Bible.com Inc: a potential goldmine... or maybe not

Oh man. Bible.com is being sued by an investor for not being profitable enough.

James Solakian, a shareholder of Bible.com Inc sued the company's board members, accusing the ordained ministers of failing to profit from the potential windfall. It seems that the directors refused to sell the domain for the 100 million dollars that they could make from the sale. He says they mismanaged the site and that there was alot of profit potential.

So let me get this straight. This guy invested in a religious website and is angry because it is not profiting as it should. Has he thought about reading the bible. Maybe if he did, he might read a few things about greed.

God enlighten him.

Archbishop appeal fund video - Port of Spain Archdiocese

The Archdiocese of Port of Spain has launched the Archbishops Appeal to renovate churches in urgent need of repair in the Archdiocese. Here is the Video presentation:

The one Leper

We ask God for so much. For his part, he gives us a lot. Sometimes we thank him, sometimes we don’t. I want to be like the one leper in today’s Gospel who turns back to thank Jesus. So I will begin, and maybe you can continue on you own.

Thank you Lord for the situations that cause me embarrassment. I asked for humility and you provide the opportunity.

Thank you Lord for the non-believers who constantly attack my faith. I asked for a strengthening of my faith. To answer these people, I had to learn what the truth is, and now I am firm in my belief.

Thank you Lord for those who attack family life. I asked for a family and you provided one. Now you have shown me how to appreciate and love this family.

Thank you for my diabetes. I prayed everyday for good health. Now, I have to pay special attention to diet and exercise – things that will make and keep me healthier.

Thank you for my friends and family who have gone to join you. I prayed that I might not stray from you. The memory of their passing is a constant reminder that I too will pass from this world and that I need to be prepared always, just in case you call.

Thank you for the community at the Cathedral. I asked for an opportunity to serve, and you showed me a way through the “Light of the Immaculata”

Lord, thank you for all that I am, for I owe it all to you.

Gospel Reading...

"On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee.

As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, 'Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!'

When Jesus saw them, he said to them, 'Go and show yourselves to the priests.' And as they went, they were made clean. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan.

Then Jesus asked, 'Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?

Then Jesus said to the Samaritan, "get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well." [Lk. 17:11-19]

It's only a tiny Rosebud

A newly ordained priest was walking with an older, wiser Priest in a garden one day. Feeling a bit insecure about what God had in store for him, the younger asked the older for some advice.

The older priest walked up to a rosebush and handed the younger a rosebud and told him to open it without tearing off any petals. "What does this have to do with anything" he thought to himself, still out of respect for the older man he tried but soon he realised he could not achieve what was asked of him.

Noticing the younger priests inability to unfold the rosebud without tearing it, the older preacher began to recite the following poem...

"It is only a tiny rosebud,
A flower of God's design;
But I cannot unfold the petals
With these clumsy hands of mine."

"The secret of unfolding flowers
Is not known to such as I.
God opens this flower so easily,
But in my hands they die."

"If I cannot unfold a rosebud,
This flower of God's design,
Then how can I have the wisdom
To unfold this life of mine?"

"So I'll trust in God for leading
Each moment of my day.
I will look to God for guidance
In each step of the way."

"The path that lies before me,
Only my Good Lord knows.
I'll trust God to unfold the moments,
As He unfolds this rose."

The Divine Praises

To honour the feast of Saint Francis I wish to offer the "The Divine Praises" of
The Saint, Francis of Assisi:

You are holy, Lord, the only God,
and Your deeds are wonderful.
You are strong.
You are great.
You are the Most High.
You are Almighty.
You, Holy Father are King of heaven and earth.
You are Three and One, Lord God, all Good.
You are Good, all Good, supreme Good,
Lord God, living and true.
You are love. You are wisdom.
You are humility. You are endurance.
You are rest. You are peace.
You are joy and gladness.
You are justice and moderation.
You are all our riches, and You suffice for us.
You are beauty.
You are gentleness.
You are our protector.
You are our guardian and defender.
You are our courage. You are our haven and our hope.
You are our faith, our great consolation.
You are our eternal life, Great and Wonderful Lord,
God Almighty, Merciful Saviour.

Know the Mustard Seed

My atheist friend often tells me that he does not operate in the realm of “belief”. He operates in the realm of “know”. Anyone coming to him to discuss meta-physics must walk with proven facts. He would not accept anything unless it could be proven and once he accepts it, he now knows this to be “fact”.

I have seen all sorts of documentaries proving and then disproving many phenomena. Scientist look for reasons. Sometimes they find something, sometimes they say it is out of the realms of modern science: that is to say that with the current knowledge of science it cannot be proven.

With all this proving and disproving sometimes we are not sure what to believe. I am reminded of the French philosopher Descartes who says that all the senses can be fooled, so how do we know that we are in fact alive, or even human? The answer he came up with is “I think, therefore I am.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus is saying, don’t just think, don’t just believe, know. Have faith. Know your God wants what is good for you. Know that you are blessed and highly favoured. Know that all is possible with the power of the Holy Spirit. Know that even plants will obey the instruction they are given. Know. Know. Know.

Isn’t it incredible that an atheist can know, and be wrong because he lacks the truth, and many of us who have that truth do not “Know” it.

Lord, send your spirit upon us that we may never lack faith.

Guardian Angels