Everyone's a friend!

Friday of week 13 in Ordinary Time

Matthew 9:9-13 

There's a sense of exclusivity in the first reading.  Abraham who sought for a wife for his son Isaac, explicitly told the servant not to get from Canaan, a foreign land, but from the family where he came from.

But the Gospel teaches inclusivity.  Matthew and the rest were accepted wholeheartedly by Jesus.  Furthermore, he said, "What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. And indeed I did not come to call the virtuous, but sinners."

We are fond of compartmentalizing people - rich and poor, haves and have nots, healthy and sick, successful and failures.  But one thing is certain - in heaven there are no rich or poor, powerful and powerless.  All of us become brothers and sisters of one Lord and Master.   And he teaches us to love one another as he loves us.

So, make a checklist of relationship with others:

1. Do I carry a bias for or against people or do I see the face of God in them?
2.  Do I strive hard to connect them with God?
3.  Do I teach them to be disciples as I am?

For children's mass:

When we were children, there's no such thing as exclusivity.  We enjoyed befriending everyone.  But sometime in our lives, there are those who would teach us, "Go with this group and not with that.  God with the rich kids."  But we are members of one family of God and Jesus is our brother.

Let us help our children, rather:

1. to have compassion for the poor by seeing Jesus in them.
2. teach them to do small acts of mercy for them
3.  teach them that serving others is serving Jesus who is our friend and Master


BIBLIARASAL, TAON C
Available in all St. Paul's Bookstore

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