Sinusulit mo ba ang paghihintay?
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Today we are celebrating the third Sunday of Advent. This Sunday is also called Laetare or Gaudete Sunday. The Latin Laetare or Gaudete are words that declare JOYFULNESS and EXCITEMENT. At bakit ba tayo naeexcite? Dahil nalalapit na ang kapaskuhan, nalalapit na ang pagdating ng Mesiyas.
Pero kasama ng ating kagalakan ay ang katotohanan na kailangan nating maghintay. We have to wait for the coming of the Lord. It is not yet Christmas. It is still the advent season. But the problem is, we are trying to push this season to run as fast as it could so that Christmas can come. Kung puwede lang wag na mag adbiyento. Kaya nga gusto natin magdecorate ng magdecorate, mamili ng mamili, naguunahan sa mga mall. At ang traffic, terrible! Why? Because of this thing we call THE CHRISTMAS RUSH.
People cannot wait anymore, we are losing the virtue of patience. But my dear friends, this is the point of this Sunday’s celebration. TO PATIENTLY WAIT and AS WE WAIT, WE PREPARE OURSELVES. Ang tao kasi ayaw na ayaw ang maghihintay. Gusto natin mabilis, madali, at magaan… But you know, there is something we can learn in waiting.
Our gospel for today speaks about John the Baptist, who was in prison already. And we all know the reason why he was imprisoned; it is because he spoke of the truth against Herod and his immoral relationship with Herodias.
John the Baptist was born as a prophet to prepare the way of the coming of the Messiah. Yun ang misyon niya! Ang ihanda ang lahat para sa pagdating ng Hari, ng Mesiyas, ng Tagapagligtas. He spoke of the truth and prophesied as Isaiah prophesied that we would. John was the voice in the desert proclaiming PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD! And he fulfilled his mission very well, even until he is already in prison.
And when John was already in prison, he was still focused on his mission, WAITING for the messiah. That is why he sent his disciples to ask Jesus whether he is really the messiah, knowing that he was nearing his death already in prison. Kung baga, hanggang sa kahuli-hulihan, si Juan Bautista ay NAGHINTAY.
And if you remember, during the visitation, when Elizabeth heard of Mary’s greeting, the baby in Elizabeth’s womb jumped inside. It was like the baby, who’s John the Baptist, was so excited already to fulfill his mission, he was so excited to see who this messiah is.
Mula sa tiyan ng kanyang ina, hanggang sa kulungan, sa kanyang kahuli-hulihang sandali, NAGHINTAY si Juan sa Mesias. He never lost sight of his mission, he never lost sight of PATIENTLY WAITING for the coming of the Messiah.
John could have just argued and complained to God. TEKA, NAPAKATAGAL KO NANG NAGHIHINTAY, BUONG BUHAY KO NAGHINTAY AKO, HINANDA KO NAMAN ANG DARAANAN NIYA, TAPOS ETO PA ANG MAKUKUHA KO?! But John never focused on that, nor on asking for deliverance. But rather, he still focused on waiting for the Messiah, the Chosen One.
At ano ang sumunod na nangyari? When his disciples asked Jesus whether he was the one, Jesus did not say yes! Rather, he asked them to tell John what they saw, the lame walking, the blind able to see, the lepers are healed, the deaf can hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. It was not the kind of Messiah that the Israelites were expecting, because they thought of the messiah as a powerful king who would smite the wicked and the enemies in battle.
What could have been the reaction of John when he heard of this kind of Messiah? I am sure, nagtatalon muli sa kagalakan si Juan. Hindi man siya nakarinig ng mga laban ng mesiyas kung saan ipinakita ng Mesiyas ang kanyang lakas at kapangyarihan, pero nakarinig siya ng laban ng mesiyas sa pamamagitan ng pag-ibig at pagpapatawad.
And perhaps John said to himself, IT WAS WORTH THE WAIT. Sulit ang paghihintay. Ito nga ang mesiyas, ang makapangyarihan.
And so we ask ourselves, ANG PAGHIHINTAY BA NATIN AY ISANG PAGHIHINTAY SA DAPAT HINTAYIN? SA PAGHIHINTAY NATIN, MAY KAGALAKAN BA TAYO SA ATING MGA PUSO? NAGHAHANDA BA TAYO SA TUNAY NA MESIYAS? AT SULIT BA ANG PAGHIHINTAY?
My dear friends, let me end this with a description of people of this age written by one author. He said:
We are surrounded by information but are strangers to wisdom.
We are addicted to politics but indifferent to principle.
We are driven by acquisition but arrogant of sacrifice.
We are fascinated by self-analysis, but numb to the needs of others.
We are preoccupied with our bodies but careless with our souls.
We are attentive to gossip but deaf to the Word.
We love to talk religion but are fearful of sharing our faith.
The inner change that Jesus brought about to people is the sign of the powerful messiah; not external power, wealth and fame. Not decorations, crowns or sparkling lights. Let us not mistake the material prosperity for spiritual growth, outer decoration for inner dignity, and seasonal joy for spiritual joy. For real waiting for the messiah, is a real and patient waiting and preparation of one’s heart and soul.
Sana bago dumating ang Panginoon ngayong kapaskuhan, maihanda natin an gating mga kalooban. Upang ang paghihintay natin, kapag dumating na ang Panginoon, ay masabi nating SULIT. IT IS WORTH THE WAIT.
