Synoptic Gospels
After Jesus told the crowds “blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”, he also tells them not to seek after wealth that perish and get destroyed. He tells them instead to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and they will be taken care of like the lilies of the field and the birds of the air. Jesus preaches no gospel of prosperity, he preaches the gospel of the kingdom of God where those are poor in spirit, those who mourn, those who hunger and thirst for what is right are declared blessed because of a future that has been reserved for them by the Father in heaven.
Continue reading about (Sunday VIII — A) Seek First the Kingdom
Feb
7
angfrayle on February 7th, 2011
Jesus wants us to take his words as expressions of the Father’s will and the measuring stick by which we check whether we are being perfect as the Father is perfect .
Continue reading about (Sunday VII — A) Be Perfect as Your Heavenly Father is Perfect
Matthew presents Jesus as the New Moses who points out to the People of God the Way of Righteousness. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus instructs his listeners how to be faithful to God’s Law. After telling them that they are the salt of the earth and the light of the world, Jesus tells his audience that to be so they should have a “righteousness that surpasses that of the scribes and the Pharisees.”
Continue reading about (Sunday VI — A) Fidelity and Righteousness
Two Sundays ago, we read about the light that has begun to shine on those who dwell in darkness. In Matthew’s mind, that light is Jesus. Today, Jesus tells his listeners that they are the “light of the world”. In a way, the righteous Jew was also called “light” insofar as he reflects the light of the Torah (cf. Psalm 112). But the Christian is light of the world when he reflects the light that is Jesus Christ.
Continue reading about (Sunday V — A) You Are the Light of the World
Last week’s reading about the fulfillment of the prophesy of Isaiah about the light that dawns upon those who live in desperation and hopelessness is followed up by the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount. True happiness (or “blessedness”) is something that belongs to God’s future, but it is given as a foretaste to those who have learned to put their trust in God. The people whom Jesus calls “blessed” are those who have learned that only in God’s reign can there be peace, the wholeness, that everyone desires.
Jan
11
angfrayle on January 11th, 2011
The liturgy offers us two readings: the longer form (Matthew 4:12-23) and a shorter one (Matthew 4: 18-23). The shorter reading focuses on the first disciples as the first fruits of Jesus’ preaching. The longer form places the call of the first disciples within a bigger context: the fulfillment of the prophetic oracle from Isaiah 9.
Continue reading about (Sunday III — A) That They Who Sit in Darkness May See A Great Light
Jan
8
angfrayle on January 8th, 2011
The Feast of the Santo Niño de Cebu makes us recall one of the events that preceded the formal evangelization of the Philippines in 1565, the discovery of the statue given by the Magellan expedition to Queen Juana of Cebu by a sailor of the Legazpi expedition. The image was subsequently placed under the protection of the first missionaries to the Philippines, the Augustinians led by Fray Martin de Rada and Fray Andres de Urdaneta, who came with the team of Legazpi. It is now housed in the Basilica del Santo Niño of Cebu.
Continue reading about Unless You Repent and Become Like A Child (Feast of the Sto. Niño)
The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord begins Ordinary Time. The gospel reading from Matthew 3 gives us the account of the Lord’s baptism at the Jordan. Matthew’s particular contribution is to point out that John baptized Jesus not by reason of superiority, but because it was the duty assigned to him by God. [...]
Continue reading about (Sunday I — A) This is My Beloved Son
For the fourth Sunday of Advent, the figure of Joseph is presented to us. He is described in one brief phrase as if all his life was a reflection of it. "Joseph was a just man." He too was one of those who waited for the coming of the Messiah and was privileged to have [...]
Continue reading about (Advent IV — A) Joseph, Husband of Mary (Matthew 1:18-25)
John the Baptist is the last of the Old Testament prophets, the one who ushered in the ministry of Jesus and the one who witnessed the first signs of the coming of the Kingdom. But it was not his place to experience the coming of the Holy Spirit and the emergence of the Church. Like Moses who led Israel out of Egypt but who never set foot on the Land of Promise, John the Baptist is one of those whom Paul would say saw the city of God from afar but never came near to it as today’s Christians do
Continue reading about (Advent III – A ) The Signs of the Messiah (Matthew 11:2-11)
The Second Sunday of Advent is about the mission of John the Baptist. As John prepared Israel for the coming of Jesus, so the Church is also called to prepare the world for the arrival of the Lord. As John announced the nearness of the Kingdom and the repentance that should characterize those who will [...]
Continue reading about (Advent II – A) Good Fruits of Repentance (Matt. 3:1-12)
With the first Sunday of Advent, we begin a new liturgical year, the Year of Matthew (Year A). Advent is the time when we prepare for the three-fold coming of the Lord: in His nativity, in His second coming, and in the hidden way He comes to us in our daily lives. We recall His [...]
Continue reading about (Advent I – A) Stay Awake! (Matthew 24:37-44)
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