DAILY- HOMILY

February 20, 2009
Friday 6th Week in Ordinary Time

GENESIS 11:1-9
The whole world spoke the same language, using the same words. While
the people were migrating in the east, they came upon a valley in the
land of Shinar and settled there. They said to one another, "Come, let
us mold bricks and harden them with fire." They used bricks for stone,
and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves
a city and a tower with its top in the sky, and so make a name for
ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth." The
Lord came down to see the city and the tower that they had built. Then
the Lord said: "If now, while they are one people, all speaking the
same language, they have started to do this, nothing will later stop
them from doing whatever they presume to do. Let us then go down and
there confuse their language, so that one will not understand what
another says." Thus the Lord scattered them from there all over the
earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it was called
Babel, because there the Lord confused the speech of all the world. It
was from that place that he scattered them all over the earth.

MARK 8:34--9:1
Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them, "Whoever
wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and
follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but
whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the Gospel will save
it. What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit
his life? What could one give in exchange for his life? Whoever is
ashamed of me and of my words in this faithless and sinful generation,
the Son of Man will be ashamed of when he comes in his Father's glory
with the holy angels." He also said to them, "Amen, I say to you,
there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see
that the Kingdom of God has come in power."

REFLECTION
Perhaps if some prophet invited us to follow him and one of the
conditions was to suffer, we definitely would be having second
thoughts. Who in their right mind would freely choose to take a path
filled with hardship, pain and misery? At the onset, the journey looks
more precarious than it should.

That's why love becomes the essential factor here. Soldiers engage in
battle not because they know that death is a high possibility. They
fight to defend our country and those nearest and dearest to them even
at the risk of offering up their own lives. Students don't voluntarily
undergo the mental challenges of long tests and exams because they are
masochists. They study because they want to make the best of this
blessing given to them by their families.

We follow Christ not because it will be a walk in the park. It is our
loving commitment to him as he demonstrated this total dedication to
us by his death on the cross. That is the true cost of discipleship.
It would be nice to take a leisurely stroll and occasionally enjoy a
cup of coffee at a local café as we stay on this path of light. But
there will be moments of darkness and uncertainty. When the going gets
rough, will our Lord still find us by his side?

Let us continue to pray for the grace of persistence. No matter what
happens to us today and in the coming days, may we always find
ourselves at the service of the one who loved us first.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the healing and strength of:
- Sophia Gonzalez
- Christy Chin
- Sister Teresa Mabasa, DC
- Jocelyn Bulan
… for the personal intentions of
- the family of Maria Josheil Dapo
- Mary Wong and KL
… for the eternal repose of the souls of
- Aurea Magcamit
- Manuel Go
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: Franz A. Saw
- Wedding Anniversary: Conrado & Dolores Flores
- In Memoriam: Dr. Celso de los Angeles, Sr.
- In Memoriam (+): Arturo Chong Munoz (Dec 22, 1928-Feb 19, 2003)+
- In Memoriam (+): Feliciana M. Marin
… 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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