DAILY- HOMILY

November 2, 2017 - November 2, 2017 - ALL SOULS

Commemoration of All The Faithful Departed

Violet

Wis 3: 1- 9 / Rom 5: 5 - 11 / Jn 6: 37- 40

     Rooted in ancient Christian tradition from the second century, St. Odilo of Cluny (962 - 1049) established a commemoration of all the faithful departed in 988, which was accepted in Rome in the 13th century.

FROM THE FIRST READING:          Wis 3: 1 - 6

     The souls of the just are in the hands of God and no torment shall touch them. In the eyes of the unwise they appear to be dead. Their going is held as a disaster; it seems that they lose everything by departing from us, but they are at peace.

Though seemingly they have been punished, immortality was the soul of their hope. After slight affliction will come great blessings, for God has tried them and found them worthy to be with him; after testing them as gold in the furnace, he has accepted them as a holocaust.

FROM THE 2ND READING:            Rom 5: 6- 9

     Consider, moreover, the time that Christ died for us: when we were still sinners and unable to do anything. Few would accept to die for an upright person; although, for a very good person, perhaps someone would dare to die. But see how God manifested his love for us: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us and we have become just through his blood. With much more reason now he will save us from any condemnation.

GOSPEL READING:           Jn 6: 37- 40

     Jesus said, "All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me, I shall not turn away. For I have come from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of the One who sent me.

     "And the will of him who sent me is that I lose nothing of what he has given me, but instead that I raise it up on the last day. This is the will of the Father, that whoever sees the Son and believes in him shall live with eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day."

REFLECTION

     The practice of praying for the faithful departed goes all the way back to the early Christian era when names of the deceased were posted in places of worship so that all could pray for them. The catacombs of Rome testify to this practice.

     Purgatory is not a physical location but a stage for the purification of souls before entrance into God's heaven. St. Pope Gregory the Great reminds us that souls needing purification undergo a process of further cleansing which allows them to enter heaven. Jesus tells us that whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will be condemned (Mk 3: 29) but for lesser offenses there would be purification before entrance into heaven. Based on Scriptural passages which speak of cleansing and purification, the Church teaching on purification was formulated at the Councils of Trent and Florence (CCC# 330, 331)

     When we pray for the faithful departed we simply practice what we profess in Apostles' Creed, "I believe in the communion of saints ... the resurrection of the body." We are all adopted sons and daughters of God. The deceased have gone ahead to be with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. While we grieve at the loss of loved ones, we trust in Jesus' words that all who believe will be saved.

     Purgatory is not some kind of prison where one is expected to make restitution for offenses of the past; rather purgatory provides for inward transformation to make it possible to be united with God.

     Perhaps purgatory may be likened to a boot camp for heaven. No matter who or how we may be, boot camps are meant to prepare us for future tasks and responsibilities. It is a time to deepen one's relationships with the merciful and loving Father who sent his only begotten Son so that we may have eternal life.

     The celebration of All Souls reminds the living to pray for the departed that they may rise again as promised by Jesus to his followers.

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     EUNICE B. ARAGON 

     JOHN BRAGANZA 

     NELSON F. ALCANAR

     ROWENA E. JUGUETA

     SHEENA LORRAINE GOKAW

IN MEMORIAM (†)

     CHEW SEE

     RAMONA CHUA HWAN

OTHER INTENTIONS:

For the repose of the soul of Renan Lacida.

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!

**************************************************

These reflections are distributed free and are for personal use only. Feel free to send the Daily Prayer reflections to your friends, colleagues and relatives; however, if you do, please include the following: 

  +================================================+

   |  The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the

   |  priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish

   |  distributed free and for personal use only.  

  +================================================+

Commemoration of All The Faithful Departed

Violet

Wis 3: 1- 9 / Rom 5: 5 - 11 / Jn 6: 37- 40

     Rooted in ancient Christian tradition from the second century, St. Odilo of Cluny (962 - 1049) established a commemoration of all the faithful departed in 988, which was accepted in Rome in the 13th century.

FROM THE FIRST READING:          Wis 3: 1 - 6

     The souls of the just are in the hands of God and no torment shall touch them. In the eyes of the unwise they appear to be dead. Their going is held as a disaster; it seems that they lose everything by departing from us, but they are at peace.

Though seemingly they have been punished, immortality was the soul of their hope. After slight affliction will come great blessings, for God has tried them and found them worthy to be with him; after testing them as gold in the furnace, he has accepted them as a holocaust.

FROM THE 2ND READING:            Rom 5: 6- 9

     Consider, moreover, the time that Christ died for us: when we were still sinners and unable to do anything. Few would accept to die for an upright person; although, for a very good person, perhaps someone would dare to die. But see how God manifested his love for us: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us and we have become just through his blood. With much more reason now he will save us from any condemnation.

GOSPEL READING:           Jn 6: 37- 40

     Jesus said, "All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me, I shall not turn away. For I have come from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of the One who sent me.

     "And the will of him who sent me is that I lose nothing of what he has given me, but instead that I raise it up on the last day. This is the will of the Father, that whoever sees the Son and believes in him shall live with eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day."

REFLECTION

     The practice of praying for the faithful departed goes all the way back to the early Christian era when names of the deceased were posted in places of worship so that all could pray for them. The catacombs of Rome testify to this practice.

     Purgatory is not a physical location but a stage for the purification of souls before entrance into God's heaven. St. Pope Gregory the Great reminds us that souls needing purification undergo a process of further cleansing which allows them to enter heaven. Jesus tells us that whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will be condemned (Mk 3: 29) but for lesser offenses there would be purification before entrance into heaven. Based on Scriptural passages which speak of cleansing and purification, the Church teaching on purification was formulated at the Councils of Trent and Florence (CCC# 330, 331)

     When we pray for the faithful departed we simply practice what we profess in Apostles' Creed, "I believe in the communion of saints ... the resurrection of the body." We are all adopted sons and daughters of God. The deceased have gone ahead to be with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. While we grieve at the loss of loved ones, we trust in Jesus' words that all who believe will be saved.

     Purgatory is not some kind of prison where one is expected to make restitution for offenses of the past; rather purgatory provides for inward transformation to make it possible to be united with God.

     Perhaps purgatory may be likened to a boot camp for heaven. No matter who or how we may be, boot camps are meant to prepare us for future tasks and responsibilities. It is a time to deepen one's relationships with the merciful and loving Father who sent his only begotten Son so that we may have eternal life.

     The celebration of All Souls reminds the living to pray for the departed that they may rise again as promised by Jesus to his followers.

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     EUNICE B. ARAGON 

     JOHN BRAGANZA 

     NELSON F. ALCANAR

     ROWENA E. JUGUETA

     SHEENA LORRAINE GOKAW

IN MEMORIAM (†)

     CHEW SEE

     RAMONA CHUA HWAN

OTHER INTENTIONS:

For the repose of the soul of Renan Lacida.

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!

**************************************************

These reflections are distributed free and are for personal use only. Feel free to send the Daily Prayer reflections to your friends, colleagues and relatives; however, if you do, please include the following: 

  +================================================+

   |  The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the

   |  priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish

   |  distributed free and for personal use only.  

  +================================================+

November 1, 2017 – WEDNESDAY, ALL SAINTS

Solemnity, White

Rev 7: 2 - 4, 9 -14 / 1 Jn 1:1 - 3 / Mt 5: 1 - 12a

     Originating from the 4th century Eastern Feast of All Martyrs, Pope Gregory IV established this Feast of All Saints in the Roman Church in 835. Originally celebrated on Easter Friday, it was moved to 13 May and, in the ninth century, to 01 November where it countered the Celtic pagan feast of the Druids.

FROM THE 2ND READING:            1 Jn 1:1- 2

     This is what has been from the beginning, and what we have heard and have seen with our own eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, I mean the Word who is Life. The Life made itself known, we have seen the Eternal Life and we bear witness, and we are telling you of it. It was with the Father and made himself known to us.

GOSPEL READING:           Mt 5: 1 - 12a

     Jesus said, "Fortunate are those who have the spirit of the poor, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Fortunate are those who mourn, they shall be comforted. Fortunate are the gentle, they shall possess the land. Fortunate are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall be satisfied.

     "Fortunate are the merciful, for they shall find mercy. Fortunate are those with a pure heart, for they shall see God. Fortunate are those who work for peace, they shall be called children of God."

REFLECTION

     A friend shared with me that he lost his job as head of sales. He had thought all along that he had been doing well. After all his division had brought in the highest sales in many years. His supervisor gave him feedback that his team-mates thought that he was too strict, that everything was "de numero." He could not believe what he heard; he thought he had worked well with his team.

     He went into depression and self-doubt. His faith in God was terribly shaken. He went for months in darkness until he read about Thomas Merton's "false self."

     A commentator described it this way, "Each one of us is shadowed ... by an illusory person, [a] false self. That false self is the illusion of my separate self as absolute, as a center of the universe, the hub of the bicycle wheel. I rationalize that this egocentric self, this self of mine, that I project to others, is the fundamental reality of life to which everything else in the universe is ordered. So I can spend a whole life up on the surface, covering myself with pleasure and possessions and bodily beauty and strength to make myself visible and important to myself and my world. But under all these things with which I am clothed I am hallow."

     My friend recognized this truth! He slowly and painfully admitted the existence of this illusory self, his false self, that what he thought about himself was really "ego" and egocentric and felt deep shame. It took time to accept his nothingness before God and that everything came from the gracious hand of God. He slowly came to understand that this is what being poor in spirit meant.

     Just about the same time, he was made to realize that he had not listened well. He thought that he was being terminated. He was not! Actually he was being given a new position, that of head of a new division, with freedom to choose his own team­ mates!

     Holiness or being a saint does not mean being perfect or without weakness and with no shadows. Being a saint means humility, humbly accepting both the lights and shadows of my life, that I am really nothing except through God's loving kindness.

     As a spiritual writer R. Rohr says, the work of facing and accepting my shadows in all humility is a lifetime work- shadow boxing. Persons who are poor in spirit are saints. We celebrate them today, both living and those who are now with God.

     All you saints and blessed of God, intercede and pray for us.

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     FR. ANTONIO S. SAMSON SJ

     GLORIA M. PI LARES 

     JONATHAN LEE 

     LOUCIANA NGO SY

IN MEMORIAM (†) 

     DEPARTED FRIENDS, RELATIVES OF JAMES & GLORIA YU

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!

**************************************************

These reflections are distributed free and are for personal use only. Feel free to send the Daily Prayer reflections to your friends, colleagues and relatives; however, if you do, please include the following: 

  +================================================+

   |  The Daily Prayer, a service and an apostolate of the

   |  priests, laity and friends of Mary the Queen Parish

   |  distributed free and for personal use only.  

  +================================================+