Gratitude & Thanksgiving

Wise words from St Theresa of Calcutta “ We need silence  to be alone with God,  to speak to him,  to listen to him,  to ponder his words deep in our hearts. In silence  we are filled  with the energy of God himself  that makes us do all things  with joy. The fruit of silence is prayer,  the fruit of prayer is faith,  the fruit of faith is love, and the fruit of love is service.  To be only all for Jesus  we need a deep life of prayer.  How do we learn to pray?  By praying.  Let us adore Jesus  in the Eucharistic silence. Souls of prayer  are souls of great silence.  We must endeavor to  live alone  with Jesus  in the sanctuary of our inmost heart.  In reality  there is only one substantial prayer, Christ himself. One voice  which unites in itself  all the voices raised in prayer. Saint Teresa of Calcutta († 1997)

About Acts 8:26-40, Philip and the Ethiopian “ Do you understand what you are reading?” Acts 8:30 “How can i unless somebody instructs me? Acts 8:31 Philip was there to help the Eunuch understand. The Bible can be hard to understand but God gives us teachers.  Who are the Philips in our midst, opening up the Word of God for us, helping us to reach a deeper understanding and a livelier faith? (Sermon from FORMED, 22 April 2021) May we all continue to be humble asking for help, encountering our own Phillips and being Philip to others. 

Excerpt from homily by Rev Deacon Clement, Church of the Holy family Because of the Life of Christ,  We have eternal life. Because of the Light of Christ, We no longer live in darkness. Because of His Grace and Truth We attain Grace and Truth. Because of Jesus We know what God is like. Jesus is God’s gift to us. The giver of the gift is God. The reason of the gift is Love. The recipient of the gift is you and I.

"Go and take your place in the temple and tell the people everything about this life."  Acts 5:20   What is this life? This life that the apostles are to tell the people is the life in Christ. And this life in Christ is a life marked by joy, peace and above all by love, and by forgiveness. A life with a deep wellspring of love. We are to be witnesses like the disciples, to tell people about this life.   Are we living this life in Christ in Christ Jesus?   Or are we living the ordinary life, the life of the average person in this world? We are called to a higher life - a life filled with God's grace and God's love. Our life need to reflect that love. Lets live out the life of love in Jesus Christ, and share this life with others.

It’s Divine Mercy Sunday... and homily at mass made me connect some dots from past readings....     I jotted down 4 take-aways.  May you be blessed too!  

In psalm 4, David was confronted with a multitude of afflictions - fleeing from his son,  chased out of his land, being slandered by his enemies and having his integrity at stake: How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame?  How  long will you love vain words, and seek after lies?  Psalm 4:2 4  When David asks the Lord to give him joy instead of asking for other  blessings. There are many who pray: “Give us more blessings, O LORD. Look on us with kindness!” But the joy that you have given me is more than they will ever have...Psalm 4:6-7 He knows that Peace is the outcome of our capacity to be joyful in the Lord. 8  In peace I will both lie down and sleep;  for you alone, O Lord, makes  me dwell in safety.   Psalm 4:8 David is also wise to know that his coming to God is not his own righteousness but the mercy of God. I through the abundance of your merciful love will enter your house. Psalm 5:7      

Late night reading the book of Genesis - the amazing story of the life Joseph, and listening to Fr Thomas Bobby Emprayil’s preaching..... Notes taken from from Rev Fr Bobby’s preaching We should look at the incidents of our life through a divine perspective. If we want to grow in spiritual life, we should received a SPIRITUALITY INNER VISION - The Eyes of our Heart. Once we receive this, we will look at everything through a Godly perspective. There are two ways through which we can look at our lives esp the miseries, the misunderstandings, the accusations, the misfortunes, the crosses we have to carry.... We can see these through a divine perspective or an earthly perspective. —> GOD CALLS US TO A HOPE Eph 1:17 17  I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him,  18  so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you , what ...

Such a powerful sharing by Rev Fr Donald Haggerty, and so much to savour, to contemplate and to grow into... The Truly Exalted Way When I did not seek him with self-love, he gave ­himself to me without being sought” (Jacques Maritain).  A place hidden in the heart of God awaits ­contemplatives as they renounce any desire for status or privilege with God  and leave that ambition smoldering in ashes.  This renunciation has a significant consequence in the ­inner realms of silent prayer.   The effect is to hide the soul more easily from itself .  We lose interest in self and have no need to gain anything for ourselves in prayer.  —> Without a desire to seek anything for self or to advance in some manner in our own estimation, a poverty takes hold in us and becomes an ordinary place for prayer ….  We learn then more often to discard at the doorstep of prayer all traces of desire for an acquisition of any kind in prayer.     —> The desir...

The forty years in the desert were looked back on in two ways:  Either they were a period of honeymoon in the desert, when Israel was alone with the Lord in the desert and the two were bonding together in love, like a honeymooning couple, expressing and intensifying their love for one another. Or they were looked at as a time when the murmuring and infidelities began, when Israel lusted to be back among ‘the leeks and garlic and onions’ of Egypt, shying away from the challenges of life in the harsh and difficult desert. Setting before Israel is the choice whether to obey or ignore the Laws which have been laid down.   It is not so much a choice of obedience as a choice of love,  obedience to the divine Law is an expression of love of God. The same choice lies before us in our tr ials and tribulations in life.   How do I choose?  Do I choose love? And the same choice lies before us in Lent whether or not to take the season seriously enough to make the spec...

Today is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, it concludes the Christmas season. The Feast of the Presentation of our Lord is to make ourselves present to each other and to God .   When Mary and Joseph presented themselves in the Temple with Jesus, it was in order to make themselves present to God in a most personal way.  They went to the Temple to meet God, to encounter Him.   This is the key to today's celebration. Meeting God and encountering Him by presenting ourselves to Him.  And, our encounter with God is not just between Him and us as individuals but in the community and with the community. We are called to bring Jesus to the world and reveal his face to humanity. Excerpted from reflection by Archbishop William Goh

Heb 10:22-24 calls us to live out the three theological virtues. Therefore brethren... Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of  faith ...   Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering... L et us...stir up one another to love and good works...

It is the Christian’s task  to bring goodness where there is evil and healing where there are wounds.  We have many opportunities  in the course of the day either to foment anger and enmity or to soothe it, opportunities   to roughen a wound  or to smooth it down.  As we know from our failures to do this,  such works are the works  of the Spirit of Christ, supporting our own weakness and  triumphing over  our  own leanings  towards evil. (Taken from commentary on Universalis based on Mark 16:15-18)

The body (soma)  Is our physical nature Is   our solidarity with all of material creation. Relates us to others. The soul (psyche)  Is our intellectual nature Is the natural principle of life, resulting from God’s creative act.   Belongs to the mind with its ability to reason, organise and think. The soul’s horizon is what reason can see. The spirit (pneuma) Is our spiritual nature  Is the highest part of the person. Is the person’s openness to the transcendent , to mystery , to God . In the human person,  The body relates us to material creation The soul  organises our life The spirit  is our reaching out beyond ourselves. The healthy development of the human person happens when all three of these are functioning properly and their activity is integrated. ——— Archbishop William Goh spoke about the body, soul (mind) and spirit (heart) in his Scripture reflection (15 Jan 2021): “As human beings, we are constituted of body, soul and sp...

Pilgrimage has a special place in Christianity.  Fidelity to the goal, and keeping one’s eye on the ball is a thought which underlies the whole idea of Christian pilgrimage.  Moses was faithful as a servant, but Christ is faithful as the master of the house.  We are still on a Pilgrimage, a journey of vital importance. Pilgrimage is an expression of dissatisfaction with the present state of things and with oneself and one’s own part, a time of withdrawal from normal preoccupations in order to re-focus on the goal, to assess the obstacles in one’s own way of life.  By being cut off from the normal distractions, subterfuges and supports of daily life, the pilgrim is led to be more objective about himself or herself, often helped by fellow-pilgrims in the same state of mind, and by meditation on the holiness of the shrine at the end of the pilgrimage, whether it be the Holy Land, or Lourdes or Canterbury or Compostella. (Commentary from Universalis based on  Today...

Archbishop William Goh (18 Jan 2021)

Peace belongs only to those  who will to have it.  If there is no peace in the world today,  it is not because Christ did not come;  it is because we did not let Him in. Archbishop Fulton Sheen  (Simple Truths)

  A lovely passage attributed to Pope Francis (but i didn’t verify). So many “wow” gems to mull on, sentence by sentence until we interiorise them.... Rivers do not drink their own water;  trees do not eat their own fruit;  the sun does not shine on itself  and flowers do not spread their fragrance  for themselves.  Living for others is a rule of nature.  We are all born to help each other.  No matter how difficult it is… Life is good when you are happy ;  but much better  when others are happy because of you . Let us all remember then  that every changing colour of a leaf is beautiful   and every changing situation of life is meaningful ,  both need very clear vision.  So do not grumble or complain ,  let us instead remember that  Pain is a sign that we are alive,  Problems are a sign that we are strong   and Prayer is a sign we are not alone.  If we can acknowledge  these truths ...

* As I pray for others The Lord impresses upon me There are three of us In a love encounter; A flowing of love among three. There are three in the Holy Trinity The Father, Son and Holy Spirit This is the source of true love . There are three among us Jesus, the person I hold, and myself And there is a giving and receiving of true love . There are three movements within each of us Loving God, loving one another, loving ourself This is how we are called to truly love. And so I am led into a deeper experiencing  As I holds others in prayer I encounter the blessedness of true love.  Within and without, There are three. * The Painting that inspired this reflection.   It was on the wall of the Mervent Cave at Montfort Centre, right there as I gazed up from where I sat for a quiet afternoon of prayer and contemplation, on day 5 of a most blessed silent retreat (11-17 Dec 2020)

Today’s first reading: Num 24 - The Oracle of Balaam. Today’s Gospel reading: Mat 21:23-27 - The chief priests and scribes questioning Jesus’s authority. ———————— Fr Edward Seah pointed out that the two passages spoke about discernment of truth and one’s response.   He contrasted the two responses in the two passages: Balaam chose to respond with his eyes opened to the truth , turning his intended curse into a blessing The chief priests and elders chose to remain blinded to the truth , saying “we do not know” Fr went on to point out two contradictory virtues  Absolute detachment - giving up of everything earthly Absolute love - suffering for love’s sake And two rules to perfection Acting in Union with Chris t Mortifying one’s senses At the evening of life,  we shall be judged on our love.    (St John of the Cross 1542-1591) In striving towards perfection - to be free to: love without selfishness suffer without grudges renounce without remorse rejoice without ...

From a Spiritual Canticle of St John of the Cross (1542-2591) -  Recognising the mystery hidden within Christ Jesus (Taken from the 2nd reading of the Office of Readings, 14 Dec 2020 Monday (Feast of St John of the Cross) Though holy doctors have uncovered many mysteries and wonders, and devout souls have understood them in this earthly condition of ours, yet the greater part still remains to be unfolded by them, and even to be understood by them. We must then dig deeply in Christ.  He is like a rich mine with many pockets containing treasures however deep we dig we will never find their end or their limit.  Indeed, in every pocket new seams of fresh riches are discovered on all sides. For this reason the apostle Paul said of Christ:  In him are hidden all the treasures of the wisdom and knowledge of God.   The soul cannot enter into these treasures, nor attain them unless it first crosses into and enters the thicket of suffering, enduring interior and exter...

I was told that that the La Salle schools had a beautiful tradition: Every hour on the hour, a bell would ring, and an announcement: “ Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God.”     The entire school would stop, and all would keep a minute of silence.... Prayer is simple attention * To become aware Of who we are with God And who we are with one another (*Rev Fr Edward Seah told how an elderly La Salle brother, Br  William, defined prayer.)

As part of Rev Fr Edward Seah’s homily on Gaudate Sunday, he pointed to a lovely excerpt from the homily given by  St Pope John Paul II  on 18 Dec 2002... “We must understand  that our whole life should be an "advent",  In vigilant expectation  of Christ's final coming.  To prepare our hearts  to welcome the Lord who,  as we say in the Creed,  will come one day  to judge the living and the dead. We must learn to recognize his presence  in the events of daily life.  Advent is then  a  period of intense training   that directs us decisively to the One who has already come ,  who will come  and who continuously comes .”

A wonderful, wise reminder, that there  is meaning in all that happen in this life. “ Who are you?” By  Saint John Henry Newman († 1890) God has created me to do him some definite service; he has committed some work to me which he has not committed to another.  I have my mission—I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next.  Somehow I am necessary for his purposes, as necessary in my place as an archangel in his—if, indeed, I fail, God can raise another, as he could make the stones children of Abraham.  Yet I have a part in this great work; I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons.  He has not created me for naught. I shall do good. I shall do his work. I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, though not intending it, if I do but keep his commandments and serve him in my calling. Therefore I will trust him.  Whatever, wherever I am, I can never be thrown away.  If I am in ...