John 1:1-18, Solemnity of the Birth of our Lord As a way of preparing myself for Christmas, I once tried to contemplate the nativity scene following the prayer method proposed by St. Ignatius of Loyola in his Spiritual Exercises. Using the power of my imagination, I began by trying to feel the cool gentle breeze…
Category: Evangelist: John
Prayer, and then silence…- Mark Aloysius, SJ
John 17:11B-21, Feast of St Edmund Campion Perhaps the most well known piece of writing by Edmund Campion is a letter he wrote to the Privy Council in 1580, often referred to as Campion’s Brag. Allow me to read to you a well-known part of it: And touching our Society, be it known to you…
So what if God is Trinity? – Francis Alvarez, SJ
John 16:12-15 (Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity) Catholics and members of most other Christian denominations believe that there is only one God, and God is Father, Son, and Spirit. St. Augustine expressed this conviction in another way: The one God is Lover, Beloved, and the Love between them. So what? Revealed in these terms…
Inhale, Exhale – Ulysess Cabayao, SJ
John 20:19-23 (Solemnity of the Pentecost) One way to think about the Pentecost is to think about how we breathe. One of the biblical metaphors for the Spirit is breath—it is known as ר֫וּחַ (ruach) in Hebrew, πνεῦμα (pneuma) in Greek, and spiritus in Latin. The association of breath with spirit is not unique to…
Default – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 14:23-29, Sixth Sunday of Easter I once had lunch with a dear friend sometime ago. As we got settled in our seats, I asked her straightaway, “O, how’s name-of-husband doing?” See, a few weeks before that, I received a text from her that said, “Arnel, please pray naman for name-of-husband. He’s becoming really cranky….
Learning – Jett Villarin, SJ
John 14:23-29, Sixth Sunday of Easter We see things fall to the ground and we matter-of-factly say gravity. Think about it. What is it about the mass of an object anyway that attracts another object with mass, the way we were taught in elementary physics? What happens with “massless” and speedy stuff like light, which…
Knowing When to Quit – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 10:11-18, Fourth Sunday of Easter 2015 I’ve read this beautiful Gospel passage so many times in my life, I thought I would no longer find any new message in it, until I pondered over it again this week. I’m sure you’ve noticed that the phrase Jesus keeps repeating here is “lay down my life”….
Hungry – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 21:1-19, Third Sunday of Easter The worst thing about religious life is being far from family. But the best thing about religious is being far from family—because when I visit, they share with me deep-down things that they’d normally keep to themselves if I were with them all the time. I was in Davao…
The Gentle Rain of Mercy – Norlan Julia, SJ
John 20:19-31 (Second Sunday of Easter/Feast of Divine Mercy) The quality of mercy is not strained; It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest; It blesseth him that gives and him that takes: The Merchant of Venice, Act IV, Scene I This year’s Divine Mercy Sunday takes…
Doubt – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 20:19-31, Second Sunday of Easter/Feast of Divine Mercy “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Don’t you find that rather rude? I mean, when Thomas’ best friends told him that the Lord…
A Theory of Divine Mercy – Johnny Go, SJ
FOR 13 MARCH 2016 John 8:1-11 (Fifth Sunday of Lent) Today we are presented with what I consider one of the defining moments in the public ministry of our Lord. A woman caught in the act of adultery is dragged into the temple square to stand in shame and in full view of a blood-thirsty…
A Different Perspective – Jojo Magadia, SJ
FOR 13 MARCH 2016 John 8:1-11 (Fifth Sunday of Lent) Is the glass half-empty or half-full? A scientist might remind you that the glass is actually completely full, with atoms of both water and air. A philosopher might ask, “But are we sure the glass is real?” And a lawyer might say, “We can agree…
One Lost Sheep 