4th Week of Advent 2014
Reflection on 1 Samuel 1:24-28/ Luke 1:46-56
by Frank D. B. Savadera, SJ
One
priest I’ve met made a research about small altars kept inside households of
urban poor dwellers in Payatas (near the dumpsite). As part of his research, he enters a house
and asks if the household keeps an altar. Most of those he visited surprisingly said
YES! We have an altar in the house! Then, he asked: Who put up the altar? What is on the altar? Mama Mary, Santo Nino, Sacred Heart, a Cross,
the Nazareno, Saint Joseph, etc.? This priest was just so surprised by the variety
of responses and stories about these altars.
Believe it or not, some of the images were salvaged from the garbage,
perhaps thrown away by non-believers.
Others have decapitated body parts … no hand, no eye, a damaged torso
and so on. And yet the image stays on
their small altar. Then the priest asks: What then is the use of
having an altar (sometimes even a dirty and unkept altar) in your house? The priest was most amazed by a
response: Alam nyo po na kahit kami ay
mga taong basurahan (na ang durungis namin), sa tuwing umaalis at umuuwi po
kami ng bahay … hinahawakan po namin yan, kinakausap, dinadasalan at NAPAPANATAG
po kami na kahit ganito ang buhay namin … kasama po namin siya. As we come and go, we hold on to the image,
we pray in front of it, we talk to it …
much so even when life is difficult, we find PEACE knowing that God is with
us.
Friends,
isn’t it that our culture is very PHYSICAL – we need to see, we need to taste
and smell, we need to hold and touch.
This is what a TRUE EXPERIENCE is for us. We do not refer to credentials
of people or news about a person’s wrongdoings.
If we see someone visiting us, speaking to us, coming to us at a time
when we are down, he who comes to us, touches us and holds our own hands … moreso embraces
us … that person becomes significant … isn’t he? Similarly,
it will need to be PHYSICAL – we need to HOLD ON TO a tangible and
concrete experience of Christmas.
Friends,
we’ve heard a lot of homilies the past days of simbang gabi. Let my first message to you be simple and
practical: HOLD ON TO SOMEONE WHEN YOU
SAY MERRY CHRISTMAS! Is that
possible? We say this because our WORDS
and GREETINGS will be empty, Christmas
cards will be meaningless … and GIFTS?
What about GIFTS? Gifts are
useless especially those you’ve sent via LBC or thru a messenger. Isn’t it that you send out those gifts
sometimes to those whom you are simply obligated to give anything . But for those that you truly care for … CAN
YOU HOLD ON TO THEM WHEN YOU SAY MERRY CHRISTMAS! I think there is something strange, pitiful and unfortunate about someone who is just so
uptight that no one can literally touch him nor can he reach out to touch
anyone. Sad ba? We think of this as an INADEQUACY! It will mean a lot if we can STILL LEARN to
touch. And my first simple message to
you is HOLD ON TO SOMEONE WHEN YOU SAY
MERRY CHRISTMAS. This is not about simply FEELING GOOD or FEELING
BETTER. When you hold on to someone …
you LEARN HOW TO FEEL isn’t it?
According to one author: “The
goal for most people should not be to feel better, but to get better at
feeling.” Feel the value of touching and
being touched … hopefully in a sincere way hah!
HOLD ON TO SOMEONE WHEN YOU SAY MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Of
course, we mean more than simply touching physically! When we say NA-TOUCH naman ako … it means
something DEEPER isn’t it! Case in
point: How many of you have seen the
latest CHRISTMAS VIDEO of GOOGLE PHILS?
There
is a child singing the song: “You”. The lyrics goes: You
give me hope , the strength, the will to keep on. You’re on my side when no one seems to
listen. And only you can bring out all
the best I can do. I believe you turn
the tide. You make me feel real good
inside. It's your smile, your face, your lips that I miss, those sweet little
eyes that stare at me And make me say, I'm with you through all the way. 'Cause
it's you who fills the emptiness in me; It changes ev'rything, you see, when I
know I've got you with me.”
Who
knows this song? The song was sung
alongside snippets of overseas Filipino workers at their workplaces abroad and
getting in touch with their loved ones in the Philippines. I have some relatives living abroad … in fact my
sister is in Baltimore. And I must say that
when I saw the video: I WAS TOUCHED in a
quite DIFFERENT and DEEP KIND of way!
Our readings today talk about the stories of two women, namely HANNAH in
the Old Testament and Mary in the Gospel of Luke. I
would like to believe that these women allowed themselves to be touched by the
presence of God in a quite different and meaningful way. Hannah was initially barren and Mary knew NO
MAN. Friends, we do not need any big or an
obvious miracle for us to be able to FEEL TOUCHED by God’s presence this
Christmas. There is such a thing as
SIMPLE PLEASURES. They are simple and
pleasurable because they remind us that life need not be complicated and
stressful. ALLOW YOURSELF to be TOUCHED by the SIMPLEST things this Christmas.
Allow a meaningful Christmas song to touch you (Pasko na Sinta Ko, Hanap hanap
kita or O LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEM). O
come all ye faithful! ALLOW YOURSELVES TO BE TOUCHED by the
Spirit of God through the SIMPLEST of things this Christmas! I’m sure there are a lot that you can
experience.
When
you HOLD ON TO SOMEONE and ALLOW YOURSELF TO BE TOUCHED BY THE SIMPLEST THINGS
… isn’t it that there is a KIND of JOY that is DEEP. WE ARE CAPABLE OF EXPERIENCING A DEEP KIND OF
JOY. The Joy is not only for you to
KEEP. Let others know about what made
your JOYFUL. This is what Mary and
Hannah were doing … that is letting others know that there is such a thing as a
DEEP KIND of JOY. Can we figure out the
words: MY HEART EXULTS IN THE LORD. MY SPIRIT REJOICES! What is that about? For our sake, maybe we can begin by gathering
and sharing with others the TOP 5 experiences of the past year that made us
truly happy. Offhand, I can think of my
recent trip to China. Initially, I was
anxious and afraid because of a particular mission. I didn’t know what I would expect. But I simply allowed myself to be a recipient
of peoples’ generosity. Wow! Everything worked out well not because I
planned it but simply because I just surrendered to the circumstances unfolding
before me. I was coming back to the
Philippines and on the plane I was praying and crying. There was JOY and I take this time to SHARE
WITH YOU that there is such a thing as a DEEP KIND OF JOY.
Friends as we continue with our celebration of the Yuletide Season, let me leave with you my simple advice: HOLD
ONTO SOMEONE WHEN YOU SAY MERRY CHRISTMAS.
Reach out. Allow yourself not
simply to feel better but to be better at feeling.
ALLOW
YOURSELF to be TOUCHED by the SIMPLEST things this Christmas. Reflect on and even pray about your favourite
Christmas song (hopefully not just Jingle Bells).
Lastly, as in the experience of Hannah
and Mary, take time to speak to someone about your Top Five experiences the past
year that allowed your HEART to TRULY REJOICE.
How have you experienced a DEEP KIND of JOY the past year! Proclaim
JOY!
