A story and a blessing for Mother’s Day.
In the Synoptics we find Jesus being asked what is the greatest commandment. His response was the two-fold commandment of love. But in John’s gospel at the Last Supper, Jesus gave his disciples what he called a new commandment. What was it? (Fifth Sunday of Easter – C)
What is best-loved psalm of the Bible? (4th Sunday of Easter – C)
Peter denied Jesus three times. Jesus gives Peter the opportunity to take back his three-fold betrayal and confirms his special role among the disciples in taking care of his flock. (3rd Sunday of Easter – C)
“To see is to believe.” But if you think about it, it is really incorrect. Find out why. (Second Sunday of Easter)
The scribes and pharisees brought to Jesus a woman caught in the act of adultery. The Law of Moses, they say, demand stoning for such crime. What does Jesus have to say about that? Jesus bent down to write. What did Jesus write on the ground? (5th Sunday of Lent)
The Parable of the Prodigal Son is perhaps the best-known and well-loved parable of Jesus. Someone has observed that this parable is not about the younger son but about the father. It was the father and not the son who was prodigal. But prodigal in what sense? (4th Sunday of Lent C)
Not every misfortune is a punishment due to sin (although every sin can be considered a misfortune.). But every sin has within it the seed of ultimate negative consequences. (Third Sunday of Lent)
The Transfiguration was not just a one-of-a-kind moment when the glory of Jesus as God successfully broke through his humanity. It had something to do with his Baptism and with the profession of faith by Peter at Caesarea Philippi. Their common denominator was his passion, death, resurrection and ascension that was still to come. (2 Sunday of Lent)
Jesus was tempted in the desert. Temptation must be attractive in order to be tempting. But what is so attractive about the three temptations offered by the devil? (First Sunday of Lent)
Can we really take seriously the words of Christ, “Blessed are you poor, the Kingdom of Heaven is yours”? (6th Sunday in Ordinary Time -C)
“Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” What did Chist mean by “catching men” or “fishers of men”?
They left everything and followed him. In Jesus’ time it was common to see famous rabbis surounded by devoted disciples. Becoming disciples of Jesus was not exactly the same thing. The demands were more exacting.
The adulation with which they initially accepted Jesus was replaced by a murderous rage. The warm welcome changed into rejection. Why the sudden and unexpected change? (Fourth Sunday In Ordinary Time – C)
Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing. The era of grace promised by the prophets has finally begun with the coming of Jesus. This grace is God’s offer of forgiveness and salvation. And it (the offer of forgiveness and salvation) is always present and in fact, is being offered RIGHT NOW! (Third Sunday in Ordinary Time)
The Feast of the Sto. Nino has become a feast proper to the Philippines. It seems to be a continuity and the finale of the Christmas season as it celebrates the Child Jesus. More than that the Feast is a celebration of the Filipinos embracing the Catholic Faith. (Sto. NINO)
Jesus asked to be baptized in order to identify himself with humankind. But his baptism was also the occasion of the second epiphany and of the beginning of his public ministry. (Baptism of the Lord)
In Europe the feast of the Three Kings used to be the time when children received Christmas gifts. This practice is understandable. We read in Matthew that upon arriving at the house where the child Jesus was they bowed in homage and opened their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. (Epiphany)
What should we do? It is like a moral imperative (or categorical imperative). Wikipedia states: “A moral imperative is a principle originating inside a person’s mind that compels that person to act. It is a kind of categorical imperative, as defined by Immanuel Kant. Kant took the imperative to be a dictate of pure reason, in its practical aspect. Not following the moral law was seen to be self-defeating and thus contrary to reason. Later thinkers took the imperative to originate in conscience, as the divine voice speaking through the human spirit. The dictates of conscience are simply right and often resist further justification. Looked at another way, the experience of conscience is the basic experience of encountering the right.” John the Baptist was not a philosopher. His answer was both practical and to the point. (3rd Sunday of Advent).
This Sunday Gospel speaks about the way of the Lord. It also talks about winding roads and rough ways. How do roads and ways help us in preparing for the celebration of Christmas? (2nd Sunday of Advent)
Happy New Year! No. I am not making a mistake. It really is new year. It’s the first day of the liturgical year. (First Sunday of Advent, Year C).