Matthew 28:1-10, Easter Sunday 2017 Aren’t you glad that the purple linen covers here at the altar are now gone? In the past, churches covered the crucifix and the saints only after Holy Thursday mass. Recently, however, the covers go up much earlier, for some strange reason that probably only liturgists know. Personally, I’ve found…
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Horror Vacui – Johnny Go, SJ
John 20:1-9, Easter Vigil Two great mysteries bookend our Lord’s lives–and they feel so different from each other. At the beginning, of course, is the birth of our Lord, which we celebrate at Christmas, and in the end, we have his resurrection, which we commemorate today as Easter. The Christmas narrative seems to happen in…
Stay in Us – Rudolf Horst, SVD
Matthew 28:1-10, Easter Vigil “Stay with us, Lord, for it is almost evening.” This was the insistent invitation that the two disciples journeying to Emmaus on the evening of that very first Easter addressed to their companion who had talked to them in a way that their hearts were on fire. Weighed down with sadness,…
Surplus – Jett Villarin, SJ
Matthew 28:1-10, Easter Vigil Fasten your seatbelts. I have some particle physics stuff to tell you. I know physics can be difficult but don’t worry. One graduate physics professor advised us once: if you don’t know the answer to the question, just say “energy”. Let’s try this. What keeps the sun shining? (Energy) Why is…
What About Love? – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 18:1-19:42, Good Friday 2016 A little over a year ago, ISIS took a video as they incinerated a Jordanian pilot in a cage. My friends said that the footage was all over the net, but I resisted the temptation of watching it. I learned my lesson many years ago when a friend sent me…
Staycation – Mario Francisco, SJ
John 13:1-15, Maundy Thursday All gathered here could consider the next three days as staycation. We stayed to avoid traffic at expressways and airports as well as to save time and costs. Moving through everyday life 24/7, whether at work, school and even home, is tiring and burdensome. We all need rest of body and…
Fighting back with the Towel – Willy Samson, SJ
John 13:1-15, Maundy Thursday In boxing, when a trainer sees that his boxer is being badly beaten by his opponent, he throws a towel and the fight is over. Throwing in the towel then, is a sign of surrender and giving up. But in the arena of loving, it’s a different story. A towel around the…
Beyond Betrayal, Beyond Death – Arnel Aquino SJ
Matthew 26:14-25, Holy Wednesday Did you ever wonder if Judas is in heaven or in hell? There’s not been a few times when people have asked if I think Judas is in heaven or in hell—like what I think matters in the whole thing. “He betrayed Jesus and then killed himself, so he must be…
How Lovely is Your Dwelling Place – Arnel Aquino, SJ
Matthew 26:14-27:66, Palm Sunday Two years ago, when my kuya called from Davao to tell me that our mom was rushed to the ICU, I hurried home. I was used to visiting patients in the ICU—like parents of friends, strangers I had anointed, priests. But nothing really prepared you for when your own mom was…
Wearing Eight Clothes – Willy Samson, SJ
Matthew 26:14-27:66 Today is Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week – the summit of Lent. On this week, we remember the greatest expression of God’s love for us – Jesus dying on the cross for us, because of our sinfulness and unfaithfulness. To meaningfully commemorate the Holy Week and gain profit from this weeklong…
Doodling with Love – Willy Samson, SJ
John 8:1-11, Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Lent When someone is doodling, he’s either bored to death or waiting for something or someone to come. When the Pharisees and angry crowd brought a prostitute to Jesus to be stoned to death as prescribed by the law, Jesus simply doodled something in the ground. For…
Golden Tears – Willy Samson, SJ
John 11:1-45, Fifth Sunday of Lent One day, God told his angels to gather tears on earth. After a week, they returned bringing millions of tears in containers. But much to their surprise, the tears turned into gold and stones. Gabriel asked God, “Why some of the tears turned into gold and some into stones?”…
One Lost Sheep 