My dear brothers and sisters, today is a beautiful and remarkably rich Sunday in our Church calendar. We are celebrating the Seventeenth Sun...
My dear brothers and sisters, today is a beautiful and remarkably rich Sunday in our Church calendar. We are celebrating the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, but today, July 26, also marks two very significant and deeply personal observances for us: the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, and Fil-Mission Sunday. At first glance, you might wonder, how do grandparents, Filipino missionaries, and today's scriptural readings all connect? But if we look closely at the Word of God today, we will find a beautiful thread that sews them all together.
To help us unpack this, I want us to reflect on three simple words that start with the letter "W". They are Wisdom, Worth, and Witness.
Let’s start with our first word: Wisdom. In our First Reading from the First Book of Kings, chapter 3, God appears to a young King Solomon in a dream and essentially gives him a blank check. God says, "Ask something of me and I will give it to you." Imagine if God asked you that tonight. Many of us would instinctively ask for a winning lottery ticket, a promotion at work, a new house, or perhaps physical healing. But what does Solomon ask for? He asks for an "understanding heart"—he asks for the wisdom to know right from wrong, to govern God's people well. He doesn't ask for a long life or overflowing riches. And because he asked for wisdom, God was pleased and gave him exactly that.
This brings us to our beloved grandparents and the elderly whom we honor today. My memories of my grandparents are still vivid in my mind. I grew up with my lola and lolo. Im a lola and lolo's boy. Both of them are educators. My Grandma was a primary teacher and my Grandpa was a professor at UP Los Baños. That's why at the age of 5, I already memorized the positions of the planets and constellations, the scientific names of the plants and animals, etc. Now I don't remember anything. I used to have a brilliant mind because of them. And most of all, I will never forget that I am always nakukurot sa singit because of my naughtiness in the church. My grandma loves to sit on the front row of the church. Kaya....
When we are young, we often equate a successful life with accumulation—more money, more titles, more achievements, more followers on social media. But sit down with a Lolo or a Lola. Talk to them about what really matters. You will quickly find that they are the living embodiment of Solomon’s choice. They have lived long enough to realize that the latest gadgets or the fanciest cars are not the true treasures of life. When a person reaches the twilight of their years, they don't ask to look at their bank accounts or their college diplomas. They ask to hold the hands of their children and grandchildren. They ask for the sacraments. They know what lasts. That is true Wisdom. And as a society and a Church, we need to sit at their feet and listen to them.
This leads us to our second word: Worth. What is the true value of the things we pursue? In our Gospel today from Matthew chapter 13, Jesus tells us that the Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, or a pearl of great price. When a merchant finds that one magnificent pearl, he goes and sells absolutely everything he has with joy, just to buy it. He didn't feel shortchanged. He didn't feel deprived. The merchant gladly let go of his lesser possessions because he knew the supreme worth of that single pearl.
This is exactly where Fil-Mission Sunday comes in. What makes a young Filipino man or woman leave the comfort of our country, say goodbye to their tight-knit family, and travel to a foreign land with a different language, a different climate, and sometimes a hostile environment? It is because they have found the pearl of great price. They have realized the infinite worth of the Gospel, and they are willing to "sell everything"—to give up their comfort and security—to share this treasure with the world.
And let us not forget our millions of OFWs—our Overseas Filipino Workers. Pope Francis once beautifully called Filipinos the "smugglers of faith." Many of our OFWs go abroad out of economic necessity, but wherever they go, they bring their rosaries, their devotion to the Sto. Niño, and their deep love for the Holy Mass. They are filling up the empty churches in Europe, the Middle East, and the Americas. They are our modern-day missionaries. They know that no matter how much they earn abroad to provide for their families, their true worth is rooted in their relationship with Christ. Like the Psalmist says in our Responsorial Psalm today, Psalm 119, "I love your commands more than gold, however fine."
Our third and final word is Witness. In our Second Reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans, chapter 8, Paul gives us one of the most comforting verses in all of Scripture. He writes: "We know that all things work for good for those who love God."
It is very easy to believe this verse when life is going our way. But what about when tragedy strikes? What about when we lose a job, when a loved one suddenly passes away, or when a family faces extreme poverty? How can that possibly work for good? This is exactly where we need the Witness of both our elderly and our missionaries.
Our grandparents have lived through wars, natural disasters, economic crises, personal heartbreaks, and loss. Yet, here they are, sitting in the pews beside us with their rosaries, still praising God. They are our living witnesses that God is faithful. They can look back at the long tapestry of their lives and say, "Yes, there were dark threads of sorrow and pain, but God wove them into a beautiful picture of grace. All things truly do work for good."
Likewise, our missionaries are witnesses of hope. They endure loneliness, rejection, and exhaustion, yet they radiate joy because they know they are, as St. Paul says, "predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son." Their very lives are a testimony that the Kingdom of Heaven is real, and it is worth everything.
My dear friends, today, look at the elderly in your families and in our parish. Don't just see them as people who need care; see them as the bearers of Wisdom who can teach you the true Worth of life, and who serve as a Witness to God’s enduring love. And as we celebrate Fil-Mission Sunday, let us support our Filipino missionaries not just financially, but with our fervent prayers.
Most importantly, let us look inward and ask ourselves: Have I found my pearl of great price? Am I willing to let go of the temporary, shallow things of this world to fully possess the Kingdom of Heaven? Let us ask the Lord today for an understanding heart, just like Solomon. May we have the Wisdom to recognize the Kingdom, the courage to give everything for its Worth, and the grace to be its faithful Witness to the ends of the earth. Amen.
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