"STAY WITH US, LORD" (Luke 24:29)

In a few days, we shall be welcomed into a new season. Days ago, we celebrated the last Sunday in the Catholic Church's liturgical year; The Solemnity of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe (the 34th Sunday in Ordinary Time, but usually not said this way). We are set to begin a new year based on the Church's liturgical year, from which we draw many lessons and indications, vital for spiritual, political, and socio-economic well-being. With Advent in 2020, we shall be ushered into YEAR B. Advent is the season in focus. From Adventus (ad-venio, to come to), Advent is a season of the Church's greatest expectation, for having laboured in “Babylon”, subjected to sin, torture and brutalities of God's opponent, the Church anticipates the birth of a Redeemer. Within this time, we unite with Israelites, who up to date, await the birth of the Messiah, the expected sign of freedom from oppression and foreign governance, based on Ancient Israel political atmosphere. Advent helps us...

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  CARRYING THE CROSS Dear Friends, we enter the 2nd Day of the praying of the Holy Rosary in this Month of October. Clearly, today would like us to delve into passion and sorrow with particular reflection on the Sorrowful Mysteries as it is the tradition on every Friday, with Good Friday being the day maximus . Today is also the 1st Friday of the Month of October and hence, it is a sign of communion of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary.  The Mysteries of today, I would say, take us unto a pedestal wherein we journey with Christ in his passion, like Mary, aspirating and trying to enter those same moments of pain and agony. That fellow whom we love, always yearn to listen to, walk with, I speak of Christ, is about to be sacrificed. This level embodies God's love for us, for mankind, “in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (cf. Romans 5:8), winning us to himself, desiring that we might stray no more. This vivifies an erudition of love especially when fused with sacri...

1st Reading      1 Corinthians 2:10-16 R. Psalm            Psa. 145,8-9.10-11.12-13.13-14 Gospel               Luke 4:31-37 Dear friends, today we are presented with one of Jesus' liberation acts presented as a healing. As outlined in his programmatic discourse which he expounded in a synagogue in Nazareth (yesterday's Gospel) to be on a mission of bringing good news to the poor, liberty to the captives, we see Jesus liberating a  possessed man.  This kind of story relayed by Luke already should stress the fact that Luke concerns himself more with works of a physician since he himself is a physician. We speak best in our fields.  Today's Gospel, I believe, engulfs our various situations in life, situations wherein we are chained by forces seeming to be beyond us. An encounter with Jesus sets the pace for a liberation from such challenging situations. With Christ, powerlessness, a sort of ...

1st Reading           1 Corinthians 2: 1-5 R. Psalm                 Ps. 119:97.98.99.100.102 (R.  97a)  Gospel                     Luke 4: 16-30 May Christ help us. We shall be concerning ourselves with Luke's Gospel with particular attention given to his activity in Galilee, as well as Paul's first letter to the Christian community in Corinth, as our first reading. Invariably, we are set to see missionary work outside the normal domain. Paul will preach to the Greeks, not Jews, while Luke, a Gentile Physician, will use stories of healing as any physician will do, and even due to his area to be outside the Jewish land, he will reference examples outside the expected areas to counter reactions against Jesus, especially from Pharisees and Scribes.  Our lives can be that which mirrors Christ's, if we learn to recognize the needs of the time, even ...

1s Reading          Ezekiel 12:1-12 Psalm                    Ps. 78: 56-57.58-59.61-62 (R. see 7b)  Gospel                   Matthew 18:21-19:1 A very important part of our lives concern our day-to-day interaction with others. This has become imperative because we are social beings and we necessarily need an interaction with other people in all spheres to live well.  While we endeavour to do this we come across obstacles that are inimical to healthy interactions. One of such is man's imperfection. These imperfections often lead us to offend others.  Amidst these imperfections, there is still room for reconciliation, and the Gospel has been addressing this theme since yesterday. The Gospel addresses the problem of man's inability to reconcile and forgive. With the mention of 'brother', Jesus makes it a very important point to speak about all those we come...

1st Reading       Ezekiel 9: 1-7; 10:18-22 Psalm                 Ps. 113:1b-2.3-4.5-6 (R. 4b)  Gospel               Matthew 18: 15- 20 The prophet Ezekiel, in today's first reading, narrates a vision of the slaughter of idolaters and also the consequent departure of God from Jerusalem. This departure meant doom for Israel as they will be exiled in Babylon by the Babylonians, first in 597 BC and then in 586 BC. The events, described by Ezekiel, are prior to the siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. Ezekiel's prophetic ministry spans through the Babylonian exile (592-570 BC) and hence, Ezekiel is often consulted when anyone seeks to know about the Babylonian exile of the Israelites. This is strengthened by the fact that Ezekiel himself was part of those taken to exile. Ezekiel's special concern for the purity of the Temple and the peace of Jerusalem is known by he being brought up in the p...