OUR PARISH PRIEST

THE HOLY SPIRIT – GOD, OUR FRIEND (SOLEMN FEAST OF PENTECOST, 2009) Reunions are always exciting events.   And to me, nothing beats a high school reunion.   A few weeks ago, I attended my high school batch reunion.   25 years passed since we graduated.   I could see happiness on the faces of all those present.   Why?   Because we were reunited with friends, true and tested friends; the same friends with whom we discovered life and love; with whom we grew in seriousness and mischief. Friends have a way of reviving our hope that no other person – spouse, family or workmate – can ever do. A man discovered his cancer cells returned.   All he wanted to do was resign himself to it and die. He refused further medication. Then the wife notified the man’s best friend who visited and talked to the man.   Inspired by the visit, the man agreed to be treated again.   His confidence and hope rekindled by the words of a friend. Today, as we celebrate Pentecost, I believe that a fresh approach t...

JOYFUL VISITORS FROM ST. IGNATIUS St. Ignatius Parish was my second parish as pastor.  And today, Sunday, a delegation of former parishioners came to visit me in my Tagaytay home.  Truly, Filipino Catholics love and support their priests with all their hearts.  This group came to cheer me up, never mind that they are youth leaders of that parish many, many years back.  It just feels great to be surrounded by grandmas who consider you as their priest and their grandson!  After celebrating Mass for them, we enjoyed the food they brought all the way from Taguig and then, the mandatory picture-taking!!!  Salamat po mga lola ng Taguig! To ensure that i will entertain them, the grandmas thought of using a bait - they brought along my two dogs, now in the loving care of Ate Melinda, my former parish cook. Meet Wewe, a shitzu and Meecah, a jack russel terrier.  nice to meet you again, my dear pets!  how i miss you here in tagaytay!  But we have to "let go and let God!"

JESUS' CLOSEST FRIENDS I just like to share this photo of the children from our Holy Family Parochial School, posing with the Corpus of Jesus before it was hoisted permanently at the center of the church sanctuary. Jesus must be so glad and consoled at the presence of his closest friends!

LET GO AND LET GOD! Ascension Sunday (7th Easter) They say that one of the indications of growing old is fondness for reminiscences, for nostalgia, for remembering events or people long gone.   That is why listening to our grandparents, we patiently endured their repeated stories about the Japanese era, the American occupation or the glories of their favorite dead presidents. So next time you catch yourself pining for things of the past, watch out – you might be growing old! Many people are comfortable with the past and cling to it with all their might.   If possible they want to return to the past because the past is a safer haven, a better time, a better condition.   They cannot let go. They do not want to move on.   They want to return to that which is no longer here. At this feast of the Ascension, we can imagine the apostles overjoyed that Jesus has risen from the dead.   They start to believe that things will be just the same as before.   Jesus will be present and do for...

2009-2010: Year for Priests! The Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI will declare open the Year for Priests (June 19, 2009 - June 19, 2010) to commemorate the 150th death anniversary of St. John Mary Vianney, patron saint of priests, specially parish priests.  In line with this, the Holy Father is calling all bishops of the world to start programs celebrating the gift of the priesthood in the life of the Church.  By now, the Cardinal-Archbishop of Manila, His Eminence Gaudencio B. Rosales, has already conceived programs for priests both for his archdiocese and for the entire country.  Let us await the announcement of activities in which we will all participate in as priests, religious and lay people.   This blog will try to contribute something to this Jubilee of Priests by posting articles on the priesthood, sharing personal experiences of my priestly ministry, specially as former parish priest of 3 parishes in Metro Manila, and giving updates on the line-up of activities connected to the e...

25   YEARS AND MOVING ON…AND AHEAD! We were there last Saturday, May 16, 2009, at the very place where we last saw each other before we launched into our own dreams, our future lives, our destinies. It’s so hard to believe that 25 years ago - after four years of living together and forming youthful but tenacious bonds that preceded that main event - we received our high school diplomas, went into the big city to pursue college or started to work for our families (as some without regrets had actually done), or started our own families (as some of us boldly and idealistically did in the name of young love). Many of us ventured far after graduation into the unknown jungles of city life exploring an independence that came by way of new friends, cheap boarding houses or dormitories and love interests.   Many of us also decided to remain in the province, our sweet, idyllic Bulacan, to help ageing parents in the fields, stores and shops or some other business as a way of kee...

MALIGAYANG KAARAWAN DEAR A-A!!! In the parish, the priest cannot do things alone. He needs the support, the inspiration and all the help that lay people, his brothers and sisters can and should give to the Church. In my last parish, the "best parish in the world," I was blessed to have as my partner in the work of serving the People of God, the "Best Parish Pastoral Council President in the World"!!! Happy Birthday, servant of God and friend of the poor - my dearest sister Cita Quilala!  my prayers and the gratitude of the entire community.  God bless you!  Stay happy, healthy and holy!

IS JESUS YOUR FRIEND? Sixth Sunday of Easter  Many people tried to convince me to join “Friendster” but I didn’t. But now I joined “Facebook” and I am hooked into it, checking my account everyday and faithfully updating pictures and personal events.   By now these cyber networks are considered a new cultural phenomena.   What makes “Friendster,” “Facebook” and “Multiply” a big success among us?   And related to this, what makes cell phone text messages an untiring passion among the old and the young?   For one, these activities ignite in us the passion to connect with others -faceless, yet exciting others.   Though not physically present, they are our “friends.”   They may not send us regular and original messages but we keep them on our list because we believe they are there for us, when we need them. They are our collection, our reserve of friends. Today we experience an evolution of the meaning of the word “friend”. A friend is someone linked to us by computer or cell phone...

CAN THE YOUNG SAVE HUMANITY? A Final Word on Christian Capinpin My last official mission as parish priest of Holy Family, Kapitolyo in Pasig City was to bless the newly repaired and refurbished library of our parochial school last April 29, 2009 at 4:30pm, just before my thanksgiving and farewell Mass. The library was also renamed that afternoon as the “Christian Gabriel D. Capinpin Library.”  Since early this year, Christian has been my favorite topic in homilies, talks, recollections and even classes in the seminary. Who was Christian Capinpin?  Why was he important to his family and friends, his parish, to other young people and children, to the rest of the world? Christian was a young man of 19 years, when he suddenly died on February 3, 2009 after just a very short but also complicated and puzzling blood-related illness.  In the years I have been his parish priest, I sensed that there was something beautiful not only in the externals of this handsome young...

CHRISTIANS MUST BEAR FRUIT Fifth Sunday of Easter One of the keys to understanding the message of the gospel is to pay attention to words often repeated. In today’s gospel, about the vine and the branches, the phrase “bear fruit” is repeated five times.   There must be some emphasis then in the mind and heart of Jesus about his disciples’ future performance of their responsibility in the church, in the society and in the world. We wonder how as human beings, living in very challenging situations of today, we can bear fruit.   We are amazed at the achievements of the people we see in the highlights of television and newspapers and think that following them we might perhaps bear fruit. Do we bear fruit when we bag the headlines after winning an athletic feat like the powerful Manny Pacquiao, that great Filipino boxer? He is surely the most illustrious native of our country today.   Do we bear fruit when we advertise in the media our concern for the poor of the country as local ...

THE GOODNESS OF JESUS THE SHEPHERD Fourth Sunday of Easter One of my parishioners joined the presidential party for an international meeting of world leaders.   A riot threatened to destroy the order of the meeting and suddenly all the presidents and prime ministers of the nations were whisked in private helicopters to avoid harm.   These leaders left behind the presidential parties they organized to join them, each one of these subordinates scrambling for safety when the rioters came to storm the building.   My parishioner was unhurt physically but kept asking why his own leader abandoned him and his companions in that moment of danger. News spread all over the world about a certain ship captain who traded his own freedom for the safety and release of his crew and passengers when pirates attacked their vessel.   Many commentators hailed this heroic act as a proof of real service and sacrifice still present in the world. While there have been different ver...