A PREAYER THAT STRUGGLES AND PERSEVERES

THE PRAYER THAT STRUGGLES AND PERSEVERES:

(1) The Woman of Tyre-Sidon who constantly begged our Lord Jesus to heal her daughter from an evil spirit. The Lord replied that it is not proper that the bread be fed to the dogs because the bread is meant for the Children. Take note that the woman was Canaanite, not Israelite. And at the time the Jews looked down on Canaanites as pagans. But the woman undaunted by the insult, even humbled herself all the more, and said, "Lord, even the dogs eat the crumbs." There and then our Lord was moved by this singular act of faith and to her assurance, the Lord said: Go in Peace your daughter is healed and at that instant her daughter was healed.

(2) A centurion once asked Jesus to heal his servant who was sick. The Centurion is a man of authority having in his command a thousand soldiers. Jesus told the centurion, I will go to your house and heal your servant. The Centurion, despite of his authority and stature, replied. "Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof, but simply say the word and my servant shall be healed." The Lord was amazed, and He exclaimed, I have never seen such kind of faith, not even in Israel (n.b. the Centurion was Roman and not Israelite, which shows that even Gentiles like the centurion can be so animated by faith). Jesus said to the centurion, "Go your servant is healed." Today the faith of this Centurion is immortalized in the Canon of the Mass. Each time the Priest elevates the Host he says, "This is the Lamb of God, which takes away the sins of the world, happy are we who are called to this supper." and we reply, " Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter my roof but only say the word and my soul shall be healed." May the Body and Blood of Christ bring us to everlasting life.

REFLECTION FOR TRINITY SUNDAY

MY REFLECTION FOR TRINITY SUNDAY: One vivid and impressive catechism I have learn as a child is no other than the Sign of the Cross. As a child I enjoyed the story about guardian angels. I was fascinated by these winged creatures I saw printed on children's books. My late grandmother use to tell us that when we do good our angels are happy, but when we do bad the devil is happy. Inquisitive as I am, I asked my grandmother what to do whenever I am tempted by the devil to do bad. She said that I should simply offer a prayer to God and the best form of prayer is to make the sign of the Cross, invoking the name of the Holy Trinity. According to her the mere invocation of the Holy Trinity will make the devil flee. This childish form of instruction remained with me and as I matured. It has metamorphosed into some form of higher level thinking. Not a diminished faith but an enriched faith, nourished by solid Christian education, the scriptures and the liturgy. Today I am still happy that many of our fellow Catholics still use the sign of the cross, before we eat, before we do anything we always make the sign of the cross. I sincerely hope that we can keep up with this very beautiful tradition.

What does it really mean to live a life according to the principle of the Trinity. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is a controversial one. Even the Church cannot fully explain the depth of this doctrine. But its reality is beyond reasonable doubt. We are humans and our understanding of the Divine is only limited as far as we can carry. But in the Scriptures it was said that the Word (Jesus) was with God since the beginning of time, and that the spirit of God hovered over the face of the earth. In the baptismal formula, Christ instructed His Church to baptize in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Three persons but one God.

If there is any practical lesson we can derived from this dogma is the understanding that there is one single principle that animates the Trinitarian life, and this is LOVE. The Father loves the Son and the Son Loves the Father. So we too as Christians and as we are often led to make the sign of the cross each time, we should also be reminded to live up to that principle called LOVE. Jesus said, "Love one another as I have loved you." This is the true essence of what it is to be a Christian - to fully participate in the LOVE that unites the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.

To God be the glory.
+ In the Name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Blessed Sunday to everyone. See you in Church.