Always in the context of victory

I MEAN the victory of Christ’s redemptive mission that takes care of everything in our life, no matter how things turn out to be. All our affairs, whether they are considered a success or a failure, done in the proper way or in the wrong way, etc., should be referred to the victory of Christ. 

 In that way, all our affairs can take part in the victory of Christ over sin and death that in the end is what truly matters in our life. Thus, we would have every reason to be happy and hopeful and to remain calm despite whatever. This is actually the ideal condition of our life, and we should try our best to attain it. 

 In that way also, we can be in a better position to see God’s will better, and to follow it properly. As we all know, we work or perform better when we feel light and animated by love, without as much as possible bearing the drag of a guilt feeling or anything negative. 

 Of course, we have to understand that Christ’s victory was gained through the cross, through his loving obedience to the will of his Father who wants him to assume all the sins of men, rendering death to all our sins by dying on the cross and then by resurrecting. 

 It’s important that we learn to assume the mind of Christ in everything that we do. Especially when we commit mistakes or even commit grave sins, if we have the mind of Christ, we would know how to repent and how to rid ourselves of bad feelings to regain the peace and joy that are proper to us as children of God. 

 And when we succeed in something, we also would know how to react properly if we assume the mind of Christ. We would be most thankful, and our joy would never make us proud and vain. In fact, what would happen is that we would be more motivated to do more good things, breaking new frontiers in the area of loving God and loving others. 

 To be able to refer everything in our life to the victory of Christ would definitely require some effort on our part. First, we would really ask for God’s grace which we can do if our faith is strong and healthy. Then, we have to go through the human process of learning. 

 It’s a step-by-step process, slow and kind of arduous especially at the beginning. But if we persist, things would just pick up, and voila!, referring things to Christ’s victory becomes an instinct. 

 This skill is most needed these days when many people are sinking in sadness and depression because they do not know how to cope with the many challenges and difficulties of our times. 

 Let’s hope that we can have many people who can inspire and impart this skill on others. To be sure, this is not merely a psychological trick or device. It’s what our faith is telling us. Christ himself said so. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Mt 11,28-29) 

 But for all that, let’s learn to carry the cross with Christ, because only then can we share in his victory.

Blessing different items

AS priest, I, of course, receive frequent requests to bless different items—tokens of devotion like rosary beads, stampitas, or bikes and cars, and of course, houses. I always welcome these occasions because they can only show that people still have some traces of piety despite the growing secularization of our environment. It’s something to be fostered strongly, especially these days. 

 In these blessings, I always tell those concerned to be most thankful to God, since in the end, he is really the one who provided them with those items to be blessed. Even if they were the ones who made them, or spent for them, etc., in the end it is God who gave them those items. And the gratitude toward God should be expressed in deeds more than just in intentions and some nice words. 

 The idea behind the encouragement to be thankful is for those concerned to continue growing in their relationship with God. I always remind them that the blessing is not just some kind of social custom for them to be socially correct. It has a deep religious meaning that they should always keep in mind when using those items. It is meant to relate them and the things being blessed to God always. 

 If it’s some token of devotion to be blessed, I usually tell them to see God or whatever saint is involved in those tokens. They should feel invited to be with God or the saint whenever the token is used. 

 That is also why, given the common tendency to take religion for granted, I tell them to put many tokens of devotion around, so that the presence of God would not be lost to them and to the others with them. Those tokens should remind them that their life is and should always be a life with God, and not by themselves alone. 

 If it’s a bike or a car to be blessed, I remind them that those vehicles should strongly remind them that our life here on earth is like a journey toward a definitive destination, which is heaven with God. 

 I tell them that everytime they use those vehicles, they should be reminded of the underlying religious meaning and purpose of their use. They should not just get stuck with the technicalities and the worldly and temporal purposes of their use, like affording them mobility, convenience, comfort, etc. 

 In fact, they should devise a way where everytime they use those vehicles, they should not just get to some place, but should get the sensation that they are getting closer to heaven. To be sure, having this religious meaning in mind would not distract them from their driving. Rather, it would make them most careful. 

 And if it’s a house to be blessed, I tell them that their house should channel and reflect the definitive home we are supposed to have in eternity. I encourage them that aside from making their houses as beautiful as possible, they should make their houses a home where love in all its manifestations is nurtured. 

 There should be constant concern for one another, eagerness to help and to understand each other. The house should be turned into a home and a school where the basic education and formation of the those in it is carried out. In fact, the home should be made like a domestic Church where faith, hope and charity should be fostered.

Always be at peace

WE have to remember that this is our ideal condition to be in. We may have to do some battling, we may feel angered and agitated for a number of reasons, we may be hounded by fears, doubts and worries, but let’s see to it that, at least, at the end of the day, we should be at peace with everyone, with God first and with everybody else also. 

 And if we master the art of peace-making well, we somehow would know how to have peace in our mind and heart even if we have to go through the unavoidable battles and episodes of anger and agitation, of fears, worries and the like in our life. 

 The secret, of course, is to be with God, to identify ourselves with Christ, following his teachings and example. With Christ, we would know how to deal with all the elements of our life that are contrary to our dignity as children of God, and yet not eaten up by bitter zeal, anger, hatred and the like. In fact, we would know how to always live charity whose manifestation will always include peace of mind and heart. 

 It’s important that we have peace in our mind and heart because that is the requirement for us to see things clearly and objectively, to make judgments fairly and to do things well. With peace, we can manage to be hopeful and happy even while cruising still in this vale of tears of ours. 

 Without peace, we can only manage the opposite. Our biases will dominate the way we perceive things, make judgments and do things in general. And our suffering continues and can worsen. 

 While peace is an effect of charity, it is also what keeps charity going and growing. There is always an intimate mutual relationship between charity and peace. The more love for God and others we have, the more peace we will also enjoy. And vice-versa—the more peace we have, our love for God and others would also grow. 

 We can always have peace because even in the worst scenario when problems, issues and difficulties are left unresolved, we can always go to God, asking for grace or mercy or whatever help we need. And God always takes care of everything. He is always there for us, ever solicitous of our needs and eager to forgive. All we need to do is to go to him. 

 We just have to learn also how to live abandonment in the ever powerful and wise providence of God. And this can mean that we also have to learn to be patient and hopeful, willing to suffer together with Christ who bore all our sins and everything that our sins would cause, and who conquered all of them by his resurrection. 

 We also have to learn how to be accepting of persons and things as they are even as we slowly find ways of how we can help each other to be how we ought to be according to God’s designs for us. We should avoid getting stuck in our differences and conflicts. We can always find common ground among ourselves. The fact that we are all humans, that we are all creatures of God, children of his, and loved by him are some of the basic inalienable commonalities we have, which we can use to build up peace among ourselves.