Talk
REV. FR. BOB McCONAGHY:
Good morning, Everyone!
You came here today with certain expectations. You came here expecting to listen to Bro. Bo. You came here expecting Bro. Alvin to walk down the aisle singing a powerful song. You expect to hear the dynamic Bro. Audee and Bro. Tony come out here to preach to you. That’s what you expect.
Our God is a God of the unexpected. A God of surprises. Guess what? Instead of all of that talent, you got me!
Now, you’ll notice that I will not be giving a dynamic talk. I will not be singing.
I will not be walking all over the stage.
Why? Because I’m old.
Today, we will be centering in on an emotion. We talked about it in the past series. That emotion is anger.
What we learned in that series was that feelings are neither bad nor good– they’re just feelings.
You didn’t wake up today and said, “Today, I’ll be angry. I’ll yell at somebody.” Most folks know that I’m kind of a laidback guy. I rarely yell. I’m pretty calm.
That’s the way I was my whole life– until I moved here, and bought a car, and began driving along EDSA.
Intellectually, I knew what road rage was, but I didn’t think I was capable of road rage. That was before they had bus lanes.
Driving home from doing counseling at the Greenbelt Chapel back to the seminary, I would be in a fit of rage. Somebody would beep their horn because I’m going too slow. Two buses would come together and pinch me back.
And I began saying words that I didn’t know I could say…
Road Rage!
I would wind up at the seminary seething. A seminarian would come out and say it’s my turn for spiritual direction. I would have to go in for spiritual direction with this rage still within me.
I knew I was going to drive just about every day on EDSA and I better do something about this because it’s going to give me a second heart attack.
I don’t drive much anymore. Nico is my driver. He has been driving only for six months. People are cutting him off just like what happened to me but I’ve never seen him get upset or angry. But something tells me once he lets me off, his rage will arise.
To keep calm, this is what I do. I would get in my car and start the car, and I say, “Lord, I know that on my way to Greenbelt Chapel, somebody will cut me off. There might be people going slow and I’ll be tempted to beep the horn. If a bus or jeepney passes too close, I’ll be tempted to go into a rage. Lord, when I’m most tempted to do that, I’m going to pray for all the people who are waiting for a non- aircon bus and realize I’m so blessed to be able to be in an air-conditioned car.”
When I would arrive back in the seminary, I would be calm.
If you experience that sort of road rage, a good way to confront the anger is to absolutely make yourself relax– by recognizing that others are going to work in transportation which is far worse.
Scam!
Today, we’re speaking about this very unusual Gospel in which Jesus goes into a road rage– into a deep anger. How do we understand that?
First, we realize that this Temple was the place where God resided– in Jewish belief.
For you to atone for your sins, kind of like going to confession once a year, you had to make the journey all the way to Jerusalem because that’s
where the Temple was. From Nazareth (where He lived) Jesus had to travel approximately 136 kilometers to get to Jerusalem. That’s a long walk. It probably took Him two to three days to get there.
Remember that Jesus did that every year until His 33rd year. Every year that He went there, He saw the same thing. Every Jewish person had to make that trip to receive God’s mercy. Otherwise, their sins would not be forgiven.
The way they would show their heart, and their atonement was to bring an animal — a sheep, a goat, or a dove. Once they get into the Temple, the high priest would slaughter that animal, and that would be their atonement, and they would be at peace.
But there is one problem. The whole thing was a scam. It was a way to get a kickback to the high priest and all the other priests.
Some would bring their own goat or their own sheep. They would go into the courtyard of the Gentiles– this is where non-Jews could come and pray. Their whole marketplace was set up. Along with other priests, the high priest would be in that courtyard.
The high priest would look at your sheep and say, “Your sheep has a bruise. We can’t use this sheep for there’s a blemish. But we have sheep for sale. You can go that corner and buy one.”
But the sheep were 5 or 10x more expensive than what they brought with them.
To do business in the marketplace, you’ve got to have money. Most people would arrive with money. They would have coins. The only way you could buy something in the Temple was with a Jewish coin — a shekel.
Most people who arrived had coins that had the picture of the emperor or some god. They had to exchange their coin for a shekel. They would go to the moneychangers who would cheat them. It’s like giving them your US$1.00, and they will give you P3.00 in return. It was a total con in which the high priest would make money
Fake News!
The scam still happens to this day.
There will be men who will use Christianity and the Gospel in a blasphemous way.
I won’t mention names either from here or from America. I’ll show you ways in which people can use Christianity to scam people into false beliefs and make them feel guilty– through a movie that I saw in the 1980s.
The movie is titled Leap of Faith. It stars Steve Martin. He plays this evangelist who sets up a tent, and 200-300 people would come in. He calls himself Jonas Nightengale. He would be onstage, wearing a shining jacket.
He would dance, and he would preach, “I feel a miracle coming on!”
The way they work a scam is this:
His staff usher people to their seats. The staff asks the people their names and why they came.
One person would say, “I have a cancerous tumor on my breast.
My name is Edith.”
(A staff then goes backstage and whispers the information through an earpiece in Jonas’ ear.) While onstage, Jonas then says, “Jesus is telling me that there is a woman named Edith. Edith, are you here?”
Edith then stands.
The false preacher says, “Edith, you have a tumor, right? I saw your breast and it’s been healed now!” Everybody would applaud.
They also have an elderly lady on their staff. Jonas always calls her to go onstage.
Jonas then says, “The Lord wants to heal you from arthritis.”
Jonas puts her hand on her head and gives her a little push. The lady falls, and the staff catch her and help her stand.
They then ask her, “How do you feel now?
The lady runs back and forth on stage. Another miracle!
They play music, and the people are pumped up. Jonas goes out into the audience. He puts his hand on the people’s heads. But prior to that, he had a wooden crucifix with paint on his hand. When he puts his hand on the people crucifix would appear. Another miracle!
When you see that movie, you’ll see how scam artists and phony healers manipulate people’s emotions into thinking that Jesus is healing them when He’s really not. But the end of the movie is very powerful where real miracles take place. If you have the chance, watch Leap of Faith. It’s worth seeing.
Jesus Does It!
When Jesus arrives at the Temple area and sees the scam going on, all the rage that must have built up from His teenage years reaches the surface. He just couldn’t allow that injustice– making His Father’s house a place where the high priest and his cronies would make lots and lots of money.
As He sees what’s happening, He takes a whip and drives all the animals away. He goes to where they’re selling doves. That makes Him most angry.
People who couldn’t afford the sheep, goats, or cattle were the poor people. They could have afforded to buy the dove, but it was being sold at the Temple for 15x more than it’s worth.
Jesus wipes out the coins on the table.
He turns the tables.
He drives the animals out and says, “Get rid of those doves!”
The Gospel says that the reason He was so angry was He was consumed by His Father’s house.
People ask Him, “Where do you get the authority to do this?”
Jesus gives a confusing answer, “I will destroy his Temple, and in three days, I will raise it.”
People then say, “You can’t do that. It took 46 years to build this Temple!” The Gospel writer, John, didn’t know what it meant when he first heard that.
It was only after the Resurrection and many years later that he would reflect on what happened. He realized that the Temple that Jesus was talking about was the Temple of His Body.
The three days were Good Friday, Black Saturday, and Easter Sunday.
The Temple would no longer be a building. The people would no longer have to travel far and bring animals as a sacrifice.
Jesus becomes the spotless Lamb. That’s why we say, “Lamb of God, You take away the sins of the world.”
People don’t have to go far to receive His mercy. Jesus died on the Cross and rose again. When we got baptized, we became Temples or dwelling places of the Holy Spirit. To receive God’s mercy and to atone for our sins, we don’t have to go far. We just need to go in and examine our conscience, “How have I hurt others? How have I failed to love?”
Then go to Confession.
Be Angry!
There is such a thing as sinful anger which seeks to destroy something or someone. There is virtuous anger.
St. Thomas Aquinas said that when we see injustice, and we don’t get angry, that is a sin and that is immoral. You and I are called to get very angry.
For example, the Paris Olympics. We were told that the Olympics is always supposed to be a place where different nations may disagree with one another but come together for the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.
During the Olympics, everyone becomes one— at least
for two weeks. But right in the midst of that, came such a blasphemous exposition of the Catholic Last Supper where the Eucharist was established.
The excuse given was that it was not meant to depict the Last Supper.
But if you look at it closely, the hands and the positions of the transvestites were precisely the same in Leonardo Da Vinci’s Last Supper.
The one who played Jesus, (French disc jockey) Barbara Butch said in her Instagram, “This is the gay new testament.”
Though they took it off the Instagram already, that should make even LGBT Catholics very angry, because it does not represent who they really are, and their dignity as persons. It made a scam and a sham out of religion.
It was actually a pagan rite.
Organized religion can be criticized and dismissed. But Bishop Robert Barron, other bishops around the world, and Muslims who love the Blessed Mother, stood and expressed that anger not in a violent way but in a confrontational way by saying, “Don’t ever do that again. We see right through it.”
You and I are called to get very angry at something like that.
We are called to get angry at other things. When we look around, we see the poverty. We feel sorry for the people. The Lord calls us to be angry that this has to be. You may not be a politician to change the laws that would make it better for the poor people. But there is something you can do– one-on-one. You can roll down your car window and give them a coin.
Do something Pope Francis encouraged us to do way back in 2015 when he was here in the Philippines.
He said, “Did you ever shake the hand of the poor person? Did you ever ask their name? Did you ever look into their eyes and allow them to tell their story?”
The Pope said when you do that, you become the beggars, and they can become the generous ones. It’s something simple that you can do to express anger at that injustice, just as Jesus expressed His anger.
Have a Selfie!
You can simply take a moment of your day to say, “What is your name?”
After that, you can tell them, “I’m off to work now. I have a project. Can you pray for me? I’ll pray for you too.”
If you have time, do something that no one ever does with that single unrepeatable act of God’s creative love: “Let’s have a selfie.”
If you do that every day for five days, you now know that there are five people praying for you. When you have the poorest of the poor praying for you, those are powerful prayers. In that way, you have expressed your anger in a beautiful, loving way.
Finally, Jesus was consumed and burned internally for His Father’s house.
He would be totally consumed on the Cross and would rise again.
As a result of that, we got a new identity. You’re not what other people say about you and you’re not what you have. Your identity is that you are the beloved of the Father.
Just as when Jesus was baptized, God said, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
At the end of the day, He wants you to know the truth about you: “You are my beloved child. No matter what you’ve done, in you, I am well pleased.”
A lot of times, we say that we have too much on our plate. But you might be going through such a time when there is not too much on your plate– but too much on your table.
On your table right now, there can be bitterness because you did not get hired for the job you wanted. You thought there was love but you got rejected. On your table are sins of the past that make you feel guilty. What’s on your table can be fear about the future of your family. All of those fill up a table.
It can also be a loss. Perhaps you lost a loved one due to COVID-19 and you’re still not over it. And you don’t feel God’s Presence.
We experience those realities, and Jesus is seeking this morning to break through all of them– and turn over those tables.
In turning them over, He’s saying to us: “Trust me. Know the truth about yourself. I’m angry at the injustice of what you’re going through. But more than your prayers and penances, what is most important to me is that you believe that I love you even in your sinfulness. Allow me to embrace you. Allow me to tell you always that no matter what you’ve been through, I embrace your past, I embrace your future as much I embrace your present in mercy and love.”
Always remember that in the eyes of the Father, you’re more valued than gold. So, be kind to yourself and one another.
God bless you. Thank you for listening to this old guy.
First Question
BRO. JC LIBIRAN: It’s good to receive God’s Word, but we want to invite you all to reflect on it and discuss it amongst yourselves in your family, in your Light Group or your Feast Light.
First question: Is it better to be loving than it is to be right? How can you apply this, especially when you’re angry for the right reasons with a stranger or with a loved one?
FR. BOB: For example, you’re not getting along with one of your officemates. They spread rumors about you. They never invite you to lunch or dinner and this is making you angry.
Anger has a virtuous purpose and that is confrontation. When we think of confrontation, we think of yelling and it’s not going to be like that.
Let’s say her name is Melissa. You can tell her: “Melissa, when you said those things about me in front of everyone, I need you to know that it really hurt me.”
If she asked, “How did I hurt you?”
Just say, “I just need you to know that you really hurt me.”
Most people think that they are kind until they realize how they can hurt someone else. That person must go to bed that night and think about what you said.
If someone says something in front of the group to make fun of you, this is the way to handle it:
Tell that person, “Can you repeat what you said?” The person then tells you, “You’re dumb!”
You can reply by saying, “When you said that, how did it make you feel? Did you feel superior? What did you want me to think or to feel? Did you want me to feel embarrassed or humiliated? But you know, I’ll get over it. But you have to realize that what you said or did does not impress anyone.”
So, you didn’t raise your voice. You didn’t yell.
The other people who would have loved to say that to him– you got him to admit what no one was expecting — now they need to go evaluate their behavior, which at first they never did. They’ll never treat you like that again.
Goal of Confrontation
SIS. TISHA: Anger is an emotion that signals to us that our expectations have not been met. When we are angry, the best way to go about it is to first take a step back and think what is that expectation that failed to be met. In that way, we can begin to express our anger more clearly. We’re not just exploding and saying mean words.
Even if your anger is valid, it doesn’t give you the right to hurt people. It is better to be loving than it is to be right. When we express anger, I believe that God allows us to experience this– not to use it as a weapon but to use it to seek unity.
The goal of confrontation is not to prove yourself right but to seek that unity.
BRO. JC: Definitely, this question deals with being angry with others. Friends, tell the person beside you, “Forgive.”
SIS. TISHA: That’s something important. When we talk about anger, we must talk about forgiveness. Forgiveness is not something we can easily do. I hear a lot of young people who experience that their father was not faithful to their mother and vice-versa. They say that they don’t know how to forgive their mom or their dad. That’s why we pray with them, and we don’t expect them to immediately do it.
So, whenever we remember that incident, let’s choose to forgive and then we go on with our day. The next day, when we remember it, let’s choose to forgive again.
Second Question
BRO. JC: Choose to forgive again and again. This leads us to the next question:
How do you deal with anger when you’re angry with yourself especially when you encounter failures and don’t meet your own expectations or the expectations of others?
FR. BOB: You are not in this world to live up to others’ expectations.
My parents had expectations of me when I was in high school. My father was an Algebra teacher. He would tutor other kids and get paid for it.
I flunked Algebra because I didn’t let my studies interrupt my education — basketball, football, and baseball. I graduated in high school with an average of 72.2 due to the generosity of the faculty.
In my old age, this is what I’ve learned far more from my failures, than from my successes: Don’t be a perfectionist. Don’t get angry at yourself when you fail.
It’s healthy for your children to fail because most of us fail at something.
When we go to confession, we confess because we feel guilty. But we can look back and get so angry at ourselves for having done that.
That’s not what Jesus wants. That’s what the evil spirit wants– to let you feel discouraged when you fail.
Instead, look back and say, “How can I learn from my failures?”
It’s easy to learn from your successes. But it’s far more human to learn from your failures.
Cheers!
SIS. TISHA: As a perfectionist, I was an honor student every year. I graduated summa cum laude.
But I failed a lot. I had to shift courses because I failed to choose the correct one first. I must admit to everybody that I made the wrong decision. And it was really a humbling time for me. How did I deal with it?
I want to share an episode of Bluey— it’s an Australian Kids TV Show. I highly recommend that you watch it on Disney Plus.
The title of that episode is Bike. In that episode, Bluey, the young girl, is trying to learn how to bike. She keeps falling– and getting frustrated.
She told her Dad, “It’s not fair! Why can’t I just do it straight away?!”
The Dad said, “Well kid, that’s not how the world works.”
Then, they sat on a bench in the park, where they observed three kids trying to do something but failing. Bluey and her Dad cheered them on until the kids were able to do what they were trying to do.
From there, Bluey got up and tried to learn biking again.
The Dad said, “Even if it wasn’t ideal, it’s still a win. Good work Bluey.”
God is like that to us. We have a God who is patient, willing to let us learn, and who will cheer us on.
Third Question
BRO. JC: Tell the person beside you, “Forgive yourself.”
Next question: Have you been angry with God? How did you deal with it, and how can it help us?
SIS. TISHA: I haven’t really experienced getting so angry with God. But I did sulk with Him.
When I was 16, I got into a real relationship, but a year and a half later, we broke up. I asked him why.
He said, “I feel God is telling me that we need to break up.” The thing was, we broke up before I led the Worship session in
Feast Makati
Salcedo. I was singing, Declare Your Victory.
What was interesting was that, instead of leading me away from God, the breakup led me closer to God.
That’s something we see a lot in the Bible. The Bible doesn’t hide the feelings of anger of people towards God. When you read through the Bible, you’ll note there are a lot of people who do get angry at God.
What’s important is not to feel angry towards God– but to bring that anger to God, to converse with Him, to bring that dialogue with Him, to talk about it with Him. It’s going to lead you closer to Him.
BRO. JC: Thank you for sharing that. Remind the person beside you: “Let’s get real with God.”
FR. BOB: The question that was asked on Bibliakonia the other night was,
“Is it okay to be angry at God because I don’t feel His presence? My husband died two years ago, and now my daughter is sick. Is it okay to be angry at God? I don’t sense His Presence.”
There’s a whole book on being angry at God.
It’s called the Book of Job. About 40% of the Psalms are expressions of anger at and disappointment in God. How do you deal with that?
When God Seems Not Present
I’ll tell you about Bro. Caloy Carcellar, who is in Bibliakonia with us on Tagnanan Island near Davao where he has a Divine Mercy Ministry.
It’s a beautiful ministry and he has a great turnout of young people.
As he said, on this very stage, he was asked to leave the seminary when he was in his third year of taking up Theology. He was very disappointed. Then, his sister died of leukemia. Then, his mother had a very painful pancreatic cancer. He was really upset and angry thatGod didn’t answer his prayer– especially on behalf of his sister.
He said, “I really felt like just giving it all up– all this stuff about faith. I just wasn’t interested anymore.”
He was angry at God because God being all-powerful didn’t heal his sister and his mother. He dealt with it by being honest to God in prayer, not editing or leaving out anything, and using the words that came to his mind.
When you and I have a conversation, we usually edit our conversation with people. We don’t say everything that we want to say– especially if it’s negative.
Well, here, the Heavenly Father knows what we’re experiencing. We can’t hide anything from Him.
Bro. Caloy prayed day after day in a very angry way. Eventually, he was able to get through it all and was in peace.
But then, guess what? Just about six months ago, his brother, aged 55, was diagnosed with Stage 4 Prostate Cancer. It has already metastasized to his bones. That’s the most painful kind of cancer.
Once again, Caloy expressed that anger. But there was something good that came out of it. His brother was kind of a lukewarm Catholic. His friends took him to the Padre Pio Shrine. He went to confession. Even though there was a long, Good Friday in his life, Caloy could discern that this was God’s way of answering his prayer: “Yes, your brother is sick. Maybe there will be a physical healing, but trust Me, stay with Me. Don’t leave me.”
When you watch him on Bibliakonia, you would never know Caloy is in dire situation– because of the joy on his face when he speaks about the Gospel or when he answers viewers.
God understands what you’re going through. When you don’t feel that Presence of God, know that the Presence is there. Just say completely what’s in your heart– all the anger and frustration. It’s just good to ventilate those.
That’s the way Caloy got through his challenges.
The Gift
BRO. JC: Thank you, Fr. Bob of Bibliakonia. Thank you, Tisha of our Bible Nerds Podcast.
Friends, as we wrap up the day, we want to invite you to go through these questions as well. Reflect on them– your anger against yourself, your anger against others, and your anger against God.
There’s really a gift from this emotion that God has given us. Fr. Bob, let us pray for our people.
FR. BOB: Lord Jesus, as we continue to worship this day, we pray that each soul, each heart, might be enlivened. You were fully human, Jesus, and You experienced all the emotions– including anger– that we experience.
So, You understand us when we’re hurting.
You understand us when we’re lonely. You understand us when we feel guilty. You understand us when we don’t think we’re going to make it through our difficult situations.
You understand us when we cannot forgive ourselves.
Help us, Jesus, to remember that when we choose You– which is what we do today– to choose You is to become aware that we are loved beyond anything our imagination can conceive– before anyone thought of You, before anyone knew Your Name.
So, Jesus, this morning, put all of us at peace. No matter how deep our emotions are at this moment, lift us– just as you lifted Jesus from death.
Lift us from the little deaths that we experience every day, and give us again the joy that radiates from the Gospel.
We ask this in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Commitment
BRO. AUDEE VILLARAZA: We come face-to-face with the truth today to realize that we have a loving God. God loves you. He does not hate you. But He hates the sin that has crippled you. Why? Because you are His Temple.
Today, I believe that Jesus, who once upon a time cleared the table in the Temple, Jesus is here, and He’s about to clear away as well what should not be in you as the Temple of the Lord. He’s going to restore you from your brokenness.
He’s going to complete you and make you brand-new.
There’s somebody here who has never done this. I believe that Heaven is rejoicing that you are here in this place and that you are going to commit your life to Jesus. And for most of you who have been doing this time and time again, this can be a brand-new start yet again for you. So, we do this together.
Everybody, say: Dear Jesus, I am a sinner in need of a savior. I believe that You are the Son of God. I believe that You came into this world to save me, to rescue me, and to raise me to life. I believe that You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life. And that You are my way back to the Father. And today, I answer Your call and Your invitation to give my life to you. Today, I pray that this is my new beginning, my re-surrender. From this day on, I call You my Savior, my Redeemer, my Friend. Give me a brand-new heart. I love You. I worship You. I honor You.
And today, I come back to You. In Jesus’ Name.
I want you to lift your hand as a way to commit your life to Jesus — on the count of 3: 1- 2- 3! Come on, hands up. Celebrate New Life with Jesus!
BRO. JOHN BEN RODRIGUEZ:
Can you look at the person beside you? Can you betterhonestly tell me if that person has a better smile now? Because that is burning love of Jesus for everyone. I hope you received it today.
Welcome to our first-timers. This is your spiritual family. Before going home, we want you to come over here. We want to meet you, shake your hands, and pray for you.
Love Offering
Wait a While
Who has experienced swimming in an inflatable pool?
One of my friends, their garage is spacious, and they have a 200-gallon inflatable pool. We wanted to swim, so, my friends and I pumped air into it, and once the pool was already in shape, we turned on the faucet to fill the pool with water– and left it for a while. After 30 minutes, we went back. And you know what? The water was just a couple of inches high. It took three hours for the pool to be filled with water.
What is this telling me?
We need to wait a while.
And this goes back to our Feast Talk topic last week — about the Wedding at Cana. They used six stone jars, each filled with 20 to 30 gallons of water. So, 6 x 30, that’s nearly 180 gallons of water. They had to get the water from a well.
But reading the verse, you’ll note that filling the jars was instant.
Why am I sharing this? Because I want to tell you sometimes it takes a while for the miracle of abundance to happen in your life.
But God’s question to you is this: While in that process of waiting for your jar to be filled, are you consistently pouring that water?
Or, are you impatient– saying, “Lord, I’ve already paid my debts, how come my reward won’t come right away– as in tomorrow already?
But are you consistently filling the jar with water? So that when the jar is filled, that miracle can happen.
Tell the person beside you: “Enjoy waiting.”
Pouring Your Share Consistently
I want to honor each one of you here today because you’re doing this weekly. It’s you saying, “Lord, my finances are part of Your job, part of Your miracles. I will consistently pour out my share of water every week, every single week, because I know when the jar is filled, it will become wine, and it will be enough not just for me, but for everyone.
So, stand up and I want you to smile because this is your share.
Lord, please accept my Offering. Please multiply it consistently and may
I follow what You are saying. Cause a miracle to happen in my finances and every other aspect of my life. This we ask in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
With joy in your heart and a smile on your face, come forward and give to God.
Holy Mass
Homily
REV. FR. EDWARD DANTIS, SSP
on the Gospel Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48
REV. FR. BOB McCONAGHY
Concelebrant
Excerpts:
Good Morning, Everyone! How are you?
Are you in a relationship? Is it an exclusive relationship?
It better be. You don’t want to share your loved one with another one, do you?
But are you in an exclusive church or community? If your answer is yes, then you must think about it. We know of communities that believe they will be the only ones who will be saved…
I have been at The Feast for more than a year. I feel that The Feast is not exclusive. Am I right? We don’t need to have a membership card to be here.
We welcome first-timers. My family is with me here today, and they are first-timers too. My mother is here. It’s her birthday today. That’s why I’m more nervous because she is hereJ
In the First Reading, we hear how the Lord took some of the spirit that was on him and bestowed it on 70 elders– who then were able to prophesy.
The spirit came to rest on two men who were not in the gathering, and they prophesied too.
Joshua, Moses’ aide, asked Moses to stop the two men from prophesying.
But Moses said he wished all God’s people would receive the spirit and assume prophetic leadership.
Moses was like, “Why stop them to prophesy if they’re telling people about God’s Kingdom?”
Jesus Teaches About Tolerance
In the early years of the Church, only those who were ordained preachers could preach.
If you’re not ordained, you’re not allowed to preach. You could even be imprisoned.
But today, you are blessed with good lay preachers in our communities– our Feast Builders.
Jesus’ disciples echo Joshua’s concerns. There are men driving out demons
in Jesus’ Name and Joshua wants to stop them because they are not Jesus’ disciples.
And Jesus echoes Moses’ reply: Nobody should be prevented from invoking the power of Jesus’ Name to drive out demons wherever there may be.
Jesus accepts everyone who performs good deeds. Good deeds in His Name will not go unrewarded.
We are encouraged to work with other Christians in performing mighty deeds for God’s Kingdom. Here, Jesus teaches us about tolerance.
Being tolerant or permissive is a suspect. It must be checked if it could lead to abuse of freedom or violent consequences. A mother who cannot correct her child’s bad behavior is being tolerant– incorrectly. Tolerance could also be proper in other cases. It would be a big mistake to view tolerance in a negative way.
In the Gospel, Jesus asks His disciples to be tolerant. Why would He require such from them if He knew that tolerance was not good?
First Reading: Numbers 11:25-29
25 The Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to Moses.
Taking some of the spirit that was on Moses, the Lord bestowed it on the seventy elders; and as the spirit came to rest on them, they prophesied. 26 Now two men, one named Eldad and the other Medad, were not in the gathering but had been left in the camp. They too had been on the list, but had not gone out to the tent; yet the spirit came to rest on them also, and they prophesied in the camp. 27 So, when a young man quickly told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying
in the camp,” 28 Joshua, son of Nun, who from his youth had been Moses’ aide, said, “Moses, my lord, stop them.” 29 But Moses answered him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the people of the Lord were prophets! Would that the Lord might bestow his spirit on them all!”
Ways To Receive Salvation
As narrated in the Gospel, the discussion started after the disciples saw someone driving out demons in Jesus’ Name.
They prevented him from performing an exorcism because he was not among the followers of Jesus.
We could only presume what crossed the mind of the disciples. Were they jealous because the man could cast out demons– even though he was not one of them? They thought the power to exorcise demons was exclusive to the disciples. Were they angry because they assumed that the power was a privilege given only to the followers of Jesus — and not to anyone who was not part of His exclusive group?
The disciples were confused. Suddenly, what they thought to be their exclusive right was no longer their own alone. Jesus said His reasons.
He said, “Do not prevent him. There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me. For whoever is not against us is for us.”
With these words, Jesus taught His disciples about tolerance more than an exercise of Christian humility and charity.
This teaching is relevant for us today. We should not think that salvation is only reserved for those who were baptized and believed in Christ. Membership in His Church, faith, and Sacraments are still considered the ordinary ways to receive salvation. This, however, does not exclude the possibility that God could offer other ways of bringing people to encounter the Paschal Mystery of Christ in their lives. Like, an outsider who performed exorcism in the name of Jesus is the trustworthy source of salvation, and the rest is just His medium.
Second Reading: James 5:1-6
Second Reading: James 5:1-61 Come now, you rich, weep and wail over your impending miseries. 2 Your wealth has rotted away, your clothes have become moth-eaten, 3 your gold and silver have corroded, and that corrosion will be a testimony against you; it will devour your flesh like a fire. You have stored up treasure for the last days. 4 Behold, the wages you withheld from the workers who harvested your fields are crying aloud, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.
5 You have lived on earth in luxury and pleasure; you have fattened your hearts for the day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned; you have murdered the righteous one; he offers you no resistance.
‘Angels’ in Japan
I had a chance to see Japan when I was studying about Theater. My Lolo, who experienced the horrors of World War II, told me not to trust the Japanese people as they would only do me harm.
I was in Tokyo airport with my luggage. It contained my camera but not the plastic envelope, where I put the passport and important documents, addresses, and contact details of the receiving party that I would meet in the school, and the host of the place where I would stay.
I arrived late in Japan– almost midnight. I was supposed to go to Suzuka.
I looked for train staff to explain to them that I needed to be in Suzuka. They couldn’t speak English fluently. So, I just bought a ticket to ride the regular train because the bullet train was already closed. I was told that it would take me
2 1/2 hours to travel. So, I went to the platform and waited for the next train.
I checked my luggage. I had my camera, but the plastic envelope which had the contact details and addresses of those I was going to was not there. I asked myself and the Lord where I would go now. I was extremely tired at that moment. So, I just let the Lord do His job. I also said that I could just go to the Philippine Embassy there to ask for help.
After five minutes, I saw a Japanese girl. She was anxious, and she was looking for me. She handed me the plastic envelope that I was looking for. She was the teller in the main station. She didn’t know English, but she gave the documents to me. I thanked her. I even cried for joy.
Responsorial Psalm: 19:8, 10, 12-13, 14
R. (9a) The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul; the decree of the LORD is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple.(R)
The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances of the LORD are true, all of them just. (R)
Though your servant is careful of them, very diligent in keeping them, yet who can detect failings? Cleanse me from my unknown faults! (R)
From wanton sin especially, restrain your servant; let it not rule over me. Then shall I be blameless and innocent of serious sin. (R)
Who Are the Real Christians?
My grandfather was a bit wrong about the Japanese people. In my desperate time, the Lord sent me angels — Japanese angels. The first one was the teller of the train, and the Japanese host, who was also my teacher who waited for me and stayed up late so someone would open the house, serve tea, and make sure there was clean and warm bedding for me that cold night. The Japanese people did something good. They may not be Christians but they went out of their way to help me.
My lolo and I came from two different eras and experienced different treatments from the Japanese. Still, I know that the Lord was present in our experiences of hardships, despair, care, and assistance. Yes, they were capable of hurting– but also of loving. They may not be Christians, but they possess the qualities that merit the Kingdom of God.
We must believe that God is working through all kinds of people. Many of whom are very good. Perhaps they believe in another religion –or, in a way, they can shame us on the importance of truth, understanding justice, promoting freedom, peace with others, and most especially, loving our fellowmen.
What is of greatest relevance to us is whether we Christians are doing God’s work just because we have the name Christian. This is no guarantee that we are.
Amen.
