We know that God loves us, that he protects us and guides us to our destiny. In the Bible, angels are presented as God’s messengers to people, to help us carry out God’s plans. The archangel Michael is mentioned in the last book of the Bible as the angel who leads the fight against the
The martyrs we honour today shed their blood at Nagasaki, Japan, in the years 1633-1637. Among them were Dominican priests, religious brothers and sisters, and three laymen. The person who heads the list was a married layman who had a Chinese Father and a Filipina mother. Involved in a criminal case, he fled to Japan.
From a despised tax-collector, appraised no higher than a public sinner or a pagan, Matthew becomes an apostle. He is living proof that Jesus came to call sinners. And among the apostles, he is one of the two who witnessed to Christ not only with their life and work but also their writing. He is
Cornelius and Cyprian, the first a pope, the second a bishop, both asserted the freedom to spread the message of Christ and both paid with their lives for their courage. To them, Christ was worth living for and therefore worth dying for. They preferred their inner freedom, for which Christ had paid the price, to
People who want to carry out their mission in life often have a high price to pay. Jesus continued his mission of love of doing the Father’s will to save us and was nailed to the cross for it. Mary had been told by Simeon that she would suffer for and with her Son. When
Greeting Praise to God our Father, who loved us so much that he gave us his only Son, so that all who believe in him may have eternal life. May Jesus fill us with his life and be always with you. R/And also with you. Introduction by the Celebrant Jesus keeps reminding us in the
The Bible, including today’s readings, sees Mary in function of her Son; nothing more is said about her in the gospel than what illustrates and serves Christ’s mission. Her inconspicuous and self-effacing service is very telling about her character and role – and at the same time about our mission: to witness quietly to the pre-eminence of
Gregory the Great (540-604) was civil prefect (governor) of Rome; he became a Benedictine monk, later papal envoy to Constantinople. Elected Pope, he reluctantly accepted, as he preferred the monastic life. He was a very capable administrator, looking upon his task as service. His incumbency during difficult times was marked by his efforts to care
112th WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES “Each year the World Day of Migrants and Refugees invites us to turn our attention to different aspects of the complex phenomenon of migration. For this 112th World Day, the theme, “Even just one of these children,” draws our attention to the minors directly involved in the experience
Commentary by Fr Fernando Armellini: Matthew 20:1-16 – 25 Sunday Ordinary Time – Year A – English Voiceover Greeting (See First Reading) “Seek the Lord while he is still to be found, call to him while he is still near,” says the prophet. God himself goes out to seek you, says the message of today.
