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So Jesus said, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own, but I speak these things as the Father instructed me. And the one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what is pleasing to him." – John 8: 28-29

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Dear friends in Christ Jesus, we all know that Jesus always did the will of his Father. Jesus obeyed his Father even to the point of death. His ultimate sacrifice on the cross to save the whole world makes it more evident. During the lifetime of Jesus only a few people really knew who he was. The majority of Jews did not believe that he was the Savior. Jesus was not a Savior according to their expectations. Because Jesus did not come to the world to fulfill their expectations but rather to fulfill the will of his Father.

Jesus spoke and did the things according to the instructions given to him by his Father. The Father was always present with him. Jesus makes it very clear that the reason why his Father has not left him alone is because he always tried to do the things that pleases his Father. To please his Father Jesus has paid a huge price.

We can learn for our lives from Jesus that we need to please God and not humans. We need to fulfill God's will and not our will, we need not live our lives according to the expectations of others, we need to make sacrifices to fulfill the will of God. 

Let us imitate our master who has shown us the best. Amen

Reflection on John 8: 12-30 by Fr. George Joseph SVD

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Regnum caelorum (Mt. 4:17)

The Kingdom of God was always in the mind of Jesus. We are given three parables in our Gospel today (Mt. 13:44-52). These parables are about the hidden treasure, the pearl, and the dragnet. When we talk about parables, Biblical scholars would say that they talk about the Kingdom of God, what it is all about, and how it comes about.

In the Old Testament, the Kingdom of God refers to the provident and protective kingship of God over the chosen people. The fruit of this Kingdom is a whole moral order of peace, justice, and mercy.

In the New Testament, Jesus proclaimed that the Kingdom of God is near at hand (Mt. 4:17). So he called for conversion and repentance and for watchfulness. He also said that the Kingdom of God was for everyone.

If you ask me what my own definition of the Kingdom of God is, I would admit to you that I would refer to the teachings of the Church. It is when we accept and do God’s will  and promote the values of God’s Kingdom: truth, justice, love, and peace. If these values rule our lives, it means that God’s Kingdom is reigning in our hearts, in our community and society.

But take a look around us. Can we say that God’s Kingdom reigns in the hearts and minds of people? We can say ‘ Yes and No.’ How can we realize this Kingdom in our lives?

For me, it is very simple. I will give you some practical guidelines for a Christian: share your Time, Talent and Treasure to the needy, Love more simply, offer hospitality, support the bereaved, admonish the sinner, spread the Good News of the Kingdom of God, counsel the doubtful, comfort the lonely, bear wrongs patiently, forgive all injuries, free your heart from hatred, free your mind from worry, expect less and live simply, and pray for the living and the dead.

These are very simple and very practical things.

These deeds are not impossible to practice and let us do them joyfully.

By Fr. Rajesh Minz, UK.

Sanctificatio vestra (1 Thes. 4:3)

The way we walk and live according to our Lord’s word is a good indication of how well we please Him. What is God’s will for us His children? He is pleased by our constant sanctification which is a continuous search for purity in our whole being, spirit, soul, and body. First of all, we must recognize that there is an omnipotent God, so the fear of God is the first step to our sanctification and the search to please Him alone. To search to please Him means that we are interested in pleasing His heart and that means diligently searching His Holly Word to know what steps we must take to reach it.

We can find an extensive list of things that we must reject or avoid in our lives to keep our souls of sin against God. In summary, we must reject all work of darkness and all fruit of the flesh that only brings death and damnation. If we try to do so by our own effort and strength, we will be on the verge of complete failure because the word of the Lord says that we can do nothing outside of Him. When trials and bad times come to our lives, the first and last resource of help must be our Lord and Savior who experienced in His own flesh and human nature all kind of temptations without failing, hence He understands our human condition and is a very present help in trouble (Psalm 46:1).

Whether we are going through moments of joy or difficulty, we must remember that it is God's will that we give thanks at all times, that we pray for each other without ceasing and that we do not lose the joy of our salvation that is in Christ Jesus, our savior. His plans for us are perfect and of goodness at all times, Glory be to the Lord, His mercies are forever!

By Nydia Flores, US.