DAILY- HOMILY

AUGUST 24, 2009
FEAST, BARTHOLOMEW, APOSTLE
MONDAY 21ST WEEK ORDINARY TIME – YEAR I

REVELATION 21:9B-14
The angel spoke to me, saying, "Come here. I will show you the bride,
the wife of the Lamb." He took me in spirit to a great, high mountain
and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from
God. It gleamed with the splendor of God. Its radiance was like that
of a precious stone, like jasper, clear as crystal. It had a massive,
high wall, with twelve gates where twelve angels were stationed and on
which names were inscribed, the names of the twelve tribes of the
children of Israel. There were three gates facing east, three north,
three south, and three west. The wall of the city had twelve courses
of stones as its foundation, on which were inscribed the twelve names
of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb.

JOHN 1:45-51
Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one about whom
Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus son of Joseph,
from Nazareth." But Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come
from Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see." Jesus saw
Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, "Here is a true child of
Israel. There is no duplicity in him." Nathanael said to him, "How do
you know me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called
you, I saw you under the fig tree." Nathanael answered him, "Rabbi,
you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel." Jesus answered
and said to him, "Do you believe because I told you that I saw you
under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this." And he
said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and
the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."

REFLECTION
Nathanael made quite an impression on Jesus. When Jesus first saw him,
he exclaimed, "There is an Israelite who deserves the name, incapable
of deceit." Nathanael was brought to Jesus by his friend, Philip, whom
Jesus had invited to follow him on the preceding day.

Philip, as a result of his first experience of Jesus was convinced
that he was the Messiah. So he urged Nathanael to accompany him to
meet Jesus. He told him that he himself, along with Peter and Andrew,
had found the Messiah, Jesus son of Joseph, from Nazareth. "From
Nazareth," Nathanael blurted out, "can anything good come from that
place?"

Philip had used an approach that didn't appeal to Nathanael. If today
we wanted to persuade a friend to become a Christian, to follow
Christ, how would we go about it? Perhaps we'd line up a series of
rational arguments and hope our friend would see them as proof that
Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. Perhaps though, few people would
be persuaded to believe in Jesus by rational arguments.

This, of course, is why Philip's attempt to persuade Nathanael failed.
He gave Nathanael a rational reason and Philip hoped it would lead
Nathanael to accept Jesus as the Messiah. So having failed, Philip
abandoned reasoning and said very simply to Nathanael, "Come and see
him for yourself." Nathanael went with Philip, was confronted with the
person of Jesus and believed.

Faith in Jesus can be found only in a personal relationship with him.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the strength and healing of:
- Brenda Domingo-Solis
- Lisa
- Francis Torres
- Shiappee
- Richy Ozoa
- Benjamin Reyes
- Eutiquio Atanacio
- Gertrudes M. Atanacio
… for the speedy recovery and strength of Elyssa
… for the personal intentions of
- Josheil Dapo
- Med Villanueva
- John Paul Urbina
- Arnold Cabatingan
- Crisanta Anas
- Leo Flores
… for the safety of San Juan de Dios Hospital
… good health: Diomedes C. Mallari
… for the eternal repose of the souls of
- Raul and Epifania Ylaya
- Luciano Soliven
Eternal rest grant unto them and may perpetual light shine upon them.
May they and all the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Dary B. Abad
- Birthday: Ricky V. Morabe
… for the healing and peace of all families

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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