Gospel: Luke 24:13-35
25 And he said to them, "… How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!
26 Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer
these things and enter into his glory?"
Suffering and work
By Bishop Precioso D. Cantillas, SDB, DD
Jesus explained to His disciples that the “Messiah should suffer” in carrying out his mission; and, that it is a “Suffering Servant” who would set God’s chosen people free from all kinds of slavery. This was something so different from what the people in Jesus’ time, including His disciples, expected. They were waiting for some triumphant and majestic king who would vanquish all their oppressors and would provide them freely with “milk and honey”. So Jesus showed by words and deeds and by His very life and death that the reality of suffering is part and parcel of life and work here on earth; but also that this necessary evil could be the source of one’s happiness and peace.
It is certainly our experience, too, that suffering is necessarily part of our life at work. We cannot have things done just by saying a wish or striking the air with a magic wand. We have to sweat it out in order to produce things; squeeze out our minds to plan the production or manufacturing system, and the whole complex of business and industry in order to supply the ever growing demands of people for goods and services. Suffering in all its kinds and forms is an indispensable investment in the business of work.
Some workers would grudgingly bear the pains and burdens of their work all their life and even become bitter about it and about everything. Some would rationalize the harsh realities in the workplace and try to cope with it, accept reality and live with it rather peacefully. Those who believe in Christ would feel the presence of their suffering Lord and be inspired to bear every pain and suffering at work. Uniting themselves with the Messiah, and lovingly suffering with Him would make work not only gainful materially but also and most importantly spiritually redeeming.
Foretaste of His glory
By Teresa R. Tunay, OCDS
Occasionally, at work, a dark horse would rise to save the day for the company. One such dark horse is Mang Goring, messenger, collector and all-around errand man for a multi-national company. He’s not the garrulous type like one VP’s driver who always has something to say about everything, but one day Mang Goring made a comment about the performance of Roman, a bright newcomer whom the president had trusted so much. Coming from a good family and educated abroad, Roman’s credentials were impressive, his person was affable, and his approach to work was innovative and effective.
Then, before a year was over, Roman vanished. The president was in shock and the whole company was mute with disbelief—it was discovered that Roman had ran away with millions of the company’s money expertly siphoned off to his secret bank accounts. Mang Goring’s casual comment about Roman proved to be an unheeded warning—he turned out to be the prophet no one heard.
Jesus in today’s gospel mentions those who are “… slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!” As we can see, then as now, people do not automatically open their ears to prophets. All the more now, in our time, when people would rather listen to idols. And our idols these days, more often than not, are the “with it” people—smart, gregarious, driven, articulate achievers with PhDs tailing their names—unlike Mang Goring, an undergraduate from some obscure high school in the Visayas. There are many Mang Gorings in our midst, dark horses who are not only unnoticed but who also suffer in silence, yet they are at peace and grateful for their lot. Believing that Christ is with them in their suffering, they are already blessed with a foretaste of His glory.
No comments:
Post a Comment