Gospel Reflection

January 11, 2013

Year of Faith

Friday after Epiphany of the Lord

by Rev.  Fr. Nilo Mangussad (Rector Our Lady of Peace Quasi-Parish)

Mass at Shrine of Mary, Queen of Peace (Our Lady of EDSA)

                         

Reading 1 1 Jn 5:5-13

Beloved: Who indeed is the victor over the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

This is the one who came through water and Blood, Jesus Christ, not by water alone, but by water and Blood. The Spirit is the one who testifies, and the Spirit is truth. So there are three who testify, the Spirit, the water, and the Blood, and the three are of one accord. If we accept human testimony, the testimony of God is surely greater. Now the testimony of God is this, that he has testified on behalf of his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has this testimony within himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar by not believing the testimony God has given about his Son. And this is the testimony: God gave us eternal life,
and this life is in his Son. Whoever possesses the Son has life; whoever does not possess the Son of God does not have life.

I write these things to you so that you may know that you have eternal life, you who believe in the name of the Son of God.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 147:12-13, 14-15, 19-20

R. (12a) Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.or:
R. Alleluia.
Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;
he has blessed your children within you.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has granted peace in your borders;
with the best of wheat he fills you.
He sends forth his command to the earth;
swiftly runs his word!
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob,
his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
He has not done thus for any other nation;
his ordinances he has not made known to them. Alleluia.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Lk 5:12-16

It happened that there was a man full of leprosy in one of the towns where Jesus was; and when he saw Jesus, he fell prostrate, pleaded with him, and said, “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said,
“I do will it. Be made clean.” And the leprosy left him immediately. Then he ordered him not to tell anyone, but “Go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.”  The report about him spread all the more, and great crowds assembled to listen to him and to be cured of their ailments, but he would withdraw to deserted places to pray.

HOMILY

In our Gospel, Jesus shows how compassionate He is and how loving He is to all people. And He cannot deny one who asks for cure. He only wants the best and the well-being of each one of us. The problem is, we still get sick. The dis-ease that we feel is because we have removed ourselves to our connection, to our source - our Lord who wants us well. He wants us to connect ourselves to Him. When we get sick, it is the time that the Lord is trying to tell us, "come out and pray".

If we pray, we get connected once more to the Lord. Jesus always connects Himself to the Father, because He wants to be well and give wellness to everyone. We, too, want to be well. If we can only connect through Jesus to our Father. The first thing He does is to bless us, not simply by water, but the water and the blood, with the Holy Spirit.

It is good to be listening to our hearts. Our hearts call to the Lord. But do we listen to Him? We go to mass because we try to be connected. But how connected are we, when sometimes we come to mass and it becomes the extension of our nap? My brothers and sisters, when we go to mass, let us always make sure - is the connection truly there, that I may be removed from the dis-ease that I feel? It only takes a humble request from us, and the Lord will cure us. Are we ready to re-connect to God?