May 22, Trinity Sunday

March 22, 2016

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

Proverbs 8:22-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15

Today is Holy Trinity Sunday. I remember this famous story about the Trinity and St Augustine. One day St Augustine walked along the sea shore and began reflecting on the mystery of the Trinity. He saw a little boy scooping water from the sea to fill up the small hole he made in the sand. Augustine asked the boy what he was doing. The boy replied, “I am transferring the ocean into this small hole.” Augustine laughed aloud, and said, “Transferring the vast sea into such a hole, that’s impossible!” And the boy, who was actually an angel, said to Augustine, “And that’s what you are doing. In trying to unravel the mystery of the Holy Trinity, you’re like transferring the ocean into a hole.”

My brothers and sisters, this story tells us that God’s mystery is beyond human calculations and logic. No person can fully understand the mystery of the Holy Trinity. But why do we believe in the mystery of the Trinity? In fact, every time we make the sign of the cross, we profess our faith in the Trinity as we say, “In name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”.  Every time a priest gives a blessing, we also profess our faith in the Trinity as the priest says: “May our Almighty God bless you in name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. We were also baptized in name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. This is how Trinitarian our faith is. But why did God reveal himself to us as a Trinity? What does it mean to have a Trinitarian God? What are its implications in our life as Catholics?

Let us reflect on these in three points:

OUR TRINITRIAN GOD IS A GOD OF RELATIONSHIP. The church teaching on the Trinity tells us that we have ONE GOD IN THREE DIVINE PERSONS: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They are not impersonal entities. We call them “persons” because they live in a loving relationship with one another. God the Father loves His Son very much. God the Son, who is Jesus, also loves the Father and He showed this by being obedient to the will of the Father. The bond of love that unites the Father and the Son is the Holy Spirit. Our God is a God of relationship.  Perhaps one reason why some find it difficult to have this personal relationship with God is that they don’t look at God as a person. They look at God merely as an idea, an imagination or a creation of the mind. But on the contrary, the mystery of the Holy Trinity tells us that God is a community of persons. We are capable of entering into a relationship with our Trinitarian God because our God is a God of relationship. But how can we describe the relationship between the three divine persons?

IT IS A RELATIONSHIP OF LOVE - TOTAL GIVING OF ONE SELF.  Perhaps one reason why some human relationships fail is because of selfishness. If we look at the Trinity, one secret that keeps strong their relationship is the absence of selfishness. They do not compete with each other.  Hindi sila nagpapalakasan o nagpapagalingan. That is why we don’t end up having three gods but only one God in three divine persons. In fact the gospel tells us: the Father gives everything to the Son, then the Son shares everything with us through the Holy Spirit. This is total giving of one self. Walang ipinagdadamot. Walang itinitira para sa sarili – everything is given and shared to the other. This is indeed a challenge – to imitate the love of our Trinitarian God in our own relationship with our loved ones. But are we really capable of imitating this kind of relationship?

YES, WE ARE. BECAUSE WE ARE MADE IN THE IMAGE AND LIKENESS OF OUR GOD. Since we were created in the image and likeness of our Trinitarian God, then it means that we have the capacity to imitate the same love that binds together the Trinity: a love that is not selfish, a love that does not compete for greatness but a love that totally gives and shares oneself to the other.

On this feast of the Holy Trinity, let us remember that our God is a God of relationship characterized by the total giving of oneself. Let us turn to our Trinitarian God to give us the grace of strong and loving relationship in our families and communities.

May 15, Pentecost Sunday

May 15, 2016

Pentecost Sunday

Acts 2:1-11; Psalm 104; 1 Corinthians 12:3B-7, 12-13; John 14:15-16, 23B-26 or John 20:19-23

There is this story about a man who looked sad on his birthday. One of his friends who noticed that he was sad came to him and asked why. The birthday celebrant answered his friend: “My brother forgot to greet me today.  He also forgot to do so last year.” The friend said: “Don’t worry that’s ok.  Sometimes it happens that even siblings forget each other’s birthdays.” The birthday celebrant said, “Is that so? But he is my twin brother!”

Today as we celebrate Pentecost, the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, we also celebrate the birthday of the Church. The Holy Spirit is the giver of life, the soul of the Church. One of the images used to depict the Holy Spirit is the wind because like the blow of a wind, the Holy Spirit is invisible yet we can feel its presence. So how does the Holy Spirit work in us? How can we feel its presence? What is its role in our lives?

Let us reflect on this in three points:

HOLY SPIRIT AS COMFORTER.  I remember as a child I used to climb trees and play in the streets with my friends. There were times when due to recklessness, I would end up being wounded. When I arrived home crying, my mom would clean my wounds with betadine and alcohol. It was really painful. But do you know what would my mom do to ease the pain? She would blow towards the wounds until the pain subsided. Such is the Holy Spirit in our lives. When we are down, burdened and wounded with all the concerns in life, the Holy Spirit calms our hearts and comforts us.

This was the experience of the apostles in the first reading. They locked themselves in the upper room not only because they were afraid. They were also wounded and in pain because Jesus just died on the cross. But when Jesus appeared and breathed on them the Holy Spirit, their pains, fears, and doubts were all blown away. Peace reigned in their hearts. The presence of the Holy Spirit indeed blows away our fears when we are afraid and comforts us when we are wounded and in pain.

HOLY SPIRIT AS PROTECTOR. In my thirteen years of stay in the seminary, it was seldom that I got sick. But there was one time when I had a high fever. When we would get sick, we were usually sent home in order to regain strength. I remember at home my mom would always prepare a special soup for me whenever I am sick with fever. When the soup is served, she would first take a spoonful of the hot steaming soup, taste it a bit, blow on it a little before putting it in my mouth.

Why would she do that? She wanted to be sure that I would not get burnt by the hot soup. Such is the Holy Spirit in our lives. When we face our struggles and crosses in life, we sometimes do not know what lies ahead of us. But if we place our trust in the Holy Spirit, we can be certain that we are in good hands. The Holy Spirit will be there to protect us and assure us that like Jesus we will end up victorious in facing our cross and trials in life.

HOLY SPIRIT AS GIVER OF JOY. I remember as a child when my parents would not give in to my demands, there were times when I became moody. But my mom had a way of handling my being moody. She would approach me and try to tickle me by blowing at my ear. This would lighten up my mood and make me smile. Such is the Holy Spirit in our lives. When we are gloomy, when we do not find any meaning and direction in life, that is the time to pray to the Holy Spirit to bring joy, guidance and meaning to our lives. The joy that the Spirit gives is not the fleeting joy found in worldly things. It is rather a true and lasting

joy that comes from the Lord.

My brothers and sisters, let us thank the Lord for the gift of the Holy Spirit. We have already received the Holy Spirit when we received the sacraments of baptism and confirmation. Do you feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in your lives? The Holy Spirit is our comforter, protector and giver of joy.

In this mass, let us pray that this same Holy Spirit will inspire us to give comfort to those who are troubled, protection to those who are defenseless, and joy to the sorrowful.  Amen.

May 08, Ascension Sunday

May 8, 2016

Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord

Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 47; Eph 1:17-23; Luke 24:46-53

Mother’s Day

There is this story about a priest who said in his homily: “We bring nothing with us when we die. There is no money in heaven! People in heaven have no money!” The whole congregation fell silent. Then a little girl whispered to her mother loud enough for all to hear: “Mama, mama, we are in heaven already!” 

Today we are celebrating Mother’s Day. I am sure that even without money, a mother’s love has a way of making us feel that our home is heaven on earth. Can we just greet the beautiful mothers around us and say “Happy Mother’s Day!” Aside from Mother’s Day, we are also celebrating the feast of Jesus ascending into heaven. If Jesus loved his disciples, why is there a need to leave his disciples on earth? Isn’t it that it is better for Jesus to accompany His disciples and guide them as they fulfill their mission? Why did Jesus have to leave?

Let us reflect on this in three points:

THE LORD’S ASCENSION IS THE HOMECOMING OF JESUS TO THE FATHER. The Ascension of Jesus tells us that His real home is to be with God the Father in heaven. Now what does this mean for us? Let us remember that the Church is the Body of Christ. We are the body of Christ. If Jesus who is the head of the body is in heaven, then there is hope that we will one day be with Him in heaven. Isn’t that beautiful? We are certain that we can call heaven our home. We can call paradise our home because Jesus is already there preparing a place for us and waiting for our homecoming back to the Father. This is one of the consoling truths revealed to us by the mystery of the Lord’s Ascension into heaven. Did Jesus really leave us when He went up to heaven?

THE LORD’S ASCENSION DOES NOT MEAN THAT JESUS HAS ABANDONED US. We oftentimes see the Lord’s ascension as Christ leaving us - that Jesus will go to a distant place where we can no longer see Him. But the mystery of the Lord’s Ascension tells us that even without His physical presence, Jesus continues to remain in us. We need new eyes to see Jesus. We need to see things in the eyes of faith to recognize His presence, to realize that He did not leave us forsaken. Now that Jesus is in heaven, His presence cannot be limited only to one place. In every adoration chapel throughout the world, in every sacrament, in every mass celebrated, in every experience of love, in every prayer experience of prayer Jesus is present. We can personally encounter Jesus anytime and anywhere. This is a proof that the Lord has never abandoned us. Now that Jesus is in heaven, what is He doing there?

JESUS IS NOW WITH THE FATHER INTERCEDING FOR US. Oftentimes when we are in an exalted position, we tend to forget the misery of others. Let us not forget this especially tomorrow, as we exercise our vote to elect leaders of our country. Let us choose leaders filled with the sense of mission to serve.  Not just those who are filled with sense of ambition to be put into positions of power. Jesus was filled with that sense of mission. Even if Jesus is with the Father, hindi lang siya nagpapakasarap sa langit. He uses this opportunity to intercede for us, to empower us to continue His mission. What is the mission that Jesus gave us? To go out to all the world and proclaim the Good News. But Jesus does leave us on our own. He will intercede for us. He will continue to work with us now that He is in heaven.

And so my brothers and sisters, as we go back to our own homes after this mass. Go and tell the world about the good news of Jesus. This is part of our mission. May we hopefully become His instruments so that many people will also come to experience His love. Amen.

May 01, 6th Sunday of Easter

May 1, 2016

6th Sunday of Easter

Acts 15:1-2, 22-29; Psalm 67; Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23; John 14:23-29

I remember reading this interesting fact that scientists have discovered the effect of a tiger’s loud roar on other animals. The unique sound waves of a tiger’s terrifying roar can temporarily paralyze its prey with fear. So even if you have time to escape and avoid the tiger running after you, the tiger’s roar paralyzes you with fear so that you become its victim.

My brothers and sisters, our fears often operate in the same way. Our fears can paralyze us to the point that we cannot move on anymore. This is why Jesus in today’s gospel tells his disciples, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Do not be afraid.” Don’t let fear paralyze you into inactivity. But why were his disciples afraid? Where is this fear coming from? What will Jesus give to them so that they may overcome their fear?

Let us reflect on these in three points:

THE DISCIPLES WERE AFRAID OF JESUS LEAVING THEM.  As we look forward to Jesus ascending into heaven next Sunday, the disciples were saddened and afraid when Jesus told them “I am going away.” They have gotten used to being with Jesus all the time: listening to his teachings and witnessing his miracles. Perhaps they were telling Jesus, “Isn’t it that you rose from the dead to be with us? Then why are you leaving us again?” Notice the deep desire and longing of the disciples to be with Jesus. Remember that they were guilty of leaving Jesus at the moment of his passion and death on the cross. They know how empty life could be without Jesus. That is why when Jesus rose again from the dead and appeared to them, they recognized the mistake they have done and all they want now is to be with Jesus.

These past days, we have seen how our candidates for the coming elections are aspiring and longing to win the elections. But how many of them also have that deep desire and longing for the Lord? How many of us actually long for the Lord? Like the experience of the disciples, may we all realize how empty, how meaningless life could be without Jesus. Jesus will have to leave his disciples to go to the Father in heaven. But He will give us another gift of his presence. What is that gift?

JESUS WILL SEND THE HOLY SPIRIT TO ASSURE THEM OF HIS PRESENCE. The irony is that Jesus had to leave so that his presence may all the more be felt by everyone. The physical presence of Jesus is limited only to a certain place at a certain time. Imagine if Jesus were with us now, his physical presence is limited by space and time. He can be present only in one place at a time. But since the Lord has sent the Holy Spirit – his spiritual presence – Jesus is present every time there is mass all throughout the world. His presence can be felt by many people all throughout the world at the same time. This is the beauty of the gift of the Holy Spirit as the spiritual presence of Jesus. What then is the fruit of the presence of the Holy Spirit?

THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL GIVE US THE PEACE OF JESUS. The peace of Jesus does not mean that we will have a comfortable and easy life. When confronted with difficulties, fear sometimes paralyze us. But if we have the Holy Spirit, if we have the spiritual presence of Jesus, we will have peace. The peace of Jesus will help us overcome our fears and move on. Isn’t this the experience of the disciples of Jesus? After Jesus ascended into heaven, they faced even greater persecution and trials. But they were not defeated because of the presence of the Holy Spirit in their hearts. They were not paralyzed by their fear because they held on to Jesus who gave them peace. In the first reading the conflict of the first Christian community was resolved through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Peace was restored because of the presence of the Holy Spirit in them. This tells us that if we want to have peace, we need to hold on to Jesus. Because the absence of Jesus is the absence of peace.

In this mass let us pray for the grace that like the disciples, we may hold on to Jesus, long for His presence, be open to the workings of the Holy Spirit so that the peace of Christ may reign in our lives.  Amen.