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Category: prayer

Lent – Time for conversation

 

Time for conversion

from abundance to the necessary

from exaggeration to frugality

from wanting to be satisfied

from addiction to freedom

 

Time for conversion

from hypocrisy to sincerity

from narrow-mindedness to broad-mindedness

from self-righteousness to goodness

from arbitrariness to clarity

from fickleness to faithfulness

 

Time for conversion

from the I to the Thou

from alienation to closeness

from indifference to sympathy

from grievance to reconciliation

from hostility to peace

 

Time for conversion

from noise to silence

from hectic to pause

from impatience to serenity

from distraction to composure

from the surface to the essential

Tiempo de conversión

de la abundancia a lo necesario

de la exageración a la frugalidad

del deseo de tener a la satisfacción

de la adicción a la libertad

 

Tiempo de conversión

de la hipocresía a la sinceridad

de la estrechez de miras a la amplitud

del fariseísmo a la bondad

de la arbitrariedad a la claridad

de la inconstancia a la fidelidad

 

Tiempo de conversión

del yo al tú

del distanciamiento a la cercanía

de la indiferencia a la simpatía

del agravio a la reconciliación

de la hostilidad a la paz

 

Tiempo de conversión

del ruido al silencio

de la agitación a la pausa

de la impaciencia a la serenidad

de la distracción a la serenidad

de lo superficial a lo esencial

 

 

Lighting the Way

Letter to Fr. Jordan on his Beatification

 

 

  Dear Fr. Jordan,

You are an inspiration to all Salvatorians and their friends who are impacted by your humble beginnings. You light the way for all of us ~ past, present and future ~ to be directed by your vision and mission. You have given of yourself to blaze an unparalleled trail in the community for us to follow with trust.

Your Priests are Priests forever in the Order of Melchizedek to serve sacramentally and spiritually. Your Brothers are bound together to serve the peoples’ needs and the Church’s directives. Your Sisters serve the unfortunate and marginalized bringing joy and hope to hearts. Your Lay bring their families to the Eucharistic Table encountering Jesus. They are fed spiritually, so that they may serve and feed the hungry of heart. Continue Reading

Easter triduum: Maundy Thursday

 

Jesus himself washes the feet of his disciples and invites us to humble service to our fellowmen:

“When I, your Lord and your master, have washed your feet, you should also wash each other’s feet. I have set an example; what I have done for you, you should also do” (John 13, 14-15).

 

We feel the same as the apostles Continue Reading

ICDS Way of the Cross – 2020/14

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Station 14: The body of Jesus is laid in the grave

 

 

Last resting place …?

Nicodemus, the one who had first come to him at night, also came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes weighing about one hundred pounds. They took the body of Jesus and bound it with burial cloths along with the spices, according to the Jewish burial custom. Now in the place where he had been crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had yet been buried. So they laid Jesus there because of the Jewish preparation day; for the tomb was close by.” (John 19:39-42)

Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus wrapped Jesus, who had been freed from the cross, in a cloth and carried him to a nearby burial site. According to other sources, such as the Gospel of Mark, there were also a number of women among them. Nevertheless, it now seems to have been a rather family affair, in contrast to the crowd at the execution.

With the laying down and embalming in the new tomb (a symbol of the purity of Christ) Jesus now escapes the curious glances. Noise and turmoil remain, silence and concentration return. Finally, the heavy stone is rolled in front of the entrance to the tomb. This stone, it seems in the truest sense of the word, is supposed to have been the keystone among the affairs of Jesus of Nazareth. Was the chapter closed with him and all hope buried? Continue Reading

ICDS Way of the Cross – 2020/13

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Station 13: Jesus is taken down from the cross

 

 

Immortal love …

After this, Joseph of Arimathea, secretly a disciple of Jesus for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate if he could remove the body of Jesus. And Pilate permitted it. So he came and took his body.” (John 19:38)

The image of the Pieta comes to mind, the image of Mater Dolorosa, the Mother of Sorrows. Jesus is taken down from the cross and placed in the arms of his mother. An adult human being, lifeless in the same arms that once carried Him and the womb that gave birth to him. A mother weeps for her child who she has brought to life and cared for years, with whom she had shared countless hours of joy. She is a picture of unspeakable grief, indescribable tenderness, and wordless despair.

Mary, the mother, loves with her whole being beyond physical death. So much is expressed in this silent embrace: it is the image of a love for which bodily death is not a barrier and does not mean the end. Continue Reading

ICDS Way of the Cross – 2020/12

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Station 12: Jesus dies at the cross

 

 

Unifying love in the darkest night …

And at three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Some of the bystanders who heard it said, “Look, he is calling Elijah.” One of them ran, soaked a sponge with wine, put it on a reed, and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see if Elijah comes to take him down.” Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. (Mark 15:34-37)

A last act of earthly love and tenderness: Jesus asks the disciple John to take care of his mother and asks his mother to accept John in his place. Both do not leave his side until the last breath.

Let us try to enter into this scene mentally. Before us lies only sadness, no comfort, no hope. – Everything seems to have come to an end… Continue Reading

ICDS Way of the Cross – 2020/11

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Station 11: Jesus gets nailed to the cross

 

 

 

nail down …

When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left. Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:33-34)

Jesus, who always taught openly and freely, is now nailed down. Like a piece of wood that you take hold of, that you have at your disposal. He is crucified and is suffering the most shameful punishment that existed at that time.

God is nailed down by men, his size reduced. He surrenders himself completely. In his incredible love for us he allows this to happen… Continue Reading

ICDS Way of the Cross – 2020/10

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Station 10: Jesus is robbed of his clothes

 

 

Exposing …

 

I can count all my bones. They stare at me and gloat; they divide my garments among them; for my clothing they cast lots.” (Psalm 22:18-19)

Arriving at the place of execution, Jesus gets his clothes torn off. He is exposed, exposed to the eyes of the many, exposed to them with no protection. Jesus is enduring this: He is on the same level as the defiled, the humiliated, the exposed of all kinds. Deprived of all his possessions and dignity, he now stands at the very bottom of human society.

Again and again, it happens that people expose each other – often without even noticing it. Be it through ruthlessness, shamelessness, lack of respect, sometimes stupidity, – or perhaps deliberately, to hurt the other, to belittle, to degrade. Continue Reading