Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Prayer for Families



Prayer of Blessed Therese of Kolkata for Families
Our Father, who art in heaven, you have given us a model of life in the Holy Family of Nazareth. Help us, most loving Father, to make a new Nazareth of our own families, where joy and peace will reign.

May it be deeply contemplative, fervently Eucharistic and joyfully vibrant.

Help us to stay together through good and ill thanks to our praying as a family.
Teach us to encounter Jesus in every member of our own families especially those who suffer and are wounded.

May the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus make our hearts as meek and humble as his (Mt 11,29).

Help us to fulfill our vocation as a family in holiness.
May we love one another as God loves each one of us more and more every day and forgive each other's faults as you forgive our sins.

Most loving Father, help us to accept all you give to us and give all you take from us with a big smile. Immaculate Heart of Mary, cause of our joy, pray for us!

Holy Guardian Angels be always with us, guiding us and protecting us. Amen.

Sunday, May 3, 2015





Feeling blessed today to celebrate the Holy Eucharist, on the first Sunday of May 2015! The Parable of the Vine and Branches taught by Jesus makes me feel one with him, experiencing his life and love and producing abundant fruits of joy, courage and zeal for the good news of God's Kingdom.
3 May 2015




Wednesday, May 13, 2009

http://www.cultureunplugged.com/play/1081/Chicken-a-la-Carte
http://www.localphone.com/call/india?rb=Ho%2F2i3WejuLwthHX%2BECyeaEVP1YlU02Q3nsmXN8rUaw%3D

Saturday, December 13, 2008

SURVIVING MUMBAI

"But my feeling is that the Lord, for some reason, put His protective hands around me. I had little to do with my deliverance; He was and is in control, and that is fine with me."

This is the most touching of the survival stories that I have read about the Mumbai Massacre. As he writes, everything in life happens for good, though we may not realise it now. May be, it will make us more grateful for all those safe and peaceful moments we have always enjoyed in our life. I am deeply touched by this account of remarkable rescue. How gracious is our God! How powerful and protective is our Blessed Mother and the Angels and Saints!!! Please read on... You will not stop once you begin.

(Courtesy: Catholicmil.org)

Written by Peter OMalley Tuesday, 09 December 2008 18:14

Last Wednesday evening around 10pm, following a relaxing supper, my friend Eugene and I arrived at the check-out desk at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai, as we have done together hundreds of times in our travels as New York investment bankers currently living in Hong Kong . As I placed my bag on the table I heard a loud gunshot, which I recognized from my years living in South Africa to be the distinctive snap of an AK-47 assault rifle. Hearing another shot a second later, I looked at Eugene and said, “Run, that’s AK!”

We streaked away from the gunfire toward the nearest exit as the terrorists were entering the hotel lobby from various points. I smashed through the doors toward the pool area and ducked into some bushes as the gunfire grew in intensity. I realized Eugene did not make it out of the lobby.

Five or six people had arrived in the bushes before me, all now paralyzed in fear. From the sound of things I realized that a Columbine-like shooting spree was taking place inside, with gunmen walking around methodically executing people. Mind racing, I concluded that being bunched up in the bushes in the corner of the pool area was not safe.

Surveying the scene brought the dispiriting conclusion that we were trapped, surrounded by dozen foot-high walls on all sides. I scanned the walls and then scrambled for a finger or toehold, but found none. I did, however, spy an air conditioning duct about nine feet above me. I leaped and was able to knock a cover away. I jumped again and grabbed onto the unit, but as I tried to pull myself up, I fell, causing the folks in the bushes to hush me to be quiet.

A quick aspiration to the Holy Spirit — “Come, O Holy Spirit, fill the heart of thy faithful!” — and then another leap upward. This time I was able to grab on and pull myself up over the wall where I flipped onto a lean-to roof of the pool shed. I laid low and quiet, partially concealing myself with tree branches.

Breathless, I thought to email my colleagues in London and apprise them of our plight. “Urgent: This is not a joke. At Taj Hotel in Mumbai. Gunmen on loose. People killed. Call police.” Then I turned off my phone, thinking a ring could give away my position and bring on a quick and violent death.

The minutes passed, while screams and sounds of gunfire continued. I began to pray to St. Michael the Archangel: “St. Michael the Archangel , defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.” I also prayed the first of many Rosaries to see my way through what had suddenly become the single most shocking and desperate experience of my life. I knew that if I was to get through this, it would be Our Lord’s doing.

An hour passed atop my poolside perch. The scene below was quieter now, but infinitely more creepy. Occasional bursts of gunfire would rip through the dark night, indicating that the evil men were still at their cruel business. At one stage, approaching the edge of panic, I prayed, “Thy will be done.” But then I hedged, adding, “I know your will be done, Lord, but I’m not gonna say that now because I fear that by doing so I will somehow be giving up. So here’s the deal: I will hand this situation over to Our Lady and let Her decide how to deal with it.”

Another hour passed. I spent the time spying the scene below, thinking, considering my next move, praying many more St. Michael prayers and Memorares, trying to keep my head clear. I also had to distract myself from my increasing need to go to the bathroom. But I wasn’t ready (yet) to possibly exchange my life for that relief.

Suddenly I noticed hotel busboys down below secreting people out of the pool area via a trap door on the deck. I decided — in hindsight with some regret — to join them. As I crawled to the edge to jump off, I realized the side of the shed from which I was jumping was about 25 feet off the ground. But I’d committed to the jump and only by some miracle was able to slow my momentum and claw onto the edge by my very fingertips. I stabilized myself but a moment later felt the shingles of the shed roof begin to crumble. So I grabbed for a nearby water pipe and somehow managed to inartfully shimmy my way down to the ground unhurt.

I joined the five or six people being ushered down into the hole, and followed them silently through a labyrinth of stairs and twists and turns that ultimately led out into the second floor business center of the hotel. We entered a room where about 70 other souls were huddled together in common terror. I immediately felt that this was not a good place to be: a very soft target with no command or control and no security on the four ingress/egress points. We were extremely vulnerable.

As the terrorists’ grenades, AKs and bombs periodically shook the walls and rattled our minds, I resumed my fervent — though distracted — prayers to Our Lady. With battery power (thankfully) remaining on my BlackBerry, I began praying the Glorious Mysteries with a friend in Mumbai via text, which proved a great comfort.

The scene around me was surreal. Some folks were drinking tea, seeming to ignore our plight. Others were crying and simmering just below the level of panic. My resolve was to keep my senses and continue praying for inner strength. It was possible this siege could last several days, so keeping my wits about me was imperative.

My eyes darted from one ingress point to another as I prayed. I recalled my high school football days when we’d doggedly practice vigilance in awaiting the snap, and quick response time in deciding which “hole to hit” in the activated offensive line. I readied myself thinking, “OK, if they enter through staircase A, I will head for Door B. If they enter through Door C, I will jump out Window D, etc.”

Thankfully, there was a bathroom in the business center. The one time I used it I found several men hiding in the stalls. I learned later through news articles that a number of them spent the entire 8-9 hours locked inside in those stalls.

As the hours passed, the mood inside the room remained tense but controlled. At one point the tiny red corner light on my Blackberry began to flutter. It was a colleague in my firm’s corporate security operation informing me that I should leave the premises immediately, as the terrorists were searching the hotel floor-by-floor looking for Americans and Brits to kill. I’m 6′4″ and an obvious Yank, particularly in a place like Bombay . Once spotted, I’d be a dead man for sure.
Just then a very loud bomb detonated and small arms fire rang out in one of the stairwells. I assumed the end was near.

I hurried off an email to my Mom and Dad, thanking them for my life and everything else they’d given me. Then I emailed my dear wife and sons: “Thank you, Celeste, for being my best friend and soul-mate. I love you!” I wracked my mind and heart for a few pearls of wisdom to leave my three small boys that would edify and sustain them in a life without their father. Asking the Holy Spirit for guidance, I explained to them that life was a gift, and that they should do their best to enjoy that gift. I urged them to take care of their mother, each other, and their community — and not to be afraid to discern their vocations. I counseled them to keep a daily prayer life and live the norms of piety we’d taught them. “Live life to the fullest, boys, and stay in a state of grace.”

My heartache (and heart-rate) increased as the AK fire drew closer. I approached the headwaiter and quietly asked him if I might slip out the back stairs, as my corporate security indicated I should leave the building immediately. The man assured me that we were secure, but the look on his face betrayed his fear and uncertainty. He then huddled with his two busboys while I positioned myself by the back stairs.

A moment later, the busboys announced that they would begin allowing some folks to slip out. This instantly created a mad rush toward the stairs. Though I was positioned near the doorway, a lovely Indian-accented chorus arose, saying, “Women and children first!” Ah, but of course! I gulped and stepped aside.

The women and children began exiting in groups of eight. After about a minute, men began cutting the line. After some dozen men had cut in front of me, at a point when most of the women had gotten out, I joined the outflow and was able to escape.

I am obviously very lucky — and very blessed. I learned later from our corporate security, who were monitoring my emails, that the business center was attacked by gunmen some five minutes after I was able to escape. I also learned that my friend Eugene had been shot in the lobby, but thankfully will make a full recovery. ( Eugene told me the next day that I’d sprinted right past the terrorist who leveled his gun and shot him in the hip. Fortunately he was dragged into a security room, from which point he was able to escape the hotel a few minutes later.)

Colleagues and friends have asked how I feel after experiencing such a trauma. I tell them I am fine — shaken but fine. At the end of the day, I am convinced that “bona omnia fecit” (all works for the good). I will forever be inspired by the staff of The Taj, who were polite, courteous and courageous throughout the ordeal. They saved hundreds of lives, many sacrificing their own in doing so.

Agnostic and atheist friends have told me that they’d be a wreck if such a thing had happened to them. But my feeling is that the Lord, for some reason, put His protective hands around me. I had little to do with my deliverance; He was and is in control, and that is fine with me.

What good can come out of this dreadful experience? Hopefully a more widespread recognition that the power of prayer and an unshakeable faith in God’s loving plan can get us through anything. That is why I am offering this account to Catholic Exchange. I want others to pray and draw closer to Christ and His Mother, especially in these uncertain times.

Why God has allowed me to live on? I have no idea. But at this point, the thought that will not leave my mind is, “From him to whom much is given, much is expected.”

I pray that I can live up to His expectations.

http://www.catholicmil.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1358:surviving-the-massacre-in-mumbai&catid=75:other&Itemid=252

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Powe of Prayer

In themselves, as weak as worms,
How can poor believers stand;
When temptations, foes, and storms,
Press them close on every hand?

Weak, indeed, they feel they are,
But they know the throne of grace;
And the God, who answers prayer,
Helps them when they seek his face.

Though the Lord awhile delay,
Succor they at length obtain;
He who taught their hearts to pray,
Will not let them cry in vain.

Wrestling prayer can wonders do,
Bring relief in deepest straits;
Prayer can force a passage through
Iron bars and brazen gates.

Hezekiah on his knees
Proud Assyria’s host subdued;
And when smitten with disease,
Had his life by prayer renewed.

Peter, though confined and chained,
Prayer prevailed and brought him out;
When Elijah prayed, it rained,
After three long years of drought.

We can likewise witness bear,
That the LORD is still the same,
Though we feared he would not hear,
Suddenly deliverance came.

For the wonders he has wrought,
Let us now our praises give;
And, by sweet experience taught,
Call upon him while we live.
-John Newton

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

CHOICE IN ELECTION!!!

This election, perhaps poses the biggest challenge of choice for American Catholics. It is like being caught between the devil and the deep sea. Many Catholics, knowing that I have no voting rights in this country, asked my counsel in choosing a candidate. I would not, of course, like to propose any candidate, although I am one who followed the campaigns very closely.

On the one hand we have a candidate who calls himself a maverick, having many years of experience, fought for the country, suffered permanent injuries to his physique, and who of course, professes to be pro-life. If elected he will be the oldest first term president of the U.S. But he has picked a running mate who is totally ignorant and inexperienced of world affairs and economy, unprepared and under-prepared in case of an eventuality of assuming the office of the president and by default the leadership of the world.

On the other hand we have a candidate, who is young, energetic and vivacious, excellent in debates, creating history as the first African-American candidate, whose slogan is ‘change we can’. However, his pro-choice posture poses problems in the minds of so many Catholics. His running mate, a Catholic and tested politician, does not even know or pretends not to know when life begins in a fetus! The liberal agenda of this team makes them the untouchables for many.

Many Church leaders have appeared on the scene, calling for choosing the candidate with pro-life stand. According to them, choosing a candidate who supports abortion, which is an intrinsically evil action, is equal to bartering your salvation, inviting hell fire on you.

In this scenario, it is important to see what the issues of LIFE are. Abortion, an intrinsically evil action, nothing short of murder, of course is the most important issue here, but not the only issue. There are other killers like war, tobacco, guns, etc. which are equally lethal and dangerous. War in Iraq under the present president has not only killed millions so far, injured and maimed many more, permanently handicapped a nation, destroying its infrastructure, food supply, and financial recourses. This is done in the name of fighting Al Qaida, which is obviously non-existent in Iraq, but rooted in places like Pakistan and Afghanistan. Which candidate supports and gets campaign money from tobacco lobby which is another big killer in this country? Which candidate supports and protects the gun lobby, making deadly guns available to school children and criminals?

So where do we stand on issues of LIFE? The unborn is the most precious, yet vulnerable and innocent human being who needs our protection. But what about the millions of vulnerable, innocent and unarmed Iraqis and over 5000 US soldiers who lost their lives? Aren't they precious too? I am waiting to hear the views of the leaders of the Church on this issue. The Holy Father, of course, had spoken very strongly against Iraq war on many occasions. So if voting for abortion, which is equal to murder, is inviting judgment and hell fire, what about all those who voted four years ago for the present administration which happens to be one of the most destructive, murderous and intrinsically evil in history?

I am not in any way proposing or advising a choice between two candidates, but only posing some questions which many people have shared with me. My only advice to them is to follow your conscience in voting. Please pray, and reflect and follow your conscience and do not feel guilty for it. The voice of your conscience is the voice of the Holy Spirit.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Proclamation, Persecution and Growth

Catholic Church teaches that there is truth in every religion and we, through our missionary activity, help people first of all to live good and morally upright lives, following the tenets of their religion, which is but coming from the same God. We are also duty-bound to bring them the good news of Jesus, our only Savior. Making people accept Christ is not our job, but it is the work of the Spirit of God. If and when the Holy Spirit touches them and transforms them, they accept Jesus. Our duty is to proclaim the good news by our words and our witnessing. Persecution is part of Church's growth, as Christ himslef had told us: "If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you. Remember the word I spoke to you, 'No slave is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours" (Jn 15:18-20).

The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. Not a drop of blood shed by the simple, unknown Christans, the world over, even that of the unborn victims, will go unfruitful and unproductive. Wherever there is struggle, persecution and martyrdom, Church grows in leaps and bounds as the victims demonstrate their faith in the most powerful and courageous manner and as the Holy Spirti works there in miraculous ways. Let us keep praying so that their sufferings may be reduced, that they may have the courage to bear witness to Christ, and most importantly, that we may change our own lives and become better Christians, being inspired by them.