(This was a reflection I gave during the Opening Rosary of the Filipino Rosary Crusade-Nottingham North yesterday. During our Rosary this month, we will be reflecting/sharing on the 12 articles of Faith contained in the Apostles' Creed.)
"I believe in God the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth."
There is a famous Filipino saying that goes like this "Ang anak matitiis ang magulang, pero ang magulang di matitiis ang anak." (Children may take their parents for granted, but parents will not take their children for granted.) I'm sure this saying also applies to God.
When we have a look at the various stories in the Bible, we could see how God reaches out to us. From Adam and Eve to the patriarchs, judges, prophets, kings, and finally through Jesus Christ His only Son. In Jesus, God is presented as our Father. For the Jews this was a shock for they couldn't even say the word "God" out of reverence for the Almighty.
Jesus taught a lot about God the Father who is loving and merciful. This was best illustrated by the famous Parable of the Prodigal Son.
The challenge for us is: Huwag nating tiiisin o tikisin ang Diyos Ama. (Let's not ignore or provoke God our Father.) God wants to reach out to us and yet, we ignore Him or worse provoke Him. He calls us to change and yet we continue to do things that are not pleasing to Him.
And because all of us call God as Father, we are all siblings. And so, Huwag nating tiisin o tikisin ang ating kapwa (Let's not ignore or provoke our neighbor). If we could help, then let's do so. If people are already down, let's not put make things more difficult for them. If they are angry, let's not fuel their anger further.
Finally, because we believe in God our Father as the creator of heaven and earth, Huwag nating tiisin o tikisin ang Kanyang mga nilikha (Let's not ignore or provoke His creation). How do we care about our environment nowadays? Do we reuse and recycle? Do we switch off the light when not needed? These may sound simple things, but these are part of our faith.
If we regard God as our Father, if we regard Him as the source of life of all creation then we'll have a deeper faith in Him. A deeper faith will prod us to hope that we'll soon be united with Him in heaven. And because He has shown us His love, we will also be able to love Him in return.
"If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts" (Psalm 95).
