Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Gospel Reflection



March 20, 2013
Wednesday – Year of Faith – Lenten Seasons
by Rev. Fr. Leo Nilo C. Mangussad, Rector, Shrine of Mary Queen of Peace, Our Lady of EDSA (EDSA Shrine) 12:15PM Mass at Shrine of Mary, Queen of Peace (Our Lady of EDSA)


King Nebuchadnezzar said: “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you will not serve my god, or worship the golden statue that I set up? Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I had made, whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, flute, lyre, harp, psaltery, bagpipe, and all the other musical instruments; otherwise, you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace; and who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?” Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, “There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue that you set up.”

King Nebuchadnezzar’s face became livid with utter rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual and had some of the strongest men in his army bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and cast them into the white-hot furnace.

Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” “Assuredly, O king,” they answered. “But,” he replied, “I see four men unfettered and unhurt, walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God.”  Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him; they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.”

Responsorial Psalm Dn 3:52, 53, 54, 55, 56

R. (52b) Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever;
And blessed is your holy and glorious name,
praiseworthy and exalted above all for all ages.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.
R. Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you on the throne of your kingdom,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you who look into the depths
from your throne upon the cherubim;
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven,
praiseworthy and glorious forever.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!

Gospel Jn 8:31-42

Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone.  How can you say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in a household forever, but a son always remains.  So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free. I know that you are descendants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you.  I tell you what I have seen in the Father’s presence; then do what you have heard from the Father.”

They answered and said to him, “Our father is Abraham.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works of Abraham. But now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God; Abraham did not do this. You are doing the works of your father!” So they said to him, “We were not born of fornication. We have one Father, God.”  Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and am here; I did not come on my own, but he sent me.”

HOMILY

As Jesus has said, "...and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free".
It is best to live a truthful life and practice truthfulness, unless you are an extremely good liar, that you could go on lying with your life. It will set you free if you know the truth because if you lie, you will have to put another lie to cover up the lie that you have said in the first place. And as you continue lying, more lies will have to be conjured to cover up the truth that you should have said in the first place.
The truth will set you free. But how many of us are willing to face and tell the truth? We are more fond of covering up the truth with utter lies. Why? It is like this. Sometimes, if we want to tell the truth, we just say half of it, so we are able to manipulate it. The painful part of it is, we only believe the other half, rather than the authentic half. And in so doing, we produce a convenient truth for us to live by. It is manipulating the absolute truth.
What is the absolute truth that will set us free? Love that comes from God. Jesus Himself has said that love is the absolute truth. If you love one another, you're not going to deceive anyone. You will tell truth. You are not going to be greedy, you're not going to be selfish, you're not going to think of yourself, but rather, think of everyone else.
Jesus sets the truth into action. Can we continue bearing this truth in our lives? Or are we going to cover up this truth with lies, and then continuously and non-stop cover it up with more lies? My brothers and sisters, Jesus wants us to live in truth. Can we cooperate with Him and bring the truth to everyone?