Dear Family of God,

Experience has shown that most Christians desire so much to do God’s will but often find themselves resisting Him. Anyone who has been through this experience knows it can sometimes be overwhelming. The remedy to this conflict is Surrender. Lent is a good time to seek this grace.

Two of the most influential works of Western Civilization are “The Odyssey” and “The Iliad” by the Greek writer Homer. They are illustrative of the two great metaphors for life: The Odyssey explores life “as a journey”, while the Iliad sees life “as a battle.” The revelation of the Christian faith makes plain the battle of our lives. It is a battle between good and evil, between God and Satan, between the Spirit and the Flesh.

Dear Family of God,

In recent times, I have been asked by some well-meaning Catholics if the wars and persecution of Christians around the world is a sign of the end time? I found a good response to this concern in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraphs 675-677.

In the first chapter of the Gospel of Mark we encounter Jesus in a Capernaum’ synagogue casting out a demon (what the bible calls an “unclean spirit”) from a man. The demon recognizes Jesus immediately, both who he is, and the power that he has over him. That power is demonstrated when Jesus expels the fallen angel.

When we see Gospel stories like this one, we may be tempted to think that this sort of demonic influence no longer takes place in our modern scientific times. On the other hand, some people can become overly enamored with the devil and demonic activity. They can ascribe too much power to evil influence that can breed a fear and despair in those who believe it. What is the appropriate response to the demonic?

Dear Family of God,

Most of you would agree me with that the world we live in today is becoming very polarized. And, we are witnessing the same concern here in our beloved country. In a deeply polarized society, people constantly attack each other. I guess some of you deal with this every day, especially if you are very active in social media. But as Christians, we can’t get caught up in this and live like the people of the world. In Romans 12:1, St. Paul admonishes us, “Not to be conformed to the standards of the world.…” There is the need then to constantly examine our conscience. How do we respond to attacks or opposition? Or how have we been responding to opposition?

We start telling lies around the age of three, the experts tell us. It’s understandable. Lying is a god-like power. Whatever I want, I need only say it, and the world rearranges itself accordingly. It’s amazing at first. But soon reality snaps back and I’m faced with a dilemma. If I remain committed to my lie I start to fracture into pieces. My words and reality drift apart, and I find myself lost in a lonely world of further falsehoods and fear of being found out.

The readings for this weekend speak to us about God’s call. Those of us doing our best to practice the faith heard God’s call at one point in our life and said yes to Him. The goal of God’s call for each one of us is to grow in holiness. Our celebration this weekend gives us an opportunity to reexamine our expectations about the call to holiness. It is important we have the right understanding of what holiness is, else we risk burdening ourselves with unrealistic expectations.

Dear Family of God,

This weekend we will celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord. What is Epiphany?

The word Epiphany (επιφάνεια) comes from two Greek words; epi, “on, upon”; and phaino, “to appear, to shine.” Therefore, the “Epiphany” refers to the divinity of Jesus “Shining upon” the earth. In other words, it is the manifestation of His Divine Nature. The Feast of Epiphany commemorates the coming of the Magi as the occasion for the first manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles in the Western Church.

Dear Family of God,

Happy Feast Day of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!

Two things we can imitate of the virtues of Mary and Joseph, one is their humility that made them always available for God and allow themselves to become instruments for the fulfillment of God’s plan of salvation. Second is the virtue of obedience because they are humble. Obedience to the law made them receive the blessings and revelations of God through Prophet Simeon when they presented Jesus to the Temple. As Pope Saint John Paul II fondly say: “The salvation of the world passes by way of the family.”

Dear Family of God,

I want to share with you all “The History of the Holy Face Devotion” and add this devotion to our weekly prayers, that is every Tuesday after the Daily Mass and Rosary.

In Tours, France during the 1840's a young Carmelite nun named, Sr. Mary of St Peter, received a series of revelations from Our Lord about a powerful devotion He wished to be established worldwide...the devotion to His Holy Face. The express purpose of this devotion was to make reparation for the blasphemies and outrages of "Revolutionary men" [the Communists] ...through whom God is allowing the world to be chastised for its unbelief, as well as for the blasphemies of atheists and freethinkers and others, plus, for blasphemy and the profanation of Sundays by Christians. Specifically, this devotion is the Divine tool given by God to defeat Communism, but it is also an instrument given to the individual devotee as a seemingly unfailing method of appealing to God in prayer...through adoration of His Holy Face and Name.

Dear Family of God,

What is freedom?

Freedom is doing what is good. Love is willing the good of the other. Willing or doing evil is deprivation of freedom, in other words, when we choose to sin, we are not acting freely, we are slaves to sin.

This weekend’s reading warns us that it is our final decision for or against God, that is, our choosing to obey Him by doing His will, or our choosing to go against His will, which will decide our eternal reward, or eternal punishment. As free beings, it is we who choose our eternal destiny.

As we do not know the moment death will strike, our only guarantee of dying in God's friendship is to live in that friendship always, saying “Yes” to God in our deeds. We should become men and women who profess our Faith in word and deed, remembering that, "Not all those who say to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only those who do the will of my Father who is in Heaven" (Matthew 7:21).

Dear Family of God,

God does not deal with us “fairly” and it is a good thing! We should be thankful God does not give us what we deserve. The parable this weekend tells us that our Heavenly reward is not something we earn, but rather a free gift. God has made His rewards available to all through Faith in Christ Jesus. Indeed, as Isaiah says: “As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your ways and my thoughts above your thoughts” (Is. 55:9). Heaven is a gift to us by God, it is all about graces that He is willing to give to those who are willing to receive them. Grace is an "undeserved love" that God has shown us through the death and Resurrection of His only Son Jesus Christ.

Dear Family of God,

Do you know that the “Lord’s Prayer” is a dangerous prayer?

What I refer to when I say dangerous, is the phrase “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” We take a risk if we do not forgive others. It is as if we are asking God not to forgive us. If we want to be forgiven, we must first forgive those who have wronged us.

The Book of Sirach says: “Forgive your neighbor’s injustice; then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven” (Sir. 28:2). When we forgive from the heart then God heals us from past hurts and we are at peace with God, with others, and with ourselves. On the other hand, unforgiveness is selfdestructive, it hinders our growth and robs us of peace.

Dear Family of God,

What is fraternal correction?

Why it is important?

St. Paul said, “Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” Charity is the fulfilment of the law and our being. God who is love made us for love also, only when we love that we will attain true joy in life. Correcting an erring brother or sister especially when they are young, is a form of love. We care enough for them that we don’t want them to persist in error that will be self-destructive or will lead them to prison.