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World at Prayer blog
Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
On this first day following the Advent days of Hope and assurance, the Christmas season of wonderment and new birth, the manifestation of the Light that shown for the whole world to see, we meet Hannah, a woman who is barren, heartbroken and carrying a sorrow she could hardly speak aloud. But standing beside her is Elkanah, her husband, who sees her pain and refuses to let her suffer alone. He doesn’t dismiss her grief. He stands by her and offers something that could appear to be inconsequential but isn’t. He offered her a listening heart, compassion and his presence. “Why do you weep? Am I not more to you than ten sons? His words may have fallen short, but no human comfort ever fully fills the deepest ache, but it can reveal a heart that wants to lift the burden from someone who is loved.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
As I reflected on today’s readings and Father Peyton's life, I was drawn to Luke’s account of Jesus’ healing through both word and touch. St. Luke, who had a medical background, describes the man who approached Jesus as being “full of leprosy.” This detail tells us that the man suffered not only physically, but also emotionally and spiritually. In that time, leprosy rendered a person ritually unclean, cutting him off from family, community, and worship. He was expected to live apart, carrying the weight of isolation and rejection. Unlike everyone else, Jesus is not afraid to draw near. Filled with the Holy Spirit, He reaches out and touches the man. Though ostracized and suffering, the man believes that Jesus can heal him both physically and ritually, and so he cries out in faith, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus responds with compassion and authority: “I do will it. Be made clean.” Immediately, the leprosy leaves him.
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Catholic Faith | Learn more about our faith
Pope Francis during his general audience on 25th January 2023, said, “if anyone asks me the best way to meet Jesus, I would say be needy. Be needy for grace, needy for forgiveness, needy for joy, needy for whatever you need...you can fill that with what you are needy for. This is the only way Jeus will draw near to us.”
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Learn more about our faith | Why pray?
Saint Brother André Bessette for me represents a towering witness to the efficacy and power of prayer. The efficacy of prayer arising from a wounded soul, of prayer confident of God’s Providence, of prayer offered for the good of others, of prayer leading to the salvation of souls, of prayer united to the heavenly family of Joseph, Mary and Jesus. Alfred Bessette’s family profoundly shaped his spirituality. Tragedy struck young Alfred, the future Brother André, early, with the death of his father when Alfred was just nine years old, followed by his sweet mother's passing three years later. Orphaned and alone, he experienced firsthand the pain of loss and vulnerability.
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Learn more about our faith | Why pray?
As the director of the Formation program for seminarians of the Congregation of Holy Cross, there is a term I used frequently as I cautioned the young men in formation. “Please don’t jump ahead of oneself.” Some with an ambitious mind wanted to act like deacons already. They were focusing too much on future outcomes even before completing the current stages of training. Of course, the dangers of becoming overly confident and unrealistic can be significant. No growth takes place then. Why am I saying all this, we just celebrated the birth of Jesus a few days ago and here we are with today’s Gospel already highlighting the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry after John the Baptist’s arrest. It might sound like jumping ahead of oneself.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
As we are still in the Christmas Season, it is necessary to continue contemplating and understanding the mystery of the incarnation and nativity of Emmanuel. To understand this, we need to dig deeper into the mystery of Christology. The question is, who is Jesus? Both the first reading and the Gospel throw light on this. In my reflection, I will focus more on the First Reading. The first letter of John, as we have heard, begins with a question. Who is a liar?
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