Out of Love

         Once I was talking to one of the Altar Servers of a certain parish. In the course of our conversation he shared candidly, with a tinge of humor, his experience in serving. There are actually many functions one can do in serving at the Eucharist. One may assist the priest at the altar, another can be a candle bearer, or a thurifer who carries the metal censer with burning charcoal for the incense. But the task he likes best is to be the crossbearer.

During Mass, the crossbearer is the person appointed to carry the processional cross and stands at the head of the pack at the beginning or end of the service. When I asked him why, he explained that when he carries the cross everybody looks at him. People bow to him and he feels so popular! I realize we can do certain things for God with suspect motives. Carrying a “real” cross will not always be that popular and fantastic!

The Gospel few days back (Lk 9:7-9) spoke of Herod the Tetrarch who wanted to see Jesus out of curiosity. He must have been intrigued by the fame and popularity of Jesus. Surely, he heard about his miracles and was amazed by the authority of his teachings. But he was seeking for Jesus for wrong reasons. Aside from mere curiosity, people can come to God for other wrong reasons. Some because it’s the fad or fashion; like wearing a cross as a jewelry. Others because they feel popular as having a “selfie” with a celebrity. Some come to God to get a favor or a grace. And still others because it is fun and “cool.” But following Jesus goes beyond the crowd.

In reality, we have always the tendency to do things for wrong reasons. We can serve for  ulterior motives. It’s the impression people have toward our public servants in government. The cycle continues and the cynicism for a better country deteriorates. We can also love and get married for wrong reasons; then regret that one has followed his heart and one’s impulses too soon. We can work for wrong reasons such that at the end of the day, one feels empty for having slaved himself for the paycheck. We can even pray and worship not really for God’s sake but to please other people.

          The great challenge is to seek Jesus with faith and consciously do things out of love for God. More than expecting what we can get, Jesus will ask us what we can give. He will demand what we can surrender or what we can offer to Him. More than our time, the greatest offering we can do is to give our life to Him! More than our talent, the most significant things we can offer is our self-surrender; handing over our life to Jesus. To live for God and honor Him is a personal project worth our entire commitment.

          The example of martyrs like St. Lorenzo Ruiz and his companions are a beautiful reminder. He followed Jesus despite the inconvenience of being a “cross bearer.” Lorenzo joined the Japanese mission for wrong reasons. It was to escape from false accusation that he accompanied the Dominican priests. But the grace of God touched him. When the trying moment came, his reasons were purified. He became more than willing to suffer the torture. He was able to show that his love for Jesus was greater than his chance for survival. He offered his life and love for Jesus! However, few are really called to die for God. Majority of us are simply called to live for God in our daily lives in patience and extraordinary love.

          The Gospel today (Lk 16:19-31) describes two different characters, the unknown rich man and the poor Lazarus. Jesus’ parable warns us that a life of self-service will have its due consequences. Love binds us to be concerned and sensitive to the plight of our needy brothers and sisters. We are to discover God in them. Here is a thought from Pope Francis. Last August, the first-ever “Papal Selfie” appeared and went viral on social media. It was uploaded by one of the youngsters from the Diocese of Piacenza who met with the Pope. He told them: “You are bearers of hope. You, in fact, live in the present, but are looking at the future. You are the protagonists of the future, artisans of the future. Make the future with beauty, with goodness and truth. Have courage. Go forward. Make noise."        

 

(This article also appears in the Faith Section of Cebu Daily News – September 29, 2013)

For God's Kingdom

In today’s Gospel (Lk 16:1-13), Jesus tells the parable of a dishonest steward. The Master got a tip that this servant was squandering his wealth. So he was summoned to give an account.

Reading this story, I am reminded of a mestiza-chinese woman who is at the center of news these days. Obviously she is not Kim Chiu. Kim Chiu, though is much beautiful. She became famous for her beauty and her mass appeal. But this woman has become infamous because of her “enterprising ways” of squandering the tax payers’ money.

News has it that she started very poor. Her father got bankrupt and left his family with nothing. When she was a high school student, her mother had a sari-sari store in front of her school where she also sold banana cue. The family was so poor that at times they had no viand; she would ask neighbors for dried fish to have “ulam” for rice. At that time, she could not even afford a decent dress to wear.

But she had the talent of being very enterprising. She seemed to have a “Midas touch” and could practically make cash out of anything. She has this strong convincing power; she can induce people to buy and she was very persistent. For instance, she would bring a big bag full of candies and school supplies in school and sell them to her classmates and teachers during recess. This was how she paid her tuition, school expenses that made her way to graduate.

After high school, her enterprising ways also leveled up. She claimed she became a supplier of charcoal, chickens, spare parts of military tanks, aircraft and communication equipments. She became so rich that other said she place her money in their bath-tub of their home. She acquired properties, cars, houses here and abroad.

But lately, people discovered the true source of her income. She was using the discretionary fund of the government channeling them by putting up “ghost projects” though fake NGO’s and bogus private companies. Government officials were helping her in this enterprise. Then they would split the gains 50-50; giving “balato” to their employees and helpers.

Now, the Lord makes this question: why are the people of darkness more “enterprising” than the children of light? Why are those who build their “own kingdom” on earth more hard-working than those who build God’s Kingdom?

The answer is clear. It is more lucrative to build one’s own kingdom on earth. Its easy. The results are instant. One lives in comfort. You gain power and wealth. While building God’s Kingdom is difficult. The process is slow, tiring and oppressive. Its always an experience of “delay gratification.” Thus the kingdom of God is out of the picture.

But Jesus’ constant challenge is this: seek first the Kingdom of God!

Here is an inspiring true story of Bartolome Blanco. He is from Cordoba, Spain and died as a martyr during the Spanish Civil War. In 1936, the Spanish authorities arrested him because he was a Catholic Leader and Secretary of the Catholic Action in their place. At this time, Spain had a communist government and implemented religious persecution. Bartolome was executed on October 2, 1936 at 21 years old.

He did not protest when he was sentenced to death. When he was handcuffed, he kissed it to the surprise of the soldier who place it on him. He walked at the site of his execution barefooted “in order to be more conformed to Christ.” He refused to be shot from behind because he was to die by firing squad. He said “whoever dies for Christ should do so facing forward and standing straight.” He shouted as he was showered with bullets: “Viva Cristo Rey!” (Long live Christ the King!).

After his death, they discovered a letter he wrote to her girlfriend Maruja. Aside from expressing his love for her even at the point of death, she also exhorted her:

“Take on as your primary objective the salvation of your soul.”

Towards the end of the letter, he wrote: “Do not forget that I am looking at you from heaven.. let my memory remind you that there is a better life, and that attaining it should constitute our highest aspiration!”

Think about this in moment of trials, temptations and tepidity. This about this thought when you get tired of working for the Kingdom of God: “There is a better life! Attaining it should constitute our highest aspiration.”

Following Jesus

When I was in Grade 6, I joined the Boys’ Scouts in our school at the University of San Carlos. One of the activities organized back then was a camporee in Camp Marina. Among the nightly activities we had was a camp fire. We had songs and skits during the camp fire. One of the songs we were taught as a group of scouts to experience camaraderie was “I have decided to follow Jesus.” There were many other songs that were taught to us. But this one I remembered so well. But back then, boys as we were, the song was a mere recreational song.

Yet this song has a very serious theme. It’s a song on making a definite choice. It is actually a profession of faith. It has also a dramatic story behind it.

The song originated from India; in a place named “Assam.” In the 18^th century, this region was divided by hundreds of tribes. Most of them were “head hunters.” A man’s strength and ability was assessed by the number of heads he had collected!

Now missionaries from Wales and England arrived in this aggressive and hostile people. Naturally they found it difficult to evangelize these tribes. In fact, many of the missionaries were among the heads collected by the head hunters.

But one missionary succeeded in bring a man, his wife and two kids to Christ. He and family was baptized. Moreover, this man’s faith proved to be so contagious that many of his neighbors and villagers began to accept Christianity.

The village chief got so angry upon hearing this. He summoned the man before the entire village community. He demanded that he renounce his faith in public or face execution. But the man replied: “I have decided to  follow Jesus! No more turning back.

Enraged by his refusal, the chief had his two children executed by archers. But still the man said: “Though no one joins me, still I will follow. No turning back..”  Now with fury, the chief ordered his wife to be arrowed down. Now he asked the man for the last time: “I will give you one more opportunity to deny your faith and live.”

Yet the man said: “The world can be behind me, but the cross is still before me. No more turning back.” Thus he was arrowed down like the rest of his family.

But with their death, a miracle took place. This chief who had ordered their killing was moved by the faith of the man. He wondered why a man with his entire family would be willing to dies for a man who had lived more than a thousand years ago. “There must be something supernatural about Him.” Having made the decision, he went to the missionaries and declared: “I too want to belong to Jesus Christ.!”

Today’s Gospel taken from Lk 14:25-33 speaks about the radicality of following Jesus. “If anyone comes to me,” Jesus says “without hating his father, mother, wife, children, brothers and sisters cannot be my disciple.” Using hyperbolic or exaggerated language, Jesus wanted to emphasize the great detachment needed to be His disciple.

Pope Francis said: “Faith is not something decorative or for show. To have faith means to put Christ truly at the center of our lives.

There are 3 D’s we can learn from the Gospel:

1.     Discernment

We make a clear choice for Christ. We need to sit down and calculate the cost like building a tower or a house. We need to sit down and decide like a king at war. We need to make up our mind!

2.     Detachment

Pope Francis, in speaking to the youth during the World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil said: “Faith is a Copernican revolution, an operation that shifts concerns and priorities so that they revolve around Jesus and not the individual or false idols.”

3.     Dying to Self

Furthermore, the Pope said: “possessions, money and power can give a momentary illusion of being happy. But they end up possession us, making us want more. We are never satisfied. Instead with Christ as the center of your life, you will never be disappointed.”