Daily Reflections
Friends, consider this question today: What does it mean to be a Christian? Would you be Christian today if you had grown up in a different country, or in a family of different religion? For most of my life, I assumed that because I was born to an Indian Hindu…
Read More
One of my favorite Bible illustrations, when I was growing up, was a picture painted by Alford Usher Soord, British painter (1868-1915), of “The Parable of The Lost Sheep.” It depicts a lamb stranded halfway down a steep cliff with the shepherd hanging perilously over the edge. He risking his…
Read More
The last two Sundays, and at Easter, we proclaimed the great Alleluia of the Lord’s resurrection. Today, the fourth Sunday of Eastertide, we continue to read the post-Easter message from the Acts of the Apostles and the Evangelists. The readings continue the testimony of the power of the resurrection and…
Read More
A middle-aged man went to a photo studio for a photo shoot. He showed the pictures to his friend and said to him: “I took my picture for my funeral, now I look handsome before it is too late. When will you have yours?” He encouraged his friend to leave…
Read More
The story of the conversion of Saul started with his bitter aggression against the nascent church, which has a humble but glorious beginning. The Pentecost experience soaked the disciples with the power of the Holy Spirit and gave them a courage they had never known before. They bore witness with…
Read More
I absolutely love the story of Deacon Philip and the Ethiopian! Many Preachers of the Good News First, it shows how the whole body of believers went out and evangelized after Pentecost, not just the apostles. Unfortunately we have a small written record of the Church after Pentecost, and most…
Read More
The first reading today talks about the persecution of the early Catholic Church in Jerusalem. Christians are being scattered, as groups of angry Jews storm into houses, and forcibly evict men, women, and children. Stephen, the first Deacon, and perhaps the first martyr, is dead and recently buried. Saul, who…
Read More
God, the Father Today’s readings are an exhortation to believe in God. St. Paul lays out the evidence of why all must believe: because of Christ’s rising from the dead, by studying Scripture, and that the risen Christ was in the physical presence of many. John’s Gospel continues this message…
Read More
People have different reasons why they seek God. For some people, God is needed when there is a problem while others try to have Him in their lives as a personal friend, Father, and God. There are many others who do not want to be bothered about God but yet…
Read More
The sixth chapter of St. John’s Gospel is a profound teaching on the meaning of the bread of life. The chapter starts off with Jesus’ feeding the 5,000 on a mountain near Bethsaida on the Sea of Galilee. The chapter ends with a lengthy discourse on the great mystery of…
Read More