DAILY- HOMILY

MARCH 8, 2013
FRIDAY 3RD WEEK OF LENT – YEAR I

Hos 14:2-10 / Ps 81: 6c-8a. 8bc-9. 10-11ab. 14 and 17 / Mk 12:28-34

HOSEA 14:2-10
Return to your God Yahweh, O Israel! Your sins have caused your downfall. Return to Yahweh with humble words. Say to him, "Oh you who show compassion to the fatherless forgive our debt, be appeased. Instead of bulls and sacrifices, accept the praise from our lips. Assyria will not save us: no longer shall we look for horses nor ever again shall we say `Our gods' to the work of our hands." I will heal their wavering and love them with all my heart for my anger has turned from them. I shall be like dew to Israel like the lily will he blossom. Like a cedar he will send down his roots; his young shoots will grow and spread. His splendor will be like an olive tree, his fragrance, like a Lebanon cedar. They will dwell in my shade again, they will flourish like the grain, they will blossom like a vine, and their fame will be like Lebanon wine. What would Ephraim do with idols, when it is I who hear and make him prosper? I am like an ever-green cypress tree; all your fruitfulness comes from me. Who is wise enough to grasp all this? Who is discerning and will understand? Straight are the ways of Yahweh: the just walk in them, but the sinners stumble.

MARK 12:28-34
A teacher of the Law had been listening to this discussion and admired how Jesus answered them. So he came up and asked him, "Which commandment is the first of all?" Jesus answered, "The first is: Hear, Israel! The Lord, our God, is One Lord; and you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength. And after this comes a second commandment: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these two." The teacher of the Law said to him, "Well spoken, Master; you are right when you say that he is one, and there is no other besides him. To love him with all our heart, with all our understanding and with all our strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves is more important than any burnt offering or sacrifice." Jesus approved this answer and said, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.

REFLECTION
The scribe who questioned Jesus in today's Gospel about which commandment is "the first of all" is very familiar to all of us. If Jesus asks us today what the greatest commandment is, we too can probably recite perfectly that the first is: "you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart…"; and second is: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Yes, we know by heart the statement of faith, but are these words expressing our heart-cry to the Father? Can we remain in His love just by declaring our faith in Him?

What we lack isn't knowledge but power to live it out.

The greatest act of faith requires the greatest act of love. Love God above all things. If God is first in our life, then all other things will fall in their proper place. If we have a great relationship with Christ, then we will have a great relationship with our family and friends, our spouses, our children and grandchildren. If we love Christ, then we will know how to love our neighbor, how truly to love one another, and how to love ourselves. If we have experienced God's forgiveness, then we will know how to forgive those who have offended us. The First Commandment has to be first on our list, first in our hearts and minds, first in our life, first in our duties.

Does our love for other people stand in the way our love for God?

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.
… for the speedy recovery and healing of
- Eufrocina Navarro
- Toots Monfort
- Ditas dela Paz, Toots Monfort, Andy Lecaros, Virginia Hernandez, Mon Torres, and Fleur Torres
- Benny
… for the personal intentions of
- Eufrocenri Navarro
- Pauline
- Beny Chua
- Weng
… for the eternal repose of the souls of
- Bernadine Boychief
- David Orange
- Cliff Utter
- Msgr. William Van Ommeren
- Siervo P. Dizon
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: Krissil Kay E. Cardenas
- Birthday: Lanny Nañagas
- In Memoriam (+): Siy I. Chin Go
- In Memoriam (+): Francisco T. Ong, Sr.
… 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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