Commentary on the Liturgical Readings for Sundays and Special Feasts

Proclaiming God's Greatness (the Magnificat in Luke 1:46-56) - Simbang Gabi December 22

2011-12-21T11:40:00.001+08:00

SAMBUHAY REFLECTION
For December 22, 2011 (Luke 1:46-56)
By Fr. Randy Flores, SVD
[thanks to K. L. Gamban for editing]

Her name is Leah.

She is Mary’s thirty-sixth great grandmother. “All women,” Leah says at the birth of Israel’s child, “will call me blessed” (Genesis 30:13). “All generations,” says Mary on the eve of the birth of Israel’s greatest child, “will call me blessed” (Luke 1:48).

Leah’s life, though not well known, is interesting; and not without connection to the Christmas story.

The eldest of the two of Laban’s daughters, Leah is the less beautiful, the less known and the less loved. While her sister Rachel is described in excessive words—“beautiful in form and beautiful in appearance” (in Hebrew yepat toar wipat mareh), Leah has “eyes without luster”—only one word in Hebrew (rakkot). Leah has poor eyesight, the Rabbis would explain, because of too much weeping.

In the story of the two sisters in Genesis 29-30, we are explicitly told that “Jacob loved Rachel.” (29:17). He does not mind serving Laban’s household for Rachel for a total of fourteen years (29:30). He has to be deceived by Laban to marry Leah to fulfill the local custom of marrying the older daughter first. In contrast, Leah learns to love her husband even if he does not love her and keeps ignoring her.

The text says that “when the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, he “opened her womb” (29:31). The Lord blesses her with children. Two of her children would become the key figures of salvation history—Levi, the ancestor that begins the priestly tradition of Israel; and Judah, the thirty-sixth great grandfather of Jesus.

Underneath the Song of Mary (the Gospel reading) are beautiful stories of our salvation that finds its climax in Jesus’ birth. It is a “mosaic of Old Testament quotations and allusions interpreting the coming of Jesus” as one commentary puts it. The song is found within the Visitation story (Luke 1:39-56) – when Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth who was pregnant. When we examine the narrative carefully however, we realize it is not the action of Mary’s visitation that is being emphasized.We do not even know the reason why Mary visited Elizabeth. The evangelist Luke does not give us more information, except that she traveled “in haste.” Mary stayed at the home of Elizabeth for three months, but we do not have more information about what she did there, except the fact that Mary sang this hymn — what we now call the Magnificat.

This should give us a hint at how important the Song of Mary is, and how the evangelist invites the readers to slow down and take time to reflect on it (especially as we prepare for Christmas). Let us take our cue from the women of the Magnificat—Leah, Hannah (first reading) Elizabeth and of course, Mary—how they “magnified” God in their lives and experienced the joy of God’s love.

To help us a little more for this reflection, let us cite some lines from the homily of Venerable Bede on the Magnificat:

When we devote all our thoughts to the praise and service of the Lord, we proclaim God’s greatness. Our observance of God’s commands, moreover, shows that we have God’s power and greatness always at heart. Our spirit rejoices in God our savior and delights in the mere recollection of our creator who gives us hope for eternal salvation.

What is note-worthy in the homily of this great monk (commonly known to us as San Beda) is his emphasis on both praise and service as in themselves a proclamation of God’s greatness. But it is not enough to have one without the other. Unfortunately, there are many people who get stuck in the service part. They serve in their parishes or communities and become so busy with all their church work, that they sometimes forget the praise part. In all their busyness and efficiency, they sometimes fail to recognize God’s hand in everything that they do and accomplish.

As we render service to others in our day-to-day lives – whether through our work in church, in service to our families, or even in our offices – we must always remember that it is God who is to be magnified and not our own egos. Let us not allow ourselves to fall into the trap of self-glorification. The sure-fire way of avoiding this is by always recognizing that God is greater than who are and by magnifying Him in our lives, like what the Magnificat women did.

With Christmas Day just around the corner, there is no better time to begin this habit of giving praise and glory to God for His greatness and faithfulness! "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16, NIV) – this fulfillment of God’s promise is a truly a season to rejoice!

Why in haste? - December 21 Simbang Gabi

2011-12-20T14:42:00.000+08:00

Why in haste? Mary's visit to Elizabeth
(Song of Songs 2:8-14 and Luke 1:39-45)
December 21 Simbang Gabi
by Fr. Randy Flores, SVD

Travelling today from Manila to the province of Abra in the north of Luzon will take only eight hours by bus including heavy traffic.

One hundred years ago—in 1909, it took eight days for the first SVD missionaries, Fr. Luis Beckert and Fr. John Scheiermann to reach the very first mission station Philippine SVD in Abra. It was a long, non-stop journey, in haste.

Fr. Luis was coming from China, where he had been a missionary for six years. Fr. Juan from Europe, where he had just been ordained a priest. Their meeting place was Hongkong and from there they travelled together by a steamer to the Philippines, arriving in Manila, on August 15, 1909.

Spending just four days of rest from almost a year of sailing, they began their travel to Abra, probably on horseback to Pangasinan, then by boat to Vigan; from there the two foreigners took two to on two bamboo rafts from there to Abra going up against the current of probably swollen Abra River since it was the rainy season. They arrived in the capital, Bangued and then proceeded to San Isidro (called “Cagutongan” at that time) on horseback arriving there at noontime. This was August 23, 2009.

- (see the homily of Fr. Antonio Pernia, SVD at the SVD Centennial Mass, Shrine of the Divine Word, Christ the King Seminary, Quezon City, 14 August 2009; also Frederick Scharpf, SVD, “Traveling from Manila to Ilocos,” The Ilocos Review

20 (1988), pp. 127-131).

Mary, in the Gospel reading today from Luke (1:39-45), is a picture of a traveler in haste in the most delicate of situations—pregnancy. After the Annunciation Story, Luke narrates that “Mary arose and went in haste into the hill country to a Judean city” (v. 39)—to the house of Zechariah and Elizabeth. If Ein Kerem, a village southwest of Jerusalem, was the home of the couple (as tradition says), Mary could have traveled for ten days at the least, either on foot or on donkeyback, from hills of Galilee across the plain of Esdraelon, through the mountains of Samaria, into the Judean hills---along a land with many hills, valleys, deadly rocks and robbers.
It was a very long, tiring, and dangerous journey—yet she went in haste.

Why in haste? One scholar has advanced the idea that Mary left in haste to prevent neighbors at Nazareth from discovering her pregnancy. That is not the character of Mary, however, who often presented as a
contemplating woman—see Luke 2:19, 51 (B. Hospodar, CBQ 18 [1956]). The better insight is to think that Mary travels in haste in “obedience to the plan revealed to her by the angel, a plan which included the pregnancy of Elizabeth (1:36-37)” (Raymond Brown, Birth of the Messiah, p.331).

Such reaction of going “in haste” to obey God’s will has other examples in the Bible. At the Exodus, the Israelites must eat the Passover meal “in haste” (Exod 12:11); the shepherds, once hearing the good news from the angels that a “Christ the Lord” is born, they went from the field to the manger “in haste” (Luke 2:16).

Some years ago, before the coming of e-mail, the most convenient way to send letters greeting cards is through the post office. Many of us would still remember the cars of the postal service plying the streets with their slogan, “Don’t Delay.” They were, of course, delayed most of the time.

“Don’t delay!” That seems to be the slogan of Mary in fulfilling God’s will. Mary ponders at her
heart, but in obeying God’s will, she does in haste.

Simbang Gabi 2011: Homilies

2011-12-06T22:09:00.001+08:00

This year's Simbang Gabi homilies (2011) are coming from SVD Philippine Northern Province. Thanks to the SVD-PHN missionaries who contributed and to Fr. Robert Ibay, SVD who collected them.

Please click on the links to download (pdf format):

December 16
December 17
December 18 - 3rd Sunday of Advent
December 19
December 20
December 21
December 22 - (Randy Flores' article for the Sambuhay misallette )
December 22
December 23
December 24
December 24/25 - Midnight Mass (Fr. Carlito Reyes' homily, Xmas 2007)
December 25 - (Fr. Carlito Reyes' homily, Xmas 2007)
December 25 (by the late Fr. Anthony Ceresko, OSFS)

Simbang Gabi 2010
Simbang Gabi 2009

Jesus Walks on Water - 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time - B

2011-08-07T15:24:00.000+08:00

Curiously enough, only one great picture of this scene has ever been painted (by Conrad Witz in 1444 [image above]). You might have thought it would made an ideal subject: Jesus as a shimmering figure on the water, frightened disciples huddling in the boat, and Peter, caught between glory and terror, walking on the water towards Jesus and then...starting to sink. Perhaps devout artists avoided it because it seemed to show up the great apostle in a bad light" - N. T. Wright

Stories and anecdotes

2011-07-29T06:38:00.000+08:00

For preachers, teachers, speakers, and listeners alike.
Click here http://sanestories.blogspot.com

Priests and SUV

2011-07-28T06:28:00.000+08:00

Man: Father, can you do a novena for me to win an SUV raffle?
Capuchin Priest: Sure, but what's an SUV?
Man explains what an SUV is.
Capuchin: Oh no, that's not what novenas are for. I can't help you.
Man goes to a Dominican priest and makes the same request.
Dominican: Sure, but what's an SUV?
Man explains and gets the same answer.
Man goes to a Jesuit and makes the same request.
Jesuit: Sure, but what's a novena?

source: http://www.cegguam.org/catholic_jokes

2010-12-13T22:28:00.000+08:00

8:00 in the evening --
Schedule of Simbang Gabi Masses at the Chapel of Divine Word Seminary in Tagaytay City.

SVD Location Map

046-4131253 for more info.

Simbang Gabi Homilies 2010

2010-12-03T15:56:00.018+08:00

December 16, Thursday - Day 1
1) Faiq Quinto, OSJ
2) John Mark Veloso, SVD
3) Rommel Gacias, Tahanan ng Mabuting Pastol
4) Ian Christopher Andal, San Pablo Seminary

December 17, Friday - Day 2
1) Anthony Raymund Apostol, San Pablo Seminary
2) Suresh Kumar Gorremucchu, PIME

December 18, Saturday - Day 3
1) Jimmy D. Reyes, San Pablo Seminary
2) Marita Guevarra, CTS Lay Student
3) Kantha Rao Gudipundi, PIME
4) Shermin Aromin, SVD
5 Fr. Raul Caga, SVD (Divine Word Seminary)

December 19, Sunday - Day 4
1) Maria Cristina Pahilan (CTS Lay Student)

2) Mark Marlonne Lumbera, San Pablo Seminary
3) Joseph M.Bernales, San Pablo Seminary
4) Leexter Saludes, San Pablo Seminary
5) Fr. Ronnie Crisostomo, SVD

December 20, Monday - Day 5
1) Li Qi, SVD
2) Clyd Autentico, CRSP
3) Vu Xuan Tran, SVD
4) Marc Louie Caniza, San Pablo Seminary
5) Fr. Jerome Marquez, SVD (Saint Jude Catholic School)

December 21, Tuesday - Day 6
1) John Paul Marquez, SVD
2) Gail Daven Castillo, OSJ
3) Rosauro Valmores, CRSP
4) *Fr. Pavol Hudak, SVD (Saint Jude Catholic School)

December 22, Wednesday - Day 7
1) Elino Comanda, OSJ
2) Nelson Meshian, PIME
3) Albino Vecina, CRSP
4) *Father Fred Mislang, SVD - UP Los Banos

December 23, Thursday - Day 8
1) Randy De Jesus, Tahanan ng Mabuting Pastol
2) Reniel Nachimma, SVD
3) Ferdinand Aporillo, MSP

December 24, Friday - Day 9
1) Sedfrey Nebres, SVD
2) Jose Eugenio De los Santos, OSJ
3) Louie Cris Gregorio, SVD
4) *John Paul Marquez, SVD

December 24/25 - Midnight Mass
1) Wilfredo De Mesa, Jr., OSJ
2) Benjie Manalo, SASMA
3) Renante Pabilico, Amigonian

December 25 - Christmas Day
1) Fr. Anthony Ceresko, OSFS (+)
2) Fr. Carlito Reyes (Wales, UK)
3) Rommel De la Cruz, San Pablo Seminary

January 1, 2011 - New Year
1) Ronald Aries Pirante, Tahanan ng Mabuting Pastol
2) Isagani Gabisan, CSRP

Simbang Gabi Homilies 2009

2009-12-15T11:47:00.015+08:00

Updated - Dec 17, 2009 - at 6:38AM
Please click the links to go the files (in pdf format -Adobe Reader).
Other homilies will be uploaded, please visit this site often for updates.

Click here for Homilies from the SVD Northern Province.

Simbang Gabi 2007 - go to the right panel for the past links or click here.
Simbang Gabi 2004 (Divine Word Seminary students)- click here.

2009 Reflections/Homilies:
December 16 Lino Nicasio Is 56:1-3. 6-8 Jn 5:33-36

December 17 Vic Rayco Gn 49:2. 8-10 Mt 1:1-17 Click for the reflection on the same readings by Fr. Randy Flores, SVD (2007)

December 18 Bernard Collera Jer 23:5-8 Mt 1:18-24 Click here for the reflection on the same readings by Fr. Carlito Reyes (2007)

December 19 Angel Magada Jgs 13:2-7.24-25 Lk 1:5-25 Click for the reflection on the same readings by Fr. Randy Flores, SVD (2007)

December 20 Jerome Marquez Mi 5:1-4 / Heb 10:5-10 Lk 1:39-45

December 21 Randy Flores Sg 2:8-14 Lk 1:39-45

December 22 Joey Sepe 1 Sm 1:24-28 Lk 1:46-56 Click here for the reflection on the same reading by Fr. Raymun Festin, SVD (2006)

December 23 Joey Guinto Mal 3:1-4.23-24 Lk 1:57-66 Click here for the reflection of Fr. Nilo Gealan, SVD

December 24 Bel San Luis 2 Sm 7:1-5. 8-11. 16 Lk 1:67-79 Click here for the reflection on the same readings by Fr. Joe Aripio, SSP.

Vigil of Christmas Aris Martin Is 62:1-5 Mt 1:1-25 Click here for the reflection on the same readings by Fr. Carlito Reyes (2007)

December 25 Roland Aquino Is 52:7-10 / Heb 1:1-6 Jn 1:1-18 Click here for the reflection on the same readings by Fr. Carlito Reyes (2007)

Trinity Sunday

2008-05-18T19:00:00.009+08:00

The Trinity by El Greco (1577)

Texts:
Reading 1
Ex 34:4b-6, 8-9

Early in the morning Moses went up Mount Sinai
as the LORD had commanded him,
taking along the two stone tablets.

Having come down in a cloud, the LORD stood with Moses there
and proclaimed his name, "LORD."
Thus the LORD passed before him and cried out,
"The LORD, the LORD, a merciful and gracious God,
slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity."
Moses at once bowed down to the ground in worship.
Then he said, "If I find favor with you, O Lord,
do come along in our company.
This is indeed a stiff-necked people; yet pardon our wickedness and sins,
and receive us as your own."

Gospel
Jn 3:16-18

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him will not be condemned,
but whoever does not believe has already been condemned,
because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

Commentary:

Feast Day of God

Today is the feast day of God, in his name as “Holy Trinity”. The term, though limited, itself is the best that we have to express that mystery of one God yet there are three persons of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Fr. Ben Beltran, SVD, former Dogma professor of mine, long time parish priest of Risen Christ church in Smokey, Mountain (Balut, Tondo) telling in class of his survey on who is Santissima Trinidad. A number of his respondents from Smokey Mountain answered she was Aling Trining, the old seamstress on the block. Today, we use a more localized term, “Banal na Santatlo”.

Church Fathers and Trinity

Many preachers would be tempted to do apologetics on the how three divine persons are different yet the same nature of one God. Usually they use the analogy of three candles burning and when brought near to each other they would produce one flame. That is cute but crude and very simplistic explanation of a “mystery” that had preoccupied many great thinkers and writers of the early Church – the so-called Church Fathers. In the late fourth century A.D. the great Cappadocian Father, Gregory Nazanzien (329-389) wrote, “To speak of the Godhead, is I know, like crossing the ocean on a raft, or like flying to the stars with wings of narrow span. Even heavenly beings are unable to speak of God’s decrees or of his government of the world” (E. Bernecut, p. 74, italics mine).

In 1989, we were sailing on a small boat. It was storm signal no. 2 and we were in the sea between the islands of Ambulong and Iling (San Jose, Occidental Mindoro. The sea was extraordinarily rough, the waves gigantic. We wanted to go to a village in Iling island to celebrate mass. I was a seminarian then in regency, accompanying my parish priest, Fr. Ryu Ishikawa, an Japanese SVD missionary. After an hour of sailing, the boat sank. It was a blessing that some men from that village were fixing the roof a school saw us and rushed to bring us to the shore. That is the image that the Gregory Nazanzien wants us to remember when we speak of the Trinity – a dangerous sail on a small boat in a rough sea.

After this rhetorical warning, however, Gregory Nazanzien utters a prayer: “But enlighten my mind and loosen my tongue, Spirit of God, and I will sound aloud the trumpet of truth, so that we who are united to God may rejoice with their whole heart (p. 74).” Then he proceeds confidently to talk about God.

Theologians on God

Who is God? This is the question of the day. This is the preoccupation of theology (in Greek theos-logos = God-talk, hence “discourse about God” or “study of God”). Thanks to theologians who have helped us come to a better, broader, and reasonable understanding of who God is. I think here of St. Agustine and his book On the Trinity, St. Thomas’ five arguments for the existence of God in his Summa Theologica; modern theologians like Karl Rahner and his essay “The Trinity;” contemporary theologians like Hans Kung—Does God Exist?, Walter Kasper -- The God of Jesus Christ, and Joseph Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) -- God of Jesus Christ. For those not trained in theology, I recommend these two reader-friendly books on how monotheistic religions articulate the idea of God, Karen L. Amstrong, A History of God: The 4000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam and Jack Miles, God: A Biography. I also recommend with a lot of caution to read the recent challenge of a respected scientist to belief in God, Richard Dawkins' God Delusion.

Gospel in a Nutshell: John 3:16

We do not even have to engage with theologians to come out with the best answer on the question of who God is. The liturgical readings for the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity suggest the most common yet the most profound answer to the question. The Gospel reading contains the most quoted verse from the Bible, John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life” (NAB). This is “the Gospel in a nutshell”, as some commentaries put it. In fact, there is no need to interpret this verse – it is as “simple and gentle as 1+1=2.”

There are also many stories created about the inspiring John 3:16. One in particular relates a hardened criminal in prison and a persistent pastor determined to convert him. One cold evening, the prison’s fireplace ran out of wood. That prisoner told the pastor that he should give up his bible to help warm the place. The pastor agreed with one condition: the prisoner must read the pages first before burning them. The story ends with the hardened criminal’s repentance.

What happened? He testified later: “I read and burned Genesis, I read and burned Exodus, I read and burned Leviticus, etc. but when I came to John 3:16, I read and I was “burned”.

Thirteen Attributes of God: Exodus 34:6-7

There is no other more appropriate commentary on John 3:16 than in the first reading of today’s Liturgy particularly Exodus 34:6-7. For the Jews, these verses consist what they call the “Thirteen Attributes of God”. In these verses, we have too the Old Testament in a nutshell. From these verses we come to know fully who the God of Jesus is:

“The LORD passed before him, and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, yet by no means clearing the guilty, but visiting the iniquity of the parents upon the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation’” (NRSV)

Notice that “steadfast love” is mentioned twice. In Hebrew, it is only one word, hesed (sometimes spelled as chesed, pronounced as kesed) and it is at the center of these verses. Hesed is commonly translated in English as “steadfast love”, in most Tagalog translations, “wagas na pag-ibig” but best captured in the Ilocano word, "napudno." The Hebrew language has another word for “love”, “ahaba” which is commonly used to express affection especially love between husband and wife. Hesed is often used to describe the faithfulness of God to his covenant with Israel. We need then two English words to better capture the sense of this word, hence “steadfast love,” or better “faithful love” as the title of an old song goes (“My Faithful Love” sung by Ms. Pilita Corrales).

Why this solemn and touching affirmation of God as “merciful, forgiving, abounding in hesed?” In Exodus 32, we read the saddest and most shameful story of Israel – they make for themselves another god, a Golden Calf. They decide that YHWH is no longer their God; they even proclaim that YHWH is not the God who brought them out Egypt. Moses, in a kind of symbolic action, breaks the two tablets of the covenant. The covenant is broken, so too the relationship between YHWH and Israel. YHWH then decides to wipe them out but Moses intercedes for them. YHWH changes his mind. The question of the readers after Israel’s unfaithfulness would be: “Will God still be with his people? Or Will God still trust Israel as covenant partner? In the next chapter, Exodus 33, YHWH says he is no longer to be with the people in their journey to the Promised Land. God’s presence now is in danger. This is a critical moment of the story as well as critical moment of the life of Israel. Again, Moses makes an intercession for the people.

In this chapter (Exodus 34), YHWH, in kind of intimate conversation with God, tells Moses to cut two of tablets of stone so YHWH will write once again the words that were on the former tablets. And very early in the morning, on Mount Sinai, the LORD passes by Moses and proclaims what the Jews call the “Thirteen Attributes of God”. After this, the covenant is renewed. And from this time on, God will be known as the God of mercy and forgiveness.

When we think of the Holy Triune God, we remember that he is God who is abounding in hesed.

Meditation: Who is God for me? When was the last time I experienced God’s mercy in my life?

The Coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost

2008-05-06T09:05:00.003+08:00

by Jean Restout

Reading 1: Acts 2:1-11

When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled,
they were all in one place together.
And suddenly there came from the sky
a noise like a strong driving wind,
and it filled the entire house in which they were.
Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire,
which parted and came to rest on each one of them.
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in different tongues,
as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.

Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven staying in Jerusalem.
At this sound, they gathered in a large crowd,
but they were confused
because each one heard them speaking in his own language.
They were astounded, and in amazement they asked,
“Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans?
Then how does each of us hear them in his native language?
We are Parthians, Medes, and Elamites,
inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia,
Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the districts of Libya near Cyrene,
as well as travelers from Rome,
both Jews and converts to Judaism, Cretans and Arabs,
yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues
of the mighty acts of God.”

Commentary:

“Acts of the Holy Spirit”

If we re-title the Acts of the Apostles, easily we can choose the name, “Acts of the Holy Spirit.” In this second volume of Luke’s writing (first volume is the Gospel of Luke), the Holy Spirit is the one acting, inspiring, directing and moving to action the early Christians and their mission. In Paul’s second missionary journey, he and Silas wanted to bring the Gospel to the East by trying to go to Bithynia (Northwestern part of modern day Turkey), but “they have been prevented by the Holy Spirit from speaking the word in Asia” (16:6). “As Luke narrates, “the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them” (16:7). Only the Holy Spirit knows why the Gospel should not first be preached to the Far East; but it is clear that Paul and Silas must not pursue their own personal plans and projects nor depend on their ability and experience. They must go where the Spirit blows. So they went westward, to Troas, and from there brought the Gospel to Europe (16:11-12).
The Acts of the Apostles mention the word “spirit” (pneuma or pneo) 115 times; Gospel of Luke – 50 times; all in all 164 times. The Acts of the Apostles begins with a reminiscing off Jesus’ teachings “through the Holy Spirit” (1;2) and ends with a reminiscing of how the Holy Spirit spoke through the prophet Isaiah to the ancestors (28:25). Likewise the Gospel of Luke begins the announcement of the birth of John the Baptist who will be “filled with the Holy Spirit” (1:15). With this literary style called inclusio (when a word is mentioned at the beginning and at the end of a writing), we can say that Acts of the Apostles, as well as the whole of Luke’s works, is embraced by the Holy Spirit. In the fact, even the whole Bible is embraced by the Spirit. Genesis begins with “spirit of God” hovering over the waters (1:2) and ends with the invitation of the “Spirit and the bride” in the last chapter of the very last writing of the Bible – the book of Revelation (22:17).

It is no surprise then that, in telling us the story of early Church, Luke begins with the story of the Coming of the Holy Spirit to the disciples (2:1-13). This is a very important and a crucial section. From this time on, the disciples would no longer be afraid and timid to proclaim publicly the good news of Jesus. This is what we notice in Peter’s Pentecost speech (2:14-36). The same Holy Spirit would move the disciples to a koinonia, (“fellowship” or common life), listening to the teachings of the Apostles, breaking bread and praying together, selling their properties and possessions to help each other (see 2:42-47; also 4:32-35).

Hence, the Holy Spirit is prime mover in the Acts of the Apostles, like the “timonero”, the helmsman steering the boat to its destination.

The "Timon" (Rudder)

Pentecost and the Coming of the Spirit

To understand better this Sunday’s first reading (Acts 2:1-13), we need to ask why is the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of the Pentecost? Or what is the relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Pentecost?

Pentecost is one of the more important feasts in the Old Testament. It is also called the “Feast of Weeks” (Shavuot in Hebrew). It is described as the “feast of harvest, of the first fruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field” (Exodus 23:16); as “the first fruits of wheat harvest” (Exodus 34:22). This shows that Pentecost was originally a feast of farmers – an occasion on which they show gratitude to Yahweh for the first fruits, the early harvest.

In the ancient religion of Canaan, the one responsible for a good harvest is Baal. He is the storm-god, the god of rain, the rider of cloud, and other titles associated with rain and vegetation. More than half of the land of Israel is desert and rain is rare, anyone who can send rain and a good harvest must be a powerful god. So Israelites, at times, goes after Baal thinking that he is the one who gives “the grain, the wine, and the oil” (Hosea 2:10). The Feast of Weeks is not only an occasion to thank God for the early harvest; it is also to affirm that it is Yahweh, and not Baal, who gives rain and harvest (see Psalm 135:7).

By associating the Jewish Pentecost with the descent of the Holy Spirit, we can say that Yahweh who sent rain and provided good harvest in ancient time is the same God who provides “good harvest” of believers in the early Church through the Holy Spirit. The prayer taken from Psalm 104:30 is fitting here: “Lord, send forth your Spirit and they shall be created; and renew the face of the earth.”

After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 A.D., Pentecost ceased to be an agricultural feast. It became the feast of the Giving of the Torah (Law) on Mount Sinai. In Exod 19:1, the Israelites arrived at the wilderness of Sinai “on the third new moon”. This was interpreted to mean that between the Passover meal in Egypt and arrival at Sinai was fifty days (hence, “Pentecost” from the Greek “fiftieth”). It was most probably this meaning that Luke is familiar with when narrating the Coming of the Holy Spirit on the feast of the Pentecost in Jerusalem.

Why does Luke then set the day of the coming of the Holy Spirit on the anniversary of the Giving of the Torah on Pentecost? We can suggest three points here:

(1) The Giving of the Torah in Sinai is fundamental to the life of Israel. With the Law, Israel would know how to “walk with the Lord” to the Land that the Lord had promised them to possess (Deuteronomy 30:16). Likewise, the Coming of the Holy Spirit is fundamental to the life of the early Christians. It will be the Holy Spirit who would direct their life and mission of preaching the Gospel “to the ends of the earth”.

(2) The Giving of the Torah signifies the birth of Israel in the wilderness as the people of God. The Coming of the Holy Spirit signifies the birth of the Church in Jerusalem.

(3) The Coming of the Holy Spirit on the Feast of the Giving of the Torah also signifies that the Church now under the guidance of the Holy Spirit is a continuity of God’s covenant with Israel.

This close relationship between Torah and the Holy Spirit in Luke will have to be born in mind when we read the next writing of the New Testament after the Acts of the Apostles – the Letter of Paul to Romans where Paul will make a sharp contrast between the Law and the Spirit (see Romans 7:6).

Meditation:
What is the critical point of my life? How did the Holy Spirit move me to make the right decision?

References:
Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra Pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992).

Joseph B. Tyson, "Pentecost" in HarperCollins Bible Dictionary, Revised Edition, pp. 826-827.

The Suffering Servant of the Lord: A Holy Week Reflection

2008-03-18T08:49:00.014+08:00

Fr. Fransiskus Madhu (1976-2007)

Fr. Gerry Gudmalin, SVD, former classmate in the seminary, sent a text message last Saturday informing me that he is going to say the Palm Sunday mass in Lubuagan in Kalinga, the place where he was assigned until last year. The town became notorious as the place where one of our young Indonesian SVD missionaries was killed last year, on Palm Sunday April 1. 2007.

I remember writing last year in my website the sad story of the violent fate of a man of God like Fr. Fransiskus Madhu, SVD. For the link, click here.

Fr. Gerry Gudmalin recounted how he and Fr. Madhu equally divided their assignments for the Holy Week, one liturgical service for each of the seven villages (called "barangays" or "barrios").

For the Palm Sunday Mass, since Fr. Francis did not know how to drive a motorcycle, he was assigned to the village of Mabongtot, an hour trek going down from the town while Fr. Gudmalin went to a farther village. It was around 5:30 in the afternoon. The mass was to be held inside the public school building since there was no chapel in the village.

Fr. Madhu was still seated waiting for some things needed for the mass when a man with an M-16 armalite slung from the shoulder fired at the priest at close range. Fr. Madhu sustained five bullet wounds in his lower abdomen and side. He died on the spot. He was only 31 years old.

The police had identified the suspect who was with three other companions during the shooting and who fled after the incident. After one year, the suspect remains at large we still do not know why he was killed. The innocent is ambushed “wantonly” says the book of Proverbs (1:11).

Fr. Fransis, as he was fondly called, was the only son among five siblings. When his mother heard of what happened to his only son, she lamented: "Why did they kill him? Fransis was a good son."

The Suffering Servant of Yahweh in the Book of Isaiah

The story of Fr. Madhu was the first thing that came to my mind when I was preparing my homily for Holy Tuesday [celebrated at the chapel of the Pink Sisters Tagaytay 03-18-08]. His violent fate can be a sort of a modern template to understand the Suffering Servant in the Book of the prophet Isaiah-- this anonymous Servant is persecuted, humiliated, and eventually killed because he is beloved by the Lord.

Most of the first readings in masses during Holy Week are taken from second section of the book of Isaiah (chapters 40-55), from the so-called four Songs of the Suffering Servant. Earlier, scholars had even thought that these texts were, at the beginning, a separate book from Isaiah but were later introduced into the book to explain the sufferings of Israel who went into exile in 586 B.C.

The Suffering Servant on Holy Monday
On Holy Monday, we read the First Servant Song from Isaiah 42:1-7 – the Servant there is Israel, chosen by the Lord “to bring forth justice the nations” and who are called to be "light to the nations”.

The Suffering Servant on Holy Tuesday
For Holy Tuesday, the first reading comes from Isaiah 49:1-6, the Second Song of the Suffering Servant. We hear that the Servant is sent to Israel, to bring back the people back to the Lord. The mission of the anonymous servant is to help his fellow Israelites come out of their blindness and deafness. We do not know what kind of blindness or deafness the Israelites are suffering from. But in the Bible, Israel has always fallen to the temptation of worshiping other gods and blurring social justice.

If the Servant is Israel as we mentioned above, then Israel is sent to Israel. This is doing mission at home, charity beginning at home, "missio ad intra". In the course of this mission, the Servant meets disappointment: “I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and emptiness” (Isa 49:4). And that happens to all of us. After so many years of committing ourselves to serving people, for fighting for what is right and just, so many months of praying and searching for the truth, so many days of studying, and we get no results, the tendency is to become discouraged, almost wanting to give up.

But note that the servant here does not give up instead he says with confidence, “For sure, my cause [Hebrew "mishpat"] is with the Lord, and my reward with my God” (Isa 49:4). The servant keeps going even if he does not see many results.

The Suffering Servant on Holy Wednesday
On Holy Wednesday, the reading comes from Isaiah 50:4-11, the Third Servant song. We read that the opposition against the Servant becomes stronger and violent: “I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard; My face I did not shield from buffets and spitting” (Isa 50:6).

But again, this servant is confident in the Lord’s help and states categorically, “The Lord helps me, therefore I have not been disgraced; I have set my face like flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame” (Isa 50:7).

The Suffering Servant on Good Friday
On Good Friday, we read the Fourth Servant Song, the most famous of the four texts—Isaiah 52:13-53:12.

The result of this violence done to the innocent servant is horrible: “no form, no comeliness, no beauty …people hide their faces from it” (Isa 52:2-3). The Servant of the Lord, now "ugly", is forsaken: “He was despised and rejected by others; a man of sorrows and accustomed to infirmity; and as one from whom others hide their faces spurned and we held him of no esteem” (Isa 53:3).

As I’ve written in my meditations in the recently published prayer booklet, Stations Cross (now available at St. Pauls], this biblical text could have inspired devotees in the Middle Ages to include the scene of the sixth station where a certain woman named Veronica wipes the deformed and now ugly face of Jesus.

This seemingly meaninglessness of the suffering of the Servant is understood in a different way here. The suffering of the Servant is now a suffering for others, a "vicarious suffering": “But he was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins, Upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole, by his wounds we were healed” (Isa 53:5).

For the early Christians, when they wanted to make sense of the passion of Jesus, of the injustice, violence and shame of the crucifixion, they turned to these texts of the Suffering Servant of the Lord in the Book of Isaiah.

Sources:
Charles Conroy, “The Servant(s) of the Lord in the Book of Isaiah,” in Journeys and Servants: CBAP Lectures 2003 (Manila: CBAP, 2003), pp. 49-62.

Randolf C. Flores, "'My God, My God, Why Have You Abandoned Me?' An Exegesis of Psalm 22:1-12," Diwa 31 (2006), pp. 24-41.

H. Simian-Yofre, Sofferenza dell'uomo e silenzio di Dio nell'Antico Testamento e nella letteratura del Vicino Oriente Antico (Roma: Città Nuova , 2005).

Jesus and Judas

2008-01-31T22:53:00.001+08:00

Behold Lent!
On Feb 16 and 23, 2008, both Saturdays, here at the Divine Word Seminary, I will be conducting a public presentation on Jesus and Judas history taking into consideration the four Gospels, extra-biblical sources, Gnostic Gospels, and the Gospel of Judas.

In the afternoon, my colleague and friend Fr. Ronnie Crisostomo, SVD, professor of Liturgy in this institution and former missionary to Argentina, will explain the history and theology of the liturgical services during Holy Week.

For details , please contact/text Bing at 09157884117 or email at bingkasilag2002@yahoo.com

Simbang Gabi 2007 Homilies

2007-12-14T23:59:00.001+08:00

For some time (from 2002-2004) , it was the practice of professors of Divine Word Seminary to publish their homilies for the masses of Simbang Gabi. Through the encouragement of Fr. Jerome Marquez, SVD, our Canon Law professor, once again, we would like to present to you our commentaries of the Simbang Gabi readings as service to preachers as well as to those who would like to meditate on the "Christmas" readings.

I would like to thank personally the following writers and guest writers:
Divine Word Seminary: Carlito Reyes, Ronnie Crisostomo, Alex Muana, and Antolin Uy
St. Jude Catholic School: Jerome Marquez, Linus Nicasio, and Ferdinand Alfante
Christ the King Seminary: Raymun Festin
St. Paul Seminary (Silang, Cavite): Joe Aripio
San Carlos University (Cebu): Roderick Salazar
Rome: Antonio Pernia
Belgium: Anthony Ynzon

Thanks also to Nielo Cantilado (our provincial) for linking this blog to the new official website of SVD Philippine Central Province; to Logos Publications for allowing some articles from the The Word in Other Words (the SVD Bible Diary) to be reprinted here; and to Ms. Bing Kasilag of CTS for proofreading the texts. For copies of Bible Diary 2008, please email: waraytac@yahoo.com

our URL address: www.misalinggo.blogspot.com

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!
R. C. Flores, SVD

Photo above is "Christmas in the Philippines"
by Ms. Ala Paredes

Dec. 25 Christmas Day - Mass During the Day

2007-12-14T23:26:00.000+08:00

By: Fr. Carlito Reyes
Professor of New Testament
Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City, Philippines

Reading 1: Is 52:7-10
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 98:1, 2-3, 3-4, 5-6
R. (3c) All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.
Reading II: Heb 1:1-6
Gospel: Jn 1:1-18 or 1:1-5, 9-14

COMMENTARY

Powerless word. Henri Nouwen says that we live in a century when there are a lot of words. If one drives from Manila to Tagaytay, one sees a lot of words. You see them on big billboards, on the sidewalks, on the bodies of jeepneys and buses, you see words everywhere. You do not only see words, you also hear them a lot.

Many people complain that they say the same things again and again to their children or partners and yet they still remain the same. Their words are falling on deaf ears. Nouwen relates this reality with the law of supply and demand. When the supply of words is greater that the demand for them, words becomes cheap!

The second reading for today tells us that in the past God spoke a lot through the prophets. Maybe he saw that his words are failing on deaf ears.

Now he decides to speak differently: he sends us his Son, the eternal Word made flesh. Powerful word. Timothy Radcliffe, the former master general of the Order of Preachers or the Dominicans, invites us to observe adults talking to infants. He wonders why adults talk to infants who cannot understand them. Radcliffe says that they talk to infants not to communicate ideas, not to solicit bright insights, but to give life to them. Indeed, infants become alive when adults talk to them.

The Gospel reading is too theological, something very difficult to understand. However, just listen and receive the words of the Gospel. We will be like infants receiving words from our father. We may not understand him, but we will be alive. Today God give us his word. His word is powerful! Silence is also a way of giving power to our words.

Harold Kushner, the author who became famous because of his book entitled When Bad Things Happen to Good People, writes in his Book of Letters that the first word in the Hebrew alphabet is a (aleph). It is never pronounced. It is the sound which one makes to begin a sound. He says that it is the first letter of the 70 mysterious names of God in the Old Testament, like Elohim or El Shaddai, the first letter of the word Adam, the first letter of the first commandment. He opines that it is not accidental that these words begin with aleph: most important words begin with silence. Now we understand why we want our audience to be quiet when we want to say something important! Powerful and important words begin with silence. Now we understand why we sing Silent Night, Holy Night as we welcome God’s word becoming human.

The word became flesh. Gerald O’Collins, a popular Australian-born Jesuit systematic theologian, says that Christmas is a time to fill our senses. Our eyes enjoy seeing the different crèches, multi-colored Christmas lights, beautifully decorated Christmas trees. We hear joyful Christmas carols, bells waking us up early in the morning, the laughter of Santa Claus. We smell the roasted chestnuts, the incense in the church, the pine trees. We taste foods that appear only on Christmas, fruit cakes, Italian Christmas bread panitone, special hams and sausages. Finally our skins feel the cool breeze of the season.

Added to this is the reflection of Joyce Rupp who says that we do a lot of walking during this day: we walk an extra mile to reconcile with our enemies, we walk to the church and participate well in the service, we walk to our friends, relatives, and to the poor to bring them gifts. As the first reading says: “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who. . . brings good news.” In short, all our senses are alive on Christmas day. Gerald O’Collins says that “By being built out of what we see, smell, taste, hear and feel, all these symbols and rituals correspond convincingly to what Christmas faith essentially means.” The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Dec. 24/25 Midnight Mass

2007-12-14T23:11:00.001+08:00

By: Fr. Carlito Reyes
Professor of the New Testament
Divine Word Seminary, Tagaytay City, Philippines

Reading 1: Is 9:1-6
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 96: 1-2, 2-3, 11-12, 13
R. (Lk 2:11) Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.
Gospel: Lk 2:1-14

COMMENTARY

Peace on Earth.
The first reading for tonight announces that the people who walked in darkness has seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of doom a light has shown. If these lines are read in the context of the book of the prophet Isaiah, the time of darkness refers to the pre-exilic and exilic time of suffering and humiliation of Israel and the time of great light refers to the time of restoration and homecoming. If the lines are read in the context of Christmas, the time of darkness refers to the time before Christ and the time of great light refers to Christ’s birth. Hence, we have the B.C. and A.D. or what we nowadays call B.C.E. and C.E. Kings before Christ wanted their kingship to be the beginning of a new era. This is the reason why their calendars were dated according to their reigns, e.g. on the fifteenth year of . . . or the eleventh year of . . . The longer the years they add to their reigns, the greater their reigns are considered great. That means if they stay on their thrones for many years, they are able to maintain peace. This is what Pax Romana means. But of course, they remain on their thrones by eliminating those who would get in their way.

In contrast, the king we honor tonight really begins a new era that lasts, and a kingdom bigger than the Roman Empire. This is the reason why we and the angels are singing “Peace on Earth!” This replaces the Pax Romana! The Pax Romana is attained by killing those who oppose the rule of the emperor, but the “peace on earth” is given by a king who is willing to die for our sake. The Pax Romana is expanded by power and war, but the Pax Christi is expanded by love and non-violence. Violence belongs to the time of darkness, non-violence to the time of light. “For every boot trampled in battle, every cloak rolled in blood, will be burned as fuel for flames,” says the first reading. Perhaps, this is one way for us to understand why during the Christmas season the military and the NPAs declare a cease-fire. Indeed, many of us long for the day when governments all over the world will spend the money for the poor rather for weapons of destruction. We should also pray for ourselves that we may be loving persons and not hostile ones.

Glory to God and Peace on Earth.
The angels sing a song that shows the unity of heaven and earth. It is a good song that should educate us not to over spiritualize Christmas. There are people who say that Santa Claus, Christmas trees, lavish foods and parties are out of place in the season. People who say these things think that we celebrate Christmas in the spirit of the world. But Christmas is about God becoming man! And many of our practices during the season are not paganistic but expressive of the great mystery we celebrate: God becoming human. Heaven and earth are united in Christmas.

The stars we display on our windows show that we want a celestial body to come down to earth. Similarly at midnight of Christmas we put a star or angel on top of our Christmas trees. Are they not symbols of heaven kissing earth? And Santa Claus? C.K. Chesterton, a famous author along the caliber of J.R.R. Tolkein and C. S. Lewis, sees nothing wrong with Santa Claus when he writes:

Now I am delighted and astonished every morning to find a present so big that it takes two stockings to hold it, and then leaves a great deal outside; it is large and preposterous present of myself, as to the origin of which I can offer no suggestion except that Santa Claus gave to it to me in a fit of peculiarly fantastic goodwill.

Of course it is easier to explain our lavish serving of food. Bethlehem cane from two Hebrew words: “beth” means house and “lehem” means bread/food. If one puts them together Bethlehem means house of bread. Why should it be a problem to prepare rich food?

But the best symbol is the crèche. Barbara Brown Taylor says that a lot of people talk about life, a good life, using “up” words: “rising above anxiety,” “keeping our heads above water,” and “cheer up.” However, she asks us to look at the manger: there is no comfort there, no privacy, no neatness. And yet God is there, in the middle of the picture. Peace, love and joy are there! It is not only in the best of times but also in the worst of times that we can find God, peace, love, and joy! The picture of the manger teaches us that God is with us. It is not the God up there who answers our prayer by lifting us up, but the God who comes and lives with us. We cannot over spiritualize Christmas. Jesus is God and Human!

Merry Christmas!

Dec. 24 Simbang Gabi

2007-12-14T22:50:00.000+08:00

Commentary 1: Fr. Jose Aripio, SSP
St. Paul Seminary
Silang, Cavite, Philippines

Commentary 2: Fr. Lino Nicasio, SVD
Professor of Homiletics, Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City, Philippines
Principal, St. Jude Catholic School
Manila, Philippines

Reading 1: 2 Sm 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 89:2-3, 4-5, 27 and 29
R. (2) For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.
Gospel: Lk 1:67-79

COMMENTARY 1

George is a farmer who wakes up very early in the morning to pasture his carabaos. He has a wisdom honed by experience. One day I asked him why he has to go out very early. He answered that the time is cool and the grass is fresh for the carabaos. But what impresses is what he said: “It is at dawn that I could see the sun rising, its rays dispelling the darkness and giving definite forms to things around and seeing it I can feel hope for the future. I feel the blessings of the Almighty being poured on me as I see the dew glistening on the leaves of the trees and the grass in the fields and disappearing little by little as the horizon becomes brighter. And I would sing my favorite line, ‘Praised be the Lord!’” It’s a very simple song from an unassuming farmer but one laden with meaning.

Zechariah sings his own song of praise, the Benedictus, Latin word for “blessed.” He was struck mute and deaf for nine months earlier because of his disbelief on the angelic promise of the birth of his son. But when his son is born and he indicates that the child’s name is John, Zechariah regains his speech. Zechariah knows in his heart that it is God’s work.llt is God who has made him hear and speak, and in his canticle he thanks God with all his heart for God’s inexhaustible generosity. He no longer doubts the divine power. In his son John, “Yehohanan” in Hebrew which means “Yahweh has shown favour,” Zechariah sees the unfathomable graciousness of God to his people. God does not forget his promises. The messiah will be born to give hope in the midst of darkness to deliver us from our enemies, to forgive our sins, and to bring us into the way of peace. In Jesus alone is salvation and all John will do is to prepare the way for the Savior, “in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of fathers toward children and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous, to prepare a people fit for the Lord” (v. 17).

King David, in the first reading, remembers the kindness of the Lord. He is not at ease in his comfort “while the ark of God dwells in a tent.” So he wants to build God a temple. But the Lord turns down his offer; instead, the Lord promises to build a house or a dynasty for David. Although David committed a sin of infidelity and was punished, the tender compassion and the unconditional love of God now prevail over his justice. David is forgiven.

Tonight we will celebrate the birth of Christ. He is “the dawn from on high” who is moving down to us to dispel the darkness of sin and to fill the emptiness of our life. He is our God whose power is greater than freedom from our enemies, freedom from the “shadow of death” itself.

Then we can sing our own song of praise and thanksgiving, like the farmer George. When I asked how many kids he has, George, with a sheepish smile, answered, “eight”. I asked if he can afford to feed, clothe and send them to school. He said “yes” with a lot of conviction. “God is always with me,” the farmer adds, “and is always faithful to his promise to help me although I am not very ‘religious. I just work the best I can, help other farmers plough their fields, respect their rights, and go to Mass on Sunday.”

COMMENTARY 2 (from Bible Diary 2008)

People want to be remembered on their birthdays, anniversaries, and special events in their lives. People also want others to remember their promises to them, and are so happy when this happens. In the Gospel Zechariah exults because of “remembrances.” Let us reflect on these so as to be “infected” with Zechariah’s great joy.

First, God has remembered His promise of a Savior: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has visited and brought redemption to his people.” During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, Gen Douglas MacArthur had to flee the country, but not before uttering the famous words: “I shall return.” It took years, but he did return to fulfill his promise, much to the jubilation of an embattled, occupied nation. God, however, did something much greater than what MacArthur did. He fulfilled His promise of a Savior: “He has raised up a horn for our salvation within the house of David his servant.” He has sent His own Son to rescue humanity from slavery to sin and from death, thereby opening the gates of heaven for us His fallen children. Thus it is only right and just that we feel the joy that Zechariah feels in the Gospel, for God has remembered His promise, and in doing so He has remembered us. In fact God remembers us always. Blessed be the Lord God!

Secondly, part of God’s remembering to send a Savior involved sending a forerunner, in this case John the Baptist, Zechariah’s own son: “And you, child, will be called prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways…” Every dignitary’s trips, including the Holy Father’s, are planned well in advance. Part of the preparations includes the sending of advance parties to smoothen the forthcoming visit, thus ensuring success. Zechariah proudly rejoices that his own child “will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins.” These words hold true for us too, in the sense that we have to prepare the Lord’s paths to our own lives, by removing all obstacles to His coming. Thus he can truly visit us in order “to shine on those who sit in darkness and death’s shadow, to guide our feet into the path of peace.”

As Christmas approaches, let us do our own “rememberings.” Let us remember to clean up our lives through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, to remember to help the poor and needy, and as Zechariah reminds us: “to worship him in holiness and righteousness…all our days.” This is the season to remember many good things, but more importantly, this is the season to remember the Lord and “the tender mercy of our God” towards us.

Dec. 23 Simbang Gabi - 4th Sunday of Advent

2007-12-14T22:07:00.000+08:00

Commentary 1: Fr. Jerome Marquez, SVD
Professor of Canon Law, Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City
Director, St. Jude Catholic School
Manila, Philippines

Commentary 2: Fr. Ferdinand Alfante, SVD
Assistant Administrative Head
St. Jude Catholic School, Manila, Philippines

Reading 1: Is 7:10-14
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 24:1-2, 3-4, 5-6
R. (7c and 10b) Let the Lord enter; he is king of glory.
Reading II: Rom 1:1-7
Gospel:Mt 1:18-24

COMMENTARY 1

Christmas Is To Have Jesus

Whom do you want to be with this Christmas? Your family, your sweetheart, your children, your friends…. Oh definitely, we want to spend Christmas with the significant persons in our life. For Christmas is truly a story of love and relationships. It is narrative of God wanting to be with those whom He loves.

This gospel of Matthew (1: 18-24) provides us with this love story. It gives us an account of the conception of Jesus in relation to Mary and, more decisively, in relation to Joseph. Joseph was identified as the “son of David” and through whom Jesus legally became the descendant of David, the awaited Messiah to come. The gospel also tells us that Mary had been betrothed to marry Joseph. This betrothal includes the arrangement that the woman should live in the house of her parents and must not yet sleep with her groom. But Mary was found pregnant by the Holy Spirit. When this pregnancy became apparent to Joseph, this righteous man did not expose Mary to shame. He decided to divorce her privately until God’s messenger appeared to him in a dream telling him not to be afraid to take Mary into his home and to accept the child as his own. The angel indicated the name of the child and his mission. As soon as he awoke, Joseph obeyed God.

So with whom do you want to be with this Christmas?

Christmas is to be with Jesus.

The naming of the son, “But she will bear a son, and you are to give him the name, Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (v. 21) is a significant part of this account. It is a widespread conception that the Messiah will be the savior of his people. There is a special interest that the saving act is related to the forgiveness of sins. Thus Jesus as the Messiah, the one promised to be born, is to “save us from sin”.

In the Old Testament, the verb “to save” is used primarily as deliverance from the enemy. During the exile, it expressed God’s deliverance of the people from exile and their restoration to God’s kingdom (Isa 35: 4; 43: 11-12). This forgiveness is to be understood also as a restoration of the proper relationship with God. Jesus in Matthew’s gospel announces the forgiveness of sins (1:26). Thus to be with Jesus is to be forgiven. To be with Jesus is restore relationship with God.

Christmas is restoring relationships with God. Christmas is restoring relationships with our family, with our sweethearts, with our children, with our parents, with our friends, with our enemies, with persons we are called to relate. As George Herbert adds, “He who cannot forgive others breaks the bridge over which he must pass himself.”

Therefore, to be with Jesus on Christmas is to have restoring relationships…to build bridges over which we can connect again with people.

Christmas is not only wanting to be with Jesus, it also means God wanting to be with us.

In the gospel, Jesus will be called Emmanuel. Since Emmanuel is not a name of Jesus and also not a usual title, it attracts attention. Allusions to God’s being with us permeate the whole Gospel (17:17; 18:20; 26:29). But Matthew has especially through the last verse of the Gospel (Mt 28:20: “I am with you always, until the end of time) created an inclusion that the resurrected Jesus will always be with his community. Jesus is the Emmanuel, the God with us. God is with God’s people. God is present with us today in this community.

Here we understand that Christmas shows us a God who chose to be with us. The presence of God is the presence of the Holy. Jesus’ coming among his people has the effect of transforming the characteristics of human situation. Instead of being a situation characterized by the presence of sin, the unholy, it is now characterized by the presence of the Holy, who is with us.

Therefore if God is with us, he helps us transform our human conditions and situations.

In 1942, Mother Theresa with the permission of her confessor made a private vow to God –binding under Mortal sin – that she will “give to God anything that He may ask, and Not to refuse Him anything.” Only later did Mother Theresa explain the reason for it: “I wanted to give God something very beautiful and without reserve”. When Mother Theresa made this remarkable private vow “not to refuse God anything,” this was to be put to the test. In 1942, India was involved in World War II which disrupted the life of her community and school. During that time there was no teacher from class 4 to class 10. Mother Theresa took all the classes and she kept the girls busy in order to let them forget and overcome their fear of war and violence.

Added to her hardships was the Bengal famine of 1942-43 which took the lives of at least two million people. As the sisters and students began to suffer from food shortages, Mother Theresa who has pledged to refuse nothing to God, in turn trusted that God would not refuse her anything. So one day at 8:00 am, she said: “I am going out children, you stay in the chapel and pray.” By 4:00 pm the store room was full of different kinds of vegetables. They could not believe their own eyes.

Indeed, if God is with us, we can do something beautiful and without reserve to transform human condition and situations.

Who do you want to be with this Christmas? Our response: we want to be with Jesus, the Emmanuel, the God with us.

Allow me to end with another love story of Christmas. The painter of “Hapag ng Pag-asa” (Table of Hope), Mr. Joey Velasco, wrote a book as a follow-up to his painting. This time, he went back to the poor children he depicted in his Last Supper painting. He went to their squatter houses, listened to them, and wrote the stories of their life and poverty.

One day while he was groping in dark for the title of his new book, he went for a coffee break in a donut restaurant. He met a lady who glanced at the picture of Hapag ng Pag-asa painting, grabbed it close to her eyes and squinted.

“This strikes me as the Poor Kids’ Last Supper…” And then she stared at the painter and said,

“You know, my friend, they are actually not poor…”

“What? You’re the only one who said that.” Joey wondered smilingly at her remark.

And she continued: “…because THEY HAVE JESUS.”

That struck him. That has become the title of his book, THEY HAVE JESUS. That line stayed with him because it was so heartrending. He had been searching for it for so long. That is Christmas. We might search for so long on who should be with us on Christmas. Maybe that lady was correct. It is Christmas if we have Jesus. Emmanuel. God with us.

COMMENTARY 2

When a student excelled in the class, he is given the honor.
When a bar examinee got the highest mark, he is honored as the topnotcher.
When Manny Pacquiao won the super featherweight fight, he is called the Pinoy top-boxer.

Today’s gospel gives tribute to a man who was not an honor student, neither a bar topnotcher nor a well-loved boxer. He was just known as a silent worker, a carpenter, a husband of Mary, and a foster father of Jesus. His name is Joseph.

Joseph had an important role in Jesus’ Incarnation. In a patriarchal and heavily hierarchical society like that of the Jews in Jesus’ time, there is a need for man to stand up for the rights of women and their children. Since Mary conceived a child by the power of the Holy Spirit during the time of their engagement, Joseph’s action of taking Mary as his wife was very important. If Joseph did not marry her, Mary with the child in her womb might be stoned to death. The Divine Plan of Incarnation would have been ruined.

Why did God choose Joseph as the guardian of Jesus and Mary? Let me present three reasons why Joseph was chosen by God for this significant role in the Incarnation of Jesus.

1. He is obedient to the will of God. The gospel says, “When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.” Today’s gospel tells us about how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. Mary, Joseph’s wife, was found to be pregnant by the action of the Holy Spirit before they were married. “This took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him ‘Emmanuel’.” God always fulfills his promise – the imminent coming of the King. Yet He needs the cooperation of human beings to make His plan come true. That’s why God called Joseph to take responsibility to accept Mary as his wife. Although in such a critical situation Joseph might have panicked a bit and even “planned to dismiss her quietly,” he was disposed to listen to God’s message as it was revealed to him by an angel. Joseph accepted the call and responded positively despite the fact that his acceptance jeopardized his personal interest. Furthermore, he was all the more ready to put the Lord’s command into practice.

2. He is a righteous man in the eyes of God. The gospel says, “… he was a righteous man.” Joseph did not only think about his own good. He thought about Mary’s good, too.

His justice was truly greater. Instead of denouncing, he preferred to respect the mystery which he did not understand. The greatest justice of Joseph saved both the life of Mary and that of Jesus.

3. He is King David’s descendant according to the plan of God. The gospel says, “… the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife…’” Joseph was the descendant of King David, and the father of Jesus. This is to fulfill what the Lord had said to prophet Jeremiah, “I will raise a shoot from David.” Despite of David’s sins, he was a man after God’s own heart. It was he whom God accepted to begin the dynasty of kings, and it was in his line that Jesus the Messiah would be born. In the Old Testament, David was known as the most popular and most beloved king while Jesus was the most famous and most loved king of the New Testament.

As we celebrate the fourth Sunday of Advent, we should be careful not to overlook the essential elements in our preparation for the birth of Jesus. Today’s gospel encourages us to imitate the attitude of Joseph as God’s cooperator in His plan of salvation. Similarly, we are also called to cooperate with God in the salvation of humankind. That cooperation can be expressed in the way we take our responsibilities; by the way we are acting intelligently, with justice for the good of all the people. With this we can reflect upon our own lives. How responsible am I in my life? How do I cooperate with God’s plan to help people?

Dec. 22 Simbang Gabi

2007-12-14T11:39:00.000+08:00

Commentary 1: Fr. Alex Muaña, SVD
Professor of Missiology
Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City

Commentary 2: Fr. Raymun J. Festin, SVD
Professor of Philosophy
Christ the King Seminary
Quezon City

Reading 1: 1 Sm 1:24-28
Responsorial Psalm: 1 Samuel 2:1, 4-5, 6-7, 8abcd
R. (see 1a) My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
Gospel: Lk 1:46-56

COMMENTARY 1 (in Filipino)

Alam po ninyo may alamat ng dalawang anghel na ipinadala sa mundo upang tipunin and lahat ng mga panalangin ng tao. Ang isa ay inaatasang punuin ang kanyang bayong ng mga petisyon ng sangkatauhan. Ang isa nama’y binigyan ng misyon upang tipunin ang mga dasal pasasalamat ng tao. Pumunta nga sila sa mundo at pagkatapos nilang ikutin ang buong sanlibutan sila’y bumalik sa langit. Ang isa ay tuwang-tuwa dahil umaapaw sa napakaraming petisyon ng tao ang kanyong bayong; subalit ang isa nama’y malungkot dahil iisa lang ang laman ng kanyang bayong. Ang dasal pasasalamat ng tao ay naririnig sa langit pero bihira sa mundo kahit na sinikap ng anghel na hanapin ito.

Mga kapatid kung titingnan natin ang ating pakikipag-ugnayan sa Diyos ay maari nating ihalintulad ang kuwentong ito sa ating buhay bilang mga Kristiyano. Kadalasan ang ating mga dasal ay nakatutok lamang sa mga petisyon o kahilingan natin sa Diyos. Panginoon ipagkaloob mo sa akin ang katiwasayan ng buhay. Sana manalo ako sa lotto ngayong pasko para marami akong pera. Sana matagpuan ko na ang aking “dream girl” o “dream boy” ngayong pasko. Walang masama ang humiling ng isang bagay sa Diyos. Subalit kung halos lahat ng ating dasal ay nakatuon lang sa petisyon at nakalimutan natin ang dasal pasasalamat sa Diyos ay iba na iyan...

Ang katagang “thanksgiving” ay binuo sa dalawang salita: “thanks” means magpapasalamat at “giving” means magbigayan. Ang katagang “thanksgiving” ay hindi kompleto kung hanggang bigay nang bigay lang ang Diyos sa atin. Kailangan ding magpasalamat tayo sa kanya na siyang bukal sa lahat ng ating buhay.

Sa ating ebanghelyo ngayon ay binigyang pansin natin ang “magnificat” ni Maria. Ito ay isang awit o dasal pasasalamat ni Maria sa kagandahang loob ng Diyos sa kanya. Napag-alaman natin na si Maria ay pinili ng Diyos upang maging ina ng kanyang bugtong na anak. Hindi ba ito isang pagpapahalaga ng Diyos kay Maria? Isang babaeng taga-probinsiya at walang kabantuganang maipagmamalaki ay gawing ina ng Diyos. Kaya nga punong-puno sa pagpupuri at kagalakan ang puso ni Maria ng dasalin niya ang “magnificat” ang panalanging pasasalamat.

Pinasalamatan ni Maria ang Diyos sa pagpili sa kanya, kahit siya’y mahinang tao upang gampanan ang kanyang natatanging tungkulin. Hindi nangangailangan ang Diyos ng mga sikat na tao. At lalong hindi niya binigyan ng pansin ang mga taong ang akala sa sarili nila’y sila na ang pinakamagaling sa lahat upang gampanan ang dakilang gawain ng Diyos. Sa 1 Cor. 1:28, makikita natin na pinili ng Diyos ang mga itinuturing na hamak, walang halaga, at walang kabuluhan sa sanlibutang ito upang pawalang-halaga ang mga itinuturing na dakila sa sanlibutan.

Nagpapasalamat si Maria sa Diyos sa pagtupad ng kanyang pangako na magpadala ng tagapagligtas. Kung tapat ang Diyos sa kanyang pangako kay Maria, tapat din ang Diyos sa kanyang pangako para sa atin. Ang lahat ng biyaya ng Diyos para sa atin: pamilya, pananampalataya, kaibigan, bokasyon, edukasyon, kahit ang ating mga pagkakamali o pagsubok ay sapat na upang maranasan natin ang walang pasubaling pagmamahal ng Diyos sa atin. Kung ano man tayo ngayon ay hindi dahil sa ating sariling gawa kundi dahil sa katapatan at walang katapusang pagmamahal ng Diyos. Kaya dapat lang na pasalamatan natin siya ng buong-buo at papurihan sa lahat ng kagandahang loob niya sa ating buhay.

Mga kapatid sa ating pagpapatuloy ng ating pagdiriwang ngayon alalahanin natin na ang Misa ay ang pinakamataas na uri na pasasalamat na maihahandog natin sa Diyos. Kaya gawin natin itong isang personal at espesiyal na pasasalamat sa kanya sa lahat ng mga biyaya na ipinagkaloob niya sa ating buhay – materyal man o pang espirituwal. Buong puso nating pasalamatan at purihin siya habang dinadalangin natin ang “magnificat” ni Maria: “Ang puso ko’y nagpupuri sa Panginoon, at nagagalak ang aking espiritu dahil sa Diyos na aking Tagapagligtas. Sapagkat nilingap niya ang kanyang abang alipin.”

COMMENTARY 2 (from Bible Diary 2006)

Mary’s Magnificat is a prayer, a poem, a psalm, and a paean – rolled into one.

It also tells a story. It tells of the God who exalts the humble, the God who is merciful. It is a story of the storyteller herself, for it recounts how a lowly maidservant was raised to the highest honor of being the Mother of God.

She is the most blessed of all. The Angel Gabriel said it. Elizabeth pronounced it. Now, Mary herself confirms it: “All generations will call me blessed.”

Why blessed? Because the Lord is with her, as Gabriel said. That is why the measure of grace is filled up to the brim. Mary wants nothing. She has Jesus. Jesus is more than enough.

One wonders how many secret things she knew about Jesus. Certainly, she had a lot of these treasures. For she experienced the joy of being with Jesus for the longest time.

Because of this singular joy, Mary must have recited the Magnificat throughout her life – in moments of solitude and prayer. Her lips must have uttered praises to God a million times over: “My soul magnifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior.”

Perhaps, she even sang her Magnificat on the way to Calvary as she accompanied her Son. For the Magnificat is not only a song of praise uttered in a moment of deepest joy. It is also a canticle of faith expressed in a moment of deepest sorrow.

Even as she watched her Son suffer and die, Mary knew deep in her heart that God’s promise was being fulfilled.

That is the deeper meaning of her Magnificat.

Dec. 21 Simbang Gabi

2007-12-14T11:31:00.000+08:00

By: Fr. Antolin Uy, SVD
Professor of Church History
Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City

Reading 1: Sgs 2:8-14
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 33:2-3, 11-12, 20-21
R. (1a; 3a) Exult, you just, in the Lord! Sing to him a new song.
Gospel: Lk 1:39-45

COMMENTARY

Mary’s visit with her kinswoman Elizabeth is a comment on the joyful spirit of Christmas. The Mother of God adds something more: traveling in haste along the idyllic hill country that is Judea, “springing across the mountains, leaping across the hills” (Songs 2:8). A beautiful Advent picture of Mary and of God’s constant interventions as the season ushers in the wonderful mystery of Christmas. A visit always brings joy, and a visit with relatives brings exhilarating joy. Mary’s concern for an expecting mother in Elizabeth goes beyond the call of charity into the realm of the divine. The infants Jesus and John are the center of the visitation. Mary’s visit offers the opportunity to link the firstborns – a premonition of their future roles. The tale of the visit is Med with an aura of God’s pervading presence. These two households represent the meeting of the two covenants, Elizabeth greets Mary as “most blessed among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb” – meaning to say, highly favored among women because of Christ her son. Mary is no ordinary woman and the “fruit of her womb” no ordinary baby, It is the faith of Mary that is singled out by Elizabeth. The infant in Elizabeth’s womb acknowledges this and “leaped for joy” in her womb. The event depicts a glad welcome; more importantly, it confirms the fulfillment of what the Lord told Mary. Great joy, great welcome!

The event is a master plan of the Holy Spirit that finds completion in the faith of the two privileged mothers. The mystery of the incarnation takes on human flesh through them. The Holy Spirit hovers over a happy gathering of relatives. The unusual incident goes back to the angel’s words to Zechariah: “He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb” (Lk 1:15). The messianic leap of the infant John and Elizabeth’s utterances announce the fulfillment of the Holy Spirit’s interventions. Mary’s journey is a personal decision but equally she is directed by the Spirit. Like their mothers, the infants Jesus and John recognized each other. In her address to Mary, “The Mother of my Lord” Elizabeth and John acknowledge the superiority of Mary and Jesus even as the latter in turn pay the visit to the inferior.

While Christ’s incarnation results in the redemption of us all, it is really the glory of God and His love that moves him to share with humankind. Because of our saved humanity heaven has been opened for us. There’s something apostolic and missionary in Mary’s visit with Elizabeth. Something beautiful and good (Christ) must be shared with others.
Christianity is a religion of joy, and the birth of Christ more than illustrates it. Joy is characteristic of Christmas, and, in the Philippines, family reunions tell that.

As we visit relatives, let us bring Jesus, the reason of it all. Mary’s visit with Elizabeth bears an apostolic and missionary mark: Christ always has something to communicate. Visiting the sick, the poor and the oppressed might not relieve them of their needs but would bring them the joy of the Lord.

Dec. 20 Simbang Gabi

2007-12-14T11:30:00.001+08:00

Commentary 1: Fr. Ronnie Crisostomo, SVD
Professor of Liturgical Studies
Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City

Commentary 2: Fr. Antonio Pernia, SVD
Superior General
Society of the Divine Word
Rome

Reading 1: Is 7:10-14
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 24:1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6
R. (see 7c and 10b) Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
Gospel: Lk 1:26-38

COMMENTARY 1

“Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign:
the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son,
and shall name him Immanuel.”

Signs play an important role in our everyday life. Before buying and consuming any food, we check the signs of freshness and make sure they are not beyond their expiry date. Lovers and spouses demand proofs and signs of their partner’s love and fidelity; they too are very keen in discovering signs of a falling out of love of their partners. Parents look for signs of development and maturity in their children. Economists speak about signs and indicators of economic growth or decline. Doctors describe our health through signs and symptoms. And some panic when they see the first traces of wrinkles on their faces or the first strands of white hairs on their head because these are signs associated to getting older.

We realize that sign is a pervading reality of our life as humans. Therefore, it is not strange that in our relationship with the divine, signs are indispensable. A cursory glance at the use of the term “sign” in the Bible reveals that it appears little less than 200 times without counting its various synonyms. It is comparable (in terms of its frequency of use) to other important biblical terms and concepts like righteous/righteousness, faithful/faithfulness, etc.

God, being transcendent, deals with his people who are limited and finite through signs to an even greater degree. It is through sign, understood as “an action, an occurrence, and event by which a person recognizes, learns, remembers, or perceives, the authenticity of something” (Gunkel, TDNT VII, 213) especially the salvific will and plan of God. For example, God used the rainbow, a sign in nature, as a remembrance of the covenant which He made with Noah after the flood: “God added: ‘This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come, of the covenant between me and you and every living creature with you: I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth’” (Gen 9:12-13). The various signs connected with the Exodus event, like the plagues in Egypt, the Blood of the Passover lamb (Ex 12:13), the eating of the “unleavened bread” (Ex 13:9), and the consecration of the first-born (Ex 13:16), etc, are signs offered “to mediate an understanding or to motivate a kind of behavior”. But ultimately, signs are meant to confirm God’s commitment with His people and that people may come to acknowledge Yahweh as the only God.

It is not surprising, therefore, that God would offer a sign to Ahaz, the successor to the throne of David, threatened by the neighboring kingdoms, not to fear (v.4) but to believe (v.9). The King is invited to ask for a sign – any sign - but he declines, hiding behind a pious refusal to “put the Lord to the test” (v. 12; see Ex 17:2; Deut 6:16; Judg 6:17). This situation is not concerned with a request for a sign, but with an offer of a sign which would make it easier for him and his people to believe. Thus the king’s response is a failure of faith, an unwillingness to be assured. It should be noted that it was common for kings or other leaders to inquire of the Lord, often through prophets, before deciding to go to battle (see 2Kgs 13:14-19). So Yahweh responds angrily through the prophet and gives a sign: “Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.” This is to re-affirm that ancient promise to David and the election of Jerusalem as the Lord’s holy place.

From the early Church, in trying to understand the mystery of Christ, the God-man, saw in this passage from Isaiah (our first reading today) a hint to this mystery and saw in it a prophecy that was fulfilled in Christ, the Immanuel who was conceived by the Virgin Mary. [Modern exegetes, however, are unanimous in pointing out that there was an inadequate rendering of the Hebrew term almah = young woman to the Greek word parthenos = virgin by the Septuagint, a term that would be adopted later by Matthew and Luke. It is true though that the term almah does not exclude that dimension of virginity.] Of course, the early Church did not find any difficulty in making this affirmation of the virgin birth because she had experienced already Jesus as the glorious Lord and was seen as the fulfillment of all the prophesies of old especially that promise that the throne of David will last forever (see Ps 89: 36-38) was seen to have been fulfilled by the coming Lord (Lk 1:32-33; cf. Rev 11:15). But whether we interpret the birth of Jesus as extraordinary/miraculous or not, the point is God intervenes to save his people and he keeps his promises.

The sign given - a child - is also very significant. The child symbolizes hope (Is 9:1-7). In promising a child to be born in the context of an international threat was God’s way of convincing Ahaz that his kingdom will perdure because the birth of a child signifies a promise of a new generation. Rabindranath Tagore would say: “Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of man.” Thus, Ahaz needed only to trust and God promised him that the fulfillment would be imminent: “For before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted” (Is 7:16).

The birth of Jesus as a child is not only the fulfillment of the promised redeemer of humankind or the expression that God has not given up of humanity but Jesus became the new sign, the new image, the new face of God for humanity to contemplate - that of a fragile child. Through Jesus, God has refashioned his image and revealed himself through His beloved Son as the merciful Father whom we can approach with confidence. Indeed, Jesus’ humanity is the sign / sacrament of the Father.

It is this new sign – Christ – who is the fullness of grace and redemption is being offered to us today through the Church especially through her sacramental signs. As St Leo the Great taught: “Our redeemer’s visible presence has passed into the sacraments.” While it is true that we can find signs of God’s presence in nature, in the events of our lives, yet the privileged signs of his presence and concern for us are what He has instituted in and through His Church. If they are not so, Christ would not have instituted them.

If Jesus’ humanity is the sign/sacrament of the Father, the sacraments, in turn, are the efficacious signs of Jesus. Let our commemoration of the Incarnation of the Son of God in this season of Advent and Christmas lead us to a better appreciation of the signs of Christ’s presence among us: the sacraments of the Church especially the Eucharist.

COMMENTARY 2 (from Bible Diary 2008)

Bad news? Often it happens that God’s Word comes to us as bad news. For not seldom, when God asks to enter our lives, his Word demands of us a radical change, transforms our plans, and even shatters our dreams.

This seems to have happened to Mary when the Angel Gabriel came to announce the news that she would be the mother of God’s son. No more dreams of a quiet life with Joseph in a small corner of Nazareth. Mary was being asked to be involved in God’s plan for salvation of the world by being the mother of the Messiah. This would draw her into the controversy surrounding her son and thrust her into the political intrigues of the big city of Jerusalem. But what started as bad news eventually became good news for Mary. How did Mary transform bad news into good news?

Three moments. First, the moment of fear, confusion and even rebellion. Mary was greatly troubled at the Angel’s greeting. She was afraid, and she protested: How can this be, since I have no relations with a man? This was followed by a second moment. A moment of reflection and prayer. Mary pondered over the Angel’s greeting. In a spirit of openness and an atmosphere of quiet, she listened to the explanation of the Angel. She discerned God’s ways as revealed in the lives of others. She dared to believe and trust God. And thus came a third moment. The moment of joyful acceptance of God’s Word. “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”

Also in our case, the Word of God can come at first as bad news. But, like Mary, we can transform bad news into good news. To do so, we need to live through the three moments in Mary’s response to God’s Word – fear and confusion, reflection and prayer, joyful response and acceptance.

Christmas is God himself transforming bad news into good news – the bad news of the sin of our first parents in the Garden of Eden becomes the good news of the birth of God’s son among us. May our celebration of Christmas make us learn to transform bad news into good news and make us the bearer of good news always.

Dec. 19 Simbang Gabi

2007-12-14T11:28:00.000+08:00

Commentary 1: Fr. Randolf C. Flores, SVD
Professor of Old Testament, Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City, Philippines

Commentary 2: Fr. Lino Nicasio, SVD
Professor of Homiletics, Divine Word Seminary, Tagaytay City
Principal of St. Jude Catholic School, Manila, Philippines

Reading 1: Jgs 13:2-7, 24-25a
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 71:3-4a, 5-6ab, 16-17
R. (see 8) My mouth shall be filled with your praise, and I will sing your glory!
Gospel: Lk 1:5-25

Commentary 1

“A Few Good Men” is the title of a successful movie in 1992 based on a Broadway play by Aaron Sorkin. It’s the story of lawyers at a court-martial who, in the course of defending their clients, begin to uncover a high-level conspiracy in United States Marines. Against all odds they choose to be “good” and relentlessly pursue the truth.

A Good Person is Harder and Harder to Find

The book of Judges from whom the first reading is taken a similar narrative that centers on the quest of few good men and women –called “judges” or more appropriately, military leaders who would take up the lead to protect Israel from their enemies. Actually, it is a desperate search for “few good men”. The stories in this book unfold in a kind of cyclic pattern of apostasy (going after other gods), punishment (usually the oppression of a foreign nation), repentance, and rescue and back to apostasy again. Every time a new story of Israelites’ infidelity begins, the search and call for a qualified leader or “judge” is also on. But a good leader is a rarity: Among the judges, it is only Othniel, the first judge, and Deborah, the only female judge, that we do not read any character and commitment problem. Ehud, the second judge is a trickster; Gideon, a coward; and Jephthah eventually turns his daughter as burnt offering and Samson, a tragic figure. In this book, a good person is getting harder and harder to find. As you come to the end of the book, it ultimately spirals into idolatry, rape, and near genocide – in short then book of Judges ends with anarchy and chaos in the Promised Land.

Annunciation Type-Scene

The first reading today narrates the birth of Samson, the last judge (Jgs 13:2-7, 24-25a) which liturgy parallels with the story of the birth of John the Baptist, last prophet of the Old Testament (Lk 1:5-25, the liturgical reading has the first part: the annunciation of the John’s birth). The narrative of the birth of these two men follows the structure of a miraculous birth common in the bible. This annunciation type-scene (as it is called in biblical scholarship) has three elements: the initial barrenness of the wife, a divine promise of future conception, and the birth of a son. We find similar type-scenes in the birth of Isaac (Gen 18:1-16); of the twins, Esau and Jacob (Gen 25:20-26). According to R. Brown (Birth of the Messiah), Luke could be drawing parallels between the birth of Samuel (1 Samuel 1) and John the Baptist. Both of their fathers, Elkanah and Zecariah are priests; mothers Hannah and Elizabeth are barren, Samuel and John the Baptist are “dedicated” to the Lord; and the name “Hannah” comes from the same Hebrew word as “Yohanan” (“John” in English) “HEN” “kindness” or “grace” in English).

Samson and John the Baptist
In any case, Samson and John the Baptist are parallel figures too. Aside from the similarities of their birth, they share a tragic end. Samson dies with the Philistines after crashing the pillars of their temple while John was beheaded on Herod’s order. As Samson is bound by the Nazirite vow where he must abstain any intoxicating drinks, refrain from cutting the hair on one's head, avoid corpses and graves (see Num 6:1-21), the ascetic lifestyle of John indicate that he too is Nazirite ( see Luke 7:3).

However, the two are better seen as figures of contrast. Samson, his name means “sun”, really burns himself up like the sun. He has the strength of Hercules except that he is dim-witted. He breaks his Nazirite vow by eating from the carcass of a lion (Judg 14:9); against his parents’ consent, he becomes erotically involved with three women from their enemies, the Philistines. In rage for feeling betrayed, he goes around burning the Philistine vineyards. In retaliation, the Philistines burn his wife and her parents. Like the in the first, the rest of those marriages end in tragedy. The love story of Samson and Delilah, as we know today, has become a classic story of love and betrayal. Who would ever forget love and violence in Tom Jones’song, Delilah?

The song opens immediately with betrayal:

I saw the light on the night that I passed by her window
I saw the flickering shadows of love on her blind
She was my woman
As she deceived me I watched and went out of my mind
My, my, my, Delilah
Why, why, why, Delilah.

And ends with rage and murder:

I could see that girl was no good for me
But I was lost like a slave that no man could free
At break of day when that man drove away, I was waiting
I cross the street to her house and she opened the door
She stood there laughing
I felt the knife in my hand and she laughed no more
My, my, my Delilah
Why, why, why Delilah.

"The Just Man"
John the Baptist is different. The writer Luke sees to it that John is not another Samson. Even the first century A.D. Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus, calls him a “just man”.

In the Gospel of Luke, John is at every important event in the life of Jesus. As we have seen, this Gospel opens with the announcement of birth of John the Baptist before the announcement of birth of Jesus; the story of the birth of John first before the story of the first Christmas; the preaching of John before the Jesus himself appears to preach.

In the Benedictus, Zechariah calls his son “the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways” (italics mine, Lk 1:76). “To go before the Lord” seems to indicate not only John as “forerunner” but also as the teacher of Jesus. Discipleship is “going after the Lord”. Jesus could have been a disciple of John before he himself becomes a teacher. At one point, the disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray “as John taught his disciples” (Lk 11:1) and then he proceeds to pray the “Our Father”. Did Jesus learn the “Our Father from John?

From the Crib to the Cross

When John is in prison and he sends his disciples for a sort of “background” check on Jesus, the latter’s reaction ends with calling John “more than a prophet” and greater than among those born of women (Lk 7:26, 28; synoptic parallel was read last Sunday, Dec. 16, Mt 11:2-11). These words do not mean to heap up accolades but to lead Luke’s readers to see John as the precursor not only of Jesus’ birth but also of his death. Both shared a violent end. Such will also the fate of those would wish to follow Jesus. In the second volume of Luke’s work, the Acts of the Apostles, we will read the stoning of Stephen, the first Christian martyr. This violent yet triumphant story is read right on the day after Christmas (Dec. 26, Acts 7:54-60). The Crib must lead us to the Cross.

A Few Good Men

On this season, we can choose to think of other few good men (and women too) who suffered such fate. The story of the death of Bishop Wilhelm Finnemann, SVD would exemplify this ideal. He was the first SVD auxiliary bishop of Manila and probably the first German to become a naturalized Filipino citizen.

In 1936, Bishop Finnemann was appointed the first bishop of Mindoro. It was World War II. The war took its toll in Mindoro especially on women and children. Some Catholic schools and convents were being transformed into brothels for children. Women especially young girls were being abused raped and turned into “comfort women”.

Bishop Finnemann strongly stood against these abuses and a number of times interceded and denounced the soldiers to free young girls who were forced to become sex slaves. The bishop was thus imprisoned and on October 26, 1942, he was thrown alive into the sea between Calapan and Batangas. One account describes that he died, “Along the way in the waters between Verde Island and Batangas, the soldiers bound his hands and feet, tied his body on a huge rock and dropped him overboard into the depths of the sea.” (cited in fabc.org).

Palm Sunday, April 1, 2007 in Barrio Mabongtot, Lubuagan, Kalinga. Fr. Fransiskus Madhu, SVD missionary was about to begin the Palm Sunday mass when a man with an M-16 slung from the shoulder fired at him at close range. Fr. Madhu sustained five bullet wounds in his lower abdomen and side. He died on the spot. It’s now past seven months and 19 days, still no justice has been served to the young Indonesian missionary.

Back to John the Baptist
This Christmas season, we can choose to be a renewed follower of Jesus, one among the few good men and women, by beginning to heed the preaching of John the Baptist.

And the crowds asked him, "What then should we do?" In reply he said to them, "Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise." Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?" He said to them, "Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you." Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what should we do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages" (Lk 3:10-14).

Commentary 2 (from Bible Diary 2005)

There is a saying: “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” This seems to be Zechariah’s thought in today’s gospel after anger Gabriel gave him great sounding news: Elizabeth and he are about to have a child. And because he doubted the angel’s word, Zechariah was struck dumb. What the priest failed to see was that with God everything is possible. Let’s consider the following points:

First, God had a plan for human being’s salvation. It may have taken centuries to unfold, but the plan was going to be realized. And Zechariah and Elizabeth had a role to play: to be the parents of the precursor of the Savior.

That both of them were old was irrelevant in this case, for nothing is impossible with God.

What about us? Are we ready to be sued by God for his purposes? Are we eager to do God’s will in our lives even though it is difficult? St. Francis prayed: “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace?” What does God want us to do for him?

Second, God chooses whom he wills. He chose Zechariah, Elizabeth and others for his purposes. And he chose each and everyone of us for a special task or calling, this is why He created us.

Are we going to miss and lose the mission God has in mind for us? It is the priesthood or religious life, or single blessedness or married life? Yes, we are unworthy, but our task is to be like Mary, a servant of God’s will.

Third, God carries out his plan. It may have taken a long time for the Savior to appear, but he did. In life, we have our own time, and we have God’s time. Usually when we want something, we want it our own way, in our time. This is wrong, for we should allow God to work out his plan in our lives and in his own time. What we need to do is to be ready at all times to do God’s will when, where and how he wills it. This is the way of God’s servant.

God has a purpose for our lives. Are we willing to fulfill it? May the Holy Spirit guide us that we may accomplish for which God created us with love.

Dec. 18 Simbang Gabi

2007-12-14T11:20:00.000+08:00

By: Fr. Carlito Reyes
Professor of New Testament
Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City

Reading 1: Jer 23:5-8
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 72:1-2, 12-13, 18-19
R. (see 7) Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Gospel: Mt 1:18-25

COMMENTARY

The preacher can focus either on the prophecy of Jeremiah or on the figure of Joseph. It is also possible to combine both points for reflection.

The first reading is best understood when one considers its context. It is part of a section that deals with bad shepherds starting with chapter 22 and ending in chapter 24. Chapter 22 contains addresses to the bad kings of Judah. King Jehoiakim significantly is presented as the exact opposite of his father who is considered as a good king. Jehoiakim builds a big palace for himself and yet neglects to pay the salaries of the people. He argues that a palace is his legacy. He is presented as a king who is interested with the trappings of power rather than the execution of justice. On the contrary his father, Josiah, did what is just and cared for the poor. The prophet says that a true legacy is justice and care for the poor, not a palace.

Other than Jehoiakim, Jehoahaz and Jeconiah were also addressed by the prophet negatively.

Chapter 23 tells us that the bad shepherds will be replaced by God himself and he will also appoint new ones. And the first reading for today is the announcement that a true shepherd who will govern wisely is coming and his name is “The Lord our Justice.”

Now a question can be asked: how do we see our political and religious leaders? Are they like Jehoiakim or Josiah? Are their programs designed to uplift the life condition of the poor? Or are they focused on the trappings of power, like big cars and offices?

However, the reading applies to all, not just public and religious leaders. In the book entitled Heroic Leadership, Chris Lowney points to the fact that most of the time people think of leadership using a top-down model: a leader commands, influences, inspires, takes charge, etc. This model pictures a leader with followers. He says that this is a stereotype which is applicable only to one percent of the population. He believes that the other 99 percent are also leaders and they are leading all the time, well or poorly. It sounds true for in many ways we persuade, influence, inspire and move others, sometimes badly, sometimes well.

However, there is still nothing to match the leadership of the Good Shepherd. There are many Psalms that will prove this and there is a long chapter in John’s gospel that describes the qualities of the good shepherd. But there are also stories from shepherds that illustrate the role of our good shepherd.

Robert Barron, in his book The Strangest Way, gives a story about a young lady who prefers to go on skiing even on Sundays, neglecting her obligation to attend mass. In a freak accident one day, she broke her leg making her incapable of skiing. One Sunday, unable to go out and ski, she decided to go to mass. It was a good shepherd Sunday. The preacher talked about how a shepherd knows when one of his sheep wants to stray. When he notices this he breaks one of the sheep’s legs. It can no longer stray but the shepherd will have to carry it on his shoulders when they go home and when they go out to graze. He stops doing this only when the leg is healed. But when it is healed, the sheep is not willing to stray anymore. Every time the shepherd carries the sheep, their relationship is deepened. When the young lady heard this, she cried. She was able to relate the story to her life situation.

The shepherd in the story of the preacher is perhaps the image of the coming Lord Jeremiah wants us to see and expect --the shepherd who will not allow us to be lost, who likes to be close to us. And this is one of the interpretations of the coming Christmas. It is a day when God moves to get near to us!

The gospel reading for today presents Joseph, called “son of David”, a righteous man. He is placed in a very difficult situation. Matthew reports that Mary was betrothed to him but before they lived together she was found to be pregnant. Joseph decided to divorce her quietly. An angel, however, instructed him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife for she had conceived through the Holy Spirit. When Joseph awoke, he did what the angel told him.

Schadenfreude is a German word which means to gloat over the mistakes of others, or to take pleasure at another’s pain. Joseph could have done this as a righteous person. He is right, Mary is wrong! He could leave Mary in a scandalous situation and prove to the world that he deserves to be called righteous. But if this is what Joseph did, his righteousness was that of little minds.

The righteousness of Joseph is seen in his discernment and obedience to the angel’s instructions. In the gospel, Joseph is seen as a man of action and not of words. Not even a word is attributed to him by the evangelists. And perhaps this is what his righteousness is. His teaching can be summarized as “actions speak louder than words.” One is reminded of the ode to love in 1 Corinthians 13. In a different context Paul says: “If I speak in tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” One can read further and see that “love does not rejoice over wrong doing, does not brood over injury.” That is righteousness.

John Shea gives a story that shows Joseph and Jesus in the carpentry shop. The father is teaching his son about the saw, the plane and the hammer. He presents Joseph as saying to Jesus: “The law is our measure. It is a tool of judgment, but someone always wields it. Do not use it as a hammer to hit or a saw to cut. Our tools are to fashion a table, not to brutalize the wood.” Perhaps this is a story that helps one to understand how Jesus treats the law in his public ministry. A good example of the story’s application is the account of the woman caught in adultery in John 8. Jesus did not use the law as a hammer to hit at the adulteress. Perhaps this is the righteousness he learns from his father! The righteousness prophesied by Jeremiah!

Dec. 17 Simbang Gabi

2007-12-14T10:28:00.002+08:00

Commentary 1: Fr. Randolf C. Flores, SVD
Professor of the Old Testament, Divine Word Seminary
Tagaytay City, Philippines

Commentary 2: Fr. Anthony Ynzon, SVD
Graduate Student in Philosophy, Catholic University of Louvain
Belgium

Reading 1: Gn 49:2, 8-10
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 72:1-2, 3-4ab, 7-8, 17
R. (see 7) Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Gospel: Mt 1:1-17

COMMENTARY 1

Reading a list of names is far from boring. Just imagine the anxiety and excitement of a nursing student who goes through a long list of names to check if she had passed the board exam or not. For my thirteenth year of priesthood, I went through a list of names of those who attended my ordination to the priesthood on Dec. 13, 1994. Most names were familiar to me, others total strangers. The children in the list have gotten married; three have passed away. Thanks to the person who had that bright idea to come out with a guest book for visitors to sign up, now I have a firsthand witness of a personal history.

Schindler's List
A more intense pathos and angst is seen in the characters of Steven Spielberg’s movie Schindler’s List. It is based on a true-to-life story of Oskar Schindler who owns a factory in Poland during the Nazi period. Taking advantage of cheap labor, the German businessman employs Jewish workers in his factory. But then after witnessing the horrifying reality of the Jews being sent to the concentration camps and eventually being killed in the gas chambers, he creates a list of over 1,100 Jews whom he saves from death. Mr. Schindler lobbies before the Nazi authorities lying to them about the names on his list as Jewish workers necessary to manufacture goods for Hitler’s army. The end of the movie is a touching scene of the survivors laying a stone over the grave of Mr. Schindler. Thanks to Schindler’s list, these Jews, his former factory workers, survived to tell the harrowing story of the Jewish Holocaust.

List of Failures
A list of names has its own story to tell. The names in genealogies, like Jesus’ genealogy, have their own story to tell – some still familiar to us, but most familiar to the Jews of the first century A.D. Except for Josiah who had introduced political and religious reform in Israel in the 7^th century B.C., all the names there including Jesus and his parents witness diverse experiences of human failure. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob have a problem with honesty. Both Abraham and Isaac lie to disown their wives before authorities to save their own skin. Jacob is a trickster, stealing both the blessing (“berakah” in Hebrew) and birthright (“bekorah”) from his brother, Esau.

Failed Monarchy
David, supposedly greatest of Israel’s kings, is guilty of the murder of Uriah, the commander of his own army, to legitimize an adulterous affair. Though credited for building the first Temple, his son Solomon is notorious for having 700 wives and 300 concubines “who turned away his heart after other gods.” The author of the book of Kings has no good word for Solomon and his father: “his heart was not true to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David” (1 Kings 11:4) -- like father like son. His leadership is not only religiously offensive; it is also marked by corruption and injustice. Solomon builds luxurious palaces, rest houses, and stalls for his innumerable horses at the expense of his own people, exacting heavy taxes and employing forced labor to satisfy his edifice complex. Two hundred years later, even after the many warnings of the prophets and the experience of the division of the kingdom and the fall of Samaria, such abuse of power in the monarchy still pervades. Manasseh (26^thmale ancestor of Jesus according to Mt 1:2), who reigns the longest, forty five years, is easily the worst king in Judah. Not satisfied with rebuilding sanctuaries for other gods, he burns his own son as an offering to them (2 Kings 21:3-6). Through Manasseh’s example, idolatry spread like wildfire to the people of Judah and Jerusalem. Example is the best teacher. According to author of the Second Book of Kings, Manasseh should be blamed for the destruction of Jerusalem and exile of its people to Babylon. So great is his sin (2 Kings 21:12-15; 22:16-17).

Five Women, Five Victims
The five women in Jesus’ genealogy are less sinners than victims. Tamar (Genesis 38) poses as a prostitute and seduced her father-in-law, Judah because the former did not intend to fulfill his promise and obligation to provide her with a husband of his line, and give her a chance to bear the grandchildren who would continue his line; Rahab is another prostitute from Jericho who goes out of her way to help the Hebrew spies even if it would entail betraying her own city and people (Joshua chapters 2 and 6); Ruth, the Moabite childless widow who needed to leave her own land and her own religion to join Naomi, her mother-in-law in Bethlehem-- Naomi’s relative, Boaz marries her after a compromising position on a threshing floor (Ruth 3); the “wife of Uriah,” Bathsheba is apparently a victim of the king’s abuse of power; and Mary suddenly finds herself in a scandalous situation by becoming pregnant before marriage. Matthew’s unexpected introduction of women in the genealogy could reflect the early Christians’ recognition of the contributions that women as well as other powerless groups made to the growth of the church.

Genealogies in Ancient Near East
Archeology has shown us that more than 3,000 years before the coming of Israel, people in the ancient Near East preserved their institutions and forged their identity by listing down names. For instance, in order to legitimate the rule of a king and preserve the monarchy, scribes wrote down the list of names of kings who reigned in the kingdom including the number of years of the reign of each king. One king even reigned for 43,200 years (!), making Methuselah (Gen 5:27) in the genealogy of Adam, the supposedly oldest person in the bible (969 years old), a toddler.

Old Testament Genealogies

No wonder that there are around 27 genealogies in the Bible and two are in the New Testament (the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew and Luke). The longest is found in 1 Chronicles 1: 1- 9:44 (Adam to the descendants of Saul) and scholars think that authors of the gospels of Matthew and Luke patterned their presentation of Jesus’ genealogy after the Chronicles.

Why a write a genealogy of Jesus? If we were among the first Christians, it would have been a scandal that the Jesus whom we begin to call and worship as the Son of God comes from a human family! Remember that the second century followers of Jesus did not yet have a dogma of the Trinity.

In the Old Testament, there are two main purposes of genealogies: (1) on the literary level, a genealogy marks the end of the story a generation and the beginning of a new one. On the theological level, it is to legitimate belongingness – who does and who does not belong to the chosen people of Israel.

On the literary level for instance, we read the genealogy (“toledoth” in Hebrew) of heavens and the earth (Gen 2:4) marking the beginning of the (second) story of creation. Before the flood, we read the genealogy of Noah (Gen 6:9) and the genealogy of Noah’s sons (Gen 10:1) after the flood. This could be the reason why Matthew divides his presentation of Jesus’ genealogy into three events (in 14 generations): before, during, and after the monarchy. The evangelist wants to present the coming of Jesus as a new beginning of a story and history of Israel; someone in whom the chosen people can have hope for from the failed monarchy (including its symbolism that the first passage in the Bible after the last book of the Old Testament is the genealogy of Jesus).

On the theological level, genealogies answer the question about who is and who is not an Israelite. Thus we read the genealogy of Shem (Gen 11:10) from whom the descendants of Abraham emerge as well as the genealogy of Terah, Abraham’s father (Gen 11:27). Isaac has his own genealogy too (Gen 25:19) linking him to Abraham and to Jacob, all heirs to the promise of the Lord. In contrast, also Ishmael (Gen 25:12) and Esau (Gen 36:1) have genealogies, but it is clear that these genealogies function to separate them from belongingness to the chosen people. Nonetheless, they receive God’s blessings too. In starting his gospel with Jesus’ genealogy then, Matthew clearly presents Jesus as a “true Israelite”, an heir to the promise and to the faith of Israel’s ancestors.

Conclusion: Janus Parallelism
In short, in the genealogy of Jesus read during this Simbang Gabi, we can meditate on two things: (1) Jesus as the new beginning -- as Israel’s hope as well as our hope; (2) Jesus as part of God’s promise to Israel in the past -- the basis of our hope. When we think then of Christmas, we do not only look forward to the newness that the Incarnation brings about but also look back to God’s faithfulness to his covenant with Israel to whom Jesus belongs.

In Roman mythology, Janus (from where the name “January” comes from) is known as the god of gates, doors, doorways, beginnings, and endings. He is often portrayed with two faces one looking forward, the other backward. I think New Year as well as Christmas can also be Janus-faced. We look back to God’s goodness from the beginning (the “Alpha”) and we look forward with hope in the birth of Christ, in the birth of a New Beginning (the “Omega”).

COMMENTARY 2

Halo-halo( from Tagalog halo, “mix”) is a popular Filipino dessert that is a mixture of shaved ice, milk and sugar, to which is added various sweet beans and fruits, and generally served cold in a tall glass. This definition holds true at least before I came to our mission station in Palawan. Once there, the term halo-halo had a whole new meaning for me.

When I first arrived, I was really worried how we could survive as a mission center with very limited funds and no regular source of sustainable income. I was first concerned with the basics, food of course! If I could only get an assurance that we would have rice on our table daily, that will be a big relief. As days passed, I noticed that a steady supply of rice came in, not much, yet enough for us to live by and even feed and share with people who beg from us.

Part of our rice supply, I fondly termed as halo-halo for these came from children in the elementary school who made it a habit to bring to school (on the day of their monthly mass) 1 gatang or approximately 1 to 2 cups of rice in a plastic bag. One could only beam at the sight of the children who, despite the poverty in our place, can still find ways to share for our mission! Not being an expert on rice varieties, we simply put them together and cooked “halo-halo rice” for our meals. Indeed, good rice, NFA rice, not-so-good rice, and other varieties, all ended up to make one sumptuous meal that exuded an odor of children’s generosity expressed at its best!

If we look back on Jesus’ genealogy, we couldn’t help but think of Palawan’s halo-halo rice. Indeed, we are presented with a mixture of sinners and saints, of kings and peasants, of men and women. In the end, we still got Jesus! God works wonders, even in halo-halo situations. Let today’s gospel be an invitation from God for us to be thankful for all that has been, and an assurance that if God works, there will be rice for us to get by.

Dec. 16 Simbang Gabi - 3rd Sunday of Advent

2007-12-14T09:49:00.000+08:00

Commentary 1: Fr. Roderick Salazar, SVD
President of San Carlos University
Cebu City

Commentary2: Fr. Lino Nicasio, SVD
Professor of Homiletics, Divine Word Seminary, Tagaytay City
Principal of St. Jude Catholic School, Manila

Reading 1: Is 35:1-6a, 10
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 146:6-7, 8-9, 9-10
R. (cf. Is 35:4) Lord, come and save us.
Reading II: Jas 5:7-10
Gospel: Mt 11:2-11

COMMENTARY 1 (from Bible Diary 2008)

The cock crows. We wake up. We head for Church. The scent of Christmas is here. Misa de Gallo starts.

Once upon a time, a cock also crowed. And a man cried. For he had looked into the eyes of love and remembered that he had been told he would betray his Lord three times even before the cock would crow but once. He cried in remorse and repentance. And today, on the spot where he wept, a Church stands in testimony to the forgiveness that love gave, and the love that forgiveness called to birth.

Cocks crow to announce the break of day. Full light may not yet even be there, but cocks know when day is near. Today, at cockcrow, we remember that when Jesus was born, it was the break of dawn for the world. Let us stretch toward the light, so that we too may learn to be born, like the dawn.

Today’s Gospel tells us that Jesus was saddened that though people had gloried in the light of the lamp that was John the Baptist, when Jesus came, the true Light that He was, people did not come to Him as easily.

May the crowing of the cocks today not only wake us from sleep but awaken us to repentance, to a new birth, worthy of Christmas which we pray will come soon.

COMMENTARY 2

If you are considering someone for a high position, you would probably run a “background check” on that person. This means checking on his or her family background, educational attainments and credentials, religious beliefs and affiliations, values and attitudes, achievements and the like. Doing so creates a composite picture, so to say, of the person prior to making the final decision whether they are suitable or not for the position being considered.

In today’s gospel, John the Baptist seems to be sending his disciples to Jesus to do a first-hand background check on Jesus and His ministry. What could have prompted John to do so? Let us reflect on the gospel and discover its lessons.

First, we have John’s doubts. The gospel says: “John heard in prison about Christ’s deeds.” Perhaps he was being kept informed about Jesus’ preaching on love, reconciliation, forgiveness and the tremendous love of the Father for His children. This was quite a contrast to John’s “fire and brimstone and God’s judgment” approach in his preaching. Hence John was perhaps wondering or doubting about Jesus’ preaching and ministry. What seems to going on with this Jesus? Hence the “background check” just to be sure. John the Baptist wanted to resolve his and his disciples’ doubts about the one whom he had previously pointed out as “the Lamb of God.”

Second, we have Christ’s answer: “Go back and tell John what you hear and see; the blind see again, and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised to life and the Good News is proclaimed to the poor.” These are “Messianic” acts, proving that Jesus was indeed “He who is to come.” It is worth noting that Jesus did not chide John for his doubts, but rather reassured him that all was as it should be.

Third, we have Christ’s tribute to John the Baptist. He is “more than a prophet;” he is Lord’s messenger, tasked to prepare for the coming of the Messiah, and a truly great person, for “of all the children born of women, a greater than John the Baptist has never been seen.” John was a man of principle, unafraid of anyone and ready to give his life in defense of truth and moral principles.

What do all these mean for us? First, if we ourselves have doubts about our faith or about God, we should do what John the Baptist did: resolve one’s doubts. We can do so by a careful and reflective reading of the Scriptures, by praying to God for enlightenment, and by consulting reliable persons. Secondly, as Christmas approaches, we should renew our commitment to the Savior by making sure that we are cleansed from the “leprosy” of sin through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and by being “good news” to the poor through our active and respectful assistance to them. And thirdly, we would do well to imitate the Baptist by becoming persons of principle like him, unafraid to stand up for what is right and just before God and people.

If by the grace of God we do these things, then it can be said that not only was the good news preached to us, but that it has become alive in our words and deeds.

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C): "He feasted sumptuously everyday"

2007-09-28T22:42:00.000+08:00

Lazarus is carried to Abraham

Master of James IV of Scotland
Flemish, Ghent or Mechelen, about 1510 - 1520
photo grab: biblical-art.com

The Text: Luke 16:19-31 (NAB)


19: ¹² "There was a rich man ¹³ who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day.
20: And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
21: who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
22: When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried,
23: and from the netherworld, ¹⁴ where he was in torment, he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side.
24: And he cried out, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.'
25: Abraham replied, 'My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
26: Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go from our side to yours or from your side to ours.'
27: He said, 'Then I beg you, father, send him to my father's house,
28: for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they too come to this place of torment.'
29: But Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.'
30: ¹⁵ He said, 'Oh no, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'
31: Then Abraham said, 'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.'"

Commentary

Sometime last week, I took the plane for Leyte. Since there were no newspapers nor in- flight music, part of the entertainment on board was a game hosted by the flight attendants. A prize was at stake for the first passenger who could produce a picture of a sad person. I don't think I had one nor the rest of the passengers do--who would ever face the camera sad? But then someone pulled out his wallet and produced a 500 peso bill with Ninoy's "sad" face on it.

Whoever thought that there's sadness in money? Even the book of Proverbs says "Wealth adds many friends" (16:4).

Luke Chapter 16

Luke chapter 16 is famous for being the gospel on wealth. Four times the word "rich" is mentioned and three times for "wealth". The chapter begins and ends with stories that opens with the phrase "there was a rich man" (v. 1 &v. 19).

Two Parts of the Parable

The last part of the this chapter, the Gospel reading, narrates the famous parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (vv. 19-31). We should take notice here of Jesus' addressees of this parable-- the "lovers of money" (Gk. philarguroi v. 14)

The parable can be divided into two parts: the first is the story of the reversal of fortunes of two men (vv. 19-26) and the second is the story of the five brothers (vv. 27-31). This latter part is often missing in many homilies.

Part I: Reversal of Fortunes

Luke's first example of reversal of fortunes is found right at the beginning of his gospel, in the Song of Mary (or Magnificat). The "lyrics" are bold:

"He [God] has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty" (1:52-53).

With this, Luke initiates an important theme of his gospel: reversal of fortunes.

The Anonymous Rich Man
In the Parable, the rich man's lifestyle is enviable: "dressed in purple and fine linen" (v. 19a) -- signature clothes at that time, only royalties could afford (see Esther 1:6); and "feasted sumptuously every day" (v. 19b).

To have an idea what a sumptuous feast is like, we can read from a Roman novel written in the first century A.D. on a dinner hosted by Trimalchio, member of the Roman nouveau riche. Food is endless. Eat all you can. There’s a set of dish each representing every sign of the Zodiac which is served course by course by fleet of servants. Name it and Trimalchio has it, including live birds sewn up inside a pig. Even their names speak of pomposity. His wife's name is Fortunata and Trimalchio means "thrice-blessed".

The name of the rich man in Jesus' parable is known in the Latin translation as Dives ("rich"). But this is missing in most older manuscripts. Perhaps, Luke intends that the rich man is anonymous an open figure so any any rich person should be a candidate.

Lazarus, the Poor
The poor man (Gk. ptochos) has a name, "Lazarus" meaning , "My God helps". It sounds like a prayer more than a proper name. Indeed for his situation described in the story, he would need a lot of divine intervention. He is dumped right at the gate of the rich man, probably a cripple. He is covered with sores. In the book of Job, when the three friends saw that Job was covered with sores, they did not recognize him so they wailed, tore their robes and threw dust in the air upon their heads. "They sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great" (2:12-13).

Lazarus was hungry, longing something from the rich man's table. The picture is not of Lazarus wanting to fill his empty stomach with crumbs as often portrayed by artists and preachers. Lazarus is at the gate, just few meters from the scene of feasting. We wonder why the rich man is never aware of the presence of a poor man at his very own gate. Perhaps, the phrase "what fell from rich man's table" (v. 21) is a metaphor for help that is expected of a rich man. This was the point of last Sunday's Gospel reading--sharing of possessions (Luke 16:1-13) and this is also the point of Luke's story of Zacchaeus, another rich man (see my blog on this, please click).

In any case, no help comes to Lazarus but dogs that come to lick his sores. Here's the best example of that expression, "The dog is man's best friend."

Reversal of Fortunes
Finally both of them died. Here begins the reversal of fortunes. Lazarus is "carried away by the angels to be with Abraham." Very often, in the old Testament, the reward of a righteous life is to be buried with one's ancestors. That's why death is described as "being gathered to one's ancestors" (see, among others, Gen 49:33; Num 27:13).

When the rich man died, he is buried, period. No adjectives nor qualifications used to describe his burial, no gathering to his ancestors. The parable says he is in Hades, the Greek place of the dead; and he is being tormented (Gk. hyparchon, v. 23). Now the rich man looks up and sees Abraham and Lazarus from a distance.

The ironies continue. He now notices the poor man though far away while when he was alive he never bothered to see the poor man at his own gate. He calls out for Abraham for mercy while he himself was merciless.

Notice that the rich man still thinks he is the boss. He's got no nerve to command Lazarus to come to his aid or to be a messenger. Abraham, however, shows him the real status now. He had received "good things during his life" (Gk. ta agatha) while Lazarus received only bad things (Gk. ta kaka). "But now here" (nun de oude, strong contrast in Greek) he is being comforted while the rich man is "in agony" (v. 25).

As there was a wide economic gap between rich man and the poor man, so there is NOW a great eschatological divide between the two. Part I of the parable ends reaffirming the reversal of fortunes (v. 26).

Part II: The Fate of Five Brothers

The second part is short, eleven verses only, and almost like an appendix to the story. But then this part is the essential part of the parable.

It begins with a short prayer of the rich man (now turned "poor" man) address to Abraham, practically to raise back to life Lazarus (cf. the raising of another Lazarus in John 11:43). He wants him to warn his five brothers. Readers of Luke assume these five brothers are also rich, "dressed in purple and fine linen" and "feast sumptuously everyday".

But then there is no need for any resurrection, "They have Moses and the Prophets". Obviously Jesus is referring here to the Old Testament (Pentateuch and the Prophets). With this statement, we see that Old Testament is seen as restoring justice for the poor (the Hebrew concept of mishpat). In fact this is the main function of a prophet. Note that Moses is the greatest prophet (see Deuteronomy 34:10).

We have a very clear example in prophet Amos (first reading) who is condemning the wealthy ruling elite of Samaria of their luxuriously lifestyle at the expense of the poor:

4 Alas for those who lie on beds of ivory,
and lounge on their couches,
and eat lambs from the flock,
and calves from the stall;
5 who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp,
and like David improvise on instruments of music;
6 who drink wine from bowls,
and anoint themselves with the finest oils,
but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!
7 Therefore they shall now be the first to go into exile,
and the revelry of the loungers shall pass away. (Amos 6:4-7 from NRSV).

In this text, Amos lists four activities of luxurious living:
eating, singing, drinking, and perfuming oneself.

Furthermore, the beds are made of ivory (v. 4a);
food is special (v. 4b);
cups are huge (“bowls”, v. 6a);
perfume is very expensive (6a);
song is accompanied by various instruments (v. 5).

With all these, they ignore the suffering of the “ruin of Joseph” (v. 6b). Amos alludes here to the destruction of a certain territory perhaps because of natural disaster (earthquake?). The point is the insensitivity on the part the rich; enjoying while many others are suffering.

Listening to the prophets is enough (Luke 16:29). Karl Marx is then not correct when he taught "religion as opium of the masses" -- heaven anesthetizes any striving to make life better here on earth, for the poor simply have to wait for that eschatological reversal of fortunes.

But this is not the point of the last part of this parable. Instead, the hope to be in the bosom of Abraham is practiced by the rich in the sharing of their possessions. In theological terms, this is the ethical dimension of eschatology; in simple terms, simple lifestyle.

Resources:
1) For the meaning of simple lifestyle / spirituality of simplicity, see my post, click here.

2) For a synthetic study of wealth and poverty in Luke-Acts, see Carlito C. Reyes, "The Poor and the Rich in Luke," in Led by the Spirit: Festschrift in Honor of Herbert Schneider, SJ on the Occasion of his 65th Birthday , ed. M. L. Locker (Manila: LST, 2002), pp. 141-153.

3) For a survey of poverty in the bible, see Leslie J. Hoppe, There Shall Be No Longer Poor Among You: Poverty in the Bible (Nashville: Abingdon, 2004), see esp. 69-72 (on Amos), and pp. 150-156 (on Luke).

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C): "Dishonest Wealth"

2007-09-21T07:46:00.000+08:00

photo grab: www.silk.net/RelEd/clipart.htm

The Text: Luke 16:1-13 or 16:10-13 (NAB)


1: ¹ Then he also said to his disciples, "A rich man had a steward who was reported to him for squandering his property.
2: He summoned him and said, 'What is this I hear about you? Prepare a full account of your stewardship, because you can no longer be my steward.'
3: The steward said to himself, 'What shall I do, now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me? I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg.
4: I know what I shall do so that, when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their homes.'
5: He called in his master's debtors one by one. To the first he said, 'How much do you owe my master?'
6: ² He replied, 'One hundred measures of olive oil.' He said to him, 'Here is your promissory note. Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.'
7: Then to another he said, 'And you, how much do you owe?' He replied, 'One hundred kors ³ of wheat.' He said to him, 'Here is your promissory note; write one for eighty.'
8: ⁴ And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently. ⁵ "For the children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.
9: I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, ⁶ so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
10: ⁷ The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones.
11: If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth?
12: If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?
13: No servant can serve two masters. ⁸ He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."

Commentary

Government officials, past and present and perhaps future, are being accused of, investigated for, charged with amassing wealth in billions(!) of pesos through bribery, commissions in contract deals, illegal gambling, corruption and extortion. The news is simply overwhelming. Click on this.

"Mammon of Unrighteousness"

In the Gospel text above, Jesus seems to have allowed the use of illegal means for a noble end. Jesus counsels his disciples to be make “dishonest wealth” (mamwna/j th/j avdiki,aj, literally, “mammon of unrighteousness”) a friend (fi,loj). He commends a corrupt manager (Luke 161-9). One might be tempted to read this text as license to use "dirty money" or "blood money" for a good purpose.

Material Possessions

There is a tension in the text, and readers are invited to wrestle with it. The issue here is material possessions, a clear theme of this chapter (Luke16). In fact, Luke talks a lot about material possessions both in his Gospel and in his second work, the Acts of the Apostles. In this said chapter, we see that Jesus is not totally against material possessions. In the Acts of the Apostles, the first Christian community even shared their own personal resources to survive (Acts 2:44; 4:32).

Koinonia

This gospel is not about being dishonest for a good purpose; not about the license to use dirty money to help the poor a la Robin Hood. It is about sharing of possessions (in Greek, koinonia).

In the first story (Luke 16:1-8), notice that the manager reduced the interests of the debts. Since his master praised him for doing this, we can assume that the said manager used his own expected profit or commission to offset those interests. Making “friends with dishonest wealth” is sharing your wealth.

God and Mammon

Wealth only enjoyed by the few becomes indeed a “dishonest wealth”. Wealth does not only belong to you it also belongs to others (Luke 16:12). To serve God and mammon (an Aramaic word for “wealth” or “power”) at the same time is a contradiction because when you "serve God", it implies you are sharing out your "mammon" to others most especially to the needy.

24th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C): "Until one finds it"

2007-09-15T15:23:00.000+08:00

This picture shows some Roman coinage
as reformed by Augustus c. 23 B.C.E
(1 gold aureus=25 silver denarii;
1 denarius=4 bronze sesterti).
Credit: Barbara McManus, 2001

The Text: Lk 15:1-32 or 15:1-10

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
So to them he addressed this parable.
“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert
and go after the lost one until he finds it?
And when he does find it,
he sets it on his shoulders with great joy
and, upon his arrival home,
he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’
I tell you, in just the same way
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance.

“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one
would not light a lamp and sweep the house,
searching carefully until she finds it?
And when she does find it,
she calls together her friends and neighbors
and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’
In just the same way, I tell you,
there will be rejoicing among the angels of God
over one sinner who repents.”

Then he said,
“A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father,
‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’
So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings
and set off to a distant country
where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.
When he had freely spent everything,
a severe famine struck that country,
and he found himself in dire need.
So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens
who sent him to his farm to tend the swine.
And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed,
but nobody gave him any.
Coming to his senses he thought,
‘How many of my father’s hired workers
have more than enough food to eat,
but here am I, dying from hunger.
I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him,
“Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
I no longer deserve to be called your son;
treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”’
So he got up and went back to his father.
While he was still a long way off,
his father caught sight of him,
and was filled with compassion.
He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.
His son said to him,
‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;
I no longer deserve to be called your son.’
But his father ordered his servants,
‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him;
put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.
Then let us celebrate with a feast,
because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;
he was lost, and has been found.’
Then the celebration began.
Now the older son had been out in the field
and, on his way back, as he neared the house,
he heard the sound of music and dancing.
He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean.
The servant said to him,
‘Your brother has returned
and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf
because he has him back safe and sound.’
He became angry,
and when he refused to enter the house,
his father came out and pleaded with him.
He said to his father in reply,
‘Look, all these years I served you
and not once did I disobey your orders;
yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns,
who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,
for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’
He said to him,
‘My son, you are here with me always;
everything I have is yours.
But now we must celebrate and rejoice,
because your brother was dead and has come to life again;
he was lost and has been found.’”

or

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
So to them he addressed this parable.
“What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them
would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert
and go after the lost one until he finds it?
And when he does find it,
he sets it on his shoulders with great joy
and, upon his arrival home,
he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’
I tell you, in just the same way
there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents
than over ninety-nine righteous people
who have no need of repentance.

“Or what woman having ten coins and losing one
would not light a lamp and sweep the house,
searching carefully until she finds it?
And when she does find it,
she calls together her friends and neighbors
and says to them,
‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’
In just the same way, I tell you,
there will be rejoicing among the angels of God
over one sinner who repents.”

Commentary
We are entering the second month of the disappearance of Eliseo Cadivin. The SVD seminarian never returned to the seminary after he went out to claim a small amount sent to him as a birthday gift. It is also for two months now since Eliseo’s two brothers and a sister took a leave from work to look for their lost brother. Their relentless search, day and night, rain or shine is remarkable. When we confer every night to exchange information, the sister always ends a fruitless day with words of determination: “We will not rest until we find him”.

I think, the above can be a modern and realistic parallel of the two parables [three if longer reading is preferred] in this Sunday’s Gospel reading.

The Three Parables of "Lost and Found"

The three parables – parable of the lost sheep (Luke 15:1-7), parable of the lost coin (Luke 15: 8-10), and parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) are found in one chapter, one after the other. It is not difficult to see that the three stories have the same genre and theme – a parable that narrates of being lost and found. If we, however, read slowly and attentively these parables, we notice significant differences between the first two parables and the parable of the prodigal son. The first two parables though parallel provide a picture of the juxtaposition of the a male (shepherd) and female (woman) protagonists. Sheep and a coin are lost and the owners go out of their way to find the lost properties. Once found, there is a public announcement of rejoicing. The parables end with a statement of Jesus associating the joy with the heavenly joy caused by “one sinner who repents” (15:7,10).

The Parable of the Prodigal Son

In the parable of the prodigal son, there is no mention of being lost. The son takes the initiative to leave his father’s house. If lost here means metaphorical (to lose the sense of being a son, apollymi in Greek”, see 15:32), still this parable is unique since the the one “lost” is a human being rather than just merely a piece of property (sheep or coin). Unlike the sheep and the coin, the son is not found but comes to his senses and goes home.

There is also a third major character of the story—the elder son. There is no announcement of a public rejoicing in the parable of the prodigal son. In fact, the elder son is surprised of the ongoing celebration. The parable does not end with statement of Jesus on a heavenly joy over a repentant sinner. Hence, it makes sense to follow the shorter option suggested by the liturgists and leaving out the third parable to a different liturgical occasion.

Tax/Toll Collectors

The narration of the parable of the lost sheep and parable of the lost coin is occasioned by “tax collectors and sinners” drawing near to listen to Jesus and causing the Pharisees and scribes to “keep grumbling aloud” (Gk., diegongyzon, vv. 1-2).

In the world of the New Testament, the expression "tax collectors and sinners" (see also Mt 9:10) is common, almost like a slogan. Why are tax collectors sinners? Not all of them are corrupt. The Greek word "telōnēs" usually translated "tax collectors" properly means "toll collectors".

As we know, one of Jesus’ disciples is a tax/toll collector (see Mt 9:9-13). Matthew (called Levi in the Gospels of Mark and John) works in Capernaum, Jesus' second hometown along the edge of the Lake of Galilee. Located along the major road of international trade between Damascus and Egypt, this town is strategic. Goods and merchandise sold in other towns would have to pass through Capernaum. Tolls have to be paid for goods entering and leaving Capernaum. Matthew is one of those toll collectors who work in the Capernaum custom house (someone like a customs collector today).

Why toll collectors are called "sinners"? The rich and the educated, a minority in Jesus' day, routinely criticize toll collectors because such job was not honorable as collections were paid to the colonial power, Rome. Though against their will because they were Jews, they have to do the job to survive. Any extra amount will also be welcomed coming from tips from the merchants passing through Capernaum. Rarely that toll collectors would have a very rare opportunity to cheat because of the efficiency of the auditing system of the Roman Empire.

Toll collectors are not sinners because they cheat on their job. They are simply stereotyped as sinners because they work in such a job looked down by many. In short, they represent the outcast and the poor. That Jesus would welcome them and even eat with them leave either an admirable impression or a shock on the crowd (Luke 15:2).

The Parables of the Lost Sheep and Lost Coin

Readers, indeed, are shocked by the extravagance of the two parables.

In the first parable, the shepherd loses a sheep and leaves the ninety-nine “in the wilderness” the most dangerous of all places in Israel (see Deut 32:10). He seeks the sheep “until he finds it” (v. 3). Finding it, he “places the sheep on his shoulders” and summons friends and neighbors with a celebration. In a similar parable from the apocryphal Gospel of Thomas, the shepherd looks for that sheep because it is the “biggest one” and when the shepherd finds it he says, “I love you more than the ninety-nine.” We do not find these details in Luke. The shepherd goes out of his way and puts the rest of the sheep in danger to find one ordinary sheep.

In the second parable, the woman loses a coin. The search of the woman is described in four actions: “light a lamp”, “sweep the house”, and seek diligently”, “until he finds it” (v. 8). In short, she does everything to find just one coin though she has still nine coins left. When she finds it, she calls his friends and neighbors for a celebration, surely spending much more than the value of the lost coin.

For the listeners of Jesus, the message is clear –they should not be shocked that he welcomes tax/toll collectors and sinners, nor repentance is a condition. Repentance can also come after an experience of love and mercy.

Zaccheaus, the chief tax/toll collector

We can think here of Luke’s story of another tax collector few chapters later—Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10). He is, in fact, “the chief tax collector and is rich” (v. 2), but “small” (Gk. mikros v. 3)--both in height and in his reputation. He has to climb a tree so he could see Jesus and at the same time so people look up to him. What a surprise that it is the master who would “look up” to him. (Gk. anablepos) and invite himself to stay at his house (v. 5).

Again, people grumble aloud (Gk. diagoggyzō): "He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner" (v. 7). But Zacchaeus, obviously touched by the Jesus’ gesture of going out of his way to stay at his house, declares: "Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much” (v. 8). Zecchaeus is familiar with the Torah on the laws of restitution: “When someone steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, the thief shall pay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep” (Exodus 22:1).

The end of the story of Zacchaeus bears similarity with the conclusion of parables of sheep and the coin. In the two parables, Jesus makes a statement of the heavenly joy in one repentant sinner. In the story of Zacchaeus, he declares that “salvation” (in Hebrew yeshua, also the name of Jesus in Hebrew) enters Zacchaeus’ household and that he too is Abraham’s child. "For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost" (vv. 9-10).

To recapitulate the points:

1) Jesus goes out for the outcasts, the sinners, and the poor, here represented by tax/toll collectors. This is typical of Luke’s portrait of Jesus’ mission.

2) Like the shepherd and the woman who lost his sheep and her coin respectively, Jesus seeks “until he finds it”.

3) Such experience of concern and mercy brings a sinner to repentance (like Zaccheaus).

23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time (C): "Hate Your Family"

2007-09-08T22:41:00.000+08:00

Icon of James
"James, the Brother of Jesus"
(Greek : Iάκωβος ο Αδελφόθεος )
source: wikipedia.org

The Text: Lk 14:24-33

25 Now large crowds were traveling with him; and he turned and said to them, 26 "Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. 28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, 30 saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.' 31 Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. 33 So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.

Commentary

A year ago, the retired supreme court justice Hilario Davide submitted to the President his proposals for the much needed electoral reforms. Among them is the ban on political dynasties and nepotism, a recommendation he had submitted to the 1971 Constitutional Convention and the 1986 Constitutional Commission.

Here's my interpretation of Luke 4:25-33, Jesus' possible teaching against nepotism. The article is published in the 2007 SVD Bible Diary:
----------------------

Why did Jesus teach his disciples to "hate" their families?

"Family first before country." This could be an attitude indicating a fractured culture. "The Filipino is not community-driven, certainly not nation-driven" as one one writer laments. Worse is nepotism---favoring relatives or personal friends because of relationship than because of their abilities. As Filipinos, we tend to confuse nepotism with pagmamahal sa pamilya (family loyalty). Yet we know for a fact that nepotism breeds graft and corruption and vice versa.

Is it what Jesus up to when he says, "Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple" (Lk 14:26)? Early Christian stories recount that James, the brother of Jesus, (Mk 6:3) is elected the bishop of Jerusalem because he is the kamag-anak ("relative") of Jesus. Does this explain that Jesus is, at times, "anti-family?".

We should not think that Jesus teaches disrespect of one's family. The Old Testament says very clearly: "Honor your father and your mother" (Exod 20:12). Loving one's family is loving God, as in the teaching of Jesus, son of Sira: "Those who respect their father will have long life, and those who honor their mother obey the Lord" (Sirach 3:6). Why then does Jesus, the son of Joseph, teach to "hate one's family?"

In recent years, bible scholars suggest four possible insights on this teaching:
(1) Jesus has two types of disciples: those who stay at home and live the gospel in the context of their families and those who are sent out to preach Jesus' message. It is to this second group of disciples that Jesus addresses this teaching to leave behind their families.

(2) To break away from the family in that culture may indicate that Jesus disapproves a family that is patriarchal and dominated by men.

(3) It may also mean that Jesus is forming a surrogate family, a new family of brothers and sisters that has God as the only father.

(4) Having a family is a form of security, leaving home would mean giving up that security to be in solidarity with many people who are homeless and landless, something that the prophets did in the Old Testament.

In the end, Jesus is not against the family. But, he requires his followers to see beyond the confines of their own particular families, a new and bigger "family" with God as the Father (cf. Mt 23:9).

5th Sunday of Easter (C): New Way of Loving

2007-05-05T16:53:00.000+08:00

Mandatum novum, do vobis
(by Simon Ushakov, 1685)
photo grab: wikipedia.org

The Text: John 13:31-33a-34-35

When Judas had left them, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him,God will also glorify him in himself,and God will glorify him at once. My children, I will be with you only a little while longer. I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

Commentary:

"See, how they love one another!", this is what Gentiles in the 3rd century A.D. exclaim whenever they see a Christian community (cf. Tertullian, Apology 39.6). With candidates, in this Christian country, killing each other as midterm elections draw near, the opposite is true: “See, how they hate one another!”

"Love one another." This commandment, addressed particularly to the disciples, belongs to the first part of Jesus' long farewell speech at the Last Supper (see 13:31 - 17:26). It is to be the response to the new reality that is to be brought about by Jesus' passion, death, and resurrect on. That is why before Jesus gives the new commandment, he speaks of his "glorification". For the writer of the Fourth Gospel, Jesus’ glorification is the one event of his passion, death, resurrection, and ascension.

"I give you a new commandment, that you love one another" (13:34). What makes this commandment "new" (13:34)? It seems this is not even original to Jesus. In the Book of Jubilees, a Jewish religious writing in 2nd century B.C which reworks the materials found in Genesis and Exodus, Isaac leaves a farewell commandment to his sons, Esau and Jacob: "Love one another, my sons, as a man loves himself, with each man seeking for his brother what is good for him . . . loving each other as themselves" (Jubilees 36:4-5). Likewise, Paul, writing in around 50 A.D. exhorts the Christians in Thessalonica: "Now concerning love of the brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anyone write to you, for yourselves have been taught by God to love one another" (1 Thess 4:9). Similar exhortations are found in (Sir 27:17; Rom 13:9; Gal 5:14; Mark 12:31). Indeed, this commandment sounds like an echo of a much older biblical text, Lev 19:18, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself".

The newness of this commandment can be understood better if we take into its background the theme of the "new covenant" in Jeremiah 31:31-34. We see a better connection too with Jesus' last farewell in the context of the Last Supper. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus would speak of this theme after supper: "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood" (Lk 22:20).

Writing at the end of the Babylonian Exile (ca. 531 B.C.), prophet Jeremiah (chapter 31) prophesies a reunited people of God (Israel and Judah v. 31) under a new and unbreakable covenant:

31 The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt-- a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, "Know the LORD," for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

God reminds the Jews of a broken covenant with him which resulted to the punishment in the Exile. That covenant was made with Moses at Sinai. It is the old covenant from the time of Moses to the Babylonian Exile. God’s own fingers wrote the covenant in stone tablets (Exod 31:18). It would be valid forever, for all places and for all times – a Berit Olam, "a perpetual covenant". This covenant, however, was broken.

A broken covenant does not mean it is the end of that covenant. A broken marriage vows, for instance, does not mean that the bond of marriage is also broken. The marriage does not cease to exist, but it is in crisis. Everything depends on what the couple do next.

Even though Israel broke the covenant, it does not cease to exist. God does not make another covenant. God’s promise to be with his people remains valid. But over that broken covenant, God extends pardon. With it, God promises that the old covenant will be renewed. It will become “new” in the sense of better, different, no longer breakable covenant. It is to be written directly to the heart.

For Christians, this promise in Jeremiah is fulfilled in Jesus (Lk 22:20; 1Cor 11:25; Heb 8:13; 12:24). The new covenant, no longer be broken, is written in the heart of Jesus.

The "new commandment" (mandatum novum) in John is not new in the sense of being original. It is "new" because it is different; it is renewed by Jesus. The reason to love one another is no longer just to feel good and safe, no enemy to worry about, and establish a smooth interpersonal relationship with others. The reason of love for one another is Jesus.

WANTED: GOOD SHEPHERD

2007-04-28T15:18:00.003+08:00

WANTED: GOOD SHEPHERD

The Gospel Text: John 10:27-30

Jesus said:
"My sheep hear my voice;
I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
No one can take them out of my hand.
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all,
and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.
The Father and I are one."

Instead of my usual Sunday commentary, I'm posting a Pastoral Statement from our bishop of the Diocese of Imus (Cavite). Bishop Chito Tagle relates the Gospel reading from John 10:27-30 ("Good Shepherd" theme) to the forthcoming midterm elections. Note, however, that the text does not come from the Good Shepherd discourse but from Jesus' interaction with his fellow Jews during the Feast of the Dedication (Jewish Hannukah). To have a proper context, the Good Shepherd discourse in 10:1-21 is worth reading then.

A good background material on the symbolism of shepherd in the Bible is the work of Elena Bosetti, Yahweh, Shepherd of the People: Pastoral Symbolism in the Old Testament (Slough, UK – Maynooth, Ireland: St. Pauls, 1993). Sister Elena Bosetti is a member of the Pastorelle sisters and currently professor of Biblical Theology at the Gregorian University. Please click on this for a sample of her lectio divina on shepherd.

Here’s the pastoral statement of Bishop Chito Tagle:

Today is Good Shepherd Sunday. We praise God for sending us Jesus, the Good Shepherd who offered himself so that we may have life.
Life. Humane and full life – that is God’s design for us. That is our dream as well. As one Filipino people, we hope that after periods of trials, the vision of the Book of Revelation may come true: “Never again shall they know hunger or thirst…for the Lamb on the throne will shepherd them. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water, and God will wipe every tear from their eyes” (Rev 7:16-17). It is clear that when Jesus the Lamb of God shephers the suffering people, they will find a humane and full life.
How was Jesus able to truly shepherd us? The gospel describes Him and His shepherding in three ways. First, He knows his sheep and they follow Him (Jn 10:27). He is not a stranger who does not understand his sheep, but rather one who has intimately entered their lives. Secondly, He gives them eternal life and they will not perish (Jn 10:28). Jesus does not lead the sheep to destruction or death but to the good. Thirdly, Jesus and his Father are one (Jm 10:30). His loving union with the Father and His will is the root of His love and mission towards the sheep. His shepherding does not spring from ambition but from the love of the God the Father. A shepherd with these three characteristics of Jesus will surely lead us to a humane and full life.
In two weeks we shall have national and local elections. We will choose our leaders or shepherds in government. Let us not forget, however, that in building up our society, all of us are shepherds. Our nation, province, town or city is our common responsibility. Common responsibility calls for common shepherding. This is called participatory governance. Everyone shares in achieving a humane and full life for all. The Social Teaching of the Church stresses that it is a Christian duty to participate in community life especially through an informed and responsible choice of leaders during elections (Compendium 190-191). Pope John Paul II teaches that democracy is safeguarded when the people choose their leaders and hold them accountable to the people (Centessimus Annus 46). It is the obligation of those elected to give an accounting of their work to the people (Compendium 408). Therefore, leaders and citizens are shepherds of one another so that the whole community may achieve a humane and full life.
Given the vision of the Diocese of Imus of a community that is God-oriented and therefore oriented to neighbor, life, society and creation, we your pastors are calling on the candidates and the citizenry to reflect on the following:
Elect only those candidates who are God-fearing, morally upright, worthy and prepared. Do not choose potential winners because they are popular but for those who deserve to be elected. We often think that a vote for a potential loser is a wasted vote. That is not so. A vote for an unworthy candidate is wasted, even if the candidate wins.
It is the duty of the laity, together with the ordained and religious, to participate in the PPCRV-NASSA-Namfrel programs of voters' education, the guarding of ballots and their tabulation. Monitoring the performance of elected officials is equally important so that our votes will not be wasted.
Based on the social concerns in Cavite that surfaced during our Diocesan Caravan of Christ the King last November 24-25, 2006, let us invite candidates in our province, towns and cities to publicly commit themselves to these concerns:
A comprehensive plan to protect ecology in Cavite, to keep it clean and suitable for healthy living, and to conserve Cavite's agriculture.
A vigorous program to protect the dignity, rights and livelihood of Cavite’s laborers, farmers, fishing communities, women and poor settlers.
A clear program to safeguard the institution of the family and family values in the face of cultural changes and the massive migration of Caviteño OFWs.
A viable program for the protection of children in Cavite, especially those of OFW parents, the homeless, undernourished and abused.
A program for making health service available and affordable in
Cavite.
Rejection and eradication of jueteng and illegal gambling in Cavite.
Rejection and eradication of violence, arbitrary arrest and killing as a way of doing politics in Cavite.
Rejection and eradication of receiving and giving bribes as a political tool in Cavite.
Let us discern whether our candidates are good shepherds who would hear our voice and respond to our pleas for a humane and full life.
We are inviting the various ministries, basic ecclesial communities, religious organizations and ecclesial movements to coordinate with their parish priests in order to organize prayer vigils, holy hours, recitation of the rosary and other forms of prayer on the day leading up to May 14 elections. Through the prayer of the Mary, Our Lady of the Pillar, we entrust our nation and our province of Cavite to Jesus the Good Shepherd who desires that every Filipino and Caviteño may have a humane and full life.

Luis Antonio G. Tagle
Bishop of Imus

3rd Sunday of Easter (C): The Confession of Peter

2007-04-21T03:44:00.000+08:00

Martyrdom of St Peter (1546-50) by Michelangelo
Cappella Paolina, Palazzi Pontifici, Vatican
The tradition that Peter was crucified upside down
is found in the apocryphal Acts of Peter.

The Text: John 21:1-19

At that time, Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
He revealed himself in this way.
Together were Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus,
Nathanael from Cana in Galilee,
Zebedee's sons, and two others of his disciples.
Simon Peter said to them, "I am going fishing."
They said to him, "We also will come with you."
So they went out and got into the boat,
but that night they caught nothing.
When it was already dawn, Jesus was standing on the shore;
but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to them, "Children, have you caught anything to eat?"
They answered him, "No."
So he said to them, "Cast the net over the right side of the boat
and you will find something."
So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in
because of the number of fish.
So the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, "It is the Lord."
When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord,
he tucked in his garment, for he was lightly clad,
and jumped into the sea.
The other disciples came in the boat,
for they were not far from shore, only about a hundred yards,
dragging the net with the fish.
When they climbed out on shore,
they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it and bread.
Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish you just caught."
So Simon Peter went over and dragged the net ashore
full of one hundred fifty-three large fish.
Even though there were so many, the net was not torn.
Jesus said to them, "Come, have breakfast."
And none of the disciples dared to ask him, "Who are you?"
because they realized it was the Lord.
Jesus came over and took the bread and gave it to them,
and in like manner the fish.
This was now the third time Jesus was revealed to his disciples

after being raised from the dead.
When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter,
"Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?"
Simon Peter answered him, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."
Jesus said to him, "Feed my lambs."
He then said to Simon Peter a second time,
"Simon, son of John, do you love me?"
Simon Peter answered him, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."
Jesus said to him, "Tend my sheep."
Jesus said to him the third time,
"Simon, son of John, do you love me?"
Peter was distressed that Jesus had said to him a third time,
"Do you love me?" and he said to him,
"Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you."
Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep.
Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger,
you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted;
but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands,
and someone else will dress you
and lead you where you do not want to go."
He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God.
And when he had said this, he said to him, "Follow me."

Commentary
As the midterm elections in the

Philippines

are fast approaching, candidates are now doing everything to get themselves elected. The cheapest medium is the word. If poets wrestle with words and the just meditate the Word day and night (Psalm 1), politicians manipulate words. Words are desacralized. They are emptied of symbols and transcendence. In many politicians’ speeches, words become banal –"only words", devoid of responsibility. Politicians create an aphoria of words and actions, of theoria and praxis. One line of a song says it all: "Salita, puro ka salita, kulang ka naman sa gawa".

Such an aphoria affects not only politicians.

Peter exhibits such comportment the Gospel of John. What he says is the opposite of what he does. In John 6, people board boats from sea of Tiberias to look for Jesus apparently to benefit from the miracle of multiplication of loaves that Jesus performed earlier. Jesus takes the occasion to teach the crowd (the Bread of Life discourse). Like a prophet and unlike a politician, Jesus does not speak "smooth things" just to please the crowd (Isa 30:10). The crowd reacts: "This teaching [Greek "logos", "word"] is difficult; who can accept it" (John 6:60)? Even if Jesus tries to clarify his "word", many of his disciples decide no longer to follow him (John 6:66). So Jesus addresses the Twelve for them to make their own decision too. But Simon Peter declares strongly, "Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words [rēmata] of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God" (John 6:68-69). Perfect words.

But we the readers of the Gospel of John know that those words of Peter are empty, "only words". Peter will deny Jesus three times (John 18:17,25,27). When pressed if he is Jesus’ disciples, he would say "Ouk eimi" (I am not).

From chapters 1-20 of the Gospel of John, Peter is presented as an anti-model of a disciple, a man who has no word of honor. At the washing of the feet of the disciples, he gets the wrong end of the stick (13:6-10). Even at the scene of the resurrection, readers find his character comical -- he is outrun by the Beloved Disciple (John 20:4).

But in this chapter 21, the very last chapter of the Fourth Gospel (the reading for the 3^rd Sunday of Easter C), Peter is portrayed in a better light. Scholars today agree that Chapter 21 belong to a later period, no longer written by the author of the Fourth Gospel but added to the Gospel by an editor. If this is the case, chapter 21 reflects a certain tradition among the early Christians that carries themes such as Peter’s renewal of discipleship, his role as a shepherd of the Church, his death as a martyr, the role of the Beloved Disciple, his death, its relation to second coming (R. Brown). These are concerns, both pastoral and theological, that preoccupied the members of the Christian community in second century A.D., in particular, the community of the Beloved Disciple. Chapter 21 attempts to clarify those, especially the role of Peter in the early Christian Church after he failed in his loyalty to the Lord.

After the miraculous catch of fish and the Beloved Disciple’s recognition of the risen Jesus (vv. 6-7), the disciples with the Risen Lord gather around a charcoal fire, almost like a beach picnic (v. 8). But the last time we hear of such gathering around a charcoal fire was in the courtyard of the high priest. The Beloved Disciple and also Peter were there with the slaves and the police warming themselves at the fire as Jesus was being tried before the Sanhedrin (John 18:18). This was the scene of Peter denying three times that he was with Jesus.

The writer of the Fourth Gospel wants his readers to associate the gathering around a charcoal fire in chapter 21 with this sad event in the life of Peter. As Peter denied Jesus three times, so Jesus asks Peter three times to love (be loyal to) him (vv. 15-17). Very often, "love" in Bible means loyalty (Deut 6:5). At third question of loyalty, Peter felt hurt (v. 17). It is on this third question that he realizes that he betrayed the Lord three times.

Nonetheless, Jesus, the Good Shepherd, entrusts his flock to Peter. As the Good Shepherd, Jesus is concerned of his flock now that he will no longer be seen in their midst. Jesus does not abandon them. He appoints Peter as their shepherd.

As a shepherd Peter must also be ready must to "lay down his life for the sheep" (John 10:11). Jesus predicts such a violent fate of Peter in a metaphor: "someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go." He would suffer martyrdom, just like many others, as a consequence of his following of Jesus.

With this figure of Peter with both lights and shadows, he would be a fitting model of identification for us today who see ourselves failing in our loyalty to Jesus but still realize we are given opportunities to renew our commitment to the risen Lord.

2nd Sunday of Easter (C): The Faithful Thomas

2007-04-13T00:24:00.000+08:00

by Caravaggio; photo grab: wikipedia

The Text: John 20:19-31

On the evening of that first day of the week,
when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,
for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood in their midst
and said to them, "Peace be with you."
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you.
As the Father has sent me, so I send you."
And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
"Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,
and whose sins you retain are retained."

Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve,
was not with them when Jesus came.
So the other disciples said to him, "We have seen the Lord."
But he said to them,
"Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands
and put my finger into the nailmarks
and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."

Now a week later his disciples were again inside
and Thomas was with them.
Jesus came, although the doors were locked,
and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you."
Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands,
and bring your hand and put it into my side,
and do not be unbelieving, but believe."
Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me?
Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples
that are not written in this book.
But these are written that you may come to believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that through this belief you may have life in his name. (NAB)

Commentary:

Right after we buried our confrere, the slain SVD missionary Fr. Fransiskus Madhu, SVD, I asked Fr. Gerry Gudmalin, SVD, Francis' companion and parish priest of the Lubuagan (Kalinga) Mission, what will be their next move. Without blinking an eye, Fr. Gerry spoke of remaining in Lubuagan and the other SVD missionaries in the Kalinga mission, even in the face of violence and death.

"Let us also go, that we may die with him" (John 11:16). This is what Thomas says as he addresses his fellow disciples. The occasion: it is the eve of Jesus' passion. News of the illness of Lazarus, a close friend of Jesus, reached the master and his disciples. But Jesus waits for two days on the other side of the Jordan River, as if to give Lazarus the dignity of dying and being raised again. Jesus is determined to go to Bethany near Jerusalem. His disciples are afraid of the consequences. The last time he was there, he was almost stoned to death (John 10:31). So the disciples restrain him: "Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again" (John 11:18)? But Thomas persuades his fellow disciples to go with their master and die with him. They heed Thomas.

Experts on the Gospel of John think that Thomas's reaction is unequivocal (i.e., he means what he says). Unlike Peter who makes an empty promise to Jesus to remain faithful until death (John 13:36-38) (note that Peter talks to Jesus alone), the word of Thomas is intended for his fellow disciples. It is for this reason that Thomas will stand out among the disciples to encounter the risen Lord after his resurrection.

Today's interpretation of this Sunday Gospel text is often times colored by the English expression "doubting Thomas" (synonym for "cynic, disbeliever, doubter"). Indeed, Thomas comes a late believer of Jesus' resurrection, but never too late to formulate the most profound and radical confession of the Gospel of John: ho kurios mou kai ho theos mou ("My Lord and my God", John 20:28).

The disciple who has not remained faithful to Jesus when he faced violent death needs to make a kind of an oath of allegiance to the master after the resurrection. This is what Peter does when meets the risen Lord at the Lake of Tiberias (21:1-17). Thomas does not need such a renewal of vow. He has been faithful to his master.

Thomas is a kind of a model disciple, one who sincerely seeks to understand the message of Jesus (see 14:5) and at the same time commits himself to the person of Jesus. Without fear, he announces in public his readiness to share the violent death of the master and so accompanies the him on way to Jerusalem.

The violent death of Fr. Madhu is a powerful example of such fidelity. He was shot by an M-16 armalite while preparing to celebrate Palm Sunday Mass commemorating Jesus' entrance to Jerusalem. The "stampita" (little card) distributed during before the mass has the text from the Fourth Gospel: "I appointed you to go and bear fruit" (15:16). This passage belongs to the farewell discourses of Jesus where the Johannine theme of martyrdom, or at least witness until death, is best articulated. Jesus announces that his own disciples will experience hatred of the world (15:18-25). As the Holy Spirit will bear witness in or through them, they will also bear witness (Greek martureite vv. 26-27). They will be expelled from the synagogues and be killed (16:1-4). In an earlier text, Jesus compares himself with a grain of wheat falling to the ground to give life to a new plant, to a new life (12:24). Likewise, the followers of Jesus will share this destiny.

Thomas expressed clearly his fidelity to Jesus in his willingness to share his master’s violent destiny. Fr. Fransiskus Madhu, SVD missionary, felled by five bullets, shared this destiny not "in word but in deed" (cf. 1 John 3:18). The Church Father, Tertullian (ca. 155–230 A.D.) once wrote, "Sanguinis martyrum, semen christianorum" ("Blood of martyrs, seed of Christians").

------------------
Sources:

Johannes Beutler, "Faith and Confession: The Purpose of John" in J. Painter, R. Alan Culpepper and F. F. Segovia (eds.), Word, Theology, and Community in John (St. Louis, MS: Chalice Press, 2002), pp. 19-29.

Raymond Brown, A Risen Christ in Eastertime: Essays on the Gospel Narratives of the Resurrection (Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 1991).

Easter Sunday: The Empty Tomb

2007-04-08T13:47:00.000+08:00

Women arriving at the Empty Tomb
photo grab: heqiarts.com

In the resurrection narratives of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), the only passage common among them is the visit of some women to the tomb of Jesus, or the so-called "empty tomb". Since the supposedly discovery of another tomb of Jesus (lost tomb?) wants us to believe that a critical challenge has been posed on gospels' account of the empty tomb, I'm going to post once again an undedited version of article I have written on the topic published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer. Click on this for the published article. Since the publication of this article, there have been numerous studies, accessible online, supporting what I have written. Click on this to ge a free e-book on the topic.

The "Lost Tomb of Jesus"
by Randolf C. Flores, SVD
Bible and Hebrew Language Professor
Divine Word Seminary
4120 Tagaytay City

"His disciples may go and steal him away" (Mt 27:64). This was what the chief priests and the Pharisees suspected to happen after Jesus’ death so they came to Pilate a day after with a request to station a security guard at the tomb of Jesus. In that culture, like ours, where deception, lying, hypocrisy, and secrecy are social strategies, the missing corpse would prove that Jesus was raised from the dead. Does this text allude that Jesus’ body was transferred, if not stolen, to another tomb?

The recent announcement of Discovery Channel that they have found the "lost tomb of Jesus" could be an intriguing attempt to shed light on this question. Discovery is coming out with documentary this Sunday with James Cameron of "Titanic" fame as executive producer and Emmy award winning documentarian Simcha Jacobovici as director. Its website gives ample information on the circumstances of the discovery, the process of interpreting the inscriptions involving respected New Testament Scholars and the use of DNA testing—thus the univocal assertion that the tomb “belonged to the family of Jesus of Nazareth.” The title of the just release book of Jacobovici which he co-authored with Charles Pellegrino sums it all: The Jesus Family Tomb: The Discovery, the Investigation, and the Evidence That Could Change History (HarperCollins, 2007).

The Catholic hierarchy (CBCP ) issued an immediate reaction through the media, "it’s not true", arguing that "Jesus" was a common name in the first century A.D. and so coincidental. But that was precisely what Jacobovici disproved. For the documentary, he sought the help of a respected statistician who did a study of the probabilities leading to the conclusion that the odds is at least 600 to 1 in favor of the tomb being Jesus' family tomb. The ratio is reduced dramatically if one runs the name “Jesus, son of Joseph”, a combination name in one of the inscriptions.

The bone of contention is actually the bone-boxes or ossuaries found in 1980 in a tomb in Talpiot, a neighborhood southeast of Jerusalem. The ten ossuaries reveal inscriptions written in Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, and Latin and interpreted by Jacobovici as the names of Jesus and his alleged "family" including Mary Magdalene as his wife and a certain Judah as his son. That Jesus had a wife and that he had a son is certainly an over-interpretation of the inscriptions disregarding critical reading of history. However, the Aramaic inscription "Jesus, son of Joseph" is something that New Testament scholars should reckon with. Discovery’s website informs that no less than the Harvard scholar Frank Moore Cross, a name in biblical studies and biblical archeology, did an epigraphic study of the said inscription and assessed that the lettering reads "Jesus, son of Joseph" and dates to the Herodian Period (from around 1 B.C. to 1 A.D.). If we accept statistics and epigraphic evidence, we have here a plausible Jesus’ ossuary.

What are the implications of this? Jesus underwent a secondary burial. His bones were placed in an ossuary to be buried possibly near to his family. And thus we are faced with a theological problem -- that there was no resurrection, or if there was, it was simply a spiritual resurrection "in which the husk of the body is left behind," as James Tabor, controversial New Testament scholar and consultant on the film said in an interview.

What theologians have to say on this would be interesting to know. But let me just pinpoint some loopholes in the claim of Discovery.

First, the title "Jesus, son of Joseph" was never a title used by the early followers of Jesus. It was used later and by outsiders (see Luke 3:23; John 1:45 & 6:42). It’s difficult to understand why such a rare title was inscribed on a Jesus’ ossuary.

Second, it was next to impossible to transfer the body of Jesus if we consider the biblical account of his burial: the tomb had a large stone rolled to it, was sealed, and was guarded (Matthew 27:60-66). The women discovered an empty tomb in the first hours of the Sabbath (Mark 16:2; Matthew 28:1). If there was an attempt to move the body out, it would have been during the Sabbath, a serious violation of the Sabbath prescription.

Third, sometime around 50 B.C. to 50 A.D., the Roman emperor issued an edict, Diategma Kaisaros (Caesar’s Edict) that sepulchers and graves should remain unmolested in perpetuity as a way of honoring the dead. The edict also warned of serious punishment for violators.

Fourth, Eusebius, a Church historian in 4^th cent. A.D., wrote that the tomb of James, the "brother" of Jesus, became a pilgrimage spot in Jerusalem for many Christians. If this was part of the family tomb of Jesus in Talpiot, Christian pilgrims would not have gone there since that would contradict their belief in a Risen Jesus. Eusebius’ description of the tomb of James, who as martyred around 62 A.D., appeared to be a singular tomb. Why he was not buried in the family tomb of Jesus?

Lastly, what is the significance of Talpiot as the final resting place of Jesus and his family? Jesus came from Nazareth and most probably some members of his close family (like Mary) were still alive at the time of his death. Followers could bury him there or somewhere in Galilee like in Capernaum, his adopted town.

In short, the Discovery’s "Lost Tomb of Jesus" does not have a compelling evidence to "rewrite Christianity".

Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion (C): The Prophet Enters Jerusalem

2007-03-30T00:04:00.000+08:00

Jesus crucified with criminals

(from the panel of the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica)
photo grab: stpetersbasilica.org

THE TEXT
Click on Lk 19:28-40 (Entry to Jerusalem)
Lk 23:1-49 (Passion of Jesus)

COMMENTARY

C'est bizarre

Since there is no developed idea of an afterlife punishment (or "hell") in the Old Testament, not to be remembered is one of the punishments of the wicked. It’s not surprising then that evil fears forgetfulness. We saw this in the recent news of the hostage taking of school children and teachers. The hostage-takers made sure they will be remembered. They got the media, local and international. They stamped their memory on the children with a kiss, just like Judas. It’s bizarre that media could call these hostage-takers who had with them two grenades, a fully loaded Uzi and a pistol and who used innocent children ages 5 to 8 –"mabait" ("kind"). Click on this.

In contrast, one unnamed criminal, one of the two who was crucified with Jesus, asked to be remembered – not by the crowd, not by the world – but by Jesus: "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom" (Lk 23:42).

"An Orderly Account"

We are in the story of the Passion of Jesus according to Luke. Let me first offer a short introduction of Luke’s understanding of who Jesus that will help us comprehend with more depth the mystery of the Lord’s Passion.

The evangelist Luke informs us at the beginning of his Gospel that "after investigating everything carefully from the very first" (1:3) he decides to write "an orderly account"(1:3) in order to "know the truth" (1:4). In a way, Luke may seem to be unsatisfied with the way others have written about Jesus, perhaps referring to the Gospel of Mark from which Luke borrows some of his materials.

The author of the Third Gospel then aims at presenting a more complete account of Jesus and his ministry. In fact, Luke does not end with his story of Jesus as the rest of the Gospels do, but goes on to narrate to us the life of the early Christians as they went about preaching the Good News. This is Luke’s second volume, the Acts of the Apostles.

In that sense, Luke becomes a reliable source of the knowledge of the truth that is Jesus. Hearing and reading Luke’s story of Jesus’ Passion on this Palm Sunday (year C) allow us to have a closer look at who Jesus is as experienced by "eyewitnesses and ministers of the word" (1:2).

The Rejected Prophet

When Luke presents Jesus in his writing we get another angle, another portrait from those given to us by the three other Gospel writers. If Mark portrays Jesus to be the "crucified messiah", Matthew the "new Moses", and John the "divine logos" ("word"), for Luke Jesus is a rejected prophet.

Jesus is born like a prophet. When Hannah who is barren learns that she is conceiving a son, she breaks forth into a song. Samuel, her son, would become the first major prophet of the Old Testament. Mary conceives Jesus and breaks forth into a song (the Magnificat) almost the same as that of Hannah. At the infant Jesus’ presentation in the Temple of Jerusalem (Lk 2:26-29), the Holy Family encounters two prophets, Simeon and Anna. Simeon prophesies the child’s future destiny: "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed" (v. 34).

Jesus teaches like a prophet. Jesus begins his public ministry with the reading of the scroll of Isaiah and offers himself as the fulfillment of this prophetic ministry – "to bring good news to the poor. . . to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor" (Lk 4:18-19).

Jesus describes his listeners' antagonistic reaction by saying, "No prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown" (4:24). When he defends his interpretation of Isaiah by appealing to events in the prophetic ministries of Elijah and Elisha, this antagonism becomes a rage 4:25-28). Jesus therefore aligns himself with the Old Testament prophets like Amos, Isaiah, and Jeremiah whose teachings were rejected by the majority.

Jesus heals like a prophet. One day, Jesus goes to a town called Nain, about 40 kms southwest of Capernaum. As he enters the gate, he meets a funeral procession. The only son of a widow is dead. Jesus comforts the widow and brings to life the dead young man (Lk 7:11-17). The reaction of the large crowd and the disciples is one of 'fear' leading to them to confess: "A great prophet has risen among us" (v. 16)! The incident is similar to the prophet Elijah’s raising of the widow’s son in 1 Kings 17.

Although Luke affirms a number of times that Jesus is greater the prophets (7:24-28; 9:18-20, 28-36), he makes his readers understand that Jesus is a prophet who fulfills the work of the great prophets of Israel. As such, he will die in Jerusalem. When he is in Jerusalem, some concerned Pharisees come to him to warn him to get away from Jerusalem for Herod wants to kill him (Lk 13:31). In an unequivocal reply, Jesus says: "Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem" (v. 33).

Journey to Jerusalem

Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem is so emphasized in Luke’s Gospel. While Mark devotes three chapters (8:27-10:52), Luke spends 30 chapters(!) to narrate the journey to Jerusalem. Luke begins his narrative with a strong determination on the part of Jesus: "he set his face to go to Jerusalem" (Lk 9:51).

The journey is concluded with a sort of an ancient royal entrance procession to Jerusalem (Lk 19:28-40, first Gospel reading of this year’s Palm Sunday). The elaborate preparation of securing a donkey to ride on indicates further the determination of the prophet to enter Jerusalem. It may also remind the readers of a non-Israelite prophet, Balaam, who rides on a donkey to set off to curse Israel. Instead, he ends up blessing Israel (Numbers 22-24).

In any case, the entrance procession pauses for a prophetic lament over Jerusalem (Lk 19:41-44). Jesus weeps over Jerusalem. This evokes an earlier lament (in Lk 13:34-45): "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!"

In the Old Testament, the one known for his laments over Jerusalem is Jeremiah, the weeping prophet (Jer 11:18-20:18). So when Jesus enters Jerusalem’s Temple and “cleanses” it, he cites the prophets, especially Jeremiah: "My house shall be a house of prayer" [Isa 56:7]; but you have made it a den of robbers" [Jer 7:11].

Prophet Crucified

When we reflect on the Passion of Jesus, we should try to avoid to conflate (to make 'halo-halo") the four Passion Narratives. Although the four narratives in the Gospels manifest a general similarity in narrative sequence, there is a considerable difference in content. Usually, it is in those differences that we discover the meaning that the Gospel writer wants to communicate to his readers.

In the Gospel of Mark, for example, Jesus’ passion is highlighted by the feeling of human divine abandonment. This reaches its peak in Jesus only words on the cross: "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me" (Mk 15:24)? But in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus does not manifest such sentiment and anguish. The Lucan Jesus is brave and resolute. In the via crucis, when Jesus saw women "beating their breasts and wailing for him" he turns to them and says: "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children" (Lk 23:28).

Jesus on the Cross is a picture of a prophet, one who knows fully his destiny as fulfillment of the will of God. So his first words are one of forgiveness: "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing" (Lk 23:24). Forgiveness is put into practice when one of the criminals who was crucified with him prays to Jesus to be remembered (Lk 23:42).

In the Old Testament, divine forgiveness is expressed in God remembering his people. In the Magnificat, Mary sings that God’s "mercy is on those who fear him" (Lk 1:50) and that God has helped his servant Israel "in remembrance of his mercy" (Lk 1:54)

In this light, we understand the instant fortune of the crucified criminal who reminds his partner to "fear God" (Lk 23:40) and makes a brief but effective prayer for remembrance. That prayer is interpreted by Jesus as a prayer for forgiveness. He can then promise to that criminal: "Truly I tell you, today you will be with in Paradise" (Lk 23:42).

Here is the fulfillment of the prophetic mission of Jesus which he reads earlier from the scroll of Isaiah: "to bring freedom to prisoners" (Lk 4:18). Jesus exercises his prophetic ministry even at the point of death. Thus, with both courage and serenity, the crucified prophet finally calls out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit" (Lk 44:46).

REFERENCES:

R. Brown, Death of the Messiah, 2 vols. (NY: Doubleday, 1994).

R. Alan Culpepper, "The Gospel of Luke" in The New Interpreter's Bible vol. 9, pp. 3-490.

J. J. Kilgallen, A Brief Commentary of Luke (NY/Mahwah: Paulist, 1988).

D. Senior, The Passion of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke (Wilmington, Delaware: Michael Glazier,1989).

K. Stock, "Il racconto della Passione nei Vangeli sinottici" (Unpublished notes; Rome: Pontifical Biblical Institute, 1995).

B. E. Ehrman, The Great Courses: The New Testament (DVD Video; University of Carolina, 2001).

Holy Week in Tagaytay City

2007-03-28T15:06:00.000+08:00

For those who will be spending Holy Week up here in Tagaytay City, here's the schedule of Divine Word Seminary Chapel for the Liturgical Services (Triduum) on Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, and Easter Sunday.
Please click on the image.

5th Sunday of Lent (C): The Story of the "Adulterous" Woman

2007-03-25T06:59:00.002+08:00

Susanna and the Elders (1610)
by Artemisia Gentileschi (Schloss Weissenstein, Pommersfelden)
photo grab: wikipedia

The Text: John 7:53 - 8:11

Then each went to his own house
while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area,
and all the people started coming to him,
and he sat down and taught them.
Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman
who had been caught in adultery
and made her stand in the middle.
They said to him,
"Teacher, this woman was caught
in the very act of committing adultery.
Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women.
So what do you say?"
They said this to test him,
so that they could have some charge to bring against him.
Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.
But when they continued asking him,
he straightened up and said to them,
"Let the one among you who is without sin
be the first to throw a stone at her."
Again he bent down and wrote on the ground.
And in response, they went away one by one,
beginning with the elders.
So he was left alone with the woman before him.
Then Jesus straightened up and said to her,
"Woman, where are they?
Has no one condemned you?"
She replied, "No one, sir."
Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you.
Go, and from now on do not sin any more."

Commentary

The news carried the other day photographs of three nuns playing slot machines and blackjack at a gaming fair in Manila. Although the nuns were there obviously not to gamble, some bishops immediately thought of possible sanctions for this "shameful" scene. Sounds like the movie "Sister Act", parts I and II. And when we the Story of the Adulterous Woman is read at Mass today, we will be smiling at such an episcopal irony.
[click on this]

From the Gospel of John?
Earlier scholars usually begin their commentaries on this Story of the Adulterous Woman by informing readers of its textual problem. Earliest Greek manuscripts do not carry this story and when some later manuscripts do, it is usually found in different places: after John 7:53 or John 8:36 or John 8:44, or even after Luke 21:38. The style of the language is not clearly typical of the Gospel of John. The story suddenly interrupts, like a shooting star, the long dialogue between Jesus and the Jews in the Temple area. Jesus who is “talkative” suddenly is restraint in this story, contented with writing on the ground. Thus, scholars had thought of this controversial story as a later addition to the Gospel of John, from a different author or “A Non-Johannine Interpolation” as the late New Testament scholar Fr. Raymond Brown put as his title of this story.

Antiquity of the Text
Recent studies, however, would like us now to appreciate the antiquity of the text, perhaps first as an oral tradition. In fact, no less than a second Christian writer, Papias, might have known this story (as mentioned by Eusebius). A third-century writing also refers to the story of the adulteress (in Didascalia Apostolorum). The reason why this is missing in important Greek manuscripts, it was a scandalous story (as it is today)—Jesus tolerating adultery (!). The early Christians were not so enthusiastic to transmit the story. In fact, St. Augustine in one of his commentaries on marriage expressed his worry that this story might give women an excuse for not taking adultery as a grave sin.

Moral Problem
Indeed, this will not be only a scandal but also put Jesus in position of self-contradiction. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave a stern warning against adultery: "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Mt 5:27-28). Later on, in a figurative way, Jesus would give even a stricter warning:

"If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to enter life maimed or lame than to have two hands or two feet and to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into the hell of fire. " (Mat 18:8-9).

This could be the reason why the Pharisees and Scribes bring to Jesus a woman caught in adultery. They want to “test” him (v. 6), which means to enter into a debate with him, to show to the public that Jesus is contradicting himself.

A Remarried Divorcee?
In an interesting study written some years ago, a suggestion is made that the woman was not adulterous in the legal sense (in the sense of the law of Moses) but in the sense of Jesus’ teaching. A divorced woman who remarries commits adultery (Mark 10:12, also Matt 5:31-32; 19:3-9). In support of this, the study shows that some elements necessary to prosecute the case of adultery mentioned in Deut 22:22-24 are lacking: evidence and witnesses. Because of the gravity of the penalty, stoning to death, the trial for adultery is rigorous and difficult to prove: there should be at least two eye-witnesses who could testify to the unequivocal nature of the act, to the time when and the place where it occurred. Both the adulterer and adulteress, who are equally liable to death penalty (Lev 20:10), must be present. In the story, the two witnesses and woman’s partner are missing. The study then concludes that the case is not adultery but remarriage of a divorcee which is in Jesus’ teaching is "adultery".

The suggestion is interesting, but it is not totally convincing. The text in the Gospel of John does not speak of a case of a divorced woman. Nonetheless, it gives us an idea that the legal process is not being observed and therefore would justify Jesus’ stand.

Death by Stoning
The Pharisees and Scribe remind Jesus that "in the Law of Moses ordered such women to be stoned” (v. 5). As often thought the Old Testament ("Law of Moses") punishment is harsh and barbaric—stoning to death. But if we take a closer at the supposedly Old Testament texts cited, the manner of death penalty is not specified: “If a man commits adultery with the wife of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall be put to death (Lev 20:10)". The text in Deuteronomy specifies stoning but as punishment for the illicit affair of a woman who is betrothed (Deut 22:21). The book of the prophet Ezekiel speaks of adultery but the punishment is not clear whether it is stoning or something else. Note that it also a metaphor (Ezek 16:38-40).

Even if the punishment is stoning to death, we do not have evidence in the Bible, even in the Old Testament, that such is made into practice. The law is there but that the punishment of stoning is actually done is questionable. In fact, there are only two actual stoning that we know of: the stoning of Naboth (in 1 Kings 21:13) and Stephen (Acts 7:11-58). Neither of the two is an adultery case.

There is a similar story, the Story of Susanna, sometimes found in the book of Daniel (chapter 13), hence a Deuterocanonical writing (probably written in 1000 B.C.). Susanna is falsely accused of adultery by two dirty old men who are also judges. What kind of death penalty with which she is going to be punished not also specified.

In other words, Jesus has another basis for not applying stoning to death as punishment of the adulterous woman.

Ciphers in the Sand
Jesus' silent reaction is a bit strange given the fact that he was earlier "talkative". He writes on the ground (vv. 6 & 8). As this the only evidence of Jesus knowing how to write, we are interested to know what he could have written down. But the text is not interested with what Jesus writes but how he writes: "he bent down and wrote on the ground". It was St. Augustine who suggests (in one of his commentaries on John) that Jesus’ gesture is meant make a contrast with the Decalogue written in stone. The Law of Moses is not rigid nor cold like a stone. It is not a frozen law. Nor it is intended to be used for punishing or killing. The Law gives life (Ps 19:7). It is also written on the ground that is, a down-to-earth law. It considers the situation of the person, the circumstances, the intentions of the accusers and the victim. The Law of Moses allows us to see a broader understanding of sin rather than a narrow concept of it as shown by the accusers of the woman. That’s why Jesus could say: "Let the one who is without sin [Greek ho anamartētos] be the first to throw a stone at her" (v. 7).

Beginning with the Elders
The accusers' reaction is short but dramatic: "And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders" (v. 9). Age brings wisdom but also a lot of stupidity (Job 32:9). The disappearance beginning with the elders also reminds us of the two elders who were corrupt judges and who had falsely accused Susanna (Daniel s13). The woman and Jesus were left alone, the Miseria (Misery =Kawawa) and the Misericordia (Mercy =Awa), as St. Augustine writes. Jesus' counsel to the woman: "Go, (and) from now on do not sin any more" (v. 11) does not presuppose the woman's guilt. It was the same words that Jesus used to the paralyzed man who was healed (John 5:14).

The point of the whole story: Jesus shows appears as God’s representative who desires life for the sinner rather than death. What a timely text for this season of Lent.

NOTE: Even St. Augustine does not identify the woman as Mary Magdalene (unlike in Mel Gibson’s movie, “The Passion of the Christ” or with some uninformed preachers).

References:

Johannes Beutler, "Gesù si rivela al suo popolo: Gv 5-8" (Unpublished handouts, Pontifical Biblical Institute, Rome, 2006).

A. Watson, "Jesus and the Adulteress" Biblica 80 (1999), pp. 100-108.

L. Kreitzer – D. Rooke (eds.), Ciphers in the Sand: Interpretation of the Woman Taken in Adultery (John 7:53 – 8:11) (The Bible Seminar 74; Sheffield, 2000).

R. E. Brown, The Gospel of John I-XII (Anchor Bible 29; NY: Doubleday, 1966).

Seven Last Words at Divine Word Seminary Chapel

2007-03-21T14:16:00.000+08:00

Click on this or on the title above.

Fourth Sunday of Lent (C): The Parable of the Prodigal Son

2007-03-18T00:48:00.000+08:00

The Return of the Prodigal Son
(1773 Pompeo Batoni)
photo grab: wikipedia

The Text: Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
"This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."
So to them Jesus addressed this parable:
"A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father,
'Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.'
So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings
and set off to a distant country
where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.
When he had freely spent everything,
a severe famine struck that country,
and he found himself in dire need.
So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens
who sent him to his farm to tend the swine.
And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed,
but nobody gave him any.
Coming to his senses he thought,
'How many of my father’s hired workers
have more than enough food to eat,
but here am I, dying from hunger.
I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him,
"Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
I no longer deserve to be called your son;
treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers."'
So he got up and went back to his father.
While he was still a long way off,
his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion.
He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.
His son said to him,
'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;
I no longer deserve to be called your son.'
But his father ordered his servants,
'Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him;
put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.
Then let us celebrate with a feast,
because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;
he was lost, and has been found.'
Then the celebration began.
Now the older son had been out in the field
and, on his way back, as he neared the house,
he heard the sound of music and dancing.
He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean.
The servant said to him,
'Your brother has returned
and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf
because he has him back safe and sound.'
He became angry,
and when he refused to enter the house,
his father came out and pleaded with him.
He said to his father in reply,
'Look, all these years I served you
and not once did I disobey your orders;
yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends.
But when your son returns
who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,
for him you slaughter the fattened calf.'
He said to him,
'My son, you are here with me always;
everything I have is yours.
But now we must celebrate and rejoice,
because your brother was dead and has come to life again;
he was lost and has been found.'"

Commentary

It’s difficult to find something new to say about a biblical text that is as popular as the Parable of the Prodigal Son. The subject of many commentaries, the parable's oldest commentary could be traced back to the Church Father Tertullian in the middle of the second century A.D. who writes that the "most gentle father" in the parable is "God surely" (De Paenitentia) and in allegorical way (typical form of interpretation at that time) he explains that the ring that the father gave to the son is baptism, while the banquet is the Lord’s Supper (De Pudicitia).

The Parable as a Trap

The problem with parables such as this one is that the moment we begin to identify the characters or even identify ourselves with the characters, the parable "throws us beside" (literal meaning of the paraballō, the Greek root of the word, "parable").

Take for example the behavior of the father. If the father here is God the Father we would run into theological and moral difficulties: Why would Jesus depict God as owning slaves? As favoring one son over the other? As not remembering to invite the older son to the feast? As hoarding goods and partying while there is a severe famine in the land?

Some preachers also take note of the reaction of the father who runs to meet his lost son (v. 20) as unbecoming, a loss of dignity of some sort, for a respected elderly man to do so, thereby accenting the uniqueness and unconditional love of this father which only a Heavenly Father can do. But since when is running an unbecoming conduct in the Bible? People who run in the Bible do not reflect in anyway a loss of their dignity: Mary Magdalene runs to Simon Peter and the Beloved Disciple to report Jesus' empty tomb. Then Peter and the beloved disciple run together almost like a race to the tomb (John 20); Paul uses metaphors of running to illustrate his ministry (1 Cor 9:24, 26; Gal 2:2; Phil 2;16).

The image of a father waiting by the window, looking at a long and winding road for the return of the son often portrayed in plays is touching but a bit overdone. The text does not say that the father is waiting. But that he hopes for a run-away son to return is expected of any responsible father. A 2^nd century A.D. rabbinic writing uses a similar parable to explain the passage "You will return to the Lord your God" from Deut 4:30:

To what is the matter like? It is like the son of a king who took to evil ways. The king sent a teacher to him who appealed to him, saying, "Repent, my son." But the son sent him back to his father [saying], "How can I have the effrontery to return? I am ashamed to come before you." Thereupon his father sent back word: "My son, is a son ever ashamed to return to his father? And is it not to your father that you will be returning?'

Here we another example of a merciful father, but one who does not simply wait for the son's return but sends out messengers to the lost son.

It’s not so easy also to identify ourselves with the younger son who, in the text, does not seem to show a sincere conversion or repentance. The text says "he came to his senses" (v. 17, New American Bible translation), in Greek eis heauton de elthōn literally “he came to himself”. This is not the common word for the verb “to repent” which is metanoō. The prodigal son simply realizes that while he eats pig food, there is real and good food his father’s house. So he rehearses what he has to say to his father, short of genuine humility and sincerity. He will have to say "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you (vv. 18 & 21). But even the Pharaoh uttered the same empty words to Moses in Exodus 10:16, "I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you."

At the return of the prodigal son, most homilies end, even the Gospel reading in the Mass is cut short (the shorter version). We are tempted to end the story with the lavish banquet tendered by the father for his returning son, in a sort of "they live happily ever after." As in the parable, readers ignore, forget, and do not like the second son. In the midst of revelry, even the supposedly merciful father forgets the existence of his elder son. It’s strange that the elder son was not even informed or invited for the big celebration. He has to ask the slaves what’s going on (v. 26).

We do not like the elder brother even though he is what a son is supposed to be, loyal and obedient to his parents (Exodus 20:12, 4^th commandment) because of his feelings of resentment (Tagalog, tampo and sama ng loob) at his father and his younger brother. He is said to that he performs his duties out of fear rather than out of love for his father. But these are all over interpretation of the texts. For instance, the older brother complains and accuses his brother before his father: "This son of yours…swallowed up your property with prostitutes". Thus most plays portray a prodigal son spending all his money with new found friends in some sort of "beer houses". Commentaries point to a false accusation since the text does not say so. It simply states "he squandered his property in dissolute living" (v. 13). But the Greek words used "dieskorpisen" and "zaō asōtōs" would lead to such connotations. In contrast, it was the father who makes unkind remarks by calling his son "dead" and "lost" (v. 32).

The point is that this parable has no easy interpretation. Once you identify yourself with the one of the "better' characters, you find yourself trapped by the parable.

Parable of the Pigs

I remember a story share by an SVD missionary on this parable. He was stationed in the so-called bush mission in Papua New Guinea. He asked once the youth to dramatize the parable of the prodigal son. To his surprise, the young people scrambled for the role of ….the pigs! He soon found out that, in that tribe, the people consider pigs as one of the first creatures of God, hence an ancestor.

The Parable as Mimesis of Human Experience

Before we try to introduce divine allegories to the parable, it's good to remember that a parable speaks of a human experience: sibling rivalries, runaway children, wayward husbands, irresponsible fathers, poverty---concrete problems of families: Note that the parable begins with: "There was a man who had two sons". This phrase immediately tells of us of the many conflict stories in the Bible among siblings: Cain and Abel; Isaac and Ishmael, Jacob and Esau; Leah and Rachel; Joseph and his brothers; even Jesus came into conflict with his own relatives (cf. Luke 8:21); the disciples are warned that they too would be betrayed by their parents, brothers, sisters, relatives, and friends (Luke 21:16).

In the seminars for Basic Ecclesiastical Communities, young people usually act out this parable in a sort of a play I've noticed that the plot of this instant staged drama is common: because of poverty, a son decides one day to try his luck in the city. At first, he is hardworking but then when he has enough money, he now starts smoking, drinking, going to beer houses, and finally becomes a drug addict. Almost caught by the police, he decides to return home to the province but only to find his father dying.

In a kind of reader-response interpretation, the parable is made to imitate concrete human experiences. And in spite of the limits of the characters, the parable allows us possibility of reconciliation in the family, that there are good, understanding, and forgiving parents. This would also apply in communities whose members call themselves "brothers" or "sisters."

Last year, my brother suddenly became seriously sick. I took upon myself the responsibility to take care of him. It was not easy both financially and emotionally. Once I thought that I could have functioned better as a priest without getting involved in the concerns of my family. But then I also thought that perhaps part of my God-given vocation as priest is unrequited care of my brother.

I always connect this care for a brother with this story. Once there was man who saw a frail boy carrying a baby and staggering towards a park. The man said to the boy: "Pretty big load for such a small kid". With smile, the boy replied: "Why, mister, He ain't heavy; he's my brother." The story, as we know, inspired a composer to write the famous song with the same title: He ain't heavy; he's my brother.

-------------------

A great part of this reflection is adapted from Amy-Jill Levine, Same Stories, Different Understandings: Jews and Catholics in Conversation (CBAP Lectures; Quezon City: Catholic Biblical Association of the Philippines, 2004), pp. 48-56.

Third Sunday of Lent C: "Hope for a Tree"

2007-03-09T16:34:00.000+08:00

The Text: Luke 13:1-9 (NAB)

Some people told Jesus about the Galileans
whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices.
Jesus said to them in reply,
"Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way
they were greater sinners than all other Galileans?
By no means!
But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!
Or those eighteen people who were killed
when the tower at Siloam fell on them—
do you think they were more guilty
than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem?
By no means!
But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!"

And he told them this parable:
"There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard,
and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none,
he said to the gardener,
'For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree
but have found none.
So cut it down.
Why should it exhaust the soil?'
He said to him in reply,
'Sir, leave it for this year also,
and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it;
it may bear fruit in the future.
If not you can cut it down.'"

Commentary

Angeles, Baguio & Ormoc

In 1990 a killer earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 in the Richter scale devastated the City of Baguio. The year after, 1991, two major natural disasters struck the country -- the eruption of Mount Pinatubo and the floods in Leyte, particularly in Ormoc City. Those were the worst of times.

I remember hearing a comment, certainly insensitive, that divine punishment has visited three sin cities, Angeles (vicinity of Mt. Pinatubo, had been notorious for its night spots), Baguio (city that does not respect Holy Week), and Ormoc (in Leyte, associated with the ostentatious wife of a dictator). These cities were then baptized with a punitive acronym "ABO" (Tagalog, "ash") and were compared with the biblical twin cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Bible and Natural Disasters
The thought that moral transgressions bring about natural disasters in a kind of cause and effect could be traced back to the Bible, especially in the prophets of Ancient Israel. In the middle of the 8^th century B.C., the prophet Amos (chapters 7-9), in a series of vision reports (a form of delivering a prophetic message in Antiquity), warns that natural disasters will certainly strike and destroy the northern kingdom of Israel as proofs of God’s wrath over the former’s actions of injustice against the poor and the weak: "Ah, you that turn justice to wormwood, and bring righteousness to the ground!"(Amos 5:7)

Locusts, fire, epidemic of skin disease, famine, and earthquake, all coming from God, will devastate the land. By affirming that divine punishment is to be carried out by means of natural catastrophes, Amos laid the basis for a certain understanding of divine action in history that would be immensely influential but also very problematic.

Divine Punishment
We feel the same problem when we begin to interpret the Gospel text for this 3^rd Sunday of Lent, Luke 13:1-9.

The writer Luke informs us of 18 people who were killed by accident when the tower in the old wall of Jerusalem near the pool of Siloam collapsed (13:4), perhaps due to an earthquake. Jesus uses this unfortunate accident to teach repentance in order to avoid divine punishment of a similar kind.

Although this accident is known only in Luke's Gospel and was not even mentioned by historians at that time like Josephus, it would reflect, however, a prevailing concept of divine punishment like that in Amos: natural disasters/accidents happen due to human beings' sinfulness.

Hope for a Tree
The moment we begin to question if such equation is reasonable, Luke has Jesus narrating a parable of a barren fig tree (13:6-9). The story seems to be an anticipated answer to a possible question on God's love and the meaning of natural disasters.

The parable is very simple. A farmer's fig tree remained fruitless for three years so he decides one day to cut it down. But his gardener makes a wise appeal: "Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down" (13:8-9). Patient is the gardener indeed. It's not difficult to imagine the "gardener" in Resurrection Narrative in the Gospel of John who apparently was the …. Risen Jesus (John 20:15).

The tree is given a fourth chance, quite unlikely in the book of Amos where sure punishment comes on the third offense. Note the common expression there: “For three transgressions and for four, I will not revoke the punishment” (see, for example, Amos 1:3).

Hope in Genesis 1-11
That such a chance does happen, not only once, not twice, but all the time is attested in the first eleven chapters of the first book of the Bible, in Genesis.

After Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they are driven out of paradise (chapter 3). But God makes clothes for them and puts the clothes on them (3:21). That's a simple gesture of care but it does show that God does not abandon them. They have been punished, but God does not abandon them.

In Genesis 4, we read the first violence in the Bible. A brother kills his own brother. Blood is not thicker than water. God condemns Cain, but the murderer complains that his punishment is too great to bear which includes himself being killed. God relents and puts a mark on Cain’s forehead and says nobody is allowed to kill him. God gives the murderer a chance.

Genesis 6 begins the grim story of spread of the sin of human race. "Every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually" (v. 5), as the author of the Book Genesis describes. God was even sorry that he created human beings. He decides to destroy humanity including the earth with a flood. But again God gives a chance. He saves Noah and his family and the animals.

Then we have the famous story of the tower of Babel in Genesis 11. The people want to build a tower. There’s nothing wrong with that. Towers are common in ancient Near East. But a tower ("ziggurat") is not meant for human beings but for the gods and goddesses. That's why when the people build the tower of Babel to "create a name for themselves" (11:4), God is not pleased of such a human pride and self-aggrandizement. God and his council decide to confuse the mortals' languages and they did not understand one another. Yet God does not abandon these scattered peoples. He gives a chance. He chooses a particular group of people.

The rest of the Book of Genesis down to other four books of the Torah will be the story of a chosen people beginning with the story of Abraham and Sarah.

As the Book of Job says, "There is hope for a tree even if it is cut down" (14:7).

Reference:
Charles Conroy, Journeys and Servants (Quezon City: CBAP, 2003), pp. 1-22.

Second Sunday of Lent Year C: Transfiguration

2007-03-02T08:12:00.000+08:00

Mt. Everest, transfiguration place
of great mountain climbers
photo grab: accressthedivie.com

Here's my commentary on the Gospel reading for the Second Sunday of Lent Year C, Jesus' Transfiguration.

The Text: Luke 9:28-36

28 About eight days after he said this, he took Peter, John, and James and went up the mountain to pray.
29 While he was praying his face changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white. 30 And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah,
31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem. 32 Peter and his companions had been overcome by sleep, but becoming fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.
33 As they were about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good that we are here; let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." But he did not know what he was saying.
34 While he was still speaking, a cloud came and cast a shadow over them, and they became frightened when they entered the cloud.
35 Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my chosen Son; listen to him." 36 After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. They fell silent and did not at that time tell anyone what they had seen.

Commentary

Mountain Climbing
When the three Filipino mountain climbers came down from Mount Everest, it was clear they were no longer the same persons as before. They have been "transfigured" by their climbing and beholding the earth’s highest mountain.

Not so with the three disciples Peter, John and James. Their experience of mountain climbing and beholding the "glory" of earth’s highest Lord has not left them "transfigured". When they come down from the mountain, Peter denies Jesus three times (Lk 22:34), the brothers James and John want to satisfy their naked ambition to share in the "glory" of Jesus (Mk 10:37).

Note that Jesus' transfiguration is meant for them (Luke 9:35).

Tent Building
No wonder, Peter attempts to fix the experience by suggesting to make three tents, one for Jesus, one for Moses, and one for Elijah. In Ancient Near East, the homes of gods and goddesses are in far away mountains and in tents. But Luke makes it a point that Peter does not know what he was saying (v. 33). Luke has Stephen tell us clearly that "The Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands" (Acts 7:48-50).

Moses and Elijah
The presence of two Old Testament figures, Moses and Elijah is interesting. These two men are considered prophets not in the classical sense (not in sense of the "writing" prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, etc.). What’s the connection among the three? The key is found in the last prophetic book of the Old Testament, in the book of the Prophet Malachi (4:4-5):

⁴Remember the teaching of my servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel. ⁵ Lo, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes. ⁶ He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse.

As Jesus goes up to the mountain to confirm his mission from God, so do Moses and Elijah who go up to Mount Horeb (1 Kgs 19; Exod 34).

The three are said to be talking of Jesus' "exodus" (departure, v. 31) that is about to be "fulfilled" (Greek plērōō) in Jerusalem. At his ascension, Jesus tells his disciples that "It was necessary to fulfill everything about me in the Law of Moses, and the Prophets and the Psalms" (Lk 24:44). We can say that Jesus’ "exodus" (the paschal mystery) is the climax of God’s salvific plan from long ago.

Transfiguration and Agony in the Garden
All three Synoptic gospels carry this story of Jesus’ Transfiguration (see Mt 7:1-8; Mk 9:2-8). But only Luke reports that the transfiguration is in the context of prayer. What would have Jesus' prayed for?

Because of the themes of prayer, solitude, mountain, the presence of the three disciples Peter, John and James who are in deep asleep, and the talk of Jesus' passion, scholars see a parallel story in Jesus’ agony in the garden (see Lk 22:39-46). In the Mount of Olives, Jesus' prayer was:

"Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done."

Note that this prayer has similarities with the "Our Father".

It thus makes sense that the story of transfiguration becomes a story in the season of Lent. And we who are privileged to witness to this "glory" are also invited to be "transfigured" into it-- unlike Peter, John, and James.