DAILY- HOMILY

MARCH 22, 2011
TUESDAY 2ND WEEK OF LENT – YEAR I

Is 1:10, 16-20 / Ps 50:8-9, 16-17, 21, 23 / Mt 23:1-12

ISAIAH 1:10, 16-20
Hear the warning of Yahweh, rulers of Sodom. Listen to the word of
God, people of Gomorrah." Wash and make yourselves clean. Remove from
my sight the evil of your deeds. Put an end to your wickedness and
learn to do good. Seek justice and keep in line the abusers; give the
fatherless their rights and defend the widow." "Come," says the Lord,
"let us reason together. Though your sins be like scarlet, they will
be white as snow; though they be as crimson red, they will be white as
wool. If you will obey me, you will eat the goods of the earth; but if
you resist and rebel, the sword will eat you instead." Truly the Lord
has spoken.

MATTHEW 23:1-12
Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, "The teachers of the
Law and the Pharisees sat on the seat of Moses. So you shall do and
observe all they say, but do not do as they do, for they do not do
what they say. They tie up heavy burdens and load them on the
shoulders of the people, but they do not even raise a finger to move
them. They do everything in order to be seen by people; so they wear
very wide bands of the Law around their foreheads, and robes with
large tassels. They enjoy the first place at feasts and reserved seats
in the synagogues, and being greeted in the marketplace and being
called `Master' by the people. But you, do not let yourselves be
called Master because you have only one Master, and all of you are
brothers and sisters. Neither should you call anyone on earth Father,
because you have only one Father, he who is in heaven. Nor should you
be called leader, because Christ is the only leader for you. Let the
greatest among you be the servant of all. For whoever makes himself
great shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be made
great."

REFLECTION
How should we serve and obey God? There are many ways: "Cease to do
evil. Learn to do good, search for justice, help the oppressed…" (Is
1:16). But Jesus says, "The greatest among you must be your
servant." (Mt 23: 11). Indeed, there are many ways we can serve the
Lord, just as the Pharisees and scribes thought they were doing, but
we must do these with utmost humility. Otherwise it would be
hypocrisy, arrogance and vanity to think that we were accomplishing
God's work on our own. Jesus goes further to emphasize this point when
he later washes the feet of his disciples and says, "Do to others what
I have done to you."(Jn 13:15)

How and whom should we serve, then? We must show charity to those
among whom God has placed near us: our parents, children, spouse,
officemates, classmates, clients, neighbors, even the people who serve
us, like helpers, waiters, etc. We don't need to look far from where
we are to give a smile, a word of encouragement or a listening ear, to
do God's work daily. The most important thing is that we do these
regularly, with love and humility, without looking for recognition or
gratitude.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Ferdinand T. Laxamana
- Marge, Irene C, KD, Kristin, Maria, John C, Frank & Gene
- Pamela, Juday, Darlita, Godofredo, Lydia & Jennette
- Teodora Amaranto, Fernando Ma Nlangit, Roselyn Cagadas, Jason
Ortile
… for the personal intentions of:
- Mary Wong
- Nick
- Med Villanueva
… Birthday: Ab Villanueva, Lourdes Manlangit, Dexter Calleja, Cookie
Manzanero, Jimson Manzanillo, Fernando Manlangit, Rica Dee
… for the eternal repose of the soul of Gloria Punsalan. Eternal rest
grant unto her and may perpetual light shine upon her. May she and all
the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Mersol Suba
- Birthday: Fr. Aristotle Chan Dy, S.J.
- Birthday / In Memoriam (+): Dr. Horacio and Tony Bulaong
- In Memoriam (+): Co Go Bee Ngo
- In Memoriam (+): Chua Tiat
- In Memoriam (+): Rectorino S. Bate
… 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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