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Showing posts with the label William Byrd

'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

'St Joseph' in Manila. Sunday Reflections, 4th Sunday of Advent, Year A

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The Dream of St Joseph, Georges de la Tour  Gospel Matthew 3:1-12 ( NRSV, Anglicised Catholic Ed .) Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do 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 as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: ‘Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel’,which means, ‘God is with us.’ When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the

'One will be taken and one will be left.' Sunday Reflections, 1st Sunday of Advent, Year A

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Gospel Matt 24:37- 44 NRSV, Cath.Ed Jesus said to his disciples: For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour. One will be taken and one will be left- Matthew 24:40 In February 2000 a friend of mine, Daisy, an enginee

'Behold the handmaid of the Lord.' The Annunciation

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The Annunciation , El Greco, 1595-1600 [ Web Gallery of Art ] Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word. Fr Donnchadh Ó Floinn (1902 - 1968) was a priest of the Archdiocese of Dublin who wrote 201 short meditations in Irish Gaelic for  The Far East , the monthly magazine of the Columbans in Ireland, from March 1949 till April 1967. In 2003 they were published by Foilseacháin Ábhair Spioradálta, which specializes in spiritual books in Irish and is run by the Jesuits, under the title  Aibhleoga Crábhaidh ,  ‘Sparks of Devotion’ . Fifty of these had come out in book form before under the same publisher in 1957 with the title  Caoga Árdú Meanman , which could be translated as  'Fifty Raisings of the Spirit’ . The editor of  Aibhleoga Crábhaidh  was Fr Iognáid Ó Maoleachlainn of the Diocese of Ardagh