King of Our Hearts

Solemnity of Christ the King Nov. 22, 2009 (Jn 18:33-37)

So Pilate went back into the praetorium and summoned Jesus and said to him, "Are you the King of the Jews?"

Jesus answered, "Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?"

Pilate answered, "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?"

Jesus answered, "My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here."

So Pilate said to him, "Then you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."

Today, as we end the Liturgical Year, we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King. In the Gospel today, we are presented with a Christ who is under trial, the King of the Universe questioned by an earthly ruler and persecuted by His own people. Jesus was brought to Pilate by the people to whom He preached, the people for whom He worked miracles, the people who hailed Him when he entered Jerusalem. He was rejected and His kingdom was refused because His Kingdom was not of this world and because His message challenged the the way people were living their lives.

"Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice." With these words, Jesus explains that His Kingdom is founded on truth and that anyone who lives in truth, anyone who lives according to God's will is part of His Kingdom. The people who condemned Jesus to death were, therefore, refusing His Kingdom and rejecting Him as king because they did not accept the truth that He preached.

We Christians claim to have Jesus as our king. We hail Him as King of the Universe. Indeed, He is God and He commands the entire cosmos. But are we part of his Kingdom? Do we live in truth, in accordance with God's will? Are we not also like the Jews who refused Jesus' Kingship? When we live in sin, we reject the Kingdom of God, we disobey Him whom we call king. From this, we can conclude that becoming part of God's Kingdom does not mean just being a member of the Church. It entails a lifestyle that is in accordance to what God has planned for us. It means living not as children of this world, but as heirs of the Kingdom which is not of this world.

In other words, we should let Jesus reign in our hearts. Everything we do should be in obedience to His will and should be for the building up of His Kingdom here on earth. We should be His loyal subjects, offering our very selves as a soldier or a statesman offers himself to the king, for his service and for the good of the kingdom. We become genuine members of God's Kingdom and Jesus is truly our King when we live in truth and love. For everyone who belongs to the truth hears the voice of Christ, the King.

May Christ reign in our hearts! And may His Kingdom have no end!

Holding on to the Word

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Nov. 15, 2009 (Mk 13:24-32)

"In the days after that time of trouble the sun will grow dark, the moon will no longer shine, the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers in space will be driven from their courses. Then the Son of Man will appear, coming in the clouds with great power and glory. He will send the angels out to the four corners of the earth to gather God's chosen people from one end of the world to the other.

"Let the fig tree teach you a lesson. When its branches become green and tender and it starts putting out leaves, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when you see these things happening, you will know that the time is near, ready to begin. Remember that all these things will happen before the people now living have all died. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

"No one knows, however, when that day or hour will come - neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son; only the Father knows.

Jesus warns us to be ready for "the hour" of judgment. He tells to learn to read the signs of the times, as we are able to read the signs of nature.

Today, we give much value to the things of this world. We are afraid to die because to die means to let go of this world, to let go of the things or of the people we hold dear. We are losing the sense of the spiritual. We are becoming too materialistic that we forget to prepare for the world that is to come. We call on God only for our worldly needs. We forget to pray for spiritual health, for a better relationship with God and for salvation.

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away", said the Lord in our Gospel today. With these words, he reminds us that everything is ephemeral. Everything in this world will pass away. Only God is eternal.

In our desire to find happiness, we should seek that which shall remain. We can never find happiness in things that will pass away. Therefore, we should seek God. We should find comfort in His Word. His words should be our guide as we take this journey we call life.

Many people are rejecting God's Word today. They say God's commands no longer fit the needs of the times. But, as faithful Christians, we should hold on to the words of our Lord and God. We should hold on to Him because His Word is truth and His words are the words of everlasting life (Jn 6:68).

Therefore, we should live according to God's commands and according to the laws of the Church, the authority in interpreting God's Word. Others might call us conservative, but is it wrong to hold on to what can save us?

Only if we hold on to Jesus' Word can we say that we are ready for the end of the world. Even if we do not know the day or the hour of judgment, we have no reason to fear that day if we hold on to Christ. We shall not even fear death if we're with Him. Truly, if God is with us, who can be against us (Rom 8:31)? Whom shall we fear (Ps 27:1)?

The Gift of Self

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time Nov. 8, 2009 (Mk 12:38-44)

As he taught, Jesus said, "Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely."

Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything — all she had to live on."

Giving the graces we have received back to God is a way of showing gratitude to Him. He is God, and He needs nothing, but our desire to thank Him is a gift from Him and it makes us grow in love for Him. In giving back to God, we recognize the fact that everything comes from Him, even our very existence.

In the Gospel, Jesus praises a poor old widow as having given the most in the treasury, even though the others gave huge amounts. Jesus points out that the woman gave out of her poverty. She gave even if it meant that she will not have any left for herself. The others gave large amounts from their surplus wealth. But the widow gave everything she had. She gave herself. Even though it was not much, it was the most.

The widow's generosity teaches us that nobody is too poor to give. Every one of us, even those whom we call poorest of the poor, has something we can offer to God. He has given us so much. The problem is that we disregard His graces and call ourselves poor. We hoard everything we have and refrain from giving, reasoning out that we ourselves need these things. We do not realize that we can give, even when it seems that we, too, are in need.

I've heard of a story that demonstrates my point. This took place in a seminary. After a fire devoured some houses near the seminary, some of the victims sought refuge in that eseminary. The priests and seminarians welcomed them. Then, a group of monks (I'm not sure from which religion) asked the seminary administrators if they could extend help. They requested for the evacuees to assemble in one place. When the seminary administrators gathered the evacuees in a chapel, the monks passed collection baskets around, obviously asking for money from the evacuees. While this was happening, the priests were already confused with what the monks were doing. Why would the monks collect money from those who just had their houses burnt?

After the collection, the monks told the evacuees that the money they collected will be used in buying goods for other people who are in need, probably people who are in a worse situation than that of the evacuees. True enough, nobody is too poor to give. Even those who are in dire need are still able to extend help to others.

Even when we do not have money or any material object, we can still give. After Ondoy left many people homeless, those who extended help are not only limited to those who gave money and other goods for the victims. Those who had nothing to donate had the opportunity to give by offering their time in volunteer work. Their God-given abilities to clean, to repack goods and to distribute them were all they needed to say that they have truly given. In short, they had nothing to give but themselves.

The woman in the Gospel teaches us the value of giving ourselves to God. We all belong to God and we should offer ourselves only to Him. The greatest gift we can ever give Him is ourselves, not the things we possess, because it is us that He loves and longs for.

Our daily living should become an offering to God. We don't need to become priests or lay servants to say that we are offering ourselves to Him. We don't even need to become martyrs. No, not necessarily. We just need to offer everything we do for Him, even if it's not a church-related work. When we offer our daily lives to Him, we become a pleasing offering. We become stronger against temptation. We become truly His.

The widow's offering is a measly amount, but it was the greatest gift to God. Similarly, we are nothing before God, but we can offer Him nothing better than our selves.

A Year of Light !

Lamp upon Our Feet turns 1!

It's been a year since I created Lamp upon Our Feet. Since that simple night of October 4, 2008, this blog has been a true lamp to its readers, notwithstanding the relatively small number of readers. It really warms my heart to know that my reflections have reached other hearts and have had a nourishing effect to other souls. As I always said, it does not matter how few my readers were. What matters to me is that my writings have helped others.

If I may, I would like to quote a comment from one of the first followers of my blog. He said:

"Hi. Please continue your noble mission. I'm a renewed Catholic. your writings help me a lot in my quest to be a Good follower of Christ..

God Bless You!"

This comment continues to be my inspiration. This had a great effect on me. It did not merely flatter me. It did not try to praise my writing skills. It was a personal narration of how I touched a person's life. It affirmed my mission.

Because of comments like that, I knew that the light I bear- the Word of God- was illuminating others. I knew that I was not just carrying the light for no reason. I had a purpose. For that specific comment I quoted, I thank Kuya Randolf.

Recently, I haven't been able to keep the lamp burning. Circumstances have not allowed me to post reflections for almost two months now. Nevertheless, I will continue my mission as soon as circumstances change. I hope it will be soon.

As for now, I rejoice that Lamp upon Our Feet is turning 1 year old. I am planning some activities for the whole month, and I pray that 100% Katolikong Pinoy will help me. I am planning to declare a "Fiesta de la Palabra de Dios" or Feast of the Word of God. Well, we will see what happens in the days to come.

Come everyone. Join me in this endeavor!

Let the Word of God be a lamp upon our feet!

Yours in Christ,
Dale

To Come and Feast on His Table

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time Aug. 16, 2009 (Jn 6:51-58)

"I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."

Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"

Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever."

It is very difficult to accept the teaching of Jesus about His giving of Himself as bread for all. Killing someone is a most gruesome sin. What more is eating someone's flesh? The Jews did not understand this teaching, nor was it easily accepted by the pagans who heard of it when the disciples preached Christianity to all nations. How could a God allow Himself to be eaten by people? This teaching challenged the wisdom of the pagans. As St. Paul puts it, "We proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles (1 Cor 1:23)." When we think about it, it really is foolish of Jesus to offer Himself on the cross and as bread in the Eucharist. But, "the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom (1 Cor 1:23)."

Jesus' offering of Himself is the greatest sign of God's love for man. This is what God destined and revealed even in the first pages of the Bible. In the Book of Genesis, God promised to send a Savior who will defeat Satan. But who would have thought that God will save us in this way?

God must have judged it better to redeem us through the bitter passion and glorious resurrection of Jesus in order to give us an example of giving oneself, of giving everything without withholding anything. Through Jesus, God did not only redeem us; He also gave us a model to follow in order to avoid sinking in the quicksand that is sin.

In the Eucharist, Jesus continuously nourishes us and gives us life. He says, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you (Jn 6:53)." The souls of those who do not receive the Eucharist slowly become weak. The Eucharist is not a vitamin for the soul, giving it only extra strength; the soul needs it because it is its primary food. The Eucharist is Jesus, and Jesus is the only source of life and strength.

Therefore, we must receive the Eucharist often. If there are some things, like sin, for example, which hinder us from receiving it, we must denounce them with God's help, in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We must strive to be worthy to receive the food of our soul. If we work hard to feed our bodies, we must work harder to feed our souls. Yes, this food is given free of charge, but we must be pure and worthy to receive it.

God, in His great love, is giving Himself as life-giving food for us. May we receive Him in faith. In receiving Him, Jesus comes to dwell in us, and we begin to live because of Him, with Him, in Him, and in the way He lived. On the last day, we shall be born in eternal life because we have fed our souls.

God has given us everything as a gift. We need only to come and feast on His table.

Flesh for the Life of the World

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time Aug. 9, 2009 (Jn 6:41-51)

At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, "I am the bread that came down from heaven." They said, "Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, 'I came down from heaven'?" "Stop grumbling among yourselves," Jesus answered. "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the Prophets: 'They will all be taught by God.' Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father.

I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread which I will give is my flesh for the life of the world."

The Jews cannot comprehend how Jesus could have come down from heaven. They know Jesus and even His parents. So how could they believe that Jesus came from heaven?

Jesus explains to them that no one can come to Him unless the Father wills it. Through this, He implies that it is the will of the Father for Him to come down to earth so that all may live. He was born on earth because this was God's plan for the salvation of His beloved people. Jesus is God's grace to us, a gift for our salvation. He is the living and life-giving symbol of God's care.

For us who are living after Jesus' time, He has given the Holy Eucharist. This is not only a reminder of His sacrifice on the cross. This is not a mere symbol. This is really Him, the living and life-giving bread. Through the Eucharist, God's will to bring His Son to all peoples is fulfilled. It is here that Jesus' offering of His flesh on Calvary two thousand years ago is made present now.

Jesus offers us His flesh and blood for the life of all (Jn 6:51). His offering of flesh and blood is an offering of His life. In the Eucharist, we receive, in faith, the life of Jesus. This life is the eternal life with the Holy Trinity and with all the saints.

Receiving Jesus' life is also accepting a challenge. It is a challenge to make our lives His life. As St. Paul puts it, "It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me (Gal 2:20)." We need to take upon ourselves the works of Jesus. We need to follow His footsteps, to live as He had lived because we have received His life.

Therefore, the Eucharist does not only nourish us, it also changes us. If, in faith, we receive the bread of life, we, little by little, become Jesus to all. This can only happen if we keep the lessons of the Eucharist in our hearts and in our deeds. Imagine how peaceful the world will be if we can all become Jesus!

A Greater Hunger

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time Aug. 2, 2009 (Jn 6:24-35)

Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.

When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, "Rabbi, when did you get here?"

Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval."

Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?"

Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."

So they asked him, "What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"

Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."

"Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread."

Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.

The Gospel today tells us that the people were looking for Jesus. This happened after the miracle of the multiplication of bread and fish wherein more than five thousand were able to eat. Jesus frankly told them that they were looking for Him only because they were able to eat, not because of the miracle they witnessed (Jn 6:26).

The people's search for Christ symbolizes the people's search for God. From the very beginning of his life, man has been searching for someone who can provide all that he needs in order to live. Since he met God and realized His power, man has been in pursuit of Him. Man searches for God because he needs Him.

This immature faith is rampant throughout Christianity. Many of us call on God only in times of material need. We only see God as the Great Provider of our necessities in life. This faith is immature and can easily crumble when faced with difficulties. If this is the kind of faith of all Christians, no Christian would be found among the poor.

When the Jews who were hungry approached Him, Jesus revealed to them a greater hunger which they often neglect. This is the hunger of the soul. Every soul longs for God's embrace but this yearning is neglected because of physical hunger and of the hunger for worldy things.

Jesus did not correct our perception of God as Provider of our needs. He only wanted us to direct our attention to the greater reason why we needed God. Indeed, we need Him in order to live in this world, but for how long will we live here? More than for our survival here on earth, we need God to save our souls, to nourish us with the bread which gives eternal life.

Jesus says that He is the life-giving bread. In receiving Him, we can want nothing more. Let us first seek the life that He gives to our souls. Let us establish a good relationship with Him. Let us prioritize the hunger of our soul and He will provide us with everything else we could ever need (Mt 6:33). Only in Him can we find rest for our hearts ("Confessions" by St. Augustine of Hippo), and in accepting Him, we receive eternal life where we will never go hungry nor thirsty (Jn 6:35)