REUNITED

Babita’s biggest nightmare came true: her five-year-old daughter, Suhani, was missing.

       She left her alone at home because she went to visit a nearby hospital while her husband, a vegetable vendor, had already gone to the market early that morning. Together with her husband, they looked for Suhani but she was nowhere to be found. Later, they went to the police station to report the missing child. The police informed them that their child was in the safe custody of Childline. A good Samaritan noticed their frightened-looking daughter around 12 noon. He took her in his custody before he handed her over to the police. After seven agonizing hours of frantic searching, the child was reunited with her parents.

       Just like the parents of Suhani, God searches for those who are lost. And He never stops until He finds them and brings them back to His fold. Each person is valuable to the Lord. No matter how far deep you are in your sins, He continues to love, search and woo you. And when He finally finds you, He rejoices together with His angels and saints. Judith Concepcion (svp_jmc@yahoo.com)

Reflection: Has someone lost his or her way because of your own doing? What should you do to bring that person back to the right path?

The things we do reflect to others what we believe. This is why we need to take care that we do not scandalize others by our actions. It is imperative that we realize the power of our example to children. If adults are doing something, it lends credence to the idea that it is worth doing even when it is something like smoking or getting drunk or swearing. Children’s minds are very open to new experiences.

7 Brothers and sisters: None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself. 8 For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For this is why Christ died and came to life, that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living. 10 Why then do you judge your brother or sister? Or you, why do you look down on your brother or sister? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written: “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bend before me, and every tongue shall give praise to God.” 12 So then each of us shall give an account of himself to God.

R: I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear? The Lord is my life’s refuge; of whom should I be afraid? (R) 4 One thing I ask of the Lord; this I seek: To dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, that I may gaze on the loveliness of the Lord and contemplate his temple. (R) 13 I believe that I shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living. 14 Wait for the Lord with courage; be stouthearted, and wait for the Lord. (R)

When we are reunited with the object of love we have previously lost, we rejoice. We all know the experience of finding something or someone who was lost. This is how the heart of God reacts when we repent of our sins and return to the sheepfold. He rejoices as we see in the next parable of the Prodigal Son. God does not desire to punish us; He simply wants us to let Him love us.

Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest, says the Lord.

1 The tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, 2 but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” 3 So Jesus addressed this parable to them. 4 “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? 5 And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy 6 and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance. 8 Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she does find it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’ 10 In just the same way, I tell you, there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

think:  The things we do reflect to others what we believe.

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Psalm 21-25

WE ARE THE LORD’S

A very clear statement regarding ourselves is what we have in today’s First Reading from St. Paul, in his letter to the Romans: “Both in life and in death we are the Lord’s.” So is it any wonder that in the corresponding Gospel for today, the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, the shepherd and the woman considered their loss as unbearable and they didn’t stop until they recovered what they were looking for?

       Incidentally, it often happens to us as well, that we lose things (like our cell phone, for example). We misplace them, forget them or leave them behind somewhere. In an effort to recover them, we have recourse to “lost and found” announcements or ask the intercession of St. Anthony of Padua. But even with these, there is no foolproof guarantee that we will find or revover the lost items. At the root of such an unpleasant experience is the identity and belongingness of the thing. When threatened by theft or loss, its identity is endangered.

       That is why, for us, our fundamental identity as creatures of God and children of the Father is something we should always keep in mind. Again, “both in life and in death we are the Lord’s.” Because of this, we cannot pass judgment on others just because they happen to stray away or engage in attitudes and behaviors which seem inconsistent with their fundamental identity.

       The early Christians of St. Paul’s time were in fact quarreling over clean and unclean foods (as prescriptions to identify themselves). On the other hand, the Pharisees and the scribes of the Gospel were disdaining the tax collectors and sinners who were associating with Jesus. Issues like these undermine our universal Christian identity and belongingness to God. He, more than anybody else, owns us.

       Thank God that should we be lost, it is He himself who will take pains  to search for us and bring us back where we belong. Indeed, “we are the Lord’s.” Fr. Martin Macasaet, SDB

REFLECTION QUESTIONS: Have you experienced being lost? How did it feel to finally find your way? That is also how God feels when He loses us and then finds us back again.

Lord Jesus, thank You for always looking out for me. May I never stray from Your embrace again.