All you Saints in Heaven,
great and small, pray for us!

When the Saints Go Marching In
(YouTube)

My article in today's Ming Pao newspaper with the topic: 
HK's legislature needs .... seatbelts! 
is on Ming Pao website - click "Australian in HK". Free access to article with recording today from about noon to 8pm HK time. Text without recording 

Pope in Sweden - Reports Here

How a restless reforming pope can help heal Reformation rift

I have signed this petition concerning refugees arriving by boat to Australia

Could a mild outbreak of humanity be behind the Coalition's cynical new asylum politics?

Psalm 24

God, by living a good life, help me to seek your face

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

1 John 3.1-3

Think of the love that the Father has lavished on us by letting us be called God's children

And God's love has even more in store for us in the future: we shall be like him because we shall see him as he really is

This is why we must try to live good lives. We must try to be as good as Christ

Jesus, please help me be more like you

Recording

Matthew 5.1-12

Jesus said to the crowds:

Blessed are poor and simple of heart people. They belong to the kingdom of heaven .

Blessed are people who are going through great sorrow. Their hearts will be filled with peace.

Blessed are people who lead just and honest lives. They will see the victory of goodness.

Blessed are people who show mercy to others. God will be merciful to them.

Blessed are people who have a clean heart. They will see God.

Blessed are people who are peacemakers. They are God's children.

Blessed are people who are persecuted for the cause of right.
They will receive a great reward in heaven.

Jesus, please help me be merciful and kind and just

Recording  

In all languages, one of the most common phrases we use many times each day: "Where are you going?"
All Saints Day reminds us of the Big Answer: Heaven.
c.f. the many "Near Death Experience" stories that give a glimpse of Heaven - Here

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

206: Recording

“The complexity of today’s society and the challenges faced by the family require a greater effort on the part of the whole Christian community in preparing those who are about to be married. The importance of the virtues needs to be included. Among these, chastity proves invaluable for the genuine growth of love between persons. 

In this regard, the Synod Fathers agreed on the need to involve the entire community more extensively by stressing the witness of families themselves and by grounding marriage preparation in the process of Christian initiation by bringing out the connection between marriage, baptism and the other sacraments. 

The Fathers also spoke of the need for specific programs of marriage preparation aimed at giving couples a genuine experience of participation in ecclesial life and a complete introduction to various aspects of family life”.

195: Recording

The principle of the maximization of profits, frequently isolated from other considerations, reflects a misunderstanding of the very concept of the economy. 

As long as production is increased, little concern is given to whether it is at the cost of future resources or the health of the environment; as long as the clearing of a forest increases production, no one calculates the losses entailed in the desertification of the land, the harm done to biodiversity or the increased pollution. 

In a word, businesses profit by calculating and paying only a fraction of the costs involved.

Yet only when “the economic and social costs of using up shared environmental resources are recognized with transparency and fully borne by those who incur them, not by other peoples or future generations”,[138] can those actions be considered ethical. 

An instrumental way of reasoning, which provides a purely static analysis of realities in the service of present needs, is at work whether resources are allocated by the market or by state central planning.

189: Recording 

Solidarity is a spontaneous reaction by those who recognize that the social function of property and the universal destination of goods are realities which come before private property.

 The private ownership of goods is justified by the need to protect and increase them, so that they can better serve the common good; for this reason, solidarity must be lived as the decision to restore to the poor what belongs to them.

 These convictions and habits of solidarity, when they are put into practice, open the way to other structural transformations and make them possible.

 Changing structures without generating new convictions and attitudes will only ensure that those same structures will become, sooner or later, corrupt, oppressive and ineffectual.

10 years ago today

2006-11-01 Jia Jia home in Zhaoqing after throat operation in hospital in Guangzho. Thank
you, Philip!

Melbourne Cup today:

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 1st of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Anhui

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 1st of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Congo

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)

Pope to Sweden today

Francis heads for new periphery by marking Protestant anniversary in avowedly secular Sweden

On the brink of a 'Filipino moment,' it's up for grabs

By John Allen
(always good to read)  

Indian and Nepalese shops all over Hong Kong are decorated these days for the Festival of Dewali (Deepawali)

As the world experiences more "darkness" of varying kinds, may this Festival of Light remind us that even the tiniest light - a lit match - dispels darkness!

c.f. Diwali and the Melbourne Cup !

Micah 1-4

In the future, the mountain of the Temple of the Lord will be the most important place  in the world.

All nations will come to this place. They will say:

Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord so that he may teach us his ways and we may walk in his paths.

Nations will not lift sword against nation. There will be no more training for war.

Yes please, Lord, stop nations fighting each other. Please give peace to our world 

My recording of this reading

Psalm 95

Come ring out our joy to the Lord. Hail the rock who saves us.

Let us come before him giving thanks. With songs let us praise the Lord.

A mighty God is the Lord, a great king above all gods.

In his hand are the depths of the earth. The heights of the mountains are his.

To him belongs the sea, for he made it, and the dry land shaped by his hands.

Come in, let us bow and bend low. Let us kneel before the God who made us.

For he is our God and we are the people who belong to his pasture.

Lord, you are our Creator. Our life comes from you. We praise and love you, Lord

Recording 

Revelation 20.11-15

Then I saw God sitting on a great white throne

I saw the dead, both great and small, standing in front of his throne, while the Book of Life was opened, in which was the record of everyone's life

Everyone was judged according to the way they had lived

Then Death and Hades were thrown into a burning lake.
This burning lake is the second death

Anyone whose name could not be found in the Book of Life
was thrown into the burning lake

Jesus, may all near and dear to me, be in the Book of Life

Recording 

Mark 6.17-29

Not long after Jesus began traveling and teaching, King Herod arrested John the Baptist and put him in prison.

This was because John had told Herod he was breaking the Law
by living with Herodias,  his brother's wife.

During a birthday party for Herod, the daughter of Herodias danced.

Her dancing so pleased Herod
that he said he would give her anything she wanted.

Herodias told her to ask for the head of John the Baptist on a dish. Herod then had John beheaded.

Jesus, please give the world good leaders, and protect people from bad leaders like Herod

Recording 

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

205: Recording

The Synod Fathers stated in a number of ways that we need to help young people discover the dignity and beauty of marriage.

They should be helped to perceive the attraction of a complete union that elevates and perfects the social dimension of existence, gives sexuality its deepest meaning, and benefits children by offering them the best context for their growth and development.

194: Recording

For new models of progress to arise, there is a need to change “models of global development”;[136] this will entail a responsible reflection on “the meaning of the economy and its goals with an eye to correcting its malfunctions and misapplications”.[137]

It is not enough to balance, in the medium term, the protection of nature with financial gain, or the preservation of the environment with progress. Halfway measures simply delay the inevitable disaster.

Put simply, it is a matter of redefining our notion of progress. A technological and economic development which does not leave in its wake a better world and an integrally higher quality of life cannot be considered progress.

Frequently, in fact, people’s quality of life actually diminishes – by the deterioration of the environment, the low quality of food or the depletion of resources – in the midst of economic growth. 

In this context, talk of sustainable growth usually becomes a way of distracting attention and offering excuses. It absorbs the language and values of ecology into the categories of finance and technocracy, and the social and environmental responsibility of businesses often gets reduced to a series of marketing and image-enhancing measures

188: Recording

The Church has realized that the need to heed this plea is itself born of the liberating action of grace within each of us, and thus it is not a question of a mission reserved only to a few: “The Church, guided by the Gospel of mercy and by love for mankind, hears the cry for justice and intends to respond to it with all her might”.

 In this context we can understand Jesus’ command to his disciples: “You yourselves give them something to eat!” : it means working to eliminate the structural causes of poverty and to promote the integral development of the poor, as well as small daily acts of solidarity in meeting the real needs which we encounter.

 The word “solidarity” is a little worn and at times poorly understood, but it refers to something more than a few sporadic acts of generosity. It presumes the creation of a new mindset which thinks in terms of community and the priority of the life of all over the appropriation of goods by a few.

Four old retired guys are walking down a street in Yuma , Arizona. They turn a corner and see a sign that says,
   "Old Timers Bar - ALL drinks 10 cents." They look at each other and then go in, thinking, This is too good to be true.
     The old bartender says in a voice that carries across the room, "Come on in and let me pour one for you! What'll it be, gentlemen?"
   There's a fully stocked bar, so each of the men orders a martini. In no time the bartender serves up four iced martinis - shaken, not stirred - and says, "That'll be 10 cents each, please."
   The four guys stare at the bartender for a moment, then at each other. They can't believe their good luck. They pay the 40 cents, finish their martinis, and order another round.
   Again, four excellent martinis are produced, with the bartender again saying, "That's 40 cents, please." They pay the 40 cents, but their curiosity gets the better of them.
   They've each had two martinis and haven't even spent a dollar yet.
   Finally one of them says, "How can you afford to serve martinis as good as these for a dime apiece?"
   "I'm a retired tailor from Phoenix ," the bartender says, "and I always wanted to own a bar. Last year I hit the Lottery jackpot for $125 million and decided to open this place. Every drink costs a dime. Wine, liquor, beer – it's all the same."
   "Wow! That's some story!" one of the men says.
   As the four of them sip at their martinis, they can't help noticing seven other people at the end of the bar who don't have any drinks in front of them and haven't ordered
anything the whole time they've been there.
   Nodding at the seven at the end of the bar, one of the men asks the bartender, "What's with them?"   
   The bartender says, "They're retired people from Australia, they're waiting for Happy Hour when drinks are half-price."

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 31st of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Tianjin

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 31st of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Nepal

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)

This is just the tip of the iceberg:

Man acquitted of drug trafficking sues Hong Kong police for more than HK$3.9m over ‘planted evidence’

c.f.  This story  and  this one

A good article to go with Pope's visit to Sweden tomorrow:

Missionary Ecumenism: Justice, Peace, Integrity of Creation and Lutherans

By Fr Harry Winter O.M.I.

c.f. Readings for "Sunday 31"

Wisdom 10-19

Wisdom has been present in the world since the beginning of time. 

Wisdom has always been a close friend of good people.

Wise people see God in the beauty of creation. 

Foolish people are blind to God's presence in creation.

Wise people ponder God's goodness and kindness.

Wise people  try to be good and kind to other people.

My recording of this reading

Psalm 145

I will give you glory, O God my king. I will bless your name day after day.

The Lord is great, worthy of all praise. His greatness cannot be measured.

Age to age shall proclaim your works, shall speak of your splendor and glory.

The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.

How good is the Lord to all,
compassionate to all his creatures. All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord, and tell all the world of your love.

The Lord is faithful in all his words and loving in all his deeds.

The Lord supports all who fall
and raises all who are bowed down.

The eyes of all creatures look to you and you give them their food each day. The Lord is close to all who call him, who call on him from their hearts.

Let the whole world bless the Lord's holy name, for ever, for ages unending.

Recording 

2 Thessalonians 2.1-17

Regarding the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, don't be deceived by wild speculation

Stand firm in your faith and avoid speculation

Keep the traditions we taught you, whether by word of mouth or by letter

May God strengthen you in everything good you do or say

Jesus, stop people spreading false information

Recording  

Today's Gospel:

Luke 19.1-9

In Jericho there was a wealthy man named Zacchaeus, a senior tax collector. He wanted to see what kind of person Jesus was

But because of his short stature he couldn't see over the crowd.
So he climbed a tree

Jesus saw him up the tree and said "Zacchaeus, come down, because I will stay at your house today"

Zacchaeus hurried down and welcomed Jesus warmly. People complained "He's gone to stay at the house of an outcast"

Zacchaeus replied "Sir, I am going to give half of my property to the poor. And if I have cheated anyone, I'll pay them back fourfold"

Jesus said to him "Today salvation has come to this house"

Jesus, please help more people to want to know and love you

Recording  

Jesus knew Zacchaeus was a traitor (working for the Romans) and corrupt (cheating people). But Jesus could see the good in Zacchaeus' heart ... it was fertile ground for the message of goodness. Jesus could see grain among the weeds. 
c.f. this beautiful reflection by Pope Francis (Joy of the Gospel 24 and 153)

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

204: Recording

The response to the consultation also insisted on the need for training lay leaders who can assist in the pastoral care of families, with the help of teachers and counsellors, family and community physicians, social workers, juvenile and family advocates, and drawing upon the contributions of psychology, sociology, marital therapy and counselling. 

Professionals, especially those with practical experience, help keep pastoral initiatives grounded in the real situations and concrete concerns of families.

 “Courses and programs, planned specifically for pastoral workers, can be of assistance by integrating the premarital preparation program into the broader dynamic of ecclesial life”.

Good pastoral training is important “especially in light of particular emergency situations arising from cases of domestic violence and sexual abuse”.

All this in no way diminishes, but rather complements, the fundamental value of spiritual direction, the rich spiritual treasures of the Church, and sacramental Reconciliation

193: Recording

In any event, if in some cases sustainable development were to involve new forms of growth, then in other cases, given the insatiable and irresponsible growth produced over many decades, we need also to think of containing growth by setting some reasonable limits and even retracing our steps before it is too late.

We know how unsustainable is the behaviour of those who constantly consume and destroy, while others are not yet able to live in a way worthy of their human dignity. 

That is why the time has come to accept decreased growth in some parts of the world, in order to provide resources for other places to experience healthy growth. Benedict XVI has said that “technologically advanced societies must be prepared to encourage more sober lifestyles, while reducing their energy consumption and improving its efficiency”.[135]

187c: Recording

The old question always returns: “How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods, and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help?” (1 Jn 3:17).

 Let us recall also how bluntly the apostle James speaks of the cry of the oppressed: “The wages of the labourers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts” (5:4).

Yesterday's menu - reading from Revelation 19.1-9
Today's menu - reading from Luke 19.1-9
Melbourne Cup on Tuesday?! 19 1 9 ?

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, Sunday,  please bless the people of Africa

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 30th of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Shanghai

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 30th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Haiti

And praying for one Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, please bless all Muslims in my own country 

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 could watch only the first few  minutes of this video. How much can you watch?

The War on Children - Exposing the Comprehensive Sexuality Education Agenda

More Syrian refugees arrive in Rome at Pope's prompting

God bless Italy !

Yesterday afternoon at Lai Chi Kok men's prison, I told one inmate how this week at the High Court three inmates on different days received reductions for helping my anti-drug campaign. I said "one got 12 months less, one 6 months less, one 2 months less". 

The inmate's reply really struck me .... and motivated me to keep up the campaign. He said "one day is good" !  Meaning, to get out of prison even one day earlier than expected is not a small thing

Jonah 2-4 (a)

God arranged for a big fish to swallow Jonah. Jonah was in the fish for 3 days.

Inside the fish, Jonah prayed to God for help. God heard Jonah's prayer and got the fish to vomit Jonah on the shore.

Again God told Jonah to preach repentance in Nineveh. This time Jonah did as God requested.
"Forty days and Nineveh will be destroyed" he proclaimed.

Jonah 2-4 (b)

The people of Nineveh believed God's message. They put on sackcloth and ashes. They fasted and prayed. They repented of their evil behavior.

God saw their change of heart and spared Nineveh.

Jonah complained to God: "Your change of mind will cause me a big loss of face."

God said to Jonah: "Do I not have the right to show compassion to my people?"

Lord, please help me repent of bad behavior

My recording of this reading

Revelation 19.1-9    (1919)

After this I heard the sound of a huge crowd in heaven singing: "Alleluia! Victory and glory and power to our God!"

The sound of the crowd  was like the sound of the ocean or the roar of thunder as they called out:

"Alleluia! The reign of the Lord our God the Almighty has begun.
Let us be glad and joyful, and give praise to God, because this is the time for the marriage of the Lamb"

And an angel said "Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb"

Jesus, even on this earth, may I start to hear the sounds of heaven

 Recording 

Mark 6.7-13  (6+7=13!)

Jesus went on a teaching tour of  the nearby villages. 

He sent out  his 12 special friends in 6 pairs, with authority over evil spirits.

He told them to take only bare essentials for the journey.

He said "If any place does not welcome you, as you leave that place shake the dust from your feet as a sign to them".

The 12 apostles preached repentance. They cast out many devils. They anointed sick people with oil and healed them.

Jesus, may every place welcome you and your messengers

Recording  

System failure? Calls for transparency in Hong Kong’s ‘cruel’ prison sentence reviews

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

203: Recording

Seminarians should receive a more extensive interdisciplinary, and not merely doctrinal, formation in the areas of engagement and marriage.

Their training does not always allow them to explore their own psychological and affective background and experiences.

Some come from troubled families, with absent parents and a lack of emotional stability. 

There is a need to ensure that the formation process can enable them to attain the maturity and psychological balance needed for their future ministry. 

Family bonds are essential for reinforcing healthy self-esteem. 

It is important for families to be part of the seminary process and priestly life, since they help to reaffirm these and to keep them well grounded in reality.

It is helpful for seminarians to combine time in the seminary with time spent in parishes. There they can have greater contact with the concrete realities of family life, since in their future ministry they will largely be dealing with families.

“The presence of lay people, families and especially the presence of women in priestly formation, promotes an appreciation of the diversity and complementarity of the different vocations in the Church”.

192: Recording 

For example, a path of productive development, which is more creative and better directed, could correct the present disparity between excessive technological investment in consumption and insufficient investment in resolving urgent problems facing the human family. 

It could generate intelligent and profitable ways of reusing, revamping and recycling, and it could also improve the energy efficiency of cities.

Productive diversification offers the fullest possibilities to human ingenuity to create and innovate, while at the same time protecting the environment and creating more sources of employment.

Such creativity would be a worthy expression of our most noble human qualities, for we would be striving intelligently, boldly and responsibly to promote a sustainable and equitable development within the context of a broader concept of quality of life.

On the other hand, to find ever new ways of despoiling nature, purely for the sake of new consumer items and quick profit, would be, in human terms, less worthy and creative, and more superficial.

Donald Trump is not an outlier, but the distillation of our dominant values

187b: Recording

A mere glance at the Scriptures is enough to make us see how our gracious Father wants to hear the cry of the poor:  “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt ; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them… so I will send you…” (Ex 3:7-8, 10).  We also see how he is concerned for their needs: “When the Israelites cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up for them a deliverer” (Jg 3:15 ).

 If we, who are God’s means of hearing the poor, turn deaf ears to this plea, we oppose the Father’s will and his plan; that poor person “might cry to the Lord against you, and you would incur guilt” (Dt 15:9). 

A lack of solidarity towards his or her needs will directly affect our relationship with God: “For if in bitterness of soul he calls down a curse upon you, his Creator will hear his prayer” (Sir 4:6). 

At High Court yesterday morning a barrister read out a letter to the lady judge from a lady defendant. Barrister stopped to chuckle as he read out the words "I was so happy to know I would have a lady judge".  (And I also was happy to see that lady judge ... this year she has been most sympathetic to supporters of the anti-drug campaign ....and twice this week she has given discounts to such supporters. God bless her!)

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, Saturday,  please bless the people of Central & North America

And praying for prisoners in one part of China each day of the month:
On this 29th of the month,  Jesus please bless the prisoners of Chongqing

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 29th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Mauritania

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

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)

Atrocious conditions in prisons in the Philippines - which is why many prisoners in other countries don't want to be transferred back to the Philippines  ... with Duterte in power making return even less attractive:
Inside two of the Philippines’ most notorious jails

Woo Kwok-hing says he can heal HK's rifts - with video

And see yesterday's menu, below, for why I'd like Judge Woo to be the next Chief Executive in HK!

Many times over the past few years I have tried to make contact with media in South America, to enlist their help in my anti-drug campaign .... in the same way as I've been working with media in Africa. But never even once a response. 

A few days ago I met a man from South America who told me why the media in South America would not want to be part of an anti-drug campaign: because in virtually every country of South America there is a strong alliance between the government, the media .... and the Drug Lords   

Jonah 1

God said to Jonah: "Go to the city of Nineveh and preach repentance."  Jonah was afraid to go to Nineveh.  He ran away.

He boarded a ship  for Tarshish.
When the ship was at sea, a great storm hit the ship.

The sailors drew lots to see who was responsible for this bad luck.
The lot chose Jonah who admitted his guilt in disobeying God.

The sailors then threw Jonah overboard. The sea immediately became calm again.

Lord, please help me agree to do anything you ask me to do

My recording of this reading

Psalm 94

O Lord,  Judge of the earth, how long will the wicked crush the poor?

The wicked say "God does not hear". But can he who made the ear, not hear?

Blessed are those whom the Lord teaches. The Lord gives them peace in troubled times.

When cares increase in my heart,
God's consolation calms my soul.

Lord, when cares and troubles increase, please  help us to trust in you.

Recording  

Revelation 18.1-4

I saw another angel, shouting at the top of his voice: "Babylon has fallen, Babylon the Great has fallen. Gone for ever, never to return, is your life of magnificence and ease"

Another voice spoke from heaven: "Come out, my people, away from Babylon, so that you do not experience her punishment"

Jesus, please help us not be contaminated by worldly values

Recording

Mark 6.1-6

Jesus and his disciples went to his home town of Nazareth. On the Sabbath he went to the prayer hall and began teaching.

People in the prayer hall were astonished at his teaching. "Who does he think he is?" they asked. "He is just a carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, Joset, Jude and Simon. His sisters also are here." And they would not accept him.

So Jesus said to them "A prophet is despised only in his own country "

Because of their lack of faith, Jesus cured only a few sick people there. He was amazed at the lack of faith in Nazareth.

Jesus, please help me be happy about your gifts to others

Recording  

Not always, but most of the time, Jesus links healing with faith - as in Mark 6.
c.f. Here

Why we can’t end corruption in Africa?

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

202: Recording

“The main contribution to the pastoral care of families is offered by the parish, which is the family of families, where small communities, ecclesial movements and associations live in harmony”.

Along with a pastoral outreach aimed specifically at families, this shows the need for “a more adequate formation… of priests, deacons, men and women religious, catechists and other pastoral workers”.

In the replies given to the worldwide consultation, it became clear that ordained ministers often lack the training needed to deal with the complex problems currently facing families.

The experience of the broad oriental tradition of a married clergy could also be drawn upon.

191: Recording

Whenever these questions are raised, some react by accusing others of irrationally attempting to stand in the way of progress and human development.

But we need to grow in the conviction that a decrease in the pace of production and consumption can at times give rise to another form of progress and development.

Efforts to promote a sustainable use of natural resources are not a waste of money, but rather an investment capable of providing other economic benefits in the medium term. 

If we look at the larger picture, we can see that more diversified and innovative forms of production which impact less on the environment can prove very profitable. 

It is a matter of openness to different possibilities which do not involve stifling human creativity and its ideals of progress, but rather directing that energy along new channels.

187a: Recording

Each individual Christian and every community is called to be an instrument of God for the liberation and promotion of the poor, and for enabling them to be fully a part of society. 

This demands that we be docile and attentive to the cry of the poor and to come to their aid. 

10 years ago today

2006-10-28 English classes at Ricci Memorial Center in city, to raise money for education
of poor children in Zhaoqing

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 28th of the month,  Jesus please bless the prisoners of Beijing

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 28th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Lesotho

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)

   Two pieces of good news from the High Court!   

1. Yesterday a judge gave a discount to an African inmate for helping my anti-drug campaign...just like the judge on Monday ....two discounts in two days ....after 5 "no discounts" in a row over the past few weeks

2. A semi-retired High Court judge ...is a candidate to be the next Chief Executive of HK:
Candidate to be next Chief Executive of HK: retired High Court Judge Woo Kwok Hing

This dear judge has twice heard cases of inmates who have helped my anti-drug campaign. Both times he gave discounts for helping my campaign....including the biggest ever discount given by any judge:  Here  (see page 3, "T")

Hong Kong judge who found his forte as a colourful election watchdog

Amos 1-9

It was God who formed the mountains and created the wind.
The Lord is his name.

He says to the House of Israel:

Seek me and you shall live. Do not go to the places of idol worship.

Seek good and not evil, so that you may live. Hate evil and love good.

Injustice and swindling, exploitation of the poor, this is the reason for earthquakes and disaster.

Lord, please help me to do good and avoid evil

 My recording of this reading

Psalm 93

The Lord is king, with majesty enrobed, he has girded himself with power.

The world you made firm, not to be moved. From all eternity, O Lord, you are.

The oceans and coastlines of the world are majestic and powerful.

But greater than the roar of mighty waters, more glorious than the surging of the sea
is the Lord on high.

Such a Lord, such a Creator, such a God. Truly your decrees are to be trusted.

Holiness is fitting to your house
O Lord, always and everywhere.

We praise you, Lord, our Creator

Recording

Mark 5.21-24; 35-43

A prayer hall official, Jairus, fell at Jesus' feet and pleaded "My little daughter is dying. Please come and lay your hands on her and save her life".

While Jesus was on the way to Jairus' home,  people arrived and told Jairus "Your daughter is dead. No need to trouble the Master any further".

Jesus heard this and said to Jairus "Do not be afraid. Just have faith". Jesus allowed only Peter, James and John to go with him.

Mark 5 (cont)

At Jairus' home, everyone was weeping and wailing. Jesus said to them "Why all this crying? The child is not dead, but asleep".  Everyone laughed at him.

So he got them all to leave. Then taking the girl's parents and his 3 companions, he went to the place where the child was lying.

Taking the girl by the hand he said to her "Little girl, I tell you to get up". The little girl got up at once.  She was 12 years old.

Jesus, please give us more faith to pray for the sick ....even for children who have died!

Recording

What a happy couple Jairus and his wife must have been after Jesus brought their daughter back to life (Mark 5). Jairus was an official at the synagogue in Capernaum which was the "parish church" of Peter, Andrew, James, John and Matthew. It was also the synagogue where Jesus had healed a man possessed by an unclean spirit ... an event which Jairus had witnessed? When Jairus went back to "work" at the synagogue after his daughter had been healed, I wonder if Jesus again visited the synagogue? Imagine the joy in Jairus' heart as he welcomed Jesus. 

Don’t Lock ’Em Up. Give ’Em a Chance to Quit Drugs
Politicians from both parties now acknowledge that too many people have been put away for too long

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

201: Recording

“This effort calls for missionary conversion by everyone in the Church, that is, one that is not content to proclaim a merely theoretical message without connection to people’s real problems”.

Pastoral care for families “needs to make it clear that the Gospel of the family responds to the deepest expectations of the human person: a response to each one’s dignity and fulfilment in reciprocity, communion and fruitfulness.

This consists not merely in presenting a set of rules, but in proposing values that are clearly needed today, even in the most secularized of countries”.

The Synod Fathers also “highlighted the fact that evangelization needs unambiguously to denounce cultural, social, political and economic factors - such as the excessive importance given to market logic - that prevent authentic family life and lead to discrimination, poverty, exclusion, and violence.

Consequently, dialogue and cooperation need to be fostered with societal structures and encouragement given to lay people who are involved, as Christians, in the cultural and socio-political fields”.

This is good - much better than report on yesterday's menu, below

190: Recording 

Here too, it should always be kept in mind that “environmental protection cannot be assured solely on the basis of financial calculations of costs and benefits. The environment is one of those goods that cannot be adequately safeguarded or promoted by market forces”.[134]

Once more, we need to reject a magical conception of the market, which would suggest that problems can be solved simply by an increase in the profits of companies or individuals. Is it realistic to hope that those who are obsessed with maximizing profits will stop to reflect on the environmental damage which they will leave behind for future generations? 

Where profits alone count, there can be no thinking about the rhythms of nature, its phases of decay and regeneration, or the complexity of ecosystems which may be gravely upset by human intervention. Moreover, biodiversity is considered at most a deposit of economic resources available for exploitation, with no serious thought for the real value of things, their significance for persons and cultures, or the concerns and needs of the poor. 

186: Recording

Our faith in Christ, who became poor, and was always close to the poor and the outcast, is the basis of our concern for the integral development of society’s most neglected members

I was due to be at High Court at 9.30am yesterday ....and be at Cathedral at 10.30am for priests monthly retreat and meeting.
Thought I had no hope of making 10.30 ...but then the 9.30 case finished much earlier than expected ...at 10.15...and I was able to get a taxi and be at Cathedral by 10.25.  God is good!

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 27th of the month,  Jesus please bless the prisoners of Tibet

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 27th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Tibet

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)

On my last few trips to the High Court I've had the disappointment of no mitigation being given to inmates who helped my anti-drug campaign.

But yesterday a kind local judge reversed the trend: he gave one year's discount to a South American inmate. 

Thank you Jesus!

It is time to stop the shameful kowtowing to China – before it is too late

Short YouTube videos of my 70th birthday party on October 16 - thank you Michael!
01  02  03  04  05  06  07

1-5: at St Paul's Yau Ma Tei
6 & 7: at local restaurant

Chris McDonnell   (UK blogger)

An exchange of views

We have only a few days left before what has supposedly been presidential dialogue but has often degenerated to the level of insult, is concluded with an election result

Joel 1-4

My country has been invaded. Joy has disappeared from the land.

Priests, put on sackcloth and lament. Proclaim a fast to pray for our nation.

Turn to the Lord your God again,
for he is all tenderness and compassion.

Call out to the Lord for help. "Spare your people, Lord!"

The Lord replies: "I will save and rescue you.

I will pour out my spirit on all peoples. Every one will prophesy and see visions.

You will learn that I am the Lord your God. Jerusalem will be a holy place."

Lord, let our land be filled with knowledge of you and love for you

Psalm 92

It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning, and your truth right through the night.

Your deeds, O Lord, have made me glad. For the work of your hands, I shout with joy.

To me you give the wild ox's strength. You anoint me with the purest oil.

May we love and praise you right through our lives, right till the end of our days.

May we keep on proclaiming your goodness, proclaiming that in you, our rock, there is only goodness.

Lord, it is right and fitting to love and praise you

Recording   

Revelation 15.1-4

Then I saw something great and wonderful: those who had fought against the beast and won, were singing the Song of the Lamb:

"Great and wonderful are all your works, Lord God almighty. Just and true are all your ways, King of nations. All nations will come and adore you"

Jesus, may all the nations of the earth adore you

Recording 

Today's Gospel:

Mark 5.25-34

A large crowd gathered around Jesus near the side of the Sea of Galilee. In the crowd was a woman who had suffered from bleeding  for 12 years. She had spent all her money on doctors, but they  had been unable to help her.

She had heard about Jesus. She came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. "If I can touch even his clothes, I will be healed" she said to herself.

As soon as she touched Jesus' cloak, the source of the bleeding dried up at once. Aware that power had gone out from him, Jesus turned round and said "Who touched me?"

The woman fell at his feet and told her story. Jesus said "My daughter, your faith has restored you to health. Go in peace and be free from your illness".

Jesus, please help sick people touch you by prayer

Recording 

In today's Gospel - another story of someone breaking the law (...like the leper...): 
people like that ill women were not supposed to touch anyone.
Sometimes it's ok to break the law!

Given the ongoing collapse of Venezuela, please God this meeting will bring about change for the better:  Pope grants Venezuela president a private audience

c.f. Venezuela opposition challenges govt dialogue plan

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

200: Recording

Proclaiming the Gospel of the family today

The Synod Fathers emphasized that Christian families, by the grace of the sacrament of matrimony, are the principal agents of the family apostolate, above all through “their joy-filled witness as domestic churches”.

Consequently, “it is important that people experience the Gospel of the family as a joy that ‘fills hearts and lives’, because in Christ we have been ‘set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness’ (Evangelii Gaudium, 1).

As in the parable of the sower (cf. Mt 13:3-9), we are called to help sow seeds; the rest is God’s work. 

Nor must we forget that, in her teaching on the family, the Church is a sign of contradiction”.

Married couples are grateful that their pastors uphold the high ideal of a love that is strong, solid, enduring and capable of sustaining them through whatever trials they may have to face.

The Church wishes, with humility and compassion, to reach out to families and “to help each family to discover the best way to overcome any obstacles it encounters”.

It is not enough to show generic concern for the family in pastoral planning. Enabling families to take up their role as active agents of the family apostolate calls for “an effort at evangelization and catechesis inside the family”.

Shame Australia, shame, shame, shame:
Rottnest Island - Black prison to white playground

189b: Recording 

The financial crisis of 2007-08 provided an opportunity to develop a new economy, more attentive to ethical principles, and new ways of regulating speculative financial practices and virtual wealth.

But the response to the crisis did not include rethinking the outdated criteria which continue to rule the world.

Production is not always rational, and is usually tied to economic variables which assign to products a value that does not necessarily correspond to their real worth. This frequently leads to an overproduction of some commodities, with unnecessary impact on the environment and with negative results on regional economies.[133]

The financial bubble also tends to be a productive bubble. The problem of the real economy is not confronted with vigour, yet it is the real economy which makes diversification and improvement in production possible, helps companies to function well, and enables small and medium businesses to develop and create employment.

Deng Adut (from Sudan) on being a child soldier, moving to Australia and dealing with racism

185: Recording

In what follows I intend to concentrate on two great issues which strike me as fundamental at this time in history. I will treat them more fully because I believe that they will shape the future of humanity. 

These issues are first, the inclusion of the poor in society, and second, peace and social dialogue. 

10 years ago today

Two days ago a letter came in my mail - from a Filipina inmate in Lo Wu prison who needed the birth certificate of her child.
By chance I had the chance to collect the certificate yesterday - gov't office right next to High Court! So, the certificate was in mail yesterday afternoon! Could UPS beat that?! 

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 26th of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Xinjiang

And praying for one of the world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 26th of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Togo

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)