May 1, 2022 *3rd Sunday of Easter* Peter became a different person – a Rock!

Sr. Gemma Dinglasan, RGS     

     

 https://www.psephizo.com/biblical-studies/the-miraculous-catch-of-fish-luke-5/     

Ps 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11-12, 13         

Acts 5:27-32, 40b-41      

Rev 5:11-14        

Jn 21:1-19 or 21:1-14

The Gospel reading describes Jesus’ encounter with Peter and the other disciples at the sea of Tiberias (Lake of Galilee) after the resurrection .While reading the Gospel I remember my days in Israel when I visited my Aunt who belongs to a missionary congregation in the Holy Land. The lake looks as ordinary as our Taal Lake and Wikipedia describes it as the lowest fresh water lake on Earth and the second-lowest  lake in the world at levels between 215 meters and 209 meters below sea level. I was there in October 2016, had my retreat on the other side of the Lake at Capernaum and enjoyed my silence along the shore of Galilee. One of my reflections during that time was on this gospel passage:

                “My only goal for every retreat and for every prayer period is to strengthen my relationship with God. Judas and Peter committed the same mistake of denying Jesus, and both of them repented (for Judas, it was described in the Gospel of Matthew) but Judas  killed himself while Peter spent all his energy, his whole being trying to identify the Risen Christ in others and duplicating God’s presence thru works of mercy and compassion. Without that deep relationship with Jesus, Peter, like Judas could have ended up hanging himself on a tree. Peter knows Jesus so well. It is only in prayer that I can reach that proximal zone of intimacy with God.”

In the encounter, Jesus asked Peter three times if he loves him. We all know how Simon Peter responded. The degree of his response commensurate to the weight of his denials. In today’s lingo, this is an example of a Rights-based approach. Jesus opened Peter’s senses to acknowledge and affirm his rights to free expression, his rights to recognize his self-worth by expressing his love to Jesus and upholds Peter as a rights-bearer rather than a mere duty-bearer. After that encounter, Peter became a different person – a Rock!

Rights-based approach is the fundamental component of the Theory of Change where the focus is on the process and the outcome. Peter recognized his strength – its empowerment, and became the leader of the Church. May the dynamism of the Spirit lead this Church to be more compassionate, dialogic, open and circular in all of Her actions.

Having this in mind, I want to end my reflection with a prayer for our Bayang Magiliw:

                Jesus, you chose the lowly Lake of Galilee to meet your successor who would continue your mission, please do the same for our country. Please choose the humblest yet most capable of running the country. The Filipinos deserve a better leader, one who relates with the poor, loves the poor and is poor. Amen.

     

April 17, 2022* Easter Sunday The Resurrection of the Lord *Lift High the Light of Christ 

Klein F. Emperado, Youth of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente

https://medium.com/@adamnicholasphillips/searching-for-signs-of-resurrection-amidst-a-pandemic-966dba10f39c

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

Acts 10:34a, 37-43

Col 3:1-4

Jn 20:1-9

A month ago, I received an invitation to craft the liturgy for the Ecumenical Easter Sunrise Service held annually by the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP). The first thing that came to my mind was on how to elaborate, through a contextual liturgy, the message of Jesus’ resurrection among our people who continually suffer and are hard-pressed due to the endless crisis on matters that involve the social, economic, political, health and the environment. 

Looking into the Gospel narrative of the resurrection from John, we could see two images of a woman – one who is weeping and the other one, proclaiming Jesus’ rising from the dead. The weeping woman in the narrative was Mary of Magdala, a faithful disciple of Christ who was mistakenly accused as a prostitute and a woman possessed with evil spirits according to past interpretations of patriarchal and sexist scholars.

Mary of Magdala or Mary Magdalene resembles the image of the “Inang Bayan” (Motherland) who endlessly weeps over the suffering, agony, and death of her children victimized by oppression, corruption, deceit, dehumanization and greed for wealth and position. The weeping woman today is seen in the mothers, wives and loved ones of the victims of extrajudicial killings, the false drug war and of those wrongly accused and illegally detained, innocent individuals. 

We are even led to a question of faith. If Christ has truly risen and triumphed over the world’s power and dominions, why do we still see around us the problems of poverty and suffering? Did Jesus triumph truly over evil and suffering? What is the message of Jesus’ resurrection today as we are faced with untruth, injustice, unpeace, and the worsening conditions of our people? 

Amid the pandemic and the worsening socio-political and economic situations, we are faced with these heartbreaking realities. Stomachs are grumbling. People die due to the lack of access to quality healthcare and medical services. Those in power trample upon human dignity and the basic rights of the people. Those who help the poor and speak the truth like church workers – Pastor Nathaniel “Dodo” Vallente (UCCP) and Kuya Aldeem Yañez (IFI), labor union leaders and activists are red tagged, accused, illegally arrested, and detained without any legal bearing. Persecution of truth-tellers, human rights defenders, development workers, peace advocates, and prophets of our time have worsened. The “Lumads” of Mindanao and other cultural minorities are harassed, killed, and incarcerated for their love of the ancestral land. Laborers are endlessly suffering from unjust treatment, low wages, and unsafe working conditions. Farmers and fisherfolks experience hunger and grave poverty due to the unjust government policies. Families of victims who fell prey to the false drug war campaign are threatened for rising against the injustices. Filipino migrant workers continue to experience oppression and slavery by foreign employers. Women continue to suffer maltreatment and injustice from people and systems subscribing to patriarchy. Children are peddled by their own families to online sex predators for financial gains. LGBTQIA community members are judged wrongly and gazed upon with much apathy. People living with HIV and AIDS are dehumanized due to our lack of empathy amid sufferings and hardships. Earth rights are violated, and the environment suffers from destruction. Calamities, both natural and human-caused, worsen the poverty among our people. The country yearns and hopes for a leader who will serve the interests of most of the population, especially those who are in the margins. 

These conditions and situations have dampened our spirits, crushed our beings, and entombed us into the darkness of desperation and frustration. We, like the “Inang Bayan” have been constantly weeping and wailing over the endless sufferings of our people. Our tears have dried but still we have felt that we have not grieved over the loss of people due to murders and the ongoing pandemic. We have been overwhelmed by grief, trauma, and hopelessness as if every single day was a journey to Calvary, bearing our heavy burdens and the cross of our suffering people. Our people have been experiencing their individual and collective crucifixions. They are left hanging and made to die without any help or support from those who promised them a good and better life during electoral campaigns. For all these, we continue to weep and mourn. 

But as we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, despite being hard-pressed, broken, crushed, persecuted, vilified, maligned, red-tagged, mutilated, and imprisoned in dark cells that resemble tombs, God enables us the body of Christ today – the churches and the communities of faith that profess Jesus as the Messiah, the one who is biased with the poor and the oppressed, to rise up and decry this tyrannical, oppressive, inhumane, destructive, punitive and cruel regime.

As the body of Christ today, we rise from the dark tombs to stand against powers and systems that dehumanize people and desecrate the whole of creation. The message and the challenge of the resurrection is rising and giving life to those who have lost hope, and even faith, to work and act for a better and just future. 

Meanwhile, we also focus on the image of the woman who proclaimed Jesus who rose from the dead. Despite deep grief and uncertainty, she ran to tell the disciples about the occurrence that Jesus’ lifeless body has disappeared in the tomb. Her courage to proclaim the resurrection amid the threat of persecution from the ruling powers resounds until today. The message of the resurrection is made even louder today with the proclamation of women who carry on with the struggle for liberation not just for themselves but for the greater community. Women must be given the right place not just in the resurrection story but in our life and ministry as churches and in the greater community. We must express our solidarity with them as they carry on with struggle for emancipation. 

In the Gospel narrative, we see the Risen Jesus lifting the spirit of the weeping woman who was in grave desperation. We see the woman until today weeping for the Jesuses who have been victims of oppression, slavery, exploitation, greed, and impunity of those in power. But as churches and faith communities, we are the body of Christ today and we are called today to lift the spirit of the “Inang Bayan” through our ministry of bearing the message of comfort, support, and solidarity with the oppressed and taken advantage of. 

For as we rise as Christ’s body, we give hope and inspiration for our people who struggle against adversities and oppression. For the triumph of Christ over darkness and death persuades us to proclaim what is good and just, advance the welfare of many, fight against evil and the self-vested interests of those in power. The resurrection of Jesus fortifies our faith and stance of advancing the liberating work of proclaiming the good news to the poor, freedom to the captives, sight to the blind, deliverance to the oppressed, and by reminding the people, through our bold prophetic witness, that the day of God’s favor, God’s reign will come into fruition. 

May we, in our efforts, proclaim our witness of the resurrection as we boldly declare, “We have seen Jesus” like the women and the disciples. Though not all people were given the opportunity to see and feel the resurrection in our daily lives because we are overwhelmed with sufferings and strife. 

So, what are the images of Christ’s resurrection for all of us today? We see Christ rising from the dead in the lives of women challenging the patriarchal systems and fighting against every maltreatment and oppression; youth and children dreaming for a better future for their own and the society; cultural minorities  striving hard to defend their traditions and the ancestral domain; workers and union leaders continuing the struggle for life-giving wages and safe working conditions; migrant Filipino workers yearning for upliftment of their own families and the nation; members of the LGBTQIA resisting discrimination and judgment of the society; farmers and fisherfolks rising up against oppressive systems and policies; people living with HIV and AIDS fighting for their rights to proper medical attention; families of the victims of the fake drug war rising up to claim justice for their slain loved ones; communities recuperating from typhoons, quakes and other calamities; and organizations and individuals advocating for earth rights by opposing reclamations, mining operations and many other environmentally-destructive acts. 

Indeed, Christ is alive among us today. Christ’s body has risen from the dark tomb. Christ’s body at present are the churches united to carry on with the task of proclaiming the truth to a society engulfed with lies, fake news, troll farms, revisionism, misinformation, and disinformation. The body of Christ in our present context – the church people, the clergy, and the laity, are called to struggle hand in hand against the evils with Christ’s everlasting Light. 

As Christ’s risen body at present, we are called to proclaim God’s justice and peace in all our works and ministries. We are then called to lift high the Light of Christ, proclaim God’s love that is unending and powerful enough to defeat darkness, death, and the evils of our time. Siya Nawa!

April 10,2022* Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion* From Where I Sit…Some Musings On Holy Week

Weena Meily, Association of Women in Theology (AWIT)

Nathan Simpson (Australian), “Jesus Entering Jerusalem,” 1999. Oil on canvas. https://www.wnd.com/2011/08/329273/; https://nathansimpson.com.au/

Ps 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24.         

Is 50:4-7         

Phil 2:6-11      

Lk 22:14—23:56         

Two saints are staring at me, Teresa De Avila and Charles De Foucauld. With two (probably) year-old dried palms beside their images at the left. And about four feet to the right Our Lady of Lourdes stands, not staring at me, but at the rest of the world. Then, moving a little more to the right, my gaze is graced by another saint, Dorothy Day. Then, I sweep my gaze , bend a little, there a lovely painting with a Filipino accent gives you a pause from this religious ocular excursion. Then again, I bend a little more, and another interesting framed image of Dorothy Day emerges with a Relic of Jesus’ cross housed in a simple, beautiful cross figure reliquary below it . And the final move, I twist my waist a little more, and behold, Therese of the Child Jesus, of the Little Way, the Little Flower, offers a loving look.

Now all these I am able to see from where I sit. No, I’m not in a religious museum. My seat at our dining table in Nazareth House (-catholic Worker, Manila) affords me this visional exercise. I was assigned here in this dining table space since I came in December, and has quite afforded me a lovely chance to have such a blessed view of all our Companions almost side-by-side, almost looking alive and telling me so much. And keeping watch of me and what I do, it seems. What a loving thing this is indeed! But what more loving thing it is to dwell in community with my roomies! As the Rev. Noel Bordador ECP has imprinted in my heart, “Community is the ascetic tool in the life of a catholic worker”.

It is reassuring and a feel-good experience to be watched over by the saints in this part where I live. But to stay and live in community with persons who are complete strangers, however brought together by compassion and love, can be a day-to-day struggle. Whether you live in a family with extended members or work in a workplace with a difficult boss and annoying co-workers, these pose challenges for us to live as Christians, as true followers of Christ. After all, Jesus’ life was not a life of prosperity, of pomp and exclusive benefits in a private club. Looks like it was more a life of intermittent comfort, of uncertainty, surprises, and a lot of truth-telling . Just like that kind of truth my companions in the House have revealed to me. The truth that is sometimes painful, hurting. But always freeing, liberating, humbling.
Today, we are entering into Holy Week. Interestingly enough, this is the only time when we have two gospel readings. One for the Procession of Palms, and the other, the main gospel reading , which is one of two of the longest set of readings in our liturgical celebrations (the longest of course, are the beautiful readings at Easter!) The gospel narratives depict Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, followed by his trial, torture and eventual death. In this entry into Jerusalem, we see this man sitting on a donkey (some say a colt, some an ass, whatever) with people surrounding him with shouts of Hosanna. Hosanna is a joyful Aramaic exclamation of praise, that seems to be specific to Jewish religious festivals. Must be a beautiful scene. In Luke, he shifts a bit to a longer ‘shoutout’ “blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! All happy shouting words of praise and waving palm branches. And today for us, the palms have been a holy symbol for Lent. And what with dried palms used to be burned into ashes and in turn used for Ash Wednesday’s practice. We are reminded. As these ashes are marked on our foreheads, they tell us a tale of humility, they call us to a life of compassion, they keep us in touch with Jesus’ life. Dried palm branches that remind us of our vulnerability, the inevitability of our end, and the assurance that in all of life’s seeming unrelenting suffering, there is a rising from it all.

Ash Wednesday to Palm Sunday, totals 40 days (counting the Sundays). It symbolizes Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness before embarking on a journey of fulfilling His Father’s Will , of announcing the Good News, of truth-telling that love encompasses all. The wilderness was a way of preparing himself for this ministry to fulfill God’s promise. To prepare himself for a more grueling life with hostile Jewish authorities. Because truth-telling was not an easy way to preach this good news. Jesus is an embodiment of the good news. He is the Emmanuel, the God-with-us. The incarnation of the promise of God, the Father. The flesh and blood of God’s Word. Here he is entering Jerusalem riding on a donkey. And palms waving, people singing Hosanna. It is almost Passover and this is an appropriate jubilant song. Here is the truth-teller, the prophet, some say the Messiah, the Son of God. And he is now at the edge of his life. This is a jubilant chaos. But a more messy chaos in this narrative is about to happen.

Our very own country is thrown into turmoil for the past 6 years. And what in a most terrible state in the past two years of a disordered, raunchy handling of the Covid 19 crisis. Extrajudicial killings continue, prices of commodities skyrocketing, rampant human rights violations, red-tagging and arrests of rights advocates with trumped up charges, an appalling unemployment rate leaving millions in dire conditions, we all know, that this country has been vulgarly mismanaged by equally vulgar and slovenly leadership. Let’s look at some stats here: The number of poor Filipinos grew by 3.9 million to 26.1 million individuals and of poor families by 4 million to 4.7 million between the 1st semester of 2018 to the 1st semester of 2021. And this is just according to the very low poverty threshold of Php79 per person per day.

Meanwhile, amid growing poverty, the wealth of the 40 richest Filipinos jumped to 30% in 2021. (read more, http://www.ibon.org ) Now, isn’t that infuriating? How can you be so happy with a spike on your wealth while your countryfolk are wallowing in a quagmire? I shuddered, and I thought I was convulsing.
We want change, we said. It seemed like everyone’s mantra. But how is that? My heart laments and as I take a breather in writing, I am caught by that Dorothy Day frame I mentioned earlier. “What we would like to do is change the world…By crying out unceasingly for the rights of workers, of the poor, of the destitute…We can throw our pebbles in the pond and be confident that its ever-widening circle will reach around the world.”(Dorothy Day, The Catholic Worker, 1946; read more, http://www.catholicworker.org) And it did reach these parts of the world. Standing up for human rights, fighting for justice, organizing the masses to learn to “read the signs of the times”, upholding and promoting the Social Teachings of the Catholic Church, reading the Word of God with the eyes of compassion , making peace a priority. We are faced with a turbulent Philippine state, but on top of this, we are keeping the torch of hope ablaze.
In about one month from now, millions will be going to the polls to vote for the next leadership. We are confronted with lies, deception, fake news, trolls abound. Social media has been exploited by people spreading disinformation. Here we are faced with yet another challenge as Christians- the task to help the misinformed unlearn, relearn and learn more about discernment. What is yet another laborious mission created by the atmosphere of doubt and distortion is indeed a colossal undertaking. What monster is this that seems to have possessed souls ? What ghoulish obsession is this that seems to have overcome the good? Again the poor lament, and cry out, as the Psalmist, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken us? My God, my God, why hast thou left us in misery? Where is your love? Where is your mercy? Where are you? And in the midst of this darkness, when all is barren, and parched, when hunger and thirst consume, hope emerges, buds grow. Our circles of discernment give us the grace to be brave, and strong and unfold rather than enfold, unravel rather than enshroud. Our little groups of engagement in learning the platforms of candidates for our future governance manifests the truth behind all the lies. We continue to hold on, be steadfast, vigilant, and never again allow the dark clouds of a dictatorship descend upon us. Our Passover is here, our crucifixion is inevitable. And so is our Resurrection. We rise from the rubble. We rise amidst uncertainty. We rise together.

From where I sit, I turn my gaze to these saints, these holy ones. They too have had their share of their own passion, death and resurrection. They have followed Jesus’ path unto death. We too are called now. This is our time. (I’d better stand and move! We have lots of work to do!)

April 3, 2022*Fifth Sunday of Lent* Pagpapalaya sa Babaeng “Nangangalunya”

Floyd Castro, St. Mark UMC

https://www.heqiart.com/store/p66/24
__Woman-Caught-In-Adultery_Artist_Proof_.html

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

Is 43:16-21          

Phil 3:8-14          

Jn 8:1-11

Ang gawa-gawang kaso.

Habang nagtuturo sa Templo, isang babae ang dinala ng mga Pariseo kay Hesus. Nahuli raw na nangangalunya ang babae at dapat batuhin hanggang mamatay, ayon sa Kautusan ni Moses. Tinatanong nila kung ano ang masasabi ni Hesus sa kasong ito.

Ayon na rin sa teksto, tinatanong nila si Hesus para subukin siya at makahanap ng maipaparatang sa kanya. Inaasahan nilang sa pagsagot ni Hesus ay maipapailalim siya sa tinatawag natin ngayon na, “public opinion” o “trial by publicity”. Habang ang kaso ng babae ang pinalalabas na pangunahing isyu, ang totoong pakay ay gusto lang nilang husgahan ng tao si Hesus base sa kanyang isasagot. Naghahanap sila ng maipaparatang sa kanya. Tila may kinalaman ang pakay na ito sa tanong ni Nicodemo sa John 7:51.

Totoo bang nahuli sa aktong nangangalunya ang babae? Kung nahuli siya sa akto, bakit wala ang lalaki – nakatakas, o pinatakas? O baka naman hindi totoong may lalaki at gawa-gawa lang ang kwento? Kung totoong nangangalunya, ayon sa Kautusan ni Moses, dalawa silang dapat patawan ng death penalty. Pero bakit kay Hesus dinala ang babae? Si Hesus ba (o ang mga guro/Rabbi ba) ang may authority para dinggin o litisin ang kaso ng pangangalunya? Wala ba silang korte o sadya lang talaga na hindi sila interesado sa katarungan?

Mapanghusga ang maraming tao. Popular ang pag-subscribe sa mga stereotypes. Kapag aktibista – komunista, terorista; kung drug addict – rapist, mamamatay-tao; ang kabataang mulat at marunong magtanong at mag-analisa – brainwashed! Kaya kung may ikukulong na aktibista gamit ang gawa-gawang kaso, marahil ang damdamin ng marami ay, “tama lang ‘yan” o hindi kaya ipagkikibit-balikat na lang. Kapag ang pinagbibintangang drug addict ay pinatay – minsan (sana hindi naman madalas), parang nakakahinga pa ng mas maluwag sa pagpapasalamat. Madulas ang pagtanggap sa kwentong, pinatay kasi nanlaban. Hindi ba importante ang buhay? Wala na bang halaga ang katarungan at katuwiran? Tulad ng pang-iipit na ginawa ng Pariseo kay Hesus, iniipit nila ang mga tao sa tanong na, “Hindi ba mas mabuti na ang drug addict ang mamatay kaysa makapang-rape o pumatay pa ng inosente?”

Nang marinig nila iyon, sila’y isa-isang umalis, simula sa pinakamatanda. Iniwan nila ang babaing nakatayo sa harap ni Jesus. (John 8:9)

In fairness sa mga Pariseo at elders – sa kwentong ito, madali nilang na-realize kung gaano ka-absurd ang pinapagawa nila kay Hesus. Bagamat alam natin na eventually ay mag r-retaliate sila sa ibang paraan, sa pagkakataong ito tinanggap nila na wala sila sa katuwiran. Hindi tulad sa panahon natin, kahit walang matibay na ebidensya – tinataniman para maakusahan. Kahit lumang kaso, binubuhay para lang maipakulong ang tinuturing na kaaway. Nanlalaban ang mga walang laban. Mag re-reproduce ng mga search/arrest warrants para patahimikin ang mga pumipiglas. Gagamitin ang resources ng publiko para lang harangin ang lahat ng banta sa interes ng mga nasa puder.

Diyos ng katuwiran, dalangin namin na iligtas mo kami mula sa kawalang-katarungan. Nagpapasalamat kami sa paglaya ni Dr. Naty Castro at patuloy na umaasang papanumbalikin mo ang kanyang sigla at lakas upang ipagpatuloy ang paglilingkod sa iyo. Inilalapit din namin ang paglaya ng iba pang mga bilanggong pulitikal. Lusawin nawa ng iyong liwanag ang mga kasinungalingang ipinaparatang sa kanila. Pinananabikan namin na sambitin mo rin sa amin ang salita ng pagpapalaya, “Hindi rin kita hahatulan. Umuwi ka na…” (John 11:11). Amen.