AFJ Dedicates Kolkata to Mother Mary

Good Friday Meditation by Melvyn Brown

INVIGORATE YOUR FAITH THIS GOOD FRIDAY

In our preparation for Good Friday we take into account the Liturgical celebration of the Lord's Passion, which is divided into three parts: The Liturgy of the Word, the Veneration of the Cross and the Holy Communion. 

The reading from the book of Isaiah 52:13-53: 12 is the First Reading. When you read the Word of God through the prophet, it becomes a profoundly meditative presentation of Christ, the Messiah, and the Divine plan is revealed for all generations to come. 

This Good Friday we recollect on Psalm 31. "Let your face shine on your servant". The Psalm enriches our Faith with the promise of the gift from God. We move on to the Second Reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews 4:14-16: 5:7-9. I want you to read this letter, for I believe the Spirit will guide you and encourage you to know your faith better. "Christ became obedient unto death, even death on a cross". I have repeated this from my previous talk for Passion Week. Try to look down from the Cross and become as deeply involved as Christ in this salvific labour. Pause in your prayers. 

Our next way is to read the Gospel. The Passion of our Lord Jesus according to St. John 18:1-19:42. The second part is the Adoration of the Holy Cross. Part Three is Holy Communion. The incarnation "to live among us" is completed in the Eucharist. John. 1:14. When you receive Christ in Holy Communion it becomes a prelude to eternal life.

Faith in the Christian Family

CHRISTIAN PARENTS AND FAITH IN THE FAMILY  By MELVYN BROWN

Young people sense the Divine Presence of God in the world. Parents and many adults have the opportunity to nurture the gift of faith in children; faith which will sustain them through life and as adults in the future.
Parents, in guiding their children in faith will not always have all the answers.  “It’s all right to say you don’t know,” said Cardinal Ronald Hart. There’s a lot of mystery about faith. Don’t give simple answers because some answers are not so simple. It will take a lifetime to under-stand them. Robin Bose, a catechist said, “ The most important thing that parents can teach their children is that they are not alone in the world. They are loved by a God who is the source of all love.”
God can be found in everyday moments which parents can share with their children. One Bengali-Catholic mother found that she and her six-year old daughter got their day off to a good start when she played ‘Christian music ‘.
A lady I know spends time at home and says, “It’s good for your children to see you at prayer. This teaches them more effectively than a lecture. “
“If a child sees the parent struggling to do the right thing, sometimes failing, the child will have compassion “, said Mary Mathew, a junior school teacher. She suggests that a parent who tries to live by the Gospel’s values, strives for a healthy spirituality, respects human dignity and is sensitive to the needs of others.
While many parents are eager to pass along the faith that has meant so much to them, some struggle with how to introduce religion to their children. One parent said; “What are they going to believe when we don’t know what we believe? “ The answer is found in prayer, self-performance, in helping the helpless, in attending services and asking God to guide and help.
When one parent enrolled her daughter in the local parish Sunday School, she discovered her own faith rekindle. She believed that she had to do more leading by example.
Youngsters have a spiritual sense that can be tapped. The large numbers who turned out to greet Pope John Paul II during his visit to Calcutta indicated this interest.
Faith is a great legacy. Yet, ultimately it is a gift of God – as individual, as unique as each of His beloved children.
Psalm 25: 4-5 says, “Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in Your truth, and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation. “
A Catholic priest once impressed me when he said : “ God speaks most powerfully in the wilderness experience, for instance, when the family faces divorce, unemployment, illness or other trouble, God is with us throughout life and ‘ can do things in you if you’re open to Him’. So, let us as a family open the door of Faith in our own family, each to his own.