November 29, 2015
1st Sunday of Advent
1st Reading: Jer 33:14-16
2nd Reading:
1 Thes 3:12-4:2
Gospel: Lk 21:25-28, 34-36
Jesus said, “Then there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth anguish of perplexed nations when they hear the roaring of the sea and its waves. People will faint with fear at the mere thought of what is to come upon the world, for the forces of the universe will be shaken. And at this time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
“Now, when you see the first events, stand erect and lift up your heads, for your deliverance is drawing near.”
“Be on your guard; let not your hearts be weighed down with a life of pleasure, drunkenness and worldly cares, lest that day catch you suddenly as a trap. For it will come upon all the inhabitants of the whole earth. But watch at all times and pray, that you may be able to escape all that is bound to happen and to stand before the Son of Man.”
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
During the premier showing of Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ in Cebu in early 2006, people watching the screening behaved like they were there for a Lenten recollection. Some failed to hold back their tears at the flogging scene. Then a roaring sound was heard. Someone from the audience fell asleep while watching the scene and snored. When secretly confronted by the seatmate who quickly woke him up, he quipped: “Must I be deprived of praying, with the Spirit itself making intercessions for me “with groanings that cannot be uttered?” He was quoting Romans 8:26.
The Bible verse he quoted easily leads us to this Sunday Liturgy’s theme on “watching” and “praying”.
Because we do not know when the world will end, today’s Gospel exhorts us to “watch and pray”. We watch not with the passivity of moviegoers who can fall asleep even at the most touching scenes, but with the proactivity of repentant sinners eager to expiate for their sins. In praying, ours should not be the prayer in one’s slumber hilariously described as “groanings that cannot be uttered”. Rather, it should be the prayer of a person detached about what he is praying for because his greater concern is the preservation of the natural order established by God’s Will. Like Jesus he will say: “Not my will but yours be done”.
Praying and watching imply self-restraint. Too much pleasure makes us too comfortable and will nip in the bud any longing we have for eternity. When we watch and pray rather than wallow in a life of pleasure, the ‘groanings’ of our spirit will be genuine, not fake. — Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM. Email: dan.delosangeles@gmail.com. Website: www.frdan.org.
May comment ka ba sa column ni Father Dan? May tanong ka ba sa kanya?
I-type ang BANDERA REACT <message/ name/age/address> at i-send sa 4467.