our Father’s Love
Do we remember as kids not wanting to brush our teeth? It was an obligation. We only did it after being asked multiple times or after being warned of punishment. And what changed when we grew older… was it not that we started to “like someone?” All of a sudden we were brushing our teeth multiple times per day, chewing gum any time between. Winterfresh, Tic-Tacs, Binacha, Mentos! We go well beyond obligation when we like someone, when we want to grow in relationship. So what about God, do we like him? (see scripture readings) (more…)
Mary said yes and entered through the narrow gate.
When we think of salvation, are we even interested in it? Especially in our youth or early adulthood, when it seems that we have none of life’s hardships; it may feel that we have no need of salvation. But when we are more mature; when we have gone through some of life’s struggles, don’t we become interested in being saved? (see scripture readings) (more…)
It is natural that we want to experience heaven already. Heaven will be wonderful. Work will no longer be pain. There will be no more illness and no more loneliness. But more so than this, there will be no more division. What does Jesus mean when he says, “I did not come to bring peace on earth but rather division?” How come he doesn’t bring that peace and unity of heaven to us right now? (more…)
As we grow through life, different things call our attention. When we were children, we loved to play. We loved toys, ice cream; we loved for adults to watch us do things. As we became teenagers, we became fixated on friends, sports, and instead of wanting adults to watch, we wanted secrecy. As we became adults ourselves, we were overjoyed with our freedom but them came to realize that what we really wanted was security. These are all worldly desires, and Jesus tells us to watch out for them; they are vanity. (see scripture readings) (more…)
A lot of us think that freedom means being able to do whatever we want. As children, we want to only eat candies, as teenagers we want to stay out late, as adults we ignore the teachings of Christ and the Church and do whatever our body’s desire. Is this the freedom Christ died on the cross to give us?
St. Paul tells us, that we were not set free to sin, we were set free from sin; we were set free to be able to love. Sin enslaves us and keeps us from happiness. Christ came to break the shackles of sin and death, so that we can live in true freedom. (more…)
What is Fatherhood? Fatherhood is more than the donation of one’s genes for the reproduction of human life. Fatherhood includes knowing what is good for another and making the sacrifices to lead them there.
When I was a child, I remember my father taking me to see a movie; it’s not a great movie so I’m hesitant to mention it, but it made us chuckle, Chevy Chases’ Vacation. In this movie Clark Griswald had in mind what he thought the family needed, a vacation to Wally World, and he made every sacrifice he could to get the family there. He drove long hours, he hiked through the desert when the car broke down, and when they arrived to find Wally World closed, he willingly risked going to jail to give them the experience. He was being a father, though of course a misguided and comical one for the sake of the movie. (more…)
Do we believe that God still raises people from the dead? Apparently we do. There’s a book which lists 400 occurrences since the time of Christ, of Saints raising people from the dead. Francis Xavier is one of these saints, he alone is said to have raised four people during his time as a missionary throughout East Asia. So why does God raise people from the dead and why doesn’t he do it more often? This is a question of conjecture into the mystery of God, but let me do the best I can to answer.
If we look at the readings from today, we will find a common pattern to these miracles of revival. Firstly, they are between a mother and her son. The son has died, but through the grace of God, the son is revived and given back to his mother. So what can we bring out from the pattern? (more…)
When we were children, we were not aware of the differing opinions of people in the world. Our only experience was our parents, and we were probably not very aware of their differences. As we got older, we gradually became aware of differences in peoples beliefs and views. In high school or earlier, we probably began to have discussions with our friends. At some time in our life, we may have become alarmed, and questioned what we believe asking, “On who can we depend for the truth?”
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“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn 13:35).
Pope Francis’ homily to teenagers…
Dear young friends, what an enormous responsibility the Lord gives us today! He tells us that the world will recognize the disciples of Jesus by the way they love one another. Love, in other words, is the Christian’s identity card, the only valid “document” identifying us as Christians. It is the only valid document. If this card expires and is not constantly renewed, we stop being witnesses of the Master. So I ask you: Do you wish to say yes to Jesus’ invitation to be his disciples? Do you wish to be his faithful friends? The true friends of Jesus stand out essentially by their genuine love; not some “pie in the sky” love; no, it is a genuine love that shines forth in their way of life. Love is always shown in real actions. Those who are not real and genuine and who speak of love are like characters is a soap opera, some fake love story. Do you want to experience his love? Do you want this love: yes or no? Let us learn from him, for his words are a school of life, a school where we learn to love. This is a task which we must engage in every day: to learn how to love. (more…)
In all of our lives there are people who have locked the doors to the risen Christ; who have hardened their hearts to God’s love. We too may have done this in different periods of our lives. When we were children, we may have hidden our faith away out of fear of being made fun of in school. The apostles hid themselves, “out of fear of the Jews.” As adults, we may hide our faith away at work or even with friends and family. This is not good because our faith will weaken. Even the worst sinners have walked this path; their hearts have become hardened; they have locked whatever gift of faith God had given them away. But there is one thing that can pass through these walls and resurrect their faith and their life. (more…)
Do we remember as kids not wanting to brush our teeth? It was an obligation. We only did it after being asked multiple times or after being warned of punishment. And what changed when we grew older… was it not that we started to “like someone?” All of a sudden we were brushing our teeth multiple times per day, chewing gum any time between. Winterfresh, Tic-Tacs, Binacha, Mentos! We go well beyond obligation when we like someone, when we want to grow in relationship. So what about God, do we like him? (see scripture readings) (more…)
