12/10/2026
Amen
HOMILY TRANSCRIPT | WHEN YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT TO SAY, PRAY
Fr. Jomar Burgos Parish Priest of St. Peter the Apostle Parish, Manila
Oct. 7, 2026 , Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary
GOSPEL : Luke 11:1-4
Link: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1C6Kt6X2Kn/?mibextid=wwXIfr
My dear brothers and sisters, meron po bang pagkakataon minsan sa buhay natin na gusto nating magdasal, pero hindi natin alam kung ano yung sasabihin. At times we want to pray, but we do not know how to pray and what to say in prayer. Maybe we have experienced this. You enter the church, you sit down, you make the sign of the cross, and then nothing. You do not know how to begin. You do not know how to begin, maybe because you are tired. Maybe because you are worried. Maybe because there are too many things happening in your mind and even in your life. Or maybe the problem is so heavy that you cannot even put it into words. You do not know how to do it. You simply sit there and said, Lord, alam kong alam mo kung ano yung nasa puso ko.
And perhaps that is why the request of the disciples in today's Gospel is so beautiful. They saw Jesus praying, and when he finished, one of them said, Lord, teach us to pray. They requested Jesus to teach them to pray. Notice something: they did not ask Jesus, Lord, teach us how to perform miracles. They did not ask Jesus, Lord, teach us how to preach eloquently. They did not ask Jesus, Lord, teach us how to cast out demons. Rather, they asked Jesus to teach them how to pray.
And because somehow they understood that the strength of Jesus came from his relationship with the Father. Nakikita nila ’yan, napapansin nila ’yan. And so Jesus taught them the Our Father. And today, until today, we pray this particular prayer taught by Jesus. And of course today we are also celebrating the memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary, and whenever we speak of the Blessed Mother, we cannot but remember or speak another kind of prayer that is close to the hearts of many Filipinos, and that is the prayer of the Holy Rosary. For many Filipinos, the rosary is one of the first prayers we learn. Isa ’yan sa mga natatandaan natin or natutunan natin na dasalin.
Perhaps we have seen our grandparents or parents or our catechists or elders praying the rosary, holding the beads. And the rosary gives us words when we cannot find our own. Ginagamit or dinadasal natin yung rosaryo kasi minsan hindi natin alam paano sabihin yung dasal, and we use the rosary to be able to pray what we cannot pray. There will be moments when you can pray beautifully, very spontaneous, but there will also be moments when all you can manage to say is Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be. And sometimes that is enough, because prayer is not primarily about saying impressive things to God.
Hindi mo kailangan magbulaklak ng salita. Hindi mo kailangan magpa-impress sa Diyos. You don't even need to tell the Lord, Lord, I memorize a lot of prayers—prayers about remaining with God, nananatili sa Diyos. A child does not always have to speak when sitting beside his mother. Kapagka yung isang anak, na bata, hindi naman kailangan magsalita nang magsalita to express himself pag kasama yung kanyang nanay. And sometimes it is enough that the child stays there. It is in the same way, there are moments when we do not need to explain everything to God. We just simply stay, we hold the beads, we contemplate on the life of Jesus, and we utter the prayer. We say the prayer.
That is why the rosary is not merely repetition of words. It is a prayer that keeps bringing us back to Jesus. Remember, the rosary is not just simply about the Blessed Mother. It's a contemplation of the life of Jesus. We try to look at the mysteries. We contemplate Jesus being conceived, being born, Jesus preaching, performing miracles, carrying the cross, dying on the cross, and rising after death. The rosary may be Marian in its rhythm, Hail Mary, full of grace, but Christ is at its center. Tunog Marian, pero ang sentro si Maria. Mary always points us toward her Son, and perhaps that is especially important when life becomes difficult. Itinuturo ni Maria lumapit tayo sa Diyos. And perhaps that is important.
When somebody in the family is sick, the Blessed Mother is telling us, Pray. When there is tension in your marriage, pray. When you are anxious about finances, pray. And when you are carrying grief that nobody else seems to understand, pray. Not because prayer magically removes every problem. Hindi naman po ganyan yung karanasan natin na pag nagdasal tayo, matatanggal kaagad lahat ng problema. We pray because prayer reminds us that we do not carry our problems alone. pinapaalalahanan tayo, hindi natin bitbit yung problema na tayo lamang.
And sometimes we say, No, Father, yung rosaryo naman paulit-ulit 'yan, repetitive. But perhaps repetition is not always meaningless. Think of the words we often say to people we love every day. Yung mga simpleng salita na sinasabi natin araw-araw: Ingat ka, kumain ka sa tama, mag-text ka pagdating mo, at mahal kita. We tell these words every day, paulit-ulit, again and again. And we repeat them because some things are worth saying again and again. And the rosary is something like that. Again and again: Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be. Again and again. And slowly, the prayer moves from our lips into our hearts.
Makita po natin, hindi na lang siya sa bibig lumalabas ang nangungusap na, yung ating kalooban at puso. And so today, as we celebrate the memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary, perhaps we can take a very simple invitation. And what is that? Pick up your rosary again. When was the last time you prayed the rosary? Maybe you have not prayed it for a long time, and so you start praying again. Start with a decade. Maybe pray it while commuting later on, papasok sa trabaho. Pray it quietly before sleeping tonight. Pray it with your children. Pray it for someone who asked you, “Ipadasal mo naman ako.” And when you run out of words, do not worry. Just hold the beads and begin saying, Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be.
And with Mary beside us, may we discover that prayer is not simply something we say. Prayer is where we learn to place our life in the hands of God. Doon po tayo natututong ipagkatiwala ang buhay natin sa kamay ng Diyos. And so tonight, before we sleep, pray the rosary. But pray it slowly, and offer each bead for one person, or for each bead for a concern that you are carrying in your heart. And as we end this reflection, let us tell the Lord and the Blessed Mother, Our Lady of the Rosary, teach us to stay close to Jesus, especially when we no longer know what to say. Amen.
