21st Sunday In Ordinary Time: Confessing Jesus Today

In today’s gospel, Jesus directly asked his disciples,

“Who do you say that I am?”

Simon Peter said in reply,

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus said,

“And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church.”

Peter’s confession is the rock foundation of our Christian life. Without confessing Jesus the Christ as God of our lives, everything we say and do, all our rituals and sacraments will amount to nothing. Christianity is neither a set of obligation, mere religion nor a list of commandments but a relationship with Jesus. As Pope Benedict XVI said: “Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.”^[1]

“Who do you say that I am?” This is the question directed to each one of us by Jesus. We are the only ones who could answer Jesus’ question. Nobody else can answer it for ourselves.  We cannot answer this question if we have not experienced God’s love and grace in our lives.

Confessing Jesus as God of our life, however, has serious consequences. It is more than just a personal relationship or a romantic relationship with sweet Jesus. It is a commitment to Jesus’ gospel, values and vision of establishing God’s reign here and now. To confess Jesus as God of our life and the world is not just inside the church but in the world we live in. In other words, there is no separation between our faith in Jesus and what is happening in our world today.

Confessing Jesus in the church, spiritual or religious realm without practice and being indifferent to the real happening in the world today is what we can call a split-level kind of faith. Such faith sees no connection between Jesus’ words and deeds and the suffering and evil happening around us.

We witnessed this kind of faith in the recent spike of killings in our country because of the government’s war on drugs. It is utterly disturbing to see that in a Christian country like ours, the killings is tolerated, even supported. A culture of silence and a climate of fear is prevalent. In the midst of the daily killings, many people go on with their lives, show no empathy to the victims and accept the government war on drugs as necessary evil.

Confessing Jesus during these times of so much violence and killings is hard, even dangerous. Many times we are like a lone voice in the wilderness. But as true Christians we need to stand by the values and words that Jesus proclaimed and died for—the values of love over hatred, peace over violence, inclusion over discrimination, justice over oppression, and forgiveness over judgment.

Like Peter, we need to be like a rock in our faith in Jesus. Rock here means not being “bato” (apathetic) to the suffering of the poor victims of killings nor being hard as not showing any weakness or compassion. When Jesus called Peter, the rock, Jesus was well aware of the many faults and flaws of Peter. Peter’s being rock comes from the strength he received from God: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.” Like Peter, we fear, we vacillate, and we try to escape from the mission of Jesus.

But in the end, Peter stayed with Jesus. May we also stand with Jesus in today’s critical times.

 

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(1) Deus Caritas Est 1. Deus Caritas Est (Latin for “God is Love”) is the first encyclical written by Pope Benedict XVI.

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time: How Catholic Are We?

In the gospel today, nothing could hold back the brave woman from Canaan to plead with Jesus—not religious boundaries, not gender rules, nothing—when she told him the needs of her precious child. It was the faith of this outsider that moved Jesus to grant her what she wished for. Jesus said, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And the woman’s daughter was healed from that hour.

All four readings this Sunday touch on the theme that the salvation of the Lord is not just for a select group of people; it is available to everyone, even foreigners and outsiders.

In the first reading, from the book of the prophet Isaiah, the Lord proclaims that all nations will have the opportunity to be in a relationship with God. He says, “The foreigners who join themselves to the Lord…keep the Sabbath…[and] hold to my covenant” will be blessed beyond measure.

In the second reading, from his letter to the Romans, St. Paul describes himself as “the apostle to the Gentiles.” Paul was called by God to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ beyond the boundaries of Israel. He preached in polytheistic pagan nations, to people who had never even heard of the one, true God.

In this week’s gospel reading, a Canaanite woman, a foreigner, came to Jesus and begged for help. Her daughter was gravely ill, and she knew that Jesus had the power to heal people. Up until this time, Jesus had focused His efforts on the people of Israel, but this foreign woman had so much trust in the Lord that Jesus granted her what she wished for.

And finally, this same theme is present in the fourth reading, the Responsorial Psalm. (Don’t forget the Psalm, it is also a reading from the Bible.) The response this week, from Psalm 67, is, “O God, let all the nations praise you!” The words of this Psalm are clear that the Lord is not just the God of Israel. He is the God of all creation: “So may [God’s] way be known upon earth; among all nations, your salvation.”

We as church are called to be a true Catholic church.   Do you know the meaning of the word Catholic? It means free from provincial prejudices or attachments, in other words, of the whole; universal.  In fact, the Catholic Church was born out of the inclusivist missionary effort of Jesus and early Christian communities.  The first disciples and members of our church were all outsiders, marginalized, excluded from society, social outcasts, sinners, Gentiles.

Likewise, we are called to be a church for all people today.  We can be a church for all people today by welcoming in our community, the poor, the sinners, the unchurched, even or especially to those who have distanced themselves from the church. But to be Catholic church, we also need to be open to other religions and faith and even those with without religion or faith at all through dialogue.  After all, we only have one agenda on earth – that of making this world a better place, a just and peaceful world for everyone.

This brings us to the ultimate purpose of our being church.  To be church is to be missionary.  We are a church not for our own personal salvation; we are a church primarily for the mission—Jesus Mission: The mission of building the Kingdom of God here on earth where all people of every nation, race, colour, gender, culture, belief, religion, politics are one

In God’s eyes there are no ‘dogs’.  The food on the Master’s table, the Lord’s Word and his Love and not just the crumbs, is for all without exception. In God’s church, there are no locks, no “members only,” no first or second class, no dress codes, and no dues. Only love.

The Eucharist is a banquet and fellowship that welcomes all especially the sinners and outsiders.  In this Eucharist, let us ask the Lord of all to help us do away with all discrimination and with him to make us open to all.

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time: Jesus Invites us to Walk on the Water

God meets us where we are, whatever situation we are right now. God meets us in our joys and sorrows, in our hopes and anxieties and in our securities and fears. But more than that, God wants to take us to another level—God invites us to walk on the water!

Today’s readings show how God meets us in our fears.

In the first reading, God appeared to Elijah in his gravest fear. Elijah was running away from Jezebel who wanted to kill him. Jezebel wanted to kill Elijah because Elijah denounced her evil ways. Elijah feared for his life so he hid in a cave. There, God appeared to Elijah not in the strong wind, earthquake, and fire but in a tiny whispering sound.

In the Gospel we heard how the disciples were terrified when they saw Jesus walking on the water whom they thought to be a ghost. Then, Peter asked Jesus if he could walk on the water too and come to him. Jesus said, come. But Peter became terrified at the strong winds and big waves and he began to sink. Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught Peter, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

We too experience fear, real or imagined, in our lives. What is your particular fear at the moment?

God did not promise to take away all our fears. On the contrary, Jesus wants us to accept our fears and humbly admit our need for God and others. He did not tell us to evade the painful reality of our lives.

When we are afraid we tend to ask the Lord to intervene and do extra-ordinary things for us. God’s response is often not through spectacular ways (like in a strong wind, earthquake and fire) but he consoles us and comes to us in a soothing way. Jesus brought calm to the disciples in the boat.

More importantly, God’s response to our fear is encouragement; God gives us courage. Jesus told Peter, “Courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” Courage comes from the root word in French cor which means heart, core or being. In giving courage, Jesus is telling us to bravely accept the truest reality of our lives; the courage to be. The truest reality of our lives is that we are created by God and destined to live with God in his Kingdom.

This future life with God is already given to us now. Jesus proclaimed the good news of his kingdom which is already happening now though its fullness will happen in the future. God calls us to a life transformed according to the values of the good news.  Despite all the hardships and challenges that come our way, we will stay calm and at peace because God is with us. God is inviting us to walk on the water.

So what’s keeping us from walking on the water?

We have already mentioned courage. Courage is not the absence of fear but the ability to tame our fears. More importantly, courage is the awareness that God is walking ahead of us on the water. Courage is the awareness of our true selves which Jesus showed us. Our truest selves, the core of our being, is that we are meant to live and participate in the union and love of God.

Secondly, is our lack trust in Jesus. In the midst of fear, Jesus calls us to trust in him. We don’t need to just cow in fear. Amidst our fear, Jesus wants us not to focus on the roaring wind and waves but to keep our eyes on the One who walked on water.

Lastly, perhaps we are not able to leave behind our securities. Jesus wants us to step out of the boat of our comfort zones and securities.  Jesus invites us to take the plunge with him. Jesus wants us to let go of our worldly anchors. Instead, Jesus wants us to anchor on his life and good news.

Feast of the Transfiguration: A Foretaste of Our Ultimate Metamorphosis

When the Redemptorist came to Baclaran in 1932, Baclaran was a small desolate village of grassland near the sea. They built a small wooden chapel attached to their convent since their main purpose was to give missions to the Tagalog provinces. Little did they imagine that someday the small wooden chapel would transform into the biggest shrine in the world dedicated to Our Mother of Perpetual Help. Little did they imagine that Baclaran would transform into a booming town for trade and an international pilgrim center. These transformations happened because of the love story between Our Mother of Perpetual Help and the Filipino people.

Today, we celebrate the feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord. In today’s gospel, Matthew narrates the transfiguration:

Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother, John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, conversing with him.

Jesus’ transfiguration happened after his first prediction of his own passion and death in Jerusalem. The disciples were naturally shocked and distressed to hear this from Jesus as represented by Peter’s wailing to Jesus: “This cannot happen to you, Lord!” It is after this depressing situation of disillusionment and incomprehension that the Transfiguration takes place. Through the transfiguration, Jesus wanted to give his disciples a preview of his glory even if it was just a fleeting moment.

The Greek word used to describe for transfiguration is metamorphoo—the root of the English word, metamorphosis. We use that word more popularly today for the transformation of caterpillar to butterfly, likewise in the transformation of a maggot into an adult fly and the changing of a tadpole into a frog. We are utterly amazed when we witness these wondrous changes.

Metamorphosis is one of the wonders and mysteries of nature, indeed, one of the wonders of God’s creation. Who would imagine that a beautiful butterfly would come out of an ugly caterpillar? Metamorphosis is a reminder and a symbol for us from nature that something good can come out even from the messiest and ugliest reality of our lives. This gives us the greatest of hope and joy in anticipation of the transformation that will become of us and of God’s creation in the fullness of time.

Jesus’ transfiguration was a foretaste of the metamorphosis that is to become of us at the end of time. The divine metamorphosis that occurred to the three Disciples on the mountain during the time of the Transfiguration of the lord will also happen to us and we will become “God-viewers.” Like them and all the Saints of the ages, God’s light will metamorphosize our whole body and soul. We will achieve what is called Theosis (Deification) and shine as luminaries radiating the light of the knowledge of God. We will become partakers of the Divine Grace and communicants of God.

Until Jesus return in glory, God will make possible many spiritual metamorphosis in our lives. Along the journey of our lives, the Lord will transfigure Himself to us especially in the midst of crisis experiences.  The Baclaran story is a story of metamorphosis. Nature offers us plenty of metamorphosis which are manifestations of God’s wonder. There are many small metamorphosis that God gives us every day like a beautiful sunset, a sudden burst of joy because of an experience of the goodness of a person, a profound bliss out of the sense of being loved, a sense of genuine fulfillment out of an empowering project for the poor, etc. These small spiritual metamorphoses truly gives us divine joy if only for a fleeting moment.

But these spiritual metamorphoses are not just to show us the wonders of God but also a calling for mission. Until Jesus returns, our mission is to partner with Him in giving foretastes—previews—of God’s kingdom. As JR Woodward said, “The church is called to be a foretaste of God’s kingdom, a place where people can get a taste of the future in the present.”[1] As we wait and anticipate the kingdom, we too can bring great joy to God the Father by the joyful witness of our lives and humble service to our fellowmen and women (Mark 1:11).

 

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[1] JR Woodward, “Missional Field Notes,” https://missionalfieldnotes.wordpress.com/2014/01/09/church-as-foretaste-of-gods-kingdom/