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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Pope Francis
MercyHK
This
website's anti-drug campaign saves people from going to prison in HK
See & share inmates' letters!
How
campaign began
HK
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JesusTower
GoodNewsForPoor
Dr
Jesus
China8
SimpleBible
MatteoRicci
Tues Dec 22
3 days
to Christmas. Jesus
born at Christmas, please give hope and peace to our troubled world!
Please join me in a very special Christmas wish/prayer: No Covid-19 cases on Dec 25 Please God!
With
a real baby! 
Christmas
Flash Mob
From
an O.M.I. parish in South Africa:
Yesterday
I spent 5 hours at Tai Lam women's prison ... where a room with women serving
the longest sentences was the one with the most Christmas decorations!
Pope Francis - Fratelli
Tutti:
74. One detail about the passers-by does
stand out: they were religious, devoted to the worship of God: a priest and a
Levite. This detail should not be overlooked. It shows that belief
in God and the worship of God are not enough to ensure that we are actually
living in a way pleasing to God. A believer may be untrue to everything
that his faith demands of him, and yet think he is close to God and better than
others. The guarantee of an authentic openness to God, on the other hand, is a
way of practising the faith that helps open our hearts to our brothers and
sisters. Saint John Chrysostom expressed this pointedly when he challenged his
Christian hearers: "Do you wish to honour the body of the Saviour? Do not
despise it when it is naked. Do not honour it in church with silk vestments
while outside it is naked and numb with cold". Paradoxically, those
who claim to be unbelievers can sometimes put God's will into practice better
than believers.
---------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
c.f. readings for Dec 22
My recording of this reading
1
Samuel 2: Hannah
praised God for giving her a child: "My
heart rejoices in the Lord. The Lord, our fortress, is holy. Don't speak
proudly, for the Lord knows what's in our hearts. The Lord breaks the power of
the strong. He gives strength and victory to the weak. He blesses the barren
woman. The Lord raises the poor from the dust, and gives them a seat of honor
with princes. The Lord guards the steps of good people, but scatters bad people
in their pride." The Lord blessed Hannah and she gave birth to three more
sons and two daughters. Her son Samuel grew up in the temple. The temple priest
at that time was Eli. But Eli's sons were bad men. They stole the people's
offerings to the Lord.
Dear God, please bless good people like Hannah, and please help bad people
like Eli's sons to stop being bad
Listen
Luke
1.46-56: Mary
said "My soul praises the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in
God my savior. Starting from today, all generations will call me blessed, for
the Almighty has done great things for me". Mary
stayed with Elizabeth about 3 months and then went home. Elizabeth gave birth to
a son. Her neighbors and relatives shared her joy. When the child was
circumcised on the 8th day, he was given the name John
Jesus, please bless all women who are having a baby today
Listen
Reflection on the above readings: Christmas is a time for praise and adoration ... with Mary
------------------------------
As
an English teacher I added a comma after "bull" (in today's first
reading) to save the life of the mother. A trap for lectors: They
slaughtered the bull, and
the child's mother came to Eli.
-------------------------------
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 22nd
of
the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Zhejiang
And praying for one of
the world's poorest countries
each day of the month:
On this 22nd of the month, Jesus
please bless the people of Rwanda
And praying for one
Islam-related intention each day of the week:
Jesus, today, Tuesday,
please pacify Boko
Haram
----------------------------
----------------------------
Mon Dec 21Happy Winter Festival! (my 2017 article)
Distressing
video stories of two drug mules in prison in HK (5
mins)
Pope Francis - Fratelli
Tutti: 73.
The parable then asks us to take a closer look at the passers-by. The nervous
indifference that makes them pass to the other side of the road - whether
innocently or not, whether the result of disdain or mere distraction - makes the
priest and the Levite a sad reflection of the growing gulf between ourselves and
the world around us. There are many ways to pass by at a safe distance: we can
retreat inwards, ignore others, or be indifferent to their plight. Or simply
look elsewhere, as in some countries, or certain sectors of them, where contempt
is shown for the poor and their culture, and one looks the other way, as if a
development plan imported from without could edge them out. This
is how some justify their indifference: the poor, whose pleas for help might
touch their hearts, simply do not exist. The poor are beyond the scope of
their interest.
------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
c.f. readings for Dec 21
Song of Songs 1-2: The
bride says:
Kiss me. Your love is better than wine. How right it is to love you, you whom my
heart loves. The
bridegroom says: How
beautiful you are, my love, how beautiful you are. The
bride: He
has taken me to his banquet hall and his banner over me is love. The
groom: Come
then, my love, my lovely one, come. Show me your face and let me hear your
voice, for your voice is sweet and your face is beautiful. The
bride: My
beloved is mine and I am his.
Dear God, please give me a lover's love for you
Listen
Psalm
33: Ring out your
joy to the Lord, all good people, for praise is fitting for loyal hearts. For
the Lord loves justice and right; he
fills the earth with his love. By his word the heavens were made, he
spoke and the universe came into being. They are happy, whose God is the Lord,
he is the source of all true joy. May your love be upon us, O Lord, since we
place all our trust in you.
Lord, we trust in your precious love
Recording
Zephaniah 3.14-18: Shout
for joy, daughter of Zion, Israel, shout aloud! Rejoice, exult with all your
heart, daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has repealed your sentence; he has
driven your enemies away. The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst; you
have no more evil to fear. When that day comes, word will come to Jerusalem:
Zion, have no fear, do not let your hands fall limp. The Lord your God is in
your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult with joy over you, he will
renew you by his love; he
will dance with shouts of joy for you as on a day of
festival.
My
recording of this reading And
the Father Will Dance - Song
Luke
1.39-45: As soon as
she could and as quickly as she could, Mary went to Elizabeth's home in the
hills near Jerusalem. As soon as Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the
baby in Elizabeth's womb jumped, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy
Spirit. Elizabeth
said to Mary "Of all women, you are the most blessed, and blessed is the
baby in your womb. Why should I be honored with a visit from the mother of my
Lord? Blessed are you for believing God's promise"
Mary, blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb,
Jesus
Recording
Reflection on today's readings: Not with a royal family, not with religious rulers, but with simple and lowly people did God arrange the first Christmas
-------------------------
It
was Christmas and the judge was in a merry mood as he asked the prisoner,
"What are you charged with?"
"Doing my Christmas shopping early", replied the defendant.
"That's no offence", said the judge. "It is if you do it before
the shop opened", said the prosecution lawyer!
--------------------
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 21st of
the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Yunnan
And
praying for one of the
world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 21st
of the month, Jesus please bless the people of Benin
And praying for one Islam-related intention
each day of the week:
Jesus, today, Monday,
please pacify I.S.
-----------------------
----------------------
Sun Dec 20
5 days
to Christmas. Key
of David, who open the gates of the eternal kingdom, come to liberate
from prison the captives who live in darkness!
Has
had 7 mil views!
Say
Merry Christmas (4 mins)
Last week I visited 3 prisons:
Lai King on Monday, Hei Ling Chau 18A on Wednesday, Lai Chi Kok on Friday ....
with meetings and many other jobs on Tuesday and Thursday. So, yesterday I had a
hiking holiday, with Fr Luc .... to Big Wave Bay near Sai Kung once again. ....
to get some extra energy for a busy Christmas week.
Pope Francis - Fratelli
Tutti:
The characters
of the story
72. The parable begins with the robbers.
Jesus chose to start when the robbery has already taken place, lest we dwell on
the crime itself or the thieves who committed it. Yet we know them well. We have
seen, descending on our world, the dark shadows of neglect and violence in the
service of petty interests of power, gain and division. The
real question is this: will we abandon the injured man and run to take
refuge from the violence, or will we pursue the thieves? Will the wounded man
end up being the justification for our irreconcilable divisions, our cruel
indifference, our intestine conflicts?
Bible Study: Mark 5
------------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
c.f. readings for Advent 4
Isaiah
7: A foreign king and his army attacked
Jerusalem. The king of Judah and his people were full
of fear. God told Isaiah to say to the king of Judah: "Keep calm, have no
fear. You will not be defeated. The Lord himself gives you a sign of his
protection: a
maiden is with child and will give birth to a son whom she will call God-with-us."
Lord, please help me understand how you are God-with-me every day
My recording of this reading
Psalms
24-26: The Lord's is the
earth and all its peoples. It is the Lord who is Creator of the universe. May
all hearts open their doors to the Lord. Let
him enter, the king of glory. Lord I hope in you all the day long.
Forgive my sins and help me walk in your truth.
God my savior, teach me your way of truth
Recording
Romans
1.1-7: From
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, who has been called to be an apostle, and
specially chosen to preach the Good News. This
news is about the Son of God who, according to the human nature he took, was a
descendant of David. This news is about Jesus Christ our Lord who, by his
resurrection from the dead, proved he was the Son of God. From him I received my
mission to preach the obedience of faith to non-Jewish nations. You are one of
these nations. You belong to Jesus Christ. To you who are God's beloved friends
in Rome, may God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give grace and peace
Jesus, Son of God, may all nations know and love you
Recording
Matthew
1.18-24 (a): This
is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to
Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child
through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a man of honour and wanting
to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his
mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
"Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife,
because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth
to a son and you must name him Jesus,
because he is the one who is to save his
people from their sins."
Recording
Matthew 1.18-24 (b): Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Emmanuel, a name which means "God-is-with-us." When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took his wife to his home.
Reflection on the readings: Matthew's Gospel is the "Bye Bye Gospel" since it begins and ends with the theme of "God is with us" .... which in English is the origin of the term "Bye" ("God-B-with-Ye")
Video commentary on today's readings - in Italian, Chinese, English, and Spanish (+ Cantonese audio)
-------------------------------
Hour
of Love HK radio program 8.30
pm HK time tonight
- with items about HK prison inmates
-------------------------------
Snowman
and his wife had a frosty conversation ....
------------------------------
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 20th
of the month, Jesus please bless the prisoners of Sichuan
And praying for one of the
world's poorest countries each day of the month:
On this 20th of the month, Jesus
please bless the people of Gambia
And praying for one Islam-related
intention each day of the week:
Jesus, today, Sunday,
please bless all Muslims in my country
-----------------------
----------------------
Sat Dec
19
6 days
to Christmas. Come
Jesus, Flower
of Jesse's stem, sign
of God's love for all his people: save us without delay
Both
of these are good!
THE DIGITAL STORY OF THE NATIVITY (13m
views!) and A
Facebook Christmas Story
I was at Lai
Chi Kok men's prison from 10am to 5pm yesterday. Prison is well over
capacity and staff deserve a medal for their dedication and professionalism as
they strive to protect the prison from Covid-19. All staff have Covid tests
every few days and newly arrived inmates are quarantined on arrival.
Pope Francis - Fratelli
Tutti:
71. The
story of the Good Samaritan is constantly being repeated.
We can see this clearly as social and political inertia is turning many parts of
our world into a desolate byway, even as domestic and international disputes and
the robbing of opportunities are leaving great numbers of the marginalized
stranded on the roadside. In his parable, Jesus does not offer alternatives; he
does not ask what might have happened had the injured man or the one who helped
him yielded to anger or a thirst for revenge. Jesus trusts in the best of the
human spirit; with this parable, he encourages us to persevere in love, to
restore dignity to the suffering and to build a society worthy of the name.
---------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
c.f. readings for Dec 19
Judges 12-13: Jephthah
was judge in Israel for 6 years. For the following 25 years, Ibzan (7 years),
Elon (10 years) and Abdon (8 years) were judges. After these judges,
the Israelites again were unfaithful to the Lord and so they were oppressed by
the Philistines for 40 years. It was then that the angel of the Lord appeared to
Manoah's wife and said to her: "You are barren and have had no child. But
you will soon conceive and bear a son. No razor is to touch his head, for
he shall be dedicated to the Lord from his mother's womb. It is he who will
rescue Israel from the Philistines". The woman gave birth to a son and
called him Samson. The child grew and the Lord blessed him.
Dear Lord, please bless all barren women
Recording of this reading
Psalm 71: In
you, O Lord, I take refuge. Please hear me and help me. Be
a rock where I can take refuge. Rescue me from people who want to hurt me. It is
you, O Lord, who are my hope. In you I have trusted since I was young. From
my mother's womb you have been my help. My hope has always been in you.
Now that I am old, please do not forget me. Now that my strength fails, do not
abandon me. Now that I am old and grey-headed, may I continue to trust in you
and proclaim your help. To you I will sing with the harp. All day long my tongue
will tell of your goodness to me.
Lord, may all elderly people put their trust and hope in you
Recording
Alleluia, alleluia! Root
of Jesse, set up as a sign to the
peoples, come to save us, and delay no more. Alleluia!
Recording
Luke
1. 5-25: When
Herod was king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah and his wife
Elizabeth who were really good people, but they were childless. Once when they
went to the Temple in Jerusalem, Zechariah entered the inner sanctuary to burn
incense, while all the people prayed outside. An angel appeared and said
"Zechariah, your prayer has been heard. Your
wife will have a son and you must name him John. He
will prepare the way of the Lord". Not long after this, Elizabeth
conceived, and for 5 months she kept to herself, thanking God for taking away
her humiliation at not being able to have a baby.
Jesus, please help childless couples to have a baby
Recording
Reflection on the above readings: The conceptions of Sampson and John the Baptist remind us that He who designed the womb can program pregnancies for special occasions .... preparing us for the conception of Jesus
---------------------------
At Lai Chi Kok prison yesterday, as is the rule in
all prisons now for chaplains, I wore a large face shield as well as a face mask
.... and gave thanks that my eyesight is still able to read most things ok
without glasses .... because when I wear glasses with a mask my glasses fog up
.... and if I was to use glasses + mask + shield I would need a seeing-eye dog!
------------------------------
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 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, today, Saturday,
please pacify the
Taliban
------------------------
------------------------
Fri Dec 18
6 days to Christmas. O Come, Divine Messiah, our troubled world urgently needs your peace
(4
mins) Where's
the line to see Jesus? (97,000
views!)
Yesterday
my morning was dedicated to jobs for MercyHK
in its efforts to help homeless people, and in the late afternoon I joined a 90
minute zoom meeting for my other NGO, Voice
for Prisoners.
Come to think of it, the name of the man on the bench and the person holding
out hands through prison bars is the same: _E_U_
Pope Francis - Fratelli
Tutti:
70. It is remarkable how the various
characters in the story change, once confronted by the painful sight of the poor
man on the roadside. The distinctions between Judean and Samaritan, priest and
merchant, fade into insignificance. Now
there are only two kinds of people: those who care for someone who is hurting
and those who pass by; those who bend down to help and those who look the
other way and hurry off. Here, all our distinctions, labels and masks fall away:
it is the moment of truth. Will we bend down to touch and heal the wounds of
others? Will we bend down and help another to get up? This is today's challenge,
and we should not be afraid to face it. In moments of crisis, decisions become
urgent. It could be said that, here and now, anyone who is neither a robber nor
a passer-by is either injured himself or bearing an injured person on his
shoulders.
-------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from Simple
Bible
c.f. Readings for Dec 18
Jeremiah 23: See,
the days are coming, it is the Lord who speaks, when I will raise a
virtuous Branch for David, who will reign as true king and be wise,
practising honesty and integrity in the land. In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel dwell in confidence. And this is the name he will be called:
The-Lord-our-integrity.
Jesus, Branch of David, may the coming Christmas
celebration of your birth give more integrity to our world
Recording
of this reading
Psalm
72: O God, give your judgement to the king, to a
king's son your justice, that he may judge your people in justice, and your
poor in right judgement. For he
shall save the poor when they cry, and the needy who are helpless. He
will have pity on the weak, and save the lives of the poor. Blessed be the
Lord, God of Israel, who alone works wonders. Ever blessed his glorious name.
Let his glory fill the earth. Amen! Amen!
Jesus, save the lives of the poor!
Recording
Matthew
1.18-24 (a): This
is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to
Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child
through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a man of honour and wanting
to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his
mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
"Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife,
because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth
to a son and you must name him Jesus,
because he is the one who is to save his
people from their sins."
Recording
Matthew 1.18-24 (b): Now
all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the
prophet: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son,
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means "God-is-with-us." When
Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took
his wife to his home.
Jesus, Saviour, Emmanuel, we praise you Lord
Recording
Reflection on the above readings: The Gospel says how Jesus will be Emmanuel, "God with us". From "God be with you" came "Godbwye" which became "Godbye" which became "Goodbye". Each time we say "bye bye" or "bye" or "goodbye" to someone, let's remember the meaning "God be with you".
-------------------------
Yesterday during a visit to Rosary Church in Tsim Sha Tsui,
as I remembered yesterday's Bible reading about "The Lion of Judah"
(see yesterday's menu, below), I became totally distracted by the fact that
Jesus is a Lion! (... my team!)
-------------------------
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 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, today, Friday,
please bless all Muslims
----------------------------
----------------------------
Thu 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 6,800,000 views: Mary,
Did You Know?
I spent most of yesterday at Hei
Ling Chau Addiction Treatment Centre where among the couple of hundred of
drug addicts I spoke with were 2 local Yau Ma Tei men I know quite well: a taxi
driver and a cook. I look forward to catching up with them when they are
released early next year
Disturbing
RTHK documentary (in Cantonese) on terrible conditions at notorious Castle
Peak Immigration Centre
(CIC)
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
Pope
Francis (Happy 84th Birthday!) - Fratelli
Tutti:
A story
constantly retold
69.
The parable is clear and straightforward, yet it also evokes the interior
struggle that each of us experiences as we gradually come to know ourselves
through our relationships with our brothers and sisters. Sooner or later, we
will all encounter a person who is suffering. Today there are more and more of
them. The decision to include or exclude those lying wounded along the roadside
can serve as a criterion for judging every economic, political, social and
religious project. Each day we have to decide whether to be Good Samaritans or
indifferent bystanders. And if we extend our gaze to the history of our own
lives and that of the entire world, all of us are, or have been, like each of
the characters in the parable. All of us
have in ourselves something of the wounded man, something of the robber,
something of the passers-by, and something of the Good Samaritan.
-------------------------
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
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:
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 17th 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 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, Thursday, please pacify Al-Qaeda
----------------------------
Wed Dec 16
Drone
Christmas lights! (& see 
below!)
Today
is feast day of the Oblate martyrs of Laos
Pope Francis - Fratelli
Tutti:
68. The parable clearly does not indulge in
abstract moralizing, nor is its message merely social and ethical. It speaks to
us of an essential and often forgotten aspect of our common humanity: we
were created for a fulfilment that can only be found in love. We cannot
be indifferent to suffering; we cannot allow anyone to go through life as an
outcast. Instead, we should feel indignant, challenged to emerge from our
comfortable isolation and to be changed by our contact with human suffering.
That is the meaning of dignity.
------------------------------
Chris McDonnell
Listen!
Share these words with your children and grandchildren, the story of the Jesus
Child
-----------------------------
The
Book Blog:
4 readings + recordings
Comments welcome here
Readings are from
Simple Bible
Proverbs 23-24: If someone invites you for a meal,
be careful not to make a pig of yourself. Don't waste your breath talking
to foolish people. Make sure your children receive a
wholesome discipline. Don't be a drunkard.
Don't be a glutton.
Avoid prostitution. Brains are better than brawn. If you make a big mistake and
fall, get up and start again.
Lord, please help me put
into practice the ideas in these words
My
recording of this reading
Psalms
20, 21: May the Lord protect and help you,
may he give you your heart's desire
and fulfil every one of your plans. Some trust in chariots or horses,
but we trust in the Lord.
Lord, may our plans and hopes
be acceptable to you.
Please bless our plans
Listen
Philippians
1.13-25: My chains have become famous and have given
courage to many other believers. Many others are now becoming more daring
in announcing the Message without fear. I hope and trust that I will always have
courage for Christ to be glorified in my body, whether by my life or by my
death. My heart wants to go
two ways. One part wants to depart this world and live for ever with
Christ in heaven. The other part wants to stay in this world to help more
people to know the Lord
Jesus, give me courage in
spreading the Good News
Listen
Matthew
14.22-33: After feeding the crowd with 5 loaves and 2
fish,
Jesus told his disciples to go by boat across the nearby lake.
Jesus stayed to send the crowds away.
Then he went up into the hills to pray. When darkness came, the boat was far from land,
but it was battling large waves caused by a strong head-wind. Jesus then walked on the water towards the
boat.
He called out to his disciples "Courage. It is I. Don't be
afraid." Peter answered "Lord, if it is you, tell
me to walk on the water to you." Jesus said "Come". Peter then started walking on the water,
but he became afraid and began to sink.
"Lord, save me" he called out.
Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to keep walking on the water.
"Man of little faith, why did you doubt?" asked Jesus.
As they got into the boat, the wind stopped. The men in the boat bowed to Jesus and said
"You really are the Son of God".
Jesus, please help me not to
lose faith in you
Listen
Reflection on the above readings: Philippians and Matthew have one theme in common: courage!
---------------------------
-------------------------
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 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, Wednesday,
please pacify Al-Shabaab
--------------------------------
-------------------------------
----------------------
On-going project to help homeless people in YMT-Jordan area
========
Africa:
2020: My trip to Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Johannesburg
2017:
My trip to Southern Africa, Dubai (
The
Last Run)
2016:
My trip to Kenya, Uganda
2015: My trip to Tanzania, Malawi
----------------
Latin America:
2019-05-10: No More Mules Peru FB boost 199,000 views!
2019-01-20: Article in El Pais, Uruguay - 01 02
2018-09-18: No More Mules Facebook campaign - more than 300,000 people reached in Venezuela
2018: My trip to Latin America
----------------
South East Asia:
Aug 16, 2020: CNN - Indonesian women recruited to take drugs to Hong Kong
Oct 23, 2019: FM988 Breakfast program in Kuala Lumpur at which I was a guest
June 2019: My campaign featured in The Malaysia Drug Trade (6 written reports & documentary video)
2019-03-25: Eleven HK01 video and photo reports about Malaysian drug mules arrested in HK- here (one of the reports is about my anti-drug campaign).
Dec 2018 - My Jan 2019 trip to Malaysia
2018: My trip to Thailand and Cambodia
--------------------
Hong Kong:
July 2019: My warning to HK domestic helpers - published here in HK Filipino media
2018-09-22:
My
60 min video interview with Radio99,
in Cantonese, is here: 01 02
to help stop people going to prison
2018-07-29: SCMP- Beware drug lords luring domestic helpers, refugees into narcotics trade
2018-04-08: The Pearl Report on TVB - concerning HK's Long Term Sentencing Review Board and my anti-drug campaign
March 18, 2018: South China Morning Post report on my work
2017-12-01: Report in Chinese in Ming Pao Magazine
2017-09-27: SCMP Spirit of HK Awards (video starts after 20 secs)
2017-08-24: Cable TV video report on my anti-drug campaign and a Facebook report on the video report (click "translation" for English)
2027-05-18: SCMP - The prison chaplain who has stopped 150 drug mules reaching HK
2017-03-25: Oriental
Daily
report of case of South African woman given discount for help to my campaign
*** May
14 updates:
Oriental
Daily, Apple
Daily, Sing
Tao
Dec 1, 2016 - HK News: More women being recruited as drug mules
2016-10-13: HK01 report about campaign and about work for the poor
2016-09-11: Oriental Daily report about my campaign - and same day Editorial
2016-08-27: Oriental Daily article about court case and campaign
My
anti-drug campaign sites
(skillfully
managed by kind HK friends):
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nomasmulas/
Facebook: Chinese no more mules page
Facebook: AddisAbabaDrugTrade; KenyaDrugTrade; TanzaniaDrugTrade; JohannesburgDrugTrade; SaoPauloDrugTrade; MalaysiaDrugTrade; ThailandDrugTrade; HongKongDrugTrade; CambodiaDrugTrade; IndonesiaDrugTrade
http://hkdrugblog.org/name-and-shame/index.htm
----------------------
Photos
from my time in China 2001-20008
---------------------
---------------------
Australian Chinese for
Families Association
Gay marriage: Elephant in the room (by John W)
--------------------------------------------
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
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the King.
The official launching
was
held on the Gold Coast, Australia, on January 20,
2012.
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Fr John Wotherspoon O.M.I. 胡
頌 恆 神 父
jdwomi@gmail.com
HK
mobile +852- 67095674
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ .