DAILY- HOMILY

MARCH 10, 2009
TUESDAY 2ND WEEK OF LENT – YEAR I

ISAIAH 1:10, 16-20
Hear the word of the LORD, princes of Sodom! Listen to the instruction
of our God, people of Gomorrah! Wash yourselves clean! Put away your
misdeeds from before my eyes; cease doing evil; learn to do good. Make
justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan's plea, defend
the widow. Come now, let us set things right, says the LORD: Though
your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow; Though they
be crimson red, they may become white as wool. If you are willing, and
obey, you shall eat the good things of the land; But if you refuse and
resist, the sword shall consume you: for the mouth of the LORD has
spoken!

MATTHEW 23:1-12
Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying, "The scribes
and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses.
Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do
not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice.
They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people's
shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. All their
works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and
lengthen their tassels. They love places of honor at banquets, seats
of honor in synagogues, greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation
`Rabbi.' As for you, do not be called `Rabbi.' You have but one
teacher, and you are all brothers. Call no one on earth your father;
you have but one Father in heaven. Do not be called `Master'; you have
but one master, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your
servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles
himself will be exalted."

REFLECTION
In the book of Isaiah, the Lord clearly tells us to do good and to
turn away from our evil ways. There is always something to reform in
ourselves. So we must exert all our efforts to ridding ourselves of
the sin that easily clings to us.

The Gospel sends an even stronger message – let us not be Christians
for show. Let us not look for honors or special treatment. Instead,
let us seek the last place, to be the servant of all like Jesus
Christ. To achieve this, we need a lot of humility. Humility comes
from the Holy Spirit. This is the message of today's Gospel.

Jesus wants us to be different from the world. To be a new creation.
And what is this new creation? The Servant of Yahweh. The Son of God
who went to the cross to be crucified for our sins. This is true
humility. The cross is a stumbling block for the Jews and madness for
the Gentiles. But for a Christian, it is the power and wisdom of God
(cf. 1 Cor 1: 23- 24). With Christ as our leader and example, we can
now enter into humility and accept humiliations because he has forged
a path for us – from the cross to resurrection.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the healing and strength of:
- Sophia Gonzalez
- Ester Marcelo
… for the personal intentions of:
- Nitz Carvajal
- Pauline
… for the safety of Johnson Cuiting
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Leticia G. Martinez
- In Memoriam (+): Uy Se King
- In Memoriam (+): Jesus F. Magsaysay
- In Memoriam (+): Andrew Ng
… 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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