Shalom

27 Dec Thu	St John, Apostle
	1 Jn. 1:1-4 Ps. 96:1-2, 5-6, 11-12 Jn. 20:2-8

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Seeing is not necessarily believing. Several people can view the same event and offer differing descriptions. An experience can draw some people to a deep faith; others may find themselves farther away. Both the Beloved Disciple and Peter see the empty tomb and wrappings, but only the former comprehends their significance. If we follow the Gospel of John closely, we know that for this evangelist faith in the one sent by God - Jesus - imparts a special spiritual awareness and wisdom. And faith means the giving of the total self to the Master, which includes the body, mind, heart and soul. The eyes of faith will help us understand the perplexing events that occur around us every day. The best witness is the kind of experience that engages the total person. John and his followers experienced the Word made flesh in every aspect of their being. They were transformed by their encounter, and now they hope to bear witness to that experience to future generations. Our best witness to the Master is not by means of words or clever techniques. A life transformed by love and expressed with generosity of heart and soul is a light shining in the darkness. We cannot give what we do not have. Let our personal encounter with Jesus result in an eloquent witness to what we have seen, heard and experienced.

Lord, may I be totally transformed by my encounter with You.

DAILY OFFERING

Eternal Father, I offer You everything I do this day; my thoughts, words, joys and sufferings. Grant that, vivified by the Holy Spirit and united to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, my life this day may be of service to You and to others. I also pray that all those preparing for marriage discover in Sacrament the source of Christ's grace for living a fithful and fruitful love. Amen.

PRAYING WITH THE CHURCH

INTENTION
That Christians may free themselves from the subtle forms of cultural conditioning which prevent them from recognising the dignity and rights of others
Elaboration

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P R A Y I N G W I T H T H E C H U R C H

INTENTION :	That Christians may free themselves from the subtle forms of cultural conditioning which prevent them from recognising the dignity and rights of others
Our vocation and mission as Christians is to bring the light of Christ to the world in order to preserve the world from corruption by permeating it with the values of the Gospel. We need, ourselves, first and foremost to be enlightened by Christ. We do not generate light, we only refract, reflect and radiate. It is His light that we must cast on the world. The more transparent our lives are with the values of the Gospel, the better is the light of Christ reflected and the less we are seen. The world in which we live is mixed with wheat and weeds. There is good and evil. Consumerism is but the logical sequence of a materialistic way of life. Spiritual values are forgotten. Our wants are made to appear as our needs and we are forced to get so immersed in the joys of this world as to forget the joys of the world to come. We are admonished to be aware lest we be trapped by these and other forms of cultural conditioning that mark this world. Awareness is the first step to change. We pray that this awareness may help us to be delivered from the cultural conditioning that hinders and hampers our vision and prevents us from recognising the dignity and the rights of others.
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