December 26, 2021*Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph*Nurturing Passion for Justice and Equity 

Klein Emperado, IFI Youth

https://opsouth.org/news/feast-of-the-holy-family

Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5

Sir 3:2-6, 12-14

Col 3:12-21 or 3:12-17

Lk 2:41-52

Prayer

Parent God, you have shown us the way to life and justice. Through the ages, you have nurtured and empowered people to mold persons who possess great passion for justice and equity. Enlighten our minds and hearts and make us ready to receive Christ Jesus, our Liberator and the message of hope, peace, joy, and love in a world of hate and prejudice. Make our families and circles as nurturing places where human dignity is always upheld and where passion for just peace and abundant life is nurtured. Inspire us, O Parent God to build a world of justice and equity. These we pray in Jesus, God with us, yesterday, today, and forever. So be it.

The Scriptures from Sirach, from the Psalms and from the Letter of St. Paul to the Colossians provide us with the context of particular teachings on family life. Above all the fundamentals of happy family is love and respect. A family is not a stand-alone-unit of a society. A structural justice is an important factor in ensuring a healthy family life. For example, parents could provide the needs of the family if at the very least a living wage being implemented for the workers, and job security for every worker. We would understand that it is the responsibility of the state to ensure the welfare of children.

Removing the patriarchal tendencies of the text, these should be seen as encouragements for establishing a consultative and nurturing relationship among family members. Thus, there is a need to counter the old unjust system of patriarchy among families, where the father has the only prevailing voice and decides for the matters of the wife and children.

In this manner, children will be raised in a more just and humane way. In effect, this will impact the life of the greater community for the nurture of justice and equity-loving individuals who will later lead nations, communities and organizations and build their own families in the future. This nurturance of children in the way of justice can be seen in the life of Jesus, the son of Mary and his foster father, Joseph, a carpenter from Nazareth.

The Gospel text this Sunday ushers us into the silent years of Jesus’ life. Jesus’ look at justice was nurtured in the home. Surely, he saw the oppression and inequality among fellow citizens who were under the captivity of the Roman empire. We can attribute Jesus’ pursuit of an inclusive and just social order from the way he was nurtured by his parents in that poor home in Nazareth. Here we can see that nurturing a just family is a good step towards building a more just society. Molding persons with so much passion for justice, equity and respect for human dignity are means of building an egalitarian society.

Jesus grew a sense of equity that at the age of 12, he defied the customs of his tradition and culture by discussing the complicated and diverse interpretations of the Jewish faith. To their amazement, Jesus’ parents found him amid the teachers of the law, manifesting his critical mind and inquisitive tendencies. What Jesus did was to listen intently to the teachers and then afterwards, delivered his own interpretations to the standards and requisites of the law.

Just like in our generation today, those who have the critical mind and inquisitive tendencies have been met with negativity by the way institutions treat them. Those who question the unjust and inhumane practices in our society have been treated as subversives. In the church setting, the young who have been uncomfortable with our rituals have been named heretics. Our young people, especially in the churches explore how to deepen their faith through church tradition that are not just limited to attending worships, bible studies and youth camps. Some feel that we need to express our prophetic witness for justice, going to the valleys and meadows: the urban poor and to the factory workers, who have been struggling for a life that is truly dignified. Some chose “the road less traveled” to be of service to those who need God the most. These options give them deeper meaning in life.

We see many Jesuses of today in the lives of activists, human rights defenders, labor union leaders, peacemakers, environment advocates, and many others who take the unconventional and risky path of fulfilling the role of love and service to people.

Some parents could be disappointed because their children followed a path that will not gain them the bounty riches or high positions of this world. Some parents could be so proud of their children who took took a more difficult, complicated, and risky path certainly, not for their own interest but for the betterment of all peoples, especially those that are in the margins, those who are underprivileged and oppressed.

But in all of these, despite the silence of the Biblical texts regarding the formative years of Jesus up until the beginning of his earthly ministry, we still can see the trace of nurturance done by Mary and Joseph to Jesus, who possessed so much passion for justice, and so much love for humanity. We could assume that Mary and Joseph may have moments of misinterpretation and in turn, Jesus may have had some misunderstandings about his parents. But nonetheless, the respect one’s right to decide and express opinion has been upheld rightly in that poor Nazareth home. And thus, came Jesus, who began a movement of liberation from unjust structures and systems that enslave, oppress, and dehumanize them.

May the parents who follow and believe the path of Christ, and with the example of Mary, and Joseph, set an example for nurturing inquisitive and critical-minded individuals, who without any wary or reservation, stands for what is right and what is just for the betterment of all. Siya Nawa!

December 19 *Fourth Sunday of Advent*Peace

Koko Alviar, Kalipunan ng Kristianong Kabataan (3KP)

https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/468655904946576042/

Ps 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19

Mi 5:1-4a

Heb 10:5-10

Lk 1:39-45

Today, we light the purple candle, the fourth of the four advent candles. This fourth one traditionally symbolizes peace. We had just come off the week of joy.

Nowadays, peace is a complicated word. So is joy.

As the world contends with various big issues — unpeace, inequity, overconsumption, the climate crisis, displacement — the anxiety over the future is palpable in the increasing number of people stricken with mental health concerns. Surveys everywhere say people are less happy and less trusting of institutions like their governments and even the press (thus, polarization and the preference for “fake news). Among young people, we find this existential sorrow in a profound disinterest in long-term commitments and good citizenship.

Yet, ironically, we also find an abundance of tools that allow us to pretend to be at peace or joyful. We are equipped with technologies with which we can take hundreds of photos, at no cost to us (unlike the film cameras that we used sparingly back in the day). We can hide behind filters and editing apps. We can look for the one photo (sometimes a dozen, to be honest) that appeals to us most then post it on social media, on which we conjure up an ideal persona — untroubled by the world, fulfilled, living the life. Of course, pretense will always fall short.

It may be difficult these days to find a true sense of peace and joy, even hope and love (the two other themes of advent), but wasn’t this always the challenge that came with the Advent wreath? After all, the practice originates in pre-Christian Germanic peoples, who thought the evergreen and the flame meant hope in the darkest days of the year. In Christian history, the custom was integrated toward the end of the fifth century, when the only season Christians observed was Lent. Patterned after the latter, Advent wants us to self-examine and repent but also — and particularly around this time — rekindle joy and find peace in the coming among us of Jesus with a great task up ahead: salvation.

Some connect the very fact that the third candle is pink and perhaps not red to the idea that it is a time for both introspection and rejoice. Violet or purple, as we know from Lent, is emblematic of penance, preparation and sacrifice.

Revisiting such a history, this writer finds that the best way to participate in Advent is in exhibiting “subdued joy.” That is the perspective today’s Christians must assume.

It’s easy to feel uneasy if one focuses on the dark realities that push us deep into hardship. It’s also easy to highlight the component of the faith that revisits our inadequacies as humans and then end up shrouded with guilt and hopelessness. On the other hand, it is also easy to choose unfettered joy and superficial peace in a hypercapitalist society, where the “blessed” become oblivious to the struggles around them or the “damned” suspend for a moment their thinking of their real passions and tragedies. If these extremes come almost readily, we must seek the middle ground where we acknowledge our faults but also encounter God’s grace; where we see disrepair but also remind ourselves of the teaching of compassion and the call to build peace; where we see joy in the season — in the sparkling lights and the many gifts and the cheery songs – and find that such a feeling is something we must pay forward.

In the Gospel reading, a pregnant Elizabeth exclaims what would turn into parts of the “Hail Mary,” declaring the blessedness of her cousin Mary for being chosen to bear the Holy Child. This episode began when “the baby leaped in her womb,” filled with joy and peace upon hearing its aunt’s voice. The elderly Elizabeth’s own miracle baby would turn out to be John The Baptist, a pivotal Biblical character. He cried out in the wilderness, preparing the way for Him. He baptized followers “with water for repentance” knowing that someone “more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry,” will do so with “the Holy Spirit and fire.” While living in obscurity like John did is not for all of us, we should find inspiration in the fact that he has kept that reassurance from the womb to the rest of his life, exemplifying “subdued joy.”

In terms Christians can understand and emulate, he lived simply and allowed people to “encounter Jesus.” These times, in fact, require us to do both if we are to pass on a livable world to future generations. The world’s fast-dwindling resources should be used responsibly; unjust structures are creating millions upon millions of anawim today. We must revisit the origins of these times and, from that radical point of view, rediscover what it means to be at peace and to sow peace.

“Subdued joy” is something we can express in solidarity and compassion, especially in this the season of giving. Why don’t we support products from companies that conduct themselves responsibly and enterprises that contribute to social justice? Why don’t we give by organizing community exposures and humanitarian responses to the vulnerable? Why don’t we provide platforms where the least, last and lost can speak and ensure that agenda-setters can hear them? Why don’t we evangelize with good works? Our sense of peace must lead us to the path of responsibility for the wellbeing of our siblings — to leap with happiness and then spread the comfort we have found by transforming the world for our Lord Jesus Christ.

As we seek the path of “subdued joy” in preparation for the birth of our shepherd and savior, may God restore us and make Their face shine on us. May God’s Peace be with us.##

December 12, 2021*Third Sunday of Advent*Joys and Sacrifices of Proclaiming God’s Jubilee 

Klein F. Emperado, Youth of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente

Zep 3:14-18a

Is 12:2-3, 4, 5-6

Phil 4:4-7

Lk 3:10-18

God’s coming into our midst is the cause of joy as shown in our Old and New Testament Readings for this week. The Holy One of Israel and the Sovereign God’s coming brings gladness and renewed vigor to the people who are in endless suffering due to captivity. The expectant joy of God’s people springs from the salvation brought by the coming of God’s promised Messiah. Our imagery of joy, from the Biblical times, is associated with victory, loud singing, a festival, and endless rejoicing among people whom God has visited and appeared to, a time when fear and disaster are no more – a jubilee as it can be called.

But further than the imagery of joy  in the Biblical narratives is the proclamation of God’s jubilee – the day of God’s favor.The   concept is not quite acceptable even by the leaders of the past and today. Jubilee is a radical concept characterized by liberation from all forms of oppression, bondage, slavery including unpaid debts, detention, and the restoration of relationships, in totality and without conditions.

Prophets of old and the present time continuously proclaim the jubilee – the year of God’s favor to all peoples, especially to those who are made captive by the oppressive rulers and systems that continue to dominate even our society today. The Gospel narrative in Luke calls us to a higher sense of becoming as person who are others-centered by sharing an extra coat to those who have none, food to those who are hungry and those who have nothing to eat. Despised tax collectors, who came to be baptized, are even challenged to collect not in excess from what is required. The questioning soldiers were told by Jesus to refrain from extorting money by way of threat or false accusations. There is that call to be satisfied with one’s wages and resources.

If today, the said prophetic proclamations are to be told to our government rulers, state forces, and legislators, the prophets would surely be red-tagged and vilified, and referred to as subversives. The said call to share one’s resources to the needy and those who have nothing in life can make one’s life in danger especially in the Philippines. Even those who selflessly desire to share to the needy by way of organizing a community pantry were tagged and maligned  by our own government authorities. Helping the poor is a dangerous act to be done here in the Philippines. Many were killed and imprisoned because of this act.

Even more, when our truth-tellers proclaim what is true and just, for the leaders to do away from committing corruption, extortion, threat, and deception, they are being called anti-government and against progress. These leaders of today would actually be enraged by the truth-tellers’ call to be satisfied from their honest earnings. Because in truth, what is true and just is not their “cup of tea” and is hard to accept with their selfish and greedy bodies and systems.

But amid the persecution experienced by truth-tellers since of old, there is that unfathomable joy and contentment in proclaiming God’s jubilee despite the dangers and threats one may be faced due to its radical message.

As forerunners of just peace, equity, and liberation, like John the Baptist, who announced the coming of the Messiah, the task is truly a challenge and may possibly cost one’s life while in the process. Announcing God’s jubilee would mean proclaiming that salvation does not only involve the soul but as well as the physical, mental, economic, social, and political aspects of our human life.

The holistic concept of salvation comes as a concrete embodiment of our belief and stand for God’s promised abundant life, a life lived to the fullest in John 10:10. But how can everyone experience life to the fullest when there only a few who are enjoying the bounty of resources? And the rest of the population are facing difficulties, dying in hunger, and grasping their last breaths due to extreme poverty and oppression.

And as a church, the forerunner of God’s coming reign, should we stay silent amid our people’s sufferings? Should we not use our prophetic voice to speak for those who are muted and silenced? Should we not look deeper and hear intently the desperate cries of the disadvantaged and underprivileged? Are we not called to be prophets of today at this time of untruth and deception?

The path taken by forerunners of God’s reign of truth, justice, compassion, and equity is a “road less traveled” – a path of selflessness, sacrifice, and self-denial. The cost of proclaiming God’s jubilee has caused the lives of prophets since of old – priests, pastors, nuns, bishops, church workers, labor union leaders, human rights defenders, peace advocates, medical and healthcare workers, environmentalists, journalists, lawyers, paralegals, farmers, fisherfolks and many other truth-tellers.

In truth, God’s jubilee brings great joy to the captive and oppressed people but those who are tasked to proclaim the year of God’s favor – the reign of just peace and abundant life, are faced with the challenges, struggles and realities of being vilified, maligned and red-tagged. We pray that truth-tellers and prophets of today may remain steadfast, faithful and may they delight in God’s righteousness and justice, despite the difficult path of prophetic witness today. Siya Nawa!

SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT*5 December 2021*Make the winding roads straight

Fr. Joey Ganio Evangelista, MJ, Malita Tagakaulo Mission,Diocese of Digos

https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/27092035232655157/

Ps 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6.

Bar 5:1-9

Phil 1:4-6, 8-11

Lk 3:1-6

We incessantly cross rivers, plod through mud, and climb mountains when we visit the Tagakolu  communities here in the highlands of Malita. To read John the Baptist’s proclamation from Isaiah on the Second Sunday of Advent stirs in me different feelings.

“Prepare the way of the Lord,

make straight his paths.

Every valley shall be filled

and every mountain and hill shall be made low.

The winding roads shall be made straight,

and the rough ways made smooth,

and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”

In a province where good infrastructure leads to the homes and farms of the wealthy and powerful while the Tagakolu become tenants on their own land, I cannot help but have conflicted feelings.

When shall the Lord come?

The coming of the Lord is an event that will change the world as we know it; it is not something that will solely take place in our hearts. It will not just be an individual personal experience but  will be communitarian as well. The various parables of Jesus in the gospels about the kingdom help us imagine how it shall be. It is something like the world we live in and yet very different.

The Season of Advent is a time for Christians to prepare for the birth of our Lord Jesus. At the same time, it is a reminder that we should not live our lives as if there were no tomorrow. Advent reminds us that we are a people of hope. The way we live our life each day should reflect this hope. John the Baptist’s proclamation to prepare the way of the Lord and to make straight his paths is not news of coming doom but a reminder of hope: the Lord shall indeed come!  To live a life of hope in the world we live in right now should be a striving to make straight paths, making low mountains and hills, and making the rough smooth.

The current situation in the Philippines has made even hope subversive. When people were going hungry during the pandemic and a woman thought of a way to help those who were going hungry and convince other people to share, she was branded a subversive. When another woman dared to report on the government’s war on drugs, she was bullied by the government. Another woman occupying the second highest office in the land had been sidelined by the government she served when she dared question problematic policies. These women showed Filipinos how hope looks

like in this godforsaken age of Duterte. They did not remain silent nor did they change sides when things seemed bleak.

This Second Sunday of Advent we are admonished to have a second look at how we understand what it means to repent. We are urged to look deeper at what it means to make straight the Lord’s paths, to fill the valleys, make low the mountains and hills, and to make smooth what is rough in a country where tyrants are buried as heroes, where the poor and indigenous peoples are treated like livestock, and where hope is red-tagged and considered seditious. The Christian understanding of repentance today is not merely sacramental, liturgical and sentimental. It is also that, but more

importantly, it is to hope and to strive to be a sign of the hope that the Lord shall indeed come! Let  us look to Ana Patricia Non, Maria Ressa and Leni Robredo and learn how it is to be a person of hope, how to make the winding roads straight in order to prepare for the coming of the Lord.