Wednesday of the 2nd Week of Lent Jer 18:18-20Mt 20:17-28 “You do not know what you are asking,” Jesus answered. “Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” When John and James’ mother approached Jesus with her request that her sons sit at the left and right of Jesus, she (and her... Continue Reading →
27 February, Tuesday — Serving first, disabilities second
Tuesday of the 2nd Week of Lent Isa 1:10,16-20Mt 23:1-12 "The greatest among you must be your servant." I was in a snow ski resort with my family in Japan last year for a family holiday. I am unable to walk, so I move around in a wheelchair. But it was very difficult for my... Continue Reading →
26 February, Monday — Our nothingness before our Lord
Monday of the 2nd Week of Lent Dan 9:4-10Lk 6:36-38 …rescue us for the sake of your name. When receiving ashes, one of the lines the priest says is ‘Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.’ Today’s readings greatly emphasize this, and I’ve realised that I needed the reminder, because it’s... Continue Reading →
25 February, Sunday — Just to thank you, Lord
2nd Sunday of Lent Gen 22:1-2,9-13,15-18Rm 8:31-34Mk 9:2-10 A thanksgiving sacrifice I make… Lent is a season where we, Catholics, are called to sacrifice. Many Catholics have decided to give up on something like social media, meat, or other forms of sacrifice. We also usually tie up our sacrifices to a few prayer intentions. And... Continue Reading →
24 February, Saturday — The Story that Matters
Saturday of the 1st Week of Lent Deu 26:16-19Mt 5:43-48 “But I say this to you: love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you…” Of all Jesus’s teachings, I find this one of the hardest ones to swallow: Love your enemies, pray for them. Wait, what…? When I first read that, I was... Continue Reading →
23 February, Friday — Crying Foul
Friday of the 1st Week of Lent Eze 18:21-28Mt 5:20-26 “Listen, you House of Israel: Is what I do unjust? Is it not what you do that is unjust?” If you have managed children before, you’ll discover that they are the first to point out if you have been fair in your treatment of them... Continue Reading →
22 February, Thursday — What a friend we have in Jesus
22 Feb – Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, the Apostle The feast of the Chair of St. Peter at Rome, Italy has been celebrated from the early days of the Christian era on Jan 18, in commemoration of the day when St. Peter held his first service in Rome. The feast of the... Continue Reading →
18 February, Sunday — The whole truth & nothing but the truth
1st Sunday of Lent Gen 9:8-151 Pet 3:18-22Mk 1:12-15 “Repent, and believe the Good News.” So we begin Lent, with readings from the covenant between God and Noah and, in the second reading, we have our first Pope telling us that the flood is actually a prefigurement of our baptism, where we are made clean... Continue Reading →
17 February, Saturday — Responding continuously to Jesus’ call
Saturday after Ash Wednesday Is 58:9-14Lk 5:27-32 Jesus noticed a tax collector, Levi by name, sitting at the customs house, and said to him, “Follow me.” And leaving everything, he got up and followed him. I always wonder why and how Levi, also known as Matthew, was able to immediately follow Jesus. Perhaps he had... Continue Reading →
16 February, Friday — Who are we fasting for?
Friday after Ash Wednesday Is 58:1-9Mt 9:14-15 They ask me for laws that are just, they long for God to draw near. “Why should we fast if you never see it? Why do penance if you never notice?” Today, as the first Friday after Ash Wednesday, will probably be the day I am the keenest... Continue Reading →
OXYGEN 