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Showing posts with the label Benedict XVI

'God seems so distant, so forgetful, so absent.' Sunday Reflections, Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord, Year A

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Christ's Entry inot Jerusalem Melozzo da Forli [ Web Gallery of Art ] The Commemoration of the Lord’s Entrance into Jerusalem Matthew 21:1-11 . When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, “The Lord needs them.” And he will send them immediately.’   This took place to fulfil what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, ‘Tell the daughter of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you,     humble, and mounted on a donkey,         and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees an

Beethoven in Auschwitz

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L. V. Beethoven - Romance for Violin and Orchestra No. 2 in F major, Op. 50 Renaud Capuçon, violin Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, conducted by Kurt Masur Last Sunday, the First Sunday of Lent, I came across a beautifully-written article on  The Catholic Thing  with the title  Juliek and His Violin , written by Elizabeth A. Mitchell. The article begins this way:  Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel recounts this exchange in his Auschwitz memoir,   Night : I . . .I’m afraid . . .They’ll break. . .my violin . . . I . . . I brought it with me. I thought he’d lost his mind .  His violin?  Here? It’s an expression of incredulity at the seemingly inane focus of his young friend Juliek on a violin amidst shockingly inhumane conditions.  For days, the inmates had been force-marched in an evacuation to Gleiwitz, a sub-camp of Auschwitz, and now, crammed together in a barracks, bodies are crushing atop another.  Death is imminent . Further down we read:  And in those

'God’s mercy is infinitely greater than any guilt of ours.' Sunday Reflections, 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

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Zacchaeus , Willem Isaacsz van Swanenburg   [ Web Gallery of Art ] Readings   (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Readings   (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa) Gospel   Luke 19:1-10 ( New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised Catholic Edition, Canada)     Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through it.  A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax-collector and was rich.  He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature.  So he ran ahead and climbed a sycomore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way.  When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.’  So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him.  All who saw it began to grumble and said, ‘He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.’  Zacchaeus stoo