Holy Ground

"Yahweh said to him, 'Do not come near; take off your sandals because the place where you are standing is holy ground.' And God continued, 'I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.' Moses hid his face lest his eyes look on God." - Exodus 3:5-6

Respect is something we all want people to have for us. It is said that we have to give it in order to earn it. Unfortunately, we don't see much of it anymore. People cross so many lines and hardly anything is sacred nowadays. Imagine a neighbor you hardly know just barges into your house one day. They demand to be invited for dinner but give you very little courtesy while in your presence. After dinner, they leave and show no gratitude for your attention with them. This is how many of us are with the Lord and how we act when we enter His house, the church.

Some people walk in late. They talk to the people next to them during the homily, or gaze off at something, not paying attention. Many come in chewing gum or not properly dressed. Many of these are also the first to leave before the blessing is even given. Do you not know that the house of the Lord is a sacred place? A holy place? We have lost the meaning of what is sacred and holy. Before the presence of God, the Creator of the Universe, Moses had to take off his shoes because he was in the presence of the Most High! Open your eyes and see how what we experience during the Mass is the mystery of God the Almighty! What you see going on before you is what Jesus Christ Himself taught the apostles to do before the faithful. The priest who gives the Mass has taken the place of Peter, John, James, Andrew and the rest, and is breaking bread with you, just as Jesus did! And God has invited you to the feast! Pay attention! Involve yourself in the works of God!

And besides having respect for holy and sacred ground, have you fully removed your shoes? Moses was a shepherd, his shoes must have been so dirty. There's no way he could have entered holy ground with them on. Are you bringing filth into God's presence? Are you approaching Him with things you know are separating you from Him? He is holy and pure and deserves at least our respect before Him. When God identified Himself to Moses and Moses recognized he was before God, he hid his face from the Lord because immediately Moses knew how small he was and how infinite and holy God is. In the same way, all of us, since we are all sinners, should bow down before the presence of God out of respect for His Name with the reverence He deserves, especially when we enter His sacred house.

Today's Prayer:
My God, in my ignorance I follow my own will and neglect the fact that You are God, my Creator and rob You of the reverence and respect You deserve. Please give me the humility You gave to Moses before You so that I can honor Your Name. In Jesus' Name we pray, amen.

Holy Week

"He humbled Himself by being obedient to death, death on the cross. That is why God exalted Him and gave Him the Name which outshines all names, so that at the Name of Jesus all knees should bend." - Philippians 2:8-10

When we were younger, we attended Mass during Holy Week and it was an obligation. The dressing up, the sitting and standing, and the long readings were tedious. This week, as we begin to observe Holy Week, we must recognize that we are no longer children, and approach the upcoming days with reverence and adult faith. This week, we meditate on the fact that being God, Christ chose to lay down His life for our sins. This isn't just a story or something that happened a very long time ago, but it's the very core of our lives and our salvation. If as an adult, you have decided that you believe in Jesus Christ, then observe this week in respect and reverence. God always extends an invitation to follow Him, but use this week to meditate on our own lives, our own sinfulness and the way Jesus came to Earth to serve us. Don't go through this week following the routine, but ask the Lord to let this week come alive for you. Think about the way the Human Jesus must have felt entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, knowing He would be put to death. His peers were about to condemn Him and His friends about to betray Him. And at the end of all this, He would resurrect, breaking the hold death had on us for so long. For the price Jesus paid, we no longer need to fear dying because He gained for us a much bigger reward with the Father in Heaven.

As adults, I ask all of you to please let your faith come alive this week. Attend the Masses, go to confession and reconcile with God, read the bible, meditate on Jesus' passion, death, and resurrection. We are no longer children, but adults that should know that our salvation is a very personal matter. It is our duty to make the time to show respect to the Lord who has given us life.

Today's Prayer:
My God, in the Name of Your son, our Lord Jesus Christ, I ask You to reveal Yourself to us during this Holy Week. Let those most in need of Your mercy come to reverence the passion, death, and resurrection of Your son, so that we may never die. In Your Name we pray, amen.