“The Holy Spirit empowers us to love others as God the Son loves them“ The reading during the Sixth Sunday of Easter, is taken from the Gospel of John, where Jesus assures His disciples that if they love Him, they will obey His commandments. his statement highlights the inseparable connection between love for Jesus and …
Tag Archives: Easter
The Lord is my Shepherd
In this challenging time for me, my mantra comforts: ‘The Lord is my shepherd. There is nothing I shall want’ The fourth Sunday of Easter is commonly known as Good Shepherd Sunday, and in all three lectionary cycles, the Gospel reading is taken from the tenth chapter of the Gospel of John. This comes after …
Patreng and Other Good Sheperds
“Let them multiply and let the forces of evil be vanquished.” The Gospel on this Fourth Sunday of Easter uses the metaphor of Christ as the Good Shepherd. In the Old Testament and during the time of Christ, sheep were plentiful, Israel being a pastoral society. Understandably, both the Old and the New Testaments make …
New Places in Our Hearts
In the Gospel narrative of St. Luke on the Third Sunday of Easter, the disciples who had just encountered Jesus on the road to Emmaus and recognized him in the breaking of bread are in the midst of sharing their experience when Jesus appears to them. He who has truly risen from the dead mysteriously …
Crisis of Faith During a Pandemic
“How can a merciful and loving God exist when there is so much evil and suffering around?” Most of us are familiar with the story of the apostle Thomas also called Didymus who doubted the accounts of the other disciples about their encounter with the Risen Lord. The story, which is the Gospel tomorrow, the …
Good Friday and Easter Sunday
“We need a God that gives us hope even in times of defeat.” One can only wonder if there is reason for us to celebrate Easter in a world that is more like a Good Friday. Gripped with fear and uncertainties, we ask what lesson this blessed feast could have in these tragic days. Apparently, …
Tony La Viña 