DAILY- HOMILY

APRIL 12, 2011
TUESDAY 5TH WEEK OF LENT – YEAR I

Nm 21:4-9 / Ps 102:2-3, 16-18, 19-21 / Jn 8:21-30

NUMBERS 21:4-9
From Mount Hor they set out by the Red Sea road to go around the land
of Edom. The people were discouraged by the journey and began to com
plain against God and Moses, "Why have you brought us out of Egypt to
die in the wilderness? There is neither bread nor water here and we
are disgusted with this tasteless manna." Yahweh then sent fiery
serpents against them. They bit the people and many of the Israelites
died. Then the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned,
speaking against Yahweh and against you. Plead with Yahweh to take the
serpents away." Moses pleaded for the people and Yahweh said to him,
"Make a fiery serpent and set it on a standard; whoever has been
bitten and then looks at it shall live." So Moses made a bronze
serpent and set it on a standard. Whenever a man was bitten, he looked
towards the bronze serpent and he lived.

JOHN 8:21-30
Jesus said to the Pharisees, "I am going away, and though you look for
me, you will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come." The
Jews wondered, "Why does he say that we can't come where he is going?
Will he kill himself?" But Jesus said, "You are from below and I am
from above; you are of this world and I am not of this world. That is
why I told you that you will die in your sins. And you shall die in
your sins unless you believe that I am He." They asked him, "Who are
you?"; and Jesus said, "Just what I have told you from the beginning.
I have much to say about you and much to condemn; but the One who sent
me is truthful and everything I learned from him, I proclaim to the
world." They didn't understand that Jesus was speaking to them about
the Father. So Jesus said, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man,
then you will know that I am He and that I do nothing of myself, but I
say just what the Father taught me. He who sent me is with me and has
not left me alone; because I always do what pleases him." As Jesus
spoke like this, many believed in him.

REFLECTION
The kind of questions that the Pharisees throw back at Jesus shows not
just their inability but their unwillingness to understand him. After
all, many others who heard the same words "came to believe him." What
separates the two groups, and to which of them do we belong?

The verse immediately preceding the gospel situates the conversation
in the Treasury, and thus offers a key to the Pharisees' mindset. In
the Temple, the Pharisees are made keenly aware of their wealth and
power causing them to turn a blind eye towards Jesus who tells them
that they must be "above this world" if they are to truly understand
his essence. They are like the rich man mentioned elsewhere in the
gospel who becomes downcast when Jesus tells him that he must sell all
his belongings if he is to become a true follower. The second group –
those who understood Jesus - likely comprise the Pharisees' subjects,
poor folk who own very little precisely because the Pharisees had
extracted so much from them. Unless we become less attached to our
worldly possessions, we will find ourselves no different from the
Pharisees and miss out on the true meaning of Jesus' message.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Mrs. Borja
- Mr. Roland and Mrs. Elaine PDL Cuenca and Russell
… for the personal intentions of:
- Wilfredo L. De Leon
- Pauline
- Josheil Dapo
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Julia Chua
- Birthday: Virginia Davide
- Birthday: Joseph Comon
- Birthday: Ana Melissa Yao Bate
- Birthday: Melinda Rodrigue (60th Bday)
- Wedding Anniversary: Jose Sr. & Lilia Lim
- Presbyterial Ordination: J. Cesar R. Marin, SJ
… 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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