Binhi sang Pagtuo
April 27, 2009
Dear Centralians and Friends,
Greetings from the Chaplain’s Office!
Our reflection for this week comes from John 20:26-29. It is one of the many stories after the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The focus of the story is the doubt of Thomas. He will not believe unless he can put his fingers in the wounds of Jesus. When Jesus appeared to them, he said to Thomas, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
A decade ago, Dr. Lester Ruiz told me a story that illustrates faith.
He said that every time he goes to work in New York, he sometimes see a blind man with a seeing-eye-dog. This blind man will take a train from Trenton to Princeton. He told me that every time he sees this blind man, he felt both sadness and envy. Sadness because Dr. Ruiz has sight and he does not and envy because that blind man fully comprehend what faith is.
Dr. Ruiz is right. The “eyes of faith” are eyes that are blind. In order for us to have faith, we have to be blind and must remain blind. This should not be confused with being blind to the realities of life, but blind in a sense that you do not know the exact details of what will happen but you are excited on what it will be because you believe that God has in store something good for you.
The hymn says,
I don't know about tomorrow,
I just live from day to day.
I don't borrow from it's sunshine,
For it's skies may turn to gray.
I don't worry o'er the future,
For I know what Jesus said,
And today I'll walk beside Him,
For He knows what is ahead.
Many things about tomorrow,
I don't seem to understand;
But I know Who holds tomorrow,
And I know Who holds my hand.
Let us remember the words of Jesus to Thomas, “Stop doubting and believe!”
May God bless us all!
Sincerely,
Pastor Francis Neil G. Jalando-on
Assistant Chaplain
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Road to Emmaus
Binhi sang Pagtuo
April 20, 2009
Dear Centralians and Friends,
Greetings from the Chaplain’s Office!
Our reflection for this week comes from Luke 24:13-49. This is the story of two followers of Jesus on the road to Emmaus – about 11 kilometers from Jerusalem, two hours of walking distance. This is one of the stories after the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The two men were talking about what happened in Jerusalem – the suffering and death of Jesus, the one whom they were all hoping to redeem Israel, and that it was now three days after his death. They were sad, disappointed and on the brink of losing hope. The setting of their journey was towards the sunset – a symbol of death. Their conversation with Jesus gave them hope – a hope beyond the sunset.
Let us reflection on three things:
First, Jesus will help us open our eyes and make us realize that there is always hope. To hope is to have faith. Hebrews 11:1 says, “What is faith? It is the confident assurance that something we look forward to is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead.”
There was a great reversal in their situation. At first, they were walking away from Jerusalem, but after Jesus opened their eyes, they immediately went back to Jerusalem – as symbol that there is now hope. We, too, should open our eyes and help in opening the eyes of our brothers and sisters.
Second, Jesus gives us peace. Jesus appeared to the gathered disciples and said to them, “Peace be with you. As the father sent me, so I send you.” Jesus knows that our world is thirsty of peace. In Hiligaynon, Shalom (Hebrew of peace) is more than kalinong. It is also kasulhayan, kabuganaan kag kaginhawaan.
We have the responsibility to be bringers of peace. Jesus told them that his father sent him to bring peace, and he is also sending us to bring peace.
Third, Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit to sustain us in our mission of opening the eyes of the people to the truth, and in our mission as peace bringers. The Holy Spirit fills us with power to do our assigned tasks.
Dunamis (Greek of power) gives us two words in English – dynamo and dynamite. Dynamo is a generator of electricity from mechanical energy. To be a dynamo means to be dynamic – to be full of energy, enthusiasm, and a sense of purpose and able both to get things going and to get things done. Dynamite on the other hand is an explosive, and is very harmful and dangerous.
Let us be a dynamo of peace, and not a dynamite that destroys peace.
Like the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, let our hearts burn with passion as we do our Christian mission.
May God bless us all!
Sincerely,
Pastor Francis Neil G. Jalando-on
Assistant Chaplain
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Chaplain's Office Website: http://www.cpu.edu.ph/chaplain
Audio Sermons of Binhi sang Pagtuo: http://binhi.4shared.com
Blog: http://cpuchaplain.blogspot.com
April 20, 2009
Dear Centralians and Friends,
Greetings from the Chaplain’s Office!
Our reflection for this week comes from Luke 24:13-49. This is the story of two followers of Jesus on the road to Emmaus – about 11 kilometers from Jerusalem, two hours of walking distance. This is one of the stories after the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The two men were talking about what happened in Jerusalem – the suffering and death of Jesus, the one whom they were all hoping to redeem Israel, and that it was now three days after his death. They were sad, disappointed and on the brink of losing hope. The setting of their journey was towards the sunset – a symbol of death. Their conversation with Jesus gave them hope – a hope beyond the sunset.
Let us reflection on three things:
First, Jesus will help us open our eyes and make us realize that there is always hope. To hope is to have faith. Hebrews 11:1 says, “What is faith? It is the confident assurance that something we look forward to is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead.”
There was a great reversal in their situation. At first, they were walking away from Jerusalem, but after Jesus opened their eyes, they immediately went back to Jerusalem – as symbol that there is now hope. We, too, should open our eyes and help in opening the eyes of our brothers and sisters.
Second, Jesus gives us peace. Jesus appeared to the gathered disciples and said to them, “Peace be with you. As the father sent me, so I send you.” Jesus knows that our world is thirsty of peace. In Hiligaynon, Shalom (Hebrew of peace) is more than kalinong. It is also kasulhayan, kabuganaan kag kaginhawaan.
We have the responsibility to be bringers of peace. Jesus told them that his father sent him to bring peace, and he is also sending us to bring peace.
Third, Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit to sustain us in our mission of opening the eyes of the people to the truth, and in our mission as peace bringers. The Holy Spirit fills us with power to do our assigned tasks.
Dunamis (Greek of power) gives us two words in English – dynamo and dynamite. Dynamo is a generator of electricity from mechanical energy. To be a dynamo means to be dynamic – to be full of energy, enthusiasm, and a sense of purpose and able both to get things going and to get things done. Dynamite on the other hand is an explosive, and is very harmful and dangerous.
Let us be a dynamo of peace, and not a dynamite that destroys peace.
Like the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, let our hearts burn with passion as we do our Christian mission.
May God bless us all!
Sincerely,
Pastor Francis Neil G. Jalando-on
Assistant Chaplain
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Chaplain's Office Website: http://www.cpu.edu.ph/chaplain
Audio Sermons of Binhi sang Pagtuo: http://binhi.4shared.com
Blog: http://cpuchaplain.blogspot.com
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Easter Sunday
Binhi sang Pagtuo
April 13, 2009
Dear Centralians and Friends,
Our reflection for this week comes from John 11:25-43.
Yesterday almost all of Christendom celebrated Easter Sunday – the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Why almost? The Western Church (Roman Catholic and Protestant) celebrated it on April 12, 2009 while the Eastern Church will be celebrating it on April 19, 2009. Next year, and the following year – 2010 and 2011 the dates of celebrating Easter will be the same. It is sad to note that Christians cannot even unite on the date of celebrating Easter Sunday.
I would like to share one message, one implication and four challenges on the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The message of the resurrection is that God is a God of life. The statements of Jesus as recorded in John – “I am the way, the truth and the life”, “I am the living water”, “I am the resurrection and the life”, “I am the bread of life” – points to the truth that our God is God of life, and giver of life. John 10:10 affirms it – “I have come that you may have life, and have it to the full.” Because of this truth, together with Peter and Martha, we can declare, “thou art Christ, the Son of the Living God.”
The implication of this message is that we must not allow the world to kill Jesus again and again, and force him to remain in the tomb. Thus, as we resist the forces of death in our midst, let us ponder on these challenges from the word LIFE.
L – Live a life that shows that Jesus is alive in our lives and is not dead. Like what happened in Lazarus, Jesus Christ is commanding us to unwrap ourselves from the graveclothes, thus freeing us from the bondage of death-like situations. Let us always picture out Jesus shouting at us, “get out of there.”
I – Involve actively in the ministry of resurrection. Let us be active in the ministry of resurrecting our brothers and sisters who are living a spiritually dead life; and resurrecting also those who are victims of modern day Sadducees and Pharisees.
F – Fulfill God’s expectation to be bringers of life and not death. We are expected to always seek life and not destruction. Let us cry together with Jesus (John 11:35) every time we see death and destruction, and then let us do something about it.
E – Encourage one another to be united in taking away the stone in the tomb. Jesus is asking us to collectively “roll the stone away.” There is strength in unity. We must participate in the task of putting away the barriers that impede us in having a life in its fullest.
May God continually bless us all!
Sincerely,
Pastor Francis Neil G. Jalando-on
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Audio Sermons of Binhi sang Pagtuo: http://binhi.4shared.com
Chaplain's Office Website: Under Construction
April 13, 2009
Dear Centralians and Friends,
Our reflection for this week comes from John 11:25-43.
Yesterday almost all of Christendom celebrated Easter Sunday – the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Why almost? The Western Church (Roman Catholic and Protestant) celebrated it on April 12, 2009 while the Eastern Church will be celebrating it on April 19, 2009. Next year, and the following year – 2010 and 2011 the dates of celebrating Easter will be the same. It is sad to note that Christians cannot even unite on the date of celebrating Easter Sunday.
I would like to share one message, one implication and four challenges on the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The message of the resurrection is that God is a God of life. The statements of Jesus as recorded in John – “I am the way, the truth and the life”, “I am the living water”, “I am the resurrection and the life”, “I am the bread of life” – points to the truth that our God is God of life, and giver of life. John 10:10 affirms it – “I have come that you may have life, and have it to the full.” Because of this truth, together with Peter and Martha, we can declare, “thou art Christ, the Son of the Living God.”
The implication of this message is that we must not allow the world to kill Jesus again and again, and force him to remain in the tomb. Thus, as we resist the forces of death in our midst, let us ponder on these challenges from the word LIFE.
L – Live a life that shows that Jesus is alive in our lives and is not dead. Like what happened in Lazarus, Jesus Christ is commanding us to unwrap ourselves from the graveclothes, thus freeing us from the bondage of death-like situations. Let us always picture out Jesus shouting at us, “get out of there.”
I – Involve actively in the ministry of resurrection. Let us be active in the ministry of resurrecting our brothers and sisters who are living a spiritually dead life; and resurrecting also those who are victims of modern day Sadducees and Pharisees.
F – Fulfill God’s expectation to be bringers of life and not death. We are expected to always seek life and not destruction. Let us cry together with Jesus (John 11:35) every time we see death and destruction, and then let us do something about it.
E – Encourage one another to be united in taking away the stone in the tomb. Jesus is asking us to collectively “roll the stone away.” There is strength in unity. We must participate in the task of putting away the barriers that impede us in having a life in its fullest.
May God continually bless us all!
Sincerely,
Pastor Francis Neil G. Jalando-on
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Audio Sermons of Binhi sang Pagtuo: http://binhi.4shared.com
Chaplain's Office Website: Under Construction
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Palm Sunday
Binhi sang Pagtuo
April 6, 2009
Greetings from La Carlota City!
Our reflection for this week comes from Luke 19: 28-48.
Yesterday, the Christian church celebrated Palm Sunday, the Triumphal Entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem. Today is a holiday to commemorate in advance the Araw ng Kagitingan (Day of Valor, previously Bataan Day) on April 9 – to honor the bravery and heroism of Filipinos and Americans during World War II.
Connecting our Christian history to that of our Philippine history, we can say that the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem was also his Araw ng Kagitingan. Previous to this, the center of Jesus’ ministry was on Galilee and on the outskirts of Jerusalem. His public appearance in Jerusalem was very limited. His audience was mainly the poor, the sick – the marginalized sector of the society. But on that day, Jesus showed courage by riding in a donkey in broad daylight and challenged the political and religious authorities in front of many people.
The people upon seeing Jesus shouted “Hosanna!” which means “Save us, now! We pray!” The people were fed up. They were ready for a revolution. They were looking for a savior. The Pharisees shouted at Jesus, and asked him to rebuke his disciples. But he said, “if they keep quite, the stones will cry out.”
A great multitude was following him. They thought all the while that he will lead them to raid the Praetorium, the headquarters of the Roman camp. He instead turned towards the temple. If you study the map of Jerusalem, from the entrance, Jesus can either go to the seat of Roman power, or to the Temple, the religious center of the Jewish people. He chose the temple. He did not want to start a bloody war with the Romans, that’s why he did not enter riding on a horse, a symbol of war, but on a donkey, a symbol of peace.
He cleansed the temple because it had become a den of robbers. Graft, corruption, conflict of interest had become the way of life of the religious sector – there was collusion between the religious leaders and businessmen. The priests deliberately declared the animals brought by the people as unclean, and those declared as clean were the animals sold only in the temple area. The price was exorbitant. The religious sector was getting richer and richer on the expense of the poor people.
Jesus exposed these evil practices. On that day, he was marked for death. The plot to kill him was under way.
What about us? Is Jesus still trying to enter our lives or are we afraid that Jesus will find out our corrupt practices? Oftentimes, we expect Jesus to act in a way that we expected him to act. But like in New Testament times, he turns to the unexpected – he turns towards the core of our being. He confronts us face to face. He wants to clean us first – to drive away our evil practices. Should we join the plot to kill him? Will we be one of those who, at first, shouted “Hosanna” and later shouted “Crucify him!?” Hopefully, Jesus will enter our lives triumphantly.
May God continually bless us all!
Sincerely,
Pastor Francis Neil G. Jalando-on
Assistant Chaplain
April 6, 2009
Greetings from La Carlota City!
Our reflection for this week comes from Luke 19: 28-48.
Yesterday, the Christian church celebrated Palm Sunday, the Triumphal Entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem. Today is a holiday to commemorate in advance the Araw ng Kagitingan (Day of Valor, previously Bataan Day) on April 9 – to honor the bravery and heroism of Filipinos and Americans during World War II.
Connecting our Christian history to that of our Philippine history, we can say that the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem was also his Araw ng Kagitingan. Previous to this, the center of Jesus’ ministry was on Galilee and on the outskirts of Jerusalem. His public appearance in Jerusalem was very limited. His audience was mainly the poor, the sick – the marginalized sector of the society. But on that day, Jesus showed courage by riding in a donkey in broad daylight and challenged the political and religious authorities in front of many people.
The people upon seeing Jesus shouted “Hosanna!” which means “Save us, now! We pray!” The people were fed up. They were ready for a revolution. They were looking for a savior. The Pharisees shouted at Jesus, and asked him to rebuke his disciples. But he said, “if they keep quite, the stones will cry out.”
A great multitude was following him. They thought all the while that he will lead them to raid the Praetorium, the headquarters of the Roman camp. He instead turned towards the temple. If you study the map of Jerusalem, from the entrance, Jesus can either go to the seat of Roman power, or to the Temple, the religious center of the Jewish people. He chose the temple. He did not want to start a bloody war with the Romans, that’s why he did not enter riding on a horse, a symbol of war, but on a donkey, a symbol of peace.
He cleansed the temple because it had become a den of robbers. Graft, corruption, conflict of interest had become the way of life of the religious sector – there was collusion between the religious leaders and businessmen. The priests deliberately declared the animals brought by the people as unclean, and those declared as clean were the animals sold only in the temple area. The price was exorbitant. The religious sector was getting richer and richer on the expense of the poor people.
Jesus exposed these evil practices. On that day, he was marked for death. The plot to kill him was under way.
What about us? Is Jesus still trying to enter our lives or are we afraid that Jesus will find out our corrupt practices? Oftentimes, we expect Jesus to act in a way that we expected him to act. But like in New Testament times, he turns to the unexpected – he turns towards the core of our being. He confronts us face to face. He wants to clean us first – to drive away our evil practices. Should we join the plot to kill him? Will we be one of those who, at first, shouted “Hosanna” and later shouted “Crucify him!?” Hopefully, Jesus will enter our lives triumphantly.
May God continually bless us all!
Sincerely,
Pastor Francis Neil G. Jalando-on
Assistant Chaplain
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