"A new heaven and new earth are offered to each of us in this season of Easter. How do you experience it?"
"Because Jesus was truly human, He died and was entombed. His death and resurrection (not resuscitation) is the essential part of the proclamation of His humanity and divinity. "
Resurrection brings life, new work, a fresh start where nothing learned will be of much help.
"The resurrected Lord is in evidence when I have a change of heart about my feelings toward an enemy".
Listen to the Lenten hymn "Where you there when they crucified my Lorrd Where ere you? ??
"Easter offers us an invitation to walk with Jesus in a life renewed by his Resurrection. The Risen Lord makes all things new.."
Three posts by two authors are offered to readers for reflection on this day.
Three reflections on Good Friday for your contemplation by Michael Couts, SJ
"Thursday is a celebration of turning those ordinary forms of service, hospitality and availability, into a way to imitate Christ. "
"Henri Nouwen also invites us to, “always look at Jesus, because in his crucified and glorified heart we will see ourselves called to share in his suffering as well as in his glory.”"
"Rupp helps us see that something as everyday as a doorway can help us to ponder our spiritual growth. A good exercise for Palm Sunday and Holy Week is to unlock the spiritual lessons that are being offered to us. "
In this post you will find three distinct reflections on the crosses we all carry.
The four reflections were meant to be published as four distinct texts. This was not done and I apologize for any confusion this has caused. in the official posting
This year, Lentin is " .. . a time of meeting one another again in person and a time of looking forward to celebrating and worshipping in person in our own churches/"
Icicle time is not unique to Winnipeg and today's poem offers some marks of that "dreaded" beauty from Mother Nature.
"This return is what he prayed so fervently for. But he also understands the resentment of the older child. No doubt, he spends sleepless nights worrying about how to heal the damaged relationship between his two children. "
"Mary is presented today as an obedient and faithful woman who generously agreed to be the Mother of God, thus cooperating freely in the plan of salvation."
"Who is being ignored and marginalized today? Whose voices are not being heard? How do they show us to walk in newness of life we are called to?"
"How easy it is to write off certain situations or individuals, seeing that they seem barren, unable to produce."
"It is also customary to give monetary gifts to at least two poor people and to send two food gifts to at least one person."
"Peak experiences don't have to be profound moments of prayer. They don't even have to be confined to religious experiences. It's just a felt sense that all is right with my world and that God hasn't abandoned me."
shanoshan"Lent is a period of preparation, a type of spiritual retreat that evokes the experience of the desert."
A concerned parishioner asks a priest about "changes" in Lent.
A reminder of the meaning of ashes from yesterday's Ash Wednesday.
"Perhaps the sad and scary reality of our world has made me realize that it is only God who can rescue us from this mess."
"Whatever your traditions and practices, try to take time today to consider how you head into Lent."
"If you’re finding it hard to gear up for another season of self-sacrifice, I hear you. It feels like we’ve been in sacrifice mode for a long time."
"However my plan or rather my hope and prayer is to ask Mother Mary to Journey with me during this Lenten season."
" As John the Baptist reminded those complaining that everyone was leaving him and going to Jesus. Jesus is the bridegroom! He is only the friend of the bridegroom! We, the Church, are the bride. And there is more."
"Christmas never stops tugging at us, as this igNation series illustrates in its seasonal exploration of that strange dance between religion and popular culture and deeply grafted traditions, expectations, and associations. This is the time of year when sentimentalism overpowers even the most auster
If your Christmas tree could talk what might it say after Christmas??
" there comes a realization that community is at the heart of the mystery of Christmas, the mystery of the Incarnation"
T.S.Eliot wrote that the Magi had " a cold coming" in "the very dead of winter." Even so, they brought special gifts. What do we bring to Christ?
"Many people find themselves reflecting back on their own hidden life and experiencing a closer kinship with Jesus. In other words, they allow themselves to advance in wisdom, age, and grace along with Jesus."
"We may not like the person, but as disciples we are called by that infant born this sacred night, to love them"
As we end the 2019 Christmas season, a modern Christmas song invites controversy.
Images of a deep and dark December call to mind the music of Simon annd Garfunkel.
"St. Bernard of Clairvaux says it best, “They fall on their faces, they revere him as king, they worship him as God. He who led them has instructed them too. He who urged them on by means of the star has himself taught them in their inmost heart.”
"Today’s First Reading offers a suitable blessing for us as we start the civic year. Perhaps it also helps all of us to approach this new year with peace."