San Mateo, Rizal- As the ninth and last day of Misa de Gallo concludes today, many parishioners are seemingly rejoicing for they are able to attend and complete all of the masses in line with our Pre-Christmas Catholic tradition. But for others, though they didn’t complete such, being able to participate on some of the Simbang Gabi masses is a blessing to be thankful for.
Today’s Gospel talks about the story on how God remembers his people. As we all know, Zacharia, father of John the Baptist, was turned into a mute because of his response on the good message given by Archangel Gabriel. John couldn’t fathom on how Ana, his wife, would be able to conceive a child knowing that she is barren. But after the birth of his son who will soon be the precursor of Christ, Zacharia rejoices and expresses his gratitude to the Lord — not through pen and paper, but by saying how greateful he was for such beautiful gift.
In the homily given by Rev. Fr. Lopito “Bembol” Hiteroza, two things were emphasized that we should grasp and live by.
The first one is “God is the Faithful God.” Looking back to the Gospel, we could assess how God kept his promises to Zacharia despite his doubtfulness before.
“God remains faithful no matter how unfaithful we are.” said Fr. Bembol.
In connection to that, Fr. Bembol also mentioned the three key elements of the act of remembering in which, will help us to embody the context of being faithful.
The Past-reminds us to have a sense of gratitude to all the blessings that we have received before; The Present-reminds us the to treasure no matter what we have today as if it is a gift; and The Future-which tells us that we must anticipate blessings… to remain hopeful and optimistic on the things that will come in our lives.
Aside from the act of faithfulness, Fr. Bembol also discussed our role as servants of God.
“Kung ano lang ang papel natin, yun lang ang gampanan natin; Ang Panginoon dapat ang makilala hindi tayo.” he reiterated.
A Blessing to Receive
Misa de Gallo is one of the longest tradition of Filipino Catholics have. With this fact, most of us believed that if we complete the novena masses, one of our wishes will be granted.
But Lee Salonga, a parishioner shared that attending Simbang Gabi is more than just a physical blessing to receive.
“Yung siyam na simbang gabi actually puno siya ng struggle at biyaya para sa akin. Struggle kasi ang hirap gumising ng maaga, ang hirap hanapan ng oras kasi gabi ka na umuuwi from work, tapos blessing… actually hindi siya physical na blessing. It’s more a blessing na nakikita mo yung faith ng ibang tao. Kasi for me, hindi pa naman kumpleto yung faith ko. Yung makita mo yung faith ng ibang tao, yung mga matatanda, yung mga bata, yung mga nagsisimba na yun nga despite na maaga, despite na walang tulog, parang natatransfer din sa akin. Yung light nila na-shashare din papunta sa akin para magkaroon din ako ng light,” Salonga stated.
As Salonga completed the nine-day masses, he wished for more enlightenment to help him strengthen his relationship to God.
Flint Osric Gorospe
Senior Writer, Website Team - Media Ministry
Flint is an 18 year-old journalism student from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines. He is also a developing writer, actor, singer, photographer and a church servant. Started as a young member of Tanghalang Aranzazu, Flint had developed his craft throughout the years and expanded his networks as he joined in different church organizations. Currently, he is the Secretary of Avant Garde Singers and also a member of Ministry of Altar Servers, Tanghalang Aranzazu and Media and Public Information Ministry.
