a veteran of letting go of the things we love: 10th week Friday 2013

What does Jesus mean when he said pluck out your eyes if that causes you to sin, or cut off you right hand if it leads you to sin?  What does these mean?  Since I did some research on the life of St. Anthony who feast we celebrated yesterday, I found out that a boy at one point kicked his mother in a fit of anger and in a fit or remorse went to St. Anthony to confess his sin.  St. Anthony said, if your legs causes you to sin cut it off.  So the boy went home and cut his legs.  When St. Anthony came to know about this he went to the boy’s house, took the boy’s leg and attached it back.  And the saint lectured the boy and told him not to do what the Lord said literally.

So if it is not literal what is it then?  This passage means that when you follow the Lord you have to learn to cut off, so to say, that which can become an obstacle or a hindrance to your following of the Lord.  When you follow the Lord you have to be ready to leave behind that which may hinder you from following him entirely.  If you desire to seek the Lord with all your heart, then you seek him with your whole heart and not with one foot there and another foot here.  Bug-osa.  Indi mag-alang-alang.  That is the reason why when you enter the seminary the first devotion that is offered to you is the devotion to the sacred heart of Jesus.  Why.  Because you ought to develop a manly heart, lalaki, kag indi alang-alang nga tagipusuon, indi pigaw.

Of course when you are separated to you family you will always feel pain.  Of course if you are detached from the people you loved you will experience pain, and yes some of us cry, I think many of us cried but they won’t tell you so.  That is not the point of Jesus.  We all feel pain.  But the point is, kon kada sakit dalagan puli, kon kada sakit tawag, kon kada sakit pudag-pudag, pigaw.  Kon nagasakit tubanga.  kon nagasakit batuna.  Kon nagasakit intiendiha nga bahin ini sang akon pagtubo, bahin ini sang akon pagsunod kay Kristo.  Kay kon indi mo na pag-atubangon, indi mo na pagbatunon, indi mo na paghakson you will never grow.  Nagadaku lang buy-on mo pero tagipusuon mo cute.  Go to Jesus, follow Jesus, imitate Jesus because he has not just a sacred heart, but precisely it is sacred because first and foremost it is a manly heart – it is brave and courageous.  This is the meaning of your Sacred Heart Scapulars.  Subong balay pa lang bayaan mo.  Subong playmates pa lang ginbayaan mo.  You reach my age and you will become a veteran of so many things you really love but have to let go for the sake of Jesus, for the sake of the church.  This is the life of the priest.  The letting go for the sake of Jesus begins now with a very small step – leaving home for the seminary – very small step.  Painful, yes.  Padayon, puede.