God's Word and Daily Life

By Father Bernard Holzer, aa

There are so many challenges and confusion in our world, in our lives, in our families, in perhaps within us...

Let us ask the Lord to give us His Wisdom, to welcome it and to live with it.

A reading from the Book of Wisdom (6: 12-16)

« Resplendent and unfading is Wisdom

And she is readily perceived by those who love her,

And found by those who seek her.

She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her

one who watches for her at dawn will not be disappointed,

for she will be found sitting at the gate.

For setting your heart on her is the perfection of prudence,

and whoever keeps vigil for her is quickly free from care;

Because she makes her rounds, seeking those worthy of her,

and graciously appears to them on the way,

and goes to meet them with full attention.”

Let us pray with King Solomon (Book of Wisdom 9: 1-6, 9-11):

“God of my ancestors, Lord of mercy,

you who have made all things by your word

And in your wisdom have established humankind

to rule the creatures produced by you,

And to govern the world in holiness and righteousness,

and to render judgment in integrity of heart:

Give me Wisdom, the consort at your throne,

and do not reject me from among your children;

For I am your servant, the child of your maidservant,

a man weak and short-lived

and lacking in comprehension of judgment and of laws.

Indeed, though one be perfect among mortals,

if Wisdom, who comes from you, be lacking,

that one will count for nothing.

Now with you is Wisdom, who knows your works

and was present when you made the world;

Who understands what is pleasing in your eyes

and what is conformable with your commands.

Send her forth from your holy heavens

and from your glorious throne dispatch her

That she may be with me and work with me,

that I may know what is pleasing to you.

For she knows and understands all things,

and will guide me prudently in my affairs

and safeguard me by her glory.”

By Father Bernard Holzer, aa

During the month of November, the Church invites us to look far, to take root with the Lord's promises to keep hope. The Church also invites us to remember all those who have marked us and inspired our lives. She invites us to pray for them and with them: May they rest in peace and bring us peace!

Let us reread the vision of St. John to be inspired by it.

From the Book of Revelation 7: 9, 14, 17

“After this I had a vision of a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue. They stood before the throne and before the Lamb, wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hands (…) These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb (…) The Lamb who is in the center of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to springs of life-giving water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

In this vast humanity, each of us remains unique. There is no anonymity, God calls each of us by his name. This is enough to support our hope.

Let us pray :

Lord, I thank you for my family, for my parents, for my friends, my formators, all those who have allowed me to grow, to open my heart, to understand the world, for those who have encouraged me and led by example, for those who have helped me to know you and to live your Good News. Keep them close to you, bless them, and welcome them into your Kingdom. Blessed are you, Lord. Teach me to love and to be generous!

by Ada Escopete

A New York Times article described conditions in Manila City Jail: “The inmates were cupped into each other, limbs draped over a neighbor’s waist or knee, feet tucked against someone else’s head, too tightly packed to toss and turn in the sweltering heat.”

With the perceived inhumane reality in Philippine prisons, the Catholic Church has been active in providing inmates with better conditions.

The Philippine Jesuit Prison Service Foundation (PJPS) has been advocating a more humane approach to the rehabilitation of not just the incarcerated individuals but also their families.

Since its founding in 1994, the group has worked with the Philippine Bureau of Corrections to provide programs to alleviate inmates' living conditions. The group also provides livelihoods, medical assistance and scholarships to children of prisoners.

 Executive director and Jesuit Father Eli Lumbo said doing prison ministry is a full-time job where one cannot easily rest due to a plethora of church work.

 “Each time I enter the prison camp, I do not know what to expect. After all, I minister to more than 20,000 inmates in the National Penitentiary ... Majority of them come from poor families and a good number have not had education or a good education,” Father Lumbo wrote in a 2017 article of the PJPS.

 Father Lumbo also said that the Church’s role in prison ministry is not to judge but to give accompaniment and spiritual direction to inmates.

 “I would not begrudge them their choices. I will not make the prejudices of our society the basis of how I deal with supposed criminals. As a priest, I am invited to enter the world of the convicted felon,” Father Lumbo added.

Visiting the prisoners is one of the corporal works of mercy. When I feed the hungry or give alms to the poor, I always have the impression that I am doing something for my neighbor. It is I who give — my neighbor merely receives.

But after an experience last month, my perspective has changed. The experience did not only change the prisoners. It also left a mark on the very person who visited.

More than the willingness to help a client, I was confronted by my own sins. I was reminded of my own imperfections and weaknesses. Yet there I was — a knight in shining armor for a client’s cause.

I saw Christ in prisons. No matter how dirty and foul-smelling — the Emmanuel — the God with us was there. So, I realized, I did not bring Christ in prisons. He was already there with the inmates waiting for a visit, waiting to be fed and to be consoled.

By Ada Escopete

God has truly blessed me with the privilege of allowing me to attend my first World Youth Day (WYD) here in the Philippines in 1995. Twenty-seven pilgrims, including our bishop, left our humble parish for a trip to Manila.

Several weeks prior to leaving Palawan, our group of young people met for lectio divina, faith-sharing and fun. It was a time of deepening our relationship with God and each other. By the time we began our pilgrimage, we were very excited to see and meet Pope John Paul II. Our minds and hearts were also open to encountering God in a new way.

Palawan has a small population so I was totally amazed by the number of young people as well as older adults attending the event. It was such a joy to meet and share life with people from various countries, cultures and languages. I was overwhelmed by the diversity among us, yet felt the unity of one faith. It did not matter whether you were red, white or green, we all shared one great faith. There was a strong sense of the presence of God among us. The experience gave a sense of rootedness and connection with the universal Church.

The catechesis sessions were very rich and challenging. We addressed the needs of our world and how we as young people could respond to these needs. In looking at the theme, “Go and Make Disciples of all Nations”, what stayed with me throughout my experience was the call to encourage each other to unite and remain faithful to ourselves as well as to God – even if it means being criticized and attacked. Listening to the Word each day and the passion with which it was read moved me to want to respond to the Gospel with courage and at the same time remain non-violent.

As we celebrate the feast of Saint John Paul II on October 22, let us remember his great legacy in founding the World Youth Day. Saint John Paul II, pray for us!

“Carlo was an ordinary boy, simple, spontaneous, likable … he loved nature and animals, he played football, he had many friends of his age, he was attracted by modern means of social communication, passionate about computer science and, self-taught, he built websites to transmit the Gospel, to communicate values and beauty… A model of how young people can use technology at the service of the Gospel to “reach as many people as possible and help them know the beauty of friendship with the Lord.” – Cardinal Agostino Vallini, in Assisi.

Let us pray for today’s youth:

O God, who have sent the power of the Gospel

like leaven into the world,

grant that the youth of today

whom you have called to live amid the world and its affairs,

may be fervent with the Christian spirit

and, through the tasks they carry out in this present age,

may constantly build up your Kingdom with enthusiasm and joy.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Let us remind ourselves over and over again that holiness has to do with very ordinary things: truthfulness, courtesy, kindness, gentleness, consideration for others, contentment with our lot, honesty and courage in the face of life, reliability, dutifulness. If we were to offer advice to those who want to advance. . .it would be to set the compass, so to speak; to aim at this gathering up of the self so as to be able to give that self to God. 

Dealing with this hardship led him to an even deeper relationship with God. How many of us, when dealing with difficulties, simply give up, believing things will not get better?

This quote from Padre Pio is a gentle reminder that we should not give up in our prayers. God’s timing is perfect, and worrying about the outcome of our situation won’t do any good.

“Pray, wait, and do not worry. Worrying is useless. God is merciful and will listen to your prayer… Prayer is the best weapon we have; it is the key to the heart of God. You should speak to Jesus, not with your lips but with your heart.”

Today, as we remember this modern saint, let’s lift up our concerns to Jesus, not just with our lips, but with our hearts. Let’s trust that our prayers are being heard.

Does the Cross truly make sense?  If we could separate ourselves from all we have learned about the Cross of Christ and just look at it from a secular and historical perspective, the Cross is a sign of great tragedy.  It’s connected to the story of a man who became quite popular with many, yet was vehemently hated by others.  In the end, those who hated this man arranged for His brutal crucifixion.  So, from a purely secular point of view, the Cross is an awful thing.

But Christians do not see the Cross from a secular point of view.  We see it from the divine perspective.  We see Jesus lifted up on the Cross for all to see.  We see Him using horrible suffering to eliminate suffering forever.  We see Him using death to destroy death itself.  Ultimately, we see Jesus become victorious on that Cross and, therefore, forever we see the Cross as an exalted and glorious throne!    

Moses’ actions in the desert prefigured the Cross.  Many people were dying from snake bites. Therefore, God told Moses to lift up the image of a snake on a pole so that all who looked upon it would be healed.  And that’s exactly what happened.  Ironically, the snake brought life instead of death!

Suffering occurs throughout our lives in various ways.  Perhaps for some it’s daily aches and pains from ill health, and for others it may be on a much deeper level, such as an emotional, personal, relational or spiritual one.  Sin, in fact, is the cause of the greatest suffering, so those who struggle deeply with sin in their lives suffer deeply from that sin.