Your Grief Will Become Joy

Photo of baby snail on a rose with text of the Shalom Snail couplet, "Your Grief Will Become Joy."
โ€œYour Grief Will Become Joyโ€
A reflection on John 16:20-22
Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter
ยฉ๏ธ2022 Gloria M. Chang

Sorrow is not the end; through Christ, anguish gives way to unshakable joy that no one can take away.

Gospel

John 16:20-22

Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.ย … Read the rest

Saint Mark, Evangelist

Photo of snail and daffodils speaking the Shalom Snail couplet for the Feast of Saint Mark.
โ€œSaint Markโ€
A reflection on St. Mark in tradition, Revelation 4:7, Ezekiel 1:10
Feast of Saint Mark
ยฉ๏ธ2022 Gloria M. Chang

The Evangelists and the Four Living Creatures

Since the time of the early church, the Fathers associated Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John with the four โ€œliving creaturesโ€ in Revelation 4:7:

The first creature resembled a lion, the second was like a calf, the third had a face like that of a human being, and the fourth looked like an eagleย in flight.

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Isaiah 61, Day 5

Photo of snail and spider flower with text overlay of Isaiah 61:10c about the bridegroom and bride.
โ€œIsaiah 61, Day 5โ€
Isaiah 61:10c
ยฉ๏ธ2020 Gloria M. Chang

The eternal Bridegroom and Bride form heavenโ€™s royal temple, sealed in divine splendor.

Like a bridegroom adorned with a diadem,
as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

Isaiah 61:10c

Heavenly Marriage

Biblical marriage between a bridegroom and his bride has royal, sacred, and cosmic significance. … Read the rest

Isaiah 61, Day 3

Photo of snail and lantana speaking Isaiah 61:10, the Canticle of the Bride.
โ€œIsaiah 61, Day 3โ€
Isaiah 61:10a
ยฉ๏ธ2020 Gloria M. Chang

I will rejoice heartily in the Lord,
my being exults in my God.

Isaiah 61:10a

Canticle of the Bride

Holy Mother Church, the new Jerusalem, rejoices as one Body and one Bride.… Read the rest

The Root of Jesse, Day 8

Photo of a snail and an insect speaking Isaiah 11:8 about the baby playing by the viper's den.
โ€œThe Root of Jesse, Day 8โ€
Isaiah 11:8
ยฉ๏ธ2020 Gloria M. Chang

In the viperโ€™s den, perfect love reignsโ€”fear flees where Christ is victorious.

The baby shall play by the viperโ€™s den,
and the child lay his hand on the adderโ€™s lair.

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The Mountain of the Lord, Day 1

Photo of two snails walking on a mossy path, speaking about the mountain of the Lord from the prophet Isaiah.
โ€œThe Mountain of the Lord, Day 1โ€
Isaiah 2:2a
ยฉ๏ธ2020 Gloria M. Chang

Vision of Paradise Amidst Destruction

โ€œYour country is waste, your cities burnt with fire,โ€ the prophet Isaiah rails in the opening chapter of his scroll (1:7a). Judah and Jerusalem are riddled with injustice, hypocrisy, murder, thievery, rebellion, and every sort of corruption.… Read the rest

Living Stones of the New Jerusalem

Photo of snail and roses speaking the Shalom Snail couplet, "Living Stones of the New Jerusalem."
โ€œLiving Stones of the New Jerusalemโ€
A reflection on Luke 21:5-19
Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
ยฉ๏ธ2022 Gloria M. Chang Revised 2025

How will the living stones of the New Jerusalem arise from the templeโ€™s destruction?

While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, he said, โ€œAll that you see hereโ€”the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.โ€

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Questions About the Kingdom of God

Photo of snail and pink asters with text overlay of the Shalom Snail couplet, "The kingdom of God is within you. Among you, Christ's love makes all things new."
โ€œQuestions About the Kingdom of Godโ€
A reflection on Luke 17:20-21
Thursday of the Thirty-Second Week in Ordinary Time
ยฉ๏ธ2022 Gloria M. Chang

Asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he said in reply, โ€œThe coming of the kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, โ€˜Look, here it is,โ€™ or, โ€˜There it is.โ€™ For

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