Morning Voice

November 1, 2020 Solemnity of All Saints READINGS:  RV 7:2-4, 9-14 ;  PS 24:1BC-2, 3-4AB, 5-6 ;  1 JN 3:1-3 ;  MT 5:1-12A . A Japanese proverb says, “The cat is a saint when there are no mice about.” And a Bengali proverb adds, “Any new saint-to-be has his miracles to make.” All saints or all to be saints? The Christian life is a vocation to holiness. We all are on a journey toward sainthood. Being on a journey consequently means that we are not yet at our destination, we are not yet saints, but saints to be. According to our Catholic faith and the teachings of the Church, a saint is anyone in heaven, whether officially recognized (canonized) on earth or not, who form the “great cloud of witnesses” who have ridden themselves of every burden and sin that clings to them and persevere in running the race that was laid before them (Heb 12:1). The allusion here could be made of our different ancestors, parents and beloveds and people whose life had been a mod...

October 25, 2020   Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time - A. READINGS:   EX 22:20-26 ;  PS 18:2-3, 3-4, 47, 51 ;  1 THES 1:5C-10 ;  MT 22:34-40 . A Lebanese proverb says, “Love overlooks defects; hatred magnifies them.” An Inca proverb adds, “Love can neither be bought nor sold, its only price is love.” Ours is a God full of pity. He expresses his compassion and pity by taking the party of the less fortunate, the outcasts, the abandoned, the migrants, the forsaken of our societies. The psalm 34:7 sings rightly, “The Lord hears the cry of the poor. Blessed be the Lord.” That is actually so true and uplifting to know that the weak, the orphan, the widow, the marginalized, and all kinds of poor are the friends of God. That he gives priority to their voices. He does so, because of his great love and compassion. Love is what describes the best of our God. Love is his name, love is his way, and love is what he expects the most from us. Today’s liturgy could easil...

October 18, 2020 Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time - A READINGS: IS 45:1, 4-6 ;  PS 96:1, 3, 4-5, 7-8, 9-10 ;  1 THES 1:1-5B ;  MT 22:15-21 . A Corsican proverb says, “The soul belongs to God, and possessions to their owners.” And an Ivorian proverb adds, “Though the sky belongs to the bird it can’t fly when it’s raining.” “… Give to the LORD glory and praise; give to the LORD the glory due his name!” Glory, honor, and praise belong by right to God. Nothing of what we rejoice about or of what we do is out of his reach and his authority. Actually, he alone has power over all things. Therefore, what could a man boast about that is not from God? What do you have that has not been given to you by God? Even you yourself belong to him. Here we could nicely recall the conversation at the creation. It is said that, after he finished creating all animal and other living creatures, God said to himself in an intimate communication, a God to God dialogue, “Let us make human bein...

October 11, 2020   Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time - A. READINGS:   IS 25:6-10A ;  PS 23:1-3A, 3B-4, 5, 6  ;  PHIL 4:12-14, 19-20 ;  MT 22:1-14 OR 22:1-10 .  A Kikuyu proverb says, “Every feast has its guest of honor.” And a Greek proverb adds, “Is appallingly poor, the heart that never rejoices.” Some people live as if life was all about desolation, tears, mourning. They seem to never find a reason in life or something to rejoice about and laugh. Starting from the external appearance, they always arbor the ‘Good Friday’ face, without any hope of ‘Easter Sunday’, what Pope Francis, inviting to be joyful Christians, calls the syndrome of the gloomy face. In today’s liturgy, the first reading and the gospel join into one to invite us to rejoice. We are summoned at the banquet of happiness. The Kingdom of God is described as a place, or more, as an event of great joy. God’s kingdom is actually, more than a geographical location. It is an eve...