John 24:23-29, Sixth Sunday of Easter Nothing in this world is ever still. Everything is moving all the time. When something moves, we say it is alive. When it is motionless, we say it is lifeless. Motion is life. Life is motion. Even things that seem dead to us are not without motion. The…
Category: Season: Easter
Default – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 10:27-30, 4th Sunday of Easter “No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.” Last time I checked, that’s not been changed, sisters and brothers. I don’t think anyone can change…
The Shadow, The Stone, The Scroll and The Scar – Noel Bava, SJ
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday Brothers and sisters,Every year, the Catholic Church gives us this Sunday—the Second Sunday of Easter—as Divine Mercy Sunday. And it is befitting that it comes immediately after the First Sunday of Easter because the Gospel today—and all the readings—reveal a Risen Christ who chooses mercy, again and again. While praying…
Credo – Jett Villarin, SJ
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed. (Jn 20:29)” If I told you that I have seen the Lord, would you believe me? Thomas wouldn’t. The doubters would say, fake news, hallucination, cultural conditioning, psychological projection, superstition,…
Pockets of Easter – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday If Jesus simply showed himself to his friends in his Resurrection and then ascended into heaven before their eyes, Christianity would still have been born. I mean, Jesus did not have to do all the other things; like ask for something to eat, catch up with his friends walking to…
Where does Easter Begin? – Jordy Orbe, SJ
Luke 24:1-12; Easter Vigil Where does Easter begin? I remember a video I once saw on Facebook of an Easter Vigil Mass. There was this impressive setup— there was a cave in the sanctuary, and at the climactic moment during the Gloria, the cardboard stone split open. The Risen Christ emerged, accompanied by flashing, fireworks,…
Irrepressible – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 20:19-23, Pentecost Sunday The New Testament Greek word for soul or spirit is pneuma. But that’s only the translation of the Old Testament Hebrew, ruah, breath or air or wind. Hence, when used of God, ruah & pneuma and mean breath of life, or an atmosphere or ethos of sacredness, or the unstoppable force…
Air – Jett Villarin, SJ
John 20:19-23; Pentecost Sunday The Jesuit poet Gerard Manley Hopkins once compared the Blessed Virgin to the air we breathe. Today, Pentecost, in celebration of the Holy Spirit coming into our lives, we will compare the Holy Spirit to the air that surrounds and sustains us. Like the atmosphere, the Holy Spirit helps us listen,…
Vine – Jett Villarin SJ
John 15:1-8, 5th Sunday of Easter I’ve always wondered about seedless grapes or seedless watermelons. I mean, they’re convenient and nice, but how do you keep them going? It must be by some biological magic that they keep showing up on our tables. I would think that seedless fruit are like celibates. They’re a dead…
Reason for Living – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 10:11-18; 4th Sunday of Easter If mom and dad initiated me into Sunday mass, it was my Uncle Will who initiated me into spirituality. He was the kind of Catholic who constantly pursued deeper knowledge and wisdom in faith, prayer, and church life. So, he read inspirational books and saw spiritual directors like Frs…
Cathoholic – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 14:1-12; Fifth Sunday of Easter Ever heard the word, “cathoholic”? I chuckled the first time I heard it a few years ago. I kinda suspected what it meant before I looked it up. Cathoholic: a Catholic who’s drunk with Roman-Catholic beliefs, traditions, rituals, morals, but misses out on the Christic values, like option and…
Scars – Arnel Aquino, SJ
John 20:19-31, Divine Mercy Sunday On my left wrist is a scar shaped like a J, what’s left of four stitches from when I was in third grade. I was carving soap for a project when I mindlessly slammed my arm down a carving tool. It cut my wrist open, bad enough for dad to…
One Lost Sheep 