My Lord and My God

Second Sunday of Easter (B) -     

April 15, 2012:                          Thomas asked, “Lord, we do not know where you are

                                                        going. How can we know the way?” Jesus stated: “I  

                                                          am the way, the truth, and the life.”

            Today’s Gospel reading contains what scripture scholar Bruce Vawter calls “the most complete affirmation of Christ’s nature to be found on the lips of anyone in the gospel.” This precious affirmation is uttered by the apostle Thomas who should be better known as the “courageous Thomas” with his ready reaction of clearly speaking his views regardless of the pressures to agree or to remain silent.

His calm heroic strength is ignored by the Synoptic Gospels. Only John highlights a few incidents where Thomas’ courage shines forth. In John 11:16 when Christ’s life appeared to be in critical danger, Thomas urges the rest of the Apostles: “Let us go along and die with him.” In Jn 14/5, Jesus is telling the Twelve about eternal life, “You know the way that leads to where I go.” In reality they did not know what Jesus meant; only Thomas broke into the Lord’s dialogue and asked, “Lord, we do not know where you are going, how can we know the way?” Jesus stated, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” A week later when Jesus invited Thomas to see and to touch his open wounds, the truth now became clear and Thomas said: “My Lord and my God!”

            Confident that God our Father welcomes our request, we now pray: “ALMIGHTY FATHER, GIVE US THE GRACE TO LIVE OUR TOMORROWS GUIDED BY THE CENTRAL MISSION OF JESUS. WE ASK YOU THIS THROUGH JESUS YOU SON OUR LORD. AMEN”

Easter Faith

Easter Sunday  (B) –

April 8, 2012: John 20: 1-9     “Then the disciple who arrived first at the tomb went in.

                                                        He saw and he believed!”

            Because of the Sabbath, it was very early on Sunday morning that Mary Magdalene went to the tomb. When she arrived she was amazed and shocked to find the stone removed. This was a situation Mary felt she could not face herself. So she returned to the city to look for Peter and John. Mary, we realize, is the supreme example of one who went on loving and believing even when she could not understand and this is the love and the belief which in the end finds glory. So, then, it was to Peter and John that Mary went and they immediately set out for the tomb. They went running and the younger John outstripped Peter in this breathless race. With typical impulsiveness, Peter not only looked in, but went in, For the moment, Peter was only amazed at the empty tomb; but things began to happen in John’s mind. If tomb robbers were at work, why should they leave the grave clothes? Then something else struck John – the grave clothes were neither disheveled nor disarranged. They were lying there still in their folds. This sight suddenly penetrated to John’s mind. John realized what had happened--- and John believed! It was what John saw with his own eyes that convinced him that Jesus had risen!

            John was the first instance of what we call “Easter faith”. What John believed and what we celebrate today is the same reality – CHRIST IS RISEN! The empty tomb is the proof that Jesus has conquered both sin and death.

            On this glorious feast day, we give thanks to the Lord and we now confidently pray: “GOD OUR FATHER. WE PRAY THAT THE JOY OF THIS EASTER DAY MAY PENETRATE OUR MINDS AND HEARTS AND BRING US CLOSER TO YOU. WE ASK THIS IN THE NAME OF JESUS, THE RISEN LORD. AMEN.”

Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion (B)

The Passion of Jesus according to Mark            “And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed his last.”

 April 1, 2012

How deeply do I realize that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, loves me and gave himself for me? (Gal. 22:20) The final week of Lent offers us an opportunity to bring our hearts and minds into harmony with Christ. As you attend the Church ceremonies which dramatize the last agonizing moments of Jesus’ life, listen to the passion story in a spirit of prayer and embrace its message. There is no point in comforting ourselves with the thought that a group of Jews 2,000 years ago crucified Christ. Each of us had a hand in his death because the face of Christ is marred and scarred by the injury we inflict on our fellowmen. If we are honest, we can see shades of ourselves in the people who put Jesus to death. Peter and Judas, Pilate and the soldiers should make us reflect on the treachery and the evil that reside within all us. No one can follow Jesus through the liturgy of Holy Week without this truth deeply dawning anew in our hearts. However, the undeniable truth is that God loves each one of us with a love that cost his death on the cross.

As we remember, the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, with confidence we place our requests before our heavenly Father:

“ALMIGHTY FATHER, IN YOUR INFINITE WISDOM AND LOVE, YOU HAVE SAVED THE WORLD THROUGH THE CROSS OF CHRIST, YOUR SON. MAY WE ALWAYS REMAIN FAITHFUL WITNESSES TO THAT CROSS IN OUR DAILY LIVES. THIS IS OUR PRAYER THROUGH JESUS CHRIST YOUR SON OUR LORD, AMEN.”

The Grain

Fifth Sunday of Lent (B)

John 12: 20 -33     “Unless the grain of wheat is brought down into the earth and dies, it remains

                                    just a grain of wheat”

March 25, 2012

To follow Christ, means to travel the same road as His, to lay down our lives, and to leave everything totally in the hands of God our Father. To drive home this point, Jesus takes an example from the world of nature. Our lives, like Christ’s, must be like the grain of wheat which is brought down into the earth to produce new life. The grain of wheat dying in the earth shows us how we must uproot our attachments, our selfishness before we can start living the life of Christ. We must never forget that we ourselves are God’s grain of wheat. What does to be buried in the earth mean? It means avoiding sin, accepting suffering and living for others. Christ’s way of the cross begins at our own doorstep and this is His challenge to each one of us – to follow His path of pain and suffering in our daily lives.

Firmly believing that God our Father will bring us through our pain and suffering to everlasting life, we now pray: “ O LOVING FATHER, YOUR SON TELLS US THAT HE IS THE GRAIN OF WHEAT WHICH IS BROUGHT DOWN INTO THE EARTH AND DIES IN ORDER TO YIELD A RICH HARVEST. LIKE YOUR SON JESUS, HELP US TO UPROOT OUR SELFISHNESS SO THAT OUR LIVES MAY BE MORE OPEN TO YOUR LOVE. THIS IS OUR PRAYER THROUGH JESUS CHRIST YOUR SON OUR LORD. AMEN.” 

Born Again

Fourth Sunday of the Lent (Year B)

John 3: 14 – 21        “Can anyone be born again?”

March 18, 2012

 Jesus said to Nicodemus: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that all who believe in him may be healed and may have eternal life.”

Today’s Gospel contains the response of Jesus to Nicodemus’ question – “Can anyone enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?”

Jesus answered Nicodemus: “Just as the serpent was lifted by Moses in the desert to heal the people, so must the Son of Man be lifted up so that all who believe in him may have eternal life and healed by Jesus on the cross.” In John’s Gospel, Jesus came to earth both to become fully human and to lift all people to eternal glory.

Like Jesus, we are born human and now we try to lift that humanity to glory through the rebirth of baptism and through the powerful love of the Savior on the cross. “Faith,” Jesus says, “leads us to eternal life. The deeper our faith the better foundation we have for being lifted up by the healing form above to the glory of the Kingdom.”

With confidence, we now bring our concerns to God the Father: “GOD OUR FATHER, LOOK WITH LOVE ON US YOUR CHILDREN AND SAFELY GUIDE US ON OUR PILGRI M JOURNEY. THIS IS OUR PRAYER THROUGH CHRIST OUR LORD. AMEN.”  

The Two Giants

Third Sunday of Lent Year B

John 2: 13-25    “Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!”                           

March 11, 2012

Jesus told those who were selling doves: “Get them out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!”

At the time of our Lord, two giants were continually at war with each other – the Marketplace and the Father’s House, and when He saw that it had been infiltrated by the money changers, His inborn pride triggered a violent reaction. Acting alone, Jesus drove them out!

We are attracted to both the Marketplace and the Father’s House. Take the issue of life. Can it be bought or sold or it its value beyond all price?

Lent is fitting time both to catch a spark form the fiery zeal of the Lord and to clarify our values.

We now pray: “O LOVING FATHER, ENLIGHTEN US THAT WE MAY CLEARLY SEE THE TRUE VALUE OF OUR FATHER’S HOUSE. THIS IS OUR PRAYER THROUGH JESUS YOUR SON OUR LORD. AMEN.”

Go On

Second Sunday of Lent (Year B)

Mark 9: 2 - 10     “Jesus was transfigured before their eyes”

March 4, 2012 

            What is the importance of the transfiguration of Jesus? Jesus had decided to go to Jerusalem to accept the cross. But before he could go on, Jesus had to be absolutely sure that he was right. On the mountain top, Jesus received the approval of his decision. When Jesus met Moses, the supreme law-giver and Elijah, the greatest of the prophets, they both said to him, “Go on!”

            When Jesus went to God his Father and asked, “What wilt thou have me do?” God said to him, “You are acting as my own beloved Son should act. Go on!

            What, then, is the main message of this gospel passage for us? To enter the Kingdom of God, the only available path is the path of Jesus - the way of the cross that eventually leads to the resurrection.

            “O LOVING FATHER, INCREASE OUR FAITH AS WE MAKE OUR JOURNEY THROUGH DIFFICULT MOMENTS OF OUR LIFE. THIS IS OUR PRAYER THROUGH CHRIST YOUR SON OUR LORD. AMEN.

 

Reform and Believe in the Gospel

First Sunday of Lent (Year B)

Mark 1: 12-15    “Reform your lives and believe in the good news!”

February 26, 2012

            Why did Jesus go into the desert? Scripture says the Spirit “drove” him there. Why did the Spirit not plunge him into his preaching at once? Why delay Jesus with an experience that could only weaken him physically? What then can we learn from Jesus?

            From all this, we see the importance of occasionally moving out of the world of our daily life to do what Jesus did --- to reflect, to pray, to plan. If a man like Jesus needed time alone to get ready for his mission in life, surely we need time to get ready for whatever task God has for us. This is the reason why many Catholics make a yearly retreat – to listen to what God has to tell them. We need to find out what we can do to bring God more into our world and a good time to do this is during the season of Lent. What Jesus did in the desert prepared him for his mission. What we do in our retreat will also prepare us for the task God has for each one of us.

            As we enter the season of Lent, we ask God’s help in our struggle with the forces of evil – 

“LOVING FATHER, CONTINUES TO SHOW US YOUR LOVE AS WE NOW RESPOND TO YOUR CALL NOT ONLY TO CLEANSE OURSELVES BY SELF-DENIAL BUT ALSO TO DEEPEN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU. WE ASK THIS THROUGH JESUS YOUR SON OUR LORD. AMEN.”