So let's talk about today's readings 4/30/09

[cheeto1]

usccb.org/nab/readings/043009.shtml

“The Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away”.
I wonder what that was like for Philip? This is so Emmaus. We know what it was
like when Jesus disappeared from the 2 disciples, He was just gone. But now here’s
Philip disappearing from the Eunuch. We know what it was like for the Eunuch,
Philip was just gone. But what was it like for Philip?

In today’s gospel, Jesus says He has seen the Father. The very beginning of the book
of John says that Jesus was one with God. It seems hard to see someone if you are
one with them. What does God look like? Did Jesus see Him with eyes? Does He
look just like Jesus, since Jesus said, “If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father”? Incidentally, it was Philip He said this to.

Today is the day of Pope Pius V, who decided for himself what he would wear.

So what struck you about today’s readings? :bible1::twocents:

 

[thevickinator16]

I have read the OT before and never realized just how much beforehand knowledge the Jewish people had about Jesus coming. The bulk of the Old Testament is foretelling His coming. I did not get that the first time I read it. It is good to read it daily through the readings. It doesn’t overwhelm me as much.

I think we all have a problem trying to see God the Father, and God, the Son and the Holy Spirit as one and as separate at the same time. St Faustina tried to explain in her diary, the concept in her vision she recieved. Still I don’t think without God’s graces we can make sense of this. Do you realize just how much trust is involved in loving an unseen God? In our lives we pretty much go for the concrete reality. Here we are asked to just believe in what we can’t see and to trust in Him for all things in our lives!

Hope and trust, that is all we have. With these gifts we recieve so much from our Heavenly Father and from Jesus and the Holy Spirit! I can’t wait till I can get all the answers from them personally! How about you?

God Bless!

 

[DonLeon]

usccb.org/nab/readings/043009.shtml

“The Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away”.
I wonder what that was like for Philip? This is so Emmaus. We know what it was
like when Jesus disappeared from the 2 disciples, He was just gone. But now here’s
Philip disappearing from the Eunuch. We know what it was like for the Eunuch,
Philip was just gone. But what was it like for Philip?

In today’s gospel, Jesus says He has seen the Father. The very beginning of the book
of John says that Jesus was one with God. It seems hard to see someone if you are
one with them. What does God look like? Did Jesus see Him with eyes? Does He
look just like Jesus, since Jesus said, “If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father”? Incidentally, it was Philip He said this to.

Today is the day of Pope Pius V, who decided for himself what he would wear.

So what struck you about today’s readings? :bible1::twocents:

If I remember correctly, some earlier versions had Philip snatched by the hair by the Holy Spirit. Since God snatched him that way, I am sure that it did not.hurt.

As for what God the Father looks like, scripture tells us that he is pure spirit. So it is my understanding that Jesus was speaking metaphorically. That is Jesus is all love, com-
passion, understanding, forgiveness, etc. For as the Father is, so is the Son.

PAX DOMINI

Shalom Aleichem

 

[cheeto1]

Hope and trust, that is all we have. With these gifts we recieve so much from our Heavenly Father and from Jesus and the Holy Spirit! I can’t wait till I can get all the answers from them personally! How about you?
God Bless!

Yes, hope and trust is all we have, but, if we were to run out, we would still have
God, even if we didn’t know it! He is there, loving us, helping us from where we are,
His mysterious plan for each of us continues to unfold come what may! If we were
to lose both our hope and our trust, God already knew it would happen and already
has a plan to get it back!

I can wait for the answers until my time, but what question do you most wish you
had the the answer to?

 

[cheeto1]

As for what God the Father looks like, scripture tells us that he is pure spirit. So it is my understanding that Jesus was speaking metaphorically.

So do you think He can’t be seen with eyes?
I suspect you are right, but it is exciting to think He might look like something,
or to look like us…

 

[thevickinator16]

Yes, hope and trust is all we have, but, if we were to run out, we would still have
God, even if we didn’t know it! He is there, loving us, helping us from where we are,
His mysterious plan for each of us continues to unfold come what may! If we were
to lose both our hope and our trust, God already knew it would happen and already
has a plan to get it back!

I can wait for the answers until my time, but what question do you most wish you
had the the answer to?

The question I would like to have answered is: Why does God love me, a horrible sinner? That was my Lenten exercise for this year. I just have trouble wrapping my mind around His unfathomable love. No matter how hard I try I cannot make this connection. I do believe He loves me, just not why.

God Bless!

 

[cheeto1]

The question I would like to have answered is: Why does God love me, a horrible sinner? That was my Lenten exercise for this year. I just have trouble wrapping my mind around His unfathomable love. No matter how hard I try I cannot make this connection. I do believe He loves me, just not why.

God Bless!

That is a really great question. I thought of that when I was looking up, high in the
sky at all the stars for a long time. There were men with telescopes, showing us
where the moon is, where mars is, where saturn is, etc. A feeling came over me like
the whole earth is very very very, small… and we are so much smaller… how can
God find us, in this universe, let alone love us? But I heard a scientist on the radio
say that God balanced everything in this universe so delicately, that if one thing got
out of orbit, it would wreck everything. He said the universe that we have discovered
so far seems to be created and balanced for the specific reason of having the
conditions necessary for life on planet earth!

 

[Zahmir]

From my blog at bonumteesse.blogspot.com

In an interesting parallel, both Philip and Jesus speak from Scripture today, and in fact, the man in the story from Acts, having received an interpretation from Philip, now believes and has eternal life.

Reading these passages today, I am drawn to a quote by St. Jerome: “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” That is so true! If we don’t read the stories of our faith, how will we ever begin to know the man who saved us?

There is another wrinkle to these stories: we just don’t need to read the Bible; we need to receive an authoritative interpretation of the Scripture. What I am doing right here is not authoritative. What Philip was doing was authoritative. What Jesus was doing was authoritative.

In the end, do we choose to remain ignorant of Christ by avoiding the stories of our faith? I know that I could do a lot better… Hopefully these daily reading updates help you to find your way back into a regular rhythm of reading Scripture and finding the authoritative teaching of the Church.

 

[Crumpy]

The question I would like to have answered is: Why does God love me, a horrible sinner? That was my Lenten exercise for this year. I just have trouble wrapping my mind around His unfathomable love. No matter how hard I try I cannot make this connection. I do believe He loves me, just not why.

God Bless!

Why?

Because you are a part of God’s creation, so He loved you so much, in the first place, because He created you. And, you are created in God’s image and likeness.

John 3:16 God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.

God made us to know Him,to love Him,and to serve Him.We must be faithful. We must love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.