In my ministry as a priest I have encountered many experiences of grief and loss, and, like any other human being, I have had to deal with these difficult emotions both in myself and in others. Over the past 50 years since my ordination, I have learned a lot in this regard.
April 22, 2019
O God, through this paschal solemnity
You have bestowed upon the world
Your healing grace;
pursue Your people, we beseech You,
with heavenly gifts
so that we may obtain perfect freedom
and arrive at life eternal.
Through Christ our Lord.
April 21, 2019
Heavenly Father and God of mercy,
we no longer look for Jesus among the dead,
for he is alive and has become the Lord of life.
From the waters of death You raise us with him
and renew Your gift of life within us.
Increase in our minds and hearts
the risen life we share with Christ,
and help us to grow as your people
April 20, 2019
O God, who makes this most holy night illustrious
by the glory of the resurrection of our Lord,
preserve in the new children of your family
the spirit of adoption which You have given,
that, renewed in body and soul,
they may give You a pure service.
This we ask of You through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son.
April 19, 2019
We remember today, the pain and suffering of the cross,
and all that Jesus was willing to endure for us.
He paid the price to offer us the gift of eternal life.
Help us never to take for granted this gift of love.
Help us to be reminded of the cost of it all.
Forgive us for being too busy, or distracted by other things,
April 18, 2019
O Lord Jesus, in order that the merits
of Your sacrifice on the Cross
might be applied to every soul of all time,
You willed that it should be renewed
upon the altar.
At the Last Supper, You said:
"Do this in remembrance of me."
By these words You gave Your apostles
and their successors the power to consecrate
April 17, 2019
O Lord Jesus Christ,
sublime model of all perfection,
You are urging onward all privileged souls
in their high aspiration towards the goal of religious life;
and, moreover, You also strengthen them
through the powerful force of Your example
and the efficacious influence of Your grace
so that they may be able to follow You
April 16, 2019
Lord, you are near to those
who are rejected and brokenhearted.
Give me the grace not to give up
when others insult me and tear me down.
Remind me I am loved and that
I always have a home with you in my heart.
April 15, 2019
Although my mother uttered her first words in the Philippine Ilocano language, we are a Chinese family and along with my brothers and sisters, I was born in Hong Kong.
April 15, 2019
Jesus my Lord, let me strengthen my courage
by taking on the courage of all those people
who have been centurions for me.
Many have faced disasters
and hard times with great constancy.
The upper hand of evil never turned them against you.
They kept going.
Let me be like them, Lord.
No matter what the cross,
let me never stop declaring you
The Columbans are a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God.