Sep 11, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
The Most Holy Name of Mary
Thursday of week 23 in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Luke 6:27-38
“Do not judge”. How difficult it is not to judge but it’s very important we follow this commandment of Jesus. This comes after a very fundamental teaching of Jesus. “Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate”. And in order to be compassionate like the Father, Jesus is giving the ways. And the first way is “Do not judge”. Then, come the other ones, “do not condemn, grant pardon, give abundantly”. But let’s mediate on the first one, “Do not judge”. Why? Because when you judge you destroy your relationship with that person. When I judge I take a distance from that person. But in Jesus Christ we are all united in His life. We all are united in the heart of Jesus. My unity with the other person in Christ is destroyed by my judgement about that person. Instead, with the life of Christ, I must try to understand that person so I can be compassionate like the Father. Instead of judgement, we understand the other in compassion so that unity in Christ is maintained. With judgements, I distance myself away from the other and from the unity provided in Jesus Christ. Let’s reflect: Do I recognize that my judgements about others are distancing myself from the unity in the heart of Jesus Christ?
Don Giorgio
Sep 10, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Wednesday of week 23 in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Luke 6:20-26
“Happy you who weep now: you shall laugh”. This is one of the beatitudes. So, what does it mean? Does it mean that we must weep now so that we can laugh late? No. It means that with the incarnation of God, something has changed in the life of each human being. The human standards cannot be the same. The human outlook cannot be the same. There was a fundamental change in the life of each one of us because God became part of our life. This is big. This is more than what we can imagine. God incarnated. What changed? That what is changed is that our weeping is not the end. But my weeping will be transformed into laugh because the presence of God in my life changes my life. Weeping is part of life. But with God incarnate, I can see beyond the reasons of my tears to the reasons to be happy. The presence of God in our life changes perspectives, changes outlook of life, changes in choices in life. Because with God we see more that the immediate. We see beyond the immediate, as God the eternal Father is with us. Let’s reflect: Do I see beyond the immediate as God is present in my life?
Don Giorgio
Sep 9, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Tuesday of week 23 in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Luke 6:12-19
“everyone in the crowd was trying to touch him because power came out of him that cured them all”. Power from Jesus is always there. All what we must do is to try to touch Him. God never stops to love us. He always loves us. The power to heal us is always there. This crowd we see in the episode was waiting for Jesus. He went out into the hills to pray, and he spent the whole night there. But the people were waiting for Him. What happens is that we often do not try. We see lot of people and think that it’s not possible to touch Him. We quit. We postpone. This is where our faith fails. We must not quit. We must not postpone. We must keep trying to touch Him. The power is coming out of Him. It will cure us. Let’s reflect: Do I keep trying to touch Jesus or I quit without trying for some reasons?
Don Giorgio
Sep 9, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Monday of week 23 in Ordinary Time
Saint Peter Claver
Gospel – Luke 6:6-11
“Is it against the law on the sabbath to do good, or to do evil; to save life, or to destroy it?”. Jesus is asking a very basic question which must be the foundation of every law and instruction. All the laws and norms must be for doing good. They must be for saving life. Not just the opposite. But often, we try to interpret or change laws and norms in a way that it becomes an instrument for doing evil so that my selfish interests are saved. In this process, probably lives are destroyed. The laws and norms which God gave to the People of God in the Old Testament became like that. They became laws not of loving God but laws of a punishing God. Jesus is God became man who wants to save each and everyone. This is the most important principle, Jesus Christ, the love of God incarnate. So, if any law or norm, which does not contain that love of God, it’s not worthy to save us. Let’s reflect: Do I see the norms and laws as vehicles of God’s love to save persons?
Don Giorgio
Sep 7, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Mark 7:31-37
“Then looking up to heaven he sighed; and he said to him, ‘Ephphatha’, that is, ‘Be opened’”. Before doing this, Jesus took him aside in private, away from the crowd, put his fingers into the man’s ears and touched his tongue with spittle. A unique way of dealing with this man. When people asked for healing, some He did with just the words. But this one, a personal touch can be seen. This opens us to the fact that Jesus wants to make a personal relationship with each of us. He takes us apart, away from the crowd, through different kinds of experiences to have a personal relationship with Him. Then with you He looks up to heaven and He says to you, “Be opened”. You heart is open to the love of God and at the same time, the heaven is opened to you. You are free to praise the Lord because you are free of your bindings, bindings of sin. Life changes when you let Jesus to make a personal relationship with you. He comes to us in the Word of God, in the Sacrament of Communion. Please let him take you apart through your daily experiences to have a personal relationship with Him. That changes life. Let’s reflect: Am I letting Jesus, who comes to me in Eucharist and in the Word of God, to make a personal relationship with me?
Don Giorgio
Sep 6, 2024 | DAILY BREAD
Saturday of week 22 in Ordinary Time
First Saturday: Let us entrust ourselves to the Immaculate Heart of Mary
Gospel – Luke 6:1-5
“The Son of Man is master of the sabbath”. That is a fundamental principle to remember whenever we uphold our principles or man-made principles more than the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus positions Himself as the ultimate authority, even over all religious traditions. He fulfills and transcends all traditions and principles. This is a reminder that His person and mission are greater than any human or religious regulations. Jesus points out that man-made rules, when rigidly enforced without compassion, can overshadow the law’s original intent. The Pharisees’ strict interpretation had lost sight of the human need behind the Sabbath. His healing on the Sabbath and other actions reflect this, showing that love, mercy, and compassion must be at the center of any practice. Upholding principles should never come at the cost of neglecting the needs of people. When we prioritize our own principles or man-made traditions above the person and mission of Jesus Christ, we risk losing His way. We will not be following Him but ourselves. We must not lose sight of Jesus Christ, while we follow human customs, especially under social pressures. Let’s reflect: Do I prioritize Jesus Christ or human customs under social pressures?
Don Giorgio
