Easter Sunday (B)

(Edited) Reflections (from) Easter Sunday, April 16, 2006

"He saw and believed"


There are three characters in the Easter Sunday gospel: Mary Magdalene, Simon Peter, and the other disciple (the one Jesus loved). In this resurrection account of John, it is Mary Magdalene who first witnessed that the stone of the tomb was moved away. And it was she who reported to Simon Peter and John that "they" had taken away the body of Jesus. When Mary mentioned "they", we are not sure to whom she was referring to, but what really is the focus of attention and importance, is the loss of the body of the Lord.

We see that Mary Magdalene's report to Peter and John sent the two "running" toward the tomb. The report of the loss of Jesus' body brought on an urgent response. As the two ran, the gospel tells us that John outran Peter, telling us that John was really much younger than Peter. However, when John arrived at the tomb, he peered and did not enter. It was Peter who went in when he arrived at the tomb. Peter saw the wrappings and the piece of cloth which had covered the head of Jesus. As Peter was examining these, it was then that John entered the tomb. The gospel tells us his response: "He saw and believed".

Three disciples of Jesus: Mary Magdalene, Peter and John. They were told by Jesus that He was to rise from the dead after three days. But they did not as yet understand this and what the Scriptures tell about this. It was the experience of the "empty tomb" that made them respond in different levels of faith to what Jesus taught and what Jesus' person meant to them. Mary's faith was on the level of the senses. Although she knew that Jesus told all of them that He was to rise from the dead after three days, her level of faith could not as yet integrate what her senses perceived. On the other hand, Peter's faith was one that sought understanding. When he entered the tomb and found that Jesus' body was not there, he "observed" the wrappings and the piece of cloth lying there. He wanted to "understand" what this evidences were and what this event-experience was. As to the disciple Jesus loved, we are told that "he saw and believed". John's faith in Christ, since he was closest to Jesus, has reached a level of love. And a faith that integrates the mystery of love, easily understands the mystery of God - especially the mystery of God in Jesus of Nazareth.

All of us are Marys, Peters, and Johns in some way or another, in our journey of faith in the risen Lord. Sometimes, our faith is on the level of the senses like Mary. We say to ourselves, "nothing in the Scripture explicitly says Jesus is risen". The resurrection accounts only describe an empty tomb. Or we may be like Peter who tries to understand and observe everything in the mystery of the empty tomb. Perhaps we may read the biblical context of everything reported about the Resurrection of Jesus and meditate on all the physical evidences and on its meaning - objectively and for ourselves. But, when we have the level of faith as John, whose faith was rooted in his being close to Christ, our contemplation on the mystery of Christ will lead us to exclaim in our hearts: "He is risen".

Good Friday (Year B)

(Edited) Reflections (from) Good Friday, April 10, 2009

First reading: Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 31
Second reading: Hebrew 4:14-16; 5:7-9
Gospel reading: John 18:1 - 19:42

"Now it is finished."

The gospel passage for Good Friday spans two chapters in the gospel of John. It starts with Jesus and His disciples going across the Kidron valley, and then entering a garden in that area. Moving then to the end of the gospel passage, there is another mention of a garden - in which is found an empty tomb for Jesus to be buried. Between the garden at beginning of this gospel and the garden at the end of the passage, are the events of Christ's passion we know by heart. These events are proclaimed in the gospel of Good Friday's liturgy. The dramatization of the events makes the spirit of the liturgy the most solemn day of all days in the liturgical calendar of the Church. The solemnity and deep reverence which the ceremony produces reminds the mass-goer of that law in the heart which God places in each one.

When the part of the gospel says:

"When Jesus took the wine, He said, "Now it is finished. Then he bowed His head, and delivered over His Spirit",

the whole congregation is requested to kneel down in reverence, with each one silently acknowledging in his heart the great self-sacrificing love God has for each and every one in the world.

Jesus had a very short public life. Traditionally, it is said to be three years (with his death at age thirty-three). But it was a public life fully spent at the service of all humanity - in obedience to His Father's will. In those short years, Jesus had healed so many people - from all sorts of ailments and from demonic possession. He has taught and preached so many times - on top of a mountain, before a very large crowd, and most often during simple meal gatherings. And the miracles and wonders He has performed amazed not only His apostles but whole groups of people. And probably His greatest miracle was the raising of Lazarus from the dead.

After that mission of raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesus had incurred the enmity of the Scribes and Pharisees. For the people were flocking more to Him and listening more to His teaching. And so it happened as He had predicted. He was betrayed to the Pharisees. He was arrested, scourged and nailed to a cross. In the crucifixion, when the hour Jesus spoke of was to be fulfilled, Jesus said, "Now it is finished". His mission however had not ended there. It continues to this day in our daily lives. As the we await Him buried in the tomb, to rise again on Easter Sunday, all will know that what He "finished", we continue. We continue to proclaim: For God so loved all of humanity and all of creation, that He gave His only Son Jesus, to die on a cross and rise again, that all may realize the need for the light of His resurrection to guide all humanity and the world now till the end of the age.

Passion Sunday (B)

(Edited) Reflections (from:) Passion Sunday March 29, 2009, Year B

First reading: Isaiah 50:4-7
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 22
Second reading: Philippians 2:6-11
Gospel reading: Mark 14:1 - 15:47

"Clearly this Man was the Son of God!"

Passion Sunday (traditionally known as Palm Sunday) begins the holiest week of all the liturgical weeks in the Church's calendar. The gospel for Passion Sunday presents a narration of the events leading to the crucifixion of Jesus. The main events of this Passion are as follows:

• Jesus in the house of Simon with a woman entering and pouring perfume on the head of Jesus
• Judas Iscariot going to the chief priests to hand Jesus over to them
• Jesus celebrating the Last Supper together with His apostles
• Jesus going to the Mount of Olives to pray
• Judas arriving accompanied by a crowd with swords and clubs
• Jesus arrested and led off to the high priest
• Jesus accused of blasphemy; and the abuse done on Him by the members of the Sanhedrin
• Peter out in the courtyard and denying Jesus three times before breaking down in tears
• the Sanhedrin sending Jesus to Pilate for interrogation
• Barabbas released in behalf of Jesus who was sentenced by His own people to be crucified
• the soldiers abusing Jesus and mocking Him
• Jesus journeying to Golgotha carrying the cross - with Simon of Cyrene obliged to help Him carry the cross a part of the way
• Jesus crucified and the soldiers rolling dice to gamble for His garments
• two thieves sentenced to die with Jesus, one on His left, and the other, on His right
• Jesus crying out "My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me?
• Jesus crying out His last breath and the sanctuary's curtain suddenly torn in two - from top to bottom
• a centurion who stood guard exclaimed, "Clearly this Man was the Son of God!
• some women and others who came up from Jerusalem, looked at Jesus from a distance
• Joseph of Arimathea arranging for the proper burial of Jesus

Listening to these events when the gospel is read, or presented as a short dramatization, is a great help in contemplating the great love God has for each one and all He created. The image of Christ crucified on top of any altar - that image of Jesus wounded, suffering, and dying on the cross - is an image that will always have a strong impact on souls. This Crucified image and the events of the Passion will turn many times over in the minds and hearts of those who believe. In the hearts of the faithful is an eternal love that is rooted many centuries ago to a man of God who was born and died on the Cross. And this love knows that the cause of peace on earth will, despite all appearances, be fulfilled. Every Passion Sunday, this nascent truth is sown deep in the hearts of all who attend the Eucharist. It will impress in man's consciousness that there indeed is reason to hope and a reason to live and work for the cause of peace.

Christ's death on the cross is only the beginning of the cause for peace, not the end; it is, after three days, a mark of a glorious beginning. As long as all the faithful never renege on their commitment to Jesus, any death-related situation or event in life will not faze the gift of faith and hope which that commitment inspires. Death will not shock or shake anyone as long as man's context of meaning in life and work is always seen in the context of the Passion of Jesus. For the believer knows that Christ's passion and death is what will lead Him and all who believe in Him to the glory of His resurrection.

This beginning of Holy Week then is a time to pray more and learn how the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the Son of God, will continually give meaning to our life and also inspire those who do not yet believe. It is a time to give more time also for the needy. For they are clothed in the appearance of Christ's Passion. It is a time to listen, to keep still, and to let the spirit of the Season sink deeply into each heart and soul. It is a time to reflect and to imagine: if you place yourself in that "hour" with Jesus and His apostles, using your imagination - what would you think and do? Would you run and hide like the apostles? Would you be with the others from Jerusalem who looked at Jesus from the distance? Or would you be one of those who kept all that happened in their minds and hearts, and retold the story to others that they may believe?

Memorial of Saints (March 20)

St. Cuthbert wanted to live in solitude as a hermit, but he could not do so because he was appointed bishop of Hexam. Though he was very prayerful, he did not neglect the care of the needy and the abandoned. He was known to have the gift of healing and prophetic visions. With his gift of healing, he healed many who were struck during a plague (died ca. 687 A.D.).

St. Wulfram served at the court of Theodore III of Neustria, and then received an appointment as archbishop of Sens. Wulfram resigned after two and a half years, and became a missionary to the Frisians (who probably lived at that time in what is now present-day Netherlands, northern Germany and southern Denmark). After years of missionary work, he returned to the monastery of Fontenelle (died ca. 703 A.D.).

St. Herbert was a disciple and close friend of St. Cuthbert. Ordained a priest, Herbert lived on an island in Lake Derwentwater, England. This was the origin of the island's name - St. Herbert's Island (died ca. 687 A.D.).

St. Photina is the name Catholic tradition gives to the Samaritan woman Jesus encountered at a well (John 4) in his itinerant missionary life. After being converted by Jesus, Photina preached the gospel, was imprisoned for three years, and died a martyr at Carthage. Martyred together with her were the servants of Emperor Nero's daughter who were all converted to the Christian faith.

St. Martin of Braga built several monasteries. In Braga, he was made metropolitan of Galicia - in present-day Spain. St. Martin wrote several treatises, two of which are Formula vitae horestae and De correctione rusticorum. St. Martin died at Dumium - the main monastery where he did his work as bishop (died ca. 597 A.D.).

5th Sunday of Lent (B)

(Edited) Reflections (from) 5th Sunday of Lent Year B, March 29, 2009

First reading: Jeremiah 31:31-34
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 51
Second reading: Hebrews 5:7-9
Gospel reading: John 12:20-33

"...If it dies, it produces much fruit."

In the Fifth Sunday of Lent, the gospel presents Jesus speaking about His impending Passion. The passage in John's gospel specifies the Passion as an "hour" - with the Lord Himself mentioning that His hour is coming to pass. That "hour" involves everything in His passion, death and resurrection: beginning with His arrest, to His crucifixion, death on the Cross and resurrection. Aside from the "hour", Jesus also mentions the image of a grain of wheat falling to the earth, and then dies. The Lord uses this analogy to help His hearers understand His dying not as a loss, but one that produces much fruit. It is Christ's will that all who follow Him understand that losses or deaths in its many forms, small or big, if rooted in His life and work, will bear fruit for the greater good.

This Sunday's gospel makes all aware that though Jesus is divine, He was also human. And He expressed it well by saying, "My soul is troubled now, yet what should I say - Father, save Me from this hour?" Jesus knew He was sent by the Father to save the world. And God spoke in a voice from the heavens to make the people also aware of who Jesus is, and what would transpire in that hour that will come to pass. It is an "hour" for the glory of God - a mystery so deep, clothed in the appearance of the Crucifixion, and one which God's wisdom transcends all human reason or philosophy.

It is human to worry, fear or be anxious about the realities of losses and deaths. Some psychologists made a survey, and surprisingly, it was not death that man fears the most but speaking before a crowd of people he does not know. But even with this modern survey, the fear of death has been in the mind of ancient man for it is a reality not known to him. Man fears anything unknown. But Jesus' death helps man understand what it is in the context of faith in a Father who knows all. Since death is a spiritual reality unseen, an analogy is used to understand it in a context of natural faith: like a grain of wheat that falls to the earth and dies, and produces much fruit. Faith in Jesus is keeping to His word in faith - that death leads to resurrection, to new life - in this world, and in the next.

4th Sunday of Lent (B)

(Edited) Reflections (from) 4th Sunday of Lent (B), March 18, 2012

Liturgical readings

2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23
Psalm 137
Ephesians 2:4-10
John 3:14-21

"That the world might be saved through Christ."

It is by sinfulness that humanity can be condemned and judged by God. But God in His faithfulness and mercy, does not want humanity to suffer this final fate. Instead, He sent His Son Jesus, His only begotten, to lead all humanity to the Truth, the Way, and the Life Jesus teaches. Jesus is the true Source of healing and salvation from sin and eternal death. Whoever believes in God in Jesus, and approaches Him with a contrite heart in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, will be saved. What is needed is to make daily steps to reform his life, to resolve not to repeat past offenses against God, and not to commit again the past sins that can lead him to die in iniquity and perdition. If man roots all his life and work in God, he will share in the eternal life that is meant for all.

The Lord entered human history not to rule as the world's kings do, but to serve, to bring light to all minds and hearts, and to show the path that leads to His Kingdom. In His kingdom, His throne is not of gold nor of silver, but a Cross that lifted Him up on Golgotha. This cross of the Saviour is part of the path and journey to His kingdom. It is a path strewn with sacrifices, humility, mortification and life-giving work. God sent His Son Jesus to call us to His Kingdom. And there is no need to leave one's present state of life and work. Anyone can find Jesus, and the path to His Kingdom wherever he already is. Continuous conversion and a daily turning of one's heart to God is the key to His Kingdom.

Following Christ's call to conversion and to journey to His Kingdom needs hearts purified from values in modern culture that oppose what Christ teaches. Jesus espouses the value of the Cross but sharing in the Cross of Christ does not mean performing extraordinary feats of mortification; it can simply mean carrying one another's burdens in life with the spirit of His charity. This is exactly why the Father sent His Son: that all may learn to listen to Him well, and believe. Listening is difficult, but can be made easy with discipline. The discipline can be learned. To learn to listen to God in His Word and Sacrament will always help anyone "put off the old man, be dressed anew (Ephesians 4:22-24), abandon sin, and then remove everything that presents an obstacle to the love of God" (from St. Francis de Sales). And this spiritual direction produces a hope for all humanity "that the world might be saved through Christ."

3rd Sunday of Lent (B)

(Edited) Reflections (from) 3rd Sunday of Lent (B), March 11, 2012

Liturgical readings

Exodus 20:1-17
Psalm 19
1 Corinthians 1:22-25
John 2:13-25

"He was talking about the temple of His Body."

There is a DVD on "The Gospel of John". What makes the film very good is its focus on the gospel story and not the actors. No famous names nor multi-awarded actors nor actresses are mentioned. This was done for the viewers' attention; that they may not be distracted from the storyline of John's gospel. In the film, when the scene that refers to the story of Jesus' Cleansing of the Temple is shown, Jesus' zeal and indignation at the moneychangers in the Temple was forcefully represented. Even when the many details of the scene are already added interpretations of the film's producers, the viewers will still understand well the value of respect for sacred things, places and all that pertains to worshipping Yahweh.

That film's scene on the Cleansing of the Temple is this Sunday's gospel. The gospel refers to Jesus presenting His Body as a temple. He prophesied that when His enemies would destroy the temple of His Body, God will bring it back to Life. Jesus' hearers and followers did not understand this at first. So did the all the Jewish people of His time. They always knew the temple as the temple King Solomon built for them (which took many years to build). Only when the events of the crucifixion, death and resurrection happened, did Christ's followers begin to understand more what Jesus was teaching regarding the temple of His Body. It was that Temple that was brought to life again after three days.

From the Scriptures John wrote, to the film's scene on the Cleansing on the Temple, we are now called to understand what it means today. We live in a very modern and secularized environment. In this secularized world one can learn to respect sacred realities and things as it was in the olden days. All the monks, desert fathers and saints of Eastern and Western Christianity give a very good example of piety and fear of God. They and the Church today know well the danger of impiety, irreverence and disrespect against all sacred matters. Modern man can live among many man-made things but need not be too attached to it. Too much attachment can produce arrogance and pride in the soul.

So this Sunday's gospel reminds all of us to place God above all - especially when in His Temple. It makes all realize that man-made things are simply means, and not ends in themselves. Christ teaches all the faithful to have a healthy detachment and indifference to all matters that pertain to world.