nadulman or not choosing
In reading the gospel one gets to wonder why Jesus would ask a man disabled and sick for 38 years whether he wants to get well. After 38 years in your sickbed, who would not want to be healed? But the question is important. It is important because Jesus wanted the man to choose, to choose to be healed or to choose not to be healed.
This is a very important issue during this season of lent for this is the mark whether the person has entered the world of values. We enter the world of values when we are already choosing, when we use our power to choose, when we discern and make a choice. When you are hungry and you eat something, you are merely acting on your hunger. You are not making a choice. If you are hungry and you choose not to eat, now you are choosing. If you are angry and you hit your enemy with a clenched fist, you are acting on your anger, you are not making a choice. But if you are angry wanting so much to hit the other person, but then you decide to control yourself, you decide to forgive the offender, then you are now making a choice. Kon pasugtan lang naton ang luyag naton we can never enter into the world of values, into the world of virtues because we are merely following desires, we are merely following our natural inclinations, and our wants even. Making the choice is important. We could not remain merely following every dictate of our hunger, every dictate of our desires, every dictate of our emotions. We have to learn to make choices.
This I believe is the point of Jesus. The image of the paralytic man is exactly like this. When we follow only the impulse of our anger and impatience then we are paralyzed in the sense that we could not move and act against our temperament. We often say nadulman sang iya kaakig, naimpeto. The expressions show that there is no choice made. Nagpadala lang gid sa iya kaugot. In a sense we are paralyzed by our anger. But remember you can choose to be patient, you can choose to control your rage. You can even choose to forgive.
When we merely follow our impulse to accumulate and accumulate then we are paralyzed by this need. We buy and buy and buy even the things that we don’t really need. We follow our natural inclinations, our natural tendencies to possess. Greed is a natural inclination. When we are greedy we do not choose. We simply succumb to this tendency in us thus paralyzing us. But remember you can choose to be simple, you can choose to possess only the essentials. You can choose to be generous and to share what you have.
When we merely follow our impulse to be important and to be powerful or well known we are in a way also paralyzed by this need. We follow our natural inclination for self-importance, we follow our natural inclination to be honoured, affirmed and flattered. It is natural tendency and no choice is involved. But remember you can choose to be humble, you can choose to be simple lang gid nga tawo.
TO choose is very important. Indi lang magpadala, indi lang magpaanod, indi ka lang magsiling, ti tawo man lang ako, ukon natural man lang na siguro. No, we are capable of greater things, we are capable if we choose to become what God wants us to be.
This season of lent it is hammered to us day in day out, to enter the realm of virtues, to enter the realm of values we need to choose.
This is a very important issue during this season of lent for this is the mark whether the person has entered the world of values. We enter the world of values when we are already choosing, when we use our power to choose, when we discern and make a choice. When you are hungry and you eat something, you are merely acting on your hunger. You are not making a choice. If you are hungry and you choose not to eat, now you are choosing. If you are angry and you hit your enemy with a clenched fist, you are acting on your anger, you are not making a choice. But if you are angry wanting so much to hit the other person, but then you decide to control yourself, you decide to forgive the offender, then you are now making a choice. Kon pasugtan lang naton ang luyag naton we can never enter into the world of values, into the world of virtues because we are merely following desires, we are merely following our natural inclinations, and our wants even. Making the choice is important. We could not remain merely following every dictate of our hunger, every dictate of our desires, every dictate of our emotions. We have to learn to make choices.
This I believe is the point of Jesus. The image of the paralytic man is exactly like this. When we follow only the impulse of our anger and impatience then we are paralyzed in the sense that we could not move and act against our temperament. We often say nadulman sang iya kaakig, naimpeto. The expressions show that there is no choice made. Nagpadala lang gid sa iya kaugot. In a sense we are paralyzed by our anger. But remember you can choose to be patient, you can choose to control your rage. You can even choose to forgive.
When we merely follow our impulse to accumulate and accumulate then we are paralyzed by this need. We buy and buy and buy even the things that we don’t really need. We follow our natural inclinations, our natural tendencies to possess. Greed is a natural inclination. When we are greedy we do not choose. We simply succumb to this tendency in us thus paralyzing us. But remember you can choose to be simple, you can choose to possess only the essentials. You can choose to be generous and to share what you have.
When we merely follow our impulse to be important and to be powerful or well known we are in a way also paralyzed by this need. We follow our natural inclination for self-importance, we follow our natural inclination to be honoured, affirmed and flattered. It is natural tendency and no choice is involved. But remember you can choose to be humble, you can choose to be simple lang gid nga tawo.
TO choose is very important. Indi lang magpadala, indi lang magpaanod, indi ka lang magsiling, ti tawo man lang ako, ukon natural man lang na siguro. No, we are capable of greater things, we are capable if we choose to become what God wants us to be.
This season of lent it is hammered to us day in day out, to enter the realm of virtues, to enter the realm of values we need to choose.
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