Posted: 11 May 2009 09:00 PM PDT
Acts 14:19-28 / Jn 14:27-31
There’s an ancient Chinese curse that says, “May you live in interesting times.” The curse seems to have come true in our day. There’s no era in history that can match the speed and the complexity with which growth and change are occurring at this very moment. It’s fascinating and exciting, but it also has an impact on our daily lives, injecting a level of uncertainty and stress that we’d just as soon live without.
And so, Jesus’ words in today’s gospel are especially relevant and comforting. ”Peace is My gift to you,” he says. What exactly is the peace that Jesus promises to those who walk with Him? It’s not a freedom from having to pay close attention to our finances or our retirement fund, or to who our kids are hanging out with. It’s not an immunity from having to watch our diets, monitor our health, and give our rose bushes just the right combination of care.
The peace that Jesus gives is the peace of perspective, of seeing all things in the light of our profound conviction that the Lord loves us, walks with us, and will always give us what we need. It’s the inner quiet that comes from knowing that “for those who love God, all things work for the good.”
Trust that, and you will know His peace.
Tuesday, 12 May 2009
Sunday, 10 May 2009
Benedict XVI Reiterates Church's Link to Jews
Papal Pilgrimage Begins Overlooking the Promised Land
AMMAN, Jordan, MAY 9, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is affirming the continued unity of Christians and Jews in the ancient practice of pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
The Pope visited the Basilica of the Moses Memorial at Mount Nebo today, commencing his weeklong Holy Land pilgrimage. Tradition holds that it was here that God showed Moses the Promised Land after 40 years of wandering in the desert.
"It is appropriate that my pilgrimage should begin on this mountain, where Moses contemplated the Promised Land from afar," the Pontiff said. "Moses gazed upon the Promised Land from afar, at the end of his earthly pilgrimage. His example reminds us that we too are part of the ageless pilgrimage of God's people through history."
"From the earliest times," the Holy Father continued, "Christians have come on pilgrimage to the sites linked to the history of the Chosen People, the events of Christ's life and the nascent Church."
"This great tradition," he added, "which my present pilgrimage is meant to continue and confirm, is grounded in the desire to see, to touch, and to savor in prayer and contemplation the places blessed by the physical presence of our Savior, his Blessed Mother, the apostles and the first disciples who saw him risen from the dead."
"The ancient tradition of pilgrimage to the holy places also reminds us of the inseparable bond between the Church and the Jewish people," the Pontiff explained. "From the beginning, the Church in these lands has commemorated in her liturgy the great figures of the Patriarchs and Prophets, as a sign of her profound appreciation of the unity of the two Testaments."
"May our encounter today," the Pope concluded, "inspire in us a renewed love for the canon of sacred Scripture and a desire to overcome all obstacles to the reconciliation of Christians and Jews in mutual respect and cooperation in the service of that peace to which the word of God calls us!"
New Moses
Father José RodrÃgez Carballo, General Minister of the Franciscans living in the Holy Land, who welcomed the Holy Father, said, "You are not alone on this journey. We want to accompany you, or rather follow you, just as once the people of Israel followed Moses and were led by him."
"Today," he continued, "we still feel as though we are in the desert and we need someone who leads us to the Lord, someone who helps us get to know him as a provident and compassionate Father, as Our Lord Jesus Christ revealed him to us."
"Your Holiness, we entrust ourselves to you on this pilgrimage," the Franciscan priest declared. "Take our pleas to the Lord and address us again with that Word, which is the only one that can give us salvation."
In his remarks, the Holy Father thanked in particular Father Carballo and the Franciscan friars who minister to the Holy Land pilgrims for "their age-old presence in these lands, their joyful fidelity to the charism of St. Francis, and their generous concern for the spiritual and material welfare of the local Christian communities and the countless pilgrims who visit the Holy Land each year."
Saturday, 9 May 2009
Notre Dame Honor for Obama Seen as Mistake
Poll Reveals Majority Disagrees With University
NEW YORK, MAY 7, 2009 (Zenit.org).- More than half of all Americans oppose the University of Notre Dame's decision to honor President Barack Obama with an honorary degree, according to a Rasmussen poll.
The telephone survey, released Tuesday, asked 1,000 adults if the university should be giving the president an honorary degree, given the 2004 guidelines established by U.S. bishops stating that Catholic institutions should not honor people whose actions conflict with the Church's moral principles. Fifty-two percent of those polled said no, and among Catholics, 60% said no.
The statement of the U.S. bishops says: "The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."
Only 25% of those polled agreed with the university's decision, and 19% said they were unsure.
When asked if it's important that commencement speakers for universities with a religious affiliation share the religious views of that university, nearly two-thirds (63%) said yes. Of Catholics, 56% said yes, while 87% of evangelicals answered in the affirmative, along with 63% of other Protestants.
While the majority disagrees with the university's decision to honor the president, only 30% of American adults believe the president should cancel his appearance at Notre Dame. Among Catholics, just 34% think Obama should cancel.
Of those polled, 15% say they are following the story "very closely," and another 23% are following it "somewhat closely."
Among Catholics, 25% are following the story "very closely," and another 27% are following it "somewhat closely."
NEW YORK, MAY 7, 2009 (Zenit.org).- More than half of all Americans oppose the University of Notre Dame's decision to honor President Barack Obama with an honorary degree, according to a Rasmussen poll.
The telephone survey, released Tuesday, asked 1,000 adults if the university should be giving the president an honorary degree, given the 2004 guidelines established by U.S. bishops stating that Catholic institutions should not honor people whose actions conflict with the Church's moral principles. Fifty-two percent of those polled said no, and among Catholics, 60% said no.
The statement of the U.S. bishops says: "The Catholic community and Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles. They should not be given awards, honors or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."
Only 25% of those polled agreed with the university's decision, and 19% said they were unsure.
When asked if it's important that commencement speakers for universities with a religious affiliation share the religious views of that university, nearly two-thirds (63%) said yes. Of Catholics, 56% said yes, while 87% of evangelicals answered in the affirmative, along with 63% of other Protestants.
While the majority disagrees with the university's decision to honor the president, only 30% of American adults believe the president should cancel his appearance at Notre Dame. Among Catholics, just 34% think Obama should cancel.
Of those polled, 15% say they are following the story "very closely," and another 23% are following it "somewhat closely."
Among Catholics, 25% are following the story "very closely," and another 27% are following it "somewhat closely."
The Rest Will Take Care of Itself!
Posted: 07 May 2009 09:00 PM PDT
Acts 13:26-33 / Jn 14:1-6
It’s natural to wonder what heaven will be like, and it’s fascinating to hear the phantasms that some of us have conjured up, with no basis whatever in fact or scripture except that this is the way we think it ought to be. Will it be like a Giotto painting with everyone in fancy dress and all neatly arranged like the court of a renaissance king? Or will it perhaps be an idyllic scene of saints clad in flowing white gowns, luxuriating serenely on puffy clouds and languidly plucking their harps? I seriously doubt it. But who knows? For the fact is that heaven is as inscrutable as God himself.
Yet we do know something about God: He is our eternally loving Father. And good fathers know how take good care of their children. St. Paul said that he didn’t have a clue as to the specifics: “Eye has not seen nor ear heard what God has prepared for those who love him.” And in the end, who needs specifics? What we do need is trust “trust in the full extent of God’s love for us. And from that trust in his love will come love in return” love that takes care and helps our neighbors to thrive.
Trust and love. The rest will take care of itself!
Acts 13:26-33 / Jn 14:1-6
It’s natural to wonder what heaven will be like, and it’s fascinating to hear the phantasms that some of us have conjured up, with no basis whatever in fact or scripture except that this is the way we think it ought to be. Will it be like a Giotto painting with everyone in fancy dress and all neatly arranged like the court of a renaissance king? Or will it perhaps be an idyllic scene of saints clad in flowing white gowns, luxuriating serenely on puffy clouds and languidly plucking their harps? I seriously doubt it. But who knows? For the fact is that heaven is as inscrutable as God himself.
Yet we do know something about God: He is our eternally loving Father. And good fathers know how take good care of their children. St. Paul said that he didn’t have a clue as to the specifics: “Eye has not seen nor ear heard what God has prepared for those who love him.” And in the end, who needs specifics? What we do need is trust “trust in the full extent of God’s love for us. And from that trust in his love will come love in return” love that takes care and helps our neighbors to thrive.
Trust and love. The rest will take care of itself!
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