What is the essence of a feast? John 6:1-15. John’s version of the five loaves and two fish miracle In a feast, most (if not all) participants commemorate a figure that represents the group. In a way, a feast is a means to celebrate a group’s identity. The inherent sharing and dialogue built into dining […]
How should we make sense of the wrath of God? John 3:31-36. The wrath of God The Old Testament has shown numerous instances of the seemingly wrathful side of God. In the New Testament, we have also witnessed Jesus being angry at those who have turned a place of worship into a place of business. […]
What does it mean to fully believe? John 3:16-21. God so loved the world that he gave His only Son “… So that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” Can we fully believe something without knowing something? When we examine what believing means, it is a deliberate act. […]
How can we know more about heaven? John 3:7b-15. “You must be born from above.” My attempt at daily reflections has led me to arrive at a tentative insight: that our knowledge of heaven and the True Good can only be retroduced, as in, inferring causal mechanisms and interactions between entities through events we may […]
What does it mean to preach? Mark 16:15-20. The disciples preached everywhere In today’s context of constant information and communication, it is easy to transmit words. If by preach we mean “to talk about something”, there are many influencers and celebrities that do this for a living. Since it is easy to communicate verbally or […]
Why are those who have not seen yet believe consider blessed? John 20:19-31. Another account of the doubting Thomas story. “You believe because you can see me. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.” As seekers of good, we somewhat need comprehensible and reasonable evidences to inform our faith. But in a […]
Battling unbelief and hardness of heart Mark 16:9-15. Go and proclaim the gospel If we do not pay attention to the way we think, we cannot take charge of our beliefs. If we do not pay attention to the way we feel, we cannot take charge of our hearts. To proclaim is to proactively claim […]
Meals can be opportunities for divine revelation John 21:1-14. Jesus reveals Himself post-resurrection in a breakfast with disciples Meals can be opportunities for divine revelation. Come to think of it: the food we eat are great evidences of how entangled we are with society and the world. Imagine the infinite number of things that have […]
Persuasion is different from manipulation Luke 24:35-48. Jesus continues to persuade His disciples through reason rather than imposing through His power There is something dignifying and empowering in the way Jesus tried to convince his disciples that He is resurrected. Imagine: if God is all-powerful, why didn’t He impose and manipulate His disciples on what […]
We are always on, but do we pay attention? Luke 24:13-35. The disciples did not recognize Jesus right away In this hyperconnected world, terabytes of information appear before us. We are supposedly “always on” — reachable via various channels. But are we really able to pay attention to things that really matter? The disciples did […]