PAN DE LA SEMANA

  3 rd Sunday Easter (A) May 4, 2014 TWO DISCOURAGED DISCIPLES;  TWO DEVOTED & SAINTLY APOSTLES Today and last Sunday would be a “study in contrasts.” Just allow me to attempt at making a comparison. Last Sunday was a story of two enthusiastic and happy apostles who galloped their way towards sanctity. All told, about 4 million people flocked to Rome for the occasion. Hundreds of thousands converged at the Piazza di San Pietro and beyond, clogging all available side streets and open spaces. Hundreds of millions more watched the solemn proceedings on TV and via online streaming. Today, though, no one is watching. Who loves to watch a story of dejected and despondent men, dragging their feet towards any place away from (not towards) the city of dropped plans, dashed dreams, and utter disappointment, if not, defeat? They ambled about in shame. They absent-mindedly walked away from the city that once nurtured their brightest and fondest h...

Catholic Homily/Sunday Reflection 3rd Sunday of Easter - Year A April 6, 2008 Today, 3rd Sunday of Easter, the liturgy calls our attention to early risers, sojourners, and travelers. In the Gospel, Luke reports the fact that “some women from [their] group … were at the tomb early in the morning.” The same gospel passage tells us about “two of Jesus’ disciples going to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus.” Again, the same Lukan report speaks about the disciples being joined by another one, and all three became fellow sojourners as they talked on all the way up to the moment of the “breaking of bread.” We see here three types of people with very focused goals and precise objectives. The women, presumably, were there first thing in the morning to do unfinished tasks related to the burial of their Master whose death coincided with the Sabbath day of rest. The two disciples had a precise destination – Emmaus, although the Lukan report does not say for what purpose. For all th...