Gospel Reflection

April 20, 2013

Saturday – Year of Faith – Easter Season

by Rev. Fr. Obi Mulenga, Society of Missionaries of Africa, Zambia

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

                         

Reading 1 Acts 9:31-42

The Church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria was at peace. She was being built up and walked in the fear of the Lord, and with the consolation of the Holy Spirit she grew in numbers.

As Peter was passing through every region, he went down to the holy ones living in Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas, who had been confined to bed for eight years, for he was paralyzed. Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed.” He got up at once. And all the inhabitants of Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.

Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which translated is Dorcas). She was completely occupied with good deeds and almsgiving. Now during those days she fell sick and died, so after washing her, they laid her out in a room upstairs. Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him with the request, “Please come to us without delay.” So Peter got up and went with them. When he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs where all the widows came to him weeping and showing him the tunics and cloaks that Dorcas had made while she was with them. Peter sent them all out and knelt down and prayed. Then he turned to her body and said, “Tabitha, rise up.” She opened her eyes, saw Peter, and sat up. He gave her his hand and raised her up, and when he had called the holy ones and the widows, he presented her alive. This became known all over Joppa, and many came to believe in the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm PS 116:12-13, 14-15, 16-17

R. (12) How shall I make a return to the Lord for all the good he has done for me?
or:
R. Alleluia.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD
R. How shall I make a return to the Lord for all the good he has done for me?
or:
R. Alleluia.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
R. How shall I make a return to the Lord for all the good he has done for me?
or:
R. Alleluia.
O LORD, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
R. How shall I make a return to the Lord for all the good he has done for me?
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Jn 6:60-69

Many of the disciples of Jesus who were listening said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, “Does this shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the Spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe.” Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him. And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father.”

As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer walked with him. Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”

HOMILY

For this week, if we listen to the Gospel readings, Jesus Christ has been talking about being the Bread of Life, being the Word that gives life. And when we listen to such words, sometimes it is very difficult to understand its real meaning or implication. That is why we say that the doctrine is difficult to comprehend. The doctrines of the Church are for believing. It is not like philosophy, it is not like science. It is talking about the Spirit of God, and it is very difficult to understand the language that talks about Spirit. 

When we say the Word of Life, we know that if we listen to people who talk positively on how we can live a life free of sin, those words are life-giving. If we do not listen to them and do what they tell us, we are prone to error and sin. One cannot commit a mistake by listening to the Word that gives life, by reading the Gospels, by listening to people preaching about the Word. You cannot go wrong. But if you listen to other words out there in the world, most of them are misleading, most of them are dividing. They do not sow life. That is the difference between the Word that gives life and the word that denies life. 

So when we listen to Christ talking about Himself as the Word that gives life, sent by God the Father, we ought to believe. It is not for debating at all, it is not for argument, it is not for analyzing. And that is what we call doctrine, which is different from the moral teachings of the Church. With the moral teachings, you can debate, you can talk about it, you can analyze, but at the end of the day, you also have to follow it, as it is what the Church teaches with authority from above. 

We who are Catholics, somehow, have to be properly catechized in order to understand the implication and the importance of the doctrines of our Church. Jesus, in the Gospel today, tells that 'it is hard for you to understand'. Those who did not understand ran away. They departed. Then Jesus asked if the others also want to run away because the Word that He teaches is hard. And Peter responds by asking, "Where can we go?" That kind of response is standing for many of us who constantly say, "Lord, where can we go? What can we follow? Which are the teachings that we can follow, apart from following You up to our death?" 

Doctrines are not easy. When Jesus talks about giving life, about Him coming from God the Father, this is doctrine. When we profess in the Creed that we believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, we are actually talking about the sermons that Jesus Christ taught to His Apostles. So the moment we begin to depart from our doctrines, then we know that we are following something else. If we remain to be divided, we cannot serve two masters at the same time. It is either you save one and disown the other. So if you say you believe in Christ, you don't need to mix with other teachings. 

You see that Peter in the First Reading is performing miracles, curing the sick, raising the dead, in the name of Jesus, and not in any other name. That is how doctrine is important, and that is how doctrine is hard. Because doctrine should be followed, not to be debated, not to be questioned, but for believing in. That should be made clear to each and every Christian - that we do not argue about our faith, because we cannot find logical, reasonable answers that are as scientific as you can put them, as it is a matter of faith.

We pray that as we listen to the words of Jesus, we may be inspired and led by the Holy Spirit in order that we may draw life from them. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Gospel Reflection

April 19, 2013

Friday – Year of Faith – Easter Season

by Rev.  Fr. Matthieu Dauchez

6:30AM Mass, Mary, Queen of Peace Shrine (Our Lady of Peace Quasi Parish/EDSA Shrine)

                         

Reading 1 Acts 9:1-20

Saul, still breathing murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, that, if he should find any men or women who belonged to the Way, he might bring them back to Jerusalem in chains. On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” He said, “Who are you, sir?” The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. Now get up and go into the city and you will be told what you must do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, for they heard the voice but could see no one. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him to Damascus. For three days he was unable to see, and he neither ate nor drank.

There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias, and the Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” He answered, “Here I am, Lord.”  The Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the street called Straight and ask at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul. He is there praying, and in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him, that he may regain his sight.” But Ananias replied, “Lord, I have heard from many sources about this man, what evil things he has done to your holy ones in Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to imprison all who call upon your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for this man is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before Gentiles, kings, and children of Israel, and I will show him what he will have to suffer for my name.” So Ananias went and entered the house; laying his hands on him, he said, “Saul, my brother, the Lord has sent me, Jesus who appeared to you on the way by which you came, that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately things like scales fell from his eyes and he regained his sight. He got up and was baptized, and when he had eaten, he recovered his strength.

He stayed some days with the disciples in Damascus, and he began at once to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God.

Responsorial Psalm PS 117:1bc, 2

R. (Mark 16:15) Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the LORD, all you nations;
glorify him, all you peoples!
R. Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or:
R. Alleluia.
For steadfast is his kindness toward us,
and the fidelity of the LORD endures forever.
R. Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Jn 6:52-59

The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his Flesh to eat?” Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink his Blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my Flesh is true food, and my Blood is true drink.  Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.”  These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

HOMILY

My dear brothers and sisters, 'the bread that you eat and the wine that you drink are My Flesh and Blood'. These are mysterious words. These are essential words, because they institute the greatest gift of our Lord - His holy presence, His Eucharist. And this should be the first obvious mystery. Obvious in the sense that it is exactly the style of our Lord - a Lord of love.

St. John Marie Vianney was saying that when you receive communion, God remains in your heart, and this is the small heaven. Jesus is giving us His Flesh, his Bread as gift - His own presence in the Eucharist. Amen.  

Gospel Reflection

April 18, 2013

Thursday – Year of Faith – Easter Season

by Rev. Fr. Leo Nilo C. Mangussad, Rector, Shrine of Mary Queen of Peace, Our Lady of EDSA (EDSA Shrine)
12:15PM Mass, Mary, Queen of Peace Shrine (Our Lady of Peace Quasi Parish/EDSA Shrine)

                         

Reading 1 Acts 8:26-40

The angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, “Get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route.” So he got up and set out. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, that is, the queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury, who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning home.Seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah.The Spirit said to Philip, “Go and join up with that chariot.” Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

He replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” So he invited Philip to get in and sit with him. This was the Scripture passage he was reading:

Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opened not his mouth.In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who will tell of his posterity? For his life is taken from the earth.

Then the eunuch said to Philip in reply,“I beg you, about whom is the prophet saying this? About himself, or about someone else?”  Then Philip opened his mouth and, beginning with this Scripture passage, he proclaimed Jesus to him. As they traveled along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water. What is to prevent my being baptized?” Then he ordered the chariot to stop, and Philip and the eunuch both went down into the water, and he baptized him. When they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, but continued on his way rejoicing. Philip came to Azotus, and went about proclaiming the good news to all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

Responsorial Psalm PS 66:8-9, 16-17, 20

R. (1) Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Bless our God, you peoples,
loudly sound his praise;
He has given life to our souls,
and has not let our feet slip.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare
what he has done for me.
When I appealed to him in words,
praise was on the tip of my tongue.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed be God who refused me not
my prayer or his kindness!
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Jn 6:44-51

Jesus said to the crowds: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. It is written in the prophets:

They shall all be taught by God.

Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my Flesh for the life of the world.”

HOMILY

We have preferences on the food that we eat. We prefer sweet from the bitter, crunchy from the slimy, and so forth. But who wants bread that is difficult to swallow?

We are very fond of choosing foods, especially for our health, but who teaches us? We research, we ask people, and we believe the experts, the nutritionists, because we want to eat the best, especially when we are sick and want to get well.

Jesus is the Bread of Life. If we believe the doctors and nutritionists, how about the people who bring Jesus to us? Do we believe them? Do we ingest Jesus, our Bread of life, in our lives?

Moreover, we as recipients of the Bread of Life from heaven, we should also be nutritionists to those who seek eternal life. Are we helping our brothers and sisters to receive the Bread of Life, so that they can also have eternal salvation? How can we be nutritionists to one another, if it is very difficult to approach us, and when our mere presence dispels or drives others away?

My brothers and sisters, if we have received Jesus into our hearts, we should be glowing in happiness, and people should see Jesus in us, as we bring them to the Lord. The question we must ask is - If I am truly filled with the Bread of Life, am I able to show it to my brothers and sisters, or am I still deprived, that up to now, Jesus cannot be seen in myself, and in my life?

Gospel Reflection

April 17, 2013

Wednesday – Year of Faith – Easter Season

by Rev. Fr. Leo Nilo C. Mangussad, Rector, Shrine of Mary Queen of Peace, Our Lady of EDSA (EDSA Shrine)
12:15PM Mass, Mary, Queen of Peace Shrine (Our Lady of Peace Quasi Parish/EDSA Shrine)

                         

Reading 1 Acts 8:1b-8

There broke out a severe persecution of the Church in Jerusalem, and all were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria, except the Apostles. Devout men buried Stephen and made a loud lament over him. Saul, meanwhile, was trying to destroy the Church; entering house after house and dragging out men and women, he handed them over for imprisonment.

Now those who had been scattered went about preaching the word. Thus Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them. With one accord, the crowds paid attention to what was said by Philip when they heard it and saw the signs he was doing. For unclean spirits, crying out in a loud voice, came out of many possessed people, and many paralyzed and crippled people were cured. There was great joy in that city.

Responsorial Psalm PS 66:1-3a, 4-5, 6-7a

R. (1) Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Shout joyfully to God, all the earth,
sing praise to the glory of his name;
proclaim his glorious praise.
Say to God, “How tremendous are your deeds!”
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
“Let all on earth worship and sing praise to you,
sing praise to your name!”
Come and see the works of God,
his tremendous deeds among the children of Adam.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has changed the sea into dry land;
through the river they passed on foot;
therefore let us rejoice in him.
He rules by his might forever.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Jn 6:35-40

Jesus said to the crowds, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst. But I told you that although you have seen me, you do not believe. Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me, because I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me. And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.”

HOMILY

Good afternoon, brothers and sisters. Happy Easter.

There is the story of a mother who is cooking a wonderful lunch for her son. For that lunch, she started cooking vegetables. And when the kid was having lunch, he ate everything, except the vegetables. So the mother said, "Son, try to eat the vegetables." And the son replied with a firm 'no'. So what the mother did was she forced her son and said, "You will eat your vegetables, whether you like it or not!" And the son, afraid and with tears in his eyes, tried to eat the vegetables.

Sounds familiar? Don't worry. We are like kids, too. Just like them, we can see our own resistance to eat good food. We would rather eat J.Co or Krispy Kreme (laughs), or sundaes, but never ampalaya, okra or saluyot. But these are healthy food for the body.

Jesus is the Bread of Life. But sometimes, we don't want to take the Bread of Life, because the life He gives us is not always honey and milk. Sometimes, it is difficult to swallow. Sometimes, it is very challenging. Sometimes, it is so hard, that we'd rather not take it. But Jesus is the Bread of Life, and the Bread of Life will bring us to our salvation.

We are also being asked to be 'mothers' to those who refuse to eat the Bread of Life. We need to help them, not because they are going to fail and die, but because Jesus wants to reach out to them. And if we are going to share the Bread of Life with other people, we will receive the same resistance as the child did in our story. But there is a chance to help them accept this food. Just like mothers who will cook vegetables in a very pleasant way to entice their child, we can do the same. If we, ourselves, are good conduits of the Bread of Life, we will be able to help people 'swallow the bitter pill'. We can only be good conduits, if people can see in our selves, in our smiles, in our lives, that Jesus is in us.

The question we must ask is - am I a good conduit of the Bread of Life, or am I so affixed with myself that I don't care how I can convert you? I will force you.

My brothers and sisters, Jesus wants to stay in our hearts. Are we welcoming Him to live inside us?