Easter Message EUREKA! AH HA(Jn.20:1-10)

By: Rev. Fr.  Francisco R. Albano, Diocese of Ilagan

 

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A traditional politician once asked a gathering of students: “What should I do to convince the people to accept my leadership and my platform?” And out came one great answer: “Be crucified, die, and rise again on the third day!”

Today we proclaim and celebrate the loveliest event of all time–the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. In his public ministry, Jesus tried to show people that he is God through sound teachings and miracle after miracle of healing, but people could not take the hint.  Thus, a last miracle was required that would demand total surrender to Jesus as Lord and Savior; it is as if God had run out of means to win his people back to his embrace. Through his resurrection, Jesus proved that he is God and can neither deceive nor be deceived. Indeed if man and woman deliberately will not accept this, they miss the target that is God.  This is what sin is–hamartia, missing the mark.

The resurrection of Jesus is definitive proof that all his claims–true, good and beautiful— are valid and of salvific value to man, woman, and all of creation, yes, to Life itself. The resurrection is clear proof of the sincerity of his words and deeds, his oneness with people for whom the resurrection is, and of his power over his own body and the laws and structures of nature. Believe the risen Christ who claimed and continues to claim again and again that “all life is good; that we are accepted; that the past is approved; that the future is open;” the gates of hell shall not prevail!

It is not easy to accept the amazing truth, goodness and beauty of the resurrection of Jesus. The reality of the resurrection is discovered, as it is, through a step-by-step process.  In allowing oneself to be led by clues, by hints, by the hand of love in a spirit of openness, the evidences of human experience, both scientific and mystical/ transcendental, are revealed. To discover the risen Christ, one must journey like John who most likely began more like Mary Magdalene or Peter.

These three disciples had different attitudes toward Jesus – the son of a carpenter who went about doing good, proclaiming the good news of salvation, asserting new ethical standards, and healing the sick of body and spirit.  Jesus shattered illusions of the blind, the leprous, and the sinner, demolishing the arguments of the Scribes and Pharisees; he silenced wind and wave, raised the dead to life, played with children, enjoyed wine and good humor, claimed presence before Abraham was, and walked the way of the cross.  Mary Magdalene, Peter and John each loved him and were attracted to his human presence and hints of divinity. Still, each regarded Jesus differently.

The three disciples reveal three kinds of love, each differing in quality and shape according to their viewpoints or various ways of seeing the reality of an empty tomb before them.  The initial reaction of Mary Magdalene reveals a love and outlook unable to see the import of sense impressions.  She focuses on emptiness and the external factor of thieves: “They have taken the Lord away from the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him,” she says.  Peter’s love, on the other hand, makes him scientific: “He saw the linen clothes lying there and he saw the napkin, which had been upon Jesus’ head, not lying with the rest of the linen clothes, but lying apart from them, still in its folds, by itself.”  Peter accounts what was there but did not know what to make of it.  He is simply was confounded by mystery. John’s love is of highest quality; he too sees the facts, but allows these to lead him into the mystery. “So then, the other disciple, who had arrived first at the tomb, went in too, and he saw, and believed.”  At that moment he realized “the meaning of scripture, that Jesus should rise from the dead.” In faith, in a mystical experience of a moment, John discovers the risen Christ whom he does not see.

After the resurrection, Mary Magdalene, Peter, and the other disciples evolved into being like John, as their love of Jesus heightened as they left behind, in proper places, the methods of simple impressions, narrow science, linear thinking, and dialectics for a EUREKA! experience of Mystery/Spirit/Love. They allowed themselves to be resurrected by Life from the graves of selfishness to love, so that they could believe and then to understand.

Thus, one can say that the resurrection event is appreciated at various levels–at the levels of the relatively unremolded experiences of Mary Magdalene or Peter and at the level of a person of great love and faith like the beloved disciple John.  So it is that people love Jesus, but not Jesus Christ; or love Jesus Christ, but not him as Son of God; or love his totality as God-Man of the cross and resurrection, but would not surrender to him as Lord, Savior, and King of all creation, because of vested economic, political or cultural interests.  All depends on the quality of love and grace.

Only a person of deep love and faith—one willing to go beyond the confines of body and mind and the clues of “linen clothes lying there ….  the napkin, which had been upon Jesus’ head, not lying with the rest of the linen clothes, but lying apart from them, still in its folds”—can declare before the empty tomb: Eureka! Christ is risen! Ah ha!

And so, what is to be done?  One takes and reads the Gospels and falls in love with Jesus-Christ-Son of God, step by step; then faces the empty tomb, experiences him unseen, and declares: “My Lord and my God!”

The resurrection of Jesus was meant for the people of God. Do you believe in the risen Christ? If so, you are commanded by the situation to accept his leadership and his platform for establishing his Kingdom and demolishing values of selfishness and the tombs of globalized Empire.  Even under the high-risk conditions of passion and death!

Ah ha! Happy Easter!

Photo grab from: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/deaconsbench/2011/05/homily-for-may-8-2011-3rd-sunday-of-easter/

Easter Message

 

By: Kevin Meese, Diocesan Director
Catholic Mission, Australia

easter 

 

My Easter reflection must necessarily begin with an acknowledgement that my own experience, cultural background and religious tradition influence greatly my perspective– one which is offered to my network of Filipino friends with a sense of great humility and respect.

In Australia at present, political coverage in our various media outlets focuses on tax reform, immigration policy and budget deficits.  There are those who seek change in legislation in order to encourage a sense of entrepreneurial endeavour (advocating generous tax concessions for the rich); others who seek to safeguard the livelihoods of the struggling poor (advocating sustainable social outreach programs through equitable tax reform).  More and more people are gathering on the streets to protest that asylum seekers are receiving harsh treatment, whilst others defend policies which seemingly keep Australia safe.  The end of the mining boom in Australia has contributed to budget deficits and created a political rhetoric which increasingly uses the language of fear.

A significant number of people, however, use the language of love in their daily lives through the expression of their faith.  The Christian perspective teaches us that, through his death and resurrection, Christ has conquered sin and death.  With Easter joy we can confidently share with others the news that Christ is risen.  It is a time for rejoicing.  It is also a time to consider what we actually mean by the message we share.

Pope Francis has famously written that: “There are Christians whose lives seem like Lent without Easter. I realize of course that joy is not expressed the same way at all times in life, especially at moments of great difficulty. Joy adapts and changes, but it always endures…” (EG6).

I believe that our faith in Christ’s conquering of sin and death has tangible signs which can be identified in our world.  For the Easter season, we live “as if” this is already a constant reality in our world.  It is more realistic to say that it is not yet fully realized, but it is certainly what we live for.  Around us are signs of self-giving which mark those whose religious traditions point them to the way of love.  There is also evidence of selfishness, corruption and sin–even though we are a determinedly optimistic, Easter people.  After the initial euphoric time of re-enactment which is part of the liturgical expression of the Easter Triduum, we must hold on to enduring Easter hope.  We live in hope and our hope is in Christ.

Over my many visits to the Philippines, I have never once returned home except with a tremendous sense of hope.  The continuing struggles of the Lumad in Mindanao, the thirst for justice in the slums of Tondo, and the determined resolve of those held in detention on political grounds all give rise to this hope.  It is for me always an experience of deep reverence when I am welcomed into someone’s home within the vast labyrinth of slum dwellings in Manila, and I never cease to be inspired by the sense of community and self-determination which abounds in these places of great hardship and great love.

In the account of the Resurrection in John’s Gospel, we read that there are as many responses as there are witnesses to the events of Easter Sunday.  We encounter a reluctance of the beloved apostle to enter the tomb, the boldness of Peter; the instant belief as well as the failure to understand.  We also are confronted by the weeping of women and the revelation that Christ is indeed risen.

In our own time, we are often confronted by reality which illuminates, but which can sometimes also confuse us.  There is much in the account of John which provides grounds for reassurance then!  Faced with evidence of abuse of rights, selfishness and corruption, we can have confidence in our response of holding on to the belief that Christ has conquered sin and death.  We live out this faith and seek always to find ways to ensure that God’s will is done on Earth–the experience of God’s reign amongst us.

This devotion and commitment to God’s reign points to our complete liberation from sin.  As Gustavo Gutierrez writes in A Theology of Liberation: “A broad and deep aspiration for liberation inflames the history of humankind in our day, liberation from all that limits or keeps human beings from self-fulfillment, liberation from all impediments to the exercise of freedom.”  Easter is the time to celebrate this promise–our entire lives are spent working for its realization.  Happy Easter to all!

 

Jesus and the Women Rising for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation

He Qi. Christ Has Risen

Luke 24:1-12
Jesus and the Women Rising for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation
Easter is a very special occasion for the church to proclaim the resurrection promise that God is making all things new, beginning with the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
The good news of Easter is announced first to women by angels, just as an angel announced the news to Mary that she would be the mother of Jesus (1:26-38). In Luke’s narrative, most of the witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection were women. “Now it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them” (24:10).
This March we are celebrating International Women’s Month so it would be fitting to reflect on Jesus’ life, death and resurrection by drawing inspiration from women of faith and courage.
We live today in a world broken by so much greed that breed social injustice and destruction of God’s creation. Women and children are most vulnerable to extreme poverty, trafficking, physical and sexual abuse, and many forms of violence. But women are rising!
At the risk of facing persecution as Jesus did, we hail the faith and courage of women religious who dedicate/dedicated their lives proclaiming the resurrection promise.
One of them is Sr. Stella Matutina, a 47-year old Benedictine sister, has received numerous death threats and trumped-up charges after many years of vocal opposition to large-scale destructive open pit mining in Mindanao, Philippines. In 2015 she was recipient of the Award for Human Rights by the Weimar City in Germany – for her engagement in the movement to defend the rights of mining-affected indigenous communities in Mindanao.
Of course, Sr. Stella is not alone in her advocacy. The wave of forced displacement of entire communities along with the killings of Lumad community leaders and educators in Mindanao in 2015 attracted nationwide and global awareness and condemnation. More voices from the inter-faith community at home and abroad expressed support to the Stop Lumad Killings and Save Our Schools (SOS) campaigns. Last February 12, as part of the global One Billion Rising campaign to end violence against women, the Ecumenical Women’s Forum led the dance gathering with the theme “We Rise with the Lumads in Seeking Justice and Peace.”
The United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) Haran House has long opened the church as sanctuary for our Lumad sisters and brothers forced to flee from the twin evils of mining and military operations in their communities. After the recent burning of Haran dormitories housing the Lumad refugees, the UCCP declared “The early Christians were burned at stake for following Christ and resisting Roman domination… Their burning bodies help enlightened the world and defeated the forces of darkness. Indeed, “those who would give light must endure burning!” The burning of Haran Mission Center certainly cannot consume UCCP. It just added more fire in our passion to search for truth or justice.”
For church people who are called to be Earth defenders, it is necessary to stand in solidarity with the Lumad and all indigenous people who prove to be the best stewards of God’s creation. Defend the Land, Defend the Earth Defenders – this must be our pledge.
Let us also draw inspiration from the life and witness of indigenous environment and human rights defender Berta Caceres.

Berta led the indigenous Lenca people of Honduras in grassroots campaign that successfully pressured the world’s largest dam builder to pull out of the Agua Zarca Dam. If the dam project pushed through, hundreds of Lenca people would have lost their right to sustainably manage their land and permanently deprived of water supply, food and medicines. In 2015, after receiving the Goldman Environmental Prize, Berta asserted, “We must undertake the struggle in all parts of the world, wherever we may be, because we have no other spare or replacement planet. We have only this one, and we have to take action.”

Berta was born on March 4, 1973. Last March 2, just 2 days before her birthday, she was assassinated in her home. “She was a woman committed to fighting for the protection of the environment and indigenous people’s territories and the common struggle,” said Fr Ismael Moreno, director of Radio Progreso and the Jesuit-run Team for Reflection, Research and Communication. The Italian newspaper La Stampa hailed her as a “martyr of Laudato Si’”, the Pope’s environment encyclical.

Women vs the Evils of Iron-Fist Rule
Let us also remember the women of faith and courage who lived a dangerous life like Jesus as they served among the poorest of the poor and defied the abuses under martial law.
Sr. Mary Bernard of the Carmelites was already in her 50s when martial law was imposed by the Marcos dictatorship. As hundreds of activists who fought the plunder and human rights abuses of the Marcoses were imprisoned, Sr. Mary Bernard visited them and tirelessly worked for their release.
Sr. Mary Virginia Gonzaga took her final vows with the Good Shepherd Sisters in 1979. She was assigned to work among slum dwellers and then with migrant workers in Agusan. Aware of the prevailing socio-economic inequalities at that time, the sisters gave seminars for people to know and assert their rights as well as address their problems. “Sr. Gin” died in 1983 when an overloaded and dilapidated vessel MV Cassandra sank in the sea four hours after leaving Agusan bound for Cebu. Together with three RGS sisters Consuelo Chuidian, Concepcion Conti and Catherine Loreto, Sr. Gin offered her life to save as many passengers as they could.
Survivors narrated how the four sisters prayed, distributed life vests and assisted many children and women towards the life rafts to get ready to abandon ship, unmindful how little time they had to save themselves.
In this election season, we would like to imagine that if they were still alive, these women martyrs in the darkest years of martial law, are surely with us in the present-day Campaign against the Return of Marcoses in Malacaňang.

 

Amie Dural-Maga

MIGRANTE, New Zealand

 

 

Reflections on the Seven Last Words of Jesus

 

Dear Readers,
As a national, ecumenical organization of church people who believe that our preferential option for the poor is expressed in our solidarity with the people’s struggle for a just and humane society and in the defense of life in the fullness of its dignity, the Promotion of Church People’s Response (PCPR) shares these Balik-tanaw, IsangPagninilay Reflections of the Seven Last Words of Jesus and the Easter message as a humble offering for meditation and contemplation..
A favorite adage says, “Worship and Service must be one.” PCPR believes that our faith, hope and love are nourished in our personal and collective prayers and reflections as well as our active involvement in social justice ministry.
This Holy Week is an important moment in our Christian calendar to reflect on the life-death-resurrection of Jesus.

Balik-tanaw, Isang Pagninilay is about looking back (balik) or revisiting the narratives and stories from the Biblical text and seeing, reading, and reflecting on these with the current context (tanaw) in mind. Balik-tanaw, Isang Pagninilay is travelling back into Scriptures to arrive at the present situation, reflecting on the relevance of the historical narratives/stories to give significance to our engagements in the present world. Balik-tanaw seeks to honor the biblical text of the past as a timeless source of inspiration for the current period by highlighting the prophetic call and priestly ministry so deeply needed today.
We are very thankful to our writers, who in the middle of their busy engagements with various ministries of the Church, carve out space from their precious time to write and share their reflections to us. May the God of Wisdom continue to inspire them and shepherd their ministries in the “rising” and resurrection of the people from all forms of “death” that denigrate, deny, and destroy life in its fullness.
As you read, our prayer is that you will be:
JOYFUL, that we have Christ who showed us the way of service, so we would not be stripped of hope;
HOPEFUL, that RESURRECTION awaits any who never give up; and,
GRATEFUL, that the early dissenters of the Roman Empire, the martyrs and the early disciples who spread the good news of RESURRECTION, and the underground movement of the early church have led us to our present mission.

The PCPR Secretariat

Foreword

 

Dear Readers,

As a national, ecumenical organization of church people who believe that our preferential option for the poor is expressed in our solidarity with the people’s struggle for a just and humane society and in the defense of life in the fullness of its dignity, the Promotion of Church People’s Response (PCPR) shares these Balik-tanaw, Isang Pagninilay Reflections of the Seven Last Words of Jesus and the Easter message as a humble offering for meditation and contemplation..

A favorite adage says, “Worship and Service must be one.” PCPR believes that our faith, hope and love are nourished in our personal and collective prayers and reflections as well as our active involvement in social justice ministry.

This Holy Week is an important moment in our Christian calendar to reflect on the life-death-resurrection of Jesus.

 Balik-tanaw, Isang Pagninilay is about looking back (balik) or revisiting the narratives and stories from the Biblical text and seeing, reading, and reflecting on these with the current context (tanaw) in mind. Balik-tanaw, Isang Pagninilay is travelling back into Scriptures to arrive at the present situation, reflecting on the relevance of the historical narratives/stories to give significance to our engagements in the present world. Balik-tanaw seeks to honor the biblical text of the past as a timeless source of inspiration for the current period by highlighting the prophetic call and priestly ministry so deeply needed today.

We are very thankful to our writers, who in the middle of their busy engagements with various ministries of the Church, carve out space from their precious time to write and share their reflections to us. May the God of Wisdom continue to inspire them and shepherd their ministries in the “rising” and resurrection of the people from all forms of “death” that denigrate, deny, and destroy life in its fullness.

As you read, our prayer is that you will be:

JOYFUL, that we have Christ who showed us the way of service, so we would not be stripped of hope;

HOPEFUL, that RESURRECTION awaits any who never give up; and,

GRATEFUL, that the early dissenters of the Roman Empire, the martyrs and the early disciples who spread the good news of RESURRECTION, and the underground movement of the early church have led us to our present mission.

 

The PCPR Secretariat

PrologueJesus: A Victim of Conspiracy Going Through the Valley of the Shadow of Death

By: Deaconess Norma P. Dollaga

United Methodist Church

KASIMBAYAN

 

Jesus Arrested and Betrayed . Oil painting by Sandy McMillan 

The opening verse of the Gospel according to Mark is explicit. It is the beginning of the Gospel of Jesus the Messiah (the Anointed One), the Son of God.  Jesus or Joshua or Yeshua means “Yahweh liberates or delivers” (Psalm 22). For the Gospel of Mark, Jesus of
Nazareth is the long awaited Messiah who will deliver his people from oppression and suffering.

In Mark 14, the priests and the scribes plot ways to arrest and kill Jesus. They wanted it done in a “clean” way to avoid mass riots.

Meanwhile, Jesus sensed the coming hour of trouble. During the last dinner with his disciples, Jesus told his disciples that one of them would betray him. The looming possibility of being arrested, persecuted, and executed deeply affected Jesus. “And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. He said, ‘Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want.”(Mark 14:35-36). The stress became so unbearable that Jesus’ sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground (Luke 22:44). Medical science explains that extreme anxiety and great fear causes Hematidrosis or the exiting of blood pigments from the capillaries into sweat glands.

The Arrest, Interrogation, and Torture 

Then, a crowd with swords and clubs came to arrest him. These were the agents of the priests, elders, and scribes.  The arrest was over-kill. “Then Jesus said to them, ‘Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest me as though I were a bandit?  Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not arrest me. But let the scriptures be fulfilled.’” (Mark 14:48-49).

The language used in the text, specifically the word bandit, should be underscored. According to Prof. Revelation Velunta, the Greek word lestes is “always translated in English as bandit or robber; however, the same Greek word is used for rebel—the lestes were composed of dispossessed farmers and runaway slaves.”

Jesus was interrogated at the Sanhedrin where the chief priests, elders and scribes were present. Joseph Caiphas was the chief priest. His roles included managing the temple and its treasury, performing religious rituals, and administering temple police and personnel. He presided over the Jewish Court and council. He had power over the Jewish population as he liaised between the Roman Empire and the people. The appointing power for the high priests came from the Roman Empire. Loyalty to the appointing power was expected, and likewise, to some degree, the high priest had leverage in rigging political decisions, especially when they complemented the Empire’s interests.

Jesus’ strong statement, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers” (Matthew 21:13) and his driving away of money changers in the temple served as impetus for his “death warrant” as he exposed the corruption in the Temple System under Caiphas’ governance, who, like Herod, was a puppet of the Roman Empire.

Palestine under Roman rule was never a peace zone. There was always political tension and dissatisfaction with how Roman laws were implemented.  Direct control through the census, heavy taxation burdens, dispossession, dislocation, and divergent traditions were sources of uneasiness and strain.  The land that used to be owned by Jewish people was now under the control of the Empire.  Insecurity and tension over properties grew.

“To terrorize people into submission, the Roman Empire destroyed villages, slaughtered or enslaved some of the people, and crucified leaders of the resistance.” (Horsley, Richard ed., In the Shadow of the Empire, Reclaiming the Bible as History of the Faithful Resistance. p 77.)

The Trial

The trial was a farce and done in haste so protesters could not easily mount a protest.  The Sanhedrin leaders were looking for evidence that would justify the execution of Jesus, but they could not extract sufficient evidence. There were witnesses, perhaps paid ones, brought to testify against Jesus. The accounts they provided were not credible enough to strongly establish Jesus’ crime.

Only after he was asked whether he was Messiah – the Anointed – and he affirmatively replied, was he charged with blasphemy. The accusers ganged up on him, beat him, spit in his face, and blindfolded him (Mark 14:65).

According to Leviticus 24:16, a blasphemer’s punishment is death: “One who blasphemes in the name of the Lord shall be put to death; the whole congregation shall stone the blasphemer. Aliens as well as citizens, when they blaspheme the Name, shall be put to death.”

However, crucifixion, a capital punishment of state-sanctioned execution (judicial killing), was the sole power of the Roman government. The Sanhedrin had no legal authority to execute a death sentence in the form of crucifixion. Thus, they brought Jesus to the Roman Governor Pilate to determine the case and to implement the full force of Roman law.

Jesus could have been stoned to death as a blasphemer like Stephen was in Acts. That he was brought to Pilate, to the Roman Prefect, informs us that his crime was not really blasphemy. No one would be crucified for blasphemy.

The Verdict

They bound Jesus and led him to Pontius Pilate. Pilate sent Jesus to be crucified as a messianic claimant. The sign over his head read, “King of the Jews” not “Blasphemer.” Jesus was condemned by the state to be executed via crucifixion.

“Crucifixion was a common execution for traitors, defeated soldiers, and rebellious slaves. Later, under the Roman Empire, only non-citizens,    lower-class Romans, and violent offenders were crucified. It was officially accepted as the most painful and disgraceful form of capital punishment, graver than decapitation, being thrown to wild animals, or being burned alive.  For these reasons, this heinous penalty was often imposed upon foreigners who became threats to Roman Rule.” (Kaiser,Walter C & Garret, Duanne. NIV Archealogical Study Bible: An Illustrated Walk Through Biblical History, 2007.)

Jesus was a threat to the Empire.

This pattern has not changed. In a familiar web of conspiracy among the power brokers, the Empire’s political, religious, economic, socio-cultural elite, their colonial rulers, and their local cohorts always maintain systems and structures that justify and institutionalize the criminalization and punishment of anyone and everyone who challenges their power.

Jesus, a victim, and a martyr of this schema

The plot has not changed. Those who live out the challenge and the mission as proclaimed by Jesus, ““The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind,    to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour” (Luke 4:18-19) are perceived as a threat, an enemy of the state, and a target for crucifixion.

But, lest we forget, we believe in the resurrection.

To the surprise of the Empire both past and present, the mission went on – challenging rules and systems that do not align with a life of fullness.  Empires would always scheme methods and over time master skills and wit to sabotage the will of the people for salvation and liberation. But lo and behold, the unrests continues… the movements against powers that kill continue… the resurrection of the purpose and vision of the mission keeps on threatening the Empire…

As the pattern of events remains familiar to us today, we must ask:  Can such conspiracies be stopped?

Epilogue

By : Iris Ann (Agong) Agustin- Capus

CONTAK Philippines (Church Office for International Networking in the Philippines)

He.Qi, Christ  on Easter Morning 

 

The passion and death of Christ are remembered anew by Christians throughout the world each Lenten season. This is a consistent reminder that we, as human beings, are capable of choosing to take a path of service.  The choice is a daring act that includes risky engagement with those in power.  Christ’s suffering and crucifixion illustrates the potential result of such engagement.  This is only further amplified in remembering that Christ also told his followers that they too would carry the “cross” in the pursuit of God’s promise of Shalom. Death and suffering manifest the seemingly insurmountable realities of humanity in decay, of festering problems rooted in human structures and systems perpetuated by the few and thrust upon the toiling majority. Sorrow and darkness are a continuing reality from whence brews our story of hope and struggle. This is a kind of suffering instigated by a State that sees the threat of Jesus’ love and service to humanity. Our continued suffering is rooted in a vicious cycle of violation, repression, greed, and monopoly of power by a few to the majority.  However, the human experience does not end in despair and death—ours is a story that addresses the people’s needs, emancipates humanity, and joins with the people rising for life and dignity.  Ours is a collective experience culminating in a new heaven and new earth where peace and justice reign. There is resurrection, Christ is risen! This is an affirmation of the human capacity to rise above our reality. Our belief on the resurrection empowers us that the very last breath is not goodbye, but rather a welcome to the new generations of victors. The breaking of dawn is an opportunity to give flesh to a community of love, justice and peace. Every pulsating moment is but an offering to a life among God’s people.

THE FIRST OF THE SEVEN LAST WORDS OF JESUS Luke 23:34

By: Fr. Rene Ventajar, CP
Parish Priest , St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows

Oplan Tumba 

Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”

After his anguish in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was arrested by temple guards and was brought before the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin conducted a hasty night trial. No witnesses were brought and no testimonies corroborated. The high priest desperately asked Jesus a self-incriminating question. Jesus could have refused to answer the question. But he answered boldly in the affirmative. He was convicted as guilty of blasphemy, punishable by death in the Mosaic Law. After that, he was manhandled and mocked and spat upon by the Sanhedrin and temple guards. Since only the Procurator could sentence him with the death penalty, they waited for daybreak to bring him to Pontius Pilate.
The Sanhedrin accused Jesus of insurrection, a political offense punishable by death. Despite Pilate’s not finding any reason to punish Jesus, he gave in to the political pressure of the Sanhedrin to have Jesus tortured by ordering that Jesus be flogged to the limit. It was not enough for the Sanhedrin. They succeeded in having Pilate sentence Jesus with the barbaric punishment of crucifixion.
As Jesus hung upon the cross, after carrying a heavy beam to the place of crucifixion with insults and stumbling along the rough, cobblestone road, he was physically exhausted. He needed to pull his body up every time he breathed. A crucified person ultimately dies of asphyxiation, when he can no longer lift his body to gasp for breath.
We expect a person who has been unjustly tried and sentenced to crucifixion to be furious toward his oppressors. In contrast, as we look at Jesus agonizing on the cross, we do not see rage, but compassion and forgiveness. Instead of shouting for vengeance, the first words that came out of his parched mouth were: “Father forgive them, they do know not what they are doing.” He presupposes his own forgiveness of his persecutors and asks his Father to excuse them and forgive them.
Jesus is true to his teaching about loving enemies and praying for persecutors. This is the most difficult teaching of Jesus. This teaching goes against our human tendency to retaliate and inflict greater harm to people who offend us. The antidote to an escalation of violence is forgiveness. We need to pray for God’s grace to be able to forgive. If we pray for the person instead of cursing him or her, we remove the negative energies in us. If we consider where the person is coming from or what he is going through, we will be less vindictive and become patient and forgiving to our offenders. We may even be inspired to help the person.
Is Jesus advocating passivity in the face of violence and injustice? If we read the Gospel in its wholeness, there are many passages where Jesus directly confronts perpetrators of violence and injustice. When he was slapped by a soldier, he did not turn his other cheek. He confronted the soldier on his violent act. He criticized the political and spiritual leaders of their immorality and hypocrisy. In fact, he was killed by the rich and powerful people of his time because he disturbed the status quo. This clarification is crucial because we live in a world of structural or societal sin. There is overwhelming violence and great injustice throughout the world, especially in our own country. Should we remain quiet or undisturbed and not rock the boat? Should we stay mum in the face of great social inequalities spawned by unjust socio-economic and political structures? Jesus confronted the perpetrators of violence and injustice.
Jesus, as the face of God the Father’s mercy, did not advocate passivity or apathy. His mercy is shown in his justification of sinners. He begged his Father to overlook human iniquities. He asked His Father to be merciful to us because we are often un-free due to our fallen nature. We do not know what we are doing. We fail to do the desirable things that we want to do and we commit the actions we abhor to do. Jesus, as the face of God the Father’s mercy, searches for the lost and rejoices when he is able to lead them back to His Father.
Jesus’ forgiveness of his persecutors does not mean tolerance of violence and injustice. Jesus invites us to hate sin but love and forgive the sinner and invite them back to the Father.

THE FIRST OF THE SEVEN LAST WORDS OF JESUS Luke 23:34

By: Rev. Fr. Francisco R. Albano
Diocese of Ilagan

Curious Christian Art 

“Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”

How many of us remember the seven last words of Jesus? We can forget businessman P.T. Barnum’s last words: “What were today’s last receipts?” Or those of defeated King Richard III: “A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse! Or those of Karl Marx when asked to say something for history: “Last words are for fools who haven’t said enough.” But Christians should never forget the seven last words of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Full of courage, love and compassion up to the end, Jesus uttered his last words spontaneously. He spoke them to his Father, to a good thief Dimas, to his mother Mary, to his beloved disciple John, and to himself. He speaks them to us as we remember in holy ritual his passion and death.
Let us listen well to the first word: “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing!” (Luke 23.34a)
Picture the scene when he uttered these words.
Soldiers are gambling for his clothes. People are simply watching the scribes, Pharisees, elders and soldiers jeering and making fun of him. And Jesus asks his Father to forgive them all and all sinners past, present and future as well, whose sins he was bearing. In the words of Isaiah 53.12, “He bore the sins of many and made intercession for the transgressors.”
Let us consider three striking phrases:
1. “ABBA / FATHER / AMA.”
Jesus was calling/addressing his Father who once proclaimed when Jesus was baptized in the river Jordan, and when he transfigured before Peter, James and John at Mt. Hermon: “This is my well-beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” I’d like to think God the Father said these words again at the crucifixion, only that Jesus failed to hear anything in his pain and utter loneliness. The name “Father,” is uttered with great respect, as in “Father in heaven, holy be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done”, as it was now being done by his Son. “Father,” ours too he said, for we are his brothers and sisters.
2. “FORGIVE THEM.”
Forgive my brothers and sisters, your children, is what Jesus is saying… Please forgive them, Father, as I forgive them is what Jesus is saying… likely not just once, but several times—insistently, persistently, because the sin against him and his Father was most grievous.
Jesus was being crucified and he thought of love and forgiveness and reconciliation for those who did not and do not deserve love. Against all the worldly standards of mice and men, against “common sense,” he asks the Father, “Forgive them.”
It used to be that in the old world (still with us in many ways!), the golden rule was the lex talionis–tooth for a tooth, eye for an eye, ngipin sa ngipin, mata sa mata. This was supposed to stress that punishment should not exceed the injury done. But the foolishness of people transformed it to a law of revenge outside legitimate law. Many civilizations disappeared because this misinterpretation became the rule. Then, society changed the formulation, a negative Confucian version of which is: Do not do to others what you do not want them to do unto you. This golden rule was good, but someone or some people found it wanting and so changed to befit human dignity. He/they said: Do to another what you want him/her do unto you. This is a better reformulation, but it is still weak as motivations could be dubious.
The Old Testament asserts a different formulation: “Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:18). You are to love your neighbor. You and neighbor are one, both unto the image of God.
Jesus reaffirmed this new golden rule, and raised the standard higher still. A new commandment, unknown to ages past, and a new standard of human behavior in human history offered to all, commanded to disciples, and entered into the ethical order: “Love as I, your Jesus, your Messiah, your Savior, beloved Son of God, loves” (John 13.34).
And how did Jesus love? He said: “Love your enemies; pray for those who persecute you… Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matt.5:44, 48) And so, Jesus prayed: “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.”
We remember that Peter, trying to be witty and willing to do more than the law required, asked Jesus, “Lord, how many times must we forgive wrong doers? Seven times?” Jesus replied, “No, but seventy times seven times” (Matt 18.21-22). Misinterpreting the prophet Amos’ (1:3-13) metaphor, the scribes required Israelites to forgive but up to three, four times only. Forgiveness had no effect on the unrepentant who condemns himself.
Jesus practiced what he preached. “Father, forgive them,” he begs. It was not God who said, “Son, forgive them…” Jesus said it first, and this must have pleased the Father. He did not wait for the Father because he knew the Father’s will!
Forgive them? For what and why? Forgive the scribes, Pharisees, elders, priests, people, all who cried “crucify him!”? Forgive those who did not give him a fair trial? Forgive those who manipulated Pontius Pilate so he, not they, would put Jesus to death under Roman law? “If you release him,” they said, “you are not a friend of Caesar. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.” Forgive those who hated him because he had exposed and opposed their hypocrisy, legalism, ceremonialism and ways oppressive of the people? Forgive the Roman soldiers who tortured him and violated his human rights? Yes! And all sinners as well, from Adam to you and me and to come, because all of us were there!
3. “FOR THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING.”
Jesus prayed that all be forgiven because they did not know what they were doing. Was it true that they did not know what they were doing? The Pharisees, scribes, elders, priests certainly planned his death. They wanted a subversive eliminated who denounced: their inordinate love of money; their love of power over the people whom they oppressed with burdensome laws and rituals; and, their love of worldly fame and places of honor at the table and in the synagogues. “They were determined to kill him” (John 12: 53).
The truth is that it was clear to them Jesus was from God, but they could not accept the consequences of surrendering to him in faith–giving up their vested interests and selfish ways.
But at the same time, they did not know what they were doing. Because of their narrow-mindedness, they did not realize that there is a state of life better than that to which they were accustomed. They were under the illusion that the promised Messiah would be a politico-military king-liberator who would conquer the Romans and restore Israel to its pristine glory as a Davidic kingdom. They failed to appreciate that the Kingdom of God had begun and was among them. Thus, they are excused!
Jesus forgave them all. And did his Father forgive them? Yes. Yes. Yes. God offered/gave them the grace of pardon and forgiveness. But this grace was ineffective because it was refused by hardened hearts—like it was rejected by Judas Iscariot and continues to be rejected forever by Satan and his devils. But received humbly and in faith, it is efficacious. Dimas received the grace and so too Longinus the soldier and a repentant Peter whose denials of Christ contributed to the sufferings of Jesus.
THE GOOD NEWS

What is the good news of the first of the seven last words of Jesus? The good news is that there are no limits to God’s love for his special creation humanity, sinners and saints, us. People are deemed worthy of forgiveness by the blood of his Son.
The good news is that those who in their repentance and humility accept the grace of forgiveness are empowered to love as Jesus loved and to forgive as Jesus forgave and as his Father forgives without measure. But, the sad news is that this power, more often than not, goes unutilized. The unforgiving remain in selfish wounded pride, while the unforgiven stay with guilty consciences. You forgive and you gain freedom. One is forgiven and he gains freedom. In forgiving and serving one another, we become free.
Forgiving a wrongdoer is a form of service. One theologian puts it this way: the grace of forgiveness given to another through us gives the wrongdoer a chance to repent, to sin no more, to help change the world. But, he must accept with an open heart this grace of forgiveness. One must be generous in relaying this gift to the wrongdoer. Still, we must remember that even as forgiveness is given, justice must be rendered. God forgave the sins of humankind but still required divine justice–the self-sacrifice of his Son. Before justice was his merciful love and forgiveness!
Let us consider some examples of where the grace of forgiveness should prove effective and salvific.
• In the Family where suffering and crucifixion happens: Love as forgiveness should be seen in the family, in the home, where many wrong-doings take place between family members. Forgiveness begins with the removal of hatred and bitterness in the heart of the wronged, even as repentance and rehabilitation of the wrongdoer is being worked out, even as the wrongdoer may not yet have shown humility to ask pardon.

Separated couples should learn how to forgive one another, separate as friends, when reconciliation is no longer possible. Children of broken homes should, in time, learn how to forgive their parents. Parents should learn how to forgive and receive back a prodigal son or daughter.

All should be given a chance to repent and reform, even if the chance and the grace are refused. This is the whole point of grace and the freedom of God and that of the human person.

• In the Community/Society where the passion and death of the Lord is reenacted over and over: Juan de la Cruz and Inang Bayan are asked by the Lord to forgive their oppressors and exploiters, the perpetrators of imperialist globalization, trade liberalization, privatization of state firms, price deregulation, militarization, patriarchy, graft and corruption.

Jesus commands families, Juan de la Cruz and Inang Bayan to hate the sin but love and forgive the sinner and demand that justice be done and just compensation be paid. The Lord calls for restorative justice where victim and victimizer as well as the community are reconciled with one another and with God in justice and mercy. The Lord asks that we pray that exploiters and oppressors accept their and God’s offer of forgiveness and so be converted and live.
We are to love and forgive and do justice to raise the quality of human life and behavior to the quality of who we are truly to be, in the likeness of God. This can be done with God’s grace.
While grace comes from God and from God alone, it must be so that we create external conditions that make it easy for wrongdoers, ourselves included, to receive forgiveness and do good. Thus, we forgive and forget on one hand, even as justice is asserted and penalties paid on the other. We invite ourselves and all to teach gospel values; promote human rights; remove the bases of domestic violence and gender discrimination such as machismo and patriarchy; remove the bases of political dictatorship such as feudal ownership and monopoly control of agricultural lands as well as local and foreign big merchant and big business monopolies, and so on.
Thus do we invite ourselves and all to create structures of grace and care for all. All this, my friends, in gratitude for the Lord’s forgiveness, mercy, and love.