Gospel: Mt. 11: 2-11
4 Jesus said to them in reply, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5 the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised,
and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.
A saving grace
By Bishop Precioso D. Cantillas, SDB, DD
The Jews at the time of Jesus were expecting a Savior, to deliver them from their many kinds of suffering—personal, economic, social, political and spiritual ones. Jesus confirmed that He was the Messiah to those whom John the Baptist had sent to verify whether it was He whom they were waiting for. He pointed out to them that many sick people have been healed and the poor given the “good news”—that people are being made whole in their being, rather than being given material things, like money with which they can buy their freedom from any kind of evil or with which they can have more things to enjoy. Jesus provided a different kind of salvation, or rather, a more complete kind of salvation which would grant the believer true freedom and happiness.
In our times, work for many is some kind of a savior saving them and their families from material, physical, or financial poverty and providing them with satisfaction and happiness in at least what money gained from work can buy. For others who may be suffering from psychological pains such as boredom, loneliness, sense of worthlessness and others, work could also be a source of healing for them. Yet, ironically, work could also be the oppressor for others. Some would be enslaved, over- burdened and distressed by too much work. Some would get burnt out, physically and mentally spent due to excessive working.
What then could save work from being an oppressor to the worker and transform it to his veritable savior? When work is taken up with Jesus—the worker believing in Him as the Messiah present among us in our day to day activities—and, when it is done with love and sacrifice in union with Him. Work then, becomes a saving grace.
Awed by miracles
By Teresa R. Tunay, OCDS
For some (or many?) people, work is the most important thing in life—so important that they would work even on Sundays and holidays. Filipinos overseas taking two or three jobs to earn a living are no longer uncommon for us; almost every other middle class Pinoy has some migrant relatives abroad who tell them of their hardships earning precious dollars, euros or dinari.. And yet, I observe that even from among such workaholics you’ll find those who would not hesitate to drop whatever work they’re doing in order to make time for a mystery. This is what today’s gospel leads me to think.
One concrete example: a number of colleagues—all a hardworking lot—take leave from their work in order to be free to consult a visiting Filipino Catholic priest who has earned a worldwide reputation for being a miracle worker. This healer-priest is known to have made the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, and the dead to rise again. They exclaim, “Nakabuhay ng patay?! Nakakamangha, di ba?” thus the workaholics find time for him—to beg healing for their myriad aches and pains.
If such a keen need for a healing medium does not make us see that there is Something or Someone Else more important than our work, then the healing encounter would not be completely beneficial—it may even do more harm than good. You’ve heard, of course, of people who earn so much money all their life only to spend it all on hospital bills? We ought to see that our being workaholics indicates a certain lack of balance in our lifestyle. If we consciously attend to First Things first—listen to the Source of our very existence first, even only for a few moments each day—we will be perfectly guided as to the use of our bodies, talents and resources. Then we will not be awed by miracle cures, miracle drugs and miracle workers. We become the miracle.
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