Today is the First Sunday of Lent, and  today’s Gospel is taken from the opening of  Matthew, chapter 4.  We hear the well known, dramatic story of Jesus’ temptations in the desert which takes place before he begins his public ministry.

During the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln was asked, “How can we get rid of our enemies?” He then asked his generals about their war strategies so that they could win battles. Then Abraham Lincoln said, “We can get rid of our enemies by making them our friends”.

Jesus, through the Gospel this 6^th Sunday of ordinary time, reminds us to live out our Christian life in the light of the moral values inspired and grounded on love, because God is love.

Here in Australia the idiom “turn something on its head” is used quite a lot, especially in sports. When a team is leading by a big score and then the opponent rallies and is now in the lead, you can hear commentators saying, “The game has been turned on its head”.

January, the beginning of a new year, can be a time of regret and reflection, mixed with optimism for the future, a time for new resolutions.

A few years ago I talked to my cousin from the United States over the phone and we chatted for quite a while, and, while I know that she knows me, somehow in her voice she seemed a little bit bewildered.

In this feast of the Magi, the Church celebrates the welcoming of the nations to the scene of that first holy night: Mary, Joseph, and the child Jesus.

Happy New Year! And, with the New Year we are blessed with three occasions for this day. First, we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary as Mother of God. Second, we also celebrate the Octave of Christmas and lastly, we celebrate the beginning of the New Year.

It’s difficult to say something about Christmas that has never been said before! Maybe, though, that’s not an issue, as at this special time of year, traditions are important.

During the first three centuries of persecution, Christians didn’t celebrate the Christmas feast in the same way we celebrate it today, reflects Fr John Quang SVD.

They celebrated the feast of Emmanuel, God-is-with-us. That’s the essence, the crux of Christmas. It is not so much about a birthday, but rather about God the Creator becoming human like us in flesh and dwelling among us so that we may be saved. The word Jesus means ‘God saves’. As a result of God being among us and becoming one like us, we are saved.