Father Dominic Emmanuel
Christ’s commune
A peep into the life of early Christians throws light on some of their practices.
Feast of Ascension
Just as, starting with Ash Wednesday, Christians spent 40 days of Lent preparing for Easter to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, now, exactly 40 days after Easter, Christians all over the world celebrate another important feast called the Ascension of the Lord.
May Day musings
There are different theories about to the origin of May Day and even its original objectives. It has, however, now come to be identified with workers’ rights on the one hand and the recognition of dignity of labour on the other. While people engage in different kinds of jobs, May Day is associated more with hard labour and with soiling of hands than with white-collar jobs. It was made more famous by the Russian Revolution, which established quite firmly workers’ rights against the exploitative practices of the capitalist system.
The risen saviour
One of the most intriguing articles of faith among Christians, one which is often looked at with doubt and even considered superstitious, is their belief concerning the resurrection of Jesus from the
Jesus’ parting gift
The Lenten season that began on Ash Wednesday is coming to a close but not before reminding us of the fast-changing circumstances in the last days of Jesus’ life leading to His death.
Dravid, cricket & God
Some of the glowing terms used to describe Rahul Dravid when he retired from all forms of international cricket a few days ago were that Dravid was the one “who stood for grit over beauty, team over self and humility over arrogance” and that he always played for the country rather than for self. Dravid was convinced that it was time for him to move on and let the young ones take charge of the team.
If cricket is often considered religion in India and Sachin Tendulkar its god, then Dravid could easily be described as a saint of sorts. According to him, the decision to retire was “taken after a lot of ‘contemplation’ with friends and family”.
What should fast be like?
The disposition in the Christian community during Lent is rather subdued as the members strive to spend more time in abstinence, fasting, charity and prayer. In the process they invent and, indeed, improve upon ways of observing Lent, though some over enthusiastic individuals lose sight of the real purpose of Lent or fasting.
Turn your heart to God
Today, with “Ash Wednesday”, Christians all over the world commence the season of Lent, which will end a day before Good Friday (April 6). The Lent lasts for 40 days, Sundays excluded. Forty, as a Biblical number, appears in various contexts in the Bible. Jesus fasted for 40 days in the desert before embarking on his public ministry of preaching and healing.
