Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Tagle has urged the faithful to spend the days leading to Christmas as occasions to deepen one’s prayer life and worship of God.
He called on the congregation to “recover this sense of worship [and] resting in God, for us to relish the salvation that comes to us in Jesus.”
“We are asked during these days and on Christmas Day to be a worshipping people, to pray, to rest in God,” he said in his homily during a Mass he celebrated at the Supreme Court of the Philippines.
He noted that people spend more time with television, computers and mobile phones thereby significantly losing time for prayer.
According to him, Filipinos are not a worshipping people “unless we worship the tv set.” The television set is the Filipinos’ “new God” as it commands attention, and “dictates on us.”
Tagle said for one to benefit from God’s salvation, one has to pray. He recalled that the Jewish people have always been faithful to the Sabbath Day spent on prayer, adoration and worship of God because He truly deserves it.
He explained the Sabbath Day is the time to re-establish the family, “as a family of God, as a family brought together by prayer, worship and adoration.” He added the Jewish people keep the Sabbath Day sacred, a day spent with one’s family “because it is worship day.”
“So from prayer, you go into action because prayer and action must come together,” he explained. Godly actions come from worship and affinity with God because “our God is a God of goodness.”
Tagle said the gospel talks about testimony and witnessing as John the Baptist was a witness to the One greater than him. He said the world is in need of witnesses to Christ.
“Kaya ang mahalaga we have God, that we have received God in ourselves so that we can witness Him through our words, through our attitudes, through our interaction, through our deeds, all of them hopefully, will be a living witness to the God who comes to save,” the Manila prelate further explained.
The 54-year old prelate said the nine-day Misa de Aguinaldo is celebrated to prepare for the birth of the Messiah.
According to him, he has been often asked why the celebration takes nine days. But he explained that the nine-day celebration symbolizes the nine months Mary carried Jesus in her womb and “every day is an equivalent of one month until the joyful event of the birth of her son.”
“Ngayon ho, nagsisimba kayo ng siyam, kapag hindi ninyo kinompleto yung siyam, premature,” he added.
Chief Justice Renato Corona and staff attended the Mass.
Meanwhile, Supreme Court Administrator and Spokesman Justice Midas Marquez said the invitation extended to Archbishop Tagle was made before the impeachment moves at the House of Representatives.
He expressed the Court’s sincere appreciation for the prelate’s presence despite the controversy brought about by the articles of impeachment approved by 188 lawmakers of the House of Representatives last Dec. 12. (Melo Acuna)
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