x Close
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
As we approach the final days before our celebration of Christmas, we are reminded once again of the many ways that God has been sending messages and messengers to us in advance of his coming among us as a man. Time and again, different prophets spoke to us of God’s concern and compassion for his people, assuring them that he walked with them. We were given an example of one such prophet today in the person of Malachi, whom God sent to assure people that He would send a messenger to prepare their hearts, restore relationships, and turn them back to God. The messenger God is sending would not simply announce news; he would shape hearts. In Luke’s gospel today, the prophecies of God took flesh in the birth of John the Baptist. We heard the neighbors who asked, “What will this child be?” The answer was clear: John is the messenger that Malachi spoke of. John’s very name, God is gracious - announces the new area of salvation. His life becomes a bridge between the old and the new. John is the one who calls people back to God, reconciles hearts, points away from himself and towards Jesus, lives simply, boldly, and faithfully.
Share
As we come down the homestretch of Advent toward Christmas, it’s good to pause and remember why December 25th is a holy and special day. The opening prayer says it all: “O God, who seeing the human race fallen into death, willed to redeem it by the coming of your only begotten Son…” In just one line, we recognize our need for a Savior and profess that one has been sent. The prayer then turns to our response: “…grant, we pray, that those who confess his Incarnation with humble fervor may merit His company as their Redeemer.” That phrase—“confess his Incarnation with humble fervor”—is a powerful reminder of what we strive for in our faith: to proclaim that Jesus, the Son of God, took on our human nature to redeem us, and to do so both humbly and with passion. That balance is not always easy.
Share
Brief and contemporary inspiration focused on hope and family prayer will be delivered to your inbox! Articles include live video, written word, and links to resources that will lead you and your family deeper into faith.
Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
Today's readings present a miraculous conception of two famous people in the history of the Israelite. These are Samson and John the Baptist. They carry similarity connected to their mission as announced by an Angel. They are both to be Nazirites from birth, abstaining from wine and strong drink, their mothers were barren initially and both have a mission of participating in the mission of God’s working among his people.
Share
Holy lives of inspiration | Immaculate Conception | Learn more about our faith
In difficult situations, dilemmas, quest between the truth and Charity sometimes we seek justification. We quickly identify the wrong, and the betrayal; we are cornered by pain. We seek relief by exposing that individual who has failed us. The world will clap for us! Pope Francis in his Apostolic letter Patris Cordis (With Father’s Love) says that often in life, things happen whose meaning we do not understand. Our first reaction is frequently one of disappointment and rebellion. "Joseph set aside his ideas in order to accept the course of events and, mysterious as they seemed, to embrace them, take responsibility for them and make them part of his history." — Patris Cordis, Apostolic letter by Pope Francis (150th anniversary of the proclamation of St. Joseph as patron of the universal church)
Share
Holy lives of inspiration | Immaculate Conception | Learn more about our faith
“We can draw strength, love and so many other blessings from our ancestors as we learn about them, practice gratitude for them, and perform sacred ordinances for them in the temple” If Only Our Ancestors Could Talk by Sheiyenne Baloo What has this got to do with the gospel reading today? We are presented with a genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, arranged into three neat sections of fourteen generations all connected to Abraham and David. What is it about all these generations of people named that should even attract our attention?
Share
Learn more about our faith | Strengthening family unity
Can you imagine finding out that your neighbor—the one everyone considered a bad person—made it into Heaven? Whatever emotions or questions that might stir up in us pale in comparison to the shock Jesus causes in today’s Gospel. In His parable of the man with two sons, Jesus compares the first son—the one who initially said “no” to his father but later changed his mind and did what was asked—to tax collectors and prostitutes. That alone would have been scandalous to His listeners. Tax collectors and prostitutes were considered the most shameful, the most morally corrupt, people of their time. Most believed they were beyond redemption—that the die had been cast, that they could not change. Like that imagined neighbor…or even someone closer to home.
Share
