St. Sebastian Church

I could not find the name of the Author of this article and yet I found it a very interesting and worth meditative information. Although I am happy to reproduce it here with some of my own addition but  I am not the original source.

When Jesus said “Take up your cross and follow me” what he meant according to many theologians was willing to die in order to follow him.

Although let us not debate on this phrase in the above context, we can, and we do however interpret “cross” as some burden we must carry in our daily lives; like a strained relationship, a thankless job, a physical illness, financial restrains etc. With self-pitying pride, we say, “That’s my cross I have to carry” Read more

The meaning of the Annunciation is an announcement. Nine months before Jesus is born, the angel Gabriel is sent to the Virgin Mary to announce the conception of the Son of God through the Holy Spirit. Although it’s not likely that Jesus was actually born on December 25, March 25, exactly nine months before Christmas, is the most logical day to celebrate the Annunciation. God’s every announcement has a valuable message for each one of us. Through His announcement God revealed Mary’s perpetual virginity, Motherhood of God and Her glorious assumption.

There are 3 practical lessons we can learn from Mary and from the Solemnity of Annunciation of the Lord:

Be prepared to be used by God.

As an unmarried young woman from Nazareth, Mary has a very low social status, but God doesn’t care about that. Mary continues a long list of people in the Bible who felt inadequate (Moses, Rahab, David, Jonah, Naomi to name just a few) that God uses to fulfill His promises. Mary allowed herself to be used by God to fulfill His promise and to redeem humanity from the sin. Read more

On February 2, the Universal Catholic Church observes the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, honoring Jesus Christ’s presentation in the Temple when he was a young child. Jesus’ presentation in the Temple reflects how he fulfills the Old Covenant. According to Old Testament law, a sacrifice had to be offered in the Temple when a child was consecrated to the Lord. Mary and Joseph honor this tradition, as Luke 2:22-24 describes:

When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,” and to offer the sacrifice of “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons,” in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord. Read more

Who was St. Valentine and how did he inspire Valentine’s day?

In the early martyrologies, three different St. Valentines are mentioned, all sharing Feb. 14 for a feast day. Unfortunately, the historical record is sparse. The first St. Valentine was a priest and physician in Rome. He along with St. Marius and his family comforted the martyrs during the persecution of Emperor Claudius II, the Goth. Eventually, St. Valentine was also arrested, condemned to death for his faith, beaten with clubs, and finally beheaded on Feb. 14, AD 270.

The second St. Valentine was the Bishop of Interamna (now Terni, located about 60 miles from Rome). Under the orders of Prefect Placidus, he too was arrested, scourged, and decapitated, again suffering persecution during the time of Emperor Claudius II. Read more

Lent is a wake-up call to Repentance – to begin a new way of life. It is an opportunity for us to really begin to form a new habit which can radically transform our life. Lent gives us 40 days to practice how we are to live our life for the rest of the time. It is the way for us to prepare for the joy of Easter and the New Life that is ours in the Dying and Rising of Jesus.

Jesus did not come to save us by His miracles. He saved us by His passion. Beginning at the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus sweated blood, was plotted against, was betrayed with a kiss and abandoned by His Apostles. Jesus was arrested, handed over to the authorities, was judged and condemned to crucifixion. He was rejected for Barabbas, a murderer. He was scourged 39 times (maybe more), blind-folded, spat upon in the face, mocked, slapped and crowned with  thorns. Jesus was made to carry His own cross, stripped of all His garments and then fastened naked to the cross, with nails to His Hands and Feet. Read more

Saint Joseph the chaste husband of Mother Mary and foster father of Jesus was a Jewish person born in 30BC in Bethlehem. He descended from Royal lineage which dates back to King David.

He was a humble carpenter who married Mother Mary without whom the history of salvation would be incomplete. However much is not written and known in the Bible, but what is written in the Gospels speaks volumes about his life and character. We also gather knowledge about him in other writings that he was a noble, pious, and forgiving person very loving, considerate and understanding. Read more

INTRODUCTION

Vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin. This means that it dissolves in water and is delivered to the body’s tissues but is not well stored, so it must be taken daily through food or supplements.

HISTORY

Until the end of the 18th century, many sailors who ventured on long ocean voyages, with little or no vitamin C intake, contracted or died from scurvy which was later found to be caused by vitamin C deficiency. During the mid-1700s, Sir James Lind, a British Navy surgeon, conducted experiments and determined that eating citrus fruits or juices could cure scurvy, although scientists did not prove that ascorbic acid was the active component until 1932.

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Tadev:  Dev boro dis dium tuka, Simao Titiv.

Simao: Tukai dium re, Baba Tadev.

Tadev:  Zaite dis tuji khoboruch nam. Tuji bolaiki bori asa nhoim?

Simao:  Devache kurpen bolaiki bori asa ….punn?

Tadev: Punn ani kitem? Oso chintest- dukhest tuzo sobhav kiteak tor? kitem zalam? .

Simao:  Hea novea vorsant kitleo vaitt ani bhirankull ghoddnneo ghoddtat teo polleun mhaka roddonk ieta.

Tadev: Kosli khobor sangonk sodtai? Rosteancher obsoeg ghoddleat ani kitlinch bhavam-bhoinnam sompun geleant, mhonn tum dukhi asai?  Read more

Mogall Firgozkaramno,
2023 Novem voros suru zata mhollear soglle vatten umed ani kuxalkai. Hea vorsa odik kuxalkai asunk karann, fattlim don vorsam Covid-ak lagun roddun ani bhieun dis sarle. Kitem zatelem ani koxe dis sartele mhonn dubhav ietalo. Punn atam sogllem somadhan zaun kuxal zaunk soglleank purtem karann asa.

Adlea Korarant thodde pavtt pidda rog ieun ani chodd pavtt dusream desanche raza akromonn korun rajeank/porjek nirvaxi korun vhortale. Tankam pidda-pidd ditale. Dev ani devosponn korunk sot’tea legun tankam dinaasle. Oxem astanam porza roddun Devak ulo martali ani Dev tanchea uleak kan diun adharak ietalo. Tankam soddoitalo. Hi porza kuxal zaun aplea ganv-ghora vochun Devak dhinvastalo ani bhetto bhettoitalo. Read more

We are all enjoying the festive and wonderful season of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. I do sincerely hope that you all had a blessed and a memorable Christmas with your family and friends. We now look forward to the coming year 2023.

A quick reflection over the key happiness and events that shook the world in the recent past it occurred to me that in all the scenarios there is one thing in common, the never-ending ‘uncertainty’. The year 2022, witnessed several leaps and bounds of uncertainty, we would have not ever thought or imagined. We started the year with the relentless and endless pandemic, COVID-19, with its countless variants playing havoc with the population, claiming a million lives worldwide. The latter half of the year saw the pandemic receding behind curtains and bringing relief and jubilation. The Russia –Ukraine war and the resulting oil crisis went on to have a ripple effect on the world economy. So many countries are going through bad times and the current economic situation creating a constant doubt or fear of a recession in 2023. It’s an uncertain future. Is this the new way of living our lives? We need to reflect and debate this issue as we journey through the course of our lives. More often than ever, we wake up in the morning, eat, go to work, come home, again eat, sleep, repeat and the cycle becomes a monotonous routine. Some of us have even forgotten the reason for our existence. As we depart from this year to the next, let us usher in 2023 with renewed hope and total faith in the Almighty. New year – a new chapter, new verse, full of dreams and resolutions. Ultimately we are the ones who write it. The choice is ours. Read more