While these statistics are expected from a Church that has moved from being in complacency, and maintenance mode, to a state of being in utter decline, it is still nonetheless shocking to revisit these numbers again. A survey that Pew Research Center conducted in 2009, and updated in 2011, showed that those who left the Catholic Church outnumber those who [...]
“You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” (St Augustine of Hippo). In each of us, we have an unquenchable thirst and we spend much of our lives in search of something to quench it. God our Father’s message in today’s readings is this: Come to me and I will [...]
At this stage of my youth, my heart grows restless at the thought of the mundane working life that approaches me. In my head, I would envision stepping into the working world as being parallel to running a long marathon race, a race with an unknown yet daunting distance to be covered. The finishing line of the race would be [...]
In the Scripture text where Peter says to Jesus who is walking on the water, "Lord, if it is you, bid me, come to you on the water." (Matthew 14: 28) and Jesus calls out to him. Things go swimmingly well, Peter defies gravity and the laws of Physics and begins to walk on water like Jesus did. However, we [...]
“Life is not fair!” How often do we lament these words verbally or in the silence of our hearts? How frequently do we hear this statement made by others as well? When one reads the parable of the Labourers in the Vineyard (Mt 20:1-16) using the logic of labour’s market, one is likely to feel the sense of injustice for [...]
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “Prayer is both a gift of grace and a determined response on our part. It always presupposes effort. The great figures of prayer of the Old Covenant before Christ, as well as the Mother of God, the saints, and he himself, all teach us this: prayer is a battle. Against whom? Against [...]
We all want to be liked, loved, be well received and respected by others. However, if we harbour grudges and want to exact revenge, can we be the person who glorifies our Father? The first reading is a timely reminder of the main ingredients found in sin – pride, resentment and anger. We must not allow anger to seethe and overtake [...]
On first impressions, the Gospel for this week seems oddly antagonistic and confrontational - it seems to suggest how we should stand up, perhaps challenge someone from the church, who has wronged us. It even lists methodologically how we should go about it along with a follow-up should the exchanges prove unsuccessful; attempt the one-on-one first, followed by bringing along [...]
There comes a time and a season when the community is called to gather as one and to prayerfully discern and to decide together the next steps or the new paths to forge. This discernment has to do with the operational every-day things such as leadership roles, the running of the community, the works and the direction those works will [...]
In today’s Gospel, the reflection is centered on Matthew 16:24. “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” Jesus is preaching about the conditions of discipleship - to become his follower or disciple. A terse and precise command to emulate the perfect model but never an [...]