Enthused yet?

I chanced upon the etymology of the word "Enthusiasm" and thought it was so cool how the word is made up.

Modern use seems to limit the meaning to merely "great excitement for or interest in a subject or cause" (The American Heritage Dictionary). However, the origin and make-up of the word is actually much deeper.

"Enthusiasm" comes from the Latin enthūsiasmus, from Greek enthousiasmos, from enthousiazein, rooted from entheos, which is made up of:

• en ("in"); and
  
• theos ("god").

So, to be inspired would actually mean to be "in God" or to be inspired by God". The next time we use the word, we'd remember God's role in our life.

May we all always be enthusiastic and "en-theos'ed" in everything we do!



FYI: What is "Etymology"?
(Thanks to dictionary.com)

et-y-mol-o-gy [et-uh-mol-uh-jee]

1. the derivation of a word.
2. an account of the history of a particular word or element of a word.
3. the study of historical linguistic change, esp. as manifested in individual words.

Labels: Etymology

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Noa turns one! (Again?)

Yes, my godson turned one once on 3 June this year. But on this very day last year, Noa was "born again"! That’s right. On 3 August 2008, he was baptised and officially became my godson!

Jesus answered and said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above." Nicodemus said to him, "How can a person once grown old be born again? Surely he cannot reenter his mother’s womb and be born again, can he?" Jesus answered, "Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit." - John 3:3-5

Happy "re-birth"day Noa! In one short year, you have grown to be such a source of joy. You bring so much to all of us. God has indeed blessed so many with you, a sign of His boundless love, and it’s our privilege to watch you grow.


Thank you. I love you. And I speak also for mummy, daddy, godma Theresa and auntie Jo!

Labels: birthday, people

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Urgent prayer requests

I was looking blankly on the scroller of bad news today and got a small shock: "Pope Benedict XVI undergoes operation after breaking wrist in fall." Of course, since the short summary contained little detail, I had to turn on my laptop to make sure he's ok. And, thank God, he is.

The Pope had a fall in the bathroom while on vacation in the Italian Alps. The 20-minute surgery went well, according to the doctor. Please keep him in your prayers; if you're not Catholic, please do pray for this good man anyway.

Quite frankly, the man's 82 now. How he's able to take on his daily routine is beyond me. I continue to be a firm admirer of B16, and I hope you won't mind praying with me.

I'd also like to request for your prayers to go out for the victims of the double blast. Such evil in the world reminds us of God's promise of Heaven - this (life on earth) can't be it - and it reminds us of God's love for us - He does nothing to take away anyone's freedom to go against Him.

Please lift up every victim to the Lord, that they will be given strength and the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Please also pray for the culprits, that they may see and recognise the love the God really is, and repent.

Ok. I'm going back to bed! Good night!

Labels: in the news, Pope B16

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Just do it?

I was discussing an evangelisation idea with Joo just two days back, and yesterday evening, I received an unexpected email out of nowhere pointing in the same direction.

More on this if I ever get there.

It's quite scary when God gives you clear signs that He's with you on your thoughts. It's like dreaming a silly dream, and your dad tells you, "Go ahead son, go do it."

I know this is quite vague, but it's not without purpose. Pray for me to have ears to hear.

Labels: Epiphany

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Last Judgment: more hope than horror

As a footnote on my thoughts on Spe Salvi, I must say, Pope Benedict has helped me look at the painting of the Last Judgment from a less self-centred perspective. I realise that when it comes to the Judgment, we're too worried at how we'll end up. But the Final Day is not all boom, doom and gloom. In fact, as B16 argues, it's more hope than horror.

In the arrangement of Christian sacred buildings, which were intended to make visible the historic and cosmic breadth of faith in Christ, it became customary to depict the Lord returning as a king – the symbol of hope – at the east end; while the west wall normally portrayed the Last Judgement as a symbol of our responsibility for our lives – a scene which followed and accompanied the faithful as they went out to resume their daily routine. As the iconography of the Last Judgement developed, however, more and more prominence was given to its ominous and frightening aspects, which obviously held more fascination for artists than the splendour of hope, often all too well concealed beneath the horrors. - n41

In him who was crucified, the denial of false images of God is taken to an extreme. God now reveals his true face in the figure of the sufferer who shares man's God-forsaken condition by taking it upon himself. This innocent sufferer has attained the certitude of hope: there is a God, and God can create justice in a way that we cannot conceive, yet we can begin to grasp it through faith. Yes, there is a resurrection of the flesh. There is justice. There is an "undoing" of past suffering, a reparation that sets things aright. For this reason, faith in the Last Judgement is first and foremost hope – the need for which was made abundantly clear in the upheavals of recent centuries … [Only] in connection with the impossibility that the injustice of history should be the final word does the necessity for Christ's return and for new life become fully convincing. - n43

The image of the Last Judgement is not primarily an image of terror, but an image of hope; for us it may even be the decisive image of hope … it is an image that evokes responsibility, an image, therefore, of that fear of which Saint Hilary spoke when he said that all our fear has its place in love. God is justice and creates justice. This is our consolation and our hope. - n44

Lord, remind me to live responsibly and love everyone. In You, justice and grace overflows. Keep my mind and my heart focused on the goal of being with You, so that everything I do, I will do out of love for You. Amen.

Labels: Christian living, Pope B16

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