A Jesuit Adventure

  https://youtu.be/b-l5HLUL9FY As we begin the season of Lent on this First Sunday in Year A, the readings invite us to look honestly at temptation, sin, and grace. We are reminded that while human weakness is real, God’s mercy and faithfulness are even greater. The Genesis creation stories were written for the people of Israel to explain who God is, who human beings are, and why the world is both beautiful and broken. These stories were shaped in a time when Israel lived among cultures that believed humans were slaves of the gods. Genesis offers a very different vision: one God who lovingly creates, breathes life, and desires relationship with humanity. Genesis paints a very tender picture of creation. God forms the human person from the dust of the ground and breathes life into him. This shows two important truths about us. We come from the earth—we are fragile, limited, and dependent. Yet we also carry God’s breath within us—we are precious, loved, and filled with divine life. H...

 https://youtu.be/zVFbR3K_N6c My dear friends, on this Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A, the Word of God challenges us to go deeper in our faith. It reminds us that true holiness begins not on the outside, but in the heart. The first reading is taken from the Book of Sirach also known as Ecclesiasticus which was written around 200 years before Jesus by a Jewish teacher named Ben-Sira. He lived at a time when many Jews were influenced by foreign cultures and were tempted to forget God’s law. His teachings were later valued by the early Church and are part of the Catholic Scriptures. Sirach speaks clearly about human freedom and responsibility. God places before us two paths: life and death, good and evil. We are free to choose either. God does not force us to obey, nor does God lead us into sin. The images of fire and water help us understand this truth. Fire can destroy, while water can give life. Both are within reach, and what we stretch out our hand to take depends on us. In...

https://youtu.be/9BoGo_ZE3h8 My dear friends, it is possible to be very religious and yet miss the heart of faith. On this Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, the readings challenge us to move from outward religion to a faith lived through mercy, humility, and light. Isaiah spoke to the people of Israel during a time when they were very serious about religious practices like fasting and prayer, especially after returning from exile. However, their faith had become external. They observed rituals but ignored the poor, the hungry, and the suffering around them. Through Isaiah, God challenges this false spirituality and calls the people back to a faith lived through compassion and justice. In the reading, God clearly explains what true worship looks like. It is not just about fasting, prayers, or religious duties. God asks His people to share their bread with the hungry, welcome the homeless, clothe the naked, and care for those in need. These simple acts of kindness reveal a heart that truly ...

 https://youtu.be/xkj0S_7E0d4 What makes a life truly successful? In a world that measures success by power, wealth, and recognition, the readings on the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time in Year A invite us to look at life through God’s eyes. They remind us that God chooses the humble and calls the weak ‘blessed,’ revealing a very different path to true fulfilment. The first reading is taken from the prophet Zephaniah who lived during the reign of King Josiah of Judah, a time when the people had drifted away from God. Although there were outward religious reforms, many hearts were still filled with pride, injustice, and false worship. Zephaniah warns of the coming “Day of the Lord,” a time of judgment, but he also speaks words of hope for those who sincerely return to God. In the first part of the reading the prophet urgently calls the people to “seek the Lord, seek righteousness, seek humility.” , words which we will again hear in the gospel narration of the Beatitudes. This invitat...

 https://youtu.be/dKFx2dg_EZ4 My dear friends today we celebrate the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A. Today’s readings remind us that God enters our darkness with light, calls us from division to unity, and invites us out of comfort into a deeper mission. In the first reading taken from the prophet Isaiah, Isaiah addresses the people of Israel when they were facing fear, political instability, and foreign threat. The northern regions of Zebulun and Naphtali were among the first to suffer invasion by the Assyrian empire. These lands experienced humiliation, loss, and despair. It is into this painful reality that Isaiah announces God’s promise. Isaiah does not deny the suffering of the people. Instead, he names it honestly. Yet the message quickly turns toward hope. The prophet declares that the same land once covered in darkness will see a great light. This light is not just physical brightness but a sign of God’s saving presence returning to His people. Isaiah speaks of joy li...

 https://youtu.be/lvUHubxa2iI My dear friends today we celebrate the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A. The readings of today invite us to rediscover who Jesus truly is and who we are called to be in Him. They remind us that God’s call, God’s mercy, and God’s light are greater than our past, our failures, and our fears. The first reading, taken from the prophet Isaiah, is known as the Second Servant Song These words were spoken during the time of Israel’s exile in Babylon, when the people felt defeated, forgotten, and without hope. Into this situation, the prophet speaks of a mysterious “Servant of the Lord” chosen from the womb and formed for a special mission. The Servant is called “Israel,” showing that he represents the people as a whole. God says that bringing Jacob back is “too small a thing.” The Servant is also chosen to be “a light to the nations,” so that God’s salvation may reach “to the ends of the earth.” This reveals God’s heart: His love is not limited to one peo...