Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary time (27 June 2010)

Fr James McTavish FMVD

“Freedom!”

In the film Braveheart, Mel Gibson’s famous line is “Freedom!” Even when he is being killed he shouts out “You can take my life but you will never take my freedom!” Freedom is a great gift, given to us by God. St Paul reminds us “Brothers and sisters: For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.” What the following of Christ offers to us is this – freedom. Whoever follows Christ becomes free to be who they are, to be fully human.

Each human being has been given the gift of freedom, a freedom to love others, to help, to serve. What do we use our freedom for? Charles de Focauld said at one moment in his life “I have lived so much for myself. Now it is time to live for God”. Do I use my freedom to build up this world or just my own interests like my bank balance? The freedom of our intellect too can be used in a way that constructs, that helps others, that builds the Kingdom. Personally speaking I will not read any old book, watch any movie that comes along or even waste time watching TV. Life is too short and time is too precious for that. The opposite of freedom is slavery. If we find ourselves spending hours in front of the TV or on Facebook then perhaps we are slaves and not really free. “Do not use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh; rather, serve one another through love.” (Gal 5, 13). There are many things that can enslave man – alcohol, gambling, pornography. It is awful when you see someone who should be free becoming totally enslaved to a vice.

Seeing the needs of others can move us to respond and can make us more free from ourselves. Visiting a deaf school this week I realised how beautiful it is to be able to communicate with these children. I have started to learn basic sign language as I would like to communicate more with them. Many people are deaf in our world of today, not only physical deafness but also spiritual. They are deaf to the cry of the poor, deaf to the cry of others. How about you and I? Are we able to hear the cry of others? One boy was in the city with a friend. He was explaining how insensitive the world was becoming. To show his friend he started to shout out for help. No one responded. Then he took a dollar coin and dropped it. As it hit the ground everyone stopped, everyone turned their heads. Is it possible that this world could be more sensitive to money than to the cry of those in need?

This week we have been busy hosting a mission trip. A group of young students from 4 different universities in England have come to Philippines for 20 days. They spent the first four days in Tagaytay, just outside Manila. What is amazing is seeing how keen they are to do good, how open they are to experience other cultures. On their first night they spent time with some simple Filipino families who even though they were poor were so joyful and generous. The students themselves said that the people with so little were more generous and joyful that many rich people in the UK. When they came to Manila they visited a poor neighbourhood of squatters. One sad scene was seeing a funeral wake of a little girl, two years old, who had died of pneumonia due to a lack of antibiotics. The students were confronted by this and wondered how a little girl could die for want of a course of simple antibiotics costing a little more than a dollar. The question they had was “How could this happen?” Perhaps this is a good question for us all. For sure we can all do more to help the world around us. For sure if we were more attentive to the cry of our poor neighbours these things would be less common.

Jesus himself came to teach us how to be free. Am I free Lord to follow you and serve you? For sure, following Christ we become more free of ourselves and are able to leave so many useless attachments behind. Jesus shows us an example of a determined man. He was determined to be dominated by no man and nothing. He sets his face towards Jerusalem with so much determination and asks us to follow him. Each one of us is called to share in his mission as priest, prophet and king. In the first reading Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak over Elisha. This gesture means that Elisha too is called to share the prophetic calling as each one of are too as in baptism the Lord throws his cloak over us in a sacramental way. We are each called to denounce injustice, to seek a humble daily conversion and try to be better people. Let us ask for this grace to be truly free and to use this freedom to build up the Kingdom, while we still have time.

REFLEXION Evangelio Semanal

Volver a lo fundamental: “Es el Mesías”

(P. Luis J. Tamayo)

Imagino que vosotros también habréis recibido esos correos electrónicos en el que se pide que respondas a 25 preguntas sobre la persona del que te lo envía, para luego devolvérselo… con la cosa de que luego dice la carta que si lo haces te sorprenderán las respuestas. En el fondo, alguna vez en la vida, a quien no le interesa saber lo que otros piensan de él, ¿verdad?

Jesús, sin utilizar el correo electrónico, levanta la pregunta fundamental: «¿Quién dice la gente que soy yo?»; ellos contestaron: «Unos que Juan el Bautista, otros que Elías, otros dicen que un antiguo profeta».

Pero es más, no sólo le interesa saber que dice la gente en general, sino que dicen los suyos, sus íntimos, sus amigos… vuelve a hacer la pregunta por segunda vez: «Y vosotros, ¿quién decís que soy yo?». Pedro tomó la palabra y dijo:
«El Mesías de Dios».

El le llamó el Mesías pues el entendía que Mesías significaba Salvador. Pedro no lo dijo por que sí… Pedro lo dijo fruto de una experiencia, fruto de una experiencia profunda de haberse visto profundamente amado y por ello rescatado de su miseria. Jesús lo había salvado. Jesús había creído en él profundamente, Jesús había restaurado su corazón roto, Jesús lo había mirado con amor y esa mirada había calado hondo. “Pedro no me avergüenzo de llamarte a mi Iglesia”.

Si un médico por no definirse o implicarse del todo en su trabajo deja morir a alguien, el médico es expulsado del Hospital. Sin embargo, Pedro, a pesar de haber negado a Jesús y así dejarle morir… sin embargo Jesús, le confirmó en su llamada para ser cabeza de la Iglesia. Tu crees que esa segunda oportunidad no la experimentó como una experiencia de muchísimo amor y confianza? Así Jesús le pudo decir: Tu eres el Mesías.

Y tú, ¿cómo responderías a la pregunta?, ¿quién dices que es Jesús?; ¿qué experiencia tienes de Jesús que te ayudaría a definirlo?

El miércoles defiendo la Tesis, después de los exámenes, el catarro fuerte de estos días, los antibióticos, etc. Esta mañana en mi oración sentía el cansancio, y miraba a Jesús y la Virgen: entendía de ellos: “Nosotros creemos en ti, venga lo vas a conseguir, lo vas a hacer muy bien; Ánimo! Adelante. No tires la toalla!”. 

Cuando escuchas en tu corazón estas palabras del Señor, sientes que las fuerzas se te restauran , vuelves a experimentar una gran confianza… Jesús es mi fuerza, es la roca donde me apoyo. Lo diré con las palabras del Salmo 18,2: SEÑOR, roca mía y castillo mío, y mi libertador; Dios mío, fuerte mío, en él confiaré; escudo mío, y el poder de mi salvación, mi refugio.

12th Sunday of Year (20 June 2010)

Fr James McTavish, FMVD

“Deny yourself and pick up your cross”

Modern life is lived in the fast lane. Everything happens at high speed. Sometimes there is no time for reflection or even to learn from mistakes. Like the guy on the horse that is galloping along. “Where are you going” he was asked. “I don’t know,” he replied, “ask the horse”. But even in ancient Greece the famous Socrates noted that the unexamined life is not worth living. When things happen too fast the phenomenon of depersonalization occurs. There is no time to assimilate and to connect all the events in life’s rich tapestry. All seems random and with no connection but if we stop and reflect, with a little bit of faith, we can see God’s hand behind gently guiding us in all the evens of life.

Jesus wanted his disciples to personalize their relationship with him. He asked them who the people say he is and the disciples tell him various answers like John the Baptist or Elijah. Then he asks them the million dollar question “And you, who do you say I am?” (See Luke 9, 18-24) In asking his disciples he is also asking each one of us. Who is the Lord for us? Many times our faith consists in discussions, many times idle, about the Church, the priests, the rules etc. But as Pope Benedict reminds us “Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” (Deus Caritas Est, #1).

To the question who do you say I am Peter responds “The Christ of God”. Jesus does not like to be presented as a heroic messiah or marvel superhero. He tells his disciples that he must suffer greatly. “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Sounds harsh but let us delve deeper to discover the good news here. First thing is it is not a command but an invite – if you wish, if you want to. Next the difficult part, we have to deny ourselves. It sounds distinctly untrendy and not in fashion to deny yourself especially when the buzz word today is indulge. The error here is to think that the denial involves denying something good, like chocolate (which may be the case for some!). But how about denying all that makes us unhappy, such as denying pessimism and fears. One friend told me that Jesus wants him to deny his fears as he uses them as an excuse to not follow the Lord with more daring and radicality. When we have a tendency to pessimism we should ask for the grace to deny that. What do you need to learn how to deny?

Every person has their cross. Each of us has challenges and we actually need them if we want to grow, to mature. To pass from being a caterpillar to being a butterfly. The caterpillar has to work hard to emerge from its cocoon. Once scientists tried to speed up the process by making the exit hole bigger of the cocoon. The caterpillar got out quicker with less work but the butterfly it became had weak wings that had not had the chance to develop. We need the narrow road to develop. When Jesus says to pick up our cross it is to pick it up. Not to look at it or just be intimidated by it. Do you pick up the crosses or lose strength procrastinating? St Theresa of Avila said that the biggest cross is to try to avoid the cross. Sometimes carrying the cross we feel we are being lead to our death and in a way it is true! But it is only part of the truth because the whole truth is that there is the resurrection. Recently we have been arranging for a mission trip that will arrive from London – 18 young people from our apostolate there will come to Philippines for 3 weeks of mission exposure. In one moment I was very stressed organizing their stay here. I thought I would die of stress and anxiety! In these moments it is important not to lose courage but to keep going. Sometimes we can even fall under the weight of our crosses but our good Lord shows us that even if you fall three times it is still possible to get up and keep going.

It is a bit like when the test pilots were trying to break the sound barrier. Approaching Mach 1 the aircraft would shake violently and many pilots eased back on the throttle. Along comes Chuck Yeager and when he experienced those vibrations, as if the airplane would break up, he opened up the throttle and BOOM! He broke the sound barrier and experienced the tranquillity and stability of supersonic flight. The same with us - carrying the cross we experience turbulence and vibrations and we think we shall break up. But instead of giving up if we persevere in prayer, in the middle of the struggles and vibrations of ‘death’ – BOOM – we then enter into the peace of the resurrection. Like with the mission trip, in the middle of the struggles, BOOM, Lord thank you now I experience the peace of going supersonic with you! Taking our love and self giving to new heights!

Let us follow Christ by carrying our cross. Dietrich Bonhoeffer the great protestant theologian said that when Jesus bids us come follow him he bids us to die. To die to selfishness, fears and pessimism which stop us enjoying this short life. Let us ask Jesus for the grace to pick up our cross each day and follow him. Amen.

REFLEXION Evangelio Semanal

El perdón, fruto del amor. 

Creo que es la frase que mejor puede resumir las lecturas de hoy. La repito, el perdón, fruto del amor.

En la primera lectura Dios perdona a David por el amor que le tiene. David ha cometido un gran pecado: matar a espada a Urías y quedarse con su mujer. David reconoce su pecado y Dios le perdona. Pero le perdona por el amor que le tiene. Fruto de ese amor que profesa a David, le ha dado cantidad de cosas, como nos dice la lectura, y aún le dará más: una descendencia de la que nacerá el Mesías.

En la segunda lectura se nos dice que nuestra justificación, es decir nuestro ser justos ante Dios no es gracias a la ley, sino a la fe en Jesús. El perdón de Dios hacia nosotros no es fruto de la ley, el perdón de Dios es fruto del amor. Si el perdón dependiera de la ley sería horrible, pues estaríamos bajo el poder de la ley, y la ley, depende de quien la interprete, puede ser dura e implacable, más aún cuando se interpreta al pie de la letra. Jesús dice en el evangelio: “el sábado se ha hecho para el hombre y no el hombre para el sábado”. Para Dios el hombre está y estará siempre por encima de la ley, sobre todo de toda ley que oprima a la persona.

Y en el evangelio vemos con mayor claridad que el perdón es fruto del amor. “Sus muchos pecados están perdonados, porque tiene mucho amor”. Esta frase puede extrañar hoy a muchas personas al igual que a los hombres del tiempo de Jesús. La manera de actuar de Dios con respecto al perdón, entre otras cosas, no es nuestra manera de actuar. Dios perdona siempre y nos dice que hay que perdonar hasta setenta veces siete. No creo que sea bueno adoptar una actitud moralista ante esta frase de Jesús. Quien lo haga demuestra no entender el obrar de Dios y de Jesús, que va más en la línea de salvar y perdonar que de condenar, de amar por encima de todo.  

Vayamos al terreno humano y seamos realistas: nos cuesta perdonar porque no amamos. Y si no, pensemos en alguien concreto a quien no hemos perdonado, sobre todo si es  una persona cercana a nosotros…¿por qué? porque no le amamos.  No perdonamos porque emitimos un juicio fruto del odio, del rencor, de la ira, o incluso del dolor y lo peor de todo es que nos creemos con todo el derecho a juzgar y más aún a condenar. Estamos lejos de aceptar que el perdón es fruto del amor.   

Hoy en las lecturas tenemos tres ejemplos que nos pueden ayudar a ejercer el perdón hacia los demás fruto del amor que les podamos tener. Para ejercer el perdón hay que ser misericordiosos, es decir, tener un corazón semejante al de Dios, que es lo mismo que decir,  un corazón lleno de amor por sus criaturas. Para ejercer el perdón hay que

poner a la persona por encima de la ley. Sólo así podremos comprender que el perdón es fruto no de la ley sino del amor. Para ejercer el perdón tendremos que aceptar que no somos jueces, sino que el juicio se lo dejemos a Dios que, por encima de todo, perdona.

Termino recordando las palabras de Jesús: “sus muchos pecados están perdonados, porque tiene mucho amor”.

REFLECTION Sunday´s Gospel

12th Sunday in Ordinary time

(June 13, 2010)
Fr James McTavish, FMVD

Rebel with a cause

There was a famous film in the 1950's starring James Dean. It was called "Rebel without a cause". In today’s gospel we meet another rebel but this time a rebel with a cause. A woman who enters into the house of a Pharisee and bathes the feet of Jesus with her tears, dries them with her hair, kisses his feet and then pours perfume over them. (See Luke 7, 36-50). She was not allowed to enter that house, it was men only at the table and as a sinner of public renown she was not allowed to touch others. When the owner of the house, the one who had invited Jesus to eat with him sees this he is scandalized. Being a Pharisee he was a real goody-goody in terms of the Law but he was full of judgements. When he saw the woman crying at the feet of Jesus he thought to himself “If this man were a prophet, he would know who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner.”

But the vision of Jesus on this woman is very different. He notices every single detail of love and tells Simon “When I entered your house, you did not give me water for my feet, but she has bathed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but she has not ceased kissing my feet since the time I entered. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she anointed my feet with ointment.” Jesus notices. He is very sensitive to the little acts of love we show him, in our thoughts, in our gaze towards him, in our concrete acts of kindness to others.

Simon needs a change of hard drive or even a new mother board. He needs to start seeing the world and others in the same way Jesus sees things. Simon was faithful to the law but as St Paul reminds us in the second reading “Brothers and sisters: We know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ” (Gal 2,16). It is not enough just to follow the law such as doing the minimum like going to Mass or saying a prayer or too. It depends on the motivation - is it just to fulfil the Law or is it really out of love? How to tell the difference? Well Simon the Pharisee was very righteous and invites our Lord onto his home territory. The ‘sinful woman’ was very different. She was looking for Jesus, she was breaking the ‘rules’. She was moved by love. Perhaps the words of St Peter Chrysologus can be applied to this woman “But the law of love is not concerned with what will be, what ought to be, what can be. Love does not reflect; it is unreasonable and knows no moderation. Love refuses to be consoled when its goal proves impossible, despises all hindrances to the attainment of its object. Love destroys the lover if he cannot obtain what he loves; love follows its own promptings, and does not think of right and wrong. Love inflames desire which impels it toward things that are forbidden.”

She was a rebel with a cause and that cause was the love of Christ - “The love of Christ urges us onwards” (2 Cor 5,14). When we are too at home with our faith, when we put God in a box perhaps we are becoming like Simon the Pharisee. The woman shows great love but she had experienced God’s love first, she had experienced forgiveness as Jesus explained – “So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven because she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.” The one who experiences the forgiveness of God will be slow to condemn others because they are aware of their own misery and the great mercy of God towards them. Many times people say I can forgive but I don’t forget. Why don’t we forget? Many times because we don’t want to. When we experience rancour towards others we should always remember what St Paul told us “Love does not keep a record of wrongs” (1 Cor 13,6). What to do if we have difficulty to forgive? Pray for the person, do small sacrifices and offer it for them. Re-establish communication, no matter how little at first, a smile, a text. When the dialogue is more healthy then you can broach the areas that are causing trouble.

Let us be inspired by this woman in the gospel, by the boldness of her love, by her generosity. Simon the Pharisee seems very reserved and stingy compared to the daring and generous attitude shown by her. When she pours out the perfume it is a real symbol of love as perfume in the bible, like today, is often connected to love. In another episode of anointing the woman there actually wipes the perfume from the feet of Jesus with her hair. Some commentators note that the fragrance would arise from both Jesus, from the perfume poured on him, and the woman from her hair. The perfume on both of them would produce one aroma such that the ‘two become one’, a symbol of love. Let us learn from this and place ourselves at the feet of Jesus too in prayer, breaking the jar of our heart and pouring out our concerns, our thanksgiving and all our love at the feet of Jesus knowing that he is a God who is not indifferent to our little acts of love.

May our faith and love for Christ not make us too conformist! May we not get too relaxed in a faith that remains in its comfort zone. Like those people who make a little financial donation to the Church to tranquilize their conscience. Let us take care and not to become too righteous thinking we are saved just because we follow the Law or are just doing the minimum. As the Church document Lumen gentium reminds us “He is not saved, however, who, though part of the body of the Church, does not persevere in charity. He remains indeed in the bosom of the Church, but, as it were, only in a "bodily" manner and not "in his heart." All the Church's children should remember that their exalted status is to be attributed not to their own merits but to the special grace of Christ. If they fail moreover to respond to that grace in thought, word and deed, not only shall they not be saved but they will be the more severely judged.” Let us not merely conform to the standards of the world or society just going with the flow. That is so easy, even a dead body floats downstream. Go against the current for Christ even if for the world you are rebellious. But how great to be a rebel with a cause and that cause is Christ and his Kingdom.

REFLECTION Sunday´s Gospel

Feast of Corpus Christi

Fr James McTavish FMVD

“This is my body!”

One common human experience is that when you love someone you desire to remain in their company. You want to stay in their presence. When Jesus was with his disciples he enjoyed their company even though they must have given him a headache at times. He knew that his death would separate him in some way from his disciples but through his great love for them he wanted to remain loving them forever. For this reason he sent them the Holy Spirit, the spirit of love so they would have his love in their hearts and thus we have the Feast of Pentecost - the coming of the Spirit, the moment when the disciples received that love of God in their hearts. After Pentecost we celebrated the Feast of the Trinity to remind us that God has chosen to dwell in our hearts and that the Trinity is in us. Now we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi which means as we know ‘body of Christ’ inn Latin. What does this feast symbolize and how does it fit into the series of feasts we are celebrating?

First and foremost this feast reminds us of the personal presence of Christ among us. In the world of today many things are done virtually. You can buy a book through the Internet by just visiting Amazon. You don’t even need to talk to a sales assistant. You can visit any city in the world and have a virtual tour without ever meeting anyone. You can chat to people you don’t even know from all over the world even though they are not really present. What do these three experiences have in common? In some ways they all lack the inter-personal dimension of presence. Presence is an aspect that is often overlooked. The simple act of being present such as in a dialogue, being present and listening. Are you present now? The opposite of being present is being absent.

Jesus comes in the Eucharist to find us, to find you. I went to celebrate a mass in the house of a sick and bed bound woman. In the homily I shared about the film the Last of the Mohicans where the lead man is being separated from the woman he loves. He shouts to her with so much passion and conviction “No matter where you go I will find you!” These are the words and actions of the great lover Christ in every Eucharist – he comes to find us, no matter where we are. He comes to our encounter, a personal encounter. It was beautiful because I did not know that in that mass there was a man present who had not been to Church for so many years and only by chance was visiting the house that night. As he listened to the Lord tell him “I will find you!” he looked so surprised but also joyful.

That Christ is truly, substantially and really present in the Eucharist is a constant teaching of the Church. Some doubt this because of course faith is needed. St Thomas Aquinas puts it beautifully when he says that sight, touch and taste are often deceived, the ear alone is best believed. And in every year we hear Christ tell us through the lips of the priest “This is my body” and so we believe because Truth himself will not lie to us. Here the Risen Christ is fulfilling the promise he made to his disciples in Mathew 28, 20 “I will be with you always”. Of course in every Mass Christ is present in various ways – in the congregation, in the Word of God, in the Priest but most especially in the Eucharistic species. In the Eucharist he is truly present, in his flesh and blood, soul and divinity.

Various Eucharistic miracles have occurred which perhaps can strengthen our faith in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist - instances where the host has become real human flesh and it is called a miracle. There is something mysterious here right enough. In former times, when the mass was said in Latin where now we hear “This is my body” the people would here “Hoc est enim corpus meum”. Now you know where the phase ‘hocus pocus’ comes from. But every Eucharist is a miracle already! Perhaps the fact that we are at mass now, belonging to a community, trying to live in a better way – looking at our lives before and how we are now we can say ‘wow what a miracle! What a transformation!’

In fact we too are called to be transformed by our participation in the Eucharist. As St Leo the Great (4th century) commented “the sharing in the body and blood of Christ has no other effect than to accomplish our transformation into that which we receive”. Whenever we put into practice the gospel, the Word of God takes on flesh and blood in us. I remember one day when a person made a comment to me which I found a little strange. The Holy Spirit reminded me of the advice of Jesus “when someone has something against you, approach them and reconcile” (See Matthew 5,23). I thought well I don’t have anything against him but Jesus says if he has something against you, to go and approach. I went and I realized putting our prayer into practice is the best way to celebrate Corpus Christi because then Christ can say in our lives “This is my body” and little by little we become more Christ like.

Let us enjoy this feast today, giving thanks (the meaning of the word ‘Eucharist’) to God for his real presence in the consecrated host. May our participation in the Eucharist transform us into what we receive - the presence of Christ in the world of today. Amen.

Corpus Christi, REFLEXION Evangelio Semanal

Corpus Christi: Presencia verdadera de Jesús

(P. Luis Tamayo)

Hoy la Iglesia Universal celebra el Corpus Christi, es una fiesta especial que se hace en torno al Cuerpo de Cristo. Uno puede pensar, ¿por qué hoy se celebra algo que ya celebramos todos los domingos? Alguno dirá: ¿a caso no celebramos cada domingo la fiesta del Señor?

Justamente aquí encontramos la razón y el origen de esta fiesta. Al acudir a la eucaristía cada domingo, e incluso muchos de nosotros los días de diario, uno corre el peligro de acostumbrarse de tal modo que no es que desprecie, pero deja de apreciar… tan sublime acto de amor de Nuestro Señor al perpetuar su presencia en la Eucaristía. Esto es lo que le pasó a un sacerdote... que se acostumbró a la Eucaristía... Hoy Jesús nos invita a que no nos acostumbremos a tanto amor en la Eucaristía.

Cuenta la historia que en el siglo XIII, cerca de Roma, en una pequeña ciudad llamada Bolsena, en la basílica de Sta. Cristina aconteció el milagro eucarístico de Bolsena: Había un sacerdote que no tenía fe en la transubstanciación, es decir en la transformación del pan y del vino en el cuerpo y la sangre de Cristo. El pedía fe en su oración, por eso seguía celebrando la misa. Era 1264, y un día al consagrar la eucaristía, al levantarla sobre el altar, ocurrió el milagro. El pan eucarístico tomó la forma de carne humana y desprendió unas gotas de sangre real y autentica. De hecho, hoy día, esta hostia aún se conserva y científicamente se ha comprobado su autenticidad (la carne está constituida por un tejido muscular del corazón… Nos encanta escuchar milagros!!). Al poco tiempo la noticia llegó a la Papa Urbano IV y finalmente, en torno a este año, instauró la fiesta del Corpus Christi.

En la Eucaristía "Cristo mismo, vivo y glorioso, está presente de manera verdadera, real y substancial, con su Cuerpo, su Sangre, su alma y su divinidad" (Concilio de Trento: DS 1640; 1651).

La razón de esta fiesta es tener un momento especial en el año litúrgico para recordarnos que no hay que banalizar nuestra asistencia a la Eucaristía, y así no dejar que ésta se convierta en algo monótono, rutinario y pierda todo sentido. La Eucaristía no es un “acto social”, no es un “tengo que”… es una cita amorosa, es un encuentro entre mejores amigos… Él que viene es quien más te ama… es un encuentro entre Dios y tú – tú y Dios. Es un momento especial que hay que preparar previamente. De esta forma uno puede llegar a entender la necesidad de asistir diariamente a la Eucaristía. 

El Concilio de Trento dice: "Por la consagración del pan y del vino se opera el cambio de toda la substancia del pan en la substancia del Cuerpo de Cristo nuestro Señor y de toda la substancia del vino en la substancia de su sangre; la Iglesia católica ha llamado justa y apropiadamente a este cambio transubstanciación" .

La transubstanciación es un milagro que pasa desapercibido para quien no tiene fe porque después de la consagración, aunque no hay ya substancia de pan ni de vino, si quedan los "accidentes" (color, gusto, peso, cantidad, etc.) de pan y vino. Por eso la Eucaristía tiene la apariencia de pan y vino aunque no lo es.

¿Qué es lo que permanece? Permanecen en la Eucaristía los accidentes, o apariencias del pan y del vino. ¿Cuáles son? Los accidentes que permanecen después de la transubstanciación son: peso, tamaño, gusto, cantidad, olor, color, sabor, figura, medida, etc, de pan y de vino. Pero cambia la sustancia, ya no es pan sino el cuerpo y la sangre de Cristo. 

Enseña el Catecismo de la Iglesia Católica: “Mediante la conversión del pan y del vino en su Cuerpo y Sangre, Cristo se hace presente en este sacramento”, ¿Cómo se hace presente? Según la doctrina, por la fuerza de las palabras de Cristo por el sacerdote, bajo la especie de pan y de vino se transforma en el Cuerpo y la Sangre de Cristo, y por la natural conexión, éstos contienen el alma de Jesús y, por la unión hipostática, la misma Divinidad de Nuestro Señor. 

Esta es una invitación a entender el verdadero deseo de Dios de perpetuarse de forma visible y de tal forma que pudiera estar siempre cerca de cada uno de nosotros.

La pregunta final es: ¿cómo preparo mi encuentro eucarístico con el Señor sabiendo que viene en cuerpo, sangre, alma y corazón? ¿cómo le acojo sabiendo que viene verdaderamente el mismo Dios a mi vida?

Santísima Trinidad - REFLEXION Evangelio Semanal

El deseo de Dios es estar cerca de cada hombre

(P. Luis Tamayo)

Pr 8,31 Mi delicia es estar en junto a los hombres

Recuerdo cuando por primera vez marché de misiones a Filipinas. Mis padres vinieron a despedirse al aeropuerto. Mi madre se emocionó y en ese instante yo intuí que el corazón de una madre es querer estar cerca de sus hijos. Así es el deseo paterno de Dios, es el deseo apasionado, ardoroso de querer estar junto a cada hijo suyo.

Pero así como la persona que más me puede querer no puede estar siempre físicamente presente junto a mí, por las mismas distancias, Dios en su maravilloso amor lo ha hecho posible.  Dios ha querido estar con cada hombre en una unión inseparable, que perdure por siempre, incondicional, que nada la rompa, en una unión a la altura de Dios, es decir, una unión eterna.

Mt 6,6 Entra en tu habitación, cierra la puerta y habla a tu Padre que está en lo secreto. Dios ha venido a habitar el interior de cada persona. Por el Bautismo lo humanamente imposible se hace realidad. Por el bautismo el don del ES, y con él la Santísima Trinidad, vienen a habitar el corazón de cada hombre.

San Agustín así lo descubrió: Tanto tiempo por fuera te busqué, hasta que te hallé dentro de mí; más intimo que a mí mismo.

Cada uno de nosotros somos Templo de la Santísima Trinidad. San Pablo se lo recordará a los Corintios: (1 Co 6,19) ¿No sabéis que vuestro cuerpo es templo del Espíritu Santo que habéis recibido de Dios y que habita en vuestro cuerpo? 

A veces hay personas que te dice: “Padre, rece por mí que usted está más cerca de Dios…” y yo tengo que contestar: “pero si Dios está en ti, muy dentro de tí…”

En nuestro interior está la presencia de las tres Divinas Personas: Padre, Hijo y Espíritu Santo. Es lo que siempre hemos anhelado, la compañía, el cariño, la conversación. ¿Por qué crees que la gran enfermedad del hombre es la soledad? Por que fuimos creados para vivir en intima relación y el mundo nos ha hecho olvidar esta gran realidad. Descubreló!!! Hablalés!!!

Esto es como las Cuevas del Drack en Mallorca. Por fuera no se ve nada, solo un campo, pero por dentro se encuentra una de las grandes maravillas del mundo, lo llaman la "catedral natural": lagos de aguas cristalinas, estalactitas, estalagmitas, bóvedas naturales de rocas, colores por los sedimentos de miles de años… ¿Quién iba a saber que ese tesoro estaba ahí dentro? 

Nos hemos acostumbrado a una religión de cumplimiento… y nos olvidamos de lo más esencial: La Santísima Trinidad te habita! Reconocelos en tu interior! Oh dulce huesped del alma!

Lo que todos descubrimos tarde o temprano es que otra persona no puede impedir que yo me sienta solo; ya puede ser mi marido, mi mujer, los nietos, mis padres… este es el engaño que hemos vivido siempre: creer que solamente otra persona puede llenar este vacío dentro de nosotros. De aquí el error de muchos matrimonios que se casan para llenar la soledad y no para darse al otro cónyuge. Luego nos pasamos la vida reclamando: si fuera más atento, si me escuchara más, si me tomaran en cuenta, si estuvieran conmigo… no me sentiría solo. Pero la verdad es que a pesar de haber sido satisfechas todas estas condiciones, otra vez volvemos a sentirnos solos.

La clave está en dejar de esperar que otros satisfagan todas mis necesidades, y entender esta verdad de la habitación de la Trinidad en nuestro interior. Esto es lo único que puede hacer que mi vacío interior si se alivie… solo necesito dejar de exigir que los demás llenen mi vacío y empezar a acostumbrarme a dialogar con las tres Divinas Personas, invertir tiempo en acostumbrarme a su presencia. Siempre están ahí, preguntaté: ¿sólo acudo a ellos cuando tengo necesidad?; Vamos a pedirles la gracia de vivir en su presencia en una relación de agradecimiento.

Homily for Feast of Holy Trinity (30 May 2010)

Fr. James McTavish, FMVD

Living with the Trinity

Today we celebrate the great mystery of our faith, the Holy Trinity. In some ways so familiar, as we begin every mass ‘In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit’ but in other ways so mysterious and unfathomable. The story is told of St Augustine walking along the beach trying to figure out the mystery of the Trinity. He came across a little boy (an angel in disguise) trying to put the seawater from the ocean into a small hole he had dug in the sand. When Augustine inquired as to what he was doing the boy told him that it is easier to put all the waters of the ocean into the small hole than for the human mind to understand the mystery of the Trinity! Where does that leave us? Perhaps our primary focus is not to understand the Trinity but to know them and love them. As Fr Jaime Bonet, the founder of the Verbum Dei community wrote “It is useless to know the doctrines of the Trinity if we do not first savour, drink from and enjoy the fountains of divine love which spring up from deep within us”. It is one thing to try and describe what an ice-cream is and it another thing to taste it!

One of the best explanations I have ever heard of the nature of the Trinity was not in the great theological lecture halls of the universities in Rome but from an 11 year old girl giving her testimony here in the Philippines. She shared how every day she spoke to God the Father and thanked him for the gift of life, how she tried to live her school days in the presence of her good friend Jesus, and how she always felt accompanied by the Holy Spirit as her helper and companion. Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God, they shall see the Trinity. The Trinity are not far from us. In fact if you did a survey and asked where do we find the Trinity most people would point vaguely to the sky and say ‘in heaven’. But as St Alphonsus Liguori was fond to remark “Heaven for God is the human heart”. From baptism we receive the in-dwelling of the three divine persons. When asked where is God it is more correct to point to our heart. In his exhortation to the faithful St Alphonsus encouraged to foster their relationship with God in prayer – to talk to him as a close and dear friend and to love him as spouse which is in effect to grow in a loving relationship with the Trinity. They live in us so how crazy we would be if we did not enjoy their delightful company.

They live in us but the question is ‘do we live with them?’ Do you share with them? Sometimes they are living in us but we ignore them and never speak to them. Sometimes our thoughts are on many other things, many worries and anxieties and we are so busy we do not have time to pray. Anyone who has no time to pray is actually a very inefficient person because the best secretary and organizer is none other than the Holy Spirit. There is no one better for putting order in the chaos. What a pity that instead of our lives revolving around the Trinity, we make the Trinity revolve around our schedule. Is it not time to put God in the centre? Once Jesus got angry in the temple because instead of being a sanctuary, a place to encounter God it had become a place of business and negotiations. Jesus said “Stop making my Father’s house a market place!” (John 2, 16). We are meant to love God and use money, not the other way around.

Having the Trinity dwell in us means we also must care for and take care of our bodies. That is why it is wrong to get drunk because our body is a temple of the Spirit. And excess alcohol leads to all sorts of shenanigans. We need to take care what we put in our hearts and minds. If you opened a tabernacle and found it full of rubbish you would be shocked and scandalized. And if they open the tabernacle of our mind and heart? What would people find?

Each one of us is called to be a manifestation of the Trinity. To be a reflection of their love, to be a visible sign of their communion. When others meet us they have the right to encounter God in our lives. This is not only for those who are ‘holy holy’ but every Christian is called to reveal the face of the Trinity within them. When Nelson Mandela gave his 1994 South African Presidential Inaugural Speech he reminded us all that we are children of God. He said “Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate, but that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, handsome, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to manifest the glory of God within us. It is not just in some; it is in everyone. And, as we let our own light shine, we consciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our fear, our presence automatically liberates others." It is a call to manifest the greatness of the Trinity within us. Imagine all that power and love in us! Next time we gaze at an awesome scene, a towering mountain, the raging ocean, the stars twinkling just remember that the Trinity who made it all is within us – God the Father speaking through his Son, the Word, in the Spirit and all things came to be.

The Trinity can be seen in so many ways if we have eyes to see. When we come to pray and meditate upon Sacred Scripture, the Trinity is present. In what way? Well the whole of scripture, as St Gregory the Great reminds us, is a love letter from the Father. Jesus himself tells us that the Word of God refers to him and to understand what we listen to we need the assistance of the Holy Spirit. So looking at the Scriptures we can in some way discover the face of the Trinity - “Truly dedicated servants always pay attention to the facial expressions of their masters so as to hear and follow out commands with promptness. So too the righteous focus their minds on the presence of Almighty God and gaze upon his Scriptures as upon his face” (St Gregory the Great).

Let us enjoy this feast day today. It is an opportunity for us to grow in our relationship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is a good question to ask ourselves “Who are they each for me?” They live in us. May they not remain as unwanted guests but let us welcome them in our hearts and grow in this loving relationship with them. Amen.

Pentecostés

La voz del defensor versus la voz del acusador

P. Luis J. Tamayo

El domingo pasado celebramos la Fiesta de la Ascensión, este domingo celebramos la fiesta de Pentecostés, la venida del Espíritu Santo. Con esta acaba el tiempo de Pascua para dar paso al Tiempo Ordinario.

La Escritura describe al ES de diversas formas, fuego, paloma, y viento. Cuando hablamos de la imagen del "viento impetuoso", hace pensar en el aire, que distingue a nuestro planeta de los demás astros y nos permite vivir en él. Benedicto XVI dice que lo que el aire es para la vida biológica, lo es el Espíritu Santo para la vida espiritual; y, como existe una contaminación atmosférica que envenena el ambiente y a los seres vivos, también existe una contaminación del corazón y del espíritu, que daña y envenena la existencia espiritual. Así como no conviene acostumbrarse a los venenos del aire —y por eso el compromiso ecológico constituye hoy una prioridad—, se debería actuar del mismo modo con respecto a lo que corrompe el espíritu. La metáfora del viento impetuoso de Pentecostés hace pensar en la necesidad de respirar aire limpio con los pulmones, como con el corazón el aire espiritual, el aire saludable del espíritu, que es el amor. “El defensor, el Espíritu Santo, que enviará el Padre en mi nombre, será quien os lo enseñe todo y os vaya recordando todo lo que os he dicho.”

Una forma de identificar la contaminación de la mente es la voz del Acusador. ¿Quién no ha experimentado la voz del Acusador tirando por tierra –en algún momento de la vida– la esperanza, el ánimo, llevando a verlo todo negro, empujando al desánimo y acabar descorazonados, desalentados, abatidos o tristes. En situaciones donde uno se siente más vulnerable como una enfermedad, tiempos de exámenes, estrés en el trabajo, un embarazo, dificultades de comunicación en el matrimonio, el fallecimiento de un familiar, cuando ves que a final de mes no llegas, o se habla en la empresa que van a recortar número de empleados. La voz del Acusador cobra fuerza… no es que antes no estuviese, sino que ahora por estar en situaciones de vulnerabilidad coge más fuerza, hasta tal punto que lo ves todo negro… que te ves en un túnel sin luz al fondo. De repente nada tiene solución.

El otro día se me acercó un hombre, me empezó a contar su situación en su familia. Fue precioso ver el proceso que realizó la persona, de cuando empezó a hablar a cuando salió del despacho. Yo sólo escuchaba, en un primer momento todo lo que describía era maravilloso, luego al sentirse en confianza empezó a soltarse y todo se hizo negativo… tenía necesidad de desahogarse… y antes de acabar, le hice unas cuantas preguntas… empezó a reflexionar y de repente todo empezó a tomar un tono más positivo. Al final se dio cuenta que las cosas no eran tan negativas, sino que era él quien así las veía. Ese “caer en la cuenta” de la realidad… es el Espíritu Santo!! “El defensor, el Espíritu Santo, que enviará el Padre en mi nombre, será quien os lo enseñe todo y os vaya recordando todo lo que os he dicho.”

A veces lo vemos o todo blanco o todo negro. O todo es terrible, o todo es maravilloso. ¿Cómo pueden cambiar las cosas tan rápidamente? Espera! Hace falta un equilibrio. Busca a alguien que te objetive, que te muestre la luz al final del túnel... Párate y pide luz al Espíritu Santo. La voz del Acusador tiene la misión de desanimar, de hacerlo todo imposible, de ponerle mil quejas, de hacer ver que las cosas no marchan. Pero también es cosa del Acusador hacerte ver todo excesivamente ideal, sin ningún problema… es la fantasía o falta de la realidad. Te hace creer que todo lo has conseguido tu para que el orgullo te suba. Y ya sabemos la ley de la gravedad: todo lo que sube baja.

Necesitamos al Defensor, al Espíritu Santo, que nos trae el sano juicio, una mirada equilibrada sobre las cosas. Él es quien te pone los pies sobre la realidad: Te deja ver lo negativo, pero con la esperanza de dar la fuerza para superarlo; y te sabe hacer ver lo positivo en agradecimiento con la certeza que Dios te lo ha dado.

¿Cuál es la gravedad de no descontaminarse? ¿Cuál es el problema de no desenmascarar la voz del Acusador? que acaba por afectar la libertad. Mis actos están movidos por mis percepciones, acabo actuando según mi percepción de la realidad. Y las cosas, muchas veces, no son sólo como yo las percibo, sobretodo si mi mente está contaminada por la voz del Acusador.

Jesús nos ha regalado varios medios preciosos donde el Espíritu actua de forma perceptible: la dirección espiritual y de la confesión (entre otros). Abrir lo que hay dentro, dejar que la luz entre: lo bueno y lo malo. Necesitamos de momentos especiales donde el Espíritu Santo actúa sacramentalmente, donde recibo al Defensor por la imposición de las manos del sacerdote, donde acontece ese “caer en la cuenta” por la iluminación del Espíritu Santo, donde acabo por ver luz al final del túnel.