we give thanks to God for the grace he gave us to live as witnesses of the gospel, as we tried our best to testify to Christ through our words and actions.
    Beloved, in addition to celebrating what we were able to do for the glory of God, we also need to ask ourselves, “What could I have done better?” because each day our God invites us to make the world better with his grace. The need to make this world a better place is expressed through the symbols we use during Advent. The candles remind us that we need more of the light of Christ to dispel the darkness in our world. The wreath made of evergreens reminds us of the gift of a new life that God brings us anytime we open our hearts to him; and the colors of Advent (purple and rose) also remind us that true joy cannot be attained without repentance. This is also the message in our scriptural readings today.
    The first reading tells us that we need to acknowledge our need of God as a savior in all aspects of our lives. That is the lesson that the people of Israel learned in exile. They thought they could fight their own battles, defeat their enemies, and solve all their problems without God. However, they came to realize that human effort alone is not sufficient to turn things around in life. They realized that what they needed was not more of human strategies and planning, but more of God. When they came to this realization, they cried out asking God to return into their lives and help them live every moment of their lives for him: “Would that you might meet us doing right, that we were mindful of you in our ways!” (V.) When they cried out, our God, who gives a second chance and provides new beginnings, listened to their cry and delivered them. Beloved, at times, we behave like the Israelites and try to solve our problems without God’s help. However, what we need is more of God not more human strategies.
    In the gospel, Jesus reminds us to live not so must in the past or even in the future, but to live in the moment. That is what Jesus meant when he told his disciples to stay awake! If we don’t live in the moment, we will miss how the God we are waiting for comes to us even today in our Eucharist, and how he comes to us through Scriptures, our family, friends, community, even the pains of our lives. At times, the greatest challenge we have is how to live in the present moment. We dwell so much on the past and on the future that we miss the presence of God in the moment. But the secret of life is that God is the I AM; he is ever present in all our joyful as well as painful moments.
    Beloved in Christ, I don’t know the troubles from your past that continue to occupy you. I don’t know the questions you have about the future. But our readings today teach us how to respond to our past and future in such a way that this advent does not become just a way of going through the motions. Our readings remind us that if this advent is going to be a true encounter with Jesus, we need to do two things: Acknowledge our need of God and live in the moment. Don’t be afraid to express your need for God. Don’t be afraid to live in the moment with God because God can make a way even where there seems to be no way.

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  4. 34th Sunday-Year A
    Solemnity of Christ the King

    Ezekiel 34: 11-12, 15-17
    I Cor.15: 20-26, 28
    Matthew 25: 31-46

    The World is in Need of Christ: Can They Find Him in Me?
     
    Beloved, today we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King. By this celebration, we bring our liturgical year to an end. Next week, we shall begin the Season of Advent. The Solemnity of Christ the King was established, as a universal feast, by Pope Pius XI in 1925. This was a time when the whole world was suffering from the impact of the First World War, Communism, and the rise of the Nazis in Germany. This feast was established to remind the world that it is only when we embrace the kingship of Christ that this world can find true peace and joy because Jesus Christ is our origin and our destiny.
    My Dear People of God, when you think of the recent shootings in Las Vegas, Sutherland Springs in Taxes, terrorist attacks all over the world, last Friday’s killing of more than 300 of our Muslim brothers and sisters in Egypt, the hundreds of them who are wounded and are fighting for their lives in hospitals, and all the other evils that plaque our world today, you can only come to one conclusion: Our world needs Jesus Christ more than ever. That is why the Feast we celebrate today should not just be a celebration that ends in this church but must be a lifestyle that helps transform this world.
    When we reflect on sin in our own lives and all the evils in our world, we might be tempted to lose hope. However, our readings today should console us and bring us hope. In the first reading, God tells us that even though life in our world might seem cloudy and dark, he will rescue his sheep. He will reach out and rescue the injured, the sick, the lost, and those who have strayed. The responsorial psalm reminds us that even though there is so much evil and hatred in our world, God is still working for only one thing: Our Good! St. Paul in our second reading tells us Jesus will return to restore the world to its original holiness and bring it to its final destiny in God. In the gospel, Jesus tells us he will return at the end of time but that he also returns to the world each day to make it better and he invites us, Christians, to help him realize this mission.
    Jesus comes to us everyday. He comes through those who feed the hungry, those who quench the thirst for love and justice in the world, those who clothe the naked and care for people in need, and all those who avoid evil and do good. Jesus does not only come to provide our need but also to help us avoid sin and evil. Everyday, Jesus returns to us through his words in the Scriptures. He comes through that silent voice of conscience that warns us when we are about to sin and prompts us to do good deeds. Jesus comes through the Eucharist to strengthen us against sin. He comes through the voice of parents, siblings, friends, leaders and all those who encourage us to choose good and avoid evil.
    Beloved, as we ponder the kinship of Jesus in which we share because of our baptism, we need to remember that the kingship of Christ is a kinship of humility and sacrificial love. Jesus is the King who turns the manger into a palace; and the Cross into a throne. Unless we are ready to do the same: embrace humility and see others as important as we are, learn to love people even if we disagree with them, and respond to hatred with love as Jesus did on the Cross, the world will not know peace. As a shepherd, Jesus can only call our names and invite us to be part of the mission of transforming the world. It is totally up to us to either live out this gift we received at our baptism or choose to ignore it. But it is important to remember today that God has placed the destiny of your family, community, relationships, and the world equally in our hands.
    My Dear People of God. As I reflect on these readings today, I ask myself: The world is in need of Jesus, can they find him in me? Can they find him in you? Am I humble enough to see the worth in every human being and put others first? Is my love sacrificial enough to overcome hatred with love?
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  5. 33th Sunday-Year A
    Proverbs 31:10-13, 19-20, 30-31
    1 Thes. 5:1-6
    Mt. 25: 14-30

    You are God's Answer to Some Problem in the World

     My Dear People of God, in some sense, the kingdom that God wants us to establish here on earth can be likened a potluck. Your joy becomes complete when you bring the little you have to share with others. Our first reading from the book of Proverbs talks about the excellent wife. In biblical wisdom literature, the writers usually present their teaching through songs or poems that portray the virtues that all human beings are called to imitate and the vices that we are called to avoid. In our reading today, the writer uses the image of an excellent wife to represent the whole of humanity and the virtues that we are called to live out. The ideal wife is one who understands her life as a gift meant for others. She sees all that he has as a means to an end; and brings all her gifts into her interaction with her family, community, and the church for the glory of God. Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, this is how we need to understand our lives. All we have been blessed with (husband, wife, children, education, friends, knowledge, skills, time, our physical appearance, and any talent we have) should be seen as gifts for the good of our family, our community, and our Church for the glory of God. 
    The parable of the talents that we read in the gospel is not about economic principles and how to make profit in business, but how to live as children of the kingdom of God. Jesus teaches us that every gift we have will multiply only if we bring that gift into our interaction with others. In order to understand Jesus’ words “those who have will receive more but those who have not, the little they have will be take away from them”, we first need to understand Jesus’s concept of “gift”. For our Lord, each if us is God’s gift to family, friends, and community; and anyone who pours him/herself into people’s lives will be filled with more of God. You become a channel through which God comes to others and that channel will never run dry. However, those who hide their gifts and refuse to be a channel for God will lose the gift they have been given because without God, we are nothing. The point of the parable, therefore, is not how much financial profit the servants made; rather it is about whether they brought their gifts into their interaction with others. That is what the imagery of trade in the parable communicates to us. You cannot trade with people without some sort of interaction. In fact, when you read the history of trade, you will come to realize that what we call trade in our word today was actually meant to be an exchange of gifts.  In simple societies people still do that. You give me part of what you have that I need, and I give you some of what I have that you need. In that way each of us will have our needs met by God through the people places in our lives. The problem with the man who buried his gift in the gospel today is that he did not bring it into his interaction with people.
    Beloved, each human life is God’s answer to some particular need that he wants to satisfy in our world today. God solves the world’s problems by creating human beings. We are all stewards of God’s grace. Everything we have, we have been given to share in such a way that, through us, God will satisfy the need of all human beings and created things. Our world is hurting and there is so much darkness in our world today but as St. Paul reminds us in the second reading, we are the light that God will use to dispel the darkness in our world. God needs you and me to make a difference. My prayer is that, like the ideal wife, each of us will continue to see all we have as a means to an end; and bring all our gifts into our interaction with family and community through the Church for the glory of God.
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