Saturday, October 20, 2012

 

29TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II

OCTOBER 21, 2012
Mission Sunday
29TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – YEAR II

Is 53:10-11 / Heb 4:14-16 / Mk 10:35-45 or Mk 10:42- 45

ISAIAH 53:10-11
Yet it was the will of Yahweh to crush him with grief. When he makes himself an offering for sin, he will have a long life and see his descendants. Through him the will of Yahweh is done. For the anguish he suffered, he will see the light and obtain perfect knowledge. My just servant will justify the multitude; he will bear and take away their guilt.

HEBREWS 4:14-16
We have a great High Priest, Jesus, the Son of God, who has entered heaven. Let us, then, hold fast to the faith we profess. Our high priest is not indifferent to our weaknesses, for he was tempted in every way just as we are, yet without sinning. Let us, then, with confidence approach the throne of grace; we will obtain mercy and, through his favor, help in due time.

MARK 10:42- 45
Jesus then called them to him and said, "As you know, the so-called rulers of the nations act as tyrants, and their great ones oppress them. But it shall not be so among you; whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you shall make himself slave of all. Think of the Son of Man, who has not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life to redeem many."

REFLECTION
Let us remember that the Church exists to evangelize. The Church, which is you and I, is missionary by nature. Through our baptism, we were baptized into this body of Christ, the Church. For better or for worse, we are symbols of Jesus Christ in the world. It is therefore our mission, our very lifeblood to see Mission Sunday, not as an outsider, but as someone called to be on mission.

Sadly, in the Church today many Catholics have been sacramentalized but not catechized: baptized but not formed in the teaching of Jesus and his Church. A certain lethargy has attached itself to the Church, making many of us spiritually anemic, reluctant to share faith with others. Almost like parasites, we eagerly receive the sacraments and other riches of the Church, but we hesitate to share it with others. We listen to God's Word, but are reluctant to proclaim it ourselves. We must ask ourselves, why? Is it because the Word of God has not embedded itself within us? Does Jesus mean anyone or anything to us at all?

An old principle goes: we cannot give to others what we do not have ourselves. Hence we need first of all to be "missionized." lf our Christianity is only a matter of rules and regulations like going to Church on Sundays and not eating meat on Fridays; if our faith is only a matter of convenience and not of conviction; if Christ is only a statue and not a person whom we really know, then we are certainly thinking and viewing Mission Sunday as an outsider. We will end up with excuses saying: "Not me, I am too busy; I am too afraid, I don't know to talk to others about Christ."

We need to have the faith level conviction in our intellect and in our heart. Once that happens, we will need no urging to witness to Christ. We will feel impelled from within to celebrate and share the life of Jesus. We must begin today because now is the acceptable moment of salvation. In our own corner of the world, let us light the lamp of Christ by what we say and how we live, by what we believe and what we stand for, and by the attitudes we manifest. Let these be seen and heard loud and clear at home, in our study and work place, in our neighborhood, and particularly with those who do not share our faith. May the people around us begin to see a difference in our lives, and let that difference be Christ himself. After all, he is there to inspire us every step of the way. Let us not forget that with his great commission: "Go make disciples of all nations," we also have his great promise: "Know that I am with you always until the end of time."

Mission Sunday is a day to thank God for our faith. Christ expects each one of us to never let a day pass without proclaiming God's message of salvation to those around us. None of us can say that we cannot be a good Christian, that we cannot pray, that we cannot offer to God our crosses for the salvation of our brothers and sisters. If we try, we shall discover that we can help to spread the kingdom of God far more that we think.

Let us keep in mind that there is no shorter way to heaven than helping others to reach there. And so, as we worship God today, let us pray we may have the courage to shout out and offer to all those around us Christ and his message of salvation for Christ is our lifeblood and theirs as well.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Belle Barrera
- Ma. Theresa O. Bernardo
… for the personal intentions of
- Med Villanueva
- Veronica Yap
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Nathan W. Lim
- Birthday: Hilarion Uy
- Birthday: Connie M. Paraan
… 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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