The first reading for today is taken from the second part of the Book of Isaiah. This part of the book was written for people in exile.  The People of Israel suffered because they had been taken away from their homeland by the Babylonians. Yet, they knew that this was God’s punishment for their turning to pagan ways. This second part of Isaiah is the Book of Consolation. The prophet says that a day will come when the sins of the people will be expiated, and God will lead them back home. Today’s reading is the third Song of the Suffering Servant[1]. A prophet shall come who will willing take upon himself the guilt of the people so that he can suffer for them. He is not a masochist.  He does not want to suffer, but he does want to sacrifice himself out of love for God and his people. This same thought is carried in the second part of today’s gospel[2].  Jesus announces that he is ready to sacrifice himself for God’s people.  He loves deep enough to sacrifice. This concept is completely against the mind set of Jesus’s world, as well as our world. A little sacrifice might be acceptable, but total sacrifice seems unreasonable. That was the reason why Peter protested.  And that is also the reason why Jesus tells him that he is giving the argument of the people of the world. He calls him Satan. Peter is doing the work of the devil. A mindset that is basically self-centered cannot understand sacrifice.  It also cannot understand love.  The person whose concept of love is as a means of his or her fulfilling needs cannot understand that real love demands sacrifice.  In fact, the deeper the love, the greater the sacrifice. The shallower the love, the more insignificant the sacrifice. Couples whose marriages have grown so that they can say that they are far more in love now than when they first married, recognize that they each sacrifice more now than when they were first married. They understand each other better because they are willing to accept each other more than ever before. The lady whose life revolves around taken care of her sick husband, loves him more now than on their honeymoon.  The man who supports his wife when she is having a bad day, or week, is loving her.  On the opposite side, the guy looking to pick up a girl for the evening knows nothing of love. The girl who views a guy as a means to an end will see the end of her ability to enter into a real marriage. Consider the sacrifices that you make for your children. There is nothing that you would not do for them no matter what it costs you.  That includes setting your faces like flint, like the Servant of the first reading, and putting up with your children’s complaints and even their anger when you decide that something happening in other homes will not happen in yours.  For example, you say to your children, “I don’t care what happens in other places, here there will be no phones when we are eating, and all devices will be in the kitchen and plugged in for the night by 8:00 pm. If you need them after that for homework, you can do your homework on the kitchen table.” You have that rule to protect the children from pornography and from midnight texting. But it results in your children saying, “Everybody else can do this.” or you say, “We are a family that puts Christ first. We worship on Sundays and receive Communion.  If something happens that forces us to miss Sunday morning Mass, then we go to Church Saturday or Sunday night.  This is what we do because this is who we are.  We are Catholic.”  And your children respond, “Nobody else has to do what we have to do.”  But you refuse to back down because you love your children more than yourself and are willing to risk dealing with your own upset at your children’s reactions than neglect raising them to be strong Catholics. Your faces are set like flint. So, we have to keep our faces set like flint and grow stronger in faith every day we have left in this world. Christ’s love for us was unrestricted. He would do anything for us. He would make any sacrifice for us. Peter couldn’t understand.  He protested because he wanted to put a limit on the Lord’s sacrifice, and thus on his love. He thought in the way of the world. It would take time for Peter to learn the demands of Christianity, the demands of true love. He would be among the first of many martyrs who would be witnesses to love. None of us want to suffer. If we did there would be something wrong with us. But if we really love, then we are willing to accept suffering, and deny ourselves so that our love might grow deeper.  Acknowledging that this is completely opposed to the mindset of a self-centered society, we ask God to give us all the ability to love and love well.  We ask our Lord to give us the courage to live with sacrificial love, to help us courageously live the Gospel • AE

[1] Cf Is 50:5-9a [2] Mk 8:27-35

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Fr. Agustin’s Schedule for Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Saturday, September 11, 2021.

Sunday, September 12, 2021.

Fr. Agustin will be away from the parish this weekend. The mass schedule and the time for the celebration of the Sacrament of Confession remains the same.

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XXIV Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario (Ciclo B)

Quién dice la gente que soy yo?” Es la pregunta que hizo Jesús a sus discípulos mientras recorría las aldeas de Cesarea de Filipo. Después de veinte siglos esa pregunta… no la sabemos responder. ¿Quién es Jesús para nosotros? Su persona nos llega a través de muchos siglos de imágenes, fórmulas, dogmas, explicaciones teológicas e interpretaciones culturales que van desvelando y, a veces, también velando su misterio. Para responder a la pregunta de Jesús podemos acudir a lo que han dicho los Concilios, sí, o escuchar el Magisterio de la Iglesia, o leer las reflexiones de los teólogos o repetir cosas que hemos oído a otros, pero ¿no se nos está pidiendo una respuesta más personal y comprometida? Afirmamos rápidamente que Jesús es Dios, pero, luego, no sabemos qué hacer con su divinidad. ¿Amamos a Jesús sobre todas las cosas o está nuestro corazón ocupado por otros dioses en los que buscamos seguridad, bienestar o prestigio? ¿Para qué sirve confesar la divinidad de Jesús si, luego, apenas significa algo en nuestras vidas? También decimos de él que es Señor, pero ¿es él quien dirige nuestra vida? Doblamos distraídamente la rodilla al pasar ante el sagrario, pero ¿le rendimos alguna vez nuestro ser? ¿De qué nos sirve llamarlo tantas veces Señor si no nos preocupa hacer su voluntad? Confesamos que Jesús es el Cristo, es decir, el Mesías enviado por Dios para salvar al ser humano, pero ¿qué hacemos para construir un mundo más humano siguiendo sus pasos? Nos llamamos cristianos, pero ¿qué hacemos para sembrar libertad, dignidad y esperanza para los últimos de la Tierra? Proclamamos que Jesús es la Palabra de Dios encarnada, es decir, Dios hablándonos en los gestos, las palabras y la vida entera de Jesús. Si es así, ¿por qué dedicamos tan poco tiempo a leer, meditar y practicar el Evangelio? ¿Por qué escuchamos tantos mensajes, consignas y magisterios antes que la palabra sencilla e inconfundible de Jesús? ¡Hay tanto qué pensar! Hoy podríamos empezar, quizá meditando, además de en el evangelio, en aquellas palabras de Soren Kierkegaard: «Señor Jesús, tú no viniste para ser servido, ni tampoco para ser admirado o, simplemente, adorado. Tú has deseado, solamente, imitadores. Por eso, despiértanos, si estamos adormecidos en este engaño de querer admirarte o adorarte, en vez de imitarte y parecernos a ti» • AE

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He took him away from the crowd. He touched his ears and his mouth and said, «Be open». This is a miracle story. This is a story about our lives with the Lord. There is a great deal of noise in our lives. Interesting word: noise.  It even sounds bad. NOISE. There is much noise in our lives, but not just in the sense of sound. There is noise in the sense of disturbance, you know, like static on the phone line.  TV, computer, the phone, the kids, the neighbors, those driving down the street with their radios on overkill, are all audio noises, but there is also noise, disturbance, created by the continual worrying about tomorrow, the hanging on to the battle stories of the past.  Noise. Noise. Noise. Noise in our lives:  «Did you see what she was wearing?  Guess who just broke up?  Noise Noise Noise.  Mom, Dad, can I have……? Would you buy me……?” The phone rings, «You have a tremendous opportunity to save money now by having your driveway resurfaced this week instead…» NOISE. And Jesus took the man away from the crowd, away from the noise. He took him to have a personal encounter with. He calls us away from the crowd, away from the noise to his quiet. Quiet before the Lord is so important: A few moments before and after Mass, out of respect for the presence of the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, out of respect for the needs of others to get away from the noise, out of respect for our own need to listen to the Lord in the quiet. Quiet in our homes. Fifteen minutes of quiet, before the morning gets going, or after the kids are in bed, or together as a family, just a little quiet time. A little time to get away from the noise. A little time with the Lord so he can touch us. He touched the man’s ears and he said, “Ephphatha! Be opened!”[1]. so, He calls us to hear. To hear the still small voice Elijah heard, whispering that God loves us and has a plan for each of us[2].  To hear the whisper of Christ on the cross, telling us in the darkest moments of our lives that we will get through this together[3]. To hear the beautiful voice of the Holy Spirit singing the Love Song of God in our hearts. To hear the voice of Mary, reassuring the concerned wine steward at the wedding feast of Cana, and reassuring us, saying, «Do whatever he tells you[4].» To hear the voice of our conscience within, calling us to holiness. To hear the Word of God alive in the Bible, proclaimed in the Church, proclaimed by the Church, proclaimed by the loving husband and wife in their continual gifts of themselves to each other, proclaimed by parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles. Jesus touches our ears in the same way he touched the man’s mouth and said, «Be opened», telling He tells us not to be afraid to stand up for our beliefs and our lifestyle, even if we are told that we are not in concert with modern society. He needs our voices.  He needs us to proclaim that he is indeed alive. The Resurrection continues. We celebrate his resurrection on Sundays so we can have the spiritual strength to proclaim his life. He opens our mouths to proclaim his praise to the world. He drew the man away from the crowd.  He touched his ears and his mouth, and he said, «Be opened.» And the man left proclaiming the love of God. He touched him. He touches us. Now we know what exactly we have to do • AE

[1] Mk 7:31-37. [2] Cf 1 Kings 19:11. [3] Cf Luke 23:34. [4] Cf John 2:5.

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Fr. Agustin’s Schedule for Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Sunday, September 5, 2021.

12.30 a.m. English Mass @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

3.00 p.m. Misa en Español @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

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XXXIII Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario (Ciclo B)

Son muchos los hombres y mujeres que se sienten incapaces de hablar con Dios. No saben escucharlo y no saben hablarle; podríamos decir que son como sordomudos ante Él, y es que han olvidado los caminos que los podrían ayudar a entrar en sí mismos y en el encuentro con Dios: el silencio, la meditación, etc. Otros siguen cumpliendo algunas prácticas religiosas: predicaciones, liturgias; sus labios se mueven para entonar cantos o recitar oraciones, pero sin ningún dialogado en el fondo del corazón. Justo lo que decía el Señor el domingo pasado en el evangelio. Incapaces de comunicarnos con Dios, ¿cómo escuchar hoy esta llamada de Jesús al sordomudo? ¿Cómo abrir nuestros oídos y nuestros labios para dialogar con Dios? Cuenta Tony de Mello en uno de sus escritos ese delicioso relato. Un pez joven acudió a otro más viejo y le preguntó: «Dime: ¿dónde puedo encontrar eso que llaman Océano? He andado buscándolo por todas partes sin resultado». El viejo pez le respondió: «El Océano es precisamente donde estás tú ahora mismo”. El joven pez se marchó decepcionado: «¿Esto? Pero si esto no es más que agua… Lo que yo busco es el Océano». Para encontrar a Dios no hay que recorrer largos caminos. Basta detenerse, cerrar los ojos, entrar en nuestro corazón y escuchar la vida que hay en nosotros mismos. Ahí, donde estamos ahora mismo, está Dios rodeándonos y penetrándonos de vida. Yo no hago absolutamente nada y, sin embargo, mi corazón palpita, la sangre corre por mis arterias, mi organismo respira. Una fuerza oculta recorre todo mi ser. No soy yo quien hace algo para vivir. Segundo a segundo voy recibiendo la vida como un regalo misterioso. Solemos decir: «Estoy respirando» pero, en realidad, no es así. Yo no estoy respirando. La respiración está sucediendo en mí. Cuando un niño recién nacido respira por vez primera ni siquiera sabe que existe el mecanismo de la respiración, sus pulmones jamás han funcionado hasta entonces. Y sin embargo la respiración llega y el milagro comienza. Desafortunadamente también entre nosotros hay quienes sólo ven agua y no descubren jamás el Océano. Viven sin escuchar el misterio de la vida que los rodea y los sostiene. Hoy podríamos pedirle al Espíritu de Dios que nos inunde con su luz para que podamos recuperar esa capacidad de dialogar con Dios, de escucharlo, de hacerle preguntas. El punto de partida podría ser el silencio • AE

We are back to St. Mark again. As you notice, we have left the Bread of Life — the five lovely, wonderful Sundays dedicated to Jesus, our Bread of Life and Light of the World — and now we’re back to basics with the gospel of St. Mark that is going to take us through the rest of the year in this Gospel[1]. And as Mark is, one thing can be said: he’s very practical. In today’s gospel, Jesus confronted the Pharisees because of their hypocrisy. They never observed the law that they multiplied for their people. This is a dangerous way of life that we (especially, priest and religious, the modern-day Pharisees), must be careful of. We must not live a hypocritical life, or even make life difficult for others. Furthermore, by saying that: “What comes out of a man is what defiles him,” the Lord is inviting us to do a deep examination of conscience. The malicious intentions, the hatred, pride, the corrupt tendencies we harbor in our heart are really what define and make us who we are. They are the vices that make us bad. We must evict them before they rock our spiritual boat. They are the real and hidden enemies that we must fight and defeat daily. The quality of our life is measured by the quality of our heart and mind. If our mind and heart are poisoned and sick, our body would be sick a thousand time more, even without one knowing it. So, the most important thing that God needs from us is a pure heart as Christ taught us: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God”[2]. And the best way to be faithful to God’s command is to allow our hearts to be transformed by the grace of God. So, rather than pay excessive attention to the letters of the law and physical purity, let us pay attention and ponder on St. Paul’s advice: “Let your hearts be inwardly transformed, so that you will know the will of God”[3]. God’s will is his law. It must motivate us to love others, and to avoid evil. It must evoke true repentance and a sincere will to forgive others. It must keep us firm in faith. Above all, it must move us pursue only what is good, just, noble and holy. Easy? No. Impossible? No way! With the grace of God everything is possible! • AE

[1] When it comes to the Sunday Scripture readings, we have the three cycles A, B and C. These are sometimes called the Year of Matthew (Cycle A), the Year of Mark (Cycle B), and the Year of Luke (Cycle C). [2] Mt 5, 8. [3] Rom 12, 2.

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Fr. Agustin’s Schedule for Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Sunday, August 29, 2021.

7.30 a.m. English Mass @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

10.00 a.m. English Mass @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

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XXII Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario (Ciclo B)

P. Giovane, Cristo curando al paralítico de la piscina de Betsaida (1592), óleo sobre tela, Museo de la Academia (Venecia).

Los primeros cristianos recordaban a Jesús, no como un hombre religioso, sino como un profeta y, desde luego, alguien cercano a los enfermos y a los oprimidos, como alguien que no vivía la observancia de la ley por encima de las personas, un hombre -que era Dios- que buscaba siempre hacer la voluntad de su Padre. Marcos, el evangelio más antiguo, presenta a Jesús en conflicto con los sectores piadosos de la sociedad judía. Entre sus críticas más radicales hay que destacar dos: el escándalo de una religión vacía de Dios, y el pecado de sustituir su voluntad, que sólo pide amor, por tradiciones humanas. En el evangelio de este domingo, Jesús cita al profeta Isaías: «Este pueblo me honra con los labios, pero su corazón está lejos de mí. El culto que me dan está vacío porque la doctrina que enseñan son preceptos humanos»[1], diciendo después dónde está la trampa: «Dejan a un lado el mandamiento de Dios para aferraros a la tradición de los hombres»[2]. Éste es el pecado en el que con tanta frecuencia caemos: una vez que hemos establecido nuestras normas y tradiciones las colocamos en el lugar que sólo debe ocupar Dios. Las respetamos por encima incluso de Su voluntad. No dejamos pasar la más mínima prescripción, aun cuando vaya contra la ley del amor. Seamos sinceros: honramos a Dios con los labios, pero a veces nuestro corazón está lejos de él; recitamos el Credo, pero creemos lo que nos conviene; cumplimos ritos, pero no hay una obediencia interior a Dios. Y es asín que poco a poco nos vamos olvidando de Dios, para luego olvidar que lo hemos olvidado. En otras palabras: empequeñecemos el evangelio para no tener que convertimos demasiado. Orientamos caprichosamente la voluntad de Dios hacia lo que nos interesa y olvidamos su exigencia absoluta de amor. Pasa el tiempo y ya no echamos en falta a Jesús; olvidamos qué es mirar la vida con sus ojos. En nuestro rato de oración en algún momento del fin de semana podríamos pedirle al Espíritu de Dios la claridad que necesitamos para distinguir lo esencial de lo accidental; la fuerza para cumplir la Ley de Dios lo mejor que nos sea posible, pero sin lastimar nunca la ley del amor • AE

[1] Mc 7, 1-8. 14-15. 21- [2] Ídem.

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Jesus has just given the apostles a teaching that demanded their absolute trust in Him, their absolute faith in Him, even though this teaching was completely against what their eyes, ears and senses were telling them.  He told them that He was the Bread of Life.  He told them that they needed to eat His Flesh and drink His Blood for them to have eternal life. For some of them this was too hard to accept and so they left Jesus and returned to their previous lives. The Twelve told Jesus what was happening.  Perhaps they were implying that Jesus tone down His teaching some.  Maybe they were just pointing out that the Lord was losing followers #Whatever The fact is that Jesus was not going to rescind a word.  He came to make the spiritual real. He came to bring a reality to the world that was beyond the capacity of man to understand.  He came to bring the Gifts of God that were far greater than man’s fondest hopes. He would not compromise the truth.  “Will you go, also, Peter,” he asks the leader of his Twelve.  “Lord, where can we go, you alone have the words of eternal life.”  And with that confession of faith, Peter stays in good shape.  He did not know with his senses how it is possible for Jesus to give His Body and Blood for the food they would need for the journey to God. Peter did not know with his senses, but he knew with his heart that all was beautiful with Jesus and that it would be infinitely foolish to trust in the senses rather than trust in the Lord. We are called to believe in the Lord, to trust in Him.  We are called to give an infinitely greater credence to the spiritual we cannot see over the material we can see.  We are called to faith. It is quite normal for us to go through periods of doubting the teachings of the Lord.  It is normal for us to ask, “How is God only one, if the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Spirit is God?”  It is quite normal for us to ask: “How can Jesus be both fully God and fully man?”  It is quite normal for us to ask: “How can this bread and wine, material objects before the Mass, now be the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ?”  It is quite normal for us to want to stand on the material world of our senses and ignore the new world of the spiritual. When these types of doubts come to our mind, be they flashing through, or lingering and challenging us, we need to stop and consider the Gifts of the Lord.  We need to reflect on our Savior, Jesus Christ.  We reflect on the wonders He provides that are beyond our imagination, too good to be true, but, yes, they are true. We are children of God. We think about the peace that we have when we are united with Him and the chaos we have when we turn from Him.  And, so, we trust completely in the Lord.  We trust Him over our own senses. And so we believe.  We believe in that which we do not see.  We believe in that which our human senses cannot reveal. And we come to Church this Sunday and pray as we pray every day of our lives, we pray the prayer of the father of the epileptic boy whom Jesus asked, “Do you believe?” We join this man and pray, “I do believe, Lord, but help those parts of me that do not believe[1].” We are human, yes, but we have been entrusted with the mystery of the Divine. We have been given the Gift of the Eucharist. For sure we are tempted to trust only our senses.  We are tempted to stand on the material.  We are tempted to limit ourselves to the here and now.  We are human.  But we are also spiritual.  And deep within us, deep within every single one of us there is the Voice of Faith prodding us to exclaim with Peter, “I will not leave you Lord.  You alone have the words of eternal life.[2]” • AE

[1] in Mark 9:24 [2] Jn 6:60-69

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Fr. Agustin’s Schedule for Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

Saturday, August 21, 2021

3.00 p.m. to 4.55 p.m. Sacrament of Confession

5.00 p.m. English Mass @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

Sunday, August 22, 2021.

12.30 p.m. English Mass @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

3.00 p.m. Spanish Mass @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

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XXI Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario (Ciclo B)

Voy a tirar unas pocas piedras sobre mi propio tejado. En la sociedad moderna vivimos acosados por palabras, comunicados, imágenes y noticias de todo tipo. Ya no es posible vivir en silencio. Anuncios, publicidad, noticiarios, discursos y declaraciones invaden nuestro mundo interior y nuestro ámbito doméstico. Esta «inflación de la palabra» ha penetrado también en la vida de la Iglesia donde los clérigos hablamos y escribimos mucho. Demasiado, quizá. La pregunta que nos hemos de hacer es sencilla: ¿Qué capta la gente en nosotros?, ¿palabras llenas de espíritu y vida, como eran las de Jesús, o palabras vacías? Me da la sisca, que dicen mis amigos de Musquiz, que lo segundo. A lo largo de los años he oído muchas críticas a la predicación de la Iglesia. Se nos acusa de poca fidelidad al evangelio o al Magisterio; de alianza con una ideología política de un signo o de otro, de poca apertura a la modernidad, o demasiada… creo que no pocos que se alejan hoy de la Iglesia quieren saber si, al menos para nosotros, nuestras palabras significan algo. La palabra del Señor era diferente. Nacía de su propio ser, brotaba de su amor apasionado a su Padre y a sus hermanos. Era una palabra creíble, llena de vida y de verdad. Se entiende la reacción espontánea de Pedro: «Señor, ¿a quién vamos a acudir? Tú tienes palabras de vida eterna»[1]. Muchos hombres y mujeres de hoy no han tenido nunca la suerte de escuchar con sencillez y de manera directa sus palabras. Su mensaje les ha llegado, muchas veces desfigurado y distorsionado por demasiadas doctrinas, fórmulas ideológicas y discursos poco evangélicos. Uno de los mayores servicios que podríamos realizar en la Iglesia es poner la persona y el mensaje de Jesús al alcance de los hombres y mujeres de nuestros días. Ponerles en contacto con su persona. La gente no necesita escuchar nuestras palabras sino las suyas. Sólo ellas son verdadero espíritu y vida ¡Cuánto necesitamos los hombres de hoy esa palabra de Jesús capaz de dar un vigor y una fuerza nueva a nuestra vida; cómo necesitamos de creyentes que nos hablen, como Jesús, con palabras donde se transparente su experiencia, su fe, su amor • AE

[1] Cfr. Jn 6, 55. 60-69

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How wonderful that this Sunday we can talk and meditate on our Mother the ever-blessed Virgin Mary! With the exception of Jesus Christ, who is the Eternal Word, conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit, she is the greatest person to ever exist.  She is the greatest person to be conceived through a human mother and a human father. She is greater of any of the great people of history. She is the one who was conceived without sin. She gave her life so we can have a Savior. She is the greatest of us all. The greatest of us all is a woman. Mary brought a new dignity to every woman who has ever lived and who ever will live. Women bring life into the world and nurture this life.  Because Mary sacrificed herself for us, our women bring unique reflections of God into the world and nurture His Image with their bodies and with their lives. Women are life givers. Christian women give life to the Divine. Women are sources of love, carriers of love and nourishers of love. In these days when the most lucrative industry in the world is the pornography industry, where mainly young girls are exploited, Our Lady reminds us of the Dignity and Respect that are the natural rights of every female among us. We men are reminded that it is our obligation to care for and protect our women, be they little girls, teens, wives, singles, widows or the elderly. All men need to pray for those among us whose biblical origin was a gift from God to Adam. In these days of the glorification of the self, Our Lady reminds us of a person whose body and spirit were created for another.  She said “Yes” to the angel at the Annunciation and allowed God to radically change her life. She nurtured and cared for the child that others wanted dead.  She supported Jesus as a young man when some thought he was deranged. She stood with Him as He was tortured to death to complete the Father’s plan of redemption. She accepted John the apostle and us into her heart and became our mother. For all this and more than we could ever imagine, Mary was rewarded with her total union with God at the conclusion of her earthly life. She was assumed into heaven. Now closest to her Son, the judge of the Living and the Dead, within whisper length from his ear, she brings our prayers before Him.  We can be sure of this! She brings the prayers we offer when we honor her in the Rosary.  She brings the prayers we offer when we just call out, “Mother, help us!” so today we pray to her and we celebrate, with hearts full of joy, that she was taken to heaven where she lives forever • AE

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Fr. Agustin’s Schedule for the weekend of August 14-15, 2021,

Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Saturday, August 14, 2021

4.00 p.m. Sacrament of Confession

5.00 p.m. Vigil Mass (English) @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

Sunday, August 15, 2021.

7.30 a.m. Mass (English) @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

10.00 a.m. Mass (English) @ St. Dominic Catholic Church

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Solemnidad de Asunción de la Santísima Virgen María (2021)

Hoy es fiesta grande para los creyentes. Una fiesta que no es sino el eco del anuncio pascual: Cristo ha resucitado y María es llevada en cuerpo y alma a los cielos. Aquella mujer que supo acoger como nadie la salvación que se le ofrecía en su propio Hijo, ha alcanzado ya la vida definitiva. La que supo sufrir junto a la cruz la injusticia y el dolor de perder a su Hijo, comparte hoy su vida gloriosa de resucitado y nos invita a caminar por la vida con alegre esperanza. La Asunción de la Virgen es una fiesta que confirma nuestra esperanza cristiana: hay salvación para el hombre. Hay una vida definitiva que se ha cumplido ya en Cristo y que se le ha regalado ya a María en plenitud. Hay resurrección. María es la Madre de nuestra esperanza. Ella es «la perfectamente redimida», como solía decir Rahner. En ella se ha realizado ya de manera eminente y plena lo que esperamos un día vivir también nosotros. Pero María es sobre todo Madre de esperanza para los pobres y los rechazados de este mundo. Si María es grande y bienaventurada para siempre es porque Dios es el Dios de los pobres. María se alegra de que Dios sea así. El Dios de los pobres y los humillados. El que ha sabido mirar la humillación y bajeza de su esclava. El que no se ha detenido ante Popea o Cleopatra, sino que ha fijo su mirada en una pobre muchacha sin brillo ni riquezas. Al cantar hoy el Magníficat podríamos recordar quién es el Dios que ha glorificado a María y en el que ella ha puesto todo su gozo y su esperanza. No es el Dios lejano e indiferente en el que a veces pensamos, sino el Dios de los sencillos, aquel que «derriba del trono a los poderosos y enaltece a los humildes; el que coIma de bienes a los hambrientos, y a los ricos despide con las manos vacías». Estas palabras no son palabras de ningún profeta agresivo ni de ningún guerrillero violento, sino que han brotado de la ternura, la limpieza y el gozo que caben en el corazón de María santísima; ese corazón que había guardado la memoria y el gozo de Jesús, quien bendecía al Padre porque ha ocultado su reino a los aristócratas de la tierra y lo ha revelado a aquellos que aparentemente no valen nada, pero valen todo • AE

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