29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Page 12)

Sunday’s Readings: Isaiah 53:10-11, Hebrews 4:14-16, Mark 10:35-45

From the Pastor’s Desk…  To Serve & Give One’s Life

The longing to be powerful is as ancient as the world. We ourselves experience it every day in the most commonplace situations, as in wanting to occupy the best or first place, in choosing the best of partners, in climbing up the ladder to a higher position at work – till we go so far as to fight for political power without a conscience, even destroying the adversary. At the root of the problem, there is always the terrible duality: an instinct for dominance and one’s ridiculous vanity.

Our own self-centeredness can infiltrate to such a point that we think we are someone special, and that we are of even more worth if we dominate other people; and if only the other person could be more brotherly! Isn’t this the question that is planted in one’s mind? If the other person would really change into being my brother: then I could overwhelm him with my dominance, even against his own person or his own goods? Couldn’t I also then speak poorly about him behind his back? Would he allow me to destroy his privacy?

For Christ, on the other hand, one is greater when he/she resigns their will to dominate others and learns to serve with a fraternal love. There are so many people around us that attract us, due to their generosity and their noble lives! One’s moral authority is born from within a heart that is in solidarity, is generous, and serves. They radiate a special authority; they need neither to threaten, to bribe, nor to flatter. Perhaps this is the most important secret of life and yet the most ignored. We live life more intensely, only when we give it away. One can only live when that person helps others to live.

What is He asking of us? The service that Christ asks of us is demanding, however it is immensely fruitful. This service implies a struggle to the death against one’s egoism and it is an exercise in humility; this is the hard part. Yet, it is also a productive service because it is our source of salvation. It is very easy for one to give something; and this happens to us also when it does not cost us anything, especially when we have an abundance. But honestly: who dares to give everything, and then to give one’s all to the others, until it hurts?

The idea alone of serving others, may scare many away. For others, it may attract them only to place themselves at the center of attention. It is an obligation of one’s conscience to assume a commitment of service.

We have to give what is alive in us: our happiness, our faith, our tenderness, our confidence, and the hope that sustains us and animates us up from within. To give one’s life in this way – is always a gesture that enriches, that helps us to live, that gives life to others, that redeems souls, and that liberates and saves people.

God bless you, Fr. Oscar
Father Oscar

 

Easter Sunday – The Resurrection of The Lord – 2022 English/Español

Sunday’s Readings: Acts 10:34, 37-43; Psalms 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23; Colossians 3:1-4; John 20:1-9 EVERYTHING IS CHANGED Easter changes everything. Having been raised from the dead, Jesus shatters the frightful images that haunt humanity. Betrayal, torture, crucifixion, death, burial—these terrors pale in the brilliant glory of Jesus resurrected. Today’s psalm guides our response to God’s power: “it…

The Passion of the Lord-Palm Sunday-English / Español 2022

Sunday’s Readings: Luke 19:28-40; Isaiah 50:4-7; Psalms 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24; Philippians 2:6-11; Luke 22:14-23:56 THE MESSAGE OF CHRIST’S LOVE From the proclamation of the Gospel at the beginning of the liturgy, we know that today is different, not only because we hear two Gospel passages, or because we hold palms and move in procession. Today…

5th Sunday of Easter 2022-English/Español

Sunday’s Readings: Acts 14:21-27; Psalms 145:8-9, 10-11, 12-13; Revelation 21:1-5; John 13:31-33, 34-35 SOMETHING NEW IN CHRISTJesus knew that the scribes and Pharisees were trying to trap him. They put him in what seemed to be a no-win situation. Let the woman who was caught in adultery go, and he would have been accused of ignoring…

4th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2022-English/Español

Sunday’s Readings: Jeremiah 1:4-5, 17-19; Psalms 71:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 15-17; 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13; Luke 4:21-30 LOST AND FOUND The parable of the father and his sons is one of the most familiar of all of Jesus’ stories. The father in the parable is lavish in forgiveness and revels in the return of his young son, who…

3rd Sunday of Lent- English / Español 2022

Sunday’s Readings: Exodus 3:1-8, 13-15; Psalms 103: 1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8, 11; Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12; Mt 1:16, 18-21, 24a HOLY GROUND Moses met God in a most astounding way in the bush that was burning but not consumed by fire. Moses clearly had a powerful encounter with the Lord. He even felt bold enough to…

2nd Sunday of Lent 2022- English / Español

Sunday’s Readings: Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18; Psalms 27:1, 7-8, 8-9, 13-14; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 9:28-36 A GLIMPSE OF GOD Have you ever had a glimpse of God? Perhaps you perceived God’s presence in a quiet moment of prayer, a tender conversation with a loved one, or a difficult situation that was resolved unexpectedly. Peter, James, and John…

1st Sunday of Lent 2022 – English / Español

Sunday’s Readings: Deuteronomy 26:4-10; Psalm 91:1-2, 10-11, 12-13, 14-15; Romans 10:8-13; Luke 4:1-13 IN THE DESERTJesus was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, and then the devil tested him. Moses and the Israelites had been in the desert for forty years before being led to the land of milk and honey.…

8th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2022-English/Español

Sunday’s Readings: Sirach 27:4-7; Psalms 92:2-3, 13-14, 15-16; 1 Corinthians 15:54-58; Luke 6:39-45 WE ARE KNOWN BY OUR FRUIT This week, Jesus tells us that we must examine our own inner selves, our attitudes and dispositions, virtues and faults, rather than judging others. What is in our hearts comes out in what and how we speak.…