Today, April 1, 2012 is Palm Sunday which commemorates Jesus' triumphant entry to Jerusalem. It also ushers Holy Week which is rightly called "The Week that Changed the World."
The Gospel today comes from Mark 14:1-15 on the Passion of Christ. It describes how Jesus sitting on a donkey started his "ascent" to Jerusalem at a place called Bethphage. Despite being the "King of kings and Lord of Lords," He came humbly on an ass defying the exalted expectations of a conqueror in a shining chariot or on a mighty horse! The people accompanied him carrying branches and even laying down their cloaks on His path singing,"Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest."
The Gospel relates Jesus' agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. In this garden setting, our Lord experienced the abysmal depth of human suffering which caused Him to be bathed in a "sweat of blood" thus manifesting His human nature. While in Mount Tabor during His Transfiguration, He showed the dazzling glory of His divinity!
Listening to the Gospel account of the Passion and Death of Jesus transported my thoughts to the Holy Land which I have been privileged to visit four times, actually five times. But during my fifth pilgrimage in 2005, I gave up visiting most sites since I volunteered to stay with someone in the group who suffered a stroke in Nazareth.
The Adriatic Travel brochure for May 2005 had a Land of the Bible trip which covered the Holy Land, Egypt, Jordan and Mt. Sinai. Aside from the Holy Land, I had not visited the other places mentioned so that my eagerness to join the pilgrimage was at high gear. My "balae" Lily de Guzman and her daughter Prescy, my cousin Tina Dizon along with my colleagues in the Simbang Gabi Prayer Group- Arnie and Sol Sedayao, Nitay Caballes, Rick and Elvy Tan and a good friend, Filipinas Pineda accepted my invitation to be pilgrims, too.
The sojourn to the Land of the Pharoahs with its monumental pyramids and the Coptic church where our Blessed Mother appeared was a memorable experience. So was the visit to the ancient city of Petra in Jordan which has existed during Biblical times being known then as Edom. It is said that the "remnants" of Israel during the Babylonian Exile stayed at this red- sandstone city. To see temples, tombs and even an amphitheater carved out of the mountains by Nabateans who inhabited the place 6,000 years ago was mind-boggling! The visit to St. Catherine's Monastery, the oldest one in the world which takes care of Moses' "burning bush" ( yes, it is still alive!) in the Mt. Sinai area was a most awesome, never-to-be-forgotten experience! Also, the oldest existing icon of Jesus in the world is at St. Catherine's too. It is called,
"Pancrator" and depicts the face of Jesus with His right side showing gentle, tender lines and a merciful look while His left side features a deep piercing eye with a raised eyebrow and gnarled lip as if giving out severe judgment.
The published itinerary showed the visit to the Holy Land first and then to Egypt and the rest of the destinations. But a week before our scheduled departure, the itinerary was reversed for some unexplained reason. It did not bother me a bit!
To me, the Holy Land is a place that has greatly enriched my life with such a powerful sense of faith, peace and wisdom on the reason for my being and the truth of my being so very blessed! To be at the Bethlehem cave where Jesus was born, to walk where Jesus walked in Nazareth, Capharnaum and Jerusalem and to touch the waters of the River Jordan and the Sea of Gallile were moments of intense rapture and wonder. So were the times I had stood on Mount Tabor where Jesus had His transfiguration and the one where on my knees I was in the Holy Sepulchre itself!
Saturday, March 31, 2012
March 27, 2012 MOUNT NEBO, JORDAN
Today, March 27, 2012, the First Reading is on the constant complaints of the Israelites against Moses for the hunger, thirst and discomfort they were experiencing in the wilderness. The Lord saw that despite the miracles the people had witnessed as their crossing the Red Sea and the food that was being provided daily for them, their hearts were still cold. They were even complaining of the "manna!" As punishment, God sent serpents in their midst and the Israelites suffered so much pain from the poisonous bites. In fact, many perished during their journey.
Moses appealed to God on behalf of the people. God in His mercy, instructed Moses to make a bronze serpent and said that whoever would look at it would be healed. Moses made the bronze serpent and hang it with its body elongated on top of his staff making the structure look like a cross. As God promised, anyone who looked at it was healed.
This Reading reminded me of of my visit in 2005 to Mount Nebo in Jordan where God allowed Moses to see the Promised Land. Recall that because of the disobedience of Moses in striking the rock from which water came forth to quench the thirst of the Israelites, God told him that he would not set foot on the Promised Land. Nonetheless, before Moses died, God rewarded him with a view of the "land of milk and honey" from Mount Nebo. According to Jewish and Christian tradition, Moses died there. However, to this day, no one knows where his grave is.
Because of its connection to Moses, Mount Nebo has long been a pilgrimage site. The church built in 394 A.D. which is presently called, "Memorial Church of Moses," has many original mosaics of plants, flowers, birds, fowl and animals. The exotic colors are still vividly clear! In the Baptistry is a large mosaic with a Greek inscription of the date- August 531- with the names of the three workers who created it. The Theotokos Chapel in honor of our Blessed Mother added in the 17th Century has in its apse a mosaic of a square-like object which looks very much like a "ciborium," (vessel for the Eucharist). The altar is decorated only with a simple, medium-sized Cross. On the wall on its left is a picture of Pope John Paul II kneeling in adoration commemorating his visit there on March 20, 2000. He planted an olive tree near the Byzantine chapel as a symbol of "Peace."
Pope Benedict XVI visited Mount Nebo on May 9, 2009 before going to the Holy Land. Standing where Moses was shown the Promised Land, He said, "It is appropriate that my pilgrimage to the Holy Land begin on this mountain which should remind all people to undertake a daily exodus from sin and "slavery" to new life and hope. God has given us an unshakable promise to guide our journey." He added, "Christians are called to doing our small part, in fidelity, to the vocation each of us has received."
In the church grounds, stands a serpentine cross sculpture symbolic of the bronze serpent structure created by Moses in the wilderness (Numbers 21:49) and the Cross upon which Jesus was crucified (John 3:14). I gazed at it for long and remembered Jesus on the Cross with arms outstretched ready to give healing, love, forgiveness and hope to those who seek Him. Then I went near the railing on the side of the mountain where a large map shows the various locations throughout the region and its distances from Mount Nebo. I surveyed the whole panorama before me absorbed with wonder, fervor and gratitude. I looked up at the clear azure sky as a litany of praise and thanksgiving burst forth from my heart! As tears ran down my cheeks, I struggled to answer the question in my mind, "Who are you to deserve these gifts - standing here on Mount Nebo having a view of the Promised Land like Moses, but unlike Moses having set foot on the "holy ground" of the Promised Land? I remembered my four visits to the Holy Land already. I covered my face with my hands to shield it from my imagined flaming tips of accusing fingers thrust at me, a sinner! I knew I was unworthy of the gifts, undeserving of the unspeakable joy and peace I felt in the revered places I have been privileged to visit. I was humbled! I bowed my head in "shame" not daring nor attempting to give an answer to a query which will remain unsearchable and unfathomable for all time!
Moses appealed to God on behalf of the people. God in His mercy, instructed Moses to make a bronze serpent and said that whoever would look at it would be healed. Moses made the bronze serpent and hang it with its body elongated on top of his staff making the structure look like a cross. As God promised, anyone who looked at it was healed.
This Reading reminded me of of my visit in 2005 to Mount Nebo in Jordan where God allowed Moses to see the Promised Land. Recall that because of the disobedience of Moses in striking the rock from which water came forth to quench the thirst of the Israelites, God told him that he would not set foot on the Promised Land. Nonetheless, before Moses died, God rewarded him with a view of the "land of milk and honey" from Mount Nebo. According to Jewish and Christian tradition, Moses died there. However, to this day, no one knows where his grave is.
Because of its connection to Moses, Mount Nebo has long been a pilgrimage site. The church built in 394 A.D. which is presently called, "Memorial Church of Moses," has many original mosaics of plants, flowers, birds, fowl and animals. The exotic colors are still vividly clear! In the Baptistry is a large mosaic with a Greek inscription of the date- August 531- with the names of the three workers who created it. The Theotokos Chapel in honor of our Blessed Mother added in the 17th Century has in its apse a mosaic of a square-like object which looks very much like a "ciborium," (vessel for the Eucharist). The altar is decorated only with a simple, medium-sized Cross. On the wall on its left is a picture of Pope John Paul II kneeling in adoration commemorating his visit there on March 20, 2000. He planted an olive tree near the Byzantine chapel as a symbol of "Peace."
Pope Benedict XVI visited Mount Nebo on May 9, 2009 before going to the Holy Land. Standing where Moses was shown the Promised Land, He said, "It is appropriate that my pilgrimage to the Holy Land begin on this mountain which should remind all people to undertake a daily exodus from sin and "slavery" to new life and hope. God has given us an unshakable promise to guide our journey." He added, "Christians are called to doing our small part, in fidelity, to the vocation each of us has received."
In the church grounds, stands a serpentine cross sculpture symbolic of the bronze serpent structure created by Moses in the wilderness (Numbers 21:49) and the Cross upon which Jesus was crucified (John 3:14). I gazed at it for long and remembered Jesus on the Cross with arms outstretched ready to give healing, love, forgiveness and hope to those who seek Him. Then I went near the railing on the side of the mountain where a large map shows the various locations throughout the region and its distances from Mount Nebo. I surveyed the whole panorama before me absorbed with wonder, fervor and gratitude. I looked up at the clear azure sky as a litany of praise and thanksgiving burst forth from my heart! As tears ran down my cheeks, I struggled to answer the question in my mind, "Who are you to deserve these gifts - standing here on Mount Nebo having a view of the Promised Land like Moses, but unlike Moses having set foot on the "holy ground" of the Promised Land? I remembered my four visits to the Holy Land already. I covered my face with my hands to shield it from my imagined flaming tips of accusing fingers thrust at me, a sinner! I knew I was unworthy of the gifts, undeserving of the unspeakable joy and peace I felt in the revered places I have been privileged to visit. I was humbled! I bowed my head in "shame" not daring nor attempting to give an answer to a query which will remain unsearchable and unfathomable for all time!
March 25, 2012 Jeremiah, The Prophet
The First Reading today is from Jeremiah 31: 31-34. This Reading has been called "Jeremiah's Spiritual Testament." He spoke of the Old Mosaic Covenant of Mount Sinai, the Ten Commandments which were inscribed in stone. He emphasized that the Old Covenant was grounded on legal observance and that the New Covenant which will be established when they return to God would fulfill the old one and would be entirely on the basis of grace. Jeremiah wrote what God said," I will write it upon their hearts. They shall be my people and I shall be their God."
To the Hebrews, the "heart" is the center of human intelligence and willpower. To write the Law in their hearts meant to move the Law from outside of the person to inside thus enabling him to internalize God's Law. It was by reading the Law and "living" it that an individual became connected to God.
Jeremiah was one of the best known prophets whose name means, "Yahweh Exalts." He came from the tribe of Benjamin and received his call in 626 BC when he was only twenty years old. He warned the kings, priests and people that they were bringing disaster to the nation for not living according to the Covenant. He mentioned their many sins which included not treating each other fairly, exploiting the widows, orphans and strangers and following false gods.
Since his foremost message was of "judgment" on the people for their many sins, he was rejected, despised and even thrown in a cistern twice. Because of his great sorrow for his people, he was called the "Weeping Prophet." For some time, he moved around town with a yoke on his neck to show his people the sufferings they would undergo if they do no not turn away from their sins. In fact, no prophet suffered much as did Jeremiah. In many ways,his sufferings were similar to those of Jesus. Both were hated by the religious order; both were rejected by their own townmates; both wept over their own cities; both were accused falsely; and both were thrown into prison.
One of his famous sayings is : Wisdom, might and riches are nothing compared to the happiness that man achieves through real knowledge and understanding of GOD."
To the Hebrews, the "heart" is the center of human intelligence and willpower. To write the Law in their hearts meant to move the Law from outside of the person to inside thus enabling him to internalize God's Law. It was by reading the Law and "living" it that an individual became connected to God.
Jeremiah was one of the best known prophets whose name means, "Yahweh Exalts." He came from the tribe of Benjamin and received his call in 626 BC when he was only twenty years old. He warned the kings, priests and people that they were bringing disaster to the nation for not living according to the Covenant. He mentioned their many sins which included not treating each other fairly, exploiting the widows, orphans and strangers and following false gods.
Since his foremost message was of "judgment" on the people for their many sins, he was rejected, despised and even thrown in a cistern twice. Because of his great sorrow for his people, he was called the "Weeping Prophet." For some time, he moved around town with a yoke on his neck to show his people the sufferings they would undergo if they do no not turn away from their sins. In fact, no prophet suffered much as did Jeremiah. In many ways,his sufferings were similar to those of Jesus. Both were hated by the religious order; both were rejected by their own townmates; both wept over their own cities; both were accused falsely; and both were thrown into prison.
One of his famous sayings is : Wisdom, might and riches are nothing compared to the happiness that man achieves through real knowledge and understanding of GOD."
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