Sep 3 – Memorial for St. Gregory the Great, Pope and Doctor St. Gregory (540-590) collected the melodies and plain chants so associated with him, that they are now known as Gregorian Chants. He was elected by unanimous acclamation for pope. Incidentally, he was also the first monk to be pope. Before his papacy, he... Continue Reading →
27 July, Sunday — Asking for trust
17th Sunday in Ordinary Time Gn 18:20-32Col 2:12-14Lk 11:1-13 "And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. This verse from today’s Gospel passage was my ‘scriptural door gift’ at a prayer service I attended a few years ago. Each of... Continue Reading →
30 May, Friday — Moving from grieving to hoping
Friday of the 6th Week of Eastertide Acts 18:9-18Jn 16:20-23 "So it is with you: you are sad now, but I shall see you again, and your hearts will be full of joy, and that joy no one shall take from you." The passing of Pope Francis and the election of Pope Leo XIV have... Continue Reading →
29 May, Thursday — Learning to Rejoice in the Ascension
Ascension The Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Christ (also called the Solemnity of the Ascension of Jesus Christ, Ascension Day, Ascension Thursday, or sometimes Holy Thursday) commemorates the Christian belief of the bodily Ascension of Jesus into Heaven. It is one of the ecumenical (shared by multiple denominations) feasts of Christian churches, ranking with the feasts of the Passion and Pentecost. Following the account of Acts 1:3 that the... Continue Reading →
21 April, Monday — The lesser-known disciples
Easter Monday Acts 2:14,22-33Mt 28:8-15 While they were on their way, some of the guard went off into the city to tell the chief priests all that had happened. When I was going through the readings for today, I was slightly surprised to see that the Gospel passage – for Easter Monday, the day after... Continue Reading →
21 March, Friday — Insights from Joseph’s story
Friday of the 2nd Week of Lent Gen 37:3-4,12-13,17-28Mt 21:33-43,45-46 But Reuben heard and he saved him from their violence. "We must not take his life” he said. I only knew about Joseph’s thrilling tale from the musical, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, and appreciated the chance to read his story more closely for... Continue Reading →
20 March, Thursday — Considering the Small Things
Thursday of the 2nd Week of Lent Jer 17:5-10Lk 16:19-31 And at his gate there lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to fill himself with the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. Today’s Gospel passage on Lazarus and the rich man, whom I read somewhere is left unnamed... Continue Reading →
9 February, Sunday — God calls us first
5th Sunday in Ordinary Time Isa 6:1-81 Cor 15:1-11Lk 5:1-11 With this he touched my mouth and said: "See now, this has touched your lips, your sin is taken away, your iniquity is purged." Both the passages set for today’s First Reading and Gospel are familiar ones which have been used before. But when I... Continue Reading →
16 January, Thursday – Our Father and Mother want to heal us
Thursday of Week 1 in Ordinary Time Heb 3:7-14Mk 1:40–45 Feeling sorry for him, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him. “Of course I want to!" he said. "Be cured!” I recently attended the 5th Lourdes Experience in Singapore, an event of prayer for the sick and devotion in honour of Our Lady of... Continue Reading →
27 November, Wednesday — Persevering in hope
Wednesday of Week 34 in Ordinary Time Apo 15:1-4Lk 21:12-19 "Your endurance will win you your lives." I always feel slightly unsettled by the readings at mass every November as the liturgical year draws to an end, especially with the passages from the book of Revelations. The nightmarish images of frightening beasts and destroying angels... Continue Reading →
OXYGEN 