Luke 24:13-35, 3rd Sunday of Easter “We had hoped….” We can hear the disappointment in the two disciples’ voices as they spoke to the stranger on the road. “We had hoped…” In other words, they no longer did. What’s striking, however, is that these two had already heard of the empty tomb found not only by the…
Category: Evangelist
How Do We Return To Jerusalem Changed? – Francis Alvarez, SJ
Our Gospel today, Luke 24:13-35, begins with two disciples of Jesus journeying to Emmaus. They must have been dejected. Wasn’t Jesus supposed to redeem Israel? How could one then make sense of his gruesome death on the cross? They might have been distraught. If they had left everything to follow Jesus, what was going to…
Our Emmaus:Walks, Meals and Runs – Pat Nogoy, SJ
Luke 24:13-35, 3rd Sunday of Easter Some walks can be hard and long. Especially for those whose hopes and lives have been shattered to pieces. Robbed of life’s coherence, two disciples can only return and make their way home. Home is a familiar and comfortable place where they can somehow piece some fragments together into…
Keeping Easter Alive – Pedro Walpole, SJ
John 20:19-31 How has the week gone for you? Last Sunday, for a time, we emerged from the Gospel passion narrative, from the suffering in life around us into deep desires and hopes, sharing in the resurrection, the loving mercy of God. Yet the world in the last week has not changed. How am I…
God Hopes in Us – Junjun Borres, SJ
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday The Gospel reading today reminds me of an incident that took place some 23 years ago. One morning, I got a call from my sister who used to work at a school about half an hour drive from New Bilibid Prison, where I served as a volunteer chaplain. She said…
The Anatomy of Healing – Pat Nogoy, SJ
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday Today’s readings and Gospel are about peace. Peace is not easy to come by nowadays. I am thinking of families that are suffering from hard misunderstanding, deep feuds, or have, in time, drifted far apart from each other. In my mind are couples who had relied on a relatively stable…
Despite Closed Hearts – Ro Atilano, SJ
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday How is your heart doing? Each of us is called by God to have a heart that is always open and available for others, a heart that is magnanimous enough to love God’s people. However, there are times when the door of this heart is closed. And there could be…
Should We Celebrate Easter? – Madz Tumbali, SJ
Easter Sunday 2020 I remember a story by then Jesuit Conference for East Asia and Oceania President Fr Adolfo Nicolas about his home province, Japan, told when I was a novice. Hiroshima, 8:15 in the morning of 6 August 1945, an American B-29 Bomber dropped “Little Boy” on the city. The bombing immediately wiped out…
Christ’s Consolation & Challenge at a Time of COVID – Robbie Paraan, SJ
Easter Vigil 2020, Loyola House of Studies Matthew in our Gospel tonight seems to suggest a sort of Ignatian repetition. He communicates the same message first through the angel of the Lord, and then through the person of the Risen Christ. Like a good son of Ignatius, I chose to focus on this repetitio and…
Stories and Dreams – Jett Villarin, SJ
Matthew 28:1-10, Easter Vigil 2020 A toxic wind has been blowing into our world for several months now. This poison has kept us shuttered in our homes and hospitals. Death is in the air. We are afraid. We are anxious about the uncertainty of it all. We can only keep vigil and wait for this…
To Serve, Love and Count not the Cost – Nemy Que, SJ
John 13:1-15, Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper In normal times, the celebration of Holy Thursday (Maundy Thursday) would have churches all over the country decorating the sanctuary of the church as early as the night before, arranging flowers and assembling an altar of repose, where the blessed sacrament will be placed for a night…
A Saving Love – Arnel Aquino, SJ
Matthew 21:1-11, Palm Sunday I’ve had asthma since I was born and hypertension since I was 23. So, when experts said that people with comorbidity had less chances of surviving Covid-19, that nailed me. And I felt nailed almost every day in the first two weeks of lockdown; nailed on fear, nailed on anxiety, nailed…
One Lost Sheep 