Morning Voice

April 18, 2021 Third Sunday of Easter - B.  Readings:  Acts 3:13-15, 17-19 ;  Ps 4:2, 4, 7-8, 9 ;  1 Jn 2:1-5a ;  Lk 24:35-48 . A Chinese proverb says, “When a large vessel has opened a way it is easy for a small one to follow.” And an Ethiopian proverb adds, “A hyena intrudes through a gap a dog opened.” The resurrection of Christ brings about great joy. But that joy is not only for the Jewish people neither for the restricted group of disciples alone. It is a joy to be shared by all who hear about it. This Easter joy comes from the fact that in Jesus, we all are forgiven of our sins and made children of God by adoption. We said in the opening prayer: “May your people exult forever, O God, in renewed youthfulness of spirit, so that, rejoicing now in the restored glory of our adoption, we may look forward in confident hope to the rejoicing of the day of resurrection.” That Easter joy gets all its meaning when we measure what the resurrection of Christ brought us. The Catechism

April 11, 2021 Second Sunday of Easter - B. Sunday of Divine Mercy Readings:  Acts 4:32-35 ;  Ps 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24 ;  1 Jn 5:1-6 ;  Jn 20:19-31 . A Sicilian proverb says, “God plays seriously, but He is a merciful father.” And a Bajan proverb adds, “It is he who got milk that is merciful.” There is a popular saying that vengeance is human, mercy divine. This saying is always proved true with the way we react in front of an offense. When someone is offended, it asks for great self-control for him to not dream of retaliation. May we be Christians or pagans, it is human to feel bad after an offense but it becomes divine to not wish or plan to repay offense with an offense. The Wiseman Gandhi in that sense had the hollow nose saying, “An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.” For, if we keep punishing those we deem cruel, then we are no better than the bad guys ourselves. What makes the difference between bad and good people is the ability to forgive and to give a new oppor

April 4, 2021   Easter Sunday The Resurrection of the Lord The Mass of Easter Day - B. Readings:  Acts 10:34a, 37-43 ;  Ps 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23 ;  Col 3:1-4 ;  Jn 20:1-9 . A Jewish proverb says, “If you start thinking of death, you are no longer sure of life.” And an Ivorian proverb adds, “Life is your ability to breath out every time you breathe in.” What are we celebrating these days? The answer to this question can be found in the introduction of the solemn vigil of Easter. The priest starts the celebration by saying, “Dear brethren, on this most sacred night, in which our Lord Jesus Christ passed over from death to life, the Church calls upon her sons and daughters, scattered throughout the world, to come together to watch and pray. If we keep the memorial of the Lord's paschal solemnity in this way, listening to his word and celebrating his mysteries, then we shall have the sure hope of sharing his triumph over death and living with him in God.” Three lessons from this

April 2, 2021 Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion - B. Readings:  Is 52:13—53:12 ;  Ps 31:2, 6, 12-13, 15-16, 17, 25 ;  Heb 4:14-16; 5:7-9 ;  Jn 18:1—19:42 . A French proverb says, “It is loving too much to die of love.” And a Congolese proverb adds, “Lovers do not hide their nakedness to each other.” For our Lord Jesus, the real Passover takes place not at the table with a sacrificial lamb, the bread, and the wine but at the Cross, in the Passion. His Passover that we celebrated last night is perpetrated in his passion that we live today. On this day, when "Christ our paschal lamb was sacrificed" (1 Cor 5:7), what had long been promised in signs and figurative was at last revealed and all the ancient prophecies were brought to their fulfillment. In the Lord Jesus dying on the Wood of the Cross, the true Lamb replaces the symbolic lamb, and the many offerings of Ancient Israel give way to the unique sacrifice that truly pleases God, the sacrifice of love. The Catechis

Holy Thursday Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper - B. Readings:  Ex 12:1-8, 11-14 ; Ps 116:12-13, 15-16bc, 17-18 ;  1 Cor 11:23-26 ;  Jn 13:1-15 . A Congolese proverb says, “A leader is he who tells his people what they must hear, not what they want to hear.” And a Latin proverb adds, “Leadership is by example.” We are opening today a very special moment, three days of great impact on our life of faith. We must mind our life, our unique real business with God. Distractions and temptations may come our way, we should be focused on the Lord who offers today his Passover. And besides, the goal of the Christian life is to find our glory in the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Christ. That is not only the central mystery of our faith but also the reason for our being. This evening, through the celebration of the Lord's Supper, we open the mysterious book of God's love. Actually, that book was opened since last Sunday's celebration but it reaches its epic from tonight. To

March 28, 2021 Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion - B. Readings:  Mk 11:1-10 ; or  Jn 12:12-16 ;  Is 50:4-7 ;  Ps 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24 ;  Phil 2:6-11 ;  Mk 14:1—15:47 . A Latin proverb says, “Experience purchased by suffering teaches wisdom.” And a Danish proverb adds, “Suffering and patience, obedience and application, help the lowly born to honor.” As we open this great and holy week, we also open today a special page of each one's life, the page of holiness through the forgiveness of God. We are seven days before Easter. We celebrate today the Palms Sunday, the day in which Jesus entered gloriously and over the acclamations of the crowds in the Holy City. Besides the aspect of glory, the Palms Sunday opens also to the greatest humility and suffering. Thus, the liturgical calling of Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion. For, Jesus opens today his passion that will lead to his death and glorification in his resurrection. This Sunday teaches the Christian community a beautif

March 21, 2021 Fifth Sunday of Lent - Year B. Readings:  Jer 31:31-34 ;  Ps 51:3-4, 12-13, 14-15 ;  Heb 5:7-9 ;  Jn 12:20-33 . A Swahili proverb says, “A new thing is a source of joy even if it is sore.” And a Ghanaian proverb adds, “The wood will renew the foliage it sheds.” Love is the greatest sacrifice man can ever make. All that we put as action get their meaning if they are done with love. For, without love all is void and nothing. The passion, death, and resurrection of Christ, if not understood as an expression of God's love becomes nothing and useless. As Christians, we are urged to walk in the same love Jesus had for us until sacrificing himself for our salvation. His perfect act of charity is what this Lent invites us to imitate. For, Lent is the perfect time of imitation of Christ. It is also the time of a new covenant. God promised to enter into a new agreement with each one of his creatures and to transform them from within. The word of God today, the 5th Sund

March 14, 2021 Fourth Sunday of Lent - Year B. Readings:  2 Chr 36:14-16, 19-23 ; Ps  137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6 ;  Eph 2:4-10 ;  Jn 3:14-21 . A Dutch proverb says, “It’s a poor heart that never rejoices.” And a Spanish proverb adds, “Every season brings its joy.” The Lenten season is known as the par excellence, season of repentance, of spiritual discipline, mortification, and mourning for our sins and failures. Besides that, Lent is also a great time of joy. For, though sinners, it opens us to the hope of forgiveness and leads us into God's mercy. Through this special season, we get to experience how great and gracious is our God. It is his mercy that leads him to sacrifice himself for our salvation. The liturgy of this fourth Sunday of Lent plunges us in the perfect joy. The entrance antiphon bangs, "Rejoice, Jerusalem, and all who love her. Be joyful, all who were in mourning; exult and be satisfied at her consoling breast." (Cf. Is 66: 10-11) With the City of Peace, it

March 7, 2021 Third Sunday of Lent - Year B Readings:  Ex 20:1-17 ;  Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 11 ;  1 Cor 1:22-25 ;  Jn 2:13-25 . A Tshi proverb says, “If you have no time to take care of your sickness, you get time to die.” And a Russian proverb adds, “Every vegetable has its time.” The way to perfection passes through the highway of obedience. What makes man and differentiates him from any other creature is his capacity to freely obey. But when a man refuses to obey, he becomes a mere animal just good for training as we do with dogs and other pets. Obedience is the keyword of the Christian life. It is also one of the main attitudes of our Lenten pilgrimage. Who says obedience, says faithfulness and it leads to perfection and the summit of wisdom. Today's liturgy puts a special emphasis on three theological and human virtues, obedience, purity, and perfection. These three elements are interconnected to each other. Obedience leads to perfection and perfection is the life in purity