Blog Entries

“You are the light of the world.” (Jesus tightens the screws, as he always does.) Homily Preached February 9, 2020 by Fr. Cassian OCSO “You are the light of the world.” Last Sunday we heard the words of Simeon as he held the infant Jesus in the Temple: “My eyes have seen a light for revelation to the Gentiles and the glory of your people Israel.” The light Simeon proclaimed is the same light we proclaim at Easter: Christ our Light. Today we hear that we are the light of the world....

It was in Mark 6:2 when the crowd beheld the marvelous works of the master that they wondered out aloud and quipped, "what wisdom is this?". This has been my reaction ever since the Luke challenge began, especially as I read through the 14th chapter of Luke as Jesus proceeded to educate the people present at the dinner party of one of the notable Pharisees in the land on what you will call table etiquette at parties Ir simply party etiquette? Whatever you call it there was nothing that...

Exactly what is the Gospel of the Kingdom all about? We either follow the traditional governance of mankind which is fuelled by self interest OR, we choose to reject that wide path and follow the governance (Kingdom) of the Father which is loving all as self and focusing on the well being of others. Has theology muddled your perspective? If so, have you asked yourself why it might strive to do so, and who as a result may benefit? © ...timothyu

Over the years, the term legalism or being legalistic has been widely used to describe strict guidance and practices in the name of Christ. Hence, to understand what is meant by the term legalism we should begin with a basic definition. Legalism: Strict, literal, or excessive conformity to the law or to a religious moral code. Therefore, Legalists are people who add personal preference to accepted doctrinal teaching, accept these additions as having equal weight with doctrinal teaching, and...

Proverbs 23:23 ~ Buy truth and do not sell it. Buy wisdom, discipline, and knowledge. Have you ever "costed" your discipleship? If you have, you have sold--giving everything out to buy truth. You do not spend it on yourself ("sell"), but to invest in the Kingdom of God. The truth, as it has come in precious packages of wisdom, discipline, and knowledge, is flavored with the Gospel. It becomes everything to you. Like a soldier, you fall in line and obey instructions. Over time you...

Luke 13 seems to open on a very tragic account. Then, Luke reports (13:1), “on the same occasion,” some were present who reported to Jesus about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. We don’t know any more about this event than is here reported. Apparently, Pilate had sent in his troops to break up a gathering of Galilean Jews that he deemed dangerous. The Roman soldiers did not even respect the fact that the Jews were worshiping God by offering sacrifices....

Mark 9:1: He [Jesus] said to them, Amen I tell you: “There are some standing here who will not taste death into they see the kingdom of God come with power”. The verse above, I believe, has immediate inferences for the daily walk of the Christian. To know those, we should ask ourselves, (1) Have I experienced this power? (2). What does it mean to experience this power in a kingdom setting? (3) Why did just make this assertion about the kingdom of God and the power found within...

It's the twelfth day of the Luke challenge and we are already halfway into this journey and it has been a journey of transformation occasioned by new lights been shed on the word of God! I have a deep affinity for God's word but in the last 12 days or so that affinity has been taking to new heights as I attempt to read the Luke gospel all over again. David said, "Oh I how to love thy word, it is my meditation all day" (Psalm 119:97). This has been my experience the past 12 days, more than...

Jesus came to earth to save all of mankind from death caused by unrighteousness. We are all sinners, and for that reason we are unable to live eternally with God. Because of God’s great love for his creation, he sent his Son to die on the cross as payment for our sins. When we place our faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we receive salvation – and we are granted eternal life. This is the basic truth of Christianity. During the early days of the ministry of Jesus, he...

Hillsong Worship Who You Say I Am Who am I that the highest King Would welcome me? I was lost but He brought me in Oh His love for me Oh His love for me Who the Son sets free Oh is free indeed I'm a child of God Yes I am Free at last, He has ransomed me His grace runs deep While I was a slave to sin Jesus died for me Yes He died for me Who the Son sets free Oh is free indeed I'm a child of God Yes I am In my Father's house There's a place for me I'm a child of God Yes I...

December 24, 2019, is a day that will forever be etched in my memory. We didn't get to go home to be with my family again for Christmas, so we had planned on gathering with the hub's side of the family in our hometown. I was up til wee hours of the morning getting our Ugly Christmas sweaters prepped for a contest the next day. I had mentioned making cookies as well for the cookie exchange, but the hubs said it would probably be better to wait until the morning so they would be nice and...

A face in the crowd In the crowd, the milling thousands, people and their humanity are lost, yet there are times when I see a face, a woman, a child or an older man, or woman, rushing along carried by the stream of humanity, preoccupied with their own worries and pain, or perhaps reliving some joy or another, yet to me, it can just be a face, seen once and then forgotten. They have no name, just someone rushing by, or if I am part of the throng avoiding me, stepping aside no eye contact,...

satan He was the first of many to become corrupted by his selfish identity and the first to fall from the heights of splendor and Grace. He was beautiful not in the sense of curves and lines but by the Light that reflected and refracted through him just like light glimmering off the surface of a pond or that of a diamond. And with his corruption; he became not only an outcast but the enemy of God’s will, His Throne and Kingdom. His name was Lucifer. The Light bearer!

"Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples: "The scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So, practice and observe everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy, burdensome loads and lay them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. All their deeds are done for men to see. They broaden their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. They love the places of honor at...

THE GOSPEL OF PRAYERS It's not difficult to label the book of Luke as the 'gospel of prayer'. More than any other book of the gospels, the gospel of Luke took time to expound on the prayer life of Jesus! Right from Luke 3 when Jesus was baptized the Bible said as he was praying the heavens opened up and there was an outpouring of God's Spirit upon Jesus thereafter a voice came from heaven and gave approval to the master! It didn't stop here. In Luke 4 Jesus went praying and fasting for 40...