DAILY- HOMILY

JULY 15, 2011
MEMORIAL, ST. BONAVENTURE, BISHOP, DOCTOR
FRIDAY 15TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR I

Ex 11:10—12:14 / Ps 116:12-13, 15-16, 17-18 / Mt 12:1-8

Exodus 11:10—12:14
Moses and Aaron had worked all these marvels in the presence of
Pharaoh, but Yahweh had made Pharaoh obstinate and he would not let
the people of Israel leave his country. Yahweh spoke to Moses and
Aaron in the land of Egypt and said, "This month is to be the
beginning of all months, the first month of your year. Speak to the
community of Israel and say to them: On the tenth day of this month
let each family take a lamb, a lamb for each house. If the family is
too small for a lamb, they must join with a neighbor, the nearest to
the house, according to the number of persons and to what each one can
eat. You will select a perfect lamb without blemish, a male born
during the present year, taken from the sheep or goats. Then you will
keep it until the fourteenth day of the month. On that evening all the
people will slaughter their lambs and take some of the blood to put on
the doorposts and on top of the doorframes of the houses where you
eat. That night you will eat the flesh roasted at the fire with
unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Do not eat the meat lightly cooked
or boiled in water but roasted entirely over the fire—the head, the
legs and the inner parts. Do not leave any of it until the morning. If
any is left till morning, burn it in the fire. And this is how you
will eat: with a belt round your waist, sandals on your feet and a
staff in your hand. You shall eat hastily for it is a passover in
honor of Yahweh. On that night I shall go through Egypt and strike
every first-born in Egypt, men and animals; and I will even bring
judgment on all the gods of Egypt, I, Yahweh! The blood on your houses
will be the sign that you are there. I will see the blood and pass
over you; and you will escape the mortal plague when I strike Egypt.
This is a day you are to remember and celebrate in honor of Yahweh. It
is to be kept as a festival day for all generations forever.

Matthew 12:1-8
It happened that Jesus walked through the wheat fields on a sabbath.
His disciples were hungry, and began to pick some heads of wheat and
crush them to eat the grain. When the Pharisees noticed this, they
said to Jesus, "Look at your disciples; they are doing what is
prohibited on the sabbath!" Jesus answered, "Have you not read what
David did when he and his men were hungry? He went into the house of
God, and they ate the bread offered to God, although neither he nor
his men had the right to eat it, but only the priests. And have you
not read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the Temple
break the Sabbath rest, yet they are not guilty? I tell you, there is
greater than the Temple here. If you really knew the meaning of the
words: It is mercy I want, not sacrifice, you would not have condemned
the innocent. Besides the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."

REFLECTION
The Gospel today is trying to tell us what the essence of Christianity
is. Many people think it is a matter of just fulfilling certain
obligations like going to Mass on Sunday, being honest at work and
providing for our families. Still others who are moralistic think of
Christianity as a list of do's and don'ts. Still others think that to
be Christian means to suffer a lot and to be generous to the poor. The
truth is, it is all that and more.

Basically, to be Christian is to be merciful as our heavenly Father is
merciful. What is mercy? For the Jews, mercy means to have compassion
on others, especially the weak, the oppressed and the downtrodden. For
them, another aspect of mercy is the tenderness that God feels for his
children, for us. God's mercy has been shown to sinners time and time
again. His love is always meant to lift us up from our failures, our
faults and our betrayals and put us into the kingdom of His beloved
Son. Only God can love like this. Only He can show this kind of mercy.

Yet we are called to be merciful like God. We can do this if we
understand and experience God's immense love for men. We must be
connected to Him as branches are to a vine. We must pray of ten and
receive the sacraments worthily. Lastly, we must truly believe that
our mission on earth is to be loving and merciful as God is. It is
possible to be merciful, even to those who hurt or persecute us. For
this, we have Jesus as our example and model.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Fr. Luis Sierra, OP
- Manuel Alapide
- Jo Marcelo
- Jun Lee
- Father William VonAllman
… for the personal intentions of
- Andrew
- Nikolai Cortez, Aydin Cortez, Karl Cortez, Maureen Cortez, Rex
Cortez
- Josheil Dapo
- Pauline
- Estelita Escamilla- Andrew
- Glenda and Joel Bisco
- Ma. Fe and Florante De Castro
- Fe Edralyn and Domingo Barayoga Sr.
- Churchill and Marichu Barayoga
- Mary Ann Castro
- John Dale and Glenn Dale Manzon
- Pinky Siblio
- Julie Manzon
… Birthday: Samuel Besana, Julie and Glenn Manzon
… In Thanksgiving: Manzon and Barayoga Families
… for the eternal repose of the souls of
- Lutgarda Sison Cortez
- Ong Chong Chong
- Joel Dingcong
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: 1st Neo Catechumenal Communities MTQ -1975
- In Memoriam (+): Pablo S. Chan +
… for families who are in need of healing
… 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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