Ross Dizon

Gather Together Two or Three in Jesus’ Name

Jesus is always in his Church.  Yes, he is in the midst of those who gather together in his name by the initiative of Providence. Jesus wants us disciples to know that we shall receive for sure what we pray for, but on one condition:  we will have to agree on what to...

Deny Themselves, Bear Their Own Cross, Follow Christ

Jesus is all things to all.  He leads those who live for others and deny themselves.  For they do not seek their own good, but the neighbor’s. Peter is blessed.  For in the first place, the Father, not flesh and blood, lets him know who Jesus is.  In the second place,...

All Things to All so as to Save All

Jesus is the Teacher who shows us by words and by works what it means to become all things to all for the sake of God’s kingdom.

Foreigners No Longer, But Citizens Rather

Jesus, our peace, makes one the Jews and those who are not Jews: the foreigners. He tears down, through the cross, the wall of hate that separates them.

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Jesus and the Father are one and of one mind and heart.  And to be a Christian means to have Christ’s mind and heart. Jesus walks about in the temple area on Solomon’s Porch or Colonnade.  It is a place many people go to, especially in winter.  For there, due to a...

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Burden and Sorrow of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Jesus is God-with-us.  He stays with us all along the way that we travel.  He finds bearable the burden that we turn out to be. The disciples cannot haul in the net due to the huge number of fish caught in it.  But surely, it is a burden that makes the fishermen...

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Palpable, Touchable, Visible, True

Jesus makes palpable God, whom no one has seen or touched.  True disciples do not rest till their Teacher is palpable to them. Jesus knows that when he shows up risen, his disciples will think they see a ghost.  They will want him to be palpable.  That is why he has...

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Live and Die as Jesus Christ Did

The risen Jesus is at God’s right hand and intercedes for us.  His love enables us to live and die as he did. There are in the New Testament paradoxical teachings.  These ideas, for instance, strike us as odd:  to die is to live, loss is gain, to serve is to rule,...

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Palms of Martyrdom, of Witness

Jesus is the faithful witness and the King of martyrs.  To welcome him means to follow him to the end with palms in our hands. Of the four gospel writers, only John mentions palms.  Matthew and Mark speak only of “branches.”  Luke, for his part, says nothing at all...

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Holy and Just in the Sight of God

Jesus ushers in the new creation. He comes to make all things new. Hence, he wants us to be just and holy. The prodigal son goes back home. He stands for those who are not holy: robbers, evildoers, adulterers, tax collectors. But as it turns out, the older son should...

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Come to Our Senses about Our Sins

Jesus is divine mercy in person.  Hence, he is ready to forgive us if we come to our senses and decide to turn back to God. We have all to come to our senses and return so as not to perish.  For we all stray, those from Galilee or Jerusalem.  Those of us who are older...

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Guilt and Hope that We All Share

Jesus is the Good News of salvation.  He calls us who have sinned—and no one of us is free of guilt—to return to God.  So, there is hope for us.  In the face of evils, like war crimes, many wonder, “Where is God.”  As though the guilt were his.  Why does he allow...

Mind and Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Prayers and Changes for Good

Christ is always before the Father in prayer.  And it is while he prays that the appearance of his face changes and his clothing turns dazzling white.  Prayers make for good changes. In a forum in which exchange of ideas took place, a comment spoke of prayers as...