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Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things. -St Paul: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 The success of love is in the loving - it is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done -Mother Teresa Love understands all languages. - Romanian Proverb To love and win is the best thing. To love and lose, the next best. - William M. Thackeray Man cannot live without love. He remains a being that is incomprehensible for himself, his life is senseless, if love is not revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, if he does not experience it and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it. -Pope John Paul II And now these three remain: faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is love. - I Corinthians, chapter 13 It is love that makes the impossible possible. - Indian Proverb If you judge people, you have no time to love them. - Mother Teresa Love is never defeated, and I could add, the history of Ireland proves it. -Pope John Paul II To laugh often and love much... to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to give one's self... this is to have succeeded. - Ralph Waldo Emerson The more I give to thee, the more I have.' - William Shakespeare I have found the paradox that if I love until it hurts, then there is no hurt, but only more love. - Mother Teresa What will survive of us is love.' - Philip Larkin The mind determines what is possible. The heart surpasses it. - Pilar Colinta Marriage is an act of will that signifies and involves a mutual gift, which unites the spouses and binds them to their eventual souls, with whom they make up a sole family - a domestic church. -Pope John Paul II Where love is, no room is too small. - Talmud To love and be loved is to feel the sun from both sides. - David Viscott Are we to love only those who deserve our love? Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven. - Matthew 5:43-45 We can only learn to love by loving. - Iris Murdoch It is not how much we do, but how much love we put in the doing. It is not how much we give, but how much love we put in the giving. -Mother Teresa Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing. - Goethe Give your hands to serve and your hearts to love. - Mother Teresa Love makes everything that is heavy light. - Thomas p Kempis I have found the paradox that if I love until it hurts, then there is no hurt, but only more love. - Mother Teresa |
Love
Faith
Let God's promises shine on your problems.
-Corrie Ten Boom
Have no fear of moving into the unknown. Simply step out fearlessly knowing that I am with you, therefore no harm can befall you; all is very, very well. Do this in complete faith and confidence.
-Pope John Paul II
Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.
-Martin Luther King, Jr.
Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.
-Mother Teresa
Faith enables persons to be persons because it lets God be God.
-Carter Lindberg
Faith: belief without evidence in what is told by one who speaks without knowledge, of things without parallel.
-Ambrose Bierce
A little faith will bring your soul to heaven, but a lot of faith will bring heaven to your soul.
-Dwight Lyman Moody
Faith moves mountains, but you have to keep pushing while you are praying.
-Mason Cooley
Faith is a reasoning trust, a trust which reckons thoughtfully and confidently upon the trustworthiness of God
-John R. Stott
The smallest seed of faith is better than the largest fruit of happiness.
-Henry David Thoreau
The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith.
-Franklin D. Roosevelt
In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't.
-Blaise Pascal
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
-Hebrews 11:1
Leap, and the net will appear.
-Julie Cameron
Miracles happen to those who believe in them.
-Bernhard Berenson
-Corrie Ten Boom
Have no fear of moving into the unknown. Simply step out fearlessly knowing that I am with you, therefore no harm can befall you; all is very, very well. Do this in complete faith and confidence.
-Pope John Paul II
Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.
-Martin Luther King, Jr.
Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.
-Mother Teresa
Faith enables persons to be persons because it lets God be God.
-Carter Lindberg
Faith: belief without evidence in what is told by one who speaks without knowledge, of things without parallel.
-Ambrose Bierce
A little faith will bring your soul to heaven, but a lot of faith will bring heaven to your soul.
-Dwight Lyman Moody
Faith moves mountains, but you have to keep pushing while you are praying.
-Mason Cooley
Faith is a reasoning trust, a trust which reckons thoughtfully and confidently upon the trustworthiness of God
-John R. Stott
The smallest seed of faith is better than the largest fruit of happiness.
-Henry David Thoreau
The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith.
-Franklin D. Roosevelt
In faith there is enough light for those who want to believe and enough shadows to blind those who don't.
-Blaise Pascal
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
-Hebrews 11:1
Leap, and the net will appear.
-Julie Cameron
Miracles happen to those who believe in them.
-Bernhard Berenson
Is God’s Grace is Enough for Us to Survive Our Crosses?
Having faith in God does not always mean being exempted from suffering. Though we “claim” victory in the Name of Christ, victory does not always come painlessly. Even Christ’s victory came through pain and suffering. Before the Resurrection, He was first tortured by the Romans.
So are we doomed?
No.
Shall we experience pain and suffering in this life?
Most probably.
Accepting Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior will not exempt you from the cross. It is actually the opposite. “Then Jesus said to his disciples: If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” (Mt 16:24)
If Jesus is truly our Lord, then we servants are no greater than Him. And He hangs on a cross.
When God said “My grace is sufficient for you,” He promises us the grace to survive whatever pain, suffering or trials we are experiencing. He does not promise to take the pain away, but the strength to survive it. St Paul knew this:
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)
Sin introduced suffering. And ever since then it has been a part of the human experience. Yet suffering, an evil in itself, can be used by God. He used it to save us. Through his Passion, salvation came. Suffering did not have the last word, the Word made flesh had the last Word, Jesus.
No matter how dark and painful our situation is right now, light awaits at the end of the tunnel. And this light is Christ Himself.
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness hasn't overcome it." (Jn 1:5)
In Jesus we shall find the strength to carry it through. In Him we shall find the strength we do not posses but need. “I can do all these things in him who strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:13)
His grace is enough.
Is God’s Justice All About Punishment?
God’s justice is a scary thing for many. When we think about Divine Justice, we typically think of punishment. But is there more to Divine Justice than “getting it”?
The word "justice" comes from the Latin word jus, which means "right". So we can say that justice is giving God and our neighbor their right, their due. Man is due to give God and his neighbor his love. And God has dued us to be with Him in heaven.
I also like to think that Divine Justice is God’s desire to set things right. To make us right, perfect and holy.
But man can accept justices in two ways.
Let us take a drug addict as an example. His addiction has ruined his life. The “just” thing to do, the right thing to do is get him rehabilitated. For an addict, he can take the rehabilitation as an aid or as a punishment. It is the same rehabilitation but how an addict sees it can differ.
If the addict loves his drugs more than himself, more than life itself, rehabilitation is a punishment because he will but cut off from his drugs. To him, the drugs is his life. To cut him from it, is to cut his life. So to him, rehabilitaion is painful. And chances are, he will reject it.
But if an addict really want to be well again, he welcomes the rehabilitation even if it would be a painful process. He knows that the rehabilitation will bring him back to a healthy and happy human being.
I believeDivine Justice is the same thing. Divine Justice wants to give us what is right by setting us right. Divine Justice wants to give us our due, which is Eternal Life.
Divine Justice may cause pain, like a misaligned bone being set right. The alignment process may be painful, but it is all done that we may be fully functioning. Sin has misaligned not only our bodies but our souls. And for God to leave us as we are is neither just nor merciful.
God’s justice and mercy cannot contradict each other for there is no contradiction in God. His Justice and Mercy are both faces of His Love. Both desire that we be with Him in all eternity.
We should never fear God’s Justice for it is good for us. Everything that comes from God is good and loving. Only those who loves evil find God’s goodness appalling, threathening and painful.
For those who love God, His Justices is merciful.
For those who loves evil, His Justice is punishment.
What Does Edward Cullen and a Chaste Person Have in Common?
What Does Edward Cullen and a Chaste Person Have in Common?
Self-control.
In movie Twilight, the vampire family “Cullens” survives by eating blood of animals instead of humans. Even though their hunger is not fully satisfied with animal blood, they chose to do so. “It is like a person survives only on tofu” as Edward puts it. Through the years the members of the Cullens have learned to control their lust for blood.
Why the choice? Because the value human life.
I like the scene of Edward and Bella in Bella’s room. Edward tried kissing Bella but realized that he could not handle his thirst for blood with such physical contact. Edwards suddenly backs off for Bella’s sake. There is a great lesson and principle in this scene. Know your weakness and do not go beyond it. In the Catholic world we call it “Avoiding the near occasion of sin.” And that is what a chaste person has in common with Edward Cullen.
The Cullens chose not to kill humans for their own sake. They chose a harder road of survival, drinking the blood of animals. The chaste person also chooses not to use people to satisfy their lust for physical pleasure. It is also a hard road.
In the heart of the Cullen’s choice to drink animal blood was there respect and value of human life. It is the same value for a person that drives a chaste person to live a life of self-control.
For the love of Bella, Edward finds different ways to express his affection to her. There is always a sense of cautiousness in his actions, lest Bella’s life might be put in danger. The single chaste person does the same. He finds ways to express his affection in creative ways other than sex or foreplay.
Why the hard-work on self-control? Because Edward and the chaste person know what true love means. They are willing to make sacrifices for the good of their beloved.
Self-control.
In movie Twilight, the vampire family “Cullens” survives by eating blood of animals instead of humans. Even though their hunger is not fully satisfied with animal blood, they chose to do so. “It is like a person survives only on tofu” as Edward puts it. Through the years the members of the Cullens have learned to control their lust for blood.
Why the choice? Because the value human life.
I like the scene of Edward and Bella in Bella’s room. Edward tried kissing Bella but realized that he could not handle his thirst for blood with such physical contact. Edwards suddenly backs off for Bella’s sake. There is a great lesson and principle in this scene. Know your weakness and do not go beyond it. In the Catholic world we call it “Avoiding the near occasion of sin.” And that is what a chaste person has in common with Edward Cullen.
The Cullens chose not to kill humans for their own sake. They chose a harder road of survival, drinking the blood of animals. The chaste person also chooses not to use people to satisfy their lust for physical pleasure. It is also a hard road.
In the heart of the Cullen’s choice to drink animal blood was there respect and value of human life. It is the same value for a person that drives a chaste person to live a life of self-control.
For the love of Bella, Edward finds different ways to express his affection to her. There is always a sense of cautiousness in his actions, lest Bella’s life might be put in danger. The single chaste person does the same. He finds ways to express his affection in creative ways other than sex or foreplay.
Why the hard-work on self-control? Because Edward and the chaste person know what true love means. They are willing to make sacrifices for the good of their beloved.
Learning Joy from a Toy
Learning Joy from a Toy
Joy is what everybody longs for. Most of us have sought it through selfishness, lust and greed. And we have discovered that these ways are fleeting, shallow and leaves us empty in the end.
So how do we find joy?
Let Woody show you.
Woody is one of the main characters in the animated trilogy Toy Story. Woody always knew who he was and his purpose. So what are they?
1. He belong to Andy
2. He is a toy made for the enjoyment of others.
3. He is happy when he is giving happiness to children.
Woody does not live for himself. He always reminds his fellow toys that he and they belong to Andy. And then shows the bottom of his boots with “Andy” marked on it.
Like Woody we who are baptized have been marked. Baptism seals a Christian with the indelible spiritual mark (character) of his belonging to Christ. St Paul says: “And that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body.” 1 Cor 6: 19-20. We do not belong to ourselves, Christ owns us.
It is hard for us to stomach all this "belonging to Christ" talk. In a society where “freedom” and “independence” is the ultimate good, God has become a threat. “It’s my way or the highway” is the modern culture’s motto. Has our way lead us to the joy we are looking for? Or is it just a long highway of loneliness and misery?
The media has done a great job sowing the seeds of discontent by constantly reminding us of what we “don’t have” instead of what “we can give.” So we are in the vicious “If-I-Only-Have-This-I-Will-Be-Happy” cycle. Wake up call, you will never have everything you want in this world. They are found in heaven.
God created us to love. Love is our joy.
The self is given to be given away.
The toys in Toy Story are most joyful when they were played with. The last thing they wanted was to be left in the trunk, useless. Most of us have shut ourselves in the trunk of our own selfishness. We have chosen to live in a dark, lonely and miserable place. And we delude ourselves it is a happy place.
We are most ourselves when we forget ourselves. Getting lost in love (agape) is where we will find our true identity and meaning.
Be a give-joy and not a killjoy.
What is the Life of Man?
What is the Life of Man?
Almost all of us search for what life is all about. What is its meaning? What is my meaning? Sadly, most of us define it by our own terms, or worst, by what the media and society dictate to us.
Man made definitions of the meaning of life will always be faulty. Why? Because man did not create himself. We are not the designer of our lives. We did not come to existence because we decided to, Someone else decided we should exist. Only that Someone can reveal to us what life is all about.
That Someone is “The” One. God.
Only in God can we find what life is all about because He is Life itself.
Only God through Jesus can we truly live. Only in Jesus can we find life’s meaning. For Jesus is God’s revelation made flesh. In Jesus, God did not only reveal Himself to us, but revealed ourselves to us.
And what did Jesus revealed?
We were created to know and love God. And we cannot find life’s meaning outside of it.
God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Saviour. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life
Almost all of us search for what life is all about. What is its meaning? What is my meaning? Sadly, most of us define it by our own terms, or worst, by what the media and society dictate to us.
Man made definitions of the meaning of life will always be faulty. Why? Because man did not create himself. We are not the designer of our lives. We did not come to existence because we decided to, Someone else decided we should exist. Only that Someone can reveal to us what life is all about.
That Someone is “The” One. God.
Only in God can we find what life is all about because He is Life itself.
“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” – John 14:6To find meaning outside God is to live a life prone to error and pain. Our human efforts will always fall short for we do not know who we really are. We do not know our fulfillment. And most of all, we cannot reach the fulfillment of our humanity by our own effort (that is why the New Age movement is a heresy.) Only God’s grace can do that.
Only God through Jesus can we truly live. Only in Jesus can we find life’s meaning. For Jesus is God’s revelation made flesh. In Jesus, God did not only reveal Himself to us, but revealed ourselves to us.
And what did Jesus revealed?
We were created to know and love God. And we cannot find life’s meaning outside of it.
God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Saviour. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life
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