A Cloud Of Witnesses

Hello! and happy good Tuesday to all of us, GUYS.  Our "food for the soul" today:

THE GOOD NEWS (31 January 2017)

"What a cloud of innumerable witnesses surround us!  So let us be rid of every encumbrance, and especially of sin, to persevere in running the race marked out before us.

Let us look to JESUS the founder of our faith, who will bring it to completion.  For the sake of the joy reserved for HIM, HE endured the cross, scorning its shame, and then sat at the right of the throne of GOD.  Think of JESUS who suffered so many contradictions from evil people, and you will not be discouraged or grow weary.  Have you already shed your blood in the struggle against sin?" - Hebrew 12:1-4 

(Three reasons for remaining steadfast under testing:

- think about JESUS and HIS sufferings;   

- think about "the communion of saints," that is to say, the mysterious bonds uniting all believers;

- think of the trial as a test coming from the FATHER.)

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Let Your Hearts Take Comfort, All Who Hope In The LORD

Hello! and happy good first day of the week to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Monday:

THE GOOD NEWS (30 January 2017)

"How great is the goodness which YOU have stored for those who fear YOU, which YOU show, for all to see, to those who take refuge in YOU!

In the shelter of YOUR presence YOU hide them from human wiles, YOU keep them in YOUR dwelling, safe from the intrigues of wagging tongues.

Blessed be the LORD for HIS wonderful love!  HE has strengthened my heart.

I said in my fright: 'I have been cut-off from YOUR sight!'

Yet when I was crying, YOU heard; when I called for mercy, YOU listened.

Love the LORD, all you HIS saints!  The LORD preserves HIS faithful, but HE fully requites the arrogant." - Psalm 31:20-24 

(Luke attributes these words to JESUS on the cross.  A little further on we find other words, "YOU are MY GOD," which are also in Psalm 22, and closely linked to the Passion.  It will be our last hope at the moment of death.  Into YOUR hands I commend MY spirit.)

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Consider Your Own Calling

Hi! and happy holy and family day to all of us, GUYS.  Our first-thing-first this Sunday:

THE GOOD NEWS (29 January 2017)

"Brothers and sisters, look and see whom GOD has called.  Few among you can be said to be cultured or wealthy, and few belong to noble families.  Yet GOD has chosen what the world considers foolish, to shame the wise; HE has chosen what the world considers weak to shame the strong.  GOD has chosen common and unimportant people, making use of what is nothing to nullify the things that are, so that no mortal may boast before GOD.  But, by GOD's grace you are in CHRIST JESUS, who has become our wisdom from GOD, and who makes us just and holy and free.  Scripture says: Let the one who boasts boast of the LORD." - 1 Corinthians 1:26-31 

(See whom GOD has called.  The Church of Corinth is formed of ordinary people: this is their strength.  Everybody has his place and his mission in the Church.  Ordinary people and poor communities, often persecuted and calumniated, have a primary role in the evangelization of the world.  GOD wants them to evangelize the rich and at times, even the hierarchy.)

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"Quiet! Be Still!"

Hello! and happy good weekend to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Saturday:

THE GOOD NEWS (28 January 2017)

"On that same day when evening had come, JESUS said to them, 'Let's go across to the other side.'  So they left the crowd and took HIM away in the boat HE had been sitting in, and other boats set out with HIM.  Then a storm gathered and it began to blow a gale.  The waves spilled over into the boat so that it was soon filled with water.  And JESUS was in the stern, asleep on the cushion.

They woke HIM up and said, 'Master, don't you care if we sink?  As JESUS awoke, HE rebuked the wind and ordered the sea, 'Quiet now! Be still!'  The wind dropped and there was a great calm.  Then JESUS said to them, 'Why are you so frightened?  Do you still have no faith?'

But they were terrified and they said to one another, 'Who can this be?  Even the wind and the sea obey HIM!'" - Mark 4:35-41 

(In Jewish mentality the sea is a daily reminder of primitive chaos, it is there the marine monsters move around, monsters which only GOD, for HE is the all-powerful, can challenge: Leviathan and Rahab.  In commanding the sea: Quiet now!  Be still!  Just as HE does with the demons [Mark 1:25] JESUS affirms HIS divine power over the forces of evil.

Confronted with all the forms of evil that attack them, in the midst of tempests that arise, people, at times, wonder if GOD "does not sleep."  JESUS is there.  HE is not surprised by the disciples' fear of the tempest, but of their lack of faith; only trust in the victory of JESUS, Son of GOD, over the forces of evil, will allow them to overcome this fear.

At the very instant when they discover this divine power in JESUS, the apostles are terrified, as was Moses at the burning bush [Exodus 3:1], and Isaiah at the time of his vision in the Temple [Isaiah 6:5], as all those to whom GOD shows HIMSELF in a special way: more than a friend, more than a master, JESUS revealed HIMSELF to them in the truth of HIS being.  This fear in discovering GOD so close to them was greater than the fear they had felt during the tempest a few moments earlier.") 

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The Seed Growing By Itself

Hi! and happy TGIF to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Friday:

THE GOOD NEWS (27 January 2017)

"JESUS also said, 'In the kingdom of GOD it is like this.  A man scatters seed upon the soil.  Whether he is asleep or awake, be it day or night, the seed sprouts and grows, he knows not how.  The soil produces of itself; first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.  And when it is ripe for harvesting they take the sickle for the cutting: the time for harvest has come.'" - Mark 4:26-29

Like the smallest mustard seed that had grown up to a tree,

the Kingdom of GOD grows on.

(In every period of time, people become impatient.  When will the kingdom of justice be realized?  Will violence and corruption soon come to an end?  JESUS answers: invisible forces are already at work; the world matures and the Kingdom grows on.)

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What Is Faith?

Hi! and happy good Thursday to all of us, GUYS.  Our "food for the soul" today:

THE GOOD NEWS (26 January 2017)

"For its sake I now suffer this trial, but I am not ashamed, for I know in whom I have believed and I am convinced that HE is capable of taking care of all I have entrusted to HIM until that day." - 2 Timothy 1:12 

(HE is capable of taking care of all I have entrusted to HIM.  These words invite us to remember exact meaning of the word "faith."  In Hebrew, for the Old Testament, the word "faith" had the same root as "to be firm," or "to lean on something."  In Greek, the word that has become "faith" signifies both the trust that could be had in a debtor, and the guarantee given to the creditor.  So Paul considers all his apostolic life as the deposit he has placed in GOD's hands.  Like Paul a person of faith is not deceived by the mirages of a happy life but prefers to use his life in an often thankless labor and persevere as if he already saw what couldn't yet be seen [Hebrew 11:27].)

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Go Out To All The World And Tell The Good News

Hello! and happy good mid-week to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Wednesday:

THE GOOD NEWS (25 January 2017)

"Then HE told them, 'Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation.  The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; the one who refuses to believe will be condemned.

Signs like these will accompany those who have believed: in MY Name they will cast out demons and speak new languages; they will pick up snakes and, if they drink anything poisonous, they will be unharmed.  They will lay their hands on the sick and they will be healed.'" - Mark 16:15-18

(Proclaim the Good News to all creation.  The Good News is the seed that will be planted in the world and will flourish, in its proper time, in every field of human endeavor.  Salvation is not a matter of saving isolated souls or individual beings.  The Gospel is to be proclaimed to all creation in all activities and acts of those who have been renewed by baptism.  They are to be the yeast that transforms human history.

On the day of resurrection, JESUS' human nature begins to participate fully in divine Glory [Romans 1:4].  JESUS now asks us to believe in HIS Name, that is, in the divine power HE has just received and that works through HIM.

The Name is a word that has little or no meaning for us.  For the Jews it meant the active presence of GOD.  This term allowed them to speak of GOD's mysterious presence in the world without disregarding HIS greatness.)

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Whoever Does The Will Of GOD

Hello! and happy good Tuesday to all of us, GUYS.  Our "food for the soul" today:

THE GOOD NEWS (24 January 2017)

"Then HIS mother and HIS brothers came.  As they stood outside, they sent someone to call HIM.  The crowd sitting around JESUS told HIM, 'YOUR mother and YOUR brothers are outside asking for YOU.'  HE replied, 'Who are MY mother and MY brothers?'

And looking around at those who sat there HE said, 'Here are MY mother and MY brothers.  Whoever does the will of GOD is brother and sister and mother to ME.'"- Mark 3:31-35 

(JESUS lost HIS relatives but found HIS true brothers and sisters.  When we commit ourselves to GOD's work, we discover new brothers and sisters and a mother, Mary, of whom the Gospel says, 'Happy are you for having believed that GOD's promises would be fulfilled.'  JESUS does not say, 'He is MY father,' for the FATHER is one and HE is in Heaven.)

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Sing To The LORD A New Song, For HE Has Done Marvelous Deeds

Hi! and happy good first day of the week to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Monday:

THE GOOD NEWS (23 January 2017)

"Sing to the LORD a new song, for HE has done wonders; HIS right hand, HIS holy arm, has won victory for HIM.

The LORD has shown HIS salvation, revealing HIS justice to the nations.

HE has not forgotten HIS love nor HIS faithfulness to Israel.  To the farthest ends of the earth all have seen GOD's saving power.

All you lands, make a joyful noise to the LORD, break into song and sing praise, with melody of the lyre and with music of the harp.

With trumpet blast and sound of the horn, rejoice before the King, the LORD!" - Psalm 98:1-6 

(Humanity has found the way to liberation and salvation: in the coming of CHRIST, GOD-made-man; in HIS resurrection.)

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Agree In What You Say

Hi! and happy holy and family day to all of us, GUYS.  Our first-thing-first this Sunday:

THE GOOD NEWS (22 January 2017)

"I beg of you, brothers, in the name of CHRIST JESUS, our LORD, to agree among yourselves and do away with divisions; please be perfectly united, with one mind and one judgment.

For I heard from people of Cloe's house about your rivalries.  What I mean is this: some say, 'I am for Paul,' and others: 'I am for Apollo,' or 'I am for Peter,' or 'I am for CHRIST.'  Is CHRIST divided or have I, Paul, been crucified for you?  Have you been baptized in the name of Paul?

I thank GOD that I did not baptize any of you, except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one can say that he was baptized in my name.  Well, I have also baptized the Stephanas family.  Apart from these, I do not recall having baptized anyone else.

For CHRIST did not send me to baptize, but to proclaim HIS Gospel.  And not with beautiful words!  That would be like getting rid of the cross of CHRIST." - 1 Corinthians 1:10-17 

(The first sin of the Church is the division among believers.  Several apostles passed through Corinth.  Certain members of the community profited by this to affirm their own identity by declaring allegiance to one leader rather than another: a way of satisfying vanity and the need of self-assertion.

Agree among yourselves and do away with divisions: be a united family.  This admonition is understood when the Church is a community sharing the same concerns.  It is a little different when the church gathers together large numbers of people of different backgrounds who are perhaps opposed to one another in daily life.  In this case the Christian community must be united, not by ignoring reality and never talking of inequalities, but by recognizing individual and collective faults in daily life.  The Church can never be a reunion of passive or "heavenly" people.

CHRIST did not send me to baptize.  When the Church is fully absorbed in its own problems, Paul reminds them of their mission: Is our first concern to preach the Gospel, or to dispute for the posts of guides and ministers of the community?

That would like getting rid of the cross of CHRIST.  The cross should be present in the message we preach and in the way we preach it.

Moreover in evangelization it will always cost us to work with poor resources in a world subject to media.  We need to count on the grace of GOD because we are weak and without titles of prestige.  It will cost us to remind our communities of the poverty of JESUS and to be criticized by those who are well off in the world.)

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To The King Of All The Nations

Hi! and happy good weekend to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Saturday:

THE GOOD NEWS (21 January 2017)

"Clap your hands, all you peoples;

acclaim GOD with shouts of joy.

For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared;

HE is a great king all over the earth.

HE brings peoples under our dominion

and puts nations under our feet.

HE chose our inheritance for us -

the pride of Jacob whom HE loves!

GOD ascends amid joyful shouts,

the LORD amid trumpet blasts.

Sing praises to GOD, sing praises!

Sing praises to our King, sing praises!

GOD is king of all the earth;

sing to HIM a hymn of praise.

For GOD now rules over the nations,

GOD reigns from HIS holy throne."

- Psalm 47:2-9

JESUS CHRIST, The King Of All The Nations

(The LORD comes at the end of time to begin HIS reign.)

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Kindness And Truth Shall Meet

Hello! and happy TGIF to all of us, GUYS.  Our "food for the soul" today:

THE GOOD NEWS (20 January 2017)

"Show us, O LORD, your unfailing love

and grant us your saving help.

Would that I hear GOD's proclamation,

that HE promise peace to HIS people,

HIS saints - lest they come back to their folly.

Yet HIS salvation is near to those who fear HIM,

and HIS Glory will dwell  in our land.

Love and faithfulness have met;

righteousness and peace have embraced.

Faithfulness will reach up from the earth

while justice bends down from heaven.

The LORD will give what is good,

and our land will yield its fruit.

Justice will go before HIM,

and peace will follow along HIS path."

- Psalm 85:8-14

The Incarnation

(The salvation that GOD brings us is a marriage between heaven and earth, a shared project between GOD and humans.  CHRIST is simultaneously the plenitude of GOD and the fruit of the earth.

Salvation comes from GOD, but it is brought by a man, CHRIST, freely welcomed by a woman in the name of humanity.  With the incarnation, it is not possible to believe in GOD without believing in humankind.) 

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HE Is A Mediator Of A Better Covenant

Hi! and happy good Thursday to all of us, GUYS.  Our "food for the soul" today:

THE GOOD NEWS (19 January 2017)

"Consequently HE is able to save for all time those who approach GOD through HIM.  HE always lives to intercede on their behalf.

It was fitting that our High Priest be holy, undefiled, set apart from sinners and exalted above the heavens; a priest who does not first need to offer sacrifice for himself before offering for the sins of the people, as high priests do.  HE offered HIMSELF in sacrifice once and for all.  And whereas the Law elected weak men as high priests, now, after the Law, the word of GOD with an oath appointed the Son, made perfect forever.

The main point of what we are saying is that we have a high priest.  HE is seated at the right hand of the divine majesty in heaven, where HE serves as minister of the true temple and sanctuary, set up not by any mortal but by the LORD.

A high priest is appointed to offer to GOD gifts and sacrifices, and JESUS also has to offer some sacrifice.  Had HE remained on earth, HE would not be a priest, since others offer the gifts according to the Law.  In fact, the ritual celebrated by those priests is only an imitation and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary.  We know the word of GOD to Moses with regard to the construction of the holy tent.  HE said: You are to make everything according to the pattern  shown to you on the mountain.

Now, however, JESUS enjoys a much higher ministry in being the mediator of a better covenant, founded on better promises." - Hebrew 7:25-8:6 

JESUS CHRIST, The High Priest

(For the people of Israel, the institution of priests - and high priest - were closely linked to GOD's covenant with HIS people; it could not be questioned without questioning the bond uniting Israel with its GOD.  No one would have dared to do it.  However, the author quotes a central text of Jeremiah announcing a new covenant with HIS people.  When we speak of covenant, we speak of the way GOD treats us and the way we treat HIM.  Jeremiah says: GOD will make HIMSELF known to believers in a personal way and no longer will it be a duty for them to love HIM, because they will have HIM present at every moment.  This word of Jeremiah was known but it was given little attention: was he not speaking for a later time than his own?  Here, the author says: with JESUS, we have this new covenant.

JESUS also has to offer some sacrifice.  The passage draws our attention to the priesthood that is now CHRIST's in GOD's world.  Is there a connection between that and the Eucharist we celebrate every day or every Sunday?

In 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, Paul closely united the Eucharist of today with the death of JESUS that truly appears as the sacrifice.  In so doing he gives the orientation that has prevailed everywhere in the Church of the West.  For us the mass is linked most of all to the crucifix which is above the altar.  Here, we are invited to look towards this "heavenly cult" that CHRIST celebrates in glory.  There the world of eternity with all the elect assembled in GOD meets the world of time, where they succeed each other, each one in its own time.  The Apocalypse of John will invite us to look towards this celestial liturgy and it is precisely the understanding of JESUS' sacrifice that is stressed in the liturgy of the Eastern Church.  It is not a matter of opposing, but of discovering the multiple richness of the faith.

JESUS enjoys a much higher ministry.  Our liturgical service on earth is glorious inasmuch as we try to associate with the perfect praise of GOD in HIS "heaven."  It is the sunshine of our week, but it cannot be our essential duty unless we have received a special charism.  Here below, we must follow JESUS who did not envy the priests of HIS time but labored and died to reconcile humans with one another and with GOD.

Those who wish to meet JESUS in real life where truth must be observed will be easily accused of meddling in politics [which is not a sin].  However it is a fact that JESUS did not die to defend religious practice, but to show that it is not what is most important.  HIS "baptism" was a real death, likewise HIS "Eucharist": this did not resemble a beautiful liturgy, in which no one [of course] risks life.)

Celestial Liturgy

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Stretch Out Your Hand

Hi! and happy good mid-week to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Wednesday:

THE GOOD NEWS (18 January 2017)

"Again JESUS entered the synagogue.  A man who had a paralyzed hand was there and some people watched JESUS: Would HE heal the man on the Sabbath?  If HE did they could accuse HIM.

JESUS said to the man with the paralyzed hand, 'Stand here in the center.'  Then HE asked them, 'What does the Law allow us to do on the Sabbath?  To save life or to kill?'  But they were silent.

Then JESUS looked around at them with anger and deep sadness because they had closed their minds.  And HE said to the man, 'Stretch out your hand.'  He stretched it out and his hand was healed.  But as soon as the Pharisees left, they met with Herod's supporters, looking for a way to destroy JESUS." - Mark 3:1-6 

(Here, what Mark wants to emphasize is not the miracle JESUS performs, but HIS attitude vis-à-vis the Sabbath.  This miracle confirms what HE has just said in 2:28.

The Pharisees considered it lawful to work on the Sabbath if it was a question of saving someone in danger of death.  JESUS is about to enlarge this ruling, for HIM, not to do good is to do evil, not to cure is to kill.

Some ask if JESUS was interested in the material advancement [well-being] of people or only in their spiritual progress.  Actually, it is impossible to separate one from the other.

JESUS, apparently, did not speak of the economy nor the social order, but HE did denounce our prejudices that prevent us from giving the world a true and just order.

People, then, have the capacity and the means to better their condition, but they use them poorly because they remain prisoners of principles or institutions that are considered sacred, and in order to preserve them they allow half the world to die.) 

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The Son Of Man Is LORD Of The Sabbath

Hi! and happy good Tuesday to all of us, GUYS.  Our "food for the soul" today:

THE GOOD NEWS (17 January 2017)

"One Sabbath HE was walking through grainfields.  As HIS disciples walked along with HIM, they began to pick the heads of grain and crush them in their hands.  Then the Pharisees said to JESUS, 'Look! they are doing what is forbidden on the Sabbath.'

And HE said to them, 'Have you never read what David did in his time of need, when he and his men were very hungry?  He went into the house of GOD when Abiathar was High Priest and ate the bread of offering, which only the priests are allowed to eat, and he also gave some to the men who were with him.'  Then JESUS said to them, 'The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.  So the Son of Man is master even of the Sabbath.'" - Mark 2:23-28 

(It was normal that passersby, when hungry, would pick fruit or wheat.  The Pharisees were scandalized because JESUS' disciples did this on the Sabbath, a day when all work was prohibited.

The Sabbath was made for man.  No law, no matter how holy it is, should be applied in a way that would oppress a person.

The Son of Man is master even of the Sabbath.  For the Jews, the observance of the Sabbath was the pillar of the Law established by GOD.  Who did JESUS think HE was?)

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The Bridegroom Is With Them

Hello! and happy good first day of the week to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Monday:

THE GOOD NEWS (16 January 2017)

"One day, when the disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees were fasting, some people asked JESUS, 'Why is it that both the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but yours do not?  JESUS answered, 'How can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them?  As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast.  But the day will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them and on that day they will fast.

No one sews a piece of new cloth on an old coat, because the new patch will shrink and tear away from the old cloth, making a worse tear.  And no one puts new wine into old wineskins, for the wine would burst the skins and then both the wine and the skins would be lost.  But new wine, new skins!." - Mark 2:18-22 

Pharisees' Characteristic

(Many religious leaders sympathized with JESUS.  How they would have liked that HE rekindle the faith of the nation!  JESUS HIMELF did not feel that HIS primary task was to reorganize worship and bring people to the synagogues.

The Pharisees were fasting.  Fasting, a sign of repentance, supported their prayers that GOD come and liberate HIS people.  GOD comes in the person of JESUS: joy and celebration are more appropriate than fasting.  The prophets had announced the wedding feast of GOD with HIS people when HE would come to visit us [Isaiah 62:4-5].  Because of this, in presenting HIMSELF as the bridegroom, JESUS identifies who HE really is.

What is the new wine?  It is of course the Gospel, and the enthusiasm because of the Holy Spirit that leads the disciples to every kind of madness to manifest the love of the FATHER and the freedom that they have acquired.  In order to understand this, let us read the Acts of the Apostles and the lives of the saints, who have marked Church history.

Old skins.  Gospel does not fit into the molds of religion and likewise does not enter into those persons who hold onto them at all costs.  Mark wants us to catch Gospel's novelty.  We have just seen JESUS welcoming sinners, now we wonder that HE doesn't come like religious groups with prayers and fasting.)

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Woe To The World Because Of So Many Scandals!

Hi! and happy holy (Feast Of The Sto. Niño) and family day to all of us, GUYS.  Our first-thing-first this Sunday:

THE GOOD NEWS (15 January 2017)

"Woe to the world because of so many scandals!  Scandals necessary come, but woe to the one who has brought it about.

If your hand or foot drags you into sin, cut it off and throw it away.  It is better for you to enter life without a hand or foot than to be thrown into eternal fire with your two hands and two feet.   And if your eye drags you into sin, tear it out and throw it away.  It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to be thrown into the fire of hell with your two eyes." - Matthew 18:7-9 

(Scandal is not something that makes noise or causes a stir in society but which leads consciences astray and causes those who seemed honest to fall.

JESUS then speaks of the harm caused by social pressures.  Many times the little ones strive to raise their standard of living and become more self-reliant, better educated and able to earn more.  Often enough, society puts obstacles in the way of anyone who does not want to play dirty and who refuses to imitate the lifestyle of selfish persons.  Because of this, the little ones will have to give up, to accept failure, to lose an eye before losing the most important thing, which is to live in the sight of GOD.   

It is better for you to enter life without a hand or a foot.  JESUS stresses the incomparable value of eternal life.  At times, to gain the Kingdom we will have to sacrifice even our job, our security and our life.

Woe to the world because of so many scandals.  Sometimes it is an individual who leads others to sin; at other times it is society itself with its corruption, violence and unjust social structures.  JESUS invites us to be aware of sin, personal and social: the bad structures will be destroyed, no matter how, by tears and blood [Luke 23:28].

These scandals necessarily come.  JESUS lived in a world of violence, but apparently HE did not complain about the situation.  HE did not encourage us to dream of paradise on earth.  While some Christian communities aspire to be a flock of sheep meekly surrounding their shepherd, JESUS has a different vision of Christian life.

The real world, the one GOD is saving, was not created to be an oasis of happiness, but a place where free persons grow through their struggles.  Scandals are part and parcel of this world, but the power of evil does not diminish in any way the glory that GOD will receive in the end.  Through suffering and hunger for justice GOD will awaken love and make it grow.)

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Confidently Approach The Throne Of Grace

Hi! and happy good weekend to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Saturday:

THE GOOD NEWS (14 January 2017)

"For the word of GOD is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword.  It pierces to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and judges the intentions and thoughts of the heart.  All creation is transparent to HIM; everything is uncovered and laid bare to the eyes of HIM to whom we render account.

We have a great High Priest, JESUS, the Son of GOD, who has entered heaven.  Let us, then, hold fast to the faith we profess.  Our high priest is not indifferent to our weaknesses, for HE was tempted in every way just as we are, yet without sinning.  Let us, then, with confidence approach the throne of grace; we will obtain mercy and, through HIS favor, help in due time." - Hebrew 4:12-16

(For the Jews, the High Priest - despite his personal defects - was a sacred person protecting the people from the punishment deserved by their sins.  The people needed not only leaders to govern them, but an advocate before GOD.  Aaron, Moses' brother, the first priest of the Jews, had been such a man.  His successors, the High Priests, were to be the same.

This idea is developed here: the High Priest is the people's representative before GOD, and he must be weak as they are but accepted by GOD.  CHRIST is just that and perfectly so.  Forgetting that JESUS is a man among humans is as serious for the faith as forgetting that HE is the Son of GOD.

It is helpful to look at the role of CHRIST, the High Priest, at this time when the Church reminds us that all the faithful are associated with the priestly role of CHRIST.  We must represent humanity before GOD, we are consecrated to GOD for that purpose.

In the Eucharist we thank GOD in the name of everyone.  In daily life we must be instruments of the grace of GOD by being people who promote truth, encourage love and establish peaceful relationships.)

The Sacrament Of Eucharist

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Do Not Forget The Works Of The LORD!

Hello! and happy TGIF to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Friday:

THE GOOD NEWS (13 January 2017)

"Give heed, O MY people, to MY teaching; listen to the words of MY mouth!

I will speak in parables, I will talk of old mysteries which we have heard and known, which our ancestors have told us.

We will not keep them hidden from our children; we will announce them to the coming generation: the glorious deeds of  the LORD, HIS might and the wonders HE has done.

HE issued decrees for Jacob and set up a law in Israel, which HE commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would learn and teach their own children.

They would then put their trust in GOD, and not forget HIS deeds and HIS commands.

And not be like their ancestors, stubborn and rebellious people, a people of inconstant heart whose spirit was fickle." - Psalm 78:1-8

 

(This psalm draws a lesson from the history of Israel: GOD's blessings and the ingratitude of HIS people.)

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We Have Become Partners Of CHRIST

Hi! and happy good Thursday to all of us, GUYS.  Our "food for the soul" today:

THE GOOD NEWS (12 January 2017)

"Listen to what the Holy Spirit says: If only you would hear GOD's voice today!  Do not be stubborn, as they were in the place called Rebellion, when your ancestors challenged ME in the desert, although they had seen MY deeds for forty years.  That is why I was angry with those people and said: Their hearts are always going astray and they do not understand MY ways.  I was angry and made a solemn vow: They will never enter MY rest.

So, brothers, be careful lest some of you come to have an evil and unbelieving heart that falls away from the living GOD.  Encourage one another, day by day, as long as it is called today.  Let no one become hardened in the deceitful way of sin.  We are associated with CHRIST provided we hold steadfastly to our initial hope until the end." - Hebrew 3:7-14

 

(Now believers have to begin anew the search for the Promised Land, that is, the Rest that GOD offers.  The first time, it was Moses, the servant of GOD, who guided HIS people and was responsible for HIS household.  Now it is the Son: they thought they would find rest in a specific place, in Palestine.  The true Rest is intimate life with GOD that we reach through faith and entrance into the Christian community.

Several times this letter will recall the warning given the Hebrew pilgrims in the desert: If only you would hear GOD's voice today!   The road is long and the believer grows tired when difficult times come, after the enthusiasm of the first days.  Supported by CHRIST's words, we must continue to hope for that which GOD promised, but which is invisible to our eyes.

The creation poem spoke of GOD's Rest after creating the world: this meant that the universe must come to a point of entering into the fullness of the mystery of GOD.  Human sorrow and work on this earth bring a person to her true end, which is "to rest" in the happiness of GOD.)

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JESUS Cures Simon's Mother-in-Law

Hello! and happy good mid-week to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Wednesday:

THE GOOD NEWS (11 January 2017)

"On leaving the synagogue, JESUS went to the home of Simon and Andrew with James and John.  As Simon's mother-in-law was sick in bed with fever, they immediately told HIM about her.  JESUS went to her and taking her by the hand, raised her up.  The fever left her and she began to wait on them.  That evening at sundown, people brought to JESUS all the sick and those who had evil spirits: the whole town was pressing around the door.  JESUS healed many who had various diseases, and drove out many demons; but HE did not let them speak, for they knew who HE was." - Mark 1:29-34

 

(Peter's simple faith is manifested.  JESUS enters the house, bringing with HIM peace and health.  JESUS shows us how to visit the sick.  What a natural thing to do when Mass ends - to go see the sick.  The care and love of our Christian sisters and brothers attracts GOD's favors upon them.

As soon as it was sundown.   Let us not forget that it is the Sabbath, the weekly day of rest.  For the Jews days are counted from the time of sunset and night precedes day as shown in Genesis 1:5.  Everyone observes the Sabbath, just as JESUS does and there is such haste to bring the sick to HIM that they begin to do so in the evening as soon as the Sabbath is over.) 

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HE Left Nothing Not "Subject To HIM"

Hi! and happy good Tuesday to all of us, GUYS.  Our "food for the soul" today:

THE GOOD NEWS (10 January 2017)

"The angels were not given dominion over the new world of which we are speaking.  Instead someone declared in Scripture: What is man, that you should be mindful of him, what is the son of man that you should care for him?  For a while you placed him a little lower than the angels, but you crowned him with glory and honor.  You have given him dominion over all things.

What it is said that GOD gave HIM dominion over all things, nothing is excluded.  As it is, we do not yet see HIS dominion over all things.  But JESUS who suffered death and for a little while was placed lower than the angels has been crowned with honor and glory.  For the merciful plan of GOD demanded that HE experience death on behalf of everyone.

GOD, from whom all come and by whom all things exist, wanted to bring many children to glory, and HE thought it fitting to make perfect through suffering the initiator of their salvation.  So HE who gives and those who receive holiness are one.  HE HIMSELF is not ashamed of calling us brothers and sisters, as we read: LORD, I will proclaim YOUR name to MY brothers; I will praise YOU in the congregation." - Hebrews 2:5-12

(The author has just reaffirmed the divinity of CHRIST, but immediately takes other texts from the Old Testament which speak of "man" [son of man is the Hebrew term] and this time applies them to CHRIST.  This shows that in GOD's design, Man and CHRIST are one.  All that HE has been, the glory that is HIS, of all this we are invited to share.

The new world.  Actually the text says: the world to come.  This does not mean future times, or the end of the world, but the new and definitive times that began with the resurrection of CHRIST.

The new world is where the risen CHRIST is.  It is the homeland we are hoping for.  This new world has already come to us: a believer who lives in the Spirit constantly has experiences which are not of the earth even if in the beginning he is not aware of it.

All the history of JESUS is then both HIS and ours.  HE thought it fitting to make perfect through suffering the initiator of their salvation.  There is no other way to human liberation than the way of the cross.  Those who are eager to free others must be tested, some through opposition, others through indifference.  Suffering is a good teacher and it tests the strength of our surrender.

It is on the cross of CHRIST that we must discover the love of the FATHER for HIS Son, since HE did not "condemn HIM" to suffer on earth, but rather, by way of suffering, HE called HIM to be the Savior and model for everyone.)

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This Is MY Beloved SON

Hello! and happy (Baptism Of The LORD, JESUS CHRIST) to all of us, GUYS.  Our "daily bread" this Monday:

THE GOOD NEWS (09 January 2017)

"At that time JESUS arrived from Galilee and came to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.  But John tried to prevent HIM, and said, 'How is it YOU come to  me: I should be baptized by YOU!'

But JESUS answered him, 'Let it be like that for now that we may fulfill the right order.'  John agreed.

As soon as HE was baptized, JESUS came up from the water.  At once, the heavens opened and HE saw the Spirit of GOD come down like a dove and rest upon HIM.  At the same time a voice from heaven was heard, 'This is MY Son, the Beloved, HE is MY Chosen One.'" - Matthew 3:13-17 

(In this baptism JESUS identifies HIMSELF with HIS people, more precisely with this world of "untitled" people who want to hear a call to conversion.  For HIM it is an occasion of deep religious experience recalling that of the great prophets.  What the voice says gives JESUS HIS mission.  HE will be Son and Servant of the FATHER [Psalm 2 and Isaiah 42.1].)

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Your Light Has Come

Hello! and happy holy (Solemnity Of The Epiphany Of Our LORD) and family day to all of us, GUYS.  Our first-thing-first this Sunday:

THE GOOD NEWS (08 January 2017)

"Arise, shine, for your light has come.

The Glory of YAHWEH rises upon you.

Night still covers the earth

and gloomy clouds veil the peoples,

but YAHWEH now rises

and over you HIS glory appears.

Nations will come to your light

and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

Lift up YOUR eyes round about and see:

they are all gathered and come to you,

Your sons from afar,

Your daughters tenderly carried.

This sight will make your face radiant,

your heart throbbing in full;

the riches of the sea will be turned to you,

the wealth of the nations will come to you.

A flood of camels will cover you,

caravans from Midian and Ephah.

Those from Sheba will come,

bringing with them gold and incense,

all singing in praise of YAHWEH."

- Isaiah 60:1-6

(As the prophet looks at the humble Jerusalem which is barely rising from its ruins, he suddenly has a vision of the future of Jerusalem, filled with the LORD's riches, the city that will be the bride of the LORD.

There all the aspirations of a humanity purified and gathered in the light of GOD will be achieved [see Revelation 21].  There all people will delight in the fullness everything they ever longed for.

These promises point to the goals on which the Church must focus.  It is in the Church that all the real riches of humanity - faith, understanding, community - are and must be gathered.)

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