Message for USA and International Shop Owners
There are times in life when we feel confused and lost. Our lives sometimes lose meaning and we feel adrift, we feel empty. In our search for meaning in our lives, one thing that really helps is the others: the people around us; those we enjoy a healthy relationships with. We are affected and influenced by relationships. They remind us that we are not alone; that others share life with us and we ourselves have a role in their lives too.
The Beauty of our Catholic Faith by Fr. John Harris
Recently I was speaking to a group of ladies, most of them in their seventies. The subject of death and dying came up in the midst of the discussion. Most of the group were widows and so they had experienced deeply the sadness of death and the loss of someone they loved. Suddenly one of them announced that she felt it was time for the Church to get modern and to accept that reincarnation was also a possibility. Indeed, she stated that she much preferred the idea of reincarnation than talk of death and bodily resurrection.
Read more: The Beauty of Our Catholic Faith by Fr. John Harris
I am writing this reflection on the Feast of Saint Thomas, nicknamed “Doubting Thomas”. In the Gospel, Saint Thomas refuses to believe that Jesus rose from the dead. He was, after all, just brutally tortured and murdered, who could blame him? But Jesus had risen, and He approaches Saint Thomas and invited him to touch His wounds.
Read more: Distrust of the Mercy of Jesus by Fr. Jason Jones
One of the most tragic stories in the whole of Christianity is the story of Judas Iscariot. He was one of the Lord’s closest disciples and the one who led the troops to arrest him in the garden. Judas was the one who pointed out Jesus in the dark of the evening. The great role of the apostle is to point the way to the Lord, Judas did it, but not in the way of a true disciple.
Read more: Trust that He is truly Merciful to Repentant Souls by Fr. John Harris
God never violates our free will
by Fr Eamonn Bourke
“God never violates our free will. It is up to us whether we want to receive God’s grace or not. It is up to us whether we will co-operate with it or waste it” (Diary 1107)
If there is a God, why so much evil? People often ask the question, ‘if there is a God then why is there so much evil and sadness in the world?’
Read more: God never violates our free will by Fr Eamonn Bourke
Can we prove the existence of God
Because of the terrible scandals of individual human beings in the Church many people have not just stopped attending the sacraments, but they have turned their back on God. They have come to the conclusion there can’t be a God to allow these things to happen.
No matter who you are, where you are and what you do, it is always good to have friends. In life, we all want to get on well with everyone but that’s easier said than done! There are those who we find difficult and we tend to avoid, those who we don’t get on with or those who don’t like us. There are even people who are against us.
Zacchaeus and the Obstacles of Life by Fr. Cornelius
I read an interesting quote by an unknown author many years ago which was “Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful”. I have been reflecting on this quotation, doing my best to put it within a realistic context. The more I try to unravel the philosophy behind this quotation, the more it eludes my imagination. Like every other thought provoking quotation and expression, different interpretations could be allocated to it.
Read more: Zacchaeus and the Obstacles of Life by Fr. Cornelius
Our institutional Church is struggling in a fierce storm of crises after crises
When we are sailing in the middle of a severe storm with fierce winds blowing us every which way, we need a safety rail to hold on to until such time as the storm abates, and the forces that cause it have diminished to the point of no longer having any undue influence on the path we wish to sail.
Read more: Our institutional Church is struggling in a fierce storm of crises after crises
The Banality of Evil and the Consequences of Foolish Ideas
Thirty Years
In 1963, Hannah Arendt published her fascinating book, “Eichmann in Jerusalem – A Report on the Banality of Evil.” In 1933, she was a Jewish woman who had fled Germany during Hitler's rise to power, but was now, thirty years later, reporting from Jerusalem, on Eichmann's trial for The New Yorker Magazine.
Read more: The Banality of Evil and the Consequences of Foolish Ideas
by Fr. Eamonn Kelly
“Life rushes by...There is no stopping the clock...Every year seems to go by faster...Life is over in a flash…We are only passing through...Death is the only thing that we can be sure of”
Peace to People of Goodwill
Fr. Cornelius Nwaogwugwu CM
One of the observable outcomes of the pontificate of Pope Francis is the influence of authentic leadership. Pope Francis has sought to provide a humble but genuine example of a true priest and servant of Christ.
Unknown to me, as I travelled to my sister’s house, my sister and her son were having a great argument. He, in his nine years of wisdom, was demanding permission to go to his friend’s house. She, in her Motherly care, was trying to explain that he had been at the friend’s house yesterday.
A notorious “lack of time” is a syndrome of the world we live in. Like a precious commodity, every minute in today’s world is scrupulously counted and faster cars or faster computers don’t seem to help us that much.
Read more: The busier we are, the more we need time for prayer
In her Diary, St. Faustina wrote, “I find myself so weak that were it not for Holy Communion I would fall continually. One thing alone sustains me, and that is Holy Communion. From it I draw my strength; in it is all my comfort. ....."
We all need a New Year. We all need to begin again. That is why these first weeks of 2012 are so important. We can become cynical and say that in the past we have made many New Year’s resolutions and we have not kept them. But, as Christians, such thoughts must never fill our minds.
In the message given to St. Faustina, Jesus emphasises many times the need to pray for sinners: "The loss of each soul plunges Me into mortal sadness. You always console Me when you pray for sinners. The prayer most pleasing to Me is prayer for the conversion of sinners" (Diary 1397).
Divine Mercy Apostolate, Maryville, Skerries, Co. Dublin, Ireland K34 NW54 | Tel: 00 353 1 849 1458 | Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.