HOMILY (JULY 30, 2023) | 17th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (A) | CAPTIVATED BY GOD | DOM LORENZO, SSCV

HAMON SA WASTONG PAGPAPAHALAGA! Sa pamamagitan ng mga talinghaga ipinamukha sa atin ng Panginoon na ang buhay ay isang hamon na nangangailangan ng tugon. Sa Ebanghelyo ngayong ika-17 Linggo ng Karaniwang Panahon (cfr. Mateo 13:14-52) tinuturuan tayo ni Hesus ukol sa wastong pagpapahalaga tungo sa angkop na pagtataya ng sarili para sa kaharian o paghahari ng Diyos. Saad ng Simbahan, “Jesus instructs us on the supreme value of the Kingdom of God. Since the Kingdom of God is worth more than everything else, we must be willing to sacrifice everything to make it our highest priority.’ Hangad ng Iglesya ang matutunan nating bigyang pansin ang ‘pinakamahalaga sa lahat’— ang ‘kayamanan’ na tinutukoy ni Hesus sa Mabuting Balita. Paliwanag ni Pope Francis, sa wastong pagpapahalaga matatanto natin na lahat ng bagay ay biyaya ng Diyos: “Everything is grace, everything! We need only to have the willingness to receive it, not to resist grace.” Kung gayon, mahalaga ang pagiging bukas-loob sa pamamaraan ng Poon upang mamalas sa ating buhay ang hiwaga ng paghahari ng Diyos at Kanyang karunungan. Giit ng Iglesya, “we can be grateful that God has planted in our hearts the longing which moves us to discover him and grow in holiness. We will learn a lot from the experience of great men and women saints of the Church captivated by God.” Dahil sa udyok ng Espiritu Santo, marami ang nabighani na iwanan ang lahat at tanggapin si HesuKristo bilang kanilang ’Tanging Yaman’!” Ani Bishop Teodoro Bacani Jr, “The reign of God does not only fascinate us but also grips our hearts and impels us to reach out to this reign at all costs. The person who truly discovers the reign of God will prefer God’s will to anything else, and will be willing to sacrifice everything in order to submit himself to God.” Lahat samakatuwid ng nabighani ng Diyos ay hinipo ng Kanyang pag-ibig. Konklusyon ni Bishop Bacani, “We must allow ourselves to be fascinated by God, ravished by his goodness and beauty. This will require opening ourselves to him in prayer. Then when we have experienced the goodness and the beauty of the Lord, no renunciation will be too great for we have, in the kingdom of God, in God himself, the greatness of all incentives.” Kumbinsido ang Simbahan: “there is joy in discovering the treasure of the Kingdom of God in our lives. Jesus, who is the hidden treasure and the pearl of great value cannot but inspire joy, all the joy of the world: the joy of discovering a meaning for one’s life, the joy of feeling committed to the adventure of holiness.” Nasa Diyos ang ating tunay na kaligayahan! Tinuturuan tayo ng Panginoon ngayong linggo maging tunay na marunong, na matuto ng wastong pagpapahalaga upang malaman kung ano ang mga bagay na tunay na importante at dapat pagtoonan ng pansin at panahon. Limitado lamang ang ating lakas at panahon sa daigdig, nawa maging totoo tayong matalino sa pagtataya ng oras, talento at sarili bilang tugon sa panawagan ng Diyos.