Opinion

While Jesus performs many of his miracles with a simple word or touch, in today’s gospel, Jesus heals the man with a speech impediment in a most graphic and dramatic way. Sensitive to the man’s condition, Jesus pulls him away from the crowd in order to spare him from embarrassment and humiliation. Then he puts his finger into the man’s ears and, spitting, touches his tongue.The gesture poignantly shows how Jesus identifies physically with the man’s infirmity to awaken faith in him. Looking up to heaven, he groans and utters the word, “Ephphatha,” which finally opens the man’s ears and loosens his tongue.Pope Benedict XVI gives an insightful comment that the word, “ephphatha - be opened”, sums up Christ’s whole message and all his work. The context of the event confirms the idea. No...

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Denmark has recorded 344,088 cases of COVID with 2,580 deaths. In contrast, we have 1,976,202 cases and 33,330 deaths and counting. Denmark, of course, has a population of only 5,815,792 while we have a population of 111,265,058. The Danish government announced last week that the country will no longer consider COVID-19 as “a socially critical disease”. “The epidemic is under control. We have record high vaccination rates,” said Health Minister Magnus Heunicke in a statement last Friday. Starting September 10, they will drop some of the special rules and restrictions that have been introduced in the fight against COVID-19.In July this year, the country introduced a digital coronavirus passport that had to be show...

Our readings this Sunday are about the Law or the Torah. Literally, the Torah means law, guidance or directive, and pertains to God’s revealed teaching for humankind. In its restricted sense, it refers to the first five books of the Old Testament (Pentateuch) which are traditionally ascribed to Moses, the recipient of God’s revelation on Mt. Sinai.The Torah is the source of Israel’s national pride. The Israelites are aware that they are just a small nation and cannot boast of great political power, like Rome, or philosophical and artistic brilliance, like Greece. Nevertheless, they see themselves standing above all other nations. “For what great nation is there that has gods so close to it as the Lord, our God, is to us whenever we call upon him? Or what great nation has statutes and d...

COVID-19 transmission among households was three times more likely if the household had a high living density, according to a study in Clinical Infectious Diseases. This means more crowded households are expected to have higher transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. Higher living density in this study is defined as having more than three household members but fewer than six rooms.The researchers looked at 100 COVID-19 index patients, all adults, and household contacts of all ages from April to October 2020 in North Carolina. Participants were enrolled in the study a median of 6 days after the index patient's symptom onset or diagnosis. On days 7, 14, and 21 from symptom onset, the household submitted nasal swabs, and on day 28, they underwent a seroconversio...

In the first reading, Joshua summons the people of Israel and asks them to decide whether to serve God or the idols of their pagan neighbors. Sensing his imminent death, he wants the people to make a solemn recommitment to the covenant for he is aware of the real danger and temptation of idolatry surrounding them. In response, the people unanimously choose to serve God, “for it was the Lord, our God, who brought us and our fathers out of slavery. He performed those great miracles before our very eyes and protected us along our entire journey.”The gospel presents a parallel scene wherein Jesus also makes his disciples decide whether to believe in him or leave him. This occurs at the end of his long discourse on the Bread of Life where he reveals himself as the true bread that comes down...

In 2020, we learned that for patients on ventilators, Dexamethasone was shown to reduce mortality by about one third, and for patients requiring only oxygen, mortality was cut by about one fifth. Dexamethasone is a corticosteroid used in a wide range of conditions for its anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressant effects.Now another corticosteroid, inhaled budesonide often used for Crohn's disease, was tied to a shorter recovery time in COVID-19 patients who were at a higher risk of severe infection, according to a study published in The Lancet.The researchers used UK residents 65 or older or who were 50 and older with comorbidities who were enrolled in the larger PRINCIPLE trial. Patients were unwell with suspected COVID-19 for up to 14 days (median, 6 days), and were ...

The 2019 Philippines Forestry Statistics recently released by the Forest Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources is quite interesting when it comes to data pertaining to the province of Negros Occidental, particularly on forest cover. While others might be doubtful, as there are some concerns that should be taken into consideration, this is so far the latest official statistics from the DENR.From 2006 to 2019, the land classification status of Negros Occidental has remained constant with a total land area of about 792,607 hectares. The land classification is a general description on particular uses of our lands, as provided for in the 1987 Philippine Constitution. It is a system of classifying our lands into alienable and disposable land, forestland, mi...

This year, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary falls on a Sunday, and so its liturgy takes precedence over that of the 20th Sunday of the Year. This is providential because the gospel reading of today’s feast happily coincides with the theme of the Bread of Life which we have been reflecting on for the past Sundays. “Lord, give us this bread (of life) always,” the people ask Jesus.In answer, Jesus tells them clearly that to have the Bread of Life is to believe in him as the Word of God and to receive him as the Word made Flesh in the Eucharist.In the gospel, Mary is greeted by Elizabeth, “Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” Because Mary believed in the Word of God spoken by the angel, the Word became incar...

The levels of IgG antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein remain stable, or even increase, 7 months post-infection, according to a follow-up study in a cohort of healthcare workers coordinated by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) in collaboration with the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona. The results, published in Nature Communications, also support the idea that pre-existing antibodies against common cold (non-pandemic) coronaviruses could protect against COVID-19.In order to predict the pandemic’s evolution and develop effective strategies, it is critical to better understand the dynamics and duration of immunity to SARS-CoV-2 and the “possible immunity” to SARS-CoV-2 from the antibodies against the coronaviruses that cause common colds. With...

For the past two Sundays, we have been reading from Chapter 6 of John, which opens with the account on the multiplication of bread. This miracle prompts the crowd to pursue Jesus up to Capernaum.Jesus exhorts the people not to seek bread that perishes but the bread that lasts to eternal life, which he can give. They then ask Jesus to give them this bread always. After some discussion, Jesus declares, “I am the bread of life… I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever.”The Jews have always believed that the true bread of life is the Law, the Word of God, that nourishes his people. Given to Moses on Mount Sinai, the Torah/Law manifests God’s will and teaches Israel the right way of living. In today’s gospel reading, Jesus presents hims...