DAILY- HOMILY

January 26, 2015 MONDAY, 3rd Week in Ordinary Time

Sts. Timothy and Titus, Bishops

Memorial, White

2 Tim 1: 1–8 / Mk 3: 22–30

[Sts. Timothy (d. 97) and Titus (d. 107) were both disciples of St. Paul the Apostle. St. Timothy was Bishop of Ephesus while St. Titus was Bishop of Crete. St. Paul wrote three pastoral letters to them.]

Reading: 2 Tim 1: 1-8

     From Paul, apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of his promise of eternal life in Christ Jesus, to my dear son Timothy.

     May grace, mercy and peace be with you from God the Father and Christ.

     I give thanks to God whom I serve with a clear conscience the way my ancestors did, as I remember you constantly, day and night, in my prayers. I recall your tears and I long to see you that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, so like the faith of your grandmother Lois and of your mother Eunice, which I am sure you have inherited.

     For this reason I invite you to fan into a flame the gift of God you received through the laying on of my hands. For God did not confer on us a spirit of bashfulness, but of strength, love and good judgment. Do not be ashamed of testifying to our Lord, nor of seeing me in chains. On the contrary, do your share in laboring for the Gospel with the strength of God.

Gospel: Mk 3: 22–30

     Meanwhile, the teachers of the Law who had come from Jerusalem said, "He is in the power of Beelzebul: the chief of the demons helps him to drive out demons."

     Jesus called them to him and began teaching them by means of stories or parables, "How can Satan drive out Satan? If a nation is divided by civil war, that nation cannot stand. If a family divides itself into groups, that family will not survive. In the same way, if Satan has risen against himself and is divided, he will not stand; he is finished. No one can break into the house of the Strong one in order to plunder his goods, unless he first ties up the Strong one. Then indeed, he can plunder his house.

     Truly, I say to you, every sin will be forgiven humankind, even insults to God, however numerous. But whoever slanders the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven: he carries the guilt of his sin forever."

     This was their sin when they said, "He has an evil spirit in him."

Reflection:

     St. Timothy was a companion and assistant of St. Paul the Apostle in his missionary work. Paul's confidence in him could be seen in how Paul would call on Timothy to do special mission in forming and strengthening the churches he wanted to reach.

     The first reading then is very apt at this time that Pope Francis calls on the Church to contribute to the New Evangelization through many different ways.

     St. Paul reminds everyone that gifts of "strength, love and good judgment" have been given us. These gifts are not to be kept in the dark but to be used to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These gifts are to inspire and give the faithful the necessary confidence in witnessing to the risen Christ who conquered death.

     Perhaps, we are asked to work with one another without fear in evangelizing the people we meet and work with. The "spirit of bashfulness" has no place at this time. What do we tell them? How do we tell them? When do we tell them about Jesus? There are groups in the Church that have started to do this. If we think we can contribute something in this area then maybe it is time to work and cooperate with them. Let us ask ourselves in our prayer, is God asking me to do this?

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER DIARY INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY 

     ERWIN B. MONTOJO

WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

     JOYCE GOTAMCO & SHERWIN CHAN

IN MEMORIAM (+)

     CHOA SI

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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