Of Angels, and Growing Molave Trees

Once I planted molave seedlings in a vacant lot on the campus. As tree seedlings, having the impression that they are sturdy enough to withstand the elements, I thought, after planting them, we can leave them and flourish by themselves. A brother in the community informed me that after planting the molave tree seedlings, I have to take care of them still. I had to place tree guards to protect the tree seedlings from playful children who might trample them. Monitoring the pest that may feast on their leaves and buds is needed to ensure their growth. Pruning is necessary to assure that they will grow straight and not unnecessarily spend their nutrients in an undesired branch. One's responsibility towards the trees planted does not end after placing them on the ground. That is merely tree planting. Attending to their needs to assure their maturity is needed. That is tree growing.  

When God created us, He did not leave us by ourselves. Being a responsible Father of us all, He did not permit that we swim in the dangerous and often tumultuous sea of life by ourselves. God continues to assist us in our life, way after our birth. God's nurturing help comes in many means. It may be through our parents, teachers, friends, or the people around us. In a special way, God created angels for the benefit of men. Angels are pure, created spirits. Angels are celestial or heavenly beings, of a higher order than human beings. Their name means servant or messenger of God. God directs them to protect and guide His precious creation: man.  

God placed the angels at the service of men. St. Michael, whose name means Who is like God, defeated Lucifer and his minions in a fierce battle when the latter rebelled against God. St. Michael assists us in overcoming the temptations and powers of Satan. St. Gabriel, whose name means God is my strength, announced to Zachary and Mary the birth of their children, ushering in the beginning of man's salvation. St. Raphael, whose name implies God has healed, accompanied the young Tobit in search of a remedy for his ailing father. Blind; bodily ill; counselors; and druggists sought his intercessions. As their names take their reference in God, archangels are nobodies without God. As they attend to God, they aid man. God realized the angels' purpose by directing them in service of man; to protect, heal, and announce man's salvation. Through the angels, God manifests His abiding protection for man so that he may grow fully in accord with God's plan. 

As we continue our journey back to God, in the context of Christian discipleship, know that God sends help to us through the angels. They accompany us as God desires them to be. The mere awareness of the angels' presence in our lives can improve our faithfulness in God. In facing the battle against good and evil, one draws confidence from the fact that he is not alone in his journey. God sends angels to be with us.  From infancy to death human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession. Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life. Already here on earth, the Christian life shares by faith in the blessed company of angels and men united in God (CCC 336). 

This is how God grows and nurtures us. He never abandons us after creation. He entrusts us with the angels, to light and guard, to rule and guide us back to God. 

SEEING AND CARING FOR THE LAZARUSES

Who wishes to be rich? After hearing the parable of Lazarus and Dives, the rich man, one might have second thoughts about aspiring to be rich (Lk 16:19-31). Dives, the rich man, who ate his fill and enjoyed the luxuries of this world afforded to him by his riches, ended in the netherworld, where he was in torment. Lazarus, the poor man, after his death, ended up at the side of Abraham, enjoying the bliss of paradise. It seems riches placed Dives in hell, while poverty delivered Lazarus to heaven. But if this is true, who would wish to be rich? 

 

Riches and poverty do not automatically assign us to our final destination. Rich people are not inevitably bound to hell. Heaven is not certain for the poor. One's situation in life does not dictate where one will end up in the next life. It is one's manner of living (whatever lot is given to him) that will direct where one will continue his life in the world-without-end. Thus, status in life, whether rich or poor, is beside the point in relation to one's final destiny. One will not be judged by the amount in his bank account (if ever there is one). 

 

More than being rich and poor, one may pay attention to his capacity to love his neighbor; to see his neighbor's suffering, and do something to alleviate such misery. The response may not be grand, as one’s resources limit it, but what is greatly appreciated is the response itself (it is the thought that counts). Contribution or assistance of the rich may differ in scale from that of the poor, but both assistances are surely valued and can merit one a place at the side of Abraham. On the contrary, insensitivity, even blindness, towards one's neighbor will certainly earn one's ticket to the netherworld. It is this insensitivity that condemned Dives to hell. Insensitivity is not exclusive among the rich, for all can possibly be unresponsive to the needs of one's neighbor. 

 

The Lord condemns such thoughtlessness of one's neighbor: Thus says the LORD the God of hosts: Woe to the complacent in Zion! Lying upon beds of ivory, stretched comfortably on their couches, they eat lambs taken from the flock, and calves from the stall...yet they are not made ill by the collapse of Joseph (Am 6:1a, 4-7). Those who were complacent in Zion may not necessarily be rich but those who are indifferent to the difficulties of their neighbor. Such complacency may have been motivated by selfishness; thinking only of one's needs and comforts. This blinded them to the things that truly matter for the Lord, and for them too, eventually. 

 

Paul rightly admonished Timothy to chase those things that really matter (in following Christ):  You, man of God, pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness... to keep the commandment without stain or reproach (1 Tm 6:11-16). This can be realized neither by one's self nor by paying attention to one's needs only. It is through and with one's neighbor that one can be fully and truly righteous, devoted, faithful, loving, patient, and gentle. The neighbor in need is not only there to benefit from those who are able in life. He gives the opportunity for one to learn and live out valuable lessons that matter in the Kingdom of God; to those in need one can be generous; to those who are obstinate one can be patient; to those who are traitorous one can show faithfulness; to those who are angry one can be loving. Seeing and being with one's neighbor can be a bridge toward the Kingdom.      

 

Riches and poverty will not count in heaven, but the manner one treated his neighbor. Dives may have seen Lazarus in his lifetime, but he was too busy in his own life. When he was in need in the netherworld, it was then that he acknowledged Lazarus in his life. But seeing Lazarus in heaven, from hell, Dives may have realized (rather Abraham made him realize) it was too late. He had his time and opportunity, but he wasted them all, seeing only himself.     

Whom do you see? 

Do you see the Lazaruses around you? 

Will you care for them?

HUMILITY IS TRUTHFULNESS

Years ago, a soda commercial portrayed a fan girl meeting her celebrity idol, she was given options on how to react in front of her idol: will she get his autograph? Ignore him? or will she kiss him? She chose none of the options and rather chose to be simply human. She shouted at the top of her lungs: I love you Piolo. The commercial ended with a tagline: Magpakatoo ka.  She simply expressed her real feelings, as a thirsty person would simply drink the soda, without any pretensions and hesitations. Nagpakatotoo lang. Life may not be a soda advertisement, but the message of this commercial reverberates in real life. How many of us are being truthful about who we are, or pretending to be someone else (willfully living in lies), and worse is, do not know who we are?  

Truth hurts. We heard this saying many times, and many times we try to avoid some truths in our lives for they truly wound us. We choose to ignore them, even deny them at times. Whatever we do, however, they remain to be in our lives. Ignoring them can never diminish truths. We are simply delaying the day we come face to face with them and accept them. 

A worse attitude towards the truths in our life (more than ignoring), is fantasying. When the truth hurts so much, some may replace it with alternative truth, half-truths, and lies; letting themselves believe that what they thought is what is real, but actually, is simply a lie. Surrounding himself with self-made beliefs, he grows detached from who he is. As he is living in a lie, he ends up being a delusional, hypocrite, living a double life, a hidden life. One illusion a person can concoct is that he is better than the rest; better than who he is.  

In the gospel (Lk 14:1, 7-14), Jesus tells us to take our proper seats in a banquet. Some may think of themselves as one worthy of seats of honor, and so they take them, only to be embarrassed when asked: Give your place to this man. Detached from his true worth, one may over-valuate himself, and thinks he is better than the rest. The key to knowing our proper place is humility. Jesus says: When you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, My friend, move up to a higher position. Truths (about ourselves and life) are discovered in humility. Humility is not always about taking the lowest seat, doing the menial work, wearing tattered shirts, and other mean things. Humility is about truth. St. Thomas explains that humility is about knowing ourselves for what we are, and in relation to God and our neighbor. It is one's regard for himself according to the reality of his life. In the face of God's greatness, and the merit of our neighbor, we cannot remain to be in our delusions and make beliefs. Knowing the truths about ourselves, with all our weaknesses and shortcoming, we cannot but be humble about ourselves. That humility leads us to truthfulness. Ang pagpapakababa ay syang daan sa pagpapakatotoo. 

Who among us would like to be humble? As humility becomes synonymous with modesty (pagkamahinhin), meekness (pagkamaamo), and submissiveness (masunurin), who would desire to embrace this virtue? When almost all are ready to give a fight whenever they are challenged, who would think of humility? Only those who are courageous enough to take the lowest seat, and face the truth will do so (and become humble).

The good news for those who take the path of humility is that they will find true joy and peace in being truthful (about themselves). The book of Sirach reminds us: My child, conduct your affairs with humility, and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts. Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find favor with God...Water quenches a flaming fire, and alms atone for sins (Sir 3:17-18, 20, 28-29). The humble ones find favor in God: For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted (Lk 14:1, 7-14). For those who have been made poor in the name of humility and truthfulness, God, in His goodness, makes a home for them (Ps 68:4-5, 6-7, 10-11). 

Who would like to be humble; to be humbled?

Who would like to be truthful? 

Magpapakatotoo ka ba?

THE STRUGGLE IS REAL

Life is tough nowadays (Mahirap ang buhay): A kilo of rice is at P 45, sugar is at P 100, and white onion is at P 500. Challenges may be considered a part of life. Not only on basic commodities, and daily expenses that we experience difficulties. Even in the religious aspect of our life, we are to experience troubles (#StruggleIsReal). 

 In the gospel (Lk 14:25-33), Jesus turned and addressed the great crowds traveling with Him “If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple." Hating, and denying one's family is hard, more so carrying a cross. This teaching of Jesus points to the fact that difficulties are prerequisites of Christian discipleship. In following Jesus, one must make sacrifices, and embrace some forms of denial, and dying, so that one may fully give himself up to God and the mission given to him. Total commitment to Jesus implies giving up some aspects of our life, be it comforts, identities, and practices. Through this, one puts himself (his time, body, life, talents, etc.) at God's disposal. On the contrary, a person who keeps holding on to the things he ought to give up, cannot follow Jesus wholly, with all His heart. One cannot call himself truly Christ's disciple while he keeps on sinning without a single resolve to give up such an offensive act. For genuine Christian discipleship to be realized in one's life, a person must be ready to break ties with those that are contrary to that way of life. For one to give primacy to God, he must put all other persons (even our beloved family) and things second (to God). That is difficult. That is Christian discipleship.    

 In his Letter to Philemon (Phmn 9-10, 12-17), St. Paul encouraged Philemon to receive back Onesimus as his brother. Philemon can only do so if he would give up his view of Onesimus as his slave. Being Christian necessitates one to make sacrifices (to give up something), even those which, or whom we deem to be all too important in our life. We sometimes have to rely on so many people and things in our lives. We depend on our parents and families for sustenance. We hang out with our friends for affirmation and encouragement. We hold on to our dreams and aspirations as motivations that keep us going. These persons and things are good in themselves, but they can sometimes prevent us from growing, from truly pursuing the lot God reserved for us, as they serve as our comfort zone, and sense of security. We fail to grow and pursue by ourselves the fate God gives to us. 

It was once said, and very rightly, that a person cannot discover new oceans unless he dares to lose sight of the shore. Only the children who dare to leave the comforts that their parents provide can form their own families. Only a friend, who can live without the affirmation of others, can become man enough to stand by his decisions. Unless we deny ourselves from the comforts of life that provided security, albeit rendered us stunted, we will not make any progress in our spiritual life. Only those who can give up comforts in their lives (dreams, desire, caprices, vices, sins), can deny themselves, carry their crosses and follow Jesus. Like Philemon, we are encouraged to turn our backs on the things that hinder us from growing and maturing in our faith; in following Jesus. 

 In the face of the great difficulties of our journey of Christian discipleship, Jesus motivates us to pursue what we have begun.  We are to make a lifelong commitment to carrying the cross God has entrusted to us, less, the onlookers should laugh at us and say, ‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish.’ or 'This one wage a war with no enough troops.' But truth be told, there will be moments when the stone we gather will not be enough to put into completion the edifice we aspire to build; when the ten thousand troops we muster would not suffice against our enemies. In following Jesus, we experience weakness and discouraging results. We might even question God about the cross He asked us to carry; whether it is the cross proper to us (as it is too heavy for us to bear), or question even the difficult way He chose.  

 The book of Wisdom (Wis 9:13-18b) reminds us that we, human and limited as we are, cannot fully comprehend God's will for us: Who can know God’s counsel, or who can conceive what the LORD intends? In those disappointing and seemingly hopeless instances, we are not to hold on to our strength and resources. We may be asked even to give all the little things we save; the building materials we possess, and the ten thousand troops under our control. We are left to pray to God, that He may send the Holy Spirit to enflame our hearts anew:  With the Holy Spirit sent upon us from on high, our paths here on earth are made straight, enabling us to continue our journey no matter how tough it may be. In the end, the God who bestows upon our life cross, will be the same God who will accompany us and make sure that whatever He had begun in us will be put to completion (Philippians 1:6). In every moment of our journey of Christian discipleship, the Lord is our refuge and strength (Ps 90:1).

 The good news for us is, the toil and labor we bear on the journey will not be the end. Jesus did not remain on the cross after taking the road to Calvary. The story of Jesus, whom we dare to follow, ends in the glory of the resurrection. That ending can be ours too, should we persevere in following Him. 

Christian discipleship is not a walk in the park. To be faithful to God (to His commandments and mission He entrusted to us) is not stress-free. He never promised an easy life for us, but only a worthwhile destiny (heaven). Will you give up everything, carry your cross and die with Him? If yes, be prepared too to rise in glory with Him.   

SELF-CARE and thy neighbor

Self-care activities are vastly promoted nowadays. People are encouraged to eat a healthy meal, engage in exercise, go for a walk, have a cup of tea, sit in the sunlight, etc. Some may see these as applicable only to those who have the luxury of time and resources (for how can one have a cup of tea when several chores are filed on his desk). Promoters of self-care, however, see it differently. They firmly believe that such activities are necessary to keep a person's well-being, whether mental or physical health. To clear one's mind and organize himself, one has to pause for a while and take a deep breath. To function well at work, one needs ample sleep and nourishment. More than a product of caprices, self-care is a must for a well-balanced life. It is a necessity.  

The self is given importance not only in the realms of physical health but more so in spiritual well-being. In the gospel (LK 6:39-42), Jesus said: Remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye. Before one can assist his neighbor, he must make sure that he is capable of doing so, lest he may mislead the one he is supposed to help. A blind person cannot guide another blind person, they will both fall into a pit. Before one can teach the catechism, he must know the catechism. Before one can impart love, he must experience in himself that love. Any spiritual journey and growth begin with the self. 

 In his mission to preach the gospel, St. Paul reminded the Corinthians (1 COR 9:16-19, 22B-27) that attention to one's self must be given: I have become all things to all, to save at least some. All this I do for the sake of the Gospel, so that I too may have a share in it... I drive my body and train it, for fear that, after having preached to others, I should be disqualified. In the course of one's progress in spiritual life, the self is not neglected even if one's goal is to offer selfless love. Self is the beginning (terminus ad quo) in following Jesus. But a stern warning must be given that the self is not the end (terminus ad quem) of man's efforts. Preaching the gospel does not aim to placate nor benefit the self alone. It has to climax with the love of the neighbor. An enlightened person sees not for himself, but that he may guide those in darkness into the light of faith. One is trained not only for his salvation, for more so to form his neighbor and make them fit for heaven.  

Self-care is necessary to begin and continue the task at hand. We need to rest and eat. We need to enrich our knowledge and spirituality. All this not for our own sake alone, but that we may of great help to our neighbor; that we may bring the good news we have received, impart the great love we experienced. Woe to us if we do not preach it, and keep it for ourselves. 

Magsimula sa sarili. Isipin ang sarili. Huwag pabayaan ang sarili. Ngunit huwag matatapos sa sarili. Tumuloy/tumulay sa kapwa.

RECEIVING JESUS

There is an old Latin Proverb that speaks about our capacity to receive things and knowledge; “Quidquid recipitur ad modum recipientis recipitur: Whatever is received is received according to the manner of the receiver. When a noodle is received from a neighbor and transferred to an unclean plate, one cannot savor the noodle fully, as the noodle becomes contaminated. When an information is passed to device incapable of processing it, one cannot fully access the information (e.g. Mac file to a Microsoft powered computer). When a non-Spanish speaker or reader reads a beautiful Spanish poem, the rhyme in the stanzas are unappreciated. In other words: We receive things not as they are but as we are.

In the gospel (Lk 7:1-10), a centurion received Jesus in great humility and faith. As Jesus was going to his house to heal his ill servant, the centurion sent words to Him: Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof. Therefore, I did not consider myself worthy to come to you; but say the word and let my servant be healed. Those profound words of the centurion expressed faith in Jesus, his acknowledgement of his own unworthiness, and charity towards his ill servant. Such manner of receiving Jesus merited admiration from Jesus, moving Him to say:  Not even in Israel have I found such faith. Even without Jesus actually going in the centurion's house, the ill slave of the centurion earned healing. The slave was found in good health upon the return of the messengers to the house of the centurion. The centurion and his ill slave earned the grace of healing from Jesus, as the centurion received Jesus in a manner proper to Him: with faith, humility, and charity. 

The Corinthians (1 Cor 11:17-26, 33) on the other hand, even after hearing the Word of God from Paul, and seated at the table of the Eucharist failed to experience the fullness of God's grace. They have not benefitted fully from the precious gifts Paul delivered to them, as they were ill disposed to accept such gifts, and consequently failed to profit from them. There were divisions and factions among them as they meet as a Church. Charity was lacking in the fellowship, as there were those who go hungry while other got drunk. The Eucharist they celebrated did not become a proclamation of the death and love of the Lord, if not a mockery to the message of the Lord's Supper.   

We receive Jesus, through the words proclaimed before us, and through His body and blood given to us. Do we benefit wholly from these? Our disposition necessarily points on how we benefit from the fruits of the sacraments we receive. Thus, a more significant question to answer is, how do we receive them; how do we receive Jesus in our life?

SURVIVING IN THE WORLD-WITHOUT-END

With the soaring prices of basic commodities, one is challenged on how to make ends meet. For P15,200 (average salary in the Philippines as of 2020), how can one pay his bills (electricity and water bills), buy food, and finance the education of his children? People are left with no choice but to be creative in dealing with this tough time. When push comes to shove, one's survival instinct kicks in. Out of this sorry situation, one food cart business is able to come up with a meal set worth P20 only. It is called bentelog. Through P20, one can have a meal for his lunch; a cup of rice, an egg, and a small portion of meat. One needs to pull all his resources together, and do everything to thrive in these trying times. When all these are behind our back, hopefully, we can say: We survive (even with just P20)!

 In the gospel (Lk 16:1-13), the master commended a dishonest steward. The master praised the steward, not because of his dishonesty but because he acted prudently. Upon realizing that his evil schemes would be revealed and eventually suffer the severe consequences of his sins against his master, the steward thought of ways on how to over those (future) consequences. The story of the dishonest steward does not aim to teach how to be deceitful but rather to desire and do something that one may survive. By organizing well whatever he had and can, the steward managed to clear a path for his (future) subsistence. For that prudence (wisdom, use of common sense), not for his cheating, his master commended him. 

The commendable survival instinct of the steward, we are to imitate, but certainly not that we may also engage with fraudulent deeds. The later part of the gospel (Lk 16:1-13) points us to where we should make use of our desire to withstand any difficulties. Jesus said: I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. Our eyes, and efforts to live in this world, by all means, should be directed to that eternal dwellings; that is Heaven. All the things we do should contribute to our survival in the world-without-end, and not simply in this world that ends. Jesus concludes with the way how we can do this: No servant can serve two masters.  He will either hate one and love the other or be devoted to one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and mammon. To endure until to the world-without-end, we are to make a choice who are we to serve: the masterS of this world or the Master of the eternal dwellings? The key to survival lies in whom we are to choose.  

When mammon is chosen; that is to survive merely in this world, corruption and sinfulness seep into our lives, to our very being. When money and worldly riches are foolishly desired and used, they can debase us. They deprive us of desiring God and His kingdom. When money is all that is in our minds, we can do unreasonable things to ourselves and more so to our neighbors. In the book of the prophet Amos (Am 8:4-7), those who chose to survive in this world and serve mammon decided unflinchingly to cheat their neighbor; trampling upon the needy, and destroying the poor of the land. They fix their scales for cheating, buy the lowly for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals; even the refuse of the wheat they will sell. All this in the name of worldly riches. The LORD will never forget a thing they have done!

Choosing God, and desiring to survive in the next world is no easy task. When we see those who robbed us and steal from the public coffers, living in a prosperous, while those who live in honest ways and eat the fruit of their hard labor, one may be tempted to join the bandwagon living in this world as if there is no next. We may justify ourselves by saying: anyway, everybody is doing it; everybody lies. We can remain steadfast for the choice we make (in choosing God, and to live for the eternal dwellings that await us) through the counsel of St. Paul (1 Tm 2:1-8), I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone, for kings and all in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity. In the face of temptations to choose God or to cheat our neighbor, we pray and beg for God's grace that we may remain faithful to Him; that our dignity as His children may remain unsullied. And the Lord, hearing our prayers, will lift us in our poverty. We who chose Him, and remain faithful in Him, will survive in the world without end.