Today is the commemoration of All Souls’ Day, which most Filipino Catholics always celebrate a day earlier, which is All Saints’ Day. It is one of those rare Sundays where our priests are allowed not one, but quite a few Gospel readings, to read before his flock. But before we discuss today’s gospel readings, it is important for us to remind our Catholic brethren of what we say towards the end of The Apostles’ Creed when we pray: “He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the Communion of Saints, the Forgiveness of Sins, the Resurrection of the body and life everlasting… Amen!” Indeed, we shall rise again in spirit!
For this “Kalag-Kalag” weekend where most of us visit our dearly departed relatives, I hope it reminds us of our mortality … that, after all, life is just too short and that we’re really do not belong to this earthly world, but in the spirit world where our souls would live throughout eternity. Now whether we would live a life of eternal bliss or eternal damnation is solely up to us, after all, God never forces himself upon us. Remember that famous quotation by St. Augustine, “The God who created us without our help cannot save us without our consent.” In short, when we die and find ourselves in the wrong place, we cannot blame God for not trying to save us, it’s our fault!
So for this Sunday, we will discuss two scripture readings, first from Matt. 11:25-30 and another one from the last Supper discourse which you can read in John 14: 1-6.
“25 At that time Jesus said in reply, “I give praise to you, Father, Lord of Heaven and Earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. 26 Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him. 28 “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”
That the Holy Spirit blesses us with His gift of wisdom, it doesn’t necessarily mean that we suddenly become geniuses. The hidden thing that, what was not revealed to the wise and the learned but is revealed to the childlike, is really the gift of faith. Too often, we encounter Biblical scholars or theologians who can interpret the Bible from page one to the last page. But often they seem lost in their own translations simply because they have lost their childlike faith and above all their humility—something gravely missing in us today.
The second paragraph is something people have learned to sing from the hit songs of a Filipino balladeer, that in times of trouble, we can always seek our Lord Jesus Christ, who is present, body, blood, soul and divinity in the Holy Eucharist or the Blessed Sacrament. There in His presence, I can unburden my sorrows to the Lord, converse with Him and find inner peace.
The other gospel reading comes from John 14: 1-6 in the Last Supper Discourse… this is also called The Prayer of Jesus. “[Jesus told his disciples] 1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God, have faith also in me. 2 In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you myself, so that where I am you also may be. 4 Where [I] am going you know the way.” 5 Thomas said to him, ‘Master, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way? 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
First of all, let me stress one very important point… that God sent his only Son our Lord Jesus Christ to save us from our sinfulness… not by lying to us! In the first gospel reading today, we touched on our childlike faith and so when Jesus tells us that in His Father’s house, there are many dwelling places… then with childlike faith, we believe that this is true. But more important than our Lord’s revelation about the numerous dwelling places in His Father’s house is His eagerness to bring us all to that place.
Just imagine, our Lord Jesus is telling His disciples (He might as well be telling this to us) “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you myself, so that where I am you also may be.” That is His Divine wish that we live in His Father’s house together with all of us who believes in Him. He is like one in our barkada who always want to be in our company. But let’s ask our friends or barkadas … are we only friends or barkada’s in his life? What about the next life? Will we go on separate ways? Shouldn’t we all be friends in this life and in the next one? That’s exactly what Jesus wants that His friends here on earth be with Him also in heaven.