by Fr. Jose “Joesum” Sumampong, Jr.
July 4, 2021
(14th SUNDAY in OT – A):
Kindly open your Bible and Read Mt 11:25-30
Church celebrates the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A). Here they are:
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Points for Reflection: I am sharing to my dear readers these stories which I have collected to help you reflect as the Universal
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# 1. the sign “Silence!” in a hospital shields the quiet mysterious knitting up of bodies and nerves.
“Silence!” in a radio station safeguards a delicately tuned traffic with infinite space.
In a library, “Silence!” whispers of the deep communion of mind with mind, the calm flowering of thought.
Thus does silence speak of healing, of messages from space, and of the distilling of wisdom. (Silence, Today) ++++
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# 2. A sergeant was instructing some new recruits. “Just remember that no matter how hard the work or dirty the job an officer gives you, you always have the last word.”
As the men stared at him in surprise, he added, “That word is ‘Yes sir!’.” (THE LAST WORD (Obedience), Grit) ) ++++
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# 3. George Washington, the Father of United States of America, was baptized and reared in the Anglican Church. However, during his public life he worshipped in churches of other faiths, wherever he found them. At least twice he attended a Catholic Mass. Persons close to him testify that Washington was a man of prayer. What kind of prayers did he say?
Some answer to that question was found in a small, worn notebook in Washington’s handwriting discovered in an old trunk. It is entitled simply: The Daily Sacrifice: A Sacrifice of Prayer and Thanksgiving for the Week, Both Morning and Evening. Here is his prayer for Wednesday morning: “Almighty and eternal Lord God, the great Creator of heaven and earth, and the God and Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ, look down from heaven in pity and compassion upon me Thy servant, who humbly prostrates myself before Thee, sensible of Thy mercy and my own misery.”
Washington talks to God as “Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Msgr. Arthur Tonne) ) ++++
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# 4. Once upon a time there was a young prince. He was very handsome except for one thing: He had a crooked back. This birth defect caused him great sorrow. It also kept him from being the kind of prince that he really wanted to be for his people.
One day the prince’s father asked the best sculptor in his kingdom to make a statue of the prince. It should portray him, however, not with a crooked back, but with a straight back. The king wanted his son to see himself as he could be.
When the sculptor finished the statue, it was truly magnificent. It was so lifelike that you could mistake it for the prince.
The king placed the statue in the prince’s private garden.
Each day when the prince went to the garden to study, he looked longingly at the statue.
Then one day he noticed that when he did this, his heart beat faster and his body tingled.
Months passed. Soon the people began to say to one another, “The prince’s back doesn’t seem as crooked as it once did.”
When the prince heard this, his heart beat even faster and his body tingled even more.
Now the prince began to go to the garden more often. He spent hours standing before the statue, studying it closely, and meditating on it.
Then one day a remarkable thing happened. The prince found himself standing as straight as the statue. (Mark Link, S.J.) ) ++++
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# 5 Ralph Martin, a Catholic layman, writes: “A real estate man I know gets up early in the morning to pray; an aerospace engineer prays and reads Scripture on his lunch hour;
a production manager of a computing firm prays after the children are in bed at night.”
And so the first thing we can do is to do what many serious people are doing.
We can begin making Bible reading and prayer a greater part of our lives. (Mark Link, S.J.) ) ++++
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# 6. Years ago a motorist stopped at a farmhouse.
On the porch was an elderly woman.
Working around the house was an elderly man. He was whistling nonstop in a tuneless way.
The motorist asked about the whistling. “It’s for my wife,” said the elderly man. “She went blind a few years ago, and it left her terribly frightened and lonely.
Hearing me whistle lets her know that I am nearby and watching over her.” (Illustrated Sunday’s Homilies) ) ++++
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What a beautiful gathering that we have here today to enjoy the Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Although this is the first Sunday of the hot Summer months, the grace of God has touched many, drawing you all to unite and receive Jesus in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist and to hear the Sacred Word of God that strengthens the hearts of the believers.
During today’s “Opening Prayer,” we heard that the Heavenly Father has raised a fallen world through the obedience of Jesus. During this same prayer, we asked God to free us from sin and to bring us a joy that will last forever. In other words, the Lord Jesus is our hope of finding rest for our souls.
During the Gospel reading today, we heard Jesus say that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. When we live our Christian life as a new creation, enjoying the gifts that we have received during the Sacrament of Baptism, we think spiritually. When we think spiritually, we are no longer burdened by the worldly ways because we are walking our living faith and hope with a spiritual heart.
To explain this, while those of a worldly heart seek to accumulate their treasures, those of a spiritual heart give freely what they own. While the worldly minded hold grudges, those of a spiritual mind forgive. While those of the worldly way avoid Church attendance, the spiritual minded person cherishes the presence of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. Endless such comparison can be made as we are well aware.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, in all our daily thoughts, words and actions, let us remember to value our ongoing presence before the indwelling Spirit of God. Through Jesus, let us strive to worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship Him. [Jn. 4:23] May we always remember to place God first in our lives. May we always remember to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. To succeed in this goal, we must seek to walk hand-in-hand with the indwelling Holy Spirit who is our Guide in all things. By doing these things, Jesus will find rest in our hearts and our souls will find the true and perfect rest in the Sacred Heart of Jesus.