Opinion

In a recent interview with Pres. Volodymyr Zelensky, the BBC correspondent asked the Ukrainian leader, “How do you maintain hope in the future, given everything that is happening?” “It’s not hope,” the president replied, “but certainty.” “Of victory?” “Of course!”Pres. Zelensky is certain that in the end, Ukraine will win the war. What could be his basis for such certainty? Is it the extraordinary courage of his people and their unparalleled patriotism; or their massive support from the international community; or his conviction that good will always triumph over evil; or his faith that God is on their side? We do not know. It could be any or all of the above.We all have our own wars and uncertainties. The world faces a disturbing uncertainty not only of its future, but of its very...

Today, we begin the solemn celebration of Holy Week, as we recall the last days of Jesus on earth. It was during these days when he fully accomplished the Father’s mission for him to save humankind through his passion, death and resurrection (paschal mystery).And because of the pre-eminent fruit of the paschal mystery, which is our salvation, the Church has always kept these days as the most important and sacred in her liturgical calendar. Thus, the name the Holy Week.Let us endeavor to keep these days truly holy by spending time in prayer and reflection (instead of having fun in beaches and mountains). Let us accompany Jesus as he goes through his suffering and death. His final days were days of deep darkness and total rejection.The extreme pain he suffered was not only physic...

On March 26, numerous countries once again participated in the annual commemoration of the Earth Hour.This event, which started in Sydney, Australia, in 2007, encourages everyone to switch off lights for an hour starting at 8:30 in the evening. Over 190 nations participate in this annual lights-off that has become a global movement in conserving energy to avoid the increasing emissions of carbon and other greenhouse gases.Scientific studies already show carbon emissions hugely contributed to the declining quality of our environment to the extent of creating climate change that is now considered a global climate crisis.Aside from advocating environmental protection, the Earth Hour is a concrete gesture of minimizing the use of energy, and therefore, even just for an hour the wor...

In today’s gospel, Jesus arrives in the temple area to teach, when some Pharisees and scribes bring in a woman caught in adultery. They make her stand in the middle and ask Jesus’ verdict on her. They remind him that the law of Moses prescribes nothing less than death by stoning.The gospel notes that their motive is “to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him.” As in previous attempts, their question is meant to put Jesus in an air-tight dilemma of self-condemnation.To pardon the woman (and be consistent with his message of mercy) would be to go against the law of Moses, while to send her to death would be to violate the Roman law which forbids killing by private citizens.The insensitivity of the religious leaders in dragging the unfortunate woman and...

During the past weeks, the production of diwal was so noticeable, particularly in the towns of Valladolid and Pulupandan in the southern part of Negros Occidental. This development is quite interesting, as this marine species, known in English as angel wing, was getting rare in previous years.Diwal is one of the pricey marine resources amounting to more than P1.000 per kilo in some instances, but recently it only cost from P200 to P300 per kilo from the source. I can no longer remember when was the last time I tasted diwal and so I bought some when I passed by in a boulevard in Valladolid while on my way from Bacolod to Kabankalan last week.I realized that the declaration of the Negros Occidental Coastal Wetlands Conservation Area as the country's 7th Wetlands of International Impo...

The parable of the prodigal son is often touted as one of the greatest stories ever told not only for its extraordinarily artful narration, but more significantly for revealing the heart of God in a manner that totally baffles the listener.In the story, God is depicted as one whose love is extravagant to a degree that it is, humanly speaking, insane.The story of the prodigal son is preceded by two other parables, that of the lost sheep and that of the lost coin. All three parables develop the same theme on the lavish behavior of God’s love which eludes reason to the point of making it seem foolish.For what can be more foolish than to abandon the ninety-nine sheep in pursuit of a lost one? Or what sense is there in turning the whole house upside down to search for a small coin? ...

Water security and the development of climate change resilient infrastructure will be among the priority concerns of presidential aspirant and Vice President Leni Robredo if she is elected as the head of state in the May 2022 elections.During last Saturday's presidential debate sponsored by the Philippines' Commission on Elections, Robredo, the lone female presidential candidate, emphasized that water is an essential commodity so much so that infrastructure projects associated with the continuing supply of much needed water resources should be in place and sustain.Robredo, who has adopted pink as the color of her campaign, said that our infrastructure development should take into consideration climate change, from housing, farm-to-market roads, schools and others related to basic s...

While writing this homily, I could not help but think of the many innocent people in Ukraine, who are suffering and dying from the relentless and merciless bombings of the Russian army.Today’s gospel mentions two tragic incidents, one caused by human cruelty, the other by an accident. The first concerns a group of Galileans who were summarily executed in the temple on the orders of Pontius Pilate. The second recounts the fall of the tower of Siloam which claimed the lives of eighteen persons.The popular belief then was that misfortunes strike the victims because of their sins (much like our own belief in “gaba”). Jesus instead posed the question of whether the victims of Pilate’s cruel order were greater sinners than all the other Galileans, and whether the victims of the accident ...

The San Miguel Corp. Global Holdings recently announced that it will construct a 300 megawatt Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) power plant in San Carlos City, as confirmed by former t representative Alfredo "Albee" Benitez (Negros Occidental, 3rd District) in a DIGICAST NEGROS report last week.The powerphilippines.com earlier reported that this energy project would be located within the San Carlos Ecozone along the Tañon Strait, which separates the islands of Negros and Cebu.It claimed that SMC is investing about Php 18.5 billion to construct four 75MW generators and the project is now in its early stage in implementing the processes of the Environmental Impact Assessment. It is expected that the construction of the LNG plant would commence by the 3rd quarter of this year and it will be...

The story of the Lord’s transfiguration happens eight days after Peter’s profession of faith and Jesus’ first prediction of his suffering, death and resurrection. Jesus follows up his prediction with his teaching on discipleship as taking up one’s own cross.The disciples do not listen to Jesus. They, in fact, do not want to hear him talk about his passion and death. They have followed him in the hope of getting a share of the power in the kingdom he is about to establish.Such is the disposition of Peter, John and James, as Jesus takes them to the mountain to pray. While Jesus is praying, his face changed in appearance and his clothes become dazzling white. Moses and Elijah appear beside him, and the three talk about the exodus that Jesus is to accomplish in Jerusalem. What is the m...