Divine Mercy Sunday

04-28-2019Church RenovationFather Prince Raja

Happy feast of Easter! Easter is the prototype of all Christian feasts. It is such a great event that one day ofcelebration does not suffice. We needed eight days of liturgical celebrations. Yes, today we conclude theOctave of Easter.

On this 2nd Sunday of Easter, every year, we have the same gospel reading, though the other two readings vary.The gospel passage of today begins with the narration of the first appearance of the Risen Lord to his apostleson the day of Easter, it goes on then to narrate the appearance of the Risen Lord to Thomas who was absent onthe day of the Easter. The latter incident takes place on the eighth day of Easter (like today). Thus the gospeltext of today from John (20:19-31) really links the Easter Sunday to the Octave. A very apt reading indeed toconclude the Octave of Easter!

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Alleluia! He is Risen!

04-21-2019Weekly ReflectionFather Prince Raja

We cannot live Easter without entering into the mystery. It is not something intellectual, something we only know or read about… It is more, much more! "To enter into the mystery" means the ability to wonder, to contemplate; the ability to listen to the silence and to hear the tiny whisper amid great silence by which God speaks to us ( 1 Kings 19:12).

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The King on a Donkey’s Back

04-14-2019Weekly ReflectionFather Prince Raja

Today the Church is celebrating the Palm Sunday which is also known as Passion Sunday to commemorate thebeginning of Holy Week and Jesus’ final agonizing journey to the cross. The word passion comes from a Latin wordPassio meaning “to suffer,” and we meditatively go with the sufferings of Jesus. Here we have the rejoicing with thecoming of Jesus and at the same time a reminder of his suffering that is to come in a short time. In the liturgicalcalendar Holy Week begins with the Sixth Sunday in Lent. Palm Sunday reminds the faithful of the glorious andtriumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. As Jesus entered into Jerusalem the crowds greeted him with shouts of joyand proclaimed him as the messianic king. They spread their cloaks on the ground and placed the palm branches onthe street and shouted “Hosanna to the Son of David” and “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord”.

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“Neither do I condemn you.

04-07-2019Weekly ReflectionFather Prince Raja

We are just one week away from the Holy Week and away from our celebration of God’s love shown in the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. For us Christians this season of Lent is a time of special grace in which we experience the presence of a personal God who cares and loves us. Our response is to transform ourselves and live according to his will. We want to do something new and come to him in obedience and freedom. We ought to change our lives during Lent and come closer to him. Therefore the Church calls this season as a joyful time, because it is our preparation for the future joy of Easter that approaches us bringing his blessings, mercy and forgiveness. As we approach to the end of our Lenten season, we are reminded of our last opportunity to cooperate with God’s graces and his benevolent love. 

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