3rd Sunday of Advent (A), December 12, 2010

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Inspire in Us the Practice of Good: Reflections for Spiritual Growth and Self-Renewal, 3rd Sunday of Advent (A) - December 12, 2010
Liturgical readings
Isaiah 35:1-6, 10
Psalm 146
James 5:7-10
Matthew 11:2-11

"Go back and report to John what you hear and see."

St. John the Baptist and Jesus our Lord. Both prophets; both martyred very harshly. John prepared the way for Jesus; Jesus prepares the Way for all of us. John decreases himself, that Christ may increase in the world; Jesus on the other hand commends John for his great role in the history of our salvation. How little we are compared to the stature of these two great men; and yet, we are also called to follow their footsteps in the many ways we can.

By our baptism in the Catholic Church, we share in the prophetic mission of Jesus. A prophet is one who speaks to God's people - one who announces the Good News, and one who denounces the evil of his times. John's prophetic mission was to help people turn from their evil ways and prepare themselves for the coming of Jesus. Then Jesus' prophetic mission was to proclaim liberty to captives, sight to the blind, and a year of favor from the Lord. By our baptism in Christ, we become a prophetic people. Our prophetic mission as people in ordinary life, is to be the "salt of the earth and the light of the world".

When we imagine what happened to the prophetic life of St. John the Baptist and that of Our Lord, we may say, "how can we follow in their footsteps since our lives are not as pure and as simple as John and Jesus were?" Though there are surely others in the Church who are called to make this same witness as John and Jesus (those who are gifted to become martyrs), our prophetic witness can be as simple as opting to follow and obey the stance of the Church as regards respect for life. By simply respecting life in all its stages (from womb, to its end in the tomb), we stand with Christ and the Church in the mission to see life as sacred and a gift from God.

Points for reflection: How do we already show our respect for life in all its stages? What other steps can I take so that we can show our love for God by our respect for people, who are not of the same class, educational background, culture, or belief as we are?

5th Sunday of the Year (C)

First reading: Isaiah 6:1-2a, 3-8
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 138
Second reading: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11
Gospel reading: Luke 5:1-11

"Leave me Lord. I am a sinful man."

The gospel for February 7 is taken from the gospel of Luke. It
tells the story of the call to discipleship of Simon Peter, James,
and John. The story begins with Jesus getting into one of the
boats (the one belonging to Simon Peter) - and after pulling out
a short distance from the shore, began to teach God's Word to the
crowds from the boat. After Jesus finished speaking, He noticed
that Simon Peter had not caught any fish. He thus ordered Simon
to "put out into deep water and lower his nets". At first Simon
was reluctant because they had worked all night and have caught
nothing. But he eventually obeyed. And then to his amazement, he
and his companions caught such a great number that the weight of
the catch was almost near to sink their boats! At this Peter fell
at his knees and said, "leave me, Lord. I am a sinful man". But
Jesus said, "Do not be afraid. From now on you will be catching
men." Simon and his companion fishermen brought their boats to
shore, left everything, and followed Jesus.

Bible commentator Robert J. Karris says that this passage from
Luke is drawn from the gospel of Mark (which was a written source
earlier than Luke's gospel). The huge catch of fish (Lk 5:4-7)
and Simon Peter's reaction to it (Lk 5:8-11) makes Luke's version
a protracted version of Mark's. Karris also points out that the
main message of this gospel story is related to Simon Peter's
vocation and ministry as an apostle. From a simple fisherman,
Christ called Peter to be a "fisher of men" - enlisting him in
His corps of kingdom workers.

Many of us know how difficult it is to make ends meet in these
times of serious global financial crises. Like Peter, we "work
all night" and yet we could not keep up with the food bills, the
household utility bills, our children's educational needs, the
support we give to elderly parents or relatives, and so forth.
For some of us who are humbled by this truth, we sometimes
experience a financial windfall, and then we realize how we took
too much pride in our own strength, our own intelligence, skills
and talents (and connections). But when God blesses us with an
unexpected financial solution, we exclaim like Peter, "leave me
Lord. I am a sinful person." God's great mercy, goodness, and
compassion humbles us and makes us realize that all good things
come from Him; our life as a Catholic individual, family or
community, depends ultimately on Him. As an old proverb teaches
us, "we do our best, and God will do the rest". Let us therefore
thank God for all His goodness and mercy - especially in making
us His children (despite our sinfulness). The Eucharist is a
celebration of thanksgiving. By this great sacrament, our family
is nourished and our faith and hope in God is strengthened, that
we may do His will and share this faith and hope also with
others.

4th Sunday of the Year (C)

First reading: Jeremiah 1:4-5, 17-19
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 71
Second reading: 1 Corinthians 12:31--13:13
Gospel reading: Luke 4:21-30

"No prophet gains acceptance in his native place."

January 31 is the 4th Sunday of the Year (C). The gospel passage
continues from what was read last Sunday. From Luke chapter 4
verses 21-30, we will discover the various reactions of the people
to the discourse of Jesus in His hometown synagogue: "some spoke
favorably of Him", "some marveled at His appealing discourse",
"others asked, 'is not this Joseph's son?'" And so when Jesus
explained to them that 'no prophet gains acceptance in his native
place', many were filled with indignation. They rose up, expelled
Him from the town, led Him to the brow of the hill, and intended
to hurl Him over the edge. Jesus however went straight through
their midst and walked away.

There is a section in the Bible allotted to the Books of the
Prophets. The prophets Elijah and Elisha, whom Jesus also refers
to in His discourse at the synagogue, are one of the early
prophets in this section of the Bible. Prophets, according to
the meaning intended by the Scripture, are called by God to be
His spokesmen. If we go back to the Bible and read the lives and
mission of these prophets, including Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Amos (to
name a few), we will discover that their prophetic vocation was
filled with much indignation or opposition from the people. An
example of this was what the people did to the prophet Jeremiah
- they put him in a dry well filled with mud, intending to starve
him to death (Jeremiah 38:1-13). And the last of Israel's
prophets after Jeremiah and others, and before Jesus, was St.
John the Baptist. We know what happened to him.

Jesus is also a prophet in this tradition of Israel's prophets.
He is King, Priest and Prophet. By our baptism in Jesus, we share
in His kingly, priestly, and prophetic functions (as a community
of disciples - a kingly, priestly, and prophetic people of God).
The task of Jesus as Prophet was to announce the Good News and to
denounce what was evil in His time. That was a very dangerous
task. We know that it eventually led to His passion, death and
resurrection. As we are now called to meditate more on the gospel
for this Sunday, let us examine our hearts and see where it
stands. Do we stand with those people who marvel at the discourse
of Jesus and speak favorably of Him? Or do we take a stronger
stance and stand by Jesus and His prophetic vision - "staying"
with Him, even if others "want to hurl Him over the edge?"