Some facts about doing my laundry
by Rev. Fr. Philip Vincent S. Sinco
The Season of Lent has two important invitations: to turn away from sin and to be faithful in the message of the Gospel. I believe, nobody will ever be challenged by these injunctions unless he has gone deep into himself and be aware of what is going on in his life. I think this is what happened to me in the past days. Paradoxically, the things that I have been carrying out in routine, say, doing my laundry, has opened my awareness to the recurring issues I keep on dealing with myself in the past twenty-eight years of my personal journey. What seemed to be tedious and boring has turned out to be an opportunity for self-discovery, and that I was able to regress inwardly as I searched for inner peace and healing.
Hence, allow me to share to you some facts about doing my laundry...
WASH
It’s been ages that I washed my clothes with my bare hands. As far as I can remember, the last time I stretched and crumpled those dirty shirts of mine was when the pulsator of our washing machine at home screwed up and I had no choice but to put everything inside the large tub, and let my 10 fingers do the job. Now I am doing it again, reminding myself that everything has to start from the basic...
At the back of my mind, I was torn between living the easy life and taking responsibility for myself…I have been so used in getting things done in a jiffy that my understanding of personal accountability and trustworthiness were shrouded…I was so into my comfort zones lately that I almost forgot where I actually came from…I know that I have endured a lot through the years but my painless and worry-free disposition has reduced my memory to practicality…all I ever wanted was an easy life and there was a point in time that I thought everything was possible…but in reality, it wasn’t. Just like washing my clothes, life is difficult…
RINSE
I usually rinse my clothes three times before I finally drench it in a separate tub of fabric conditioner mixed with water. This is to make sure that what I will be wearing is free from remnants of soap suds. I just don’t like the impression that my laundry was haphazardly done especially when my folks notice some white marks on my shirt as if I applied too much baby powder on my body (which I don’t usually do)…I am also very particular with stains. If they still remain after several washing, I would throw or give that shirt away.
In life, there have been instances that I hate myself because of my woundedness…that I often question my credibility and worthiness, thinking that I don’t deserve anything…that happiness can never be free or spontaneous because I have to work hard for it all the time…like the stains on my shirt, there are certain experiences that I’d rather forget because it is too painful to remember…only to realize later on that facing it squarely, when I had the chance, would have made me courageous and strong…sometimes ,I feel bad when the "ghosts" of my past would haunt me again because I have deliberately thrown them away…Now, I am reminded that there is such a thing called “grace” and this “grace” is usually build on nature.
DRY
Drying my clothes is not a simple task for I have to bear the scorching heat of the sun…or better wait for several days before I can finally wear my favorite shirt if it’s raining…or put it inside the dryer and spin it in eternity...Occasionally (and with much desperation), I’d like to defy time, ironing my damp clothes forcibly so that I can use them again, only to be embarrassed later on that they are not actually parched up but stinky.
In life, there are occasions when I get so impatient over certain matters…that I jump easily to conclusion without weighing down the odds…that I have been so attached to the results of my words and actions that I have failed to look closely into myself and discern which is more loving and life-giving…and then, I am reminded once again that my thoughts are faster than my words so that I can ponder things well inside my mind before blurting them out…and that I can be reasonable enough to control myself for the greater good…
FOLD
I am a certified “neat freak”. Folding clothes for me is like solving a geometrical equation , where I would painstakingly pleat every edges in order to come up with a perfect square…more so, I would arrange them neatly- segregating the whites from coloreds, the plain shirts from printed shirts, the crew necks from v-necks, those with "sleeves" from those without "sleeves. It gives me satisfaction and contentment to see my cabinet in order…I would always aim for tidiness and harmony…
At times, I’d like to see life that way too…that everything’s fixed and all I have to do is to rely on what has been planned or scheduled. but having this idealism has left me frustrated in the past years…there are things that are beyond my control…in the end, I am only invited to take risk and let go for life is not all about precision…I will learn so much if I have the willingness to compromise and be comfortable with the occasional mistakes that I have committed. Failure makes sense sometimes. It makes me grow better as a person.
Perhaps, I should thank our labandera for making me realize these things once again. Salamat Nang Minda!
Thursday, February 26, 2009
“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel!”
“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel!”
(cf. Mark 1:15)
by Bp. Gerardo A. Alminaza, D.D.
This is the formula used with the giving of ashes at the start of the Lenten Season, another alternative to “Remember you are dust and to dust you will return!” (cf. Genesis 3:19).
“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel!” This could be a powerful program for our Lenten discipline as well as for our efforts in building and strengthening our BEC’s. It has two movements: away from and moving towards. During these 40 days of Lent, we can ask ourselves in prayer: “From what or even whom am I being asked by the Lord to turn away from?” and “How can I be more faithful to the Gospel?” Reflecting on my life, the journey of our community, and the circumstances of our world today, “Where am I most challenged to grow to become a more loving person as God is to us?” “How can I be an instrument of communion?”
In his Lenten Message this year, the Holy Father Benedict XVI focuses on the value and meaning of fasting, which is an important means together with prayer and almsgiving, to make our Lenten spiritual exercises fruitful. Among other things, he says, “Denying material food, which nourishes our body, nurtures an interior disposition to listen to Christ and be fed by His saving word. Through fasting and praying, we allow Him to come and satisfy the deepest hunger that we experience in the depths of our being: the hunger and thirst for God. At the same time, fasting is an aid to open our eyes to the situation in which so many of our brothers and sisters live.”
He quoted Saint Peter Chrysologus who writes: “Fasting is the soul of prayer; mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heard, hear the petition of others. If you do not close your ear to others, you open God’s ear to yourself” (Sermo 43: PL 52, 320. 322).
And then the Holy Father goes on to say, “It is precisely to keep alive this welcoming and attentive attitude towards our brothers and sisters that I encourage the parishes and every other community to intensify in Lent the custom of private and communal fasts, joined to the reading of the Word of God, prayer and almsgiving. From the beginning, this has been the hallmark of the Christian community, in which special collections were taken up (cf. 2 Cor 8-9; Rm 15, 25-27), the faithful being invited to give to the poor what had been set aside from their fast (Didascalia Ap., V, 20,18). This practice needs to be rediscovered and encouraged again in our day, especially during the liturgical season of Lent.”
This is especially relevant with the recent experience of fire that burned around 40 houses in our community in Zone 2 Brgy. Bakhaw and led to the untimely and painful death of an elderly couple Romeo and Filomena Hisog. This also acquires more meaning as we pay attention to the plight of all Filipino migrant workers and their families during this first Sunday of Lent, contemplating Jesus being led by the Spirit into the desert, where He remained for 40 days and being tempted by Satan. As we observe fasting and abstinence and other works of mercy, let these words of Jesus be our inspiration: “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to finish his work.” (John 4:34)
I join the Holy Father in prayer and hope that every family and Christian community may use well this time of Lent in order to cast aside all that distracts the spirit and grow in whatever nourishes the soul, moving it to love of God and neighbor.
“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel!”
(cf. Mark 1:15)
by Bp. Gerardo A. Alminaza, D.D.
This is the formula used with the giving of ashes at the start of the Lenten Season, another alternative to “Remember you are dust and to dust you will return!” (cf. Genesis 3:19).
“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel!” This could be a powerful program for our Lenten discipline as well as for our efforts in building and strengthening our BEC’s. It has two movements: away from and moving towards. During these 40 days of Lent, we can ask ourselves in prayer: “From what or even whom am I being asked by the Lord to turn away from?” and “How can I be more faithful to the Gospel?” Reflecting on my life, the journey of our community, and the circumstances of our world today, “Where am I most challenged to grow to become a more loving person as God is to us?” “How can I be an instrument of communion?”
In his Lenten Message this year, the Holy Father Benedict XVI focuses on the value and meaning of fasting, which is an important means together with prayer and almsgiving, to make our Lenten spiritual exercises fruitful. Among other things, he says, “Denying material food, which nourishes our body, nurtures an interior disposition to listen to Christ and be fed by His saving word. Through fasting and praying, we allow Him to come and satisfy the deepest hunger that we experience in the depths of our being: the hunger and thirst for God. At the same time, fasting is an aid to open our eyes to the situation in which so many of our brothers and sisters live.”
He quoted Saint Peter Chrysologus who writes: “Fasting is the soul of prayer; mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heard, hear the petition of others. If you do not close your ear to others, you open God’s ear to yourself” (Sermo 43: PL 52, 320. 322).
And then the Holy Father goes on to say, “It is precisely to keep alive this welcoming and attentive attitude towards our brothers and sisters that I encourage the parishes and every other community to intensify in Lent the custom of private and communal fasts, joined to the reading of the Word of God, prayer and almsgiving. From the beginning, this has been the hallmark of the Christian community, in which special collections were taken up (cf. 2 Cor 8-9; Rm 15, 25-27), the faithful being invited to give to the poor what had been set aside from their fast (Didascalia Ap., V, 20,18). This practice needs to be rediscovered and encouraged again in our day, especially during the liturgical season of Lent.”
This is especially relevant with the recent experience of fire that burned around 40 houses in our community in Zone 2 Brgy. Bakhaw and led to the untimely and painful death of an elderly couple Romeo and Filomena Hisog. This also acquires more meaning as we pay attention to the plight of all Filipino migrant workers and their families during this first Sunday of Lent, contemplating Jesus being led by the Spirit into the desert, where He remained for 40 days and being tempted by Satan. As we observe fasting and abstinence and other works of mercy, let these words of Jesus be our inspiration: “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to finish his work.” (John 4:34)
I join the Holy Father in prayer and hope that every family and Christian community may use well this time of Lent in order to cast aside all that distracts the spirit and grow in whatever nourishes the soul, moving it to love of God and neighbor.
“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel!”
May Sunog! May Milagro!
May Sunog! May Milagro!
by Evelyn B. Nervato
Fe Marina S. Siacon
Nagkinarankaran ang tanan, nagalukdo sang mga gamit, nagaguyod sang mga sapat, sa paglikaw sa isa ka daku nga sunog nga natabo sa Barangay Bakhaw sang nagligad nga Pebrero 23, 2009. Nag-umpisa ini mga alas kwatro sa aga, nagikan sa kandila nga ginsindihan bangud sang brown-out. Diri sini nga balay nag-umpisa ang sunog. Madamo nga mga pamalay ang nagkalasunog lakip na diri ang mag-asawa. Malapad ang ginlamon sang kalayo humalin didto sa tangkulan sang taytay (taytay nga nagaangot sa Jaro market) pakadto sa old chapel nayon. Maayo lang kay ining old chapel ukon kapiya wala man masunog, pero sa kilid kag likod sini naupos gid. Diri nag-untat ang kalayo. Napalong ang kalayo sa bulig sang mga bombero, kag subong man sang mga tao mismo sa sini nga barangay nga wala nila ginbale ang kabudlay sa paghakot sang tubig gikan sa bomba. Masigbitbit lang sang ila balde.
Pagkatapos sang sunog, gintawgan ni Bishop Alminaza ang Pastoral Service Ministry sa pagkadto sa nasunugan sa pagpangungisa sang halit nga natuga sa mga tao upod kay Fr. Andy. Si Msgr. Oso nagpadala man gilayon sang onse ka sako nga used clothing kag mga tinapay sa kaalwan sang Angelina. Nagpadala man ang parokya sang materiales (subong abi sang mga pusog, kawayan, lansang, amakan kag galvanized iron) bulig sa pagpatindog sang balay sang mga tao nga nasunugan.
Sa sini nga hitabo, diri naton masaksihan ang espirito sang bayanihan. Ang mga tao sa sining magamay nga katilingban naghugpong, nagbululigay, wala ginbale ang daku nga kabudlay mabuligan lang sang tanan ang pagtapna sang kalayo. May ara man nga nagasiling nga daku nga milagro ang natabo kay ngaa nga sa balay gid sang Mahal nga Birhen nag-untat ang kalayo.
Nagahibi nga nagapanaysayon ang isa ka nanay nga nagakongkong pa sang iya baby. Siling niya: “Ginbuligan gid kami sang Mahal nga Birhen sang Medalya Milagrosa. Nagapati ako nga ginhumlad niya ang iya manto sa paghatag proteksyon sa amon. Milagrosa gid siya matuod. Kabay pa nga matandog man ang mga tagipusuon sang mga tao kag maghatag man sing kabilinggan sa Mahal nga Birhen paagi sa pagpangadi sang Santo Rosario.” May isa man didto nga naghambal, “Sang pagbaha wala man ang Mahal nga Iloy maano. Nag-untat ang pagdalom sang tubig sa iya nayon.”
Pagpuas sang kalayo, nagkadto ako sa old chapel, didto man gihapon ang Mahal nga Iloy, sa gihapon nagatan-ay sang iya mga kamot, handa sa pagbulig sa iya mga kaanakan. Nagpasalamat ako sa iya kay ako man nagapati nga tungod sa iya bulig wala maglapta ang kalayo.
by Evelyn B. Nervato
Fe Marina S. Siacon
Nagkinarankaran ang tanan, nagalukdo sang mga gamit, nagaguyod sang mga sapat, sa paglikaw sa isa ka daku nga sunog nga natabo sa Barangay Bakhaw sang nagligad nga Pebrero 23, 2009. Nag-umpisa ini mga alas kwatro sa aga, nagikan sa kandila nga ginsindihan bangud sang brown-out. Diri sini nga balay nag-umpisa ang sunog. Madamo nga mga pamalay ang nagkalasunog lakip na diri ang mag-asawa. Malapad ang ginlamon sang kalayo humalin didto sa tangkulan sang taytay (taytay nga nagaangot sa Jaro market) pakadto sa old chapel nayon. Maayo lang kay ining old chapel ukon kapiya wala man masunog, pero sa kilid kag likod sini naupos gid. Diri nag-untat ang kalayo. Napalong ang kalayo sa bulig sang mga bombero, kag subong man sang mga tao mismo sa sini nga barangay nga wala nila ginbale ang kabudlay sa paghakot sang tubig gikan sa bomba. Masigbitbit lang sang ila balde.
Pagkatapos sang sunog, gintawgan ni Bishop Alminaza ang Pastoral Service Ministry sa pagkadto sa nasunugan sa pagpangungisa sang halit nga natuga sa mga tao upod kay Fr. Andy. Si Msgr. Oso nagpadala man gilayon sang onse ka sako nga used clothing kag mga tinapay sa kaalwan sang Angelina. Nagpadala man ang parokya sang materiales (subong abi sang mga pusog, kawayan, lansang, amakan kag galvanized iron) bulig sa pagpatindog sang balay sang mga tao nga nasunugan.
Sa sini nga hitabo, diri naton masaksihan ang espirito sang bayanihan. Ang mga tao sa sining magamay nga katilingban naghugpong, nagbululigay, wala ginbale ang daku nga kabudlay mabuligan lang sang tanan ang pagtapna sang kalayo. May ara man nga nagasiling nga daku nga milagro ang natabo kay ngaa nga sa balay gid sang Mahal nga Birhen nag-untat ang kalayo.
Nagahibi nga nagapanaysayon ang isa ka nanay nga nagakongkong pa sang iya baby. Siling niya: “Ginbuligan gid kami sang Mahal nga Birhen sang Medalya Milagrosa. Nagapati ako nga ginhumlad niya ang iya manto sa paghatag proteksyon sa amon. Milagrosa gid siya matuod. Kabay pa nga matandog man ang mga tagipusuon sang mga tao kag maghatag man sing kabilinggan sa Mahal nga Birhen paagi sa pagpangadi sang Santo Rosario.” May isa man didto nga naghambal, “Sang pagbaha wala man ang Mahal nga Iloy maano. Nag-untat ang pagdalom sang tubig sa iya nayon.”
Pagpuas sang kalayo, nagkadto ako sa old chapel, didto man gihapon ang Mahal nga Iloy, sa gihapon nagatan-ay sang iya mga kamot, handa sa pagbulig sa iya mga kaanakan. Nagpasalamat ako sa iya kay ako man nagapati nga tungod sa iya bulig wala maglapta ang kalayo.
Parents’ Formation Update
Parents’ Formation Update
by Evelyn B. Nervato
The Parish of Our Lady of Candles in partnership with the Jaro Archdiocesan Social Action Center (JASAC) continues to enrich the parish program by helping the poor especially the under-nourished children. This program does not only feed the children but most importantly it enriches the parents’ spirituality. A group of Jaro Catechists conducted a spiritual formation session to the parents of these under-nourished children. These parents are also taught the proper care and feeding of their children.
The first session, “Ang Pagtuga” was given last February 19 in Barangay Cuartero Hi-way. The second session, “Ang Pagkilalahay” was given last February 24 and 27 in four barangays - Taytay Zone II, San Vicente, and Cuartero Hi-way.
by Evelyn B. Nervato
The Parish of Our Lady of Candles in partnership with the Jaro Archdiocesan Social Action Center (JASAC) continues to enrich the parish program by helping the poor especially the under-nourished children. This program does not only feed the children but most importantly it enriches the parents’ spirituality. A group of Jaro Catechists conducted a spiritual formation session to the parents of these under-nourished children. These parents are also taught the proper care and feeding of their children.
The first session, “Ang Pagtuga” was given last February 19 in Barangay Cuartero Hi-way. The second session, “Ang Pagkilalahay” was given last February 24 and 27 in four barangays - Taytay Zone II, San Vicente, and Cuartero Hi-way.
Private Schools Urge ‘Clear Guidelines‘ For Conduct of Drug Testing
Private Schools Urge ‘Clear Guidelines‘ For Conduct of Drug Testing
(News condensed from CBCP Monitor, Vol.13 No. 4, February 16 – March 1, 2009, by Roy Lagarde – News Editor)
by Armando A. Suñe
Catholic schools are in favor of the government plan for random drug testing to be conducted in both public and private schools in the country.
But the Catholic Educators Association in the Philippines (CEAP) along with other private schools wants the government to provide strict and clear guidelines in the conduct of drug testing in all high schools and tertiary levels.
I
n a statement, the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA) said that while the drug testing is worthy of support there are still facets that need concern.
The educators said authorities have to assure the anxious public that it has set in place safeguards to prevent negligence or malice aimed at incriminating students.
The group cited the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 which provides that “students of secondary and tertiary schools shall, pursuant to the related rules and regulations as contained in the school’s student handbook and with notice to the parents, undergo random drug testing, the expenses of which will be borne by the government.”
“Hence, in the interest of safeguarding the rights of its students from being violated in the process, clear implementing guidelines should be created in consultation with school officials and be discussed with appropriate stakeholders,” it added.
And while the COCOPEA acknowledges the value of the random drug testing, they said that the government’s campaign against illegal drugs should “substantively focus on the drug pushers and not the victims – such as the students.”
Reflecting on the issue, it should prove prudent indeed for the government to issue “definite and clear guidelines”, in consultation with the private and public education sector, in order to forestall possible confusion, finger-pointing, blaming, and, to put it optimistically, to ensure the honest success of the random drug-testing campaign.
The drug-use problem in our country is an issue too dangerous to be left aside. It is like a Pandora’s Box which, if left unchecked and curtailed, will open a plethora of more problems detrimental to our country – an illegal-drugs-trade-fueled economy, weakened and lessened able-bodied labor force, loss of moral values, breakdown of family life, and decreasing importance of personal religious affiliations. In fact, some of these problems have already begun to take root beyond our comfortable knowledge.
Jose Rizal was right after all when he said, “The youth is the fair hope of the fatherland.” A drug-crazed generation in our youth sector would certainly hamper our quest for a better Philippines. Anyone among us doesn’t need to look far to witness the destructive effects of drugs on the victimized person.
The random drug-testing program of the government doesn’t have to go awry and unsuccessful because of poor and hasty planning. We commend and are one with the COCOPEA in calling awareness towards the urgent need for such “clear guidelines” to be issued and implemented by the government. As private citizens of our country, we join in the well-meaning call for the transparent pro-active response of the government authorities concerned. After all, as Ninoy Aquino said, “The Filipino is worth dying for,” and all the efforts of both the private sector and government should have no other motive than the honest and sincere delivery of the welfare needs of our people.
(News condensed from CBCP Monitor, Vol.13 No. 4, February 16 – March 1, 2009, by Roy Lagarde – News Editor)
by Armando A. Suñe
Catholic schools are in favor of the government plan for random drug testing to be conducted in both public and private schools in the country.
But the Catholic Educators Association in the Philippines (CEAP) along with other private schools wants the government to provide strict and clear guidelines in the conduct of drug testing in all high schools and tertiary levels.
I
n a statement, the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA) said that while the drug testing is worthy of support there are still facets that need concern.
The educators said authorities have to assure the anxious public that it has set in place safeguards to prevent negligence or malice aimed at incriminating students.
The group cited the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 which provides that “students of secondary and tertiary schools shall, pursuant to the related rules and regulations as contained in the school’s student handbook and with notice to the parents, undergo random drug testing, the expenses of which will be borne by the government.”
“Hence, in the interest of safeguarding the rights of its students from being violated in the process, clear implementing guidelines should be created in consultation with school officials and be discussed with appropriate stakeholders,” it added.
And while the COCOPEA acknowledges the value of the random drug testing, they said that the government’s campaign against illegal drugs should “substantively focus on the drug pushers and not the victims – such as the students.”
Reflecting on the issue, it should prove prudent indeed for the government to issue “definite and clear guidelines”, in consultation with the private and public education sector, in order to forestall possible confusion, finger-pointing, blaming, and, to put it optimistically, to ensure the honest success of the random drug-testing campaign.
The drug-use problem in our country is an issue too dangerous to be left aside. It is like a Pandora’s Box which, if left unchecked and curtailed, will open a plethora of more problems detrimental to our country – an illegal-drugs-trade-fueled economy, weakened and lessened able-bodied labor force, loss of moral values, breakdown of family life, and decreasing importance of personal religious affiliations. In fact, some of these problems have already begun to take root beyond our comfortable knowledge.
Jose Rizal was right after all when he said, “The youth is the fair hope of the fatherland.” A drug-crazed generation in our youth sector would certainly hamper our quest for a better Philippines. Anyone among us doesn’t need to look far to witness the destructive effects of drugs on the victimized person.
The random drug-testing program of the government doesn’t have to go awry and unsuccessful because of poor and hasty planning. We commend and are one with the COCOPEA in calling awareness towards the urgent need for such “clear guidelines” to be issued and implemented by the government. As private citizens of our country, we join in the well-meaning call for the transparent pro-active response of the government authorities concerned. After all, as Ninoy Aquino said, “The Filipino is worth dying for,” and all the efforts of both the private sector and government should have no other motive than the honest and sincere delivery of the welfare needs of our people.
Rediscover Confession, Urges Benedict XVI
Rediscover Confession, Urges Benedict XVI
Calls It Sacrament of Forgiveness
(News condensed from CBCP Monitor, Vol.13 No.4, February 16 – March1, 2009; Zenit)
by Armando A. Suñe
VATICAN CITY, February 15, 2009 – Sin is what puts distance between the believer and God, and it’s the sacrament of confession that brings the two back together, says Benedict XVI.
The Pope said this today in a Gospel reflection on Mark’s account of the healed leper (Mark 2: 1-12), which he delivered before praying the midday Angelus with those gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
“It is not…physical malady that distances us from God, as the ancient norms supposed, but sin, the spiritual and moral evil.”
Benedict XVI reflected: “The sins we commit distance us from God, and, if they are not humbly confessed, trusting in the divine mercy, they will finally bring about the death of the soul. This miracle ( of the healed leper) thus has powerful symbolic value.
“In the Sacrament of Penance Christ crucified and risen, through his ministers, purified us with his infinite mercy, restores us to communion with the heavenly Father and our brothers, and makes a gift of his love, joy, and peace to us.”
“Dear brothers and sisters,” he concluded, “let us invoke the Virgin Mary, whom God preserved from every stain of sin, that she help us to avoid sin and to have frequent recourse to the sacrament of confession, the sacrament of forgiveness, whose value and importance for our Christian life needs to be rediscovered today.”
Our reflection on Pope Benedict XVI’s message makes us conclude that, beyond the physical healing that may take place because of confession, confession itself heals our relationship with God and makes us children of God again. Sin separates us from God and takes us away from the “State of Grace” necessary to enter into friendship with HIM. Confession restores that “State of Grace” in us and makes us friends with God again. Going to confession requires HUMILITY, which means one has to die from the refusal of admitting to God his sins, all because of his stubbornness and pride.
Why do a lot of Catholics these days refuse to go to confession? It is because of this pride and stubbornness, the same Sin that Adam and Eve committed. Worst, a lot of Catholics these days have adopted the wrong attitude of non-Catholics who were wrongly taught to believe they should confess only directly to God. As Catholics, we need to remember what Jesus Christ said to Peter and the Apostles during the resurrection, “Those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven. Those whose sins you retain, they are retained.” Priests ordained in the Roman Catholic Church are the present-day successors of Peter and the Apostles. Christ forgives us of our sins during confession through these ordained Roman Catholic priests. Let us not be afraid then to go to our priests for Confession, especially this Lenten season.
Confession does give us the bonus of a liberating feeling of well-being, of light-heartedness, of an unexplainable feeling of goodness and freedom of spirit in God’s name, and of knowing that we are back in God’s care and protection. This results in a general feeling of good health and a possible return to physical healing of our infirmities itself. Only those who have gone to a good Confession with a priest receive this blessing – this feeling of relief, goodness and well-being. No drug-abuse habit can come up to this unexplainable “HIGH” that only comes from God. Just ask your friend who has gone to a good Confession, dear reader. Now, I am asking you: Wanna try going to Confession? I dare you, dear reader. Try it. You won’t regret it.
Calls It Sacrament of Forgiveness
(News condensed from CBCP Monitor, Vol.13 No.4, February 16 – March1, 2009; Zenit)
by Armando A. Suñe
VATICAN CITY, February 15, 2009 – Sin is what puts distance between the believer and God, and it’s the sacrament of confession that brings the two back together, says Benedict XVI.
The Pope said this today in a Gospel reflection on Mark’s account of the healed leper (Mark 2: 1-12), which he delivered before praying the midday Angelus with those gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
“It is not…physical malady that distances us from God, as the ancient norms supposed, but sin, the spiritual and moral evil.”
Benedict XVI reflected: “The sins we commit distance us from God, and, if they are not humbly confessed, trusting in the divine mercy, they will finally bring about the death of the soul. This miracle ( of the healed leper) thus has powerful symbolic value.
“In the Sacrament of Penance Christ crucified and risen, through his ministers, purified us with his infinite mercy, restores us to communion with the heavenly Father and our brothers, and makes a gift of his love, joy, and peace to us.”
“Dear brothers and sisters,” he concluded, “let us invoke the Virgin Mary, whom God preserved from every stain of sin, that she help us to avoid sin and to have frequent recourse to the sacrament of confession, the sacrament of forgiveness, whose value and importance for our Christian life needs to be rediscovered today.”
Our reflection on Pope Benedict XVI’s message makes us conclude that, beyond the physical healing that may take place because of confession, confession itself heals our relationship with God and makes us children of God again. Sin separates us from God and takes us away from the “State of Grace” necessary to enter into friendship with HIM. Confession restores that “State of Grace” in us and makes us friends with God again. Going to confession requires HUMILITY, which means one has to die from the refusal of admitting to God his sins, all because of his stubbornness and pride.
Why do a lot of Catholics these days refuse to go to confession? It is because of this pride and stubbornness, the same Sin that Adam and Eve committed. Worst, a lot of Catholics these days have adopted the wrong attitude of non-Catholics who were wrongly taught to believe they should confess only directly to God. As Catholics, we need to remember what Jesus Christ said to Peter and the Apostles during the resurrection, “Those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven. Those whose sins you retain, they are retained.” Priests ordained in the Roman Catholic Church are the present-day successors of Peter and the Apostles. Christ forgives us of our sins during confession through these ordained Roman Catholic priests. Let us not be afraid then to go to our priests for Confession, especially this Lenten season.
Confession does give us the bonus of a liberating feeling of well-being, of light-heartedness, of an unexplainable feeling of goodness and freedom of spirit in God’s name, and of knowing that we are back in God’s care and protection. This results in a general feeling of good health and a possible return to physical healing of our infirmities itself. Only those who have gone to a good Confession with a priest receive this blessing – this feeling of relief, goodness and well-being. No drug-abuse habit can come up to this unexplainable “HIGH” that only comes from God. Just ask your friend who has gone to a good Confession, dear reader. Now, I am asking you: Wanna try going to Confession? I dare you, dear reader. Try it. You won’t regret it.
Archbishop's Message for Lent Season
LENT is an opportune occasion for profound re-examination of life, for confronting ourselves with the truth of the Gospel, which demands radical moral renewal. Jesus Christ begins his public ministry with the message: “The time of fulfillment has come … Repent (i.e. change your mind and behavior), and believe in the Gospel” (Mk. 1/15). St. Paul the Apostle gives his rejoinder: “Be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4/23).
Along this line, the scientist, Albert Einstein, offered a formula for solving the problems and crises that churches, institutions and governments are facing when he said: “The significant problems we face today cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created these problems and crises.” We will not solve our problems – religious, social, economic, political- by insisting on doing the same things that have produced the problems. The call of Lent is for moral renewal. To achieve this we need at least a critical mass of citizens-leaders who are willing to “break out of the box,” to jump on to the beginning of a new wave, to move into a new cycle of development, to operate with a new social consciousness and conscience, not for their individual or group security, but for the good of the greatest number.
We stated, some years ago, at the National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal, that “failures in renewal have come from a deeper source: our hardness of heart and resistance to conversion….We, as Church, have to confess responsibility for many of the continuing ills of Philippine society.” In a Pastoral Statement on “Renewing Our Political Life” (January 29, 2006), we said, and we can say it again, that “at the bottom of our political chaos is a crisis of moral values, a crisis of truth and justice, of unity and solidarity for the sake of common good and genuine peace.”
The most seriously affected by the crisis of moral values are the poor, the marginalized, oftentimes treated like commodities. Graft and corruption breeds widespread poverty. Widespread poverty in turn breeds graft and corruption. There is a concatenation of crisis and corruption that goes down to the barangay level, up and down and up, infecting the whole of society, like a contagious cancer.
To cure this social cancer we need a new breed of leaders in our country. The forthcoming national elections must not simply be a changing of hats for the same persons, or change of faces but with unchanged hearts. We must be able to gather a critical mass of citizens-leaders with a genuine passion and obsession for good governance and prophetic leadership. This critical mass will be the training ground of other citizens who will lead our country with the value s of honesty and justice, truth and integrity, credibility and accountability, transparency and stewardship. These are the moral values that citizens must use to criticize and measure the present brand of leaders and raise up a new breed of leaders.
Along this line, the scientist, Albert Einstein, offered a formula for solving the problems and crises that churches, institutions and governments are facing when he said: “The significant problems we face today cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created these problems and crises.” We will not solve our problems – religious, social, economic, political- by insisting on doing the same things that have produced the problems. The call of Lent is for moral renewal. To achieve this we need at least a critical mass of citizens-leaders who are willing to “break out of the box,” to jump on to the beginning of a new wave, to move into a new cycle of development, to operate with a new social consciousness and conscience, not for their individual or group security, but for the good of the greatest number.
We stated, some years ago, at the National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal, that “failures in renewal have come from a deeper source: our hardness of heart and resistance to conversion….We, as Church, have to confess responsibility for many of the continuing ills of Philippine society.” In a Pastoral Statement on “Renewing Our Political Life” (January 29, 2006), we said, and we can say it again, that “at the bottom of our political chaos is a crisis of moral values, a crisis of truth and justice, of unity and solidarity for the sake of common good and genuine peace.”
The most seriously affected by the crisis of moral values are the poor, the marginalized, oftentimes treated like commodities. Graft and corruption breeds widespread poverty. Widespread poverty in turn breeds graft and corruption. There is a concatenation of crisis and corruption that goes down to the barangay level, up and down and up, infecting the whole of society, like a contagious cancer.
To cure this social cancer we need a new breed of leaders in our country. The forthcoming national elections must not simply be a changing of hats for the same persons, or change of faces but with unchanged hearts. We must be able to gather a critical mass of citizens-leaders with a genuine passion and obsession for good governance and prophetic leadership. This critical mass will be the training ground of other citizens who will lead our country with the value s of honesty and justice, truth and integrity, credibility and accountability, transparency and stewardship. These are the moral values that citizens must use to criticize and measure the present brand of leaders and raise up a new breed of leaders.
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