DAILY- HOMILY

JANUARY 14, 2010
THURSDAY 1ST WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II

1 SAMUEL 4:1-11
For all Israel, the word of Samuel was as the word of Yahweh; since
Eli was very old and his sons persisted in their wicked behaviour
towards Yahweh. It happened at that time that the Philistines mustered
to make war on Israel and Israel went out to meet them in war,
pitching camp near Ebenezer while the Philistines pitched camp at
Aphek. The Philistines drew up their battle-line against Israel, the
fighting was fierce, and Israel was beaten by the Philistines: about
four thousand men in their ranks were killed on the field of battle.
When the troops returned to camp, the elders of Israel said, 'Why has
Yahweh caused us to be beaten by the Philistines today? Let us fetch
the ark of our God from Shiloh so that, when it goes with us, it may
save us from the clutches of our enemies.' So the troops sent to
Shiloh and brought away the ark of Yahweh Sabaoth enthroned on the
winged creatures; the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, came with
the ark. When the ark of Yahweh arrived in the camp, all Israel raised
a great war cry so that the earth resounded. When the Philistines
heard the noise of the war cry, they said, 'What can this great war
cry in the Hebrew camp mean?' And they realised that the ark of Yahweh
had come into the camp. At this, the Philistines were afraid; for they
said, 'God has come into the camp. Disaster!' they said. 'For nothing
like this has ever happened before. Disaster! Who will rescue us from
the clutches of this mighty God? This was the God who struck down
Egypt with every kind of misfortune in the desert. But take courage
and be men, Philistines, or you will become slaves to the Hebrews as
they have been slaves to you. Be men and fight.' So the Philistines
gave battle and Israel was defeated, each man fleeing to his tent. The
slaughter was very great: on the Israelite side, thirty thousand foot
soldiers fell. The ark of God was captured too, and Hophni and
Phinehas the two sons of Eli died.

MARK 1:40-45
A man suffering from a virulent skin-disease came to him and pleaded
on his knees saying, 'If you are willing, you can cleanse me.' Feeling
sorry for him, Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him and said to
him, 'I am willing. Be cleansed.' And at once the skin-disease left
him and he was cleansed. And at once Jesus sternly sent him away and
said to him, 'Mind you tell no one anything, but go and show yourself
to the priest, and make the offering for your cleansing prescribed by
Moses as evidence to them.' The man went away, but then started freely
proclaiming and telling the story everywhere, so that Jesus could no
longer go openly into any town, but stayed outside in deserted places.
Even so, people from all around kept coming to him.

REFLECTION
Such is the price of fame when word gets around. Jesus heals a leper
and now it has become all but impossible for him to enter a town or
village without him drawing attention. That's why he chooses to stay
on the outskirts of a residential area, and still people flock to see
him.

Perhaps, the writer here wanted to express how magnanimous a
personality Christ was and continues to be. For one to attract such
crowds there had to be something more than just the miracles. There
had to be some connection the masses felt to be so drawn to our
Savior. There had to be some message people longed for and could only
find it in Jesus.

Healing is a loving act. Whatever may inhibit us from becoming fully
alive in our everyday actions should be a grave concern. Because,
we're never truly happy when there's a scar on our soul. More than the
physical handicap seen by the naked eye, the inner wounds and ill
feelings affect us psychologically and somehow manifest on our bodies.

When we long for the Master's touch for cleansing, for us to be made
whole, a new life is reborn. We feel more alive than we've ever been.
It's difficult to blame the healed leper's enthusiasm, who for so long
had been shunned by society. Hopefully, we can be just as happy when
we allow God to take away all that disturbs our minds and extremities,
so that we can be found rejoicing in his love once more.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the strength and healing of:
- Brenda
- Gemma
- David Danao
- Francis Torres
- Mon Torres
- Jessy
- Tess Aquinde
… for the personal intentions of:
- Joaquin
- Mariano Montemayor
- Milen
- Lachi
… In Thanksgiving for all the blessing received: Aviles family
… for the eternal repose of the souls of Go Bon Shu.
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.
- Birthday: Fil Christian M. Cruz
- Birthday: Shay Canon
- Birthday: Elizabeth Dee
- Birthday: Heidi Caro
- Birthday: Amador L. Reyes, Jr.
- Birthday: Dr. Ma. Fides Pacheco
- Birthday: Rosa B. Cua
- Wedding Anniversary: Brian & Ria Cassandra Salonga
- In Memoriam (+): Florencia B. Cabrera
… 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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Parish Priests' e-mail:
Fr. J. Cesar R. Marin, S. J. parishpriest@marythequeen.org

Assistant Parish Priests' e-mails:
Fr. R. Hart, S. J. rodneyhart@marythequeen.org
Fr. Thomas O'Gorman, S. J. thogorman@marythequeen.org
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