‘Making the poor a priority isn’t political, it’s the Gospel’
Sept. 19—25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings: Wisdom 2:12, 17-20; Psalm 54, R. The Lord upholds my life.; James 3:16—4:3; Gospel: Mark 9: 30-37 In his Aug. 19, 2020, address
Sept. 19—25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Readings: Wisdom 2:12, 17-20; Psalm 54, R. The Lord upholds my life.; James 3:16—4:3; Gospel: Mark 9: 30-37 In his Aug. 19, 2020, address
Gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico, gaudete.” “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice.” (Philippians 4: 4) With these words from the entrance antiphon for today’s Mass, the Third Sunday of Advent or Gaudete Sunday, we celebrate what is a “break” in the penitential preparation for Christmas.
“Who do you say that I am?” This is a question that lies at the core of our Christian faith. Who is Christ to us in a very personal way?
At the beginning of Lent, Basti, a 10-year old Grade 4 student, decided to abstain from meat for the duration of the season. His mother tried to convince him to instead avoid doing other things, as he needs to have protein, being a growing boy.
Since childhood we were taught that our Christian faith is faith in the Trinity, three persons in one God. Difficult to explain and comprehend, it is aptly called a mystery.
Water during the hot summer months is a most precious commodity. It quenches thirst. It refreshes. It cleanses. Water has also played a vital part in my pilgrimages with Journeys of Faith. Whether it’s a trip to the Holy Land walking the path of Jesus with Fr. Rene Lopez, or visiting places in Eastern Europe and Marian lands where the Christian faith and first saints thrived, water is ever present.
This Sunday’s readings have faith as the central theme. We see in the first reading how faith sustained the chosen people from the Exodus to their entry into the promised land. Then in the second reading, St. Paul beautifully summarizes Abraham’s own journey of faith and how this bore fruit in his “descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sands on the seashore.”
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again, rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4) Today is Gaudete Sunday, one of two Sundays in the liturgical year when the priest wears rose-colored vestments. (The other Sunday is the third Sunday of Lent.)
I have known Opus Dei (work of God) since 1970. Some of my best friends are Opus Dei members. I enjoy their company. They are always warm and friendly, polite and caring single individuals, or loving family men with a happy disposition.
Editor’s note: Below is what the author, a member of the CCP Board of Trustees, calls as a “Reflection on the Controversial Exhibit at the CCP.” I am writing this
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