Called to be Prophets

by © LPi  |  01/30/2022  |  Weekly Reflection

St. Oscar Romero (1917-1980) was a “Salvadoran Roman Catholic archbishop who was a vocal critic of the violent activities of government armed forces, right-wing groups, and leftist guerrillas involved in El Salvador’s civil conflict (Encyclopedia Britannica).” As a voice of the voiceless, he was an outspoken champion of the poor who were the ones most affected by the civil unrest and violence. His advocacy provoked several attempts on his life.

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Turn Sadness to Joy

by © LPi  |  01/23/2022  |  Weekly Reflection

Human history reveals many periods where people lost a sense of God’s transcendence. It may even be argued that human beings have been wandering and lost more than they have been at home and focused. Human nature being what it is, we struggle with who God really is — the God of our salvation history or the “gods” of human constructs. Relying on our own designs and pursuits, we forget that we really are meant to listen to One upon whom the Spirit of the Lord rests, Jesus Christ, and not to ourselves. That same history that reveals our fickleness and infidelity also reveals God’s constancy and faithfulness. God always finds us.

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God Delights in Us

by © LPi  |  01/16/2022  |  Weekly Reflection

God delights in you. How do you feel when you hear that? Delight usually comes with an exuberant flow of joy that seemingly arises from one’s toes with the expression of great glee. Reflecting upon the deep measure of joy God has in us can be a source of joy for ourselves. Delight is infectious.

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God Claims Us as His Own

by © LPi  |  01/09/2022  |  Weekly Reflection

“We are called to live our baptism every day, as new creatures, clothed in Christ.” —Pope Francis

What reference point do you use when making decisions? Many times, impulse takes control and decisions are made based solely on emotion and desire. We all know that these types of decisions can often get us into trouble. When a person has a confident sense of who they are and a real understanding of what is important and of value, the likelihood of knee-jerk impulsive choices diminishes. Baptism gives us what we need to make well informed and purposeful decisions. By this simple gesture, God claims us as His own and provides us with the identity and purpose we need to properly live life.

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Encounter God's Love

by © LPi  |  01/02/2022  |  Weekly Reflection

In his Apostolic Exhortation, The Joy of the Gospel, Pope Francis references a thought from Pope Benedict XVI: “Being a Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” Today we celebrate an encounter with the Person of Jesus Christ!

This simple but holy event in time dramatically changes human life, pointing it toward a new horizon and giving it a decisive direction. This is a message and truth that is not meant to be shared with only a select few who qualify but with the entire world. Pope Francis continues saying, “Thanks solely to this encounter or renewed encounter with God’s love, which blossoms into an enriching friendship, we are liberated from our narrowness and self-absorption. We become fully human when we become more than human, when we let God bring us beyond ourselves in order to attain the fullest truth of our being.”

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The Season of Gifts

by Rev. Emmanuel I. Ihemedu  |  12/26/2021  |  Weekly Reflection

It is said that great gifts come in small packages. On Christmas Eve, underneath the Christmas trees in many of our homes, are gifts wrapped beautifully with Christmas colors. Unfortunately, some of these gifts will be returned to the stores right after Christmas because these gifts may not be our sizes; they may not fit; they are not our favorite colors; or simply because we don’t like them.

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We are God's Instruments

by © LPi  |  12/19/2021  |  Weekly Reflection

St. Augustine tells us that a “Christian is a mind through which Christ thinks, a heart through which Christ loves, a voice through which Christ speaks and a hand through which Christ helps.” As we look around and out at the world, we do not have to search too far before we come face to face with inequity and injustice. There is so much unfairness, prejudice, anger, hatred, violence, and want. The stories of human heartache, people being hurt, deprived of life’s necessities, loneliness, and sickness are far too commonplace. For many of the world’s ills, the vices of greed, lust, pride, gluttony, and jealousy are clearly among the more significant root causes.

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A "Pearl of Great Price"

by © LPi  |  12/12/2021  |  Weekly Reflection

We’ve all heard the adage, “Laughter is the best medicine.” In many ways, it really is. When was the last time you really laughed? The gift of imagination allows us to see possible things that are yet to be. Imagine a world filled with laughter. We take life too seriously sometimes. Fear, uncertainty, pressure, negativity, disappointment, and myriad other human experiences can rob us of the joy needed for laughter. God never promised us an easy road, and we do have to take the course of our lives seriously. However, there is a balance to be sought and a possible joy that can be brought even to the darkest and most challenging of encounters.

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Open the Door for Christ

by © LPi  |  12/05/2021  |  Weekly Reflection

St. Ambrose shares some wisdom on our need to prepare the way and open the door for Christ. “You see that when the Word of God knocks hardest on your door, it is when his hair is wet with the dew of the night. In fact, he chooses to visit those who are in tribulation and trial, lest one of them be overwhelmed by distress. So, his head is covered with dew, with drops, when his body is laboring hard. It is important to keep watch so that when the Bridegroom comes, he is not shut out. If you are asleep and your heart is not keeping watch, he will go away without knocking; but if your heart is alert for his coming, he knocks and asks for the door to be opened to him.” When life gets overwhelming and difficult and we find ourselves feeling a bit downhearted and miserable, these words can bring great comfort.

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Hearts of Love & Humanity

by © LPi  |  11/28/2021  |  Weekly Reflection

Staying awake can often be a challenge, especially when we are exhausted. Life’s demands have a way of zapping every last bit of energy out of us. When we are tired it affects us not only physically, but psychologically and spiritually as well. All of our senses are dulled and diminished. We can overlook details, become disinterested, lethargic and apathetic, and detached. Getting sufficient physical rest only helps so much. We need to be rejuvenated, refreshed, and re-energized in other ways.

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More to Come

by © LPi  |  11/21/2021  |  Weekly Reflection

We often come to life expecting all of the pieces of the puzzle to nicely fit together. We want and expect harmony, order, and fairness, the achievement of rewards for good behavior, good health, and happiness. We can more easily accept death when it comes naturally after a good long life, but have a real difficulty comprehending the meaning of it all when it is cut short. Willing to put in a good measure of effort, we desire positive results. When things go wrong and life gets hurtful, unjust, and downright ugly, we become unsettled and can quickly fall into despair. This is especially true if we are people of faith who believe in a God who sees things on our terms and works in favor of our life agenda. What happens to our faith when we find ourselves sitting in a mess?

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He Seeks Us Out in Love

by © LPi  |  11/14/2021  |  Weekly Reflection

“And then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in the clouds’ with great power and glory.” Take a moment to ponder these words from today’s Gospel. How does this image make you feel? For people to truly understand the significance of this message, something profound has to happen within. If we find ourselves reacting with a sense of dread or fear, we have to step back and ask why. Our answer will reveal a great deal about our relationship with God. It’s hard to fall in love with a God of whom we are afraid. God does not want us to be afraid. Nor does He want us to align our wills to His in order to avoid some kind of horrendous eternal consequence. That sounds like too much of a superficial power play on the part of God who continues to seek out His children in love.

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Live Authentically and Walk with Holiness

by © LPi  |  11/07/2021  |  Weekly Reflection

On December 10, 1979, a very petite holy woman known as Mother Teresa of Calcutta spoke these words in her Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech, “But I am sure in the families and many of our homes, maybe we are not hungry for a piece of bread, but maybe there is somebody there in the family who is unwanted, unloved, uncared, forgotten, there isn’t love. Love begins at home. And love to be true has to hurt. I never forget a little child who taught me a very beautiful lesson."

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