October 11, 2008 (Saturday)

DIDACHE


PROVE HIM RIGHT

“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” – Luke 11:28

We’ve all heard God’s Word countless of times. But why do only a few of us follow what we hear? I have my guesses.

Some have what I call the AKNY Syndrome, short for “Alam Ko Na ‘Yan.” When they hear God’s Word, they mumble to themselves, “I’ve heard that before.” When you believe that you already know everything, you leave yourself no room to learn.

Another reason why some of us do not seem to act on the Word is because we choose what to read. When we come across God’s promises, we get our neon highlighters, underline the verses, read them again and again and claim them to be ours. But when we read His commands, we instantly turn to the next page and forget about them. Being choosy is surely not a sign of being transformed by God’s Word.

A few of us hear the message of God clearly but wait for the “convenient” moment to apply it. We opt for convenience rather than obedience.

God gives His Word to you because He knows you can carry them out.
My suggestion? Prove Him right. Arun Gogna

REFLECTION:
“It ain’t those parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bothers me, it is the parts that I do.” (Mark Twain)

May Your Word, O Lord, inspire me, and disturb me when necessary.

COMPANION

1st READING

The law is our guardian to the extent that it teaches us what it means to act according to our human nature. The Law guides us in our humanity so that we can avoid the worst excesses of sin. It cannot save us from sin nor can it repair the damage done by sin. However, it is good that it is a step in the right direction, and if used well, leads us towards faith in Christ.

Galatians 3:22-29
22 Brothers and sisters: Scripture confined all things under the power of sin, that through faith in Jesus Christ the promise might be given to those who believe. 23 Before faith came, we were held in custody under law, confined for the faith that was to be revealed. 24 Consequently, the law was our disciplinarian for Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a disciplinarian. 26 For through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendant, heirs according to the promise.

P S A L M

Psalm 105: 2-3, 4-5, 6-7
R: The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
2 Sing to him, sing his praise, proclaim all his wondrous deeds. 3 Glory in his holy name; rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD! (R) 4 Look to the LORD in his strength; seek to serve him constantly. 5 Recall the wondrous deeds that he has wrought, his portents, and the judgments he has uttered. (R) 6 You descendants of Abraham, his servants, sons of Jacob, his chosen ones! 7 He, the LORD, is our God; throughout the earth his judgments prevail. (R)

G O S P E L

Why can’t Jesus speak plainly and simply? Why all these metaphors and images in His preaching? I think Jesus wants to make us reflect more deeply on what He has to say to us. If everything He taught us was plain and simple, there is a danger we would take it for granted very easily. If we have to think about it a bit and reflect upon it a lot, it is more likely to sink deeper into our hearts and consciousness. If I am right in this, it shows us that Jesus is one smart guy!


Luke 11: 27-28
27 While he was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” 28 He replied, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

my reflections
think: Jesus wants to make us reflect more deeply on what He has to say to us.
_________________________________________________________

God’s special verse/thought for me today________________
_________________________________________________________

T O D A Y ’ S BLESSING LIST
Thank You Lord for: ____________________________________
_______________________________________________________

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Sirach 13-16

SABBATH

ALL OF US ARE HEIRS OF GOD

It is true — through faith in Jesus Christ we are all invited to share in the inheritance of the children of God, namely salvation, won for us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. When Paul says that there is no longer slave or free, male or female, Jew or Greek, what he is saying is that these distinctions are irrelevant when it comes to determining whether or not one is a child of God and heir to the promise of eternal life. Accepting the Gospel and becoming a Christian is not dependent upon one’s gender, race or status in life. The call is open to all.

The distinction to be made here is that between those who are and are not baptized. In Baptism, we become children of God and enter into a whole new relationship with God in such a way that it is unrepeatable. Once we are baptized, we cannot be “re-baptized.” The Catholic Church recognizes the baptism of other Christian denominations, provided the intention is to baptize the person in terms of the scriptural understanding of the sacrament. Thus, the Church does not “re-baptize’ Christian converts to Catholicism. The baptism must also be Trinitarian, that is, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

All people enter into baptism in faith, and then stand as equals before the Father as His children. This means that we should always work towards breaking down any barriers between members of our faith so that our unity and witness of faith will truly reflect the unity and oneness of the life of the Trinity into which we are baptized. When a person is baptized as a child, the parents and godparents make a serious promise to form and rear the child in the ways of the Catholic faith. Baptism is not merely a ritual or photo opportunity, or an excuse to have a family get-together. It is a celebration of our faith where a child is named for God and the community commits itself to be a living witness of faith for the child so that he/she will grow up knowing what it means to be a Christian. Fr. Steve Tynan

Reflection Question:
How faithful am I to living out the true meaning of my baptism? Is my life a good witness of the Christian life to those around me?

Holy Spirit, grant me the grace and strength to follow Your call daily and to always witness that truth to others.

St. Kenneth, monk, pray for us.