19th Week ORDINARY TIME, green Pss III – AUGUST 11 THE WORD – in other words “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” yet it was another type of fear, yes, even dread that creased the foreheads and dulled the eyes of the thousands of American and Filipino soldiers on that fateful day of October 17, 1944. Their landing on the shores of Tacloban and Palo, Leyte marked the beginning of the invasion of Leyte. Hanging in the air was the real and present danger of getting maimed or killed in battle. Confronting the allied forces was a formidable army of Japanese soldiers who were known to their ferocity in battle. During those highly dangerous moments, many, if not all, prayed to the Lord pleading for protection and safety. After all, “there are no atheists in the foxholes.” Each night for the next three months of bitter inch by inch fighting each soldier would have some moments to ponder what would happen to him the next day. Would the following day mark the fateful “coming of the Lord” into his life? While we are made to live, the stark reality of death stares into our faces. We know that, in itself, death is nothing else but the absence of life, just as darkness is the absence of light and bitter cold is the void left by warmth or heat. Yet even death or darkness or bitter cold is really nothing, still we instinctively shrink from it, even fear it immensely. However, knowing that our lives-the earthly life at least-will one day inevitably come to an end, we can prepare for it by making each day and each moment count. The seeming finality of death places on each one of us the sense of urgency. “Carpe diem!” (“Seize the moment, make the best of the day or time!”) the old adage says. The prospect of death also gives a sense of direction to a life which would otherwise wend and weave its way through the many byways the world can offer. Finally, death can make us reflect on the value and meaning of life especially when we delve into the truth that at the end of our earthly existence the Lord will come. Whether He will be welcomed as a loving brother and merciful savior or as a severe judge very much depends on what we do with and how we conduct ourselves between the now given to us and the coming of the Lord that he determines. In 1944 thousands of Filipino and American soldiers died between October 17 and December 31, when the fierce fighting finally and mercifully came to an end. Many more Japanese soldiers perished. Let it be our prayer that those who died had the chance to prepare for the coming of the Lord into each soldier’s life. –Fr. Flor Laguna, SVD (USA)
Posted on: Fri, 09 Aug 2013 21:25:42 +0000
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