Islam File    The New Translation

"Same-sex marriage" file

Letter from a South African inmate in a HK prison for drug trafficking - a 26 year old mother of three children:
   
   

South China Morning Post - today's report 
Terminally ill former Hong Kong asylum seeker finally returned to Philippines

Jesus, thank you for helping Christine make it to July 19. May she also make it to July 29 - her 40th birthday. And may her return home somehow bring about a healing miracle - driving away cancer from her body. Jesus, please tsunami Christine with your healing love! 
And dear Lord, please bless all the kind people who have visited and helped Christine since she was released from detention on March 1.

Sirach 32-34

If you are chosen for an important job, don't let it go to your head.

When you speak, keep to the point. Say much in a few words.

Reflect before you act. Look before you leap.

Travel broadens the mind. Ask God's protection when you travel.

Psalm 124

"If the Lord had not been on our side", this is Israel's song.

If the Lord had not been on our side when people rose against us,

then would they have swallowed us alive when they were angry with us.

Blessed be the Lord who did not let us become a prey for their teeth.

Our life, like a bird, has escaped
from the snare of the hunter.

Indeed the snare has been broken
and we have escaped.

Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. 

Thank you, Lord, for all the times you have rescued me from trouble

Recording 

Hebrews 1.1-4

At various times in the past and in various different ways, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets

But in our own time, he has spoken to us through his Son,
through whom he made everything. He is the radiant light of God the Father's glory

He has sacrificed himself for sinners. He has taken his place at the right hand of the Father.
He is far greater than any angel

Jesus, deepen my understanding of who you are

Recording 

Recommended: check these readings early morning, think about them during the day, check them again at night. This habit gives us extra energy, courage, motivation, peace and compassion for each day

 Matthew 9.9-13

One day when Jesus was walking past a customs house he said to a tax collector  named Matthew "Follow me". Matthew got up and followed Jesus.

Matthew invited Jesus and Jesus' friends to a dinner in his house.
Some tax collectors and "bad" people sat at Jesus' table.

Religious leaders saw this and complained to Jesus' friends
"Why does your master eat with tax collectors and bad people?"

Jesus' answer was "It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick.

Go and think about the Bible words 'What I want is mercy, not sacrifice'. I have a special concern for rejects and down-and-outs."

Jesus, please help religious leaders in today's world to care more about people who are rejected by society

Recording 

The Joy of Love - Pope Francis' letter - on love in the family      Full English text

102: Recording

  Saint Thomas Aquinas explains that “it is more proper to charity to desire to love than to desire to be loved”;110 

indeed, “mothers, who are those who love the most, seek to love more than to be loved”.111

 Consequently, love can transcend and overflow the demands of justice, “expecting nothing in return” (Lk 6:35), and the greatest of loves can lead to “laying down one’s life” for another (cf. Jn 15:13).

 Can such generosity, which enables us to give freely and fully, really be possible? Yes, because it is demanded by the Gospel: “You received without pay, give without pay” (Mt 10:8).

102a: Recording

Humanity has entered a new era in which our technical prowess has brought us to a crossroads. 

We are the beneficiaries of two centuries of enormous waves of change: steam engines, railways, the telegraph, electricity, automobiles, aeroplanes, chemical industries, modern medicine, information technology and, more recently, the digital revolution, robotics, biotechnologies and nanotechnologies. 

It is right to rejoice in these advances and to be excited by the immense possibilities which they continue to open up before us, for “science and technology are wonderful products of a God-given human creativity”.[81] 

76: Recording 

I feel tremendous gratitude to all those who are committed to working in and for the Church. Here I do not wish to discuss at length the activities of the different pastoral workers, from bishops down to those who provide the most humble and hidden services. Rather, I would like to reflect on the challenges that all of them must face in the context of our current globalized culture.

 But in justice, I must say first that the contribution of the Church in today’s world is enormous. The pain and the shame we feel at the sins of some members of the Church, and at our own, must never make us forget how many Christians are giving their lives in love. They help so many people to be healed or to die in peace in makeshift hospitals.

 They are present to those enslaved by different addictions in the poorest places on earth. They devote themselves to the education of children and young people. They take care of the elderly who have been forgotten by everyone else. They look for ways to communicate values in hostile environments. They are dedicated in many other ways to showing an immense love for humanity inspired by the God who became man.

 I am grateful for the beautiful example given to me by so many Christians who joyfully sacrifice their lives and their time. This witness comforts and sustains me in my own effort to overcome selfishness and to give more fully of myself.

At HK airport yesterday morning, as Christine waited for various officials to resolve her situation (see SCMP story at top of this menu), she indicated to me that she need to vomit. So I quickly took out a small plastic bag from my shoulder bag. But as she started vomiting quite heavily, she gestured that something was wrong: the B. bag had a hole in it, and vomit was spilling on her dress. Kind volunteers cleaned up the mess ...and I apologised to Christine for the experience.

Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day of the week:

Sun: Africa        Mon: Europe & Russia     Tues: South Asia      Wed: East Asia  
Thurs: S.E. Asia & Pacific       Frid: South America       Sat: Central & North America 
  
Jesus, today, Tuesday, please bless the people of South Asia

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 19th of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Shanxi

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 19th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Sudan

And praying for one Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, please pacify Boko Haram 

Letters from (mainly African) inmates in Hong Kong prisons - and other drug trafficking items:   2016

This website's Tanzania File
(stopping Africans from being tricked into bringing drugs to HK)
- letters  from Tanzanian inmates  in Hong Kong prisons

This website's HK Asylum Seekers' File
(stopping South Asians from being "people smuggled" to HK)

I have asked HK volunteer in Malawi, Janny Law, how this website can assist her to help some of the most needy people. This is her reply:

July 18

Letter from a South African inmate in a HK prison for drug trafficking - describing how she was "set up":

Sirach 29-31

Help others in their time of need.
When people ask you for help, do not turn them away.

Do not let your children grow up wild. Teach them self control and self-discipline from their earliest years.

Good health is better than silver and gold. Better to be poor and healthy than rich and sick.

Do not give in to brooding and fretting when things go wrong.
Even in the saddest situation, look for light at the end of the tunnel.

Avoid jealously and anger.
Jealously and anger will shorten your life.

A moderate diet will help you sleep well. Gluttony produces sleeplessness, biliousness and grumpiness.

Wine was made to cheer our hearts. But drinking to excess will reduce your strength.

Lord, please help me be moderate with food and drink

Psalm 123

To you have I lifted up my eyes,
you who dwell in the heavens.

My eyes, like the eyes of slaves
on the hand of their lords.

Like the eyes of a servant on the hand of her mistress, so our eyes are on the Lord our God till he show us mercy.

Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy. We are filled with contempt.

Indeed all too full is our soul with the scorn of the rich, with the proud man's disdain.

Lord, please protect poor people 
from being exploited by rich people

Recording 

Philemon 9-25

While here in prison, I have helped someone you know to become a believer. He is carrying this letter - Onesimus

I'm sending him back to you, no longer your slave, but your brother in Christ

Please welcome him as you would welcome me. And let me pay for anything he stole from you

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you

Jesus, please put an end to slavery in the world

Recording 

Matthew 9.1-8

Some people carried  a paralyzed man through a crowd to Jesus.
The man was on a bed.

Jesus knew that these people believed he could help them,
so he said to the paralyzed man "Courage, your sins are forgiven".

Religious leaders in the crowd were thinking to themselves
that Jesus was wrong to say he could forgive sins.

So Jesus said to the leaders: Which is easier:
to say 'Your sins are forgiven', or to say 'Get up and walk'?

Then to prove that he had authority to forgive sins,
he said to the paralyzed man
"Get up, pick up your bed and go home".

The man got up and went home.
The crowd praised God for what they had seen.

Jesus, please give me more faith in your power to forgive, your power to heal

Recording 

The Joy of Love - Pope Francis' letter - on love in the family     Full English text

101: Recording

We have repeatedly said that to love another we must first love ourselves. Paul’s hymn to love, however, states that love “does not seek its own interest”, nor “seek what is its own”. 

This same idea is expressed in another text: “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Phil 2:4).

The Bible makes it clear that generously serving others is far more noble than loving ourselves.

 Loving ourselves is only important as a psychological prerequisite for being able to love others: “If a man is mean to himself, to whom will he be generous? No one is meaner than the man who is grudging to himself ” (Sir 14:5-6).

Christine (cervic cancer, stage 4, see items on previous menus, below) is due to leave HK this afternoon for the Philippines. But her condition is deteriorating and she's in a lot of pain, despite regular doses of morphine. Many thanks to the many people praying for a miracle. Jesus, please tsunami Christine with your healing love!

101: Recording

It would hardly be helpful to describe symptoms without acknowledging the human origins of the ecological crisis.

A certain way of understanding human life and activity has gone awry, to the serious detriment of the world around us.

Should we not pause and consider this? 

At this stage, I propose that we focus on the dominant technocratic paradigm and the place of human beings and of human action in the world.

During breakfast over the past few weeks I've been watching fascinating videos about the history of New Testament manuscripts, produced by Dan Wallace and his team. Google "Dan Wallace New Testament manuscripts".  Website of his centre

75: Recording

We cannot ignore the fact that in cities human trafficking, the narcotics trade, the abuse and exploitation of minors, the abandonment of the elderly and infirm, and various forms of corruption and criminal activity take place.

 (Also), what could be significant places of encounter and solidarity often become places of isolation and mutual distrust. Houses and neighbourhoods are more often built to isolate and protect than to connect and integrate. 

The proclamation of the Gospel will be a basis for restoring the dignity of human life in these contexts, for Jesus desires to pour out an abundance of life upon our cities.

 The unified and complete sense of human life that the Gospel proposes is the best remedy for the ills of our cities, even though we have to realize that a uniform and rigid program of evangelization is not suited to this complex reality.

 But to live our human life to the fullest and to meet every challenge as a leaven of Gospel witness in every culture and in every city will make us better Christians and bear fruit in our cities.

This website's statistics for June 2016.
God bless all kind readers and bloggers!

John and Jessica were on their way home from the bar one night and John got pulled over by the police. The officer told John that he was stopped because his tail light was burned out.

John said, "I'm very sorry officer, I didn't realize it was out, I'll get it fixed right away."

Just then Jessica said, "I knew this would happen when I told you two days ago to get that light fixed." 

So the officer asked for John's license and after looking at it said, "Sir your license has expired." 

 And again John apologized and mentioned that he didn't realize that it had expired and would take care of it first thing in the morning. 

Jessica said, "I told you a week ago that the state sent you a letter telling you that your license had expired." 

Well by this time, John is a bit upset with his wife contradicting him in front of the officer, and he said in a rather loud voice, "Jessica, shut your mouth!!"

The officer then leaned over toward Jessica and asked. "Does your husband always talk to you like that?"

"Not always," answers Jessica, "only when he's drunk."

Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day of the week:

Sun: Africa        Mon: Europe & Russia     Tues: South Asia      Wed: East Asia  
Thurs: S.E. Asia & Pacific       Frid: South America       Sat: Central & North America 
  
Jesus, today, Monday,  please bless the people of Europe & Russia

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 18th of the month,  Jesus please bless the prisoners of Shandong

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 18th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Ivory Coast

And praying for one Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, please pacify ISIS 

Letters from (mainly African) inmates in Hong Kong prisons - and other drug trafficking items:   2016

This website's Tanzania File
(stopping Africans from being tricked into bringing drugs to HK)
- letters  from Tanzanian inmates  in Hong Kong prisons

This website's HK Asylum Seekers' File
(stopping South Asians from being "people smuggled" to HK)

'We just live day to day' - drought leaves Malawi's poor to starve

Chinese parents embark on search missions following spate of unsolved kidnappings

see my kidnap photo of 2006

Recommended by a reader in Australia:
Churches Drifting Too Far From the Marketplace of Ideas

Australia’s Christian churches are in crisis, on the brink of complete strategic irrelevance.

Christine yesterday returned to her nursing home after several days in hospital for treatment. She is due to leave HK on Monday afternoon, not today:

Cancer-suffering asylum seeker in Hong Kong in race to get home

Sirach 24

Wisdom speaks: "From eternity, in the beginning, God created me.
God sent  me to be everywhere on earth.

Approach me, you who desire me. Whoever listens to me will stay on the road of goodness."

Lord, please help me seek wisdom and listen to wisdom's voice

Psalms 120-121

I call to the  Lord in the hour of my distress: "Lord save me from people who speak with lying lips".

Long enough have I been dwelling with those who hate peace. I am for peace, but they are for fighting.

I lift up my eyes to the mountains.
From where shall come my help?

My help shall come from the Lord
who made heaven and earth.

The Lord is our guard and our shade. Day and night we shall not be afraid.

The Lord will guard our going and coming both now and forever.

Lord, please protect us from danger, day and night

Recording  

Titus 3.8-15

Tell people to keep their minds occupied in doing good works.

Avoid useless speculations about trivial matters

All believers, including elders, should try to be self-supporting

Grace be with you all

Jesus, help me be a doer and not just a talker

Recording    

Matthew 8.14-17

Jesus went to the home of Peter the "fisher of men". Peter's mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever.

Jesus touched her hand, and the fever left her. She got up and began to serve her visitor.

That evening, many sick people were brought to Peter's home.
Jesus healed them all.

Jesus, please heal ..... (names) ....who are sick

Recording  

CY Leung stonewalls questions over UGL, ICAC
Hong Kong Chief Executive, CY Leung, on Thursday repeatedly sidestepped questions about the HK$50 million payment he received from the Australian engineering firm, UGL.

Decadence and decline at Hong Kong’s once-proud anti-corruption agency

The Joy of Love - Pope Francis' letter - on love in the family      Full English text

98: Recording

It is important for Christians to show their love by the way they treat family members who are less knowledgeable about the faith, weak or less sure in their convictions.

At times the opposite occurs: the supposedly mature believers within the family become unbearably arrogant. 

Love, on the other hand, is marked by humility; if we are to understand, forgive and serve others from the heart, our pride has to be healed and our humility must increase.

Jesus told his disciples that in a world where power prevails, each tries to dominate the other, but “it shall not be so among you” (Mt 20:26). 

The inner logic of Christian love is not about importance and power; rather, “whoever would be first among you must be your slave” (Mt 20:27). 

In family life, the logic of domination and competition about who is the most intelligent or powerful destroys love. 

Saint Peter’s admonition also applies to the family: “Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility towards one another, for ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble’” (1 Pet 5:5).

Footage of California police killing unarmed teen prompts claim of 'trigger-happy' officers

What a borderless Africa could mean for China 

98b: Recording

Jesus worked with his hands, in daily contact with the matter created by God, to which he gave form by his craftsmanship.

It is striking that most of his life was dedicated to this task in a simple life which awakened no admiration at all: “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary?” (Mk 6:3).

In this way he sanctified human labour and endowed it with a special significance for our development.

As Saint John Paul II taught, “by enduring the toil of work in union with Christ crucified for us, we collaborate with the Son of God for the redemption of humanity”.[79]

72: Recording

In cities, as opposed to the countryside, the religious dimension of life is expressed by different lifestyles (and) daily rhythms linked to places and people. 

In their daily lives people must often struggle for survival and this struggle contains within it a profound understanding of life which often includes a deep religious sense.

We must examine this more closely in order to enter into a dialogue like that of our Lord and the Samaritan woman at the well where she sought to quench her thirst (cf. Jn 4:1-15).

10 years ago today

2006-07-15,16 Hong Kong Tak Tin jumble sale to help Zhaoqing poor: volunteers/Rose/Marinei/Dave

In order to spend an extra hour at Tai Lam Women's Correctional Centre for my monthly visit, I usually get a taxi there (and a mini-bus and metro home). Last Tuesday I couldn't understand why three taxis on Jordan Road ignored me ....when they slowed down and saw I was a foreigner, they would not stop ....until a fourth taxi stopped .... and the driver recognized me from a previous Tai Lam trip six months ago!  HK has 15,000 red taxis ...and I rarely use a taxi ..... what odds to get the same driver? Providence has a sense of humor!

Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day of the week:

Sun: Africa        Mon: Europe & Russia     Tues: South Asia      Wed: East Asia  
Thurs: S.E. Asia & Pacific       Frid: South America       Sat: Central & North America 
  
Jesus, today, Friday, please bless the people of South America

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 15th of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Liaoning

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 15th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Zimbabwe

And praying for one Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, on this Muslim day of prayer, please bless all Muslims!

Letters from (mainly African) inmates in Hong Kong prisons - and other drug trafficking items:   2016

This website's Tanzania File
(stopping Africans from being tricked into bringing drugs to HK)
- letters  from Tanzanian inmates  in Hong Kong prisons

This website's HK Asylum Seekers' File
(stopping South Asians from being "people smuggled" to HK)

Christine, for whom I've been asking prayers, now please God going back to Philippines on Friday - thanks to the South China Morning Post  (see my comment in this report)

Cancer-suffering asylum seeker in Hong Kong in race to get home

Previous photos

Sirach 20-23

People who foolishly talk too much become unpopular. Wise people know when to speak and how much to speak.

The talk of a foolish person is like a load on a journey. The talk of a wise person is a pleasure to hear.

Lord, do not give me proud eyes.
Do not let  lust take control of my life.

Do not let my mouth use coarse and foul language.

Help me avoid sins of impurity, alone or with others.

Lord, please give me the wisdom to avoid bad talk and bad actions

My recording of this reading

Psalm 119 

They are happy who follow God's word, those who seek God with all their hearts.

How can young people avoid evil? By seeking you and obeying you, Lord.

Open my eyes, Lord, that I may understand the beauty of your word.

Lord, when I'm worried or  in trouble, your word revives me and gives me strength.

Lord, keep my eyes from what is false. Bend my heart to your word and not to love of gain.

The word from your mouth means more to me than silver and gold.

The unfolding of your word gives light and teaches simple people.

Lord, thank you for your word which gives peace to our hearts

Recording

Titus 3.1-7

Remind everyone to be obedient to government officials; to be ready to do good at every opportunity; not to go slandering other people or picking quarrels; to be courteous and polite to everyone

There was a time when we too were ignorant; when we lived in wickedness and ill-will, hating each other and hateful ourselves

But then the kindness and love of God our Saviour were revealed, and God saved us because of his compassion

God saved us by the cleansing water of rebirth, and by renewing us with the Holy Spirit whom he has poured over us through Jesus Christ our Saviour

So we are justified by his grace, and look forward to eternal life

Jesus, Saviour of the world, you are our Saviour

Recording

Matthew 8.5-13

In the town of Capernaum, a Roman army captain said to Jesus
"Sir, my servant is paralyzed and in great pain." Jesus replied "I will go and heal him".

But the captain said "Sir, I am not worthy that you should enter my house. Just say the word and my servant will be healed.

For I understand orders. I give an order, and people act. I know that you also just need to give an order, and my servant will be healed".

Jesus said "This foreigner's faith is greater than that of the local people. And I  tell you that in the future people from all parts of the world will be in the kingdom of heaven".

Then Jesus said to the captain
"Go home. Your request made in faith is granted".

And the servant was healed at that moment.

Jesus, please give more people,
 from all parts of the world, the faith of the captain

Recording

The Joy of Love - Pope Francis' letter - on love in the family      Full English text

97: Recording

The following word, perpereúetai, denotes vainglory, the need to be haughty, pedantic and somewhat pushy. 

Those who love not only refrain from speaking too much about themselves, but are focused on others; they do not need to be the centre of attention. 

The word that comes next – physioútai – is similar, indicating that love is not arrogant. Literally, it means that we do not become “puffed up” before others. It also points to something more subtle: an obsession with showing off and a loss of a sense of reality.

Such people think that, because they are more “spiritual” or “wise”, they are more important than they really are. Paul uses this verb on other occasions, as when he says that “knowledge puffs up”, whereas “love builds up” (1 Cor 8:1). 

Some think that they are important because they are more knowledgeable than others; they want to lord it over them. Yet what really makes us important is a love that understands, shows concern, and embraces the weak.

Elsewhere the word is used to criticize those who are “inflated” with their own importance (cf. 1 Cor 4:18) but in fact are filled more with empty words than the real “power” of the Spirit (cf. 1 Cor 4:19).

98a: Recording 

Jesus lived in full harmony with creation, and others were amazed: “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?” (Mt 8:27).

His appearance was not that of an ascetic set apart from the world, nor of an enemy to the pleasant things of life. Of himself he said: “The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard!’” (Mt 11:19).

He was far removed from philosophies which despised the body, matter and the things of the world. Such unhealthy dualisms, nonetheless, left a mark on certain Christian thinkers in the course of history and disfigured the Gospel.

ICAC postpones dinner because of no-shows

- well done, ICAC staff!

71: Recording

The new Jerusalem, the holy city, is the goal towards which all of humanity is moving. It is (interesting) that God’s revelation tells us that the fullness of humanity and of history is realized in a city.

 We need to look at our cities with a contemplative gaze, a gaze of faith which sees God dwelling in their homes, in their streets and squares. 

God’s presence accompanies the sincere efforts of individuals and groups to find encouragement and meaning in their lives. He dwells among them, fostering solidarity, fraternity, and the desire for goodness, truth and justice.

 This presence must not be contrived but found, uncovered. God does not hide himself from those who seek him with a sincere heart, even though they do so tentatively, in a vague and haphazard manner.

Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day of the week:

Sun: Africa        Mon: Europe & Russia     Tues: South Asia      Wed: East Asia  
Thurs: S.E. Asia & Pacific       Frid: South America       Sat: Central & North America 
  
Jesus, today, Thursday,  please bless the people of S.E. Asia & Pacific

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 14th of the month,  Jesus please bless the prisoners of Jilin

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 14th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Ethiopia

And praying for one Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, please pacify Al-Qaeda

Letters from (mainly African) inmates in Hong Kong prisons - and other drug trafficking items:   2016

This website's Tanzania File
(stopping Africans from being tricked into bringing drugs to HK)
- letters  from Tanzanian inmates  in Hong Kong prisons

This website's HK Asylum Seekers' File
(stopping South Asians from being "people smuggled" to HK)

Despite valiant efforts (like last Saturday ...most of the day spent on this) I am still way behind in answering mail and email - mainly to do with prison inmates in HK.

Please bear with me ... I'm receiving 5-10 letters a day, and more than 20 emails per day ....and some days, like yesterday (8 hours at a prison, excluding travel time) no time/energy to answer mail

Court rejects Beijing's South China Sea claims

My reflection: South China? Sea

Update re Christine Aquino, asylum seeker, ex-inmate, now bravely fighting stage 4 cancer:  Since last Sunday Christine has been back in hospital ... and she is aware the doctors don't give her much time .... but now (finally!) she has legal clearance to travel back to the Philippines to spend her last days with her family (...although let's keep praying for a miracle: Jesus, please heal Christine!). 
Today's South China Morning Post has an article about Christine's courageous story

Chris McDonnell   (UK blogger)

Repairing broken friendships

As Christians we have to be positive in our contribution to the healing of peoples that must now be undertaken

Sirach 15-19

Wisdom makes us happy. Foolishness makes us sad. Humility is the pathway to wisdom.

We are free to choose good or evil, wisdom or foolishness. To live a good life is something everyone can try to do.

If we have done something wrong, we must ask pardon of the Lord. We must turn our back on  wrongdoing and face towards the Lord.

Do not indulge in luxurious living. Too much wine and luxury corrupts the heart.

Avoid gossip and slander. Be someone who can keep a secret.

The way people dress tells you what work they do. The way people walk also tells a lot about them.

Lord, please help me turn my back on wrongdoing. Help me face towards you

Psalm 118

Give thanks to the Lord for he is good. His love has no end.

Let the sons of Israel say: "His love has no end." Let those who honor the Lord say: "His love has no end."

It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in humans. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.

I was falling, falling, falling, but the Lord was my helper.

The Lord is my strength and my song. He is my saviour.

The Lord's right hand has triumphed. His right hand has raised me up.

I shall not die, I shall live and recount all his deeds.

The stone which the builders rejected has become the corner stone.

This is the work of the Lord, a marvel in our eyes.

This day was made by the Lord.
We rejoice and are glad.

Lord, we give thanks to you, for you are good. Your love has no end

Titus 2.11-14

God's grace has made salvation available for the whole human race.

We must give up everything that does not lead to God

We must delete our worldly ambitions. 

We must be self-restrained and live good lives here in this present world, while we wait in hope for the blessings that will come with the Coming of the glory of our God and savior Christ Jesus

He sacrificed himself for us in order to set us free from wickedness, and to purify us so that we would have no ambition except to do good

Jesus, please help me give up everything that does not lead to you

Recording 

Matthew 8.1-3

In Jesus' time, it was illegal for anyone to touch a leper, and it was illegal for lepers  to go near other people.

But one day a leper broke the law.
He came right up to Jesus and said "If you want to, you can heal me."

Jesus also broke the law. He stretched out his hand, touched the leper, and said "Of course I want to heal you. Be healed!"

The man was healed immediately.

Jesus, I didn't know you were a law-breaker. I guess this means that sometimes, in special cases,  it's ok to break the law

Recording 

The Joy of Love - Pope Francis' letter - on love in the family     Full English text

96: Recording

In a word, love means fulfilling the last two commandments of God’s Law: “You shall not covet your neighbour’s house; you shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbour’s” (Ex 20:17). 

Love inspires a sincere esteem for every human being and the recognition of his or her own right to happiness. I love this person, and I see him or her with the eyes of God, who gives us everything “for our enjoyment” (1 Tim 6:17). As a result, I feel a deep sense of happiness and peace. 

This same deeply rooted love also leads me to reject the injustice whereby some possess too much and others too little. It moves me to find ways of helping society’s outcasts to find a modicum of joy. That is not envy, but the desire for equality.

Vatican squelches rumors of new rules on Mass facing east
Cardinal Sarah's loss of face

97: Recording 

The Lord was able to invite others to be attentive to the beauty that there is in the world because he himself was in constant touch with nature, lending it an attention full of fondness and wonder.

 As he made his way throughout the land, he often stopped to contemplate the beauty sown by his Father, and invited his disciples to perceive a divine message in things:

“Lift up your eyes, and see how the fields are already white for harvest” (Jn 4:35). “The kingdom of God is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all seeds, but once it has grown, it is the greatest of plants” (Mt 13:31-32).

Hong Kong - where the rich and powerful are above the law 

CY sidesteps questions on ICAC controversy

Rafael Hui, Thomas Kwok granted leave to appeal

As the UK shuts itself off, Africa rolls out a welcome mat across the continent

70: Recording

It is also true that at times greater emphasis is placed on the outward expressions and traditions of some groups, or on alleged private revelations which would replace all else, than on the impulse of Christian piety. 

There is a kind of Christianity made up of devotions reflecting an individual and sentimental faith life which does not in fact correspond to authentic “popular piety”. Some people promote these expressions while not being in the least concerned with the advancement of society or the formation of the laity, and in certain cases they do so in order to obtain economic benefits or some power over others.

 Nor can we overlook the fact that in recent decades there has been a breakdown in the way Catholics pass down the Christian faith to the young. It is undeniable that many people feel disillusioned and no longer identify with the Catholic tradition.

 Growing numbers of parents do not bring their children for baptism or teach them how to pray. There is also a certain exodus towards other faith communities. The causes of this breakdown include: a lack of opportunity for dialogue in families, the influence of the communications media, a relativistic subjectivism, unbridled consumerism which feeds the market, lack of pastoral care among the poor, the failure of our institutions to be welcoming, and our difficulty in restoring a mystical adherence to the faith in a pluralistic religious landscape.

   "Maybe in view of a recent football match in France that is not such a secure analogy, but that tale can wait awhile…" - a reference to a game between ENGland and ICEland! (in today's blog by Chris McDonnell, above)   

Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day of the week:

Sun: Africa        Mon: Europe & Russia     Tues: South Asia      Wed: East Asia  
Thurs: S.E. Asia & Pacific       Frid: South America       Sat: Central & North America 
  
Jesus, today, Wednesday,  please bless the people of East Asia

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 13th of the month,  Jesus please bless the prisoners of Jianxi

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 13th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Mali

And praying for one Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, please pacify Al-Shabaab 

Letters from (mainly African) inmates in Hong Kong prisons - and other drug trafficking items:   2016

This website's Tanzania File
(stopping Africans from being tricked into bringing drugs to HK)
- letters  from Tanzanian inmates  in Hong Kong prisons

This website's HK Asylum Seekers' File
(stopping South Asians from being "people smuggled" to HK)

Islam File    The New Translation

"Same-sex marriage" file

Moving letter from a South African woman in a HK prison describing how she was forced in a horrible fashion to bring drugs to HK:
    

Pope appoints ex-Fox News correspondent as Vatican spokesman

The Chilcot report on the invasion of Iraq offers a damning verdict, and adds weight to the call for a sincere apology from John Howard and for Australia to conduct its own inquiry

Sirach 12-14

No good will come to a person who persists in evil. No good will come to a person who refuses to help the poor.

In prosperity you cannot always be sure who is a true friend, but in adversity you can be sure who is not a friend.

Greed causes a personality to wither. The pursuit of wisdom causes a personality to blossom.

Lord, please give me the wisdom to be kind and to avoid greed

Psalm 117

O Praise the Lord, all you nations.
Acclaim him, all you peoples!

Strong is his love for us.
He is faithful for ever.

May all the nations love and praise you, Lord

Recording 

Recommended: check these readings early morning, think about them during the day, check them again at night. This habit gives us extra energy, courage, motivation, peace and compassion for each day

Today's Gospel

Titus 2.1-10

It's your job to preach the behavior that goes with sound doctrine: the older men should be reserved, dignified, moderate, sound in faith and love

The older women should be teachers of good behavior, avoiding scandalmongering and too much wine. They should be an example to the younger women in their love for their husbands and children

Younger men should be moderate, with yourself setting an example of sincerity for them

Slaves should be obedient to their masters, and avoid petty thieving

Jesus, help me be a good person, a good Christian

Recording 

 Matthew 7.1-27

Jesus said to the people: Do not judge other people, and God will not judge you.

It's so easy to be aware of other people's faults yet be blind to your own faults.

Persevere in prayer. Ask and you will receive. Search and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened.

You like to give good things to your children. God likes to give good things to you.

Treat other people the way you would like them to treat you.

Beware of bad leaders. A sure way to know if someone is good or bad: are their actions good or bad?

If you put my words into practice,
you are like someone who builds his house on rock.

If you ignore my words, you are like someone who builds his house on sand.

Jesus, please help me put your words into practice

Recording 

The Joy of Love - Pope Francis' letter - on love in the family      Full English text

94: Recording

Throughout the text, it is clear that Paul wants to stress that love is more than a mere feeling. 

Rather, it should be understood along the lines of the Hebrew verb “to love”; it is “to do good”. 

As Saint Ignatius of Loyola said, “Love is shown more by deeds than by words”.106 

It thus shows its fruitfulness and allows us to experience the happiness of giving, the nobility and grandeur of spending ourselves unstintingly, without asking to be repaid, purely for the pleasure of giving and serving.

96: Recording

Jesus took up the biblical faith in God the Creator, emphasizing a fundamental truth: God is Father (cf. Mt 11:25).

In talking with his disciples, Jesus would invite them to recognize the paternal relationship God has with all his creatures. With moving tenderness he would remind them that each one of them is important in God’s eyes:

 “Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God” (Lk 12:6). “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them” (Mt 6:26).

69: Recording 

It is imperative to evangelize cultures in order to inculturate the Gospel.

In countries of Catholic tradition, this means encouraging, fostering and reinforcing a richness which already exists.

In countries of other religious traditions, or profoundly secularized countries, it will mean sparking new processes for evangelizing culture, even though these will demand long-term planning.

We must keep in mind, however, that we are constantly being called to grow. Each culture and social group needs purification and growth.

In the case of the popular cultures of Catholic peoples, we can see deficiencies which need to be healed by the Gospel: machismo, alcoholism, domestic violence, low Mass attendance, fatalistic or superstitious notions which lead to sorcery, and the like. Popular piety itself can be the starting point for healing and liberation from these deficiencies.

Inmates break out of Texas cell to help save their jailer – video

Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day of the week:

Sun: Africa        Mon: Europe & Russia     Tues: South Asia      Wed: East Asia  
Thurs: S.E. Asia & Pacific       Frid: South America       Sat: Central & North America 
  
Jesus, today, Tuesday, please bless the people of South Asia

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 12th of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Jiangsu

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 12th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Guinea-Bissau

And praying for one Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, please pacify Boko Haram 

Letters from (mainly African) inmates in Hong Kong prisons - and other drug trafficking items:   2016

This website's Tanzania File
(stopping Africans from being tricked into bringing drugs to HK)
- letters  from Tanzanian inmates  in Hong Kong prisons

This website's HK Asylum Seekers' File
(stopping South Asians from being "people smuggled" to HK)

Islam File    The New Translation

"Same-sex marriage" file

Pakistan's 'Angel of Mercy' dies

Despite the huge sums of money that passed through his foundation, Edhi lived modestly in a two-room apartment

Kenya: 'There is no escape' - Nairobi's air pollution sparks Africa health warning 

Pollution is ‘beyond imagination’

Letter from a Nigerian inmate in a HK prison for drug trafficking. "Don't do it!" he says.

Sirach 10-11

As the magistrate is, so will his officials be. As the governor is, so will be the inhabitants of his city.

What has dust and ashes to pride itself on? A king today is a corpse tomorrow.

Do not praise a person for good looks, nor dislike anyone for appearance.

Small among winged creatures is the bee, but nothing is sweeter than her honey.

Lord, please give our world good leaders

Psalm 116

I love the Lord for he has heard the cry of my appeal. He turned his ear to me in the day when I called him.

They surrounded me, sorrow, distress and the snares of death.
I was helpless, so the Lord saved me.

Calm down my soul, for the Lord has been good. I will walk in the presence of the Lord in the land of the living.

How can I repay the Lord for his goodness to me? The cup of salvation I will raise to thank the Lord.

O precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his faithful. Lord, you have loosened my bonds. I am your servant.

Thank you, Lord, for all your goodness to me

Recording 

Titus 1.1-9

From Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to Titus, true child of mine in the faith we share, wishing you grace and peace from God the Father and from Christ Jesus our Saviour

The reason I left you behind in Crete was for you to appoint elders in every town: each of them a man of irreproachable character, married only once, not arrogant or hot-tempered, not a heavy drinker, not out to make money

A man who is hospitable and a friend of all that is good; sensible, devout, with a firm grasp of the Good News, a good teacher, able to refute people who argue against sound doctrine

Jesus, please help all pastors be good "elders"

Recording 

Matthew 6.25-34

Jesus said to the crowds that life is about more than food and clothing.

Pointing to some birds flying around, Jesus said: Look at the birds. They don't sow or reap,
yet your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are more precious than the birds.

Pointing to flowers in the field Jesus said: How beautiful are the flowers. They are more beautiful than King Solomon's clothing.

If God cares so much about the life of flowers won't he care even more about human life?

So, don't spend your day worrying about what you are going to eat and drink and wear.

Put God first in your life, God and a right way of life, then  God will look after your physical needs.

Don't waste your energy worrying about tomorrow. Live life one day at a time.

Heavenly Father, thank you for caring for the birds and flowers .... and me!

Recording 

The Joy of Love - Pope Francis' letter - on love in the family     Full English text

93: Recording

The next word that Paul uses is chrestéuetai. The word is used only here in the entire Bible.

It is derived from chrestós: a good person, one who shows his goodness by his deeds.

Here, in strict parallelism with the preceding verb, it serves as a complement. Paul wants to make it clear that “patience” is not a completely passive attitude, but one accompanied by activity, by a dynamic and creative interaction with others. The word indicates that love benefits and helps others. For this reason it is translated as “kind”; love is ever ready to be of assistance.

'Reap what you sow' - families of seized lawyers send public warning to China

95: Recording

The natural environment is a collective good, the patrimony of all humanity and the responsibility of everyone.

If we make something our own, it is only to administer it for the good of all. If we do not, we burden our consciences with the weight of having denied the existence of others.

That is why the New Zealand bishops asked what the commandment “Thou shall not kill” means when “twenty percent of the world’s population consumes resources at a rate that robs the poor nations and future generations of what they need to survive”.[78]

68: Recording

The Christian substratum of certain peoples – most of all in the West – is a living reality. Here we find, especially among the most needy, a moral resource which preserves the values of an authentic Christian humanism.

Seeing reality with the eyes of faith, we cannot fail to acknowledge what the Holy Spirit is sowing. It would show a lack of trust in his free and unstinting activity to think that authentic Christian values are absent where great numbers of people have received baptism and express their faith and solidarity with others in a variety of ways.

This means more than acknowledging occasional “seeds of the word”, since it has to do with an authentic Christian faith which has its own expressions and means of showing its relationship to the Church. 

The immense importance of a culture marked by faith cannot be overlooked; before the onslaught of contemporary secularism, an evangelized culture, for all its limits, has many more resources than the mere sum total of believers.

An evangelized popular culture contains values of faith and solidarity capable of encouraging the development of a more just and believing society, and possesses a particular wisdom which ought to be gratefully acknowledged.

10 years ago today

As I walked to St Paul's Yau Ma Tei yesterday morning ...thinking about the story of the Good Samaritan in yesterday's Gospel, I came across a real live man in trouble by the side of the road .... slumped on ground at base of traffic lights opposite YMT Jockey Club. No reaction when I tried to wake him (...drugs? alcohol? been bashed? one of more of these?...).  My presence alerted a passing truck driver to the problem ...he kindly stopped and phoned the police/ambulance.

Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day of the week:

Sun: Africa        Mon: Europe & Russia     Tues: South Asia      Wed: East Asia  
Thurs: S.E. Asia & Pacific       Frid: South America       Sat: Central & North America 
  
Jesus, today, Monday,  please bless the people of Europe & Russia

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 11th of the month,  Jesus please bless the prisoners of Hunan

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 11th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Eritrea

And praying for one Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, please pacify ISIS 

Letters from (mainly African) inmates in Hong Kong prisons - and other drug trafficking items:   2016

This website's Tanzania File
(stopping Africans from being tricked into bringing drugs to HK)
- letters  from Tanzanian inmates  in Hong Kong prisons

This website's HK Asylum Seekers' File
(stopping South Asians from being "people smuggled" to HK)