By DSS. NORMA P. DOLLAGA
Kasimbayan
Zec 9:9-10
Ps 145:1-2, 8-9, 10-11, 13-14
Rom 8:9, 11-13
Mt 11:25-30
Nag-aawitan ang mga magsasaka
Nagsasalitan ng tula at kanta
Naghihiyawan ang tagadalampasigan
Nagsasayawan ang mga mangingisda
Ang namamasukan sa mga pagawaan
Naglalabasan at sila’y tuwangtuwaPalubog na, palubog na
Ang haring araw sa kanluran
Pauwi na, pauwi na
Ang haring lawin sa kanluranNagsasayahan ang mga may kapansanan
Kababaihan at mga mag-aaral
Ang mga kawal at alagad ng Sambahan
Ang makasining at mga makaagham
Ang mangangalakal, guro at lingkod ng bayan
Nagkakaisa sa iisang inaasamPalubog na, palubog na…
– Kanluran (Garry Granada)
The setting of the sun signals the time to come home, a time for rest from the daily toils. But for the poor workers in highly urbanized areas rest is a luxury. The none-stop rotation of work propagated by capitalism, rest is counter-productive. There is no rest for the weary. A worker will go home after his laborious and intensive job, he will be catching up his ride home, squeezed their way into jam-packed buses or jeepneys during the rush hour trapped in heat of the city traffic, and the crowd’s lot. There is no such thing as rest in a third world-capitalist laden society. Without rest, we are just like machines, devoid of meaning. Tired and weary, the workers will arrive too late in the evening, have dinner to whatever is the cheapest available meal- worth the budget they can get from having to receive a minimum wage of P570. They will wake up very early in the morning, to queue on the toilet shared with neighborhood, and make it sure to use only one pail of water, as it costs them P2.00 per bucket. Having breakfast of cheaply sold noodles with coffee is a luxury…only to find themselves going back to work again, to be a slave for another day. A day-to-day grind to push through another day.
There is no rest. No weekend to look forward to. Up until today, it makes them wonder what “Happy weekend” is all about. No summer vacation for sea, sand or sun, for theirs is indebtedness.
There is no rest for the weary.
“I believe in God. In the midst of hardship and constant threats of demolition, I ask God, ‘Where were you when our house was being demolished? Are you really accompanying us?’ Then I looked up the sky, I saw high rising buildings that prevent me from seeing heaven” say Nanay Inday, an urban poor leader.
There is no rest.
Yet, here comes Jesus, promising rest, his yoke is easy and his burden is light.
He knows. He believes when the poor cry or is in grief. He knows their thirst and hunger. He knows when they could not raise their heads and pray.
Come to Jesus. He believes when the poor cry or is in grief. When the poor longs for rest, he knows. Who would not aspire and dream for rest from oppression, exploitation and denial of rights and dignity? Who would not long for a rest from hunger, disease and thirst?
Jesus’ platform and mission includes a life of healthy living – we need rest, to be renewed and to be restored. But until such a system of exploitation exists, REST becomes a privilege of the few. Rest should be for everybody. We must resist to rest. To resist from oppression, is also to receive abundant life—where burden is shared.
“Everyone will find rest beneath their own fig trees or grapevines, and they will live in pace. This is a solemn promise of the Lord All-Powerful.” Micah 4:4 (CEV). 
Balik-Tanaw is a group blog of Promotion of Church People’s Response. The Lectionary Gospel reflection is an invitation for meditation, contemplation, and action. As we nurture our faith by committing ourselves to journey with the people, we also wish to nourish the perspective coming from the point of view of hope and struggle of the people. It is our constant longing that even as crisis intensifies, the faithful will continue to strengthen their commitment to love God and our neighbor by being one with the people in their dreams and aspirations. The Title of the Lectionary Reflection would be Balik –Tanaw , isang PAGNINILAY . It is about looking back (balik) or revisiting the narratives and stories from the Biblical text and seeing, reading, and reflecting on these with the current context (tanaw).
