REFLECTIONS ON LIFE, WORK, AND FAITH IN THE 21ST-CENTURY AMERICA
Hopeful stories from a Catholic parent, business professional, and first-generation Asian-American
Last year, while driving along the scenic Godley Head Road near Christchurch, New Zealand, a disturbing sight stopped me in my tracks: a car, wrecked and abandoned, lay at the bottom of a hill. I didn’t know what had happened, but I felt sorry for the people in that car. One moment, they might have …
Continue reading "Embracing Uncertainty: A Christmas Reflection"
For more than two billion Christian people in the world today, the Nicene Creed neatly summarizes their faith in ten sentences. It includes a “definition” of who Jesus Christ, the central figure in Christianity, is. Yet, unbeknownst to many, the Christian faith may have been very different today if not for one man’s leadership, courage, …
Continue reading "Contra Mundum: The Price of Faith and Leadership"
There is a line in the book “A Pilgrimage to Eternity” by Timothy Egan that caught my attention last month. Quoting Ian Goldin, an Oxford professor, he wrote, “There’s never been a better time to be alive, yet we feel so glum. So many people feel anxious. So many people feel this is one of …
A very short story of Katharine Drexel who, at only 26 years old, became one of the richest persons in the US. Yet, she was also the second American-born person to become a saint. She gave us hope that maybe we, too, can pass through the eye of the divine needle.
In San Francisco’s Mission District, about 2 miles east of the popular Golden Gate Park, stands an old church that started the beautiful city: Mission San Francisco De Asís. The story of its founding offers a powerful reminder that everything happens in God’s time.
America and Indonesia are two countries of beautiful vistas, but eventually it is the people who shape our perception of them. Here is a tribute to the kindness that my family received in the past two weeks from friends and families in both countries.
As we travel through life, inevitably we pass through storms, big and small. We may not comprehend why, but just as the two powerful storms that I encountered many years ago paved the way for memorable vacations, the storms in our lives, too, will somehow bring a more beautiful future - if not for us, …
Unlike the US, many countries celebrate Labor Day (or the Workers' Day) on May 1. The Catholic Church, too, designated May 1 as the feast day of St. Joseph the Worker. In St. Joseph, the Church sees someone whose work was centered on serving the Lord, the family, and the community. He is a model …
This past Monday, when I sat down to start my morning prayer in the corner of an empty bedroom in my house, I suddenly picked up the noise of the cars whizzing by on Eldorado Road, the big street in front of my community. I was puzzled and rather disturbed. Obviously, the traffic had been …
Continue reading "Silence, Solitude, and Simplicity: A Short Reflection on the Winter Storm of 2021"
REFLECTIONS ON LIFE, WORK, AND FAITH IN THE 21ST-CENTURY AMERICA 