May 28, Ascension of the Lord

May 28, 2017

Ascension of the Lord

Acts 1:1–11; Ephesians 1:17–23; Matthew 28:16–20

There was this story of an astronaut who had a successful travel to outer space. When he returned to earth, he told his wife, “We’ve gone up to heaven, but we did not find God there.” Obviously, the astronaut was talking about heaven from the physical and material level. The heaven that can be seen by our bare eyes. But is this the kind of heaven that Jesus refers to as we celebrate today the feast of the Lord’s Ascension?

I invite you to reflect on the meaning of this mystery in three points:

THE LORD’S ASCENSION IS THE HOMECOMING OF JESUS TO THE FATHER. Our readings today tell us that Jesus ascended not to the outer space. He ascended not to the heaven that can be seen by our bare eyes. He ascended to the throne of God the Father in heaven. He went back home to be with the Father. What does this mean for us? My brothers and sisters, let us remember that in the imagery of Church as Body of Christ, Jesus is our head and we are the body. If Jesus who is the head of the Church is now in heaven, then there is hope that we who belong to the body of Christ will one day be with Him in heaven. Jesus has opened the gates of heaven, the gates of paradise for us. Isn’t that beautiful? We are certain that there is a place called heaven, there is a place called paradise because Jesus, our head, already went there ahead of us to prepare for our homecoming. We are made for heaven. We are not made for this earth. The Lord’s Ascension ignites our hope that we will one day be at home with Jesus in paradise.

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. But this time we need new eyes to see Jesus. We need to see things in the eyes of faith to recognize His presence.  Now that Jesus is in heaven, we must understand that He also entered into a different kind of existence. Now 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 help we extend to the least of our brethren, in every prayer experience, Jesus is present. The Lord has not really abandoned us. Jesus in the Gospel says, “I am with you always until the end of the age.”

THE LORD’S ASCENSION MEANS THAT JESUS IS WITH THE FATHER INTERCEDING FOR US. We have this tendency that when we are in an exalted position, when we are in power, we forget the misery of others. But such is not the case with Jesus. He is now with the Father and as the Gospel says “all power in heaven and earth has been given to Him”. What does He do with that power?  He uses this opportunity to intercede for us, to empower us to continue His mission. What is this mission? Jesus says: “Go out to all the world and proclaim the good news.” Jesus did not send his disciples around the world as tourists.  He sends them as missionaries to make disciples. What is a disciple? A disciple is someone who has a living relationship with Jesus the master. The mission is to lead people to Jesus and develop a living relationship with him. How will they be able to do that? Jesus knows we are powerless and weak, like His own disciples. So He assures that He will continue to work with them. They will be able speak new languages, expel demons, cure the sick NOT because they are talented but because of Jesus working with them.

And so let us remember that in our mission, we must be humble enough to give credit not to ourselves but to Jesus who works in us. When God works in us and makes us his instruments, we can indeed accomplish many great things.  The Lord’s Ascension is not about Jesus leaving us alone here on earth. It is about his homecoming to the Father. We look forward for the day when Jesus will welcome us home in heaven. As we continue to live our lives on earth, may we allow God to work in us in accomplishing our mission to lead people closer to Him. Amen.

May 21, 6th Sunday of Easter

May 21, 2017

6th Sunday of Easter

Acts 8:5–8, 14–17; 1 Peter 3:15–18; John 14:15-21

I remember my professor once shared to our class that there are two ways of saying I love you in Italian. The first way is to say “Ti amo” which literally means “I love you.” “Ti amo” is more on the level of sentimental love. The other way of saying “I love you” is to say “Ti Voglio Bene” which literally it means “I desire your good.” This is the love that goes beyond sentimental love. It is a love that is expressed in action – by desiring what is good for the person you love.  Jesus says in today’s gospel, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”  How can obedience to commandments be an expression of love? Isn’t it a form of restricting our freedom? What does He mean by this?

LOVE MEANS DESIRING THE GOOD OF THE OTHER. This is actually how St. Thomas Aquinas would define love. Love is not merely an outburst of emotion. It is not merely about feeling good.  Love is an act of the will. Love is a decision. It means that if I love someone, I think about what is good for him/her and I will consciously do it because I love the person. Love is to desire the good of the other. What about loving God? God is all good. He is the supreme Good. We cannot add anymore to the goodness of God. What we can do rather is to do the good God wants us to do. If we claim that we love the Lord, then we make a deliberate choice to observe and follow everything He taught us. Thus Jesus tells us, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” This is the gauge that will determine our love for God.

GOD’S COMMANDMENTS ARE FOR OUR OWN GOOD. Perhaps one reason why we find it difficult to obey God’s commandments is because of the thought that it limits our exercise of freedom. For example, God’s command of being faithful to one’s spouse. Some men may feel restricted of their freedom to enjoy the company of other women. But come to think of it, if there were no laws against infidelity or adultery, then we would have a lot of broken families and parentless children. The same is true also with honesty. If there were no laws against dishonesty (“Thou shalt not steal”), there would be chaos and disorder in society. God has given us freedom as a sign of His love. We were not created as slaves of the Lord. We have freedom.  God has given us these commandments to discipline our exercise of freedom. Authentic use of this freedom is not just the license to do anything we want. Authentic freedom means one is free from anything that hinders us from following and loving the Lord.

LOVE KEEPS US IN COMMUNION WITH GOD. We are already preparing to celebrate the Solemnity of Ascension of Jesus next week.  If we look at our readings for today, the disciples ask themselves: Now that Jesus is about to ascend to heaven and return to the Father, now that Jesus will leave us again, will we be left alone? Is there something enduring in our communion with Jesus? How can we maintain our communion with him? The answer is love. Love will keep us in communion with God. For whenever there is love, God is present for He is love.

My dear friends, Jesus says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” To love the Lord is not mere sentimentality. To love the Lord means to obey His commands which are all for our own good.  May we strive to keep alive our bond of love for the Lord.

May 14, 5th Sunday of Easter

May 14, 2017

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Acts 6:1–7; 1 Peter 2:4–9; John 14:1–12

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.  A mother’s love is indeed priceless. Can we just greet the beautiful mothers around us and say “Happy Mother’s Day!”

I once read an article saying that too much worrying can have a negative effect on our health. Aside from making us feel tired and stressed, too much worrying speeds up the aging process of our body and increases the risk for heart attack. For those of us who have the tendency to worry all the time, Jesus in today’s gospel tells us: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God. Have faith also in me.” In the midst of the concerns we have in life, Jesus promises three things that should keep us from worrying too much:

THE PROMISE OF HEAVEN. Jesus says: “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?” The Lord wants us to reach heaven. It is important that our earthly life should be a preparation for us to reach heaven. But the question is, are we preparing for eternity? Some of us may have all sorts of plans—educational plan, retirement plan, memorial plan. What about our eternal life plan? If we know what the future has in store for us, then we would surely know how to prepare for it in the present.

There is one thing we certainly know about the future. We will have to face death as our lives on earth come to an end. Life is our journey from B to D—that is, from Birth to Death. What is between B and D is C—that is, your Choice on how to live it. The choices we make in this life will determine which side of eternity we will be. What kind of choice must we make to prepare us for eternal life?

CHOOSE THE WAY OF JESUS. If we want to reach heaven, then we must know the path that leads to it. Jesus says in the gospel that He is the way, the truth and the life. He indeed is the way that will lead us to eternal life in heaven.  But sometimes we have the tendency to look for shortcuts, to look for other ways that seem attractive to us. One of the applications I use when I drive is Waze. Waze is an app that gives you directions on the road. Just tell Waze where you are going and Waze will tell you how to go there. Waze is really helpful especially if you get lost on the road. Waze will give you alternate routes to reach your destination. We can use this analogy to Jesus who is the way, truth and life. When at times we get lost on our way to heaven, Jesus always has another route waiting for us to follow to get us back on track.

WE SHOULD NOT WORRY BECAUSE GOD ANSWERS OUR PRAYERS.  The continuation of today’s gospel says: “Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it.” (John 14:13) When we bring our petitions to the Lord in the spirit of faith, trust and obedience to His will, He will hear our prayers. (1 John 5:14-15). 

There are many things that cause us to worry in life. In the midst of these, Jesus promises us 3 things that should keep us from worrying to much: He promises us heaven, He promises us to show that way to heaven, He promises that if we pray in spirit of trust and obedience to God’s will, He will answer our prayers. May these promises of Jesus bring peace and consolation to our troubled hearts.  Amen. 

May 7, 4th Sunday of Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday)

May 7, 2017

4th Sun Easter Good Shepherd Sunday

Acts 2:14a, 36–41; 1 Peter 2:20b–25; John 10:1–10

Today, Good Shepherd Sunday, the universal Church prays for more vocations, especially to the priesthood and religious life. One intention we can include in our prayers today is not just to pray for more shepherds, but to pray for more good shepherds. Shepherds are modern day leaders. How can we say that a leader is a good shepherd? Let us look at how Jesus describes what a good shepherd is in 3 points:

A GOOD SHEPHERD PASSES THRU JESUS THE GATE TO REACH THE SHEEP. How do we determine a true shepherd in distinction from a false shepherd? See what gate or what door they use in order to reach the sheep. Jesus says in the gospel, “I am the gate for the sheep.” False shepherds pass thru another door and not through Jesus - not through the ideals and teachings of Jesus. If the door is not Jesus, the gospel tells us that these shepherds are thieves. For example, we have many shepherds in our lives: parents, teachers, government leaders, church leaders, business men are shepherds. If we will use the door of power and ambition to reach you, we will not serve you, we will rather serve ourselves. If we enter through the gate of manipulation, we will use people for self-interest. Now we understand what Jesus means, if He is the gate that shepherds will use to reach the sheep – that is an indication that these are true and good shepherds.

THE SHEEP MUST BE DISCERNING OF THE HUMAN SHEPHERDS. For us who are sheep, we should ask ourselves what door did the human shepherds take in order to get in touch with the sheep? Is it the door of ambition, of power, of greed? Or is it the door of Jesus? For the shepherds here present, there are many doors available to us to reach the sheep, to reach the people entrusted to our care – please choose Jesus the door. For as the first and second reading tells us, Jesus is the door of our salvation and the model of what it means to be a good shepherd.

WE NEED TO PRAY THAT THE LORD MAY GIVE US GOOD SHEPHERDS. Today is also the Vocation Sunday. The Church asks us to pray that many young people, may respond to the call of priesthood and religious life. It is true that there is a shortage of priests in our Church. Just imagine, the ratio of priests to parishioners is roughly one to more than 20,000 baptized Catholics. What can we do to promote vocations? We need to pray and encourage the youth to generously respond to the call of the Lord to enter the priesthood and religious life. Aside from prayer we also need to live our faith. Priests and religious do not fall from the sky. They come from families, schools, communities or workplaces. If we strive to live our faith in these places, then perhaps people may be inspired to respond to the voice of the Good Shepherd.

My brothers and sisters, let us pray that the Lord may give us good shepherds. Let us pray for the human shepherds around us – Church leaders, government leaders, community leaders, parents, businessmen, and the like. Pray for us that we may always choose Jesus the door in fulfilling our role as shepherds. Amen.

April 30, 3rd Sunday of Easter

April 30, 2017

Third Sunday of Easter

Acts 2:14, 22–33; 1 Peter 1:17–21; Luke 24:13–35

It is a human experience that when our plans do not happen, we end up feeling disappointed. Such was the feeling of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus in the Gospel today. They were expecting Jesus to lead them in a revolt against their oppressors. But when he died on the cross, they knew that what they had in mind will not happen. That is why out of frustration they went away from Jerusalem to go to Emmaus. The Gospel tells us that the road to Emmaus was a long walk – 7 miles away from Jerusalem. The disciples started walking on a bright afternoon and they ended up with no more sunlight. I believe it was long walk because the disciples were walking with a heavy heart. They were confused. They were disappointed. It is precisely at this moment that the Risen Jesus, whom they did not recognize, came and accompanied them in their journey. How can we recognize the presence of the Risen Lord in moments of doubt, confusion and disappointment?

BY LISTENING TO THE WORD OF GOD. This is what Peter pointed out in his speech in the first reading. In trying to convince the Jews that Jesus is the Messiah, he did not only give a narrative of the miracles and healings of Jesus. Peter also quoted the word of God – the psalm of David – to emphasize his point that Jesus is the messiah.

Isn’t it that in the Gospel, Jesus did the same thing. The two disciples cannot reconcile the claim that Jesus is the messiah. Because for them a messiah should always be victorious and should never be defeated. What did Jesus do to enlighten their minds? Jesus used the Word of God and explained to them about prophecy of the suffering messiah. My dear friends, in moments of confusion, doubt and disappointment, we can also recognize the presence of the Risen Lord, by listening to the Word of God. Let us allow God’s Word to shed light in the darkness we experience so that we may come to recognize the presence of the Risen Christ.

BY FOLLOWING WHAT THE WORD OF GOD TELLS US. It is not enough that we listen to the word of God. Listening must lead us to implement in our lives what the Word of God is telling us. This is what Peter emphasizes in the second reading. We were saved from slavery of sin by the precious blood of Christ. The proper response to this gift is our resolution not to go back to the old way of life – not go back to slavery to sin. How? Aside from listening to God’s word, we need to implement it in our lives so that we may come to recognize the presence of the Risen Christ who conquered sin and death for our sake.

BY PARTICIPATING IN THE CELEBRATION OF THE EUCHARIST. The two disciples on the road to Emmaus recognized the presence of Jesus in the reading of the Scriptures and breaking of the bread. These two symbols refer to the Eucharist. This is a beautiful reminder of the real presence of the Risen Christ in the Eucharist.  Jesus does not simply belong to the past. He is present here and now as we celebrate the Eucharist. If only we are mindful of His presence, I am sure like the disciples, our hearts will be burning.

As we continue with the Eucharist, let us be mindful of the real presence of the risen Christ. He comes and walks with us in the midst of our frustration and disappointments. May our listening to God’s Word in this mass lead us to follow where the Risen Christ guides us.  Amen.