Guarding Jesus in the Home (Holy Family A)

In today’s Gospel, a short phrase appears again and again. The angel says to Joseph: “Take the child and his mother” (Mt 2:13, 20, 21).

This is Joseph’s mission. This is the mission of the Holy Family: to guard the Child.

Jesus enters the world as a fragile baby, and Herod wants to destroy Him. God could have sent angels, armies, fire and power—but no. He entrusts His Son to a family. To the care of a father and mother. Today, we hear those same words directed to us: “Take the child and his mother.”

Take Jesus into your home. Guard His presence in your children, in your marriage, and in the vulnerable families around you.

The family is the guardian of the Child Jesus today. Let us reflect on this in three points:

Families Under Threat: Guarding Christ in the Home

The angel warns Joseph: “Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him” (Mt 2:13). Herod is afraid of losing power, and his fear becomes violence. Today, there are still “Herods”—not a king with soldiers, but forces that enter our homes and threaten faith: A culture of distraction that leaves no time for God; media and content that destroy innocence and distort truth; consumerism that teaches: “You are what you have,” instead of “You are loved by God;” conflict and unforgiveness that choke love.

The Holy Family teaches us that holiness does not mean having a perfect life. They were poor, displaced, afraid, and in danger—yet they stayed faithful. They protected the Child. So how do we guard Jesus in our homes?

• Guard the atmosphere. What enters the house—words, content, music, attitudes? Ask: Would Jesus feel at home here?

• Guard prayer and Sunday. If work, sports, and entertainment always come first, and God is always the one sacrificed, then the Child Jesus disappears quietly.

• Guard relationships. Simple habits—“please,” “thank you,” “I’m sorry”—protect love and keep Christ at the center.

Pope Francis reminds us in Amoris Laetitia: “The home must be the place where we learn the beauty of faith, to pray and to serve our neighbour” (AL 287). So first, guard Jesus in your home.

Joseph the Guardian: Parents as First Protectors of Faith

Joseph never speaks in Scripture, but he moves. He obeys. He acts. The Gospel describes him with verbs:.“He rose, took the child and his mother… departed” (Mt 2:14).

This shows the mission of parents today: not just to provide things, but to protect faith. Guarding Jesus in the home is not about having religious decorations only. It is about choices: Being present—not just physically, but with attention and love; setting boundaries on gadgets, content, and influences; modeling the faith—children learn more from what they see than what they hear.

Pope Francis calls Joseph “creatively courageous.” Parents today need that same creativity: to pray—even 1 minute—if that’s all you can handle; to make faith concrete—acts of kindness, generosity, honesty; to talk about blessings—“Where did we see God today?”

The family is the first Church, the first school of love, the first mission field.

Reaching Out: Caring for Displaced & Struggling Families

The Holy Family begins their story as refugees: “He departed for Egypt” (Mt 2:14). Jesus, Mary and Joseph experience what many Filipino families experience today: Displacement from typhoons, floods or earthquakes; separation due to poverty or work abroad; migration for safety or survival; homelessness and unemployment in our own barangays.

If Jesus were born today, He might be born in an evacuation center, in a small shanty, or in a home where parents are far away. To guard the Child Jesus today means not only guarding Him in our home, but also seeking Him in the homes of others—especially where life is most fragile.

So let us ask: Who are the “Egypt families” around us? Families running away from hunger, debt, or danger?

This year, can our families accompany a struggling neighbor? Or share goods with someone displaced by calamity? Or perhaps offer prayer and friendship, not just money?

Not all of us can solve poverty. Not all can rebuild homes. But every family can love.

When we protect the poor, we protect Jesus. When we sit with the wounded, we sit with Jesus.

Conclusion. Every family here has struggles. The Holy Family did too. But God was with them—and He is with us. So today, let us ask for the grace to hear the call: “Take the child and his mother.”

Take Jesus home. Put Him at the center. Guard His presence in your house and in this wounded world. 

Joseph’s Magnanimous Heart (4th Sunday Advent A)

Joseph is another important Advent figure as attested to by today’s gospel account of “The annunciation to Joseph.” Let us train our gaze onto him and be edified by his display of a magnanimous heart as he participates in the preparation of the coming of the Messiah.

Let me recall first a romantic film, Till I Met You. In this movie, Gabriel (Robin Padilla) and Luisa (Regine Velasquez) meet in the hacienda of Señor Manuel (Eddie Garcia). Gabriel is the trusted right-hand man of the haciendero, Señor Manuel and he has only deep respect for the generous old man; he loves him as his own father because Manuel has supported him since his childhood. Now, Gabriel slowly falls in love with Luisa as he knows her better even her wounded past. But Luisa is staying there in the hacienda in preparation for her wedding with Señor Manuel. Should Gabriel fight for his love and pursue the lovable Luisa? Or should he forget about his feelings out of his deep respect for the old man?

In Filipino, we have a word for giving up something precious to oneself for the interest of someone else whom one deeply cares about—pagpaparaya. Of course, Gabriel cannot betray the old man whom he respects deeply. Kailangan niyang magparaya. So, he painfully decides not to get in the way between Luisa and Señor Manuel.

In today’s gospel (Mt 1:18-24), we can view Joseph’s reaction to his knowledge about Mary’s virginal conception as an act of “pagpaparaya”—giving up the love of his life out of deep reverence for God. Verse 19 states, “Joseph, being a just man… resolved to send her away quietly.” Joseph could not take as his wife a woman whom God had chosen to be his own. Fr. Nil Guillemette, SJ explains: The “justice” of Joseph is a religious justice and prevents him from stepping in uninvited into God’s plan of salvation by assuming the paternity of the Messiah.”

Yet, in a dream, Joseph got invited into this huge plan of salvation. The angel Gabriel announced to him the mystery of incarnation: “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. She has conceived by the Holy Spirit, and now she will bear a son.” Part of this mystery was his role in this great plan: “You shall call him ‘Jesus’ for he will save his people from their sins” (v. 20-21). To this, Joseph responded with willingness.

What stands out in this gospel reading is Joseph’s magnanimous heart. This is shown in two ways: In his selfless love and in his committed love.

Joseph’s Selfless Love. Joseph loved Mary. His love for her was never possessive. When he learned of Mary’s pregnancy and, perhaps, of Mary’s own explanation even before the dream, Joseph was willing to let her go. Not with a bitter heart but a magnanimous heart seeking only whatever is good for his beloved and maintaining deep reverence for God’s plan. Handang magparaya. Letting go of something or someone very precious to oneself for a better cause calls for a magnanimous heart. It’s an act of selfless love.

Kaya ko bang magparaya? Do I have what it takes to give up something dear to me for a greater cause without turning bitter? We are all called to love. Loving in its essence is selfless. Yet, many a times we suffer from fixation to our childish neediness. To survive as a child, we necessarily demand attention and care for ourselves for we live in total dependence on others. But we need to outgrow the needy child in us; for we are called to become mature people capable of loving selflessly. This Advent season, try to think of yourself less and less and reach out to those who are in need. Give up something precious to you for the sake of another whom you care about. Pray for the grace of selfless love.

Joseph’s Committed Love. While Joseph was willing to let Mary go very carefully as not to disgrace her, he was magnanimous in yet another way as he manifested willingness to commit himself to God’s purpose. When the angel Gabriel announced to him his important role to be the legal father of Jesus by the act of naming him, He willingly obeyed. He saw his own purpose in life. God had chosen him for this. It was not a coincidence that he was a descendant of David; his acceptance conferred the same Davidic lineage to Jesus, thus, fulfilling what had been prophesied about the Messiah who was to come from the line of David.

Joseph is great because he embraced with a committed love his God-designated purpose in life. We are called to the same greatness too. To lead a great life is to live according to the purpose God has designated for each one of us. No one among us is an accident. God is not a clumsy Creator. He is the God of order and harmony and of wise designs. He has a purpose for his every act. He has a purpose for each one of us. Our task is to discern, by reflection, by self-examination, or even through our dreams, what on earth are we here for? And then like Joseph, may we have a big heart to embrace our own calling.

To end, let’s go back to the film: Señor Manuel and Luisa are preparing now for their wedding. Gabriel is willing to sacrifice his love for Luisa. Little did he know, Señor Manuel has known Gabriel’s feelings and the sacrifice he and Luisa are willing to take. The good old man, then, declares that there’s not going to be a wedding. He knows that Luisa and Gabriel, these two persons dear to him, will be much happier and fulfilled together. So the story ends with another person’s display of a magnanimous heart. It’s edifying to watch a great person.

This Advent season, let us aspire to be great, like Joseph, by cultivating a magnanimous heart—a heart willing to love and lose for a greater cause and a heart willing to love and embrace the purpose God has set for our lives.

Good News Proclaimed to the Poor ( Gaudete Sunday A)

On this Gaudete Sunday, we are invited to rejoice—not with shallow optimism, but with a joy rooted in this Advent recognition: the Lord is near! Isaiah dares us to imagine deserts in bloom and bodies restored. The Psalm sings of a God who “secures justice for the oppressed… sets captives free… sustains the orphan and the widow” (Ps 146). And Jesus confirms the hour of salvation: “the poor have the good news proclaimed to them” (Mt 11:5). Could there be a more compelling reason to rejoice than this—God’s nearness made visible in mercy and justice? This is our joy, and this is our mission.

Allow me to reflect on this call to rejoice and, by implication, on the invitation to embrace with joy the challenge of a synodal conversion within the national synodal framework—Tinig-Tawag, Tawid-Tanaw, TapakTindig, and Tipan—so that the Church may become ever more Good News for the poor. 

Rejoice! The Lord Is Near to the Poor.

We rejoice because God draws near to those who are last, least, and lost. Isaiah announces God’s saving nearness to the frightened and the frail: “Be strong, fear not! Here is your God… he comes to save you” (Is 35:4). Jesus confirms this promise by his deeds: “the blind regain their sight, the lame walk… and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them” (Mt 11:5). 

Salvation is not an idea; it is the Lord drawing close to restore dignity and hope. If God draws near to the poor, can we, as the Church, do anything less?

(Tinig-Tawag): Are we truly listening to God by listening to the cries of the poor, the migrants, farmers, fisherfolk, and creation? Joy deepens where the Church cultivates spaces of listening—such as parish circles, barrio visits, and shared discernment—where the poor speak and help shape the agenda. Perhaps our parish could form a small “Tinig Team” to host regular listening moments with those in poverty—letting their voices be heard in our gatherings.

Rejoice! The Kingdom Breaks in as Justice Is Done

We rejoice because the Lord’s reign already breaks in where sight is restored, bodies stand, and communities cross from indifference to conversion. Jesus points to these concrete signs that fulfill the promise of Isaiah. These are personal and social liberations - healing, cleansing, raising, evangelizing - that reveal the breaking in of God’s reign. Good news to the poor looks like access to healing, protection from exploitation, and pathways out of debt and hunger—signs that “God is here… to save you” (Is 35:4) and that in Jesus this saving nearness is already at work among the least (Mt 11:2–6, 11). 

(Tawid-Tanaw): The Spirit invites us to cross over from sympathy to structural charity and justice. Imagine our parishes as “Isaiah outposts”: providing legal aid, livelihood support, education scholarships, care for creation, and safe spaces for women and children. From time to time, we might try a simple “Justice Examen” as a community—looking at our budgets and ministries through the lens of the poor, and discerning whether a modest portion could be reoriented toward justice-focused initiatives.

Rejoice! Mercy Walks with Us.

We rejoice because God’s mercy is steadfast. The joy of waiting deepens not in haste but in humble companionship—precisely the path Micah commends: to “love mercy” and “walk humbly with your God” (Mi 6:8).

Mercy is not mere sentiment; it is faithful presence with families in crisis; it is accompaniment of the youth on the margins, the elderly, and those burdened by sin or shame. In this journeying together, the poor encounter Christ’s nearness through the nearness of his Church. Will we walk at the pace of the most vulnerable?

(Tapak-Tindig): We are invited to a pastoral stance that moves at the pace of the vulnerable. Some communities have found it life-giving to form “Mercy Circles” that accompany specific families or sectors over several months offering monthly visits, shared prayer, concrete support, and reflective listening. If this resonates with our parish rhythm, it could be a simple way for mercy to take one step, then another.

Conclusion: 

(Tipan): The covenant--Becoming a Synodal Church for the Poor. The call to rejoice is not naïveté; it is recognition. The Lord is near, and the poor are hearing the Good News where the Church listens, does justice, loves mercy, and walks humbly. 

Let us rejoice and become the sign we proclaim: deserts bloom, burdens lift, and hope finds a home among the poor. Perhaps this is what it means to be a synodal Church for the poor.

Visit to the Bajao Community

Sulong. Padayon.