SURVIVING THE WORLD WE KNOW (Jn 6:51-58): 25 May 2008 (Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ)
Lately, reading the papers or watching the news has been more painful than usual, thanks to all those recent tragedies. As a result, one can’t help but identify with the main character in Collective Soul’s music video of “The World I Know,” a man commuting to work, but driven to despair by all the bad news in the world.
“STILL UNWRITTEN” (Jn 3:16-18): 18 May 2008 (The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity)
A friend sent me a clip of Natasha Bedingfield singing her 2006 hit, “Unwritten,” and I immediately liked the song and its message. The song is about self-discovery, and it’s full of excitement about the adventures that lie ahead, but also at the same time full of defiance. The song Bedingfield sings exhorts us to refuse to let anyone else define us or live our lives for us.
FINDING THE HOLY SPIRIT IN UNHOLY PLACES (Acts 2:1-11): 11 May 2008 (Pentecost Sunday)
In 2006 a terrible tragedy occurred in Leyte, Southern Philippines, and an entire village was buried by a mudslide. Among the victims were about two hundred school children and their teachers who were trapped under the earth.
The rescue effort that ensued was nothing short of heroic, but what made the whole thing excruciating for the rescue team was that some of the children and teachers were sending text messages to their relatives, begging for help.
KNOWING CHRIST (Jn 17:1-11): 04 May 2008 (Seventh Sunday of Easter)
Unlike many of my friends, I’ve never liked “Godspell,” the critics’ raves notwithstanding. I’ve always preferred “Jesus Christ Superstar.” Its whole concept simply doesn’t work for me. However, having said that, I have to say that it has a couple of outstanding songs. The one that I like best is the popular “Day by Day”–a prayer about getting to know the Lord gradually, one day at a time, and as a result, learning to love him and follow him more.