Sometimes our human expressions of love are actually expressions of human hate. We must always remember that true love always desires the best for the other, and a love that doesn’t desire Heaven for other is a love that is desires something less for other.
Archive for Category: "Reflections on Mass Readings"
How Do We ‘Remain’ In Christ (The True Vine)?
Today’s Reading from John 15 (I am The True The Vine) has had its true understanding diminished by Catholic Apologists who have hard-linked it to John 6:56 (with good intentions). This short reflection attempts to restore it’s true power and understanding.
On the Second Confession of Saint Peter
This is a reflection on Jesus’ Good Shepherd dialogue from John. 10:11-18 and how it empowers Peter’s Confession from John 21:15-19. Keys to the Peterine Ministry.
The Love of God and Our Response to His Love (First Things)
The Divine truths that these Gospels readings are opening our minds up to is that when we recognize the presence of the Christ Jesus, whether in person, as the Holy Eucharist, through sacred Scripture, or in each other, grace allows us to be moved from being closed to being open to what He has come to do in our life. The love of God turns us around – turns our whole self – mind, body, and soul, completely around.
The Feast of Divine Mercy – A Great Catholic Treasure
The feast of Divine Mercy, as recorded in the diary of Saint Faustina, receives from Jesus himself the promise that the soul that goes to Sacramental Confession (the confession may take place some days before), and receive Holy Eucharistic on that day, shall obtain the total forgiveness of all sins and punishment. Additionally, the Catholic Church grants a plenary indulgence (observing the usual rules) with the recitation of some simple prayers.
The Audacity to do More than Just the Bare Minimum
One thing that life has always taught me is that if you do the bare minimum, you will get the bare minimum in return. Another way of saying it is, what you put into it is what you get out of it. Jesus’ way of expressing this axiom was to say, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.”
The Audacity of Sacrifice – Christ Jesus Demands it of Us!
Do you have the audacity to sacrifice your life? Perhaps you don’t, but the good news is that the God who lives in you does have the audacity, and He desires to accomplish great things through you if you just open yourself up to love. True love is radical – it’s powerful – it bears many fruits and blessings; and although it may cost you much suffering in this world, it’s also the best investment you can make for your eternal future.
Approach Lent as a Time to Remember Who You were Created to Be
The season of Lent, as well as the other 325 days of the year, are a great time to examine our life and ask the questions, “Am I who God created me to be, or am I something other than that?” “Have I been apathetic and not cared for my temple and let it become something other than what it was created to be?” “Have I neglected my body as a temple and let it become something other than what it was created to be?” “How I let the material, superficial, and secular ways of the world bring about disorder in my temple and allow it become something other than what it was created to be?”
Understanding Divine Consolations as Gifts from God
There many other things that can be said about Divine consolations, especially about the reasons why God decides to give them to us in the first place, but I believe that the most essential treatment that needs to be made here concerns how we ought to respond to them. I say that because Divine consolations will come to many us for whatever reason God deigns, but it is how we respond to them is what is most crucial to know.
Approaching Lent as a Time to Reject the Spirit of Idleness
As people of God we were created to know, love, and serve Him. We were created for a definite purpose to love one another as Christ Jesus loved us. We were created so that we might glorify God by giving all of our life to back to Him. We were created so that He could live in us, with us, and through us. Therefore, if you are not actively engaged in knowing, loving, and serving God then you are idle and at grave risk to falling into the temptations of Satan.
Draw Nearer To God, Seek and Find (Reflection on Mass Readings)
In this day and age, many of us aren’t very far from Jesus physically, in the sense of seeking Him out in Holy Eucharist, and most of us aren’t lepers, but there are certain aspects of our life that do need to be cleaned and made whole and turned over to God. You may live near the Church, but how close is your heart to Jesus? You may not be a leper, but is there an aspect of your life that separates you from the people of God and is requiring you to receive the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation?
Jesus Knows What You Are Going Through, So Trust Him (Reflection on Mass Readings)
Life is tough sometimes and full of troubles, and it doesn’t take many years after our birth to figure that out. The Bible of full of stories of people who went through something and only with the help of God’s grace got through it. I have never met anyone who woke up in the morning and prayed to God that He would bring suffering upon them this day. Even people who know full well that St. Paul often wrote about the benefits and necessity of suffering in this life, do not go out of their way to find it. But it comes none the less, usually unexpected; but when it comes what do we do with it?
If Demons Hear the Lord and Obey, Why Don’t We? (Reflection on Mass Readings)
Today’s Gospel Reading at the Sunday Mass comes from Matthew 1:21-28: Then they came to Capernaum, and on the sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and taught. The people were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes. In their synagogue was a man with an unclean [...]