Eqqaumaniq San Monica

Qatanngutikka nagligijaujut Kristusimi…

Isumagilauruk una takujassaq: Inuit utaqqijut tukiitigut…

Utaqqijut ullaakkut siqinirjuap saqqilerningani, sila nillataartillugu, uvaluunniit ukiukkut taartumi utaqqitillugit. Utaqqiniq inuusiup ilagimagu. Utaqqivugut tingmisuarmik tikinnissanganik, utaqquvugut sialuup nungunissanganik, utaqquvugut nalligijatta uqallangnissanganik. Ammalu isumagilauruk una: utaqqiniq tukiitigut niuvirvingmi, uvaluunniit ice cream-nik niuvirvingmi, nutaqqattut quviasuklutik siqinirjuap uqquuningani. Utaqqiniq uqumaittuuqattarmat, kisiani taanna utaqqiniq isuqaqarmat takujumajaunit, quviasungnirmut, ammalu mamartumut.

Ullumi, Katisimavissuarmi eqqaumavugut San Monica-mik. Monica anaanalaurpuq utaqqijualuulaurtumik. Utaqqilaurpuq 30-nik ukiunik tuksiaqluni erninganut Augustine-mut, uummanga saimmasimangikkaluartillugu, asiujaarsimatillugu taartumi. Monica-p utaqqininga qianirmik ammalu uqumaittumik tatatitaugaluarmat, suli tuksiaqattaqluni utaqqilaurpuq Ataniup saimmarnissanganik. Monica-p uummatikkut utaqqininga uqaqpuq uvattinnik: utaqqiniq asiujaarnirmut aqqutaungilaq, kisiani Ataniup uummammik salumarsaininganut aqqutauvuq.

Una image—"Utaqqiniq tukiitigut ammalu gift-mik tunisijumik"—tamma uummattinnik tigusiniarpuq ullumi.

Reading 1-mi, Paulos titiraqpuq Corinthians-nut: "Igive thanks to my God always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus, that in him you were enriched in every way, with all discourse and all knowledge… so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Wait for the revelation. Utaqqiluta Ataniup saqqumigiarnissanganik. Paulos uqanngilaq utaqqiniq taartuuninganik; uqaqpuq utaqqitilluta enriched-gutta saimmarnikkut, qaujimajaupluta, ammalu tigumiartaupluta Atanirmit. Ataniq sulijuq, ammalu taanna utaqqiniq isuqaqniaqpuq fellowship-mut Erninganut, Jiisusi Kristusimut.

Tagva marruuk taqqiik qangiqsimaliqtut—June 13, 2026-mit—Benjamin Vo nuulaurmat nunamit qilangmut. Marruuk taqqiik… 60-nik ukiunik qangiqsimajuq. Alan, Thao, ammalu Ryan-mut, suli ullaakkut makinniaqtillugit, illu nipiqanngippallaarami uummammi aaniarnartuq saqqiqattarpuq. Issiarvik inuqanngittuq nirivingmi… Benjamin-up qunganninga, nipingalu tusaassaarutilimat illumi…

Nallunngituugaluaq, qatanngutikka, uqumaittumi aaniarnirmi, uummavut qiaisinamat, taaqtuq isuma saqquqtisarpaa. Suuq? Suuq Benjamin? Suuq maanna? Inuusiq heavy-tut ippuq, suurlu tukiitigut utaqqijugut taartumi, ammalu siqinirjuap qaumarikninga ungasiktutut ippujuq. Comfort-niq saqquqtinnagu, uqaqtariaqaqpugut sulijumik: aaniarniq suli tatamnaqpuq. Alan ammalu Thao, ernissinnik 15-nik ukiuqaqtillugu asiujaarniq anniaqnaqtuq asuilaak. Guutiup illissi qiarumanissinnik tusaajuq, nalunngilaalu qanuq ititigimangaat uummatissinni aaniarniq. Suli qiajuvusi, ammalu Guutiup qiaqatauvuq ilissinnik. Do not rush past the wound. The silence in the house is real.

Kisiani, isumagilauruk una facet Benjamin-mit: Ben-up logic-nga, Ben-up brilliant mind-nga, ammalu taanna dream ataatami Alan-p takulaurtanga July 23, 2026-mi. Alan-p takulaurpaa dream-mi: ataatallu Ben-lu utaqqilaurmata tukiitigut ice cream-nik niuviriamik. Ammalu Ben-up akililaurpaa!

Think about this dream. It is so simple, so ordinary, yet so profound. Waiting in line for ice cream. In our earthly life, Alan, Thao, and Ryan, you are waiting in the line of grief. You are waiting in the long, heavy line of days, wondering when the sweetness of joy will return. But in that dream, Benjamin Vo was not waiting in anxiety. He was already at the front of the line. He was strong, he was happy, and he paid. He was the one giving the gift. He was already in the place of sweetness, waiting for you, not with sadness, but with the quiet confidence of a boy who has already entered the Banquet.

This dream is a reflection of today's Gospel. Jesus says: "Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Who, then, is the faithful and prudent servant, whom the master has put in charge of his household?"

Benjamin was a faithful and prudent servant. At only 15 years old, he had a mind that could soar into the heights of technology, DevOps, and cloud infrastructure, learning the very AWS environments his father mastered. He was a "photocopy" of his father, sharing that brilliant, logical mind. Yet, his heart was so simple, so gentle. He loved to listen to his Dad tell stories. He loved to watch the planes and the birds. He possessed a profound empathy, once offering his entire piggy bank to help his uncle in need—unprompted, simply wanting to give everything he had. This is the heart of a faithful servant. He did not wait for the master's arrival with fear; he lived his life with a heart wide open, ready to love, ready to serve, ready to fly.

Now, let us turn to the Gospel's call: "Stay awake!" This is not a threat of punishment. It is a call to live with our eyes open to the grace that is already here. It is a call to stay awake in love, as Saint Monica did. Monica did not sleep in despair; she stayed awake in prayer. She kept her lamp burning. And so must we.

Alan and Thao, your grief is a heavy cross. Two months have passed, and the world continues to move, but for you, time has a different weight. The temptation in grief is to close our eyes, to fall asleep in the darkness of sorrow, to think that the master has delayed or that God has forgotten us. But Paul reminds us today: "God is faithful, and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." God has not forgotten you. In the quietest hours of the night, when the tears come, God is holding you. He is keeping you firm, even when you feel you are breaking.

And Ryan, his beloved brother, his best friend. Ryan, Benjamin loved you so deeply. You shared matching shirts, sunny days in the yard, and the quiet bond of brotherhood. Ben's love for you is not gone. It is a foundation you can stand on. Ryan, you must stay awake to life. You must continue to grow, to study, to play, and to laugh—not just for yourself, but for Ben. Carry his gentle spirit in your smile. When you feel alone, remember that Ben is not far away. He is just at the front of the line, watching over you, cheering you on.

To everyone tuning in from afar, to other children who are suffering, and to every family carrying a heavy cross: You are not alone in the line. Sometimes the wait is long, and the silence is heavy. But the Master we wait for is not a thief coming to steal; He is the Lord of life coming to restore. He has already broken the power of death. He has rolled away the stone. He has prepared a place where there is no more crying, no more pain, but only the sweet, eternal joy of His presence.

Benjamin Vo is now in that place. He is with Saint Carlo Acutis, two brilliant and gentle souls who completed their earthly journey early but left behind a trail of light. Ben's legacy of love continues to flow, like the clean water of the "Giếng Gioan Baotixita" well dedicated in his name in Cà Mau, Vietnam. Just as that well brings life-sustaining water to those in need, Ben's memory brings hope and love to our hearts.

What can we carry out the door today?

Today, when you find yourself waiting—whether you are waiting in a line at a store, waiting for a phone call, or waiting in the quiet of your prayers—do not let that time be empty. Let it be a holy waiting. Remember Saint Monica's patient faith. Remember Benjamin Vo waiting in line in his father's dream, ready to pay, ready to share the sweetness. Look up, and say a quiet prayer:

"Lord Jesus, give us the grace to stay awake in love. Keep us firm to the end, and comfort Alan, Thao, and Ryan in their waiting. Help us to live with gentle hearts like Benjamin's, looking forward to the day when we will join him at Your eternal banquet."

Benjamin Vo, saimmalirit Ataniup qaumarikningani isuqaqanngittumi.

Amen.