In search of us…

What is the most important and basic characteristic of our Christian religion?
For the natural religions, it is always man searching for God.

When tribal pagans slaughter animals to offer their blood to their god, this signifies man’s desire to please an Almighty God.

When the Buddhists fast and cleanse their bodies in preparation for a very long meditation, it is still man in search of God.

When Hindus burn themselves, and offer their burning bodies to God, it is also man in search of God.

For the natural religions, man is always in search of God.
Man longs to see God face-to-face.

But for Christianity, it is the other way around.
It is not man in search of God, it is God in search of man.
That is the Good News for all of us Christians.

From the parable of the lost sheep, we see that God is in search of us. God is looking for us. This does not mean that we can lie back and indolently wait to be discovered by God. No.

The message is actually like this: we are all so important before God and God cannot rest, that God will always be restless, until He is able to see us and have us in His bosom.

That is the very good news.
For the natural religions, man is in search of God. For Christianity, from the Gospel, the Lord tells us: “God is in search of all of you because you are all important.” We hear that from the very Book of Genesis, the first Book of the Holy Scriptures.
What does God say to Adam? “Where are you? Why are you hiding?” and Adam says, “I am hiding because I am naked."

But God, very clearly, is looking for man, is in search of man. From the Book of the prophet Hosea, the Lord says, “Come back to me with all your heart. Do not let fear keep us apart.” Again, it is God in search of man. Man, being searched by God. God never growing tired, never resting, until man is with Him.

Saint John the Beloved says, “It was God who loves us first. It was not you who loved God first. It was God who loved you first. You are only responding to God’s love.”

The message is very clear. God is in search of us and God will never rest until we are with Him. What Saint Augustine says is true: “Oh Lord, how late have I known You and yet my heart is restless until it rests in You.”
The Lord also wants to tell us, “Same here. My heart will be restless until you rest in me.”

Let us thank God for such kind of love. Let us thank God for searching us because we are important. We are valuable to Him. God looks on us because we are priceless.

When the Lord appeared to St. Teresa of Avila, He told her: “Teresa, Teresa, you just don’t know how much I love you. Even if you are the only person in this world, I would still choose to die for you. Because I do not die for statistics. I do not die because there are so many people. I die for persons and that person is you.

Even if you are the only person in this world, Christ would still die upon the cross for you. This is because you are special, and God is always in search of you.

Blessings to you as you continue to observe the Disciplines of Lent…

saying no....

It is our life to help the needy.
There is something very beautiful in helping. But the Lord tells us, we must be ready to distinguish between the needy and the foolish.

When the foolish asks for help, they should not be helped. Why?

Because in cooperating with their foolishness, we are conniving with their actions of foolishness and we are tolerating them to continue doing the acts of foolishness. In the end, we never help them take the challenge to change and become better Christians.

There is a Chinese saying that goes,"If you give fish to a poor man, you give him food for one day, but if you give him a fishing rod, you give him food for a lifetime." The poor man may not apprecaite it right away but the fishing rod will offer him the challenge to fish himself, to realize his dignity as a child of God.

Today, the Lord reminds us to help the needy, clothe the naked, feed the hungry. But the Lord is also telling us to be smart and wise.

When you see something foolish going on, learn to say NO.

To be a Christian means to say YES to God but to be a Christian also means saying NO to foolishness. In saying no to the foolish, we help them realize their self-worth. In refusing help, the five wise virgins actuallly made the foolish virgins realize what they can do.

Letr us pray for a soft heart for the needy but let us also pray never to compromise with foolishness.

Let us pray for the grace to be compassionate, to be gentle to those who truly need our help.

But let us also recognize foolishness and challenge the foolish to ro rise up according to the capacity that God gave them.

As we continue to observe the Disciplines of Lent, let us ask God to give us the strength to learn how to say NO to foolishness.

Bless you all...

the world is in chaos...

It is not difficult to conclude that our nation is in chaos, or the world is in chaos. As we watch television, listen to the radio, read the newspapers, talk to each other, we will know that the world is indeed in chaos.

The world is in chaos because what used to be modesty is now called a sex hang -up.

The world is in chaos because what used to be called discipline is now called unhealthy repression.

The world is in chaos because what used to be called disgusting crappy movies are now adult movies.

The world is in chaos because what used to be called moral responsibility is now called being free and liberated.

The world is in chaos because what used to be called chastity is now called neurotic inhibition. The world is in chaos because what used to be called living in sin is now called living a meaningful relationship.

The world is in chaos because what used to be called ethical anarchy is now called theology of liberation.

The world is in chaos because what used to be called killing and aborting a baby is now called choice.

With all these, it is not really difficult to say that our world is in chaos. What is your response to this chaos? I’m anxious of your reply. Some people are too busy. They are much too blinded. They are much too deaf to listen to the chaos. They would rather read a book because they want to let themselves off from all the chaos there is in the world.

When it comes to praying for problems in the family, everybody rushes to church. When it comes to praying so that our problems would be solved, everybody goes to God. But when a priest asks us to pray for the nation, to pray for the world, who comes?

When we want to pray for our own personal needs and intentions everybody rushes to God. But when we are asked to be more patriotic , we say, “I have many preoccupations.”

It is always difficult to gather people and ask them to pray for their nation. - for peace and order in the nation.
It is indeed a danger signal. But don’t you know that chaos is not that bad? Let us remember that chaos preceded creation, the proclamation of the Gospel and the Easter Sunday.
In the face of the present chaos in every nation of the world, in the face of our distorted values, of unjust taxes, of rising criminality, of negligence of the poor, what could be our response?
Our response can be found in the readings of Luke. Have you ever heard of the rainbow? Of the promise of God?

We might be distressed and faced with serious terrible problems but the Lord offers us a rainbow of hope. Somewhere, there is a rainbow of hope waiting for us. We must not lose courage, not only for ourselves but for our nations.

The Gospel tells us about the Lord proclaiming to all of us: “The kingdom is in your midst.”
This is the Good News: that GOD is with us and He will never abandon us. God’s message is a message of hope.

Life is difficult all over the world. In all its nations, chaos is in every corner. Sadly, it is made more difficult by our fellow countrymen. But we must take courage because there is rainbow of hope. GOD is offering us hope.

As we continue to observe the disciplines of Lent, let us pray altogether and ask the Lord to sustain in us the hope we desperately need in addressing chaos around us.

the way of the cross.

Yesterday, I chanced upon a booklet in our giftshop which was displayed recently in time for our Lenten spiritual exercises. It is about the Way of the Cross for monks and priests as prayed by the lay people. It is an inspiring prayer companion for Lent.

The title of the book carries itself a message for the soul. It is the way of the cross of Jesus. Every station along the way is a reflection of the many phases and stages of our spirituality and Christian life.

Indeed, the way of the cross is the way of life of monks and priests. But when I say that our life is like a prolonged way of the cross, I do not only refer to the sufferings and anguish that life brings us. However, our life is not all pain and sorrow. In every pain and in every hurt that life offers us, there is also a joy and consolation as counterparts that are coming from the Lord Himself.

For all of us, the sign of the cross identifies us as Christians, in the same way that the Jews are identified through the star of David. Some people make the sign of the cross very devoutly. Others do it as if they were waving off flies from their noses. If we cannot make the sign of the cross properly, how can we make the sign of the cross in our hearts?

Priests and monks cannot bless without making the sign of the cross. Those who are not willing to take up the cross have no right to be blessed. In every blessing is a cross and in every cross is a blessing.

It is the way of the cross for monks, for indeed, who should live the message of the cross first and foremost but the monks who join hands in celebrating the memorial of the dying and rising of the Lord? If the life of a monk is the way of the sacrifice, then it truly should be the way of the cross.

Monastic life is a difficult life. It is no joke to live a good one. It means lots and lots of hardships and sacrifices. I am starting to realize what the older monks told me way back when I was still struggling with my monastic formation. People do not seem to grasp the full meaning of this life. Our life remains an enigma to them. A mystery that remains unfolded.

All they seem to see are the images of monks in their superficial facets of their monastic life. They see us laughing during recreations, monastic professions, and other gatherings inside the Cloister. They conclude that we are happy. They see themselves listening to us at homilies and they conclude that we are successful. Our superiors praise us for the good homilies we deliver and they conclude that we are fulfilled. But there will always come a time when we feel a sudden kind of sadness creeping in us. The only consolation given to each and every monk inside the Cloister to keep their life going is their community, their acquired family. But in the midst of this, monastic life is still a way of the cross.

Same is true with the life of a priest. Priesthood is a difficult life. Not seldom in their lives do priests feel that they are like clowns. Priests have to hide from people their tears under a smiling made-up face because they do not wish to add to their flock’s burden.

They have to dance and jump at their beck and call, even if their legs feel broken and bruised. People think that the priest’s life is easy because he is served good food; the parishioners are cooperative and warm; and the children who come to the priests are so lovable.

Sometimes I feel that people seem to forget that priests are not supermen. After each busy day in church, the priest goes to his room, alone, fondly remembering the children who can never be his own. He returns to his room, alone, with no one to whom to bare his aching soul. It is a difficult kind of life priests have, and I guess, more difficult than a monk’s life inside the Cloister. And he is called to be the people’s shepherd.

The priest’s life is very much a way of the cross.
From whom did Jesus get support and consolation? From God and from the people God has chosen to be His instruments of hope. At the way of the cross, the ‘laity’ consoled Jesus--His Mother, Veronica, Simon of Cyrene, the weeping women of Jerusalem, Mary Magdalene and John.

The prayers of the lay people help the priests carry their crosses. The prayers of faith, the acts of love, the messages of hope, the words of trust- these bring purpose to the priest’s way of the cross.

Let us pray for our priests in the whole world as they carry their own heavy crosses in their parishes.

Authority from the heart…

My friend and brother Dom Joseph Gabriel, OSB gave me a book about efficient management and I’m done reading it. It was a very good and informative book.
According to the book, there are different reasons why people fail in management. The first reason is their failure to delegate. When somebody does not know what and how to delegate, that person is not a good manager. A good manager is actually a good delegator.

Another mistake of managers is that they fail to organize people well. People under the charge of these managers end up fighting each other and become disunited and disbanded. Managers who cannot get people organized eventually fail in their task.

Another reason why managers fail is because they cannot organize their time. There is so much to do. They cannot start an activity and project at the right time at the right moment. Time management is not the name of their game.

There are three reasons why people in authority fail: They do not like to delegate, they cannot organize people and they cannot organize their time.

But if I were the author of the book, I would propose one important reason why people in authority fail. And that reason is only one word: arrogance!

People fail in authority because of their arrogance. To be arrogant is to be haughty and overbearing over those under us.

Jesus had authority in Heaven and on earth but He was not arrogant. Jesus had the fullness of authority but He was not authoritarian.

How I really wish, dear brothers and sisters, that much of our authority will come from our heart and not from the head. We enter into conflicts and our authority is questioned because there is too much head in our exercise of authority.

If we could only put more heart, meekness, kindness, gentleness and compassion in our exercise of authority, we would surely be like Jesus and we would have our brothers and sisters and the people under us spellbound.

All of us have authorities. Some people have more authority than others but we certainly have authority at least over one person.

Let us ask the Lord for the grace and compassion to put more heart into our exercise of authority.

Peace and blessings to us all!

where there is weakness, there is strength.

The Book of Judges specifically Chapters 6,7 and 8 is all about Gideon. Let me refresh your memory about the story of Gideon which I find so beautiful and interesting because Gideon was a simple farmer, and yet, Scriptures say, he talked to GOD as if he were talking to a friend. Theirs was such a personal, undemanding relationship (God and Gideon) until God told him, “You must lead an army and fight the Midianites”.

Of course, what would Gideon say to God but, “How can that be? I am not a warrior, but a simple farmer. Besides, I am very small compared to the Midianites who are like giants. I cannot fight them.”
But the Lord told him , “You have it, you have it because you know that you are weak. You have it because you are humble. I will fight the battle for you.”

As a matter of fact, the Lord was not satisfied with that because during the battle, the Lord diminished the army of Gideon to 300 against the thousand warriors of Midian and yet Gideon won the battle. Not because he was strong, not because he was well trained but because God was with him.

Actually, while I was pondering on the passages of the book of Judges and while I was writing down this reflections, I was battling against my headache, and muscle pains because of colds. I needed to fight the colds virus and vowed to myself not to skip any of the Divine Offices for the day in our Church. I succeeded. I won. I only needed lots and lots of water and Vitamin C fluids. I only needed an eight-hour night sleep. I only needed lots of prayers.

As with us , we may have to fight so many battles in our lives. We will have to fight the battle against our own selfishness which makes us feel jealous of the achievements of other people.

We will have to fight the battle against our own feelings of ill will against other people simply because they are wealthier, or more successful in life, or more handsome or beautiful than you, or happier than you, or more influential than you, or more talented than you.

We will have to fight the many battles against our desire to be somebody in our offices, communities and even in the whole world; in our desire to secure the respect and acquire reverence of those around us.

Similar to the battle of Midian, the battle against sin cannot be fought by mere rationality or by psychoanalysis. The battle against sin cannot be fought simply because we are smart and we have good educational background. The battle of sin can only be fought and won if you completely rely on GOD for help.

Let us stop blaming our traumatic childhood. Let us stop blaming our bosses. Let us stop blaming our husbands. Let us stop blaming our wives. Let us stop blaming our children. Let us stop blaming the world. Let us stop blaming our parents (living or dead) for who we are, for what we are doing in our life, and for what have become of us.

Rather, let us TRUST completely in God. He won the battle for Gideon. We will also win our battle against our brokenness, against our weaknesses, against our sin: with His generous help.
Let us trust in HIM.

As we continue with our Lenten observance, let us start the battle, and with the grace and mercy of our loving God, we will surely and definitely win.
Blessings to us all!

Prayer, almsgiving, fasting…

Today is the second day of the second week of Lent and it is good for us: monks, nuns, priests, pastors, deacons, lay ministers and especially the laypeople to reflect together on what Lent invites us to do.

Lent stands on three firm standposts: - prayer, almsgiving, and fasting.
More than any other period of the year, we are asked to pray, give alms and fast during this holy season.

Lent is a season of prayer. We do not mean that Lent is a season for more prayer, but it is actually a season for better prayer. Lent is not an invitation to multiply Hail Mary’s nor Novenas. You can do multiply them but that will not be in the spirit of lent. The spirit of Lent means better prayer, not simply more prayers. The question is not the quantity of our prayer but the quality of our prayer that is to be offered to God during this season of Lent.
Prayer that does not take root in our hearts will lead us nowhere. It will just massage our ego and convince us that we are so good. If there is no love in our heart it amounts to nothing.

The second standpostof Lent is almsgiving.
Almsgiving is not just simply giving something to the poor. It is not simply taking a coin in your pocket and dropping it into a blind beggar’s outstretched palm or into the tin can of a street child.

Almsgiving means thinking of other people. Almsgiving means sharing with other people. Almsgiving means giving a listening ear to someone who is in dire need of somebody who is willing to listen and can give advice. Almsgiving means accepting the apology of someone who has deliberately hurt you. Alms is a general term. It is not simply something that is given out of charity. It is doing concretely for a neighbor.

The third is fasting. Fasting is not simply missing food. It is not simply dieting. The season of lent is a time for us to fast. It is for us to impose on ourselves that discipline. It is craving for something but exercising restraint in giving in to it. It is conquering over our inner desire and passion for something that we want to do or to acquire.

Lent also brings to us three fruits.
Prayer encourages us to deepen our relationship with God.
Almsgiving improves our relationship with each other.
Fasting and sacrifice enhances our self discipline.

Lent gives us an improved relationship with God, an improved relationship with other people, and a better awareness and control of oneself.

Let us ask God to keep the spirit in us to do these acts in this time of Lent.
Bless us all….

Love, despite of-

Once again we are all reminded that love is the soul of our Christian life. Not liturgy, not cultic worship. Love is at the core, and is the soul of our Christian life.

You may be deprived of liturgy, you may be deprived of cultic worship, and yet, you can still be a Christian-if you are able to L-O-V-E.

Love is the soul, the core of our Christian life. It is very easy to love people from a distance. It is easier if people we love are miles and miles away. It is easier for us to love them if loving involves simply offering Masses for them and including them in our private prayers and in the prayers of the faithful of the Holy Mass.

But if the person you are asked to love is your own bedmate whom you have been sleeping with for the last 10 years or 15 years or 20 years or 50 years who makes you wake up in the middle of the night from the loud sound of his/her snore, it is a different story.

If the person you are asked to love is your own room mate who messes up with your things on your study table, then it is a different story.

If the person you are asked to love is your own house mate who turns on the TV set or stereo to its maximum volume while you are taking your after-lunch nap (siesta), then it is a different story.

When you are asked to love your own seatmate in school who makes your classroom life miserable and stressful all year long, then it is gonna be a different story.

When God asks you to love the person who obstructs your promotion in the office, then it is a different story.

When God asks you to be gentle with your seemingly unruly children, then it is a different story.

When God asks you to love a person who gossips you (tsismosa/tsismoso) and spreads false rumors against you(intrigera/intrigero), then it is really a different story.

It is easier to love people when they are from a distance. But when they sleep with you, eat with you, rub elbows with you, make life miserable for you, it is a different story. However, loving them is very much possible because all things are possible with GOD. We should aways remember that.

Let us ask ourselves, “ Do we have the souls in our Christian life?” “Do we have enough love to give life to our Christian life? If not, then all liturgy, all popular religiosity and all cultic worships will be in vain.

Today, let us take the lead to love. Let us take the challenge to love no matter what it takes, no matter how difficult it is.
Let us release ourselves from the bondage of a cold heart. Let us keep the fire of love burning in our hearts, not just for those who are easy to love, not just for those who are convenient to love, not just for those who are miles apart from us, but most especially for those who are nearest to us whom we find so difficult and hard to love.
If we can do that- then God’s rewards will all be ours!

Bless us all….

feel free, relate to my prayer. pray with me as I pray, "Forgive me Lord"...

"...Lord Jesus Christ, I kneel before You- fearful and trembling because I know I am a sinner and I dare not to rely on my own worth.
I only rely on Your goodness and mercy. I feel dirty because of my sins. My body and soul are tainted and blemished. I am frustrated because of my unguarded and unclean thoughts, because of my unkind and dirty words.

Gracious and merciful God, I seek Your protection. I look for Your healing. I am a troubled sinner. My poor soul is making an appeal to You. I cannot bear people's judgment, I can only trust in Your mercy. Lord, I show my wounds to You. I uncover my shame before You. I know that my sins are many and great, and I am afraid of the punishments my sins deserve. But I hope in Your mercy because Your mercy is boundless and endless.

Lord Jesus, You were crucified for me. Look upon with mercy and hear my prayer. I love You. I trust in You. Have mercy on me, full of sorrow and sin, for Your compassion is without end.

Praise to You, Saving sacrifice offered on the wood of the Cross for me and for all mankind.

Praise to the noble and precious blood flowing from Your wounded side, washing away the sins of the whole world.

Lord, remember me whom You have redeemed with Your blood. I repent for my sins and I long to put to right what I have done. I long to rectify my mistakes that I have made.

Merciful Lord, take all my offenses, take all my sins, purify my body and soul and make me worthy to taste Your infinite love.

May Your holy body inspire me to do the works pleasing to You and bring me health in mind and body.

Be my firm defense in my battle against temptations now and always.
Amen!....."

And for today, I shall ponder on an unexpected love....

Happy Valentine's Day to all of you out there!!!!......I shall not be discussing the beginnings nor the history of Valentine for I am sure that lots and lots of blog writers have already delineated that issue in celebration of today's feast. Rather, I shall tell you a different reflection on love.

Romanticists say that love comes from the most unexpected places, But this is true not only for love alone. God also comes to us in unexpected places and people.

In the Bible Readings of 2 Kings 15:29, we hear God using Assyria in order to talk to Israel. Assyria is a pagan nation which does not believe in Yahweh! And yet, God uses a pagan nation to talk to His chosen people. Israel does not realize this. Perhaps, Assyria does not even acknowledge that she is being used by God as an instrument. But God does it just the same.

In the Gospel, God reveals His message to children. He does not reveal His message to theologians or intellectuals. He does not do so to the richest people in society, but to children: the most taken-for-granted sector of society.

The way of God brings forth unexpected joys. If only we could open our eyes to the reality of God talking to us through unexpected people, places and events, then our lives would never be boring. We get bored only because we lack faith. It is only in faith that we discover God. Let us open our eyes and ears to His message!

Blessings to us all.....

a prelude to tomorrow's feast of the hearts: Love without measure!

Tomorrow is Valentine's day and the feast of the hearts. The celebration will call us to, once and for all, recall that the Lord has His statement: "Love one another."

I have three things to propose for your reflection now.

First: this statement is a command. It is not an invitation, a request or an option but a command. Being a command, it calls for total obedience. we are not left with any choice except to follow His command to love one another. A Christian who says, "I cannot love the other. I will just love another one," is contradicting himself. Jesus statement is a command. It is not an option, a request or an ivitation. It is an obligation.

Second, the Lord says to us, "Love one another." He did not say, "Love one another when you are both young or when you are both healthy." He did not say, "Love one another when you are not angry anymore." Or, "Love one another when the other one has stopped offending you." The Lord only said, "Love one another" without any conditions or limitations.

The truth is, my dear friends, brothers and sisters in the Lord, we are persons who love to procrastinate (postpone or delay needlessly). We would rather show our love to one another next week or next year or on Valentine's day. Yet the Lord tells us the best time to love is not yesterday, not tomorrow, not next week, not on Valentine's day. The best time to love and the best way to love by God's command, "Love one another" is to love now. If we fail to love one another now, there is great possibility we will fail to love one another tomorrow or the next moment.

Third, the Lord says, "Love one another as I have loved you." The Lord did not say, "Love one another as they have loved you." Our standard for loving is not the love we see in ohers. But our standard for loving is the love we experience from the Lord Himself.

If our standard of loving is the love we receive from other people, very surely, our love will ceratinly be imperfect and impure. Our love's standard should be that of the Lord's.

Tomorrow, as we celebrate Valentine's day, let us keep these three thoughts in mind. It is obligatory to love one another. Loving one another has no conditions. Let us remind ourselves that our model for loving one another is not the love we see in others, but the love GOD has blessed us with.

Happy Valentine to us all!...

loving and forgiving...

When we forgive , we are also asked to forget. Forgiveness without forgetting is a meaningless exercise. Yet, while many easily forgive, only a few forget the wrong that have been done to them.

Forgiveness is central to Christian life. We become more human and God-like when we forgive more.

The Lord teaches us three main points about forgiveness.

First: It is necessary to forgive. We are not given the choice to forgive or not to forgive. We must always forgive because God is forgiveness and His children need to learn to forgive.

Second: Forgiveness must be endless. The Old Testament says man can forgive three times. Peter wanted to impress the Lord and said he would forgive seven times. But the Lord told him he was still short because forgiveness should not be limited. We should never grow tired of doing good, as in forgiving.

Third: Forgiveness should be complete and total. When we forgive, we should not discuss the wrong anymore. When we forgive, we begin anew without resurrecting old pains. We forgive totally and completely.

However, forgiveness is not unconditional. The Lord sets certain conditions before forgiveness can be given. First, we must ask for it. How can you be forgiven, if you do not ask for it?
If you do not recognize the priest's power to forgive, how can he absolve you? Second, we should be ready to forgive others. Third, we must be ready and willing to love again after forgiving and or be forgiven.

When Peter denied the Lord, the Lord did not ask him if he was sorry. Instead, He said, "Peter, do you love me?

A loving heart is a precondition to forgiveness. Those who do not love cannot be forgiven. Those who do not love cannot forgive.

Bless us all as we continue to observe the Disciplines of Lent!

Brokenness and Healing…

There are three stories of brokenness and healing that I am going to confront you today.

The first story of brokenness comes from the prophet Hosea.

According to Hosea, Israel, the wife of God goes out to prostitute herself. The faithful God goes out in search of His errant wife and offers a second honeymoon. Yahweh offers His adulterous wife a second honeymoon in the desert so that they can again discover their lost love. This offer cannot happen unless the wife accepts.

In the Gospel of Luke, we hear of the hemorrhaging woman who wants to be healed from her illness. She has been suffering from it for twelve years already and she believes that she can only be healed once she touches the Lord.

In both accounts, Israel and the hemorrhaging woman were healed, only because they reached out.

Both risked reaching out to the Lord. Both were bold enough to touch the Lord.

The third story is yours!

Who among us can proudly say that we have not committed a sin? -No one.

Who among us here can say that we have not prostituted ourselves in utter infidelity against GOD? -No one.

If we want to be healed then, remember that the Lord is always here. Maybe what is missing is our bold act of reaching out.

In this time of Lent, let us reach out to GOD in silence and pray: “Lord, I want to be healed. Restore health to my soul. Lord, I want to be healed, heal me. Amen.”

First Sunday of Lent Reflections...The measure of love

Today is the first Sunday of Lent and it's Gospel is focused on the temptations of Jesus which I essayed just the other day, so I needed to deviate to give chance to a reflection which seems to be very timely and just fitting and proper on the fast approaching celebration on the day of the hearts: Valentine's Day!

So, my dear friends, without so much ado, let me begin by telling you that many of my friends in the Philippines who kept emailing me said time and again: “Dom, You must take care of yourself because if you do not take care of yourself, nobody else inside will take care of you, etc. etc. etc..."

This came to my mind why people out there get their insurance companies and memorial plans. We want to be taken care of. Why? This is probably because we believe that there might be no one to take care of us when we no longer are able to take care of ourselves.

Well, this practical idea is not really based on the Scriptures.

We can see from Scriptures that evidently, Abraham did not agree with the advice I get from my friends.

During the time of Abraham, trouble arose between him and Lot because their workers were fighting each other. And to resolve the feud, they decided together, probably saying: “Okay, let us just divide. Whichever you choose will be yours, whatever remains will be mine.” And Abraham gave the best part--the Jordan portion of the Holy Land--to Lot. He strongly believed that even if he did not take care of himself, there would always be somebody who would take care of him.--GOD.

Abraham did not mind being left the less fertile land, the less promising land. He gave up the most fertile, the most promising land to Lot. And just as he believed, Abraham was rewarded by God. He was rewarded with Canaan. He was rewarded by becoming the Father of all nations.
The action of Abraham is given confirmation by the Gospel which says, “You must treat others the way others treat you.”

In our own words and interpretation, this must mean that, “You must give to other people what you want the most for yourself,” because God will take care of the rest. It is when you are able to give up what you enjoy and aspire for the most; when you can give up your very dreams so that others can become better persons; when you can sacrifice for others so that they may be able to continue to live a descent life, then you are giving them your real love; and when there is love that is real, then God is always there.

In our celebration of the Holy sacrifice of the Mass, we offer simple bread. We offer simple wine. And yet, in the poverty of our offering, GOD responds. He gives us back, no longer bread, no longer wine, but His very body, His very blood.

God is always like that- He cannot be outdone in generosity. God always appreciates ANY sacrifice we make. The Lord says, “Treat others the way you would have them treat you.”
Give to other people what you enjoy the most. Give to other people what you like the most. Give to other people what you love the most.

It is not true that if you do not take care of yourself, no one else will. Rather the Lord says, “When you have forgotten yourself, when you have given up what you want most, what you cherish most, what you love most, then I will enter into your life.
I will take care of you.”

May God bless us and be gracious to us in this time of Lent! Happy Sunday to all of you and let me greet you an advance "happy Valentine's day to all of you" out there...

Which kiss?

In the gatherings I was invited to attend, the most remembered was the wedding of my friend in Albuquerque. During the entire ceremony, I could not help but notice the couple’s excitement and joy on their faces. After the formal ceremony, the priest who witnessed the wedding told the groom to kiss his bride. That scene was so lovely.

Our Lord Jesus Christ also received kisses, specifically from three different kinds of people.
His first kiss came from a woman named Mary, His mother.

The second kiss came from another woman from Magdala, also named Mary. When she saw Jesus in the house of Simon the Zealot, she knelt down and cried until she could wash the feet of the Lord with her tears. With her long hair, she dried the feet of our Lord and anointed them with perfume. She humbly stooped down and kissed the Lord’s feet.

The third kiss came from a man named Judas Iscariot who betrayed Him in the garden of Olives.

We proclaim our love for Jesus by our kisses to Him.
Do we kiss Him like Mary, His mother, or like Mary Magdalene, the repentant?
Or do we kiss Him like Judas, the Iscariot, the betrayer?

We cannot imitate the kiss of Mary, His mother, because She is sinless, and we are NOT.
We are thus left with the examples of the other two.
Are we going to kiss Jesus like Magdalene, repenting her sins? Or like Judas, the friend who betrayed Him?

In this Lenten season, the Gospel calls us to change our life. The keyword thus, is CONVERSION. This means r-e-p-e-n-t-a-n-c-e.

If you kiss Jesus with a kiss of a repentant woman, then you will see how Jesus will change you. You will see how peace will be restored in your heart. You will see how you can sleep again in the night. You will see how you will be peaceful again in the days of your life.

Let’s have a peaceful observance of the Lenten season!

Temptation to sin…

Today is the third day of Lent. Lent is a call to conversion. The enemy of conversion is sin.
Let me limit my reflections to three points that lead us to sin.
The first question is: what is temptation? We will know it when we know the source from where it comes.
Temptations only come from the devil. His intention in tempting us is to make us stumble. God will never tempt us. God can only test us. When the devil tempt us, his intention is to make us bad. When God test us, His intention is to make us better. When the devil tempt us, his intention is to drive us away from God. When God test us, He actually invites us to cling to Him during that period of trial.

Temptation can be a responsibility and a burden. Testing from the Lord can actually be a blessing. As gold is tested by fire, so is our Christianity also tested by God.
God’s tests are not to make life more difficult for us, but to make us better persons. The Lord wants the gold in us to surface by subjecting us to fire.
The Scriptures tell us of ways God tested His followers.
Abraham was tested by God. The Lord asked him to sacrifice his son Isaac to Him. It was not a temptation, it was a test intended to make the best in Abraham come out.
The Lord also tested the Jews. For 40 years, they wandered in the desert. The Lord tested them in the desert. The Lord wanted the good in them, the love in them, the faith in them to come out even more.

My second question is: What were the temptations faced by the Lord?
According to the Gospel the Lord was tempted three times. The first temptation was for Him to use His power for His own convenience. The Lord refused to do it, instead He chose the more difficult way, the way of sacrifice. We, who often opt for the easy way out, can learn something from the temptation of the Lord.

When I speak of temptation, I do not speak only of temptation of the flesh. Temptation can also come in the form of choosing the easy way out.
Temptations can also come in the form of telling a lie because you are afraid to be punished or to be humiliated. Temptations can also come in the form of leaning towards the more convenient or the more expedient ways, instead of the moral and proper thing to do.
We can speak of people who abuse their authority for their own convenience. We can speak of people who abuse the goodness and meekness of their fellowmen.
That is the first temptation of Jesus-- the temptation to make life comfortable at the expense of others, the temptation to abuse oneself to make life easier and more convenient.
The second is the temptation for power--worldly power, secular power. This is very clear for the Lord who says: “I do not need worldly power because I do not live in this world.”

In our life, arguments run like these: there is no sex in heaven so we might as well enjoy everything here on earth; we cannot bring our money to heaven, so it might as well be spent here in whatever manner we desire; let us enjoy all the praises here on earth, there might not be any in heaven. These are the temptations of popularity, money and sex.
The third temptation is to ask people to serve you rather than you serving other people; asking the Lord to serve you because you have been very good; asking the Lord to spare you from sickness because you attend Mass regularly; asking the Lord to make your family and children good and successful because you pray everyday.

We are here not because we want to be rewarded. We are here because we want to repay the Lord. When everything has been said and done, we can only say that wee are just but useless servants of God. We do not do good because we want to be rewarded. We do good because God has been good to us.

The third question is: How did the Lord face temptation?
Jesus, when tempted, did not argue. He did not use His reasoning. He used the Scriptures against the devil.
The way to overcome temptation is not to use psychology, logic, philosophy or even theology. The way to overcome temptation is by attuning yourself always to the Word of God--by prayer.
You must pray when you are tempted.

It is very difficult to face temptations. I speak from experience. It is easier to fall into temptations. One geek may say: “the way to get rid of temptations is to do them.” By this he meant that the way to get rid of temptations is to do the sin. Thus he banish temptation by giving in to it.

It is enjoyable to give in to temptation, and it can be very easy. But the Lord never promised us an easy life, only a meaningful life. Need I say more?
God bless us all!

criticize with love.

In the first Reading of the Acts of the Apostles, we listen to how Paul does the things that many of us love to do--criticize.
Paul criticizes his fellow Jews. He confronts them about the hardness of their hearts, about their rejection of the Messiah, and the killing of the Messiah in their own hands. It was indeed a difficult mission.

But Paul was driven into this criticism of his brother Jews, because of his one and only intention: He wanted them to discover the truth and to discover life. His criticism was an invitation for them to become better persons.

This is where we probably fail. Much of our criticism is done out of love. Much of our criticism is borne out of hardness of heart and selfishness.

Mind you, it is quite risky to criticize. It can pose as health hazard. It could pose threats to our business. It could destroy beautiful relationships in friendship if not properly handled. Yet, Paul was not afraid to destroy even his friendship with his fellow Jews because of a good ulterior motive- he wanted them to be converted!

Let us ask ourselves: “Are we afraid to criticize?” “Why are we afraid to criticize?” Is it because we are scared to risk our friendships, risk our businesses, risk or relationships? But let me remind you my dearest people of God, that there is nobody who can do it to our friends and loved ones except ourselves who can do the criticism with love and understanding.

On the other hand, we are also taught how to receive criticism. Many of us, when confronted with our limitations, block them out by saying, “I did not do that.” or “How dare you tell me such.” We defensively counteract, “Who gave you the right to criticize me?” “I have so many things to throw against you also.” Or we rationalize, “Everybody is doing that, why are you picking on me?” or worse, “Be careful with your criticism because I know what you are doing in the underground.” My goodness! I am afraid there is no end to all of these word-war exchanges.

But certainly, we can put an end to all of these if we can only acknowledge in ourselves that part of evangelization is the humility to accept criticism constructively, the awareness of the acceptance that we are not perfect, the humility and compunction of heart to accept criticism and the courage to deal with our weaknesses and finally grow humbly from it. Then and only then we can achieve successful and effective dealings on criticism.

If we are truly disciples of the Lord, two things are asked of us today. First: be able to criticize with love, so that in the process we can lead our loved ones and friends to conversion.
Second: humbly accept criticism in the spirit of openness and love. We must be willing and ready to accept that something in us needs to be corrected, that we should change, that we need healing and, finally, that we need people, our loved ones and friends to remind us of this. So, to reiterate and wrap up my thoughts from today’s Readings, I must say: we must learn to criticize with love and we must learn to accept criticism with humility.

Blessings to us all!

driving for errands amidst a snowstorm...and pondering on love.

Yesterday was the third day of a heavy downpour of snow in Northern New Mexico affecting the neighboring localities of Chama, Abiquiu, Espanyola, Chimayo and Sta Fe. Despite the snowfall, life needed to go on...monks with assignments to go out of town to run for errands had to keep going. I needed to keep going with my town trip to Sta Fe with Dom Marcus to buy maintenance stocks and attend a hands-on coaching from the great people of Studio-X, Nancy, Kyle and Matt on the launching of the new look of the monastery's website. I needed some hands-on coaching from them on the monastery's giftshop site too, which was also launched with its new look and URL.

On our wayback home, we did the shopping of maintenance stuffs at Lowe's and at Wal-mart.
While Dom Marcus did almost all of the drop-by-at-stores where he needed to pick up lots of stuffs for maintenance, I opted to stay inside the car and did some meditations on the next day's (that's today) event: Ash Wednesday.

My meditation was focused on experiencing and showing love (since it's the month of love and hearts, too) each day, each moment. I was reflecting that in the Bible, there were four Gospels: Mark, Matthew, Luke and John. Of these Gospels, the Gospels of Mark, Matthew and Luke contain such words as "If you want to be my disciple, you must carry your cross." In St Luke's, there was slight difference. There was a word "daily" after "you must carry your cross". That makes the slight difference from the other two Gospels. St Luke's says, "you must follow the Lord. Take up your cross daily, everyday, each day."

On the other hand, the issue of Lent is not only that we are faithful to the Lord periodically. I was deeply thinking while waiting for my great brother Marcus doing the shopping of his maintenance tools and supplies, that tomorrow (that is today) is Ash Wednesday and we need to start re-focusing and re-assuring ourselves of our dependence and commitment to God. I hope that the mark of our commitment will not only on the day of the imposition of ash on our foreheads because Ash Wednesday is only the beginning and not the whole of the Lenten season. And that our commitment to God should not only be fixed on the Lenten season but everyday of our lives. The event of Ash Wednesday is just a reminder for all of us to keep a steadfast heart on our lifelong commitment to God.

Furthermore, you know Valentine's Day. How many roses, chocolates, and gifts were bought because of lovers who wanted to mark the event? But let me stress to you dear friends that expressions of love for our loved ones cannot be, and should not be, limited to wedding anniversaries, and Valentines Days only.
Jesus says, "If you want to be My disciple, you must carry your cross daily." "If you want to show your love, you must show your love each day, everyday." "Each day" is very important phrase. Because it is very easy to love sometimes. It is very easy to love oftentimes. But it is very difficult to love everyday.

The call of Lent is to love, follow the Lord and carry the cross each day. Daily.

Then just as I was ending up on my reflections, Dom Marcus was already approaching and hurriedly got in, started the engine, and carefully drove the truck and headed back home to the monastery.

Valuing relationships….

While I was browsing at one of the