Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through that belief you will inherit eternal life? Belief begins with an intellectual assent but must continuously deepen. The belief Saint John speaks of in today’s Gospel is one that draws us deeper into the mystery of Christ’s Paschal Mystery—His Life, Death, and Resurrection—so as to receive the gift of His abundant and transforming Mercy…..
Alleluia! He is Risen! The Church throughout the world cries out in exultation. The Lenten journey, with its ashes
Every year on the second Sunday of Advent, the liturgy offers us the preaching of John the Baptist. He prepared the people of Israel for the coming of the Messiah. So, also today, he teaches us to welcome the advent of the Lord. Today, as then, the most difficult step to take is to understand the need to get out from where we are settled in, leave the false religious and theological security that we have constructed, and welcome the newness of God’s word.
Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.” He replied to him, “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” Luke 12:13–14
Jesus handpicked twelve men whose names are listed in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 10:2-4, Mark 3:16-19, and Luke 6:14-16) and in the Acts of the Apostles (1:13 excluding Judas Iscariot). Saint Matthew writes, “The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter …” (10:2). “Simon Peter” is first in the list of Matthew, of Mark, of Luke, and of the Acts, but Matthew emphasizes this fact: Peter is first – “primus Simon.”
The Church traditionally uses three celebrations after Christmas to emphasize the manifestation of Jesus’ divinity. First, on the Feast of the Epiphany, the Child Jesus is recognized as God by the three wise men. Then, as we saw last Sunday, at His baptism performed by John the Baptist, a voice from heaven reveals that Jesus is the beloved Son of the Father and a dove, symbol of the Holy Spirit, descends upon Him. This trilogy concludes in today’s celebration with the Gospel of the wedding at Cana, where Jesus during a wedding and after His mother’s request, turns water into wine and begins His messianic signs that would be completed with the sign of greater love through His sacrifice on the cross.
The University of Saint Joseph will be welcoming students from Portugal’s largest educational institution for socially disadvantaged children and youth as soon as next year. The program was confirmed to “O Clarim” by Álvaro Barbosa, Vice-rector for Internationalization and Academic Affairs of USJ. Macau’s Catholic university signed a collaborative agreement with Casa Pia de Lisboa just before Christmas.
In his usual Sunday Angelus prayer in St. Peter’s Square, on the occasion of the feast of the Baptism of the Lord which, according to the liturgical calendar currently in force in the Catholic Church, marks the end of the Christmas season, Pope Francis made the following statement: “the face and voice of God are revealed through the human side of Jesus”.
The Catholic Church’s teaching on the male priesthood is often misunderstood. It is not a statement of male superiority or exclusion but a theological reflection of Christ’s role as the bridegroom of the Church. While ordination is reserved for men, the Church celebrates the indispensable contributions of women in leadership, ministry, and spiritual life. Understanding the priesthood through its theological foundation helps us move beyond misconceptions rooted in societal assumptions.
The Diocese of Macau rejoices in the ordination of two new priests, Father Adriano Serro Agostinho and Father Chan Pak Lam Bosco, on August 31, 2024. Surrounded by family, friends, and the faithful, the ordination was marked by profound moments of prayer, dedication, and the invocation of the Holy Spirit.
Ten months after the devastating attacks on Jaranwala’s Christian community, hostility lingers, affecting children’s education. The Cecil & Iris Chaudhry Foundation steps in with vital aid, from housing to psychological support. Meanwhile, fresh blasphemy accusations in Sargodha spark more violence, critically injuring Nazir Masih. As authorities and religious leaders demand thorough investigations and better protection, the call for justice and interfaith dialogue grows louder.
On Pentecost weekend, the Cathedral of the Nativity of Our Lady in Macau celebrated Confirmation for its Chinese, Portuguese, and English communities, led by Bishop Stephen Lee. This sacrament strengthens Catholics with the Holy Spirit to build up the Church and witness Christ. The celebrations underscored the importance of Confirmation in Christian initiation and its connection to the Eucharist.
During Holy Week, we too, far from being holy, want to stand at the foot of the Cross with the un-haloed centurion and fix our eyes on Jesus. We too, like him, desire to discover God’s presence and mercy in the darkest corners of our hearts and of our world. And by doing so, step-by-step, as Mark taught us and as the catechumens have done in their journey toward baptism, we will enter Christ’s Resurrection.
Crucifixion was a punishment given to them by the governor. In contrast, that voluntary decision made by Jesus to undertake the suffering is what made it salvific. For suffering to become salvific, it must be voluntary and for love!
The Lord’s Prayer urges us to forgive as we expect to be forgiven. We understand that only refuge in the Holy Spirit will protect us from giving in to temptation, and we learn to trust God that He will, through Christ, release us from the stronghold of Satan, once and for all, at the end of time.
Jesus’ prayer was the perfect filial prayer, the conversation of a Beloved Son with his wise, loving and almighty Father. That’s how Jesus prayed and that’s how he wants us to pray.
Marco Carvalho The Kent Wong Gallery, located on the Ilha Verde campus of the University of Saint Joseph, will host, until May 26, the exhibition Sea of Plastic: A Recycled Art Exhibition. Inaugurated on May 8 and organized by USJ’s Institute of Science and Environment, it is an artistic event as much as a wake-up…
In the wake of the recent religious turmoil in the guise of ethnic violence in Manipur, the United Christian Forum has called for justice and respect for all communities. A prayer campaign will also be launched for God’s guidance and intervention to establish peace in the state.
Not just Catholics, but men of every religion have the innate predisposition to the recognition and awareness of a God and the inspired desire to have a relationship of prayer with Him.
The Institute of Science and Environment of the University of Saint Joseph (USJ) will take on the role of co-organizer of the annual Macau Green Week for the first time ever. The educational institution was invited by the local authorities to take over the coordination of the Green Week Carnival, an initiative that will take place on March 18 and 19, outside the Taipa Houses-Museum.
In this article, we will learn the importance of penance, repentance, and the practice of the three traditional Lenten penances: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Almsgiving is closely connected with forgiveness, and both the corporal and spiritual works of mercy are important. We must approach the Sacrament of Reconciliation, or confession, and to make firm resolutions to carry out the three penances during Lent. Let us also take up the Lenten devotion of The Way of the Cross and pray along with the community. Lent is a pilgrimage to Easter and a time for conversion and penance.
“To fight against hunger and food insecurity with the help of Artificial Intelligence”. This is the aim of a new academic consortium created through the initiative of the University of São Paulo, Brazil’s largest public university. The University of Saint Joseph has joined the project and it will foster the development of a new digital radio with a very particular mission: fight against global hunger.
The facilities of the Macau Catholic Culture Association are currently undergoing a major expansion to accommodate an increasing number of cultural events. The ongoing development will rehabilitate and expand the premises’ existing capacities, by adding an extra floor. From May onwards, the second floor of the Association’s headquarters will be used as extended exhibition space, O Clarim was told.
Largely, the Associated Press has been very aggressive against the Catholic Church but a giant of this size has room for many exceptions, as this interview with Pope Francis showed. The conversation with the journalists ventured across many important topics.