Oct 16, 2026 | DAILY BREAD
Friday of week 28 in Ordinary Time, Saint Hedwig, Religious, Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, Virgin, Gospel: Luke 12:1-7
In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives us one of the most tender assurances of God’s personal love: “Even the hairs of your head have all been counted.” These words reveal something extraordinary about our relationship with God. The One who created the universe, who knows the secrets of every heart and holds all creation in existence, is attentive even to the smallest details of our lives. Nothing about us is insignificant to Him. Jesus does not say that God merely knows how many hairs we have, but that they have all been counted. This expresses a love that is not general or distant, but profoundly personal and attentive. God does not love humanity only as a whole; He loves each person individually, with a knowledge and tenderness that no human love can fully comprehend. Yet we often live as though God were concerned only with the great events of our lives, while our ordinary struggles, hidden sacrifices, small anxieties, and unnoticed acts of love remain outside His attention. Jesus assures us that nothing escapes the loving gaze of the Father. This is why He repeatedly says, “Do not be afraid.” Our security does not come from the absence of difficulties, but from knowing that we are infinitely precious to God. Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque discovered this truth through her profound intimacy with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which reveals the immeasurable love of God for every human person. Saint Hedwig expressed the same love through her generosity, compassion, and care for those in need. To know that God counts even the hairs of our head is to discover that we are never forgotten, never insignificant, and never outside His loving concern. The message of Christ invites us to replace fear with trust and to recognize that the God who knows us so completely also loves us beyond measure. And when we truly experience such attentive love, we begin to look at others with the same tenderness, recognizing that every person is infinitely precious in the eyes of the Father. Let’s reflect: Do I live with the peaceful confidence that God knows and loves even the smallest details of my life, allowing this certainty to free me from fear and make me more attentive to the dignity and needs of others?
Don Giorgio
Oct 15, 2026 | DAILY BREAD
Saint Teresa of Ávila, Virgin, Doctor Thursday of week 28 in Ordinary Time Gospel: Luke 11:47-54
In today’s Gospel, Jesus addresses a serious accusation to the lawyers: “You have taken away the key of knowledge. You have not gone in yourselves, and have prevented others going in.” They possessed knowledge of the Scriptures and the Law, yet failed to recognize the One to whom the Scriptures pointed. Their knowledge had become an obstacle rather than a doorway to God. This helps us understand the extraordinary spiritual wisdom of Saint Teresa of Ávila. Teresa possessed the true key of knowledge: an intimate and loving relationship with Jesus Christ. She understood that knowing God is not simply knowing things about Him, but entering into a living relationship with Him. Her profound theological insights were born not merely from intellectual study, but from prayer, contemplation, personal experience, and a heart completely open to Christ. For Teresa, prayer was a loving conversation with the One who loves us. This intimacy did not separate her from the world; rather, it gave her the wisdom, courage, and freedom to reform Carmel, guide souls, confront difficulties, and serve the Church. The message of Christ reminds us that the deepest knowledge of God comes through communion with Him, and authentic communion with Him gradually transforms the way we understand everything else. We may possess extensive religious knowledge, fulfil important ecclesial responsibilities, or speak eloquently about God, yet still risk remaining outside the door if our hearts are not personally united with Jesus. Saint Teresa teaches us that the key is not reserved for a few extraordinary mystics. It is offered to every disciple willing to make space for prayer, friendship, silence, and love. The more intimately we know Jesus, the more clearly we understand His truth; and the more deeply we love Him, the more capable we become of opening the door for others to encounter Him. Let’s reflect: Is my knowledge of God primarily intellectual and external, or am I cultivating, like Saint Teresa of Ávila, an intimate friendship with Jesus that transforms my life and helps others discover the way to Him?
Don Giorgio
Oct 14, 2026 | NEWS
On the first evening of the presidential couple’s visit to Manila, a formal welcome dinner was held in honor of the President of Poland and his wife, to which I was invited by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos. On the second day of the visit, the First Lady visited our home in Quezon City. First, she met with the sisters over coffee, and then with the participants of the pattern-making and sewing course. The meeting took place in a very pleasant atmosphere. During the meeting, the First Lady sat down at a sewing machine that had been set up in advance and worked alongside the participants. In the evening, the Presidential Couple held a meeting with the Polish community and invited guests. During this meeting, the President presented state decorations to six distinguished individuals, among whom I had the honor of being included. I received the Silver Cross of Merit for my missionary, social, and charitable work on behalf of poor Filipino families, as well as for promoting Polish culture abroad. I accepted this award with great emotion and gratitude. It is not only a great honor for me, but above all, an expression of recognition for the work we have been striving to carry out with dedication for years. Our ministry in the Philippines has always been more than just a duty. It is a ministry to others, whom we strive to help, accompany, and give hope for a better tomorrow. This award is an honor not only for me, but for the Congregation and for those who support us in various ways. For me personally, this award is a commitment to continue serving—with even greater dedication—the people we meet who need our help.
Sr. Agata Sobczyk
Oct 13, 2026 | DAILY BREAD
Wednesday of week 28 in Ordinary Time
Saint Callistus, Pope, Martyr
Gospel: Luke 11:42-46
In today’s Gospel, Jesus strongly challenges the Pharisees and the lawyers because they have lost sight of the essential purpose of religious observances and laws. They carefully fulfil even the smallest prescriptions, yet neglect “justice and the love of God.” Worse still, they impose heavy burdens on others without lifting a finger to help them. Jesus is not rejecting laws, discipline, or religious structures; He is reminding us of their true purpose: systems and laws exist to serve the human person and lead everyone closer to God. When rules become more important than people, when procedures overshadow compassion, or when institutions become more concerned with preserving themselves than fulfilling their mission, something essential has been lost. The message of Christ places the dignity of the human person at the centre, because every person is created in God’s image and is the object of His infinite love. This does not mean that love abolishes rules or that mercy disregards justice. Rather, justice and mercy give laws their deepest meaning, while love ensures that their application never forgets the person they are meant to serve. Saint Callistus, Pope and Martyr, is remembered particularly for his pastoral approach towards sinners seeking reconciliation with the Church. His example reminds us that ecclesiastical discipline must always remain connected to the healing and saving mission of Christ. In our families, communities, institutions, and responsibilities, we constantly face the temptation to defend a system while overlooking the person standing before us. Yet Jesus invites us to ask not only whether a rule has been respected, but whether God’s justice, mercy, and love have been made visible through it. The true greatness of any system is not measured merely by how efficiently it functions, but by how faithfully it serves the dignity, well-being, and salvation of the human person. Let’s reflect: In the way I exercise responsibility, apply rules, and make decisions, do I always keep the dignity and needs of the human person at the centre, allowing justice and the love of God to guide my actions?
Don Giorgio
Oct 13, 2026 | NEWS
As I do every year—I spent a few days
on vacation in Maria Laach again this time.
Maria Laach—you know it, of course…
from my mission among the Gypsy children
and certainly also—from our congregation’s history… because our fellow sisters worked there from 1946 to 1955.
Sister Borromäa, Sister Carola, Sister Antonia, Sister Theresia, Sister Ildefonsa, Sister Fidelis, Sister Elisabeth, and Sister Hildegard were in the novitiate there. I have very fond memories of them all—they were special sisters!!
The artist Brother Notker Becker OSB from Maria Laach also decorated the basilica of the Branitz Institutions with mosaics.
September 8 was a special day at the abbey….
On the Feast of the Nativity of Mary and during the jubilee year marking “100 Years of the Basilica Minor,” Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki (former bishop of Berlin, now cardinal of Cologne)
celebrated a solemn pontifical Mass in Maria Laach.
In his homily, the cardinal described Mary as the dawn—she heralds Christ and points the way to his light.
At the end of the homily, he returned once more to Mary.
From her, he said, the Church can learn to open itself to Christ and welcome him, so that his light may shine into the world. His closing words were a call for courage and trust: “Let us, dear sisters and brothers, have the courage and trust to live out this mission of ours—for the glory of God and the salvation of humanity.”
After the solemn Mass, Cardinal and Abbot Mauritius made a point of going out to the forecourt of the basilica to be among the people who had joined in the celebration.
It was a wonderful encounter… I can’t put it any other way.
And the Cardinal said to me…
that I should convey his greetings to all my fellow sisters…
which I would like to do here.
Sister M. Felicitas
