October 23, 2015
Friday
29th Week
in Ordinary Time
1st reading:
Romans 7.18-25
Gospel: Luke 12:54-59
Jesus said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once: ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. And when the wind blows from the south, you say: ‘It will be hot’; and so it is. You superficial people! You understand the signs of the earth and the sky, but you don’t understand the present times.
“And why do you not judge for yourselves what is fit? When you go with your accuser before the court, try to settle the case on the way, lest he drag you before the judge and the judge deliver you to the jailer, and the jailer throw you in prison. I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the very last penny.”
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
Back in College I had a teacher whose favorite expression was, “If you don’t take care of yourself, who will?” He was amused one day when I replied, “The funeral parlor!” A few days later I saw a comic strip featuring a funeral parlor with this sign posted at its entrance: “If you don’t take good care of yourself, we will take good care of you”.
Whether we take good care of ourselves or not, funeral parlors will continue to thrive because life ends somehow, someday, somewhere. If funeral parlors should stand for anything, it should be as reminder that life in this world is the wrong life to invest on because nothing can make it last longer than a lifetime. Scriptures say that life is seventy or eighty for those who are strong (Psalm 90:10). This may not be ta-ken literally but one thing is certain: life is short.
Thriving funeral parlors are signs of human morta-lity. Today’s Gospel presumes that we understand this sign and we can read it even backwards. It seems, however, that our understanding of this sign is shallow. Had it been deeper, all of us should be more detached from the world by now. Rightly does today’s Gospel reading laments: “You superficial people! You understand the signs of the earth and the sky, but you don’t understand the present times.”
It’s not too late to do something. Today’s Gospel reading seems to suggest reconciliation. Before our neighbors get the chance to accuse us on judgment day, let us reconcile with them. Hearken to the Lord’s suggestion: I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings (Luke 16:9). It’s really urgent considering that life is short. If we don’t take care of our souls now, who will? There are no funeral parlors beyond the grave.—Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM. Email: [email protected]. Website: www.frdan.org.
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