Trinity Sunday

05-31-2020Weekly Reflection

An English Novelist by the name of Graham Greene said that he refuses to believe in a God he could not understand. It is the nature of God to reveal Himself, so that people will love Him more, know Him better, and live a life of faith in Him. But there are mysteries about God that defy human understanding. The greatness of God indeed surpasses human understanding or wisdom. The gap between the finger of God and Adam in Michael Angelo’ Sistine Chapel painting is probably about an inch, but is so much larger in life. That is why the basic foundation of spirituality is the understanding of this dictum: Let God be God, and let man be man. Man is aware of God’s love, because we experience it in our life and the day to day realities of life. Whatever we know about Him is through His Son, Jesus Christ, “He became like us in all things, except in sin.” In Jesus, the Father and the Holy Spirit’s divinity is unveiled in His humanity.

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The Gifts of Peace and the Holy Spirit

05-24-2020Weekly Reflection

At Pentecost, Jesus gifted His troubled and spiritually weak disciples with His PEACE and the HOLY SPIRIT. "Peace be with you… receive the Holy Spirit." Today especially, but for the rest of our life, let us pray to the Lord to grant us His PEACE, and the company of the Holy Spirit in our journey of life.

Lord Jesus, we do not understand how things will work out, but we trust in You. At times, we don’t see a way, but we know You will make a way. We have great faith that even now, You are touching hearts, opening doors and lining up the right opportunities for us. Sometimes, the horizon might be dark and gloomy, but we have faith that dawn is coming, in the Peace of Jesus, and the presence of the Holy Spirit.

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Jesus’ Power and Presence

05-17-2020Weekly Reflection

In the Gospel of the Ascension, Jesus empowers His disciples: “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations… Behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Mt. 28:1820) Jesus assures us of His power and presence.

In a world where unlimited calls, texts, data, refills, offers, etc. is better: There is an unlimited that is very dangerous, because there is no such thing as unlimited power in this world. Everything and everyone will eventually expire. Ascension did not leave the disciples orphaned, all He asked was to TRUST in Him. People, leaders all come and go, all worldly powers will come to an end, thus, we must all hold on to a power that is constant, strong and unchanging. In the Gospel, Jesus revealed to His disciple that His Father entrusted this kind of power to Him, and He in turn is entrusting this power to them.

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The Promised Paraclete

05-10-2020Weekly Reflection

Most scholars divide John’s Gospel into four sections, the 3rd section being the Book of Glory (Jn. 13:1-20:31). A large part of this section is the Farewell Discourse that contains Jesus’ spiritual encouragement. Jesus spoke openly to His disciples of His impending suffering. Thus, the discourse contains message of consolations to strengthen their faith, “Do not let your hearts be trouble, You have faith in God; have faith also in me.” (Jn. 14:1) Because He did not like to leave an impression that He was abandoning them, He re-assures them with a two-fold promise: “I will not leave your orphaned; I will come back to you.”

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Jesus and the Father

05-03-2020Weekly Reflection

“Believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me…” This is one of the central mysteries of our faith, Easter highlights this even further, Jn. 14:112 presents us another picture of the Relationship of Jesus and Father. Many scholars believe that John chapter 1317 commonly known as the Farewell Discourse, contains most Jesus’ Last Supper Discourse. The scene for this very long discourse is the last supper, Jesus mentions, “I am going to prepare a place for you…” His disciples assumed that He was speaking of a physical place, but Jesus was not speaking of any physical room in Jerusalem. And this is not the first time that He is talking about His Father, who sent Him into this world.

Could Jesus be talking about the “Temple,” because they have heard Him talking about His Fathers house when He drove away the money changers outside the Temple? “My house shall be a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of thieves.” (Mt. 21:13) The Temple is surely the Father’s house, was Jesus talking about preparing a place for them in the Temple? But again, Jesus was not talking about the Temple here, but He did talk often of His Father being “in Heaven.” In the Lord’s Prayer, it starts with the acclamation: Our Father in Heaven. Remembering all this, could Jesus be really talking about going to Heaven, the House of His Father, and when He has prepared a place for them, come back to take them to Heaven?

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