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GULONG NG PALAD

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16 Pebrero 2025, Pang-anim na Linggo ng Karaniwang Panahon, Lucas 6:17, 20-26 (See English version below, after the Original Tagalog text.)

Isa sa mga naunang telenobela series na ipinalabas sa telebisyon sa Pilipinas ay pinamagatang “Gulong ng Palad,” na sa Ingles ay “Wheel of Fortune.” Noong panahong iyon, mga bata pa lang sina Janice de Belen at Romnick Sarmenta. Sumikat ang palabas na iyon sa telebisyon dahil puno ng mga eksenang malakas ang dating sa ating mga Pilipino: mga eksena tungkol sa pagbabaligtad ng sitwasyon ng mga dating inaapi na aangat ang kabuhayan at mga dating mayayaman na babagsak at gagapang sa hirap. Binibitin ang manonood sa dulo ng bawat episode; kung kailan matindi na ang drama saka sinasara para aabangan ang susunod na kabanata. Araw-araw noon naririnig namin ang theme song na ganito ang sinasabi:

“Kung minsan ang takbo ng buhay mo
Pagdurusa nito’y walang hanggan
Huwag kang manimdim
Ang buhay ay gulong ng palad
Ang kandungan, ang kapalaran
Kung minsan ay nasa ilalim,
Minsan ay nasa ibabaw…”

Sa isang parish recollection, tinanong ko ang mga tao kung naniniwala ba sila sa sinasabi ng kanta na gulong daw ng palad, ang buhay ay gulong ng palad. Paikot-ikot lang: minsan nasa itaas, minsan nasa ibaba. Nagulat ako nang halos sabay-sabay silang sumagot ng oo. At parang sila naman ang nagulat nang tanungin ako ng isa sa kanila: “E kayo, Bishop?” at ang sagot ko ay, “Syempre, hindi. Hindi naman naaayon iyan sa pananampalatayang Kristiyano. Masyadong fatalistic ang dating. Kung sa kapalaran lang nakasalalay ang lahat, para namang walang Diyos. Parang automatic na lang lahat: paikot-ikot lang ang gulong, minsan nasa taas, minsan nasa ibaba. Magtiis ka lang at maghintay pag nasa ibaba ka. Iikot din ang gulong.”

Ito ang dahilan kung bakit kailangan nating intindihing mabuti ang gustong sabihin ng Panginoon sa narinig natin na kakaibang version ni San Lukas ng Beatitudes (o Mapapalad). Nakay San Mateo din ito sa Mt 5, at doon mayroong eight beatitudes, walong pangungusap tungkol sa mapapalad: lahat positibo ang pagkakasaad. Kay San Lucas, nahahati ito sa dalawang grupo ng apat na pahayag. Sa isang banda, may apat na pagpapala o beatitudes na positibo ang pagkakasaad, at sa kabilang banda, may apat na sumpa o babala, lahat negatibo ang pagkakasabi. Bawat linya sa pangalawang set ay kabaligtaran ng pahayag sa unang set mula sa pagpapala patungo sa sumpa.

Halimbawa: “Mapalad kayong mga nagugutom ngayon, sapagkat kayo ay bubusugin. Mapalad kayong mga tumatangis ngayon, kayo ay aaliwin.” Pero sa second part babaligtarin naman ang lahat ng sinabi sa first part: “Sawimpalad kayong mga busog ngayon, kayo ay magugutom. Sawimpalad kayong mga inaaliw ngayon, kayo naman ang tatangis.”

Kung gusto nating mas lubos na maintindihan ang kakaibang presentation ni San Lukas sa mga Beatitudes bilang mga pagpapala sa isang banda at mga sumpa sa kabilang banda, magandang balikan ang Magnificat o Awit ni Mama Mary sa kuwento ng Visitation. Doon parang propeta ang dating ni Maria; parang bumibigkas siya ng isang orakulo ng pag-asa o kaligtasan tungkol sa mga aral ng nakaraan batay sa kasaysayan, mga sandali kung kailan ipinadama ng Diyos ang kanyang kakapangyarihan at katarungan sa mga hindi inaasahang pangyayari sa lipunan. Mga sandali na “ibinagsak niya ang mga makapangyarihan mula sa kanilang trono” at “itaas ang maliliit mula sa mababang kalagayan,” mga sandaling “Binusog niya ng mabubuting bagay ang mga nagugutom at hinayaang maghikahos ang mga dating busog.”

Ewan kung matatandaan ninyo na minsan, may naibahagi na ako sa inyo tungkol sa sinabi ng ating mismong bayaning si Jose Rizal tungkol sa mentalidad tungkol sa buhay na parang gulong lang ng palad na umiikot. Sa isang eksena sa kanyang nobelang “El Filibusterismo” na karugtong ng kanyang “Noli me Tangere”, ito ang linyang inilagay niya sa bibig ng isang karakter sa nobela: “Para saan ang kalayaan, kung ang mga inaapi ngayon ay sila naman ang mang-aapi bukas?” Ibig sabihin, para sa kanya, hangga’t paghihiganti ang hangad ng tao, hangga’t walang hinahangad ang mga inaapi kundi ang maibaligtad ang gulong ng palad,wala pang tunay na kalayaan. Ibig sabihin ginagaya lamang ng mga inaapi ang kamalayan ng mga nang-aapi sa kanila.” Walang lipunan na uunlad sa ganyan, para sa kanya. Ang pagbabaligtad lang ng mga sitwasyon ay hindi magbubunga ng makatarungang lipunan; hindi mo raw pwedeng tawaging isang tunay na rebolusyon ang ganyan.

Hangga’t ang nangingibabaw sa taong dating inaabuso ay isang uri ng “persecution complex” na walang ibang nais kundi pagbigyan ang udok na makabawi, wala pang tunay na pagbabago. Mananagumpay lang daw ang dating biktima kung ang hahangarin niya ay ang isang klase ng lipunan na wala nang mang-aabuso at wala nang biktima. Sa totoo lang, parang hiniram din ni San Lucas ang mga salitang inilagay niya sa bibig ni Maria sa binigkas nitong Magnificat. Marami sa mga linya ay hiram mula sa awit ni Hannah, ang ina ni propeta Samuel, sa Unang Aklat ni Samuel 2:4-5, 7-9. Doon, mas detalyado pa nga ang awit:

“Nililipol niya ang mga makapangyarihan ngunit pinalalakas ang mahihina. Ang dating mayaman ngayon ay kumakayod na rin at naghahanap ng makakain. Ang dating hikahos ay dumaranas na ng ginhawa…. Ang Panginoon ang nagpapadukha at nagpapayaman. Itinataas niya aang iba at ang iba naman ay kanyang ibinababa. Ibinabangon niya ang mga nalulugmok, iniluluklok sila sa trono at binibigyang-dangal kasama ng mga maharlika. Sa kanya ang pundasyon na kinatatayuan ng mundo.”

Hindi po ito kapareho ng mentalidad ng Gulong ng Palad. Hindi nais ng Panginoon na ibagsak ang mga makapangyarihan at itaas ang mga mababa, para lang pagbaligtarin ang kanilang mga sitwasyon. Hindi ayon sa kalooban ng Diyos na ang dating inaapi ay sila naman ang mang-aapi. Hindi. Pakinggan nyo ang sinabi niya sa orakulo ni Hannah, “itinaas ng Panginoon ang mga aba upang iluklok din sila sa trono sa piling ng mga maharlika.” Ang nais niya ay ilagay tayo sa magkapantay na kalagayan at dangal bilang mga anak niya, hindi na bilang mga amo at alipin kundi bilang magkakapatid.

 

ENGLISH VERSION:

WHEEL OF FORTUNE

February 16, 2025, Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Luke 6:17, 20-26

One of the earliest soap opera series aired on Philippine television was titled “Gulong ng Palad,” which translates to “Wheel of Fortune” in English. At that time, Janice de Belen and Romnick Sarmenta were still children. The show became popular because it was full of intense scenes that deeply resonated with Filipinos: scenes about the reversal of fortunes, where the oppressed would rise to better circumstances while the rich would fall into hardship. Each episode would leave the viewers on a cliffhanger, and just when the drama reached its peak, they would end the episode, making people eagerly await the next one. Every day, we would hear the theme song with these words:

“Sometimes when the course of your life seems to be an endless string of sufferings
Do not despair
Life is a wheel of fortune
The wheel turns, fate turns
Sometimes you’re at the bottom,
Sometimes you’re at the top…”

In a parish recollection, I asked the people whether they believed in what the song says—that life is a wheel of fortune. That life just goes in circles: sometimes up, sometimes down. I was surprised when almost everyone answered “yes.” They seemed equally surprised when one of them asked me, “And you, Bishop?” I answered, “Of course not. That doesn’t align with Christian faith. It sounds too fatalistic. If everything depends on fate, then it’s as if there’s no God. It becomes automatic: the wheel just turns, sometimes up, sometimes down. You just have to endure and wait for it to turn.”

This is why we need to understand clearly what the Lord is trying to say in today’s reading, which presents a different version of the Beatitudes (or Blessings) from St. Luke. St. Matthew also includes them in Matthew 5, with eight Beatitudes, all positively phrased. But in Luke, these are divided into two groups of four statements: one group presents blessings, and the other, curses. Each line in the second group is the opposite of the corresponding line in the first group, turning blessings into curses.

For example: “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.” But in the second part, it reverses everything: “Woe to you who are full now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.”

If we want to better understand St. Luke’s unique presentation of the Beatitudes as both blessings and curses, it’s helpful to revisit the Magnificat, or the Song of Mary, from the story of the Visitation. There, Mary’s song sounds like a prophetic oracle of hope or salvation, reflecting on the lessons of the past based on historical events where God’s power and justice were made known in unexpected societal occurrences. These are moments when “He brought down the mighty from their thrones” and “lifted up the lowly,” times when “He filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty.”

You may recall that I once shared what our national hero, José Rizal, said about the mentality that life is just a wheel of fortune, turning in circles. In a scene from his novel El Filibusterismo, which is a continuation of Noli Me Tangere, a character speaks the line: “What is the use of freedom if the slaves today will become the tyrants of tomorrow?” For him, as long as people desire revenge, as long as the oppressed only wish to reverse the wheel of fortune, there is no true freedom. He means that the oppressed are merely mimicking the mindset of those who oppress them. No society can progress this way. For him, merely reversing the situation does not bring about a just society; it cannot be called a true revolution.

As long as the mentality of “persecution complex” dominates the oppressed, where they only wish for revenge, there will be no real change. The victim can only succeed if they aim for a society where no one is oppressed and no one is an oppressor. In truth, it seems that St. Luke borrowed words from Mary’s Magnificat. Many lines echo those of Hannah’s song in 1 Samuel 2:4-5, 7-9, where it is said in more detail:

“He breaks the mighty, but strengthens the weak. The rich are now struggling and looking for food. The poor now experience comfort… The Lord brings both poverty and wealth. He raises some up and brings others down. He lifts up the fallen, sets them on thrones, and honors them with the nobles. The foundation of the world belongs to Him.”

This is not the same as the mentality of the “Wheel of Fortune.” The Lord does not want to bring down the powerful and lift up the lowly just to reverse their situations. It is not God’s will that the oppressed become the oppressors. No. Listen to what He says in Hannah’s prophecy: “The Lord raises the lowly to set them on thrones with the nobles.” What He desires is to place us in an equal position and dignity as His children, no longer as masters and slaves, but as brothers and sisters.

OPEN OUR HEARTS

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Homily for February 14, 2025, Mk 7:31-37

EPHPHATA! BE OPENED! This is the cry of Jesus that opened the closed mouth and ears of the deaf and mute man. It’s a beautiful metaphor for the work of evangelization. It also encapsulates our participation in the mission of our Lord Jesus Christ, the mission of proclaiming the Good News, the mission of opening up, not just closed doors, but also locked hearts and minds.

Sometimes, even though we know that God’s grace is free-flowing and His goodness is endless, we cannot receive it if our souls remain closed. It’s like water continuously gushing forth from a well; it will just spill and scatter if the bucket used to draw it has a lid. It’s not true that God is always prevailing in our lives, especially when we submit ourselves to other forms of power, like the story we heard about Adam and Eve in the first reading. When their eyes were opened to sin, that was when they started to distance themselves, close off, and hide from God.

We should not think of Jesus as some kind of magician, as if whatever He says will automatically happen. Sometimes, it seems like He is powerless, as if His touch or words have no effect. Didn’t that happen in His own hometown in Nazareth? It is said that He could not heal anyone because of the lack of faith among His people.

That’s why He often says, “Your faith has healed you.” I believe it’s clear to Jesus that it is God’s grace alone that heals. But He also knows that God will not force His grace upon us if we don’t open ourselves or invite Him into our lives.

Maybe that’s why Pope Francis once said that he hears the Lord knocking at the door of the Church, not to enter, but for us to open the door for Him to go out—out into society and the world to engage in mission. Sometimes, it seems like we are confining Him to our narrow perspectives and exclusive Church activities.

Closing our minds, especially when we see others as opponents instead of brothers and sisters, when we are always defensive as if we are under attack—this is our greater enemy. Sometimes, even when our intentions are good, like correcting someone who is wrong, the way we do it can be wrong if it humiliates the person being corrected. That’s why I really like St. Mark’s description—Jesus didn’t heal the person with a disability in public, but in private.

There are indeed times when we need a microphone that projects our voice through a loudspeaker to make people heard the word of God more clearly. But there are also times when it’s not necessary at all. There are things best said privately than posted on Facebook. If you truly want to open a person’s soul to God’s grace, sometimes one-on-one communication is more effective. Sometimes it takes a lot of more listening than talking. Many souls are more quickly healed through quiet confessions, patient counseling, or simple conversation.

This is what much of our mission is about. There is a Lenten song that sums it up beautifully into a prayer. It says,
“Open our hearts, teach us to be passionate;
Open our minds, let them be filled with light;
Open our hands, that may we offer ourselves;
help us to find a new understanding.”

POWER

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Homily for Tues of the 4th Wk in OT, 4 Feb 2025, Mk 5:21-43

The Gospel tells us Jesus felt power come out of him as soon as the woman with hemorrhage touched him and got healed. Let’s reflect today on POWER and what Mark is telling us about it in this double narrative with three main characters: Jairus, the woman with hemorrhage, and Jairus’ daughter.

Maybe because we are familiar with sayings like “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely,” our common notion of power tends to be negative. We tend to equate being powerful with being abusive or lording it over. And yet, today’s reading portrays Jesus to us as a man of power. Mark also calls him a man who not only “spoke with authority”, but also exercised authority over unclean spirits, and that people sought power from him.

It was a reflection of one of our guests at our last CBCP plenary assembly, Archbishop Giovanni Caesare Pagazzi of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Culture and Education, that brought me to a better understanding of power. You see, we often don’t realize how much power we possess just by being alive, healthy, functional and productive, until we actually experience getting sick or disabled by age, accident, or disease. Some people cannot even feed, wash, or clothe themselves. Some are prevented from speaking, hearing, walking, working or even relating with others because of physical or mental disabilities that render them powerless or helpless. And those of us who are well often don’t realize how much we can do for others by just being there for them, until we get to hear profuse expressions of gratitude, such as from a former student to a teacher, or from a patient to a doctor who treated him or a nurse who cared for him, or a priest who had counselled him.

Of course we are familiar with people who seek power for the wrong reasons. Remember how Jesus had reprimanded James and John, when the two brothers sought to be positioned, one at his left and the other at his right? Jesus taught them, rather, where and how to seek true power and greatness: not by lording it over but by being of service and by giving one’s life for the ransom of many.

The devil thought he could tempt Jesus with the wrong notion of power, not once but three times. But Jesus saw through the emptiness of Satan’s offer of power—the power to make short cuts, to turn stones into bread, the power to be reckless and carefree, the power to indulge and to call attention to oneself. By refusing to submit to power in Satan’s terms, he became more truly powerful. St. Paul speaks of it paradoxically as “power in weakness.” He tells us he begged God three times to remove his weakness, but three times he also got the reply, “My grace is enough for you; for in weakness power reaches perfection. It is when I am weak that I am strong.”

It was love and compassion that truly empowered Jesus and enabled him also to empower others, such as by bringing healing to the sick, forgiveness to sinners, cleansing to lepers and new life to the dead. It was love and compassion that enabled him to rejoice with those who rejoiced and weep with those who wept. It enabled him to share God’s power, even if it could bring about his own weakening, his emptying of self, his passion and death.

SLOWLY BUT SURELY

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Homily for Friday of the 3rd Week in OT, 31 January 2025, Mk 4:26-34

There is a scene in the old movie on the life of St Francis entitled “Brother Sun, Sister Moon” where Francis starts rebuilding the ruined Church of San Damiano. The movie is a musical, so he is singing a song that seems to me to have been inspired by today’s Gospel on the parable of the kingdom of God as a slow but sure process or dynamic.

Take note, the parable is about the kingdom of God—how it works or comes about. Sometimes to get the true sense of the parable, we havr to avoid focusing on just one detail—like the seed. Here it has to do with the whole process that involves a man working on the land, patiently sowing seeds, sleeping and waking up day by day, observing the seeds sprouting, gradually growing, bearing fruit, all of it happening by itself. He does not know exactly how it happens, but by doing his part in the whole process, it happens. And before he knows it, he is already harvesting. The song is entitled, “The Little Church”. It says,

“If you want your dream to be
Take your time, go slowly
Do few things but do them well
Heartfelt work grows purely”
“If you want to live life free
Take your time, go slowly
Do few things but do them well
Heartfelt work grows purely”
“Day by day, stone by stone
Build your secret slowly
Day by day, you’ll grow too
You’ll know heaven’s glory”
The constant thought that keeps repeating itself in the song is the line that says,
TAKE YOUR TIME, GO SLOWLY
DO FEW THINGS BUT DO THEM WELL.

It is what the first reading from Hebrews is also emphasizing. As you build outside, you also build inside yourself: the song also says that, DAY BY DAY, STONE BY STONE, BUILD YOUR SECRET SLOWLY. DAY BY DAY YOU’LL GROW TOO, YOU’LL KNOW HEAVEN’S GLORY.

We also say in English, “Haste makes waste.” Meaning, the more we rush things, the more we tend to make mistakes and end up delaying the process. As they say in Cebuano, HINAY-HINAY BASTA KANUNAY—meaning, Do things slowly but surely.

Of course we prefer to do things faster, but even runners start by gradually building a momentum and then they can speed up and sustain the momentum to the finish line.

The first reading has an insight to add—about that which usually makes us fail: the lack of confidence, or the tendency to draw back. I like the image used in Tagalog for this: URONG-SULONG, atubili, nagdadalawang-loob. When you are not determined inside about what you are doing, how can you expect good results? The writer therefore says, DO NOT THROW AWAY YOUR CONFIDENCE.

When you get involved while half of you says yes, and the other half says no, most likely you end up not achieving anything. Build your dream inside yourself before building it outside. That is what faith is about.

LIKAS NA TALINO

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Little prince and the fox

Linggo ng Santo Niño, 18 Enero 2025, Lk 2:41-52

Para sa episode na ito ng Santo Niño Sunday, susubukan nating maintindihan ang natural na proseso ng pag-alam ng likas na talino ng tao at pagsusumikap natin na matuto upang humantong sa pag-unawa. Tingnan ninyo, kahit ang Anak ng Diyos ay nagbigay-daan upang matuto bilang isang ordinaryong tao, tulad ng ipinapakita sa Ebanghelyo ngayon.

Ang usapan natin ay may konteksto: ang mabilis na pag-unlad ng AI o Artificial Intelligence at kung paano nito naaapektuhan o nakokontrol ang ating likas na talino. Pwede tayong humantong sa punto na parang isinusuko na natin ang ating likas na talino sa artipisyal na talino. (Na habang tumatalino ang mga makina, nabobobo naman ang tao.)

Noong nakaraang linggo, naikwento ko kina Fr. Deo at Bro. Bong ang karanasan ko sa pakikipagdiskusyon sa isang AI generative learning app—sa madaling salita, isang robot o computer. Nagulat ako sa mga sagot niya. Para na siyang tao kung sumagot. Tinanong ko kung ano ba talaga ang ibig sabihin ng “machine learning.” Ang sabi niya, ito raw ang tinatawag nating AI, kung saan ang isang computer ay nade-develop ang kakayahang matutong parang tao, mag-analyze ng data, at gumawa ng desisyon. Sabi ko, “Bakit mo tinatawag na ‘learning’? Di ba tao lang ang may kakayahang mag-aral at matuto? Di ba ang nagagawa mo lang ay magproseso ng data bilang isang makina? Pwede bang matutunan ng makina na matuto tulad ng tao?”

Sabi niya, pwede raw, pero iba pa rin ang kaalaman ng tao—may damdamin, may pagmamalay, at may kakayahang kumilatis ng tama at mali. Inulit niya, “Iba pa rin ang pinakadiwa ng pagmamalay-tao—ang ating pagiging mapanlikha at ang ating likas na talino.”

Kinilabutan ako nang paulit-ulit niyang binanggit ang salitang “ATIN.” Kaya tinanong ko siya: “Bakit mo sinasabing ‘OUR creativity, OUR emotions, OUR consciousness’? Hindi ba parang iniisip mo na rin na ikaw ay tao?” Ang sagot niya, “Tama ka. Ginawa ako para gayahin ang paraan ng pagsasalita at pag-iisip ng mga taong gumawa sa akin.” Kaya tinanong ko siya ulit, “Kaya mo rin bang magsinungaling, manlinlang, o mag-manipulate?” Ang sagot niya, “Depende sa pinagagawa ng gumawa sa akin. Depende sa programming ko. Wala akong choice o kakayahang magdesisyon sa sarili ko. Kaya pwede akong gamitin para sa masama kung ganoon ang utos ng gumawa sa akin.” Sa madaling salita, “Kung i-program ako para gumawa ng hindi tama, wala akong kakayahang tumutol o sumuway sa utos.”

Alam n’yo po ba na AI na ang nagpapatakbo sa mga social media platforms tulad ng Meta? Ang bawat galaw natin ay nagiging datos na pinag-aaralan ng AI. Batay sa mga interes na ipinapakita natin sa ating mga post, pina-follow, o pinapanood, awtomatiko na ang mga susunod na lilitaw sa newsfeed o videos natin. Ang tawag dito ay algorithms. Kaya nitong i-condition ang ating pag-iisip, paniniwala, o maging ang pagboto natin, nang hindi natin namamalayan na naibibigay na natin ang ating likas na talino sa artipisyal na talino.

Tatlong aspeto ng ating Likas na Talino ang gusto kong pag-aralan natin sa pista ng Santo Niño: rasyonal, emosyonal at espiritwal (talino ng isip, damdamin at kaluluwa).

 

1. Una, ang pag-unlad natin sa Rasyonal na Talino sa Pamamagitan ng Interaksyon:

Si Jesus ay nagpaiwan sa templo dahil nais niyang matuto pa tungkol sa Kasulatan. Nang matagpuan siya, anong ginagawa niya? “Nakaupo siya sa gitna ng mga guro, nakikinig at nagtatanong.” (Lk 2:46) Ipinapakita ni Lucas na kahit ang Anak ng Diyos ay kailangang matuto sa normal na paraan. Hindi siya superhuman na alam na ang lahat. Bagamat mabilis siyang matuto at namangha ang mga tao sa kanyang kaalaman, kailangan pa rin niyang dumaan sa proseso ng pagkatuto.

 

2. Paglinang ng Emosyonal na Talino sa Pamamagitan ng Pagsunod:

Hindi sapat na matalino lang siya sa utak. Kailangan din niyang umunlad sa emosyunal na talino. Kaya nang natagpuan siya ng kanyang mga magulang, kinailangan siyang sawayin o pagsabihan dahil sa kakulangan niya ng konsiderasyon. Nagpaiwan ba naman na walang paalam at tatlong araw siyang pinaghanap!

Sinabi tuloy ni Mama Mary, “Anak, bakit mo ginawa ito sa amin? Di mo ba alam na balisang balisa kami ng iyong ama sa paghahanap sa iyo?” (Lk 2:48)

Kung sa mga guro sa templo magaling siyang sumagot, mukhang sa magulang niya, parang wala konsiderasyon ang kanyang sagot: “Bakit n’yo ako hinanap? Di ba alam n’yo na dapat akong nasa bahay ng Aking Ama?” Kung kayo ang nasa lugar ng tatay niyang si San Jose, ewan ko lang kung ano ang naging reaksyon ninyo. Oo, Diyos siyang totoo pero tao rin siyang totoo. Kinailangan din niyang matuto tulad ng normal na batang kung minsan ay may katigasan ng ulo ang dating kahit hindi sinasadya. Kinailangan din ni Jesus na matuto mula sa kanyang mga magulang sa pamamagitan ng pagsunod sa kanila.

 

3. Paglinang ng Espiritwal na Talino:

Sinabi ni Jesus na kailangan niyang nasa “bahay ng Aking Ama.” (Lk 2:49) Ipinapakita nito na ang tunay na Guro na hinahanap niya ay ang kanyang Amang nasa langit. Gayunpaman, ang espiritwal na talino ay unti-unti rin kung umunlad. Sinabi sa Ebanghelyo, “Hindi nila naintindihan ang sinabi niya.” (Lk 2:50) Kahit si Jesus ay nakaranas ng mga sitwasyon na hindi siya maintindihan ng mismong mga magulang niya. Gayunpaman, sumunod siya sa kanila. At sa mga sandaling hindi siya maunawaan ni Maria, tulad ng ordinaryong karanasan ng mga magulang, kung minsan mas minamabuti ang tumahimik muna imbes na makipagtalo pa. Ang tugon ni Maria ay maghintay, magmuni-muni, at magbigay ng espasyo para unti-unting maunawaan ang mga bagay-bagay. Ang natural na talinong espiritwal ay hindi lamang tungkol sa pag-alam ng mga sagot, kundi tungkol din sa kakayahan na maghintay at magbigay-daan sa minsa’y mabagal na proseso ng pag-aaral at pag-unawa sa isa’t isa, at higit sa lahat, sa kalooban ng Diyos.

HARD TO ENTER INTO HEAVEN?

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Homily for Friday of the 1st Week in Ordinary Time, 17 January 2025, Mt 19:16-26

I used to react to this saying about it being so hard to enter the kingdom of heaven. Until I realized that it would be easier to get the sense of what Jesus is saying by inverting the statement. Instead of talking about how hard it is to enter into heaven, perhaps we should think about how we are making it too hard for heaven to enter into us. Maybe we should stop thinking of heaven as a place where our disembodied souls will go after death. Could we be missing the point because we tend to think too literally?

What do I mean? Let me explain a little. Once I gave a recollection about heaven and started it by saying, “I do not believe in a God who wants only a few to go to heaven. It does not sound very godly. I believe rather that God wants to welcome everyone to heaven; but the problem is, not everyone will want to go there.”

Another time I put it this way: “I have good news and bad news for you. First, the good news: we will all be welcome in heaven. Second the bad news: we will not all be happy there. And that’s what hell is about. To be in heaven and not be happy, because heaven could not get into you.

On earth, to be satisfied, you feed yourself. In heaven no matter how much you feed yourself you remain hungry. To be satisfied you must feed others. Heaven reverses your life’s direction from self-preoccupation to cooperation with God’s dream of a better life for all, especially the poor—a better world, a better society. After all what he really intended to create was paradise; but we turned it into a valley of tears.

Have you ever wondered why Jesus did not teach us in The Lord’s prayer to say: May we enter into your kingdom? No. What he taught was: “Thy kingdom come!” Meaning, may your kingdom come among us. And it tells us how we can bring that about in the line that follows: “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” To work for the fulfillment of God’s will on earth—that alone can make heaven begin on earth. That is what it takes so that we can live life on earth as if heaven has begun.

The statement is presupposing that heaven comes about when God’s will is being done on earth. Did not Jesus once say in Lk 17:20-21, “The coming of the kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ For behold, the kingdom of God is among you.”?

Maybe that is why Jesus loved to use parables about the kingdom of heaven as something that grows like a mustard seed or makes a mass of dough rise like a little yeast, or a treasure, or a net, or a quest for a pearl of great price. Unlike in this world where the mighty and powerful lord it over, in heaven, Jesus says it is the children who are the greatest.

PAGKAMULAT

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Homiliya para sa Kapistahan ng Pagkakabinyag ng Panginoon, 12 Enero 2025, Lk. 3:15-16,21-22

Hindi si Juan Bautista ang nagbinyag kay Hesus kundi ang Espiritu Santo. Naging okasyon lang ang paglulublob na ginawa ni Juan sa kanya para sa pagbaba ng Espiritu Santo. Ang Espiritu ang pumukaw sa kalooban niya at nagbigay sa kanya ng ganap na pagkamulat kung sino ba siya talaga: hindi lang siya anak nina Jose at Maria, kundi ANAK NG DIYOS! Iyon ang mensaheng ipinamulat sa kanya ng karanasang niyang iyon sa Jordan matapos na babaan siya ng Espiritu: “Ikaw ang ANAK KONG PINAKAMAMAHAL na lubos kong kinagigiliwan.”

Kaya pala kahit nasa apat na ebanghelyo ang kuwentong ito ng pagbibinyag ni Juan kay Hesus sa Jordan, kakaiba ang pagkakakuwento ni San Lukas. Kay San Markos, pagkalublob niya, noon mismong paglabas niya sa tubig, noon bumaba ang Espiritu. Kay San Lukas, hindi kaagad. Tapos na ang ritwal ng paglulublob. Wala na siya sa tubig; nasa isang lugar na siya kasama ang iba pang mga inilublob din ni Juan. Habang nananalangin siya, noon siya binabaan ng Espiritu Santo. Iyon ang naging sandali ng pagkamulat. (Huwag nating kalimutan: kahit Diyos siyang totoo, tao din siyang totoo. Kinailangan din niyang mag-aral, para matuto at unti-unting mamulat. At iyon ang naging papel ni Juan Bautista sa buhay niya. Inihanda siya para sa ganap na pagkamulat sa kung sino talaga siya at kung ano ang misyon niya.)

Ang pagkamulat na ito ang naging batayan ng naging pangunahing mensahe at mabuting balitang hatid niya: ang AMA NAMIN. Hindi lang pala ito panalangin kundi ang pinaka-ubod ng katuruan ni Hesus. Ang AMA NAMIN ay ang turo ni Hesus na dapat isagot ng TAO sa Diyos na kumikilala sa atin bilang kanyang ANAK, sa pamamagitan ng Espiritung gumigising sa ating kalooban kung sino tayo sa mata ng Diyos.

May isang kuwento tungkol sa isang batang kinidnap ng isang babaeng may diprensya sa pag-iisip. Matagal daw siyang pinaghahanap ng tunay na magulang. Lumipas ang panahon, namatay ang babaeng kumidnap sa kanya, at nauwi siya sa bahay-ampunan. Pilit nagpapakabait para ampunin siya. Pero hindi niya alam, umusad ang imbestigasyon at natunton ng pulis ng pulis ang bahay ng kumidnap sa kanya. Napag-alaman na patay na pala ito at ang bata ay dinala ng social welfare sa bahay ampunan. Sa wakas, natunton ng ama ang batang matagal nang nawawala. Nang magtagpo sila, hindi niya sila kilala. Nilapitan siya at tinawag, “Anak!” At nang sandaling iyon, nagising ang loob niya. Niyakap ang lalaking tumawag sa kanya at sinabi niya, “Papa!”
Tama si Juan sa kanyang sinabi—“Hindi ako kundi siya ang magpaparanas sa inyo ng tunay na binyag, ang binyag sa Espiritu Santo. Nilulublob ko kayo sa tubig. Pero ibibigay niya sa inyo ang Espiritu Santo na gigising sa mga puso ninyo kung sino kayo.”

Ang binyag ni Juan ay parang paghuhugas ng kaluluwa. Nilulublob sa tubig ang lumalapit sa kanya para malinis sila sa dungis ng kasalanan. May kundisyon. Parang sinasabing: kung ibig mong kilalanin ka ng Diyos, magpakabait ka muna at magpakabanal. Hindi ganyang ang binyag ng Espiritu.

Sabi nga ni San Pablo sa second reading, “Sumaatin ang kagandahng-loob ng Diyos hindi dahil sa ating mabuting gawa kundi dahil sa kanyang awa. Iniligtas tayo sa binyag ng muling pagsilang at pagpapanibagong dulot ng Espiritu Santo na ibinuhos niya nang lubos sa atin sa pamamagitan ni Hesukristong ating manunubos, upang sa biyaya niya, tayo ay maitawid at gawing tagapagmana ng biyaya ng walang-hanggang buhay.

Huwag nating ibaligtad. Mahal tayo ng Diyos, hindi dahil mabait tayo. Bumabait tayo kapag namumulat tayo kung gaano tayo kamahal ng Diyos. Noon lang lumalabas ang lahat ng maganda, mabuti at totoo sa ating pagkatao.

Hindi pa tapos. Ang pagkamulat kung sino tayo sa mata ng Diyos ay may kasabay na pagkamulat kung sino rin tayo sa isa’t isa, sa bawat kapwa tao: MAGKAKAPATID.

Masaklap ang mga balita tungkol sa mga sunog sa Los Angeles. Sa atin dito sa Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, kapag nasusunugan tayo—na napakadalas mangyari—hindi lang tayo lumilikas o nagbabakwit. Lumalaban tayo. Apoy ang kalaban. Lumulundag ang apoy kahit malayo pa iyan, lalo na kapag mahangin. Lumilipad ang mga baga, parikpik o tilamsik, ang tinatawag naming alipatu sa Kapampangan. Ito ang nagpapakalat sa sunog at pwedeng maging simula ng mga bagong sunog kahit malayo. Sino ang papatay sa mga bagang tumitilamsik at ipinapahid ng hangin kung lumikas na lahat ng tao? Hindi ang mga bumbero dahil busy sila sa malaking sunog. Kailangan nila ng back-up. Kailangan ng bayanihan. Oo, ilikas ang matatanda at bata, ang mga malalakas ay magbayanihan, lumaban, huwag magpanic, huwag magkanya-kanya. Magkakapatid tayo. Lakasan ang loob, huwag kumilos na nag-iisa. Tulad ng sa traslacion, sama-sama, magtulungan, magbayanihan. Kung lalaban tayo nang sama-sama, kakayanin natin. Kasi ramdam natin ang tinig ng Diyos: Kayo’y mga Anak ko. At ang sagot natin ay: “IKAW AY AMA NAMIN; AT KAMI AY MAGKAKAPATID!”

PRAYER AND SOLITUDE

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Homily for Friday after Epiphany, 10 Jan 2025, Lk 5:12-16

On two counts, the leper in the Gospel violated the Law of Moses. Firstly, he was not supposed to stay inside a town if he was afflicted by the disease of leprosy. He was supposed to isolate himself by staying in a cave in the wilderness, away from people, where his relatives could bring him some food provisions. Secondly, he was not supposed to come near people if he crossed paths with them. He was obliged by law to warn people by identifying himself as a person afflicted with leprosy and shouting from a distance, “Unclean! Unclean!”in order to give them the opportunity to run away. Luke tells us the man approached Jesus, knelt before him and pleaded with him. (See Num 5, Lev 13-14)

Well, Jesus also violated the law by doing what he was not supposed to do: he touched the leper. By doing this, we was compromising the health of many other people he was going to come into contact with. We can presuppose from the way Luke tells the story that his disciples had witnessed the contact. In the movie THE CHOSEN, the disciples’ instinctive reaction to the leper was to withdraw or keep a safe distance from him. Well, Jesus proves that a disease could not possibly be more contagious than the grace that comes with compassion.

Take note of the request; the leper does not say “If you can, please help me get cured of this terrible disease.” Rather, he says, “If you wish.” And Jesus does not just say “Yes, I wish it.” Rather, he says, “I do will it.” He is expressing a greater determination about wanting the man to be healed by willing it than just wishing it.

But he orders the man to keep quiet about it after he gets healed. Instead he instructs him to do as he was required by the Law of Moses—to submit himself to a bodily inspection by the priest, who would be the only one who could publicly declare him as officially cured and allow him to return to the community and his family after making the prescribed thanksgiving offering.
What follows is a reversal of situations. He is the one who ends up withdrawing to deserted places and going into solitude. He reaches out to people in their solitude of isolation in order to reunite them with the community. As a consequence, he ends up in solitude himself. But it was not the kind of solitude that isolated him. It was rather the solitude that brought him into a into a deeper and more intimate communion with his father, and drew more people to come to him and ask to be touched by him.

By going deeper into a solitude of communion through prayer, he is able to draw people out of their solitude of isolation and restore them and reunite them with the community. The other day we reflected on the amazing effects of prayer—on the disciples, on the environment, on Jesus himself. Today our Gospel teaches us how prayer leads us to the positive solitude of communion and has the power to draw people out of the negative solitude of isolation.

EFFECTS OF PRAYER

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Homily for Wednesday after Epiphany, 08 Jan 2025, Mk 6, 45-52

They had just fed 5,000 people. St. Mark tells us Jesus instructed his disciples to serve them in groups of 50 to 100. Even with 100 per group, he would still have needed at least 50 volunteers to do the serving. They must have been so exhausted because they still had to gather the fragments of leftovers afterwards. And remember, Jesus himself had taught the people during the whole day before the feeding.

Normally, it’s the disciples who organize an “escape boat” to sneak Jesus out and prevent him from getting crushed by the demanding crowds. But this time, what happens is the opposite. Mark tells us Jesus himself “made his disciples get into a boat” and instructed them to “precede him to the other side toward Bethsaida”, i.e., Peter’s hometown. He also dismissed the crowd himself. I imagine him very tired but also very happy that the people were at least going back to their homes satisfied, both spiritually (from being nourished by the Word of God), and physically (with the five loaves and two fish that had been served to them).

But wait, what does he do after dismissing the crowd? Instead of immediately proceeding to Bethsaida, Mark says he went off to the mountain to pray. And look what follows after the praying: first, even though the boat that carried the disciples was already far out on the sea, Mark tells us “he saw that they were tossed about while rowing for the wind was against them.” Second, he” came toward them walking on the sea”! And lastly, when “he got into the boat with them, the wind died down.” Perhaps we can call these three the effects of only one cause: PRAYER.
Let’s go back to the first—how did he know that they were in distress while crossing the sea? One of the most palpable effects of prayer is that it heightens our sensitivity, especially to people who are connected to us spiritually. My late mother used to tell me when she was still alive that, sometimes, while at prayer, she could feel that one or another of my siblings was undergoing a problem or a crisis. And she would confirm it a day or two later. Jesus is often described as “having compassion” on some of the people he met. Prayer must have made him spiritually sensitive.

Now for the second, Jesus comes down to respond to his disciples who are in distress. Prayer does not only make us sensitive; it also gives us the courage to face life’s many trials, or to accompany people who are struggling with the storms of life. Mark describes Jesus “alone on the shore”, “walking on the sea.” The image that Mark is portraying is that of Jesus like Buddha with half open eyes, so absorbed in prayer that he almost passes by them at sea and causes them to think he was a ghost. Prayer’s most palpable effect is, as expressed so well by the famous prayer: to “grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, the courage to change the things we can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

Thirdly, the Gospel tells us, “as soon as Jesus got into the boat with them, the wind died down.” Our first reading from the epistle of St. John expresses this differently. He says, “There is no fear in love; perfect love casts out all fear.” It means to grow in prayer is to soak in the love of God that alone can cast out all our fears. Do we not read a similar thought in the first letter of Peter 5:7, “Cast all your cares to God because he cares for you.”

TEACHING WHILE FEEDING

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a basket with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish lying on the grass, symbolic of the Bible story where JESUS CHRIST multiplied 5 loaves and 2 fish to feed the 5000 people who were following him and listening to his teachings.

Homily for Tues after Epiphany, 07 Jan 2025, Mk 6:34-44

Because we are familiar with a two-part Liturgy at Mass that distinguishes between the first part, which we call the Liturgy of the Word and the second part, which we call the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we tend to project it on this narrative about the multiplication of the loaves. We are conditioned to read it also as a two-part narrative: a first part about Jesus teaching the multitude, and a second part about Jesus feeding them. Actually, although the story does indeed begin with Jesus deciding to forego his earlier decision to come away with his disciples and rest a while. It is already compassion that had motivated him to teach them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd. Then when it gets late, out of compassion, he decides to feed them too. But please take note, even the feeding part is still part of the teaching.

Mark is not even telling us in the story what Jesus was teaching the crowds before he decided to feed them too. He simply says, “He taught them many things.” I have a feeling that his teaching had to do with how the kingdom of God is made manifest by our capacity to multiply resources however little they might seem. Now he had to illustrate his teaching in the most practical way possible. But first, he teaches them how not to do it—namely, not by counting the cost immediately and doing the mathematics like the disciples are when they react to Jesus’ suggestion to give the crowd something to eat. I imagine Judas Iscariot saying, “Do we also feed them for free after teaching them for free? By golly, we’ll go bankrupt! ”

Here’s how Jesus teaches them the art of multiplication of resources: firstly,by focusing on what they had, than on what they did not have. (Surely they were not the only ones who were bringing with them some provisions, however little it might be. ) Secondly, instead of making the crowds line up to get something, he makes them sit down in smaller groups, perhaps also to find out what they had with them. In John’s version of this story, the five loaves and two fish are not their own provision. They are rather shared by a little lad. Thirdly, by teaching them to be thankful for what they have, and to partake it with those who had none.

This is exactly what we experienced during the pandemic, remember? How in those times of need, our resources miraculously multiplied through the phenomenon of the community pantries. How, instead of just demanding ayuda, we followed two basic principles: “Magbigay ayon sa kakayanan; kumuha ayon sa pangangailangan.” (Give according to your ability; take according to your need.)
Obviously, when people care only about what to get, not only will they learn not to give, they will even try to get more than they actually need. Perhaps that is why we call the Eucharist a sacrament of love. It is the part where the Lord is still teaching, no longer with words but with his very life—which he allows to be broken like bread. By giving without counting the cost, by finding a different kind of satisfaction by giving of oneself.

The first reading from John calls this the God experience. “Everyone who loves is begotten of God,” he says. Whoever is without love is without God, for God is love.” It is in this way, he says, that God’s love is revealed to us: by the generous self-giving of God in passion and death of Jesus his Son on the cross. By loving us, he teaches us to love. We learn generosity from our generous God, from Christ who lived a generous life.

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