April 30, 2014
Wednesday
2nd Week of Easter
St. Pius V, Pope
1st Reading: Acts 5:17–26
Gospel: Jn 3:16–21
Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Yes, God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him may not be lost, but may have eternal life. God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world; instead, through him the world is to be saved. Whoever believes in him will not be condemned. He who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the Name of the only Son of God.“This is how the Judgment is made: Light has come into the world and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. (…)
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in the Assimilated Life Experience)
The day after the Philippines concluded its fire prevention month in 2005, a big fire caused by an unattended candle erupted somewhere in Luzon. The old woman who started it all because she left a lit candle unattended cited the high cost of electricity to justify her use of a candle. “Mahal kasi masyado ang kuryente”, she explained. Her shocked daughter who worked as manager of a prestigious company exclaimed: “Mama, I told you many times that the company is paying for our electricity!”
This news item takes us to a deeper reflection on the Light of the resurrection. This Light is not affordable to human beings. But the price has been paid with the life of God’s only Son who was put to death after so much physical pain, mental anguish and psychological torture. Baptism has given us access to this Light. With its availability gratis et amore, there is no reason why we should make do with the lower forms of light, such as resorting to earthly treasure when groping in the darkness of poverty, resorting to carnal pleasure when feeling so sad and lonely, and indulging in illegitimate forms of leisure when walking in life’s monotonous alley.
These fake lights are the only kinds of light that evil can offer. We submit to these by compromising our baptismal commitments. Consider the case of greed. We know that greed is not among the fruits of the Light of the resurrection. Yet we compromise by submitting to moderate greed. Consider how employers lavish their workers with bonuses and dole outs in December to appear generous, but steal part of their salaries throughout the year by paying them below-minimum wage. In their relationship with God they do not perform any better. They give to God what they earn from shady deals and donate to noble causes what they gain from corruption.
Why settle for lower forms of light when real light is available to us gratis et amore? – Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM. Email: dan.delosangeles@gmail.com. Website: www.frdan.org.
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