St Pius V

Born Antony Ghislieri on January 17, 1504, he was raised by poor parents and entered the Dominican Order with whom he was ordained in 1528 and taught philosophy and theology in various Dominican colleges. He quickly became bishop and Cardinal and followed his predecessor as Pope, the easy-going Pope Pius IV in 1566. He started his Papacy by implementing the reform of the Council of Trent. He cleaned up the curia, excommunicated heretical bishops, cleaned up the immorality in the church and swept the church clean – paving the way for the great surge in the church we call the Counter Reformation. He also excommunicated the tyrant Elizabeth I of England and formed the Holy League – a confederation of Catholic armies which eventually defeated the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Lepanto. Pius V also instituted the Feast of Our Lady of Victories.
Pope Pius V also published the catechism of Trent and improved the breviary and the Roman Missal, which was still being used until 1962. He tried to clean Rome from any immorality, forbidding bull fights and even tried to stop bull fighting from Spain, one of the few things he was unsuccessful in. He died on May 1, 1572 and was canonized by Pope Clement XI in 1712. Since he was a Dominican, he frequently kept using the white cassock or habit that Dominicans used, and the custom remained that successive Popes kept using white, possibly to beat the summer Roman heat. And that is why the Popes still uses white as the color of his cassock. And the first thing Pope Francis did when he was elected Pope in 2013 was to visit Santa Maria Maggiore and pay tribute to the tomb of Pope St Pius V.

The capital city of Malta, Valletta.

In Malta, we owe it to Pope Pius V who helped build the capital city of Valletta, starting in 1570. He even sent his own Vatican architect Franceso Lapparelli, to help design the peninsula which was to become the capital city, surrounded by bastions built by the Knights of Malta.

St Catherine of Siena

St. Catherine of Siena was born during the outbreak of the plague in Siena, Italy on March 25, 1347. She was the 25th child born to her mother, although half of her brothers and sisters did not survive childhood. Catherine herself was a twin, but her sister did not survive infancy. Her mother was 40 when she was born. Her father was a cloth dyer. As a child, prayer was her delight. When only seven years old, she made a vow of virginity and afterwards endured bitter persecution for refusing to marry. At the age of fifteen, she entered the Third Order of Saint Dominic, but continued to reside in her father’s shop, where she united a life of active charity with the prayer of a contemplative saint. From this obscure home, the seraphic virgin was summoned to defend the Church’s cause. Armed with papal authority, and accompanied by three confessors, she traveled through Italy, reducing rebellious cities to the obedience of the Holy See and winning hardened souls to God. She sought out Pope Gregory XI at Avignon, brought him back to Rome, and by her letters to the kings and queens of Europe made good the papal cause. She was the counselor of Pope Urban VI, and sternly rebuked the disloyal cardinals who had a part in electing an anti-pope. Day and night she wept and prayed for unity and peace. But the devil excited the Roman people against the Pope so that some sought the life of Christ’s Vicar. Her prayers helped bring some semblance of peace. She also established a monastery for women in 1377 outside of Siena. She is credited with composing over 400 letters, her Dialogue, which is her definitive work, and her prayers. These works are so influential that St. Catherine would later be declared a Doctor of the Church. By 1380, the 33-year-old mystic had become ill, possibly because of her habit of extreme fasting. In January of 1380, her illness accelerated her inability to eat and drink. Within weeks, she was unable to use her legs. She died on April 29, aged 33, following a stroke just a week prior. St. Catherine is the patroness against fire, illness, Italy, miscarriages, and people ridiculed for their faith, and nurses.

Saint Gianna Beretta Molla

I would say the 5 most popular Italian saints are St Francis of Assisi, St Pio of Pietrelcina, St Anthony, St Maria Goretti and St Gianna Beretta Molla. Today we honor this last saint canonized in 2004 after sacrificing her life for her baby daughter, Gianna Emmanuela.
Born on October 4, 1922, Gianna Beretta was the 10th of 13 children, even though only 8 of the siblings survived infancy. She grew up in Bergamo, Italy where she was very active in the Catholic Action movement. In 1942, in the midst of the chaos of World War II she started her studies in Milan and graduated as a doctor in 1949, specializing in pediatrics. She actually wanted to go to Brazil to work as a pediatrician with her brother, a missionary priest, but her health prevented her from doing this. So she worked happily as a doctor, eventually meeting her future husband Pietro Molla, whom she married in 1955. They had 3 children within 5 years, and in 1961, she was pregnant with her 4th child. During the pregnancy, she developed a fibroma in her uterus, and the doctors suggested her to have an abortion to save her life. But she continued with her pregnancy and the baby was born on April 21, 1962, Easter Saturday. Gianna made the ultimate sacrifice for her daughter, and she got weaker and weaker and died a week later, on April 28, 1962. Her daughter Gianna Emmanuela became a pediatrician herself, and was present with her father and two other siblings at her mother’s beatification in 1994. Another sister had died in 1964, 2 years after her mother.
The miracle that certified her canonization was done on a Brazilian woman Elizabetta Comparini, who in her 16th week of pregnancy, experienced a tear in her placenta, losing all the amniotic fluid. Praying to Gianna Beretta Molla, she continued with her pregnancy and gave birth to a healthy baby, defying all the negative prognosis the doctors had given her. Gianna was proclaimed a Saint by Pope St John Paul II on May 16, 2004, with her husband and three children present. She has since became the patron for pro-life and for pregnant women, and a great statement against abortion.

On the job

The Gospel of St Matthew (Ch 25:35-36) tells us ‘I was hungry...you gave me food. I was thirsty...you gave me a drink. I was a stranger....you welcomed me. I was naked....you clothed me. I was sick....you visited me. I was in prison....you came to see me.’ The workplace offers many opportunities to live out this precious Gospel passage. Think of these people.... 

The waitress who offers a cheery hello to each customer, brightening their day.
The police officer who assists a battered woman or child, leading them to a safe shelter and counseling services.
The nurse who not only tends to the physical needs of his or her patients, but also turns each professional stop into a ‘visit.’
The social worker who helps mend the broken bonds of a divided family.
The writer concerned with such issues as social justice, truth, equality.
The fundraiser who solicits for worthwhile charities.
The janitor whose work adds a sense of dignity to an otherwise drab office or building.
The customer service representative who listens to dissatisfied customers and tries to rectify problems.
The priest who visits residents in a nursing home to bring them communion, a sense of calmness and joy as they continue to worry when life can return to normal and see their loved ones again.
The doctors, nurses, and paramedics who are doing their utmost to keep the number of victims of the coronavirus to a minimum.

A visit from Jesus

'Emmaus' marble sculpture at Lourdes by Maria de Faykod 

As we read the beautiful story of the meeting of Jesus with the disciples at Emmaus, let us imagine that He is also showing up at our homes....I share this reflection which I shared in my homily this weekend.

What if Jesus came to your house today? What would you do if there is a knock on the door, and when you open, you find Jesus in person, asking if He could spend a day or two with you? I’m sure you would give Him the best room in your house, cook the best meal for Him, and take Him around your village. And tell Him how proud you are that He came to visit you. But honestly, when you saw Him at the door, were you ready to open your arms and welcome him in, or would you have to tell Him to excuse you while you go and change your clothes? Would you go and hide your magazines and put the Bible in their place? Maybe you’ll turn off the radio, or switch the TV channel, and hide the screen of your computer? And maybe you were embarrassed to have spoken that harsh word to your brother or sister or parents?

Would you hide those CDs you listen to and replace them with some sacred hymns? Would you go about hiding the pictures you have hanging in your rooms and instead hang a crucifix quickly and a painting of the Madonna, if you have one? Yes, it’s good to reflect for a while to see if you would keep on doing the things you always did. Or say the same words and expressions you are so used to saying. Maybe start saying table grace, if you’ve never bothered to say it before. Would you take Jesus where you were planning to go, or maybe you’ll change your plans for a day or two? Would you want Him to meet your friends, or hope they won’t show up for a few days? Ask yourself in all honesty if a typical visit would make you happy and truly honored, or would you sigh with relief when at last He’s finally gone? It’s worth thinking seriously what you would do or not do if Jesus came into your life for a day or two?

Now although for some of you may find this to be a fictitious or hypothetical situation, effectively it is not.  Because Jesus is really in our midst every day we live. And contrary to what happened to the two disciples, I hope we can recognize Him right away.

Remembering my mother

With my mother in 2006

It was 10 years ago today that my mother Mary passed away into eternal life, one day short of her 81st birthday. We knew she was nearing the end, and so I had decided to spend the last month and a half here with my family. Her last night was very restless, as she kept talking to my sister, feeling very agitated. By 6:30AM I anointed her and as I prayed my Breviary next to her, and she slipped away peacefully and quietly. She outlived my father by 8 years, but little did she know that merely 8 months later, my brother Paul will follow her so unexpectedly and so suddenly. We all have great memories of our mother as she molded in each of her children a sense of duty, spirituality, proprietness, cleanliness, diligence, creativity, self-respect, foresight and love for the simple things in life. 

My parents' wedding day July 24, 1948.

She never had a job by today’s standards, but she worked 24 hours a day, all her life, providing for us, with our father, everything we ever needed. She and my father were inseparable and enjoyed 54 years of a happy marriage, surrounded and respected by 5 hard-working children, two grandsons, now both of them doctors, many admiring relatives, and plenty of faithful friends. A few days before she died I gave her to read a biography I did of my childhood, just to show her what great influence she and my father had on me and my vocation. Rest in peace, dear mother, until we meet again.

A new earth

Mt Everest and the Himalayas, seen from India for the first time in 30 years.

As people across the globe stay home to stop the spread of the new coronavirus, the air has cleaned up, albeit temporarily. Smog stopped choking New Delhi, one of the most polluted cities in the world, and India’s getting views of sights not visible in decades. Nitrogen dioxide pollution in the northeastern United States is down 30%. Rome's air pollution levels from mid-March to mid-April were down 49% from a year ago. Stars seem more visible at night.
An unplanned grand experiment is changing our planet. People are also noticing animals in places and at times they don't usually. Coyotes have meandered along downtown Chicago’s Michigan Avenue and near San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge. A puma roamed the streets of Santiago, Chile. Goats took over a town in Wales. In India, already daring wildlife has become bolder with hungry monkeys entering homes and opening refrigerators to look for food. Kangaroos are hopping around the streets of Australia. When people stay home, Earth becomes cleaner and wilder.
“It is giving us this quite extraordinary insight into just how much of a mess we humans are making of our beautiful planet,” says conservation scientist Stuart Pimm of Duke University. “This is giving us an opportunity to magically see how much better it can be.” Researchers are tracking dramatic drops in traditional air pollutants, such as nitrogen dioxide, smog, and tiny particles, all of which kill up to 7 million people a year worldwide.
The air from Boston to Washington is its cleanest since a NASA satellite started measuring nitrogen dioxide, in 2005. Compared to the previous five years, March air pollution is down 46% in Paris, 35% in Bengaluru, India, 38% in Sydney, 29% in Los Angeles, 26% in Rio de Janeiro and 9% in Durban. Cleaner air has been most noticeable in India and China. On April 3, residents of Jalandhar, a city in north India’s Punjab, woke up to a view not seen for decades: snow-capped Himalayan peaks more than 100 miles away. Cleaner air means stronger lungs for asthmatics, especially children. We’re not being invaded. The wildlife has always been there, but many animals are shy - they come out when humans stay home. Let’s hope it stays like this, without the virus!

Mass from my chapel

Since so many people cannot attend any Masses in their churches, I would like to invite you to follow my Mass on Saturday at 5 PM (Malta Time) through a Facebook page of our Retirement Home. For those who have a Facebook account, it should be easy to log on ‘Simblija Care Home’ FB page and scroll down until you find the Mass being transmitted LIVE. I will celebrate the Mass in English for the benefit of my friends in the USA, and all those who cannot understand Maltese. In New York, the time will be at 11 AM Saturday morning, while in Oregon it will be at 8 AM, also on Saturday morning. As long as restrictions for church attendance prevails because of the coronavirus, the Mass will be transmitted LIVE every Saturday at the same time. To follow the directions of our bishops and the Health Department, there will not be any people in the chapel, but many of our residents can follow it through closed-circuit TV in their individual rooms. You are welcome to share this news with your friends, as this will give you another option to follow the weekend Mass from your homes. This link that will take you to the Simblija Care Home Facebook page is here.

https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=simblija%20care%20home&epa=SEARCH_BOX

Refusing an abortion

Frontpage of 'Parade' magazine when her baby was born.

Bree Walker, a Los Angeles based CBS television anchorwoman, was born with a deformity called electrodactylism. Her hands and feet did not develop in the usual manner. When she herself became pregnant, a pre-natal test showed her child-to-be had the same condition. She was asked about an abortion, but refused. After giving birth to her daughter, she wrote to her and said the contemporary worship of physical perfection is a waste of love. “To your dad and me, your family and your friends, you were beautiful and perfect from the first moment we saw you. Physical perfection is a term that describes the human shell, not a human soul. What matters is what God sees on the inside: how we treat others, the spirit in which we work and play, our attitude towards facing life’s challenges....”

Courage and Conscience

Martin Luther King once wrote: “Courage is an inner resolution to go forward despite obstacles; cowardice is submissive surrender to circumstances. Courage breeds creative self-affirmation; cowardice produces destructive self-abnegation. Courage faces fear and masters it; cowardice represses fear and is mastered by it. Cowardice asks the question, is it safe? Expediency asks the question, is it political? Vanity asks the question, is it popular? But conscience asks the question, is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor political, nor popular, but one must take it because it is right.”

A message for my child

I can give you life, but I can’t live it for you.
I can give you instructions, but I can’t tell you where to go.
I can give you liberty, but I can’t help you protect it.
I can teach you the difference between good and bad, but I can’t make the decision for you.
I can give you advice, but I can’t accept it for you.
I can give you love, but I can’t force you to receive it.
I can teach you to share, but I can’t stop you from being selfish.
I can teach you respect, but I can’t make you be respected.
I can counsel you about your friends, but I can’t choose them for you.
I can teach you everything you need to know about sex, but I can’t make you act responsibly.
I can talk to you about drinking, but I can’t say ‘no’ or ‘just one’ for you.
I can warn you about drugs, but I can’t stop you from using them.
I can talk to you about having important goals, but I can’t achieve them for you.
I can teach you about charity, but I can’t make you be generous.
I can pray for you, but I can’t make you walk with God.
I can talk to you about how to live, but I can’t give you eternal life.

10 years ago

It was exactly 10 years ago that Pope Benedict XVI was visiting Malta. I happened to be in Malta because my mother was ending her life here on earth, and in fact, she passed away a week later. I was able to concelebrate with Pope Benedict at Floriana in an open-air Mass filled with thousands of people, including close to 800 priests. Obviously, I had my camera with me, and even though I was told afterwards that priests were told not to carry cameras or cell-phones with them, I took close to 220 photos that day, including some that I share with you today. I had chosen a strategic seat where I could see the Pope in his presidential chair, and so I took quite a few good photos, including the best one seen here at the top, as he is walking towards the altar. It was used a few times in the front page of a few local newspapers. 

Being an amateur photographer, I think this was a one-in-a-million shots that captured the personality of Pope Benedict. Incidentally, this past week he broke a record of being the longest-living Pope in history. Before him, it was Pope Leo XIII who had the record of 93 years, but now Benedict claims that record. Maybe it’s the beer that he drinks occasionally, or the piano-playing that he enjoys, which keeps him going, as a retired Pope, also known as Pope Emeritus. Ad Multos Annos!

Living through our golden years (part 2)

Consider the following and ponder these points as you grow into your senior and golden years.
- Today is the oldest you’ve ever been, yet the youngest you’ll ever be. So, enjoy this day while it lasts.
~Your kids are becoming you.......
~Going out is good.... Coming home is better!
~You forget names.... But it's OK because other people forgot they even knew you!!!
~You realize you're never going to be really good at anything.
~The things you used to care to do, you no longer care to do, but you really do care that you don't care to do them anymore.
~You sleep better on a lounge chair with the TV blaring than in bed. It's called "pre-sleep".
~You miss the days when everything worked with just an "ON" and "OFF" switch..
~You tend to use more 4 letter words ... "what?"..."when?"... "what?" . ???
~Now that you can afford expensive jewelry, it's not safe to wear it anywhere.
~You notice everything they sell in stores is "sleeveless"!!!
~Everybody whispers.
~You have 3 sizes of clothes in your closet.... 2 of which you will never wear.
~But Old is good in some things: Old Songs, Old movies, and best of all, OLD FRIENDS!!
"Life" is a gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one. Live it well! Enjoy today! Do something fun! Be happy! Have a great day!

It's Not What You Gather, But What You Scatter That Tells What Kind Of Life You Have Lived.

REMEMBER:.... It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.

Living through our golden years (part 1)

You know. . . time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the passing years. It seems just yesterday that I was young, embarking on my new life with my spouse or leading a solitary life as a nun, a priest, a monk. Yet in a way, it seems like eons ago, and I wonder where all the years went. I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams. But, here it is... the winter of my life and it catches me by surprise...How did I get here so fast? Where did the years go and where did my youth go? I remember well seeing older people through the years and thinking that those older people were years away from me and that winter was so far off that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like.

But, here it is...my friends are retired and getting grey...they move slower and I see an older person now. Some are in better and some worse shape than me...but, I see the great change....Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant...but, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks that we used to see and never thought we'd be.
Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day! And taking a nap is not a treat anymore... it's mandatory! Because if I don't on my own free will... I just fall asleep where I sit! And so...now I enter into this new season of my life unprepared for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability to go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!
But, at least I know, that though the winter has come, and I'm not sure how long it will last...this I know, that when it's over on this earth...it's NOT over. A new adventure will begin! Yes, I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn't done...things I should have done, but indeed, there are many things I'm happy to have done. It's all in a lifetime.
So, if you're not in your winter yet...let me remind you, that it will be here faster than you think. So, whatever you would like to accomplish in your life please do it quickly! Don't put things off too long! Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today, as you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not! You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life...so, live for today and say all the things that you want your loved ones to remember...and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things that you have done for them in all the years past! (to be continued tomorrow.)

Do Re Mi - Version April 2020

I am sure you will enjoy this YouTube video as much as I enjoyed it myself. Very cleverly done by some people, who like many others have a lot of free time to be creative, innovative, intuitive and artistically observant.
Just click on this link and enjoy, reflect and follow the instruction that Julie Andrews and the 7 Von Trapp children share with us today. Do Re Mi - it's really up to me!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMBh-eo3tvE&feature=share&fbclid=IwAR10dT9LZnQKK6h1x7t5qsnIp76EUID00-Gw1HFZc4gL9Gz0_KTywL5yJ5Y

Let’s start a revival!

‘Twas late in 2019 when the virus began

Bringing chaos and fear to all people, each land.

People were sick, hospitals full,

Doctors overwhelmed, no one in school.

As winter gave way to the promise of spring,

The virus raged on, touching peasant and king.

People hid in their homes from the enemy unseen.

They YouTubed and Zoomed, social-distanced, and cleaned.

April approached and churches were closed.

“There won’t be an Easter,” the world supposed.

“There won’t be church services, and egg hunts are out.

No reason for new dresses when we can’t go about.”

Holy Week started, as bleak as the rest.

The world was focused on masks and on tests.

“Easter can’t happen this year,” it proclaimed.

“Online and at home, it just won’t be the same.”

Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, the days came and went.

The virus pressed on; it just would not relent.

The world woke Sunday and nothing had changed.

The virus still menaced, the people, estranged.

“Pooh pooh to the saints,” the world was grumbling.

“They’re finding out now that no Easter is coming.

“They’re just waking up! We know just what they’ll do!

Their mouths will hang open a minute or two,

And then all the saints will all cry boo-hoo.

“That noise,” said the world, “will be something to hear.”

So it paused and the world put a hand to its ear.

And it did hear a sound coming through all the skies.

It started down low, then it started to rise.

But the sound wasn’t depressed. Why, this sound was triumphant!

It couldn’t be so! But it grew with abundance!

The world stared around, popping its eyes.

Then it shook! What it saw was a shocking surprise!

Every saint in every nation, the tall and the small,

Was celebrating Jesus in spite of it all!

It hadn’t stopped Easter from coming! It came!

Somehow or other, it came just the same!

And the world with its life quite stuck in quarantine

Stood puzzling and puzzling. “Just how can it be?”

“It came without bonnets, it came without bunnies,

It came without egg hunts, cantatas, or money.”

Then the world thought of something it hadn’t before.

“Maybe Easter,” it thought, “doesn’t come from a store.

Maybe Easter, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

And what happened then? Well....the story’s not done.

What will YOU do? Will you share with that one

Or two or more people needing hope in this night?

Will you share the source of your life in this fight?

The churches are empty - but so is the tomb,

And Jesus is victor over death, doom, and gloom.

So this year at Easter, let this be our prayer,

As the virus still rages all around, everywhere.

May the world see hope when it looks at God’s people.

May the world see the church is not a building or steeple.

May the world find Faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection,

May the world find Joy in a time of dejection.

May 2020 be known as the year of survival,

But not only that - Let it start a revival!

St Rosalia

"St. Rosalia" by Anthony Van Dyck

“Saint Rosalia Interceding for the Plague-stricken of Palermo,” by Anthony van Dyck, made during the artist’s time in quarantine, is itself quarantined, in its assigned place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The commemoration of the museum’s 150th birthday, due to have opened a few weeks ago, has been postponed because of the coronavirus. It’s springtime, the year is 1624, and the 25-year-old Anthony van Dyck is sailing south, to Sicily, where he has been invited to paint the island’s Spanish viceroy. Van Dyck is establishing his international career as a portraitist to the rich and famous, and he has already had some success in Genoa, London and his hometown, Antwerp. Now, in Palermo, he feels on the cusp of a breakthrough. He gets the portrait done that spring, but then: disaster. On May 7, 1624, Palermo reports the first cases of a plague that will soon kill more than 10,000, some 10 percent of the city’s population. On June 25, the viceroy whom van Dyck painted declares a state of emergency; five weeks later, he’s dead. Quarantined in a foreign city, the young Fleming watches in horror as the port closes, the city gates slam shut, the hospital overflows, the afflicted groan in the street.

St Rosalia complete with its frame at the Met in New York.

As the emergency wears on, a gang of Franciscans starts digging up the earth on a hill facing the harbor. In a cave they unearth a pile of bones, which, the archbishop’s commission determines, belongs to Saint Rosalia, a noblewoman of centuries past. Rosalia’s relics are paraded through the city as the epidemic abates, and the grateful citizens worship her as the santuzza, the “little saint,” who saved the city. Rosalia is proclaimed, and remains today, the patron saint of Palermo. Van Dyck — meeting the new demand, and not a little grateful himself — takes a half-finished self-portrait, slathers it with primer and paints the new protectress, floating gloriously over the illness-ravaged port town. Painted almost 400 years ago and now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, it is one of five surviving pictures of St. Rosalia made during van Dyck’s days in quarantine. It was, in fact, one of the Met’s very first acquisitions, bought a year after the museum’s founding in 1870. Now, of course, Rosalia is quarantined herself as the coronavirus pandemic intensifies. The Met does not expect to open before July. 

The Golden Rule

We promote a climate of peace by obeying the Golden Rule. It appears in different forms, but the message is essentially the same everywhere.
Buddhism: Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful (Udana-Varga 5,18)
Confucianism: Is there one maxim which ought to be acted upon throughout one’s whole life? Surely it is the maxim of loving-kindness. Do not unto others what you would not have them do unto you (Analects 15, 23)
Hinduism: This is the sum of duty: do naught unto others which would cause you pain if done to you (Mahabharata 5, 1517)
Taoism: Regard your neighbor’s gain as your own, and your neighbor’s loss as your own loss (Tai Shang Kan Ying P’ien)
Islam: No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself (Sunnah)
Judaism: What is hateful to you, do not to your fellow man (Talmud, Shabbat 3id)
Christianity: All things whatsoever you would that man should do to you, do you so to them (Matthew 7:12)

He is Risen – Alleluia

Resurrection by Perugino

The Resurrection of Jesus is another proof that God is truly present in our midst and can bring so much good out of evil. His resurrection from the dead is a clear evidence of this. But there are other proofs.

The Risen Christ can inspire a life of prayer to whoever is looking for a new direction in life.

The Risen Christ can give patience to whoever is always nervous and anxious about the future.

The Risen Christ can bring joy to those who have somehow forgot how to smile.

The Risen Christ gives a beautiful baby to that woman who a few days earlier was premeditating an abortion.

The Risen Christ can enlighten those who were living in darkness.

The Risen Christ instils hopeful promise to that couple who were thinking of separating.

The Risen Christ brings hope to those on the verge of desperation.

The Risen Christ can bring peace in a world tormented by violence and oppression, conflicts and wars.

The Risen Christ can plant a seed of Love and Reconciliation in the heart of those planning revenge and retaliation.

The Risen Christ brings a sense of optimism in a world tortured by pessimism.

We hope and pray that the Risen Christ will bring healing to a world tormented by an invisible virus, only if we can make Him more visible in our lives and with our actions.

A Blessed Easter to all visitors of this blog.

Good Friday reflections

These are some comments from Fr Raniero Cantalamessa’s homily on Good Friday at St Peter’s Basilica yesterday:
The cross of Christ has changed the meaning of pain and human suffering—of every kind of suffering, physical and moral. It is no longer punishment, a curse. It was redeemed at its root when the Son of God took it upon himself. What is the surest proof that the drink someone offers you is not poisoned? It is if that person drinks from the same cup before you do. This is what God has done: on the cross he drank, in front of the whole world, the cup of pain down to its dregs. This is how he showed us it is not poisoned, but that there is a pearl at the bottom of it. Thanks to the cross of Christ, suffering has also become in its own way a kind of “universal sacrament of salvation” for the human race.
The pandemic of Coronavirus has abruptly roused us from the greatest danger individuals and humanity have always been susceptible to: the delusion of omnipotence. It took merely the smallest and most formless element of nature, a virus, to remind us that we are mortal, that military power and technology are not sufficient to save us.
The one who cried one day for Lazarus' death cries today for the scourge that has fallen on humanity. Yes, God "suffers", like every father and every mother. When we will find out this one day, we will be ashamed of all the accusations we made against him in life. God participates in our pain to overcome it. Did God the Father possibly desire the death of his Son in order to draw good out of it? No, he simply permitted human freedom to take its course, making it serve, however, his own purposes and not those of human beings. This is also the case for natural disasters like earthquakes and plagues. He does not bring them about. He has given nature a kind of freedom as well, qualitatively different of course than that of human beings, but still a form of freedom—freedom to evolve according to its own laws of development.

Another positive fruit of the present health crisis is the feeling of solidarity. When, in the memory of humanity, have the people of all nations ever felt themselves so united, so equal, so less in conflict than at this moment of pain? We have forgotten about building walls. The virus knows no borders. In an instant it has broken down all the barriers and distinctions of race, nation, religion, wealth, and power. We should not revert to that prior time when this moment has passed. As the Holy Father has exhorted us, we should not waste this opportunity. Let us not allow so much pain, so many deaths, and so much heroic engagement on the part of health workers to have been in vain.
This is the moment to put into practice something of the prophecy of Isaiah whose fulfillment humanity has long been waiting for. Let us say “Enough!” to the tragic race toward arms. Say it with all your might, you young people, because it is above all your destiny that is at stake. Let us devote the unlimited resources committed to weapons to the goals that we now realize are most necessary and urgent: health, hygiene, food, the fight against poverty, stewardship of creation. Let us leave to the next generation a world poorer in goods and money, if need be, but richer in its humanity.
When the Israelites were bitten by poisonous serpents in the desert, God commanded Moses to lift up a serpent of bronze on a pole, and whoever looked at it would not die. We too at this moment have been bitten by an invisible, poisonous “serpent.” Let us gaze upon the one who was “lifted up” for us on the cross. Let us adore him on behalf of ourselves and of the whole human race. We too, after these days that we hope will be short, shall rise and come out of the tombs of our homes. Not however to return to the former life like Lazarus, but to a new life, like Jesus. A more fraternal, more human, more Christian life!

Good Friday statues

'Ecce Homo' at Zejtun parish church (Behold the Man)

As we commemorate today the passion and death of Our Lord Jesus Christ, it will be fitting to display a few of the statues that are usually carried in procession in various parishes in Malta. These photos were taken over the past 3 years. Around 20 parishes hold these processions with an average of 12 statues in each of them, besides many Biblical characters, Roman soldiers and other passion-related symbolisms.
We adore you o Christ and we praise you, because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.

'Ecce Homo' from Għaxaq parish procession

Crucifixion from Mosta parish procession

Holy Thursday memories

A very special day today for all the priests as they celebrate the institution of the Eucharist and the Priesthood – with a big difference this year as none of the customary decorations and celebrations will be held. Today the Chrism Mass is usually celebrated by the Bishop, surrounded by all of his priests, which will also be eliminated today from the celebration at the Cathedral. The many parish churches and chapels pride themselves today with decorating their Altar of Repose with flowers, candles, angels and other symbols of the Eucharist.

I share with you three of these Altars from last year, as thousands of people are used to visit these chapels and churches to pray the traditional 7 visits to 7 churches, a custom started by St Philip Neri in Rome, when he visited the 7 basilicas of Rome with his oratory students. Then there is the foot-washing ceremony held at each Mass, a re-enactment of which I held also for our children in my former parishes, as seen in the last photo in today’s post. Let us pray that the lack of our traditional celebrations will bring a strong yearning in people’s minds and hearts to return back to their churches with more fervor, as soon as our lives return to normal, hopefully soon.

The foot-washing ceremony for children at St. Francis, Bend, OR.

Holy Week Recollections

A miniature procession of Good Friday

Sharing some more recollections from the Holy Week celebrations from the past 4 years in Malta. These scenes show a typical miniature procession with small hand-made figurines displaying the entire procession of Good Friday. There are also scenes from an exhibition of crosses and crucifixes, as well as a typical baroque parish church dressed up in black tapestry during Lent. The last photo shows a miniature church, complete with a set of statues, main altar, and side-altars, including paintings, candlesticks, etc. Tomorrow we'll focus on Holy Thursday, especially the Altars of Repose, the pride and joy of many churches, which unfortunately will not be set up this year.

Scenes from Holy Week

Sharing more images from past Holy Week celebrations around Malta. Included in this post are a sacred choral concert in Naxxar parish, held last year during Holy Week. Also included are decorations done in front of one of the Band Clubs which usually play a series of funeral marches during the Good Friday procession, Lastly one can see a silhouette of the Crucifixion statue from the Mosta parish procession held 2 years ago. Sadly, none of these scenes will be visible this year, but thanks to my large collection of photos, I gladly share them with you, creating a little bit of nostalgia, and special holy memories. More tomorrow.

Holy Week exhibits

This week I will share with you some of the Holy Week exhibits that were displayed over the last few years in Malta. Obviously this year, none of these artistic and intricately-crafted displays will be on show, but here are a few of them for your enjoyment. Many of these were done using rice, pasta, colored salt, beans, semolina, and other unusual edible ingredients.

It’s important to note that most of the food used, is later on distributed to orphanages. Other images show the miniature statues of the Good Friday processions, all of which are also cancelled for this unfortunate year.

Hosanna to our King

As we celebrate Palm Sunday today, we honor Jesus as he is welcomed into Jerusalem before his passion and death. This was the Palestinians' way of giving a ticker-tape parade to their hero whom they have listened to, followed and saw performing many miracles among them. Many of those people healed by Him were there waving palm branches and laying down their cloaks on the road. Others were still suspicious of him and soon will shout "crucify Him!" or "release Barabbas!" This day is rich with symbolism, and besides the donkeys that I shared with you yesterday, parishioners look forward to having a piece of a palm or olive branch to hang next to a crucifix at their homes. Palm branches are popular in the USA and other tropical countries, but many other countries do not have any palms. In Malta as well as in Italy, we use olive branches instead, although someone like the Pope gets a decorative cross made from palms to carry. The Greek Orthodox, on the other hand, use pussy willow instead of palms or olive branches. As we enter Holy Week, may we find time to focus on the spiritual meaning of these holy days, and reflect on the mysteries of the Eucharist and the Priesthood on Holy Thursday, the Passion and Death of Christ on Good Friday, and ultimately the glorious Resurrection of Jesus on Easter.

Donkeys for Palm Sunday

Kelsea and Makenna Bomke leading the donkeys at Bend parish.

As we celebrate Palm Sunday tomorrow, I recollect the various parishes over the past 17 years when I was able to have a donkey lead our Palm Sunday procession towards the churches I served. It was a special treat I always included in the palms blessing which the people could relate to, especially our children. In John Day, my first Oregon parish, I had noticed a donkey tethered to a tree, and asked the owner if we could use him.

Danielle McCauley preparing to lead the donkey at Baker City Cathedral.

In Baker City, I noticed two small burros and both of them took part in our procession, until one of them passed away, and used only the surviving one for the remaining years I was there (for 8 years.) In Bend, I again found two burros and they were led by two sisters who took personal pride in leading them towards the church, followed by hundreds of parishioners.

Joe Bellinger and other servers help me at John Day parish, Oregon.

As I expected, when I left each parish, no donkeys were used for the successive Palm Sunday services. And unfortunately, this year there won't even be people to participate. But services will be held with just the celebrant and maybe an assistant while people can follow on TV or through web-cams that are becoming more popular.

Our Lady of Sorrows

Michelangelo's Pieta, the Sorrowful Mother with the dead Jesus

O most holy and afflicted Virgin! Queen of Martyrs! you who did stand motionless beneath the Cross, witnessing the agony of Your dying Son - through the unceasing sufferings of your life of sorrow, and the bliss which now more than repays you for your past trials, look down with a mother's tenderness and pity on us, who kneel before you to venerate your sorrows, and place our requests, with filial confidence, in the sanctuary of your wounded heart. Present them, I beg you, on our behalf, to Jesus Christ, through the merits of His own most sacred death and passion, together with your sufferings at the foot of the cross, and obtain our present petition. To whom shall we resort in our wants and miseries if not to you, O Mother of Mercy, who, having so deeply drunk of the chalice of your Son? Offer for us to our Savior one drop of the Blood which flowed from His sacred veins, one of the tears which trickled from His divine eyes, one of the sighs which rent His adorable Heart. O refuge of the universe and hope of the whole world, do not reject our humble prayer, but graciously obtain our petition.
The celebration of Our Lady of Sorrows is being celebrated in private today as no processions or extra Masses in factories and offices will be held. However, most of the population will follow Masses on TV and social media and implore the Sorrowful Mother to intercede for us at the present moment of incredible suffering and anxiety so many people are experiencing. May Mary protect all doctors, nurses and hospital workers, as they help the thousands of patients, and may we soon see an end to this life-threatening virus.

The power of the Rosary

In November 1884, in the town of Gren in England, the mansion belonging to Mrs. Keges was burnt. When the police discovered her body, they found out that before the arson, she was beaten with a hammer by the criminals who stole many artifacts from her house, and then wanted to hide the crime. A young man named Lee who worked as one of her servants was arrested as the main suspect. When they arrested him, they found a hammer in his pocket as well as Rosary beads. He begged them not to take them away from him. He claimed he was innocent but the jury’s verdict condemned him to death. Lee kept praying the Rosary daily and begged the Blessed Mother to intercede for him. When the day of execution arrived, Lee was taken to the guillotine, and after the priest blessed him, his head was placed just below the sharp blade, but the mechanism malfunctioned. They brought him back a week later, and a spring in the mechanism also broke. A week later the same thing happened, and he was saved for the third time. The Queen suddenly intervened and demanded that instead of death, Lee would be given life imprisonment. But at the same time, another man appeared in the scene and confessed that he was the murderer. Lee was set free and thanked the blessed Mother for saving his life. The Queen of the Rosary proved to be Lee’s salvation. Let us remember to pray this special prayer daily. Tomorrow we beg our Blessed Mother as a Sorrowful Mother to intervene for the world 

and protect us from more fatalities.

Prayer to God

Let’s bow our heads and pray:
Eternal Father, you made the whole world stop spinning for a while.
You silenced the noise that we all have created.
You made us bend our knees again and ask for a miracle.
You closed your churches so we will realize how dark our world is without you in it.
You humble the proud and powerful.
The economy is crashing, and businesses are closing. 

Thousands of people are dying, alone.

Doctors and nurses are exhausted doing their best to save lives.

We took You for granted over the years.
We apologize for being too proud and appeared invincible.
We thought that everything we have and possess was the result of our own hard work.
We have forgotten that it was always your Grace and Mercy that made us who we are.
We run in circles looking to cure this disease, when it takes humility to ask for your wisdom.
We’ve been living our lives like we will be here on earth forever, like there’s no Heaven.
Maybe these trials are your mercy in disguise.
Maybe this virus is your way of purifying us—cleansing our souls and bringing us back to you.
In the past you serenaded us with Hosea’s song:
“Come back to me with all your heart. Don't let fear keep us apart.”
You have been patiently waiting for us.
We’re so sorry for ignoring your voice . . . for our selfish ways.
Maybe we all deserve this, because we have forgotten you, Dear Father.
We’ve forgotten that you are God!
You only need to say the words, and our souls shall be healed.