THE BOY FROM FIFTH AVENUE

THE BOY FROM FIFTH AVENUE

 

“Will a person gain anything if he wins the whole world but is himself lost or defeated?” – Luke 9:25

 

Fifth Avenue was a shop in Manila in the ‘60s, dubbed as “Tailor to the Stars,” because it was the outfitter of choice of leading actors. It was owned by the family of my friend Nick Resurreccion.

Since business was good, Nick grew up basking in luxury, ending up, in his words, a spoiled brat. Nick and his wife, Malou, have lived a comfortable life. But since Nick was spoiled, they often quarreled, driving Malou to seek God’s help by attending a prayer meeting.

Just to please his wife, Nick would follow her to the prayer meeting, but made sure he arrived when it was about to end. One day, Nick came as the leader was saying the closing prayer. To his surprise, Nick heard the leader praying for him. Nick did not expect that someone would be that concerned about him. He soon joined the prayer meeting and realized that worldly wealth meant nothing if he himself was lost.

When we hold on to fleeting things, it often keeps us from possessing those that are of eternal value. But in God’s Kingdom, whatever we give up we will surely gain in greater measure. Cynthia Santiago (boses2go@yahoo.com)

 

REFLECTION:

What have you gained lately?

 

Lord, may I desire to dedicate my all to You.

 

 

The Commandments – a Yes to Values

 

When we hear the word “commandment” we easily shy away. There are too many “don’ts” in a time when we want to be free and think real freedom means we can do what we want. But old Moses is wise and has calmed down. He doesn’t thunder anymore like before. He puts a simple reality before the Israelites and before us: There are two ways. You have the choice because God has given you freedom. One way is to see the commandments of God for what they are — loving signposts along the road of life that we might go in the right direction — and obey so that we may be blessed by God and reach our goal. The other choice is: disobey and face the consequences.

Pope Benedict XVI, in a homily he delivered on September 8, 2007 in Austria, gave an interesting twist to the many “don’ts” and makes us aware that the commandments of God are all a “Yes” to a great value. I quote the Pope:

“To gaze upon Christ! If we do this, we realize that Christianity is more than and different from a moral code, from a series of requirements and laws... it is the gift of friendship. For this reason it also contains within itself great moral strength, which is so urgently needed today on account of the challenges of our time.... The Ten Commandments are first and foremost a ‘yes’ to God, to a God who loves us and leads us, who carries us and yet allows us our freedom: indeed, it is He who makes our freedom real (the first three commandments). It is a ‘yes’ to the family (fourth commandment), a ‘yes’ to life (fifth commandment), a ‘yes’ to responsible love (sixth commandment), a ‘yes’ to solidarity, to social responsibility and to justice (seventh commandment), a ‘yes’ to truth (eighth commandment) and a ‘yes’ to respect for other people and for what is theirs (ninth and tenth commandments). By the strength of our friendship with the living God we live this manifold ‘yes’ and at the same time we carry it as a signpost into this world of ours today.”Fr. Rudy Horst, SVD

 

Reflection Question:

Have I seen the commandments of God as something positive?

 

Lord, guide me to always choose life and Your blessings!

 

St. Agatha Lin, pray for us.