God is With Us: But, Are We Listening?

Looking at the insurmountable pain and sufferings that weighs down humanity all over the world, sometimes it is hard to understand that He is Emmanuel- God is with us. For a long time in my life I was a believer of the indifferent god - the one who merely watches everything from the sidelines. If God is with us here, then why can't he say something when I am in trouble, in pain, in despair? I read Diane McKelva's post Fear Not: Angels We have Heard on High about how a mysterious woman warned her about what lies ahead and how to react to it. I also thought about a similar experience my father had while he was going through cancer treatment, and though those mysterious voices didn't immediately solve their problems, it did help them persevere and eventually succeed. 

Mother of Christ

The word "Christ" is the English transliteration of the Greek word"Khristos", and it has the same meaning as the word "Messiah" which came from the Hebrew word "Mashíach". Both words essentially mean the "the anointed one" or "the chosen one". The Jews were expecting the coming of "the anointed one" who would deliver them from the oppressions of all their enemies and establish an earthly kingdom, based on many prophesies found in the Old Testaments. Collectively, these prophecies were referred to as Messianic prophecies. The prophesies for coming of the Messiah was fulfilled in Jesus. Jesus is called "Jesus Christ" because He is the one chosen by God and anointed by Him to save His people. Mary, being the mother of Jesus, thus also known as Mother of Christ.

Holy Virgin of Virgins

One of the well known and most revered titles of Our Lady is the Virgin. She is the Virgin Mother - a true paradox and a logical impossibility that prompted the teenage peasant girl from Palestine to ask, "How can this be, since I know not man?". At Annunciation, the angel replied "The Holy Spirit will come upon you". Her fiancé, Joseph, had the same doubt and was thinking about secretly leaving her. But an angel told him in a dream, "That which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit". So today people all over the world lovingly call Mary - the Virgin Mother. And every time she is called the Virgin, people are praising God for the magnificent gift He bestowed upon humanity - His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. 

Causing Scandal

Saint Martin of Tours was born in the fourth century to pagan parents in Sabaria, comprising parts of modern day Yugoslavia and Hungary. His father was an officer in the Roman army. His family moved to Pavia in Italy when he was still a child. And there the boy first learned of Christianity, felt drawn to it, and became a catechumen. Afraid of the reaction from his parents and also of the largely pagan community, Martin kept his love of Christ hidden. Following his dad's footsteps, young Martin joined the Roman army at the age of fifteen. He was stationed in Gaul during a winter season. One day while riding into the city, he noticed a beggar near the city gates. The poor man was shivering with cold and had turned almost blue. Martin had no money to give him, but had a very heavy woolen cloak to keep himself warm. So he divided the cloak in two pieces, gave one half to the beggar, and barely wrapped himself with the other half. This kind act by the young man immediately caused a big scandal among his peers and the town folks. They realized Martin was a Christian.

Holy Mother of God

Christians believe that God is the creator of all, and that He has no beginning or end. So, in that sense, calling Mary the Mother of God is confusing. We can understand this salutation better by looking the Greek word for Mother of God, Theotokos. Literally speaking Theotokos means "God-bearer". So, Mother of God is not intended to be understood as referring to Mary as the Mother of God from eternity, but she is the Mother of God Incarnate. Mary carried Jesus in her womb and attributed towards His genetic makeup. That makes Mary, without any doubt, the mother of Jesus. Since Jesus is God Himself, calling Mary as the Mother of God should also make sense. Unfortunately though, many of the Protestant Christian denominations refuse to accept Mary as the Mother of God. And this has nothing to do with Mary, but everything has to do with the nature of Jesus.

The Holy Name of Mary

The Litany of Blessed Virgin Mary, as we know it today, was first prayed at the Shrine of Our Lady of Loreto in Italy, where its usage was recorded as early as 1558. At the time, there were also many other litanies in existence throughout the world. In 1587, Pope Sixtus V approved the Litany of Loreto for the faithful use by the Church and suppressed all the other Marian litanies. The Litany of Loreto contains many titles used formally and informally for Mary, and it set before us Mary's exalted privileges, her holiness of life, her amiability and power, her motherly spirit and queenly majesty. I hardly ever paid any attention to any of these titles in the Litany while praying the Rosary, and often mumbled "Pray for us" without ever thinking who is it that actually praying for us. So it is certainly a good idea to examine each one of these titles to learn and meditate more about its origins, their relationship to the Scriptures, and more importantly, how it is connected to Jesus and points us to the kingdom of God.

Power of Prayer - A Testimony

A few weeks ago, as I was getting ready to attend a retreat led by a very gifted priest, I sent out a message on my Facebook account asking friends to make their prayer requests so that I could pray for them. Given I do not have many friends on Facebook, I was still saddened by the response I got for my request - I received three requests. Now, I know for sure that most of my Facebook friends are catholics or at least Christians, and I also believe that they all strive to maintain some kind of relationship with the Living Christ. I don't think I received only three prayer requests because the rest of my friends were living a life with perfect health, satisfying careers, and soothing relationships. It is just that they couldn't bring themselves up to asking God for some of their pressing needs. As I look back at my own life, I can't blame any of them for not approaching God with a prayer request. It took more than a few miracles in my own life to convince me of the power prayer. From my past experiences, here are three main reasons for not asking God in prayer: 1. They think that there is no need to ask God. God knows everything and will give what's needed, when it is needed; 2. They don't think God cares about specific problems of each individual; he is God and has the whole universe to worry about; 3. They don't believe they have problems that couldn't be solved by themselves. 

Can Anyone be Addicted to God?

There are instances where people who were addicted to things like money, power, luxury, recognition, or pride give up on those things when the love of God touches their heart. God actually finds ingenious ways to touch the hearts of those people who are addicted to worldly things. One of the most effective way He uses is by allowing suffering to enter the lives of those whom He wishes to touch. During the times of trials and tribulations, many tend to turn to God seeking relief from the desperate situations that they are in. Once a person discerns the presence of God - the warmth of His gentle and comforting love - there is no going back. Once we realize that the life offered by God through Jesus Christ is worth more than anything we ever possessed, it is easy to trade our life, with all of its riches and relationships, for a life in Christ. But many would argue that when somebody give up their worldly pleasures for joy in Christ, all they are doing is trading one addiction in for a different one. But is that really so, is it possible to be addicted to God?

Many Faces of the Virgin

In the vast world of Christianity, there is nobody more divisive than Mother Mary. Though the cause for fractions within Christianity can be attributed to many complex theological issues and doctrines such as the Real Presence, the Sacraments and the Papacy, I don't think there is anything out there that creates more emotional rift than the God-bearer. Catholics recognize Mary as the Queen of Heaven and Help of Christians. On November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII exercised the rarely used Papal infallibility to declare "that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory". So what is it that Catholics see in Mary that other Christians failed to see? Why has the Church risked abandonment of many of the followers because of her devotion to Mary? What is the role of Mary in the Church?

Breaking into Peace

One of the last things Jesus gave to His disciples before glorifying God the Father on a cross was peace. " Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid" (John 14:27). Almost two thousand years has passed since then and majority of world's population has heard the Good News of Jesus, but the world still lacks peace. In fact, the world seeks peace with ardent desire everyday but does not find it. Even when there are no wars, the world is troubled and tensed with all kinds of conflicts. They say there is no peace in the world, therefore there is no peace in our societies, thus there is no peace in our families, and subsequently there is no peace within us. Then the question is whatever happened to that peace that Jesus left for us? 

A Purple Cross with Pink Flowers

A while back I heard somebody talking about a gift she once received, it was a handmade cross painted in purple with little pink flowers all over it. She liked it so much so that she put it where everybody could see it. At the time, I thought of it as a nice gesture by whoever took the time making a beautiful cross to be given away as a meaningful gift. But while reading an article by an Australian surgeon named Dr. Andreas Lambrianides about the practice of crucifixion by ancient Romans, the purple cross came back to mind. What I realized was that I too have fallen into the trap of domesticating the Cross. The Cross is not meant to be purple, green or yellow; it is not meant to be decorative or exuberant, it represents a device used for one of the most cruel and excruciating punishments ever devised by man. For Christians, it is a constant reminder that, "He himself bore our sins in his body upon the cross, so that, free from sin, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed." (1 Peter 2:24). Jesus Christ paid the price for Salvation with His own body and blood by dying on a cross, and even today His blood cleanses and nourishes the Church, His body.

My Encounters with the Devil

If you are reading this post because the title sparked your interest, then you are probably expecting to read about some out-of-this world experience that brought me face to face with the "father of lies". Unfortunately though (or is it, fortunately?) I have no such experiences to talk about. All my encounters with the devil occurred here in this world and there was no burning fire, black smoke, or smell of sulfur. The devil I met had nothing bad or undesirable about him. And this devil, I meet everyday! 

A few weeks ago, while talking with some friends, the conversation somehow veered off into some of the unfortunate incidents that occurred in our society recently. Someone suggested that incidents like the Sandy Hook school shooting, the Colorado movie theater shooting and the Boston marathon bombings show clear demonic presence in our society. Needless to say, within a matter of few minutes, many more got involved in this conversation and seemed like everyone was in agreement about how the devil and his minions had something to do with these unfortunate events.

The God of All Things

Earlier during the week, I read a comment made by a grieving mother in response to an article published in CatholicStand.com about God's plan. The author was trying to make a point that though God doesn't always give us what we want, He will always give us what we need. The person who made the comment couldn't understand how this idea of God's providence fit into the immense suffering and death of a child. She wanted her child, but God thought that her needs are better served by voiding her motherhood! In the past, I had made several attempts to delve into this problem of unanswered prayers - I am a firm believer that there are no unanswered prayers. But then, how would you explain the agony of this mother, how is it that her prayers for her sick child are ever going to be answered?

When There is No More Love Left to Give

For the past year or so, I have been writing a lot about love - God's love to be more specific. When God is love, then you can never say enough about His love. One of the things I also tried over the past year is to try to put what I write into practice. While analyzing God's love, it is hard to ignore the reason God is revealing His love to us, His fallen creation. God wants us to learn from Him, from His love. Then He wants us to practice it by loving Him and loving those around us. So the ultimate purpose of our life is to love. Unfortunately though, this is where I fail miserably. No matter how much I try, I always find myself more on the receiving end of love than on the giving end. Why so, I wonder, why is it so hard to love?

Tony, Tony, Turn Around. Something's Lost

St. Antony of Padua is one of those Saints who is known, loved and admired all around the world. He joined the Franciscan Order in 1221, when he was 26 years old. He died at the age of 36. He is typically depicted with the Infant Jesus, to whom He miraculously appeared. Saint Antony was declared a saint less than one year after his death. He is the patron Saint of sailors and fishermen.  When his body was exhumed 32 years after his death, his body was found to be corrupted, yet his tongue was totally incorrupt, so perfect and simple were the teachings that had been formed upon it. He had fervent devotion to Mother Mary and used the Holy Name o Mary to fight against the heretics of his time. His feast is celebrated on June 13th.

Can I Judge Without "Judging"?

In the Gospel of St. Matthew, we see Jesus using tough language against judging others: "Stop judging, that you may not be judged... Why do you notice the splinter in your brother's eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own eye?" (Matthew 7:1,3). This passage brings up an interesting dilemma as it seems to contradict another important teaching of Christ from Matthew's Gospel itself: "If your brother sins, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone" (Matthew 18:15). In order to point out your brother of a fault, is it not necessary to judge him first? But is it not a sin to judge my brother to begin with?

Is God's Love Truly Unconditional?

Christianity is founded on the love of God for His fallen creation. The Catholic Church teaches its followers that God's love is unconditional - there is nothing that we could do to stop God from loving us! But is it all true? And if it is, then why do catholics, and Christians in General, have to obey so many Commandments, and observe Penance and other obligatory devotions? Don't we do all those things to get God to love us?

Ordinary Time Needs Extraordinary Faith

Ever wondered what's so ordinary about Ordinary Time on the liturgical calendar? 

Here's my latest article from CatholicStand.com

The Fire of Joy, Purification, and Torture

June is devoted to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart is celebrated on the octave (eight day) of the Feast of Corpus Christi. This year this feast happens to fall on a first Friday, a day usually devoted to the Sacred Heart of Jesus throughout the year. The devotion to the Sacred Heart became universal following the visions of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647 - 1690). 

The most noticeable aspect of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is the fire which represents His burning love for all mankind. In fact, the representation of fire as God's love goes beyond symbolism. The actual love of God the Father and God the Son is showered upon human beings in the form of fire - the holy Spirit came upon the Apostles as tongues of fire. As we live in the Age of the Church which is guided by the Spirit of God, this fire is ever-present in our everyday life. 

Why is God not a Woman?

While speaking to a group of youngsters during a Retreat, a young man challenged me for consistently calling God a 'He'. He said that according to his parents, God is neither a 'he' or a 'she', but an 'it'. By now, it should be no secret that I have all kind of questions when it comes to God. But this one was new territory for me as I never considered God as anything other than a 'man'. So ever wondered why God is always addressed as a man in Christianity, why not a woman, or something in between?

Redemption, Salvation and the Pope

Recently Pope Francis made headlines all across the media when many reported that the Pope has preached Salvation by works. Here is what the Pope said:

“The Lord has redeemed all of us, all of us, with the Blood of Christ: all of us, not just Catholics. Everyone! ‘Father, the atheists?’ Even the atheists. Everyone! And this Blood makes us children of God of the first class! We are created children in the likeness of God and the Blood of Christ has redeemed us all! And we all have a duty to do good. And this commandment for everyone to do good, I think, is a beautiful path towards peace. If we, each doing our own part, if we do good to others, if we meet there, doing good, and we go slowly, gently, little by little, we will make that culture of encounter: we need that so much. We must meet one another doing good. ‘But I don’t believe, Father, I am an atheist!’ But do good: we will meet one another there."

Catholic Church has long been teaching that we are saved by the grace of God and not by our works. Many of the secular media has used the Pope's speech to imply that the new Pope has a very liberal attitude when it comes to faith. In other words, it seems that the Pope is contradicting the teachings of his predecessors and is more in line with the modern day thought that being good is all that's required of human beings. Did Pope Francis err in his speech or has the Church changed its teaching?

I don't wanna get off the tree!

Ever wondered about having a real life encounter with Jesus? You could be at work, at school, on the way to the doctor, perhaps doing shopping. And somebody told you that Jesus is passing by. Would you run over to see Him? I think I would. I might even get on that Sycamore tree like Zachaeus did to get a good look at Him. I am not good at climbing trees, and I am scared of heights. I am sure I will make a fool out of myself my clinging onto that tree, doing everything not to fall. But now I am worried, not about making a fool out of myself or falling, but what if Jesus sees me? I know what He is going to tell me. He would say: "Come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house" (Luke 19:5). You might be wondering why I am worried about Jesus inviting Himself to my house. I am worried because at some point during his stay at my house, I would have to get up to say, "Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over" (Luke 19:8). Now you see, that's a lot of moolah my friends!

I am not Perfect and That's not All That Bad

There is a misconception among many that people who pray a lot and attend Mass and other church services regularly are really good people. Recently somebody told me that they have lost their faith mostly because of the hypocrisy of people who prays a lot - people like renewed catholics. This person further went onto explain that they used to have a lot of respect for Charismatic preachers and other members of the prayer group. Then they had the opportunity to be in close contact with one for an extended period of time. They said that it was disappointing to see a normal person who was prone to anger, impatience, and harshness. They were expecting a holy man, somebody filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, longanimity, mildness, faith, modesty, continency, and chastity (the 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit), but realized that the person is nothing more than a regular human being. They told me that it made them realize that people who go around to preach and pray are just phony. This person went onto say that it has created a deep wound in their mind that they even begun to doubt their own faith. They said that they can't understand why God, who knows that this person was phony, listened to this person's prayers because it turned out this person's intercessory prayers were really effective. They thought that they too was living a life similar to the charismatic person, but all of their prayers to God had gone to deaf ears.

The Spy Amongst Us

According to the Gospel of Matthew, Judas went to the chief priests and agreed to hand over Jesus to them for thirty pieces of silver (cf. Matthew 26). In the Church, the Wednesday before the Passover goes by the name Spy Wednesday. Jesus now has a spy in his camp, somebody who is seeking an opportunity to betray his Master when the time is right. 

When I heard this during the homily this morning, I thought what a horrible thing - it is really hard to fathom how an all-knowing Jesus felt knowing fully well that Judas is a spy. Then I read the following commentary by Origen (185-254 AD), a Bible scholar and early Church father:

Finding Humility

Humble is a word used a lot recently when people talk about Pope Francis. People would mention something that he has done and would use it as a proof that the new pope is a very humble man. But this idea of humility varies significantly from the commonly held assumptions about being humble. Normally speaking, being humble is not different from having very little opinion about oneself. So somebody who would agree with almost anything without ever wanting to make their voice heard, or somebody who choose to play the role of the inferior in order to please others would be considered as humble. Anybody who stands their ground or insists on their opinions be heard is considered not so humble, even arrogant. 

Temptation: Then and Now

It is funny how mortals always picture us as putting things into their minds: in reality our best work is done by keeping things out. - demon Screwtape, from The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis.

One of the things that the Bible clearly states in the Book of Genesis is that God had made everything that the man and woman would need prior to their creation. And upon human creation, God also made them rulers of all else that were created. There was no room for dissatisfaction - everything was there in abundance for them to enjoy. Then the question is: How did the satan so easily convinced them to disobey God? What great offer could the satan have given Eve that compelled her to go against God? Did God actually forgot to create something that man would have wanted and did satan took advantage of this lapse from God's part?

Did God set up man to fail?

During a recent Faith Forum session at the Church, the question came up out of nowhere, "Why did God have to create that apple tree in the Garden of Eden?" In other words, was it necessary for God to tell Adam and Eve not to eat the fruit of the tree? If it was not meant to be eaten, then why created it? In essence the argument was that God, by creating this tree and then telling the man and woman not to eat of it, created the source of temptation which eventually led to the fall of humanity, His beloved creation. So the ultimate question is: Did God set up man to fail?

When God created everything in the beginning, He found them to be good. If everything was good, then where did  the evil come from? Evil came into existence when some of the angels under the leadership of Lucifer chose to disobey their Creator. So at the time of creation of humanity, evil was already present in the universe in the form disobedience. 

Refusing Help - The case of the priest and the Levite

Lenten Reflections #1

During Lent, the Church gives a lot of emphasis to three things: prayer, fasting and charity. Prayer mends any disruptions in our relationship with God; fasting helps us to be more in control of ourselves; charity enables us to love others as ourselves.

Though selfishness and greed controls the chunk of our daily activities, amazingly humanity also spend enormous resources towards helping those in need. In fact, I am confident that I am not over-stretching when I say that it might be impossible to find a human being who hasn't done a charitable thing at least once in their lifetime. But rather than focussing on those numerous occasions when we all have helped others, I would like to reflect upon those few instances when we failed to help those in need, especially those instances when the means to help were already available at our disposal.

God can't save me from the lion's den

Please go here to read my article published at CATHOLIC STAND.

You will not be overcome

What do you do when nothing make sense; when plans fall apart and all seems to be ruined? The temptation to despair is ever present in our lives. And most of the time, it is the easiest path to take. But for an outsider looking in, it is hard to figure out why those in despair could not just find happiness in things that they have, rather than worrying about things they want, until it hit home, when they themselves become desperate. Sinking fast into an abyss of negative thoughts, they too will soon realize that when expectations fall apart, senselessness becomes the only behavior that make sense. So is hope a bad thing? Is it better not to hope at all? But is it even possible to not to have hope?

Too Proud to Ask in Prayer

"Therefore I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours." (Mark 11:24)

For a believer, prayers are powerful means to petition for God's providence, to praise His mightiness, and to thank for His protection and provision. Though I have returned to God's corner, I still find prayers, especially mental prayers, to be problematic from time to time. I have no problem with praising Him or thanking Him, but I struggle with the asking part (I do the asking using mental prayer. Why let the person next to me confused with all my petitions?). There is something in me that prevents me from asking. It could very well be pride. To determine, I have decided to chronologically write down my prayer process over the last year or so. So here it is.

Saul's Horse and St. Paul's Race

Conversion of St. Paul
by Caravaggio

The Church today commemorates the fall of Saul of Tarsus, or commonly known as the feast day of conversion of St. Paul. One of the first things that comes to mind when I think about how Saul turned into Paul, is his fall off of the horse. Saul was on his way to Damascus to arrest and bring Christians back to Jerusalem as part of the early Christian persecution. Though the Acts of Apostles give a vivid picture of what happened to Saul during that journey, it doesn't say anything about a horse; it simply says, "He fell to the ground" (Acts 9:4). So where did this horse come from, or does it even matter whether there was a horse or not?  

I will be the first one to admit and the last to realize that I am no Bible expert. I am still confused how to perceive what I read in the Bible - whether it is literal or figurative. But when it comes to Saul's fall, I have no doubt that a horse was involved; not a literal one, but a figurative one. And how do I know this? I know because it takes one to know one; I too have fallen off the horse.

Who is Jane Roe?

Over the last few weeks, I had an opportunity to read a lot (but probably not enough) about the U.S. Supreme court's landmark decision regarding the issue of abortion. By voting in favor of Jane Roe versus the defendant Henry Wade, the Court extended the due process clause of the 14th amendment to give women right to have privacy while considering abortion. The defendant Henry Wade was the Dallas county district attorney at the time. Jane Roe was the pseudonym used to protect the identity of the plaintiff in this case. While writing my last post, Heal me Lord with your Word, I got curious about the identity of Jane Roe, and did some digging since. I must admit that the description of Jane Roe leading up to the Supreme Court's decision might seem harsh, even judgmental. But her story in its entirety must be told in order for us to understand  the God of Joseph, a God who could take any evil and turn it into good for the salvation of many. 

Heal me Lord with your Word

If you were to ask me a year and a half ago, while having a good time with my buddies on a weekend, about my opinion on Catholicism, this is what my response would have been:

What's wrong with these catholics? Not all of them, I mean. Most of the catholics are good people - they come to church once a week on Sundays and leave their faith at the door as they exit the church. They, then, go on with their normal life. Such catholics are easy to be around - at times they might even share a joke about the priest or about confession. They don't mind bending the rules from time to time; they lie and gossip; they drink to get drunk; they have no problem with other peoples' sexual orientation; they could care less about abortion and contraception. Unless you see them on any given Sunday at the church, you could never even tell that they are catholics. They are the good catholics.

The Curious Case of Lance Armstrong - Part 2

In today's world, more than ever, people go hungry. There is a shortage of truthfulness in societies all over the world regardless of their physical abundance or lack of it. Appearance and illusion has taken over us; there is no longer any substance to anything, reality has become a relative term. The problem with illusion is that it exists only on the surface - anybody who bothers to dig into it will be faced with this enormous emptiness. But human beings cannot thrive in emptiness because we are meant to share the fullness of God in Christ (cf. Colossians 2:9). Therefore, the humanity today is poor: we desperately seek the truth and authenticity without even realizing it.

The Curious Case of Lance Armstrong - Part 1

Almost everything is a news these days, everybody knows everything. In this age of information over-flood that we live in, it is hard to say where the next big news is going to come from. So it is not surprising to see a guy who made bicycling looks cool making news these days, though for the wrong reasons. Lance Armstrong's name was a synonym for human perseverance and endurance. A cancer survivor who won seven Tour de France, one of the most grueling sports competitions, Armstrong gave hope and courage to millions going through tough times. 

Should religion be kept private?

Though most of the religions exist to point the way to God, there are significant differences between these religions. For example, one could argue that Christianity, Judaism, and Islam all professes about the same God; yet there are so many irreconcilable differences between the three. Not only that, both Christianity and Islam are sharply criticized over the centuries about their aggressive style of expansion. Though not much in the last few centuries, Christianity had been blamed for annihilating many cultures, their traditions, and their literary and art work in the name of religious conversion. In today's society, it seems like Muslims are often associated with violence and intolerance, promoting terrorism as a means to establish their presence. And Israel, a tiny nation in the Middle east, gives us the notion that it is the epicenter of civil unrest in that entire region. And this is only the tip of the iceberg if you factor in the Hindu-Muslim conflicts, and also the friction that exist within fractions of these religions. 

My article on Ignitum Today

"Ignitum Today" provides Catholic perspectives on every topic that matters to young adults--life, religion, relationships, and entertainment. Ignitum (pronounced ig-NEE-tum) means set on fire (by the Holy Spirit, of course). They published one of my articles today, please go here to read it.

Past, Present, and Future. Oh yeah, and God also.

The Prelude
The day was horrible - temperature was in the low 40s and it drizzled all day. Everywhere I looked, I saw shades of gray. Earth has lost its greenery. Light fog covered everything. I had two choices, both unusual: make batter with chickpea flour, deep fry everything I could put my hands on, or spend the day in an Adoration Chapel - a 15ft X 10ft room with no windows - and make good use of the Notepad app on the iPhone. I chose the latter. And now I wonder if I would get up tomorrow regretting my choice. Choices, O God, tricky indeed they are. With Your grace, one thing I have decided - when choosing between the two unknowns, I will go for the one that is more unusual than the other.

GOD: The What and The Who

Trying to understand God or the Supreme Being is a tricky proposition. There are two ways to you can pursue your knowledge of God: You can ask "What is God?" or "Who is God?". The first is a philosophical question that requires no backing from any religion. According to this view God is an impersonal Being - a supernatural phenomenon that exists in the universe and beyond the universe. Philosophy doesn't offer any clear consensus on the nature or attributes of God, rather it offer explanations such as God exists objectively and independently of human thought. 

Planned Parenthood touts over aborting over 333,000 babies in 2011

Planned Parenthood Federation of America's latest annual report for 2011-2012 says that its affiliated clinics performed 333,964 abortions in fiscal 2011.

That works out to an average of one abortion every 94 seconds.

The 333,964 abortion Planned Parenthood did in fiscal 2011 is an increase of 4,519 from the 329,445 abortions it did in 2010, according to a fact sheet that Planned Parenthood published last year.

Over two years, Planned Parenthood says, it has aborted 663,409.

The 2011-2012 report states that Planned Parenthood received $542.4 million in “government health services grants and reimbursements,” which it states includes “payments from Medicaid managed care plans.”

The report also shows that Planned Parenthood’s total assets top $1 billion dollars, specifically $1,244.7 billion.

“We are so proud of the year’s many successes, and deeply grateful for all the partners, sponsors, volunteers, staff and friends who helped make them possible,” states the report's introductory letter, signed by PPFA president Cecile Richards and Cecelia Boone, chairwoman of the organization.

Is God too big to fit into one religion?

Using "Is there a God" and "Religion: What is it"?, I tried to come to a conclusion that there is a God or a Supreme Being, and humans use religion to reach out to God. But there are so many religions in this world, and most of them are in existence to help human beings to guide the way - to point them to God. Monotheistic religions such as Judaism follows a God who is high up there  - simply uttering His name in vain could be considered as blasphemy. The glory and grandeur of this Jewish God is so frightening that you might get the sense of a highly impersonal god.

Point the Way

The Church celebrates Epiphany - the visit of three magi to the Christ child - this Sunday. The Scripture says that they came from the East following the star of Bethlehem. The wise men saw the star and they left the comforts of their home to embark on a difficult and dangerous journey in search of God. The star went before them, guiding them, and pointing them in the right direction, thus drawing them closer to God. Several years later we get to see another star in the Bible, he is John the Baptist. As the man responsible to "Make straight the way of the Lord", John pointed the crowds that came to listen to him to Christ Jesus. 

The Evangelist

During early and mid 1990s, as a full time college student in New York city and living on my own, I was in desperate need of a nighttime job. My search ended at the regional hub of United Parcel Services located on 43rd Street and 11th Ave, when I was hired to load and unload tractor trailers during the midnight shift. Everybody I knew was against me taking that job because it involved walking through Times Square at 11 o'clock at night. I was only a year or so removed from getting off the boat into the United States, and many feared that I don't have the street smarts to survive walking through the red light district to get to work. Times Square was the center of everything that is considered "dirty" by family oriented people, the place was humming with prostitutes, adult movie theaters, drug dealers, drug addicts and those who seek carnal pleasures. Never a man who listened to  unsolicited advises, I took the job. After making my way through the "sinners" for the first several week, one thing I learned quickly, though the place could be used as the cover picture for mayhem, there exists an underlying order and everybody notices everything. In the beginning, I was approached by everybody from transvestites to pimps in fur coats; a week later, I walked through there as if I am invisible, not even a runaway teenager who just got off the bus from the Midwest solicited my business. I too began to recognize familiar faces in the crowd, it was mostly the same people standing at the same spot every night wearing the same dress.

Religion: What is it?

While discussing about the existence of God (Is there a God?), I briefly discussed what set humans apart from animals. Saint Thomas Aquinas, as part of his fourth proof 'gradation', used human being's ability to reason to place them on a higher level than animals. Rationality provides us with the tools to think logically and choose intellectually. This unique ability of humans to reason also make it not only amazing but also strange that majority of the human beings believe in the supernatural. Even with all the logical thinking and free will available to our disposal, we choose to believe that there is something or someone else out there that is invisible to us, but somehow plays a vital role in our very existence. 

Is there a God?

"How do you know God exists?" It is a simple question with both a simple and complicated answer. It is simple for a faithful believer because faith is believing in something or someone you cannot see, or accepting something that cannot be proven as true. Faith doesn't require proof, or you don't need faith to believe in something already proven. Majority of the religious believers regardless of whether they are Christian, Muslim, Jew or Hindu accept the existence of God not due to revelations, but because of their faith. 

Lost in Knowledge; Lacking in Wisdom

Yet another year is upon us. Even with my optimistic glasses on, I am afraid that I don't anticipate a sudden and significant change in issues plaguing our society. Pain and misery still exists in the midst of all the scientific and technological advancements that we have experienced in the recent history. One might even argue that sufferings and influence of evil have a tighter grip on us than ever before. Wealth, convenience and abundance have failed to bring us true happiness and satisfaction. We live in a society that is overloaded with knowledge - almost everybody is a 'how-to guru'. Unfortunately as individuals we lack the wisdom to sort through the clutter of knowledge to identify what matters to us. I have this humble opinion that, more than ever, we need guidance to navigate through the overbearing load of information and knowledge. I believe that we live in a time where we need to re-examine our notion of the validity of a Church that looks old and the significance of the Word of God that seems ancient and out of touch with reality. Everyday more and more people are distancing themselves from the God, His word and His Church. People find it hard to link our everyday problems with a book that was written thousands of years ago. But can the word of God through the Church provide us with the wisdom to sort through our daily mess and find peace and happiness in a sinful world?