DAILY- HOMILY

SEPTEMBER 27, 2009
26TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - B

NUMBERS 11:25-29
The LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to Moses. Taking some of the
spirit that was on Moses, the LORD bestowed it on the seventy elders;
and as the spirit came to rest on them, they prophesied. Now two men,
one named Eldad and the other Medad, were not in the gathering but had
been left in the camp. They too had been on the list, but had not gone
out to the tent; yet the spirit came to rest on them also, and they
prophesied in the camp. So, when a young man quickly told Moses,
"Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp," Joshua, son of Nun, who
from his youth had been Moses' aide, said, "Moses, my lord, stop
them." But Moses answered him, "Are you jealous for my sake? Would
that all the people of the LORD were prophets! Would that the LORD
might bestow his spirit on them all!"

JAMES 5:1-6
Come now, you rich, weep and wail over your impending miseries. Your
wealth has rotted away, your clothes have become moth-eaten, your gold
and silver have corroded, and that corrosion will be a testimony
against you; it will devour your flesh like a fire. You have stored up
treasure for the last days. Behold, the wages you withheld from the
workers who harvested your fields are crying aloud; and the cries of
the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have
lived on earth in luxury and pleasure; you have fattened your hearts
for the day of slaughter. You have condemned; you have murdered the
righteous one; he offers you no resistance.

MARK 9:38-43, 45, 47-48
At that time, John said to Jesus, "Teacher, we saw someone driving out
demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he does not
follow us." Jesus replied, "Do not prevent him. There is no one who
performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill
of me. For whoever is not against us is for us. Anyone who gives you a
cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to
you, will surely not lose his reward. Whoever causes one of these
little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a
great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the
sea. If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you
to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into
the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off.
It is better for you to enter into life crippled than with two feet to
be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it
out. Better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than
with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna, where 'their worm does not
die, and the fire is not quenched.'"

REFLECTION
In the first reading and the Gospel, some followers of Moses and Jesus
reacted when people whom they did not consider as part of their groups
began doing what seemed to be solely reserved for them. In Moses'
group, Joshua could not accept that two men namely Eldad and Medad,
were prophesying. They claimed that these men could not possibly be
recipients of the gift of prophecy as they were not around during the
bestowing of the spirit on the seventy elders as they were left in the
camp.

Meanwhile, John, a close aide of Jesus, tells the latter of having
seen someone who did not belong to their group exorcising demons. John
must have been surprised and flabbergasted with Jesus' response: There
is no one who performs a mighty deed in his name who can at the same
time speak ill of him. For whoever is not against us is for us."

Such a response clearly suggests that Jesus imparts the theme of
inclusiveness. Jesus' mission is universal as he offered his life for
all and saved us from eternal damnation and separation from God, the
source and meaning of life. He did not want people to be left out in
his desire for the salvation of humanity. To achieve this, he welcomed
all possible assistance from people of good will who were willing to
be partners in his work of salvation as he knows very well that the
harvest is rich yet laborers are few. Anything good would ultimately
have to be an inspiration and gif t of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus desires to be friends with all and challenges us to be willing
and generous in his mission to proclaim his Father's love and mercy.
As a result, Jesus actively looked out for sinners for he believed
that they were the purpose for his coming — to be in solidarity with
us. There will be much joy and celebration whenever a sinner
experiences conversion and thus, become a child of God again. Such
attitude of Jesus is in contrast with our tendency at times to be
exclusive. We sometimes have the knack of being cliquish that we end
up distancing ourselves from others. Instead of the possibility of
expanding our horizons and relationships, we end up isolating
ourselves.

To have a mindset that is inclusive is something that we can become
more aware and practice more in our lives. It would entail a paradigm
shift in that we underscore our commonality rather than emphasizing
our differences and distinctions. We begin with the reality that we
are all created in God's likeness and are called to participate in the
universal mission of salvation initiated and handed on to us by Jesus.
We are blessed with our giftedness as well as the giftedness of others
who serve as collaborators and partners in the work of salvation. May
we have enlightened minds and open hearts to see the giftedness of
others even though they may not be part of our community as this is
clear evidence that God's presence is truly in our midst.

PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the strength and healing of:
- Margie R. Ponce de Leon
- Brenda Domingo-Solis
- Lisa
- Inday Tan
… for the personal intentions of
- Dapo family
- Edu and Minette
… In Thanksgiving: for the answered prayers of Mike
… for the eternal repose of the souls of Raul and Epifania Ylaya.
Eternal rest grant unto them and may perpetual light shine upon them.
May they and all the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Charito Nañagas
- Birthday: Monet Zalamea
- Birthday: Lydia O Hara
… for the healing and peace of all families

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers
and for those who need our prayers the most.

Have a good day!

**************************************************
Parish Priests' e-mail:
Fr. J. Cesar R. Marin, S. J. parishpriest@marythequeen.org

Assistant Parish Priests' e-mails:
Fr. R. Hart, S. J. rodneyhart@marythequeen.org
Fr. Thomas O'Gorman, S. J. thogorman@marythequeen.org
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