GOSPEL AND MEDITATION FOR WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2013

The Parable of the Ten Gold Coins (Luke 19:11-27)

The Proclamation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke

As they were hearing these things, he added and spoke a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately be manifested.[12] He said therefore: A certain nobleman went into a far country, to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. [13] And calling his ten servants, he gave them ten pounds, and said to them: Trade till I come. [14] But his citizens hated him: and they sent an embassage after him, saying: We will not have this man to reign over us. [15] And it came to pass, that he returned, having received the kingdom: and he commanded his servants to be called, to whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. [16] And the first came, saying: Lord, thy pound hath gained ten pounds. [17] And he said to him: Well done, thou good servant, because thou hast been faithful in a little, thou shalt have power over ten cities. [18] And the second came, saying: Lord, thy pound hath gained five pounds. [19] And he said to him: Be thou also over five cities. [20] And another came, saying: Lord, behold here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin;

[21] For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takest up what thou didst not lay down, and thou reapest that which thou didst not sow. [22] He saith to him: Out of thy own mouth I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up what I laid not down, and reaping that which I did not sow: [23] And why then didst thou not give my money into the bank, that at my coming, I might have exacted it with usury? [24] And he said to them that stood by: Take the pound away from him, and give it to him that hath ten pounds. [25] And they said to him: Lord, he hath ten pounds.

[26] But I say to you, that to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound: and from him that hath not, even that which he hath, shall be taken from him. [27] But as for those my enemies, who would not have me reign over them, bring them hither, and kill them before me.

I cannot proceed to make the Gospel meditation without giving praise to the first reading which is really beautiful. The name of the story in 2 Maccabees 7:1-31 is the Martyrdom of a Mother and her seven sons. It may be likened to the condemnation and defilement the Seven Sacraments receives from the world that the Mother Church cares and protects. If you will read the reading carefully, you will notice that there is a pattern of it to the Gospel for this day but both are contrary to one another. 

The king in the reading commanded his servants to put to death the Seven Sacraments and the Catholic Church in a very cruel, brutal, and demonic way. Although in the Gospel there is also a King who represents God and put to death those enemies of Him who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ, who was hated and rejected by them, and shows also that they do not want to submit themselves to the Kingship of Jesus Christ thus becoming disobedient to the Will of the Father. In the reading, the devil puts to death those who violates his wickedness and obedient to the Will of God. This reminds me of the martyrdom of St. Lawrence who was cooked alive by the Romans. Although in the reading there is no joke, the indescribable courage and faith they both have even to the point of martyrdom shows how they are committed to Christ and His words of eternal life. St. Lawrence said to his executioners, “Turn me over for the other is cooked already and have a bite!” That’s more likely the translation from Latin.

Now for the Gospel, we are told by St. Luke that the Jews thought they were special for the Kingdom of God will sprout in Jerusalem like a blink of an eye. But Jesus seems to clear their relaxed hopes for they do not know what a great responsibility they will do for the sake of the King Jesus Christ and His Kingdom. That’s why He told a parable that I believe will struck us with HORROR, FEAR, AND TREMBLING if we know the meaning of the parable.

The Parable of the Ten Gold Coins maybe likened to the phases of Jesus Christ’s action in accordance with the scriptures. These are the Incarnation, Resurrection, Ascension, Pentecost, and the Parousia.

We are told that Jesus Christ went off to a distant country gives the Ascension. Luke 9:13 tells us the Pentecost or the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles, commissioned or tasked by Jesus the King to act by the promptings of the Holy Spirit which St. Paul preached in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11. If you will go to that second letter of St. Paul, if you counted the gifts of the Holy Spirit which he enumerated as nine and not ten you are going to be wrong. For the first gift is the Holy Spirit Himself; He is God the Holy Spirit! The Gift of God, the Most High!

We are tasked or called by God to trade the ten gold coins – the ten spiritual gifts to everyone together with their fruits – which is ten also that includes the Holy Spirit as one of the ten fruits (Galatians 5:22-23).

In this parable, the servants represent all Christians who were baptized In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:18-20).

Now, as the Parousia of the King Jesus is still anticipated which we call the particular judgement and will take place which we call the Final Judgement, He will call all of His servants who received different amounts of gifts that He gave to them when they had received the Sacraments and the Word of God or the Gospels as it was proclaimed everywhere, they will be judged by King Jesus on how they multiplied their different amounts of gold they individually received from the King. Now, he will ask us what we have done to the gold coins we received and how much we have earned by using them.

AND HOLD YOUR BREATH TO THESE WORDS OF GOD! He said to His servant who received ten gold coins and earned another “ten additional ones”, “YOU HAVE BEEN FAITHFUL IN THIS VERY SMALL MATTER; TAKE CHARGE OF TEN CITIES.” WHAT DID GOD SAID!? THE MISSION WE HAD RECEIVED FROM GOD IS VERY SMALL MATTER TO HIM! But because the servant has been faithful in his mission WHICH IS A VERY SMALL MATTER, he was commanded to do another mission: to take in charge of ten cities which is the King Jesus’ great reward to him.

Then to the servant who had five gold coins and earned five additional ones; he received five cities to take in charge of.

But there was a servant who received a gold coin which he kept and stored away in a handkerchief because he was afraid of the great King who is a very demanding person, demands every living human person to be saved by the light and truth and to go to heaven and demands all baptized Christian to act on the great demands of Christ the King. The King is taking up and is harvesting all peoples of the world even those who did not really know who Jesus Christ is but lives or acts according to the Will of the Father. This is what the servant feared for if this is the case, why should he use his gold coin or gift he had if God is a demanding person and will use all means to save all and will use the gold coins of the other servants for a much earnings; then why must the servant use his gift which seemed useless and cannot be used as a means to profit?

But God’s thought and ways are of course far more superior than us, the reasoning of the servant to God is not in accordance as to what God thinks or God wills. The servant is illogical and foolish, out of reason, and not thinking very well, not using his common sense or good sense plus the light, faith, reason, truth, and love that were authored by God and sourcing from God. He ignorantly and stupidly wasted the gift of gold he received from the demanding King. Why did not put it in a bank? Or place it where it can be multiplied without you working for it laboriously? The bank is the Church – the Catholic Church – the Universal Church which lives and exists in prayer and by prayer of the Church Triumphant with Queen Mary as their Mother in prayer, Church Militant, and Church Suffering, together with the prayers of the Angels of the Third Hierarchy who are in charge of human affairs – the Principalities, Archangels, and Angels. If the gold was put here, it will circulate greatly in the Church if it was put here as a prayer. It will at the end be collected by God with interest.

But the servant had nothing now. For those who have, more will be given and for those who had no gift or possession, even what he has will be taken away from him. That’s why we are called to multiply our graces and blessings and gifts that God gave to us through the Sacraments, sacramentals, and prayers of the Church that God gave to us like God gave us the Blessed Virgin Mary as our Queen and Mother. And for the enemies of Jesus Christ the King, they will be killed before Him and be damned totally to the hellfire.

Here are some points to consider:

1 The earthly kings of this world can kill the body but cannot kill the soul. What we must fear is the flames of eternal damnation that can kill the soul once God damns us there. So we must live according to the commands of the King Jesus Christ who leads the soul to eternal life.

2. We must be obedient to God and to His laws even to the point of martyrdom.

3. We must all know the serious demands of the Gospel. Once we found it, we must effectively and efficiently work for it; if we let ourselves to be ignorant even to the Gospel and the raw materials that are at hand for us to use and multiply, if we do not work for it, exceeding beyond our best, then, we will be damned!

4. Let us go and set the world on fire!

5. Let us live imitating the Friar Preachers or the Dominicans: we must live in poverty, study, and prayer. Let us preach in actions and in words.

6. Contemplata aliis tradere – Contemplate and give to others the fruits of contemplation.

7. We must let the Holy Spirit work in us and let us use and multiply the gifts we received from God whether material gifts or spiritual gifts according to how God thinks.

“Jesus, I trust in You.” “O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.”

“LET US PREACH THE GOSPEL AT ALL TIMES. USE WORDS WHEN NECESSARY.” – St. Francis of Assisi

To the greater glory of God!

Mary H. Distributist

GOSPEL AND MEDITATION FOR TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2013

Zaccheus the Tax Collector (Luke 19:1-10)

The Proclamation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke

And entering in, he walked through Jericho. [2] And behold, there was a man named Zacheus, who was the chief of the publicans, and he was rich. [3] And he sought to see Jesus who he was, and he could not for the crowd, because he was low of stature. [4] And running before, he climbed up into a sycamore tree, that he might see him; for he was to pass that way. [5] And when Jesus was come to the place, looking up, he saw him, and said to him: Zacheus, make haste and come down; for this day I must abide in thy house.

[6] And he made haste and came down; and received him with joy. [7] And when all saw it, they murmured, saying, that he was gone to be a guest with a man that was a sinner. [8] But Zacheus standing, said to the Lord: Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have wronged any man of any thing, I restore him fourfold. [9] Jesus said to him: This day is salvation come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham. [10] For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

I cannot leave without giving meditations about the first reading for this Tuesday for it’s very beautiful, and it has also a connection to the Gospel we have and on the Psalms (3:2-8) for today.

The first reading (2 Maccabees 6:18-31) tells us about how great and serious a sin is. It also reminds me of what St. Dominic Savio said, “Death rather than sin.” This is where also what I say lies. This is why I’m always telling you to obediently subject the body which is born in concupiscence and irascible passions to faith, reason, light, and truth.

Now, I will proceed to the Gospel. We are told that there is a traitor, a corrupt, a thief, and an unjust tax collector and wealthy man whose name is Zaccheus. Like Eleazar of the Book of Maccabees, this sinner Zaccheus desires to see the Truth. When he chanced upon or has found Jesus who is the Truth, the Truth found him like a monkey in a sycamore tree. Jesus also looked up to Zaccheus for Zaccheus is a proud and arrogant sinner who desires to be converted and humbled by God. 

Then Jesus Christ the Truth told him that the Truth and Light which brings salvation must stay in his house. Zaccheus the sinner humbled himself as he came down for Jesus the Truth and Light and hastily received Jesus with joy.

The crowd or obstacles or barriers for Zaccheus is no match for him for he stood or solid to his faith in the bringer of salvation that Zaccheus believed and saw as the Truth and Light Jesus who came as a name on his ears. 

Those who persecute Zaccheus have no match to him for he has great faith like Eleazar and Abraham! 

Zaccheus desired for salvation and believed that God will save him from sin and death that imprisoned him by his actions or deeds. He knows that despite the oppositions against him, he will receive salvation for as long as he will remain solid in his faith, he remains solid in God. As he promised to God that he will do contrition, amendments, and reparation for his sins, God seemed absolving him like in the Sacrament of Confession, Jesus proclaims that salvation has come to this house – this house of Israel where the son of Abraham whose faith is as great as his son Zaccheus, for this lost man seeks and desires salvation form the Truth and Light Jesus who found him and came for him. 

As I paraphrase the words of my brother Saint Thomas Aquinas to my own words: Obedience is the perfection of the holy life. For by it a man submits to God even at the point of death like God submitted Himself to men to be killed; and to save all those who killed Him.

Here are some points to consider:

1 We must obedient and humble to God even unto death.

2. We must go to the Sacrament of Confession to confess all of our mortal sins and be contrite, solid of not sinning again, and make amendments and reparation for the sins committed. Say solidly to yourself and to God, “Death rather than sin!”

3. Meditate on the Gospel and work.

“Jesus, I trust in You.” “O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.”

Go and set the world on fire!

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!

Mary H. Distributist

GOSPEL AND MEDITATIONS FOR MONDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2013

The Healing of the Blind Beggar (Luke 18:35-43)

The Proclamation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke

 [35] Now it came to pass, when he drew nigh to Jericho, that a certain blind man sat by the way side, begging.

[36] And when he heard the multitude passing by, he asked what this meant. [37] And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. [38] And he cried out, saying: Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. [39] And they that went before, rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried out much more: Son of David, have mercy on me. [40] And Jesus standing, commanded him to be brought unto him. And when he was come near, he asked him,

[41] Saying: What wilt thou that I do to thee? But he said: Lord, that I may see. [42] And Jesus said to him: Receive thy sight: thy faith hath made thee whole. [43] And immediately he saw, and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.

St. Luke the evangelist tells us about a blind beggar, the Lord Jesus, the people who knows Jesus and shares the name of Jesus, and those people who wants to shut-up the persons who calls Jesus loudly and persistently and perseveringly loudly and loudest. The blind beggar calls God like an attention-seeker or limelight stealer or disturber in order to be seen, we call this in Filipino as "papansin" and, "epal" in a less vulgar word.

We can deduce (pardon me for using the word. I am a fan of Sherlock Holmes) in the Gospel for today that there are different kinds of people. Let me show them to you:

First are the people who were blind to the truth and begging for light or begging to other people for they are in darkness, they want to feel in order to see, in order to have sight. This kind of people hopes (of course!) and dreams that the day will come when they will have their sight - to feel more clearly everything the eyes sees. Some blind persons who were literally blind see more clearly - for they have faith in God, and they are dancing in the dark with God as their partner in dancing. But some blind persons are governed by feelings and emotions and not by light - by faith and reason. This blind people do not know the reality that faith and reason must govern feelings and emotions. The senses of man must be governed by faith and reason or by light and truth. I do not condemn feelings and emotions but

these two must be governed by truth and light. For just as time and space is where everyone and everything is living and moving and God is beyond or above the time and space, so must be the feelings and emotions must be subjected in obedience to faith, reason, light, and truth. Feelings and emotions is where a human being is prisoned. The body of man is corrupted by sin and death, darkness, ignorance,

and blindness. So must the soul be the master of the body and not the other way around. For we must understand that the soul is of light, truth, faith, and reason that gives the soul life on this earth and life in God which we call eternal life. That's why in making meditations of the Gospels, I always pray the PRAYER OF SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS BEFORE STUDY (the long version). I allow God, I allow the Holy Spirit to work in me - God wants me to be a man of light, faith, reason, and truth - and feelings and emotions must be my slave and God's slave as well.

Second are the people who know God and shares who is God to every people especially the blind who want to see the Truth who is Jesus Christ Himself. These people shares God also to those blind persons who do not yet know the truth like the pagans. Some of these people shares the truth to those blind persons who do not want to see, those who are not calling or seeking for the Truth and wants to be blind forever - the Protestants, Born-Agains, cults and sects like Iglesia ni Manalo, atheists, agnostics, Freemasons, and many more. There are also persons who have a burning desire to spread the Gospel (I'm one of them), to spread the Truth, and to spread God like a mayonnaise - for they are governed by God. They are governed by truth, light, reason, and faith. God is working in them. God is inside of them. These people know the Will of the Father who wants Jesus to be revealed.

And the last group of people are those who want the blinds and the beggars be a blind and a beggar forever. They persecute and turn to silence those who are in hunger and thirst for the Truth and for salvation and healing. Those who are in need they persecute. These people are self-righteous people - these people are very sure of their salvation and they will never be damned - and they are proud and arrogant and their pride is evident. Mayabang or arrogant in its fullness! These persons uses the Truth blasphemously for their own happiness and own satisfaction. They are extremely worst than blinds and the beggars for the Truth is not in them. They are the blind guides who leads the blind and who both falls into a pit of eternal damnation. Although some of them share the Truth in a perverse way to the blinds and the beggars, they are just doing this for their own sake. The blinds and the beggars will forever be blinds and beggars - governed by feelings and emotions that they ignorantly treat as the Truth.

Let us not hesitate to shout and to call and to get the attention of God for He will surely call for us in return for us to be healed and saved by Him. But we must first desire to be healed and be saved in order for God to heal and save us. We must say to God our desires and this is what we call prayer. God wants us to know our desire that is why He asked the blind beggar what he wants. Although God fully knows and already knows what we want or what we desire, still, He wants us to express these desires to Him! He is calling us to pray to Him for prayer is the only way that expresses our desire for God. That's why the meaning of Prayer is a desire for God. Let us rejoice then and glorify and praise God who established prayer for us to connect ourselves to Him. Let us follow God who gives us light, truth, faith, reason, and above all, love.

Here are some points to consider:

1. We must be a person of unceasing prayer.

2. We must be a person of faith, reason, light and truth. Not a person of darkness, sin, ignorance, blindness, feelings, and emotions.

3. We must be Truth seeker and defender. Paraphrasing my great brother St. Thomas Aquinas, "Truth cannot be destroyed nor cannot be attacked for it in itself is strength and great shield. Truth is truth. It will defend itself. Truth is as solid as God."

4. The meaning of Prayer is prayer is a desire for God.

5. Rejoice and glorify and praise God always!

6. We must all go and set the world on fire!

"Jesus, I trust in You." "O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee."

Go and set the world on fire!

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!

Mary H. Distributist

GOSPEL MEDITATION TODAY! 33rd SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME!

33rd Sunday in OT (C) - Being pure of mind and body like the angels.

33^rd SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME 

Luke 21:5-19

November 17, 2013

GOSPEL READING: The Poor Widow’s Contribution / The Destruction of the Temple Foretold / The Sign of the End / The Coming Persecution

The Proclamation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke

While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, he said, “All that you see here—the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.”

Then they asked him, “Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen? ”He answered, “See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’Do not follow them! When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end.” Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.

 “Before all this happens, however, they will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name. It will lead to your giving testimony. Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand, for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute. You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives. 

The Gospel of St. Luke has three stories arranged starting from the aftermath, signs before the aftermath of all, and the beginning of all - persecutions of the people of God where strength and truth is God's holy name.

We are told that some people are speaking about how precious the temple is in its outward appearance. Jesus Christ told them that the days will come when this adorned temple will be destructed. We see here the connection of the first reading we read in Malachi 3:19-20. Malachi says that the days of the destruction of the wicked people who are like and are part of the temple who is good in outward appearance but evil inside will be burned wholly just as the Lord had said. Malachi also added that for those who fear the name of the Lord, "there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays", the righteous ones will be like calves who runs over or stampedes over the wicked, going back and forth, crushing the wicked with calves feet.

The destruction of the temple that was foretold by Jesus Christ may have a two-fold truth that is part also of the one and absolute truth. We know that Jesus Christ Body will be destructed, taking the corruption and wickedness in His Body that were actually made by sinners and evil doers. In order for us men to be saved, He let His Body to be destroyed in order for us to be destroyed from sin and death. To destroy the body that was inclined in doing wickedness and sin, Jesus Christ subjected His Body to destruction so that all of mankind will be destroyed, together with God, to the point of death. And in the Resurrection of God, Jesus Christ raises us from sin and death that was caused by bodily inclination to evil that Adam and Eve caused by subjecting the body in disobedience to God by being obedient to the devil, our bodies now is also part of God's Body which triumphed over sin and death - restores and promises an eternal life after the Resurrection of Christ' Body from death.

I said earlier that it is a two-fold truth. One pertains to the Resurrection of the Body of Christ which is the Temple or the Church and its connection to our bodies and a community of bodies that we call Church, the other one pertains to the Parousia or the Second Coming of Christ. We know that Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead. In His coming we know that He will judge everyone - those who constitutes His Body, those who are pain in His Body, those who works on the healing of His Body and the strengthening of It, those who are not yet part of His Body - all of us - will be judged by God. All of our bodies will be destroyed from sin and death, from impurity and imperfection, and God will judge us - according to our deeds and obedience to the Holy Will of the Father. He will raise the righteous and He will destroy the wicked in eternal damnation. He will restore the original goodness of the body of man on His Second Coming.

Then we are signalled by Christ to be vigilant and observant to the signs of the end times. Be on your guard against false prophets and false witnesses.

But before the manifestation of the end times becomes evident, Jesus Christ told us that we will be persecuted by all especially the authorities and the people of power because of God's name But don't ever worry says the Lord. For God will provide at that instant, at that moment, the defense we are about to say. The Infinite Wisdom Jesus Christ will give us "wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute."

We will be hated by all because of His name, "but not a hair on your head will be destroyed." Because God is all-knowing and in His Infinite Wisdom knows how many hairs we have in our heads, He knows what we are up to; He knows what is going on. God will not let us lose our identity - the identity of ours that God infinitely know by His Infinite Wisdom, He will not let death destroy the mark of God in us, the identity that we are in God's mind and His mind is full of the thought of us, every moment of our lives. Our hair on our heads are numbered, our identity to God is in God and will never be destroyed.

"By your perseverance you will secure your lives." In persevering in life, we must imitate St. Paul and his company who became examples how to live an orderly life which we read in the second reading of this very Sunday. St. Paul exhorts us to take sacrifices in order to be an example to others, "losing our lives for God's sake thus securing and saving our lives."

Here are some points to consider:

1. We must be pure in mind and body like the angels.

2. Again, we must be vigilant and observant.

3. We must trust the Lord that He will send us wisdom to speak in defense against our persecutors.

4. We must lose our lives for the sake of God's name.

5. Our identity as God identify Himself in us should be our strength.

6. We must live an orderly life.

"Jesus, I trust in You." "O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee."

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!

Mary H. Distributist

GOSPEL MEDITATION TODAY! Persistence, Perseverance, Faith, Prayer (Luke 18:1-8)

Good News for the day of November 16, 2013 / The Parable of the Persistent Widow

The Proclamation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke :

And he spoke also a parable to them, that we ought always to pray, and not to faint, [2] Saying: There was a judge in a certain city, who feared not God, nor regarded man. [3] And there was a certain widow in that city, and she came to him, saying: Avenge me of my adversary. [4] And he would not for a long time. But afterwards he said within himself: Although I fear not God, nor regard man, [5] Yet because this widow is troublesome to me, I will avenge her, lest continually coming she weary me. And the Lord said: Hear what the unjust judge saith. [7] And will not God revenge his elect who cry to him day and night: and will he have patience in their regard? [8] I say to you, that he will quickly revenge them. But yet the Son of man, when he cometh, shall he find, think you, faith on earth?

The Gospel of St. Luke tells that Jesus Christ told the disciples a parable about the need for them to pray always without becoming weary. I remembered here the words of St. Teresa of Avila that I read in my YOUCAT book, "Do not pray for lighter burdens; pray for a stronger back."

We are told that there is a judge who neither feared God nor respected any human being. That just shows that this judge is detestable and should be condemned or better, to be punished severely or best, to be put to death. And there is also a persistent widow who wants this immoral judge to render a just decision for her against her opponent. It is very mysterious or peculiar for this widow knows who this judge is - an immoral person and maybe a dishonest judge. She still goes to him even there is a fact that this judge do not respect any human being! In this case, how much more in the case of the Lord! How much more and how much difference God will give to those persons who are persistent and persevere in their prayers to Him!  

The immoral judge, we can say, gave up. He was unwilling at first, but in his meditation of the matter he arrived at a decision in favor of the persistent widow. He was afraid that she will come and thought that she will become impatient, irritable, and flaming in wrath if he will not do as what is asked of him.

I recall what had happened to me just this October 31 of this year. I was attacked by Influenza virus that shut downed my whole system for days. I went to the Holy Mass that evening and received the Holy Communion. The sickness of mine became grave when I attended the Mass. That is the beginning of my suffering. I used my long umbrella as a cane when I walked back home. I cannot speed my walking. My body and my whole legs hurt as I walk. Funny thing here is I am like a turtle while walking - so many grannies and old people just seemed fast and left me at a great distance. Then started the hours when my body temperature hit 39 degrees celsius! And it played on 38 and higher. I prayed to God and Mama Mary while I also had my medicines.

Then Sunday came, November 3, when I arrived at one of the evening Masses in my parish. Out of desperation when I received the Body of the Lord, I prayed to God, "God! One last chance! I'm giving you one last chance! Heal me!" I prayed this in my mind. Then I returned home. Still desperately hoping that in a snap, I will be totally healed. Now, I really thank God and Mama Mary, I'm free now from my affliction! The sickness dissipated and is healed as the days have passed after that Sunday Mass. It also dawned on me whether I sinned against God because it may seem that my prayer is rude and I said it with confidence, strength, solidness, and roughness. By the way, I was thinking of a character in the movie Men in Black 3 who was the young agent K who said some of the words I prayed that Sunday. I was, at that moment, talking to God as I think of that guy in the movie while saying his line. Then I used it as a prayer, and there.

My Mommy also told me when I was a young boy that Jesus Christ wants to be bothered. She told me that God likes to be pestered or disturbed. "Gusto ng Diyos na kinukulit S'ya," she said. The words of Mommy is very similar to what St. Jean-Marie Baptiste Vianney said that I read on my YOUCAT book, "Our dear God loves to be bothered."

In the Gospel, the Lord Jesus told them to "pay attention what the dishonest judge says." Unlike the Honest Judge God who is fast in responding to His persevering and persistent chosen ones, Jesus Christ told them to be vigilant in listening what the dishonest judge says for what he says may bring fast destruction and injustice to them.

"But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?" These words of the Lord are very alarming, greatly to be feared against, and a prophetic one. Jesus Christ will be in search of the people of persistence and perseverance in clinging and crying to the Lord. God will be in search for those people whose confidence is on God alone (anawim or poor in spirit) when He comes again. He is giving prophesy that in His coming, will He still find faith and hope that solidly relies on Him. We are called to be persons of great faith and hope - relying solidly and completely to God alone. Will God find faith on earth when He comes again?

Here are some points to consider:

1. We must pray persistently and perseveringly all the days of our life and not becoming weary nor tired (even when experiencing spiritual desolation).

2. "Prayer is a man's strength and God's weakness." - Jaime Cardinal Sin (+)

3. We must be persons of unceasing prayer like Mama Mary (making everything of us as prayer that connects ourselves to God).

4. Be always vigilant and on guard especially against persons who will bring destruction and injustice to us.

5. We must be anawim or poor in spirit.

6. Let us make every breath of us as prayer.

7. We must be persons of great faith and of great hope.

"Jesus, I trust in You." "O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee."

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!

Mary H. Distributist

The Second Coming and The Destruction of All (Luke 17:26-37 The Days of the Son of Man)

The Proclamation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke (Luke 17:26-37)

26 'As it was in Noah's day, so will it also be in the days of the Son of man.

27 People were eating and drinking, marrying wives and husbands, right up to the day Noah went into the ark, and the Flood came and destroyed them all.

28 It will be the same as it was in Lot's day: people were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building,

29 but the day Lot left Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and it destroyed them all.

30 It will be the same when the day comes for the Son of man to be revealed.

31 'When that Day comes, no one on the housetop, with his possessions in the house, must come down tocollect them, nor must anyone in the fields turn back.

32 Remember Lot's wife.

33 Anyone who tries to preserve his life will lose it; and anyone who loses it will keep it safe.

34 I tell you, on that night, when two are in one bed, one will be taken, the other left;

35 when two women are grinding corn together, one will be taken, the other left.'

36

37 The disciples spoke up and asked, 'Where, Lord?' He said, 'Where the body is, there too will the vultures gather.'

The Gospel of St. Luke tells us how the Son of Man will come, the Parousia, or the Second Coming of Christ. It will be like in the days of Noah, where the people live in sin, wickedness, corruption of mind and heart, and full of lawlessness. God will come like a great flood, destroying everyone and everything that is wicked.

It is like a baptism. That's why we are called to live the baptismal promises we made - the baptism which we are baptized. We should live blameless in the sight of God by living the "great flood in the days of Noah" that was poured in us when we are baptized - with water and the Holy Spirit. That's how important our living the baptismal promises that we made. Because in the end, we do not know exactly when the Son of Man will come, and we do not even know when our earthly life will will end.

It is very fitting here to add the words of a saint who said, "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling." But we must balance it with the words of St. Francis de Sales: "We should fear God out of love; not love Him out of fear."

The coming of the Son of Man is similar in the days of Lot where the people are full and busy of themselves. The great problem also was sin is reigning in them where immorality and homosexuality was a way of living. Again, God will come and His revelation of self will be like a raining sulphurous fire that destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Here, we see how to live the fire, the sulphurous fire-like grace that we received in the Sacrament of Confirmation. The Holy Spirit will help us now to be in flames burning, dedicated to God and His Gospel. Just like the Sacrament of Baptism, we are much more called here to boost our all to live the baptismal promises we made more fully.

The Gospel tells also that we must not be attached to material possessions and the things that seems important to us. We are called to a total detachment from things - everything that has no concern with the coming of the Lord. We must not be like Lot's wife, who looked back, and was turned into a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:26). Again, we are called to a total detachment from all and a total attachment to God alone.

Like the salt, we must be preserved in sanctity and righteousness. Unlike the wife of Lot who looked back or turned back in the sight of destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, we must not look or turn back from sin, wickedness, corruption, and lawlessness once we dedicate ourselves to God, because if we do so, we will be like the wife of Lot who became a pillar of salt. Again, we must be like salt.

Let us live lives pleasing to the Lord so that we will be taken by Him and not be left for destruction.

And "where the body is, the vultures will gather." For people who are concerned with the satisfaction of the body, succumb into concupiscence and irascible passions, like vultures, they will gather into a body - left in corruption and full of filth, all of them will be destroyed.

Here are some points to consider:

1. Live your own vocation vigilantly.

2. Live your baptismal promises faithfully, honestly, with loyalty and fidelity.

3. Be a "living Gospel."

4. Be prepared always. (For you don't know when you will be killed! Joke!)

5. We must embrace a life of total detachment from everything (even human attachments) and live a life of total attachment to God alone.

6. We must be holy as the Heavenly Father is holy.

7. We must remember that there are times of feasting, and there are times of fasting.

8. We must give our spiritual faculties (soul) a lot more attention than bodily faculties.

"Jesus, I trust in You." "O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee."

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!

Mary H. Distributist

Pharisees Not Damned! And the Parousia (Luke 17:20-25)

20 Asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was to come, he gave them this answer, 'The coming of the kingdom of God does not admit of observation

21 and there will be no one to say, "Look, it is here! Look, it is there!" For look, the kingdom of God is among you.'

22 He said to the disciples, 'A time will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of man andwill not see it.

23 They will say to you, "Look, it is there!" or, "Look, it is here!" Make no move; do not set off in pursuit;

24 for as the lightning flashing from one part of heaven lights up the other, so will be the Son of man when his Day comes.

25 But first he is destined to suffer grievously and be rejected by this generation.

In this Gospel story of St. Luke, we were told that the Pharisees asked the Lord when the Kingdom of God would come. This question of the Pharisees is very peculiar or mysterious for it seems that they do not know what the Kingdom of God is, they are asking the Lord when it would come. I think the Lord Jesus is laughing interiorly in this question of the Pharisees. We can imagine that Jesus Christ thought to Himself: "What an unintelligible question from you, Pharisees! Do not you know that the Kingdom of God existed before and still exists, and the Kingdom of God is within you? Among you? Existing in the midst of you? Reigning among you?" Jesus Christ may seem taken aback and lowered His eyebrows because, of the Pharisees' question. The Lord can't believe what was asked of Him! He can't imagine that such "holy" persons like the Pharisees will ask Him that question! Maybe Jesus Christ thought that the Pharisees were joking, for the Lord seemed read their minds that they are imagining that the Kingdom of God will be sent from heaven like a descending palace, like a descending helicopter, landing on earth. The Pharisees were looking and in search of the manifestation of the Kingdom of God. They are in search of something that will tell to them that, "Ah! Here is the Kingdom of God! Here it is! It is now here! It came! Let us rush and welcome and receive the Kingdom of God!

But they are completely wrong for the Lord replied that the coming of the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of heaven, and the Kingdom of the Lord cannot be observed. Why? Because the Kingdom is here already! The Kingdom existed and still exists before the Pharisees eyes and senses! Why? Because the Kingdom of God is within you! Among you! 

Don't search for it! All you have to do is to be sensitive enough that the Kingdom of God is now here! It is within you! 

It is very peculiar and mysterious also that the Lord Jesus Christ did not become angry to the Pharisees. The Lord was somewhat in good mood towards them. The Gospel is indeed a funny one! The Lord Jesus is gentle indeed. He answered them calmly and peacefully and in a very friendly way: "For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you." What a mystery! What a miracle! We know that the Pharisees were the Lord Jesus "hated" in His time. They are also the "suki" or receiver of the Lord's wrath and anger and sermons and thundering words that makes their faces turn to red of shame and disgust from the "arrogance" of the Lord. But in the Gospel story, what a contrast! He answered them that the Kingdom of God is among or within the Pharisees! Wow! I can't believe it! What is the meaning of this?

We know that the Pharisees are the priests of the Lord that time. We know that they are the Church authorities before. But still, despite their hardness of heart, they are still the priest of God. They are still the one who works for God. They are still the priests of God - Whom God also loves. God loves them also. God loves the Pharisees despite of their stubbornness. They are still God's priests! It is indeed true, that the Kingdom of God is within us and among us! The Kingdom of God - of Love and Mercy is among us!

Then we are told of St. Luke that the Lord turned and said to His disciples that the days will come when they will remember the Lord Jesus' days here on this earth. They will longingly hope for the Lord - for His coming and His glory. 

In here He warned them that they must be on guard and vigilant against those false persons that tell that the Son of Man is here and came already - that is the Parousia - the Second coming of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ showed them how frightening and majestic fear He would come in glory. The day of the Lord will indeed come, but it will not be determined by false prophets and false witnesses. But the Lord Jesus Christ also added that before these things will happen, "first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation." He will suffer greatly from the Pharisees He answered with gentleness in the first story of the Gospel, he will also suffer from His disciples - all of them will be the cause of God's great suffering. Jesus Christ will be rejected so that the prophesy might be fulfilled: "The Lord rejected by the builder has become the cornerstone."

Here are some points to consider:

1. The Kingdom of God is among us. If it is so, and truly is, then it is up to us if we will surrender to God ourselves for His Kingdom and to serve Him. Let us live righteous lives in order to be called worthily indeed the Kingdom of God is among us.

2. We must be sensitive enough that the Kingdom of God is among us. 

3. Let us be on guard and vigilant against the false prophets and false witnesses.

4. Let us go to the Sacrament of Confession (confess your mortal sins!) and solidly live not to sin mortal sins again - this will strengthen the Kingdom of God and will mitigate the hurts the Lord Jesus receives from all of us - the sins that hurts Him and His Body, the Church.

5. Let us not reject Jesus Christ. Let us allow him to live in us because He is for us. "If God is with us, who can be against us?"

6. Let us longingly hope for the glorious coming of the Lord! Let us do it with vigilance.

"Jesus, I trust in You." "O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee."

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!

Mary H. Distributist