DAILY- HOMILY

December 11, 2013

Wednesday 2^nd Week of Advent - Year I

Memorial, Saint Damasus I, pope

Is 40:25-31 / Ps 103: 1-2. 3-4. 8 and 10 / Mt 11:28-30

Isaiah 40:25-31

To whom, then, will you liken me or make me equal? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes and see: who has created all this? He has ordered them as a starry host and called them each by name. So mighty is his power, so great his strength, that not one of them is missing. How can you say, O Jacob, how can you complain, O Israel, that your destiny is hidden from me, that your rights are ignored by Yahweh? Have you not known, have you not heard that Yahweh is an everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth? He does not grow tired or weary, his knowledge is without limit. He gives strength to the enfeebled, he gives vigor to the wearied. Youth may grow tired and faint, young men will stumble and fall, but those who hope in Yahweh will renew their strength. They will soar as with eagle's wings; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and never tire.

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to me, all you who work hard and who carry heavy burdens, and I will refresh you. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart and you will find rest. For my yoke is good, and my burden is light."

Reflection

This gospel passage speaks to everyone of us. For who among us has not felt overburdened about one thing or another? All of us have experienced being tired of work, of a particular problem, of a heavy trial, and of our sins. If only we could, we would run away from all of these. Christ today comes to our help by inviting us to approach him for he is the answer to the heavy yoke we carry. He does not say, "I will take away your yoke." Instead he says, "Come to me, all you who labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke…" And he promises rest for our souls. How could Christ's yoke be easy? When we imagine Christ's yoke, we usually think of the cross he carried which does not seem light and easy. The image that Christ uses is paradoxical but true. It is wisdom for the simple.

When Christ teaches us how to pray, he tells us to ask for our daily bread. Our daily bread is everything we need each day, whether physical or spiritual. Every kind of grace we receive is exactly what we need to become more united to Christ. One daily bread is the daily cross Christ provides for us. Why is it our daily bread? It is our daily bread because in our daily cross we meet Christ. We can become one with him as long as we answer his call to come to him. The weight of our cross can crush us, but if we draw near Christ when we are experiencing a burden, he will make it light for us. Often our burdens are unbearable because we resist them. It is this resistance that makes our travails heavy. But if we learn from Christ who did not resist the passion prepared for him by his Father, we will find our crosses easy and light to bear. After his agony in Gethsemane, when he finally accepted to enter into the will of the Father, Jesus entered into his passion and death with deep serenity and majesty. The battle was already won on that night of intense prayer and supplication. The prophecy of Isaiah in the first reading is fulfilled in Christ. "He strengthens the powerless…those who hope in Yahweh renew their strength." For the cross is the power of God. As St. Paul said, "It is when I am weak that I am strong" (2 Cor 12:10).

Prayer Requests

We pray …

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

… for the speedy recovery and healing of

-               Eric

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

… for the personal intentions of

Lina Magcamit

Pauline

Beny Chua

Joshua Chua

… Birthday: Fred de Leoin  

… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.

Birthday: Joana Mari G. Villanueva

Birthday: Mark Allan C. Camposagrado

Wedding Anniversary: Christopher & Lesley Meoli

Thanksgiving: Jed Patrick L. Go

… 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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