Friday, June 24, 2005
SATURDAY 12TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
JUNE 25, 2005
SATURDAY 12TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - YEAR I
GENESIS 18:1-15
The LORD appeared to Abraham by the Terebinth of Mamre, as Abraham
sat in the entrance of his tent, while the day was growing hot.
Looking up, he saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he
ran from the entrance of the tent to greet them; and bowing to the
ground, he said: "Sir, if I may ask you this favor, please do not go
on past your servant. Let some water be brought, that you may bathe
your feet, and then rest yourselves under the tree. Now that you have
come this close to your servant, let me bring you a little food, that
you may refresh yourselves; and afterward you may go on your way."
The men replied, "Very well, do as you have said." Abraham hastened
into the tent and told Sarah, "Quick, three measures of fine flour!
Knead it and make rolls." He ran to the herd, picked out a tender,
choice steer, and gave it to a servant, who quickly prepared it. Then
Abraham got some curds and milk, as well as the steer that had been
prepared, and set these before them; and he waited on them under the
tree while they ate. They asked him, "Where is your wife Sarah?" He
replied, "There in the tent." One of them said, "I will surely return
to you about this time next year, and Sarah will then have a son."
Sarah was listening at the entrance of the tent, just behind him. Now
Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years, and Sarah had stopped
having her womanly periods. So Sarah laughed to herself and
said, "Now that I am so withered and my husband is so old, am I still
to have sexual pleasure?" But the LORD said to Abraham: "Why did
Sarah laugh and say, `Shall I really bear a child, old as I am?' Is
anything too marvelous for the LORD to do? At the appointed time,
about this time next year, I will return to you, and Sarah will have
a son." Because she was afraid, Sarah dissembled, saying, "I didn't
laugh." But he replied, "Yes you did."
MATTHEW 8:5-17
When Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion approached him and appealed
to him, saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed,
suffering dreadfully." He said to him, "I will come and cure him."
The centurion said in reply, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter
under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed. For I
too am a man subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I
say to one, `Go,' and he goes; and to another, `Come here,' and he
comes; and to my slave, `Do this,' and he does it." When Jesus heard
this, he was amazed and said to those following him, "Amen, I say to
you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I say to you, many
will come from the east and the west, and will recline with Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven, but the
children of the Kingdom will be driven out into the outer darkness,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth." And Jesus said to
the centurion, "You may go; as you have believed, let it be done for
you." And at that very hour his servant was healed. Jesus entered
the house of Peter, and saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a
fever. He touched her hand, the fever left her, and she rose and
waited on him. When it was evening, they brought him many who were
possessed by demons, and he drove out the spirits by a word and cured
all the sick, to fulfill what had been said by Isaiah the prophet:
He took away our infirmities and bore our diseases.
REFLECTION
The story of the centurion and the cure of his sick servant has many
moral lessons for us. The main lesson is faith. Jesus says, "I sure
you, I have never found this much faith in Israel."
The faith of the centurion is his trust in the power of Jesus to cure
his servant. He believes that Jesus has power over sickness; He can
command the sickness of the centurion's servant to go away and it
will leave in the same way that the centurion commands his own
soldiers to come and go and they obey him. Sicknesses obey the
command of Jesus; and Jesus does not have to go to the house of the
centurion to cure the servant. All Jesus has to do is give the
command and the servant will be healed.
In our own lives, we go to Jesus when we or our relatives and friends
are sick, or asking for recovery from illness; however, Jesus expects
us to seek natural help by going to doctors and availing of medicines
to obtain a cure. God does not work unnecessary miracles; He expects
us to use available natural means. We rely on prayers; we also use
natural help.
The centurion's love and concern for his servant is also a good
example for us. In Our Lord's time, servants or slaves were reduced
to the level of things owned; even their life was at the mercy of
their masters. Their masters could kill them, if they wished. The
centurion exhibits a Christian treatment of his servant. He shows
love and concern.
The centurion belonged to the conquering people, the Romans who were
the conquerors of the Holy Land and were in control. Yet the
centurion shows respect and honor to Jesus, who belonged to the
conquered Jews. He considers himself unworthy to have Jesus visit his
house. "Sir ... I am not worthy to have you enter my house," e said
to Jesus. He has respect for Jesus, the wonder worker, and he has
respect for the conquered Jews.
It is good to review our lives, to see how much faith we have in
Jesus. We believe Jesus is God, the Second Person of the Trinity.
What is our trust in His power to help us? We should ask pardon for
the times we doubted His power to help us, His power to take care of
our loved ones.
The centurion's concern for his servant should remind us of our
obligation to love our neighbor, to treat others as our brothers and
sisters in God, to show Christian love for those over whom we have
some authority, like our employees, house helpers, drivers, janitors,
security guards or others. Our authority over others is a reminder
for us to serve them as Jesus served us, sacrificing his life for us.
PRAYER
"Heavenly Father, you sent us your Son that we might be freed from
the tyranny of sin and death. Increase my faith in the power of your
saving word and give me freedom to love and serve others with
generosity and mercy as you have loved me."
PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray ...
- for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
- for the birthdays of: Clara Isabel Autor, Lilian Capuchino-Vergara,
Jorel Mateo, Annlyn Faustino.
- for the eternal repose of the souls of Remberto, Florence and
Danilo. Eternal rest grant unto them and may perpetual light shine
upon them. May they rest in peace.
- for the personal intentions of JP.
- for the personal intentions of Lydia and family.
- Birthday blessings: Jasmin.
- for healing of Maria Alyssa Martina Balingit.
- for the eternal repose of the soul of Jaime Cardinal Sin, D.D.
Eternal rest grant unto him and may perpetual light shine upon him.
May he rest in peace.
- for the speedy recovery of Felicitas (Embi) Simeon.
- for the special intentions of Veronica Adriano, Noel Tanjeco,
Ernesto Tanjeco.
- for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Wedding Anniversary: Eric & Eunice Roxas
- In Memoriam: Mariano Chingtoco
- In Memoriam: Alfonso K. Luzuriaga Sr.
- for world peace and reconciliation.
Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our
prayers and for those who need our prayers the most.
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