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The Power of Praise

30/4/2025

A Reflection on the Psalm for Sunday, May 4th, 2025:
Third Sunday of Easter

R. I will extol you, Lord, for you have raised me up.

I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up, and did not let my foes rejoice over me. O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.

R. I will extol you, Lord, for you have raised me up.

Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name. For his anger is but for a moment; his favour is for a lifetime. Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.

R. I will extol you, Lord, for you have raised me up.

Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me! O Lord, be my helper! You have turned my mourning into dancing. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you for-ever.

R. I will extol you, Lord, for you have raised me up.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

extol: Praise enthusiastically.

How do you praise enthusiastically? Sing! Many psalms were written as a way to praise God. And many were written to be sung. It’s possibly why we have a musical interlude between the first and second readings at Mass. After all, they say singing is praying twice. So maybe that’s why two songs came to mind as I sat with these words from Psalm 30.

On my first read of the psalm I almost immediately heard in my head Josh Groban singing “You Raise Me Up.” This familiar ballad that speaks of the hope and strength that we have the power to give one another could so easily be a hymn. When I let the internet take me down the rabbit hole of this song’s origins, what struck me is that the song was not necessarily written or sung as a hymn – yet it has become one for both the secular world and church circles. The song has taken on a life of its own, having been recorded by 1400 artists in 50 different languages.

In contrast, a lesser-known song also started to play in my head as I reflected further with the psalm: a new-to-me praise and worship song, called “Somebody to You,” by Christian recording artist Rachel Lampa. While the song may not have the same “star power” as “You Raise Me Up,” it has just as much impact. Click the song title to have a listen. The song clearly emphasizes that my value and worth simply ARE because I am already somebody to God. Because of that important fact I do not have to earn love and adulation from anyone – or God – by what I say or how I act. God already made me worthy.

Maybe it’s because of the context in which I first heard each of the songs that I perceived a difference – the first more secular and the second more Christian. The first is often used to praise one another, while the latter offers praise to God. God is so worthy of our praise for all He does for us, yet God is not looking for the adulation, the “fame.” As humans we seek praise, recognition, admiration so that we are seen and heard, valued by other humans. That’s not a bad thing, but it is not THE thing. Yes, we need to value the dignity of one another, but the source of that dignity is the Lord. While both songs – and Psalm 30 – offer different sentiments, all also offer me the space to encounter and praise our God. The space to recognize I am already somebody to God, Who gifts me my inherent value as a child of God. In knowing that, I can find the space to encourage and raise up my sisters (and brothers) in Christ so that they too can know their worth. And together we can create the space to…

Extol you Lord, for You have raised us up!

Aurea Sadi

3 Comments

Joy in Suffering

29/4/2025

3 Comments

A Reflection on the First Reading for Sunday, May 4th, 2025:
Third Sunday of Easter

Acts
5.28-32, 40b-41

In those days: The high priest questioned the Apostles, saying, “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man’s blood on us.”

But Peter and the Apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than human beings. The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Saviour that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.”

Then the council ordered the Apostles not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. As they left the council, they rejoiced that they were considered worthy to suffer dishonour for the sake of the name.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

I am struck by the joy the Apostles experienced when deemed worthy to suffer for the name of Jesus. Reflecting on the times within which this was written, “suffer” has a completely different meaning from the minor discomfort I may experience for the name today. In those times, thousands had responded to the teachings of the Apostles and suffering often meant violent death. My humanness struggles to accept finding joy in that possibility.

The dictionary defines joy as “a feeling of great pleasure and happiness.” Our Christian belief tells us that joy is not a feeling… it’s a choice to love God and His promise of eternal life. I have had moments of perfect emotional joy in my mortal life, and while I am grateful for those, they have indeed passed as feelings tend to do. I have also had moments of profound peace in the midst of storms, and I understand now with the passing of time that those moments were only possible because of being deeply rooted in the love of God.

But am I rooted enough to suffer in the name? The answer is I believe that I am rooted, but I am also cowardly.

I am in awe of people I know who live their Christianity aloud and have seen the fruit of their lived example when they bring others to Christ. I know I allow myself to be His vessel when I am safely working in ministry, but my fear of being humiliated often results in my decision to stay silent when presented with opportunities in the everyday marketplace of my life. I hesitate to share the source of my joy as being the love of God and to invite others to meet Him. Jesus died for me; many of the Apostles and others became martyrs who died for their faith – and I hide behind a fear of humiliation.

I recently took one small step and taped a Litany of Humility on my desk at work, out in the open for all to see and, just as importantly, for me to see and pray every morning when I arrive at work.

I pray that I will have the humility and courage to embrace the joy of standing in the name of Jesus, not just silently but with word and deed, actively bringing His light to any environment I find myself in. He has placed me in specific places at this specific time to do just that, and though I may be taunted and ridiculed, His promise of eternal life means the joy of His love will surpass any fleeting moments of suffering.

Let us pray: Father God, thank You for Your promise of eternal life, and for entrusting me with the responsibility of bringing others to You. Deliver me from the fear of being humiliated. Help me to always remember that it is a joy to suffer for Your name, and that any weight of human suffering will always be overcome by that promise of eternal life. Amen.

Sandy Graves

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A Chat With Thomas

25/4/2025

2 Comments

A Reflection on the Gospel for Sunday, April 27th, 2025:
Divine Mercy Sunday

John
20.19-31

It was evening on the day Jesus rose from the dead, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews. Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”

When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

But Thomas, who was called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”

After eight days his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”

Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

Characters- Narrator (You)
- Thomas

Narrator [absorbing a jam-packed Gospel with a million and one threads to comment on]: So, I see the sacrament of reconciliation being initiated here. That’s big. But how can I ignore Jesus’ grand entrance via teleportation? I guess when you conquer death, walls just don’t matter anymore.

[pauses, reflecting]

Still … everyone else saw Him, and believed. Thomas didn’t.

[squints, curious and contemplative, with an ounce of judgment and a pinch of self-righteousness]

Seriously, Thomas. You didn’t even bat an eye to Jesus defying the laws of nature. Even though your ten brothers [had to double-check the math on that one] stood there, wide-eyed, telling you in amazement, “We have seen the Lord,” you still said, “Yeah, no, brethren. Unless I can touch the holes in His hands, I’m out.”

[shakes head, incredulous]

You walked with Him. Ate with Him. Watched Him raise the dead. You heard Him say He’d suffer, die, and rise again. And yet … you still wanted more proof?

Thomas [with the patience and love of a saint]: I understand your confusion. I’ve heard it echoed through centuries. “Doubting Thomas,” they call me – a cautionary tale.

[chuckles]

You’re right – I did walk with Him. It was the greatest adventure of my life: to follow Him through it all, to witness the miracles and wonders left in His wake. Everything He did, every step He took was filled with love – and it was transformative. The world never felt more peaceful, and all of life seemed to be in such rich harmony. Yes indeed, the days He walked the earth were the brightest days – He who is the Light of the World.

Imagine, then, what happens when that Light is suddenly extinguished. When the days feel like night, and the nights grow even darker still. We followed Him, and He brought us to breathtaking heights – closer to truth, closer to hope. Now, picture the fall from that mountaintop. How jarring would it be to find yourself in the deepest valley you’ve ever known, one that mirrors the heights in intensity, only in the opposite direction?

“Grieving” is an understatement for what I felt in that moment.

[smiles softly]

I was a shattered man. I needed to know – without question – that it was Him. It was never His power I doubted but His presence. I couldn’t afford even the slightest bit of uncertainty. I needed to be sure that He was truly there.

Empirical evidence. Tangible proof. Haven’t you needed those things, too?

Vanessa Noujaim

2 Comments

There Is Only One Type

24/4/2025

4 Comments

A Reflection on the Second Reading for Sunday, April 27th, 2025:
Divine Mercy Sunday

Revelation
1.9-11a, 12-13, 17-19

I, John, your brother who share with you in Jesus the persecution and the kingdom and the patient endurance, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I was in the spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet saying, “Write in a book what you see and send it to the seven Churches.”

Then I turned to see whose voice it was that spoke to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands I saw one like the Son of Man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash across his chest.

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he placed his right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living one. I was dead, but see, I am alive forever and ever; and I have the keys of Death and of Hades. Now write what you have seen, what is, and what is to take place after this.”

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

Often, I’m wandering about this world thoughtlessly, even though my Just Us coffee bag encourages me to “Ask the hard questions for a better world.” After a recent outburst from my son, I began thinking about all the times I heard the phrases, “Boys will be boys,” and “It’s just in their nature [to be destructive or violent].” While I can accept this as a temporary state of their nature during the intense period of hormonal transition to adulthood, I don’t accept this as definitive truth. If God were to have His way, we would all be living in the true image and likeness of Him, Our Creator. Instead, He allowed us to have our way, in which we often choose to separate ourselves from our true and intended nature. This nature was exemplified by the most fully integrated human being who ever existed – Jesus. And He is not violent; “A bent reed He will not break” (Isaiah 42:3). He draws things together rather than tearing them apart.

So when I come up against common behavioural patterns often stereotypically assigned to one group or another, I find myself responding in one of two ways. My way: supposing it must be true because it’s my general experience and actually alleviates me from any personal responsibility to change or address that belief. Or God’s way: scrutinizing my personal experiences around the belief and reorienting to the definitive truth – God made each and every one of us in His image and likeness – which opposes every stereotype.

Until Jesus walked the earth, God was also subject to a couple of stereotypes: first, the assumption that God could take the form of a spirit only; and, second, that God could never die. But this reading from Revelation challenges those perspectives. This vision of Jesus in his bodily form came to the writer between 34 and 66 years post-crucifixion … that day when God died. And in this presentation of the Lord, He said, “I was dead, but see, I am alive forever and ever.” So, God chose to be both fully human and fully divine, and He also died and came back to life. He has the power to resurrect the dead yet, astonishingly, I can blindly assume a disposition of complacency when it comes to trusting in His capacity to enact change.

Our Father is constantly calling us back to our true and intended nature. He is calling us to shed self-destructive behaviours so we can be more fully integrated with His goodness and virtue. He is calling us to examine continually what the world says of us so that we can decide if it aligns with His voice or if it is a false skin we are called to shed.

On the advice of a dear friend and experienced parent, I chose to embrace my son after his difficult outburst, shed the stereotypical belief that boys are, by nature, destructive, and prayed for him. Within the hour, God returned my son to his typical gentle nature, filled him with repentance, and restored our relationship. May the glory of God’s risen Son shatter any false beliefs you may hold in your heart. His love can restore all things.

Lori MacDonald

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The Power of Praise

A Reflection on the Psalm for Sunday, May 4th, 2025:Third Sunday of Easter

Joy in Suffering

A Reflection on the First Reading for Sunday, May 4th, 2025:Third Sunday of Easter

A Chat With Thomas

A Reflection on the Gospel for Sunday, April 27th, 2025:Divine Mercy Sunday

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

There Is Only One Type

A Reflection on the Second Reading for Sunday, April 27th, 2025:Divine Mercy Sunday

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

Archives

A Reflection on the Psalm for Sunday, May 4th, 2025:
Third Sunday of Easter

A Reflection on the First Reading for Sunday, May 4th, 2025:
Third Sunday of Easter

A Reflection on the Gospel for Sunday, April 27th, 2025:
Divine Mercy Sunday

A Reflection on the Second Reading for Sunday, April 27th, 2025:
Divine Mercy Sunday