Category: QUESTIONS

“WOULD YOU WALK ON OUR SEA?” (Mk 6:45-52):  09 January 2008 (Black Nazerene of Quiapo, Wednesday)

Reading: www.nccbuscc.org/nab/010908.shtml

The Quiapo Church in Manila is home to the Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno, the life-sized, dark-skinned statue brought to the country from Mexico over 400 years ago.  Today, the 9th of January, is the Feast of the Black Nazarene, as the image is more popularly known.  The statue will be placed on a carriage and pulled through the streets of Quiapo by a rough exclusively-male procession.  

“HOW MANY LOAVES DO I HAVE?” (Mk 6:34-44):  08 January 2008 (Tuesday)

Reading:  www.nccbuscc.org/nab/010808.shtml

“An Inconvenient Truth,” Al Gore’s award-winning documentary on climate change, ranks high in my list of  scariest movies of all time.  In ways both lucid and graphic, the documentary shows us the magnitude of the problem, a problem caused by all the abuses committed against the planet.  Watching the film, some of us may actually feel helpless and resigned to our fate, whatever that will be.

“WHERE IS THE KINGDOM?” (Mt 4:12-17, 23-25):  07 January 2008 (Monday)

Reading:  www.nccbuscc.org/nab/010708.shtml

The Black Eyed Peas’ music video for their hit “Where Is the Love?” begins with an intriguing close-up of a red question mark.  As the music rises, the camera zooms out to reveal that it’s a piece of crumpled poster clutched by someone running.  Soon we see the mysterious question mark being posted all over the city–on street signs, on walls, on moving vehicles, on banners, even on people’s arms, as more and more people of different age and color repeatedly sing the chorus in increasing intensity:  “Where is the love?” 

“WHO COMES BEARING GIFTS?” (Mt 2:1-12):  06 January 2008 (Epiphany of the Lord, Sunday)

Reading:  www.nccbuscc.org/nab/010608.shtml

We know the saying, “Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.” It’s a reference to the story of the Trojan War.   For ten years, the Greeks waged war against Troy, but for many reasons couldn’t win it. Then Odysseus devised a clever plan:  They built a giant hollow wooden horse outside the walls of Troy, and pretended to leave it as a peace offering.  Against the advice of their seers, the Trojans accepted the gift and held a night of revelry to celebrate the end of the ten-year siege.  Unknown to them, the  wooden horse was filled with hundreds of Greek soldiers, who in the dark of night climbed out of their hiding place when the entire city was in a drunken stupor.  They opened the gates of the city to let the other Greeks in.  Needless to say, the entire city of Troy was destroyed.  Hence, the warning about Greeks and deadly gifts.

“HOW DO YOU KNOW ME?” (Jn 1:43-51): 05 January 2008 (John Neumann, Saturday)

Reading: www.nccbuscc.org/nab/010508.shtml

In 2002 Mary Zimmerman won the Tony Award for Best Director for her work on “Metamorphosis,” a play based on a number of Ovid’s fables.  In one scene, Zeus and Hermes disguise themselves as ordinary peasants, and they visit a village knocking on doors to ask for a place to stay.  Every house closes its door on them, and after a while, Hermes tries to convince Zeus to give up.  But Zeus insists they continue and they end up before the simple cottage of Baucis and Philemon, a poor elderly couple, who–to the gods’ surprise–immediately welcome the strangers and serve them food and wine.  Suspiciously, Zeus asks them if they recognize them. “Of course!” exclaims Philemon. “You are children of God!”  But later Philemon notices that although he has already refilled his guests’ cups many times, the wine pitcher remains full.  At this point, the scene’s several narrators declare to the audience in unison:  “And then they knew.”  Baucis cries out, “Mercy, mercy!” and she and Philemon fall on their knees before the gods they finally recognize.