HOLY MONDAY

“He will not cry out, nor shout, nor make his voice heard in the street.” – Isaiah 42:2

       A Korean family that lived in the Philippines for a couple of years had themselves baptized as Catholics. Asked by the priest why they wanted to convert to Catholicism, the wife said it was because they admired the Filipino family who were their neighbors. This family showed them little acts of kindness during their stay in the country, like bringing over some food to share, acknowledging their presence with a warm smile, getting to know them through casual conversations across their fences, and the friendly Filipino children inviting their kids over to play.

       The Korean family didn’t know what Catholicism was about, but those acts of kindness were enough to make them believe that the God their neighbors worshipped was a good God.

       We don’t have to be skilled preachers of the Word to be called good servants of God. We need not “cry out, nor shout, nor make [our voices] heard in the street.” We preach simply by the way we live. Of this we have long been told, and it’s good to be reminded again and again. Nova Arias-Sevilla (nova.svp@gmail.com)

Reflection: “Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God’s kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.” (Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta)

Blessed Peter Gonzalez, pray for us.

The Servant Songs of Isaiah, of which today’s First Reading is one, are worth a few moments of reflection as they can give us insight into the nature of Jesus’ passion and death. There is nothing more important to us as Christians than the means by which we were redeemed. This is why we need to understand it as well as we can. Let us resolve to open our hearts in a deeper way this Holy Week in order to strengthen our understanding and faith in what Jesus has done for us.

1 Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put my Spirit; he shall bring forth justice to the nations, 2 not crying out, not shouting, not making his voice heard in the street. 3 A bruised reed he shall not break, and a smoldering wick he shall not quench, 4 until he establishes justice on the earth; the coastlands will wait for his teaching. 5 Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spreads out the earth with its crops, who gives breath to its people and spirit to those who walk on it. 6 I, the Lord, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, 7 to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness.

R: The Lord is my light and my salvation.

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) 2 When evildoers come at me to devour my flesh, my foes and my enemies themselves stumble and fall. (R) 3 Though an army encamp against me, my heart will not fear; though war be waged upon me, even then will I trust. (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)

There are times to celebrate and honor people; there are times to get down and do the work that faith and love demand of us. Sometimes we might think that resources can be better used than in extravagant celebrations of our faith. However, Jesus makes it very clear that there are times when we should celebrate His love with others and we should not be ashamed to do that.

Hail to you, our King; you alone are compassionate with our faults.

1 Six days before Passover Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 They gave a dinner for him there, and Martha served, while Lazarus was one of those reclining at table with him. 3 Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair; the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 4 Then Judas the Iscariot, one of his disciples, and the one who would betray him, said, 5 “Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days’ wages and given to the poor?” 6 He said this not because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief and held the money bag and used to steal the contributions. 7 So Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial. 8 You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.” 9 The large crowd of the Jews found out that he was there and came, not only because of Jesus, but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10 And the chief priests plotted to kill Lazarus too, 11 because many of the Jews were turning away and believing in Jesus because of him.

think:  Jesus makes it very clear that there are times when we should celebrate His love with others and we should not be ashamed to do that.

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Leviticus 10-12

TO BE MISUNDERSTOOD

In general, we say Jesus suffered and was condemned to death by His contemporaries because they misunderstood Him. They thought He was out to destroy what Moses and the prophets labored on to inculcate in the hearts and minds of the covenanted people of Israel. Of course, in a way, Jesus was also misunderstood because of personal and selfish reasons in some of those who were around Him. Our Gospel today, for example, proclaims that the raising up of Lazarus — an event that could have made many believe and follow Jesus — was one immediate reason for the Jewish authorities to grow hostile against Jesus.

       Misunderstanding never stops. Besides Jesus, Mary of Bethany, the younger sister of Lazarus and Martha, was also misunderstood. Though soft-spoken and silent, Mary’s simple ways were not easily taken in a positive light. Earlier (cf Luke 10:38-42), Mary’s brand of being hospitable to Jesus, by giving Him attention and time as she sat at His feet, was taken by the assertive Martha as a kind of sloth. Now, Mary’s act of anointing Jesus’ feet with fragrant oil is misunderstood by Judas Iscariot as a waste.

       We, who read about Mary’s anointing of Jesus at Bethany, also misunderstand her. This story has made many to say that Mary of Bethany was a penitent, adulterous woman — all because we create impressions, and interchange details with other similar Gospel materials (cf Mark 14:3-9; Matthew 26:6-13; Luke 7:36-38). Fr. Domie Guzman, SSP

REFLECTION QUESTIONS: In your own life, what complications arise from your being impressionable? What practical resolution can you make in this regard — as an act of true Lenten repentance?

Lord, forgive me for the times I misunderstood people because of my being impressionable.