7 Jesus said to his disciples: “In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 9 “This is how you are to pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name, 10 thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread; 12 and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; 13 and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. 14 “If you forgive men their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
Think: It is not the words of our prayers that are important but the intentions and conviction with which we pray them.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Monday, February 27, 2012
Happy Together Inspirational Stories of Love and Friendship
How to be happy together?
Sometimes in our busy lives the really important things can be forgotten. Other people, their habits and their needs may even feel annoying while we are pursuing our material needs.We may feel our relationships lack something. We are not as happy as we originally planned and wanted to be with the people in our lives. We may stand there, wondering what happened to our relationships.
When did our relationships become so burdensome to us? Where did the joy and happiness go? What happened to us being happy together?If all people suddenly disappeared we would understand that to be really happy - we need other people.
Being alone can be so sweet at times, and is certainly even necessary. But if there really was no one else around, we would begin to miss the company of others in no time. And just as it is with any other important thing:
We need to work on being happy together
Every relationship gives back what we give into it. And I am sure deep within we all want our relationships to be nurturing and happy.
We need a simple plan. Happy together - that´s the name of the project. We need to look at our relationships like they were plants in a garden. Each plant needs watering, care, weeding, sunshine and yes - rain too.
We need to realize that relationships are often neglected because of our own choices - we choose how we want spend our time and while we are living those other plans, a phone call from a friend may feel like an interruption. We feel annoyed even. "Why does she have to call just now?"
In our hurry we may forget how very important other people are to us - and we to them.
We all face hardships in our lives and when this happens, we sure appreciate those people who care about us and open their arms to hold us when the need arises.
These short inspirational stories are here to gently remind us of the importance of friends and family. These are positive and happy stories - with humor too. (Humor is the salt of life, I always say.) So let’s stick to our simple plan and invest a little time on our relationships too.
Sometimes in our busy lives the really important things can be forgotten. Other people, their habits and their needs may even feel annoying while we are pursuing our material needs.We may feel our relationships lack something. We are not as happy as we originally planned and wanted to be with the people in our lives. We may stand there, wondering what happened to our relationships.
When did our relationships become so burdensome to us? Where did the joy and happiness go? What happened to us being happy together?If all people suddenly disappeared we would understand that to be really happy - we need other people.
Being alone can be so sweet at times, and is certainly even necessary. But if there really was no one else around, we would begin to miss the company of others in no time. And just as it is with any other important thing:
We need to work on being happy together
Every relationship gives back what we give into it. And I am sure deep within we all want our relationships to be nurturing and happy.
We need a simple plan. Happy together - that´s the name of the project. We need to look at our relationships like they were plants in a garden. Each plant needs watering, care, weeding, sunshine and yes - rain too.
We need to realize that relationships are often neglected because of our own choices - we choose how we want spend our time and while we are living those other plans, a phone call from a friend may feel like an interruption. We feel annoyed even. "Why does she have to call just now?"
In our hurry we may forget how very important other people are to us - and we to them.
We all face hardships in our lives and when this happens, we sure appreciate those people who care about us and open their arms to hold us when the need arises.
These short inspirational stories are here to gently remind us of the importance of friends and family. These are positive and happy stories - with humor too. (Humor is the salt of life, I always say.) So let’s stick to our simple plan and invest a little time on our relationships too.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
GOSPEL READING TODAY (Feb. 15, 2012) - Mark 8:22-26 - A Blind Man at Bethsaida
22 When Jesus and his disciples arrived at Bethsaida, people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him. 23 He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. Putting spittle on his eyes he laid his hands on him and asked, “Do you see anything?” 24 Looking up the man replied, “I see people looking like trees and walking.” 25 Then he laid hands on his eyes a second time and he saw clearly; his sight was restored and he could see everything distinctly. 26 Then he sent him home and said, “Do not even go into the village.”
CAN YOU IMAGINE BEING HEALED? - By: Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL
I wonder what it would be like to be healed from something such as blindness. I had a brain hemorrhage when I was 17. I spent eight to 10 days in a hospital but I remember only a couple of those days. I was quite blessed because, even if my hemorrhage gave me a 50-50 chance to survive, I did not have to go through the knife. Neither did I experience significant after-effects. I look back at this experience and am very grateful for my full recovery. How much more amazing this experience would have been if it involved being debilitated and then healed.
The healing miracles of Jesus are a sign of God’s desire to heal us, not just physically but spiritually as well. Jesus demonstrates authority over sickness so we would believe that He can heal us from within through the forgiveness of our sins. It is critical that we recognize the truth of God’s love for us if we want to fully benefit from it. Nothing can stand in the way of God’s desire to redeem us except our refusal of the offer of salvation. Our tendency is to invent obstacles: “I am too much of a sinner. How can God really love little old me? I don’t deserve to be forgiven.”
Some of these excuses, if not all of them, have some basis, but Jesus tells us in the Gospel (Mark 8:22-26) that He is far bigger than any of the problems we can think of so we should not worry about them. All we have to do is open our hearts to the solution — His love — and allow Him to set about the work of salvation from within.
Jesus will not hesitate to enter our lives if we welcome Him in. Perhaps it would be good for us to be seriously sick so that we will better realize our need for His grace? No, that is not necessary! All that is necessary is that we be humble enough to invite Him in.
The healing miracles of Jesus are a sign of God’s desire to heal us, not just physically but spiritually as well. Jesus demonstrates authority over sickness so we would believe that He can heal us from within through the forgiveness of our sins. It is critical that we recognize the truth of God’s love for us if we want to fully benefit from it. Nothing can stand in the way of God’s desire to redeem us except our refusal of the offer of salvation. Our tendency is to invent obstacles: “I am too much of a sinner. How can God really love little old me? I don’t deserve to be forgiven.”
Some of these excuses, if not all of them, have some basis, but Jesus tells us in the Gospel (Mark 8:22-26) that He is far bigger than any of the problems we can think of so we should not worry about them. All we have to do is open our hearts to the solution — His love — and allow Him to set about the work of salvation from within.
Jesus will not hesitate to enter our lives if we welcome Him in. Perhaps it would be good for us to be seriously sick so that we will better realize our need for His grace? No, that is not necessary! All that is necessary is that we be humble enough to invite Him in.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
THE FEEDING OF THE FOUR THOUSAND - By: Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL
Jesus has pity on the people because they are hungry, so He miraculously feeds them. There are many stages to this event. There is the Eucharistic overtones whereby Jesus takes the bread, blesses it, breaks it, and then gives it to the people. This is precisely what happens at the Eucharist where we eventually feed not on the bread that was offered but the Body and Blood of Christ. The food we receive is not just physical food but the spiritual food that nourishes us for eternal life.
As we reflect on this story, it is important to keep this background in mind as we try to understand its meaning today. I doubt if we are going to see too many loaves of bread and fish multiplied to fill our hunger. However, the Church does encourage us to seek nourishment in the Eucharist every day if possible. This tells us that the spiritual reality we share in the Eucharist is one that captures the essence and heart of our faith. It is not enough to consider the Eucharist a mere ritual as it is more than that. The Eucharist is the source and summit of our Christian lives and faith. The saints often remind us that there is little more important than celebrating the Eucharist with faith and humility.
There is also the idea that God does provide for His people. There will be times when this is literally true in a physical sense. I have personally seen food multiplied a number of times. We need to learn to trust that God provides for us. The fact that so many do not have food to eat is not because there is not enough food to go around. Rather, it is a result of the unwillingness of people to share their excess with others. The provision is there; it is sin that creates the situation where many go hungry. And so we need to see God’s provision in both a physical and spiritual sense. If we do not receive the physical food that we need, we can still trust that spiritually God is there at all times and there is nothing others can do to deprive us of that food for eternal life.
As we reflect on this story, it is important to keep this background in mind as we try to understand its meaning today. I doubt if we are going to see too many loaves of bread and fish multiplied to fill our hunger. However, the Church does encourage us to seek nourishment in the Eucharist every day if possible. This tells us that the spiritual reality we share in the Eucharist is one that captures the essence and heart of our faith. It is not enough to consider the Eucharist a mere ritual as it is more than that. The Eucharist is the source and summit of our Christian lives and faith. The saints often remind us that there is little more important than celebrating the Eucharist with faith and humility.
There is also the idea that God does provide for His people. There will be times when this is literally true in a physical sense. I have personally seen food multiplied a number of times. We need to learn to trust that God provides for us. The fact that so many do not have food to eat is not because there is not enough food to go around. Rather, it is a result of the unwillingness of people to share their excess with others. The provision is there; it is sin that creates the situation where many go hungry. And so we need to see God’s provision in both a physical and spiritual sense. If we do not receive the physical food that we need, we can still trust that spiritually God is there at all times and there is nothing others can do to deprive us of that food for eternal life.
Monday, February 6, 2012
GOSPEL READING TODAY, FEB. 6, 2012 - MARK 6:53-56 (CHRIST CURED THE PEOPLE)
53 After making the crossing to the other side of the sea, Jesus and his disciples came to land at Gennesaret and tied up there. 54 As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him. 55 They scurried about the surrounding country and began to bring in the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. 56 Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak; and as many as touched it were healed.
GOD’S ABIDING PRESENCE - By: Fr. Martin Macasaet, SDB
In today’s Gospel (Mark 6:53-56), Mark gives us an idea of the celebrity status of Jesus. “People immediately recognized him.” And more than just that, the crowds acknowledged His extraordinary healing power: “Wherever he put in an appearance, in villages, in towns, or at crossroads, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him to let them touch just the tassel of his cloak. All who touched him got well.” Such an astonishing outpouring of zeal for Jesus (on the part of the people) isn’t really surprising, especially when you consider their acute need for healing.
The First Reading (1 Kings 8:1-7, 9-13), on the other hand, has a similar outpouring of enthusiasm from the Israelites, this time for the Ark of the Covenant during the solemn dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem. While there was the appearance of a cloud manifesting God’s glorious presence, the dedication of the Temple represents man’s attempt to bring such a divine presence into a definite, tangible locus.
A concrete dwelling, after all, is essential — even perhaps for God. There, God’s presence abides forever. Paradoxically, such presence of God can never be confined in a box. Why, in Jesus’ case, the mere tassel of His cloak could already bring about His healing power! His appearances (in other words, His presence) in various villages, towns or at crossroads turned out to be not just crowd-drawers or traffic-stoppers. They were veritable encounters with God’s efficacious and loving presence.
The First Reading (1 Kings 8:1-7, 9-13), on the other hand, has a similar outpouring of enthusiasm from the Israelites, this time for the Ark of the Covenant during the solemn dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem. While there was the appearance of a cloud manifesting God’s glorious presence, the dedication of the Temple represents man’s attempt to bring such a divine presence into a definite, tangible locus.
A concrete dwelling, after all, is essential — even perhaps for God. There, God’s presence abides forever. Paradoxically, such presence of God can never be confined in a box. Why, in Jesus’ case, the mere tassel of His cloak could already bring about His healing power! His appearances (in other words, His presence) in various villages, towns or at crossroads turned out to be not just crowd-drawers or traffic-stoppers. They were veritable encounters with God’s efficacious and loving presence.
Sunday, February 5, 2012
JESUS ON HUMAN SUFFERING - By: Fr. Martin Macasaet, SDB
Even from the literary point of view, the verses from the book of Job (our First Reading today - Job 7:1-4, 6-7) are hard to beat. As a meditation on the perennial riddle of human suffering, it is a remarkable attempt to come to grips with such an unfortunate reality in our world. On the other hand, however, our Gospel passage (Mark 1:29-39)also dwells on the same theme of suffering. But thanks to the new era inaugurated by Jesus Christ, this time there is a more optimistic tone.
Not that Jesus is offering any instant, feel-good solutions to suffering (as if there were such a thing!). Rather He is giving a new meaning to it all, along with His compassion and concern. To top it all, His own passion and death prove that He is no stranger to it.
Busy indeed was Jesus, with cures and healings almost one after the other. Before He knew it, already “the whole town was gathered at the door.” He didn’t shy away at all from this important aspect of His ministry: to bring healing to the sick and the suffering.
But perhaps Jesus wasn’t satisfied with the way things turned out. He noticed that maybe the people were more concerned with the physical cure, and maybe not so much with the Good News of salvation, which He really came to offer. As the Jesuit biblical scholar Nil Guillemette put it, “They were more interested in getting some divine aspirin, than in hearing His aspirations for them, His promise of future health and happiness in the land of God.”
Jesus is a healer, but also more. And consequently too, more than just the aches and pains we all have, there’s something more or beyond them. This, courtesy of the same Jesus Himself — through His own suffering and death on Calvary, gave a redemptive value to suffering.
We will never find the right words to explain the mystery of suffering — even if we seek them from the greatest literary works. Only in Jesus do we find meaning and redemption in pain and suffering.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
NO TO HOMECOMINGS TURNING SOUR - By: Fr. Martin Macasaet, SDB
This February, we start with the Gospel from Mark 6. And what we have today is an interesting episode. It’s about Jesus’ visit to His hometown.
Homecomings are generally happy occasions, but somehow they can also open old wounds and trigger past issues. In the case of Jesus, His townmates’ initial reaction of seeming amazement turned out to be really one of derision or contempt. A barrage of questions on their part reveals insulting insinuations. Then instead of the typical Jewish tradition of being called after one’s father, they gave Him the label “Son of Mary.” Reading between the lines, they even seemed to cast doubts about Jesus’ legitimacy.
Worse still, they apparently disdained the fame of Jesus, His reputation which at that time was already spreading. Their familiar knowledge of Him worked against His favor. Truly, as the saying goes, “Familiarity breeds contempt.”
Now, can this also be said of us, “familiar” as we might already be with our Lord? It may be good for us to examine our relationship with Him. Could we have somewhat lost our respect for Him, treating Him as an ATM-like dispenser of graces which we can conveniently avail of just because we have problems? Or is He more just like a “buddy” for us?
What a pity that Jesus worked no miracles in Nazareth itself, apart from healing a few who were sick. The neighboring villages instead were the ones who benefitted.
Let us not be dismayed if others, who are more respectful and receptive of Jesus than we are, will be the ones to enjoy Jesus’ favor more. Let us make Jesus’ homecoming into our hearts the joy-filled event that it is meant to be.
Homecomings are generally happy occasions, but somehow they can also open old wounds and trigger past issues. In the case of Jesus, His townmates’ initial reaction of seeming amazement turned out to be really one of derision or contempt. A barrage of questions on their part reveals insulting insinuations. Then instead of the typical Jewish tradition of being called after one’s father, they gave Him the label “Son of Mary.” Reading between the lines, they even seemed to cast doubts about Jesus’ legitimacy.
Worse still, they apparently disdained the fame of Jesus, His reputation which at that time was already spreading. Their familiar knowledge of Him worked against His favor. Truly, as the saying goes, “Familiarity breeds contempt.”
Now, can this also be said of us, “familiar” as we might already be with our Lord? It may be good for us to examine our relationship with Him. Could we have somewhat lost our respect for Him, treating Him as an ATM-like dispenser of graces which we can conveniently avail of just because we have problems? Or is He more just like a “buddy” for us?
What a pity that Jesus worked no miracles in Nazareth itself, apart from healing a few who were sick. The neighboring villages instead were the ones who benefitted.
Let us not be dismayed if others, who are more respectful and receptive of Jesus than we are, will be the ones to enjoy Jesus’ favor more. Let us make Jesus’ homecoming into our hearts the joy-filled event that it is meant to be.
LOOK FOR GOLD - By: Bo Sanchez
And they took offense at him. – Mark 6:3
Andrew Carnegie was the richest man in the world. If you translate his wealth using today’s values, Carnegie would be more than two times wealthier than Bill Gates and Warren Buffet combined.
And he knew about the importance of relationships. At one time, he had 43 millionaires working with him. This was the secret of his success. Because you can’t become wealthy (in the long term) if you don’t make others wealthy as well.
One day, he said something profound about relationships. Carnegie said, “Dealing with people is like digging for gold. To discover gold, you have to move a lot of dirt. But when you dig, you look for gold, not for dirt.”
Many times, we look for dirt in the people around us. No wonder we’re not happy!
Of course you’ll find dirt. The holiest saints had lots of dirt in their lives. After all, they were human beings, too. Just as we are. But if you want to be happy, you’ll have to train your eyes to look for gold. And believe me, you’ll find lots of it, too. Because every person is made in the image of God.
Andrew Carnegie was the richest man in the world. If you translate his wealth using today’s values, Carnegie would be more than two times wealthier than Bill Gates and Warren Buffet combined.
And he knew about the importance of relationships. At one time, he had 43 millionaires working with him. This was the secret of his success. Because you can’t become wealthy (in the long term) if you don’t make others wealthy as well.
One day, he said something profound about relationships. Carnegie said, “Dealing with people is like digging for gold. To discover gold, you have to move a lot of dirt. But when you dig, you look for gold, not for dirt.”
Many times, we look for dirt in the people around us. No wonder we’re not happy!
Of course you’ll find dirt. The holiest saints had lots of dirt in their lives. After all, they were human beings, too. Just as we are. But if you want to be happy, you’ll have to train your eyes to look for gold. And believe me, you’ll find lots of it, too. Because every person is made in the image of God.
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