Opinion

It was a good thing that my sisters and I decided to spend Christmas in the United States instead of an earlier plan to fly straight to Canada where two of our kids are stationed.Mary Anne and Nenen left for the US mid-December but since I could not fly out until December 22 because of work commitments, we decided to spend Christmas Eve with our aunt, Yoly Llavore, in San Diego along with our niece, Misha, who is living just an hour away from our relatives.With sisters, Nenen and Mary Anne before the statue of playwright George Bernard Shaw in the middle of downtown Niagara-on-the-Lake.*And we were fortunate to delay our plans because just days before Christmas, the deadly winter storm that left over 60 people dead in the East Coast also left thousands of people stranded in air...

Mary, Mother of GodA story is told about a small group of children who roamed around the streets of Jaro to carol. Passing by the cathedral, they stopped to enter and visit the Belen inside. They were filled with such delight and excitement as they identified and pointed at the different characters in the nativity scene. They left the cathedral with faces radiating pure joy. Outside, they found a Christian church just across the street. They also went in to visit the Belen. There the scene was different for they found the child Jesus alone, without Mary, Joseph, the angels, the shepherds or the Magi. The atmosphere was somber, and the mood changed. They could not tell why they felt a sudden sadness in their hearts, until one of them pointed to the Baby and said, “Looy ila bata, waay il...

“Today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”The sign given by the angel of the newborn Savior is a child, small and defenseless. A child so poor that it is wrapped in swaddling clothes and lies not in a cradle but in a manger, the feeding trough for animals. What kind of a sign is this?In one of his Christmas homilies, Benedict XVI tells us that “God’s sign, the sign given to the shepherds and to us, is not an astonishing miracle. God’s sign is his humility. God’s sign is that he makes himself small; he becomes a child; he lets us touch him and he asks for our love.” In the baby Jesus, the infinite God makes himself tiny so we can hold ...

CBCP file photoAfter two years of being apart from one another due to COVID19 restrictions, it is quite tempting to be more lavish and extravagant this Christmas. For many of us, this will be our first Christmas back home, and our first Christmas back with our families. True to our Filipino culture, we want to make the most of our celebrations, and what else could be more worthy of our celebration than the day our Savior is born?But while there may be a number of reasons for us to go all out in our celebrations this year, many families in our country and in our communities are still struggling because of the effects of the pandemic and the state of the economy.As many of us already know, this year saw a drastic increase in basic commodities. The price of rice, garlic, onions, f...

As I grow older, I realize that things are better accomplished in simple ways. Looking back on the years when I was younger and more energetic, I realize I could have done more (and avoided many mistakes) had I been less impulsive, more patient and more simple.In today’s gospel, God puts the finishing touches on his great plan of sending his Messiah. His plan had been prepared for thousands of years, and now the time has come for its fulfilment. Beyond anyone’s expectation, God sends no less than his own Son as the promised Savior. And to carry out the most important task of bringing his Son into the world, God chooses two ordinary persons - Mary and Joseph.Surprisingly, God accomplishes his grand designs in simple ways. Using common people, he enters into our world, through his So...

I had the fortune of knowing an extraordinary woman who never seemed to lose the smile on her face. Those who knew her fondly called her Nang Poping. A teacher, principal and later superintendent of public schools, she was highly respected and deeply loved by the community. She had a big family, and she was clearly their source of strength and the center of unity especially in their times of crises. She was actively involved in church projects, as well as in her own personal works of charity. For this she earned the endearing moniker of Mother of Perpetual Help Incarnate, since everyone who approached her was never left unaided. In her last years, she had a bad fall which kept her in the wheel chair and in constant pain for the rest of her life. Her condition did not stop her from continui...

Last week, a group of our youth leaders and catechists gathered in our parish hall to experience the Alpha through a one-day seminar-workshop, conducted by the Alpha national team. Alpha is a tool for evangelization to introduce people to an initial proclamation of the good news leading to a personal encounter with Jesus. It consists of a series of meetings, which “enable the participants to ask their questions, share ideas, build friendships and experience the love of God through the power of the Holy Spirit.”The logo of Alpha is a tilted question mark which expressively articulates its dynamics. In the Alpha sessions, the participants openly ask all sorts of questions from ordinary (even silly) to deeper ones, like “Is there more to life than this?” Eventually, they tackle the most p...

Today, the Church begins its new liturgical calendar with the season of Advent. The word advent means coming; hence the theme is one of waiting and expectation. During Advent, we look back to the time when man awaited the coming of the long-promised Messiah, and we look forward to his coming again in glory at the end of time.Meanwhile, as we stand in between these two great advents, what are we to do? The Church invites us to learn to wait because the Lord comes even today in many ways. As the people of Israel missed the Messiah when he finally came two thousand years ago, we too can miss him when he comes today, or at the end of time.Hence, the need for vigilance. How do we remain vigilant? From today’s readings, I find three things particularly helpful to make us vigilant: having...

Today the Church fittingly closes the liturgical calendar with the solemn celebration of Christ the King. As the year ends, the Church reminds us that Jesus too will come at the end of time to gather us into his kingdom. The opening prayer tells of God’s will “to restore all things in [his] beloved Son, the King of the universe… that the whole creation [may be] set free from slavery.”Jesus is King, not only of Israel (first reading), but of the whole creation (second reading). “For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.”That Jesus is king is clear enough. The problem is whether we can recognize him as king. For if we cannot recognize him as king, it would be difficult to enter i...

A few years ago, I complained of body aches to my doctor who suggested that I undergo a thorough medical check-up. As I lay inside the MRI tube, feeling nervous and claustrophobic, it suddenly dawned on me that my body was slowly dying.When I shared the experience to some of our priests in Kabankalan, they were alarmed, and one asked me with deep concern, “Really, Bishop?” To which I responded, “Yes, my body is dying, and so is yours.” Indeed, I feel that everyday my body is dying because not only are my bones aching. My eyesight too is starting to dim, my teeth are diminishing, my mobility is declining and my memory is failing.Today the gospel speaks of the end of the world. Jesus gives signs of its coming: calamities, wars and persecutions. When will it happen? Will we ever live ...