WORD ALIVE A story is told about a Franciscan, a Jesuit, and an SVD who paid homage to the Christ Child in Bethlehem. The Franciscan was interested in the manger to serve as reminder of the poverty and simplicity their Order professed. The Jesuit was more interested to have Jesus enrolled at their...
WORD ALIVE A high school teacher was telling her class about statistics which indicate that more twins are being born these days than in the past. “Why?” asked a teen-aged boy. “Because,” replied a girl, “little children are afraid to come into the world alone.” That...
WORD ALIVE On the eve of the graduation of a senior high school class, a dedicated and unassuming teacher was invited to a class farewell party. In her inspirational talk, the teacher said, “Someday you will all be successful in life. But remember, a peso is not a peso without one centavo....
WORD ALIVE The message of this 3rd Sunday of Advent is “gaudete” which means “rejoice” or “be joyful.” We are joyful, first and foremost, because God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. * * * John the Baptist, the dominant figure in the...
WORD ALIVE A famous artist once held an exhibition of all his choice paintings. One painting bore the face of a woman who was extraordinarily beautiful. “Who’s this?” spectators ask. “Is she your...
WORD ALIVE Tomorrow is the first Sunday of Advent, the beginning of the church’s liturgical calendar. And the call is “be watchful; be alert. You do not know when the Lord of the house will come. He may find you sleeping” (Mark 13, 35). * * * It does not mean...
WORD ALIVE Sunday is the feast of Christ the King of the Universe. Is Jesus Christ really a King? Standing before Pilate, Christ did not deny it. But then he said, “My kingdom does not belong to this world” (Jn 18,36). * * * In his book titled, “His Word Resounds,” Albert...
WORD ALIVE We have reached the end of the Church calendar and commemorated All Souls Day. Today, we reflect on the end of the world. Many people have been asking, “Father, is the world about to end?” I replied. “It’s because of the plagues, the earthquakes, famines, global warming,...
WORD ALIVE Jesus Christ in the Sunday gospel praises the poor widow who drops two small copper coins, equivalent to a few centavos, in the temple treasury, unlike the others who “put in their surplus money” (Mk 12,43). Although very poor, she put “all she had to live on.” The first...
WORD ALIVE There’s a true story of an elderly American couple, Larry and Betty Bartells. They had six children, a nice home, and lived a relatively comfortable life owing to Larry’s high-paying job. They could have coasted for the rest of their lives, looking forward to getting that last...
WORD ALIVE Once a priest was complaining why his bishop kept naming “monsignors” in his diocese. The bishop said to him, “You know why? When I give the purple attire to some priests, the faces of other priests turn either blue or green. Blue in anger and green in envy.” That priest’s...
WORD ALIVE “How hard it is for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God” (Mk 10,25). The words of Jesus sounds shocking and threatening for the rich. What does the Lord mean? Does he mean...
