Becoming ‘all flame’!
THERE is a famous story taken from the writings of the Desert Fathers, which reads this way: “Abbot Lot went to see Abbot Joseph and said: ‘Father, according as I…
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The power of being and working together for Christ!
THIS past week, 330 of us priests of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, along with Archbishop Jose Gomez and his auxiliary bishops, were in La Quinta for a four-day convocation….
To be in close friendship with Jesus
IF there is one fundamental thing that God desires for each one of us, it’s a close relationship with him. After all, we are his sons and daughters. He wants…
The power of Mary’s prayers
AS my parish in Glendale, California celebrates my installation this weekend as its pastor, I think of Mary, our Blessed Mother. She is the model of what it is to…
A prayer in the face of gun violence
WE’VE all been distressed by a series of mass shootings in our country in the past two weeks. At times we don’t know what to say anymore. We’re afraid for…
On the treasures we store
IN the 4th Century, an erudite and holy bishop named Basil (canonized as St. Basil the Great) played a significant role in the formulation of orthodox theology while he interacted…
You belong to Christ
“YOU were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.” (Col 2:12)…
The better part of the day
I’M merely in my third week of serving as pastor of Incarnation Church, and I love it. The people are warm, and the neighborhood is serene. I know that as…
On being connected to God in a digital era
“I Am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) Jesus’…
The call to ministry
“We can see and feel the urgency of this call in this present time when many people have left the Church and do not feel the need to be affiliated…
Preach Jesus!
THE rooms of the dormitories are now clean and empty, and the seminary is quiet, for the academic year has ended, and the seminarians have left for summer vacation. Some…
The God who creates, redeems, and sustains
AS David looked up into the skies and contemplated the vast and endless heavens, the beauty of the night captured his heart in worship and adoration to God, and so…
Keeping the spirit of God alive in our hearts and the world
OFTEN I would remind people that we, Christians, worship a triune God. In essence, this means God is one, but eternally exists as three distinct persons: the Father, Son, and…
Entering priesthood
FOURTEEN new priests graduated from St. John’s Seminary this past school year: six for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles; three for the Diocese of Monterey; three for the Diocese of…
The gift of the Holy Spirit
“He’s Jesus, our Lord, who promised his disciples and all of us who would believe in him his abiding presence. And so, he gave us the most precious gift: his…
Brother Richard Fernando, a young Filipino Jesuit on the road to sainthood
ANOTHER Filipino might become a canonized saint! His name is Richard “Richie” Fernando, a 26-year-old Jesuit brother who died saving the lives of his Cambodian students in 1996. According to…
The beautiful Anima Christi prayer
MICAHEL Masteller, a seminarian who is doing an internship at Resurrection Church in East Los Angeles, wrote a reflection paper on his experience of visiting a parishioner, Maria, who had…
An Easter Sunday message: No flames will ever destroy our faith!
WE were all in shock at seeing on television and social media the historic Notre-Dame De Paris Cathedral engulfed in flames last Monday, April 15. How could this 850-year-old gothic…
Palm Sunday: a celebration and building of God’s Kingdom!
WE just ended Lent, and we start Holy Week, the most sacred time of the year in our Christian life. We begin it by reenacting Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem and…
On taming down a culture of cruelty and condemnation
SO much condemnation goes on in our society today, especially in social media, television, and digital world. People condemn each other for their different opinions on social, political, religious, and…
The prodigious love of God, the Father
GOD never closes his heart to anyone of his children. His love and forgiveness are prodigious—immense like the ocean and the universe. It’s no wonder that his Son, Jesus, showed…
God: I am who I am
GOD’S intimate and active involvement in the lives of His people and those he chose to lead has always amazed me. Take for example his dialogue with Moses in the…
My church in her trying times
DO you trust the Lord, especially in times of crisis and uncertainty? Do you believe in His promises of healing, salvation, and new life? Can you take the risk of…
Confessing God as Lord and Savior
Many times we hear from fellow Christians of Evangelical denominations that if we accept Jesus as our Lord, we will be saved. Well, this conviction comes from Romans 10:8-13, the…
Another kind of blindness
“Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will not both fall into a pit?” (Luke 6:39). No one wants to be blind. No one wants to be deprived of…
Blessed are those who follow Jesus!
AT first glance, we may think that Jesus was speaking to a general audience when he was proclaiming the Beatitudes. But after reading this Gospel scene (Luke 6:17, 20-16) thoroughly,…
On hauling memories of God’s fidelity, providence, and promises
“POUR out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch,” the Lord told Simon while getting into the boat. “Master, we have worked hard all night and have…
Ministry and theology at the margins
AS I write this article, I am in frigid Ashville, North Carolina, attending the 35th Biennial Consultation of the Association of Theological Field Education (ATFE). I thank God for the…
The apparitions and messages of Mary in Fátima and their relevance today
MANY of us came to know about the Blessed Virgin Mary’s apparitions and messages in Fátima, Portugal through reading and hearing about them or by going on a Marian pilgrimage….