Alive!

The Lord is risen! Alleluia!

1 On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark,[c] and saw the stone removed from the tomb. 2 So she ran[d] and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.” 3 [e]So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. 4 They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; 5 he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. 6 When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths[f] there, 7 and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. 8 Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. 9 [g]For they did not yet understand the scripture that he had to rise from the dead.

As we remember Jesus' sufferings during Holy Week, today we remember and celebrate His resurrection - the new hope and life it has given to us. Jesus' sacrifice has washed our sins and has triumphed over death. We are saved! As Jesus rose from the dead, the first of mankind to do so, we too will rise again when we die to join Him in Heaven forever.

Image courtesy: Artist 

A brand new life

Bright morning has come at last.

1 When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go and anoint him. 2 Very early when the sun had risen, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb. 3 They were saying to one another, “Who will roll back the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” 4 When they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back; it was very large. 5 On entering the tomb they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a white robe, and they were utterly amazed. 6 He said to them, “Do not be amazed! You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Behold, the place where they laid him. 7 But go and tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him, as he told you.’”-Mark16:1-7

If the past days are marked by anticipation and sobriety as we relive Jesus' Passion, Crucifixion and Death, now is the beginning of a series of Celebrations as we relive Jesus' Resurrection and Triumph over death and sin. Darkness will give way to Light. Sadness and sorrow will give way to Happiness and Joy. Death will give way to Life. But take note, despite Peter's denial, the white-robed young man (assumed to be a messenger of God) specifically mentioned the name of Peter as one of those who must go to Galilee to meet Jesus. Yes, despite what happened, indeed God remains faithful to us. God does not want us to be disheartened and discouraged if ever we have committed mistakes in life because He will always forgive us and show us His infinite mercy and compassion. The question is, are we willing to ask forgiveness? Are we willing to return to Him?

Image courtesy: artist

Love and Charity

Love is never costly.

1 [a]Six days before Passover Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 They gave a dinner for him there, and Martha served, while Lazarus was one of those reclining at table with him. 3 Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet of Jesus[b] and dried them with her hair; the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 4 Then Judas the Iscariot, one [of] his disciples, and the one who would betray him, said, 5 “Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days’ wages[c] and given to the poor?” 6 He said this not because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief and held the money bag and used to steal the contributions. 7 So Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial.[d] 8 You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”9 [The] large crowd of the Jews found out that he was there and came, not only because of Jesus, but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10 And the chief priests plotted to kill Lazarus too, 11 because many of the Jews were turning away and believing in Jesus because of him.-John12:1-11

Here, Mary showed the highest form of love - anointing the feet of Jesus and drying them with her hair. This humble act can truly touch any person. However, if Jesus and so many others are moved with this gesture, there is one who thought that such an act is a waste. Yes, we all have that tendency as well. I remember the "Ghost" movie. In the middle of the story, Oda came in possession of $4 million through the guidance of Sam, the ghost. Of course, she was very happy and planned the many things she would do with the money. However, since the money belonged to Sam, he told her to give it all to the nuns on the street. Perhaps Oda felt that giving $4 million to charity is a waste because she herself is in need of money too.

Love can be painful. Charity can be painful. Giving can be impractical. The little that we give is but nothing compared to the love, sacrifice and pain Jesus endured to save us all. Jesus is inviting us to love God and our neighbor more and more.

Image courtesy: The Passion of the Christ

Through the eyes of God

"God writes straight with crooked lines."

33 “Hear another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,[a] put a hedge around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a tower. Then he leased it to tenants and went on a journey. 34 When vintage time drew near, he sent his servants[b] to the tenants to obtain his produce. 35 But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat, another they killed, and a third they stoned. 36 Again he sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones, but they treated them in the same way. 37 Finally, he sent his son to them, thinking, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 [c]But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.’ 39 [d]They seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 What will the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?” 41 They answered[e] him, “He will put those wretched men to a wretched death and lease his vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the proper times.” 42 [f]Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the scriptures:
‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
by the Lord has this been done,
and it is wonderful in our eyes’?
43 [g]Therefore, I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit. 44 [[h] The one who falls on this stone will be dashed to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.]” 45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees[i] heard his parables, they knew that he was speaking about them. 46 And although they were attempting to arrest him, they feared the crowds, for they regarded him as a prophet.-Matthew21:33-46

The vineyard represents the house of Israel; the servants represent the prophets; the son represents Jesus; the produce represents the good works; the landowner represents God; and the tenants represent the Pharisees, scribes, teachers of the Law, Elders and other religious leaders during the time of Jesus and prior to that. As I reflected, I asked God, "What would have happened if Jesus was received accordingly? What if everybody repented like the people of Nineveh in Job's time? Will that make You happy? Is it then 'mission accomplished' for Jesus?" I believe God would have been happy to see the people respond to Jesus' invitation to repent and change. But since there are those who do not respond to Jesus, God still weaves His plan and will whatever our decisions may be until such time that we open ourselves to Him. "God writes straight with crooked lines." In today's first reading, Joseph was sold by his brothers to slavery. Later on, he was auctioned in the slave market in Egypt, accused by Potiphar's wife, sent to prison perhaps for a long time. A life of desolation, it was. Perhaps Joseph asked the many "Whys?" "What ifs..." and "How can this be?" while languishing the seeming misfortunes of his life. But a light came. An interpretation of one prisoner's dream (who happened to be Pharaoh's cupbearer) led to an audience with Pharaoh himself. Joseph successfully interpreted the dream of Pharaoh, and after that, was made governor of Egypt and second in command. Now that's a 360 degree reversal of fortune! Later on, the other nations suffered famine, but Egypt was able to survive because of Joseph's work through the message of the dream. And this abundance led his family to Egypt where they lived and survived the famine that could have perfectly killed them if Joseph was never in Egypt. Joseph would say later on, "Now don't grieve and reproach yourselves for selling me, because God has sent me before you to save your lives... God has sent me ahead of you to make our race survive there and to save many of you. So it was not you but God who sent me here..." It takes a great deal of faith and love to say that a misfortune is part of God's plan for a greater good. It is okay to cry. It is okay to weep and languish over life's misfortunes. But behind a misfortune is a multitude of blessing awaiting to happen at the right time and place. Jesus was - using our human language - a victim of a few men's jealousy, a victim of violence, an innocent man condemned to die. But if we have the eyes of God, faith and love, we will all see that this is part of the plan leading to a greater good - Resurrection and salvation for us all.

Image courtesy: artist 

He Comes Again!

Jesus lives and will come again!

20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. 22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. 23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. 26 People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. 27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”-Luke21:20-28

Jesus prophesied about the destruction of Jerusalem. In 70 AD, Jerusalem was destroyed. Many were put to death, many were slaughtered, many fled to the mountains and neighboring cities, the Temple was looted before destroying it... nothing was left. These days, the Gospel readings were about "destruction" and hope in preparation for Advent and Christmas seasons. Jesus spoke of wars, insurrections, powerful earthquakes, famines, plagues, persecutions, desolation, falling by the sword and escape for those who were fortunate. Many died. Many accounts where written about Jerusalem's fall and what sad state it came into.

Then, there was another prophecy about His coming. But I noticed one thing - the signs. Signs will be seen in the sun, moon and stars. But it does not necessarily mean destruction. Nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the seas. But it does not necessarily mean destruction. People will faint in terror of what is to come into the world and of what the heavenly bodies are saying as it shakes. But it does not necessarily mean destruction. Though Jesus speaks of many signs, He did not say anything of death explicitly. Jesus' coming is not something to be feared at because it means 'the Shepherd has come to take home His sheep.' Jesus' coming is not death to those who remained in Him, but of redemption, salvation and eternal happiness with Him. When Jesus comes today, what will He find in your heart?

Image courtesy: Francesco Hayez (Destruction of Jerusalem), artists