2nd Sunday of Advent

PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD (Mk 1:1-8)

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God.
Gospel is God-spell in old English. It means good news.
Son of God. At the beginning of the Gospel, Jesus is proclaimed Son of God. At the end of the Gospel, Jesus is again proclaimed Son of God by the Centurion as Jesus hung on the Cross.

I am sending my messenger ahead of you.
We are being told that in order to understand the life of Christ, we have to know the Old Testament for Jesus is the fulfillment of the promises made by God in the Old Testament.

John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
This baptism is not the sacrament of Baptism. In those days, the use of baptism was in common use in religious groups. For example, the community at Qumran.
John the Baptist thought that the judgment of God was near. In fact, the call to repentance that he was preaching would save people from this judgment.

John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist.
John's clothing was similar to that worn by Elijah. Accordding to Jewish belief Elijah would come as the Messiah's precursor. John, therefore, is being presented as Elijah and Jesus as the promised Messiah.

One mightier than I is coming after me.
Some of the first disciples of Jesus were disciples of John the Baptist. This passage was addressed to those disciples of John the Baptist who refuse to accept Jesus as the Messiah.

PREPARING THE WAY OF THE LORD: THE PROCESS OF CONVERSION

1. Awareness of sin. "I have sinned."

2. Taking responsibility for sin. "It is my fault."

3. Confession of sin. The Gospel states: " People of the whole Judean countryside and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins."

4. Giving and receiving forgiveness. "Your sins are forgiven you."

5. Change in the mind that shows itself in change in behavior. "From now on avoid this sin."

Peace on Earth

PEACE ON EARTH TO MEN OF GOOD WILL

Alfred Anderson died last November 21, 2005. He was 109 years old and at the time the oldest man in Scotland. But that is not all. He was also the last surviving soldier who experienced the spontaneous Christmas truce of World War I. That was December 25, 1914.

"I remember the silence, the eerie sound of silence," said Ander-son. "All I'd heard for two months in the trenches was the hissing, cracking and whining of bullets in flight, machine-gun fire and distant German voices. But there was a dead silence that morning, right across the land as far as you could see. We shouted 'Merry Christmas,' even though nobody felt merry.”

British and German troops cautiously emerged from the trenches that Christmas Day in 1914. The enemies swapped cigarettes and tunic buttons, sang carols and even played soccer amid the mud, barbed wire and shell-holes of no man's land.

Why did this happen? Because the message of Christmas is peace. Christ is called the Prince of Peace. And on that first Christmas night, the choirs of angels sang: “Glory to God in the highest. And peace to his people on earth.”

What do we mean by peace? At home, is there peace if people shout at each other and hurt each other? In school, is there peace, if there is someone you avoid? In other words, there is peace when there is a good relationship.

Make your Christmas a happy one by establishing peace. First make peace with God by making a good confession. Second, make peace with people at home, in your community and in your workplace. Third, if you are already at peace with everyone, then become a channel of peace between enemies. Become an agent of reconciliation.

First Sunday of Advent

BE WATCHFUL! BE ALERT! (Mk 13:33-37)

Happy New Year!

Yes, it's only November 27. And yes, it's also new year. The First Sunday of Advent marks the beginning of the Liturgical Year in the Catholic Church.

Liturgical Year
The two high points of the Liturgical Year is Christmas (Birth of the Redeemer) and Easter (Resurrection of the Savior). They are so important that the are preceded by a period of preparation and followed by a period of continuing celebration.

Christmas is preceded by Advent and followed by the Christmas season. Easter is preceded by Lent and followed by the Easter Season..

Violet
The color for Advent and Lent is violet. However, the spirit of lent is penitential while that of Advent is joyful.

Gloria
During Advent and Lent, the Gloria (Glory to God in the Highest) is neither sung nor recited. The Gloria is reserved for Christmas when the angels sang it for the first time. However, in the Philippines it is sung during the Simbang Gabi and the Misa de Gallo.

Meaning
Advent means coming. From the first Sunday of Advent till Dec. 16, we are reminded of the Parousia (the second coming of Jesus at the end of time). From Dec. 17 onwards, the focus is the first coming of Jesus when he was born in Bethlehem.

The Advent Wreath
The liturgical symbol for advent is the advent wreath. It serves to focus our attention on the preparation for Christmas.

The wreath (circle) reminds us of eternity. No beginning. No end. God is eternal. His love for us is eternal. Someday we shall join God in eternity.

Green is the color of life. God wants life for us and not death. That is why he sent is only Son that those who believe in him may not perish but have everlasting life.

Candles. Christ is the light of the world. There are four candles representing the four Sundays of Advent. Three candles are violet. One candle is pink which stands for the Laetare Sunday, or Sunday of Joy (third Sunday of Advent).

THIS YEAR WILL CHRISTMAS BE A SEASON OF JOY?

Many are saying that Christmas this year will be sad because of the economic difficulties. (I have heard this for many years now.) But they say this year it will really be gloomy. In fact, the Christmas decorations are so sparse.

When they say that it will be a gloomy Christmas, what they mean is that we shall not be able to buy more Christmas decorations. There will less food at noche buena. No new clothes. Cheap gifts.

But Christmas is not about food. It is not about clothes nor decorations nor gifts.

Christmas is about Christ.

For this reason, there is no reason for this season not to be a joyful one. And precisely because of this, I prefer the greeting "Happy Christmas" to "Merry Christmas".

Christ the King

CHRIST THE KING (Mt 25:31-46)

EXEGESIS

The scene is the Last Judgment at the end of the world. Jesus appears as a glorious King.

In the Jewish judgment stories, gentiles seldom appear. And when they do, it is to be punished. But in this case, gentiles like Jews are to be judged fairly.

In Palestine, goats and sheep are mixed. But at night they are separated because goats need to be kept warn.

Sheep are often used to symbolize christians.

Those who are on the right are welcomed into the kingdom because of works of fraternal charity ( corporal works of mercy).

The ones on the left are condemned--not for any evil they did, but for the good that they did not do. We sin not only when we do wrong, but when we also fail to do good.

REFLECTION

God sees you. St. John Bosco used to put these words on poster for his boys to see. Why? To keep them from sinning.

We can never hide from God. We can never keep secrets from God. Criminals may get away with it. Crimes may remain unpunished. But with God those who deserve punishment will be punished.

But as God sses us when we do wrong in thought, word or deed, so also God sees us when we do right in thought, word or deed. And these will not go unrewarded.

Sometimes we are misinterpreted or judged unfairly. It is because people can not read into our thoughts. But God can. He will see the good intentions and the good will in our hears. Therefore, God will judge us mercifully.

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

THE PARABLE OF THE TALENTS (Mt 25:14-30)

EXEGESIS

A man going on a journey....
The ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven.

...called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one....
Talent may be: (a) a measure of weight, (b) a coin worth 30 kg of precious metal, (c) 6,000 denarii, and (d) in this case, abilities given by God to each one of us.

After a long timethe master of those servants came back ....
Delay in the second coming of Jesus (pariousia)

...and settled accounts with them.
Last judgment

See, I have made five more.
Did he make converts for the church?

Come, share your master's joy.
The reward is an intimate association with the Lord. This is reserved for those who have used their talents for the Kingdom.

...so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground.
This was a common practice in Palestine. Cf the Parable of the Buried Treasure

And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.
Hell is for those who have not used their talents for the kingdom.

REFLECTION

What are the talents or gifts do I have which I can offer at the service of the Kingdom? (I use Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences as framework.)

• Am I good with words (Linguistic intelligence or"word smart")?
• Am I good with numbers and with reasonning (Logical-mathematical intelligence or "number/reasoning smart")?
• Am I good in the creative use of space (Spatial intelligence or "picture smart")?
• Am I good in the use of my body (Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence or "body smart")?
• Am I good in music (Musical intelligence or "music smart")?
• Am I good at relating with others (Interpersonal intelligence or "people smart")?
• Am I good at getting in touch with my inner self (Intrapersonal intelligence or "self smart")?
• Do I flourish in the midst of nature (Naturalist intelligence or "nature smart")?

All of us have these intelligences. Although we may not possess any of them at the level of a genius, Howard Gardner affirms that with effort and with the guidance of a good teacher, we can develop them to a satisfactory level.

Consequently, no one can truthfully say that he is good for nothing and that he has nothing to offer for the kingdom and for his fellowmen.

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Parable of the Ten Virgins (Mt 25:1-13)

Wedding custom
Friends will meet the bridegroom at his house. They then fetch the bride. They return to the bridegroom's house where the wedding will take place. The wedding took place at night. They carried torches and lamps for the procession.

Delay
This is not surprising as people of the East rule their time and not time ruling them.

In the early church, Jesus was expected to come soon. But he did not.

Oil
Symbol of repentance

I do not know you.
I will have nothing to do with you.

The point of the parable

The secondcoming of Jesus is uncertain. We have to be alert. Otherwise, we might find ourselves not ready and therefore, excluded from the Kingdom of Heaven.

REFLECTION

The Lord will come at the end of time. But he will also come to us at the moment of death. But he also comes to us everyday. I will focus on prayer as that sacred moment and sacred space when we come to the Lord and the Lord comes to us.

Someone asked: where do you hide God so that man will not find him?

In outer space? But man will build a space ship to reach him.

At the bottom of the ocean? But man has submarines to reac him.

At the ends of the earth? But man has vehicles to reach him there, too.

Where will you hide him then? In the heart of man. Why there? Because man has forgotten to pray.

What is prayer then? It is going into the inner recesses of one's heart to meet God who is already there.