Third Sunday of Easter Homily

(An excerpt of the homily of Archbishop Romulo G. Valles, D.D., archbishop of Davao and CBCP President, on the Third Sunday of Easter, April 26, 2020.)

Brothers and sisters, I am happy that again, I have this chance to be with you even only through this live streaming in this holy sacrifice of the Mass of the thirds Sunday of Easter. With me is Msgr. Jimmy in this chapel of the Archbishop’s residence and two seminarians and deacon, Rev. Michael Ondras and the three staff of DXGN 89.9 Spirit FM.

I thought this would be one of these last days of the quarantine and we would be allowed to celebrate Mass publicly soon unta even with social distancing in our churches but that is not so. We continue to face the pandemic and our ECQ continues until May 15. And so magkita kita kanunay through our live streaming pa in the coming days. That will be a good mga three weeks pa up to May 15.

This Sunday, the third Sunday of the season of Easter, we have a very interesting, at least, Gospel reading, a reading from the Acts of the Apostles and the middle reading from the Letter of Saint Peter. But among the three readings, I think what would catch your attention would be the Gospel reading, the quite famous story of the disciples walking back to Emmaus, the Emmaus story, the Emmaus journey of disciples.

It is, I think, familiar to you, it is often repeated that the stress on the revelation of Jesus on the Eucharist. In fact, the words of the Gospel, it is through the breaking of the bread that they recognized Jesus.

This is the same today. This is my first stress, my point in this sharing. It is the same breaking of bread and it is through the breaking of bread whenever we are gathered that we see Jesus again. And hopefully, clearly. But I think that is not a proper phrasing. I think it is better that it is in the Eucharist that Jesus reveals himself again and again to us.

My reflection is ‘do we prepare so well for our attendance of the Holy Eucharist even not the usual way, the public celebration of the Mass, even in this live streaming mode?’ Do we prepare for it even in some little ways? Do we, like, anticipate the readings? I have to confess it to you and I have confessed it a few number of times that when in our busy lives, we are all busy, but as bishop and as priests, sometimes we don’t prepare very well our homilies. We don’t familiarize our readings. I confess that the Mass is not that “exciting”, not that lalom ang dating sa Misa. But when you review the reading like two times or within two days or one Monday and then review the readings. Just sit down and think of the coming Eucharist on Sunday, it is a different thing. So we ask, do we prepare ourselves to celebrate the Mass?