762. “It Couldn’t be Made Up. That’s Why the Blessed Mother Chose You”

💌 762. “It Couldn’t be Made Up. That’s Why the Blessed Mother Chose You”

As I watched the neighbors behind Mr. Bong’s house, who showed not the slightest hint of guilt even after tearing down his house, I could almost hear his voice echoing in my ears: “Ajim (Ma’am in the dialect), before I die, make sure this house is transferred to your name. Otherwise, the people behind will snatch it away. They are truly wicked.” He had always worried about the house.

I could not overcome my sorrow and regret towards him. Those neighbors had never once brought even a glass of water to the blind him while he was alive. Long before I had met him, they had gone so far as to block the drainage to his house. It was as if they had been counting the days to his death, waiting for this moment, and then seized the opportunity on the very day of his funeral to handle everything so shrewdly.

What words could possibly answer such inhuman behavior? Dumbfounded I could say nothing more. Carrying the dust-covered crucifix, the statue of the Blessed Mother, and his portrait, I stepped away from that place where the rest of his belongings were gone. Tears streamed down my face for even in this, I had brought pain to his heart now departed.

As I was leaving there taking out the crucifix, the Blessed Mother’s statue, and his portrait, elderly lady Ms. Serena, who lived across from his house, came by. She exclaimed with sorrow, “Oh dear! Mr. Bong always said that when he died the house would go to you, Julia. What on earth happened? How could such a thing happen? Why didn’t you take it? Ah… you should have just accepted it, even reluctantly, and later donated it to the Church at least. Tsk, tsk… Instead, you’ve only ended up giving those wicked ones the advantage,” she lamented with deep regret. My own heart also ached at their cruelty.

Yet I thought to myself that no matter how wrong they had been, the Lord would not want me to condemn them. So I offered up the pain practicing Semchigo as if I were loved, and I gently reminded Ms. Serena with words that would help her see with the loving gaze of Jesus, so that she would not fall into sin through her words.

“Ms. Serena! They act that way because they have no faith and don’t know any better. When our Jesus was nailed to the Cross and died, He never resented anyone but rather He prayed, ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing,’ as you know. So let us also pray for them, that they may repent. All right?” I said.

Then Ms. Serena replied, “Oh dear, it couldn’t be made up. That’s why the Blessed Mother chose you.” From then on, she continued to live her faith fervently. If I had even the slightest greed for money, I would have transferred His house into my own name, knowing that once he passed away, it would surely end up belonging to someone else.

 But I truly wished to serve him with Semchigo as if I were serving the little Jesus, and Semchigo as if he were my own deceased father, and to share and give love with a heart of simple love. For that reason, I never once desired that house for myself. Practicing Semchigo as if he had donated his house to the Church upon his passing, I returned home, praying for the neighbors behind his house blinded by greed. I carefully cleansed His memorial before placing it in the Chapel office, where I offered prayers for the dead.

“Oh Lord, my Beloved! I am nothing but an unworthy and trivial sinner. Yet I pray for those heartless, ungenerous, and obstinate ones—please forgive them.” And the Lord answered: “Yes, My beloved baby! In your utmost and pure love for Me, I am able—even if only for a moment—to forget the pain I suffer from those souls who reject and spurn My love.”

My personal reflection note with Mama Julia🌹💗 

Link 👇🏻

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScMn-IyINZ8oGN8Jv4M0-pozcdF67tEqzlPkk4s0EZKdnOdEw/viewform