visible rhetoric

We continue to reflect on the four hinges of moral life or the four cardinal virtues.  Last week we reflected on the necessity of prudence, the auriga virtutum , the charioteer of the virtues because  it concerns itself with doing the right thing, at the right time and in the correct manner.  The second cardinal virtue which we will look into is the virtue of Fortitude.  Many times we translate this virtue as courage but it is different from the courage we know today.  Today we understand courage as, kon pala-away, kay man maisog; kon lumumpat sa bungee jump, kay man maisog; kon nagpatunga sa dagat kag nalumos, kay man maisog; kaskasero sa dalan, gani maisog nga driver .  No, fortitude and real courage is different.  This virtue allows us to overcome fear and to remain steady in our will and resolve in the face of obstacles - yes, but it is always reasoned, it is always reasonable.  The person exercising fortitude does not seek danger for ...

Holy Thursday As we begin our celebration of the greatest of all feasts allow me first to remind you that we are celebrating an anniversary.  This is not a simple commemoration but an anniversary.  We can commemorate something anytime of the year – we can commemorate the death of a loved one anytime of the year or a wedding anytime we like.  But to celebrate it as an anniversary we have to more or less approximate it to the exact day and time it happened.  It may not be very precise but it has to come approximately within the time it happened.  What are these anniversaries which we are celebrating beginning today?

Today we look into the first of the Cardinal Virtues, the virtue of prudence.   In Christian art it is represented by a woman holding a mirror because a mirror represents truth and self-reflection.   Sometimes prudence is depicted by a snake, because the snake is the symbol of wisdom.   What is prudence?   Prudence is called the auriga virtutum – the charioteer of the virtues.   It is called the charioteer because the cardinal virtue of prudence concerns itself with the action to be taken in a particular circumstance and how that particular action is to be carried out in that particular circumstance.   Simply said it is doing the right thing, at the right time and in the correct manner – that is prudence.   It concerns itself with the what, when, where and how of virtue. Ask yourself the following – what is the good action – to visit the sick; when are you going to visit the sick, surely not during office hours when you are expected to do your d...

Jesus said to Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.  Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord.  I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.” It is in situations like this, and I am sure that there are many situations in our lives similar to this, when the Lord would propose something and ask the same question he asked Martha, do you believe this?

As we approach the Holy Week of the Passion of the Lord, the plot in our gospels, so to say, thickens.  The controversies are no longer just murmured at the background or at the sidelines.  Now they are expressed openly inviting further hostility between Jesus and the Pharisees.  Today another controversy cropped up and the Lord is correct when he said that the Jews opposed to him could no longer follow – where I am going you cannot come, you cannot follow.  And where is he going?  Jesus says that he is going to be lifted up, referring to his passion, referring to his suffering and cross and, he added, only there will people realize that he is the I Am, only there on the cross will people realize that he is indeed God.  Kon nagsiling lang sia kuntani, I am going to be lifted up on the cross and die like a criminal, the Jews can very well understand that.  Siguro masiling sila, OK go ahead, we don’t like you anyway, you are a criminal to our rel...

Today, in our series of reflection on virtues, let us take a look at the so called cardinal virtues.   The siete virtudes in our processions and the four women in Church art would often remind us of these virtues.   One can see this in the sanctuary of the Jaro cathedral or in the procession of the siete birtudes sa reyna Elena ukon sa flores de mayo.   A woman holding a pillar reminds us of the virtue of fortitude.   A woman holding a scale or balance reminds us of the virtue of justice.   A woman holding a pitcher reminds us of the virtue of temperance.   And a woman holding a mirror reminds us of the virtue of prudence.   These are the four cardinal virtues as listed in thebible, in the book of Wisdom.   The word cardinal comes from the Latin word cardo meaning the hinge, ang besagra on which all the other virtues pivot and are attached.   Ining apat ka mga birtud daw mga besagra kon sa diin na-angot kag nagalibot ang puertahan. ...

When Jesus straightened up there was no one left except just the two of them, the adulterous woman and Jesus.  St. Augustine commenting on this passage said, only two are left standing misera et misericordia – duha na lang ang nabilin nga nagatindog, ang makaluluoy kag ang maluloy-on , the miserable and the merciful, misery and mercy. This passage has a curious history because it cannot be found in many ancient bibles, and if it is found, it is found elsewhere, like in another gospel or in another chapter.  It is said that there were attempts to remove the passage and when people wanted to put it back again, they do not know where to place it?  So why would people want this removed?  Because there are some who think that the gospel passage goes easy with sinners, and that the gospel passage is soft on justice.  Basi magdumdum ang iban nga pirme lang excuse, pirme lang patawad, pirme ok ok lang.

It is very difficult to understand who Jesus is when he does not live up to our expectations.   It is difficult to understand who God is when he reveals himself contrary to what we think he should be.   It is difficult to follow God and accept his will when these are not according to what we want, when these are not according to what we desire. The Pharisees had a hard time believing and coming to terms with the person of Jesus because they are already close to their idea of who the messiah is and what he should do.   They are no longer open to other probabilities about his person, they were afraid to venture to the other possibilities of the divine will.   Even the prophet Jeremiah in our first reading grappled with his understanding of what God wanted from him.   He became confused for a while.   But in the end he learned to open himself, he allowed himself to be led meekly like a lamb rather than resist.

Our first reading speaks of that time when there will always be rejoicing and happiness in whatever God does.  It speaks of the new heavens and the new earth, of a time when there will be no more weeping and no sound of crying can be heard.  There shall be no more untimely death, no more unexpected death.  This is difficult to believe especially when we are in the presence of death itself.  This is difficult to preach especially when are still in grief. Our gospel today however, pushes us to go the extra mile in believing.  Jesus healed the official’s daughter from a distance.  Sang nangayo ang tatay nga ayuhon ang iya bata, ang Ginoo wala nagkadto sa balay sadtong opisyal, sa baylo ginsingganan lang niya sia “Lakat ka.”  Kag dugang diri nagsiling ang ebanghelyo nga ang tatay nagtuo sa pulong ni Jesus kag naglakat.  Iya ginsaligan ang ginhambal ni Jesus. He did not give immediate evidence to the miracle he was performing.  He did no...

The word lent comes from German word lenz which literally means spring.   The root from which the word lenz is derived means long, malaba .   This is because in spring the days become longer.   Have you noticed that – the days are becoming longer.   K ag kon ma-notice pa gid ninyo, as the days become longer in the season of lent the gospel is also becoming longer and longer until we reach the longest in Palm Sunday and also in Good Friday.   Our gospel today is supposedly very long because it is a story full of details.   But I know you are busy people so I just got an excerpt which is the first part of the gospel.   In this first encounter the disciples were asking Jesus, What is the cause of this man’s blindness, was it his own personal sin or was it the sins of his parents?

We are using the Saturday Gospel in this mass and this is still a mass on Saturday because I still want you to go to mass tomorrow in your own parish church.  There is no Sunday mass here.  Our gospel today tells about the well-known gospel about the Pharisee and the Publican and how they prayed before God in the temple.  The Pharisee went to the Lord to brag about himself and what he has done for the Lord.  The Publican however went before God, and without even lifting his eyes acknowledge his sinfulness and humbly asked for forgiveness.  The publican, the sinner, Jesus said, went home justified, for everyone who humbles himself will be exalted and everyone who exalts himself will be humbled.

The answer of Jesus to the question what is the greatest commandment is a phrase every Jew is familiar with from the time he or she began to speak as a child.   It is memorized and repeated constantly throughout the day, in the synagogues, in coming in and out of the house, at the start of meetings and prayers, in the same way we do with the sign of the cross.   In fact it is the first words uttered on waking up from sleep and the last words uttered before sleeping.   It is called the shema - shema Israel the beginning of the phrase which says “Hear O Israel the Lord is God, the Lord alone, therefore you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.”

Death is like a thief in the night not just because it is sudden and unexpected but also because it robs us of the things we value, of things so precious to us.  Death is like a thief not just because it comes as a surprise but especially because it gives one feelings of regret and should have – I should have stayed longer, I should have closed the window.  Death is like a thief, we do not know the day or the hours and we heard this all our lives but we always end up saying, I did not see it coming.  Death is like a thief - the comparison is just so appropriate, isn’t it?

Charity, the third and the greatest of the theological virtues is a virtue given to us by God so that we can love God above all things and love others.   Charity is different from just simply loving because charity is loving God for God’s own sake and it is loving others for God’s own sake.   Charity therefore presupposes faith in God.   Jesus was referring to charity when in the beatitudes he said “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.

The transfiguration of Jesus on a mountain came at a time when he was about to enter Jerusalem, the Jerusalem of his call and vocation, the Jerusalem of his suffering and death.  It is an important juncture in his life, an event that would be repeated again on another outcrop on earth, on the Mount of Olives.  In fact the two accounts do not have only a certain similarity in setting but also a similarity of characters.  The three disciples he brought with him were the same.  It was a final journey before a big decision – a decision which he knew ran contrary to his feelings and liking.  Should he take this decision to suffer or should he rather not?  He can choose.  He can say yes or no.  He is free. 

Jesus said, “unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.”  Jesus is setting a standard that is tremendously hard to meet.  The scribes are the best in keeping the law.  The Pharisees are the best in terms of knowing, memorizing the intricacies of the law.   So what Jesus is saying about surpassing the scribes and the Pharisees mean that we should be better than the best at keeping the law.  To be better than the best.  In a sense yes we have to struggle.  In a sense yes, we have to strive to be better than the best.  But we will always fall short, we will be found wanting and lacking, and in the end we will have to rely on the mercy and love of God.

Jesus said, the Father will not hand his son a snake when he asked for a fish.  But we ask, what if the son asks for a snake?  Will the Father give him a snake or in his love and concern hand him instead a fish?  What is my point?  In prayer it is important that you ask rightly, and so that you can be sure that you are asking rightly, then ask only for the things that God wants you to have.  Ask only for the things God wants you to have, and if you ask God for the things God wants you to ask, God will also provide what you need.

Things seldom happen in one instant.  Usually before things explode or develop into a full blown event, they develop gradually revealing signs along the way.  It is important to be aware of these signs.  It is important that we pay attention to them.  This is also true in a religious vocation or a vocation to the priesthood.  It does not reveal itself in an instant.  Rather it reveals its presence in little signs along the way, signs that reveal the presence of a call.  What are these signs?

Today we come to third theological virtue, the greatest of the three theological virtues – charity.  Now what is charity?  Charity is a virtue given to us by God so that we can love God above all things for God’s own sake and love others for God’s own sake.  In the definition we did not just simply say loving God or loving others.  Rather we said loving for God’s own sake.  Charity is different from just simply loving because charity is loving God for God’s own sake and it is loving others for God’s own sake.  It is a kind of loving that is borne in us because of our faith in God.  It is a loving that is the fruit of our faith in God.  You love not because the person is lovable, not because you are attracted to the person, not because you pity the person, not because naluoy ka , not because maayo sia, relihiyoso sia, catolico sia – no, rather, you love for God’s own sake. 

Benedict XVI instructed the bishops of the United States with these words on vocation:   “ Young people, if they know how to pray, can be trusted to know what to do with God's call." If they know how to pray.   I am repeating these words of Benedict XVI as you begin to formulate in your minds your application letter for the next formation year.   The undergraduates will submit this to me on March 19.

I have already reflected with you this morning on our gospel and on our first reading which revolve around temptation.  So this evening I would like to reflect with you on our second reading taken from the letter to the Romans. This passage from chapter 5 of the Letter to the Romans and its preceding passages starting in chapter 4 is a contentious passage which divides so many Christians even now ever since the time of Martin Luther, which triggered the greatest upheaval in Christianity which we simply call in Church history as the Period of the Reformation.  This controversy referred to is justification by faith.  This is the source of the protestant doctrine sola fide, faith alone as against the catholic doctrine of faith and good works.

We are defined by our relations.   Our identity is defined not primarily by who we are but especially by those we are related with.   Look, even our names are evidence of this.   We are surnamed after our fathers.   We are middle named after our mothers.   We may introduce our names but to clarify identity further you have to answer the question, kay sin-o ka gani bata a ?   A utod ka ni . . . ?   Or this can also happen in relations other than blood like work.   Last week my relations with the church as a priest did wonders when I was not allowed to visit the ICU because it was way past visiting hours.   When all other arguments proved unacceptable I said "I am a priest," and lo and behold I was immediately allowed.   We call this relational identity and this especially works magic in Philippine society when we are defined not so much by what we know but most especially by whom we know and in a society of whom you know relational ...