Gospel Reflection

July 13, 2013

Saturday – Year of Faith – Ordinary Time

by Rev. Fr. Ernie M. Cruz, SDB - Rector, St. John Bosco Parish Church, Makati

6:30AM Mass, St. John Bosco Parish Church, Makati

 

Reading 1 Gn 49:29-32; 50:15-26a

Jacob gave his sons this charge: “Since I am about to be taken to my people, bury me with my fathers in the cave that lies in the field of Ephron the Hittite, the cave in the field of Machpelah, facing on Mamre, in the land of Canaan, the field that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite for a burial ground. There Abraham and his wife Sarah are buried, and so are Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and there, too, I buried Leah– the field and the cave in it that had been purchased from the Hittites.”

Now that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers became fearful and thought, “Suppose Joseph has been nursing a grudge against us and now plans to pay us back in full for all the wrong we did him!” So they approached Joseph and said: “Before your father died, he gave us these instructions: ‘You shall say to Joseph, Jacob begs you to forgive the criminal wrongdoing of your brothers, who treated you so cruelly.’ Please, therefore, forgive the crime that we, the servants of your father’s God, committed.” When they spoke these words to him, Joseph broke into tears. Then his brothers proceeded to fling themselves down before him and said, “Let us be your slaves!” But Joseph replied to them: “Have no fear. Can I take the place of God? Even though you meant harm to me, God meant it for good, to achieve his present end, the survival of many people. Therefore have no fear. I will provide for you and for your children.” By thus speaking kindly to them, he reassured them.

Joseph remained in Egypt, together with his father’s family. He lived a hundred and ten years. He saw Ephraim’s children to the third generation, and the children of Manasseh’s son Machir were also born on Joseph’s knees.

Joseph said to his brothers: “I am about to die. God will surely take care of you and lead you out of this land to the land that he promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Then, putting the sons of Israel under oath, he continued, “When God thus takes care of you, you must bring my bones up with you from this place.” Joseph died at the age of a hundred and ten.

Responsorial Psalm PS 105:1-2, 3-4, 6-7

R. (see Psalm 69:33) Be glad you lowly ones; may your hearts be glad!
Give thanks to the LORD, invoke his name;
make known among the nations his deeds.
Sing to him, sing his praise,
proclaim all his wondrous deeds.
R. Be glad you lowly ones; may your hearts be glad!
Glory in his holy name;
rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!
Look to the LORD in his strength;
seek to serve him constantly.
R. Be glad you lowly ones; may your hearts be glad!
You descendants of Abraham, his servants,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!
He, the LORD, is our God;
throughout the earth his judgments prevail.
R. Be glad you lowly ones; may your hearts be glad!

Gospel Mt 10:24-33

Jesus said to his Apostles: “No disciple is above his teacher, no slave above his master. It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, for the slave that he become like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more those of his household!

“Therefore do not be afraid of them. Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known. What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge. Even all the hairs of your head are counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.”

    

HOMILY

There was a senior citizen who was feeling quite bad, because his adult children are not in good terms with him. He was telling his friends, "If I only knew that this would happen.....When their mother left me, I was left all alone to take care of them. I made a lot of sacrifices for them. I did not even get married again because of them. If only I knew that this would happen, I would have left them with their mother, at sila na ang bahala. It was really wrong for me to have done that." But his friend told him, "I don't think it was wrong. What you did was correct. The reaction of your children does not make it wrong. It is your good action that allowed you to appreciate what you did, let alone if they do not appreciate it."

The opposite has taken place in the life of Joseph in our First Reading for today. He was the one who had reason to be angry, to take revenge for what his brothers had done to him. They left him almost dead, but they repented and just stoned him, and reported to their father that Joseph was dead, not knowing later on that what they did was for their good. God always writes straight lines even on crooked lines. God allowed Joseph to experience the agony of what happened to him, for him to be an instrument of salvation of many people for later years.

God is also telling us, through today's Gospel, to take courage and not to be afraid of those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Let us not be afraid to stand for the right to do good. If you are doing what is right, do not be afraid to move on, to continue on doing that right thing. The goodness in our heart should not be removed from us, only because we are not appreciated for what we do. In the end, the Lord will be the One to take notice of it. It is the Lord who will reward us for the good that we do for others.

It is true that many times, what we do may be thankless. Minsan, ikaw na nga ang gumagawa nang mabuti, ikaw na nga ang tumutulong, ikaw pa ang napapasama. But then that does not make it wrong. That does not deprive the person of the good that God sees in the person who is doing it. Like Joseph, there is a reward at the end of our days -  if not in this world, it will be in the life to come. And it is all because God does not let go of the good that we do. He may close an eye on our wrongdoings, but the good, He will always account on our stead.

Therefore, as we look into the readings of today, Jesus tells us not to be afraid. He says that we should be afraid of those who can kill or destroy all the good that we receive. But while at it, we hold to what God has given to us, and that is the good that He has implanted in our hearts. Even though a lot of wrong things may be happening, the goodness in the hearts of many of us should not disappear. Let us not exchange goodness with what is happening around us, just because we are not given back what we have given. The Lord knows everything. He knows that at the end, there is always the Resurrection that will see everything in the light of God. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Gospel Reflection

July 12, 2013

Friday – Year of Faith – Ordinary Time

by Msgr. Bong Lo (Chaplain, Chapel of Eucharistic Lord)

12:15PM Mass, Chapel of the Eucharistic Lord (Megamall Chapel)

 

Reading 1 Gn 46:1-7, 28-30

Israel set out with all that was his. When he arrived at Beer-sheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. There God, speaking to Israel in a vision by night, called, “Jacob! Jacob!” He answered, “Here I am.” Then he said: “I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you a great nation. Not only will I go down to Egypt with you; I will also bring you back here, after Joseph has closed your eyes.”

So Jacob departed from Beer-sheba, and the sons of Israel put their father and their wives and children on the wagons that Pharaoh had sent for his transport. They took with them their livestock and the possessions they had acquired in the land of Canaan. Thus Jacob and all his descendants migrated to Egypt. His sons and his grandsons, his daughters and his granddaughtersB  all his descendants—he took with him to Egypt.

Israel had sent Judah ahead to Joseph, so that he might meet him in Goshen. On his arrival in the region of Goshen, Joseph hitched the horses to his chariot and rode to meet his father Israel in Goshen. As soon as Joseph saw him, he flung himself on his neck and wept a long time in his arms. And Israel said to Joseph, “At last I can die, now that I have seen for myself that Joseph is still alive.”

Responsorial Psalm PS 37:3-4, 18-19, 27-28, 39-40

R. (39a) The salvation of the just comes from the Lord.
Trust in the LORD and do good,
that you may dwell in the land and be fed in security.
Take delight in the LORD,
and he will grant you your heart’s requests.
R. The salvation of the just comes from the Lord.
The LORD watches over the lives of the wholehearted;
their inheritance lasts forever.
They are not put to shame in an evil time;
in days of famine they have plenty.
R. The salvation of the just comes from the Lord.
Turn from evil and do good,
that you may abide forever;
For the LORD loves what is right,
and forsakes not his faithful ones.
R. The salvation of the just comes from the Lord.
The salvation of the just is from the LORD;
he is their refuge in time of distress.
And the LORD helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
R. The salvation of the just comes from the Lord.

Gospel Mt 10:16-23

Jesus said to his Apostles: “Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves. But beware of men, for they will hand you over to courts and scourge you in their synagogues, and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake as a witness before them and the pagans. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak
but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will hand over brother to death, and the father his child; children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to another. Amen, I say to you, you will not finish the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.”

   

HOMILY

Would you agree that one of the greatest blessings that you and I have is the family? Do you agree? (People say 'yes'.) But would you also agree that sometimes, one of the greatest burdens that we may have is the family? (People also say 'yes'.) That is the reason why I decided not to marry. (laughs)

On the one hand, the family is a great blessing. On the other hand, the family can be a great burden.

In the First Reading today, from the book of Genesis, we have heard the story of Jacob, who, finally, after many years, thinking that his second to the last son, Joseph, was already killed by the beasts out on the field, find him very much alive, very healthy, and, of course, the governor of Egypt, the right hand of Pharaoh, who was instrumental in feeding the family and all the others in the great famine of that time. Jacob and Joseph cried and embraced each other. And Jacob said, "At last I can die, now that I have seen for myself that Joseph is alive." Jacob was already fulfilled, at peace and ready to die.

Are you ready to die, my sisters and brothers? Wala? (laughs) So hindi pa tayo at peace, hindi pa tayo fulfilled, mayroon pa tayong hinahanap, ano? But Jacob was ready to die, when he saw his son Joseph. The reunion of Jacob and Joseph was very touching, very emotional, and a very happy moment. And there was also reconciliation, with Joseph forgiving his brothers who sold him as a slave in Egypt.

But in the Gospel Reading, Jesus prophesied an entirely different scenario. Jesus said, "You will be hated by all, because of My name. In fact, brother will hand over brother to death, and the father his child; children will rise up against parents and have them put to death." There is conflict, there is crisis, there is disfunction in the family.

You know, in the 1960s up to 1976, during what is called the darkest chapters in the history of China, really, family members betrayed family members. Even the President of the People's Republic of China was betrayed by his children. That was a great crisis. And sadly, that happens until now. I have a friend - well, every member of the family is my friend - but their family is in courts, not only in Philippine courts but in American courts, because of their properties. Children against parents. Siblings against siblings. It is very painful when family members try to destroy each other, when family members try to kill one another. Truly, our family is a great blessing, but if we are not careful, that family can be a great burden.

The Word of God in the Gospel Reading and in the First Reading of today tells us two important keys for the family to remain a great blessing and not a burden or a curse. In the Gospel, Jesus said that we should be innocent as a dove, as simple, as pure as a dove, yet we must be shrewd, as clever as a serpent. To be innocent as a dove means to be sincere, to have no malice, to be honest. It is because if we are not honest in our relationships, the moment we put malice in our relationships, then, even the family will slowly but surely be destroyed. But Jesus also says that we should be as shrewd as a serpent, meaning that although we should not abuse others, let us also not let ourselves be abused. Huwag tayong tatanga-tanga. (laughs) Let us not manipulate others, but let us also not let others manipulate us.

Just like Joseph in the First Reading, he used his God-given talent to overcome slavery and become the governor of Egypt. But at the same time, he was like a dove - gentle, forgiving, understanding, assuring his brothers who sold him as a slave, and telling them that God has sent him in Egypt ahead of his family, to prepare for the moment of great famine.

The second key is this. In the First Reading, God told Jacob (or Israel), "I am God, the God of your Father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you a great nation. Not only will I go down to Egypt with you; I will also bring you back here, after Joseph has closed your eyes." God has shown Jacob and his family that no matter what happens, God will always be with them. God will not abandon them. And in the Gospel reading, Jesus said, "Do not worry about how you are to speak, or what to say....for it will not be you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you." Jesus is saying, "I will be with you."

So, through the good times and the bad times that our family will be going through, through joys and sorrows, let us always remind and assure ourselves that God is with us. God is with the family. Yes, we may have tried to be as innocent as a dove, and as shrewd as a serpent, yet, on our own, no matter what we do, there will really come a moment when we feel hopeless. But if we remember that God is with us through joys and sorrows, then we hold on. Hindi tayo bibitaw tulad ni Joseph at ni Jacob, at ni Jesus.

We pray for our families, we pray for one another, and we pray for ourselves, that no matter what happens, we will not give up with one another, we will not give up our families, but instead be truly faithful and a true blessing to our families.    

Gospel Reflection

July 11, 2013

Thursday – Year of Faith – Ordinary Time

Memorial of Saint Benedict, Abbot

by Rev. Fr. Benjamin “Benjo” Fajota (Vice Rector of the EDSA Shrine)

5:30PM Mass, Mary, Queen of Peace Shrine (Our Lady of Peace Quasi Parish/EDSA Shrine)

 

Reading 1 Gn 44:18-21, 23b-29; 45:1-5

Judah approached Joseph and said: “I beg you, my lord, let your servant speak earnestly to my lord, and do not become angry with your servant, for you are the equal of Pharaoh. My lord asked your servants, ‘Have you a father, or another brother?’ So we said to my lord, ‘We have an aged father, and a young brother, the child of his old age. This one’s full brother is dead, and since he is the only one by that mother who is left, his father dotes on him.’ Then you told your servants, ‘Bring him down to me that my eyes may look on him. Unless your youngest brother comes back with you, you shall not come into my presence again.’ When we returned to your servant our father, we reported to him the words of my lord.

“Later, our father told us to come back and buy some food for the family. So we reminded him, ‘We cannot go down there; only if our youngest brother is with us can we go, for we may not see the man if our youngest brother is not with us.’ Then your servant our father said to us, ‘As you know, my wife bore me two sons. One of them, however, disappeared, and I had to conclude that he must have been torn to pieces by wild beasts; I have not seen him since. If you now take this one away from me, too, and some disaster befalls him, you will send my white head down to the nether world in grief.’“

Joseph could no longer control himself in the presence of all his attendants, so he cried out, “Have everyone withdraw from me!” Thus no one else was about when he made himself known to his brothers. But his sobs were so loud that the Egyptians heard him, and so the news reached Pharaoh’s palace. “I am Joseph,” he said to his brothers. “Is my father still in good health?” But his brothers could give him no answer, so dumbfounded were they at him.

“Come closer to me,” he told his brothers. When they had done so, he said: “I am your brother Joseph, whom you once sold into Egypt. But now do not be distressed, and do not reproach yourselves for having sold me here. It was really for the sake of saving lives that God sent me here ahead of you.”

Responsorial Psalm PS 105:16-17, 18-19, 20-21

R. (5a) Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
or:
R. Alleluia.
When the LORD called down a famine on the land
and ruined the crop that sustained them,
He sent a man before them,
Joseph, sold as a slave.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
or:
R. Alleluia.
They had weighed him down with fetters,
and he was bound with chains,
Till his prediction came to pass
and the word of the LORD proved him true.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The king sent and released him,
the ruler of the peoples set him free.
He made him lord of his house
and ruler of all his possessions.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Mt 10:7-15

Jesus said to his Apostles: “As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give. Do not take gold or silver or copper for your belts; no sack for the journey, or a second tunic, or sandals, or walking stick. The laborer deserves his keep. Whatever town or village you enter, look for a worthy person in it, and stay there until you leave. As you enter a house, wish it peace. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; if not, let your peace return to you. Whoever will not receive you or listen to your words— go outside that house or town and shake the dust from your feet. Amen, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.”

  

HOMILY

There is a very popular Russian fable about the story of a wild boar who was very greedy for acorns. And when it sees acorns, he will keep on eating and eating until he tears the roots of the oak tree. One day, the oak tree spoke to the wild boar and said, "You foolish boar. I am the source of your food, and if you keep on destroying my roots, I will not be able to give you your nourishment."

A lot of times, we are also like the foolish boar. We are so greedy with a lot of material things that oftentimes, we are blinded by our own desires, by our own greed on a lot of things that we think will help us in our lives, things that we think will make us happy. But we know that God reveals Himself and asks us that we should look only on the source. Jesus is the source of life; He is the source of our faith. Jesus is the source of everything that we have. 

In the Gospel, Jesus Christ taught His apostles not to bring anything - no money bag, no sack cloth, no extra tunic. Why? It is for them to rely solely on the source of everything, and that is God Himself. 

God has given us three gifts. First is the gift of fresh healing for repentant sinners. Second, deliverance from demons - the demons of doubts, of anxieties, of hopelessness. And the third is physical healing. God wants us to be holy; God wants us to be whole and integrated as one, as the Body of Christ is one. 

My dear brothers and sisters, we are always asked to look up to the source of life. Every time we hear some things that would remind us about God, especially here in the Church, it is a good reminder for us that we all belong to God, and that we are living our lives, not for ourselves, but for God. Let us not be greedy for the material things, but always look up to God - the source of everything. Amen. 

Gospel Reflection

July 10, 2013

Wednesday – Year of Faith – Ordinary Time

by Rev.  Fr. Joel Jason (Dean of Studies, Graduate School of Theology San Carlos Seminary)

12:15PM Mass, Chapel of the Eucharistic Lord (Megamall Chapel)

 

Reading 1 Gn 41:55-57; 42:5-7a, 17-24a

When hunger came to be felt throughout the land of Egypt and the people cried to Pharaoh for bread, Pharaoh directed all the Egyptians to go to Joseph and do whatever he told them. When the famine had spread throughout the land, Joseph opened all the cities that had grain and rationed it to the Egyptians, since the famine had gripped the land of Egypt. In fact, all the world came to Joseph to obtain rations of grain, for famine had gripped the whole world.

The sons of Israel were among those who came to procure rations.

It was Joseph, as governor of the country, who dispensed the rations to all the people. When Joseph’s brothers came and knelt down before him with their faces to the ground, he recognized them as soon as he saw them. But Joseph concealed his own identity from them and spoke sternly to them.

With that, he locked them up in the guardhouse for three days.

On the third day Joseph said to his brothers: “Do this, and you shall live; for I am a God-fearing man. If you have been honest, only one of your brothers need be confined in this prison, while the rest of you may go and take home provisions for your starving families. But you must come back to me with your youngest brother. Your words will thus be verified, and you will not die.” To this they agreed. To one another, however, they said: “Alas, we are being punished because of our brother. We saw the anguish of his heart when he pleaded with us, yet we paid no heed; that is why this anguish has now come upon us.” Reuben broke in, “Did I not tell you not to do wrong to the boy? But you would not listen!  Now comes the reckoning for his blood.” The brothers did not know, of course, that Joseph understood what they said, since he spoke with them through an interpreter. But turning away from them, he wept.

Responsorial Psalm PS 33:2-3, 10-11, 18-19

R. (22) Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
Give thanks to the LORD on the harp;
with the ten-stringed lyre chant his praises.
Sing to him a new song;
pluck the strings skillfully, with shouts of gladness.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
The LORD brings to nought the plans of nations;
he foils the designs of peoples.
But the plan of the LORD stands forever;
the design of his heart, through all generations.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
But see, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.

Gospel Mt 10:1-7

Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness. The names of the Twelve Apostles are these: first, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus; Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus.

Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus, “Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town. Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

HOMILY

Hindi ko po alam kung kayo ay nanonood ng programang 'The Voice of the Philippines'. Ako hindi nanonood noon eh. (laughs) Meron po akong nakitang clip sa Facebook ng 'The Voice'. Ito po pala ay isang singing contest. At nakita ko po doon na kapag may contestant na kumakanta, 'yong mga hurado ay nakatalikod. Hindi nila nakikita o napapanood 'yong nag-o-audition. The purpose is kailangang marinig ng mga hurado 'yong tinig - the voice alone - so they will not be influenced by the looks, the sex, kung paano manamit. So they only listen to the voice. 

And then noong nabasa ko 'yong headline, ang sabi ng headline - Contestant sa 'The Voice', pinaikot ang upuan ni Lea Salonga'. Sabi ko, ano ba ang ibig sabihin no'ng 'pinaikot ang upuan ni Lea Salonga'? 'Yon pala, kapag ikaw ang judge at nagustuhan mo 'yong boses ng contestant, pipindot ka and then iikot ka at haharapin mo na 'yong voice, 'yong tinig. At pag hinarap mo 'yong voice o tinig, ibig sabihin ay kukunin mo siya para tulungan, na siya 'yong panalo para sa iyo. And in that particular clip, nakita ko, not all the judges turned around. It was only Lea Salonga who turned around dahil botong-boto siya doon sa contestant na 'yon. 

I think that it is also a beautiful image of our relationship with God. Because we can also describe God as the Voice who is calling us. And that is what we heard in the Gospel for today - Jesus calling the 12 disciples, and giving them a mission to fulfill. Lahat po tayo ay tinatawag ng Panginoon. And I'm sure all of us hear the same voice. At lahat tayo ay nagsisimulang nakatalikod. But many of us do not make that turnaround, in order to face the Voice that is calling us. Many of us are intrigued by the Voice. Parang naaakit tayo ng tinig na 'yon, but for one reason or another, we do not want to face the Voice. Because we know that once we make that turnaround, it would demand something from us. It will demand from us a decision that we have to make. 

'Yong pagtawag na 'yon, ito ay hindi lamang po sa mga magpapari o magma-madre. Pag narinig kasi natin ang kwento ng pagtawag ni Hesus sa mga disipulo, 'ay para sa mga pari 'yan, para 'yan sa mga madre'. No. This is an illustration of our collective vocation. Every day and every moment of our life, there is a voice that calls us, and we are also called to make a decision. Are we going to make a turnaround? Are we going to face the Voice that is calling us? 

Iba-iba din ang pagtawag sa atin, eh. For some of us, God may be calling us to conversion. And that is what the Voice is telling us - conversion from a particular vice, from a particular sin. At marami sa atin, siguro naririnig natin ang tinig na 'yon, pero nagdadalawang isip tayo. Haharapin ko ba 'yon, or will I continue to ignore it, because I know that once I face it, it will demand from me a decision. At alam natin ang ibig sabihin when we make a decision, and that means there should be no turning back. 

Eh gano'n naman po talaga ang ibig sabihin ng salitang 'decision'. The word decision comes from the Latin word 'decaedere'. Ano ang ibig sabihin ng 'de'? It means 'about' or 'of'. Ano 'yong 'caedere'? It means 'to cut' or 'to kill'. So literally, to decide means 'to kill'. That is why we have the word suicide, which means killing the 'sui' or the self. Homicide means you are killing the 'homo', the man. The word 'cide' or 'caedere' means 'to kill'. And when you are making a decision, analogously speaking, you are killing other options, and the only one option that is in front of you is the one that you will pursue. That is why when a man decides to marry a woman, in a subtle way, the man says that all other women are already dead in front of me, kasi isa na lang ang aking susundan. At gayon din naman 'yong babae. Pag nag-decide na pakasalan niya ang isang lalaki, ibig sabihin, all the other suitors are dead in front of her, because she has decided to marry this particular man. When you decide, you kill all other options and you pursue the voice that is calling your attention. 

Siguro sa misang ito, magandang tanungin natin ang ating mga sarili. Number one - do we listen to that Voice? Or even if we hear that Voice, are we hesitant? Parang may pag-aalinlangan pa - iikot ba ako, tatalikod ba ako, o haharapin ko ba 'yong tinig na tumatawag sa akin? And lastly, the more important question is - what is the quality of your decision? Can people rely on your decision? Can people rely on your word? When you make a decision, is it truly straightforward or committed?

In this Holy Mass, we pray for that grace, that just like the apostles, may we open our hearts to the Voice that calls us continuously, and let us also pray for the courage, that when we make a decision, it is a decision marked by commitment, conviction and perseverance. Amen.