26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
Kindly open your Bible and Read Mt. 21:28-32
Points for Reflection: I am sharing to my dear readers a story which has been a part of my collections to help you reflect as the Universal Church celebrates the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Times – A.
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St. Augustine was born in Africa in the year 354. His young adulthood was a stormy period.
It included fathering a child out of wedlock.
In his twenties, Augustine moved to Milan, Italy, where he became a professor of rhetoric. His personal life, however, continued to be stormy and wayward.
While in Milan, two things happened to him. First, he became increasingly unhappy
with his personal life. Second, he became attracted to Christianity.
It was in this frame of mind that he sat down one day and began to ponder his life. Suddenly he broke into tears and began to cry out to God:
“And you, Lord! How long will you be angry with me? Forever? Why not at this very hour put an end to my evil life?” Augustine said later:
“I was crying out like this when, suddenly, I heard the voice of a child.
It seemed to say, ‘Take and read! Take and read!’
“I stood up. For now the voice seemed like a command to read the Bible. I got a Bible and opened it.
“The first words my eyes fell upon were from the letter of Paul to the Romans. They read:
“ ‘Throw off the works of darkness [and] put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves properly as in the day, not in orgies and drunkenness … not in rivalry and jealousy.
But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.’’’ Romans 13:12-14
When Augustine read this, he stopped. There was no need to go on. He says:
“My heart was suddenly flooded with a light that erased all my doubts. And my soul was filled with a deep peace.” (The Confessions of St. Augustine -condensed and adapted by Mark Link)
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Requested the patient, “Doctor, if there is anything wrong with me, don’t frighten me half to death by giving it a long scientific name. Just tell me in plain English.”
“Well,” the doctor replied hesitantly, “to be perfectly frank, you are just plain lazy.”
“Thank you, doctor,” murmured the patient. “Now give me the scientific name so I can tell my family.” (Quote, NOT CONTAGIOUS)
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“A useful tip to a busy businessman, and to save much time,” says a journal published in England, “is to put your hat on immediately if there is a knock at your door. If it is someone you want to see, you say you have just come in. If it is not, you’re just going out.” (TIME SAVING DEVICE, Fifth Wheel)
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In recent weeks our newspapers, radio broadcasts, and telecasts have carried the usual stories of scams, corruption and ineptness. Natural disasters like the typhoons in our country have brought untold miseries to many families. In our own life experiences there is no doubt that we also have encountered repeated actions of extraordinary goodness. As we listened to “Inyong Alagad” program over DYRD-AM and read the Bohol Chronicle we have found many individuals and groups of people working to bring needed comforts during this time of other persons’ helplessness. This is a way of responding “YES” to the challenge of living out our faith – that is doing the will of the Father! This is conversion from selfishness to selflessness!
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There was once a man who had nothing and God gave him apples. He gave him the first three apples to eat. He gave him the second three apples to trade for shelter from the sun and rain. He gave him the third three apples to trade for clothing to wear. He gave him the last apple so that he might have something to give back to God to show his gratitude for the other nine.
The man ate the first three apples. He traded the second three for a shelter from the sun and rain. He traded the third three for clothing to wear.
Then he looked at the tenth apple. .. It seemed bigger and juicier than the rest He knew that God had given him the tenth apple so that he might return it to him out of gratitude for the other nine. But he reasoned that God had all the other apples in the world, and this was a very special one. .. So the man ate the tenth apple.
And he gave back to God the core … (SUNDAY OBSERVANCE, First Baptist Reminder, Dallas, Texas)
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For years two monks lived together in concord and amity. The monotony of their life finally moved one to say, “Let us get out of the groove of our humdrum round of daily tasks and do something different – let us do as the world does.”
Having lived the sequestered life so long, the other monk inquired, “What does the world without do?”
‘’Well, for one thing,” stated the first monk, “the world quarrels. See that stone? Let us place it between us, and let each one say, ‘The stone is mine’.”
Willing to accommodate Iris friend, the second monk picked up the stone and placed it between them, then exclaimed, “This stone is mine.”
Pausing for reflection, and feeling the compulsion of their years of friendship, the monk who suggested the quarrel concluded, “Well, brother, if the stone is thine, keep it.”
And there was no quarrel. (QUARRELS, John Riebe)
Ika-26 nga Domingo sa Tuig (A)
Septiyembre 27, 2020
KAHULOGAN SA EBANGHELYO (Mateo 21:28-32)
28“Karon, unsa may inyong hunahuna?…
Kining maong pangutana gisulti ni Jesus ngadto sa mga lider niadtong panahona: ang mga punuang pari ug mga magtutudlo sa balaod. Bag-o pa lang nga gipapahawa ni Jesus ang mga mamaligyaay gikan sa templo (Mt 21:12-17), ug unya Iyang gitunglo ang kahoy nga wala mamunga (Mt 21:18-22). Ang mga kadagkoan sa Jerusalem naglagot kang Jesus ug nangutana kon diin siya og katungod sa paghimo niini. Sa ebanghelyo sumala ni San Mateo, si Jesus mitubag niini pinaagi sa tulo ka mga sambingay (Mt 21:28—22:14).
Apan wala kini magpasabot nga wala kini kahulogan sa atong panahon karon. Ang pangutana ni Jesus: “Unsa may inyong…” kininagpasabot nga kita usab angay nga motubag niini.
29Dihay tawo nga may duha ka anak nga lalaki. Miadto siya sa magulang ug iyang giingnan, ‘Dong, pagtrabaho karong adlawa didto sa parasan.’ Siya mitubag, ‘Dili ko motrabaho,’ apan nausab ang iyang hunahuna ug miadto siya sa parasan.
Ang una natong reaksyon mao nga daw way batasan kining anaka! Apan maayo gani kay nausab ang iyang baroganan.
Si Jesus nagpakita lamang nato sa kausbanan sa tawo ngadto sa pagka-maayo! Bisag unsa pa ang kagahapon sa usa ka tawo, anaa pa gihapon ang paglaum nga siya mausab! Si Jesus dili gayod mopriso kanato sa atong kagahapon, hinoon siya moluwas! Nakit-an kanunay ni Jesus ang posibleng kabag-ohan sa matag usa kanato.
30Unya ang amahan miadto sa manghod ug mao gihapon ang iyang giingon kaniya. ‘Oo, moadto ako,’ mitubag siya, apan wala siya moadto.
Si Jesus mipakita sa dakong kalainan niining maong anak kon itandi sa iyang magulang.
31aKinsa man sa duha ang mituman sa buot ipabuhat sa amahan?”
Kon ikaw maoy motubag, unsa man usab ang imong hunahuna o gibati? Kinsa kanilang duha ang nagtuman sa kabubut-on sa Amahan?
31bSila mitubag, “Ang magulang.”
Mao usab tingali kini ang atong tubag. Dili igo ang pulong lamang; kinahanglan ang buhat!
Sa walay paghukom sa uban, kondili sa pagtan-aw sa atong kaugalingon, mangutana kita: aduna bay mga higayon nga susama kita sa ikaduhang igsoon? Dili ba usahay moingon man kita: Mituo man ko! Apan ang maong pagtuo ato bang giubanan sa saktong buhat? Dili ba kaha kutob ra kita sa pag-ampo sa “Mituo Ako” panahon sa Domingo, apan sukwahi sa maong pagtuo ang atong mga gibuhat sa ubang mga adlaw nianang semanaha?
31cUnya si Jesus miingon, “Sultihan ko kamo nga ang mga kobrador sa buhis ug ang mga dautang babaye mag-una pa kaninyo pagsulod sa gingharian sa Dios.
Daw makapalibog! Sa unsang paagiha nga si Jesus midayeg na man hinoon sa mga kobrador sa buhis (giisip nga public sinners) ug dautang babaye (prostitutes)? Si Jesus wala magpasabot nga siya uyon sa mga dautang buhat; kondili nga kon kini sila magbag-o, mas maluwas pa kay sa mga nagtuo nga segurado silang maluwas tungod sa paghunahuna nga sila hingpit na!
Usa sa mga makalilisang nga sala mao ang sayop nga panghunahuna nga dili na kinahanglanon ang Dios tungod kay sakto na man kita, wala na kitay gikinahanglang tabang kay hingpit na ta! Sa tinuoray walay tawo nga hingpit. Kita pulos mga makasasala!
Usa ka magsusulat nagkanayon, “ang sala, bisan pa kon kini dautan, mahimo nga maoy agianan sa grasya nga makatuhop sa kalag sa tawo. Mahimo nga ang grasya mosulod sa nahisalaag nga kalag. Ug dinhi ang kanhi nga nawala karon nakaplagan.”
Sama sa mga makasasala nga midangop kang Jesus, ako bang gitunol ni Jesus ang akong pagkamakasasala aron pinaagi sa dili matungkad nga paagi sa Ginoo ako iyang hatagan sa Iyang nagbuhagay nga grasya?
32aKay mianhi kaninyo si Juan nga Magbubunyag pagtudlo sa matarong nga pagkinabuhi, ug wala kamo motuo kaniya; apan ang mga kobrador sa buhis ug ang mga dautang babaye mituo kaniya.
Samtang kining sambingaya nagtug-an kanato sa dakong kalainan tali sa “sulti” ug sa “buhat”; tali sa “pagsugot sa ngabil” ug sa “pagdumili sa buluhaton” , kining bahina sa ebanghelyo nagtug-an kanato sa dakong kalainan tali sa “pagbaton og pagtuo” ug sa “pagdumili sa pagtuo”. Ug kining paghupot sa pagtuo nagkahulogan og kabag-ohan o kausaban ngadto sa pagka-maayo!
32bBisan gani kamo, sa human ninyo makita kini, wala gihapon maghinulsol ni motuo kaniya.”
Ang pagtuo diay mao ang pagtuman sa kabubut-on sa Dios! Duha ra ang kapilian: ang kinabuhi nga mitubag sa tawag sa Dios og “Oo” o “Dili”!