DAILY- HOMILY

FEBRUARY 2, 2011
FEAST, PRESENTATION OF THE LORD
WEDNESDAY 4TH WEEK OF ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II

Mal 3:1-4 / Ps 24: 7, 8, 9, 10 / Heb 2:14-18 / Lk 2:22-40 or 2:22-32

MALACHI 3:1-4
Now I am sending my messenger ahead of me to clear the way; then
suddenly the Lord for whom you long will enter the sanctuary. The
envoy of the covenant which you so greatly desire already comes, says
Yahweh of hosts. Who can bear the day of his coming and remain
standing when he appears? For he will be like fire in the foundry and
like the lye used for bleaching. He will be as a refiner or a fuller.
He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver.
So Yahweh will have priests who will present the offering as it should
be. Then Yahweh will accept with pleasure the offering of Judah and
Jerusalem, as in former days.

LUKE 2:22-32
When the day came for the purification according to the law of Moses,
Joseph and Mary brought the baby up to Jerusalem to present him to the
Lord, as it is written in the law of the Lord: Every firstborn male
shall be consecrated to God. And they offered a sacrifice as ordered
in the law of the Lord: a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.
There lived in Jerusalem at this time a very upright and devout man
named Simeon; the Holy Spirit was in him. He looked forward to the
time when the Lord would comfort Israel, and he had been assured by
the Holy Spirit that he would not die before seeing the Messiah of the
Lord. So he was led into the Temple by the Holy Spirit at the time the
parents brought the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom
of the Law. Simeon took the child in his arms and blessed God, saying,
"Now, O Lord, you can dismiss your servant in peace, for you have
fulfilled your word and my eyes have seen your salvation, which you
display for all the people to see. Here is the light you will reveal
to the nations and the glory of your people.

REFLECTION
Fathers care for their sons and daughters. If the journey the children
are taking takes a wrong turn, the fathers would bring themselves to
make the aforementioned change, to show that they do care about what
path their children take. God is the same in the sense that He wants
Jesus to make us realize things that would be better for our sake.

In the book of Hebrews, we are called to persevere in the face of
persecution, in this case, death. Jesus becomes just like us, to let
us know how to face death, to be able to share in our happiness, our
despair, and other emotions. He had a choice not to die, to plead to
his Father otherwise. But Jesus still died because he wanted us to be
free from death, to defeat sin. It would mean becoming one with God
again. "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal
life." [John 3:16]

And when we die, what is there beyond death? In Jesus' words, "Whoever
finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake
will find it" [Mt 10:39]. We are given a new life after death, to be
together with the angels, the saints, God and all the other heavenly
beings; to live in freedom and to be freed from the slavery of sin and
fear. Let us reflect on this as a new passage opens up to all of us:
if you were God . . . would you sacrifice your own son for the
salvation of mankind?

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Nel de Leon
- Jo Marcelo
- Jun Lee
- Marge, Frank, Gene, Maria, Cindy, Mildred
… for the personal intentions of Tito, Estrelle, Mei, JP, Danica,
Joaquin, Pe Aguirre Family
… In Memoriam: Santiago, Petronila, Emmanuel, Antonio, Violeta
… for the eternal repose of the soul of Gabriella Wong. 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: Fernando Felixberto
- Wedding Anniversary: Delfin & Josita Abadco
- Wedding Anniversary: Jimmy & Francoise Tee
- Wedding Anniversary: Melissa & JC Mercado
- Thanksgiving: Victor & Helen Yao
- In Memoriam (+): Valentino Chao (Feb 14, 1957-Feb 2, 1983)+
… 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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