WORD ALIVE Tomorrow is the first Sunday of Advent, the beginning of the church’s liturgical calendar. And the call is “be watchful; be alert. You do not know when the Lord of the house will come. He may find you sleeping” (Mark 13, 35). * * * It does not mean...
WORD ALIVE Sunday is the feast of Christ the King of the Universe. Is Jesus Christ really a King? Standing before Pilate, Christ did not deny it. But then he said, “My kingdom does not belong to this world” (Jn 18,36). * * * In his book titled, “His Word Resounds,” Albert...
WORD ALIVE We have reached the end of the Church calendar and commemorated All Souls Day. Today, we reflect on the end of the world. Many people have been asking, “Father, is the world about to end?” I replied. “It’s because of the plagues, the earthquakes, famines, global warming,...
WORD ALIVE Jesus Christ in the Sunday gospel praises the poor widow who drops two small copper coins, equivalent to a few centavos, in the temple treasury, unlike the others who “put in their surplus money” (Mk 12,43). Although very poor, she put “all she had to live on.” The first...
WORD ALIVE There’s a true story of an elderly American couple, Larry and Betty Bartells. They had six children, a nice home, and lived a relatively comfortable life owing to Larry’s high-paying job. They could have coasted for the rest of their lives, looking forward to getting that last...
WORD ALIVE Once a priest was complaining why his bishop kept naming “monsignors” in his diocese. The bishop said to him, “You know why? When I give the purple attire to some priests, the faces of other priests turn either blue or green. Blue in anger and green in envy.” That priest’s...
WORD ALIVE “How hard it is for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God” (Mk 10,25). The words of Jesus sounds shocking and threatening for the rich. What does the Lord mean? Does he mean...
WORD ALIVE Once a husband was examining his and wife’s marriage certificate. He looked at the back, trying to find something. Seeing what he was doing, the wife blurted, “What are you doing? You have been scrutinizing that marriage certificate for a long time already.” The husband replied,...
WORD ALIVE In this Sunday gospel, Jesus Christ teaches about generosity or unselfishness. He says, “Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink, you can be sure that you will be rewarded.” In the second reading, St. James, the apostle, said that the blessings we receive in this life are...
WORD ALIVE One time I was talking to a barangay chairman. I asked him why he keeps on running for the top barangay position. His reply was: “I want people to have a high regard for me and my family. I want people to recognize me and make ‘mano.’ In public” This is just the opposite of what...
WORD ALIVE A lot of love stories end with the words: “And they lived happily ever after.” Is that really true? Then there’s a young man who got married expecting to get lasting marital bliss. After a couple of years, he was asked by the priest who solemnized his wedding how things were...
WORD ALIVE The gospel episode for this 23rd Sunday relates about Jesus healing a deaf and, simultaneously, a mute man (Mark 7,31). In his commentary on the episode, a biblical author William Barclay wrote, “Most people find deaf folks a nuisance. They sympathize with people who are blind...
