John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday I’m sure you’ve seen Caravaggio’s painting entitled, L’incredulitá di San Tommaso, literally, The Incredulity of St. Thomas, or simply, the Doubting Thomas. Thomas is hunched over, his face awfully close to the Risen Christ’s naked chest. One-half of his forefinger is buried in the wound on Jesus’ side. Thomas is…
Category: Evangelist
Between Doubting and Believing – Danny Pilario, CM
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday “The Incredulity of St. Thomas” is a beautiful painting that is inspired by the Gospel reading today. Painted by Caravaggio in 1602, it is one of his more famous works, supposedly copied at least 22 times in the 17th century alone. Originally done for Vincenzo Giustiniani, it is now housed in Sansscouci…
Jesus’ Shalom – Bro Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday Fear is a natural and basic human emotion. Fear plays an important role in human survival because it alerts us of impending dangers or evil, and moves us to avoidance. The science of anatomy would locate the source of this emotion inside our amygdala, a primitive part of our brain…
Easter Fear or Joy – Johnny Go, SJ
John 20:1-9, Easter Sunday 2018 What is remarkable about this Gospel story is the emotion that the women experienced as a result of their discovery of the empty tomb: Fear. I wasn’t expecting that. We are told that the women were so afraid they said nothing to anyone– exactly the opposite of what the angels…
Inequalities – Jett Villarin, SJ
Mark 16:1-7, Easter Sunday 2018 I propose three inequalities for our Easter reflection today. The Easter truth of Christ risen in our midst, living intimately in our lives, reinforces these inequalities. These inequalities are: True > false Light > dark Love > death True > false. We hold this inequality to be true, even if…
Darkness – Mark Aloysius, SJ
John 18:1-19:42, Good Friday In the novel Night, Elie Wiesel recounts his experiences of being in the concentration camps during World War II through the fictional character Eliezer, a pious Orthodox Jewish teenager. In a central event in the novel, Eliezer and the rest of the camp witness the hanging of a child, who dies…
A Body Broken for Broken People – Ro Atilano, SJ
John 13:1-15, MaundyThursday This is Mass of the Lord’s Supper. Tonight, we commemorate the evening when Jesus gathered his friends for a meal and washed their feet. Yet it was also the same evening when he was betrayed and denied by his friends whom he shared his last supper with and whose feet he washed….
They Gathered in the Twilight – James Donelan, SJ
John 13:1-15, Maundy Thursday They gathered in the twilight and lit candles. Through the window they could see the moon, large and pale on the horizon. It was the night of Passover – the most important feast on the Jewish calendar. They came together in prayer, their voices muted, their faces outlined by shadows, their…
Egypt – Jett Villarin, SJ
John 13:1-16, Maundy Thursday It must have been a strange and solemn sight for the apostles. Here they were about to do what they had done countless times before: break bread, eat bitter herbs, drink wine, and partake of the lamb in a meal that declared their deliverance from a place of slavery called Egypt….
Rehearsing Love – Mark Aloysius, SJ
Mark 14:1-15/47, Palm Sunday This is the only Sunday in the year when we read two Gospels, one of triumphant entry, the other of crushing defeat. It is as if we are not permitted to linger very long with palms in our hand, celebrating Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem. After all, this is not why Jesus…
Among the Fickle Ground – Johnny Go, SJ
Mark 11:1-10, Palm Sunday The event we recount–and reenact–on Palm Sunday was a highlight of sorts in our Lord’s Public Ministry. Reported in all four gospels, our Lord’s entry to Jerusalem is often prefixed with the adjective “triumphal” to express the exceptional welcome given to Jesus as he arrived in Jerusalem. The welcome must have been overwhelming,…
The Transcript of Our Trial – Ron Rolheiser, OMI
Mark 14:1-15/47, Palm Sunday The biblical accounts of Jesus’ passion and death focus very much on his trial, describing it in length and in detail. And there is a huge irony in how it is described. Jesus is on trial, but the story is written in such a way that, in effect, everyone is on…
One Lost Sheep 