Grace and Mercy

Imagine yourself with Jesus at Gethsemane on the night He was about to be arrested. The apostles were sleeping soundly and it was only you and Him awake. He is in a somber mood as He prepares to pray before His impending arrest, humiliation and unimaginable persecution. He looks at you lovingly and ask you this question, “Who do you think should I exclude in my mission of salvation?”

Immediately, a collective number of people ran into your mind.

Your drunkard good-for-nothing father.

Your overly critical mother who talks normally in decibels similar to jet engines.

Your wayward brother who spends his whole life doing nothing with his barkada.

Your philandering husband.

Your nagging wife.

Your drug-addict and ungrateful child.

Your evil-scheming in-laws.

Your two-timing boyfriend.

Your too demanding girlfriend.

Your unbelievably rude next door neighbor.

Your irritating boss.

Your more irritating colleagues.

Your annoying business-partner.

That undoubtedly corrupt politician.

That hard-hearted murderer.

That despicable abortionist.

That fake and pretentious preacher.

That filthy and smug rich person.

You are still discerning who to choose and have not spoken out your thoughts yet when the Lord reaches out for your hand. Once again, with love in His eyes He speaks, “Do you believe that I can embrace all their sins and offer them my salvation as well?”

“You would?”, you asks hesitantly, “But why?”

“Because I love them all despite of and in spite of,” He says,”..and as long as they repent and sin no more, then I will welcome them in Paradise.”

Something is bothering you at that moment. You wanted to keep it to yourself but you just have to know.

“So what about us who are being wronged by these people? It seems unfair that they get away with their misdeeds and still go to heaven, isn’t it?”

The Lord smiles, “Well, for those people who experience injustices and persecutions, I am offering them more.”

He continued, “I want them to experience my Peace, the kind of peace not the world can offer.”

“And when you have this peace, you will already experience heaven while you are still on earth”, He assures.

“Please give me this peace, Lord so I can experience heaven on earth”, you pleaded.

“Yes, but with one condition”, Jesus pauses.

“You must visit me tomorrow while I hang on the cross, and let all your anger, vengeance and hatred be nailed into the cross with me. For good measure, offer your prejudices and indifferences as well”, as He gently re-assures you, “Your attitide and outlook towards these sinners will dramatically change. You will see them not as oppressors but as directionless souls that needs guidance and mercy. You will see them not as harmful persons but hurting beings as well. You will now see them as God’s children”.

“ And then, my peace shall reign upon you, because my love will finally flow through you”.

As Jesus kneels to pray, you start to walk away pondering about His invitation on Calvary tomorrow.

Will you come?

Mercy is not receiving what we do deserve. Grace is receiving what we do not deserve.

May the Lord’s peace be with us always.

- March 30, 2010

Differential Diagnostics

House M.D. is a popular TV medical series about Dr. Gregory House that is now on its sixth season. Dr. House is a highly-talented and intellectual character who heads the Diagnostic Department of Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital that solves the most trivial and mysterious illnesses a lot of average doctors could have easily misdiagnosed. They work and solve cases in a “race against time” to give curative solutions to life-threatening illnesses. This is mainly the reason why even his anti-social, abrasive, addictive and unethical and atheistic personality is minimally protested by his own diagnostic team and even by the hospital administration.

In order for Dr. House’ team to solve their medical mysteries, they often engage themselves in what they called “differential diagnostics” where all the possibilities are discussed and debated upon to hopefully narrow down the choices for them to initiate calculated treatment. Between all the highfalutin medical terms and jargon, the basic components of their differential diagnostics boils down to two – symptoms and cause. As Dr. House would often assert that, “the symptoms will never lie and the cause can never be denied.”

Holy Week is just around the corner.

Unfortunately, a lot of us maybe still approaching this holy season with a spiritual affliction weighing us down. Some are still hooked on pornography and lustful thoughts. Some may still be hot-tempered. Some may still have a lot of anger and hatred brewing inside them against people they perceive to be evil-personified. Some still see themselves as spiritually-cut above the rest leading them to self-righteousness. Some are deeply attached to worldly fame, power and wealth. Some finds lying a norm and stealing subjective.

Fortunately for us Catholics, there is an equally efficient “differential diagnostics” for our spiritual afflictions to know the symptoms and causes and in order for us to approach the most loving way to repent and mend our ways. The Catholic Church in instituting the sacrament of Reconciliation has provided us with the most basic steps to self-spiritual diagnosis and fulfillment of receipt of God’s mercy and forgiveness.

(Recommended reading is 1422-1498 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for full understanding of the sacrament of Reconciliation; or copy-paste this link into your browser – http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p2s2c2a4.htm )

1. Examination of Conscience.

Our church has always given us guidelines like the Ten Commandments, Gospel readings and apostolic preachings as helpful guides towards attaining a good self-examination.

This step, when performed in utmost sincerity, can lead to fully knowing the symptoms and causes of our sinfulness. If you feel helpless at home and at work or a seething anger from sunrise until sundown, or even a simple uneasiness inside you during most of the day, then you know that something is amiss. If you can see and feel a sense of animosity or indifference from other people towards you, then it may likely be that you have done something wrong against them. Which begs you to ask this question intimately to yourself – What have I done wrong? What good have I not done? to those people around me and to myself? Most often than not, the honest replies to our own questions lies the righteous answers.

Be aware so we can repent.

2. Be Sorry for our Sins.

I once read before about one theologian asking this thought-provoking question – “Would Adolf Hitler have gone to heaven had he repented before his death?” To which his superior replied, “God’s mercy is limitless and His love is endless that no sin can supplant. If (and that is a big “if”) Hitler is able to become truly sorry for what he has done, then he will be forgiven and he can go to heaven.”

Jesus was still hanging on the cross when he forgave the thief and promised his place in heaven after his death. That thief has lived a wayward and criminal life all-throughout but was forgiven at the last minute because that last minute was the minute he was truly sorry for his sins and seek God’s forgiveness.

Be truly sorry and be open to forgiveness.

3. Act of Contrition

This is closely related to being sorry for the sins because this involves the firm resolution to not commit the same sin again. Efforts must be made to ensure that the trappings of the temptations of the same sins will not easily over-run our resolve to live a righteous life.

On the other hand, not everybody believes that getting up from their stumbling blocks, even if it means several times, is also acceptable. Excluding willful recidivism, sinners who acknowledge their weakness and dependence on God understands that holiness is the part of the journey of forgiveness and not the end-all be-all. When we make the commitment to resolve not to sin, we also entrust ourselves to His mercy and not to our own capability alone. The former inspires us to recover many times. The latter opens a trap for hopelessness. Our faith stagnates. This defeats the merciful purpose of God. Let us stand strong against temptations but weak in front of God’s call to repentance.

Be weak in order to be strong.

4. Confession

The confession (or disclosure) of sins, even from a simply human point of view, frees us and facilitates our reconciliation with others. Through such an admission man looks squarely at the sins he is guilty of, takes responsibility for them, and thereby opens himself again to God and to the communion of the Church in order to make a new future possible. (CCC 1455)

Be heard through God’s shepherds.

5. Perform our Penance

Many sins wrong our neighbor. One must do what is possible in order to repair the harm (e.g., return stolen goods, restore the reputation of someone slandered, pay compensation for injuries). Simple justice requires as much. But sin also injures and weakens the sinner himself, as well as his relationships with God and neighbor. Absolution takes away sin, but it does not remedy all the disorders sin has caused.⁶² Raised up from sin, the sinner must still recover his full spiritual health by doing something more to make amends for the sin: he must “make satisfaction for” or “expiate” his sins. This satisfaction is also called “penance.” (CCC 1459)

Be good because God is good.

This Lenten season, let us all be spiritually healed to be spiritually blessed and refreshed.
Always remember that our spiritual health is our heavenly wealth.
God bless.

1 John 1: 8-10

If we say, "We are without sin," we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing. If we say, "We have not sinned," we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

- March 14, 2010

Hidden Acts

ASH WEDNESDAY

First Reading : J1 2: 12-18
Second Reading : 2 Cor 5:20 – 6:2
Gospel : Matthew 6: 1-6, 16-18

And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.

Our small family ministry Maia Outreach Programs has been barely over a year since it started. And by the amazing prayers, support and donations from friends and relatives, we are deeply blessed to be able to become God’s humble messengers of love and hope to some of the poor kids in our parish and even beyond that.

However, once in a while, something is bugging my mind and giving restlessness to my soul. As a result of our occasional and parochially approved solicitations, we need to send out information flyers (e.g. email notices or print-out letters) giving details to each particular project. After the project is over, I am obliged to make a short summary or report to all those who have donated how the money they shared were spent. It is during these times I feel alluded to being like those hypocrites in Jesus’ time that “blows trumpet" at the onset and aftermath of doing something righteous. I am torn between keeping a silent hand at work and informing others about our projects.

It took sometime but I needed to wait for the Lord’s assurance for peace to finally settle in my heart. Only then did I recognize (once again) the difference between the true good-doer and the good-show-er.

It all depends to whom love is directed.

Reflection:
A good-show-er does good for the love of himself. He is one who does so that others may see and to win the praise of others. He makes the intentional effort to be recognized for his good actions. To put it simply, his true motivation is to get love rather than to give love.

A good-doer does good deeds for the sole reason of loving of God and loving others. Other people may or may not see, may or may not praise his good deeds but he just keeps on loving anyway. He simply want to give love.

Prayer:
Dear Lord, please always cleanse my heart and purify my thoughts that my loving actions for others will always and only be the love coming from You towards them. Make me a humble channel of Your love. Amen.

- Feb. 17, 2010, posted on KerygmaFamily Forum

Our Favorite Bread

We are proud of our Zek.



Eversince he learned how to give alms, mostly in kind, to the poor beggars on the streets, he has always been on the look-out for them and would eagerly ask anything from us for anything he can give out. And with an innocent understanding of what being poor is, he looks directly at the beggar’s face while handing out his alms then walks away with a joyous smile, knowing that he is able to help another person in need.



One incident though posed a huge challenge for his generosity towards the poor. After a short visit to a tree and plant nursery for Zek’s homeschool activity (see related blog link with the title “Let us Go Green" - http://zeksantos.i.ph/blogs/zeksantos/2009/12/), we passed by the small bakeshop that my wife regularly buys bread from. While inside the car and waiting for his mother, I caught a glimpse of an elderly beggar a few feet away from us. I called Zek’s attention towards the elderly while handing over a packed loaf of sweet bread from his mother’s bag.



Zek was motionless as a statue until he started to shed a tear in silent protest. I was caught off-guard with his reaction and inquired in the same instant, “Why are you crying Zek?"



“Daddy, this is my favorite bread and I am hungry now" , he said in breaking his silence about his unusual reaction to his alms-giving opportunity.



How truthful his declarations were.



After nearly two hours inside the tree nursery, he is much ready to devour any food that catches his attention. He is really hungry. I also remember my wife telling me before that that bread is really one of his favorite bread. He can finish one loaf by himself with very little time to spare.



Right then and there, I needed to re-assure him.



“Zek, I know that you are already hungry and that this is your favorite bread, but you know mommy is out there in the bakeshop at this moment and buying another of your favorite bread for you to eat. She is also buying a good drink to go along with it for you to enjoy your snack more. Lolo over there, however is really more hungry than you and he has no more mommy to buy him this bread."



Zek hesitated and seemed to prolong his non-response. He still was visibly sad but after a longer after-thought, he went down the car and run towards Lolo and gave his favorite bread.



He came back to the car at the same time his mother arrived from the bakeshop. And as Zek was about to feel sad again about losing his favorite bread, his mother pulled out another loaf of bread – exactly the same kind which was actually under the bag which I failed to notice when I got the first one. Not only that, his mother showed him more breads bought from the bakeshop.



Zek was still sad but we knew that he understood in his young heart that we, his parents, know his needs and will provide for him no matter what.



He just needed to trust us.



A few more clock ticks and New Year is here.



While most of us are busy making personal resolutions to gain or improve our health, wealth and overall well-being, it should also make sense for us to pause and reflect what “favorite breads" of us are we willing to depart from in order to further serve the Lord in the coming year.



There are two types of “favorite breads".



One type spoils and harms the soul. These are our favorite sins that we have become so accustomed to that it become like second skin for us. Lying, manipulation, corruption, injustice, rumor-mongering and gossiping, addiction to vices, spousal infidelities, bad temper, unforgiveness are to name a few. These things must top our agendas of things-to-avoid in the coming year.



Another type of “favorite breads" are more difficult to depart with because they bring happiness and fulfillment. Suffice to say, they are, at times, even essential. However, they can still hinder us from realizing our real calling and purpose in God’s over-all plan.



Think about these situations.
A man giving up his love of a lifetime to become a priest.
A wealthy man giving up his hard-earned belongings for the poor.
A couple leaving the comforts of simple living and braving hunger and persecution in far-flung areas to become missionaries of God’s love.



Of course, there will always be a “confused Zek" in us when these times of calling arrive into our lives.
We can be sad.
We can be anxious and wary.
We can protest in silence.
We can be fearful at what the future will hold for us and our loved ones.



However, we must take the time to listen to Him.



We can rest on His gentle voice that lovingly assures us of His guidance and providence.
In the end, we can and should trust in His promise.
Because His promise is always true.


After all, He is our Bread of Life.


Happy New Year to all.
God bless.


- December 31, 2009

Parousia

Six days a week, I need to drive about 54 kilometers to get to our office and another 54 kilometers to go back home. With at least 9 traffic-intersection lights, minimum 14 remote high-speed monitoring CCTVs, a moderate volume of vehicles big and small and the countless surprise-me-with-a-sudden-street-crossing pedestrians and two-wheeled motor incursions from outermost to innermost lane and vice-versa along the way, my colleague and I reach our home-destination at the normal and safe travel time of an hour plus fifteen minutes.

It is not that easy but it is necessary at the moment.

It may be a bit tiring at times, but nothing a sufficient amount of rest and a cup of coffee can not handle.

Besides, I just have to recall back in the late 90’s when my friend and I needed to travel at least 3 hours from Bulacan to Laguna just to go to work, and I know that my present situation is a lot better. That time, we needed to wake up at 4am just to be sure to arrive on time at the start of the office hour at 8am.

With this commute, going home is much more pleasant and a lot exciting as well for me. After the stressful work, I just want to be with my wife and energetic son and listen to their day’s recap of activities and happenings. As soon as the door starts to open and my son’s head peeking out and asking about his transformer robots as my wife give me her subtle and tender kiss, a warmth feeling of welcome envelops my whole self.

I am home.

In a few more days, we will begin the preparation for the coming of Lord Jesus Christ. After being recognized and crowned as “Our King” this Sunday, the Advent season will officially start according to our Catholic tradition which also signals the start of the new liturgical year. Advent was historically known as "little Lent," because, like Lent, it is a time of repentance, with prayer, fasting, and confession before the Lord’s nativity or as we commonly known as Christmas.

The main questions that will be asked of us during this period will be – Will Jesus be welcomed in our individual heart when He shows up? Will we open the door to welcome Him at the sound of His footsteps arriving? Will we excitedly tell Him our stories of struggles and triumphs in life and unconditionally be grateful to His graces and mercies? Are we willing to give Him that loving embraces and kisses that He so longingly waits from each one of us.

Dear friends, our Lord has suffered in unspeakable and unimaginable terms during His first travel on earth in order to save each and every one of us.

Now let us make His second journey into our hearts a worthy and pleasing experience for Him.

Let us all make Him say with pride, “I am home”.

The term parousia is a Greek word which literally means "presence" or "coming," and refers to the eventual second coming of Jesus Christ in the end times. This last Sunday’s gospel - Mk 13:24-32, Jesus has foretold his second coming not as a fearful event to avoid but a day full of hope for those who look up to the Lord. Thanks to Bishop Tagle’s enlightening explanation of this “apocalyptic” gospel reading in his TV program “The Word Exposed” every Sunday 7am at TV channel 5.

- Nov. 19, 2009

Hot Coffee Anyone?

Three persons in three different situation.

Bobby has just recently lost his high-paying job of 2 years. He has an
ailing mother to support and needing medical attention, 4 children to
send to school and a 30,000-peso monthly mortgage payment that will be
due by the end of the current month.

Bobby has now unspeakable inner joy.

Sarah is in total grief when his boyfriend left her for another girl after
more than their three years of being in a relationship. She can not stop
wondering what made him leave her despite her all-out show of love for him
and his apparent profession of undying love for her as well.

Sarah was devastated but still hoping for them to get back together.

Jeremy is in deep thought after losing a lot of his personal belongings in
a recent typhoon-spawned flood that inundated the first floor of the flat he
was renting in the metropolis. Of all his possessions, he was particularly
sad and anxious how to replace his personal laptop that he is using for his
toxic job in an advertising firm. His meager salary will not be enough to
buy him a replacement for at least a year.

Jeremy is relieved at what happened.

Three persons with opposite responses to their situations.

So what made Bobby and Jeremy respond in their own positive way while Sarah
reacted differently?

Bobby and Jeremy both saw the blessing behind the trials while Sarah refused
to even look beyond her pain.

Bobby's firm, as he was slowly finding out in the last months, has been
actively involved in illegal activities to corner lucrative government
contracts. He himself was almost forced to sign-approve one over-priced
project that would undoubtedly given him fat under-the-table bonuses but
would, with absolute certainty, sent him to jail for such criminal misdeed.
He refused and was fired instead.

Jeremy, in the past years, has been addicted to pornography and his personal
laptop has been his all-the-time-anytime free cyber-pass to his hidden
sinfulness. And so, no matter how intent he was to change his behavior, his
laptop inside the privacy of his room has posed a grave hindrance on his
many failed attempts to mend his way. With the flood, this sinful agent is
gone and Jeremy has more leverage to limit and control his desire to view
internet pornography.

Sarah, on the other hand, knew very well that her boyfriend has another girl
even at the start of their relationship yet she still blindly accepted him.
He admitted to all his other-girls-on-the-side activities with the promise
that she will ultimately be the only one for him. He is a
more-than-occasional drinker and hot-tempered as well with a strong
inclination towards violence. Sarah, however, refuses to see the bigger
picture and she is bound to have more serious hurts and pains in the future.

Does God really allow us to have pain and trials to protect and save us from
more severe painful situations in our future lifetime and, above all,
eternal condemnation ?

Yes, I believe so.

I never fully understood it myself until my son Zek was about 2 years old.
At that time, he was starting to grab and hold anything that captured his
attention. Much to my and my wife's worry, he caught a glimpse of the flame
in the gas stove and wanted to touch it. We could not stop him with verbal
reminders and warnings about how those hot flames can seriously harm him. He
was bent on finding out what this flame is about. My wife finally thought
about letting Zek experience a managed hot temperature by allowing him to
touch our mugs with hot coffee. Finally, he understood and learned what
"hot" means and how painful it was to be touched. Henceforth, his curiosity
to touch the hot gas-stove flame was gone.

It is really up to us to learn from any bad and painful situation, to
respond positively and to faithfully believe that God has the bigger picture
in sight for each and everyone of us.

So the next time there is a trial facing us, let us reflect on it and ask
ourself this question - Is God re-directing me or wanting to protect me and
my family?

His disguised blessings can only be made clear by accepting His plan with
absolute humility and Spirit-inspired gratitude.

God bless us all.


- October 13, 2009

Kay Tagal

After months of hiatus due to our host country's restriction of social network sites and blogs, I can finally write (or post) some of the topics I have written.

So here they go..... :)