Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

    

Ika-14 na Linggo sa Karaniwang Panahon

07 Hulyo 2024

 

Unang Pagbasa: Ezekiel 2, 2-5

Salmong Tugunan: Salmo 122, 1-2a. 2bkd. 3-4

Ikalawang Pagbasa: 2 Corinto 12, 7-10

Ebanghelyo: Marcos 6, 1-6

 

Pagninilay

Ni: Renato C. Vibiesca

 

Sa tuwing may kakaiba o bagong kinikilos ang kaibigan natin o kamag-anak, ang pagtataka natin ay nauuwi sa pagtatanong na: "Ano kayang nakain niya?" Hindi tayo makapaniwala agad sa pagbabagong anyo o kakaibang ugali niya dahil hindi maalis sa isip natin ang dati niyang pagkatao. Kaya’t nasasabi nating: "Iba ka na talaga!" Hindi na siya ang dating kilala natin o ang iba naman ay itatanong pa talaga kay Maricon (kay Mare, para ma-confirm) kung totoo talaga ang balita tungkol sa pagbabago niya. Kadalasan kasi’y ikinakahon ang tao sa kung ano ang pagkakakilala natin noon at tila wala nang pag-asang magbago pa ito sa kasalukuyan. Tulad ng pagtataka ng mga kapitbahay ni Hesus at ng iba pang tao mula sa sarili niyang bayan, hindi nila matanggap si Hesus bilang isa nang magaling na guro at maraming alagad na tagasunod. Nanatili sa kanila ang Hesus na simpleng karpintero at pagkakakilala na anak lamang siya ng mga simpleng tao.

Noong nasa elementarya at high school ako, may kaklase ako na kinatatakutan ko talaga. Siya kasi ‘yung itinuturing naming siga ng Tundo. Binu-bully niya kasi ang mga estudiyante noon. Kung may gusto siyang kunin sa amin ay kinukuha niya ito at hindi kami nakakapalag. Kaya’t lagi akong alerto sa paaralan upang iwasan siya. Iniisip ko noon na masamang impluwensiya siya kaya’t dapat iwasan. Ang hula ko ay hindi siya makakapagtapos ng pag-aaral at malululong sa masamang bisyo dahil sa mga barkada niya. Pagkaraan ng ilang dekada, nagulat ako nang mag-krus muli ang daan namin ng siga ng Tundo. Ang totoo, umiwas uli ako sa kanya, nagtago ako kung saan ay hindi niya ako makikita pero mapagmamasdan ko pa rin siya. Hindi ko alam kung na-trauma ba ako at hanggang ngayon ay iniiwasan pa rin siya, pero hindi ang takot sa kanya ang talagang dahilan ng pag-iwas ko. Naninibago kasi ako sa hitsura at kilos niya, kaya’t hindi ako makapaniwala sa nakikita ko. ‘Yung dati kasing siga at mukhang sanggano ay ang linis-linis na, mukhang kagalang-galang at kapitapitagan kung kumilos. Hindi na siya ‘yung dating siga ng Tundo. Natuklasan ko na isa na siyang pastor at napakahusay mangaral. Pero papaano nangyari iyon? Hindi ba’t puro bulakbol at pambu-bully ang ginagawa niya noong nag-aaral pa kami? Samantalang ako na nagbabait-baitan noon na sumali pa sa iba’t ibang relihiyosong organisasyon at pumasok pa sa seminaryo sa pangarap na maging pari ay hindi naman natupad. Pero tulad ni Hesus, ang siga ng Tundo ay hindi nagpatinag sa mga nagdududa at hindi naniniwala sa kanyang pagbabago dahil nagsumikap pa rin siyang mangaral sa maraming lugar sa Tundo. Ang hatid ng Ebanghelyo ngayon ay ang pagpupursigi na maglingkod sa kapwa sa kabila ng maraming balakid at hindi paniniwala ng mga tao mula sa sariling bayan.

Panalangin:

Panginoong Hesus, dalangin nami’y matimyas na pasasalamat sa pagkakaloob ng lakas ng loob at pagpupursigi na maglingkod sa aming kapwa kahit na maraming hindi sumasang-ayon sa kabutihang ito.  Patuloy naming pagsusumamo ang biyaya ng Espiritu Santo na pagningasing lagi ang aming kaloobang maihayag ang iyong Mabuting Balita. Amen.

Water Love

4th Sunday In Ordinary Time 31 January 2016

First reading   Jeremiah 1:4-5,17-19

In the days of Josiah, the word of the Lord was addressed to me, saying:

‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;

before you came to birth I consecrated you;

I have appointed you as prophet to the nations.

‘So now brace yourself for action.

Stand up and tell them

all I command you.

Do not be dismayed at their presence,

or in their presence I will make you dismayed.

‘I, for my part, today will make you

into a fortified city,

a pillar of iron,

and a wall of bronze

to confront all this land:

the kings of Judah, its princes,

its priests and the country people.

They will fight against you

but shall not overcome you,

for I am with you to deliver you –

it is the Lord who speaks.’

Psalm                                                                            Psalm 70:1-6,15,17

               

Second reading                                                          1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13

Be ambitious for the higher gifts. And I am going to show you a way that is better than any of them.

  If I have all the eloquence of men or of angels, but speak without love, I am simply a gong booming or a cymbal clashing. If I have the gift of prophecy, understanding all the mysteries there are, and knowing everything, and if I have faith in all its fullness, to move mountains, but without love, then I am nothing at all. If I give away all that I possess, piece by piece, and if I even let them take my body to burn it, but am without love, it will do me no good whatever.

  Love is always patient and kind; it is never jealous; love is never boastful or conceited; it is never rude or selfish; it does not take offence, and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people’s sins but delights in the truth; it is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes.

  Love does not come to an end. But if there are gifts of prophecy, the time will come when they must fail; or the gift of languages, it will not continue for ever; and knowledge – for this, too, the time will come when it must fail. For our knowledge is imperfect and our prophesying is imperfect; but once perfection comes, all imperfect things will disappear. When I was a child, I used to talk like a child, and think like a child, and argue like a child, but now I am a man, all childish ways are put behind me. Now we are seeing a dim reflection in a mirror; but then we shall be seeing face to face. The knowledge that I have now is imperfect; but then I shall know as fully as I am known.

  In short, there are three things that last: faith, hope and love; and the greatest of these is love.

Gospel                                                                       Luke 4:21-30

Jesus began to speak in the synagogue: ‘This text is being fulfilled today even as you listen.’ And he won the approval of all, and they were astonished by the gracious words that came from his lips They said, ‘This is Joseph’s son, surely?’

  But he replied, ‘No doubt you will quote me the saying, “Physician, heal yourself” and tell me, “We have heard all that happened in Capernaum, do the same here in your own countryside.”’ And he went on, ‘I tell you solemnly, no prophet is ever accepted in his own country.

  ‘There were many widows in Israel, I can assure you, in Elijah’s day, when heaven remained shut for three years and six months and a great famine raged throughout the land, but Elijah was not sent to any one of these: he was sent to a widow at Zarephath, a Sidonian town. And in the prophet Elisha’s time there were many lepers in Israel, but none of these was cured, except the Syrian, Naaman.’

  When they heard this everyone in the synagogue was enraged. They sprang to their feet and hustled him out of the town; and they took him up to the brow of the hill their town was built on, intending to throw him down the cliff, but he slipped through the crowd and walked away.

Reflection

By Anabelle Payod-Balla

There is a saying that "Familiarity breeds contempt." But let me add, "only if we allow it." We have also heard this line before, "The grass in greener on the other side." But there is a new version of this that says, "The grass is greener where you water it."

It is what we think and what we do that determines the outcome.

Why was Jesus not accepted in His home town? Is it because of His background as son of a carpenter? Or it is because of people's perspective of Him? The people have chosen to look at Him as a son of a carpenter rather than Someone who heals the sick, who casts out demons, who makes the blind see and the lame walk.

I remember the beautiful sermon from the wedding I recently attended. It was said that in marriage, what matters is not the love that the couple found in each other, but how much love they put into their relationship each day.

We need to water love to make it grow. It will not grow in itself. Same with faith, we need to feed it to make it grow stronger. We can also get to know better our loved ones, be more familiar with them and grow our love for them, not hate them. We can deepen our knowledge of God and the more we know Him, the more we can love Him.

We have a choice to love, to water love.

Prayer

Father, thank You for giving us the freedom to choose. Help us to choose wisely. To love more, to strengthen our faith, to get to know You better and to stay close to You always. In Jesus' Name, we pray. Amen.

Discipleship 101

Second Sunday of Easter
01 May 2011


The Lord has truly risen, alleluia.


First reading Acts 2:42-47 3
The whole community remained faithful to the teaching of the apostles, to the brotherhood, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.
The many miracles and signs worked through the apostles made a deep impression on everyone.
The faithful all lived together and owned everything in common; they sold their goods and possessions and shared out the proceeds among themselves according to what each one needed.
They went as a body to the Temple every day but met in their houses for the breaking of bread; they shared their food gladly and generously; they praised God and were looked up to by everyone. Day by day the Lord added to their community those destined to be saved.

Psalm or canticle: Psalm 117:2-4,13-15,22-24

Second reading 1 Peter 1:3-9
Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy has given us a new birth as his sons, by raising Jesus Christ from the dead, so that we have a sure hope and the promise of an inheritance that can never be spoilt or soiled and never fade away, because it is being kept for you in the heavens. Through your faith, God’s power will guard you until the salvation which has been prepared is revealed at the end of time. This is a cause of great joy for you, even though you may for a short time have to bear being plagued by all sorts of trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed, your faith will have been tested and proved like gold – only it is more precious than gold, which is corruptible even though it bears testing by fire – and then you will have praise and glory and honour. You did not see him, yet you love him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy so glorious that it cannot be described, because you believe; and you are sure of the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your souls.

Gospel John 20:19-31
In the evening of that same day, the first day of the week, the doors were closed in the room where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews. Jesus came and stood among them. He said to them, ‘Peace be with you’, and showed them his hands and his side. The disciples were filled with joy when they saw the Lord, and he said to them again, ‘Peace be with you.
‘As the Father sent me,
so am I sending you.’
After saying this he breathed on them and said:
‘Receive the Holy Spirit.
For those whose sins you forgive,
they are forgiven;
for those whose sins you retain,
they are retained.’
Thomas, called the Twin, who was one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. When the disciples said, ‘We have seen the Lord’, he answered, ‘Unless I see the holes that the nails made in his hands and can put my finger into the holes they made, and unless I can put my hand into his side, I refuse to believe.’ Eight days later the disciples were in the house again and Thomas was with them. The doors were closed, but Jesus came in and stood among them. ‘Peace be with you’ he said. Then he spoke to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here; look, here are my hands. Give me your hand; put it into my side. Doubt no longer but believe.’ Thomas replied, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him:
‘You believe because you can see me.
Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.’
There were many other signs that Jesus worked and the disciples saw, but they are not recorded in this book. These are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing this you may have life through his name.

Reflection
By Herminia Jamandri-Flores

In all college courses, the introduction or the basic principles in all major subjects are coded 101. It gives us a glimpse of everything the course has to offer. The Sunday readings talk about the basics of discipleship, the main characteristics and work of disciples. In the Philippines, May 1 is also celebrated as Feast of St. Joseph the “Anluwage”, the Patron of Workers, which also coincides with the public holiday, Labor Day. It is also a day of rejoicing for the Church because it is the Divine Mercy Sunday.

But how do we see discipleship in the ordinary people with ordinary everyday life?

I was on a jeepney on a Saturday, almost dusk, when four men came up, each holding an old bag with hammer, chisel, saw and an assortment of carpentry tools. They were talking very loud all at the same time. They settled themselves on the available spaces unmindful of the discomfort. They give out an acrid smell of dried sweat mixed with cheap men’s cologne which obviously defiled the sweet scent of young people going out on a weekend spree.

Each one of these carpenters has a story to tell. The one seated beside me counted how many weeks of work more before he gets fully paid the small television he bought for his children. The second one is excited to see his son who is just starting to walk. The third man opted to hang by the bar to give his seat to an old woman. He has the loudest laugh and the nastiest remarks. The oldest who was seated at the back of the driver assisted in the giving of fares and change to passengers who neither said “please” nor “thank you.” He was almost 50 years old and has a pregnant 20 year old wife. He is saving for the birth of the child. “Is it really your child or your neighbor’s?,” asked the third guy, and more laughter. Unmoved by the nasty remark, he said that all he believes is the child is a gift from God.

I was moved by the strength of character they showed. They live simple lives. They don’t care if people recognize them or not. But they are concerned about the people they love and the houses they build, and the help they could give to anyone. They alighted the jeep happily celebrating the joy of seeing their loved ones after a week of stay-in work even with little money at hand and knowing that what they built will last.

St. Joseph must have been like them, burly and brawny, the smell of dried sweat but with lots of stories about Jesus and Mary to boast to his friends. Jesus, in His childhood, must have learned a lot from St. Joseph: how it is to be sincere in helping people, that the motive of work is to serve, and that faith is believing that which we cannot see. These are the basic elements of discipleship as seen from the life of St. Joseph, the worker. These are also the life of the early Christians following the teachings of Jesus.

So, is discipleship difficult? Let’s learn from the Carpenter.

Almighty and Ever Living God, You called people to be disciples of your Beloved Son, Jesus. You entrusted Him to St. Joseph, a model of discipleship. In obedience to Your divine plan, he took care of Jesus and Mary with sincerity of heart and faith in Your Word. He walked every step of the way with Jesus in a lifelong discipleship practiced in everyday life. Through his intercession, help us to live our daily Christian lives in loving service and obedience to Jesus’ teachings, to mature in faith through community life and to look forward to the breaking of the bread as spiritual nourishment. Make us see Jesus in the people we meet everyday so that we may be able to offer our work for Your greater glory through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Next week on God-speak
Planting Little Kisses