Vocation “is about making God’s dream come true”
Pope Francis released a message on Thursday for the for the 59th World Day of Prayer for Vocations, which this year will be on 8 May, and has as its theme “Called to Build the Human Family.” Pope Francis says that when we speak about vocations, we are speaking about making God’s dream come true. He encourage every person in the Church to give the very best of themselves. In his message, the Pope reminds us that we are called: to be protagonists of the Church’s mission; to be guardians of one another and of creation; to welcome God’s gaze; to respond to God’s gaze; and to build a fraternal world. Here is the full message: Dear Brothers and Sisters, At the time when the cold winds of war and oppression are blowing and when we frequently encounter signs of polarization, we as a Church have undertaken a synodal process:…
3rd Sunday of Easter, Year C – 2022
Reading the gospel texts, each one is inspired by them in his/her own way. Any given text, at different moments, may open up new perspectives and offer new messages. Today the long gospel text presents us with two different scenes (John 21:19-31). In the second one, we see Jesus with Peter – a scene quite special indeed and rich in insights. I read it again and… an unusual idea comes – the title I would give to this scene: ‘What God knows but… wants to be told again!’ Not once, not twice, but three times, Jesus asks a question from Peter. A searching question, one that is very personal, and… evocative… Every time Peter answers repeating the words: “Lord, you know that I love you.” The third time, Peter adds the words: “Lord, you know everything…” Peter is right: Jesus knows it but wants to hear it, he wants…
Final vows April-May 2022
We thank God with and for our four sisters who will soon make their final vows: Sr Pascaline Katungu from Goma DRC appointed to Arusha Tanzania. She will make her vows on 30th April 2022 in Our Lady of Africa Parish, Katoyi in Goma DRC Sr Scholastique Makita from Kinshasa appointed to Malindi in Kenya. She will make her perpetual vows on 30th April 2022 in Saint Gabriel Parish Yolo Kinshasa DRC. Sr Priscille Nisubire from Burundi appointed to Butare in Rwanda. She will make her perpetual vows on 8th May 2022 in Kiganda parish, Archdiocese of Bujumbura, Burundi Sr Anna Wójcik from Poland appointed to Lilongwe in Malawi will make her perpetual vows on 29th May 2022 in the Parish of Saints Peter and Paul and Our Lady of the Rosary in Kanie, in Poland. We wish them to be a good instrument in God’s hands for His…
2nd Sunday of Easter, Year C – 2022
Repeating things – speaking again the words already said – we do it very often. To remind someone of something, to explain something voiced before, to make sure people have understood. We do it with people and for people, and we do it also… with God! Yes, it is something that is often part of our relating to God. Is it that we fear he has forgotten some of our requests? Is it that we think he likes to be reminded? Is it that we like to make sure that we have asked properly? Returning to God again and again, for whatever reason, is not bad. He may indeed be happy with our coming again to be in his presence! But… there may be a danger in repeating… The danger is that we, ourselves, may no longer be very attentive to what we say. We may be used to…
Easter wishes
This year, the spring time brings together the major festivals of the three monotheistic religions: – Pessa’h 5782, which reminds the Jews of the liberating exit from Egypt – Aïd al-Fitr 1443, which closes the Muslim Ramadan fast; – Christian Passover 2022, celebrating Jesus’ victory over death. Can we take this opportunity to wish each other happy feast and “to share our joys and sorrows” as the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue invites us to do? We remember the suffering caused by the global pandemic. We all feel the violent tremors of war in the Ukraine and other countries. Natural disasters will continue. But all this must not extinguish our hope because Jesus has defeated evil and death. A hymn by Robert Lebel which can be found on the web carries this hope: Easter, spring of God! Easter, spring of the world! Easter, spring of the heart! Easter of Jesus-Christ.…
Easter Sunday, Year C – 2022
A stone rolled away… A corpse… missing… “Strips of linen lying there”… Cloth wrapping the body “still lying in its place”… All these are seen, noted, but… No body lying there, NOBODY present! Yet, the gospel text tells us that when John had witnessed this scene, “He saw and believed.” (John 20:1-9) Daily events… Regular meetings… Occasional encounters… Ordinary situations… Unexpected happenings… Unusual occasions… Overheard conversations… Surprising details… Which of these? All of these? At times… sometimes… could be… will be… the signs that could lead us to make the personal experience that John made. We will see and believe. We will NOT see any body – not ANYBODY – but we will perceive a presence. We will recognize the Risen Lord with us as surely as he was 21 centuries ago! source: www.image-i-nations.com
Palm Sunday, Year C – 2022
The following reflection is about the Gospel at the beginning of the celebration before the blessing of the palms (branches) (Luke 19:28-40). A meditation on the gospel of the Passion will be given on Good Friday. A day of jubilation. A day where acclamation and recrimination compete surrounding a man coming into Jerusalem on a donkey. With cries of joy, the crowd acclaims him as the descendant of king David. The man’s adversaries want them to be shut up. The scene is familiar but… What is less familiar is Jesus’ attitude – in the past, he has been avoiding attempts to make him king (John 6:15). And now, he accepts readily the glorious welcome that people give him – he seems to delight in it! He does not shut up the people shouting praises but those who want to silence them. None of the gospel texts tells us why…
5th Sunday of Lent, Year C – 2022
Our days are filled with messages sent and received on many platforms – computers, cell phones, tablets – these tools are available at our fingertips, literally. The more traditional media – books, magazines, periodicals – are still in use to contact people. But have you ever received a message written on… sand? This is surely not the usual mode of communication nowadays! Amazingly, we see this in today’s gospel (John 8:1-11) – we see Jesus writing in the sand. What did he write? What was the message he wanted to make known? No one can say… Did the Pharisees read it? Did they realize that the words were meant for them? Impossible to assert… Did the woman make out the characters traced by Jesus’ finger? Did this give her courage, hope to be spared the stoning prescribed by the Jewish Law? This, too, is unknown. It is after the…
A prayer for our earth
A prayer for our earth All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe and in the smallest of your creatures. You embrace with your tenderness all that exists. Pour out upon us the power of your love, that we may protect life and beauty. Fill us with peace, that we may live as brothers and sisters, harming no one. O God of the poor, help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth, so precious in your eyes. Bring healing to our lives, that we may protect the world and not prey on it, that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction. Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain at the expense of the poor and the earth. Teach us to discover the worth of each thing, to be filled with awe and contemplation, to recognize that we are profoundly united with every…