Friends’ Treasures Commemorates Rome’s Feast of Dedication of the Lateran Basilica

Fr . Ric Torrefiel in his homily on Friends' Treasures commemorates the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica (November 9).  This was built by Emperor Constantine in Rome and dedicated by Pope Sylvester  on Nobember 9, 324.  The church was built  in Caelian Hill owned by Laterani family who donated the property.  This was formerly named as St. John the Baptist which was later on changed into St. John the Evangelist. This was the first church of the Pope, the oldest and mother church not only in Rome but in the entire world, which is the center of unity and where the church started.

Catholic means universal.  We belong to one family.  God is our Father and we are His children.  The Lateran is our mother Church, the soft-spoken Clergy says.

In the Old Testament, it was David who built the first altar ( 2 Samuel 24:25) through God’s instruction through Nathan the Prophet (2 Samuel 7:4-7).  At the time, they placed  the Blessed Sacrament at the tent (1 Chronicles 16:1).

The temple had been constructed and in progress during the time of King Solomon (2 Chronicles 6:7-10) which later on developed in grandiose at the time of King Herod.

When Jesus entered the temple, he was enraged by the nonconforming behaviour inside the church brought by money changers, sellers of oxen, sheep and doves, which occupied the Holy Place.  Jesus seldom showed His irritation but this time, He was angered:

John 2:14-16  He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers seated there. He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables, and to those who sold doves he said, "Take these out of here, and stop making my Father's house a marketplace."

In consonance with this, you would notice that the Priests in the churches are angered as well when noticing churchgoers who do not dress up appropriately, use the church for news-mongering and even drag the clergies as object of gossiping, because the church is not a place for conversation and as a playground but a place of worship and prayers.  Illogically, people inside the court rooms or in concerts where gadget is prohibited could follow this proscription, why not when it comes to the church, when in fact you could tell the caller to call back later after the wedding ceremony or liturgy, he pointed out.

When I was a little boy, our grandmother would fondly say “ Just stay here in the house because I’ll go out to take care of a visit,” knowing that she had a visitor, which I could not fully grasp at a young age because I was wondering how could she attend to the guest if she would leave.  It was only later on that I understood, that the visit she was pointing to referred to church visit where "Visita Iglesia" (the seven churches visitation which is traditionally observed on Holy Week) rooted, he narrated.

It’s gratifying to witness in our parish that even at noon time, there are people from different all walks of life who engage in the Liturgy, he added. 

If you treat the Church as the House of God, everybody should be unified to maintain its aesthetic value by constant generosity in offertory, for its repair and maintenance. Ironically, your houses are well-painted and repaired while the church lamps are burnt out, sound systems are muffled, and roofs have leaks, as he encouraged the community. 

That’s why when I go to other churches, I can’t help not be tempted asking myself “What happens to the Parishioners here, do they give their share on Mass offertory, or where did the money go,” he recounted.   

You are a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16). You received the Holy Spirit when you were baptized.  Because of this, we become sons and daughters of God. That’s why when you take your communion, you should feel that longing that we’re the temple of God, he said.

In the light of being God’s temple, are we concerned with one another, those who are afflicted by calamities?  Unfortunately, within a span of one year, the concerned agencies were only able to build 400 homes to the regions which were severely afflicted by typhoon Yolanda, out of overly abundant goodwill provided for the homeless victims, as he expressed his disappointments. 

There’ s no confirmation yet as to the final itinerary of Papal visit this coming  January  whether it will be held here in Manila or somewhere in the distressed region affected by typhoon Yolanda, he told.

Fr. Ric in his final statement said that it came to his attention that there were reported unusual occurrences in the affected areas of typhoon that people who abandoned the Catholic Faith have returned to Catholicism after learning of the Papal visit, which is pleasurable according to him.

Fr. Richard Bolaton, Bulgar columnist, in his talk which focuses on  “The Eucharist and the Missionary” exclaimed that the Eucharist is the quintessential act of the person and the church.  It is the foundation of the church, which is the reflection of who we are as a person and as a missionary.  The Eucharist starts at the center of our lives (1987 Congress of the Eucharist). 

Because of this, the liturgy should persistently be taken as the core of life by both the family and the community.

Unfortunately, a lot of people turn to be indolent on attending the mass and treat it not as a celebration but as an obligation. 

I’ve been saying a Mass in a particular community which have been noted for their being exceptional because of their continuing zeal for the Liturgy even though their founder had already died.

Laity should learn to offer life as a sacrifice.  He highlighted that we don’t need a Priest any longer who would offer us but should treat ourselves as a priest besides by involvement in the Liturgy through singing and worshipping.

Offer everything that you have encountered in this life as an opportunity of gratitude and love towards God.  Behavioural pattern should not be distinctive but with consistency whether you’re inside of the Liturgy or outside of it, he mused.

Gratefulness that rooted from what you’ve got in this life should also manifest in the celebration but not as an effect of emotion that’s merely on the surface but overflows in appreciation.  That is why when the priest professes, “That my sacrifice and your sacrifice” is a communal oblation/sacrifice offered to God, he added.

For all their works, prayers and apostolic endeavors, their ordinary married and family life, their daily occupations, their physical and mental relaxation, if carried out in the Spirit, and even the hardships of life, if patiently borne  - all these become "spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ"- (Lumen Gentium), No. 34 

Both positive and negative experiences should be offered in the Liturgy as it is the event of a weekly life’s anecdotes which lead to Eucharist of fulfilment.  Unfortunately, 85% of Catholics nowadays do not experience Eucharist and do not understand its significance because of disregarding its connection to one’s life.

Probably, many appreciate the sermon on the pulpit but a lot of people go home with an empty doctrine that can be emulated and applied to their individual homes.  Heart should stream with values that can be brought home which can be revealed in our lives. 

In other words, one who is serious of loving God should take the Liturgy as the source of strength up to the point that you feel something is lacking when missing the Mass, or sickness could not even be a barrier because of that yearning.

Fr. Bolaton related that when he was grade six back then, he was encouraged to attend the Mass daily for 2 months out of the Parish Priest’s promise of installing him as an altar boy.  He did persevere until it became a lifestyle, he recollected. 

The Liturgy is the expression of our lives and communal engagement as we partake on the daily devotions to the lives of the Saints that help us to imitate spirituality, from St. Lorenzo Ruiz (Monday), St. Anthony Padua (Tuesday). Perpetual Help (Wednesday), St. Jude Thaddeus (Thursday), Sacred Heart (Friday), St. Joseph (Saturday) and up to the Pinnacle which is Jesus’ Resurrection (Sunday).

The liturgy sums up all our actions.  That is why as a Priest, everything that pertains to mass has already been memorized because it is embedded in the system thus far.

As it is the highest form of worship, we should always give the best.  That is why when I studied in Opus Dei in Spain, everything with reference to the Liturgy is measured even the breadth of arms that are gesturing the blessing towards the congregation, which has to be treated as holy.  

Show your glorious response to the Liturgy if you treat it as a place where animation of dignified gesture is upheld.

It is sardonic that the Centennial Church of iglesia ni Cristo could display a gargantuan structure while Cristong Hari (Christ the King) Catholic Church which is adjacent to it is like a fly in size.  Come to think of it, the former was developed out of goodwill, why Catholics can’t make such a big donation?  Apparently, this virtue as a quality of communal life has not been instilled in the minds of the people.

In this generation, Eucharistic renewal would be impossible without a changed life.  In Africa, their Liturgy lasts up to two hours, because they’re thinking of it not just for the sake of having it but as a celebration that is on its summit which demands gestures and response that are most pleasurable.

On marriage encounter, the couple centers their lives on the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus which are the focal point of the Liturgy.  In every raise of the chalice, everyone should imbibe its significance  of acclamation, that we may be filled by the grace of His body and blood. 

Being the witness of the Liturgy, everyone is enjoined to feel the grace of the Eucharist, that is to be extended to the community to be a true witness of the passion, death and resurrection, to feel that we’re not alone in this earth, to inspire and be concerned about others to bring them to the Liturgy, for the blessings to multiply.

Eucharist is everyone’s vocation and apostolate because it is a mandate to show gratitude toward our neighbors -  Vatican II 

Finally, Fr. Bolaton invoked the congregation for discernment of skills development and ingenuity to become fruitful in the ministry.  May the life and the will of Gospel be mirrored in this community, he concluded.