Monthly Archives: January 2012

Jan 28 2012

‘Grounded in God’ the Source of Christian Authority

A Homily for the 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2012  

Some of us might have heard of Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador. On the night of March 24, 1980, as he was saying a memorial Mass for a friend’s mother, he was shot through the heart by some ‘hired’ killers, because he was giving voice to the needs of the oppressed. The day before that he still preached his homily addressing the soldiers in his country, pleading them: “In the name of God, in the name of these suffering people whose cries rise to heaven more loudly each day, I implore you, I beg you, I order you: Stop the repression.”

Many of us here would also have heard so much of Mother Teresa of Calcutta. She was just a humble, a seemingly insignificant little old lady but had done so much for all the world. She taught everyone of us not by her words but mostly by her example. Her secret: She always finds Jesus in the person of the poor, the sufferings and the needy.  When she touches and looks at the poor person she sees Jesus Christ in them. ‘They are Jesus’ she said. Everyone is Jesus in a distressing disguise.”

Some of us here today might have heard of Cardinal Sin in the Philippines who was instrumental for the fall of the late Dictator and corrupt President Ferdinand Marcos on February 25, 1986. Cardinal Jaime Sin could no longer take the manipulation of the truth and the corruption in the government that he called all Filipinos to go out to the streets and protest against Marcos. Hundreds of thousands of people responded to his call. They faced the soldiers in their tanks and guns. They didn’t have guns themselves, but the nuns handed their rosary beads to them, gave them flowers, and tried to persuade the soldiers to side on the truth.

Three different stories of real life experiences but are speaking the same message- the three persons involved were standing on the firm ground. Because of their firm foundation, they not only spoke with authority but they really carried out their words even to the extent of putting their lives at risk, even to death. All of them were not afraid to take risks because they believed that standing for God is worth taking  the risks.

In our Gospel today, we also hear Jesus speaking with authority to the scribes and Pharisees. He was teaching ‘something new’ according to the listeners, because he, unlike the scribes has shown that he really was convinced about what he was talking about. He spoke with authority because he knows and is convinced that what he is doing is to fulfil his Father’s mission. He is so convinced of his calling and mission that he made it the ground of his ministry and life on earth. He never took back his words because his words are true. He faced the religious authorities courageously because he knew that he was representing the truth. He even faced and embraced his own suffering and death because he was just wanting to do the will of his Father. He claimed as the truth, and because of that he was crucified.

Jesus taught with authority by doing miracles because he has God as the centre of his life. His relationship with his Father is so intimate and unique that He can claim all authority over everything in heaven and on earth. Jesus takes his authority from God. As his followers we are also called to make God the centre of our lives?

How?

First, is to stand for the truth. The Truth is God, and we are called to stand for it. It is a tough call for us because standing for the truth also means sufferings, crucifixion, humiliations, etc. But if we have God as the centre of our lives, we would realize that we really don’t have to be afraid of anything else because God would become our refuge, shelter and strength. If God takes on our lives, we can do unexpected and even unimaginable things. Jesus himself has shown us this. Archbishop Romero, Mother Teresa, Cardinal Jaime Sin, were able to do this, and so  are we. I can understand why it is hard for us to make ourselves available for God because our human tendency tells us to own, contain and even control God. We exercised this tendency when we say or sigh: ‘Oh  God should have done something about this’ or ‘God should not be doing this to me’, etc. Sometimes however, the problem with us is not that we ‘can’t do it’, but ‘we just won’t do it.’ But the question for us is ‘What is the truth?’

Second, is not to worry about many unnecessary things in this world as expressed by St Paul in our second Reading today. Yes, we may worry about Djokovic being defeated by Nadal in the Finals of the Australian Open tonight, but the situation of the Asylum seekers are worth worrying more. What we are to worry about is how do we make ourselves available for God to be his instruments of love, care, forgiveness, hope for all his people. But then again, if Jesus Christ is in us, we need not to worry about many things, St Paul would assure us this when he said to the Philippians: ‘I can do everything’ he said in his letter to the Philippians ‘Because of Christ who strengthens me.’ (Phil 4:13).

Third is to open our hearts for the Voice of God that we hear today as we said in the Responsorial psalm. This Eucharistic Celebration today is a concrete evidence that God is speaking to us: through the Word and the Sacrament. Through our participation in this Holy Mass, in singing, in listening, in responding, even in silence, we are making ourselves a place of encounter with our God. Let’s just listen to him. By coming frequently to the Holy Mass we are welcoming God to come to us as our spiritual food and drink that assures us of eternal life after this earthly life.

As we continue our celebration of the Holy Eucharist today, let’s examine ourselves where is God in our lives. Is he at the centre or in the far dark corner whom we only call upon when we need him? 

Jan 22 2012

God calls and meets us where we are

Homily for 3rd Sunday in Ordinary time  2012 (year B)

I was just in my third grade when I realized I wanted to become a priest. But I kept it to myself because I’m afraid people would make fond of me if I’d tell them. I kept it to myself because my family is poor and I heard people’s talks that it is very expensive to become a priest. This childhood desire of mine had to be suppressed even more when my Father died. I come from the middle in the family of 11 but  I am the eldest son. So being the big brother somehow, I had to stop my high school studies. I had to take on some of the big responsibilities left by my Father and assisted my mum in raising my younger siblings. I then started to lose hope that I’d become  a priest. To enter the seminary one has to finish his high school studies, but I missed two years of it. Anyhow, God finds his way in to make his call even louder. He provided me another opportunity to realize my dream. The department of Education announced that those youth who have stopped schooling can undergo a certain examination and if lucky he/she would be accelerated through to the University. I took the exam. I was lucky. I got it. I skipped two years of my high school and was eligible to enrol in the Uni. To make the long story short, I entered the seminary, studied for 11 years and here I am now, a young priest working as an assistant in a certain Parish.

I am telling you all this because this shows to me, and to us hopefully  how lovely is our God who calls us to follow him. The journey might not be a smooth one, since it never will be but He would help us along the way. He does not make the mountain smaller so to speak, but he makes the climbing easier. Yes, I am a priest. Many here today are married. Some are still looking for a ‘special friend’ in Facebook or wherever. Some are still starting their lives as young Adult, as student, or whatever. But all of us are here because we are all called by God. We who are here today in this Church are Christians, because we are called by Christ to follow him. Our being a Christian, a Catholic at that, does not depend on what we do. It does not depend on who we were then, or who we have become now. It does not depend on our family background, or on our social status. Rather it all depends on the specific and the unique call of Christ for each one of us.    

Last Sunday, we heard Jesus inviting his  first two disciples to ‘come and see’ where he lives and they ‘stayed’ with him. This Sunday, we hear Jesus again inviting us, not just to ‘come and see where he lives’ or to stay with him but to leave everything behind and follow him. Jesus called his first disciples  from the very place where they are working for a living- casting or cleaning their nets for they were fishermen. God meets us where we are. We don’t have to pretend to be somebody else or someone we are not. We just have to make ourselves available for him. The disciples left their boats, their nets, even their father and followed him. But we may say: ‘It is not Good News when we have to leave everything behind and follow him right away.’ Yes, it is not. But St Paul in our Second Reading would tell us what does ‘leaving everything behind’ mean. For St Paul it means ‘detachment’ to certain things in this world and hope for the coming one. It is very crucial and challenging call because we are in the world when everything has a price somehow. We are in the world when things are advertised to be necessary and valuable only to realize later on that they are nothing and that they have nothing to offer. We are in the world when things or possessions are deemed to be the measure for one’s success. Detachment means, according to a certain author: ‘Putting away the bag of peanuts after tasting the first one.’

Our day and age, with all its challenges and frustrations are in fact reminders for us to review how are we in our following of Jesus. Following him today means going beyond ourselves. I wasn’t dreaming of coming to Australia. But Bishop Joe went there and explained to us the lack of priests in here, so I went beyond myself and came here and now here I am with you. What happens if we wouldn’t go beyond ourselves?

The Prophet Jonah in our First Reading today tried to miss the call of God for him. He does not think  or maybe he does not like that the Gentiles would hear about our Good, loving and forgiving God. So he wanted not to do what God told him to. But God finds his way in, as he always does. He turns everything  around. As we have heard, Jonah preached, the people of Nineveh listened, repented and God had shown mercy to them. In and through our baptism, God has commissioned us to go and proclaim the Good News of God. We don’t have to be the expert or the know-all. God wants to use no matter who we are.

Our Eucharist is also another wonderful way of following Him. In the Eucharist we are witnessing the great sacrifice of Christ  on the Cross and thus become part of that great saving act of God for us. The Eucharist is a concrete witness for us  that we are called by God and that we are loved by him.

So as we continue our Eucharist today let’s celebrate the fact that we are called by God to be with him, to be his witnesses, regardless of our personal circumstances and regardless of our humanity. We just have to listen to him, to turn back to him every time we fall, and to try our best to be faithful in following him. Amen.

Jan 14 2012

Staying with Jesus: Homily for 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time 2012

Homily for 2nd Sunday in Ordinary time 2012

This morning I drove up to Mount Buffalo (in Victoria Australia), with one of the parishioners. It was a really  challenging drive because of the narrow and winding road through to the top of the mountain. I had to drive slowly especially on those sharp and blind curves. To play it safe, I just obeyed all the signs there. In a way I was being faithful to all the directions set up on the way. After many turns, we finally got to the top.

The sight was just a thing to behold. I stooped down below, looking at the gorge. I enjoyed looking at the magnificent and the panoramic view of the bluish mountain ranges as far as my eyes can see. Another thing that struck me was the unbelievable rock formation that made me think God must have been playing with them by putting all those big rocks on top of each other and more. I was just enthralled and so mesmerized that I (for that short time there) have literally forgotten the world where I come from. The beautiful scenery from the top made me forget the  seemingly, long and winding road  that we went through on the way up. Truly the sight was worth the trip.

Friends, I am telling you all these not to advertise Mount Buffalo. I’m telling you this because it speaks something of us being a disciple of Christ Jesus.  The trip to the top of the mountain can be likened to our Christian journey of following Christ. Our journey in Christian life is narrow and winding. It is never a straight and a smooth one. We have to turn every now and then, to look at what’s going on around us. It is also important to note that we are not the only travellers on the  road. There are also many people like us who are wanting to get to the top. So we have to negotiate with the narrow road by slowing down at times or even by giving way to other travellers.

Moreover, in this spiritual journey, we are not travelling for nothing. We are not going there for a holiday. We are invited to be there. God invites us all to be with him. That is why, we can never claim to be ‘alone’ in our journey. That’s why we can’t claim that it is our initiative to go on the journey. Jesus has stressed this divine calling by coming to us in person, by becoming our personal friend, and as in our gospel today, by inviting us (his disciples or would-be-disciples) to ‘come and see’ the place where he ‘stays.’ He is inviting us to ‘stay with him.’ Yet, to ‘stay’ with Jesus we have to go through the narrow and the winding road of life. Jesus himself would tell us this: ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’ (Mt 16:24). But if we just keep him before us till the end and follow him (in his way of loving and in way of living), we will end up eventually to the top of it all where we not only enjoy the cbeauty of God’s Creation but more so to behold the face of our  Creator as he really is.

Jesus is inviting us today  not only to ‘come and see’ where he lives but also to ‘stay’ where he is living. This means going to and being available for him or more accurately, allowing him to come into our lives.

This is a tough call because this means we are to take the narrow and the winding road. This also entails we are to stay at the foot of our only Master, Jesus Christ. Furthermore, this also means we are to stand on his ground.  Staying with Jesus means we are to be his witnesses even to the ends of the earth.

But there is more. Being with Jesus or witnessing for him does not only mean going through the narrow and a winding road but also to a dangerous and treacherous one. The Iraqi Christians [who ‘stayed’ and ‘remained’ as witnesses for Christ in the predominantly Muslim country] can attest to this when they had to  cancel their midnight mass because of the 70 people who were killed by the suicide bombers. The Pakistani Christians had to call on 2,500 police personnel to ensure their safety in the Church during Christmas masses. The few Christians in Bethlehem ignored the conflict of jurisdiction in Bethlehem, just to stay and celebrate Christmas at the very site where Christ was born. We hear things like this everyday in the news. We can hear about all forms of religious persecutions around the world every day.

These Christians, mind you, ‘stayed’ with Jesus to the end even to the extent of giving up their very lives for him.

We who are here right now, are also invited by Jesus to come and stay with him. That’s why we are here today in this Holy Eucharist. But the gospel today reminds that we are not to be contented only by staying with Jesus all day, but to get out and bring others to Jesus as well. The two disciples went away after their time with Jesus. But they spread the Good News to others. Andrew told his brother Simon: ‘We have found the Messiah’. Then he brought him to Jesus. And we know the rest of the story, Jesus changed Simon’s name into Peter the Rock. If we are then to be serious of our commitment to Christ, then we can assure that God works something wonderful and beautiful in and through us. Let us therefore be Christ-like for others, and not acting like God. Blessed Mother Teresa, St Mary Mackillop are just few of the many unknown Christ-like people who have brought many to God, not for their own sake but for God’s sake. If they can do it, so are we. But sometimes the trouble with us is not that we can’t do it, but because we just don’t do it. Yet this is the point of our being a Christian: ‘to point to God as the meaning of our lives’ according to Fr. Timothy Radcliffe in his beautiful book ‘What is the point of being a Christian?’

This is a tough call for us today because we are in the world wherein ‘God’ is forced to stay in the corner somehow. We are in the world where God is in the bottom in the list of our priorities. We are in the world wherein ‘instant gratification’ is the name of the game. We are in the world wherein the common attitude is ‘me first’ or ‘First come first served’ basis. We are in the world wherein ‘money, fame and power’ are the goals or even the motives of the things  we do.

Our First Reading today also offers us a way to respond to that invitation of God for us: that is to listen to him in the silence of our heart. We might call it ‘prayer’, but this just means allowing God to establish an intimate and a more personal relationship with us. Again, this is a big call because of the many noises that the world has for us today. We hear the noises of violence, greed, domestic conflicts, etc. But even then, God wants to tell us something about these events, in the silence of our night or in the darkness of our lives. He comes to us as  our light when we felt we can’t see anything, or when we felt there is no light ahead of us. He wants to speak to us about these things that are seemingly ‘dark’ or ‘hopeless’ for us. We just have to listen to him. He’s not only got something to say, ‘But He has the FINAL say.’

If we keep on going faithfully the narrow, the winding, the challenging, the sometimes difficult and the treacherous road to Christian discipleship, we can be assured that we can get to the top wherein we not only forget everything behind, or experience the beauty from up there, but really that we can see God face to face and even ‘stay’ with him ‘there’ forever. Amen.