How to Possess God

        Just surrender completely to God and he is yours!

The Shroud of Turin

This short Smithsonian video gives clues that link the Shroud of Turin directly to the time of Christ.

True Humility

        I had a dream early this morning. What I learned from the dream was that we should not be concerned about if we are appreciated by other fellow humans or not, but remain perfectly content with God's everlasting love for us. 

What's Said Is Done

        During the Eucharistic Prayer at morning Mass, the priest consecrated the bread, repeating what Jesus said at the Last Supper: Take it, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my body which will be given up for you. Right then, I knew that whatever the Lord says, it's done. If the bread is his body, then it is. We must take every word he says to heart, for they are realities.

So Good to Have God...

because he is the only person in whom I can completely trust and to whom I can cry to when I am in trouble and beg for mercy after I have sinned. He is the Father!

Jesus the Coolest

        We humans typically behave like creatures that are finite, facing the vast unknown, and are constantly amazed, surprised, or shocked by what's happening. We learn about some scientific discovery and think that we can conquered the world. Hit by a tragedy and our life falls apart. Hurt by someone and we are upset and become unforgiving. In other words, we are pitiful! Now, read about Jesus in the Gospels. You'll see what he says and how he behaves fit perfectly one who is (1) all-knowing, not surprised or shocked by anything and knowing exactly what's coming to him, (2) the creator of all things, making miracles happen so naturally, his own Resurrection included, and (3) infinitely merciful, forgiving his enemies even from the Cross. As a human being, he has to be the coolest dude (no disrespect intended) there ever has been or will be. 

Transformation to Effect Transformation

        Communion time thought. Jesus transformed the host into his own body so that we may receive him and be transformed by him.

Ego, the Conscience Killer

        We all have a conscience, but to keep it clear we must leave it alone. The common trouble is that we let the ego dictate our conscience. As a result, the conscience gets muddied or even entirely ignored as the heart hardens. Pope Francis came on scene as a breath of fresh air the world had sorely needed. 

Herod, Typical Sinner

        Today is the Memorial of the Passion of St. John the Baptist. The Gospel reading from Mark 6 tells us that Herod the king married Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, and John said to him that "it is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." Herodias harbored a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. On the other hand, Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man, so he just had him arrested and bound in prison. When Herod heard John speak, he was very much perplexed, yet he liked to listen to him. [Here Herod knew that he had done something wrong, so he feared the righteous and holy John. He's perplexed about John, because it's difficult for a sinner to understand why someone wants to be holy. He still liked to listen to him because his conscience needed to be soothed.]

         Then at Herod's birthday banquet he gave, Herodias' daughter performed a dance that so delighted Herod and his guests that the king swore he would grant the girl whatever she asked of him. Herodias had her asking for the head of John the Baptist. The king was distressed, but not wishing to break his word before the guests, he gave in to the request. [Here, looking good before others overrode Herod's conscience.]

        Herod might be an evil person, but all the above comments bracketed could have described any average sinner.

All I Could Ask For

        During Communion, I was at the supper of the Lamb. The Lord God was the host. What was served was the Lamb himself. As I ate, I was purified and promised eternal life. There's nothing more I could ask for.

Hypocrisy Brings Woe

        Today is the Memorial of St. Augustine. In these last three days, the Gospel reading has come from Matthew 23. Jesus exposed the hypocrisy of the scribes and the Pharisees, who appeared righteous on the outside, but were filled with evildoing inside. Certainly, a hypocritical person does not experience inner peace. All we need to be concerned about is our inside because if the inside is clean, the outside will appear clean too. We are blessed to have Christ who can cleanse and purify us, removing all hypocrisy so that we may feel free being our genuine selves.         

From God or Not

        If you imagine yourself doing some great work for the glory of God, that is not from God. If you think about yourself being totally humble before God, that is not from him either. If you don't think about anything, but serving God faithfully ~ that is from him.  

Most Amazing Experience

        To me, this has to be the most amazing experience of the human life. A sinner, which could be anyone, knows that he's in trouble because he feels the weight of sin upon him. By the grace of God, he is lead to repenting and confessing his sins. The heavy weight is instantly lifted from his heart and he is a free new being. This experience is well known to many who have come to Christ. It was recounted on a recent EWTN Coming Home episode by Fr. George Turano who were baptized as a Catholic, left the faith for many years, and finally reverted. He described the tremendous relief and elation after making his confession. Only the true God as known through Christ can bring about such a fundamental transformation ~ not another god or man has the power to do anything with sins.

Reconciliation in Order

        Reconcile with God your Father first, then you'll be able to reconcile with your neighbor and yourself. If you don't love your neighbor and/or yourself, you have not reconciled with your creator fully yet.

God Alone Is Sufficient

        Today is the Memorial of St. Monica. After I received Holy Communion today, I really felt that once I have Jesus, there is nothing else I want for myself anymore. If God is not sufficient for me, then nothing will. Of course, I do want everyone in the world to be saved, but that's something I want for God, not for myself. 

Union Is like Playing the Piano

        When you learn to play the piano, the goal is to be able to forget completely about your fingers and put all your effort and concentration into expressing the music, making it sound beautiful. But due to human limitations, we can play a piece of music well enough, but never to the point of complete satisfaction. Similarly, in seeking union with God, the goal is to be become Christlike. The more we let go in the Lord, desiring to be changed, the more we progress. But since we are finite creatures, we can become more like him, but never reach his state of perfection. (Note that in both cases, letting go is the key.)

Critically Important Message

        In Scriptures, we see that Jesus always had the answer to any question he's asked. No one had been able to trap or stump him. He showed that he's the all-knowing God. In today's Gospel reading at Mass, Luke 13:22-30, Jesus talked about the narrow gate through which we must strive to enter in order to be saved. Once the master of the house has arisen, the door will be locked and those who are outside will be cast out forever; and they will see all those inside reclining at table in the kingdom of God. Everyone should take this reading most seriously because our response to the message will determine our eternal placement.  

Try to Be Faithful, not Successful

        I attended a Respect Life Leadership Gathering today. The task of changing the thinking of all to pro-life is daunting, but one presenter's quote from Mother Teresa was most encouraging: "God doesn't require us to succeed; he only requires that you try." To serve God is to not aim for success, but remain faithful.