DAILY- HOMILY

November 19, 2013

Tuesday 33rd Week in Ordinary Time - Year I

2 Mac 6:18-31 / Ps 3: 2-3. 4-5. 6-7 / Lk 19:1-10

2 Macabees 6:18-31

Eleazar, one of the prominent teachers of the Law, already old and of noble appearance, was forced to open his mouth to eat the flesh of a pig. But he preferred to die honorably than to live in disgrace, and voluntarily came to the place where they beat him to death. He spit out bravely the piece of meat, as should be done by those who do not want to do things prohibited by the Law, even to save their life. Those in charge of this impious banquet took him aside, since they had known him for a long time, and tried to convince him to pretend to be eating the meat, but in reality, to eat something allowed by the Law and prepared by himself. In this way, he could escape death, and be treated with humanity for the sake of their long-time friendship. But he preferred to make a noble decision worthy of his age, of his noble years, of his shining white hair, and of the irreproachable life he had led from childhood. Above all, showing respect for the holy laws established by God, he answered that he would rather be sent to the place of the dead. And he added, "It would be unworthy to pretend at our age, and to lead many young people to suppose that I, at ninety years, have gone over to the pagan customs. If I led them astray for the sake of this short life I would bring disgrace to my old age. Even if I could now be saved from mortals, I cannot—whether living or dead—escape from the hands of the Al - mighty. I prefer to bravely sacrifice my life now, as befits my old age. So I shall leave an excellent example to the young, dying voluntarily and valiantly for the sacred and holy laws." Having said this, he gave himself over to death. Those who escorted him considered his words foolishness, so their previous gentleness turned into harshness. When he was almost at the point of death, he said groaning, "The Holy Lord, who sees all, knows that though I could have saved myself from death, I now endure terrible sufferings in my body. But in my soul, I suffer gladly because of the respect I have for him." In his death, he left a noble example and a memorial of virtue and strength, not only to the

young but to the whole nation.

Luke 19:1-10

When Jesus entered Jericho and passed through the city, a man named Zaccheus lived there. He was a tax collector and a wealthy man. He wanted to see what Jesus was like, but he was a short man and could not see him because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed up a sycamore tree. From there he would be able to see Jesus, who was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him Zaccheus, "Zaccheus, come down quickly, for I must stay at your house today." So Zaccheus climbed down and received him joyfully. All the people who saw it began to grumble, and said, "He has gone as a guest to the house of a sinner." But Zaccheus spoke to Jesus, "Half of what I own, Lord, I will give to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone, I will pay him back four Times as much." Looking at him Jesus said, "Salvation has come to this house today, for he is also a true son of Abraham. The Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost."

Reflection

We are all Zaccheuses. We are also short due to our SHORTcomings, frustrations and failures. In the end, the bottom line is that we don't feel fulfilled. Something is missing in our lives. And it is good to realize this and not live in alienation. At a certain point in our lives, we need more, we want more. And this ardent desire pushes us to climb a tree. We try to achieve, try to climb, try this and that. Until Jesus sees us in all our efforts and says: " Come down quickly for I must stay at your house today." This is what Christ is doing. He wishes to come to our house, not our office nor in the mall, but in our house, in our hearts. Christ tells us that there is no need to have great achievements, or accomplishments to deserve him. Christ comes willingly and unconditionally to love and stay in our hearts. We may have been trying to climb up the tree to heaven, and we realize we can never reach heaven, so God has sent Christ to come down and carry us to heaven, to enter our houses and stay in our hearts. He has forgiven our sins, and has loved us when we were evil. This is the love of God manifested in Jesus Christ which brings about our conversion and a gratitude that impels us to love others also. The fruit of this love is charity in all its forms for other people.

Have we discovered this joy that Zaccheus has received? Because today, Christ desires also to enter into our house and stay with us. Let us welcome him.

Prayer Requests

We pray …

… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.

… for the speedy recovery and healing of

Joy Droke

Ditas dela Paz, Toots Monfort, Virginia Hernandez, and Fleur Torres

… for the eternal repose of the souls of

Carmen Raffinan

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.

Wedding Anniversary: Emelinda & Dr. Timoteo L. Yu

In Memoriam (+): Esperanza V. Austria

… 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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