Demos gracias al Señor

 

No hay momento tan importante como el momento presente. Y todo momento, muy especialmente el momento presente, es momento para dar gracias a Dios.

 

Esta semana,  la semana de “Thanksgiving” este año coincide con dos otros grandes momentos; el final del año litúrgico y el comienzo del nuevo año litúrgico.¡ feliz nuevo año litúrgico para todos!

 

La fiesta de “THanksgiving” si bien es una que tiene una gran importancia histórica, cultural religiosa y tradicional aquí en los Estados Unidos, no se celebra universalmente en nuestros países. pero al llegar aquí la celebramos porque es parte de la cultura a la cual nos vamos integrando.

 

Lo interesante de esta fiesta es que no pertenece a ningún grupo religioso en particular sino a todos., Esto es, cristianos, judíos, y todas las religiones que creen en Dios, la celebran. Dan gracias. Es esencialmente una fiesta en la cual la familia se reune a dar gracias a Dios por tantos favores que hemos recibido durante el pasado año y durante toda nuestra vida.

 

Al mismo tiempo, en este mismo momento, en la liturgia mientras nos acercamos al primer domingo de adviento, se nos invita a prepararnos para la conmemoración de la primera venida de Jesús al mundo. Mientras que las lecturas enfocan en la segunda venida de Jesús.

 

En nuestra iglesia en el pasado, estas lecturas del final del año Litúrgico

y del comienzo del nuevo año han sido presentadas de manera que nos cause temor.  Ciertamente el final de nuestra vida en particular y el final de los tiempos en general no son temas agradables.

 

Pero si estudiamos detenidamente los textos evangélicos que se nos presentan para nuestra consideración, encontraremos invariablemente un mensaje de esperanza.

 

Sí,  la vida de cada uno de nosotros en la tierra llegará a su fin tarde o temprano. Sí, el mundo tal como lo conocemos llegará a su fin. Nos dice el evangelio que el día y la hora ni los ángeles del cielo ni el Hijo lo saben. Solamente el Padre lo sabe.

 

Pero en cada uno de estos pasajes evangélicos encontramos a Jesús buscando y encontrando a sus elegidos. Y nos invitan a confiar en su gran misericordia, en su gran amor por nosotros.

 

El mensaje central, la esencia del mensaje de Jesús es que Dios es un papá bueno, nuestro Papacito que tanto nos ama que mandó a su hijo al mundo para que los que recibiéramos su mensaje no muriéramos para siempre sino que fuéramos a vivir en su regazo por toda la eternidad.

 

El regalo más grande, la razón más grande por lo cual debemos dar gracias a Dios nuestro padre en todo momento es por su hijo Jesucristo que siendo humano como nosotros nos conduce amorosamente al Padre.

 

En este momento en que celebramos la fiesta de acción de gracias, cerramos un año litúrgico y comenzamos un Año Nuevo litúrgico  este primer domingo de adviento, notamos que los vecindarios se llenan de luces que anuncian que la Navidad se acerca.

 

Te deseo que cada vez que veas una casa encendida con luces de Navidad, recuerdes que Cristo que  es la  luz del mundo, te ama, te conoce por nombre, siempre está contigo, te bendice y desea que seas feliz eternamente. Y Por eso debes dar infinitas gracias

 

Feliz fiesta de acción de gracias

 

Bendecido y provechoso adviento

 

Santa y feliz Navidad

 

El caballero de Nuestra Señora

 

Recognizing A King

 What does it mean to be in the presence of a king?  What does it mean to be in the presence of a queen?  I personally never had that experience, but I can imagine what it might be like.  For a moment, you might become nervous, maybe your palms sweat a little bit.  There may suddenly be a dryness in your throat.  It might be very difficult to form words.  Perhaps you might feel a little weak in the knees.  It certainly would be a moment that you would never forget.

And yet we profess this Sunday that there is a King of the Universe, and that person is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  And yet perhaps when we encounter him, we don’t have quite the same reaction.  For we encounter him in each and every person that we meet.  Most people that we encounter, we are indifferent to.  If we are honest, our hope is that those whom we meet don’t expect anything from us.  In fact, we sadly have come to expect the opposite.  We have become sure that the other person is going to try to take advantage of us in some way.  Whether it’s the mechanic fixing our car, whom we expect to charge us unfairly or the person in need on the street, whom we have already decided is just trying to deceive us and probably has a load of money in the bank.  We have come to be a society that lives in mutual suspicion of one another.  

This depravity of mutual suspicion simply feeds on itself and it leads to an epidemic of lack of respect.  We no longer even consider the possibility of seeing Christ in others, and so, we cut off each other on the highway.  We go home and lock our doors and don’t bother to check on our elderly neighbors.  For some, we see the other as a political opponent.  We make characterizations that the other person must be one of them - them being the opposite of who we are. 

And yet to feel good about ourselves in the midst of this, we carve out a little bit of our resources, whether it be time or money or talent, and perform some type of service.  Don’t get me wrong, volunteer service is very admirable, but if we do it so others will see Christ in us, rather than we seeing Christ in those whom we serve, then we have it all wrong.

If Jesus, the King of the Universe, is present in every human being, then why aren’t we in wonder and awe of each other?  Why don’t we get those feelings of being in the presence of royalty when we see especially those in need?  The King will ask us, “When I was hungry, did you give me something to eat?  When I was thirsty, did you give me something to drink?”

Perhaps we no longer react to being in the presence of the true King, because our goal is to have others see us as royalty.  The King of the Universe wants us to live in the Truth, which we experience when we love and serve one another.  In that we will discover the true joy of the kingdom, both in the present and for all eternity.

- The Servant

 33d Sunday in Ordinary Time

Mark 13: 24-32

 

 

“The End is Near!”

 

This is a phrase that we often hear or use in a humorous or satirical way.   Yet, it is a notion that we hear often in scripture, most especially from the Old Testament prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Joel, Zechariah and Daniel.   Today, however, we hear it from Jesus.   Jesus tells us of the end-times and cautions us that “…of that day or hour, no one knows…” while also telling us we should pay attention to the signs as a warning that the day is near.

 

Most scripture scholars agree that the earliest Christians believed that the end times were going to happen within their lifetimes.   Alas, it did not.   Many believers throughout the centuries up until the present believed, predicted, and warned that it was about to happen.   But we're still here. (And not just Christians – remember the big scare in 2012 over the Mayan Calendar?)

 

So, Jesus' message is still true, relevant and important.   We don't know when, so don't put off being a good and faithful follower of His commandments, lest we be caught unaware and unprepared!

 

However, there's an additional way, perhaps, to look at this passage.   While the end of the world has not yet come on a global scale, there have been many occasions in history where people “thought” the end was near.   And, sadly, for many people, the end has come on a personal level.    Even now, many people see the “signs.”   Namely, we live in a terribly confusing, dangerous and volatile world.   The worry that “the end is near” is always present, no matter how much we'd like to ignore that.

 

The thought occurs to me that I might not be around when the final day of judgment comes, but that will only be because I have already faced my own day of judgment.   The apocalypse is a scary thought, and, certainly, one which should make us look at our faith in a very serious and focused way.   But my one eventual demise should be no less scary or serious, in terms of how I'm living out my faith.

 

Do I truly live, or at least desire to live, in a way which brings God's love, charity, mercy, forgiveness, comfort, hope, peace and joy to the world?   If not, why wait?   If I look at the scary “signs' that are all around I can certainly see that the world is in dire need of God's presence.   So, what am I waiting for?

 

I may not know the day or hour of the second coming.   I may not know the day or hour of my own judgment day.   But I do know the day and hour that I need to bring God into this world.   And that day is today; and that hour is right now.

 

“Call Me Ishmael

In God we Trust.

 In this week’s Gospel, Mark 12:38-44, Jesus warns us about the scribes and their desire for recognition. They walk around in long robes, seeking honor and trying to appear important in front of others. But then Jesus brings our attention to a poor widow who gives only two small coins at the temple. These coins are all she has, and yet she gives them without fear,  putting her trust in God. Jesus tells us that her gift, though small, is has more meaning because she gave all she had and was used her faith in Jesus to be her supply. 

This Gospel hits me in a way that brings me back to my own struggles with humility. There have been times in my life where I wanted to be seen, to have my hard work recognized, to feel that I had accomplished something important. It’s a natural desire, but it can quickly lead to pride. Pride has a way of sneaking in, making me feel like I’m in control, like I don’t need anyone else—not even God. But I’ve come to learn, often the hard way, that pride can pull me away from my true purpose and from God’s call in my life.

When I read about the widow’s offering, I am reminded of what it means to keep God at the center. It means giving from the heart, whether it’s our time, our resources, or our talents, not for the recognition but because we trust in Him. It’s about doing what’s right in God’s eyes, even when no one else sees it. I need that reminder constantly because when God is at the center, I am reminded of my purpose and my calling. It keeps me grounded, it keeps me from getting too caught up in my own image, and it keeps me from letting pride take over. Of course I fall short and stumble but it’s my faith that keeps getting back in the ring.  

This Gospel encourages me to ask myself where I am giving from—am I giving from a place of abundance where I hardly feel the sacrifice, or am I giving in a way that makes me rely on God’s strength rather than my own? That widow didn’t have much, but she had faith. And maybe that’s the point for all of us. When we choose to keep God at the center, we’re saying that we trust Him to fill in the gaps, to take what little we can offer and use it in ways we may never understand. 

This week, Maybe we can all focus on humility and keeping God at the center. I want to remind myself that every act, every choice, can be an offering to God. And when pride sneaks in, I’ll remind myself of the widow’s two coins—a small offering but given with a big heart, trusting completely in the God.