...when I awake I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness.
Ps 17:15
Start your day on a good note - spend a mintue with God!
Ps 17:15
Start your day on a good note - spend a mintue with God!
September 21
St Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
The Gospel introduces the very writer of that Gospel, St. Mathew, whose feast we celebrate today.
Mathew was a tax collector - a much despised profession at the time of Jesus. Tax collectors were reviled because, though Jews, they collaborated with the occupying Roman Government, and were thus considered as traitors. Besides, they were known to overcharge and take their cut from the taxes.
So, when Jesus calls Mathew and then dines with him and his friends who were also ‘many tax collectors and sinners’, it offends the self-righteous Pharisees. This, then, becomes the occasion for Jesus to define his mission. He portrays himself as a physician come to care for the sick, “I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” This is a fitting reminder to all of us to stop being judgmental of the world and people around us, and to focus on how we can be better witnesses of Christ's love.
St Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
The Gospel introduces the very writer of that Gospel, St. Mathew, whose feast we celebrate today.
Mathew was a tax collector - a much despised profession at the time of Jesus. Tax collectors were reviled because, though Jews, they collaborated with the occupying Roman Government, and were thus considered as traitors. Besides, they were known to overcharge and take their cut from the taxes.
So, when Jesus calls Mathew and then dines with him and his friends who were also ‘many tax collectors and sinners’, it offends the self-righteous Pharisees. This, then, becomes the occasion for Jesus to define his mission. He portrays himself as a physician come to care for the sick, “I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” This is a fitting reminder to all of us to stop being judgmental of the world and people around us, and to focus on how we can be better witnesses of Christ's love.
For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.
Mt 9:13
Let Him in. He never forgets those who need him the most.
Mt 9:13
Let Him in. He never forgets those who need him the most.
From a tax collector to a disciple, St Matthew’s immediate response to Jesus' call poses a fitting question to us: are we willing to let go of the things that obstruct us from having a transformative experience of following Jesus?
Saint Matthew is the patron saint of tax collectors and accountants.
#StMatthew #Feast #Catholic
Saint Matthew is the patron saint of tax collectors and accountants.
#StMatthew #Feast #Catholic
September 22
Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Our human nature has the ability to both revere and protect innocence as well as to exploit and destroy it, based on our own longings and disappointments which arise, perhaps, through jealousy and ambition.
Today’s readings point to the destruction which can arise when innocence is perceived as a threat and an opposition to our preferred way of life.
In the Gospel, Jesus reminds his disciples about his impending torture, death and resurrection but they still lack comprehension and are more concerned about establishing their own hierarchy of importance. They are backward about admitting this, but Jesus leaves them in no doubt: “whoever is last shall be first; whoever is first shall be last.” And he uses a little child to demonstrate that whoever respects innocence respects Christ and, therefore, also respects the Father.
For us the message goes deeper when we learn that ‘innocence’ takes root from the Latin phrase ‘non nocere’, which in turn implies ‘do no harm’!
Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Our human nature has the ability to both revere and protect innocence as well as to exploit and destroy it, based on our own longings and disappointments which arise, perhaps, through jealousy and ambition.
Today’s readings point to the destruction which can arise when innocence is perceived as a threat and an opposition to our preferred way of life.
In the Gospel, Jesus reminds his disciples about his impending torture, death and resurrection but they still lack comprehension and are more concerned about establishing their own hierarchy of importance. They are backward about admitting this, but Jesus leaves them in no doubt: “whoever is last shall be first; whoever is first shall be last.” And he uses a little child to demonstrate that whoever respects innocence respects Christ and, therefore, also respects the Father.
For us the message goes deeper when we learn that ‘innocence’ takes root from the Latin phrase ‘non nocere’, which in turn implies ‘do no harm’!
Where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness.
Jas 3:16
Knock off the negativity, welcome the positivity.
Jas 3:16
Knock off the negativity, welcome the positivity.
The Papal Nuncio to India, Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli visited the Archdiocese of Bombay and celebrated the Holy Eucharist at St John the Evangelist, Marol. Thereafter he interacted with the parish community.
September 23
Padre Pio
We live in a time when it seems popular to be considered secular but, while it is important to respect all religious faiths and traditions, this must not come at the cost of diluting our own faith. We should not be apologetic or shy of expressing our implicit belief in Jesus.
The Gospel today invites us to take bold action. Jesus tells the crowd “No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel basket or under a bed...” Having been blessed with the Good News, we are expected to share the joy of Christ’s love, and lead lives of authentic faith, no matter where we are. We are also required to be totally transparent in all that we do, for ‘there is nothing hidden that will not become visible and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light’. We are now accustomed to every aspect of life laid bare on the Internet, so we can well understand what the Gospel tells us from over 2000 years ago!
We are ever eager to establish our presence in both the real and virtual worlds. Do our words, actions and posts speak the truth and tell the world that we are ‘Catholic and alive’?
Padre Pio, whom the Church remembers today, is one of the most loved and invoked saints of our time, best known for bearing the stigmata. Unable to move out of his residence because of ill health, he still ‘travelled’ far: he was given the gift of bilocation, and people came from all over the globe to meet him! He radiated the love of Christ through his words of comfort and advice, remaining faithful to his mission till the end.
Padre Pio
We live in a time when it seems popular to be considered secular but, while it is important to respect all religious faiths and traditions, this must not come at the cost of diluting our own faith. We should not be apologetic or shy of expressing our implicit belief in Jesus.
The Gospel today invites us to take bold action. Jesus tells the crowd “No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel basket or under a bed...” Having been blessed with the Good News, we are expected to share the joy of Christ’s love, and lead lives of authentic faith, no matter where we are. We are also required to be totally transparent in all that we do, for ‘there is nothing hidden that will not become visible and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light’. We are now accustomed to every aspect of life laid bare on the Internet, so we can well understand what the Gospel tells us from over 2000 years ago!
We are ever eager to establish our presence in both the real and virtual worlds. Do our words, actions and posts speak the truth and tell the world that we are ‘Catholic and alive’?
Padre Pio, whom the Church remembers today, is one of the most loved and invoked saints of our time, best known for bearing the stigmata. Unable to move out of his residence because of ill health, he still ‘travelled’ far: he was given the gift of bilocation, and people came from all over the globe to meet him! He radiated the love of Christ through his words of comfort and advice, remaining faithful to his mission till the end.
Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due.
Prov 3:27
Be somebody's ray of hope.
Prov 3:27
Be somebody's ray of hope.
Press Note: Celebration of the Season of Creation
https://www.archdioceseofbombay.org/post/press-note-celebration-of-the-season-of-creation
https://www.archdioceseofbombay.org/post/press-note-celebration-of-the-season-of-creation
ArchdioceseOfBombay
Press Note: Celebration of the Season of Creation
The Archdiocese of Bombay, through its Archdiocesan Office for Environment (AOE), organized a special celebration for the Season of Creation on Saturday, 21st September 2024, at the Don Bosco International School Hall. This global period of prayer and action…
September 24
Tuesday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time
The Gospel text of today seems at variance with the gentle, loving image of Jesus that we have come to expect. Instead of going out to welcome his kinsfolk, he uses the occasion to define those who are really ‘related’ to him. He does not disown his Mother and other relatives; on the contrary, he reinforces that relationship is not by blood alone! We are all called to kinship with Christ through Baptism. We are all children of one Father. We acknowledge and profess this kinship when we are true to the Gospel message, becoming living examples of God’s love.
The first reading from Proverbs endorses this, providing a road map by indicating what pleases Yahweh: to do what is upright, to be hard-working, to be compassionate, to avoid deceit in all that we do, to listen to the cry of the poor and answer.
Jesus calls us to hear the word of God and put it into practice in the situations which we meet daily.
Do we heed this call? Can we count ourselves among Jesus’ kinsfolk?
Tuesday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time
The Gospel text of today seems at variance with the gentle, loving image of Jesus that we have come to expect. Instead of going out to welcome his kinsfolk, he uses the occasion to define those who are really ‘related’ to him. He does not disown his Mother and other relatives; on the contrary, he reinforces that relationship is not by blood alone! We are all called to kinship with Christ through Baptism. We are all children of one Father. We acknowledge and profess this kinship when we are true to the Gospel message, becoming living examples of God’s love.
The first reading from Proverbs endorses this, providing a road map by indicating what pleases Yahweh: to do what is upright, to be hard-working, to be compassionate, to avoid deceit in all that we do, to listen to the cry of the poor and answer.
Jesus calls us to hear the word of God and put it into practice in the situations which we meet daily.
Do we heed this call? Can we count ourselves among Jesus’ kinsfolk?
"The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death."
Prov 21:6
Lies MAY seem like a good idea.... and end with you caught in a net!
Prov 21:6
Lies MAY seem like a good idea.... and end with you caught in a net!
We regret to inform you of the passing away of Fr Denis Pereira at Clergy Home, Bandra, this evening. The Funeral Mass will be at St Andrews Church, Bandra on Wednesday, 25th September, 2024 at 4.00 pm
We pray for the bereaved members of the family of Fr Denis. May the Lord grant him eternal rest.
Read about Fr Denis in our Retired Not Out Series here: https://shorturl.at/JNQLv
We pray for the bereaved members of the family of Fr Denis. May the Lord grant him eternal rest.
Read about Fr Denis in our Retired Not Out Series here: https://shorturl.at/JNQLv