Posts Tagged ‘Persecution’
In The Hands of God
A short Gospel, just four verses, about who God is and who we are. Jesus is the Good Shepherd, and we, the sheep, are in the hands of God. This is the message of this Sunday, also known as the Good Shepherd Sunday. Today’s Gospel is for each of us. We may be full of…
Read MoreThe Grace of Perseverance
Persecution as Distraction: Our faith ought to be lived actively. Actively pursuing God’s will for us is not always easy. Persecution and trials are the cost of discipleship or a test of our faith. Persecution can come also as a distraction, aiming to dissuade us from fulfilling God’s will for our lives and the world.…
Read MoreWhat Makes Us Strong
A conversation on what we can learn through the life and works of St. James Sometimes we wonder how we succeed in overcoming obstacles and persecutions that ordinarily seem insurmountable. As Christians, we often find ourselves championing noble causes and waging battles that are far beyond our human strength. Knowing our human weakness, we are…
Read MoreWe are Sheep Among Wolves
“Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves.” Mt 10:16. The discipleship command given to the Apostles and to us as His disciples, seems difficult to understand. Has anyone ever met sheep that are as shrewd as serpents? We have an idiom…
Read MorePersist
Are you ready to be a martyr? I certainly am not. To be a martyr is to die for the faith, and I’m too chicken-hearted for that. I hope to fall asleep and wake up in Heaven. Today is the Feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr, who was fearless in proclaiming the Word of…
Read MoreWarning over Persecution
My dear friends, in today’s gospel, Jesus sincerely tells his disciples what awaits them as his followers. He warns them thus: ‘men will seize you and persecute you; they will hand you over to the synagogues and to imprisonment and bring you before kings and governors because of my name’ (Lk 21:12 -13). Again, he…
Read MoreMartyrs of Yesterday and Today
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 approved of the stoning of…
Read MoreThe Healing at the Pool of Bethesda
‘wherever the river flows, all living creatures teeming in it will live … wherever the water goes it brings health … this water comes from the sanctuary’ I was waiting for the water to move. By then it was a long time since the day I first came to the pool. I have no clear…
Read MoreRediscovering Hanukkah
Salvation History records many instances of Jewish persecution. Around 150 years before Christ, it was the turn of the Greeks to wreak havoc and it fell to a brave remnant to uphold the traditions of the elders and revolt against tyranny. Judas Maccabeus and his band of faithful followers relied on God rather than brawn…
Read MoreWarning About Persecution
My dear friends, on this memorial of Saint George, who suffered and died for the gospel, I reflect on the Lord Jesus’ suffering. Jesus suffered, died and rose. He has become a source of inspiration to us in our moments of suffering. Jesus Suffered The Lord Jesus suffered and died for our sake. Jesus died…
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