V2Catholic.com A voice for the
poor Edited
by HK prison chaplain
Fr John Wotherspoon
O.M.I . 胡頌恆神父
jdwomi@gmail.com
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JesusTower
GoodNewsForPoor
Dr
Jesus RicciCenter
China8
Tues Dec 17
7
days to Christmas:
Come Jesus, Wisdom of our God Most High, guiding creation with power and love:
teach us to walk in the paths of knowledge
Has
had 6,633,700 views: Mary,
Did You Know?
Yesterday
I was at Lo Wu women's prison from 9.45am to 5pm .... often thinking how hard it
must be for the women to be away from their families at times like Christmas. I
even, not for the first time, found myself thinking there should be some
alternative than prison for women, especially mothers.
Elizabeth
Anderson:
Today is the anniversary of Elizabeth
Garrett Anderson, LSA, MD (9 June 1836 - 17 December 1917), an
English physician and feminist, the first Englishwoman to qualify as a physician
and surgeon in Britain, the co-founder of the first hospital staffed by women,
the first dean of a British medical school, the first female M.D. in France, the
first woman in Britain to be elected to a school board and, as Mayor of
Aldeburgh, the first female mayor and magistrate in Britain
British
grandfather, 78, arrested in Colombia with 9kg of cocaine
The Third Australian
Plenary Council 1905, by Peter Wilkinson:
Part
1; Part
2 (first published in The Swag, Vol 27,
No. 3, Spring 2019)
Happy 83rd
Birthday today!
---------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
c.f. readings for Dec 17
Genesis 49: Jacob
called his sons and said: "Gather round, sons of Jacob, and listen; Judah
is a lion cub. The sceptre shall not pass from Judah, until he come to
whom it belongs, to whom the peoples shall render obedience."
Jesus, "Lion of Judah" may all peoples of the world know and love
you
My recording of this reading
Psalm 72: O
Lord, please bless the king, that he might serve your people with justice. May
the mountains bring forth peace for the people, and the hills, justice. The
kings of Sheba and Seba bring him gifts. All nations will serve him. He
will save the poor when they cry for help, and the needy who are helpless. He
will have pity on the weak, and save the lives of the poor. May every tribe be
blessed in him. May every nation bless his name.
May all the nations know and love you, Lord
Recording
Matthew
1.18-24: A genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David,
son of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of
Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of
Perez and Zerah, Tamar
being their mother .... Salmon was the father of Boaz, Rahab
being his mother
Recording
Mt 1.1-17 (cont):
Boaz was the father of Obed, Ruth
being his mother, Obed was the father of Jesse, and Jesse was
the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose
mother had been Uriah's wife .... Eleazar was the father of
Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, and Jacob was the father of Joseph the
husband of Mary; of her was born Jesus who is called Christ.
Recording
Jesus, please bless my family tree
Reflection
on the above readings: Today
the Church begins the liturgical countdown to Christmas. May the special
readings of the next seven days give us hope and courage .... as we think and
pray about the birth of our Saviour
------------------------------
Prisoners are looking forward to Christmas Day .... it's
one of the three days in the year when they get a chicken leg for their main
meal. The other days being Lunar New Year and Mid-Autumn Festival. Rest of the
year ... chicken .... w i n g s
-------------------------------
Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day:
Sun: Africa
Mon: Europe,
Russia
Tues: South
Asia
Wed: East
Asia
Thurs: S.E. Asia,
Pacific
Frid: South
America
Sat: Cent, N 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 17th
of
the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of
Shaanxi
And praying for one of
the world's poorest countries
each day of the month:
On this 17th of the month, Jesus
please bless the people of Malawi
And praying for one
Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, today, Tuesday,
please pacify Boko
Haram
----------------------------
----------------------------
Mon Dec
16
Today is
feast day of the Oblate martyrs of Laos
Christmas remembers the birthday of the world's
most famous .... prisoner
More
vandalism yesterday at Shatin mall
------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
Genesis
19: The men of Sodom
practised sodomy.
They wanted to abuse the two angels who looked like men
when the angels visited the home of Abraham's nephew, Lot.
So the angels struck the threatening men with blindness.
Then the angels told Lot and his family to leave Sodom immediately
because it would soon be destroyed.
As soon as Lot and his family had left Sodom
the town was destroyed by a volcanic storm
Dear God, please
help people avoid sodomy
My
recording of this reading
Psalm
84: How lovely is your sacred temple, Lord.
My heart is longing to spend time in your holy dwelling. Even sparrows and swallows are your
temple guests.
They build homes for their young near your altar. Blessed are the people who live and work in
your temple.
And blessed, too, are people who keep the memory of your temple in
their hearts. As they go through the troubles of life,
you give them strength to face the trials of each day. Lord, one day within your temple
is better than a thousand anywhere else.
Dear God, thank you for special
places of prayer
Listen
1
Thessalonians 4.1-11: We urge you and appeal to you in the Lord
Jesus to make more and more progress in the kind of life you are meant to
live. God wants you to be holy. He wants you to keep
away from fornication. Live life peacefully. Get a decent job and
earn your living
Jesus, make me be a better person, a
better Christian
Listen
Matthew
19.13-15: Some people brought their little children to
Jesus.
They hoped Jesus would put his hands on the children and bless them.
Jesus' disciples told the people to go away
and not bother Jesus.
But Jesus said "Don't prevent the little children from coming to
me". Then he put his hands on them and blessed
them.
Jesus, please help all children
to know you from their earliest days.
Please don't let parents prevent children from coming to you.
Listen
Reflection on the above readings: May Christmas be an occasion for children to become interested in the story of Jesus
-------------------------
On
the way to Mass yesterday morning I gave two old shirts of mine to two different
men who are street sleepers. Not the first time I've done this. And it's always
a lovely surprise to see someone wearing them a few days later. Leaves me with
the feeling "I know that shirt"!
--------------------
Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day:
Sun:
Africa
Mon: Europe,
Russia
Tues: South
Asia
Wed: East
Asia
Thurs: S.E. Asia,
Pacific
Frid: South America
Sat: Cent, N. 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 16th of
the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Qinghai
And
praying for one of the
world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 16th
of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Afghanistan
And praying for one Islam-related intention
each day of the week:
Jesus, today, Monday,
please pacify I.S.
-----------------------
----------------------
Sun Dec 15
May the approach of Christmas give us hope and courage and strength and joy!
HK's
revolution sliding into terrorism with home-made
bombs primed to kill and maim
This is good! Cardinal
Tagle, please use English in your new job!
And another good cardinal, Cardinal Souraphiel of Ethiopia.
To prepare for my trip to Ethiopia next month, last night I watched this
most informative and interesting interview with the Cardinal
From a reader in
Australia: Something worrying is happening in Melbourne (today). There will be a protest against China's belt and road. Which isn't itself a bad thing, but when I did some research, it was organised by a white supremist. Alas, a lot of HKers living in Melbourne are going to the rally -
I doubt they are doing enough research to realise that they themselves may well be targets of those white supremists.
That guy is called Morgan C Jonas
Recommended by a reader in Australia: Spirited
Community
------------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
c.f. readings for Advent 3
Isaiah 35: Strengthen all weary hands,
steady all trembling knees,
and say to all faint hearts
"Courage! Do not be afraid. The Lord is coming to save you." Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
the ears of the deaf unsealed.
Then the lame shall leap like a deer,
and the tongues of the dumb sing for joy. Exiles will return to Zion shouting for joy,
everlasting joy on their faces. Joy and gladness will go with
them.
Sorrow and lament will be ended.
Lord, please heal the friends I
know who are blind, deaf, dumb....
My
recording of this reading
Psalm
146:
It is the Lord who keeps faith for ever, who
is just to those who are oppressed. It is he who gives bread to the hungry, the
Lord, who sets prisoners free.
Come, Lord, and
save us
Come, Lord, and
save us
It is the Lord who loves the just but
thwarts the path of the wicked. The Lord will reign for ever,
James
5.7-10:
Be patient,
brothers, until the Lord's coming. Think of a farmer: how patiently he waits for
the precious fruit of the ground until it has had the autumn rains and the
spring rains! You too have to be patient; do
not lose heart, because the Lord's coming will be soon. Do not make
complaints against one another, brothers, so as not to be brought to judgement
yourselves; the Judge is already to be seen waiting at the gates. For your
example, brothers, in submitting with patience, take the prophets who spoke in
the name of the Lord.
Matthew
11.1-19: John the Baptist sent some of his friends to
ask Jesus
"Are you the promised Anointed One?"
Jesus replied "Tell John what you hear and see:
blind people see, lame people walk, lepers are healed". Jesus also said to the people around him
how neither John nor himself could please the religious leaders. "For John
always fasted and
never drank wine,
and people said he was possessed. I eat well and I drink wine
and people call me a glutton and a drunkard."
Jesus, please help me be
someone who is easy to live with,
someone who is not hard to please
Listen
Reflection on the above readings: The influence of Jesus is so strong that even in the midst of our world's trials and troubles, just the thought of Christmas gives us hope and courage and strength and peace
Video
commentary on today's readings - in Italian, Chinese, English, and
Spanish
-------------------------------
Hour
of Love HK radio program 8.30
pm HK time tonight
- with items about HK prison inmates
-------------------------------
With the internet age, fewer and fewer people are sending/receiving Christmas
cards by mail. I'm not sending any by mail, but I'm receiving them ... a pile of
them each day .... from a group of people who don't have access to the internet:
prisoners!
------------------------------
Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day:
Sun: Africa
Mon: Europe,
Russia
Tues: South
Asia
Wed: East
Asia
Thurs: S.E. Asia,
Pacific
Fri: South America
Sat: Cent., N 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 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, today, Sunday,
please bless all Muslims in my country
-----------------------
----------------------
Sat Dec 14
What
a relief it is to hear Christmas music in shopping centres, at metro stations,
and in the media .... it's like the sound of rain falling after a drought. Our
sick world has so many problems .... Christmas offers hope. The darker the
darkness, the brighter the candle shines
Three pieces of good news from the High Court yesterday morning:
two already-sentenced local women, in two separate cases, were given the green
light to the Court of Appeal; and 82 year old Jimmie, as
in this story, was jury-acquitted 7:0 after being in detention for more than
a year on a drug trafficking charge.
From the High Court I went to Central for a "No More Mules" meeting ... mainly about the use of social media to spread the anti-drug campaign message.
Then, in order to help a man from African apply for a Court of Appeal discount, I spent 4 hours (!) at Customs Headquarters in North Point making a statement ... as requested by a CA judge.
When I arrived back at Jordan MTR, there were about half a dozen police at one end of the station concourse, and another dozen at the other end. I made a point of thanking both groups for protecting the station from vandalism (... enough is enough ..)
To end the day I joined 30 homeless people for a meal at our new venue ... an unused premise in Jordan. Meal was kindly prepared by kind volunteers in their home. This gathering will in future be every 2nd, 4th and 5th Friday of the month, replacing the former Thursday night gathering (since another group now has a meal for the homeless on Thurs nights).
---------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
Genesis
18: One day at
Mamre, God
and two angels appeared to Abraham.
At first, God and the angels looked like men.
Following the ancient custom of hospitality,
Abraham prepared a feast for them.
God told Abraham that the town of Sodom was going to be destroyed because of the evil done there.
Abraham pleaded with God not to destroy Sodom.
God agreed to postpone Sodom's destruction for a while.
Dear God, please
help people avoid sodomy
My
recording of this reading
Psalms
82-83: God says to corrupt officials:
"How long will you judge unjustly and mistreat the poor?
You should do justice for the weak and the orphan.
You should defend the afflicted and the needy.
You should rescue the weak and the poor.
You should set them free from the hand of the wicked". O God, please protect your people from
corruption and injustice.
Save us also from attack by other nations.
Let everyone know that you are the Lord of all the earth.
Lord, please stop corrupt
officials from hurting people
Listen
1
Thessalonians 3.11-13:
May God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ
make it easy for us to visit you again. May the Lord be generous in increasing your
love, and make you love one another and the whole human race as much as we
love you. May the Lord so confirm your hearts in
holiness, that you may be blameless in the sight of our God and Father
when our Lord Jesus Christ comes with all his saints
Jesus, please increase my love for the whole
human race
Listen
Matthew
19.1-9: One day some religious leaders put Jesus to
the test by asking him
"Is it against the Law of Moses for a man to divorce his wife?" Jesus replied "God created male and
female, for the two to become united as one body. What God has
united, no one should separate." The leaders then asked
"But why did Moses allow divorce?" Jesus replied "Moses allowed divorce
because people were so hard of heart. But divorce was not God's
plan. So I say to you, anyone who walks out on their
partner and marries someone else, is guilty of adultery".
Jesus, please help married
people stay together
Listen
Reflection on the above readings: Moses made exceptions, so did St Paul: The Pauline Privilege
---------------------------
Santa Claus caps now starting to appear in HK ...
worn by groups singing carols, people serving in shops, people doing promotions
on the street. I wonder if Christmas decorations will be banned on the Mainland
this year ... like
last year (my mischievious mind just tried to picture President Xi in a
Santa suit! .... and I just found this!)
------------------------------
Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day:
Sun:
Africa
Mon: Europe,
Russia
Tues: South
Asia
Wed: East Asia
Thurs: S.E. Asia, Pacific
Frid: South
America
Sat: Cent. & N
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 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, today, Saturday,
please pacify the
Taliban
------------------------
------------------------
Fri Dec 13 (make
sure to check today's 
below!)
Yesterday
afternoon, together with the Chairman of the NGO "Voice for
Prisoners", I attended a most promising meeting with the HK Security
Bureau's Narcotics Commissioner and two associates. Two or three years ago the
then Narcotics Commissioner suggested my anti-drug campaign become an NGO ....
and that advice has been followed. Now the advice is "your work is most
appreciated ... so .... apply for government support by way of advice and
funding". Will do!
Some
days ago, after a long process of communication, I was given the ok by Macau
prison authorities to visit two African women next Wed, Dec 18 .... since I am
due to meet their families next month in Kenya please God. This will be my first
visit to Macau for several years. But last night I saw this
report that President Xi Jinping also will visit Macau next week! That means
much disruption to traffic etc. No confirmation yet which day he will
visit.
Violence not over yet: MTR
station vandalised yesterday morning
Nigerian
in South African sending women drug mules to Mauritius
(... and HK ... and many other places...)
I hope he will be the next pope: Cardinal
Tagle now in charge of Evangelization (... he has Chinese background ...)
-------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from Simple
Bible
Genesis 17: God appeared to Abraham
and said to him
"I will make an everlasting covenant with you and your descendants.
As a sign of this covenant, all your males must be circumcised.
Baby boys must be circumcised when they are eight days old.
Also, Sarah your wife, even though she is old, will bear you a son.
You will name him Isaac."
Dear God, please bless
all the babies in the world
My
recording of this reading
Psalm
81: Ring out your joy to God our strength,
shout in triumph to the God of Jacob.
Listen to the voice of the Lord: "I am the Lord your God
who brought you out from the land of Egypt. Let there be no foreign god among you,
no worship of a false god. O that my people would heed me,
that Israel would walk in my ways. At once I would subdue their foes.
But Israel I would feed with finest wheat and honey".
Lord, please help us to walk in
your ways
Listen
1
Thessalonians 2.13-16:
As soon as you heard the Good News, you
accepted it as God's message and not just some human thinking. This message is still a living power among you.
For the sake of the Good News, you have been
badly treated by your own countrymen, just as Christians in Judea have
been badly treated by the Jews. The Jews have been persecuting us and
hindering us from spreading the Good News
Jesus, please help people who are being
hindered from spreading the message of your love
Listen
Matthew
18.21-35: Peter asked Jesus "How many times must I
forgive someone?
7 times?" Jesus answered "Not 7, but 77 times. For the kingdom of heaven is like a king who
cancelled the huge debt of one of his servants. But that same servant refused to cancel the
tiny debt of one of his fellow servants. So the king said to the servant:
'When you appealed to me, I had pity on you and cancelled your big
debt. But you refused to have pity on your fellow servant who asked
you for mercy. Therefore you must now go to prison until your big debt is
paid.' If you refuse to forgive other people,
you are making yourself ineligible for God's forgiveness."
Jesus, please help me to
forgive other people,
just as you forgive me .... many times each day
Listen
Reflection on the above Bible readings: Unforgiveness can make us sick. Forgiveness of others can make us healthy
-------------------------
I guarantee you will watch this more than once! Dog
on back of motorbike
-------------------------
Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day:
Sun: Africa
Mon: Europe,
Russia
Tues: South
Asia
Wed: East
Asia
Thurs: S.E. Asia, Pacific
Frid: S.
America
Sat: Cent, N. 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 13th
of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Jiangxi
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, today, Friday,
please bless all Muslims
----------------------------
----------------------------
Thu Dec 12
On this
day in 1531, something
very special happened in Mexico City ***
I was privileged to visit Guadalupe
before
and after
my trip to South America two years ago. Before, to ask for protection and help;
after, to say thank you! Mary of
Guadalupe, pray for us!
/2017-12-27-Guadalupe-04.jpg){kind=link}
21
year old with 4.2 kg of cocaine from Cambodia arrested HK airport
International
experts have quit Police Complaints Council ***
or have they? I don't think experts have quit
I
read every word of this ... thinking that so many countries are in a similar
situation - a poor choice for leaders:
A fleeting chance to stop Boris Johnson in his tracks
-------------------------
The Book Blog: 4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from Simple
Bible
Genesis 16:
Abraham and his wife
Sarah had been married many years
but they did not have any children.
So Sarah said to Abraham,
"Take my slave Hagar and have children by
her."
When Hagar bore a son, Sarah was jealous and treated Hagar badly.
Hagar ran away from home, but God said to her
"Go back to your mistress and submit to her; I will bless all your
descendants."
Dear God, please help childless
couples to have a baby
Recording
Psalms 79-80: O God, the nations have invaded your sacred
land,
they have profaned your holy temple.
They have made Jerusalem a heap of ruins. We have become the taunt of our
neighbours,
the mockery and scorn of those who surround us. How long, O Lord, will all this last?
How long will this sorrow keep going? Do not hold the guilt of our ancestors against
us.
If their guilt is somehow influencing our situation now
please give peace and healing to everyone and everything
in our history. Let the groans of the prisoners come before
you.
Let your strong arm reprieve those condemned to die. O Lord, our God, help us and save us.
Let your face shine on us and we shall be saved.
Lord, please heal any problems
in my family tree
Recording
1 Thessalonians 1.7 - 2.12:
You are a great example to other believers,
since it was from you that the word of the Lord spread to many places. Everyone knows how we planted the Good News in
your hearts, and
how you broke with idolatry and became servants of the living God. Let me remind you how we loved and served you,
like loving parents caring for their dear children
Jesus, thank you for the people who nurtured
me as a Christian
Listen
Matthew
18.1-10: One day Jesus heard his disciples
arguing about which one of them was the most important. Jesus got a little child to sit in front
of them, and said "If you want to be great in God's eyes, become
child-like.
In fact, unless you become child-like, you won't get to heaven. And make sure you never cause harm to children
like this one.
Remember, the protecting angels of children
are in the presence of my Father in heaven."
Jesus, please help me to be
more child-like,
and please don't let me ever cause harm to children
Listen
Reflection on the above Bible readings: Children feature in 3 of today's 4 readings
---------------
Yesterday afternoon when I went to the Open University of HK to
enrol a prisoner for a course by correspondence, three staff at desk found the
application was too complicated for them, so one of them phoned a supervisor
using the words "at the desk there is a more than troublesome case"
("yau ma faan di") which I understand and joked with them about. The
words in Cantonese can be understood as referring to the application ... or to
the applicant (= me!)
--------------------
Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day:
Sun:
Mon:
Tues:
Wed:
Thurs: S.E. Asia, Pacific
Frid:
Sat:
Cent,
Jesus,
today, Thursday,
please bless
the people of
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
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 Guinaea
Bissau
And praying for one Islam-related
intention each day of the
week:
Jesus, today, Thursday, please pacify Al-Qaeda
----------------------------
Wed Dec 11
Christmas
song - O Holy Night, by the
Indian group Sanam
My interview with an Indonesian woman recently acquitted by a High Court jury.
The story of how she was tricked by a Nigerian man in Cambodia to take drugs to
HK. HERE
Letter in Portuguese by Brazil man in prison for drug trafficking has been
illustrated on the No More Mules website: Nao
Jogue Com Sua Liberdade (Don't play with your freedom)
------------------------------
Chris McDonnell
Isaiah the prophet of the Nativity
We need encouragement in the darker times
For Dec 10 anniversary of Thomas
Merton:
One who
passes by
-----------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
Genesis 14-15: In the land of Canaan
there were many kings.
Sometimes they went to war against each other.
Melchizedek, king of Salem, was also a priest of God.
Abraham gave Melchizedek 10% of all his possessions.
Melchizedek gave Abraham bread and wine.
Melchizedek asked God to give Abraham a special blessing.
God said to Abraham, "This land of Canaan is yours; I give it to you and your descendants."
Dear God, please help all the kings and leaders in the world to be friends
My
recording of this reading
Psalm
78: Listen, everyone, to my teaching.
I will recount the lessons of our history. The things our parents have told us,
we will not hide from our children,
but will pass them on to the next
generation. We want the next generation to know all that the Lord has done for us in the past.
May the next generation in turn
pass on this knowledge to their own children,
so that they too will put their hope in God
and never forget all that God has done for us. May future generations not be like our
ancestors
who so often were unfaithful to God. Even though our ancestors had seen God part
the sea,
even though they had seen him provide food and water for them
in the desert, still they went on sinning. Yet he who is full of compassion forgave and
spared them.
He remembered they were only weak humans. Eventually he brought them to the promised
land
and gave a home to each of Israel's tribes. But still they sinned by building mountain
shrines
and serving idols. Then God raised up David to be their
leader. God called him from looking after sheep to be the shepherd of his people.
Lord, help us not to forget all
you have done for us
01
02
1
Thessalonians 1.1-6: From Paul, Silvanus and Timothy
to the Church of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
in Thessalonika. Wishing you grace and peace. In my prayers for you, I thank God our Father
for your faith in action, your work for love, and your
persevering hope. When we brought the Good News to you, it came
to you not just as words, but as power from the Holy Spirit. By the grace of the Holy Spirit, you accepted
the Good News,
despite great opposition from many quarters
Jesus, help people accept the Good News,
despite opposition
Listen
Matthew
17.14-20: A man went down on his knees and pleaded with
Jesus:
"Lord, please help my son. He is crazy and does crazy things
like falling into fire and into water.
I asked your disciples to heal him but they were not able to." There was an evil spirit oppressing the boy,
so Jesus ordered the spirit to leave the boy.
The boy was healed immediately. Jesus' disciples asked him
"Why were we unable to expel that spirit?" Jesus answered "Because your faith is not
strong enough."
Jesus, please increase my
faith,
so that my prayers can be of more help to other people
Listen
Reflection on the above readings: Yesterday morning on the street I met a woman who was going to another woman's home, not far from my home. The first woman invited me to join her for the visit, since the second woman's 6 month boy had died in hospital a few hours earlier. A group of people were in the home. I was given a picture of the little baby to hold. As I held it I asked Jesus to restore that baby to life ... praying for more faith to believe in what I was praying for. Please join me in a prayer that little Isaac might wake up today and attract attention by his crying.
---------------------------
Apart from a walk in the morning and a late afternoon trip
to Central for a short meeting, I stayed at the desk yesterday .... trying to
catch up on a backlog of work before Christmas. Where has the year gone? How
come Christmas has come so quickly? Is it possible that "today is Dec
11" is fake news?!
-------------------------
Please join me in praying for one part of the world each day:
Sun: Africa
Mon: Europe,
Russia
Tues: South
Asia
Wed: East
Asia
Thurs: S.E.Asia, Pacific
Frid: South
America
Sat: Cent, N 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 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, today, Wednesday,
please pacify Al-Shabaab
--------------------------------
-------------------------------
Usually I remove each day's menu after one week. It can still be accessed on "Archives" (top of this page). But because the menu of Oct 8 has special relevance to HK at the moment, I will not delete the following part of Oct 8 menu for the time being
-------------------------------
Tues Oct 8
The collapse of HK is continuing at exponential speed: Vandals
bring HK to standstill.
Yesterday before midday as I crossed the intersection of Nathan Road and Jordan
Road to join two very special friends for a Yum Cha, I noticed the traffic and
pedestrian lights were not working ... with pedestrians running the gauntlet
between buses, trucks and cars to cross the road .... and vehicles blasting
horns trying to force their way through the intersection .... with not a few
near-misses. I actually made a video of a police car going through the
intersection, but not stopping to help the situation.
More than an hour later when I returned to the same place, after the Yum Cha,
the situation was just as chaotic. So, I went home, got my trusty bush hat, and
went back to the intersection as a volunteer traffic guide .... for which, as
the afternoon went on, many dozens of bus drivers and other drivers waved a
thank you sign to me as they went past. Many pedestrians gave me bottles of
water ... from a few of which I took a few mouthfuls before putting the bottles
at an crossing island.
After about 30 minutes a police car stopped and several policeman told me to stop. I said I'd be happy to stop if they would do the job. They asked me to get in their car. I declined and walked to a footpath. Then I went home for a drink and toilet break. Then went back. Police still not helping. So I went back to work. Having a bus licence (in Australia and formerly in HK) I understand traffic and felt in no danger. Just got tired after another 90 minute stint. With a cramp in my left foot. So I went again to the footpath. Providential timing. Within a minute another police car came and two polite officers and I had the same conversation as above. They told me to go. I said I would go if they would do their job. My left foot and tiredness decided on a trip home, where I had a shower (very hot weather) and rest.
About 6.30pm I went back to the intersection ....as part of a prayer walk ...and was pleased to see 4 (!) traffic policeman on the job. But when I returned around 7pm they were just leaving ....walking away from a dangerous situation. So I ask myself, as on last night's menu: why are police not on the job? Why are they letting vandals have hours of freedom to wreck MTR stations and smash shops? Some people say the authorities want to see HK in chaos so that the PLA can come in and restore order and rule will be from Beijing. To this end, some people even say that some of the destruction is being done by undercover policemen .... maybe from the Mainland since some don't speak HK Cantonese.
Some people say that while the vast majority of protesters are peaceful, there's a small minority of radical vandals whose aim is anarchy. No mainstream media will talk much about this, but in private many people feel that former legislator "Long Hair" Leung Kwok Hung is one of the masterminds of the destruction that "spontaneously" breaks out at the same time at so many locations. Wikipedia's main article (with it's many links) shows he was/is a Trotskyist, anarchist and revolutionary Marxist.
So, the vandalising is maybe coming from more than one source, but it is turning one of the safest and most beautiful cities in the world into a place of destruction and despondency. I felt absolutely gutted last night as I walked down Nathan Road from Jordan Road to Waterloo Road, seeing the trail of destruction ...especially my beloved Kowloon Central Post Office whose doors and windows have been smashed and the front of the building covered in "campaign signs". And I noticed many groups of mainly young people in black carrying umbrellas (on a fine night) heading towards Mong Kok ....trouble brewing there.
Violence just makes things worse. And this is a lesson that the HK government is just not getting. It caused the original peaceful protests (by its crazy extradition amendment) and then by ignoring the peaceful protesters, the govt bred violence, bred radical vandals ..some of whom didn't need much breeding .... they were waiting for a chance to destroy HK. The govt has handed HK to them on a petrol bomb.
Is this all a bad dream? If only. But today is another day .... and how will people get to work and school with the MTR badly damaged and under threat after four nights of destruction (Frid, Sat, Sun, public holiday yesterday for Chung Yeung Festival)? God, please help HK get out of this mess! Please thwart the plans of the wicked!
================
My Africa trips:
2015: Tanzania, Malawi
2016:
Kenya, Uganda
2017:
Southern Africa, Dubai (
The
Last Run)
2018:
My trip to Latin America
2018: My trip to Thailand and Cambodia
March 18, 2018: South China Morning Post report on my work
Dec 2018 - Jan 2019 trip to Malaysia
June 2019: my anti-drug campaign featured in The Malaysia Drug Trade
Oct 23, 2019: FM988 Breakfast program in Kuala Lumpur at which I was a guest
--------------------
Australian Chinese for
Families Association
Gay marriage: an elephant in the room (by John W)
Video:
What "gay
marriage" did to Massachusetts
同志婚姻自2004年立法後，美國麻省的改變
（ 廣東話附字幕版
Frightening
YouTube reports:
LGBT radical impact
on educational institutions (No.
5); LGBT
infiltrating churches
(No. 6); US corporations massively
supporting LGBT agenda (No. 7). What
has happened in the US is now starting to happen in other places. Some
day our children will ask "why didn't you do more to stop this evil?"
--------------------------------------------
Pope's surprise visit to drug treatment centre
Pope is practising what he preaches: "get out and mix with the poor"
HK
readers might like to join me in praying each day for one group of HK
prison inmates: Sun:
Lo Wu; Mon: C.I.C., Siu Lam, Tai Lam; Tue: Stanley
Wed: Hei Ling Chau Thu: Lantau
Fri: Lai Chi Kok
Sat: Hospitals, Pik Uk & other centres
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This website was launched in construction
mode in Hong Kong on November 20, 2011 - the Feast of Christ
the King.
The official launching
was
held on the Gold Coast, Australia, on January 20,
2012.
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Thank you for checking this website each day. God bless all readers and bloggers!
Fr John Wotherspoon O.M.I. 胡
頌 恆 神 父
jdwomi@gmail.com
HK
mobile +852- 67095674
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