Rejoice in the Lord Always!

3rd Sunday of Advent (B)
John 1: 6-8, 19-28 “Tell us who you are, so that we could give some answers to those who sent us.”

The third Sunday of Advent is also known as Gaudete Sunday. This Sunday, in the middle of Advent Season, we are called to rejoice in the Lord always. In the second reading, Paul encourages us to wear the spirit of joy at all times: “Rejoice in the Lord always... have no anxiety about anything, but in all things, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God (Phil 4:4–6).”

The call to rejoice in the Lord at all times is not just a simple exhortation to all Christians; in fact, it’s a command from God in our union with Christ Jesus (1 Thes 5:17). God wants us to shine forth and be the life and joy in the world. If we are intimately united with God, it should transform our hearts, lead us to gratitude, and bring joy to ourselves.

But our experience will tell us otherwise, many of us are unhappy and ungrateful Christians. Too many of us are Christians by name, but not by living. We seldom see Christians gladly proclaiming their deep faith and personal experience of God’s love. Thus Paul, in his letter to the Thessalonians, exhorts us to rejoice in the Lord, pray without ceasing and render thanks to God always. As children of God, we should actively manifest in our life the joy, love and peace we received from God.

But what stops us from rejoicing joyfully in the Lord? In my years of giving spiritual direction and counseling, I realize that one basic ingredients of unhappiness is our inability to process and transcend our resentments and anger caused by strained relationships. In the end, it drains our spirits and we lost our capacity to get in touch with the joy that God is offering.

In the first reading, Isaiah reminds us of our identity: “The Lord has anointed me to bring good tidings to the poor, heal the broken-hearted and proclaim liberty to the captives.” But how do we reclaim our identity as bearers of God’s Good News?

In the second reading, Paul gives us some basic ingredients of a happy living: 1) pray without ceasing 2) give constant thanks to God always 3) allow the Holy Spirit to rule your life 4) listen to inspired messages 5) put all things into the test - discernment 6) keep what is good and throw away what is bad 7) and avoid any kind of evil and temptations.

I remember Fr. Albert Alejo,SJ comparing our hearts to the medicine cabinets. He said, check your medicine cabinet at home; and you will be surprised that some expired medicines are still there, occupying space unnecessarily. Throw them away immediately. Then he said our hearts are like the medicine cabinets; in our hearts also, we love to keep those expired, harmful, and unnecessary negative feelings - like anger, frustrations, hopelessness, doubt and worries – in our hearts. Genuine peace, inner joy and gratitude will never come to us until we consciously free our hearts from the bondage of negative feelings.

In our Gospel today, John was asked, “Who are you?” And he immediately answered, “I am the voice in the wilderness, crying out; prepare the way of the Lord.” When Jesus was asked by John’s disciples with the same question, his answer was, “Go back and tell John what you are hearing and seeing: the blind can see, the lame can walk, and the deaf hear. (Mt. 11:4-6).” Both John and Jesus knew their identity and destiny.

What about you? Who are you? Are you in touch with your Christian identity? We should be happy bearers of God’s good news through our words and actions. God wants us to be joyful always to effectively proclaim His saving power and unconditional love. Paul exhorts us to rejoice in the Lord always, for our cheerful and positive disposition in life is a very powerful means to touch the hearts of the hopeless, lonely and unbelievers.

“Who are you?” The word of Isaiah re-echoes our Christian identity, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. (Isaiah 61:1)” Let’s reclaim and proclaim our identity. Rejoice in the Lord always!

- Fr.Willy M. Samson,SJ
Pasobolong Chapel

Workers of the Future

2nd Sunday of Advent (B)
Mark 1: 1-8 “Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare the way.”

The Christmas spirit is already here. Decorations like Christmas trees, lights and lanterns are everywhere. In spite of our complaints against a heavy commercialized Christmas, I enjoy window shopping and viewing Christmas decors in Ayala. But it dawned on me that these beautiful Christmas decorations are labors of love from ordinary laborers. We did not see them work. It was a thankless job.

Nobody appreciates “silent workers.” They commonly works at night shift, those at the back stage and those whose work is to “prepare something” for others. They are a thankless job. Nobody sees the chef who prepares the delicious meal. Nobody sees the janitors who clean the social hall before and after the party. Nobody sees the tears of our thousands of OFWs who cannot go home this Christmas for the sake of the future of their families. Nobody notices their hard work and sacrifices. They are thankless jobs.

In today’s gospel, John the Baptist did another thankless job. He prepared the way for the arrival of Jesus by exhorting the people to repent. He had a glimpse of success when some repented and ask for his baptism, but he did not see the fullness of humanity’s salvation when Jesus died on the cross. His mission was crystal clear for John – just to prepare the way of the Lord. Nobody appreciated his contribution in the works of salvation. Herod even beheaded John. It was another thankless job.

But our gospel challenges us to be like John the Baptist – to become workers of the future. We are asked to work for peace in Mindanao so that our future generation will live in peace. We are tasked to protect our environment so that our children will have trees to climb and clean rivers to swim. It is our responsibility to teach Christian values to our children, to assure ourselves of good and God-fearing leaders in the future. But to work for peace, environment and formation of children are also thankless job. Nobody seems to care and support us. Why care and work for the future society?

William Barclay commented, "In youth, because I could not be a singer, I did not even write a song. I set no little trees along the roadside because I knew their growth would take so long. But now from the wisdom that the years have brought me, I know that it may be a blessed thing to plant a tree for someone else to water or make a song for someone else to sing."

Let’s ask ourselves this Advent: “Do I consciously work hard for a better future? What are your small and daily contributions? You say, you want peace in our society; but what are you doing about it? You dream of happy family; but how much time you dedicate to your family?

Let’s commit ourselves in building the future we don’t own. We are workers for our children and nation’s future. Our determination to work for a good future is not merely based on our social responsibility, but on the spiritual responsibility. Let’s discover the “John the Baptist” in us. We may not see the fruits of our labors; but that’s the meaning of being a John the Baptist. God calls us to prepare the way so that others may live to the fullest.

In a graduation ceremony, a teary eyed mother commented, “I don’t know what’s ahead of my son, but I’m at peace. I have given him good education to confidently face his future. ”

We are workers for the future generations. We may not see the end result of our hard work, apostolate, and advocacies. People may not recognize our sacrifices. Our work may end up like another thankless job. But don’t fret. Any work done with love will create a ripple effect in our future.

- Fr.Willy M. Samson,SJ

God is Always Fair

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Matthew 20:1-16 “Are you jealous because I am generous?”

“My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways,” says the Lord in our first reading today (Isaiah 55: 6-9). These words from the prophet Isaiah will guide us to understand our gospel today. God’s way are not our way, God’s mathematics is not our mathematics. He’s logic is not our logic.

Anybody who hears the gospel today may think that the landowner is really unfair especially to those hired early in the morning. In our present world where all work must be compensated, we find the landowner unfair to those hired at 6 AM. They have the right to receive more than to those who worked for just an hour.

But in reality, the landowner was actually fair to all laborers, because they all agreed to be paid the minimum wage. There is no guile here. It was done in good faith. What made the early workers furious were envy - that they were not the lucky recipient of the landowner’s generosity. Jesus explicitly mentioned it, “Are you jealous because I am generous?” (Matthew 20:15).

When I was in Montaban Relocation Site in Rizal, we used to distribute Christmas goodies for the poor, I remember a man who used to complain a lot each time we distribute goods to the people. He always irritated us. But he never complained when he was first on the queue or when he received more than the others. The laborers in our gospel are like that. They are protesting because they felt shortchanged. Envy plays a big role here. We complain when we are at the disadvantage but we care less when we receive the bigger and better portion of the pie.

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus instantly promised the reward of heaven to one of the thieves, “I promised you that today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). Some of us who are working hard to be good to achieve the reward of heaven might protest, “That’s not fair. He is stealing heaven. He did nothing to merit heaven.” We might even say, “If this is the case, we should eat, drink be merry carelessly and commit sins. Why strive to be good and holy in our younger years when God can easily forgive us later and reward us equally?”

We failed the see the point of the gospel. The gospel gives hope to those who are not working for God’s vineyard for many years. But God does not condone such idling, of course not. The gospel should bring us to a realization that it is never too late for anyone to return to God and work for his vineyard. And yet some would still insist that God is unfair to those who are faithful to Him, and gives favor to the sinners.

A theologian once said, “We sinners and martyrs may find themselves together in the presence of God because God looks at us equally but the degree of happiness might vary. Aside from being in God’s presence, what make people happy in heaven are their thoughts that they did for something for God and for their fellowmen during their earthly life.”

A bench warmer player who did nothing for the team in winning the much coveted championship title will still go to Europe with his teammates as a reward. But when the players start remembering and recalling those momentous plays, crucial breaks and difficulty in winning the championship, the players who played and fought hard for the team will be the happiest. They have stories to tell and be proud of to their friends and families. Bench warmers have nothing to share.

But I am not here to prove that God is just to everybody or to console those who are working in the Lord’s vineyard that they should not envy the late workers or those who are not working for the Lord. The gospel today wants us to purify our motivation in serving God. We don’t serve the Lord to merit material graces or to inherit heaven. We serve the Lord out of love because He has given us a lot and bless us a lot with many graces. As St.Ignatius of Loyola would say, "To give and not to count the cost." I remember Tita Glo, a volunteer in New Bilibid Prison, she said, "When one is genuinely serving God, he or she should not expect anything in return, even the words thank you."

The workers who complain are echoes of the elder son’s complaint in the Parable of the Prodigal Son. The sin of the elder was envy. He failed to identify himself with the father’s joy of a returning son. The father reminded the elder son of what love is: To be happy that his younger brother is back home. What made the elder son envious was the thought that his younger brother does not deserve such warm welcome and lavish banquet, while he himself, a very faithful son, did not receive any reward from the father… not even a single goat!

And so the Father said: “My son, you are always with me and everything I have is yours. But we have to celebrate and be happy, because your brother was dead, but now he is alive, he was lost, but now he has been found” (Luke 15:31).

To love is to think of the welfare of others. Those who know how to love are genuinely happy when others are happy.


Fr.Willy M. Samson,SJ
Sacred Heart Chapel
Ateneo de Zamboanga University

Instant Ginatan

22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Matthew 16:21-27


When I was in Hollywood, a Filipina offered an instant “ginatan halo-halo” for merienda. Having been away from the Manila for five months, the thought of ginatan halo-halo thrilled me. But the taste of this instant ginatan was a big disappointment. It was far from the taste of real ginatan. Indeed, instant products are not always good. Unfortunately, our world is turning into the culture of instants, short cuts, quick fix, and convenience stores. Modern technology is giving us a painless, easy and lazy life. Majority would say, why make it difficult and complicated when technology can make it simple and quick? In the process, we lost the value and wisdom of sacrifice and suffering.

In our gospel today, Jesus revealed the secret formula of his future glory: He must go to Jerusalem, suffer greatly, be killed, and on the third day be raised (Mt.16:21). But it was the antithesis of the disciples’ idea of “glory.” So Peter corrected Jesus, “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.” Peter couldn’t accept that suffering and sacrifice are necessary ingredients in Jesus’ assent to glory. Peter couldn’t think a suffering Saviour. And so Jesus rebuked him, “Get behind me Satan, You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” And Jesus gave his triple conditions to discipleship to correct Peter’s wrong notion of sacrifice and suffering, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” (Mt.16:24) There is no instant glory in following Christ. We need to take the road to sacrifice and suffering to attain fullness of life and salvation.

Fullness of life and salvation can only be achieved through sacrifice, self-denial and hard work. Not through shortcuts or any instant solution. They are the fruits of our hard labour, perseverance and faithful carrying of our daily cross.

When Jesus scolded Peter with the words, “Get behind me, Satan!”... Jesus’ is directly commanding Peter to resist the devil’s deceiving temptation – take shortcuts, avoid pain and suffering, run away from the cross and self-indulge. But life is not like that. It has its own challenges, failures, misgivings, detours and delays. When these things happen, self denial and sacrifice become our way of engagement. And we gain a lot from them.

One of my friends required his newly graduate son to work as an all-around helper in their bakery. The son resented the idea at the beginning. He felt humiliated but followed his father’s decision. As a worker, the son learned how to relate to people and learned the value of hard work. After six months, his father made him the new manager of the bakery.

In his desire to protect Jesus from suffering, Peter failed to see the importance of sacrifice in God’s plan of salvation. Self-denial is necessary. No sacrifice, no glory.

If you want a happy family, then sacrifice.
Spend more quality time with your family.

If you want to pass the board exam, then sacrifice.
Go to the library and read read read.

If you want good health, then sacrifice.
Avoid your favorite junk food and exercise daily.

If you want beautiful garden, then sacrifice.
Toil under the sun and soil your hands.

If you want fruits in your backyard,
then plant trees now and wait for years patiently.

If you want delicious ginatan, then sacrifice a little.
Prepare your own coco milk. Cook it slowly.
It may take a while but it’s worth all the wait and effort.

Today’s Gospel calls us to take the same road with Jesus: “Whoever wishes to come after me he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” (Matthew 16:24). St. Paul also exhorts us to run hard to win the race: “Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable garland, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified.” (1 Corinthians 9:25-27).

No to shortcuts and instants.

In heaven, only fruits of hard labor and sacrifice are recognized. And they don’t serve instant ginatan there.


Fr.Willy M. Samson,SJ
St. Joseph Parish

The Quiz

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Matthew 16:13-20 “But who do you say that I am?”


I love History subjects when I was in high school. I enjoyed memorizing famous names, important dates and exotic places. But I struggled a lot when reflection paper would be required with topics such as “If Rizal is alive today, what will he say to the Filipino youth?” To answer it well, we need to know Rizal beyond facts and figures. We need to know his values, aspirations and sentiments in order to know him well.

In our gospel today, Jesus suddenly gave a surprise quiz to the disciples to test their knowledge about him. Much to the disciples’ surprise, Jesus posted two questions to them. The first question was a general knowledge inquiry, but the second was a heart to heart inquiry – a check of personal knowledge.

The first question was a curriculum vitae material: “Who do people say I am?” And they answered, “Some say you are John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” Easy! It was just a re-echoing of what others have said about Jesus.

But the second question was a hard one. Only those who were intimately close to Jesus could answer this: “Who do you say I am?” Everybody was caught in surprise. It was a re-echoing of what’s inside their hearts.” Surprisingly, Simon answered it correctly, “You are Christ, the Son of the living God.” I could imagine a smiling Jesus when Peter answered his second question correctly.

In our experience, students who are intellectually motivated spend a great deal of time in reading and researching. They have this unquenchable thirst for deeper knowledge. In the end, they become what they read and contemplated.

On the other hand, Peter was not only intellectually motivated to know Jesus. He was spiritually moved by Jesus. He was captivated by Jesus’ charism, passion and ministry. He wanted to know what keeps Jesus so passionate in everything. Thus, Peter decided to stay close with Jesus and learn more of Him. In the end, he decided to follow the footstep of Jesus. He became what he contemplated. It was Peter’s intimacy with Jesus that led him to say, “You are the son of the living God.” It was also his intimacy with Jesus that led him to say, “If it is you Lord, allow me to walk on water.”

But far more revealing in the story was the reply of Jesus, “Peter, I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.” I suddenly realized that the more we know Jesus, the more we know ourselves and our hidden gifts and potentials. Thus, we are challenged to continually fix our eyes on Jesus in our prayer if we want to know ourselves. Our identity is in Jesus.

In our society, educated people benefits a lot. They always win in Quiz Bees, get freebies from the Cebu Pacific in-flight contest, and frequently consulted for bright ideas. Intelligent people are sources of right information and sound opinion of anything under the sun.

On the other hand, prayerful and spiritual people are sources of inspiration and strength. They are emotionally stable, balanced and happy. Such peaceful and cheerful disposition is the fruit of their deeply rooted prayer life and intimacy with God. Spiritual giants like Mary, St.Ignatius of Loyola and St.Francis of Assisi were people of prayer. Like Peter, because of their intimacy with Jesus, they found God and found themselves in the process.

But what about us? How is our intimacy with God? If Jesus will give us a surprise quiz today and ask us the same question, “Who do you say that I am?” What is your answer? Evaluate yourself.

Is your knowledge of Jesus comes from:


Your Rate
Your personal experience of Him in prayer? ----------- 40 % _______
Your personal experience Him in your daily life? ----- 40 % _______
Your Bible Study and Catechism? -=-------------------- 10 % _______
Other people’s experience of Jesus? --------------------- 10% _______

Total ________

What is your score?
Your score will tell you how deeply you know Jesus.

Knowing Jesus through Bible study and Catechism will give us a trophy in a Bible Quiz Bee; but knowing Jesus intimately through our prayer will give us heaven in our hand.


- Fr. Willy M. Samson,SJ
Sacred Heart Chapel
Ateneo de Zamboanga University

The Wall

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Matthew 15: 21-28


In the middle of our conversation with regard to the latest GRP-MILF peace negotiation, somebody suddenly blurted out, “I cannot trust the Muslims.” When he saw my reaction, he said, “Sorry Father. I am just disappointed with the recent atrocities caused by this arm conflict. I just want peace in Mindanao.”

We may not be aware of it, but we need to acknowledge that biases and prejudices, caused by our long and painful history of violence in Mindanao, unconsciously affect how we relate with our Muslim brothers and sisters. We have created an invisible wall of division. This is not what God desires. He wants to bring the whole humanity to Himself. Thus, we need to purify our minds and hearts from any destructive biases and prejudices that bring animosity and division among us.

In our gospel today, it showed that even the disciples were not free from the prejudices and discrimination. When they realized that the woman was not a Jew, they said, “Master, send her away” (Matthew 15:23). Initially, we may find Jesus’ reply to the Canaanite woman inappropriate: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel… and it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs” (Matthew 15:24,26). His intention was just to test the woman’s faith; but after testing her faith and good intention, Jesus healed her daughter in the end.

In the Scripture, it is clear that everybody has a space in Jesus’ heart, Jews or not. His unconditional love allows him to transcend all cultural, social and religious boundaries and embrace the whole humanity. Real love melts animosity, division and fear. Jesus forgives his enemies, eats with tax collectors and other public sinners, heals the lepers, talks to the prostitutes, and spends a lot of time with the poor and marginalized. He even chooses ordinary fishermen as his disciples. And He continues to love and trust us in spite of our unfaithfulness. If Jesus has one bias to speak of, it is his decision to love everybody without any reservations.

This unconditional love of Jesus is also true to our God the Father. Our first reading from Isaiah shows Yahweh welcoming the Gentiles in His holy temple: “The foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, ministering to him, loving the name of the LORD, and becoming his servant.” (Isaiah 56:6). Therefore, as children of God, we are challenged to follow the footsteps of Jesus and recognize everybody as our brothers and sisters without any reservation.

The way relate with one another shows us the need to continue purifying our hearts. We don’t trust an ex-inmate. We look down on someone who are less educated than us. We treat people differently according to their social status. We have lost our trust to people who committed a mistake. We don’t mingle with the poor. We give our undivided attention to people of high status; but not to the needs of our house helpers. We are not aware that our hidden biases and prejudices affect how we relate with others. We are insensitive to their needs. We don’t see their inner beauty. Thus, we don’t see them as our brothers and sisters.

We need to identity our hidden biases and prejudices. It is only in naming that we can tame them. Prayer will help us to purify our hearts. Our gospel challenges us to leave our comfort zones, transcend the walls of division and reach out to a stranger. Let us learn to trust one another, including those who offended us and have asked for another chance.

All of us - whatever is our color, background, religion, culture and social status - are children of God. Only true love can compel us to destroy the walls that separate us from the poor, enemy, marginalized and strangers. Peace is within reach when we begin to accept that God is present in every person; and to respect them is respect the God who created us. We also need to forgive one another and remove from our hearts all traces of distrust. Let us not forget the words of St. Paul, the disciples of the Gentiles, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.” (Eph 4:32).


A disciple asked his master, “When can I say, it is already dawn? Is it when I can say this tree is a mango tree and that one is an acacia tree?” The master said “No.” The disciple asked again, “Is it when I can recognize a cat from a dog from a distance?” The master replied, “No.” “Is it when I can say that the man coming is a Muslim, Christian or Buddhist? The master replied, “No.” Then the disciple said, “Then when can I say, it is already dawn?” The master smiled, “It is when you see a stranger coming and you said to yourself, that’s my brother. Then it is already dawn.”


- Fr.Willy M. Samson, SJ
Cagayan de Oro City
August 14, 2011

Why Pray?

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Matthew 14: 22 – 33

One of the activities we do in Ateneo is the “Trust Walk.” In this activity, each participant is blind folded and asked to walk under the guidance of a companion. We realized it is easier to walk when guided by someone whom we know well than by a total stranger. The voice of a good friend gives us the confidence that everything will be fine.

Our gospel today is a classic example of trust walk. When Peter learned that it was Jesus walking on the water, he said, “Lord, if it is you, allow me to come to you.” And Jesus said, “Come.” Although Peter could not clearly see Jesus, his voice was enough to encourage Peter to walk on water. Faith is indeed connected to our ability to hear God’s voice. The more we listen to God, the more we gain trust and confidence. Unfortunately, in our present world where noise is part of our life, we are slowly losing our capacity to keep quiet and listen to God.

People nowadays are so busy and distracted with many things. We are multi-task human beings; we do many things at the same time, but lost our focus in the process. Like a machine, we can accomplish many things, but the quality of our relationships suffers greatly, especially our relationship with God. We go home exhausted from daily work, but no sense of fulfillment. We excel in different fields and praised by our colleagues, but no inner joy and satisfaction. Many of us are simply tired, discouraged, or almost dead inside. We have lost our simple joys, spontaneity, and peace. We have lost the depth and breadth of our Christian life. We don't like this feeling of "sinking" but we are. Like Peter, distracted with many worldly concerns, we cry out for help, “Lord, I am sinking! Help me!”

The only way to regain ourselves is to pray again. Prayerful people could hear God in their prayers. The deeper we pray, the more we see God in all things. Our first reading tells us how God revealed Himself to Prophet Elijah. God did not reveal Himself in the strong wind, earthquake and fire, but in the tiny whispering sound. In our present society where everything must be loud, dramatic and grand to win our attention, the God who reveals Himself in silence loses in the competition. If we want to hear God, we need to pause and pray silently.

It is simply absurd to say that we don’t have time to pray. To pray is a decision compelled by our love of God. Even the busiest person can still drop his work and do something urgent and important. Unfortunately, we don’t see the necessity and urgency of daily prayer in our life.

Why pray? When you look at the gospel today, it is Jesus who did the seeking, and not the disciples. When we pray, we create a space and allow God to seek and find us. And when God finds us, He gives us the grace of serenity to face our storms in life. An unknown author defines the meaning of serenity…

To walk when everybody is running
To whisper when everybody is shouting
To sleep when everybody is restless
To smile when everybody is angry
To pause when all are in a hurry
To pray when all are in doubt
To think when all are confused

Fr. Roque Ferriols,SJ shared something about God who constantly looking for him when he celebrated his 70th year as a Jesuit:

“Seventy years ago, I joined the Society of Jesus. I thought I was beginning a lifetime looking for God. But it was given me to know that throughout my lifetime, God has been looking for me. With infinite tenderness, patience, and with great humility, God has been looking for me. God is humble. He waits for me to allow him to find me. Yet in the mystery of his grace, I need his grace to be able to allow him to find me. I have to pray: Lord, grant me the grace to allow you to find me.

As a novice and later as a scholastic, when they sang the Office of Tenebrae during Holy Week, I was always thrilled when they came to the verse: "Bonum est praestolare salutare domini in silentio." "It is good to wait for the saving help of the Lord in silence."


- Fr. Wilfredo M. Samson,SJ
St. Joseph Parish, Zamboanga City

The Fireworks Within Us

18th Sunday in the Ordinary Time
Matthew 14: 13 – 21

One day, Jesus called a press conference at the Manila Hotel. The reporter asked Him, "The Philippines is burdened with lots of personal, family and social crisis. What are your plans to help us?" Jesus replied, "I will ask my disciples to help." "You trust them a lot? Suppose they failed, what’s your Plan B?" Jesus smiled, "I have no other plans. I’m sure, they can do it."

In today’s gospel, the death of John the Baptist must have had caused deep pain to Jesus. By this time, Jesus was also tired of moving from one village to another, doing all sorts of work alone. He may have felt the fatigue of the ministry that he suddenly decided to withdraw from the crowd. But when Jesus saw the big crowd, he felt pity on them. But he could not do it alone. The ministry was getting bigger. He needed help. He knew it was time to bring his disciples in the frontier. He needed to wake his disciples’ potential as leaders and healers of the society.

And so Jesus said to his disciples, “There is no need for them to go away; give them some food themselves.” And they hesitantly responded with five loaves and two fish. But that small act of generosity was enough for Jesus to make a miracle and feed five thousand souls. Thanks to the disciples’ five loaves of bread and two fish. But honestly speaking, Jesus could easily make a miracle without his disciples’ contribution. But he wanted to encourage his disciples to get out of their comfort zones, be empowered and have their own miracles in God’s name.

We need leaders. Our society is in need of good leaders who can inspire and bring us to greater heights. Sad to say, we have a short list of possible good leaders in our midst. Our gospel today is challenging us to start forming leaders by encouraging individuals and groups to start sharing their loaves of bread and fish. No miracles will take place in our lives unless we share our loaves and fish. When one discovers his giftedness, he also discovers his mission. Like Jesus, we are duty bound to empower others to help themselves.

But do we know the art of empowering people? One day an old lady invited me for lunch in her house. Knowing that she was really poor, I politely turned down her invitation. But in tears, she replied, “Bakit po Fr.Willy? Dahil po ba mahirap lang kami, wala na kaming karapatang pakainin kayo? Yung mayayaman lang po ba ang pwedeng maglibre sa inyo?” I was taken aback. She was right. The poor are not just beneficiaries of our kindness; given full trust and encouragement, they could also be potential helpers, leaders and evangelizers as well.

But how do we empower people? Do I believe that each person is unique and capable of making a difference to our society? Do I consciously encourage anybody to develop his/her talents? Can I trust them to do something big and important? Can I entrust my pet project to my assistants? We are good leaders or managers, if the people under us can manage themselves even without us; or our ministry survives and flourishes even when we are gone. We are good parents, if our children can take care of themselves while we are away from home. We need to form confident, independent and highly motivated individuals who can stand on their own and lead. The measure of success of our evangelization program is when our subjects become evangelizers themselves.

We need to form leaders, and not mere followers and admirers of us. Sometimes, the cause of our fatigue comes from our inability to delegate some of our work to others, because we don’t trust them. And in the process, we don’t inspire them to wildly dream and empower themselves. Remember this – to trust is the key to confidence build-up. If Jesus could only sing a song today, he will sing the “The Fireworks” of Katy Perry to remind us of who we are. Here are some lines:

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
It's always been inside of you, you, you
And now it's time to let it through

'Cause baby you're a firework
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go, oh
As you shoot across the sky

Baby, you're a firework
Come on, let your colors burst
Make 'em go, oh
You're gonna leave 'em falling down

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon

Let’s remember, it is better to commit a mistake for trusting somebody and failed, than to commit a mistake for not trusting somebody for the fear of failure. Jesus has no plan B. He has only one plan for us – to assist Him in His vineyard.


- Fr. Willy M. Samson,SJ
St.Ignatius of Loyola Parish, Brgy. Tetuan,
Zamboanga City.

The Sell and Buy Business

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Matthew 13: 44-52

Our gospel today is all about finding the real treasure in our life. Without any doubt, we say, we found our treasure! God Himself is our greatest treasure and pearl of great value. As Christians, we know that God must be at the center of our lives. We agree that our decisions and actions must always be in line with God’s commandments. Amen! But when we look closer at our lives, we can see some inconsistencies between what we say and what we do. We don’t really walk the talk.

Let’s look closer. Some of us prefer to clean the garden than to attend Sunday Mass with their families. Some choose to work overtime on Sundays for an extra income than to chat with their children. Some could afford to read their friends’ status and view photos in their Facebook for hours, but they don’t have time for prayer and spiritual readings. Some likes listening to music but not listening to a confused friend. Some loves window shopping but not volunteering in a soup kitchen. We are curious about Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez, but not with the life of Jesus. We can easily add more to this short list of our misgivings. We are blinded. We tell our children that God is important in our life, yet our priorities, decisions, and actions contradict what our lips are saying. If we are true to our words that God is our treasure or pearl of great prize, then let’s really prioritize God in our life both in our words and actions.

The parables call us to give up our treasures of lesser value before it’s too late. Material blessings could give us satisfaction and self-gratification, but not genuine happiness that could last forever. Thus, the selling and buying of treasures are necessary. Let’s evaluate our priorities and rearrange them according to their importance in our life. Let’s not waste our God given grace – time, talent, treasure - to something which is not really important in the end.

Look closer at your life. Reflect. What really is your pearl of great value? If it’s God, do people see it in your actions? If you have a social life, do you have a spiritual life? How much of your quality time goes to your family? How do you handle your God-given time, talent and treasure? Do you see them as graces given to us to buy “heavenly treasures” by using them to help those in need? Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Mt. 6:21).

A hermit was praying by the river when a young man disturbed him, “Master, I want to become your disciple.” The hermit said, “Why?” The young man said: “Because I want to find God.” The hermit grabbed him in his neck and dipped his head under water. After a minute of kicking and struggling, the hermit pulled the young man out of the water. The young man gasped to catch his breath. And the hermit said, “Tell me, what do you want most when you were under water.” “Air!” answered the young man. Then the hermit said, “Then go home first and come back again when you want God as much as you just wanted air.”

The Kingdom of God is not totally free. We need to work for it to merit it. Let’s use our God given gifts – time, talents and treasures - to acquire a place in God’s Kingdom. It’s urgent and necessary, for the Kingdom of God is worth keeping than all of our worldly treasures combined.

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Prayer: "God our Father and Protector, without you nothing is holy, nothing has value. Guide us to everlasting life by helping us to use wisely the blessings you have given to the world. Ame,"


- Fr.Willy M. Samson,SJ
(St.Joseph Parish, Zamboanga City)

Is it worth doing it?

16th Sunday of the Year
Matthew 13: 24 – 43


Our gospel for today is a continuation of last Sunday’s gospel, the parable of the sower. In this parable, we have learned that God always provides good seeds. And our main responsibility is to provide good soil so that the good seeds planted by God will have good harvest.

Unfortunately, to provide good soil for the good seeds are not enough. The story of the parable of the weeds warns us of an enemy. The enemy may come without our knowledge and throw weeds in the good soil we have provided for our family and community. These things are beyond our control and could greatly influence our children and destroy the good seeds that God had planted. These weeds are the enemy of the good seeds. They may come to us in the form of worldly values and temptations. Our experience tells us also that even us - parents, teachers, bishops, priests, religious and formators - are not immune from the corruption of the weeds. Our weaknesses, selfishness and sins sometimes stop us from doing what is noble and right. St.Paul even confirmed it, “I cannot understand myself, the things that I should do, and I am not doing. The things that I should not do, I am doing.”

To remove the bad weeds in ourselves is not as simple as deleting a virus from our laptop. Some of these weeds are deeply rooted in our hearts and culture and could influence our behavior and decision making. It would take a lot of self-retrospection and awareness before we can even see, accept and resolve to change ourselves for a better person. Formation is a lifetime process. Forming people takes a lot of time, effort and dedication. But if we care, we don’t mind the difficulty.

How do we sustain our effort to help people? Our gospel challenges us to do three things: 1) Be patient. 2) Keep your calm. 3) And never give up.

To form God fearing, responsible, and loving individuals is not an easy task. The influence of evil is deeply rooted in us. The three parables invite us to be more hopeful rather than hopeless in dealing with those seemingly difficult and problematic people in our lives. But is it worth doing it?

The next two parables - the mustard seed and the yeast - give us reasons why we should not give up in forming and guiding the “prodigal sons and daughters” in our lives. With good soil and personal care, a small mustard seed is capable of becoming a huge tree where birds can come and rest. When used correctly, a small amount of yeast could bring a large quantity of dough to rise. The two parables are invitations to be more positive and hopeful with others. We don’t want their talents and innate goodness to go to waste. Giving up is not an option. With our patience, understanding, and constant love, one day we shall reap a bountiful harvest from our labor.

One of my students from Xavier University ten year ago visited me last week. I was thrilled to know from him that most of my noisy, hard to discipline and problematic students in high school are doing great. Most of them hold key positions in the local government and multi-national companies. They are well loved by their families and peers. Out of sheer joy, I texted one of them and congratulate him. My former student responded, “Because good teachers like you, never gave up on us.”

Sometimes our role is just to plant, plant, and plant. We are just planters. Somebody after us will do the harvest.

That’s more than enough to console me. It’s worth doing it.


- Fr. Willy M. Samson,SJ
Zamboanga Catedral

The Good Soil

15th Sunday in the Ordinary Time – (A)
Matthew 13:1-23 or 13:1-9

Our gospel for today tells us that good soil is the secret of a bountiful harvest. Even if the seeds are exceptionally good, a good harvest is doubtful if the soil where the seeds are planted is rocky, thorny or dry.

Our Christian values, faith, and goodness are the “good seeds” that God planted in us. We are basically good and talented. Unfortunately to some of us, these potentially powerful “seeds of faith, love, goodness, and intelligence” planted in our hearts, will never have a chance of good harvest for the lack of good soil to grow.

An honest child is influenced by his honest parents. Well-motivated members are inspired by their very supportive leader. Good priests and religious are products of good formation program and good community life. Hardworking students are inspired by their good teachers. Good soil produces good fruits. Bad soil produces bad fruits. Good soil then is crucial for one’s maturity, character and spiritual growth. Who you are now is the product of your own family and community influence.

Therefore, the challenge is how to create “good soil” in our family and community so as to foster the growth of the good seeds in us. We need the following positive basic fertilizers to produce good and fertile soil:

1. Positive Meaning
2. Positive Environment
3. Positive Relationship
4. Positive Communication
5. Positive Stories

Do I consciously provide these fertilizers in my family or community life? It reminds me of this article written by an unknown author:

If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn.
If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight.
If a child lives with ridicule, he, he learns to be shy.
If a child lives with shame, he learns to be guilty.
If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient.
If a child lives with praise, he learns to appreciate.
If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice.
If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith.
If a child lives with approval, he learns to like himself.
If a child lives with acceptance and friendship, he learns to love the world.
If a children lives with love of God, they learn to be human and discover their happiness.

Values and character are caught and not just learned. Let’s stop blaming the government and the poor for the proliferation of street children and the increase of youth violence and crime. We need to be more pro-active and stop criticizing. What can we do to help them? We need to do something, like assisting poor students in their education.

Good seeds are already planted in ourselves, in our children, students, friends, and members. Let’s not waste them. Let’s start providing good soil in our family and community. This is one of our Christian duties that God expects us to do. And God wants us to do it well, for the future harvest depends on us.

Good ground matters a lot. For The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.


- Willy M. Samson,SJ