utaziprincereflection

 HOMILY FOR THE SOLEMNITY OF CHRIST THE KING OF THE UNIVERSE YEAR C 2 Samuel 5: 1-3; Psalm 122: 1-2, 3-4, 4-5; Colossians 1: 12-20; Luke 23: 35-43 PROFESSING MY FAITH THAT JESUS CHRIST IS KING AND LORD OF MY LIFE THROUGH MY ACTIONS AND WORDS I pray for you: May you look forward to living, and live now as, an heir in the eternal Reign of Christ our King, and may that drives you to serve others as Jesus did. AMEN I begin by this brief story told by a friend: As a child, my friends and I used to play King and Queen. A few of us would be the Royals and have the rest serve us, bowing before us and taking care of our needs. This was the model of being ultimate rulers that we had then. However, when Jesus was born and lived here on earth, He presented a different model of being a King. He came to serve and not to be served, and to give His life so that we might live. It is because of His loving service, His sacrificial giving of Himself, that we can enter into His Kingdom and share in its...

  HOMILY FOR THE FEAST OF THE DEDICATION OF SAINT JOHN LATERAN BASILICA NOVEMBER 9 Ezekiel 47:1-2,8-9,12;  Psalm 46:2-3,5-6;8-9; 1 Cor. 3:9c-11,16-17; John 2:13-22 GOD DWELLS IN HIS CHURCH I pray that the Lord Jesus will continue to make His presence known to, and through you, and may you be a source for other people to remember that God is with them. AMEN Church Building is one of the images of the church, with Jesus as the foundation and the cornerstone, and we the various building blocks of the structure. Even as we celebrated the dedication of the new church, there were still items in the church that needed to be completed. The edifice was not fully complete. I also recalled that in centuries past, a construction of a church building would often take years, or even decades.  The people would come into the church and be able to experience the presence of the Lord Jesus, but it still had finishing touches to be completed.  I see in this the symbol of the church as ...

 DEDICATION OF THE LATERAN BASILICA NOVEMBER 9 INTRODUCTION A Basilica is a church building that has been recognized and accorded special privileges by the pope. The Lateran Basilica in Rome is built by the Emperor Constantine is solemnly dedicated on the 9th November, 324 AD. Remember that at this time in history, the Christian body is still one. The first major division, which we also call the Great East-West Schism, took place in 1054 AD. So, as at the dedication of this Basilica, it is the first and the oldest Christian Basilica. It is considered the mother and head of all churches of Rome and the world. It is the Cathedral of the Pope as the Bishop of Rome.  ORIGIN OF THE LATERAN BASILICA The Lateran Basilica is built on Lateran hill where there was the Lateran palace. In 313 AD, Emperor Constantine granted freedom to Christians and donated the Lateran Palace to the Church. The first basilica was built on this property and completed in 324 AD. Pope Sylvester I consecrated...