Ang Huling Dalawang Wika

Homilya ni Fr. Norman J. Baldoz.

Si Fr. Norman ay isa sa aking paboritong pari. Siya ay naging guro ko sa seminaryo. Magaling siyang mag-kwento, nakakaaliw pero may lalim. Masarap kalaro si Fr. Norman sa basketball lalo na kung magka-team kayo - mahusay siya sa long shot.


Kung si Jesus ay may Pitong Huling Wika, ngayon sa pagtatapos ng PY 2 may dalawang wika lang ako para sa mga magsisipagtapos ng programang ito.

Apat na taon ng nakakalilipas, sinubukan na itong isara, huwag nang ituloy. Maraming kontra. Apat na taon ng nakalilipas, ganito pa rin ang panananaw ng marami. Nang napag-usapan kung itutuloy ba ang PY2, kasama ang mahal na Obispo na nagkaisa na isara na ang PY2.

Ngayong magsasara na ang pinto ng Plaridel para sa PY2, narito ang Dalawang Huling Salita.

Una, huwag limutin si Jesus. Sa ating pagsusumikap na makapagdasal, at tumahimik, ang pakikipagbuno araw-araw sa Holy Hour, ang pagsusulat sa Journal, at ang pakikipagtagpo sa Diyos araw-araw sa Examen Consciousness at Lectio Divina….Sana ang nakuha natin ay hindi kung ano ang pagdarasal, o kung ano ang dapat dasalin.

Sa inyong pananatili rito sa PY2, mas higit sa mga ito ang ginawa natin—nakipagtagpo tayo kay Jesus. Na kasabay pala natin siya sa ating saya, at lungkot, sa ating tagumpay, at maramin beses na pagkakalugmok, sa ating katahimikan at sa ating pagkalito.

Naranasan natin si Jesus. Sana ay huwag nating kalimutan si Jesus.

We give up what is most important for us to what we want at the moment. Yung pinakamahalaga sa atin ay napagpapalit natin sa walang kwentang bagay. Nakakalungkot pero yon ang nangyayari. Huwag nating ipagpalit si Jesus.

Pangalawa, lumipad ka. Malaya ka na. Lumipad ka. Pag nakilala kasi natin si Jesus….nagiging malaya tayo.

Pang labing-anim na taong pari ko na sa darating na Aug. 3. 16 years na po at karamihan sa mga taong ito ay nasa seminaryo ako. May ibang kasiyahan po yung nasa seminaryo.

Ano po yung kaligayahan ko sa seminaryo? Yung nakikita ko pong pagbabago sa seminarista. Dito sa PY2 ay kitang-kita po yan. Mula sa PY1 at galing man sa minor seminary…papasok ng Hunyo na mahiyain, kinakabahan, natatakot, hindi sigurado sa sarili….pero habang nagtatagal…unti-unti, hindi biglaan, at hindi pwersado…napapagmasdan ko ang pagbabago. Masarap ang pakiramdam. Maramdaman nilang mahal sila ng Diyos. Nang nagkaroon kami ng evaluation ito ang mga salita nila: mas nalapit sila sa Diyos. Isasara man ang PY2, kung isip man nila ay hindi epektibo ang programa, sapat na sapat na ang mga salitang ito sa lahat ng aming hirap at pagod.

Kaya nga kayong magsisipagtapos…ngayong malapit na kayo sa Diyos, maging malaya kayo. Lumipad kayo. Hindi na kayo mga inakay, o mga sisiw…handa na kayong lumipad ng lumipad.Sa buhay natin, sa labas man o sa loob, may mga taong sisirain ang loob n’yo. Matatakot kayo sa mga sinasabi. Nagugulat ka sa mga nangyayari. Maaring manghina ang loob mo. Maaring mawala si Jesus. Maaring bumitaw kayo. Makuntento na lang sa buhay. Hindi na maghangad na mabago ang sitwasyon. At maaring masabi, kapag sumuko ka na, na isang malaking drowing ang PY2.

Pag ganito ang nangyayari na, alalahanin mo yung mga ginawa natin rito…at mas higit kung ano ang ginawa ng Diyos sa atin. Magtiwala ka. Maging totoo ka sa sarili mo. At Lumipad ka na parang agila. Ang agila man, lumipad man ito ng matagog, at kahanga-hanga…lumalapag din, dumadapo. Sana ang bawat pagsubok o paghihirap….ituring mong paglapag, pagdapo…para lalo pang lumipad at lumipad. Hindi ka na sisiw…agila ka na.

Wala akong kwento pero meron akong kanta. Baka mas maalala ito. Narito ang buod ng sinasabi ko sa inyo.

you with the sad eyes
Don't be discouraged
Oh i realize
It's hard to take courage
In a world full of people
You can lose sight of it all
And the darkness inside you
Can make you feel so small
But i see your true colors
Shining throughI see your true colors
And that's why i love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow


Dalawang Huling Wika. Baunin nyo ito

Maraming Salamat Bayan ng Pulilan

Bayan ng Pulilan, Bayan ng Diyos, Maraming Salamat.

Biyayang Tinanggap Dahil Sa'yo

Dakila ang Iyong Bayan
Kawan ng Diyos

Kapuripuri Ka Pinagpalang Bayan

Pagpalain Ka Nawa Lagi ng Panginoon, Bayan Iniwan,

upang makapaglingkod sa Malayong Bayan.

God of Silence

The God of silence beckons me

To journey to my heart

Where He awaits

O Lord, I hear You calling tenderly

To You I come to gaze

At the beauty of Your face I cannot see

To rest in Your embrace I cannot feel

To dwell in Your love hurting but sweet

To be with You; to glimpse eternity

God of night, fount of all my delight.

Show Your light . . . that my heart, like Yours, burn bright.

Be still the torment of the night

Will not encumber you, if you believe

My child this darkness isn't emptiness

For here I mold your heart

Unto My image painfully you long to see

The self you yearn to be, but fear to know

The world from which you flee in Me find home

All these I give you, if you remain in Me

I am ever here
My child, you need not fear
The dark will set you free
And bring your heart to Me

The God of silence beckons me

To journey to my heart

Where He awaits me.

Music from the Bukas Palad.

Words and music by Manoling Francisco, S.J.

Dedicated to the Carmelite sisters.

Caught!

5th Sunday of Lent Year C
Reading I: Isaiah 43:16-21

Responsorial Psalm: 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5,

Reading II: Philippians 3:8-14

Gospel: John 8:1-11

It is like a scene from a nightmare. Yet it turns out well.

Suppose you are the woman in Sunday’s Gospel. You have been “caught in adultery” (or some other sin) by the scribes and Pharisees. They shove you into the middle of a circle of people. They reveal your embarrassing sin to everyone.

Shamed, stressed, perspiring, you hear them judge you according to the law of Moses. “The law is sacred,” they declare. “It says you must be stoned to death for your crime.”You are vaguely aware that someone called the “Teacher” is there too. He had been instructing the crowd, it seems, just before you were dragged in. Now the attention is all on you. The nightmare is here…

****

Scribes and Pharisees

There is a saying that goes “hate the sin but not the sinner.” This is what Jesus did in today’s Gospel. He shows God always extends mercy to the sinner that one may turn from his/her sin.

The scribes and Pharisees are exactly the opposite of Jesus, they are typical of powerful people who have no feeling for the weak. They are the strong opponents of Jesus at his time. They are doing everything they can do just to get rid of him. So in this incident, They singled out this poor woman for public condemnation in order used her to score points against Jesus. They deliberately tried to trap Jesus by presenting a difficult problem.

Here is a woman guilty of sexual sin (adultery). At the time of Jesus, adultery was an offense punishable by death. Jewish law treated adultery as a serious crime since it violates God’s sixth commandment and it destroys the stability of marriage and family life. Jesus has been teaching the sanctity of marriage – “What God has united let no one separate.”

They place Jesus in a serious dilemma. Would Jesus condemn her? Would Jesus forgive her in order to save her from death penalty of public stoning? They hoped that he would absolve the woman. If so they would accused him before Sanhedrin, not only of tolerating sin, but also of a sacrilegious attempt against the Law of Moses.

They also hoped that Jesus would condemn this woman and agreed upon death penalty. If this so he would violate Roman law, which did not allow the Jews to administer capital punishment. So whatever the solution he gave would work to his disadvantage. And the scribes and Pharisees couldn’t wait to see the downfall of Jesus’ credibility and reputation for being compassionate even to sinner.

Jesus was trapped. There is no way out. But Jesus dealt with the situation calmly. Look at his action of bending down and writing on the ground. It suggests tremendous inner strength which, in a non-violent way, unmasks the hypocrisy of the accusers.

The tension is resolved by Jesus’ with his world, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Nobody is left to throw stones cleanly. Jesus missions her to live as a loved human person, not just as a “thing” that can be used. The Pharisees use her for their purposes as did the man who used her sexually. Jesus uses her as well as a revelation of God’s gentleness, compassion and forgiveness. He frees her from the captivity of the crowd, the Pharisees and the Law.

However, Jesus does not intend to say that adultery is not a sin or that it is a small thing. Only when the crowd are gone that Jesus directly spoke to the woman, “Woman where are they? Has no one condemned you? The woman replied, “no one sir”. Neither do I condemn you.” There is an explicit, even if delicate, condemnation of adultery in the words addressed to the woman at the end of the scene: "Do not sin anymore."


As disciples of Jesus, we are also aware that humans are weak and are more in need of understanding than of condemnation. Jesus taught us: “Do not judge and you shall not be judged” (Mt 7:1). And so, while condemning adultery, we do not pass judgment on those who commit adultery. Like Jesus, we receive them with compassion and try to love them into goodness. Yes, love them so tenderly that they will be inspired to become the saints they potentially are. In short, as disciples of Jesus we hate the sin but we love the sinner. It is difficult stance to adopt, but it is the only Christ-like stance, the only that stance which promotes life, gentleness and happiness.

Let us pray that we may look at other people with respect and compassion as Jesus look at the woman taken in adultery.

Let us pray that God will send us leaders like Jesus who will stand with the weak and vulnerable against their oppressors not aggressively, but calmly, so that the weak may find the space to created a good life for themselves.

Let us humbly ask the grace of God, that may be freed from our own addiction to sin, “let us go and sin no more.”




source: http://www.liturgy.slu.edu/

Pananatili

Pananatili
by the Bukas Palad

Huwag mong naising lisanin kita;
Wala ‘kong hangaring ika’y mag-isa.
Sa’n man magtungo, ako’y sasabay,
Magkabalikat sa paglalakbay.
Mananahan sa tahanang sisilong sa ‘yo,


Yayakapin ang landasin at bayan mo.
Poon mo ay aking ipagbubunyi
At iibigin nang buong sarili.
Sa’n man abutin ng paghahanap,
Ikaw at ako’y magkasamang ganap.

Ipahintulot nawa ng Panginoon:
Ni kamataya’y maglalaho,
anino ng kahapon.
Dahil pag-ibig ang alay sa ‘yo,
mananatili ako.
H’wag nang naising tayo’y mawalay,
H’wag nang isiping
Magwawakas ang paglalakbay.

Homecoming

Fourth Sunday of Lent
March 18, 2007

QUESTION: At the end of the story of the prodigal son,
who felt the worst of all?
ANSWER: The fattened calf!


The Gospel for the Fourth Sunday of Lent is one of the most celebrated stories of Luke's Gospel and of all four Gospels. Everything in the parable of the prodigal son is surprising; no one had never portrayed God in this way.

This parable has touched more hearts than all the sermons that have been preached put together. It has an incredible power to act on the mind, the heart, the imagination, and memory. It is able to touch our humanity by repentance, shame, nostalgia.

The theme of the parable is the unconditional love of God. Also, it has the theme of the Joy of God for a repentant sinner… the joy of homecoming.

There are three main characters in parables addressed by Jesus to the Pharisees...

The Son
The youngest son, like many young people, was longing for freedom, he wanted to be independent. He thought he would be responsible enough being away from home, being free. He wanted to prove the world that he can live on his own. The son knew the comfort and security he would have if he would stay with his father, but the thought of his own money and freedom was very attractive.

He asked for what he thought he deserved, and the Father let him have it. Instead of the glamorous life he thought he would have, after the initial fun he ended up having to work with pigs just to barely survive. To a Jew, this was the ultimate disgrace, for pigs are considered the uncleanest of animals.

He came to senses, he decided to come back to his Father. But his motive is not really to reconcile with his Father. He never thinks of the humiliation of he caused his Father or the anger he caused his elder brother, his only concern is his own survival – his empty stomach! He says to himself, How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger. I shall get up and go to my father. He tries to memorize a speech that he’s going to say to his father to make him believe he’s sorry, he is afraid that he will not be welcomed anymore.

But then look at what happens when he returns to his father... Despite everything he is not driven away....His father was so overjoyed at his return he didn't even wait for his son to get all the way back...he ran out and met him! When the son recites his memorized speech, his father won’t let him continue. His father is busy hugging him, calling for the finest robe in the house, a ring for the young man’s finger, sandals for his feet, and a huge banquet of celebration.

The good Father understands. He is overcome with joy that his young boy came home. "Let us eat and make merry, for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.

The Forgiving Father
Jesus wants to assure us that God our Father is always there for us. The parable shows how much God wishes the return of the sinner and with what goodness he prepares to welcome us. He will not deny us if we come to Him, and He will not shame us for our past actions when we do. God holds us so close to his heart that he is willing to take the losses we inflict. Even when we join forces with evil in the world God waits and prays and welcomes us back with open arms, sins and all.

The Self-Righteous Son
The elder son in the story is a self-righteous person. He is a type of the Pharisees. He represents the hardness of the Scribes and Pharisess who have no idea of God’s mercy with sinners.

The elder Son sees his father’s forgiveness with proud envy. When his Father throw a party for his younger brother, “he became angry, and when he refused to enter the house, his father came out and pleaded with him.” His words to his Father are disrespecting and he has contempt for his younger brother, calling him not his brother, but the son of his father. The elder son says, Look all these years I served you and not once did I disobey you orders yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on my friends...but when your son returns who spent all your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf..”

The Father never raise his voice, he speaks with gentleness and understanding, he said to him, My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.

The father is the symbol of perfect lover. His qualities as loving, forgiving and understanding parent makes the message of Lent clear: be reconciled to God.

Let us be confident that our loving Father welcomes us with an open arms.. His love is manifested through his Son, Jesus Christ, whose arms are wide open hanging on the Cross.

God is our first and true love, let us now return to him… Amen

Be fruitful

THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT

(Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-15; Psalm 103; 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12)
LUKE 13:1-9

PART I

In Jesus' time, suffering was seen as a sign of punishment for sin. Those who hoped for a triumphant Messiah that would reestablish Israel in power found his teaching on the cross difficult to accept.

Jesus pointed out recent disasters that people believed to be the consequence of sin. Jesus referred to two types of calamities one political and one natural. In one incident, Pontius Pilate's men killed some Jewish Galileans in cold-blood while they were offering sacrifice in the Jerusalem Temple at Passover. In another case, several construction workers were accidentally killed when a water tower fell on them. These individuals did not die because of their own sins. Although they were innocent of wrongdoing, they nonetheless suffered the reality of evil in the world. We must not look to the sinfulness of others but to our own need for repentance. Without faith, these calamities would be seen as terrible tragedies, but with faith, all events in a person's life, whether good or bad, could be sanctifying and redemptive.

In other words, the important thing is not what happens to us but how we react to it. Some people react in a negative way to the hardships of life and they become bitter. Others react in a negative way to the hardships of life and they become bitter. Others react in a positive, trusting way, and they become better. Do I view the trials in my life as tragedies or opportunities for growth? The choice of what we become is really ours: bitter or better?


Part II

Jesus told a people a parable about a fruitless fig tree planted in the vineyard (the fruitless tree was a symbol of barren Israel, Jer 8:13; Isaiah told a similar parable about a fruitless vineyard, Is 5:1-7). The parable of the owner of the vineyard tells of God’s infinite patience in dealing with the sinfulness of humans. Despite our failings, God will graciously allow us time to produce our best fruit. In what areas is God allowing us time to change..


Lent is a time when we think particularly about how we can do thing ‘to bear more fruit’ and what is this fruit…? We think of the fruits of the Holy Spirit..love, joy, peace, patient, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness and self-control.
While God was merciful and patient in waiting for it to bear, time was running out. Each and everyone of us is gifted with different things, but with equal responsibility of sharing these gifts.

Let us not lose our courage and confidence…
Jesus, gentle gardener,we are like your barren fig tree.We bear no fruit, we bore no fruit for you.Please nurture us.Feed our branches with your life-giving Eucharist.Pour living water over us one more time.Drench us with grace.As a tree we grow toward the sun.Turn our selves toward you.Always in the turning is the promiseof growth.

First School Mass

MacKillop College Year 10 Mass
March 6, 2007

"These hands used to be strong. My dad was a farmer. He worked so hard althrough his life…" Words spoken by a daughter of a dying man I anointed last week..

Metaphorically the hand is power and strength. What a man can do is that which is in his hand or to which his hand reaches. To give into the hand of someone is to deliver into his power or possession; and to take out of the hand is to deliver…

• The picture of Amellia Taylor being held in the palms of the hands of her carer is a stunning reminder of our relationship with God who holds us in the palms of his hands.
• It is an image that we want to be in the hearts and minds of each person in this room today for it is the image of the carer and the cared. These are our rights and responsibilities for this year and for ever – to be people who extend care to those we meet and who receive the care that they have to share with us.

Human Hands of Jesus
For about 20 years Jesus worked in a small town carpenter's shop. His rough, calloused, strong hands were driven by excellence, patience, and skill. Jesus grew in His craft as He spent hours watching the hands of His father. Our Lord saw life through the eyes of skilled laborers and common people.

Helping Hands of Jesus
Remember when Peter walks on water. Then Peter starts to sink. Swallowing water Peter gurgles, Lord, save me! (Matthew 14:29,30) The hand of Jesus is there, locking on Peter's stretched hand, then pulling him with a gush of water strongly upright. Arm in arm they walk to the boat. See Jesus bolding a child on His lap. His hands are hugging and gentle as He affirms the eternal worth of a child in the Kingdom.

Divine Hands of Jesus
The hands of Jesus were active doing God's will. See the crowd's faces as Jesus touches the leper, and white skin comes alive. Those fingers of love touch the faces and eyes of blind men and they see!

His hands nailed on the Cross

How could the Hands of the Creator end up like this? The Carpenter from Galilee is outside Jerusalem hanging on a tree. His carpenter's hands are nailed to a wooden cross, as He dies with our sins. The hands of Jesus are good at repairing things: broken hearts and lives. His hands mean new hope. It's not over. His hand on you removes the limits — for of Him and through Him and to Him are all things (Romans 11:36). We are parts of His body . . . Christ lives in me (Ephesians 5:30; Galatians 2:20). You are Jesus' hands on earth. Let Him do His miracle work through you this year!

****
At the end of World War II American soldiers quartered in a German village offered aid to the desolate people there. But instead of asking for food, money, farm equipment, the town people asked help in restoring a statue.

For years their proudest possession had been a beautiful statue in the town square. Now it lay shattered in many pieces. Could the Americans help them put it together again?

The task was difficult but, finally, the statue was repaired except for two missing parts that the soldiers were unable to find or replace.

Then the soldiers covered the statue with a silken material so it could be unveiled in a ceremony before all the townspeople, even though the statue was incomplete.

The mayor of the town pulled the cord, and the silken drape dropped from the statue: a handless Christ.

The townspeople stared at the sign which the soldiers had placed at the feet of the statue: “I have no hands. Won’t you please lend me yours?”*

*This story is from 1,000 Stories by Fr Frank Mihalic SVD

Transfiguration: Forestate and Reminder

Second Sunday of Lent Year C
March 3, 2007
Reading I: Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18
Responsorial Psalm: 27:1, 7-8, 8-9, 13-14
Reading II: Philippians 3:17-4:1 or 3:20-4:1
Gospel: Luke 9:28b-36

For the last three months of being an Assistant Priest here at St. Andrew’s showed me glimpse or foretaste of the glory and hardship of what it is being a priest. Through the leadership of Fr. Frank as parish priest, God showed me the enormous responsibilities of being a priest. Other than celebrating Mass everyday, officiating baptisms, funerals and wedding, priest has to manage the financial stability of the parish; he has to deal with individual needs of people who seek for his counsel and help.

I realise that life of a priest is really a challenging life, and it is a life of sacrifice. But, other than life of sacrifice, God showed me the glory and consolation of the being a priest, by being part of people’s lives, by receiving constant support and encouragement from the people, and of course by sharing friendships with the parishioners, with you.

I was thinking last night after I said my evening prayer inside my room how my simple life has changed – from being simple student in the Philippines, my life has changed to a complex reality of being a priest in a foreign country.

****
I’d like to highlight the word “change” as we reflect upon today’s readings.

Both the second reading and the gospel speak of a “change.” The second reading speaks of the change of our earthly existence in the final consummation. St. Paul was saying that Jesus Christ will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body.

The Gospel speaks of the change of Jesus as he prayed on the holy mountain. We heard about the experience of the three Apostles, Peter, Andrew and John, when they saw before their eyes the transfiguration of Jesus. Jesus’ face completely changed in appearance and his clothes became dazzling white.

What the Apostles saw of Jesus was his glorified body and divine glory. When they heard the voice of the Father, the first person of the Trinity, from the cloud saying, This is my chosen Son; listen to him, this gave them a momentary prevision or a foretaste of Christ’s future glory. Jesus is not just a human being, he is human and divine.

Why did Jesus allow his disciples to catch sight of his divinity, his inner being? Jesus has a purpose why he transfigured, why his face changed before his Apostles. He didn’t do this just show off to his Apostles his glory and power. Jesus wanted to strengthen his Apostles in preparation for the ordeal awaiting them in Jerusalem. Christ is readying his Apostles and his followers not to lose their faith when they see him suffer, being mocked, crucified, and when they witness his death on the cross. He wanted his followers to remember that after his passion and death there would be his glorious resurrection.

The glimpse of Christ’s future glory was given to these Apostles to strengthen and encourage them, when their former normal lives change into a life of sacrifice, the experience of hardships, persecutions and terrible tests of their faith. History tells us that the Apostles didn’t have an easy life. They gave up their possessions, they left their loved ones and their homeland, they also gave up their lives…

The readings for today especially the Gospel encourage and strengthen us to persevere in any hardships we are facing in our life. Whether you are priest, married or single, we have our own individual hardships and sacrifices in life.


****

I mentioned that life of a priest is a life of sacrifice. But I am also aware that every state of life also has a sacrifice of its own. Life is not always easy; each of us have our own struggles and difficulties in life. Whether you are priest, married or single, we have our own individual hardships and sacrifices in life.

Christ understands our individual suffering more than we do. Jesus wants to show us today, especially this Lenten season that even in the midst of life’s suffering there is always hope available for us.

His Transfiguration signifies that Jesus is the glory hidden in our everyday lives. The Church is teaching us especially during this Lenten season that our penance and sacrifice can earn for us a glorious and unending future life.

So, let us not lose courage and trust in God. Do not let our anxiety, fear and lack of faith triumph over us. Our worries and troubles in life are nothing when compared with the assurance and certainty we have in the next life.

Let us thank our divine Lord today for giving this consoling and encouraging vision of his glory, his Transfiguration, to his Apostles and through them to us. For in Jesus’ Transfiguration, we saw a guarantee and a foretaste, a glimpse of the joys and the glory that will be ours for eternity.

The good news is we have today is the reality that like Jesus our life will also change into its glorious beauty forever, but only if we allow Jesus to take us to his journey…

Amen.

Temptation Galore

First Sunday of Lent
February 24-25, 2007
Reading I: Deuteronomy 26:4-10
Responsorial Psalm: 91:1-2, 10-11, 12-13, 14-15
Reading II: Romans 10:8-13
Gospel: Luke 4:1-13

A temptation is an act that looks appealing to an individual. It is usually used to describe acts with negative connotations and as such, tends to lead a person to regret such actions as a result of guilt. Temptation also describes the coaxing or inducing a person into commiting such an act, by manipulation or otherwise of curiosity, desire or fear of loss. In other words, we understand temptation as something that attracts, especially with the promise of pleasure or reward.

Temptation in Christian understanding is not sin itself. It is when we entertains temptation that we commit sin. So the best remedy to avoid sin is to avoid the occasion of temptation. We say it is every we pray the Our Father, “Lead us not into temptation.”

Temptations often appear beautiful, promising and rewarding.

I remember a in the seminary said in his homily. We have to be aware with the voices of the devil when we are tempted: "No one can see you. Nobody will know. It will not cause you any harm. Everyone is doing it anyway. You are not alone. So, do it now!"

When we hear any of these four, we know we are being tempted. What we do is to flee as soon as possible. Everyone is tempted. No one can escape the temptation of the devil, even Jesus was tempted but did not sin.

Three Temptations

Quite naturally the First Sunday of Lent starts out with the temptations of Christ in the desert. Why naturally? Because Lent is a time to take off the blinders of sin and prepare to listen truly during Holy Week. Jesus models this kind of listening in the Gospel.
The temptations of devil to Jesus corresponds to three P's:

• First, “command this stone to become bread.” Power
• Second, the devil showed the kingdom of the world, “I shall give you this power and glory.” Prestige
• Third, “throw yourself down from here on the parapet of the temple.” Position

Every temptation Jesus has a direct answer: (1) One does not live on bread alone. (2) You shall worship the Lord, your God, and him alone shall you serve. (3) You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.

At the end the devil got exhausted and he left.

If we look more deeply on the temptations, and try how we can identify ourselves with those, we will find that all three are really variations on the one temptation not to be totally trusting. Jesus is also human being like us. When tempted he chose to trust God, our loving Father. In each trial, Jesus showed that he was the faithful Son who refused to succumb to the attraction of power, prestige and position. Satan was defeated and retreated until the final test when Jesus conquered evil on the cross.

Lent: Invitation to the desert

Lenten season is an invitation for us to follow Jesus in his dessert experience so that we can trust God more than ever when temptations and trials face us --- when our financial situation was very precaurious; we had a succession of failures in our work; when our children are causing us problems; when there is no peace in our family

The next 40 plus days we are all invited to have a changed of heart in order for us to put our trust and confidence in God. Also, Lenten season is a time of penance to avoid temptations. During this season we are asked to devote more time in prayer, to engage ourselves in works of piety and charity, and to self-denial by devoting our time and resources for other people.

Prayer
Jesus, Lenten work begins. Take us to a place of quiet.Exercise our souls. Correct our sagging, wild, sluggish spirits.Give us spiritual muscles, and docile quick faith.Let us come forth from the desert filled with your Holy Spirit.Let our every action Be rooted in your Spirit’s stirrings in our souls.

Pagbabalik Tanaw

While I was reciting privately the Divine Office (evening prayer) I suddenly felt homesick about my second home. I miss my seminary life. I miss being a seminarian. I miss my classmates. I miss our singing, gaguhan, kainan, and class Mass. I miss my old room (cubicle). I miss our community life, and everything within the walls of Immaculate Conception Major Seminary in Bulacan - the place where my vocational journey began..

After I said my prayer I took my guitar, played and sang this song, which I used to sing with my brother seminarians as communion hymn... We were called young, vulnerable, and often struggling to follow and obey the divine will of God. Kumusta na kaya sila?



AWIT NG PAGHAHANGAD

O Diyos Ikaw ang laging hanap,
Loob ko’y Ikaw ang tanging hangad.
Nauuhaw akong parang tigang na lupa
Sa tubig ng ‘Yong pag-aaruga.

Ika’y pagmamasdan sa dakong banal,
Nang makita ko ang ‘Yong pagkarangal.
Dadalangin akong nakataas aking kamay,
Magagalak na aawit ng papuring iaalay.

Koro:
Gunita ko’y Ikaw Habang nahihimlay
Pagkat ang tulong Mo sa tuwina’y taglay.
Sa lilim ng Iyong mga pakpak (umaawit akong buong galak/umaawit, umaawit, umaawit akong buong galak.)

Aking kaluluwa’y kumakapit sa ‘Yo,
Kaligtasa’y t’yak kong hawak Mo ako.
Magdiriwang ang hari ang Diyos S’yang dahilan.
Ang sa Iyo ay nangakong galak yaong makakamtan. (koro)

Despida party

Kriska (Kristiyanong Kasambahay) Group competing for Mr Kasambahay "Mr. Pogi"

Receiving my first sutane from Bishop Cirilo Almario Jr. (1995)

Group picture with M' Tess, our charming librarian.

Piyesta grande pag may nagdala ng cake.

Charter Change Rally in 1998. Hanapin kung san ako.

Feb 22, 2007

March 1, 2007

One year and one week older.

Maraming salamat sa mga bumati, nagtext at nag-email.



Ilan sa kanila ay ang mga sumusunod.

Annette
ate Hazel
ate Marsha
Ate Michelle
Catherine
Charish
Christine joy
Cune
Edgar
Ellen
Esperanza
Fian
Glenn
Ina
Ivy
Ivy
Jen
Laarnie
Leah
Karen
Liberty
Lovely
Mabel
Mary
Melissa
Mellisa
Monnette
Nina
Nini
Noemie
Odra
Orchid
Patricia
Peter
Philip
Pinky
Pj
Racle
Rocel
Ronald
Ronaldo
Rossel
Sister Maria
Stella Marie
Stella marie
Tita nena
Tita Patsy