Baptism of James

Baptism of the infant James within the 9am Mass today Saturday the Octave of Christmas.
Father TJ the Pastor of St Thomas More Church is flanked by the delighted godparents.

St Thomas More Church is family of families on Hillcroft St in Houston,  Texas.

Christ is the Light of the World

1 John 1:5

"This is the message we have heard from Jesus Christ and proclaim to you:  God is light, and in him is no darkness at all."

Walking in the light of the Gospel

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Sanctuary of St Vincent de Paul Church in Houston, Texas

We have seen and we have heard the Mystery

"What we have seen and heard
we proclaim now to you,
so that you too may have fellowship with us;
for our fellowship is with the Father
and with his Son, Jesus Christ"  (1 John 1:3)

The testimony of St. John the Evangelist is an eyewitness account.  Every authentic proclamation of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior must be what we have seen and heard.  What have we seen and heard over the Advent season and Christmas?  We have seen food distributed to the poor in our parishes.  We have seen clothing and money given to the needy.  We have heard about the genealogy of Jesus Christ, Son of Abraham and Son of David, conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.

In all that we have seen and heard over the past several weeks, we have the content for our own proclamation of Jesus, the Savior of all mankind.  Lord Jesus, fill us with your Spirit and enable us to bear witness to you.

A Child is born for us

"And the Word became flesh
and made his dwelling among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory as of the Father’s only Son,
full of grace and truth."  (John 1: 14)

May the simple Joys and Peace of Christmas remain with you today and every day of 2014!

O Radiant Dawn, sun of justice

"Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
for he has visited and brought redemption to his people."  (Luke 1 : 68)

Thank  you Father for the salvation you brought us through your Son, Jesus Christ.  Father fill us with the joy and peace of His presence during this Christmas season.

God is with us

"All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,”
which means “God is with us."  (Matthew !: 22 - 23)

The Virgin Mary, one of our race is the sign.  She is the sign that God's promise to be always with us is true, fulfilled even here and now.  Have you claimed it?  How do you claim the gift of the Emmanuel?  Ask the Father.  Ask the Virgin Mother to intercede for you.  As Mary placed her Infant Jesus in the hands of the Magi, Simeon and Anna, she would place in your hands the awesome gift of the Emmanuel.  How awesome it will be for you to know for certainty that always and everywhere Emmanuel, God-with-us is with you.

Come Lord Jesus!

O Emmanuel, Our King and Giver of Law

"The Lord and Ruler will be coming soon, and His name will be called Emmanuel, because He will be God-with-us."  (See Isaiah 7: 14; 8:10)

O Come Emmanuel!
How do we know that Jesus is truly with us as He promised?  Because He said so.  We walk by faith and not by sight.  If Jesus is not with us, we would not have any peace.  Our problems will completely overwhelm us.  If Jesus is not with us, there will be no hope for the future.  There will be no hope of rising from illness or recovery from a serious financial crisis.  No hope of finding a new job after losing one.   It is because of His abiding presence that we can sing with joy.  It is also because of His presence that demons have not made mince meat of us.

Thank you Jesus for your presence.

The Sign of Emmanuel

"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign; the young woman, pregnant and about to bear a son, shall name him Emmanuel."  (Isaiah 7: 14)

King Ahaz had already decided to seek foreign against the coalition massed against Judah. The situation was not just critical but an emergency.  The prophet Isaiah appeared and told the King not to seek any foreign aid.  God had promised to help him.  For King Ahaz at this stage of the crisis, it was like a parent who had already decided that surgery was the last option for a critically sick child. If you are such a parent, what would you do if a prophet comes along to urge the surgery not to proceed because God will miraculously heal your child.  That was the situation of King Ahaz.

God realizing that Ahaz was in a difficult situation offered him an incentive to faith.

"Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz:
Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God; let it be deep as Sheol, or high as the sky!
But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!"  (Isaiah 7: 10 - 12)

King Ahaz refused to ask for a sign.  He had already made up his mind what to do. The Lord God was determined however to give one of the greatest signs in the Bible.

"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign; the young woman, pregnant and about to bear a son, shall name him Emmanuel."  (Isaiah 7: 14)

The Virgin Mary is a sign.

"And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”  (Luke 2: 12)

The Infant Jesus wrapped in a swaddling clothes is another sign that points to the life and work of this Child.

What sign do we have today that what we believe is true?  The Catholic Church is the sign. It is the sign of the presence of Jesus in the world.  There are four marks that point to this sign always and everywhere in the world:  The Church is one; the Church is holy; the Church apostolic; the Church universal.  These four marks have always been the means of recognizing the Catholic Church everywhere.

Christ our King is coming

“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her.
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”  (Matthew 1: 20 21)

Joseph had three good reasons to be worried.  First, was his deep disappointment that after what he considered a prayerful discernment his choice of Mary as a wife was a failure.  Second was his deep regret with Mary herself.  Mary was reputed as the holy, chaste and wise virgin of the town.  Now, she appeared to be like everyone else.  Finally, Joseph was saddened with the  failure of divine guidance.  Divine guidance is promised in the scriptures especially for those who walk in God's ways.

Amidst such forebodings, Joseph went to bed for another restless night.  But this night was different from other nights.  It was the night of the second Annunciation.  The angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and revealed that Mary was with child by the power of the Holy Spirit.  And with this, the peace and faith of Joseph in God was fully restored.

It happens that in our own life, we might go through a period of severe test of faith like Joseph.  The test could be in the areas of family, finances, job, health, property and tools.  In such period, wouldn't it be wonderful to enjoy a visitation of an angel telling us that everything is alright and urging us to be patient for a little time because what is going on is a set up by God.  Alas, most of us would never enjoy any such visit by an angel.  This is because the message of God for us has been communicated in the scriptures.  Here are a few examples:

God is with us.  He is Emmanuel.(Matthew 1: 23)
"The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent."  (Exodus 14: 14)
"Endure your trials as 'discipline.'"  (Hebrews 12: 7)
"Be still, and know that I am God."  (Psalm 46: 10)
"Do not be afraid and do not dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God's."  (2 Chronicles 20: 15)
"Not by might, nor by power, but my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts."  (Zechariah 4: 6)

There are many such scriptures in the Bible which we can appropriate and apply to our situation.
"Through these, he has bestowed on us the precious and very great promises, so that through them you may come to share in the divine nature, after escaping from the corruption that is in the world because of evil desire."  (2 Peter 1: 4)

Come to us Jesus and bring us peace

"Hear the word of the LORD, you nations,
proclaim it on distant coasts, and say:
The One who scattered Israel, now gathers them;
he guards them as a shepherd his flock."  (Jeremiah 31: 10)

By divine providence, Israel was scattered as the sower scatters the seeds.  In the nations were they were scattered, they became the foundation for the sowing of the Gospel.  As harvest is gathered in due season, Israel will be gathered up by the Lord.

"I will bear a witness to you in the world, O Lord. I will spread the knowledge of your name among my brothers,alleluia!"  (Psalm 17: 50; 21: 23)

"Say to the fearful of heart:
Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God,
he comes with vindication;
With divine recompense
he comes to save you."  (Isaiah 35: 4)

Come Lord Jesus!  Come quickly!

Rejoice in the Lord

Philippians 4:4
"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice."

Isaiah 35:4
"Say to those who have an anxious heart,
“Be strong; fear not!
Behold, your God
will come with vengeance,
with the recompense of God.
He will come and save you.”

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Thank you Lord for my Disappointments

http://uniqueministry.blogspot.com/2009/11/disappointment-disguise-for-blessing.html?m=1

Our Interdependence

God in His immense wisdom and power could have made us independent instead of Interdependent. Each person has something to give to another in our symbiotic ecosystem. (Idea before the Blessed Sacrament)

What is my cross?

Matthew 16:24

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

"Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me."

Rejection of the cross is rejection of Jesus Christ.

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Come Lord Jesus!

"But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself."  (Philippians 3: 20 - 21)

Are your eyes permanently pointed to the skies or downwards?  Jesus says:
"For where your treasure is, there also will your heart."  (Matthew 6: 21)

Our Top Prize is in heaven.  There also is our heart. We live therefore in this world as pilgrims not holding anything too tightly because we know full well that our Lord and Bridegroom shall come any time.

Come Lord Jesus!

Mary's Sign

"And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God." (Luke 1: 36 - 37)

Some people receive revelations, word of knowledge and word of wisdom from God.  Some of these people claim that God confirms these communications with  signs.  My personal reaction is not to doubt.  Why should I?  I experience inspirations from God all the time.  In fact, I cannot survive without inspirations.  The inspirations make up for my lack of high intelligence quotient.

When the Angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would be the Mother of the Christ, Mary did not ask for any sign.  But God gave her a sign nevertheless.  That sign was a living person, her relative Elizabeth.  Elizabeth who desired to be a mother for most of her life was now old and her barrenness was absolute.  But God for whom nothing is impossible, infused strength and fruitfulness to Elizabeth.  Mary on hearing this would have said to herself, "If this is possible, then it is also possible for me a virgin to conceive to be a mother by the power of the Holy Spirit."

The confirmation of our signs could come from what God does for other people.  Such signs need no further communication from God.  When we receive the word or promise of God and consent to it, we look for examples of such fulfillments either from scripture, history or from our contemporary experience.  They are all signs.  Everything is scripture.

The word of God stands forever

"The grass withers, the flower wilts,
but the word of our God stands forever.”  (Isaiah 40: 8)

Your word leads to eternal life.  Teach us to love your word.

On the Occasion of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

On the Occasion of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

"I will rejoice heartily in the LORD,
my being exults in my God;
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation,
and wrapped me in a robe of justice,
Like a bridegroom adorned with a diadem,
as a bride adorns herself with her jewels."  (Isaiah 61: 10)


"For nothing will be impossible for God."  (Luke 1: 37)

O Most Immaculate Virgin and Mother, your Son took maximum care to adorn you with the gifts appropriate to you great Mission.  Remember us, who approach you in our distress.

Fill us with your Holy Spirit

"The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him:
a spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
A spirit of counsel and of strength,
a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD,
and his delight shall be the fear of the LORD.
Not by appearance shall he judge,
nor by hearsay shall he decide."  (Isaiah 11: 2 - 3)

Come Holy Spirit, fill our hearts with your gifts.  Lead us, guide us and use us as you wish.  We will not rebel against your total control of our lives.