CHILDREN FIRST
February 11, 2010
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“Let the children be fed first.” – Mark 7:27
My eyes popped out and my jaw dropped when I opened my birthday gift from our 26-year-old daughter,
Trina. It was a Louie Vuitton speedy bag. It was the real thing, not just a Korean knockoff.
I had mixed feelings. Part of me was regretful knowing how much money she had spent on me. But part of
me was also joyful knowing how precious I must be to her to merit such a totally unexpected present. Trina
is a new lawyer, a much-deserved reward after many years of hard work and sleepless nights in law school.
Since she became a junior associate in a law firm, she has lavished us with treasured gifts including a
large screen LCD TV and an LCD desktop computer.
Her birthday card said it all, “For all the times you put us first.” It suddenly dawned on me that indeed, my
husband, Raul, and I have always put the needs of our children Peevee and Trina before our own. If this is
the case with us mortal parents, how much more for our heavenly Father
above? Mari Sison-Garcia (mari_sison_garcia@yahoo.com)
REFLECTION:
“Let all those that put their trust in Thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy” (Psalm 5:11).
Loving Father, thank You for loving me beyond measure.
1st READING
The marriages of convenience of Solomon are coming back to haunt him. His wives begin to introduce
worship of alien gods into his household and into the nation of Israel . It is a lesson to us that our lives need
to be kept pure from anything that might contaminate our faithfulness to God. We live in the world but we are
not of the world. This is a critical distinction that easily gets blurred if we are not ruthless in dealing with
spiritual errors.
1 Kings 11:4-13
4 When Solomon was old his wives had turned his heart to strange gods, and his heart was not entirely with
the LORD, his God, as the heart of his father David had been. 5 By adoring Astarte, the goddess of the
Sidonians, and Milcom, the idol of the Ammonites, 6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not
follow him unreservedly as his father David had done. 7 Solomon then built a high place to Chemosh, the
idol of Moab , and to Molech, the idol of the Ammonites, on the hill opposite Jerusalem . 8 He did the same
for all his foreign wives who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. 9 The LORD, therefore, became
angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had
appeared to him twice 10 (for though the LORD had forbidden him this very act of following strange gods,
Solomon had not obeyed him). 11 So the LORD said to Solomon, “Since this is what you want, and you have
not kept my covenant and my statutes which I enjoined on you, I will deprive you of the kingdom and give it to
your servant. 12 I will not do this during your lifetime, however, for the sake of your father David; it is your son
whom I will deprive. 13 Nor will I take away the whole kingdom. I will leave your son one tribe for the sake of
my servant David and of Jerusalem , which I have chosen.”
P S A L M
Psalm 106:3-4, 35-36, 37, 40
R: Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.
3 Blessed are they who observe what is right, who do always what is just. 4 Remember me, O LORD, as you
favor your people; visit me with your saving help. (R) 35 But they mingled with the nations and learned their
works. 36 They served their idols, which became a snare for them. (R) 37 They sacrificed their sons and
their daughters to demons. 40 And the LORD grew angry with his people, and abhorred his inheritance. (R)
G O S P E L
The pagan woman has more faith than most of the Jewish people. This is a scandalous situation that
immediately challenges me to ask whether I have as much faith as she has. Sometimes I think the answer
is in the affirmative but other times it is not. If the same is true for you, join me in working on the times our
faith is weak and seek to strengthen it by the grace of the Holy Spirit.
Mark 7:24-30
24 Jesus went to the district of Tyre. He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it, but he could
not escape notice. 25 Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him. She came
and fell at his feet. 26 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth, and she begged him to drive the
demon out of her daughter. 27 He said to her, “Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food
of the children and throw it to the dogs.” 28 She replied and said to him, “Lord, even the dogs under the table
eat the children’s scraps.” 29 Then he said to her, “For saying this, you may go. The demon has gone out of
your daughter.” 30 When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.
Lourdes : A Place of Light and Love
In September 2008, Pope Benedict XVI visited Lourdes . One of the most impressive moments there is the
candlelight procession held every evening. The Pope participated and spoke at the end to the pilgrims. I just
selected for today’s feast some passages from his homily: “On 11 February 1858, in this place known as the
Grotto of Massabielle, a simple young girl from Lourdes, Bernadette Soubirous, saw a light, and in this light
she saw a young lady who was ‘beautiful, more beautiful than any other.’ This woman addressed her with
kindness and gentleness, with respect and trust: ‘Would you do me the kindness of coming here for a
fortnight?’ she asked her.... It was in this conversation, in this dialogue marked by such delicacy, that the
Lady instructed her to deliver certain very simple messages on prayer, penance and conversion....”
“Countless people have borne witness to this: when they encountered Bernadette’s radiant face, it left a
deep impression on their hearts and minds.... The daily life of the Soubirous family was nevertheless a tale
of deprivation and sadness... rejection and poverty. Even if there was no lack of love and warmth in family
relationships, life at the cachot was hard. Nevertheless, the shadows of the earth did not prevent the light of
heaven from shining.... Lourdes is one of the places chosen by God for His beauty to be reflected with
particular brightness, hence the importance here of the symbol of light.... Lourdes is a place of light because
it is a place of communion, hope and conversion. Jesus says to us: ‘keep your lamps burning’ (Luke 12:35);
the lamp of faith, the lamp of prayer, the lamp of hope and love!”
“In this shrine at Lourdes ... we are invited to discover the simplicity of our vocation: it is enough to love. May
the Virgin Mary and Saint Bernadette help you to live as children of light in order to testify... that Christ is our
light, our hope and our life! Amen.” Fr. Rudy Horst, SVD
Reflection Question:
Do I pray the Rosary mechanically or — as Pope John Paul II taught — in a meditative way, gazing at Jesus
through the eyes of Mary?
Lord, thank You for giving us Your beloved Mother as our Mother, too. May I not just venerate her in an
emotional way, but “sit in her school” and so learn more about You.
St. Severinus, pray for us.
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