Matthew 5:13-16, Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time “You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lamp stand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your…
Category: Evangelist: Matthew
Flavor of Christianity – Rudolf Horst, SVD
Matthew 5:13-16, Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time As a teen growing up in a Catholic family, living in one of the most Catholic areas of Germany, I never would have considered abandoning my faith. But I also never would have considered getting excited about it either. Why should I? Nobody else in my parish seemed…
Deepening Desires – Mark Aloysius, SJ
Matthew 5:1-12, Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time I. Anyone who is a parent, a teacher or has dealt with young children knows the strategy of deflection; a strategy that is used in order to avoid having to give an answer in the present moment. When a child is set upon something which you do not…
Poor in Spirit – Rudolf Horst, SVD
Matthew 5:1-12a, Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time The Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes challenge us all. When Jesus calls blessed the poor in spirit and those hungry for righteousness, he is also condemning the self-satisfaction that leads to sloth, a deadly disease that’s risen to epidemic proportions in the world. Jesus’ “Sermon on…
Pondering the Beatitudes – RB Hizon, SJ
Matthew 5:1-12a, Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time I remember once being completely taken by an evangelical youth group that somehow made me feel and think that I was completely invincible. And because of that, albeit in the “name of Jesus” completely “happy.” After having received Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior, I was convinced…
How do you imagine the Kingdom? – Francis Alvarez, SJ
Matthew 4:12-23, Third Sunday in Ordinary Time In our Gospel today, we hear Jesus preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). The Greek word translated as “repent,” metanoeite, comes from meta (beyond) and nous (mind). Literally, metanoeitemeans “to go beyond the mind.” More elegantly, it can be rendered “to go…
Don’t Surrender – Willy Samson, SJ
Matthew 4:12-23, Third Sunday in Ordinary Time For many years, a giant ruled the Kingdom of Himosh. Every day, the giant went up to the hill and challenged the villagers; but no one dared to accept because of the giant’s enormous size. One day, a little boy accepted the challenge and started walking towards the giant. To everyone’s…
To Protect and to Protest – Norlan Julia, SJ
Matthew 18:1-5, Feast of the Sto Niño The feast of Sto. Niño, is strictly speaking, a liturgical feast celebrated only in the Philippines. In other countries, there is no feast day assigned for Sto. Niño. Yet, where there are communities of Filipino anywhere in the world, the feast of Sto. Niño is celebrated with the…
Beyond the Child Jesus – Rudolf Horst, SJ
Matthew 18:1-5, Feast of the Sto Niño Even though the Christmas season ended last Sunday, we celebrate one more feast that is closely connected with Christmas: the feast of the Infant Jesus. We look at this child with tenderness. But the liturgy reminds us that this child is not just a baby. He is Jesus,…
Totally Dependent – Arnel Aquino, SJ
Matthew 18:1-5, Feast of the Sto Niño Like many of you, I flew home to Davao for a few days during the holidays to spend time with my dad. I hadn’t done that for a long time, to be with family for my birthday. My biggest thanks to God was that even as I turned…
One King and a Convoy of Tourists – Johnny Go, SJ
Matthew 2:1-12, Solemnity of the Epiphany Finding out that the three kings were neither three nor royalty was not quite as traumatic as that other life-changing discovery about Santa Claus. But to whomever thought of coming up with the three kings–what were you thinking? For years, we staged Nativity plays that religiously featured them with…
Christ Born in Us – Rudolf Horst, SVD
Matthew 1:18-24, Fourth Sunday of Advent The Old Testament is full of prophecies. But what exactly do they all mean? Reading the Old Testament carefully, we discover that not all prophecies were fulfilled, that many prophecies were dreams of the prophet. But one fact is certain: The Old Testament tells the history of salvation…
One Lost Sheep 