Diocese of Cubao - Biblical Apostolate

25/04/2026

04/04/2026

EASTER 2026
✨ Three Types of Proclamation of the Resurrection in the New Testament

1️⃣ Jesus’ Own Predictions of His Resurrection
(e.g., Mark 9:9)

2️⃣ Kerygma – short, foundational proclamations about the Resurrection found across the New Testament

3️⃣ Easter Narratives – expressed in three forms:
• The Empty Tomb
• The Appearances
• The Ascension

📖 On the Kerygma

The oldest formulation (c. 56 A.D.) is found in
First Epistle to the Corinthians 15:3–5:

“Christ died for our sins…
that he was buried;
that he was raised on the third day…
and that he appeared…”

This is the core proclamation:
🔥 Death – Burial – Resurrection – Appearances

📜 Other Kerygmatic Expressions in the New Testament

• Acts 2:24 – God raised him from death
• Acts 3:15 – God raised him from the dead
• Romans 10:9 – God raised him from the dead
• 1 Thessalonians 1:10 – Jesus, whom he raised from the dead
• 2 Timothy 2:8 – Jesus Christ, raised from the dead

⛪ Preserved in the Mass (Mystery of Faith Acclamations)
(cf. Roman Missal)

• “We proclaim your Death, O Lord, and profess your Resurrection, until you come again.”

• “When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup, we proclaim your Death, O Lord, until you come again.”

• “Save us, Savior of the world, for by your Cross and Resurrection you have set us free.”

💡 Where do these come from?

They are not direct quotations, but liturgical syntheses of the New Testament kerygma. The first option, for example, comes:

• From
1 Corinthians 11:26
→ “we proclaim… until he comes”

• and From
1 Corinthians 15:3–4
→ Christ’s death and resurrection

👉 The Church expanded the biblical formula:
from proclaiming the Death → to proclaiming the full Paschal Mystery: Death + Resurrection + Coming again

🔥 The Resurrection is not only remembered—
it is proclaimed, celebrated, and lived.

Visit my YouTube channel for full lecture on the Resurrection in the New Testament.
https://youtu.be/Pg2tFBIpans?si=0MCaj0Q6nUzdXJ0t

Happy Easter to all!

(ccto of design: J. de Guzman)

03/04/2026

✨ 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐇𝐀𝐒 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐄 ✨

From Mark’s “My God, Why?” to John’s “It Is Finished”
📖 The Cross: Abandonment or Glory?

⸻

There is something deeply unsettling about the earliest written account of the Passion in the Gospel of Mark.

Everything collapses.

Judas betrays.
Peter denies.
All flee.

Night falls. God is silent.

And on the cross, Jesus speaks only once:

💔 “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

This is Mark’s Jesus—utterly human.
Entering the deepest abyss of abandonment.

So human… that Jürgen Moltmann called it:
📚 The Crucified God

👉 A God who does not stand above suffering…
but enters into it.
👉 A God who does not silence the cry…
but cries it.

⸻

But when we turn to the Gospel of John…

✨ something changes.

The Passion is no longer just suffering—
it is the Hour:

“The hour has come…”

The Hour of glorification.

Jesus is not overwhelmed.
He steps forward.
He carries his cross.
He speaks with purpose:

✨ “I thirst.”
✨ “It is finished.”

No cry of abandonment.
No silence of defeat.

👉 The cross becomes a throne.
👉 The death becomes completion.

⸻

So which is it?

💔 Abandonment (Mark)?
✨ Glory (John)?

Both.

Mark shows the depth of the cross.
John shows its height.

Mark: what it feels like — silence, failure, darkness.
John: what it means — fulfillment, love, glory.

⸻

Because there are moments when we only understand Mark:

When God seems silent.
When prayer feels empty.
When suffering makes no sense.

But faith allows us, slowly, to see as John sees:

✨ Even here… something is being fulfilled.
✨ Even here… love is being revealed.
✨ Even here… the Hour has come.

⸻

From
💔 “My God, why have you forsaken me?”

to
✨ “It is finished.”

This is the journey of the Passion.
This is the mystery of the cross.

⸻

📚 References

• Jürgen Moltmann, The Crucified God
• Raymond E. Brown, The Death of the Messiah
• Klemens Stock, Il racconto della passione nei vangeli sinottici
• Jon Sobrino, Christology at the Crossroads

03/04/2026

02/04/2026

✨ Mandatum Novum on a Maundy Thursday: A New Way of Loving

💬 “𝑺𝒆𝒆 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓!”
a pagan would exclaim in admiration in the Third Century (A.D.) whenever he or she saw Christians (cf. Tertullian, Apology 39.6).

⚠️ “𝑺𝒆𝒆 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓!”
a pagan might say today when he or she sees Christians destroying each other on social media.

❤️ “𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓.”
This commandment, addressed particularly to the disciples, belongs to the first part of Jesus' long Farewell Speech at the Last Supper (see 13:31–17:26). It is to be the response to the new reality that is to be brought about by Jesus' passion, death, and resurrection. That is why, before Jesus pronounces the new commandment (Novum Mandatum in Latin), he speaks of his “glorification.” For the writer of the Fourth Gospel, Jesus’ glorification is the one event of his passion, death, resurrection, and ascension.

📖 “𝑰 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓” (13:34).
What makes this commandment “new” (13:34)? It seems this is not even original to Jesus. In the Book of Jubilees, a Jewish religious writing in the Second Century B.C. which reworks the materials found in Genesis and Exodus, the patriarch Isaac leaves a farewell commandment to his sons, Esau and Jacob: “Love one another, my sons, as a man loves himself, with each man seeking for his brother what is good for him . . . loving each other as themselves” (Jubilees 36:4–5).

📜 In a similar manner, the Apostle Paul, writing around 50 A.D., exhorts the Christians in Thessalonica: “Now concerning love of the brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anyone write to you, for yourselves have been taught by God to love one another” (1 Thess 4:9). Similar exhortations are found also in Sir 27:17; Rom 13:9; Gal 5:14; Mark 12:31. The commandment echoes as well a much older biblical text, Lev 19:18, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

🕊️ The newness of this commandment can be understood better if we take into its background the theme of the “new covenant” in Jeremiah 31:31–34.

📖 Writing at the end of the Babylonian Exile (ca. 531 B.C.), Jeremiah (chapter 31) prophesies a reunited people of God (Israel and Judah v. 31) under a new and unbreakable covenant:

The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD.
But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the LORD,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

⚠️ God reminds the Jews of a broken covenant with him which resulted in the punishment in the Exile. That covenant was made with Moses at Sinai. It is the old covenant from the time of Moses to the Babylonian Exile. God’s own fingers wrote the covenant on stone tablets (Exod 31:18). It would be valid forever, for all places and for all times—a Berit Olam, “a perpetual covenant.” This covenant was broken, however.

💍 A broken covenant does not mean it is the end of that covenant. A broken marriage vows, for instance, does not mean that the bond of marriage is broken as well. The marriage does not cease to exist, but it is in crisis. Everything depends on what the couple do next.

✨ Even though Israel broke the covenant, it does not cease to exist. God does not make another covenant. God’s promise to be with his people remains valid. But over that broken covenant, God extends pardon. With it, God promises that the old covenant will be renewed. It will become “new” in the sense of better, different, no longer breakable covenant. It is to be written directly to the heart.

✝️ For Christians, this promise in Jeremiah is fulfilled in Jesus (Lk 22:20; 1 Cor 11:25; Heb 8:13; 12:24). The new covenant, no longer be broken, is written in the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

🔥 The Mandatum Novum (The New Commandment) in John’s Gospel is not new in the sense of being original. It is new because it is different; it is renewed by Jesus.

❤️ The reason to love one another is no longer just to feel good and safe, no enemy to worry about, and establish a smooth interpersonal relationship with others. The reason for the love for one another is no other than Jesus.

26/03/2026

Friday of 5th Week of Lent
March 27, 2026
-Jeremiah 20:10-13
-John 10:31–42

✨ “When Friends Become Enemies”

In the film The Godfather Part II,
Michael Corleone says:

💬 “Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.”

It is a wisdom of the world—
be careful, be watchful, because relationships can change.

👉 sometimes the best friend becomes the worst enemy.

⸻

💔 Jeremiah’s Pain

In today’s reading,
Jeremiah 20:10 says:

“All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine.”

Friends have turned into enemies.
Those who once walked with him now wait for him to fall.

⸻

✝️ Even Jesus

Even Jesus experienced this.
One of his own,
Judas Iscariot,
became his betrayer.

👉 The closer the friendship, the deeper the wound.

⸻

🧠 Why Friendships Fail

As Aristotle explains,
some friendships are based only on usefulness or pleasure.

👉 When these disappear, the friendship collapses.
👉 And a friend can easily become an enemy.

Only one kind lasts:
👉 friendship based on what is good and true.

⸻

🙏 Wisdom of Sirach

But Scripture gives the deepest foundation:

Sirach 6:16–17
“A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter…
Those who fear the Lord direct their friendship aright.”

24/03/2026

MARCH 25: THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD
Isaiah 7:10–14, 8:10; Psalm 40; Hebrews 10:4–10; Luke 1:26–38

✨ Today’s readings reveal not only Mary’s response, but also the feelings of Jesus at the moment of the Incarnation.

🕊️ Jesus says:
“Behold, I come to do your will, O God” (Heb 10:7)

🌸 Mary responds:
“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”

💖 One heart. One obedience. One “Yes” to the Father.

🙏 Mary’s openness flows from faith:
“Blessed are you who believed” (Lk 1:45)

🌟 She trusted God’s promise—even when it seemed impossible.

🔥 The same is true for us:
We can follow God’s will only if we trust in His goodness.

🌍 God desires fullness of life for all.
Even in suffering, He prepares joy.

🙏 Lord, grant us Mary’s faith—
a heart ready to say YES.

22/03/2026

Daniel 13 on Monday Fifth Week of Lent

📖✨ SUSANNA AND THE DESTRUCTION OF FALSE WITNESS

The Greek versions of the Book of Daniel contain an additional story—Susanna—which introduces Daniel as a young boy endowed with extraordinary wisdom and insight.

🕰️ This composition dates to the Hellenistic period.

⸻

⚖️ A Story About False Witness

The narrative recounts Susanna, a Judean exile in Babylon, who becomes the victim of false witness—falsely accused of adultery by two elders of the community.

👉 At its heart, the story is not only about personal morality
—but about the abuse of authority and the deadly power of lies.

⸻

🔥 When Leaders Become False Witnesses

The elders, entrusted to guide the people, instead become corrupt accusers.

They manipulate their position, distort the truth, and attempt to force sin:

💬 “Give your consent, and lie with us” (v. 20)

When Susanna refuses, they turn to false testimony—
using lies as weapons to destroy the innocent.

⸻

🌸 Truth Under Attack

Susanna is trapped between sin and death:

👉 “I will not sin in the sight of the Lord” (vv. 22–23)

Condemned by false witness (v. 41),
🙏 she places her trust in God (vv. 42–43).

⸻

👁️ God Hears—Truth Responds

God hears her cry (v. 44).

Through Daniel, truth breaks through deception:
the lies are exposed, the false witnesses are unmasked (vv. 48–61).

⚖️ Justice is restored.
🔥 And in a dramatic reversal:

👉 The false witnesses suffer the very judgment they intended
(cf. Deut 19:19).

⸻

🕊️ Voice of the Early Church

Already in the 2nd century, St. Irenaeus of Lyons condemned such corruption:

💬 “Those who should have been elders of justice became witnesses of falsehood… bearing false testimony against the innocent.”

👉 A timeless warning:
False witness is not only a sin—it is a betrayal of truth and responsibility.

⸻

🌟 A Timeless Lesson

This story reminds us:

✨ False witness may appear powerful.
✨ It may even condemn the innocent for a time.

👉 But in the end:
truth will rise, expose the lie, and destroy it.

21/03/2026

📖 Fifth Sunday of Lent:
The Death and Resurrection of Lazarus (John 11:1–44):

🔥 One of the most powerful and dramatic moments in the Gospel of John—
the raising of Lazarus is not just a miracle… it is a revelation.

🧠 1. Is this history or symbol?

Some scholars question the story:
• Some deny miracles altogether
• Others say we cannot prove historicity
• Some link it to Luke’s parable of Lazarus

But John presents it differently:
✨ This is not fiction—it is a real event with deep theological meaning.

👉 The Evangelist treats it as history that reveals truth.

🏠 2. The Setting: Love and Delay

Lazarus, with Mary and Martha, lives in Bethany (near Jerusalem).
Jesus deeply loves them.

Yet—He delays.

💬 “This sickness will not end in death… but for the glory of God.”

Why the delay?
• To follow the Father’s timing
• To make the sign unmistakable (4 days dead)
• To deepen faith

👉 Not indifference—but faith-forming love.

🚶‍♂️ 3. The Journey: Walking in the Light

The disciples fear danger.
Jesus speaks of walking in the light—doing God’s will.

💬 “Lazarus is asleep…”
(They misunderstand—Jesus means death.)

Thomas responds:
👉 “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.”
—faith mixed with fear, yet still courageous.

✝️ 4. The Heart of the Gospel

Jesus declares:

💬 “I am the resurrection and the life.”

This means:
• 🌅 Future: we will rise
• 🌿 Present: eternal life begins now

Then the question comes to us:

👉 “Do you believe this?”

Martha answers with faith:
“You are the Christ, the Son of God.”

😢 5. Jesus Wept

Jesus meets Mary—and He is deeply moved.

Not just sadness… but outrage at:
• death
• suffering
• unbelief

💧 “Jesus wept.”

👉 He shares our grief—
yet He also confronts what destroys life.

🪨 6. The Miracle

At the tomb:

💬 “Take away the stone.”

💬 “If you believe, you will see the glory of God.”

Then Jesus cries out:

🔥 “Lazarus, come out!”

And the dead man walks out.

💬 “Unbind him, and let him go.”

✨ 7. What does this mean?

This is more than a miracle:

🔹 It is the greatest sign before the Passion
🔹 It reveals Jesus as the source of life
🔹 It points to His own death and resurrection
🔹 It calls us to faith

💡 FINAL INSIGHT

👉 The raising of Lazarus is not just about bringing a man back to life.

It reveals:
✨ Who Jesus is
✨ The glory of God
✨ That life is stronger than death

🙏 Do you believe this?