PRAYER

FOR THE UNIVERSAL CHURCH

God, our Father,
Through the life, death and
resurrection of Christ your
Son, you bring together in
your Spirit, from all nations,
a people to be your own.
Keep the Church faithful to its
mission:
may it be a leaven in the world,
renewing us in Christ and
transforming us into your family.
Make us a sign of your love for all
people and, and help us to show
forth your living presence in the
world. Through the same Christ
Our Lord. AMEN. (Roman Missal)
JESUS ACCORDING TO
THE GOSPELS
One reason why in the Church
change/progress is slow in coming is
the lack of clear vision of the Church
and Ministry among the clergy and
the Laity.
In time, the vision gets blurred due to
the deadly isms, disillusionment,
disenchantment, etc.
As a consequence: mediocrity, laissez
faire attitude, just do your
homework pastoral style, lack of
initiative, maintenance mode.
 To come to a proper
vision (knowledge and
understanding) of Jesus, we
need to see Jesus through
the eyes of those who
lived and worked with
Him, those whose lives
were touched by Him, i.e.
N.T. authors.
CHRISTOLOGICAL APPROACHES:
1. ACADEMIC APPROACH
- Jesus acc. to the Catechism,
Theology, Philosophy of Religion.
- This is the Christology of the
clergy, religious and educated laity.
It is the official Christology.
- Because it is very cerebral, it is
beyond the reach of most of the
laity.
 2. CHRISTOLOGY OF
POPULAR DEVOTIONS
This is the Christology of most of the
laity in the Philippines
This Christology has led people to
heroic levels of zeal and holiness.
However, it sometimes leads to
fatalism, fanaticism and syncretism.
It cannot provide plausible answers
to many of our pain-laden questions.
It can inhibit Church renewal.
3. GOSPEL-BASED CHRISTOLOGY
- To come to a proper vision
(knowledge and understanding)
of Jesus we need to see Him, his
identity and mission, through the
eyes of those who were with him,
those who lived w/ Him and
whose lives He touched.
This is a more basic and more
reliable perspective.
 According to
the GOSPELS

Who is JESUS?

What was his

mission?
 Matthew 3:16-17
After Jesus was baptized the sky
opened and he saw the Spirit of God
descend like a dove and hover over
him a voice from the heavens said,
This is my beloved Son. My favor rests
on him.
Luke 9:20
But you who do you say that I
am? he asked them. Peter said in
reply, The Messiah of God.
JESUS MISSION: EVANGELIZATION
I must proclaim
the good news (eu anggelion)
of the kingdom of God
to the other cities also;
for I was sent for this purpose.
Luke 4:43 / Mark 1:38
I came that
they may
have life;
and have it
abundantly.
(John 10:10)
 Acc. to Traditional Catechism:
The mission of Jesus was to die to
save our souls from sin, to give us
sanctifying grace in this life, so that
when we die, we may go to heaven
where we shall see God face to
face.
Thisformulation is correct but
too narrow.
 Acc. To the Gospels:
The overall lifework and
mission of Jesus was the
proclamation of the Good
News of Total Salvation.
And the salvation proclaimed
by Jesus meant - a new world
and a new history for
humankind and all creation.
 In
the Bible, the salvation
proclaimed by Jesus is called:
the kingdom of God
(Mk 1:14-15)
new heaven and new earth
(2 Peter 3:13)
age to come (Mark 10:29-30).
Eternal Life (John 6:40)
On the cross, Jesus
mission was indeed to die
for sins, but before that, in
an earlier phase in his
ministry, his mission was
the proclamation of the
Good News about the
Kingdom of God.
 FOCUS OF JESUS MINISTRY:
KINGDOM PROCLAMATION
MIRACLES (healings and exorcisms)
were ANTICIPATORY EXPERIENCES OF
THE KINGDOM in response to the
mythology of his day and the problem
of evil.
PARABLES are an EVENT in which the
KINGDOM OF GOD becomes present
through its metaphorical character -
shattering the hearer's world and calls
him/her to decide to act.
WHAT IS THE KINGDOM OF GOD?
It is a new world on earth,
to be consummated at the end
of history,
- filled with life-blessings,
- for human beings and for the
rest of creation.
 BEATITUDES:
First Part Second Part

Blessed are you who are poor for yours is the kingdom of God (Lk)
Blessed are the poor in spiritfor theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Mt)
Blessed are you who are hungry now for you will be filled (Lk)
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst
for righteousness, for they will be filled (Mt)
Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh (Lk)
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted (Mt)
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth (Mt)
Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy (Mt)
Blessed are the pure of heart, for they will see God (Mt)
Blessed are peacemakers, for they will be called children of God (Mt)
Blessed are those who are persecuted
for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Mt)
In Jesus culture salvation and
kingdom of God were synonymous.
Hence kingdom of God acc. to Beatitudes is:
a NEW EARTH and a NEW HISTORY where
the oppressed poor of our present history
- will have justice, liberation, joy;
- will inherit the earth;

- will be satisfied; and

- where people in general will experience

compassion;
- will have a direct experience of God and

- will be called children of God.

 Kingdom of God according to Jesus
Go and tell John what you hear and see:
the blind receive their sight,
the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed,
the deaf hear,
the dead are raised, and
the poor have good news brought to
them.
And blessed is anyone who takes no
offense at me.
Mt 11:2-6 / Lk 7:18-23
 Luke 4:16-21
Jesus stood up to read, the scroll of the
Prophet Isaiah was given to him: The Spirit of
the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed
me to bring good news to the poor. He has
sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the
oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the
Lords favor. And he rolled up the scroll, gave
it to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of
all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then
he began to say to them, Today this scripture
has been fulfilled in your hearing.
 The Kingdom of God for Jesus is a NEW
EARTH and a NEW HISTORY in which
humankind will experience TOTAL WELL-
BEING or LIFE-BLESSINGS such as:
- good news to the poor
- justice to the nations
- health for the sick
- liberty to the oppressed
- release to the captives
- life and resurrection to the dead
- jubilee year (restoration of land, release of slaves,
rest for the land, cancellation of debts)
 To bring good news to the poor is
always mentioned in Jesus key-
statements, his mission-statements.
See Matt 11:2-6, Luke 7:18-23, Luke 4:16-21.

In a sociologically depressed area like

Galilee the poor included:
the sick & possessed (malnourished poor),
the multitudes
the so-called sinners (people forced into
dubious professions due to poverty such as
thieves, prostitutes).
Good News for the Poor
originally means: food, home,
land, education, health, rights,
dignity for the poor.
Poor in the gospels means
the really poor, the
oppressed.
 Jesus MADE ENEMIES because of His
passionate activities for the Kingdom.
He came into conflict with the
authorities and power structures of his
time.
But He was never UNCHARITABLE.
He took counter-positions on:
- the Sabbath, purification laws
- justice
- poverty-riches
- religious and political leadership
- the Temple
 He put primacy on the human being
and human life over and against the
accepted tradition and law.
He was a rebel against what they
considered tradition.
He was an uncompromising critic of
the value-system of the
establishment.
He was unabashedly PRO-POOR, to
the consternation of the rich and
powerful.
 He bravely criticized the
institution of the Temple.
He exposed peoples hypocrisy
and love for externals.
In short, he clashed with the
economic, political, cultural,
intellectual aristocracy of His
time. He challenged their
authority and power.
Q: WHERE DID JESUS GET HIS
ENERGY AND INSPIRATION TO
COMMIT HIMSELF TOTALLY TO
HIS MISSION?

A: SPIRITUALITY a
relationship of INTIMACY WITH
THE FATHER as evidenced by the
importance he placed on
PRAYER.
In the morning, while it was still
very dark, he got up and went out
to a deserted place, and there he
prayed. (Mark 1:35)
Immediately, he made his
disciples get into the boat and go
on ahead to the other side, to
Bethsaida, while he dismissed the
crowd. After saying farewell to
them, he went up on a mountain
to pray. (Mark 6:45-46)
 POINTS TO CONSIDER:
Jesus, because He was always IN
COMMUNION WITH THE FATHER,
especially through prayer, was always
full of life, freshness and energy.
Filled with and Empowered by the Divine
Spirit he went about accomplishing the
mission entrusted to Him by the Father.
Even his outer aura was luminous with
the divine. (Transfiguration)
Even the fringe of his garment was
charged with divine power (Mark 5:7).
 Jesus was one who was in
vibrant communion with the
Father in SILENCE
Jesus was a spirit-driven,
spirit-led person.
The power, the breath of God
energized Him.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION:
How does ones CHRISTOLOGY
influence or affect ones
ECCLESIOLOGY?
Day by day..
Oh Dear Lord three things I pray:
to see Thee more clearly,
love The more dearly,
follow Thee more nearly,
day by day (Repeat Stanza)

Day by day by day by day.