Reflections of Caritas

Dear friends,

We don’t have to look too far to see that there are so many people in our world today suffering. Every day there are countless victims of random and senseless acts of shame and hatred. Many are dying and suffering because of poverty, ignorance, famine and drought. Sadly these situations are now a feature of our world today. But in our own daily lives, each of us experiences pain, difficulty and suffering. This comes in many forms; Covid-19, ill-health, bad news from the doctor, long term unemployment, a long standing family problem and many other seemingly ordinary experiences we each have every day. There are also other kinds of burdens we face, burdens of sin, or temptation, burden of guilt, burdens of conflicting loyalties, burdens of providing for our families, this life is filled with stress, with cares, with worries, with situations that call for us to make choices that sometimes are not pleasant to make. We can often believe or assume that we can or should be able to cope on our own when we experience these or similar difficulties. This is a mistake. We don’t have to cope on our own and more importantly we can’t.

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Dear friends,

On this thirteenth Sunday, we are exhorted to welcome Christ in others. This is especially, through the messengers of God and the needy people among us. We are further encouraged to be sensitive to the needs of one another in order to make a positive difference in their lives.

Jesus says that he is a above everyone and everything in our lives- even family! But this does not mean that we ignore others, especially those who might be in any sort of need. Through generosity and hospitality, we attract God's blessings to our homes and family thus transforming our lives and fortunes as well.

Today some people are so indifferent to others and their needs. We live in a sort of "do it yourself" world. But we all need to depend on others in one way or another.

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Gospel: Matthew 10:26-33

Dear friends,

On this twelfth Sunday of ordinary time, we celebrate Christ Our Lord , who is always with us. He continues to deliver us from all that threatens and makes life difficult for us, namely; persecutions, sins, death, hatred, Covid-19 and so on.

In the Gospel, Jesus reminds the twelve of the persecutions that they are to encounter as the embrace His mission. Jesus told them that authorities will go after them, they were to suffer physical and emotional violence, they were to be rejected and persecuted but should be prepared to risk everything for the sake of the gospel.The disciples of course had the reason to be afraid. But he reassured them; Not to be Afraid!!! This is the message that should reverberate in the hearts of the disciples as they embarked on the journey of proclamation, Communion and Mission.

Today, we are living in the world where we see and hear about horrors every day. Many are experiencing; hatred, rejection, Vulnerability, Tension and unpredictability. Yet as followers of Christ, we are called to trust in God, Our Father, who knows us intimately and understands our needs.

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"I am the Bread of Life"
Gospel: John 6: 51- 58

Dear Friends,
Today's feast is about the bountiful generosity of God and it is also about the deepest description of who we are as the church: We are the Body of Christ.

During the celebration of the Eucharist, we present the most ordinary of things of God; Bread and Wine; fruit of the earth and work of our hands. God accepts, blesses them and then through the power of the Holy Spirit they become the body and blood of Jesus.

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