Saint Joseph, the Worker (Year C)

Mateo 13:54-58. Unsa may mensahe nga buot ipaabot sa Simbahan ning kapistahan ni Senyor San Jose, ang patron sa tanang mamumuo. Si San Jose nagpakaon sa iyang pamilya pinaagi sa pagtrabaho diha sa usa ka ordinaryong pandayan sa Nazaret. Labing siguro gitudloan ni Jose ang iyang anak nga si Jesus sa pagpamanday nga maoy ilang bugtong panginabuhian. Pinaagi niini nakat-onan ni Jesus sa iyang amahan ang mga birtud sa pagkamakugihon ug pagkamatinud-anon. Hinaot unta nga si San Jose magdasig sa mga amahan sa pagtrabaho uban sa gugma ug kakugi. Buhion unta nila ang ilang pamilya pinaagi sa limpyong trabaho o negosyo. Dili unta sila magtinapolan ug magtinikasan. Mahimo unta sila nga maayong panig-ingnan sa ilang mga kabataan.

Monday of the 5th Week of Easter (Year C)

Juan 14:21-26. Unsaon man nato pagpakita ang atong gugma sa Dios? Ang tinuod nga gugma mapamatud-an diha sa buhat ug dili lamang sa pulong. Daghan ang moingon, “Gimahal ko ang Dios”, pero dili makapakita niini sa ilang kinabuhi. Kining mga tawhana dili matinud-anon. Sa ebanghelyo karon si Jesus miingon, “Ang nahigugma kanako magtuman sa akong gisugo.” Nga sa ato pa, ang tawo nga nahigugma sa Ginoo angay mahigugma sa isigkatawo, makamao magpasaylo sa mga kaaway, magtabang sa mga  nanginahanglan, mag-amping sa kinaiyahan, ug uban pa. Aron kita masayod sa mga kasugoan ni Cristo, kinahanglan mobasa gayod kita sa ebanghelyo. Matag adlaw mamalandong kita sa Pulong sa Ginoo ug maningkamot sa pagpuyo niini.

5th Sunday of Easter (Year C)

Acts 14:21-27; Rev 21:1-5; Jn 13:31-35

The teaching of Jesus concerning love for fellow human beings takes different forms.

On one occasion, the Lord says, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mt 22:39). Ordinarily, Jewish people would consider “neighbor” only their fellow Jews. But Jesus widens the concept of neighbor so as to include any individual who is in need of help. This is what we understand in the Parable of the Good Samaritan: Every person in need, whether he lives next door or a town away, whether she is Black or White, is a neighbor.

“Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” Jesus asks his disciples to use as measure in loving people the love they have for themselves. They are to treat another person as their own flesh and bone. This is not easy to do. As a matter of fact, we normally have different standards for ourselves and for others. The natural tendency is to give ourselves first priority or utmost care and to provide others with lesser or no attention. By asking us to love a neighbor as our own self, the Lord simply is helping us overcome narcissistic tendencies. We all belong to the one Body of Christ and we need to behave like we really are part of one another.

In today’s gospel, Jesus presents a more demanding version of the commandment of love. He says, “I give you a new commandment: love one another as I have loved you” (Jn. 13:34-35). The Lord instructs his followers to use as their standard for loving not only their love for themselves but his love for them. He knows that our way of loving can easily be tainted with selfish motivations. Hence, he challenges us to love one another according to the way he has loved us.

But what does it mean to love as Jesus loves?

It is significant that every time the Bible speaks about the love of Jesus, it uses the Greek word agape. His love is agapaic, meaning self-sacrificing, unselfish and unselective. Interestingly, every time Jesus says something about love, he also uses agape. For instance, when Jesus invites his disciples to love one another, he is asking them to love in an agapaic way, that is, in a life-giving, disinterested manner.

The love of Jesus is not conditional love, which only is given to those who meet certain conditions laid down by the lover. It does not say: “I will love you if you can make it to the dean’s list” or “I will love you if you can afford to buy me a big house.” The love of Jesus also is not merited love, which only is bestowed upon those who possess adorable qualities. It never says: “I love you because you are considerate” or “I love you because you are faithful.”

Rather, Jesus’ love is one that initiates and offers freely. Jesus called his disciples prior to any good showing or merit on their part. He loved them in spite of their lack of understanding and lack of faith. He continued to love them even after they abandoned, denied, or betrayed him. Jesus loved them not because they were lovable but because he possessed within himself the love of the Father who loves the unlovable and takes the first move in loving us. And so he says, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you” (Jn. 15:9). Jesus, like his Father, loves every person without any exception.

We are called by Jesus to do the same thing: To love individuals not because they are lovable but in spite of the fact that they may not be lovable. We are to love even the enemy, the sinner, or the despised. The true disciple of Jesus loves with a “love in spite of”, not with “a love if” or “a love because.”

The love commanded by Jesus in various ways for disciples to practice seems very difficult. If we are to depend only on our own strength, we would not be able to love the way Jesus loves. Somebody explains that the newness of Jesus’ commandment of love consists not only in the sublimity of love’s demands, but in the grace that accompanies the command. If we sincerely intend to love, God will provide the grace that will transform our hearts and make them like the heart of his Son. 

Saturday of the 4th Week of Easter (Year C)

Juan 14:7-14. “Kon mangayo kamo bisag unsa sa akong ngalan, buhaton ko kini.” Unsa may gipasabot ni Jesus sa iyang pag-ingon “sa akong ngalan”? Angay nato kining klarohon tungod kay daghan ra ba ang naghunahuna nga sa paggamit sa ngalan ni Jesus makapangayo na kita bisan unsa ngadto sa Ginoo. Sa pagkatinuod, kon mangayo kita “sa ngalan ni Jesus” ato nang gitugyan Kaniya ang paghukom kon ihatag ba niya o dili ang atong gipangayo, masaligon nga Siya ang labing nasayod unsay makaayo kanato. Dugang pa niini, sa atong pag-ampo “sa ngalan ni Jesus”, mangayo lamang kita sa mga butang nga Iyang gitinguha para kanato. Dili kita angay'ng mangandoy sa mga butang nga supak sa Iyang maayong kabubut-on.

Friday of the 4th Week of Easter (Year C)

Juan 14:1-6. Nganong mahadlok man kitang mamatay? Alang sa kadaghanan, tungod kini kay wala kita masayod asa paingon human sa kamatayon. Sa ebanghelyo si Cristo nagdala kanato’g kalipay sa Iyang pag-ingon: “Ayaw kamo kabalaka...Sa balay sa akong Amahan adunay daghang mga lawak, ug moadto ako aron pag-andam og dapit alang kaninyo.” Pagkanindot pamation nga aduna diay kitay kapaingnan human ning tanan. Dili lang kini usa ka lugar kondili usa ka malipayong pagpakig-uban sa Dios nga Amahan. Unsaon man nato pagkatultol sa dalan? Si Cristo miingon: “Ako mao ang dalan... Walay makaadto sa Amahan kon dili moagi Kanako.” Nga sa ato pa, kon gusto kitang mahiusa sa Dios nga Langitnon, atong subayon ang dalan ug kinabuhi nga gisunod ni Jesus.

Thursday of the 4th Week of Easter (Year C)

Juan 13:16-20. Unsay mahitabo kon ang tawo magpakaginoo? Ang maong tawo magdala og daghang kasakit tungod kay siya mahimong mapahitas-on, dili mosangpit og Ginoo ug magdaugdaog sa iyang isigkatawo. Wala siyay kahadlokan ni pagtahud sa uban, bisan sa mga tigulang. Dili siya makamaong malooy ni motabang sa silingan; gusto lang niya nga siya ang alagaran. Sa ebanghelyo si Cristo nagpahinumdum kanato, “Walay sulugoon nga mas labaw pa kaysa iyang agalon, ug walay sinugo nga molabaw pa kaysa nagsugo kaniya.” Ang tawo nga makasabot niini magdala og kalipay tungod kay magmapaubsanon siya kanunay. Nasayod siya nga adunay Ginoo nga maoy tag-iya sa tanan, ang Dios nga mao lamay angay simbahon ug silbihan.