Feast of Sr. Sto. Niño

Feast of the Sto. Niño

January 16, 2022, Sunday

Readings

    Reading I: Isaiah 9:1-6
    Responsorial Psalm: Ps 98:1, 2-3,3-4, 5-6
    Reading II: Ephesians 1:3-6, 15-18
    Gospel: Luke 2:41-52

Jesus Always Finds Us

When we are lost and could not find our way to God, Jesus is waiting for us at His Father’s House.

Apparently, in our Gospel reading today, Jesus was lost. He stayed in Jerusalem without the knowledge of His parents, who were already on their journey back to Nazareth. His parents anxiously searched for Him among their relatives. And not finding Him, they went back to Jerusalem to continue their search. It was only after three days of continuous searching that they found Him in the temple area, listening to the Pharisees and asking them questions. 

The Gospel presents to us Jesus being lost and how Mary and Joseph find Him. Jesus was lost. However, was He truly lost? Or was it Mary and Joseph who were actually lost?

In the Gospel, when they found Jesus at the temple, Jesus asked them, "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s House?" In saying this, Jesus implied that it was Mary and Joseph who were lost. They did not know where Jesus was. They did not know where to find Him and so they looked for Him everywhere. Actually, they were the ones who were lost, not Jesus. Jesus was exactly where He had to be, in His Father’s House.

When Christianity came to the Philippines, God found His people who were lost. It was the image of the Holy Child, the Son of God, the Sto. Niño, who found the lost people.

And yet, today, 500 years after being found, many people are still lost. They searched for God everywhere. They seem not know that God is in His temple, the Church. Let us be their guides, "tourist guides" (well, in this life, we are all resident tourists). Let us help people find Jesus by directing them to churches where Jesus is waiting for them. 

Fr. Joel R. Lasutaz, SSS

Image credit: sugbo.ph