Msgr. Jesus-Romulo C. Rañada
NOURISHED BY GOD’S WORD Sunday Gospel Reflections
YEAR A
PHILIPPINES
NOURISHED BY GOD’S WORD Sunday Gospel Reflections –YEAR A © 2014 Msgr. Jesus-Romulo C. Rañada
Censor Librorum ad casum: Rev. Fr. Reynando Percival S. Flores Imprimatur: Most Rev. Antonio R. Tobias, DD Bishop of Novaliches Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture texts are taken from the New American Bible with Revised New Testament and Revised Psalms © 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner. Published and distributed by Paulines Publishing House Daughters of St. Paul 2650 F.B. Harrison Street 1300 Pasay City, Philippines E-mail: edpph@paulines.ph Website: www.paulines.ph All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Cover design: Reajoy San Luis, FSP Cover painting: Pancho Piano First Printing 2014 ISBN 978-971-590–765-1
at the service of the Gospel and culture
CONTENTS FOREWORD ACKNOWLEDGMENT PREFACE THE SEASON OF ADVENT First Sunday of Advent Second Sunday of Advent Third Sunday of Advent Fourth Sunday of Advent THE SEASON OF CHRISTMAS Christmas Mass at Midnight Christmas Day Feast of the Holy Family Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord Feast of the Baptism of the Lord Feast of the Santo Niño THE SEASON OF LENT First Sunday of Lent Second Sunday of Lent Third Sunday of Lent Fourth Sunday of Lent Fifth Sunday of Lent Passion of Our Lord (Palm Sunday) THE SEASON OF EASTER Easter Vigil Easter Sunday Second Sunday of Easter (Divine Mercy Sunday) Third Sunday of Easter Fourth Sunday of Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday) Fifth Sunday of Easter Sixth Sunday of Easter Solemnity of Our Lord’s Ascension Pentecost Sunday ORDINARY TIME Solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity (Trinity Sunday) Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi Sunday) Second Sunday
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Third Sunday Fourth Sunday Fifth Sunday Sixth Sunday Seventh Sunday Eighth Sunday Ninth Sunday Tenth Sunday Eleventh Sunday Twelfth Sunday Thirteenth Sunday Fourteenth Sunday Fifteenth Sunday Sixteenth Sunday Seventeenth Sunday Eighteenth Sunday Nineteenth Sunday Twentieth Sunday Twenty-First Sunday Twenty-Second Sunday Twenty-Third Sunday Twenty-Fourth Sunday Twenty-Fifth Sunday Twenty-Sixth Sunday Twenty-Seventh Sunday Twenty-Eighth Sunday Twenty-Ninth Sunday Thirtieth Sunday Thirty-First Sunday Thirty-Second Sunday Thirty-Third Sunday Solemnity of Christ the King FEASTS / SOLEMNITIES Feast of the Presentation of the Lord Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed Feast of the Dedication of St. John Lateran
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First Sunday OF ADVENT Matthew 24:37-44 Jesus said to his disciples: “As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. In those days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day that Noah entered the ark. They did not know until the flood came and carried them all away. So will it be also at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be out in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken, and one will be left. Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he will have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So, too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”
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dvent, from the Latin word adventus, means coming or arrival. Such is the name given to the first Season of the Church’s Liturgical Year, which runs from the 1st Sunday after the Solemnity of Christ the King to the day immediately prior to Christmas. But more than just a season, and the first Season of the Church Year, Advent properly defines what we are as Church—a faithful people, a hopeful people who look forward to and await the Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thus situated right at the beginning of the Church Year, Advent properly and constantly orients us to the reality of the Lord’s Coming and helps us to prepare ourselves for His arrival in all earnestness and joyful anticipation. We can speak of the Coming of the Lord in four different ways. First of all, we can speak more obviously of the Lord’s First Coming into the world, and by this we mean His coming “in the flesh.” We hereby think of his conception and birth by the Blessed Virgin Mary two thousand years ago. We can reflect on the meaning of this particular event and come face to face with the Mystery of the Incarnation, his becoming human, his being born and taking the form of a child, and being given the name Jesus. Through Jesus’ birth, life, ministry, passion, death and resurrection, the Lord God, indeed, came to us
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and lived with us, in order to save us from sin and death, and to help us find our way back to God who created us, our Father from whom we have strayed. This First Coming of the Lord “in the flesh” is what we remember and celebrate every year on Christmas Day. It is one big festive Christian family-event that we look forward to and prepare for with such merriment and love. The Season of Advent then serves as the period of preparation for this annual Christmas event, enabling us to look forward with meaningful awe, in reflective joy and in prayer to this most happy occasion—the realization of the mystery of the Lord’s Incarnation announced by the Angel, his First Coming into the world. The Season of Advent is also, in the larger sense, the period of preparation for the Lord’s Second Coming, otherwise known by the Greek term Parousia—the coming yet again of the same Jesus Christ, as the exalted Lord and Savior of all, arriving before our very eyes in power and glory. The Second Coming of the Lord spells for us the final triumph of God over evil and all the forces that oppose His rule. We now dwell in a world that is broken and in dire need of ultimate repair, healing and salvation. As the Lord’s faithful disciples, we try to live in this world conscious and filled with great longing to see Him return in glory to seal the victory of God, which He Himself promised. That is why every time we come to inaugurate a new liturgical year with the observance of Advent, we remind ourselves of the Lord’s promise that He indeed will one day return, to be fully present with us forever. It will be the day of reunion with the Lord. Yet this reunion will also entail the final and universal judgment: final in the sense of being definitive, and universal in the sense of making no exception, i.e., all, each and every one shall be judged. To some, it will therefore mean a lasting and happy reunion; for others, it could mean a total and painful separation from the Lord, Who is both judge and king. We shall be judged and shall receive due recompense from Him, in accord with our faithfulness and the devotion we rendered Him as our Master and Lord even in His physical absence. Hence, we shall either be welcomed by Him and made to enter into His glory forever, or face the possibility of not being acknowledged by Him, if we ourselves consistently rejected Him in our lifetime, and by doing so, have chosen for ourselves condemnation. When we think of the truth and certainty of the Second Coming of the Lord, as well as the Final Judgment that comes along with it, we come to realize that life
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is not about the present moment alone or this present world alone. More importantly, life is also about the world that is yet to come and the eternity that beckons and awaits us. We come to recognize that there is always a tomorrow, a definitive future and that our real future and ultimate destiny depends so much on how loyal and faithful we are here and now; how much we seek to lead our lives responsibly every day, that is, how responsive we are to the real needs around us; how we exercise our freedom which is God’s gift to us; and how conscientiously and creatively we use the time, talent, and treasure He, likewise, continues to bestow on us in Christ Jesus. While the memory of the First Coming of the Lord in-the-flesh (Christmas) draws us to reflect on the past, the Second Coming (Parousia) makes us look forward to the future. The Parousia forces us to look at the present and to take stock of the things that truly matter, but which unfortunately, we often forget or take for granted, namely: death, judgment, purgatory, eternal life, heaven, and hell. The Second Coming of the Lord is the climax of history that will usher in the new creation in its fullness— “a new heaven and a new earth,” the RECREATION of humanity and the world by the Creator and Redeemer God Himself. With Advent auspiciously reminding us of the Second Coming of the Lord—of the unfolding of the promised New Beginning—we ought not to forget that apart from such a wonderful, unsurpassable, and unimaginable future event, there is one other mode of the Lord’s coming which we experience almost everyday, namely, the Coming of the Lord in a sacramental way. This Sacramental Coming of the Lord happens in the most exemplary way in our celebration of the Holy Eucharist. For then, in our midst, the Lord comes in the humble form of Bread and Wine, in the proclamation of the Word, in the ministerial presence of the priest, in the gathering of His faithful people in His Name. It is the Lord Who speaks, Who leads, and Who becomes, for us, the provider of, and at the same time, the nourishing food and drink leading us to life eternal. Apart from the Holy Eucharist, we feel the sacramental presence of the Lord in the other Sacraments—in Baptism, Confirmation, Reconciliation, Marriage, Priestly Ordination, and Anointing of the Sick. These, too, are sacramental moments of His constant coming and of His special visitation with us. In these special liturgical moments we celebrate the Lord’s being with us here and now,
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through signs and symbols that allow us to perceive and understand the grace and the Spirit of the Lord abiding and working in us: now receiving and accommodating us, now confirming and strengthening us, now healing and reconciling us, now affirming us in the love of one another, now providing us with leaders and ministers, now lifting us and drawing us to Himself. Finally, there is the coming of the Lord for which we must likewise be attentive and prepared at all times. This is the coming of the Lord where He presents Himself to us in the rather simple, casual, humble, personal, and intimate way. He also truly comes to us in the course of our ordinary everyday life, in the ups and downs of life and of relationships, in the persons we meet, in events we take part in and/ or refuse to be part of. In these ordinary occasions, the Lord comes and speaks to us words that convey hope, joy, comfort, healing, reconciliation, and/or even sometimes disappointment, exasperation, sorrow, and dissatisfaction. These are happening in the ordinary times and moments of our life, but they are not without profound meaning and significance for our relationship with the Lord. Whether we prepare for and celebrate the anniversary of the First Coming of the Lord (in-the-flesh) or look forward with hope and expectation to His Second Coming (as the Glorious King and Merciful Judge), whether we feel the presence of the Lord in His Sacramental Coming (in His symbolic and deeply significant yet effective and gracious presence) or experience His Ordinary Coming in the daily chores and cares of life (in His subtle, mysterious, and hidden presence among us), the Lord comes, indeed, and shall come to us in ways that are often surprising and at times confounding and even disruptive of our daily routine. The words of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew today should not come to us as mere hollow and trivial lines, but really as profound, timely, and urgent reminders for us Christians, followers of Christ:“Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.� Constant vigilance is the attitude properly required of us, faithful disciples and servants of the Lord. We do not know exactly when Jesus, our Master, is coming, yet we know and believe strongly that He will certainly come as He has promised. We, therefore, cannot be complacent, oblivious, and irresponsible. Since we do not know the exact time of our Lord and Master’s return, we should make sure that we stay
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awake, keeping vigil so as not to be caught unaware when He arrives, but ever ready to receive and welcome Him. For the conscientious and faithful servants of the Master, the most awaited time of the Lord’s return can be just any moment, and so we ought to treat every such moment as indeed the Lord’s—not ours—but the Lord’s time. Indeed, His own appointed time.
Christmas MASS AT MIDNight Luke 2: 1-14 In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the world should be enrolled. This was the first enrollment when Quirinius was governor of Syria. So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town. And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear. The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying,/ “Glory to God in the highest /and on earth peace to those whom his favor rests.”
“M
erry Christmas!”—So our greeting goes today and for the entire Christmas season. “Christmas” literally means the Feast of Christ. We greet one another a truly joyous and meaningful celebration of the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ. And with such a great feast come wondrous treats, sumptuous meals, reunion with family and friends. All these are centered, as it should be, on the Christ Child, the firstborn Son of Mary, and likewise, the firstborn Son of God. Christ has been born for us, the angel of the Lord announces, “a Savior…who is Messiah and Lord.” The Gospel proclamation tonight comes from Luke’s very creative narration of the nativity of the Lord Jesus. Luke takes the traditions
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that Mary and Joseph come from Nazareth. However, the child of Mary was born in Bethlehem of Judea and not in their own hometown because of the world census decreed by the most powerful ruler of that time. In response to that imperial summons, Joseph, who belonged to “the house and family of David” had to return to his own place of origin, Bethlehem in Judea. And Mary, his betrothed, despite her being pregnant, had to take the long journey with him from Nazareth to Bethlehem, in order to register. And Luke tells us: “While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son.” We have here the first of a series of mysterious circumstances that Mary and Joseph, who have chosen to abide by God’s plan, would experience. Giving birth to “their” child in a distant land, away from familiar people, and outside the comfort of a real house, was definitely far from their imagination. The world census ordered by the Roman emperor Augustus Caesar, was totally inopportune, for it made no exceptions even for people who were unfit to travel, like Mary in her advanced stage of pregnancy. But regardless of people’s circumstances, “all went to be enrolled, each to his own town.” And yet, by divine arrangement and the mystery of providence, the very census ordered by Caesar became the means by which the lowly couple, Joseph and Mary, acted in fulfillment of prophecy, proceeding to Bethlehem, the “city of David,” where it was foretold that the Messiah would be born. “She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger…” Mary’s action affirmed the ordinariness and lowliness of the human nature assumed by this Child, whom she knew to be a royal son, Son of David and King of Israel (Lk 1:32b-33), even “Son of the Most High” (Lk 1:32), “Son of God” (Lk 1:35). This “firstborn son of Mary,” who was also the Son of God, had to lie there wearing the very trappings of humanity. He was the King of the Universe, but now, of His own choice, became just like any of us. After wrapping the Child “in swaddling clothes,” Mary laid Him “in a manger” for the reason that, “there was no room for them in the inn.” Here we find exactly what Luke implies: that the world enrollment decreed by the powerful Roman emperor, was not only representative of the harsh and forbidding condition laid down by an unfriendly world, but also, as the census itself revealed, the unwelcoming attitude of the people of the “city of David” towards Mary and Joseph. The unusual influx of people to Bethlehem was just to be expected on account of
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the imperial decree, but the unavailability of lodgings in the city and the inhabitants’ insensitivity to Mary’s plight as an expectant mother at the point of giving birth, testify not only to the difficulty, but the impossibility of the circumstances surrounding the Child’s nativity. Simply put, Bethlehem, the city of David and the world it represents, were indifferent and disinterested, not bothering to even provide a room for the birth of the Child who, as the angel would shortly reveal, “is a savior… who is Messiah and Lord.” We greet one another “Merry Christmas” as this joyful Season starts, and certainly with good reason. For like the angel who first brought the good news of that first Christmas Night, we also want to be, for one another, the bearer of the announcement that: “...today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord.” We want to be heralds of the good news of Christ not only to the people we know and live with, but also to those whom we normally do not consider as belonging to our inner circle of family and friends. We reach out to them, too, as the angels did to the shepherds who were away from their families and living in the fringes of their society. We offer them the good news of God’s love, namely, that in Jesus, Son of God and Son of Mary, we have “a savior.” No matter how dire and difficult the circumstances of our life may be, no matter how inhospitable our own personal conditions and situations may be, God’s Son comes to us, offering us joy, love, reconciliation, and peace. First, we have a God who fulfills His promise to His people and makes all things work together for the good, no matter how crooked persons and circumstances may be. Secondly, this promise is fulfilled in Jesus His Son, who was born for us as savior, precisely because we are sinners in need of salvation. He comes into our world as a powerful liberator, to lift us out of the pit of our misery and self-destruction, out of our darkness and isolation, out of our personal experience of slavery and oppression, addiction and subjugation. And indeed, this is the third point—Jesus the Savior comes to us today, He is born for us right here, right now at this very moment, as He was two thousand years ago, to free us from everything that holds us back or prevents us from fully realizing who we truly are, i.e., God’s beloved children. When we accept this good news and welcome Jesus as our Savior, and when we live for Him, through Him and with Him, in faith, hope, and love, we will also find joy, love, peace and reconciliation. And that is Christmas.
First Sunday OF LENT Matthew 4:1-11 At that time Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry. The tempter approached and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.” He said in reply, “It is written: ‘One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.’” Then the devil took him to the holy city, and made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you and with their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’” Jesus answered him, “Again it is written, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.” Then the devil took him up to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence, and he said to him, “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.” At this, Jesus said to him, “Get away, Satan! It is written: ‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.’” Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him.
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he story of Jesus’ temptation in the desert proclaims the depth of Jesus’ filial love and commitment to His heavenly Father, as well as his steadfast loyalty and obedience to God’s sovereign will. At His Baptism in the Jordan, Jesus “saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming upon him…” It was this same Spirit who right away led him “into the desert to be tempted by the devil.” Both in the Bible and in the history of the Church, the desert is known as a place where people go to seek God and stay in communion with Him in solitude. The Spirit
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led Jesus to the desert because He first needed to be truly alone with God, especially in view of the saving mission and public ministry He was about to begin. Accordingly, in the desert, Jesus “fasted for forty days and forty nights.” The evangelist Matthew seems to deliberately evoke the story of ancient Israel who, having left Egypt, wandered in the desert for forty years. During this prolonged sojourn, brought about by the people’s stubborness, persistent breach of trust, and disobedience to God’s will, God continued to care for the Israelites as a loving Father would for His children. Matthew somehow draws attention to how Jesus’ disposition in the desert contrasts with that of Israel. The fasting of Jesus manifests His desire, determination and commitment to be with God, to love and to honor God alone, and to put His trust and confidence absolutely in God alone. But, as it always seems, where one seeks God, one also finds the devil. So, in the story we are told that, “the tempter approached” Jesus and repeatedly tried to draw Him away from God by shaking His very faith and confidence. In Jesus’ moment of great want and physical hunger, the tempter tries to convince Him to take advantage of His intimate relationship with God and the power and influence that are presumed to come from such a special relationship, and so “command that these stones become loaves of bread.” An ordinary person will certainly not hesitate to use whatever power one possesses to put an end to one’s hunger and satisfy one’s individual need. But for Jesus, power is not to be exploited for self-serving reasons, neither to satisfy His basic needs and desires, much less to enhance His personal image. He thus shows his unshakeable faith in God and love for Him as He wards off the tempter, using as weapon the very words of God: “One does not live on bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.” God is far more important than food, and God’s Word is, for Jesus, the very nourishment and essential sustenance that keeps Him going. The devil tries again, this time tricking Jesus into showing off His power that flows from His close connection with God. He entices Him to throw Himself down the parapet of the Temple and provoke God to send His angels to save him from harm. This supposedly was to serve as an opportunity for the people to witness the special relationship that Jesus enjoys with God, and so make it easier for Him to convince them of His own divinity. But Jesus rejects the proposal to put God to
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the test, by compelling Him to perform an awesome rescue that will thrill spectators and potential admirers. He reasons, “You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.” In his third attempt, the devil entices Jesus with all the riches of the world and promises Him possession of all these, on the condition that Jesus will worship him. It was at this point that Jesus forcefully shows His resistance and indignation by abruptly ending the conversation with the command, “Get away, Satan,” and the emphatic reminder, “It is written: ‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.’” Jesus reaffirms the number one commandment of God and expresses, with great certainty and absoluteness, that He chooses God as the One and Only Lord to be worshipped, loved, and adored. As we devotedly observe this first Sunday of Lent, the Church reminds us that the Lord Jesus, in solidarity with us, also had His own struggles with the tempter. Jesus encountered the devil at the very time when He was deeply longing for God and profoundly desiring to abide by God’s will. In the end, we are struck and inspired by Jesus’ triumph over the temptations posed by the devil. We too are consoled to know that He was not abandoned, but “angels came and ministered to him.” During this Season of Lent, let us, together with Jesus, recognize God’s total supremacy and absolute priority in our lives. And let us also learn from Jesus how to confront our own temptations in life, identifying and unmasking them for what they are. Although temptations are meant to lead us away from God, they also test our commitment to God and challenge our strength and endurance as a people chosen by God for a purpose and mission. At the same time, they are the purifying fire that fortify our determination to follow Christ to the end. Defying temptation will renew and deepen our reliance on God’s grace, goodness, and mercy alone.
Easter Sunday OF THE LORD’S RESURRECTION John 20:1-9 On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.” So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial clothes there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. For they did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead.
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he “first day of the week,” as mentioned at the beginning of today’s Gospel Reading, refers to Sunday. The sabbath falls on Saturday, the last day of the week, which for the Jews, is the day of rest as prescribed by the Law of Moses. Sunday is the first day of the week and it corresponds to the first day of Creation when God created the first among His great and wonderful works—“the light.” After the creation of light came a series of God’s other creative works with their corresponding results, thus bringing forth the entire world, with man and woman at the pinnacle of it all. That the Resurrection of the Lord happened on Sunday, the first day of the week, speaks volumes about what God is doing in Christ Jesus. That God raised Christ Jesus from the dead on Sunday— the first day of Creation—means that God now renews His Creation. God is re-creating the entire created world, thus making a new beginning; He is “making all things new.” This act of God begins with Christ Jesus His Son, with His resurrection from the dead, and it continues until it touches each and everyone of us, each and everything in this world. We have been created once, but we are being re-created once more, made new again in Christ.
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Easter Sunday is truly the “Day of the Lord.” In Spanish this is more directly and clearly conveyed with Sunday being called “Domingo,” from the Latin “Domini” meaning “of the Lord.” It harkens back to the first day of the week when Jesus was raised from the dead and became Lord of all. Therefore, every Sunday, every first day of the week, is a day to be reserved for the Lord. It is the day we especially devote to Christ, to honor Him, remembering the wonderful work that God has done for Him, for us. It is the day when we give ourselves and offer our works back to Him as our Lord and Savior. As Christians and disciples of the Lord, we gratefully celebrate our Lord Jesus’ victory over sin and death on this Easter Sunday and on every Sunday of the year thenceforth. The events recounted by the Evangelist John on that original and first Easter Sunday, began with the experience of Mary of Magdala who “came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark.” “Dark” does not only mean the absence or insufficiency of light in the early hours of dawn. For here, we are being reminded of the story in the Book of Genesis, right before the creation of Light. “Still dark” is how John aptly describes the real spiritual and psycho-emotional condition of the disciples, including Mary of Magdala, right after the passion and death of their Master. And significantly, the last line of this particular Gospel story tells us the reason, “For they did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead.” The disciples were totally in the dark: they were clueless and unsuspecting. They were utterly confused, still lost and bewildered, deeply traumatized because of everything that had happened to their beloved Teacher. They were still in a state of shock and gripped by fear. The meaning of the Scriptures was still way beyond their grasp and comprehension. In short, their experience of Jesus’ Passion (suffering) and Death (crucifixion) had yet to sink into their consciousness and be properly illumined by the Holy Scriptures. What happened as a sort of breakthrough at that moment of darkness was the discovery of the Lord’s empty tomb. It was Mary of Magdala who first came to the tomb, intending to anoint Jesus’ body. But she “saw the stone removed from the tomb.” In her shock, she came to the conclusion that Jesus’ body was stolen. Reporting this strange and upsetting development to “Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved,” Mary of Magdala, in effect, broke the first ambivalent news
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that will later become the joyful Easter message. The first two recipients of this odd news were Peter and another unnamed disciple. These two disciples ran to the tomb, as if they were in a sort of sprint race, with Simon Peter being outrun by the seemingly younger companion, identified simply as “the beloved disciple.” Upon arrival at the tomb, both Peter and this unnamed disciple discovered the burial cloths, but the Lord’s body was nowhere to be found. Moreover, they noticed something peculiar—the head cover was rolled away separately from the rest of the cloths. What were they to make out of this puzzling sight—an empty tomb and burial cloths? Mary of Magdala and Simon Peter did not know what to make of them. It took “the disciple whom Jesus loved” to shake off the initial confusion and bewilderment; he saw something beyond the telltale signs, and through his own penetrating insight arrived at faith: “he saw and believed.” Easter Sunday and every Sunday that follows is a continuing challenge and invitation for us to “see and believe.” “To see” is to recognize in the light of faith the presence of the Lord, even in the absence of His body. It is to perceive and touch the living Lord in and beyond the traces He left behind and find in them sure signs, that is, pointers to a greater reality— indeed, the Lord is risen! This kind of seeing cannot but lead to believing. While we no longer have direct access to the empty tomb and the abandoned burial cloths, as the first disciples had, we still have access to the special symbols and signs that point to the same paschal mystery. We can see through the Easter candle lit and aglow; the pure white corporal cloth that bears the tiny sacred host on the altar; the golden Tabernacle of the reserved sacrament of the Lord’s Body; the broken Bread and poured out Wine laid out at the sacred table; the fresh and fragrant flowers daintily arranged; the priest and the faithful prayerfully and joyfully gathered together in faith, hope and love, singing Alleluia; the church overflowing with faithful devotees—all these and many more bear traces of the Lord’s transcendent presence. They tell of a strong, victorious, and holy presence that cannot and shall not be contained by a cave tomb because it has vanquished the power of death. Jesus the Christ of God stands in our midst crucified, and yet, risen. Alleluia!
Second Sunday in ordinary time John 1:29-34 John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, ‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’ I did not know him, but the reason why I came baptizing with water was that he might be made known to Israel.” John testified further, saying, “I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from heaven and remain upon him. I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God.”
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he day before John the Baptist gives this important testimony about Jesus, he gave one about himself. It was a testimony about himself that should have finally settled the people’s curiosity about his identity. Thus when asked by the ordinary people and by members of the elite religious groups, John clearly and outrightly replied, “I am not the Christ.” But still intrigued by John’s persistent urgings that the people be baptized, they asked him whether he might be “Elijah,” the widely-revered prophet expected to return to prepare the people for God’s long-promised salvation; or perhaps “the prophet” spoken of by Moses. But John flatly denied that he was either. When pushed to give a more substantial answer to their enquiries, John humbly confessed himself to be “the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord’”. Consistent with this confession is the mission, whose significance is not entirely lost on the people. Here before them is the very herald of the One whom they have all been expecting. John now tries to make them realize that this One is already in their midst, though still unknown to them. But this One is definitely greater than John who now admits: “I baptize with water; but among you stands one whom you do not know, even he who comes after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie.” What follows this rather sketchy testimony of John is a more definitive testimony as to who it is John speaks of. This happens “the next day,” when “John saw Jesus coming toward him.”
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Did Jesus actually come to John to be baptized by him? We do not know this for sure, since there is no explicit mention of it in John’s Gospel narrative. But we can safely assume it, based on the witness of the Synoptic Gospels. What is immediately noticeable is the absence of reference to the actual event of Jesus being baptized by John. This missing indication makes it look like the event itself is far less important than the statement John pronounces afterwards about Jesus, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, ‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’” The way the evangelist handled this part of the Gospel speaks volumes. It declares loud and clear that the real protagonist is Jesus, and even if He submits to the baptism of John, the latter plays only a supporting role, which the evangelist did not deem necessary to highlight by narrating the event. For him, the baptism that John performed on all the people, taken together, appeared to be more important and thus he gave it greater emphasis. It served as a revelatory function of indicating to John the Baptist who it was he would have to announce as the One. As John testified: “I did not know him, but the reason why I came baptizing with water was that he might be made known to Israel.” But before being made known to Israel, Jesus had to be made known to John first, so that he could be his true herald and direct witness. For the One who was to come after him and who ranked ahead of him because he existed before him, was unknown to John until Jesus came toward him and John was given the sign that this man was the One he was to announce. John’s testimony to Jesus as the Lamb of God continued in this way. He said, “I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from the sky and remain upon him.” It was the Spirit, therefore, who ultimately testified about Jesus. John’s testimony rested on that prior testimony and direct demonstration of the Spirit regarding Jesus. The evangelist’s peculiar account of John’s testimony seems to show a lack of knowledge of, or very little interest in the other traditions, such as the one found in Luke (i.e., that John and Jesus were cousins). That portrays a kinship knowledge of Jesus by John and so a more intimate relationship that John enjoyed with Jesus. Instead, in the Gospel of John, we find the Baptist saying, “I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’” John brings to a close his
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testimony to who Jesus truly is by expressing his evident satisfaction over the Spirit’s manifestation. With this final witness, he fulfills his own avowed mission from God for the sake of the people: “Now I have seen and testified that he is the Son of God.” Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Jesus is the One Who is to baptize with the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the Son of God, but what this means will only be revealed gradually, and only to the chosen few disciples who would be given the opportunity and grace to see for themselves Jesus’ own unique person and his lifewitness to God’s action. The Gospel proclaimed this Second Sunday in Ordinary Time following the Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord opens wide for us the rest of the liturgical year. It gives us the opportunity and the grace to rediscover the mystery of Jesus Christ Our Lord and to gradually grow in our knowledge of Him as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, so that we can also grow in our capacity to witness to Him. As the Paschal Lamb, Jesus, through the shedding of His own blood, through His death and rising again to life, graciously confers the Holy Spirit on His followers and on those who, like us, will come to believe in Him as the Son of God, whose coming into the world has brought light that endures and life that truly abounds. As John the Baptist came to see and to know who Jesus was, may we too come to see and to know Jesus as He truly is. And as John the Baptist came to bear witness to Jesus, may we too come to bear witness to Him as the One Who came from God in order to redeem us and lead us towards the fullness of life that is none other than God Himself.