Reflections of Faith
Read and be inspired by a reflection based on today's Gospel made by members of the Verbum Dei Family in Manila.
4/15/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 15, 2019April 15, 2019 Holy Monday
Gospel: John 12:1-11 The measure of love is to love without measure - St. Francis de Sales As we enter into the Holy Week, we are invited to reflect on our motivation and intentions in our own Lenten journey. The gospel today speaks of how Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with expensive oil. Judas questioned Mary’s gesture. In our life, we can be influenced with our selfish intentions when loving and serving Jesus through our own ways. We might measure the way we serve and express our love towards Jesus and to other people. Jesus invites us to love without measure and to serve him without counting the cost. May Mary’s act of devotion and love to Jesus be our inspiration to follow Him purely. Amen. #PrayVD
4/14/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 14, 2019April 14, 2019 – Palm Sunday
Gospel: Luke 23:1-49 "We could be living very righteous lives but participating in the crucifixion happening in our time." – Fr. John Leydon, Columban Missionary Though the passion of our Lord happened 2000 years ago, “crucifixion” is still happening in our time. With the welfare of the poor being tossed aside and people being unjustly condemned. – “crucifixion” is happening as if it’s usual. If today you lived in the time of Christ in his passion, would you crucify him? Well today, we are gifted with faith to see Christ in our brothers and sisters. To see that everyone in our society is interrelated to one another; that the negligence of one’s responsibility could mean suffering for many. Let us not crucify Christ in the other. As we enter Holy Week, let us reflect on how we could live righteous lives thinking for the welfare of many. #PrayVD
4/13/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 13, 2019April 13, 2019 – Saturday
Gospel: John 11:45-56 "He would die in order to gather into one the scattered children of God." (cf. John 11:52) The death of Jesus in the Cross is like an image of bread that is broken. It is broken into many pieces and become all prepared to be distributed, the hungry children gather together to be fed. The children of God is hungry, not of physical food, but of love. And Jesus is the manifestation of God’s love broken into many pieces to be given to His children. As Christians, we could also sacrifice something for the scattered children of God, filling their hearts with His love. #PrayVD
4/12/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 12, 2019April 12, 2019 – Friday
Gospel: John 10:31-42 "Know that the Father is in me and I in the Father" (cf. John 10:38) Jesus is the loving face of the Father shown to men and it is through His good works that He has concretely shown the love of the Father. Though this is the truth, the Jews still did not believe Him thinking that He is only a man making Himself God. Today, we are invited to deepen our faith into acknowledging the good works of Jesus in our lives and see the Father at work through Him. May our hearts be open to His miracles so we could also testify that He is the Son of God. #PrayVD
4/11/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 11, 2019April 11, 2019 – Thursday
Gospel: John 8:51-59 "I know Him and I keep His word." (cf. John 8:55) Today’s Gospel continues to show us the scene of Jews throwing their questions of doubts to Jesus’ descent. They even wanted to throw stones at Him when they can’t fathom anymore His testimonies. It might be unusual for others to know that one has a “personal relationship” with God as a Father. God being with us through Jesus aimed for us to know Him more and to have a personal relationship with Him as our Father. He wants us to hear His words and believe in the love that He has for us. May we be open to communication with God as our Father who wants to be closer to our lives. #PrayVD
4/10/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 10, 2019April 10, 2019 – Wednesday
Gospel: John 8:31-42 "If God were your Father, you would love me." (cf. John 8:42) It is the Jews themselves that told Jesus that we have one Father – God; and it is Jesus who told them that they are supposed to love Him that came from God. Though not said directly by Jesus, it is through these words that He wanted to remind the Jews to love the ones that came from God, the Father. We are all God’s children, and it is the truth that always reminds us to love one another as brothers and sisters. And with God being our creator, it is through Jesus’ word of truth that we are able to acknowledge it and be freed from our sins. May we become true disciples of Christ keeping His word of truth that came from God, our Father. #PrayVD
4/9/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 20, 2019April 9, 2019 – Tuesday
Gospel: John 8:21-30 "The One who sent me is truthful and everything I learned from Him, I proclaim to the world." (cf. John 8:26) People are currently being blinded with fake news by some people who want to capitalize on imprisoning people’s hearts from the truth. It is in our Christian faith that we are called to not partake in its propagation but to persevere and testify for the truth. Though the truth-giving voice of the Church is being silenced by some people, they will never be able to stop the faithful from living the truth of their faith – echoing the Gospel to the peripheries of society: that Christ on the cross is our salvation! #PrayVD
4/8/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 8, 2019April 8, 2019 – Monday
Gospel: John 8:12-20 "Even though I bear witness to myself, my testimony is true." (cf. John 8:14) People nowadays always ask for pictures as proof; having a mindset of “Pics or it didn’t happen.” It isn’t wrong to ask for visual proof but faith is not meant for sight. As Christians, we are gifted with faith through our concrete encounters of Jesus giving light in our daily lives. May our lives be the proof of our testimonies of faith bearing ourselves as witnesses to Jesus being the light of the world. #PrayVD
4/7/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 7, 2019April 7, 2019 – Sunday
Gospel: Jn 8:1-11 “Mercy and Love of God” Lent is a season of repentance and especially a season where we grow more in the love and mercy of God. This season is a good time for us to pray and meditate on what Christ did for us, for us to have eternal life. When we realize how much God loves us, it will surely overflow in us and the world will experience it too for we can now give what we already have and that is the love of God. This is the answer to the realities the world is experiencing. If every one of us realizes the love of God, there will be forgiveness, mercy and love. With this the world will surely smile. Holy Spirit, help us to understand more the love of God. #PrayVD
4/6/2019
Daily Guidelines: April 6, 2019April 6, 2019 – Saturday
Gospel: Jn 7:40-53 “In God’s Time” In the previous gospel readings, there were several attempts to capture Jesus but those attempts failed and the passion of Christ should happen in God’s time. We may have noticed the division that happened in the gospel. Some believed in Jesus and some did not. In our journey there are times we might be the unbelieving or we might be the believing. We might have failed to believe because we couldn’t see the fruit of our prayers and labors but God has heard and seen everything. The things you have asked and you have worked on, it will come in God’s time. Holy Spirit, grant us the gift of faith and patience. #PrayVD |
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