Feast of St. Bruno

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Monday, 6 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, we are all reminded of the important responsibilities and obligations that each and every one of us have as Christians, as those whom the Lord had called and chosen so that we may recognise what it is that the Lord has called us all to do in our own respective lives. We should remember that we cannot be ignorant or neglect our responsibilities and the various callings and vocations that the Lord had called us to, in whatever way it is that He wants us to follow Him, just as He has shown us through our Scripture passages today with the calling of the prophet Jonah and also through the Parable of the Good Samaritan that He Himself had told His disciples.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Jonah, we heard of the moment when the Lord called Jonah to be His servant and messenger to the people of the great city of Nineveh, the capital of the great Assyrian Empire. The prophet Jonah was reluctant to follow this mission and instead of obeying God and doing what He had wanted him to do, he chose to flee from the Lord, thinking the he would be able to flee from the Lord’s calling, taking a ship to distant lands away from the mission that he had been called to do. And we heard how the Lord sent a great storm to the ship as it was on its way, and Jonah had to admit to the ship crews how he had been fleeing from the Lord and refusing to do as He had commanded it.

That was how Jonah was famously then thrown off from the ship on his own request, and the Lord sent a great beast of the sea, believed to be a whale, to take care of Jonah as he was in the belly of the beast for three days until the beast brought him to the shore again. Jonah repented his previous disobedience and followed the Lord’s guidance, and he went to the city of Nineveh to do what God had sent him to do there, to proclaim God’s words and judgment to that city which had been filled with much wickedness and evils. Through this story of the prophet Jonah, we are all reminded that each and every one of us has specific callings and missions which the Lord has entrusted to us, and we should listen to Him and follow Him in everything that He has called us to do in our respective lives.

Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Luke the Evangelist, we heard of the famous parable of the Good Samaritan in which the Lord highlighted to His disciples the story of the Good Samaritan who have helped a severely injured Jew that was beset and struck by bandits during his journey on the way to Jericho. In that occasion, we heard how three people passed by the place where the injured person was, firstly a priest, then a Levite, and last of all, a Samaritan. And if we understand the context and the significance of these people who passed by and who was the one that actually stopped by and helped the injured man, then we will realise why it truly matters for us to follow the example of the Good Samaritan in the parable today.

First of all, the Jews and the Samaritans are two different groups of people that were actually descended from a rather common ancestry, as both of them descended from the ancient Israelites, the original chosen people of God who dwelled in the Promised Land of Canaan. However, after the reign of King Solomon of Israel and the division of Israel into two opposing kingdoms of Israel and Judah, this led to the bitter division among the two groups of people, which further crystallised after the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel centred in Samaria, from where the term Samaritan came from. At that time, the Assyrians that conquered the northern kingdom brought in people from other lands to dwell in that land, and over the centuries, these people intermingled with some of the remnants of the Israelites to become the Samaritans.

Meanwhile the Jews descended from the people of both Judah and Israel that had been exiled to Babylon, Assyria and elsewhere, and when they returned back to their ancestral homeland, they dwelled mostly in Judea and Galilee surrounding Samaria, where the Samaritans lived in. Over the centuries, their accumulated differences and misunderstandings grew, and the Jews and the Samaritans grew to resent each other, and considered the other party to be flawed, mistaken and wicked in their way of living their lives and faith. Each group claimed to be the righteous bearers of the true belief in God, and each even had their versions of the Torah, which respectively claimed that their version was the true one while the other one was faulty and flawed.

Ironically however, from the perspective of the Jews, to whom most of the Lord’s followers and disciples belonged to, among the three people, the priest, the Levite and the Samaritan, it was only the Samaritan who bothered to stop and help the injured Jew. The priest and the Levite for the context were the ones who were highly respected among the Jewish people, and they should have been the ones to help the injured Jew, their own fellow countryman, and yet, they did not even stop and help at all. It was a Samaritan, the so-called mortal and bitter enemy of the Jewish people that showed love and concern, and not only that, but he even went the extra mile to help the man, and committed himself to his well-being afterwards too. This is therefore a reminder from the Lord to each and every one of us, His disciples and followers, as Christians, to show true love and genuine care to everyone, regardless their origins and backgrounds.

Today, the Church also celebrates the Feast of St. Bruno, a courageous priest and servant of God who is also known as St. Bruno of Cologne. St. Bruno was the renowned founder of the Carthusians Order, also known as the Order of Carthusians that gathered both monks and nuns who devoted themselves to the rule set by their founder. St. Bruno himself was born in Cologne in today’s Germany in the early eleventh century, and then becoming a priest and involved in education and schools in the region of Reims in today’s France, as a renowned teacher, philosopher and theologian. Some of his students would go on to become bishops and leaders of the Church, and one of them even became Pope, namely Pope Urban II.

He was also made as the Chancellor of the Diocese of Reims and managed the diocese, its goods and resources well, uprooting the corruption in the local Church, and was renowned for his confrontation against the new Bishop of Reims who was a worldly and corrupt man, an aristocrat with no clear love and concern for the Church and its people. St. Bruno persevered in his efforts and struggles with the bishop and eventually prevailed despite the challenges and difficulties that he had to face in doing so for a number of years. When he himself was about to be made a bishop for his accomplishments, he chose to withdraw himself from such worldly ambitions, and that was how he eventually built up the foundation for the Carthusian Order. Through his many efforts, inspirations and piety, he inspired many people to live their lives worthily and to commit themselves ever more wholeheartedly to the Lord.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore reflect on the words of the Scriptures, the examples of the prophet Jonah and the message of the Parable of the Good Samaritan, as well as the life and ministry of St. Bruno of Cologne. Let us all realise that each and every one of us are called to good actions and dedications, in whatever way we can, so that in our own daily lives, in our own respectives areas of responsibility, in whichever parts of our lives, we may continue to be good role models and examples to everyone around us. Let our faith and actions shine forth with the grace of God, and may these be the inspiration that strengthen many more people in their faith, especially those whose lives have been touched by us. May God bless us always in all of our endeavours, and may He bless us in our every good efforts and works, now and always. Amen.

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Monday, 6 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Luke 10 : 25-37

At that time, then a teacher of the Law came and began putting Jesus to the test. And he said, “Master, what shall I do to receive eternal life?” Jesus replied, “What is written in the Law? How do You understand it?” The man answered, “It is written : You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind. And you shall love your neighbour as yourself.”

Jesus replied, “What a good answer! Do this and you shall live.” The man wanted to justify his question, so he asked, “Who is my neighbour?” Jesus then said, “There was a man going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him, beat him and went off, leaving him half-dead.”

“It happened that a priest was going along that road and saw the man, but passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite saw the man, and passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan also was going that way; and when he came upon the man, he was moved with compassion. He went over to him, and cleaned his wounds with oil and wine, and wrapped them in bandages. Then he put him on his own mount, and brought him to an inn, where he took care of him.”

“The next day, he had to set off; but he gave two silver coins to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him, and whatever you spend on him, I will repay when I return.'” Jesus then asked, “Which of these three, do you think, made himself neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The teacher of the Law answered, “The one who had mercy on him.” And Jesus said, “Then go and do the same.”

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Monday, 6 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Jonah 2 : 3, 4, 5, 8

In my distress I cried to YHVH, and He answered me; from the belly of the netherworld You heard my voice when I called.

You cast me into the abyss, into the very heart of the sea, and the currents swirled about me; all Your breakers and Your billows passed over, engulfing me.

Then I thought : I have been cast out from Your presence, but I keep on looking to Your holy Temple.

When my soul was fainting within me, I remembered YHVH, and before You, rose my prayer up to Your holy Temple.

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Monday, 6 October 2025 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Jonah 1 : 1 – Jonah 2 : 1, 11

The word of YHVH came to Jonah, son of Amittai, “Go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach against it, because I have known its wickedness.”

But Jonah decided to flee from YHVH and go to Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, found a ship bound for Tarshish, and paid the fare. Then he boarded it and went into the hold of the ship, journeying with them to Tarshish, far away from YHVH.

YHVH stirred up a storm wind on the sea, so there was a sea tempest, which threatened to destroy the ship. The sailors took fright, and each cried out to his own god. To lighten the ship, they threw its cargo into the sea. Meanwhile Jonah had gone into the hold of the ship, where he lay fast asleep. The captain came upon him and said, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your God. Perhaps He will be mindful of us and will not allow us to die here.”

The sailors said to each other, “Let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this disaster.” So they dod, and the lot fell on Jonah. They questioned him, “So you are responsible for this evil that has come upon us? Tell us where you are from. What is your country, your nationality?” And Jonah told them his story, “I am a Hebrew and I worship YHVH, God of heaven Who made the sea and the land…”

As they knew that he was fleeing from YHVH, the sailors were seized with great fear and said to him, “What a terrible thing have you done! What shall we do with you now, to make the sea calm down?” The sea was growing more and more agitated.

He said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea. It will quiet down, for I know it is because of me that this storm has come.” The sailors, however, still did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea had grown much rougher than before. Then they called on YHVH, “O YHVH, do not let us perish for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us guilty of shedding innocent blood. For You, YHVH, have done this as You have thought right.”

They took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm again. At this the men were seized with great fear of YHVH. They offered a sacrifice to YHVH and made vows to Him. YHVH provided a large fish which swallowed Jonah. He remained in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. Then YHVH gave His command to the fish, and it belched out Jonah onto dry land.

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Friday, 6 October 2023 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Lord contained in the Scripture passages, we are all reminded that our sins and disobedience had caused us to be sundered and separated from God, and because of that, like our forefathers before us, we have fallen into the path of sin and evil, and became wayward. Yet, God has always been very patient and kind towards us, in reminding us and helping us in our journey and path. He has always been persistent in reaching out to us and helping us to find the right path, despite our disobedience and refusal to follow Him, and our refusal to follow His Law and commandments. Yet, there is indeed a limit to His patience and love, as, if we continue to disobey and refuse to believe in Him, then it is by our own choice that we will have condemned ourselves to eternal damnation and destruction.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of the prophet Baruch, we heard of the words of Baruch, a prophet who ministered to the people of the southern kingdom of Judah at the time of the end and final days of that kingdom, as a contemporary and friend of the prophet Jeremiah, who also spoke of God’s words and revelations to the people of God in that kingdom. Baruch was the scribe of Jeremiah, who helped him to record God’s words and the various proclamations and prophecies received from God, helping the man of God to carry out his works among the people, which was truly a difficult work to be done. Baruch assisted Jeremiah during the challenging and difficult times, and according to tradition, when Jeremiah had to hide from his enemies, Baruch was the one who carried out his works.

We heard of how the Lord reminded His people through the prophet Baruch, of their waywardness and sins, their wickedness and evils, all the things that they had done which prevented them from truly obeying and following God’s will, His Law and commandments, and which had led them into their downfall and destruction. The prophet Baruch in today’s first reading highlighted the faults and disobedience of the people, which therefore had led to the consequences, the failures and the downfall that they experienced, that Moses and the other prophets had warned them. As long as they kept themselves away from the Lord and His path, and trusted in their own power and ways, then they would likely face tribulations and failures, sufferings and lack of true satisfaction, which can be found in the Lord alone.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard from the passage from the Gospel of St. Luke in which the Lord rebuked the cities of Bethsaida, Chorazin and Capernaum, the cities in which He had often performed His works and miracles, taught and preached in their synagogues, and where there were frequently many signs and wonders that God had done for the people, revealing the truth about Himself and proclaiming the Good News and the truth which God has always desired to reveal to all of us. The Lord spoke in such a way because they had seen everything which the Lord Himself had done, repeatedly, again and again, and yet, many of them still failed to believe, hardened their hearts and minds, refusing to trust in Him, and continuing to doubt Him despite having been reassured and shown the truth.

This also showed us the need for us all to turn away from worldly temptations and desires, so that in our way of life and in our every actions and deeds, we may always strive to do what the Lord has commanded us to do, and not to be easily misled and misguided by the falsehoods present and found all around us. Each and every one of us must keep an open mind and welcome the Lord into our hearts and minds, so that through Him, we may truly gain understanding and appreciation of what it really means for us to have faith in the Lord, and to walk in His path. Through this, we may also have better understanding and appreciation of what we have been taught and shown by the Lord, our loving God and Saviour.

This means that, each and every one of us as Christians, we should heed God’s words always, and remember His love and kindness, appreciating how His love and mercy has done so much amazing things for us, all these while. We should not take any of these for granted any longer, and we should begin to appreciate just how fortunate we truly are, for having been so beloved and cared by the Lord, our most loving God, at all times and circumstances. We should be thankful to Him and we should strive to do whatever we can, so that we may indeed be obedient to Him, His Law and commandments, ever more, in all things, and so that we may grow ever stronger in our love and commitment towards Him, as we carry on living our lives.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Bruno, a holy man of God, whose life and actions can serve as a great example and inspiration for each and every one of us, in how we can and should live up to our faith in the Lord. St. Bruno, also known as St. Bruno of Cologne, was the founder of the Carthusian Order, and was a dedicated servant of God, in his many missions and contributions to the Church and the Christian community, in all of his works, as a great teacher of the faith and as a guide for many younger men and women of God, some of whom later on became great disciples of the Lord in their own way. He carried out many good works, and in his humility, he refused to become a bishop when he was about to be made one, as he renounced all the glory of the world, and all secular concerns and worldly attachments.

Instead, he continued to devote himself to his missions and works, and eventually gathering many followers who would become the foundation of the Carthusians, a group of faithful Christians and servants of God, dedicated to the life in service of God, in prayer and ministry among the people of God, living a worthy and good life, in accordance with God’s Law and commandments. The Lord has inspired many to follow in the footsteps of St. Bruno, and many were touched by the faith and commitment that this holy man of God had done. All of us should also therefore commit ourselves in the same way as St. Bruno had done, and do our part, in ensuring that our own actions and deeds may become truly worthy of God.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all be committed anew to the Lord, living our lives ever more worthily in each and every moments, and let us all be exemplary in our whole actions, words and deeds, so that we may indeed be the good role models and examples for one another. May the Lord continue to guide each and every one of us, and may He empower all of us so that we may be the shining examples and role models for our fellow brothers and sisters, our fellow men and women, all around us, just as St. Bruno and other innumerable saints, holy men and women of God, had inspired us by their lives. Amen.

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Friday, 6 October 2023 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Luke 10 : 13-16

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Alas for you, Chorazin! Alas for you, Bethsaida! So many miracles have been worked in you! If the same miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would already be sitting in ashes and wearing the sackcloth of repentance.”

“Surely for Tyre and Sidon it will be better on the Day of Judgment than for you. And what of you, city of Capernaum? Will you be lifted up to heaven? You will be thrown down to the place of the dead. Whoever listens to you listens to Me, and whoever rejects you rejects Me; and he who rejects Me, rejects the One Who sent Me.”

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Friday, 6 October 2023 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Psalm 78 : 1-2, 3-5, 8, 9

O God, the pagans have invaded Your inheritance; they have defiled Your holy Temple and reduced Jerusalem to rubble. They have given Your servants’ corpses to the birds, and the flesh of Your saints, to the beasts of the earth.

They have poured out the blood of Your faithful, like water around Jerusalem, and there was no one to bury them. Mocked and reviled by those around us, we are scorned by our neighbours. How long will this last, o YHVH? Will You be angry forever? Will Your wrath always burn to avenge Your rights?

Do not remember against us the sins of our fathers. Let Your compassion hurry to us, for we have been brought very low.

Help us, God, our Saviour, for the glory of Your Name; forgive us, for the sake of Your Name.

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Friday, 6 October 2023 : 26th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Baruch 1 : 15-22

You will say : May everyone recognise the justice of our God but, on this day, shame and confusion befit the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem – our kings and princes, our priests, our prophets, and our fathers, because we have sinned before the Lord.

We have disobeyed Him and have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God, nor have we followed the commandments which the Lord had put before us. From the day that the Lord brought our ancestors out of the land of Egypt until this day, we have disobeyed the Lord our God and we have rebelled against Him instead of listening to His voice.

Because of this, from the day on which the Lord brought our ancestors out of the land of Egypt, so as to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, the evils and the curse which the Lord pronounced by Moses, His servant, have dogged our footsteps right down to the present day.

We did not listen to the voice of the Lord our God speaking through the words of the prophets whom He sent to us, but each one of us followed his perverted heart, serving false gods and doing what displeases the Lord our God.

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Thursday, 6 October 2022 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all called to heed the Lord’s truth and His teachings, and ask Him for help whenever we are needing any assistance and help. We cannot struggle alone in this journey of faith, or else we will quickly realise that we will falter and be easily tempted, falling deeper and deeper into the path of sin, from which we may realise that there is no path out from. Unless we conscientiously follow the path of the Lord and remain firmly faithful to this path, striving to walk as good and devoted Christians, we may realise that we will be drawn into the ways of the world, and be tempted by sin.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Church and the faithful in Galatia, the words of the Apostle chiding and the rebuking the people of God there for their erroneous ways and wicked living, for having followed the ways and the teachings proposed and preached to them by the false prophets and by all those who did not adhere to the true deposit of the faith and the truth as preserved by the Apostles. Back then, there existed many variations of the teachings of Christ, with some people likely making use of those teachings as excuses to establish their own school of thought and ideologies, or by syncretising them with the pagan beliefs and customs.

As such, St. Paul reminded the people of God not to be easily swayed by those worldly temptations, and to adhere closely to what they have received, the pure truth as what St. Paul and the other authentic witnesses and missionaries had proclaimed to them. St. Paul reminded the faithful not to allow their desires and the weakness of their flesh to sway them to the wrong paths. Otherwise, they would end up losing their way and might even fell off away from the path towards God and His salvation. That is why, St. Paul told them not to listen to those who proclaimed different messages from what he and the other faithful servants of God had preached.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the Lord speaking to His disciples about the matter of someone who asked a friend for a favour, and how a father would care for his children in the same way that a friend would have cared for his or her friend’s requests or pleas for assistance. The Lord used that as an example to highlight to His disciples and therefore to all of us that, often times we do not realise that we have such a great opportunity to ask the Lord for help at any moment in time, but for various reasons, we chose not to seek for His help, and preferred to do things our own way, which in the end led to us doing the wrong things and choosing the wrong paths.

And why is it that we did not seek God’s help? First of all, the most often reason was that we allow our pride and ego to get in the way. We let ourselves be swayed by our ego that we refused to allow the Lord to speak to us, and we refused to listen to Him and we chose rather to do things our own way rather than to admit that we can be wrong or mistaken in our ways, or that we want to preserve that semblance of face and strength, and we chose to press on in our erroneous ways of life rather than to submit to God’s will or to look for help from Him. That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, our human pride and ego are such dangerous things that we must be ever vigilant against.

Then, another reason is that we are reluctant to ask, because we are afraid that God will punish us if we ask, and that He will chide and refuse to listen to us for our pleas and prayers. That, brothers and sisters in Christ is yet another reason why so many ended up getting further and further away from God. They rather chose to hide rather than to face the Lord, their loving God and Father. They did not have enough faith in God and in His mercy, that they chose to rather run away from Him and avoid Him, instead of entrusting themselves to His love and care. And this is what we must remind ourselves, that our Lord is our Father, and like all fathers, they will indeed chastise their children when they err, but they do so with love, and not hatred.

Which one should we rather choose, brethren? To be chastised by God and to be reminded to atone for our many sins and wickedness, for an eternity of joy and true happiness, filled with God’s love and grace because we have been reconciled to Him, or to run and hide away, to keep our pride and ego and then suffer an eternity of suffering and regret, because we keep on rejecting God’s ever generous mercy and love? Let us all not forget that all those countless souls in hell, all suffer because they have consciously rejected God’s offer of mercy and love, and chose to remain in the path of sin.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all reflect on all these and discern carefully our paths going forward. Today, we have one saint whose feast we are celebrating, namely that of St. Bruno, whose life and devotion to God hopefully can inspire us to lead a better, more holy and committed life to God. St. Bruno, also known as St. Bruno of Cologne, was the founder of the Carthusian religious order. He was a devout priest and servant of God, whose tenure as the Chancellor of the Diocese of Reims in what is today France was well-known for his upright attitude and holiness, and despite facing challenges and trials from those who opposed him.

Not only that, but St. Bruno was also remembered for his conscious rejection of fame and public office, at the time when everyone would have wanted them. When he was offered and had a very likely chance to become a bishop, St. Bruno instead renounced all of that and all forms of worldly glory, and withdrew from the world, preferring to dedicate himself to the Lord, inspiring some others to follow his examples, which eventually led to the foundation of the Carthusians. Despite repeated efforts to make him an Archbishop afterwards, St. Bruno deferred to other candidates and those whom he recommended instead of himself. He remained committed to God, living simply and humbly to the end of his earthly life.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we see in St. Bruno a genuine Christian faith and dedication, a great humility and passion to serve the Lord. At a time when many people, and even those within the Church, were tempted with worldly glory and power, St. Bruno showed them all, as well as all of us today, what it truly means to be a disciple of Christ, to be committed fully to God and to serve Him wholeheartedly, and not to be swayed and distracted by the temptations of worldly glory, power, fame, ambition, desire and especially by our pride and ego. We have discussed about it earlier, how our own ego and pride can easily lead to our downfall.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all therefore commit ourselves anew to God, and strive to be ever better and more committed disciples and followers of Christ. Let us all draw ever closer to God and to His love and mercy, entrusting ourselves ever more to Him, and learning to humble ourselves and to be more willing to listen to Him, and ridding ourselves of the excesses of our desires, ego and pride. May the Lord be our guide and with the intercession of St. Bruno, may all of us remain firmly faithful to our Hope and salvation in God, now and always. Amen.

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Thursday, 6 October 2022 : 27th Week of Ordinary Time, Memorial of St. Bruno, Priest (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Priests)

Luke 11 : 5-13

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to his house in the middle of the night and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine who is travelling has just arrived, and I have nothing to offer him.’ Maybe your friend will answer from inside, ‘Do not bother me now; the door is locked, and my children and I are in bed, so I cannot get up and give you anything.'”

“But I tell you, even though he will not get up and attend to you because you are a friend, yet he will get up because you are a bother to him, and he will give you all you need. And so I say to you, ‘Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For the one who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to him who knocks the door will be opened.”

“If your child asks for a fish, will you give him a snake instead? And if your child asks for an egg, will you give him a scorpion? If you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.”