Too Soon
Homily on the 2nd Sunday of Lent, 25 February 2024, FSpIF Chapel, Talamban
esterday was the burial of our alumnus from DBTC, a 23-year old Bosconian. He died early morning of February 4 beside his motorcycle. He was a victim of a hit-and-run vehicular incident along the street beside the Redemptorist Church. I personally did not know Jeslar. But I know his well loved girlfriend who used to be actively involved in our Youth Center in Don Bosco Lawaan. She was devastated. Two weeks ago when I came to the wake I was glad to have had a short but deep conversation with her hoping that I could somehow ease her pain, or help her find meaning in such a tragic loss. It was from her that I came to know how “buotan” Jeslar was as a former classmate, as a boyfriend, and above all as a team captain and MVP of their basketball team.
And I heard similar testimonies from the people who were present at the wake. He was a young man, dedicated to his duty of study, determined to pass the board exams to fulfill his dream of becoming a civil engineer one day. He was a good leader, who encouraged his team mates not to give up so easily, especially when study and sports were becoming almost impossible to juggle. He was a zealous apostle, who would even invite his friends to join him in attending Sunday Mass. That morning of Feb 4 he was actually on his way to Don Bosco to catch the Sunday Mass his family was going to attend. But he didn’t make it. He was snatched away too soon by the angel of death lurking on the road.
I invite you to pause at this moment and lift up brief a silent prayer for Jeslar’s soul and for his family and loved ones he left behind.
I want to believe that Jeslar, being a man of unwavering faith and a true son of Don Bosco, must already be paradise, yet he remains to be one with us today in this joint celebration of the earthly and the heavenly liturgy.
Brothers and sisters, today we celebrate the second Sunday of Lent. The Scripture readings we have just heard are very dramatic. They all speak to us about the importance of sacrifice. They say there is no true love without sacrifice. Do you agree? I suppose all of you do. Surprisingly we began this year’s Lenten season last February 14, Ash Wednesday, which coincided with Valentine’s Day. Was it only a coincidence? Or was it really part of God’s plan? Well at least for me it was a providential coincidence because it makes us understand that Lent is not just a time of the year when we have to do penances, pray longer and give alms as required by the Church. What Lent stands for is LOVE. It reminds us of the love of God calling us sinners to repent and come back to him. This forty-day period reminds us of the passionate love of Jesus who accepted death on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. In other words Lent means LOVE willing to sacrifice.
And so now, we understand why the first reading from the book of Genesis (chapter 22) is about Abraham being asked by God to sacrifice his son, Isaac. God was actually testing how much faith Abraham had. He wanted to see whether Abraham truly loved God much more than his only begotten son, whom he loved so much. I believe Abraham could not understand why God had suddenly spoken to him in a way too demanding. He was being told to have his son offered as a sacrifice; not one of his sons, but his only begotten son, whom he loved; not in five years, not in one month but sooner than he thought. In effect he was being asked to sacrifice not only a precious child for the present moment but his entire future along with his countless descendants he could possibly have.
But despite the anguish in his heart, Abraham went, ready to slaughter his son on Mt Moriah in obedience to the God he believed and to the God he loved. The good news is that at the end of all the drama, God was finally pleased with Abraham’s obedient faith. So he intervened and sent a ram to be offered as a sacrifice in place of Abraham’s son. And after that he blessed Abraham with long life, unequalled wealth and countless descendants just as he had promised.
In the gospel passage we have heard today (Mk 9:2-10) we see Jesus being transfigured on Mt. Tabor with his clothes becoming dazzling white, and his face glowing radiantly. What we do not see however was the anguish of heart during those intimate moments of prayer before the Father, especially when Moses and Elijah began to appear to him. These holy men were two persons who played a great role in their salvation history and they suddenly showed up on that mountain to converse with Jesus. It was as if they were already giving a hint that Jesus’ death was drawing near. In fact in the account of St. Luke, it was stated that Moses and Elijah were talking to Jesus about his untimely death on the cross. To Jesus their apparition was creepy if not frightening for it was a pressing call to offer himself sooner than he thought as a sacrifice on the cross. But his bodily transfiguration became an encouragement for him to go ahead and accomplish his challenging mission as the promised Messiah.
In the meantime the three disciples, Peter, James and John, who were witnesses to the entire event began to be so caught up by the extraordinary spectacle, so much so that they seem to have lost a sense of time. Peter even volunteered to set up three tents for them to spend a much longer time up there that night.
However, the most important part of that supernatural experience was the voice they heard; the voice that spoke to them from an overshadowing cloud, saying: “This is my beloved Son; listen to him.” When the cloud vanished they saw no else but Jesus alone. Whose voice could that be? And what could those words really mean? It was definitely the voice from the Father speaking to the three disciples confirming them in their faith and commanding them to listen to every word that Jesus would say. To Jesus’ three disciples the whole event took place in order to confirm their faith in Him, whom Peter confessed to be the Christ.
Dearly beloved brothers and sisters, through the story of Jesus’ transfiguration, God is telling us that during this season of Lent our eyes and ears should be focused mainly on Jesus. For he is not only God’s beloved Son, he is also the RAM foreshadowed in the Genesis story of Abraham ready to slaughter his son, Isaac, for sacrifice. If a human father could be that selfless in offering his only son as a sacrifice to the God he couldn’t see, then, God would definitely not allow himself to be outdone in generosity. The good news is: He did not spare his own Son, his only begotten Son whom he loved. On the contrary He sent Jesus to this world to be offered as a sacrifice on the cross for our redemption; for love of you and me.
As we now open the second week of our Lenten journey towards Easter, let us thank God for the opportunity to experience once again how much he loves us. And in response, let us continue fulfilling the Lenten program proposed by the Church with a much greater love coming from our hearts; a program consisting of prayer, penance and almsgiving. I do hope that you have already started doing something concrete this past week. This time, however, we are enjoined to do these pious practices not out of constraint, but out of love and devotion. Let us strive to become more in love with God during our prayer time, more patient when doing penitential acts and more generous when giving alms and selfless in the charitable works we do.
May this Eucharist and every Eucharist we celebrate be a real experience of both self-offering and transfiguration in union with Jesus. Remember this: if you feel God is asking too much sacrifice from you, know that He has already done so for you when He offered himself as a sacrifice on the cross. Keep always in mind: love can never be true without sacrifice.
Finally, anyone of us can be the next victim of a hit-and-run. God forbid! But if our heart is always with the Lord, our untimely death can open the gates of timeless paradise. GiGsss!
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