Beguiled by the Father

It’s terrible to think on this title: Beguiled by the Father; but I think it’s worst to imagine to be indoctrinated into a religion.

The title is a mere way of provoking the attention of those who are so cautious on this matter, but we should never forget that the bottom line of a vocation is a love story with God: 

 

O Lord, You induced me, and I was persuaded;

You are stronger than I, and have prevailed. Jer 20:7

Nothing will happen in our life if The Father does not talk to our hearts. We can have wonderful ideas of God but He doesn’t dwell in us, unless we learn from Him:

«Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me.

Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father.»

When Peter was able to reply Who was Jesus and profess He is the Messiah, Jesus rippled: 

“Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.”

The Father who makes all things possible. Only the Father knows everything : Mt 24:36 « ...about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.»

The journey with the Father, being in dialogue with Him, He will never abandon His children. If the worst human father will do everything to give food to his children, so how much more the Heavenly Father. So that’s why The Father gives us Jesus as the Bread of Life. «... the living bread which has come from heaven; whoever eats of this bread will live forever. The bread I shall give is my flesh and I will give it for the life of the world.» 

The Father wants us to have Eternal life and the whole world will know it, because of the life glowing in us.

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Gospel Reading:  Jn 6:44-51

Jesus addressed the crowd, "No one can come to me unless he is drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise him up on the last day. It has been written in the Prophets: They shall all be taught by God. So whoever listens and learns from the Father comes to me.

"For no one has seen the Father except the One who comes from God; he has seen the Father. Truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.

"I am the bread of life. Though your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, they died. But here you have the bread which comes from heaven so that you may eat of it and not die.

"I am the living bread which has come from heaven; whoever eats of this bread will live forever. The bread I shall give is my flesh and I will give it for the life of the world."

The flesh is weak

What is born of flesh is flesh
and what is born of spirit is spirit. Jn 3:6

Man has the capacity to transcend and it’s very important that he won’t be a slave of the flesh. The flesh composed of appetite and instincts succumbs easily to the worldly allurement. His primary objective is material and physical.

So Jesus reminded His disciples during the battle of spirit in the garden of Gethsemani: “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Mt 26:41

Prayer is the power of the spirit. Prayer teaches man not to submit to his fears and worries. Prayer is opening up to the realm of Spirit, the dimension of God, which is literally the dimension of love & hope. 

Jesus I entrust to you all my battles,

my weaknesses and all my temptations;

I come to you and I ask your Holy Spirit.

Help me not to submit to the works of the enemy: deception & lies;

increase my faith, increase my love and adoration to your Holy Name so I will always give praise and glory to the Father.

This I pray in your name, in communion to the Holy Spirit.

Prayer to the Risen Lord

Thank you Jesus, for your great love to me.

In front of your cross I kneel down to give you thanks and to honor you as my Lord and my savior.

I rise up and I submit to you all the things that burden me and make me suffer.

I want to follow the Path of Resurrection so not to remain imprisoned to sadness.

Your Holy Spirit consoles me, guides me and frees me from the nausea of being far from you.

Fill me with your Spirit my Lord and restore my broken heart, that I may always praise the Father who has created me with wisdom and love.

Make me conscious of His faithfulness in order that I may not drip into the vortex of my sorrows.

I ask you Lord Jesus, to let your precious blood flow over me right now, on my health, on my problems: to my job, to my family, to my addictions, and to all the situations that are so difficult right now in my life.

Jesus, I trust in you and I praise you for all the things that you have done to me. 

Unite me each day to Blessed Mary, so to take care always the mission of the Church witnessing your work completed in me.

Thank you for your precious blood that you have poured out for healing my pains and delivering me away from harm.

Thank you Jesus and I praise you always. Amen.

He is risen!

Indeed He is Risen!

His wounds remained but it has no longer power on Him, the hurt was gone, the scar is the only reminder because Resurrection won’t cancel what was gone through.

Being resurrected with Christ is becoming transformed, where the pain is no longer the ultimate word, but the hope gives another significance. When the light of the sun shines what the darkness concealed  is no longer relevant.

Jesus don’t eradicate your problems but He tells you not to be sad because your problem is not the ultimate word of your destiny.

His resurrection breaks the bond of sadness and helplessness. He continually reminds us that the tomb is empty and His love conquers all our fears and worries.

It’s no longer how to make my life a better one? But it’s how I live the difficulties of my life in relation to my faith and to the resurrection of my Savior? There will always be trials and difficulties in life, without them, it won’t be an interesting one, or a christian life. But what makes it more meaningful is to live each day with that hope and faith that no matter what everything has its sense.

Resurrection is not the absence of difficulties, but the consciousness that gives sense to every obstacle of happiness. True happiness is the blessedness of life that whatever life brings nothing can seize the joy of living. Example: I can face every problem if I know that my actual  problem is not as great as my God who loves me. If it seems so tough, I entrust everything to my Lord, He knows better what lies ahead of my life. No matter what, I praise my Lord because He will be with me till the end of time.

The secret of resurrection lies on the cross:

1. Learn to accept it

2. Bear it

3. Believe that this cross is not your death

4. Face whatever it takes to that cross, even it cost you everything

5. Put your trust to Jesus, even it cost you to be with Him in hell

6. Learn to wait and listen to the Word of God everyday in your life

7. Tame your mind with the knowledge of His Promise and of His Faithfulness

8. Never doubt

9. Believe that He loves you more than anything else

10. Rise with Him

Christos Anesti ("Χριστός ἀνέστη!" - "Christ is Risen!" in Coptic and Greek)

INDEED HE IS RISEN!!!




He is risen, He lives and He reigns!

There are very important moments during the celebration of the Easter Vigil.

* Lucernarium Rite - is the Solemn Blessing of the Fire; opposite to Lucifer (lux ... ferre...) "the holder of the light" who believed to be the light himself.

* The Procession of the Paschal Candle with the acclamation of LUMEN CHRISTI - (The Light of Christ) ; DEO GRATIAS - the response of the people (Thanks be to God)

* The Easter Proclamation : EXSULTET
   - The proclamation of the battle which Jesus himself have already won

* THE READINGS OF THE STORY OF DELIVERANCE AND FREEDOM...
  - All these readings are narration of the story of God's intervention in the whole history of humanity in the Sacred Scriptures

* The BLESSING OF THE WATER AND THE BAPTISMAL FONT
  - This reminds us the meaning of the Holy Water and it's power because of the immersion of Jesus on His Paschal Mystery (crucifixion, death and resurrection).


The celebration of the easter vigil is considered as the NOTTE DELLE NOTTI, the Mother of all the Nights. Where the darkness was been overthrown by the power of the Light, who is Jesus: The Lord of lords, The Light of the world and The Light that breaks the darkness of death and despair.

           EXSULTET ....

These, then, are the feasts of Passover,
in which is slain the Lamb, the one true Lamb,
whose Blood anoints the doorposts of believers.

This is the night,
when once you led our forebears, Israel’s children,
from slavery in Egypt
and made them pass dry-shod through the Red Sea.

This is the night
that with a pillar of fire
banished the darkness of sin.

This is the night
that even now, throughout the world,
sets Christian believers apart from worldly vices
and from the gloom of sin,
leading them to grace
and joining them to his holy ones.

This is the night,
when Christ broke the prison-bars of death
and rose victorious from the underworld.

Our birth would have been no gain,
had we not been redeemed.
O wonder of your humble care for us!
O love, O charity beyond all telling,
to ransom a slave you gave away your Son!

O truly necessary sin of Adam,
destroyed completely by the Death of Christ!

O happy fault
that earned so great, so glorious a Redeemer!

O truly blessed night,
worthy alone to know the time and hour
when Christ rose from the underworld!

This is the night
of which it is written:
The night shall be as bright as day,
dazzling is the night for me,
and full of gladness. The sanctifying power of this night
dispels wickedness, washes faults away,
restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to mourners,
drives out hatred, fosters concord, and brings down the mighty.

On this, your night of grace, O holy Father,
accept this candle, a solemn offering,
the work of bees and of your servants’ hands,
an evening sacrifice of praise,
this gift from your most holy Church.

But now we know the praises of this pillar,
which glowing fire ignites for God’s honor,
a fire into many flames divided,
yet never dimmed by sharing of its light,
for it is fed by melting wax,
drawn out by mother bees
to build a torch so precious.

O truly blessed night,
when things of heaven are wed to those of earth,
and divine to the human.

Therefore, O Lord,
we pray you that this candle,
hallowed to the honor of your name,
may persevere undimmed,
to overcome the darkness of this night.
Receive it as a pleasing fragrance,
and let it mingle with the lights of heaven.
May this flame be found still burning
by the Morning Star:
the one Morning Star who never sets,
Christ your Son,
who, coming back from death’s domain,
has shed his peaceful light on humanity,
and lives and reigns for ever and ever.

R. Amen.

Click here for the complete version of the Lucernarium Rite
THE SOLEMN BEGINNING OF THE VIGIL OR LUCERNARIUM

The Palm Sunday

Why Palm Sunday is important for Christians?

It’s the milestone of the resurrection of the Lord. A week before Easter. 

It’s importance is on the declaration of Jesus as Kyrios in Greek which means Lord. The Lordship of Jesus and His triumphant entrance to the city of Jerusalem.

It marks the beginning of the Holy Week.The symbolism of the palm which indicates the traditional symbol of victory and it was spread out on the streets because the people has considered Him as the Messiah who will drive out the Roman Empire’s domination in the Holy Land. This great event is truely huge, but the clumsy thing was the King of kings on a donkey, not on a stallion or on a warrior horse. 

What makes Palm Sunday of Year 2020 special?

The victory of Jesus’ Lordship in the hearts of all the believers, not so much on the palms and branches on the streets, but rejoicing in His reign of Peace amidst fear and desperation of the Corona Virus in every place of the world.  

The victory that comes from His mercy despite of all the limitations to exercise rituals and processions. This demonstrates that faith can’t be under arrest, it won’t be seized by any viruses. The powerful sign that can tackle fear and solitude is the strength that radiates from the heart of Jesus, His heart near to our pains and miseries.

Nothing can stop the hope that the Church celebrates on this Passover, as we proclaim the glorious hope of the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior.

Mysterium fidei...The mystery of faith

• Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.
• Dying you destroyed our death, rising you restored our life. Lord Jesus, come in glory.
• When we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim your death, Lord Jesus, until you come in glory.
• Lord, by your cross and resurrection, you have set us free. You are the Saviour of the world.