“They were trashtalking me!” insisted a Grade 4 student who claims she was bullied by two older girls. After a thorough and swift investigation, it turned out that the older girls were not talking about her but using bad language about a totally different situation.

The school we manage gives serious attention to Peace Education through subject integration, round-table discussions (“Bilog ang Mesa”), and anti-bullying or Peace Buddy campaigns. Because we don’t believe in punitive sanctions but in restorative practices, all three students were required to do community service after classes. At first, they resented each other. But after a week, they became fast friends.

“Peace is not just the absence of war, or avoidance of conflict, or just quietness or silence. Peace is care and value for every human being, mutual respect regardless of color or creed, gender, or age. Peace is the joy and freedom to be the best of who you are. . . . Peace is faith, hope, and love. Peace is God with us. . . . We are Children of Peace. We are Children of God,” says our Peace Declaration and Statement.  “No God. No peace. Know God. Know peace.” 

Alvin Barcelona (apb_ayo@yahoo.com) 

reflect

Is peace a top value for you? Have you found your peace? Have you found God’s peace in you?

“Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.” In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

St. William of York, pray for us.

God miraculously provides for Elijah during the drought, sending a raven to bring him food. Too often, we waste time and energy worrying about what we think we need, when instead, we could devote ourselves to the work of the Gospel—helping others encounter and grow in faith in Christ. Let us focus on the concerns within our power to influence and change. But for those beyond our control, worrying is futile; we must entrust them to God.

¹ Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab: “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, during these years there shall be no dew or rain except at my word.” ² The Lord then said to Elijah: ³ “Leave here, go east and hide in the Wadi Cherith, east of the Jordan. ⁴ You shall drink of the stream, and I have commanded ravens to feed you there.” ⁵ So he left and did as the Lord had commanded. He went and remained by the Wadi Cherith, east of the Jordan. ⁶ Ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the stream.  

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 121:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

R: Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

¹ I lift up my eyes toward the mountains; whence shall help come to me? ² My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. (R) ³ May he not suffer your foot to slip; may he slumber not who guards you: ⁴ Indeed he neither slumbers nor sleeps, the guardian of Israel. (R) ⁵ The Lord is your guardian; the Lord is your shade; he is beside you at your right hand. ⁶ The sun shall not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. (R) ⁷ The Lord will guard you from all evil; he will guard your life. ⁸ The Lord will guard your coming and your going, both now and forever. (R)  

Gospel | Matthew 5:1-12

One way to improve our relationships is by meditating on the Beatitudes and embodying them more fully in our daily lives. Jesus perfectly epitomizes what He teaches, but still many do not understand Him. Let us do our best to imitate Jesus and leave the rest to the work of His grace.

Gospel Acclamation

Rejoice and be glad; for your reward will be great in heaven.

¹ When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. ² He began to teach them, saying: ³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵ Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land. ⁶ Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. ⁷ Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. ⁸ Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God. ⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰ Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. ¹¹ Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Read the Bible in one year! Read 1 KING  12 - 14 today.

Is it only me, or is it really so? Perfumes have made a comeback at malls. Everywhere you go, you see young people doling out samples or showing cute bottles of all imaginable scent containers. There is definitely a growing demand for aromatic concoctions that are a delight to the olfactory nerves. But for the longest time now, I have shunned all types of perfumes as my body reacts to them. I get violent skin allergy reactions. 

But a different type of allergies, understood as sicknesses, fills the world. Today’s world is sick with pride (read: wars of conquest, hybrid warfare, cultural or economic conquests, economic imperialism, technological divides, etc.), with the insatiable desire for riches and domination. Of late, we see the sudden rise of strongmen leaders, tyrants, dictators, and people. This is the undeniable background and context to today’s good news—the Beatitudes. 

Today’s world needs healing. But the remedy is not to stack up on more of what the world already has a surfeit of. The world does not need more nuclear weapons. We need less tyrants. The world actually needs less of pride, anger, power, and might.

The best perfumes are those that are subtle, not immediately felt—something that does not do violence to the olfactory nerves, but which does the work imperceptibly, subtly, slowly, but surely. It is ever-present but seems to be nowhere. It does its job quietly, releasing a pleasant aroma that extends through space and time.

This is what every Christian ought to be and do—give off the aroma of Christ. You and I who claim to be Christians must give off the perfume of the Gospel.You get the drift. We must reek not of pride, power, and prestige, but we are called to give off an aroma of peace, meekness, joy, and humility. 

Fr. Chito Dimaranan, SDB 

reflection questions

What aroma do you think you give off? Does it reflect your being a Christian?

Lord God, help me to live according to Your values, not the world’s. Amen.

Today, I pray for: _______________________________