DAILY- HOMILY

NOVEMBER 24, 2007
MEMORIAL, ST. ANDREW DUNG-LAC, PRIEST & COMPANIONS, MARTYRS
SATURDAY 33RD WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - YEAR I

1 MACCABEES 6:1-13
As King Antiochus was traversing the inland provinces, he heard that
in Persia there was a city called Elymais, famous for its wealth in
silver and gold, and that its temple was very rich, containing gold
helmets, breastplates, and weapons left there by Alexander, son of
Philip, king of Macedon, the first king of the Greeks. He went
therefore and tried to capture and pillage the city. But he could not
do so, because his plan became known to the people of the city who
rose up in battle against him. So he retreated and in great dismay
withdrew from there to return to Babylon. While he was in Persia, a
messenger brought him news that the armies sent into the land of
Judah had been put to flight; that Lysias had gone at first with a
strong army and been driven back by the children of Israel; that they
had grown strong by reason of the arms, men, and abundant possessions
taken from the armies they had destroyed; that they had pulled down
the Abomination which he had built upon the altar in Jerusalem; and
that they had surrounded with high walls both the sanctuary, as it
had been before, and his city of Beth-zur. When the king heard this
news, he was struck with fear and very much shaken. Sick with grief
because his designs had failed, he took to his bed. There he remained
many days, overwhelmed with sorrow, for he knew he was going to die.
So he called in all his Friends and said to them: "Sleep has departed
from my eyes, for my heart is sinking with anxiety. I said to
myself: `Into what tribulation have I come, and in what floods of
sorrow am I now! Yet I was kindly and beloved in my rule.' But I now
recall the evils I did in Jerusalem, when I carried away all the
vessels of gold and silver that were in it, and for no cause gave
orders that the inhabitants of Judah be destroyed. I know that this
is why these evils have overtaken me; and now I am dying, in bitter
grief, in a foreign land."

LUKE 20:27-40
Some Sadducees, those who deny that there is a resurrection, came
forward and put this question to Jesus, saying, "Teacher, Moses wrote
for us, If someone's brother dies leaving a wife but no child, his
brother must take the wife and raise up descendants for his brother.
Now there were seven brothers; the first married a woman but died
childless. Then the second and the third married her, and likewise
all the seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. Now at
the resurrection whose wife will that woman be? For all seven had
been married to her." Jesus said to them, "The children of this age
marry and remarry; but those who are deemed worthy to attain to the
coming age and to the resurrection of the dead neither marry nor are
given in marriage. They can no longer die, for they are like angels;
and they are the children of God because they are the ones who will
rise. That the dead will rise even Moses made known in the passage
about the bush, when he called `Lord' the God of Abraham, the God of
Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and he is not God of the dead, but of
the living, for to him all are alive." Some of the scribes said in
reply, "Teacher, you have answered well." And they no longer dared to
ask him anything.

REFLECTION
Today's Gospel contains Jesus' own teaching about life after death.
The occasion for this teaching was a deliberate attempt by the
Sadducees to make the idea of life after death look ridiculous. Life
after death is not an extension of our existence but something
totally new. It is not based on wishful thinking but on the nature
of God himself. Everything beyond that remains uncertain. The
resurrected life lies so far beyond our experience that it can be
described only in symbols and images.

Jesus assures us: "All are alive for God." The word "all" includes
those who are alive and the departed. Jesus speaks of going to his
Father's house to prepare a place for us. Jesus has done that, and is
waiting to welcome us to the place that he has already prepared for
us. Meanwhile our task is to prepare for that great event and
homecoming, not by worrying about the details but by living life to
the full. Jesus helps us to do this by offering us, through the
Eucharist, the treasures of his truth at the table of the word, and
the treasures of his love at the table of his body and blood.

When we encounter Jesus at the end of life's journey, will we be
meeting a familiar figure and well-loved friend? Or will God be a
stranger at whose approach we shrink in fear? The answer lies in our
hands. God permits us to choose what that great final encounter will
be like. It is up to us.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray ...
... for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
... for the strength, healing and speedy recovery of:
- Damaso Guevara, Eligia Fernando, Sr. Belen Latorre, DC
- Dennis Labayen and Mario Delariarte
- Fr. Santos Mena, S.J.
... for the personal intentions of Pe Family
... Good health: Fred and Nel de Leon and family
... In Thanksgiving: Jennette
... for the eternal repose of the soul of Tolentino Abu Sandoval.
Eternal rest grant unto him and may perpetual light shine upon him.
May he and all the dearly departed rest in peace.
... for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- In Memoriam (+): Estrella Yu Castillo
- In Memoriam (+): Bertran Yu Lai (Sep 19, 1965 - Nov 24, 1996)
... 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.

Have a good day!

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