“And should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared in this way, blessed are those servants.” – Luke 12:38

       When my father passed away in October 2012, it happened in the most peaceful way possible. He took one last breath and silently went back to the Lord. I remember he told me when I was young that if a man dies peacefully, it meant he was already at peace with God. I

can’t imagine Dad’s passing being more evident of such a truth.

       When he met the Lord in 1988, his life changed completely. He started playing praise music in the house and in the car (which I initially found really weird!) and he prayed every single day. He got up early in the morning to read the Bible and have his quiet time with God. He served the Lord with all his might. And he led us to do the same.

       And every time he would get sick or have heavy chest pains, he would say to all of us so nonchalantly, “It’s OK, I can die anytime.” That really irritated me. I felt like he was teasing us but it wasn’t funny to me at all. He kept saying this even until the last few weeks of his life. But it was only in those times, when I saw him so resigned to his fate, that I really understood where he was coming from. He wasn’t afraid of death. He was totally at peace with God. He was ready.

Reflection: Are you waiting for something drastic to happen before you completely surrender your life to God?

St. Hilarion, pray for us.

The coming of Christ has changed the whole state of human existence. Before His incarnation, we were destined to a level of frustration in our relationship with God — in other words, we could never get close to Him because sin remained an immovable obstacle to this goal. But Christ, through His passion, death and resurrection, has changed all that. We have been reunited with God through His sacrifice — we are free to choose union with God again.

12 Brothers and sisters: You were at that time without Christ, alienated from the community of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have become near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he is our peace, he made both one and broke down the dividing wall of enmity, through his Flesh, 15 abolishing the law with its commandments and legal claims, that he might create in himself one new person in place of the two, thus establishing peace, 16 and might reconcile both with God, in one Body, through the cross, putting that enmity to death by it. 17 He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near, 18 for through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God, 20 built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone. 21 Through him the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord; 22 in him you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

R: The Lord speaks of peace to his people.

8 [9] I will hear what God proclaims; the Lord — for he proclaims peace. 9 [10] Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him, glory dwelling in our land. (R) 10 [11] Kindness and truth shall meet; justice and peace shall kiss. 11 [12] Truth shall spring out of the earth, and justice shall look down from heaven. (R) 12 [13] The Lord himself will give his benefits; our land shall yield its increase. 13 [14] Justice shall walk before him, and salvation, along the way of his steps. (R)

Are you ready for Jesus’ return? Are you ready to be welcomed into the gift of eternal life? If not, then you had better pray that Jesus does not come again in the next few minutes. Here we are talking about being ready to enter the Kingdom of God. While we are on earth, we need to undergo more purification. Do we open our hearts to the purifying work of the Holy Spirit or do we keep ourselves closed to this painful process?

Be vigilant at all times and pray that you may have the strength to stand before the Son of Man.

35 Jesus said to his disciples: “Gird your loins and light your lamps 36 and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. 37 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them. 38 And should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared in this way, blessed are those servants.”

think:  We have been reunited with God through Jesus’ sacrifice — we are free to choose union with God again.

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Sirach 36-40

NO LONGER STRANGERS AND SOJOURNERS

We Filipinos are the new denizens of the world. Almost all of us have a relative or an acquaintance who works someplace else in this shrinking world. At least vicariously, we have an experience or two about being given temporary welcome to a place other than our own home.

       We know how it feels. Being a stranger in the midst of people who look at you precisely as one, and who make no secrets about their discomfort at having you around, is not a pleasant prospect. We feel different and not fully inserted into the culture. At times, we feel unwelcome, rightly or wrongly.

       But most of us also have an experience of someone who came to our rescue and made us feel at home. They sat by us, walked us through as we tried to get our bearings in a seemingly hostile and strange world, and perhaps even gave us the means to start life anew in a place where we feel exactly like what St. Paul says: “alienated.”

       Truth to tell, we were once alienated from the community of Israel, and strangers to the covenant of promise. Owing to our sins, both personal and social, we literally estranged ourselves from God, ourselves, others and even from the natural world. How often do we feel powerless before the onslaught of nature that seems to rebel against the abuses humankind has wrought on it for so long? How often do we feel left out when, due to our own sins, we feel unworthy to belong and to worship in spirit and truth?

       But there is good news for us strangers today. That good news is not a concept but a concrete person in flesh and blood. In fact, He shed His blood literally for you and me. Among other things, at least that was so powerfully depicted in the great movie, The Passion of the Christ.

       Christian faith and life, however, is not just a movie. On account of the Blood of Christ, we are strangers and sojourners no more. We belong to Him. Fr. Chito Dimaranan, SDB

REFLECTION QUESTION: How welcoming are you to strangers?

Thank You, Lord, for making me feel that I belong even if I don’t feel worthy at times to be called Your child.