I would like to believe that we share a common enemy these days. That enemy is called Mt. Pinatubo. The Gospel for today says, “You must love your enemies.” So I dare say that you must love Mt. Pinatubo.
The disaster that Mt. Pinatubo has caused us has led the prophets of doom to say that God is punishing the Philippines. The disaster that Mt. Pinatubo has inflicted on us has led the prophets of doom to go to the pulpits and say, “You must turn away from sin and repent and turn to the Gospel.”
I dare say: I do not agree. Even if Mt. Pinatubo is our common enemy at this time, we should still give thanks to God for such an enemy because we are reminded, once again, that, if the Lord does not build the house, those who build it labor in vain.
Thanks to the natural disaster that Mt. Pinatubo has inflicted on us, we are reminded once again that we are not in complete control of the world; that our hands are still in the hands of God. Thanks to a disaster like that, we are reminded once again that every disaster is an occasion for sharing. We should never grow tired of giving; we should never grow tired of reaching out to those in need. Thanks to an eruption like Mt. Pinatubo, we are reminded once again that as Christians, we should always turn to God. As I said, they labor in vain if they do not call upon the name of the Lord.
We agree that Mt. Pinatubo is our enemy but let us also believe that Mt. Pinatubo is a grace. That is why even if there is an eruption going on, even if there are ashfalls, even if there are earthquakes, even if we are poor, even if there are evacuation centers left and right, we can still offer this Mass. Mass is Eucharistia. Eucharistia is thanksgiving. That is why even if that mountain is erupting right now, we can still offer Mass. We can still give thanks to God because we believe that as Christians, it is our right to be able to give thanks even if we are dying. It is our right as Christians to be able to offer Eucharistia even if we are buried in lahar. We know that God will never abandon us. We may walk in the valley of darkness but there is no reason to be afraid because the Lord is our shepherd, there is nothing we shall want.
“Let us believe that Mt. Pinatubo is a grace, and we should give thanks to God for such grace.
I LOVE MT. PINATUBO
Lk. 6:27
ONly Jesus, Always Jesus
