God's Word and Daily Life

By Mel Jasmin

On March 25, the universal Church celebrates the Feast of the Our Lady’s Annunciation. On this occasion, we commemorate the announcement of the Angel Gabriel about Jesus’ incarnation to a humble woman named Mary.

In the middle of the Lenten season, we arrive at this special feast day. In the first chapter of Luke’s gospel, the angel Gabriel appearing to the young virgin, Mary to announce that she will bear a son conceived by the Holy Spirit to be named Jesus who will be called Son of the Most High.

We are so familiar with this story that perhaps we fail to grasp what truly has taken place.  Mary is the first among all human beings to hear of God’s decision to come and dwell among us as one like us.  She is greatly troubled by the angel’s greeting but is told not to be afraid.  Before the angel’s departure she moves from fear to acceptance of God’s Word.  God’s Word has been spoken and is now within her womb.  How wondrous a moment for her and for all humanity.  For, on behalf of all of us, Mary, who has found favor with God, welcomes with faith God incarnate into the world.

The Annunciation, the first of the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary, should indeed call us to rejoice.  For now, in a world beset by a pandemic, we too might be afraid.  We must hear the voice, not of an angel, but of the Lord himself who continually calls his disciples to not be afraid because he would always be with them- the Son of God.

Hail Mary, full of grace the Lord is with you.  Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus!

By Mel Jasmin

On March 19, Saturday, we will celebrate the Feast of Saint Joseph as Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Saint Joseph was declared the Patron of the Universal Church as well as the patron of workers and carpenters.

What can we learn from the life of Saint Joseph, who was not even quoted by the Bible?

Joseph’s life offers us a magnificent portrayal of the grace of God as He came to our rescue in the Person of His Son, Jesus. So many come to Him, like Joseph’s guilty brothers, feeling the distance and fearing the worst from God, only to have Him demonstrate incredible generosity and mercy. Instead of being blamed, we are forgiven. Instead of feeling guilty, we are freed. And instead of experiencing punishment, which we certainly deserve, we are seated at His table and served more than we can ever take in.

For some, it’s too unreal. So, we desperately plead our case, only to have Him speak kindly to us—promising us peace in our own language. We then try to fend off His anger by bargaining with Him, thinking our hard work and sincere efforts will pay Him back for all those evil past deeds we’re guilty of. But to our astonishment, He never even considered our attempts important enough to mention. What we had in mind was earning just enough to silence our guilt, but what He had in mind was overwhelming us with such an abundance we’d realize we can never, ever repay.

by Father Bernard Holzer, aa

In this painful Lent, let us keep her words in our hearts and pray with those of the book of Judith: “For the Lord is a God who crushes wars; he sets his encampment among his people; he delivered me from the hands of my pursuers. (Judith 16:2)

 

 

By Fr. Bernard Holzer, aa

Lord, God of peace, hear our prayer!

We have tried so many times and over so many years to resolve our conflict using our own power and the use of arms. How many moments of hostility and darkness have we experienced? How much blood has been shed? How many lives have been shattered? How many hopes have been buried? But our efforts have been in vain.

Now, Lord, come to our aid! Grant us peace, teach us peace; guide our steps in the way of peace. Open our eyes and our hearts, and give us the courage to say: “Never again to war!”; “With war everything is lost”. Instill in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace.

Lord, God of Abraham, God of the Prophets, God of Love, you created us and you call us to live as brothers and sisters. Give us the strength daily to be instruments of peace; enable us to see everyone who crosses our path as our brother or sister. Make us sensitive to the plea of our citizens who entreat us to turn our weapons of war into implements of peace, our trepidation into confident trust, and our quarrelling into forgiveness.

Keep alive within us the flame of hope, so that with patience and perseverance we may opt for dialogue and reconciliation. In this way may peace triumph at last, and may the words “division”, “hatred” and “war” be banished from the heart of every man and woman. Lord, defuse the violence of our tongues and our hands. Renew our hearts and minds, so that the word which always brings us together will be “brother”, and our way of life will always be that of: Shalom, Peace, Salaam! Amen.

 

By Mel Jasmin 

On February 22, we celebrate the feast of the Chair of Saint Peter, the Apostle. Could you believe that one of the feasts in the Catholic Church is dedicated to an actual, physical chair?

Yes! At first, I myself couldn’t believe that we are celebrating a feast over a chair. What is so special about this Chair of Saint Peter that it is included in the holy feasts of the Catholic Church? Well, we do not celebrate the feast of the physical chair but our fidelity to the Church through Christ’s vicar, the prince of the apostles, servants of the servants of God, the Bishop of Rome, the primate of Italy, or we simply called the “pope”.

When we celebrate this feast, we move beyond the physical but to the symbolic representation which is the office or leadership given by Christ to Peter, as the first pope and head of the Catholic Church. We should remember and profess our loyalty over this chair and to the person seated on the same chair.Jya 

Today we remember the words of the Lord Himself, establishing and entrusting the Church to St. Peter, whose name means the ‘Rock’ so that the Church He has established may be built upon the firm foundation of the Rock of faith that is St. Peter, and assisted with the strength of the pillars of the faith of the Apostles. Because of this, the Church is united to the Lord, the Chief Shepherd of all, the Good Shepherd, through the many shepherds whom He had called and appointed to lead and guide His people, His flock, that is the Apostles and their successors.

By Mel Jasmin

This Sunday’s gospel teaches us about forgiveness of our enemies. Some of us find it difficult to forgive without knowing that we have experienced forgiveness by God first. We have been recipient of forgiveness before we are called to forgive! It's an amazing thing to be forgiven by God. Because of his grace poured out through Christ, we can be forgiven for all of our sins, no matter how horrendous they might be. What a wonder!

Yet when we receive God's forgiveness, we do more than rejoice in our blessing. We also become people who pass on forgiveness to others. "Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others". God's forgiveness enables us to forgive others even as it sets the standard for our forgiveness.

Jesus emphasizes the necessary connection between divine and human forgiveness. You can't have one without the other. This means one of the primary marks of the Christian will be a willingness to forgive others generously. People will know we are Christians, not only by our love, but also by our forgiveness.

So, what is the challenge to us this week? Do what is difficult to do. Forgive and have peace.

By Father Bernard Holzer, aa

Today, the national election campaign officially begins.

It is time to take note of the programs of the various candidates and to confront them with the values we want to promote. For us Christians, to confront them with Jesus’ teaching.
 
We therefore have a threefold obligation, namely:  
Leader: Let us pray that the forthcoming national and local elections may truly reflect the will of the Lord who guides the destinies of nations.
For every petition, let us pray together:
Response: Deliver us, Lord.
 
From coercion, intimidation, violence and terrorism ...
From dishonesty, lies and all distortion of truth...
From bribery, graft and all conspiracy for fraud...
From gullibility to the deceptive and blindness of perspective...
From threats, intimidation and perverse language...
Leader: Let us pray together:
Response: Hear us, Lord
 
That conscience may always be our ultimate norm ...
That the common good may always be our highest goal ...
That human dignity may be respected all the time ...
That the poor and the weak may always have the priority ...
That care for creation may never be ignored ...
That solidarity may guide the path of peace and development ...
That genuine fear of God and love of neighbors may guide those who seek
public office ...
Leader: Let us pray.
 
Altogether: Shepherd of souls and Savior of the nations, politics is your gift to us, a call to serve others and grow in holiness. Guide our politics as you guide our lives. May our political engagement for voters and candidates bring glory to your loving name and help us grow in holiness, forever and ever. Amen.

By Bernard Holzer, aa

This greatest celebration of the year for millions of Chinese, Vietnamese and other Asian peoples, is an occasion to pray for peace and harmony in the Asian continent.

We pray especially for the people of Myanmar on the1st anniversary of the military coup. We pray for the dead, the hundreds of thousands of displaced families, the people without access to basic services, those detained or tried, including the hundreds sentenced to death.

 It’s a time for family and friends, a time to rejoice, to give thanks and to exchange wishes and gifts. A time to love.

 Let us find time to meditate on the Letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians (4: 4-8), the Second Reading of the Mass on the 1^st day of the Lunar New Year: 

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” 

And let us pray:

“Merciful and compassionate God, on the first day of the Lunar New Year, we give you thanks and praise. Grant that all of us will in this year grow in peace, health, and holiness so that we can enjoy your abundant blessings. We ask this through Christ our Lord.”

 

By Mel Jasmin

On January 30, we celebrate the National Bible Sunday. Let us reflect on the relevance of God’s Word in our life.

The Bible stands there and says what it says and I have to deal with it. If I get my priorities out of whack I can try to manipulate what it says to suit my ears but cherry picking Greek glosses and lexicons or by coming up with some obscure interpretation. But if I am humble enough to let God’s Word change me rather than me change it I will experience something powerful in its study. It is like getting a letter from a friend about a problem. You can’t argue back with a letter. You have to take it all in first and read what is there, even re-read it.

Because the text is living, breathing, and sharp (Heb 4:12, 2 Tim 3:16) and because my life isn’t static, the Bible often encounters me at different times in life in different ways that it ever has before. I certainly read the Gospel of John differently now than when I was 13. Knowing the themes, the signs, the theology, purpose, and where John is taking the reader the text has become so much richer for me than it used to be and things now seem obvious that were buried for the 13-year-old version of myself. I love the richness that brings to the text as the words on the page are the same but the conversation changes as our maturity and readiness to hear what it is saying changes.

We are looking back on what many looked forward to and so we take much for granted. 1 Peter 1:12 tells us that the Gospel that has been revealed to us was concealed even from the angels much less those who went before the church and ministry of Christ. So there is much to be appreciated about being the recipients of the complete message of God/Christ through the Gospels and letters of the New Testament but also through the Old Testament (more on that another time). This gives us a privileged perspective of faith resulting in great responsibility. For instance, when Mary and Martha are upset with Jesus for not getting to Bethany to heal Lazarus any faster we know he is going to raise him from the dead. They don’t. That doesn’t mean we don’t have any faith struggles because our picture of God can be more informed than those who just had this piece or that. But it is still a blessing nevertheless!