OUR PARISH PRIEST

This is serious! 13th Sunday ordinary time Here are some ways people show their faith: Rudy is catholic but is one of the millions of catholics who rarely go to church. Zeny goes to church but leaves immediately after Communion. She doesn’t finish the Mass and is not interested to hear the announcements of what’s going on in the parish. And of course, when it rains… forget about the Mass! Monching knows he was baptized as a child but he doesn’t remember ever receiving confirmation or first communion. Nor is he interested in finding out. Faith for many Catholics today, can be best described by the term “Catholic lite” – just like Coke light, watered down version, eroded, assigned the back seat, chosen for comfort. The gospel shows us how demanding Jesus is. Just the other day I was tackling this gospel in my seminary class - how differently Jesus summoned disciples. Unlike other rabbis, Jesus set strict conditions: total response, radical yes, a c...

THE SPIRIT BLOWS… IN MY PARISH Learning experiences for a pastor and his flock – 2 RECONCILIATION OF ENEMIES It was the first time that I was transferring from one parish to another. That morning of my departure, the active, faithful and supportive parishioners were all around the rectory trying to help pick boxes, bags and whatever furniture I was to bring. Others were milling around inside the church looking sad, crying, murmuring their farewells, waiting to kiss my hand or hug their pastor one last time. Outside the church, a retinue of jeeps, jeepneys, cars and a pick-up truck was readying to transport the people who would accompany me on my exit trail. As I stepped outside the church, I was met by all sorts parishioners – the ladies who volunteer to clean, the youth wearing the ‘I love fr. Ramil’ shirts, neighbors expressing gratitude and sadness, etc… Suddenly there came to me, two ladies who were crying their hearts out, telling me how they wil...

THE SPIRIT BLOWS… IN MY PARISH Learning experiences for a pastor and his flock – 1 THE BEST FAREWELL It is a different kind of high one experiences when the source of joy comes from an unexpected person at an unexpected time. One of the first visits I made to a neighbor in the parish community was to an old woman who recently lost her husband. I attended the wake, made acquaintances with the family and engaged this widow in a beautiful conversation. When I inquired whether she or her family went to church regularly, she said it was a practice never promoted in their home. Her husband, while still alive, would buy flowers and leave them at the door of the church or at the steps of the rectory so as not to be noticed. But the family had no habit of going to Sunday mass. Besides, she claimed, the sound system was much too clear from the outside, she could recite all the homilies I delivered since I arrived. And yes, all the time I was in that parish, the lady nev...

SACRIFICE IS THE PROOF OF LOVE 12th Sunday - Ordinary Time Many new things facilitate daily living now. The cell phone made trips to the phone booth unnecessary. Mail is sent through email instead of the post office. Food is delivered to your doorsteps. The computer can be carried in your pocked in the form of the palmtop and other gadgets. Because of this, we have grown impatient because technology made us move in a fast-paced world. Anything slow and below par in quality must be declared obsolete and unnecessary. Anything that burdens must be eliminated. What do we feel when we hear our Lord Jesus pronounce these words in the gospel: If anyone wants to follow me, he must forget himself, carry his cross every day and follow me.” This is after Peter had just confessed his faith in Jesus as the Messiah, as the Savior. The Lord is telling us that if our faith in him is strong, if we believe he is the Savior sent by the Father, if we resolve to follow him, t...

GOD’S SOLUTION 11th Sunday - Ordinary Time Sin is a big problem in our day to day life. And so it needs a solution. Generally, there are two solutions to sin, two solutions to human mistakes and wrongdoing. The first solution, the human solution is cover-up. We resort to cover-up when we lie to ourselves. We deceive ourselves by saying that we have not sinned, we are not guilty. I once had a fixed schedule in a local jail hearing confessions. When my parishioners asked me whether it was too taxing to hear the confessions of convicts, I joked that in fact, it was very easy. All of them say they have no sin. They are not guilty at all! We resort to cover-up when we sugarcoat our sins. We use beautiful technical, scientific words to describe what we have done – abortion is not murder, only the expulsion of a “tissue” from a woman’s body. Corruption is not stealing but only a “commission” for a government project. Not adultery, only “mischief...

As we end the Year for Priests, Please Pray for your Priests Dear Lord, we pray that the Blessed Mother wrap her mantle around your priests and through her intercession strengthen them for their ministry. We pray that Mary will guide your priests to follow her own words, “Do whatever He tells you” (Jn 2:5). May your priests have the heart of St. Joseph, Mary’s most chaste spouse. May the Blessed Mother’s own pierced heart inspire them to embrace all who suffer at the foot of the cross. May your priests be holy, filled with the fire of your love seeking nothing but your greater glory and the salvation of souls. Amen. Saint John Vianney, pray for us. HAPPY FEAST OF THE SACRED HEART TO ALL!

A BEAUTIFUL BODY IS A BROKEN BODY CORPUS CHRISTI What is a beautiful body? Is it a sexy body, the one belonging to models and beauty queens? Is it a strong body, the one you seen in bodybuilders and weightlifters? Is it a healthy body, free of toxins, nourished by vegetarian meals? If we consult the Scriptures today, we can say that a beautiful body is not the sexy body, not the healthy body, not the strong body. I’ll tell you a story… I administered the Sacrament of Anointing to a man past his 90’s. His body was worn-out, legs and arms immobile, eyes and ears failing. He had strong hands though, big and calloused from years of intense labor. This old man came from a large family and in his early years learned to work as a fisherman to assist his parents and help his siblings go through school. While his brothers and sisters finished college, he never made it to high school. He later married and raised a family, supporting all his children to co...