Loving Jesus more than Family One of the things that Jesus said that raises up a lot of questions comes from Matthew 10: “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” (Matthew 10:37) Here, it is vital to pay attention to the words that Jesus said. First of all, Jesus did not say do not love your father or mother, son…
From Adam to Christ In Rom 5:12-21, St. Paul preaches on the sin of Adam vis-à-vis the grace of God through Christ. He said, “Therefore, just as through one person, sin entered the world, and through sin, death, and thus death came to all men, inasmuch as all sinned.” (Rom 5:12) St. Paul tells us that it was through the sin of Adam, the first man, that sin entered the world. The sin of Adam was his disobedience to God’s…
Dying for sinners Would you die for a sinner? St. Paul said, “Only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die.” (Rom 5:7) According to St. Paul, what makes the Sacrifice of Christ so incredible is that it was done for sinners. It is rare enough that anyone would be willing to lay down his life for a righteous man, but for someone to give us…
From Adam to Christ Scripture Passage (Romans 5:12-21) Therefore, just as through one person, sin entered the world, and through sin, death, and thus death came to all, inasmuch as all sinned for up to the time of the law, sin was in the world, though sin is not accounted when there is no law. But death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin after the pattern of the trespass of Adam, who is the…
Gratitude Perhaps you have seen or read this passage from St. Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians: “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” (1Thessalonians 5:16-18) In this chapter, St. Paul exhorted the early Church in Thessalonica on specific essentials of Christian life, and some of these is to “rejoice always,” “to pray without ceasing,” and to “give thanks in all circumstances.” Having gratitude in…
God so loves the world When Jesus said to Nicodemus, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. (John 3:16),” He was speaking of how God the Father gave Him up to be born as a man, to live as a man, and to suffer and die on the Cross as a man. And the purpose for all of this, is…
The Mission of the Holy Spirit St. Cyril of Alexandria (378-444) once wrote: “After Christ had completed His mission on earth, it still remained necessary for us to become sharers in the divine nature of the Word; i.e., we had to give up our own life and be so transformed that we would begin to live an entirely new kind of life that would be pleasing to God. This was something we could do only by sharing in the Holy…
Here in the U.S., the official start of the summer season begins in June with the summer solstice. Many people will be enjoying their summer break from work and school, either traveling or just relaxing at home. At Holy Name of Jesus Chinese Catholic Mission, our liturgies and fellowship activities do not take a summer break. The schedule for Holy Mass remains the same, our summer camp will be taking place from June 9-11th, while the faith seminars, small group…
Who is St. Justin Martyr? St. Justin Martyr was born around 100AD near the ancient biblical city of Shechem in Samaria. He studied philosophy, but he was not satisfied with the pagan philosophers. Eventually, he converted to Christianity. He became an early Christian apologist, defending the Christian faith. His works include “The First Apology” and “Dialogue with Trypho.” After defying an order to sacrifice to the pagan gods, St. Justin Martyr was beheaded, along with six other companions. Selected works…
Lessons from the Ascension There are two things that we can learn from the Ascension of the Lord: Regarding the Ascension, St. Paul said that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, in accord with the exercise of His great might, which He worked in Christ, raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavens, far above every principality, authority, power and dominion, and every name that is named not…