ASIA: Pope Francis meets with President of Timor-Leste - Vatican News

 

Pope Francis receives President José Manuel Ramos-Horta of Timor-Leste  (Vatican Media)

 

FORUM: Devotions on creation - 'A Wild World beyond Us' By Kat Armas, Easrth Beat, NCR Online

 

 

 

GLOBAL: Believing in Jesus can cost you your life in these 50 countries By Andrés Henríquez,  ACI Prensa, CNA

 

HOLY FATHER: Amid 'barrage' of words online and off, listen to God's word By Justin McLellan, CNS / USCCB

 

 

HOLY FATHER: ‘A community united by a Mission’  Vatican Media

 

 

Pope Francis poses for a group photo with the Vaticanisti  (VATICAN MEDIA Divisione Foto)
ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS TO THE MEMBERS OF THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF JOURNALISTS ACCREDITED TO THE VATICAN - "Being a journalist is a vocation, somewhat like that of a doctor, who chooses to love humanity by curing illnesses. In a certain sense, the journalist does likewise, choosing to touch personally the wounds of society and the world. It is a calling that emerges at a young age and which leads you to understanding, shedding light, and recounting. . . .. ... The beauty of your work around Peter is that of founding it on the solid rock of responsibility in truth, not on the fragile sands of gossip and ideological interpretations; that lies in not hiding reality and its miseries, not sugarcoating the tensions but at the same time not making unnecessary noise, rather striving to capture the essential, in the light of the nature of the Church".  Pope Francis
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2024/january/documents/20240122-giornalisti.html

 

HOLY FATHER: God’s gifts are entrusted to our care By Christopher Wells

 

 

Pope Francis highlights the need for respect and steadfastness in caring for the earth and for one another, as he welcomes participants in the Vinitaly wine and spirits trade fair to the Vatican. https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-francis-god-s-gifts-are-entrusted-to-our-care.html

 

INDIA: Standing on the shoulders of giants By Vinayak Jadav, SJ, Gujarat Province
[From “Jesuits 2023 - The Society of Jesus in the world”]

How the Spanish missionaries of Gujarat foresaw the Apostolic Preferences of today.

 

 

 

INDIA: Twenty-Five Years Ago, a Murder Most Foul By Dr. John Dayal, The Wire

 

 

INDIA: Ram Mandir - Faye D’Souza Discusses Making of ‘New’ Ayodhya with The Quint - CNUA

 

Photo - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faye_D%27Souza

The consecration of the Ram Mandir on 22 January in Ayodhya is a huge political event, being the culmination of a decades-old dispute. The Quint, in collaboration with Faye D’Souza’s Beatroot News, gives you in-depth coverage of the event. Watch Now!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtLzo8qm1Z4&t=3s

 

ITALY: Cardinal Fernández Artime, “The Salesian charism is needed today more than ever” ANS

 

 

MIDDLE EAST: Fr. Faltas, “Over 10,000 children killed in conflict” By Federico Piana and Deborah Castellano Lubov

 

 

Father Ibrahim Faltas, the Vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land in Jerusalem
In an interview with Vatican News, Father Ibrahim Faltas, the Vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land in Jerusalem, decries that more than 10,000 children have been killed since the start of the Israel-Hamas War, and urges serious consideration of the 'two peoples, two-States' solution.
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2024-01/fr-faltas-more-10-000-children-killed-in-middle-east-conflict.html

 

NEWS ANALYSIS: How Pope Francis has changed the mission for Catholic colleges and universities by Massimo Faggioli, NCR Online

 

THE SYNODAL CHURCH: Let the synodal consultations continue By Thomas Reese, RNS

 

 

 

 

 

VATICAN: Pope launches new YOUCAT: ‘Christ is password for a joyful life’ By Devin Watkins

 

 

Pope Francis hugs a young man during a recent General Audience  (VATICAN MEDIA Divisione Foto)
Pope Francis writes a letter to young people to accompany a new edition of the YOUCAT, or ‘Youth Catechism of the Catholic Church’, and invites them to find the secret to a joyful life in living with and for Christ.  https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2024-01/pope-francis-new-youcat-youth-catechism-letter.html

 

 

INSPIRATION: Brahma Kumaris - C N U A

 

Streams derive most of its water from rainfall and snow.
Image - https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-is-a-stream-in-geography.html

 

Pursue Wisdom - Each day is filled with a hundred choices and decisions, and wisdom is our best guide. Wisdom comes from three places – experience, learning and our deepest intuition. Each day is an opportunity to gather and use all three. Experience comes from engaging with life, learning comes from observing, and intuition comes from listening to myself. At the end of the day sit down and write down what was the main experience, what did I learn and what did I hear…from myself? You did listen to yourself…didn’t you?

 

Staying Peaceful - Desires cause peace to disappear. You think that acquiring things will make you feel secure, but the reality is that the more you have the more fear there usually is of losing it, and the further you are from peace. Desires are the cause of all conflicts. When you want something and cannot get it you become frustrated. Learning to be free from desires is learning how to stay peaceful.

 

Que Sera, Sera - Resistance leads to persistence. Whatever you resist or push against simply persists and pushes back in equal measure. Instead, transform resistance into acceptance by practicing “Que Sera, Sera … whatever will be, will be…”

 

Less Is More - Fear less, hope more; Eat less, chew more; Whine less, breathe more; Hate less, love more and all good things are yours.
Give Love To Everyone - If I limit the love I give to just one or two, it will eventually go stale. If I learn to create love inside my heart and silently give it to everyone I meet, love will grace every corner of my life.

 

Response Able - We now know that the true meaning of responsibility is response able or ability to respond. Whatever we may think, say, do, or feel – these are our responses for which we, and no one else, are responsible. This is easy to see but hard to live, for we have been taught to believe and think the opposite. So we don’t consciously choose our response, we react instead, and then we blame others for our reaction. No wonder we feel imprisoned by others and our circumstances. The enlightened, on the other hand, have broken the spell, they see the illusion. They take full responsibility for their response abilities and as a consequence, they always hold their own destiny in their own hands. They are free spirits.

 

Seed of Peace - If we plant a positive, clean seed of thought and concentrate on it, we give it energy, like the sun gives to a seed in the earth. And as the seed in the earth awakens, stirs and begins to grow, the thoughts on which we concentrate awaken, stir and begin to grow. So let us sow positive thoughts. Each morning before we begin the journey of the day let us sit still, in silence, and sow the seed of peace. Peace is harmony and balance. Peace is freedom from the burden of negativity and wastefulness. Let peace find its home within us. Peace is our original strength, our eternal tranquility of being.

 

Only the Best - You bring out the best in others, because you see the best in others.

 

Look Inwards - We all have three eyes. Two for looking out and one for looking in. Why would we want to look in when everything is happening ‘out there’? Because the treasure we seek is inside, not outside. What is treasure? Beauty, truth, peace, happiness. You already have what you seek. You already are stunningly beautiful. You are already peaceful and loving. How come you don’t know this? Simple, you never look inwards, beyond superficial memories or recent experiences, so you never see your own riches. Take a moment to stop, look in and see. Don’t rush. Don’t search. Just look. And be aware.

 

Barriers to Love - Whatever is in your heart that is not clean, not true, will ultimately begin to act like a wall, obstructing the natural flow of love. People who say that there is no love in their life, are being blocked by this wall. Actually there is love, but they just can’t accept it. Ego is the clearest example of this. Ego limits the flow of love by placing conditions on the love you give and receive. Ego uses love to satisfy its own needs and desires. It produces a love which is deceptive, one which brings only temporary satisfaction. Ego does not allow you to experience true love or share it. If fact, ego is capable of destroying your ability to feel love altogether.

 

Embrace Change - When you are aware and accept that everything around you is constantly changing, and that you have no control over 99.99% of it, you are able to embrace change like a close friend! Change is a like a river, constantly flowing and moving things around. The river of life is constantly bringing you ideas, people, situations – each one is an opportunity to be enriched or to enrich others, and to learn. Change is the play of the universe as it entertains us in the biggest light and sound show of all time. Why not sit back and enjoy the show?

 

Banish Sorrow - Don’t be sorry, be content – it’s a choice not a chore. Never identify with others’ sorrow or you will go down with them. Be with them, but stay up, so you can uplift them. Help them put things in perspective. But first do that for yourself. You’re feeling sorry? Why? Have you lost something? It’s an illusion – you have nothing to lose. Everything that comes to you comes to pass, literally. So let all things pass and you will turn the illusion of loss into the reality of liberation…and sorrow will be a distant memory.

 

Create Vision - Never believe anyone who says we cannot change. Vision is one of the secrets of personal transformation. We are all artists, our mind is the arena of creation and vision is what we are constantly creating. What is your vision of yourself today – patient, relaxed, positive or tense, tight and negative? What do you prefer? So be creative – what does patience look like, feel like, what are you doing that is different when you are patient and you are expressing your power to …wait? Always start with vision not action. See it and you will be it. Be it and you will do it. This is how we create our own life.

 

Give Blessings - We are all blessed with life and all the opportunities it brings, though most of us forget to notice. But we also have blessings to give. In fact, the opportunity to give our blessings may be the greatest blessing of all. By bestowing our good wishes, encouraging, empowering others, we bless. And when we do, they return a thousand-fold. Bless and be blessed.

 

Be Here Now - The past is history, so let it go. The future is a mystery, so let it come. The present is a gift – be truly in the present today and release all your fears (based on the past) and your worries (imagined futures) – this is the work of someone who truly wants to awaken, and break free from the anchors and burdens of dead yesterdays and speculative tomorrows.

 

You are what you think - You are what you think. Think that you are a being of peace and peace will become your personality. Share good news with others. Always have something interesting prepared to share with those you meet. Remember to have a peaceful thought at least once a day.

 

Transform Negativity - The energies of life come to meet us at every moment. Most come from other people who either in the same room or on the flickering, techni-colour screens with which we now share most of our homes. The vast majority of these energies are not positive. So how do we handle the ‘the negatives’, whether it’s someone’s attitude, their hurtful gestures or our daily dose of world violence and mayhem. There are three cardinal rules. First, do not absorb it – don’t be an emotional sponge. Second do not reflect it back. Otherwise you begin a cycle of emotional exchanges which may last a long time. And third, do the one thing which marks us as intelligent human beings – transform it. Even if the scene is a disaster there is some benefit somewhere in it. Even if you are watching two peoples beliefs or opinions slug it out to the edge of violence don’t take sides. Instead offer a solution then stand well back. Even if the person hates you, accept their state of being and return the light of love. In time, with patience, it will illuminate their darkness, and return to you by the bucketful! Just wait.

 

 

Photo - https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/stream/ Source: www.brahmakumaris.org

 

A man was asked to paint a boat. He brought his paint and brushes and began to paint the boat a bright red, as the owner asked him. As he was painting, he spotted a tiny hole in the hull and fixed it silently. When he finished painting, he received his money and left. The following day, the boat’s owner approached the painter and gave him a generous check, much more than the fee for the painting. The painter was surprised and said, “You've already paid me for painting the boat, Sir!” “But this is not for the paint job. It's for repairing the hole in the boat.” “Ah! But it was such a small service... certainly it's not worth paying me such a high amount for something so insignificant.” “My dear friend, you do not understand. Let me tell you what happened: “When I asked you to paint the boat, I forgot to mention the hole. “When the boat dried, my kids took the boat and went on a fishing trip. “They did not know that there was a hole. I was not at home at that time. “When I returned and noticed they had taken the boat, I was desperate because I remembered that the boat had a hole. “Imagine my relief and joy when I saw them returning from fishing. “Then, I examined the boat and found that you had repaired the hole! “You see, now, what you did? You saved the life of my children! I do not have enough money to pay your 'small' good deed.” So no matter who, when, or how, continue to help, sustain, wipe tears, listen attentively, and carefully repair all the 'leaks' you find. You never know when one needs us, or when God holds a pleasant surprise for us to be helpful and important to someone. Along the way, you may have repaired numerous 'boat holes' for several people without realizing how many lives you've saved. ?? Make a difference....be the best you...(Social Media)