The Fire of Curiosity

We were having our practices inside the church in preparation for the Easter Vigil when the frantic shouts of people outside stopped us. “Sunog! Sunog!” was the shout. Apparently, a fire just erupted in one of the sitios in Pasil. This time it was near the convent of the Missionaries of Charity sisters. Just last January 14, 2018, a fire raged in another section of the parish, in Lawis, robbing 300 families of their homes. Fire can spread easily in this neighborhood since most of the homes are built very near each other and the houses are made of light and combustible materials.

Interestingly, the Knights of the Altar (or KOA) members dashed towards the church side door towards where the shout was coming from. Unlike the world of common sense, most people in Pasil where I grew up would rather see the spectacle of the fire than run for their lives. They say fire lit man’s imagination. It still does so with a Pasilanon’s curiosity. For your curiosity’s sake, the fire was immediately put out even before the first responders from the fire department came.

This short anecdote reminded me of Jose Rizal’s story about the moth and the candle flame. Too often we come close to the light that has bedazzled and enthralled us. Our curiosity gets the best of us. Young people who start with experimentation end up enslaved to addiction to drugs, alcohol, and smoking. It is however responsible of many more good things for humanity in the many discoveries and inventions that the curious have achieved.

As we celebrate the Easter Octave this week, there is one Light that we still need to appreciate and get close to. There is still one Flame that can engulf us with passion and power without consuming us, just like the fire that Moses saw on Sinai. May the fire and light of Easter also captivate our curiosity, so we could get closer to our Savior.

Autograph or Selfie?

A celebrity comes and people flock to him. This time, instead of pen and paper, the flock is armed with cameras. If you were to meet your favorite celebrity, what would you do, ask him to write a message for you and sign his name, or take a selfie with him that you can post on social media?

New technology means new behavior. The tools that we use everyday change the way we think, feel, and act. The internet and the smartphone has erased the word patience from everyday vocabulary. Everything runs in an instant. We expect people to reply immediately. We immediately check our new Facebook posts for reactions. That is why we feel that the world runs on octane and everything should catch up to fiber optic speed. People are often frustrated and restless. Smartphone and social media addition is fast becoming a global pandemic. Instant gratification takes on high tech mode. Everyone fixed and imprisoned in the world of their phones' and computers' LCD screens.

The question really brings us to a realization. Celebrities are as old as human civilization itself. We love to be connected, especially to the powerful and the famous. But how is this need expressed today? Autographs require people to pause and think before writing down a message. A written word is more tangible. It conveys ideas that are not easily discerned from the outward. It speaks of an exchange and an encounter of persons. A selfie has more impact. Pictures always speak louder than words. It is a piece of the now forever frozen in history. It presents me boxed in with you in a frame and that frame holds us together forever.

Life is all about connections. We can use any tool and technology available just to be connected. This runs true in all of our relationships, be it in the context of a family meal, an outing with friends, or inside the church. Even prayer and communication with God makes use of tools. The need to be connected is part of our human nature, one that everyone is athirst of. We just have to make sure that the connection is more important than the tool used.

What behavior are you more likely to exhibit? Your choice reflects your own values in life. Some could even ask for an autograph, then take a selfie.

Come Let Us Worship

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 2:1-12.
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea,
in the days of King Herod,
behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying,
"Where is the newborn king of the Jews?
We saw his star at its rising
and have come to do him homage."
When King Herod heard this,
he was greatly troubled,
and all Jerusalem with him.
Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people,
He inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea,
for thus it has been written through the prophet:
And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
since from you shall come a ruler,
who is to shepherd my people Israel."
Then Herod called the magi secretly
and ascertained from them the time of the star's appearance.
He sent them to Bethlehem and said,
"Go and search diligently for the child.
When you have found him, bring me word,
that I too may go and do him homage."
After their audience with the king they set out.
And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them,
until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
They were overjoyed at seeing the star,
and on entering the house
they saw the child with Mary his mother.
They prostrated themselves and did him homage.
Then they opened their treasures
and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod,
they departed for their country by another way.

---

Reflection

Can you remember the feeling of unboxing your first gadget? Unboxing has become a fad with so many videos on YouTube showing the process of removing the gadget from its packaging, turning it on, and trying its new and promised features. Today's Feast of Epiphany is the unboxing of the Mystery of God. Like when we first opened our first iPhone from its box, Israel to whom the promise of Salvation has been given is excited to unbox its gift. To the surprise of many, when many expected power and strength, the baby Jesus was revealed as the Savior of Israel. To the further surprise of many, Magi from the East travelled and came all the way to worship Him.

That is what Epiphany is all about. It is the revelation that the unseen God is now seen, the promised light has magnificently exploded in brilliance, not only to Israel but to the whole of humanity, to the whole world, in the Baby Jesus. God overturns expectations. He came not as the invincible and glorious Being that He is, but as the vulnerable and fragile baby of Mary. He offered His love, not only to Israel but allowed the star to shine over all the land, for all people to see. The magi from the east were but stand-ins for us. Even in His birth, Jesus Christ has been welcoming everyone to Himself. It didn't matter that they were not Jews, they were not from Jerusalem, they were not sons of Abraham. What mattered is that they were invited by the star and they heeded the invitation.

With the recent Christmas celebration, many of us received gifts handsomely packed and stacked under the Christmas tree. We still feel excitement receiving and opening these. But the greatest gift we have received is the incarnate Son, the baby in Bethlehem in the arms of His mother Mary. Now He has unboxed and revealed Himself for us. Come let us worship.