FROM THE BOAT TO THE SHORE

Have you worried or been in despair?

In the final years of my masteral studies, I was preparing for my thesis writing. I had an initial discussion on my thesis with a foremost historian in our Order. He was willing to be my adviser and was ready to assist me to complete the requirements for the degree. Everything was set until he received his appointment from the Curia as the new rector of our university in Rome. He would be away from the country for years. That jeopardized our plan. I knew the difficulties of long-distance mentoring. To aggravate the situation, he was no tech savvy. Communicating via emails would be problematic, if not impossible for us. As he left for Rome, I was worried about how I would be able to finish my studies. I could not think of another person who can assist me in my studies. After sending some emails to him, I received no replies. I was in despair. I prayed to God that I might be assisted in my studies. And suddenly, the news came that my would-be adviser could not assume the post abroad due to health reasons. Few weeks after, he went home. Though surprised by his condition, I was relieved of my worries. I gained back my adviser.    

We have worries in life. We worry about things that are unclear to us. We worry when we are in darkness. The apostles were in despair as to how to manage their growing number and demands of their ministry, so much so that widows and orphans had been left unattended (Acts 6:1-7). In that crisis, God enabled to identify a new ministry in the Church: the ministry of the diaconate. The disciples, on their way to Capernaum via boat, where tossed and buffeted by a storm. Jesus went to them, walking on water. He did not simply calm the storm. He brought them to the safety of the shore.  We may have thousands of reasons to worry in life but we are not to succumb to despair. We have a merciful God. He will deliver us from darkness to light; from worries to certainty. If only we trust in Him, our worries will be made clear, in His perfect time, in His seamless way.

As we embark in our missions where God is sending us, we would experience storms. Our boats we so patiently built, and with which we have relied so much on, will be buffeted by raging winds. The boats we built will prove to be useless in the face of challenges greater than ourselves. We can only reach our destination with God's help and mercy, which is greatest among us, greater than any problem.

From the boat to the shore; more than calming the storms, God brings us to more certain grounds; to the completion of our mission. 

OUR PRAYER

Praying is our way of communicating with God. As we enter into prayer, we engage in a dialogue and conversation with God. We express to Him the deepest desires and longings of hearts. But most of the time, praying as a conversation with God is about listening to Him more than as doing the talking.  As Mother Teresa said “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at this disposition, and listening to his voice in the depths of our hearts.” In praying, we long to understand His will in our lives and not to dictate our personal will to God. Through prayers, we can be strengthened to face any difficulties and challenges in our life as God enlightens us whenever we are in darkness and fear.

In January of 2014, I thought of leaving the seminary. We had a problem in our family. I thought if I left the seminary, I can be of help to them since I will be present in their midst and perhaps be able to add some financial assistance to them should I start a lucrative business. For several nights, after dinner, I walked around the church courtyard in Santo Domingo. It was a simple silent walk. And suddenly it dawned on me that I could not give financial assistance to my parents (even now as a priest), as my siblings do. But I can give or do something for them. I can pray for them. That made me realize the value of prayer in my life; the capacity to beg for graces and mercy from God for my family and friends. From that time on, I took my prayer life seriously. I cannot give money, food or shelter, but I can pray that God may provide whatever we need. And so, I continue my religious and clerical formation. Five years after, our problem remains unsolved but we are still here, strengthened and made resilient by God. We continue to pray.                       

Praying leads us to the realization of the will of God in our life. "Not my will, but Your will be done." Thus, in our traditions and rituals, we employ things that can help us focus in meditating upon the will of God: rosary, psalms. Through these, we encounter God in silence and stillness of our hearts, the God who only speaks in silence. We come face to face with the TRUTH about our lives about God. And it is this truth that we are to bring to the people to whom we administer.

Prayer always has a social dimension. It can never be a personal one. If the Lord's Prayer is our model, we realize that it is not about "I" but "Our, We." Our lives and prayers as Christians are imitations of Christ's. The Holy Trinity never kept the love they have for one another only for themselves. They go ad extra, which is going outside or beyond their relationship as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Thus, God created us, redeemed us, and sustains us. When we pray, we always pray for others more than for ourselves; for the persons with whom we are in a relationship with. A mother prays for her children. A husband prays for his wife. A teacher prays for her students. A friend prays for his friend. Even for your persecutors and enemies, you can pray for them. As the letter of James (5:16) says: “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” Our prayers are always communal and for others, as God is towards us.

In the 16th century translation of the Lord's Prayer in Baybayin, the phrase "And lead us not into temptation" is translated as "Huwág mo kamí iwan || nang  dî kamí matalo nang tuksó." Prayer for us is about the accompaniment of God, to be secured in His presence; to be always present in Him. And God makes Himself present through the company of a friend praying for you. Di ka nag-iisa. You can be the answer to the prayers of others, as you accompany them in their prayers.  

BECOMING A SHEPHERD

Once I received a puppy as a gift from my brother-in-law. He knew I love dogs. I named him Johan and took care of it. I bought dog food and vitamins for Johan and regularly brought him to the vets. I even studied dog psychology and behavior so that I can provide whatever Johan may need. I gave my best in taking care of Johan. After all, he was mine. I felt responsible for his welfare.  Indeed, we do and give everything we can to the things and persons entrusted to us, as they become ours.

Jesus declares, “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11). And we are the sheep of His flock, for whom He lays down His life. He feeds us with His words. He binds our wounds. He saves us from the snares of death. He gives and leads us to eternal life, and we shall never perish. Jesus does all this for He has adopted (nilingap) us out of His infinite love for mankind. He does His best, he gives His best, His very own life, that everyone, not only the Jews but people of all nations (cf. Acts 13:14, 43-52), may be brought to the Father; to be sharers with the divine life. But what do we give in return? As sheep of His flock, how do we behave?

Jesus is the Shepherd and the Lamb of God. "I am the good shepherd, says the Lord; I know my sheep, and mine know me (JN 10:14)." Our Shepherd is gentle for He Himself is a sheep; He knows what it means to be a human person. He is not detached from our condition. He is a Shepherd who is in the midst of His flock; not ahead of His flock nor at their back. He is truly a Shepherd who smells like His sheep. If Jesus demands one thing from us, He knows we can fulfill it for He knows us, His sheep. But have we recognized Him as our Shepherd?

Sheep have the tendency to flock and to stay together to compensate for the natural defense they lack against possible attackers. They are always together, looking for each other as they graze to maintain their positions. Sheep may follow other sheep but only the shepherd can bring them to safety. Like the sheep, we may have the propensity to listen to one another; to human opinions; to world-pieces of advice; to other shepherds, and we perish for listening in futility to these other shepherds. Only the counsel of the Good Shepherd can bring us to our life goals; only the voice of the Good Shepherd can direct us towards heaven, our homeland; only through the guidance of the Good Shepherd can we establish a relationship with the Father.

There are lost sheep among us. It so not because the Shepherd is negligent in attending to his flock but rather because of the sheep’s personal choice to move away from the flock and away from the shepherd. Probably, sheep move away from the flock because it is tempted to the other side where there seems to be a greener pasture. Lured by wolves clothed as sheep, they leave the flock thinking they can defend themselves only to expose themselves to great dangers. Away from the Good Shepherd, sheep’s coat grows unattended and unsheared, parasites abound on its skin.  Remember the story of Shrek the renegade New Zealander sheep who hid away from its shepherd for six years in a cave to avoid shearing. When it was found, one can hardly recognize it as a sheep. Its coat has grown so thick that it was able to produce twenty suits for men. It had fleece that weigh twenty-seven kilos. It could barely see, for its eyes were covered by its overgrown coat and fleece. Shrek and other sheep disdained sheering by their shepherds not because the process is painful, but rather because it is something unfamiliar to them, though something beneficial. The Good Shepherd desires only good things for us. But often we find our own plans and will far better than His (Sa tingin natin, mas magaling tayo; mas mainam ang plano natin). We are mistaken. For that, we are lost. Away from our Shepherd, we become black sheep because of the darkness brought about by sin.

When in danger, sheep knows they need help. Sheep welcome a shepherd when in pain and danger. A female sheep giving birth welcomes the assistance of the shepherd. Suddenly it is unafraid of the shepherd. In the midst of suffering, a sheep expresses its docility to the shepherd. Such can be rendered as an act of humility on that part of the sheep who usually depends on its self and its fellow sheep.

We as sheep of God's flock have Jesus as our Good Shepherd who is constantly present in our midst, ready to tend us especially when we are in pain and in danger; the Good Shepherd who is willing to search for us whenever we are lost. Such care of the good shepherd is given to all; Jews and Gentiles alike (cf. Acts 13:14, 43-52). The love of God and the eternal life He offers to us is for all; Jews and Gentiles alike. Thus, Paul and Barnabas preached the good news to even to the pagans. Though rejected by others, they were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit, for they were heeding the call of the Good Shepherd to be shepherds of His flock; for brothers to shepherd their brothers.

Jesus is our Good Shepherd who has embraced all of us as His own. Can we be good sheep by recognizing His voice; by obeying His commandments; away from muds that can turn us into black sheep? As we become His good sheep, we are transformed to being shepherds also, after the heart of Jesus the Good Shepherd, leading our brothers and sisters to heed His voice.

FEED THEM YOURSELVES!

Have you been blessed by the Lord?

One of the indicators that the Lord blesses us is the food we have on our tables. If you eat your meals three times a day, you can consider blessed. If you eat your meals six times a day, you are truly blessed. Others may yearn more, while about ten percent of our population is already thankful having even just one meal in a day (AlTangHap). Indeed, the Lord blesses most of us but unfortunately, millions are left in hunger. Does this mean the Lord does not bless them, or have we been negligent in our responsibility in sharing our blessings?

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ or Corpus Christi Sunday. Pope Urban IV instituted it in 1264. It is a great occasion for us to celebrate and reflect upon the Eucharist we receive in the mass. It is an occasion for us to rejoice for the gift of the Eucharist that nourishes us; that reminds of Christ's abiding presence among us; His great blessing to us. 

The greatest joy we can ever experience is to be in the presence of our beloved or that our beloved is present with us. This is what Jesus does in the Eucharist where we experience His real presence. In the mass, particularly in the consecration and communion, we receive the real presence of God in the appearance of bread and wine. The bread and wine cease to be bread and wine alone but rather transubstantiated into the body and blood of Christ. In faith in Jesus's words, we hold those that appear to be bread and wine as His body and blood. Thus, when the priest offers them to us as he says, "The Body of Christ" we reply "Amen" meaning, "I believe." We believe because Jesus says "This is my Body, this is my Blood." Only a believer can receive the body and blood of Christ in the appearance of bread and wine.

The Body and Blood of Christ; the Eucharist, is the source and summit of our life us Catholics (CCC 1324). It is the source of our life as it nourishes and strengthens us in our journey. It inspires us. It is the summit of our journey as it is the end goal of our life; to be like Christ the Eucharistic Lord who shared Himself to those who are in need. In the Eucharist, we hold in our hands the creative and liberating presence of God; creative as it directs us to the image of Jesus; the image we all desire to be transformed to; liberating as it frees us from worries and weaknesses we may encounter in our journey, and prepares us to imitate Jesus, the Eucharistic Lord who served others. the Eucharist changes us internally (making us renewed creatures) and externally (as we become the witness of our faith, of Christ). In the creative and liberating presence of God in the Eucharist we are reminded of the extent of the generosity of God to us; He gave His own flesh and blood for our sustenance, just like a pelican who feeds her children with her own flesh and blood, just so they may live (in the hope later they too will do the same to their offspring). Truly in the Eucharist, we realize how blessed are we with the creative and liberating presence of God. 

We regularly receive the Eucharist in the masses we celebrate. Millions of Filipino Catholics receive the communion on Sundays. By this time, our society should have been a Eucharistic society where hunger is unknown and charity have become the norm. But on the contrary, if we look around us, a lot of people are still hungry, whether physical or spiritual. Why is that so? It is probably because we haven't received the Eucharist properly and attentively in our lives. We haven't yet appropriated the message of the Eucharistic Lord in our own lives. Just like the apostles, we may have Jesus in our presence but never learned to be like Jesus (cf Lk 9:11B-17), who desires to feed the hungry by ourselves and not to send them away.

How are we to receive and appropriate the Eucharist in our lives?

When the priest offers the body of Christ during the communion, others will not respond "Amen." They will say "Thank you" instead. Others do not even fast, with food crumbs in their mouths as evidence. Other communicants open their mouth without extending their tongue, expecting the minister to make a good flick of the Body of Christ into their mouth. Some communicants are like Venus-fly traps that at the very moment they had a sight of the host they immediately close their mouth, clutching the fingers of the minister in their mouth. Others receive Jesus in seeming sad face. Worse is others are not in the state of grace. How we receive the sacred host reflects our reception of Jesus in our life. Have we sufficiently prepared our selves in receiving Jesus? And consequently, this too speaks of the effects of the Eucharist in our lives. We fail to like our Eucharistic Lord as we fail to receive Him properly in our lives. 

In receiving Jesus in the Eucharist, embracing the Eucharistic spirituality can be our guide; that is of offering, being blessed, broken and shared.

We are to offer to god in the service of others and especially those in need whatever God has entrusted to us. We can offer our time, resources and talents to our community and even to strangers in need.  Do not say you have nothing to give. Christ gave everything for us His beloved, even his very own flesh and blood. His very own life, that we may be fully configured in His image: I am the living bread that came down from heaven, says the Lord; whoever eats this bread will live forever.

Believe that whatever we offer, though how small it may be (five loaves and two fish) will be blessed by the Lord, and in turn, will be a blessing to multitudes of people in need. Who would though five loaves and two fish can feed five thousand men?!? Your few minutes spend with a friend in grief can mean a lot to him. A simple smile to a stranger can make his rough day a pleasing one.

The blessings we receive are meant to be broken and shared. They can only be shared, as they are broken. We cannot share them as we keep them wholly for ourselves. (A seminarian once receive dinaguan (blood stew) from his parents. In his greediness, he kept the stew in his cabinet in the seminary, not wanting to share it to his brothers. A day after, the stew was spoiled and wasted). Sharing may be difficult or faithfully for others as it entails being broken of our selfishness and personal dreams in exchange for the will of God for us. But it is in being broken shared that our identity as Eucharistic people is realized. It is in His suffering and death (being broken) that Jesus realized the mission entrusted to Him by the Father (to free us from sin and share eternal life to us). 

Through the Eucharistic spirituality of offering, being blessed, broken to be shared; we realize our identity just like that of Jesus'.  

Feed them yourselves! Give them something to eat; Jesus admonished his apostles.

As we are blessed by the presence of Jesus, we are to be a blessing to others. To feed the hungry, attend the needy. Our generosity can be God's way of making Himself present to those who could not feel His hands. 

We too can be the bread of life that can feed those who are hungry! By the bread of life, we receive; through which we are transformed to become food ourselves for others; inspired by the generosity of Jesus, and through which we shall give.

We are Blessed by our Eucharistic Lord!

Be a Blessing in turn by a life of witnessing through the Eucharistic Spirituality: offering, being blessed, broken and shared!