Never for Granted!

Never for Granted!

            Why do we often take for granted the very things that deserve our gratitude the most? We do this with both people and possessions. The problem is many people do not realize this until the situation has come and passed. We take things for granted on a daily basis, always with the assumption that whenever we need something, it will be there. There are many things we fail to realize the true value of until they are missing from our lives. Think of technology, the Internet and your cell phone, not to talk about your parents, siblings, friends, money, and life. You do not realize how vital your cell phone is to your life until you have to go days without it. Enjoy the little things in life because someday you will realize they were the big things.

            “People say you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. Truth is, you knew what you had, and you just never thought you’d lose it.” This is a common thing once a relationship reaches its conclusion. When you become complacent with your partner, it is easy to fall into this trap. Happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting what you don’t have; rather it’s recognizing and appreciating what you do have. If someone once made you happy, there is a great chance they still will. Think about it — maybe you are bored with your familiar routine, but that doesn’t mean you should get rid of it. Don’t lose something you have for something you think you want. When people break up, it’s common to regret it. You end the relationship because you can think you can do better, but once you’re out there in the dating world, you realize you had something amazing. Sometimes it is too little too late and you must learn from your unfortunate decision. What screws a person up is trying to live up to image they create in their minds. There is no such thing as perfect, only perfect for you.

All called to Evangelize...

15th Ordinary Sunday - Yr B.

All called to Evangelize...

            Last Sunday’s gospel reported to us the rejection of Jesus by His own townspeople. Today, we are given a profile of those who believe in Him. From among His followers, Jesus chooses the Twelve, His band of intimate friends. The Twelve together with the other disciples are Jesus’ true family and community. He instructs them to take nothing for the journey; He urges His disciples to travel light for greater mobility and availability in their mission.

            All of us are called by God to be missionaries, proclaimers and witnesses to others of His Words. Vatican II document - Apostolican Actuositatem (on the Apostolate of the Laity) no. 3 said: “Incorporated into Christ’s Mystical Body through Baptism and strengthened by the Spirit through Confirmation, the laity are assigned to the apostolate by the Lord Himself.” So whether you are an accountant, a lawyer, a clerk, a doctor, a musician, or an executive, a teacher or whatever, you are sent out “to preach, heal, teach and witness to the good news,” in short, to evangelize. And no. 6 says, “The very testimonies of their Christian life and good works done in supernatural spirit have the power to draw men to belief and to God.”

            Just the way you live can do more good to others than the many dragging sermons and voluminous books written by known writers. Sad to say, many still have the idea that the call of Christ is addressed only to apostles and their successors, the bishops. This is not true today. Every Christian is commissioned to a ministry of love and justice by virtue of their baptism and confirmation. So, let us ask ourselves, are we faithful to our mission?

HAPPY CONSOLATA FEAST

THE CONSOLATA FEAST 2015

INTRODUCTION

Today we are celebrating the solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Consolata, Mother and Foundress of the Consolata Missionaries: Fathers, Brothers, Sisters, Lay Missionaries, Friends, Benefactors and all Christians working together with us to carry out our Mission Ad Gentes. We rejoice and thank God for the great missionary work we are doing under the company and intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary Consolata. Let us ask God to increase more his charismatic gifts in our minds, hearts and wills that we may be able to spread his Word, love and peace in the world.

THE LOVE OF BLESSED JOSEPH ALLAMANO FOR OUR LADY THE BLESSED VIRIGN MARY CONSOLATA

Our Founder was always speaking of the Blessed Virgin Mary Consolata: everything that has been done here is the work of Our Lady of Consolation. She has performed miracles everyday for this Society.

She has made the stones shout.
I have seen a lot, a lot... and if you are attentive, you’ll see and understand that the good spirit found in the House and the desire you have to be holy – everything, everything is a grace of Our Lady of Consolation.

 Nobody loves Our Lady more than Jesus (Wedding at Cana). Everything she asks the Lord, He will grant it to her.

Remembering Garissa Attack...#Peace

The Holy Thursday’s attack on Kenya’s Garrissa University College in eastern Kenya, where terrorist al-Shabaab gunmen killed 148 people, most of them students aged between 19 and 23 struck a particular nerve because, in a country where, parents make huge sacrifices to educate their offspring in the hope that they in turn will support their families – and in many cases whole clans. The killings robbed many families of their best and brightest – young people on whose shoulders rested hopes and aspirations. The Kenyans, joined by the international community at large mourn with all who lost their lives. We condole with the parents and relatives who lost their loved ones and assure them of our continued prayers, especially during this painful period. For those still in hospital, we pray for their quick recovery and peace of mind. For those who survived with minor or no injuries, we wish them speedy recovery from the psycho-social trauma and resumption of their studies. On the social network, messages can be send through: #147notjustanumber

Memorial mass will be held on Saturday, May 16, at 5.30pm, at:

St. Andrew's Roman Catholic Church
2547 Kipling Avenue, Toronto, Ontario
M9V 3A8

All are welcome.

Life: from nasty, brutish and short to beautiful and eternal...

Life: from nasty, brutish and short to beautiful and eternal...

Thomas Hobbes once said: human life is nasty, brutish and short. And for sure, not all the world's population enjoys the benefits of electricity, clean water, security, freedom from diseases, happy relationships and marriages, affordable education and healthy, and daily food and drink....progress and evolution seem spotty. However, irrespective of whether all share in these moral and material blessings, our Easter faith adds an important dimension to human life: the resurrection has taken the course of evolution beyond time and space to life in God. Human life has become beautiful, Godlike and eternal, not "nasty, brutish and short."

What Your Handwriting Says About You

What Your Handwriting Says About You

“Handwriting reveals a lot about the way you are socially, the way you think, the state of your ego, your energy levels, your attitudes toward sex,” says Lowe, “all kinds of things.” On that score, handwriting — and its analysis — are far more emotionally expressive than any email or text.  “Handwriting is really a compilation of everything you’ve ever experienced and the way you’ve reacted to it,” says handwriting expert Sheila Lowe. Here are some curiosities about it:

1. “The handwriting of somebody who has a lot of fears and anxiety is much narrower — it pulls back,” she says. In contrast, “somebody who’s really outgoing and friendly and happy-go-lucky, their handwriting is going to be more expanded.”
2. “If you’re feeling sad or contemplative, then the writing tends to get smaller — it’s like you want to disappear,” she says. “If you’re feeling happy and expansive your writing may get bigger and lean more to the right,” which Lowe says indicates leaning towards other people.
3. “Somebody who has a lot of swirls and loops might be someone who wants to draw attention to themselves,” says Lowe. “Usually people who have a lot of self confidence don’t need all that stuff. They keep things fairly simple.”
4. The handwriting of a host who’s feeling fun and frivolous, for example, “would be on the larger side — larger than medium which is 3 mm high,” says Lowe. “It would be more round and probably have somewhat inflated lower loops in their lower-case g’s, y’s and f’s.”
5. Writing can also reveal how smart you are. “Highly simplified writing is a sign of intelligence,” she says. “If you have a lot of elaboration then the appearance is more important than the message.” 
6. “Earlier in the marriage, my handwriting was very small — it was not a happy marriage,” she says. “And then later I deliberately changed my signature to be showier — a little more flamboyant, which is not really me.  I was trying to assert my independence.”

BUT who will roll away the stone for us? And why back to Galilee?

BUT who will roll away the stone for us? And why back to Galilee?

            He is going ahead of you to Galilee. There you will see him. This is the key to our Easter morning promise. The women did not hear that Jesus was raised to sit at the right hand of God on some throne in some far away heaven. What they heard was much more radical. He is going ahead of you to Galilee. There you will see him.

            Where is Galilee? Galilee is where these disciples came from. It was their home. It was the place where they had families and jobs and ordinary routines. It was not Jerusalem — the Holy City, the center of power — but Galilee, the place of everyday life. Go back to your ordinary, every day lives. Go back to where your jobs and your families are. That's where Jesus will meet you. That's where you'll find him and be empowered by him. Go back and continue this story. This is not the end; God's business is not finished. This is the beginning. This is where your work begins. This is where your life begins.

            This is the message of Easter to us. Don't stand at a tomb, paying homage to a dead teacher. Don't set your sights on simply putting ointment on wounds already dealt. Go back to the place where you live your life and meeting the Living Saviour there. Go to meet the God who chooses to walk among us with a power greater than all the powers that can ravage us and ruin us and lead us to despair. Go to meet the Christ who cannot be stopped by the world's intolerance or fear or violence or greed. Go to Galilee, go home, to the place where God has planted you and find Christ there, continuing to rise above the wrecks of human injustice, day after day.

            Christ is alive and friends, that means that we can also live. We don't need to just exist in a dog-eat-dog world; we don't need to just get by. We can live; because when we have the courage to go to Galilee and meet the Living Lord, then we are given the power to live a life that will not be stopped by meaninglessness or loneliness or hatred or injustice or disease or poverty or anything else in all creation.

            The Easter promise is that the same Jesus who could not be held back by torture, by death, by stones rolled in front of tombs, is the Jesus who is alive today and here today and available today to live in you, to rescue you and heal you and empower you and set you free from any tomb you've ever known.

BUT who will roll away the stone for us?

Perhaps this is our question as well on this Easter morning. We, too, have come to pay homage to a great teacher, a charismatic leader, a good man. We come to give honour to Jesus, but we also come with questions on our lips.
Who will roll away the stone for us?
Who will roll away the stone of sorrow from the dark tomb of our losses? Who?
Who will roll away the stone of bitterness from the dark tomb of our failures? Who?
Who will roll away the stone of cynicism from the dark tomb of our jaded vision of the world? Who?
Who will roll away the stone of indifference from the dark tomb of the world's suffering? Who?
Who will roll away the stone of grief from the dark tomb of our broken hearts and broken relationships? Who?

God has already done it. Alleluia!