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2009 Prayer Group
"Eucharistic Flame" |
Eucharistic flame prayer meeting
February 13th, 2009
Bible words: Matthew 8:1-4
When Jesus had come down from the mountain, great crowds
followed him; and there was a leper who came to him and knelt
before him, saying, Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean.
He stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, I do choose.
Be made clean! Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Then Jesus
said to him, See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show
yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded,
as a testimony to them.
Reflections
Dear brothers and sisters,
Today we are going to reflect on the healing of the leprosy
person. He came to Jesus and Jesus touched him and healed him.
How great is the feeling arising in the mind of the sick person!
He felt overwhelmed by Jesus’ great love and healing powers. We
can also keep the good feeling in our heart that our Jesus loves
us so much and takes good care of us. His love is so
unconditional and great. Once we have experienced his love very
personally in our life, we will be very near to him and we try
to do good things to other people. One time when I was in India
I visited a leprosy hospital and I spoke about the love of God.
After the talk I said: Those who still believe in God’s love in
spite of the sickness please raise your hand. Do you know what
happened? All of them raised their hand. They had not studied
theology, but they strongly believed, even though they were so
ill. My dear brothers and sisters, God loves us so much and he
can touch us and heal us even nowadays.
I wish you a pleasant prayer meeting,
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph Vadakkel
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
February 27th, 2009
Bible words: Luke
14:25-35
Large crowds were traveling
with Jesus, and turning to them he said: If anyone comes to me and does not
hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters-
yes, even his own life- he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry
his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Suppose one of you wants to
build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he
has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able
to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow
began to build and was not able to finish.' Or suppose a king is about to go to
war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is
able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty
thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still
a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, any of you who
does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple. Salt is good, but if
it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is fit neither for
the soil nor for the manure heap; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let
him hear.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
Jesus tells us how to continue our mission
on this earth. Jesus said: ”Take the daily cross and follow me!” This means
that we all have our own daily cross and with this daily cross we follow Jesus.
If we read the books of the saints we can observe one main point in their life.
They are happy to take the cross because they believe that the daily cross will
help them to follow Jesus in a better way and to get closer and closer to him.
But one trusting thing we have to keep in our heart: Our loving God will give
us a cross which we are able to carry. I am recalling one story connected with
an old woman. She had many problems in her life. One time before to going to
sleep she prayed: God, please remove my cross and give me another one. During
the night she dreamt that many crosses were standing next to her bed. Some were
very shiny, too. Among them she saw one golden cross made by Gold and another
silver one. So she was extremely happy, because the time had come to change her
cross. She took the golden one, but when she tried to carry it, it was very
heavy and she was not able to handle it. Then she tried the silver one, too.
The same thing happened. She tried all the crosses next to her bed and found
out that they were all heavier than her cross. So she came to the conclusion
that her cross was lighter than the others and easier to carry. Dear brothers
and sisters, this symbolic story shows us that God knows exactly how much
everybody can take. He chooses the right cross for everybody. So we can follow
Jesus with full heart and mind carrying the cross which he has given to us.
I wish you a graceful prayer meeting,
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
March 6th, 2009
Bible words: Luke 6:43-49
No good tree bears bad fruit,
nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognised by its own fruit.
People do not pick figs from thorn-bushes, or grapes from briers. The good man
brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man
brings evil things out of t
My dear brothers and
sisters,
Jesus tells us that we can
recognize the tree by its fruit. He refers to our spiritual life. Here on the
earth, by the grace of God, we have to try to produce good fruits. If we
produce good fruits in our life we will be satisfied and benefit from them.
This is the plan of our loving Father in heaven. So sometimes it is very
relevant that we reflect on our life and on how it is flourishing. Sometimes we
feel no fruit or no power. But don’t be dissatisfied. We trust in the Lord and
we regain our power and we will fly like an eagle in our spiritual growth. Many
golden chances God has already given us in our life for flourishing. So we can
make use of these opportunities and grow more and more. The result will be
great. We will produce more fruit.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting,
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
13th March 2009
Bible words: Luke 15:1-7
Now the tax collectors and
sinners were all gathering round to hear him. But the Pharisees and the
teachers of the law muttered, This man welcomes sinners, and eats with them.
Then Jesus told them this parable: Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and
loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and
go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully
puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and
neighbours together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.'
I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over
one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not
need to repent.
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
Today we reflect on how we
can create happiness in heaven. We know many ways how to create happiness here
on this earth. But only one requirement is needed to create happiness in heaven.
It is the deep repentance of our sins. We are near the time of Jesus’ passion
and crucifixion. So it is the right time for the spiritual renewal in our life.
God is so good and so compassionate and merciful. We also call Him the Divine
Mercy. Let us take a good decision for our life: “A total spiritual renewal” -
it will have tremendous effects in our life and it will give much blessing to
our family. The Bible says, “Purify yourselves, God will perform miracles
tomorrow in your life.”
I wish you a fruitful prayer
meeting,
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
March 20th, 2009
Bible reading Luke 19:1-10
Jesus entered Jericho and
was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief
tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a
short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a
sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. When Jesus
reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, Zacchaeus, come down
immediately. I must stay at your house today. So he came down at once and
welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and began to mutter, He has gone
to be the guest of a 'sinner'. But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord,
Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I
have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.
Jesus said to him, Today salvation has come to this house, because this man,
too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what
was lost.
My dear brothers and
sisters,
Jesus said to Zacchaeus:
“Today salvation has come to your family.” These words brought him and his
family great joy. We all like to hear these incredible words from our Lord.
Zacchaeus did something very special. Let us reflect on what he did and why it
pleased Jesus even though he was an unworthy man. He climbed on a tree to see
Jesus. He had this deep wish to see Jesus. Jesus called him and told him to
come down immediately and he obeyed. Jesus said to him, “I will stay in your
house.” Zacchaeus completely changed and was ready to return all the tax money
he had wrongly collected and even more. Jesus told him: “Salvation has come to
this house today.” He tries to change his life for Jesus. Jesus wants from us
that we change our life, if we are doing something wrong. We can ask for the
special grace to discover our own life and to change it for the better.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting,
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
March 27th, 2009
Bible words: John 5:1-18
Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a
feast of the Jews. Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which
in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered
colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie- the blind, the
lame, the paralysed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight
years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition
for a long time, he asked him, Do you want to get well? Sir, the invalid
replied, I have no-one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred.
While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me. Then Jesus
said to him, Get up! Pick up your mat and walk. At once the man was cured; he
picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath,
and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, It is the Sabbath; the law
forbids you to carry your mat. But he replied, The man who made me well said to
me, 'Pick up your mat and walk.' So they asked him, Who is this fellow who told
you to pick it up and walk? The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for
Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there. Later Jesus found him at
the temple and said to him, See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something
worse may happen to you. The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus
who had made him well.
So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted
him. Jesus said to them, My Father is always at his work to this very day, and
I, too, am working. For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him;
not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father,
making himself equal with God.
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
Today we can reflect on the
healing which happened in Bethzatha. There was a person who had been seriously
ill for 38 years and nobody could help him. When Jesus came there he saw his bad
condition and healed him immediately. The man became ever so happy. By one
touch Jesus changed his painful situation he had been in for 38 years. My dear
brothers and sisters, I want to tell you: Don’t lose your hope. Hope makes
something great in our life. Jesus is the son of the living God. So His love
and healing power can heal our sickness and our families, too.
I wish you a very graceful
prayer meeting,
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
April 3, 2009
Bible words: Luke 10: 25-37
On one occasion an expert in
the law stood up to test Jesus. Teacher, he asked, what must I do to inherit
eternal life? What is written in the Law? he replied. How do you read it? He
answered: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbour
as yourself.' You have answered correctly, Jesus replied. Do this and you will
live. But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, And who is my
neighbour? In reply Jesus said: A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho,
when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat
him and went away, leaving him half-dead. A priest happened to be going down
the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too,
a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
But a Samaritan, as he travelled, came where the man was; and when he saw him,
he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and
wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took
care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the
innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you
for any extra expense you may have.' Which of these three do you think was a
neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers? The expert in the law
replied, The one who had mercy on him. Jesus told him, Go and do likewise.
My dear brothers and
sisters,
Many times we have heard
about the good Samaritan. We like his incredible act and we all appreciate his
mighty service. We give him a good name and call him “Good Samaritan”. Why did
Jesus tell this wonderful parable to his audience? Jesus’ intention was to do
the same and “ACT LIKE THE GOOD SAMARITAN DID”. In our daily life we get plenty
of opportunities to act in a better way. We can start in our family by showing
a very great helping and understanding mind. Mother Teresa of Calcutta spoke
about a touching incident. Once she visited a poor village and gave some rice
to a poor family. This family took the rice and shared it with another poor
family. Let us also keep a loving and sharing heart.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting.
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic Flame prayer
meeting
April 10th, 2009
Bible words: John 19, 21-42
The chief priests of the
Jews protested to Pilate, Do not write 'The King of the Jews', but that this
man claimed to be king of the Jews. Pilate answered, What I have written, I
have written. When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes,
dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment
remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to
bottom. Let's not tear it, they said to one another. Let's decide by lot
who will get it. This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which
said, They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing. So
this is what the soldiers did. Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his
mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw
his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing near by, he said to
his mother, Dear woman, here is your son, and to the disciple, Here is your
mother. From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.
Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be
fulfilled, Jesus said, I am thirsty. A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they
soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and
lifted it to Jesus' lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, It is
finished. With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. Now it was the
day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jews
did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked
Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. The soldiers
therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with
Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that
he was already dead, they did not break his legs Instead, one of the
soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and
water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He
knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.
These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: Not one of his
bones will be broken, and, as another scripture says, They will look on the one
they have pierced.
Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a
disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate's
permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus,
the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of
myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus' body, the two of them
wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with
Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a
garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no-one had ever been laid.
Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was near by,
they laid Jesus there.
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
Today it is “Good Friday”
and we are thinking about the painful suffering and death of our Jesus. Why do we call it “Good Friday” in English? The reason is
because Jesus did great things for us. He suffered for us and he died for us.
So we call this special day “Good Friday”. If we look at the cross we can see
Jesus. Now Jesus is hanging on the cross. Good Friday teaches us a very great
lesson; we see Jesus in our suffering and in our daily cross. Jesus said, “Take
the daily cross and follow me.” However, we have to keep in mind that the cross
is not the end, but it is a part of the resurrection. The crucified Jesus
always helps you.
Your loving
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer meeting
April 17th, 2009
Bible words: Mt 18, 1-5
At that time the disciples
came to Jesus and asked, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? He
called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: I tell you
the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never
enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this
child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little
child like this in my name welcomes me.0
My dear brothers and
sisters,
Today we reflect on the
question of who is most eligible to reach heaven. Jesus gives us a very
suitable symbol as an answer – those who are like a child. What are the typical
characteristics of children? They have a good heart; no evils thoughts in their
heart; no worry about tomorrow. We can find many good qualities in a child. How
can we become like a child and also have those good qualities? The Holy Spirit
can help us. The bible says: “I will give you a new heart and a new mind.”
Today we can ask for this special grace.
I wish you pleasant prayer
meeting,
Your loving brother in
Christ
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer meeting
April 24th, 2009
Bible words: Mk 16, 15-20
He said to them, Go into all
the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is
baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And
these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out
demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their
hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they
will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well. After the Lord
Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right
hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord
worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.
My dear brothers and
sisters,
Today’s reflections are
about the wish of Jesus that His good news will be proclaimed all over the
world. We all have this mission to fulfil our loving Father’s vision. He says
that miracles and wonders will be accompanying this great proclamation. It is a
wonderful sign that God supports this great mission in a very powerful way. In
different ways we can actively take part in the great mission: by deep prayer,
by spreading the Word of God, etc.
So I wish you a pleasant
prayer meeting full of power.
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
MAY 1st, 2009
Bible words: John 13, 31-35
When he was gone, Jesus said,
Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. If God is
glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at
once. My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for
me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you
cannot come. A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you,
so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my
disciples, if you love one another.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
Jesus asks us “to love each
other”. This is the core of all of his teaching. It is a very enlightening
point that Jesus shows us. He is the best model for it. Sometimes it is hard to
love everyone. How can we practice his teaching? Jesus said that he will give
us a supporter. It is the “Holy Spirit”. We can ask the Holy Spirit for help so
that the Holy Spirit will help us through all our life to follow Jesus’
teaching.
I
wish you a pleasant prayer
meeting filled with power.
Your loving
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
MAY 8th, 2009
Bible words: John 14:7-14
If you really knew me, you
would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.
Philip said, Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us. Jesus
answered: Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a
long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show
us the Father'? Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father
is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father,
living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the
Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the
miracles themselves. I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do
what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am
going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son
may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I
will do it.
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
Today we can reflect on the
intimacy with God. Jesus is the best model. Jesus said “my father and me are
one”. So it is the power of Jesus’ life. We also need great power from God.
This intimacy will bring incredible blessing in our life. How we can achieve
this intimacy with God? Of course, our prayer is a great channel for it. We
also need some time in our daily life to think or reflect about the grace and
blessing we received from our Lord. When we look at our life we can very
clearly observe that God helped us many times in our life in different forms
and ways. This relation will lead to a deep faith and to an increasing trust in
the Lord. The result will be wonderful – our intimacy with our Lord will grow
and grow.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting with much blessing,
Your loving brother in
Christ
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
MAY 15th, 2009
Bible words: Mt 11:25-30
At that time Jesus said, I
praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these
things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father,
for this was your good pleasure. All things have been committed to me by my
Father. No-one knows the Son except the Father, and no-one knows the Father
except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all
you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you
and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest
for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
Reflection:
My dear brothers and
sisters,
Today’s reflection is about
the invitation of Jesus to come closer to him. Let us keep in mind only one
thing: We have to go near to God when we are carrying more and more burdens in
our life. Jesus’ words are so encouraging for us, “those who are carrying heavy
loads, come to me, and I will give you rest”. Only God can give us perfect rest
in our heart and mind. We can give all our burdens in His hand, too. So Jesus
is always ready to help us and to answer our problems, too. The bible says,
“call me and I will answer you and I will tell you marvelous and wonderful
things.”
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting.
Your loving
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
MAY 22nd, 2009
Bible reading - Mark
16:9-20
When Jesus rose early on the
first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had
driven seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him and who were
mourning and weeping. When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had
seen him, they did not believe it. Afterwards Jesus appeared in a different
form to two of them while they were walking in the country. These returned and
reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either. Later Jesus
appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of
faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had
risen. He said to them, Go into all the world and preach the good news to all
creation. Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not
believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In
my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will
pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not
hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get
well. After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and
he sat at the right hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached
everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs
that accompanied it.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
Today’s Gospel recommends us
very strongly and forcefully to proclaim the Gospel to all kinds of people.
This is the great wish of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus came to this world to
plant the word of God and the whole bible speaks about how we can receive the
word of God, how we can protect it and how we can co-operate in planting and
spreading it. First of all we must love the word of God and then we can reflect
on its power. One practical point is that every day at any time we can read
some part of the word of God. Then we take some time to reflect on it. It will
make an incredible effect in our life.
I wish you a pleasant prayer
meeting full of power,
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
MAY 29th, 2009
Bible words: John 6:60-70
On hearing it, many of his
disciples said, This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it? Aware that his
disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, Does this offend you?
What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! The Spirit gives
life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit
and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe. For Jesus had
known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray
him. He went on to say, This is why I told you that no-one can come to me
unless the Father has enabled him. From this time many of his disciples turned
back and no longer followed him. You do not want to leave too, do you? Jesus
asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have
the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of
God. Then Jesus replied, Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a
devil! (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the
Twelve, was later to betray him.)
Reflections
My dear brothers and
sisters,
If we read the bible we can
see that many people were attracted by Jesus’ teaching and Jesus had many
followers, but many left him later. They said: “This teaching is too hard. Who
can listen to it?” Therefore some of the disciples also left him. At that time
Jesus asked the other disciples, if they also wanted to go. The disciple Simon
Peter answered him: Lord to whom would we go? You have the words that give
eternal life.” So, my dear brothers and sisters, in our life we also will feel
tired and misunderstood, negated, unwanted. In those moments remember that
Jesus’ word is powerful and brings eternal life.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting,
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting
JUNE 12th, 2009
Bible words: Luke 9:44-48
And
they were all amazed at the greatness of God. While everyone was marvelling at
all that Jesus did, he said to his disciples, Listen carefully to what I am
about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of
men. But they did not understand what this meant. It was hidden from them, so
that they did not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask him about it. An
argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest.
Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and made him stand beside
him. Then he said to them, Whoever welcomes this little child in my name
welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. For he who
is least among you all- he is the greatest.
Reflection:
My dear brothers and
sisters,
Jesus asks us to be humble,
and he gives us a very clear example, too. Those who are very small are greater
than the others. In order to understand and accept this, we need a great mind
by the grace of God. Then we can see that others are greater. Jesus wishes that
we enlarge our mind. Only the Holy Spirit can help us to do so. Once we have
adopted this humble attitude, the result will be incredible and we will begin
to see the persons through the eyes of Jesus.
I wish you a very graceful
prayer meeting.
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer
meeting,
JUNE 19th, 2009
Bible words: Mark 5:25-34
And a woman was there who had
been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under
the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting
better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in
the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, If I just touch his
clothes, I will be healed. Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her
body that she was freed from her suffering. At once Jesus realised that power
had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, Who touched my
clothes? You see the people crowding against you, his disciples answered, and
yet you can ask, 'Who touched me?' But Jesus kept looking around to see who had
done it. Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his
feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. He said to her,
Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your
suffering.
Reflection:
My dear brothers and
sisters,
These bible words highlight
a very relevant point. If we believe in God we will see the Glory of God. The
woman who touched the clothes of Jesus with a deep faith was awarded with the
great miracle - the absolute healing. So faith is very important. We can truly
believe in Jesus. He came to this world to bring peace and harmony in our life.
Faith is a gift from God. When we pray we can ask for this beautiful gift from
our Lord. We can believe that whatever we ask in his name, he will grant us.
I wish you a very grateful
prayer meeting,
Your loving brother in
Christ
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer meeting
JUNE 26th, 2009
Bible words: Luke 2:41-51
Every year his parents went
to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old,
they went up to the Feast, according to the custom. After the Feast was
over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in
Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. Thinking he was in their company, they
travelled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives
and friends. When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look
for him. After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among
the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard
him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him,
they were astonished. His mother said to him, Son, why have you treated us like
this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you. Why were you
searching for me? he asked. Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?
But they did not understand what he was saying to them. Then he went down to
Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these
things in her heart.
My dear brothers and
sisters,
Mother Mary and Joseph were
searching for their child Jesus when he went missing. It was a very painful
situation for them, but finally they found him in the Temple. When they found
him, they were so happy and forgot about all the pain they had gone through
while they were searching for him. On our life journey it is extremely
necessary for us to find Jesus, i.e., to fully believe in him and to be aware
of his presence with us. Perhaps it will take years, but don’t stop searching
and finally you will find him. Sometimes we feel a lack of faith and we have a
feeling of dryness in our spiritual life. In this case there is only one way to
regain faith: go to church, participate actively and take the sacraments. Then
you will find Jesus again.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting full of power,
Your loving brother in
Christ
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer meeting
3rd July 2009
Bible reading: Mt 9:32-38
While they
were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was
brought to Jesus. And when the demon was driven out, the man who had
been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, Nothing like this has
ever been seen in Israel. But the Pharisees said, It is by the prince
of demons that he drives out demons. Jesus went through all the towns
and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of
the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the
crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and
helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples,
The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the
harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.
Reflections:
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
These
bible words explain Jesus’ deep compassion for other people. The
bible says: ”At the sight of the crowds his heart was moved with
pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned”. Another
touching word is the following: “The harvest is abundant but the
labourers are few”.
Actually,
this is the present situation of life. Nowadays many people have lost
their hopes because of many reasons. Our loving God is the only one who
can give new hope and joy in their lives. Therefore we need labourers
for His work to continue here on earth. There are two ways how we can
support Jesus’ mission on our earth:
(1) We can pray for the labourers who are working for the kingdom of God.
(2) We can also be active and become small labourers in his vineyard.
I wish you a graceful prayer meeting full of blessing.
Your loving brother in Christ,
Father Joseph
|
Eucharistic flame prayer meeting
10th July 2009
Bible words: Mt: 10,7-15
As you go, preach this
message: 'The kingdom of heaven is near.' Heal the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received,
freely give. Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; take
no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff; for the worker
is worth his keep. Whatever town or village you enter, search for some worthy
person there and stay at his house until you leave. As you enter the home, give
it your greeting. If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is
not, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to
your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. I
tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day
of judgment than for that town.
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
In the reflection of the
last prayer meeting we have seen that the field is waiting for the labourers.
Therefore we are going to reflect on the mission of the twelve disciples today.
Jesus gives them the special mission to “cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse
lepers and drive out demons.” Jesus especially encourages them to depend on the
providence of God. It is very clear that the kingdom workers continue His
mission today. In different ways we can support the kingdom workers, but mainly
by our prayers. The above bible passage is extremely empowering for the kingdom
workers and gives a satisfactory feeling to those who support them.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting.
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic Flame Prayer Meeting
17th July 2009
Bible words: John 15.1-10
I am the true vine, and my
Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit,
while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more
fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it
must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I
am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will
bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in
me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are
picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words
remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my
Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my
disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my
love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have
obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
Jesus said: ”I am the vine
and you are the branches”. It indicates the deep relation or the deep
connection. Vine and branches are not separate. They form a unity. We all are
called to bear much fruit in our own life situation, no matter whether it is a
religious vocation call or a call to family life. Today we are going to reflect
on how we can produce much fruit in our daily life. When we look at a tree we
can see how it grows and produces fruit. The tree receives power from the
sunlight and the roots find water and are very eager to take the manure from
the surroundings. The tree teaches us a good lesson. We have many opportunities
to receive the manure for our life, e.g. by attending retreats, by leading a
prayerful life, etc. The sunlight is a symbol for the Eucharist, for attending
the Holy mass, adoration etc. If we do so, the effect will be so wonderful; we
will create a deep connection with our loving God and bear much fruit in our
life.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting full of blessing.
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic Flame Prayer Meeting
24th July 2009
Bible words: John 20,
11-18
But Mary stood outside the
tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two
angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other
at the foot. They asked her, Woman, why are you crying? They have taken my Lord
away, she said, and I don't know where they have put him. At this, she turned
round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realise that it was Jesus.
Woman, he said, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for? Thinking he
was the gardener, she said, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where
you have put him, and I will get him. Jesus said to her, Mary. She turned
towards him and cried out in Aramaic, Rabboni! (which means Teacher). Jesus
said, Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go
instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your
Father, to my God and your God.' Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the
news: I have seen the Lord! And she told them that he had said these things to
her.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
Today’s reflection deals with the
appearance of Jesus to Mary Magdalene. It is very significant. Mary Magdalene
is weeping before the empty tomb. The Lord comes and talks to her, but in her
grief she fails to recognize him (v. 15). Here, Jesus does not disapprove of
Mary’s passionate feelings and actions. He understands her human emotions.
Jesus reveals to her that he is the son of the living God. The appearance is
near the empty tomb. What is the special significance for us? Sometimes we feel
hopeless and we feel that nothing is going to work out. We have a feeling of
emptiness. These bible words teach us that we can always keep hope in our heart
- no matter what situation surrounds us, the living presence of God is always
with us.
I wish you a graceful prayer meeting.
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic Flame Prayer Meeting
July 31st, 2009
Bible words: John 6:1-15
Some time after this, Jesus
crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias),
and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the miraculous signs
he had performed on the sick. Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down
with his disciples. The Jewish Passover Feast was near. When Jesus looked up
and saw a great crowd coming towards him, he said to Philip, Where shall we buy
bread for these people to eat? He asked this only to test him, for he already
had in mind what he was going to do. Philip answered him, Eight months' wages
would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite! Another of his
disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, spoke up, Here is a boy with five
small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?
Jesus said, Make the people sit down. There was plenty of grass in that place,
and the men sat down, about five thousand of them. Jesus then took the loaves,
gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted.
He did the same with the fish. When they had all had enough to eat, he said to
his disciples, Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted. So
they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley
loaves left over by those who had eaten. After the people saw the miraculous
sign that Jesus did, they began to say, Surely this is the Prophet who is to
come into the world. Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him
king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
The theme of our prayer meeting is the
multiplication of the bread. It is a very significant miracle and expresses
Jesus’ deep compassion through his action. The people were hearing the word of
God. It was getting very late and they were all hungry. So they all needed
bread. With five loaves of bread Jesus made the miracle for five thousand
people. The young boy who was keeping the five loaves of bread thought that it
was enough for him to eat, but Jesus took the bread and made a tremendous
miracle with it. If we reflect on these bible words, we will get many new ideas
and insights. For example, in our life we need many things but maybe we only
have a very tiny amount of what we need (e.g. our love for others, our helping
mind for others, our concern for others, our talents and our abilities). When
we give them to Jesus asking for His blessing, God will be able to multiply
them.
I wish you a graceful prayer
meeting full of power.
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic Flame Prayer Meeting
August 7th, 2009
Bible reading: Mt 14:22-36
Immediately Jesus made the
disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he
dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside
by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat was
already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the
wind was against it. During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to
them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they
were terrified. It's a ghost, they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus
immediately said to them: Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid. Lord, if it's
you, Peter replied, tell me to come to you on the water. Come, he said. Then
Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came towards Jesus. But
when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, Lord,
save me! Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. You of little
faith, he said, why did you doubt? And when they climbed into the boat, the
wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshipped him, saying, Truly
you are the Son of God. When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret.
And when the men of that place recognised Jesus, they sent word to all the
surrounding country. People brought all their sick to him and begged him to let
the sick just touch the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed.
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
In the bible we can see that
Jesus performed many miracles and healings. He did so, because he wanted to
bring the people near to God and to prove to them that there is a living
powerful God. He wanted to deepen their God awareness in their lives. Here, we
can see Jesus walking on the water. Peter saw Jesus walking on the water and he
wanted to walk with him. Jesus said: ”Come”. He walked for a few seconds, but
then he got scared and as a result he was about to drown in the water. Peter
turned away his eyes from the Lord and the result was so negative. My dear
loving brothers and sisters, these bible words give us a very good lesson. We
have to look at Jesus and walk with him without fear – even on water or through
fire. Nothing can destroy us.
I wish you a very graceful
prayer meeting.
Your loving brother in
Christ,
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic Flame Prayer
Meeting
August 14th, 2009
Bible reading: Luke 1: 39-56
At that time Mary got ready
and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered
Zechariah's home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting,
the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In
a loud voice she exclaimed: Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the
child you will bear! But why am I so favoured, that the mother of my Lord
should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the
baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the
Lord has said to her will be accomplished! And Mary said: My soul glorifies the
Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has been mindful of the
humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me- holy is his name. His mercy
extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed
mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost
thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the
humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away
empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham
and his descendants for ever, even as he said to our fathers. Mary stayed with
Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and
sisters,
Today we are going to
reflect on the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The
bible words show that Mary is filled with joy because of the great things God
has given to her: ”The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his
name. His mercy is from age to age for those who fear him...” Mary always kept
the happiness in her heart even though she had many trials and difficulties. In
our daily life we also face trials, difficulties, misunderstandings, etc, but
we should still trust the Lord. This trust creates happiness and peace of mind.
I wish you a very graceful
prayer meeting. Our beloved mother Mary helps each of you.
Your loving brother in
Christ
P. Joseph
|
|
Eucharistic
Flame prayer meeting
August
21st, 2009
Bible
words: Mt 19:23-30
Then
Jesus said to his disciples, I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to
enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go
through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.
When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, Who then
can be saved? Jesus looked at them and said, With man this is impossible, but
with God all things are possible. Peter answered him, We have left everything
to follow you! What then will there be for us? Jesus said to them, I tell you
the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his
glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones,
judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or
brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will
receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. But many who are
first will be last, and many who are last will be first.
Reflection
My
dear loving brothers and sisters,
Sometimes
we have many questions in our life. Even though we work for the kingdom of God
these questions can arise. These bible words give the impression that the disciples
also have questions connected with their followership. They asked Jesus: ”What
will we get after losing all things for you?” Jesus gave a very good answer. He
said that they would receive the eternal life in heaven and hundred times more
than they left on earth for his sake. This message gives us hope and
encouragement for working for the kingdom of God and following Jesus.
I wish
you a graceful prayer meeting.
Your
loving brother in Christ
P.
Joseph.
|
Eucharistic Flame prayer meeting
August
28th, 2009
Bible words: John 1:45-51
Philip found Nathanael and told him, We have found the one Moses wrote
about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote- Jesus of Nazareth,
the son of Joseph. Nazareth! Can anything good come from there? Nathanael
asked. Come and see, said Philip. When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said
of him, Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false. How do you
know me? Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, I saw you while you were still under
the fig-tree before Philip called you. Then Nathanael declared, Rabbi, you are
the Son of God; you are the King of Israel. Jesus said, You believe because I
told you I saw you under the fig-tree. You shall see greater things than that.
He then added, I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels
of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.
Reflection:
My
dear loving brothers and sisters,
Today’s
bible words speak about the Call of Nathanael. He has a question: ”Can anything
good come from Nazareth?” The answer is, “Come and see”. This answer is very
interesting - “come and see”. When we come near Jesus we see his love and care
in our life, and his loving word will encourage us. This “come and see” dimension
is also applicable to our prayer meetings. We come and gather in Jesus’ name
and his loving presence is with us.
I
wish you a graceful prayer meeting full of love.
Your
loving
P.
Joseph
|
Eucharistic Flame Prayer Meeting
September
4th, 2009
Bible words: John 15, 1-10
I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every
branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he
prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of
the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No
branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you
bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a
man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can
do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown
away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.
If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it
will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit,
showing yourselves to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I
loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in
my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love.
Reflections
My dear
loving brothers and sisters,
We are
already in the new month of September. Here in the Philippines the people are
already starting their Christmas preparations; they start them very early.
Actually, I think that this is better. Jesus says, “I am the vine and you are
the branches.” This sentence is highlighting the deep connection. We should
prepare ourselves early for these connections. Due to many reasons we might
lose the connection with our Lord, but we still have the chance to reconnect.
The advantages of this connection are great: we have more power, more joy and
more peace. If we have no connection, the fruit will not come. So we are better
off having a good connection with our loving Jesus and therefore more fruit in
our daily life.
I wish you
a very graceful prayer meeting,
Your loving
brother in Christ
P. Joseph
|
Eucharistic Flame prayer meeting
September
11, 2009
Bible words: Mt 1:18-25
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was
pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found
to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a
righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind
to divorce herquietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord
appeared to him in a dream and said, Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to
take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy
Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins. All this took place to fulfil
what the Lord had said through the prophet: The virgin will be with child and
will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel- which means, God
with us. When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded
him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave
birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
Reflection:
My dear
loving brothers and sisters,
Today our
reflection is about St. Joseph; how he overcame a difficult situation in his
life. When Joseph had decided to marry Mother Mary he found out that she was
pregnant. This was a very difficult time of crises for Joseph. His heart told
him that Mary would be faithful, but in his mind he suffered a long time before
he got the right answer. The graceful fact is that the angel appeared to him
and explained to him the whole situation. Here we see that God finds solutions
for difficult situations. We are human beings and sometimes we will also have
to face difficult situations. But don’t lose the hope! God will find the right
solution for us. Like Joseph we can be righteous through all our life.
I wish you
graceful prayer meeting.
Your loving
brother in Christ
P. Joseph
|
|
Prayer Meeting "Eucharistic Flame"
September 25th, 2009
Bible word Luke 9.18-22
Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were
with him, he asked them, 'Who do the crowds say I am?' They
replied, 'Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and
still others, that one of the prophets of long ago has come back
to life.' 'But what about you?' he asked. 'Who do you say I am?'
Peter answered, 'God's Messiah.'
Jesus strictly warned them not to tell this to anyone. And he
said, 'The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by
the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and
he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.'
Reflection:
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
The bible words start with “Jesus was praying in solitude”.
Jesus spent much time praying. He found time for silence and
solitude in his busy life. We also need some time for silence
and solitude in our life. God speaks in silence and God will
answer during our time of silence and prayer. Mother Teresa of
Calcutta says: “Silence produces prayer, prayer produces faith,
faith produces love, love produces charity and charity produces
peace.”
I wish you a very graceful prayer meeting full of power,
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph |
|
Eucharistic Flame prayer meeting
October 16th, 2009
Bible words: Luke 11.37-41
When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee
invited him to eat with him; so he went in and reclined at the
table. But the Pharisee, noticing that Jesus did not first wash
before the meal, was surprised. Then the Lord said to him, Now
then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but
inside you are full of greed and wickedness. You foolish people!
Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? But
give what is inside the dish to the poor, and everything will be
clean for you.
Reflection:
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
Today’s reflection is about “cleaning inside”.
Cleaning is very important for our life. It is so important to
clean our heart. A Pharisee invited Jesus to dine with him and
in this context Jesus spoke about this great idea. The Pharisees
have the ritual of washing hands before the meal, and it is
their tradition. Jesus offended them by saying that they take so
much care about washing hands but not about washing inside. This
message is for us, too. We can look now in our heart and see how
clean it is. We have a good way to clean our heart, namely by
confession. I know one person who came to me for counseling and
had a good confession with me. After the confession I saw his
face full of light and peace. God is staying in our heart. We
can prepare our heart for him and clean it for him.
I wish you a very graceful prayer meeting full of
joy,
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph |
|
Eucharistic Flame Prayer Meeting
6th November 2009
Bible words:
Jeremiah 33,3
'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and
unsearchable things you do not know.'
Reflections
Our loving God is an answering God. This point makes our life
pleasant and beautiful. We have so many questions in our life,
and those unanswered questions are a reason for our
dissatisfaction and unhappiness in our life. Jesus is the way
and brings happiness in our life. Jesus said: “I am the way, I
am the life and truth.” Jesus is the way! If we keep this truth
in our mind it will make our life always more comfortable and
bearable.
I wish you a graceful prayer meeting,
Your loving brother in Christ
P. Joseph |
|
Eucharistic Flame prayer group
20th November 2009
Bible words: Lk 15:1-10
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering round to
hear him. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law
muttered, This man welcomes sinners, and eats with them. Then
Jesus told them this parable: Suppose one of you has a hundred
sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine
in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds
it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders
and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbours together
and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell
you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven
over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous
persons who do not need to repent. Or suppose a woman has ten
silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the
house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she
finds it, she calls her friends and neighbours together and
says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.' In the same
way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the
angels of God over one sinner who repents.
Reflections:
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
It is very interesting to know the cause for happiness in
heaven. The bible says, when a person repents his or her sins,
there will be happiness in heaven. If we repent our sins and
look for reconciliation here on earth, we will achieve a double
effect: Heaven will be filled with happiness and the people on
earth will be happy, too. Let us try to do so.
I wish you a very graceful prayer meeting full of joy and
fruits.
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph |
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Eucharistic Flame prayer meeting
27th November 2009
Bible words: Lk 17:11-19
Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus travelled along the border
between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten
men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called
out in a loud voice, Jesus, Master, have pity on us! When he saw
them, he said, Go, show yourselves to the priests. And as they
went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was
healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw
himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him- and he was a Samaritan.
Jesus asked, Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other
nine? Was no-one found to return and give praise to God except
this foreigner? Then he said to him, Rise and go; your faith has
made you well.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
Jesus wishes that we grow in an attitude of love and
thankfulness. Jesus healed ten leprosy people but only one came
back and said thanks to him. Jesus asked him: “Where are the
others?” These words of Jesus are also addressed to us. We have
so many reasons to be thankful to Him, but many times we are
very far away from thanking Him. When we grow in thankfulness,
then we grow in faith and love.
I wish you a very graceful prayer meeting,
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph |
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Eucharistic Flame prayer meeting
4th December 2009
Bible words: Lk 18:35-43
As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the
roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked
what was happening. They told him, Jesus of Nazareth is passing
by. He called out, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! Those
who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he
shouted all the more, Son of David, have mercy on me! Jesus
stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came
near, Jesus asked him, What do you want me to do for you? Lord,
I want to see, he replied. Jesus said to him, Receive your
sight; your faith has healed you. Immediately he received his
sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw
it, they also praised God.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
The blind beggar received a great healing from Jesus.
His deepest wish was his healing and he deeply believed that
Jesus would be able to heal him.
He experienced the great healing. This healing shows us the deep
compassion of Jesus.
Let us believe more and more in Jesus and ask for his deep
healing in our life.
I wish you a very graceful prayer meeting,
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph |
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Eucharistic Flame prayer meeting
11th December 2009
Bible words: Luke 14.25-33
Large crowds were travelling with Jesus, and turning to them he
said: If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and
mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters- yes,
even his own life- he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does
not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Suppose
one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down
and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete
it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it,
everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow
began to build and was not able to finish.' Or suppose a king is
about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit
down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to
oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is
not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a
long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way,
any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my
disciple.
Reflections
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
"To follow Jesus" means to travel with him and take the daily
cross. We all have our daily crosses. Sometimes we think after
carrying all our crosses we will follow Jesus and the crosses
are finished. But Jesus asks us to follow him in our daily
cross. It may be hard or not so hard.
Jesus is our model. His journey is full of pain and suffering.
However, Jesus finds a meaning in his suffering, because he so
much connected with Abba, His father. When we are connected in
the same way with our living God, we will also find a meaning in
our daily cross. Perhaps we are able to accept the cross and to
carry it with pleasure.
I wish you a pleasant prayer meeting full of grace.
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph |
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Eucharistic Flame prayer meeting
18th December 2009
Bible words: Luke 1.39-43
At that time Mary got
ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where
she entered Zechariah's home and greeted Elizabeth. When
Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb,
and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice
she exclaimed: Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the
child you will bear! But why am I so favoured, that the mother
of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your
greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to
her will be accomplished!
Reflections
Dear loving brothers and sisters,
Mother Mary is a perfect model for our life. She is our beloved
mother by all means. She visited Elizabeth, and helped her. It
means that she spent time with her and brought her joy. Mother
Mary was filled with the Holy Spirit and full of joy. When we
are more connected with Mother Mary and the Holy Spirit, we will
also become bringers of joy. We can bring joy to the people.
I wish you a very graceful prayer meeting full of joy!
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph |
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Eucharistic Flame prayer meeting
25th December 2009
Bible words: Matthew 1:18-25
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother
Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came
together, she was found to be with child through the Holy
Spirit.Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did
not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to
divorce her quietly. But after he had considered
this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your
wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the
name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. All
this took place to fulfil what the Lord had said through the
prophet: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a
son, and they will call him Immanuel— which means, God with us.
When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had
commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no
union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him
the name Jesus.
Reflections
HAPPY CHRISTMAS
My dear loving brothers and sisters,
Christmas is the happiest day. The joy of this day can be felt
through our entire life. We know that spring water starts from
one place and continuously flows to another place. Along its
path there are plenty of green plants and trees. This spring
water changes the empty earth and creates a new situation.
Christmas is like spring water. It provides for an everlasting
green in our life. The joy will flow in our life. He is called
“Immanuel” which means God-with-us. This is the spirit of
Christmas. God is with me all the time and in all situations.
My dear loving brothers and sisters, I wish you a very joyful
Christmas full of happiness.
Your loving brother in Christ,
P. Joseph |
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