April 26, 2020, 3rd Sunday of Easter *Estranghero sa Panahon ng Pandemiko

Pastor Hazel Joyce Salatan, Asociation of Women in Theology (AWIT)

 

Supper at Emmaus by He Qi https://revfranmusings.blogspot.com/2018/04/resurrection-doubt-resurrection-hope.html

Awit 16: 1-2, 5, 7-11
Mga Gawa  2:14, 22-28
1Pedro 1:17-21
Lucas  24:13-35

Sumabay si Hesus sa dalawang alagad patungong Emaus. Hindi nila nakilala si Hesus habang sila ay naglalakbay. Nang gawin ni Hesus ang paghahati-hati sa tinapay at nagpasalamat sa Diyos, nabuksan ang kanilang mga mata at nakilala siya.

Nakilala si Hesus sa kanyang gawa at hindi sa kanyang mukha. Napagtanto nila ang kanyang sinasabi ng sila’y naglalakbay. Naramdaman nila ang nag-uumapaw na pakiramdam habang sila ay kinakausap. Isang estranghero ang nagbukas sa mata ng dalawang alagad.

Sa pagpasok ng taong 2020, naranasan ang dalawang disaster . Ang pagsabog ng bulkang Taal at ang pandemikong COVID-19. Parehas na nakapinsala sa buhay at kabuhayan ng marami. Nasaksihan natin ang iba’t ibang kwento ng mamamayan at mula rito ay nabuksan ang ating mga mata sa kalagayan ng bansa.

Tunay na kahanga-hanga ang mga mamamayang Pilipino sa anumang pagsubok ng buhay. Maraming pagkakataong napatunayan ang angking katatagan at kalakasan. Nasaksihan din ang pagiging mapagmalasakit, mapagkalinga, at mapagmahal sa kapwa. Hindi rin matatawaran ang pagkilos ng mga mamamayan tungo sa isang lipunang payapa at makatarungan na tinitiyak na ito ay mararanasan ng lahat. Sa pagharap ng bagong pagsubok, ang bawat isa ay may katangi-tanging paraan upang kayanin at malagpasan ito.

Bahagi ng kulturang Pilipino ang pagsasalu-salo kung saan naipapamalas ang mga katangiang bukod-tangi. Ang kumustahan, kwentuhan at halakhakan ang higit pang nagbibigay ng kasiglahan sa bawat pagtitipon. Sa ating kasalukuyang kalagayan, matatagalan muli ito bago mangyari.

Ngunit, malikhain ang mga Pilipino at nakagagawa ito ng mga paraan upang mabigyan-daan ang kulturang likas sakanya. Sa gitna ng panganib dulot ng krisis sa medikal ay naipapamalas pa rin nito ang kanyang kakayahan na tumugon sa pangangailangan ng kanyang kapwa.

Sa paglalakbay na ito, marami tayong estrangherong nakasasabay. Tayo ay nagiging mulat sa kalagayan ng ating mga kapwa sa pamamagitan ng kanilang mga kalagayan at sa kanilang gawa. Bagamat pinalalaganap ng di makatarungang sistema ang pagiging makasarili ay unti-unti natin itong naiigpawan at piniling maunawaan natin ang kalagayan sa pamamagitan ng pagiging lubog sa situwasyon ng ating mga kapwa at nakikisangkot sa paglaban ng karapatan para sa isang buhay na ganap (Juan 10:10).

Tayo ay magkakasama sa hakbang-hakbang na paghahanda ng ating mga sarili upang maging lubos ang ating pakikiisa at maging ganap ang ating pagtugon sa bayan ng Diyos.

Ngayong, tayo ay humaharap sa isang sakuna, marami tayong estrangherong nakakasabay, maraming Hesus tayong nakikilala. Nakilala natin sila hindi dahil sa kanilang mga pisikl n wangis kundi sa kanilang kalagayan, pamumuhay, at kanilang ginagawa.

Ang mga doktor, nars at ang iba pang tumatayong frontliners na nag-aalay ng kanilang buhay para malutas ang krisis sa medikal ay mga estrangherong hindi binibigyan ng tamang trato at pagkilala ng kinauukulan . Ngunit tiyak kong ang sambayanan ay may mataas ng pagkilala sa kanila at sa kanilang malaking nagawa at magagawa sa bayan. Idagdag pa, ang ating pagpupugay sa kanilang hanay na mga lumisan habang tinitiyak ang kaligtasan ng marami.

Hindi din naman maikakaila ang pagkakaroon natin ng kamalayan sa kalagayan ng iba pang sektor ng lipunan.

Estranghero sa atin ang maraming mahihirap na komunidad sa bansa ngunit nadama natin ang kanilang pagtangis at tayo rin naman ang naging kasama nila sa pagtangis. At hindi nagtatapos sa pagtangis ang ating pagkilala sa kanila, bagkus maging sa kanilang pagtindig para sa kanilang karapatang magkaroong ng sapat na pagkain sa kanilang hapag.

Estranghero ang marami na namatay sa sakit ngunit tayo ay nakikidalamhati sa kanilang pamilya at mga kaibigan. Kaakibat ng ating pagdadalamhati ay ang ating pagkundena sa walang maayos na solusyong medikal sa halip ay nagbigay ang pamahalaan ng pagpapahalaga sa pagpapaigiting ng militarisasyon. Ito ay nagdulot ng takot at pangamba sa maraming Pilipino.

Estranghero din ang maraming organisasyon na kumikilos upang makatulong sa maraming kababayan nating naghihikaos gayundin ang pagbibigay ng mga pangangailangan ng mga frontliners. Hindi natin sila kilala ngunit tayo ay hangang-hanga sakanila. Sa kabila ng madaming diskriminasyon at pang-iipit sa ibang mga organisasyon na tumutulong ay patuloy na nagsusumikap na gawin ang tama, ang tumulong sa kapwa.

Estranghero din sa atin ang nararanasan ng mga kapatid nating People Living with HIV (PLHIV) sa gitna ng pandemiko. Naging doble ang hirap na kanilang nararanasan. Ang iba nga ay hindi ligtas na espasyo ang kanilang tahanan.

Ang kalagayan ng maraming magsasaka din ay nahihirapan sa paglikha ng produkto dahil sa limitasyon dulot ng mga panukala ng pamahalaan. Maging ang mga mangingisda ay nagkakasya sa luging presyo ng mga huling isda. Naging mabigat din ang higit isang buwan na tigil sa paggawa ng mga manggagawa.

Marami pang mga kwento ng paglalakbay ang hindi natin nalalaman. Marami tayong nakakakasabay na hindi natin nabibigyan ng pansin. Maraming mga pahayag at panawagan na nagpaumapaw ng ating nararamdaman ngunit kadalasan hindi natin maunawaan.

Sa pinagsama-samang lakas, karanasan, at kamalayan ay naging mulat tayo sa katotohanan. Naunawaan natin na ang nag-uumapaw nating nararamdaman para sa mga estranghero ay dahil sa nais nating makatugon at maging kabahagi ng malaking pagkilos tungo sa isang lipunang mulat sa katotohanan.

Namumulat tayo sa katotohanan upang isiwalat din ang katotohanan katulad ng mga alagad na bumalik ng Herusalem at patotohanan ang muling pagkabuhay ni Hesus. Namumulat tayo sa katotohanan upang tayo ay tumugon sa hamon.

Kung atin ng makakamit ang antas ng kamalayan kung saan ating kinikilala, binigyang halaga at tayo’y pumapanig sa pinaka-aba, pinaka-api at kinalimutan ng lipunan – ang ating mga itinuturing na mga estranghero ay silang magbibigay sa atin ng mga konkretong pagsasalarawan ng paghahati ng tinapay at pagpapasalamat sa Diyos na magbubukas ng ating mga mata. ##

April 19, 2020, 2nd Sunday of Easter*Jesus Stands Amongst Us

Ms. Jeff Vito, College of the Holy Spirit

 

Appearance Ti His Disciples by  Ed De Guzman https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/289285976046065989/

Acts 2:42-47
Ps 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24
1Peter 1:3-9
John 20:19-31

 

After the crucifixion of Jesus, the disciples were held up in a room hiding with the door locked because of their fear of the Jews. But in the midst of doubt, fear, hopelessness and darkness, the Risen Lord appeared and stood among them, comforting them with the peace of resurrection.

 

One month since the imposition of Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) in the entire Luzon, we have been “locked up” in our homes because of our fear of COVID 19. This dreadful virus has claimed many lives and has altered our life’s routines and patterns. It has sown fear, sorrow, hopelessness, despair and gloom in the hearts of people.
In the Gospel today, John paints a picture of the resurrection’s hope and power. Just as the disciples were emboldened by their faith in the Risen Lord, we, too as an Easter people are called to be courageous and remain steadfast in our faith. The letter of Peter reminds us that there will always be moments of trials, difficulties and even doubts. Our faith can be tested like a “gold in a furnace.” As we continue our fight against COVID 19, let us believe in God’s great mercy, raising Jesus from the dead to give us “new life and a living hope.” He is risen and he is among us.

 
He stands among the grieving families who lost their loved ones to COVID 19 to be their comfort and solace.
He stands among the anxious and fearful people knowing that someone they love so dearly is about to die the next day to be their hope and assurance.
He stands among the afflicted who are fighting for their lives to be their respite and healing.
He stands among the poor families who solely rely on the government’s provisions to feed hungry mouths to be their hope and grace.
He stands among the courageous frontliners who put their lives on the line to minister to the sick and serve others to be their strength and joy.
He stands among servant leaders who tirelessly respond to the needs of their constituents to be their source of inspiration and wisdom.
He stands among the good Samaritans of today who opened their doors to help the poor, the lowly, the marginalized, and the suffering to be their light and joy.
He stands among the people’s movement calling for systematic health care as a way to address COVID
He stands among the organized people calling for economic and social justice as way to lessen the vulnerabilities of the people.
He stands among the human rights defenders who reminds us the human rights must be observed at all times and at all places. That the ECQ must not be an excuse to violate human rights.

 
In these trying times, he is with us and among us. He stands among us and speaks the peace of the resurrection and invites us to believe that he is Lord. Thomas and the rest of the disciples believed and became radiant witnesses of Christ. During this COVID 19 pandemic, let the love of the Risen Christ create a more ready heart in us to be sent forth as Sparks of God’s own Flame in places where darkness and doubt exist to bring the joy of the Gospel.
Let us pray for one another so that, by sharing in the victory of Christ, we may open our doors to the weak and poor. Then we will be able to experience and share to the full the joy of Easter.

~ Pope Francis ~

April 12, 2020, Resurrection of the Lord/East*A Resurrection Without Celebration

 

Prof. Lizette Tapia-Raquel, Union Theological Seminary (UTS), Cavite

Bible women arriving at the tomb, painting by He Qihttp://www.womeninthebible.net/women-bible-old-new-testaments/mary-magdalene/

 

Ps 118:1-2,16-17, 22-23

Acts 10:34, 37-43 Colossians 3:1-4 or 1Corinthians 5:6-8

John 20:1-9 or Matt 28:1-10
John 20: 1-18

 

Jesus’s resurrection story has been told so many times with great triumph and ‘Hallelujahs’ by believers that our rituals quickly move from weeping to rejoicing. In the Philippines, after a lengthy service or mass on “the Seven Last Words” and fasting on Good Friday, Black Saturday becomes a market day or a pre-production day full of preparations for the Easter celebration. On Easter morning, many congregations begin a ‘pagsalubong’ worship before the sunrise by the river or the sea in anticipation of the risen Christ. For some, this will be followed by a full day of picnicking and swimming. And when the sun rises in the horizon, Filipino Christians from Luzon to Mindanao proclaim, “Alleluya! Si Kristo ay buhay! (Hallelujah! Christ is risen!) Too soon, we all forget that many are still suffering, weeping and seeking those whom they love, just as the disciples and Jesus’s followers did on the day of the resurrection.

 

 

This Easter Sunday will be very different for many Filipino Christians and many peoples of the world. Instead of gathering in fellowship, we will be separated from each other or even isolated from those we hold dearest. Instead of feasting and drinking as a community, we will content ourselves with simple home-cooked meals while praying that others have food on their tables as well. For us at Central United Methodist Church, instead of the joint singing by the choirs and congregation of the “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah, which we have been singing as the benediction song for Easter for as long as I can remember, there will be a somber closing hymn. But perhaps these are appropriate with the current state of the peoples of the world under the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic. Perhaps, too, we can be reminded of the true atmosphere at Jesus’s resurrection.

 

 

In the lectionary gospel reading, John 20: 1-18, there was no triumph in the first fifteen (15) verses. Only tension and tribulation. Not only had Jesus been killed by the Roman Empire, his body was not in the tomb and no one among those who loved him knew where he was. Jesus, at his death, was not different from the many enemies of the Roman Empire, the enemies of the state. When he was alive, he went to the suffering people who were crying out for life; fed them, gave them water, and healed them; ate with the so-called sinners who could not or chose not to follow religious laws and the dictates of the empire, and forgave them; and he spoke against the Kingdom of Rome by preaching about the “Kingdom of God.” At every moment in his ministry, even in those we believe to be a triumphant time, there was tension and tribulation. Just as there is a tension when human rights activists question the violation of basic rights like freedom of speech and freedom of assembly; when indigenous peoples and  farmers assert their right to till the land and resist mining and mono-crop plantations; or when laborers demand security of tenure and just wages. Just as there is now tribulation among the poorest of the poor who do not know when or where their next meal will come from; the regular workers who fear if their companies can survive the impending economic recession; and the health workers and front liners who are grappling with close to impossible challenges.

 

 

As I write this reflection, I feel no triumph even as we anticipate the dawning of Easter morning. Tomorrow, there may be ‘hosannas’ and ‘hallelujahs’ and multiple videos and live feeds of sermons and liturgical services, but will these respond to and amplify the urgent cries of the masses for free mass testing, the distribution of food relief and social amelioration funds for all, or the appropriate and well-planned support for our medical front liners? Perhaps, this Easter, the message of hope can be found not in the triumph and celebration of the resurrection but in the lamentation and the intensification of the calls of the masses, the poor and oppressed, for whom Jesus lived and died two thousand years ago. Perhaps, this Easter, the message of hope and the promise of resurrection must be grounded on concrete acts of solidarity to respond to and sustain vulnerable communities. For is not the resurrection about raising each other up? Is not the resurrection for the raising of those who need God the most?

 

 

In the pericope in John 20, verses 16-18, Jesus was seen by Mary alone. When she told the disciples, they did not believe her. In the Markan text, Chapter 16: 10 -13, Mary Magdalene was again not believed when she told the disciples about seeing Jesus and the instruction for them to meet Jesus in Galilee. In the gospel according to Matthew 28, the words “Do not be afraid” were uttered twice after Jesus’s resurrection. First, by an angel and then by Jesus. Luke’s narrative may be perceived as triumphant because Jesus appears to many and ascends to heaven in Chapter 24, but even there, when he appears to the disciples behind locked doors, they were troubled and afraid. In the four gospels, the tenor of the resurrection was not triumphant.

 

 

Whether or not we accept it, Jesus left behind a world that was as much in turmoil as it was when he was born to it. While one of his seven last words were, “It is finished,” the gospel narratives end with urgent and clear commands for the disciples to continue. In John 21: 15-17, Jesus demands that John’s declaration of love be exhibited concretely. He instructs him: “Feed my lambs,” “Tend my sheep,” then again, “Feed my sheep,” and, finally, “Follow me.” In Luke 24: 49, Jesus’s last words to the disciples were “And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” Furthermore, “the Great Commission” are both found in Matthew 28: 16-20 and Mark 16: 14 -20. While the latter is doubted in its authenticity because the verses are absent in the early manuscripts, it reflects the writer’s apprehension for the future and expresses the urgency of those left behind to continue what Jesus had begun.

 

 

This Easter, let us commemorate the resurrection but not in the spirit of celebration. There can be no true celebration in the midst of so much fear, violence, suffering, and death. Instead, let us remember the resurrected Christ by being in solidarity with those who continue to be crucified. Ultimately, the power of the resurrection story has persisted and endured not because it is triumphant, but because those who follow Christ seek to embody the savior who lived and died for those who need God the most. Today, let us recommit ourselves to the power of the resurrection by struggling with the poor and oppressed until we come to the time when there can be true celebration for all. AMEN.##

 

 

 

Holy Week in the time of COVID-19

Rev. Dr. Lester Edwin J. Ruiz

He is not here – Hanna Varghese  https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/60869032436058897/

In the Christian tradition, Easter, and Holy Week in which it is inextricably embedded, is surely about the promise of Life–the abundant life for all people. It is also about taking responsibility, not only for our lives, but for the lives of others. In this particular season, it can mean freely accepting the limits imposed by “staying home,” it should mean celebrating the freedom of reaching out to others while being in voluntary quarantine, it ought to mean submitting joyfully one’s self-centered prerogatives to the shared goals and principles of the “public good.”

 

To put the matter theologically, and also faithfully, this is why, the freedom of resurrection invoked by some cannot be separated from the obligation of the Cross required of all. And any witness to the empty tomb cannot avoid the responsibility of waiting in the darkness of early morning to welcome the risen Lord.

 

Let Holy Week this year, in this time of COVID-19, be about human solidarity in the midst of a challenging, uncertain, difficult, and life-threatening world. Let it be an acknowledgement of our shared destiny as a species–as a planet. Let it be an expression of hope that those who have died not only as a result of COVID-19 but also as a result of the failures of human arrogance, exceptionalism, and less than truthful–not to mention misplaced if irresponsible and triumphalist religious or political partisanship–will not have died in vain. And let the heroic and sacrificial work of those who have offered their lives in the midst of avoidable odds in order that others might live–let it not be forgotten, but let it be a lesson from which all of us must learn with joy, with sadness, and with gratitude.

 

May our generation be remembered as the one that rose to the best of who we can be while in the midst of the worst situation that could have happened to us.##

 

(This essay was originally posted by the author to his Facebook status. PCPR was given the permission to repost here at BalikTanaw)

Abril 5, 2020* Passion/Linggo ng Palaspas*Kapangyarihan sa Gitna ng Krisis

Floyd Castro, United Methodist Church

https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/158540849356567579/

Mga Awit 22:8-9, 17-20, 23-24

Isaias50:4-7

Sulat sa mga Felipos 2:6-11

Mateo  21:1-11 o Mateo  26:14-27, 66 or Mateo 27:11-54

 

Mainit na balita!

Mateo 21:8, 10-11

Ang napakaraming tao ay naglatag ng kanilang mga damit sa daan. Ang iba naman ay pumutol ng mga sanga ng mga punong-kahoy at inilatag sa daan.

Pagpasok niya sa Jerusalem, nagulo ang buong lungsod na sinasabi: Sino ito?

Sinabi ng napakaraming tao: Siya ay si Jesus, ang propeta na taga-Nazaret ng Galilea.

Paano ba dapat umasta ang isang lider? Sa paanong paraan ginagamit ang kapangyarihan upang matugunan ang pangangailangan ng bayang pinangungunahan?

 

Noong panahon ng ministeryo ni Hesus sa lupa, nasasakupan ng Emperyo ng Roma ang Israel. Ang Israel bilang kinikilalang “Bayan ng Diyos” ay pinaghaharian ng mga paganong hindi kumikilala kay Yahweh bilang Diyos. Sa kalagayan ng Israel, mukhang higit ang kapangyarihan ng Roma kaysa sa kapangyarihan ni Yahweh. Ang kalagayan ng bayang pinili ay panlalait sa kanilang pananampalataya, sa pagkatao, sa lipunan at mismong sa Diyos.

 

Walang kalayaan ang bayan ng Diyos simula ng sila ay sinakop ng Roma. Kailangan nilang magbayad ng buwis kay Caesar at kahit ang mga religious duties ay nagagampanan ayon lamang sa pahintulot ng Emperyo.

 

Ang ating bansa, kagaya ng maraming mga bansa ay kasalukuyang nakakaramdam ng matinding pagkabalisa at kakapusan, kung hindi man kawalan ng pag-asa. Kasalukuyang hinaharap natin ang kakaibang kaaway,  kaaway  na di-nakikita, ayon sa marami – na pumapatay at maaaring patuloy na pumatay ng libu-libong tao.  Hindi ito namimili ng lahi, kulay at edad. Bagamat hindi rin ito namimili ayon sa kalagayang pang-ekonomiya, mas bulnerable ang mga mahihirap dahil para sa kanila, kailangang mauna ang pagkain at kahit gustong sumunod ay hindi pusible ang social distancing bukod sa napakamahal ng pantustos sa medikal na pangangailan ng bawat biktima.

 

Tulad ng bayang Israel, dahil sa kasalukuyang krisis, kahit ang mga religious practices ay kailangang magbago o mag-adjust. Hindi maaari ang magtipon, magkamayan, at magyakapan – mga practices na ginagamit upang makapagbigay ng pag-asa at palakasin ang bawat isa. Paano na ang komunyon at binyag? Kahit ang paglilibing sa mga nasawi ng digmang marahas ay hindi maaaring gawin ayon sa kultura ng pagdadamayan.

Mateo 26:26-27

 

Habang sila ay kumakain, kinuha ni Jesus ang tinapay. Pinagpala niya ito, pinagputul-putol at ibinigay sa kaniyang mga alagad. Sinabi niya: Kunin ninyo, kainin ninyo. Ito ang aking katawan.

 

Kinuha niya ang saro at nang makapagpasalamat, ibinigay niya ito sa kanila. Sinabi niya: Uminom kayong lahat.

Paano ba dapat umasta ang isang lider?

 

Tulad ni Hesus, ang tunay na lider – ang lider na may kapangyarihan – sa gitna ng isang matinding krisis at kahit sa harap ng nakaambang pagkakalulo (Mateo 26:16) ay ang lider na may kakayahang anyayahan ang kanyang nasasakupan sa isang hapag-kainan ng kapayapaan at pagkakaisa; kumuha ng tinapay upang ito ay pagpirapirasuhin upang ang lahat ay makakain at maligtas; at magbigay ng saro ng inumin upang maghatid ng kagalingan para sa lahat.##