Category: poetry

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Serving From a Full Heart

Photo of snail and obedient plant speaking the Shalom Snail couplet, "Serving from a Full Heart."
“Serving from a Full Heart”
A reflection on Luke 17:7-10
Tuesday of the Thirty-Second Week in Ordinary Time
©️2022 Gloria M. Chang

How can serving from a full heart transform our obedience into a joyful union with God’s divine love?

Gospel

Luke 17:7-10

“Who among you would say to your servant who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’? … Read the rest

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Heaven’s Oil

Photo of snail on an autumn leaf with text overlay of the reflection on Matthew 25:1-13: "Heaven’s oil burns, / As the world turns."
“Heaven’s Oil”
A reflection on Matthew 25:1-13
Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)
©️2023 Gloria M. Chang

Jesus told his disciples this parable: “The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.

… Read the rest
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God or Mammon

Photo of snail and orange lily with text overlay of the reflection on Luke 16:13: "The heart has a single throne, / For mammon or God alone."
“God or Mammon”
A reflection on Luke 16:13
Saturday of the Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time
©️2021 Gloria M. Chang

Gospel

Luke 16:13

“No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other.… Read the rest

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Citizens of Heaven

Photo of snail and snapdragon speaking the Shalom Snail couplet, "Citizens of Heaven."
“Citizens of Heaven”
Philippians 3:20-21 “in a snailshell”
Friday of the Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time (Year II)
©️2022 Gloria M. Chang

What does it mean to live as a citizen of heaven in a world focused on earthly desires?

Fist Reading

Philippians 3:17-4:1 (ESV)

Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. For many,… Read the rest

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Beyond Consanguinity

Photo of snail and rose with text overlay of the Shalom Snail couplet, "Beyond Consanguinity."
“Beyond Consanguinity”
A reflection on Luke 14:25-26
Wednesday of the Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time
©️2021 Gloria M. Chang

What does it mean to love beyond consanguinity and place Christ above all earthly ties?

Gospel

Luke 14:25-26

Great crowds were traveling with him, and he turned and addressed them, “If any one comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.… Read the rest

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Israel’s Universal Banquet

Photo of snail and wild flowers with text overlay of the reflection on Luke 14:15-24: "Welcoming strangers from streets and alleys, / God feeds the world from Israel’s valleys."
“Israel’s Universal Banquet”
A reflection on Luke 14:15-24
Tuesday of the Thirty-First Week in Ordinary Time
©️2024 Gloria M. Chang

How does Israel’s universal banquet invite everyone to God’s table of grace?

Gospel

Luke 14:15-24

One of those at table with Jesus said to him, “Blessed is the one who will dine in the kingdom of God.”… Read the rest

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The Valley of Dry Bones

Photo of snail on a white zinnia facing a sea of white globe amaranth with text overlay of the Shalom Snail couplet, "The Valley of Dry Bones."
“The Valley of Dry Bones”
Benedictus Antiphon, Commemoration of All Souls
From Ezekiel 37:1-14
©️2021 Gloria M. Chang

Can hope rise from the valley of dry bones?

Gospel

Ezekiel 37:1-14

The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he led me out in the spirit of the Lord and set me in the center of the broad valley.… Read the rest

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Stars and Saints

Photo of Hubble Ultra Deep Field
Hubble Ultra Deep Field
Fra Angelico, The Forerunners of Christ with Saints and Martyrs
Fra Angelico, The Forerunners of Christ with Saints and Martyrs

From eternity the Lord God designed humanity and the cosmos in his image, envisioning the constellation of saints bursting with Christic Light in the heavens. Formed from the dust of the earth, Adam evolves through the eons to completion in Jesus Christ, his descendant and Lord—the Potter’s masterpiece (Isaiah 64:8). … Read the rest

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Friend, Go Up Higher

Photo of snail and dianthus chinensis speaking the reflection on Luke 14:7-11: "Seeds that descend into the humus / Ascend again a flow’ring chorus."
“Friend, Go Up Higher”
Luke 14:7-11 “in a snailshell”
Saturday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
©️2021 Gloria M. Chang

Gospel

Luke 14:1, 7-11

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully. … Read the rest