Because death is not the conquerer

H2O News featured Pope Benedict's homily at Mass last week, and I thought I'd share it with you. The homily blessed me richly and I hope the summary will do the same for you.

"Love is stronger than death," and don't be afraid to abandon yourselves to the will of the Heavenly Father: that was Pope Benedict XVI's encouragement to us last week on the fifth Sunday of Lent.

In his homily, the pontiff said that "in order to bring to fruition the divine plan of universal salvation, Jesus had to be killed and buried, because it is in his death and resurrection that the triumph of life is manifest."

He said the path of Christ is a demanding one, but it is the only one for Christians. Pope Benedict exhorted the faithful to allow themselves be illuminated by the splendour of Christ's Face, so that "His infinite love shine through every gesture, becoming part of their daily life."

"Allow yourselves be captivated by Christ's charisma," he said. "Listen to Him and, guided by the Holy Spirit, lend your support to the His plan for you."

Source.

Let us remember, as we commemorate Jesus' death, that while it is necessary that He gave us the gift of His life, we must stretch out our hands to receive it. Christ died precisely so that we might live. Let's approach His resurrection ready to embrace our crosses the way He embraced His, and cooperate with His will.

Have a blessed Good Friday.

Who can understand your pain better?

"Who, if not the condemned Savior,
can fully understand the pain
of those unjustly condemned?

"Who, if not the King scorned and humiliated,
can meet the expectations
of the countless men and women who live without hope or dignity?

"Who, if not the crucified Son of God,
can know the sorrow and loneliness
of so many lives shattered and without a future?"

- The late Pope John Paul II,
at the conclusion of the Stations of the Cross at Rome's Colosseum
on Good Friday night in the Jubilee Year 2000

... it is not as if we had a high priest who was incapable of feeling our weaknesses with us; but we have one who has been tempted in every way that we are, though he is without sin. - Hebrews 4:15 (JB)

News in prayer 4: please pray for our friends in Italy

If it's not too much to ask, please also pray intensely for the victims of the recent earthquake in Italy.

Italy's worst earthquake in nearly three decades struck early Monday in the central region of Abruzzo, killing nearly 180 people and leaving tens of thousands homeless. As the death toll from the predawn quake rose throughout the day, the tragedy took a bitter twist as it emerged that a local seismologist had predicted a major tremor was on its way.

Dozens of residents in the province of L'Aquila, some 80 miles (130 km) east of Rome, were crushed in their beds when the earthquake struck at 3:32 a.m. Aftershocks could be felt throughout the early-morning hours, with efforts to find survivors intensifying into dusk. The original quake, which measured 6.3 on the Richter scale, shook awake most residents in the Italian capital, and the effects could be felt as far away as Naples. It was the deadliest earthquake in Italy since the one that killed more than 2,500 people in the southern town of Irpinia in November 1980. - TIME Magazine

Working in almost total silence and using nothing but their bare hands to clear rubble, rescuers in Italy were engaged in a desperate race to save dozens of people thought to be buried alive after an earthquake which killed at least 150. - The Telegraph






Please spend a moment to pray together for the victims of the natural disaster:

• for the souls of those who have been killed – that they may be welcomed into the arms of our Father in Heaven;
• for those who have come away physically unharmed – that they may recognise their call to assist those in terrible need of help;
• for those who have been rescued – that they may be healed quickly of physical pain, as well as the emotional and psychological scars they must be suffering from;
• for the countless people who are still trapped in rubbles – that they hold on to hope of being helped, and trust in Jesus; we also pray that Jesus will be with the victims to comfort them and assure them of His love for each of them;
• for the thousands of people who have been left homeless – that once they not lose hope in themselves, but work together to rebuild their lives;
• for the local authorites – that they maintain calm and act in a caring manner to handle this calamity;
• for the world watching – that all will pray for the safety and well-being of every person involved; we also pray that every member of the world family will do what they can to help (morally and financially);
• for all Catholics suffering this plight – that they may find this an opportunity to join their sufferings with that of Christ Jesus, who was buried in the rubble of all our sins.

Today, we mourn not just for Christ, but also for those who suffer with Him.

Let's offer five decades of the Holy Rosary for these brothers and sisters of ours. If you are non-Catholic, please join us in any other way to pray for the victims.



If you're intending to pray for the victims with your computers on, this slideshow and this slideshow by the Financial Times, as well as these pictures by TIME Magazine may aid you to pray better.

Some sources of the news:

• The Guardian (UK)
  
• The Telegraph
• NY Daily News
• allheadlinenews.com

Holy Thursday: last fast, do pray for all!

As we reach the end of our Lenten journey this year, please remember to observe our fast together today, and do pray for every sojourner for an ever-improving relationship with our Lord.

God bless your Holy Thursday.

What? Holy Week already?

I read this post by Catholic Culture's Phil Lawler, and I think we can all relate to this entry in one way or another (I certainly have!). I hope it blesses you.

When Holy Week arrives, I always have the same feeling. "Wait, wait!" I want to say. "I'm not ready yet."

Maybe all Catholics have the same experience. Just after Ash Wednesday, it seems to me that Lent stretches out into the future forever. I live a comfortable life, and when I deny myself some of the usual comforts, I very soon feel the pinch. I get just a little bit hungry. I don't feel like getting up early to do some spiritual reading before Mass. I keep catching myself indulging that one unpleasant habit that I said I'd work on during Lent. I sure could use a beer. I start feeling sorry for myself-- poor me!-- and I wonder: Is Lent going to last forever?

But it doesn't. Just a few short weeks later I'm looking at things from the opposite perspective. I've nearly run out of time. I was really determined to transform myself during Lent this year: to make myself into a living saint. It hasn't happened yet-- not nearly. I need more time. Is Lent ending so soon?

It's the same sad story every year. I begin Lent with the best of intentions. Then the weeks quickly roll past, and things change. I can't sustain the same zealous attitude for 40 days. Oh, I keep to my resolutions, for the most part. I continue fasting, but my prayers aren't quite as fervent, my spirit of reparation weakens. I know that I need to rev up the penitential engine again, but the days slip by...

Then, suddenly-- Bam!-- time's up! It's Holy Week. Who could've seen that coming?

When I was younger, I would be surprised to recognize my own failure to live the penitential season fully. No longer. I know myself too well. I failed last year, and the year before, and the year before that, too. I'm not so dense that I can't spot a trend.

But then, sometime during Holy Week, a second realization hits me. Of course I failed to transform myself! I can't do it. Never could, never can, never will. I need help. And help is on the way.

This year, that 2nd realization came early: during the reading of the Passion on Palm Sunday. As Jesus prays in agony in Gethsemane, the disciples nod off to sleep. I can relate to that; it seems I was nodding all through this Lent. Then Jesus tells them: "It is enough; the hour has come." (Mk 14:41) He knows they are not ready-- they never will be-- but He is ready, and that's what matters.

I'm not ready for Good Friday. But Jesus is ready to mount the Cross for me. My annual failure is the 'happy fault' that makes me realize the necessity of his Sacrifice, and treasure the depth of his love.

(For the record, this recognition that we can't do it does not imply that we should just stop trying. Let's keep trying to cooperate with God's will. We may not be able to do anything without Him, but we can certainly attempt to empty ourselves for Him to fill us up.)


Source.

How Was Your Lent?

Remind and encourage your friends regularly. My one goal every lent is to make the best of it, and God has never let my efforts fall to futility.

I have found a close friend and uncannily kindred spirit in my boss, but am often subject to the battery of his questions.

“I think you are an intelligent guy, but I think it is such a waste that you subject yourself to the constrictions of this ancient religion.” “What if your God were just one of many,” he would ask, “seeking to gain power and acclaim above his contemporaries?” “Find your own truth.”

The nights I stay up pondering his questions are the true affliction.

Numerous recent missal readings involve the character of “the Word of God”, selected for this Lenten tide by the Church to emphasize Jesus’ presence and role in God’s plan even preceding the New Testament. In other scripture readings, the Church reminds us repeatedly how Christ was sent by the father not to condemn but to save, and is the pinnacle display of God’s love for us.

I have my answer. I know my God is mighty above all, because He stretched out his hands on the cross to say, “I love you this much.” If you ask me, no substance or quality in our reality is greater than love’s universal potence.

My friend offers me the one thing I am giving up for these 40 days of lent. Telling him about my promise, but obliging to keep him company in his sombre Barcelonian apartment’s living room, the non-practicing Catholic reminds, “a promise is a promise.” His statement reminds me of the purpose of my sacrifice.

Because I love you this much.



- posted on behalf of Andre Brinstan Frois

My Portuguese confession

Missing my flight by a few minutes and having to buy a 50 Euro overnight bus ticket to Madrid also meant missing my friends and buying myself a ticket to one of the lowest points I can recall ever sinking to.

I killed the first few hours of my unplanned extra day in Porto with a lengthy lamentation and downcast train ride back to the city centre. I never got to say goodbye to my travel buddies and was going to have to see Madrid alone instead. Taking the slow sightseeing route round Porto’s Plaça de Monsinho Alberquerque monument, nothing it had to offer seemed the least bit scenic.

A heart brimming with thoughts of my life and my parents, and a wallet filled with just about zilch, I turned a corner to come face to face with a modern Portuguese igreja.

I usually drop in to say a short prayer when I pass a church – all the more reason to when you’re waiting for a ten-hour bus ride four hours away.

Scouring the church for a confessional, I found my way to the first pew where I dropped to my knees. Two elderly women whispering the rosary behind me could have been mistaken by anyone as using the church as a gossip venue. Turning back, I asked them, “confessão?”

After some undecipherable babble, they prompted me to follow them, “sacristy”. They led me to a young priest who turned me down, citing that confession could not be done as he did not speak English. As the incomprehensible dialogues continued around me, an old priest was brought into the picture, who kindly obliged.

Neither did he speak English. Shuffling about his office, he took me to another room where I made my confession in a mix of English, Portuguese and Latin. The one thing I will probably remember most distinctly years from now, will probably be the balding white-haired padre clasping my hands and smiling.

“Proverbios 23:26,” was what he asked me to read. “Today… corazon… Dios,” he repeatedly signed with his hands, prompting me to do the same. I told him that I had not been to confession in three months. Was it really because I was working in Holland (where 99% of the population understand English), or was it because I never did make the effort to head to church a tad earlier?

A long-needed confession was followed by a blessing from this warm and gentle old man. Leaving the sacristy, I came back to that same pew, and started writing.

“O my son, give me your heart…” - Proverbs 23:26



- posted on behalf of Andre Brinstan Frois

How much is He worth to you?

Today's Gospel zooms in on Judas, the notorious disciple who sold Jesus for a miserly reward.

We all have a habit to point to Judas as the traitor of the bunch. I never liked to put Judas in the common bad light, because in truth, we too often fail to see that we're very often the Judas in our own rights.

One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" They paid him thirty pieces of silver, and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over. - Mt 26:14-16

How much is Jesus worth to you? How much will you exchange Him for?

An extra hour on the Internet?
Three more A1's?
A promotion?
Five friends to go out and chill out with?
A $2,000 pay increment?
Six more games at the pool saloon?
A pornographic video?
More sleep?
A few more overtime dollars at work?
A few hours of computer gaming?
Two more rounds of Mahjong?
A good testimonial from a teacher or from the boss?
The latest novel of your favourite author?
Another round of beer?
The fourth season of Grey's Anatomy, or Brothers And Sisters, or Heroes?

They all equate to merely 30 pieces of silver - as good as nothing, compared to the real Treasure we're exchanging them for.

May we all recognise our sins in honesty, repent of them, and not live in cowardly denial, asking the Lord, "Surely it is not I?" because like Judas, we know the answer to that question.

Only the Cross offers fulfillment: Pope

Pope Benedict XVI opened Holy Week at the Vatican with a Mass that began with the Palm Sunday procession through St. Peter's Square and included the singing of the Passion. In his homily the Holy Father told the congregation of 40,000 that "without a 'Yes' to the Cross-- without walking in communion with Christ day after day-- life cannot be fulfilling."

The Pope reminded the congregation that Christ's Kingdom is "not the rule of political power, but is exclusively based on the free adherence of love." Even today, he said, many people, like Pilate, misunderstand the nature of the Kingdom. Two things must be recognized, the Pope said: "this Kingdom passes through the Cross;" and "his Kingdom is universal."

Therefore, the Pontiff said, the only means to human fulfillment is the path of the Cross. This, he said, "includes sacrifice, renunciation." He added: "Those who promise a life without this ever-new gift of self, are deluding people." On the other hand, he said-- speaking of his own personal experience-- "the times when I have said 'Yes' to sacrifice have been the greatest and most important moments of my life."


Source.

News in prayer 3

The latest on the fight against abortion in the US has taken another step toward the dark side. Senator Tom Colburn proposed the "conscience law": To protect the freedom of conscience for patients and the right of health care providers to serve patients without violating their moral and religious convictions.

Well, this law of freedom has been rejected. As the Catholic News Agency puts it: "The failure to pass this legislation now leaves the door open for the Obama Administration to rescind the law by executive order and force health workers to compromise their moral convictions."

Simply put, a woman will have the right to choose to kill the human being in her tummy. But a doctor or a nurse will not be given the right to choose to not take part in the murder of unborn children.

The result of the vote was 41-56. There were 25 Catholic Senators given a vote. 16 voted to reject the bill, and nine voted for the bill. With a defeat margin of 15, it would have made every difference in the world if those 16 Catholics stood up and lived their faith.

Source.

Please pray:

• that those who promote pro-"choice" will also fight for the rights for healthcare workers to not participate in abortions;
• for the 16 Senators who voted to reject the bill - that they will recognise the importance of this result;
• for the Senator Tom Colburn and the nine Senators who voted for the bill - that God will reward them richly for their moral courage;
• for all Catholics to see the importance of human life;
• for the US, the most powerful country in the world, that they will be guided by God in the right direction and influence the rest of the world in the right way.
  

4th Last Word of Jesus - ...why have you forsaken me?

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" - Mk 15:34

One way of looking at this was that Jesus was reciting the first line of Psalm 22 which contained prophecies that were fulfilled at his passion (the enemies jeering, dividing of clothes and gambling for the tunic). Or that Jesus was experiencing the consequences of our sin, that disconnectedness with God, that he took upon himself willingly, and so he was voicing out the anguish that he was feeling with the words from the psalm.

As I reflected on the word forsaken, and I looked at my life, I don't think that I have ever done what Jesus did. In times when I'm down, I seldom turn to God until I'm really desperate. I can't say that I've ask God why has he forsaken me because I know its always I who have forsaken him first. It shows the shallowness of my faith and relationship with God.

In my first year of seminary, I read a few books by the Jesuit priest, Fr Thomas Green, on prayer and the deepening of our relationship with God. I wrote a few reflections on my blog on what I had learnt. In one that I wrote in lent 4 yrs ago, I wrote about what spiritual consolation and desolation was. And my second last paragraph, I said that I had not experienced full desolation yet, concluding that I'm not holy enough. Maybe now still not holy.

Read the post if you are wondering why holiness leads to desolation (a sense of abandonment by God). St John of the Cross calls it the Dark Night of the Soul. While deepening of spiritual life one will encounter spiritual dryness, desolation. Mother Teresa went through years of desolation, as revealed in the recent book Come Be My Light. When the book was published, it sparked off many comments from the secular world, that she didn't believe in God, that she was a hypocrite professing a faith in a God she didn't believe in. But this spiritual desolation is not something that the world will understand. Even most Catholics do not know or understand that there is such a thing or that it exists.

Luckily God only allows it to happen to those who he knows are strong enough to perservere through it, and those who are willing to lay down their lives for him. It is a means through which God purifies our soul, to love him as he loved us. A test of our faith, whether we will still be faithful to seek him even if we do not have the good feeling that spiritual consolation brings. It brings to mind the faith that Abraham had. He was probably in highest consolation when God granted him a son in his old age. But what must have gone through when God asked him to sacrifice that same son.

In my younger days, I remember borrowing a question and answer book from the church library that had this question - "What if I scold God?". I remember that the answer started by saying that its ok, because at least you still have a relationship with God, that you still believe in him enough to expect something from him, and that you can get angry with him.

On a final note, I realised that I haven't reached a familiarity with the scriptures to be able use it in my prayer with God. I am probably like the bystanders who didn't know their psalms enough to recognise what it was. And that the last part of the psalm praises and glorifies God for the deliverance that he has granted.

The 5th Word for tomorrow's reflection is "I Thirst" (Jn 19:28).



- posted on behalf of Br Terence Kesavan

Pray the stations of the cross

Dear friends, as we approach Holy Thursday, let's spend the last few days of our journey together to reflect on the Stations of the Cross. You can do it on your own, or call together friends you know in Quady 09 to pray together.

Hope this week turns out to be what it should for you - holy.

Thanks to EWTN!

3rd Last Word of Jesus - Woman, here is your son...

Woman, here is your son... Here is your mother. - Jn 19:26-27

One reason why I like to read Archbishop Fulton Sheen's writings, is his ability to see scripture from a different perspective. When I look at this passage of Jesus giving his mother to the disciple he loved, I see it from two points of view. One that despite his own suffering, Jesus was worried about his mother, that he entrusts her, a widow, into the care of his disciple. The other viewpoint is that the disciple was not named, so that he represents all of us, to whom Jesus gives his mother.

Bishop Sheen being from America, would have used the New American Bible translation, and the word used there is "Behold your son". In this day, we don't really use the word "behold" anymore, so the other translations use "this" or "here". But the word "behold" has a richer meaning than "this" or "here". More than just a statement, it is command to see and look. It is used in John's Gospel when referring to Jesus by John the Baptist "Behold the Lamb of God", by Pilate "Behold the Man", "Behold your king!". And here Jesus is telling Mary to see and look at her son. If the words were to come out from anyone else, Mary would have looked up at Jesus on the cross. But because it came from Jesus, he was telling her to look at the disciple and to see her son Jesus, in the disciple. As the unnamed disciple represents us, Mary sees her son Jesus in each and everyone of us. We are called to be one with him, and he with us, showing his face to the world.

Bishop Sheen also mentions that just prior to this scene, was the dividing of Jesus' clothes by the soldiers. He uses the seamless tunic, most probably woven by Mary, as the link to Jesus' speaking to his mother. But as I reflected on it, somehow I got de-linked from the cross to focusing on the soldiers gambling. Much like the reflection on the two thieves, I found myself wondering what must have been going on in the minds of those soldiers:

"Just another days work"
"Lets get it over and done with"
"Sky getting dark, looks like is going to rain"
"Look at these Jews, fighting among themselves"
"Come lets have some fun and gamble for this tunic"

For them, there was no mystery, no sacrifice, nothing special about that day. In contrast to what the good thief experienced, to what the disciple and women at the foot of the cross were going through. Similarly, this week, from Holy Thursday, Good Friday and the Easter Vigil, which one are we going to be? The women, especially Mary, pondering on Christ's passion and death? Or the soldiers, where it is just another day, in fact better still, a public holiday? Whats going to be my focus, and how am I going to spend these 3 days?

The 4th Word for tomorrow's reflection is "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Mk 15:34)



- posted on behalf of Br Terence Kesavan

News in prayer 2

As most well-informed Catholics know, the new Obama regime in the US have very different perspectives on certain issues (the issue of the dignity of the human life being the most important). Because of that, it's been difficult to appoint a representative to work with the Vatican.

The post of US Ambassador to the Holy See has been vacant since 19 Jan, when Harvard law professor Mary Ann Glendon left the position. And the Vatican's already rejected three proposals for a new representative - they're all not pro-life enough.

Edward Pentin of Newsmax even commented: "To help clear up some of these disagreements, a meeting between the Pope and the President is seen by some as a matter of urgency, particularly in view of Obama’s campaign pledge to build consensus between both sides of the pro-life debate."

It's going to be tough finding a pro-life member in a pro-abort (oh, sorry, pro-"choice") administration, but it's not impossible. Let us pray for patience from both the Vatican and for the US government in finding a suitable candidate to maintain good relations between the two sides. Let's also pray for a suitable candidate sensitive to the importance of the human life, that this person may play a key role in keeping the good relationship between the Vatican and the US.

Pope Benedict XVI and Mary Ann Glendon, former US ambassador to the Vatican. (AP)

Source.

2nd Last Word of Jesus - Today you will be with me...

Amen, I say to you,
today you will be with me in Paradise.

A reflection that I read from another book on Jesus' Seven Last Words gave a very interesting insight on the role of the thieves that were crucified on either side of Jesus. The first thieves in the world were Adam and Eve, when they stole the fruit from the tree of knowledge.

God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.'... the woman saw that the tree was good for food... she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. - Gen 3:3-6

And when the good thief said "we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.", it goes further than just the theft that the two thieves committed, to the theft of the First Adam, to our sin, for which we deserve the condemnation. The thieves represent all of us, who should be "justly condemned", and yet the sinless one, the Second Adam, tells us that today we will be with him in paradise.

It was quite consoling to dwell on the hope that we too are like the "good thief", being forgiven and told that we will be with Jesus in paradise. But as I reflected further, the realisation of both thieves as representing us set in, yet only one was given that hope. It brought to mind a discussion that we had at last weeks Alpha, where one participant shared that his friend told him that he can enjoy life right now, and wait till before he dies to repent, and he will still go to heaven. After all whether we enter the vineyard at the 1st hour or the last hour we will still be paid the same. Our God is a generous God.

We all know that that is not the right way to live out our faith, but I'm sure that we all have thought about this loophole in our lives, and definitely we still use it when we consciously decide to sin, with the intention of going for confession later. But the stark contrast between the good thief and the other thief is the reality that I may reach that final day and not be able to repent, not able to recognise Jesus, not able to ask Jesus to "remember me when you come into your kingdom". Sin has the effect of darkening our soul, of covering our eyes. As St John says those who do evil will run away from good.

This is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. - Jn 3:19-20

The last point of reflection that I had was on the word "Today". Another time that Jesus used the word "today" was when he told Zacchaeus "Today salvation has come to this house". Both times salvation was declared on a person, because of their words and action, but most importantly because of a change in their heart. In the good thief, we have one example of a man who at his dying humbly embraced Christ. In the other thief we also have a man whose heart was hardened that he mocked Christ even as he was dying. And in Zacchaeus we have one who while living encountered Christ and changed his life, and received salvation.

In our current lifestyle, we always want things immediately. We want the good stuff and we want it now. But yet when it comes to Salvation, we don't mind waiting. Maybe it is because we think that Salvation and the Kingdom of God is something associated with life after death or the last days. But in fact Jesus tells us "the kingdom of God is among you" (Lk 17:21). Don't wait any longer... today is the day.

The 3rd Word for tomorrow's reflection is "Woman, here is your son... Here is your mother" (Jn 19:26-27)



- posted on behalf of Br Terence Kesavan