The Filipino Catholic

Transcription

The Filipino
CATHOLIC
VOL. 14, NO.3
Spreading the Good News
October 14 - November 11, 2009
LORENZO!
Feast Day celebrations
of First Filipino Saint
KARAKOL
of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary
Photo by Henry Medrano
We Have To Act Now!
Our Kababayans are in need of help because
of the havoc brought by Typhoon Ondoy.
Since the need is immediate, Fr. Romy
Montero approved the release of the initial
amount of $2,000.00 taken from the General
Fund of the Filipino Pastoral Ministry to be
replaced later with All the funds raised
through donations by sponsors, benefactors
and donors for the Fiesta celebration of the
POON HESUS NAZARENO this coming January 3, 2010. 100% for the Typhoon Ondoy
Fund.
This will be the fund raising project of the “Poon Hesus Nazareno sa Village” of the Filipino
Pastoral Ministry of Our Lady of Pompei. Generous donations will allow us to help our
Kababayans who are in need in this hard times. Please help.
A check for $ 2000.00 was already given to the Handang Tumulong –Typhoon Ondoy Fund,
hand delivered by Msgr. Romy Montero to the Philippine Consulate on October 2, received and
duly acknowledged by Deputy Consul General Millie Thomeczek. We are aware that this
amount is just a drop in the bucket. We hope that we will continue to help and support each
other.
To help, please send your donations to :
Filipino Pastoral Ministry
Our lady of Pompei Church
Poon Hesus Nazareno – Typhoon Ondoy Fund
25 Carmine St. New York, NY 10014
Your check donation should be made payable to : Filipino Pastoral Ministry – Nazareno
Typhoon Ondoy Fund
Thank you for your support,
Henry & Cely Medrano
Hermano Mayor 2010
Poon Hesus Nazareno sa Village
The Novena Mass for the Poon Hesus Nazareno in preparation for the
January 3rd feast day will start on Sunday, November 1 at 3:00 P.M.
Page 2 • October 14 - November 11, 2009 • The Filipino Catholic
The
Filipino
Catholic
(BN96001443), an independent
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offices at
453 Hawthorne Ave.,
Uniondale, NY 11553, is
published monthly and
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The Filipino Catholic is staffed
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not necessarily reflect the views
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Church.
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Contributing Writers
& Columnists:
Rev. Peter James R. Alindogan
Rev. Euly B. Belizar, Jr.
Rev. Basilio Colasito
Msgr. R. Dimaculangan
Art Esguerra
Robert Fernandez
Andrea Florendo
Fr. Alfred Guthrie
AA Medrano
Norma Pascual
John Primi
Fr. James Reuter
Sonia S. Salerni
Rene Tubilleja
Maria Pascual
Felix Vinluan, Esq.
Jeanne Young
Photography
Henry Medrano
Albert Betito
Circulation & Distribution
Jun Makinano
Wendel Javier
Spiritual Director
Fr. Joe Cadusale
Editor & Publisher
Manny Pascual
Write us at:
P.O. Box 3067
Garden City, NY 11531
(516) 292-1445 phone/fax
Email: FilCath@optonline.net
FROM THE EDITOR
My little grandchildren Ethan and Allie live in Queens and often come with their parents to visit me
and my wife. When 5-year old Ethan heard about the floods in the Philippines, he got very worried
about us, his lolo and lola. His father assured them that lolo and lola are safe and that although they
are Filipinos, they do not live in the Philippines – the place where they live is called Long Island, New
York.
Ethan’s loving concern and his first lesson in geography managed to make us smile in the midst of
some very devastating news of the recent floods in the Philippines.
Manny Pascual
Fr. Gerry Orbos (some of whose writings appeared in the Filipino Catholic a few years ago) once
said that the Filipinos are blessed with three things. The gift of laughter, the gift of music, and most
importantly the gift of faith.
While watching the Filipino channel these past few days, I saw the terrible aftermath of the typhoons
that hit the Philippines. Scenes of devastation. Images of sickness and death. Shattered lives and broken dreams. Heart rending pictures of
hungry children. Heavy rains and high floods that drenched even the most hardened spirit.
At makeshift shelters, families huddled together trying desperately to find comfort in each other, sharing whatever meager provisions
they’ve gotten from some generous giver. Yet, in the gloom and the sadness, there would be an occasional smile from a parent finding joy
in a baby’s embrace; the sporadic laughter of children making up games during a really bad situation.
And then there’s this scene during a church service. People asking for God’s help while singing praises to Him. A testament to the
unshakable trust of a faithful people in the love and mercy of our Divine Creator.
While typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng might have inundated our streets and homes, they were not able to drown the faith of a nation. In
the middle of a storm, the Filipino has the ability to put God at the helm. As far as he is concerned, God, in
the face of a calamity, is still in control ... absolutely certain that like other storms, this too will pass. That
morning will come, and the darkness will fade.
Sometimes a hurricane of sufferings will hit, will thunder on our lives with all its fury. In an instant we lose
our possessions, our loved ones, our precious children. We are stripped off of everything. Just like many
Filipinos who were victims of the cruel onslaught of typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng. And just like the biblical
Job, who lost everything, they too will fall to the ground. Not in despair. Not in defeat. But in worship of
God.
That is the Filipino. He suffers, he feels pain. But he still laughs and sings. And he will survive because of
his enduring faith and trust in the Maker of all things.
Of Faith And Practicality
“With God nothing shall be impossible.“
- Luke 1:37
Back to Basic Prayers
The last few weeks have been very distressing for many Filipinos in the U.S. The devastation and loss
of life wrought by Typhoon Ondoy was extremely disheartening. We saw the images in our Filipino
channels, in YouTube, in Facebook and Twitter, and in attachments to email. Yet for days there was
no way to communicate with our loved ones in the affected areas. Landlines were all but shot and
mobile phone networks were deluged to the max (no pun intended). Many of us that were here on 9/11
painfully remember the anguish brought about by this kind of break-down in communication channels
at the worst of times. The good effect, however, is many people turned to prayer and resigned their
concern to the Will of God.
by Rene Tubilleja
Surprisingly, what helped us get through to our loved ones in both those catastrophes were the simplest
of the current technologies, not the most modern and top-of-the-line devices. In Ondoy it was plain texting, and in the WTC attacks it was
the lowly payphones. I remember thanking God aloud for payphones when my daughter Margot, who was then on her first day of student
practice-teaching in the shadow of the Empire State Building (the next target, I feared), was able to finally call me from a payphone. All
the sophistication of our cell phones had been of no use in all the confusion of that hapless day. This time with Ondoy, our friends and
relatives in Pasig, Pateros, Cainta and other affected areas were able to let us know that they were safe by way of text-messages. That was
all that mattered for the moment, although I am not discounting the discouraging loss of all, if not most of their possessions to the flood.
What saddened me tremendously was to see images of people on rooftops of houses submerged in water. These were not the houses of
the wealthy but of the poor. Still, a great number of the wealthy and the middle class were also hit very hard. Let’s help them all. Material and monetary donations are always most welcome and are highly encouraged. It is a very admirable act that will earn us also some
special blessings from Divine Providence. Let us try to be as generous in our sharing as we can. Let’s not forget, however, that there is
still something better that we all can give them, regardless of our financial situation—that is, our prayers. Every time we remember their
plight, be it at work or while traveling, and every time we see images on our TV or in the Internet, let’s say a simple prayer: “Lord, please
help them cope!” Remember that these simple, short prayers are very effective. They are like text messages to God. They carry a lot of
weight because these are unedited and concise messages that come fresh from the heart. It costs us nothing but it is the more lasting help
that we could send them.
Let’s ask Our Lady, whom we Filipinos affectionately call Mama Mary to look out for her children devastated by Ondoy. By her loving
intercession, may God give succor, consolation, and special blessings for a quick recovery in all aspects of their lives. Finally, this month
of October is the month of the Holy Rosary. Let us pray it every day. Our Lady promised peace with the praying of the Rosary. It is something we sorely need in our world, especially where catastrophe has hit, and in our own personal lives.
The Filipino Catholic • October 14 - November 11, 2009 • Page 3
VIEWPOINT
In this issue:
OUR FUNDRAISER EVENT:
We are happy to announce that Michelle Pontino
of Queens won the prize of $1,000 in our Sweepstake
drawing. The drawing took place at St. Fidelis parish on
Sunday, August 30th. Our deepest gratitude to all who
helped in this event in any way or another. Next year we
hope to sponsor another such event. And we will continue
to make sure that every penny raised or donated is used
exclusively for the apostolate of Our Lady of Fatima in
our diocese.
THE MONTH OF THE ROSARY
Since October is the Month of the Rosary, it would
help to remember the often repeated purposes of Our
Blessed Mother’s visits to Fatima, Portugal. Our Lady
asked us to say the daily rosary while meditating on the
mysteries, to do penance, that is to perform acts of selfdenial, especially in the fulfillment of the duties of our state
in life, to receive Holy Communions of reparation and to
by Rev. Alfred R. Guthrie
observe, according to her requests, the First Saturdays of
each month for the purposes of the conversion of poor
sinners and true world peace.
BUT…it would also help to discuss one of her most cherished purposes - one that she didn’t make
explicit but one which comes through as a most beautiful result of fidelity to her message: fidelity to
her message would lead to the deep sanctification of all who are faithful to her requests.
The simple program of Fatima is a fast track into a deep interior life of authentic sanctity.
What is the interior life?
The interior life is the hidden action of the Holy Spirit in the soul. It is a life of God’s hidden
love and intimate relationship with his child (that is, any one of us) in the hidden, secret recesses of
the heart. It is the on-going development of a deeply personal and interior knowledge and love of,
and unity with Jesus, who as the Bridegroom of our souls, is deeply in love with each one of us.
The interior life can also be called Life in the Spirit. It is the life of living Faith. And it is also
known as being in the “state of grace”.
It is also an introduction and invitation to contemplation, that is, learning to live in the Holy
Spirit through prayer and seeing everything in our lives with the eye of God.
And by means of the interior life, the “state of Grace” we become living temples of the Holy
Spirit. That is, the interior life is what constitutes holiness.
The tragedy of mortal sin is that is completely destroys this hidden life of the Holy Spirit within
us. We all need to cherish the interior life by living in the state of grace, the Love of God, as the
unmatchable treasure which is eternal life.
This precious interior life, and its accompanying constant deepening, of the love of the Holy
Spirit within us through a life of faith, is nourished by persevering daily prayer, self-denial, fidelity to our duties, spiritual reading, and the devout, frequent reception of the sacraments, especially
Holy Communion – all of which constitute the very substance of Our Lady’s program given to us
at Fatima.
The rosary, as Pope John Paul II taught us, is a contemplative prayer, and as mentioned above,
with the other requests of Our Lady at Fatima, will lead into true holiness.
Good spiritual reading is indispensable for the purpose of benefiting from the insights of wisdom
as found in the scriptures, Church tradition, and the saintly masters of the interior life. It would
be helpful to begin by reading an historically accurate account of the Fatima apparitions, such as
Father Di Marchi’s “Fatima, The Whole Story”. (A copy may be obtained by writing to us at the
above address.)
In addition to God’s own Word in the scriptures, a few of the many wonderful works of the saints
that can be great helps in leading us into the interior life are:
“The Fire Within” by Fr. Thomas Dubay; “Secrets of the Interior Life” by Archbishop Luis
Martinez; “The Interior Castle” and the other works of St. Teresa of Avila, as well as her “Autobiography”; The writings of St. John of the Cross; “An Introduction to the Devout Life” by St. Francis
De Sales; and “The Diary of St. Faustina”, the modern apostle of Divine Mercy; and “The Story of a
Soul”, the autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux. These are a suggested few of the many books by
spiritual writers who are recognized by the Catholic Church as spiritually inspiring and doctrinally
sound. I strongly recommend each one of them.
But the one “book” of unique value and power in leading us into holiness is the daily rosary, said
to the best of one’s ability, perseveringly, reflectively and with meditation on the mysteries.
---------------------------------------But now we would do well to go further and reflect not only on our own responsibility to be
holy but also on the meaning of the phrase:
“The Universal Call to Holiness”
We hear in this phrase that all mankind is called to holiness. And so, we ask
A VALID QUESTION:
How can this be? What about those who have never been evangelized?
By the merits of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, all mankind is called to God’s holiness,
that is, to allow the Holy Spirit to guide all hearts to the Love of God above all things, especially
through the love of one’s neighbor.
Another way of putting it is that all mankind has already been invited to eternal life through the
death and resurrection of Jesus, our God who became our brother for this purpose. The difference
between a Christian and those members of mankind who have not yet been truly evangelized is that
Christians know that we have all been invited. Those who have not yet been evangelized do not yet
know that they also have already been invited to take part in the Marriage Feast of the Lamb.
This fact leads us to an understanding of the meaning of “evangelization”.
Evangelization means the informing of those who are unaware of the Gift of the Father, that is
eternal life. The only thing they need is to hear of their invitation and all they have to do is accept
their invitation by accepting the Good News by being baptized, and by living, as we are all called
to do, in God’s love.
Or, if they have not been genuinely evangelized, by accepting the gentle call of the Holy Spirit
in their hearts.
In other words, those who have not yet been effectively evangelized have still been invited to
eternal life even though they are not aware of it. That is, the grace of God’s invitation to his holy
Love is gently and constantly moving the hearts of all mankind to a hidden conversion to faith in
God, and with this faith to generosity, forgiveness, kindness, patience, fidelity, prayer, reverence,
piety, goodness, modesty, chastity, self-control, and a zeal for what is just and right, and to all the
other fruits of the Holy Spirit in the soul.
Thus those who have not yet been taught who Jesus is, are being gently called to these virtues
by the quiet action of the Holy Spirit in their hearts. They do not know Who it is who is moving
their hearts, but somehow, through the suffering of their cooperation with these graces, they are led
to faith in the hidden God within them.
And when the Good News of the Love of Jesus is authentically revealed to them they embrace
it readily as accepting something that was already within them but which had not yet been revealed
to them and put into words.
“AUTHENTIC”?
It is important to know the meaning of the phrase “authentically revealed”. Many people have
heard about Christianity but this in no way means that they have been “truly evangelized”. What
they might know of “Christianity” is what they have seen in “Christians” who are betraying Jesus
by giving scandal.
Edith Stein, a Jewish woman who was a well known philosopher in Germany just before the
Nazi era, discovered Jesus and embraced him by being baptized into the Catholic Church. She
became a Carmelite nun under the name Teresa of the Cross. She was martyred by the Nazis, and
was later declared a saint. Edith Stein was authentically evangelized through her search as a brilliant
philosopher for truth.
But Edith Stein, that is Sister Teresa of the Cross, O.C.D., was deeply concerned about the salvation of her mother who remained an orthodox Jew. The story is told that the Lord revealed to her that
her mother, by her good will and her fidelity as an orthodox Jew, was saved by the grace of Jesus.
To Edith Stein’s mother, the name “Christian” may have symbolized those who hate and persecute
Jews, that is, those who didn’t authentically represent who Jesus really is. And so, even though she
had heard the name of Jesus, she would not have been truly evangelized.
ANOTHER EXAMPLE is that of Mahatma Gandhi. He adopted truly Christian principles
as found in the Bible in advocating peaceful civil disobedience against the cruelty and injustice of
British rule over India (The method later picked up by Dr. Martin Luther King). But we are told
that he never accepted baptism as a Christian because those who were treating the people of India
unjustly claimed to be “Christians”. If they were what Christians became, then he wanted no part
of that religion.
It appears that there may be very many such searching souls in the world today, who have heard
of Jesus but have had not chance to know of the real Jesus who truly loves them and died for their
eternal salvation, nor of the fact that they are already invited to share his happiness forever.
And then there are the billions who may have already heard the name of Jesus but in such a
remote way that his Name and the salvation he won for us mean nothing to them.
But in all cases, the gentle love of the Holy Spirit is always quietly calling them as well as us to
all the virtues listed above and, through them, to eternal life.
This is the meaning of the phrase “The universal call to holiness”.
I would like to add another thought about this gentle on-going work of the Holy Spirit in the
hearts of all the members of the human race.
We are aware that Jesus came to us through his Blessed Mother, by her faith in the Father’s
invitation that she be the mother of his Son by her conception of Jesus in her womb by the power
of the Holy Spirit.
We are also aware that Jesus continues to come to us through Our Blessed Mother by the gentle
working of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of all of us by means of the gifts that come with God’s Grace.
This is why one of the titles of the Blessed Mother is Mother of Divine Grace.
This means that it is through the gentle intercession, mediation, and instrumentality of the Mother
of God that the Holy Spirit, her Divine Spouse, is moving in the hearts of these little ones all over
the world in bringing them to follow his call to that faith in God through which the love of Jesus,
whose Name they do not yet truly know, enters their hearts. To the degree they allow the Holy Spirit
to touch their hearts, they are enabled to reach out to those around them.
To such as these, as well as to all faithful baptized disciples of Jesus to whom the Good News has
already been proclaimed, and who follow him with sincere hearts, the words of Jesus are addressed
when he proclaims, “Blessed are the poor in spirit”.
AND NOW, A WARNING:
But, in following the words of Jesus to the unbelieving towns of his day, we need to note that
those of good will who have not yet been evangelized will rise in judgment of those of us disciples
who, in spite of having been evangelized, and in spite of having the sacraments and the guidance
of Jesus through the Church, fail to follow Jesus with sincere hearts and who fail to use with all our
hearts all the helps that Jesus has given to us, including, as mentioned, the sacraments, the scriptures,
and prayer, including a faithful devotion to his Blessed Mother.
All of us are called on by God to do the best we can with whatever God has given us, whether
much or little.
As the call of the Gospel offers us the treasures and joys of eternal life, if we do not accept and
live by this call, there is another “call” waiting in the wings to take over our souls.
That is…
THERE IS A WAR GOING ON!
As the Holy Spirit through the gentle instrumentality of the love of the Blessed Mother is working in the hearts of all of us, so also the evil one is feverishly working world-wide to destroy souls
and seduce them into eternal death.
With regard to our country, WHAT IS HAPPENING?
A significant sign of things to come in our country was the “sexual revolution” in the 1960’s.
To put this awful step in its mildest terms, it did not come from God.
And later, the most signal occurrence in recent American history indicating what we are in for
was the decision by the Supreme Court (Roe vs. Wade) that it is “legal” to kill unborn children.
As Nazi propaganda convinced many spiritually asleep Germans that they had almost a moral
responsibility to cooperate in the “elimination” of the Jews, and as some Chinese people were
propagandized into believing that non-Communist Chinese people were “enemies” of the people
and should be “eliminated”, so a significant number of American people have been propagandized
into believing that, in “some circumstances”, it is a perfectly reasonable moral duty to “eliminate”
unwanted unborn children, and/or to vote for those who support such a “reasonable” or (in the latest
lying phrase) “moderate” position.
Yes, if we have to decide between a “moderate” but, as best as we can ascertain, a sincere politician on the one hand, and an out-and-out enemy of human life on the other hand, it is wiser to not
to fail to go to the polls and to vote for the less rabid enemy of human life.
But the evil one’s plan as a liar and a murderer isn’t stopping.
This plan is now going after the newly born and relatively incapacitated senior citizens and
handicapped. And the evil one’s plan of deception and death, will, as in Nazi Germany, continue
to expand.
(turn to page 24)
The Priest
by Fr. James Reuter, S.J.
At 2:00 a.m. on Sunday morning this
young priest is sleeping very soundly
indeed, because on Saturday morning he is
coaching football, and on Saturday afternoon he is chaplain in the city jail, and on
Saturday night he is hearing confessions in
the parish church, and then he is trying to
prepare his sermon for Sunday, so he only
gets to bed at 11:00 p.m.
At 2:05 the phone rings.
On the phone is a citizen who sounds
very desperate. He is saying: “Heart attack!. . . .He had a heart attack!. . . My
father had a heart attack!. . . . He is dying!. . . He needs a priest!. . . . Now!. . .
Father, please come!. . . Now!
The address is far across town, and outside the parish, but the young priest
knows that he can not say to this desperate character: “Call this priest at this
number”, because the poor guy will feel very bad and will be thinking, “I call
a priest when my father is dying, and what does he say? He says ‘No! Get
somebody else!”
So the young priest says: “Okay!. . . Okay!. . . . I’m coming!”
He gets up, and gets dressed, and takes the oils from the sacristy, and pyx
from the tabernacle, and goes not through the quiet streets to the subway. There
are no people in the streets around the parish house. There are no people in the
subway station, except the cashier, selling tokens. The priest has to wake the
cashier, to buy a token.
When the train comes, it is all lit up, but there are no people in it. The doors
open, he gets into the car, the doors close, and the train rolls on. There are no
people in the car. The priest feel very weird indeed, like Buck Rogers in the
Twenty-fifth Century, going somewhere in a machine, with a loud roar, and no
people.
At the subway stop near the address there are a few people. It is a tough
neighborhood. There are lights, here and there, with music coming out of a
couple of windows, and one girl in a doorway who looks at the young and says:
“What about it, Padre?”
Finally he finds the address. It is a tenement house, and sure enough there
are lights in the sixth floor. But there is no elevator. . . . The priest runs up the
five flights of stairs, because he does not want the poor old man to be dead when
he gets there.
In the corridor, on the sixth floor, he finds the right door, and knocks. The
door is opened by a big burly citizen in his undershirt, with hair sticking out of
the undershirt. He is holding a glass in his left hand. When he sees the priest, he
lets out a triumphant roar, saying: “See!. . . . He’s here!. . . . I told you he would
come!. . . Pay me!”
The room is heavy with cigarette smoke. There is a round table. These
citizens look like they should be in the city jail. There are cards on the table, and
money, and glasses, and a bottle.
The big hairy beast who opens the door is very happy indeed. He says:
“Father, I told these guys that you would come! Even at two in the morning!
And you came!”
The priest says: “The heart attack? . . . . Your father?” The hairy beast laughs and says: “Oh, yeah!. . . My father!. . . . He really has a heart attack! But
that is five years ago, in Milwaukee. . . . When this happens, I call a priest in the
middle of the night, and he comes!. . . . That is when I discover that you will do
this! . . . . Father, I will split my take with you!”
The priest says: “No. . . . The parish has a policy. . . . We do not accept
money for sick calls.”
The big guy turns to the five criminals who are
sitting around the table, and says: “See?. . . I told you!. . . . I told you he will not
take money for coming!”
The young priest goes down the five flights of stairs, and out into the street,
past the girl in the doorway who says: “Now. . . Padre?”
There is a drunk in the subway station, begging, so the priest gives him the
coins he has left, after buying the token.
When he gets home, it is almost four o’clock, so there is just time enough
for him to have a cup of coffee before he goes down to hear confessions before
the five o’clock Mass.
Over the coffee he is thinking: “Well . . . . . at least the rank and file of
Catholic men have some confidence in the clergy.”
***
I have another friend, who is a priest, and this one is very good with boys.
He has a warm heart, and is always picking up hitch-hikers.
Once he is driving along a lonely road, and he sees a hitch-hiker, so he stops,
and takes him into his car. This hitch-hiker pulls a gun, and hits the priest over
(turn to page 10)
JUST SHARING
ON BEING PINOY
DURING THE TIME OF
CALAMITY
Some of our kind say that being Pinoy is almost
synonymous with ‘calamitous’. And, like it or not,
there are tons of reasons behind their saying so.
First, there is the reality of our predictable,
permanent, yearly visitors’ program reserved to the
most unwelcome tourists, namely, TYPHOONS and
their notorious relatives, such as flood-causing rains,
life-and-property-devastating winds, diseases, family
displacements, unemployment, rise of criminality. I
by Rev. Eutiquio ‘Euly’
might have missed mentioning their other relatives but
B. Belizar, Jr., SThD
I swear Pinoys never miss them one bit. As far as most
of us are concerned the only other thing worse than
being in the path of typhoons is being unable to relocate
the country to, say, somewhere below Hawaii.
Then there is also our calamitous politics that largely runs on our patronage and
transactional culture for fuel. For the educated Pinoy this one is among the most
frustrating occupants of our National Hall of Shame because it keeps on leaving the hall
in order to incessantly ravage and possess our people who transfer its bad spirit on to our
politicians. The culprit, we all realize, is less our poverty than our stubborn resistance
to change a deeply-ingrained quid-pro-quo cultural mindset. You want my vote? not a
few voters seem to say. Then give me my advance share of your lucrative access to our
money once in power. Even well-meaning politicians are aghast over this hushed-over
disease but eventually succumb to contagion. Money is expected to abound on the way
to next year’s elections, our poor could behave like ‘instant millionnaires’ destined to be
‘instantly impoverished’ in subsequent days. Could massive, no-nonsense voter education
programs such as those being contemplated by many sectors, including the Church, help?
Something in me aches to think so. But reality check might dampen our enthusiasm. For
a good start, we should collectively pray for a miracle to cure the moral cancer inside our
culture that basically wrecks havoc on our spirits.
We should not by-pass our chronically challenged (read: lack of a) sense of discipline.
The massive environmental pollution in our urban centers and our ubiquitous traffic
mess (“Why are Filipinos unable to obey traffic rules?” many foreign visitors ask in
bewilderment) are classic cases in point. I wouldn’t be surprised if, upon honestly
assessing the latest flood disaster in various places in Metro Manila, we will simply
acknowledge a simple truth: we are mostly the cause of the disastrous effects we see
around us. We do not dispose of our garbage properly. We hardly follow building rules for
our houses and establishments. We do not observe our own traffic rules. Now we literally
reap the whirlwind.
No, I don’t believe in mere self-flagellation. I believe in acknowledging the truth, which
is why we need to talk turkey about ourselves, as, I believe, I had tried to above. But there
is also so much that is good in being Pinoy. We need not mention how but, especially
during the time of calamity, we also show our better selves.
We keep on rediscovering we can be heroes by our simple ‘bayanihan’ spirit, ‘bayani’
meaning hero. Neighbors rescuing, feeding and sheltering neighbors are a staple story in
our every disaster experience, not excluding that from ‘Ondoy’. When my sister’s family
residing at De Castro, Pasig City, ran out of food as they were battling more than ten-feet
flood, their neighbors came to offer a share of the little food they had. Scenes like that
were multiplied in many other neighborhoods.
We also happily realize the power of praying together, the living praying together, the
living asking the prayer of saints or simply invoking the all-powerful name of ‘Jesus’ to
spare fellow Pinoys and the whole country from further suffering born of the much-hyped
Super-Typhoon ‘Pepeng’. When my sister panicked on seeing flood waters reaching their
house’s second flood (thank God, they have a second floor), with the rains continually
pouring, I counseled her to keep calm and to pray with me. After fifteen minutes, she
texted back and informed me that just as she finished the rosary, the rains stopped. “Please
offer our dawn rosaries specifically for the super typhoon to spare our people in Luzon,” I
beseeched some parishioners after morning Mass. I saw most nodding in deep sympathy.
Wonder of wonders, ‘Pepeng’ veered away from its feared route, even if Northern Luzon
was eventually hard hit. The point is that Pinoys rediscovered the power of praying
together, something that even a political phenomenon like Edsa 1 showed them.
Most of all, people like us in Samar Island who think we know most what typhoon
victims go through, now could offer our most profound sympathy, for a change. We have
been typhoon victims ourselves since time immemorial. As my small barangay parish
prepared to send the little aid we can afford to our brothers and sisters in Metro Manila,
I remembered, as a child, horrible typhoons that twisted and felled down our coconuts,
trees, crops and houses. Yet we simply picked up the pieces the next day. There was
very little evidence of government-sponsored rescue operations. And I don’t remember
anyone complaining about it. We simply relied on family, neighborhood and community.
Recently a true-blooded Eastern Samarnon whose name I wouldn’t wish to mention here
in print made a remark: “I used to have a classmate in Manila who kept on asking me a
question I often took for an insult: ‘Ano ba ang bagyo?’ (‘What is a typhoon?’). I’m sorry
to know his area was recently flooded. But, at least, I see one positive spot here. I don’t
need to answer his question anymore.”
“Be still and know that I am God.”
Psalm 46:10

“Be still and know that I am God.” It’s a simple command but it’s not that easy to follow. At least, not for me. How can we sit still in a world filled with troubles, terrors
and bitter injustices? When we are told by God to be still, does it mean to be motionless? Does his Word summon us to leave everything in suspension, do nothing at all
and just sit?




 by Nene Pascual

going after things that are beyond our reach, for much of our unrest come from the unrealistic expectations we place upon ourself and others. Too much anxiety is often rooted
in lack of faith. We have to realize when to slow down, relax and rest in the Lord.
Perhaps God is not necessarily ordering the cessation of physical activity, but the
steadying of that which is shaky within us. Perhaps to be still means to silence the rage,
to arrest the desire for retribution, to hold back judgment, to hush the doubts and the
fears, to stop the rush to despair ... and to trust in him.
There must be a time in our prayer when we are quiet and still before the Lord, when
our prayer stops being about us and what we want to happen ....and it becomes about
God. It is a moment when we surrender ourselves and all our cares to God. We acknowledge our weakness and, in awesome reverence, we focus on the greatness of God.
Great is the Lord and highly to be praised and we offer him our sacrifice of praise, even
if we are hurting.
Inward stillness is a state of calm. It is not to lose faith when things don’t work out, not
to break down when we experience defeat or loss, not to give up hope when things look
dismal, not to hurry to get the answers. It is to wait with confidence in God.
And even should the world literally crumble and we meet our darkest hour, we can still
run to God in that sanctuary deep in our heart and soul – and be
 saved by what we know
of God, and be at peace by what we know of his promise of heaven and eternal life.
In times of great adversity, we must momentarily leave the chaos, find our sacred space
where we can remind ourselves of the majesty of the Omnipotent God ... and be awed
by him, not by our circumstances or by our adversaries. There has to come a point in
our lives when we simply do not just believe there is God... we know God. This means
that we have a personal relationship with God, and that in the face of all that we are unable to do, we know what he can do.
When we feel misunderstood, unappreciated, rejected or even maligned by others, again
we have to find that inner calm and see who we are in God. Knowing God and being
right with God is enough. It is his approval of us and his recognition of the things that
we do that really matters. To be still could also mean to stop chasing after the wind and

Give all your troubles and anxieties to the Lord
and be calm. Be still and know that

he is God. And then say to him, thank you God
my Father that you are my rock, my
refuge, my shelter, my fortress, my hiding place. Thank
you that you are my strength

when I am weak. Thank you that you are the shield and the glory in the center of my
 
being. Thank you that you are the supernatural wall of fire that insulates me from all
 and that

evil. Thank you that you are my highest reward
you crown me with loving
God. 
kindness and tender mercies. Thank you, my
 
 






St. Raphael Parish holds 2nd Annual Senior Congress 


St. Raphael parish will have its Second Annual Senior Congress on Friday,
October 30, 2009 from 8:45 am to 3:00 pm. Continental breakfast is available at
8:45. Lunch will be served at 12:30 pm. A keynote address by Elder Law will be
at 9:30 am.
There will be workshops and information stations on the following topics:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
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Stroke Education
Options for Senior Living
Medicare part D
Gardgets for Vision and Hearing
Safety in the Home
Scam Prevention
Communicating with your health professional
Arthritis – alternative approaches
Vision screening – 9 am to 1 pm
Auditory screenings – 1 pm to 3 pm
God is our refuge and strength, a very present
 help in trouble. Therefore we will not
fear, though the earth should change (Psalm 46:1-2a)







It is not necessary to be a senior to attend. Handicapped entrance is at the rear of 

the building. Advance registration is required. For more information and registration 




form, go to www.straphaelparish.org. Deadline
is October 18. Fax registration
to: 

516 308-3810.



For further information, contact Parish Social Ministry at 516 308-3808.








St. Raphael Church is located at 600 Newbridge Road, East Meadow, New
York 11554.






Vision

Screeninngs

9 am - 1pm


Auditory

Screenings

1 pm - 3 pm












FROM THE PULPIT
Q and A
by Fr. Peter James R. Alindogan
A drunk that smelled like a brewery got on a bus one
day. He sat down next to a priest. The drunk’s shirt
was stained, his face was full of bright red lipstick
and he had a half-empty bottle of wine sticking out
of his pocket. He opened his newspaper and started
reading. A couple minutes later, he asked the priest,
“Father, what causes arthritis?” “Mister, it’s caused
by loose living, being with cheap, wicked women,
too much alcohol, and contempt for your fellow
man,” the priest replied.
“Imagine that,” the drunk muttered. He returned
to reading his paper. The priest, thinking about what
he had said, turned to the man and apologized: “I’m
sorry, I didn’t mean to come on so strong. How long have you had arthritis?” “I don’t
have arthritis, Father,” the drunk said, “but I just read in the paper that the Pope does.”
It always pays to find out why the question is being asked. The disciples were
eyewitnesses to all the miracles that Jesus did. They listened to him with such awe and
admiration that their lives were dramatically changed. They followed him because they
knew Jesus was unique and special.
Jesus wanted to know whether in their heart they really knew him. If their eyes
prevented them from seeing what was beyond ordinary, at least their hearts would feel
something. Jesus assumed that their minds may forget, but their hearts will always
remember.
“Who do you say that I am?” he asked them. It is like asking the question, “How well
do you really know me?” Or “Who am I to you?” Most of them gave different answers.
Except for Peter who told Jesus, “You are the Christ.” The name Christ means Anointed,
the Savior, the Messiah.
Outsiders are
Future Insiders
Mk 9:38-43, 45, 47-48
A couple drove down a country road for
several miles, not saying a word to each other.
The previous night they had a big argument, and
that led to an exchange of bitter words and hurt
feelings. They passed by a farm where a large
group of goats and pigs was feeding. The man
turned to his wife and, in a malicious and sarcastic
tone, asked her, “Are they relatives of yours?”
“Yes, you’re right” the wife replied, “They are
my in-laws!”
Man is a social being. We all have the natural
by Fr. Mike Lagrimas
human need to belong – a family, community,
friends, and various associations. The disciples
were indeed happy to be part of the group of Jesus. That must have made them feel important and special. But at the same time, that also led them to feel exclusive. In last Sunday’s
Gospel, they were, in fact, arguing about who was the greatest among them. And in the
Gospel today, they learned about some people outside the group who were casting out
demons in the name of Jesus. They tried to stop them. They sincerely believed that the
gift of exorcising demons was exclusive to them.
This is similar with the case in the first reading. Joshua tried to stop Eldad and Medad
from prophesying because they were not present in the camp when the Spirit of God through
Moses descended upon the group of elders. But Moses knew better. He told them: “Are
you jealous for my sake? How I wish all God’s people were prophets and that God would
put his Spirit on them all!” (Numbers 11:29).
It is such a wonderful thing to be part of the group of Jesus, to be the insiders. But this
does not mean that we exclude others from joining us, that we treat others as outsiders.
That is not what God wants. And we cannot limit God’s actions, nor can we stop Him from
imparting His gifts and blessings to others who do not belong to our group. Nobody has
the monopoly of God’s gifts and favors. Rather than excluding others, we should look at
ourselves and learn to appreciate the great privilege of being part of the group of Jesus,
members of his Mystical Body. What does it really mean to be considered “insiders”? The
Gospel this Sunday outlines several important points.
First, to be a genuine insider, there should be an attitude of openness. Jesus said: “There
is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of
me. For whoever is not against us is for us” (9:39-40). This simply means there are many
Peter believed in his heart that the Savior they had been waiting for centuries was
Jesus. When Jesus told them about rejection, suffering and death, Peter began to rebuke
our good Lord. With his good intentions, the Messiah Peter had in his mind was not the
Messiah that Jesus was in his totality.
Turning around and looking at his disciples, He said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan.
You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”
Get behind because Peter was trying to get ahead of him. Get behind because Peter had
forgotten that God should be first and him next. Get behind because he was getting ahead
of God. And sadly, that is what many of us do. For some of us, God is secondary in our
plans. Some of us live not according to God’s will, but according to what we want.
When we tend to get ahead of God, when we tell God what to do with our lives, when
we complain and bicker at the sufferings we endure, the rejections we face, the death we
fear, be reminded of what Jesus said to Peter, “Get behind me.”
Then Jesus told them about what it meant to be a disciple: denying oneself, taking up
his cross and following him. It takes a process to follow him. There is a need first of all to
let go of one’s ego. Those who are selfish and self-centered, Ego stands for Edging God
Out. But to a follower of Jesus, Ego has a different meaning. It means Embracing God
Only.
Then we have to take up our own cross, which is a voluntary choice. This is where the
element of sacrifice comes in. Crosses are hard to bear and we need God to help us, weak
human beings. The load is lightened in carrying our own crosses when we allow God’s
grace to enter our lives. And His grace easily gets through whenever we love. Love can
bear all things, even rejection, suffering, death.
Who is Jesus for us? The question was asked. What could be our answer? There was an
old gentleman who was asked by his grandson, “How old are you, Grandpa?” He replied
teasingly, “I am not sure.” “Look in your underwear,” he advised, “mine says I’m 4 to
6.”
It is good to find out why the question is being asked. But, it is better to give the right
answer when the question comes, “Who do you say Jesus is?”
Rev. PJ Alindogan is the pastor at St. Charles Borromeo Church in Cinnaminson, NJ. This
homily was delivered on September 13, 2009.
people outside who are also being used by God as His instruments. We may not know
who they are, but God knows them, and He rewards them for sure: “Anyone who gives
you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will not lose
his reward” (9:41). We should be open to accept others as our co-workers in the Lord’s
vineyard. That is what it means by the word “Catholic” – universal. When we are tempted
to exclude others, just think of what St. Augustine said: “There are many sheep without,
many wolves within.”
Second, a true member of Christ must always maintain the attitude of a child. The
many painful divisions and misunderstandings among us are usually caused by pride,
ambition and jealousy. St. James pointed that out in last Sunday’s lesson: “Where jealousy
and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every foul practice” (James 3:16). In his
commentary, Fr. Pierse, a Redemptorist priest, wrote: “The child has no academic degrees,
wealth, achievements – which we seek to make us ‘somebody’ great, but which, in fact,
make us rivals, competing and jealous of one another. We are constantly seeking things
that divide us. But if we can accept the poverty, loneliness and insecurity within each of
us, we will find ample ground for unity.” In the Gospel today, Jesus refers to his followers
as “these little ones who believe in me” (9:42). When we become his childlike followers,
we enjoy his zealous protection, and he even promised to punish severely anybody who
leads us to sin and spiritual ruin.
Finally, the genuine member of the Church knows perfectly well the infinite value of
the heavenly treasures and is, therefore, all too ready to sacrifice everything in order to
please God and win heaven. That is the meaning of the teaching in the Gospel about cutting one’s limbs and gouging out an eye, which is to be interpreted figuratively. A story
is told about a group of adventurers who set out to conquer a new territory, which is the
present-day Ireland. The leader announced that whoever touched land first would possess
the entire territory. One member, a man named O’Neil, was very determined to have the
new land. He rowed mightily, but he soon fell behind the boat of an equally ambitious
member. O’Neil had to make a quick and decisive move. He dropped his oars, took his
axe, and cut his left hand. Then he threw it upon the shore, so that he would be the first to
touch the land to make it his. This story sounds horrible, but that is precisely what Jesus
did. He just did not cut off his hand; he sacrificed his whole body on the cross so that he
will gain heaven for all of us. We are following a crucified Lord, and we, in turn, should
not be afraid to make sacrifices for the sake of God’s kingdom.
We come together once again as members of the family of God. Let us not just look at
one another, contented that we belong to God’s chosen family. Rather, let us look beyond
ourselves, and begin to realize that we have our mission to bring people in. Let us not just
enjoy the unity among ourselves, but should also strive to expand this unity towards others
outside. After all, this is the prayer of Jesus in Gethsemane: “I pray not only for them, but
also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as
you, Father, are in me and I in you” (Jn 17:20-21).
Happenings
by AA Medrano
Hall of the Immaculate Conception in Jamaica, Queens. She reported on the devastations
caused by Typhoon Ondoy in the Metropolitan Manila, Philippines and appealed for help.
They passed the hat during the reception and were able to collect over $1,000.00 including
the $ 250.00 donated by Msgr. Romy Montero, half of the $500 second prize he won in
the San Lorenzo Ruiz raffle.
The Philippine Consulate General in New York advices the community that they may
course their donations in the Northeast region of the US to “Project Handang Tumulong”. Please make checks payable to “Handang Tumulong Fund” (with “Typhoon Ondoy”
on the memo line), and send to:
1. PO Box No. 1362 Fair Lawn, NJ 07410, c/o Filipino American Association of
Fair Lawn, Inc. (with 501-c3 status; Tax ID No. 22-33-53102,) c/o Mr. Steve
Parrado
2. Philippine Consulate General New York, 556 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10036
- c/o Consul General Cecilia B. Rebong
Feast of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of
Pompei
The liturgical feast of Our Lady of Most Holy
Rosary was on October 7 but most of the celebrations
in her honor were celebrated on October 4, the first
Sunday of October especially at Our Lady of Pompei
Church in Manhattan. Devotees from different areas, San Lorenzo Ruiz Fiesta
Italians, Americans, Brazilians and Filipinos gathSan Lorenzo Ruiz has finally become known. Fiesta celebrations in his honor were
ered in the Village to pay homage to the Madonna celebrated in different churches in the city notably the early celebration on September
de Pompei. The Mass was multi-lingual, English, 20 at St. Patrick’s Cathedral officiated by Bishop Oscar A. Solis, the Auxiliary Bishop of
Italian, Tagalog and Portuguese representing the Los Angeles, CA and with the presence of Archbishop Timothy Dolan who welcomed the
communities of the parish.
Filipino congregation, and participated by the Filipino and American clergy. The Filipinos
The parade of colors and banners of the dif- came in droves from the metropolitan New York to attend the Mass for San Lorenzo Ruiz.
ferent groups preceded
A rosary procession followed after the Mass around the block of
the procession followed
St. Patrick’s Cathedral ending at 51st street where refreshments
by the participants and
were served to the devotees.
readers for the Mass. Fr.
The Filipino Clergy and the core group of the San Lorenzo
Terry Bagatin,c.s. was
Ruiz proceeded to a reception and dialogue with Bishop Oscar
the main celebrant with Msgr. Romulo Montero and Fr. John
Solis at the Philippine Consulate.
Massari, c.s. concelebrating. The first reading was in Italian,
Responsorial Psalm was recited in Tagalog, second reading was
28th Annual San Lorenzo Ruiz Fiesta
in Portuguese and the Gospel was read in English. The prayers
On September 27, the San Lorenzo Ruiz Association of
of the faithful were also multi-lingual. Malou Bugarin read the
America, Inc. (SLRAA) celebrated its 28th annual celebration
petition in Tagalog.
of the Feast day of San Lorenzo Ruiz at the Immaculate ConA couple representing the English speaking congregation
ception Church in Jamaica Queens at 3:00 P.M. Sunday. The
led the offertory with colorful flowers with the American flag
celebration started with the Rosary procession and the image of
preceding them. Filipino Pastoral Ministry was represented by
San Lorenzo Ruiz around the vicinity of the church.
Dayday Unarosa who offered a basket of fruits. The Italians
Fr. Jed Sumampong, C.P., Pastor of the Immaculate Conwere represented by two ladies in their native costumes who
ception Church was the main celebrant and homilist of the San
offered grapes and wheat. The Brazilians brought the ciborium
Lorenzo Ruiz Fiesta celebration. The concelebrants were: Msgr.
and wine to the altar.
Oscar Aquino, JCD, Fr. Mike Lagrimas, Fr. Nil Villaviza, Fr.
Some new members were installed to the Societe de MaRomy Hontiveros, Fr. Thomas Joyce, Fr. Lito Cabatuan, Msgr.
donna di Pompei officiated by Fr. Bagatin. The Supplica to our
Romulo Sosing and Fr. Noel Daduya. Msgr. Romy Montero
Blessed Mother was recited after the communion.
was the master of ceremonies.
Image of Our Lady of the Most
A Marian procession around the block of the church folHoly Rosary of Pompei in a
procession in the Village.
lowed after the Mass. The Benediction and the blessing with
Other participants in the Mass
the relic of Blessed Bartolo Longo concluded the procession
Altar Servers - Romy Zamudio, Conrado Acayan, Douglas
outside the church.
Ealdama, Ed Pascual; Sally Alonso, Cantor; Our Lady
Bro. Michael LaMantia, cs, the Spiritual Director of the
of Pompei Filipino Choir; Ed Burkard, Music Director,
Three Societies of Our Lady of Pompei Church invited everyImmaculate Conception church. Lectors: First Reading -
Lou Bella Calicdan;
body to a joint reception at the Fr. Demo Hall prepared by the different communities of Responsorial Psalm
- Sally Alonso, Second Reading - Romulo Mendoza; Gospel
Pompei offering their delicacies. The Filipinos prepared Filipino desserts and pansit for Reading - Fr. Mike Lagrimas; Homily - Fr. Jed Sumampong, C.P; Prayers of the Faithful:
everybody.
Roque ; Bobby Villanueva, Dr. Prosy Lim, Aris Francisco, Ernie Bugarin, Alex Dy and
Albert Medenilla.
October 24, Laksambayan
In the Offertory, all the San Lorenzo Ruiz Hermanos and Hermanas pasadas offered
The Filipino Pastoral Ministry of Pompei will hold the “Laksambayan Night” on October Flowers; Ramon Calicdan, Michael and Jocelyn Calicdan and Agnes Mendoza offered
24 to celebrate the 21st anniversary of the Filipino Pastoral Ministry. The dinner dance is Fruit basket; Dr. Raul and Mrs. Rose Calicdan brought the Ciborium and Wine to the
open to the public with a donation of $25. Tickets are now available.
altar.
Dr. Raul and Mrs. Rose Calicdan, Hermano and Hermana 2009-2010 led the prayer to
Save the Date: November 1
San Lorenzo Ruiz and Companion Martyrs.
It is All Saints day. It is also the start of the nine consecutive Sundays Mass and NoThe incoming Hermana Mayor 2010-2011, Araceli Medrano led the prayer to the
vena at 3:00 P.M. in preparation for the feast day of the Poon Hesus Nazareno on January Blessed John Baptist Scalabrini.
3, 2010. The Friday Novena Mass was changed to Sunday starting this year so that more
Msgr. Oscar Aquino, JCD, SLRAA, Spiritual Director thank the concelebrants, the
devotees will be able to attend.
participants and congregation who attended the celebration.
Nick Libramonte, SLRAA National Director, reported about the new The San Lorenzo
Appeal for Help
Ruiz and Companion Martyrs Catholic Church built by SLRAA in the Muhaki Village
A fund raising to help our kababayans who were devastated by the Typhoon Ondoy in Chang Mai Diocese in Thailand. It was the first church funded by SLRAA outside
was launched in the name of the Poon Hesus Nazareno sa Village of the Filipino Pastoral the United States. There were over 400 new conversions to Catholic Faith in the village.
Ministry. All donations received for the fiesta will be given 100% to the Typhoon Ondoy The new church was the cover of the Fiesta celebration misallette featuring the imposing
Fund. An initial check of $2000 was already given to the Handang Tumulong Fund of picture of San Lorenzo Ruiz.
the Philippine Consulate, received and duly acknowledged by Deputy Consul General Millie Thomeczek
The Feast of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of Pompei in Manhattan
on October 2. This amount is only a drop in the
bucket considering the needs of our kababayans.
Please help.
To help, please send your donations to the Filipino Pastoral Ministry Our Lady of Pompei Church
– Poon Hesus Nazareno sa Village, 25 Carmine St.
New York, NY 10014. Your check should be made
payable to Filipino Pastoral Ministry and indicate
Nazareno Typhoon Ondoy Fund. Generous donations will allow us to help our Kababayans who are
in need in these hard times. Please contact the FPM
office c/o Fr. Romy: 212 727 0214 or Cely: 917 502
5907. Please help.
Con Gen Rebong Appeal
Consul General Cecile Rebong attended the San
Lorenzo Ruiz Mass and reception at the Community
Dr. Raul and Mrs. Rose Calicdan, SLRAA Hermano Mayores 2009 -2010
Before the start of the Mass, Fr. Jed Sumampong, C.P. and Msgr. Oscar Aquino, JCD
officiated the Installation & Blessing of the Hermano and Hermana Mayores Dr. Rose and
Mrs. Rose Calicdan. The medal of San Lorenzo Ruiz was invested on them as the symbol
of their responsibility.
In their acceptance of the hermandad of San Lorenzo Ruiz, they said that they were
extremely honored and grateful to be the Hermano and Hermana Mayores for this year’s
celebration. Their lives were touched by San Lorenzo in so many ways. They both experienced a very serious health challenges but at present, they are now both in good health.
They personally attributed that what happened to them was a miracle or a personal intervention of the Blessed Mother and San Lorenzo Ruiz before the good Lord. They encouraged
everyone to make the San Lorenzo Ruiz feast day an opportunity to grow spiritually and to
be inspired and encouraged to become active and involved with the San Lorenzo Ruiz.
SLR Chapel - Broome St.
On September 28, the actual feast day of San Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila, the team ministry celebrated the Mass at the San Lorenzo Ruiz Chapel for the intention of the victims
of Typhoon Ondoy. Msgr. Romy Montero, was the presider with Fr. Romy Hontiveros,
Fr. Mike Lagrimas and Fr. Nil Villaviza as concelebrants. Fr. Joseph Marabe, who was
vacation, did not attend. In his homily, Fr. Lagrimas said that what happened in the Philippines on the feast day of San Lorenzo was bittersweet. We are able to empathize with
the sufferings of San Lorenzo. No lechon, no trimmings of a big celebration but a very
solemn one as we remember the plight of our kababayans. The Mass was sponsored by
Troi Santos and his family, and San Lorenzo Ruiz Chapel Choir. We are grateful to Naida
Villanueva who prepared a delicious soup for everybody after the Mass.
As agreed before the Mass, all the collections will be given to the Handang Tumulong
Fund of the Philippine Consulate for the flood victims. Cecile Dumdum reported that the
total collection was $656.88 and was given and duly acknowledged by Deputy Consul
General Millie Thomeczek. It was only a partial donation from San Lorenzo Chapel, because most of members were not notified yet. Dinner with Bishop Solis
The Most Reverend Oscar Azarcon Solis, Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Los
Angeles, CA, the first Filipino-American to be ordained bishop was in New York to be
the main celebrant for the feast day celebration of San Lorenzo Ruiz on September 20. A
testimonial dinner was held in his honor on September 19 at the East Manor Restaurant in
Queens, New York. Well wishers, friends and devotees of San Lorenzo to met and heard
his inspiring talk during the dinner. The Most Reverend Dennis J. Sullivan, Auxiliary
Bishop of New York Archdiocese attended the dinner together with many Filipino priests
in New York.
Birthday Celebrants
Happy Birthday to all the birthday celebrators for the month of September especially
to Fr. Mike Lagrimas, Nelia and Kevin Villanueva, Fr. Joseph Marabe and Maxie Chavez,
Judy Porferio, Babes Rivera, Dada Bertrand, Miguela Mancol, Cory Reyes-Salhus. May
you all continue to receive blessings from above.
FILIPINO PASTORAL MINISTRY of Our Lady of Pompei
SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES October to December 2009
Wednesday Sunday
First Friday
6:30 P.M.
3:00 P.M.
6:30 P.M.
Mother of Perpetual Help
Misang Pilipino *
Mass and Holy Hour
October
24
Sat
6:00 PMLaksambayan Night
25
Sun
3:00 PM
21st FPM Anniversary Day
Oct Birthday celebration
*Free Ballroom and Line Dancing & Fellowship after the Sunday Mass
November
01 Sun 3:00 PM
Mass - All Saints Day
01
Sun
4:30 PM
Start of Novena to Hesus Nazareno
02
Mon
All Souls Day
06
Fri 6:30 PM
1st Friday Mass & Holy Hour 22 Sun 3:00 PM
FPM Founder’s Day
25 Wed 6:30 PM Thanksgiving Vigil Mass & Party
26 Thu
Thanksgiving Day
29
Sun
3:00 PM
November Birthday Celebration
*Free Ballroom and Line Dancing & Fellowship after the Sunday Mass
December
04
Fri
6:30 PM
1st Friday Mass & Holy Hour
Novena/Mass Poon Hesus Nazareno
05
Sat
6:30 PM
Simbang Gabi sa Katedral (SGsK)
06 Sun 3:00 PM Christmas Triduum (Dec 13,20)
08
Tue
Feast of the Immaculate Conception
7:30 PM
6th Anniv San Lorenzo Ruiz Center
20
Sun 3:00 PM FPM Christmas Party
24
Thu
12:00
Midnight Mass
25 Thu
Christmas Day- Holy Day of Obligation
27
Sun
3:00 PM
December Birthday Celebrations
31
Thu 12:00MN FPM New Year’s Eve Party
January
Year 2010 Schedule
03 Sun 3:00 PM Feast of Poon Hesus Nazareno
Henry Medrano, Hermano Mayor 2010
24 Sun 6:00 PM Laksambayan Consultation Meeting
For More Information: Please Call the Office of the Filipino Pastoral
Ministry c/o Msgr. Romy Montero 212-727-0214
ON SCHEDULE
Masses, novenas, fiestas and other
important religious celebrations.
“This is the day which the Lord hath
made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”
-- Ps 118:24
OCTOBER 2009 EVENTS
October 11, 2009
2:00 PM - Filipino Mass
Incarnation Church,
89-43 Francis Lewis Blvd.
Queens Village, NY 11427.
(Every 2nd Sunday of the Month)
St. Rose of Lima Church
269 Parkville Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11230.
Church of Holy Child Jesus
111-11 86th Avenue,
Richmond Hill, NY 11418
Mary’s Nativity Church
46-02 Parsons Blvd., Flushing, NY 11355
October 17, 2009
6:00 PM – LIVING ROSARY
St. Paul the Apostle Church
98-16 55th Avenue, Corona, NY 11368
Sponsored by Filipino Parishioners of
St. Paul the Apostle
October 18, 2009
St. Joan of Arc Church
82-00 35th Ave. Jackson Heights, NY 11372
(Every 3rd Sunday of the Month)
Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church
101-41 91st Street, Ozone Park, NY 11416
Guardian Angel Church
2978 Ocean Parkway, Brooklyn, NY, 11235
5:00 PM – Filipino Mass
St. Bartolomew Church
43-22 Ithaca Street, Elmshurst NY 11373
October 25, 2009
Corpus Christi Church
31-30 61st Street, Woodside, NY
(Every 4th Sunday of the Month)
NOVEMBER 2009 EVENTS
November 1, 2009 (ALL SAINTS DAY)
St. Patrick Church,
39-38 29th Street, LIC, NY 11101
(Every 1st Sunday of the Month)
Our Lady Help of Christians Church,
1315 E. 28th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11210
(Every 1st Sunday of the Month)
Our Lady of the Island
Eastport, Long Island
Long Island Expressway, Exit 70
(Every 1st Sunday of the month)
November 6, 2009
7:30 PM - Filipino Mass – First Friday
Sponsored by FDA and Apostleship of
Prayer
by Gene Salle
St. Jude Church
1677 Canarsie Road, Brooklyn, NY 11236
(Every 1st Friday of the Month)
November 7, 2009
St. Brigid Church,
409 Linden Street, Brooklyn, NY 11227
(Every 1st Saturday of the Month)
Presentation Church,
88-19 Parsons Blvd., Jamaica, NY 11432
(Every 1st Saturday of the Month)
November 8, 2009
Incarnation Church,
89-43 Francis Lewis Blvd.
Queens Village, NY 11427.
St. Rose of Lima Church
269 Parkville Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11230.
Church of Holy Child Jesus
111-11 86th Avenue, Richmond Hill, NY
Mary’s Nativity Church
46-02 Parsons Blvd., Flushing, NY 11355
November 15, 2009
St. Joan of Arc Church
82-00 35th Ave. Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church
101-41 91st Street, Ozone Park, NY 11416
Guardian Angel Church
2978 Ocean Parkway, Brooklyn, NY, 11235
St. Bartolomew Church
43-22 Ithaca Street, Elmshurst NY 11373
November 22, 2009
Corpus Christi Church
31-30 61st Street, Woodside, NY
(Every 4th Sunday of the Month)
Most PreciousBlood Church (Basement)
32-23 36 st Street, Long Island City, NY
11006
November 29, 2008
Our Lady of Miracles Church
757 East 86th Sreet
Brooklyn, NY 11236
Filipino Mass every Sunday - 5:00 PM at the
Most Precious Blood Church (Basement),
32-23 36th Street, Long Island City, NY 11006.
TAGALOG
Syanga Naman!
Msgr. Ruben M. Dimaculangan
“. . . at ang tanang
kaparian”. Ang batas lagi sa liturhiya ay
bigkasin kung ano ang
nakatitik sa opisyal na
translation ng Misal.
Kung sa tagalo Mass
ay walang nakatitik na
“po”, hindi na dapat
lagyan pa ito ng “po”.
Pero ipagpatawad po sana ng Komisyon sa Liturhiya, ikinukumpisal ko na meron akong bahagi na hindi sinusunod. Sa
halip na sabihin sa parteng “Ama, lingapin mo ang iyong
Simbahang laganap sa buong daigdig. Puspusin mo kami
sa pag-ibig kaisa ni Benedicto na aming Papa, ni N., na
aming Obispo at ng tanang kaparian”, ang sinasabi ko sa
halip ay ito: “ang lahat na mga pari”. Bakit? Iba kasi
ang tunog ng bahaging yaon. Para bang sinasabi ko, “Ang
tangang mga pari”. Hindi kasi ako enjoy kapag ang salitang “tanang” ang ginagamit ko sa bahaging yaon. Pwede
pa sigurong ilagay ay “Ang may common sense na mga
pari”. Bakit? Meron kasing napaka-matatalinong pari (at
mga Obispo rin) na tapos ng kung anu-anong licentiate at
doctorate dito at sa abroad, pero hindi graduate ng UCS
(University of Common Sense). Ha ha ha ha. Patawad po!
Syanga naman.
Linggo ng Layko. Kagaya ng iba sa inyo, meron akong
paboritong mga Santo. Pero hwag kayong magugulat, ang
mga layko ay isa sa mga paborito kong mga “santo”. Kasi,
kahit nakakawalang pag-asa ang nangyayari sa politika,
maraming mga layko ang kinapupulutan ko ng pag-asa.
Mas exposed sila tukso ng pagkamuhi dahil sa dami ng
ahas sa negosyo, pag-ibig at politika. Pero maraming
layko ang nananatiling magiting. Ang mga pari, lalo na sa
Pilipinas, ay habol ng kawali, lalo na kung mabuti siyang
magpasunod. Subalit sa mga layko, yun pa minsang mga
kinakapos ang siya pang lalong inaapi. Pero marami sa
kanila ang merong “stability under pressure”. Banal ang
marami sa kanila. Hindi lang napapabalita ang kanilang
kabanalan dahil sa daigdig ng komersyo ay hindi sila pagkikitaan kung ilalathala, o hindi newsworthy. Sa bokasyon
ko bilang pari, ang pagsaksi sa katotohanan at sa katarungan
ng maraming layko, ang siyang nagpapayaman sa aking
pagkapari. Kaya nga, makahulugan para sa akin na ang
unang santo ng Pilipinas ay isang layko, si San Lorenzo
Ruiz. Syanga naman.
“Kilala mo ba ako?”. Ang tanong na ito ang isang ugat o
isa na ring uri ng corruption. Sa katunayan, hindi ito isang
tanong kundi isang deklarasyon ng kayabangan, he he he
he. Ang corruption ay hindi lang tungkol sa salapi. May
koneksyon ang corruption sa maling gamit ng impluwensya
at kapangyarihan. Ang isang asawa o anak ng colonel na sa
halip na humingi ng konsiderasyon sa gwardya ng military
base dahil nakalimutan niyang magdala ng identification
card sa oras ng red alert ay parang nagmamalabis na rin
kung sa halip na humingi ng pasensya para sila papasukin ay
ang isasagot sa magalang na pagsita ng gwardya ay “Kilala
mo ba ako?” At ang asawang colonel ay nagmamalabis rin
naman kung matapos mapakinig ang sumbong ng kanyang
Misis ay ipapatapon ang bagitong gwardya sa pugad ng
IMLF at Abu Sayyaf. Syanga naman.
Inggit, ang ulcer ng kaluluwa. Nang naglalakad sina Jesus
patungong Capernaum, pinagtalunan ng mga alagad kung
sino ang “pinakadakila” sa kanila na papalit bilang lider
kung sakaling mangyari ang hula ni Jesus na ipapapatay
siya ng mga eskriba, punong-pari, at matatanda ng bayan.
Dahil batid ni Jesus na inggit sa kanya ang magiging mitsa
ng kanyang kamatayan, ipinangaral niya sa mga alagad na
“ang paglilingkod ang tanda ng kadakilaan”. Kailangan
silang maging tulad ng isang bata. Simple lang ang kaligayahan ng bata. Hindi sila alipin ng inggit. Ang inggit
ang kalawang at ulcer ng kaluluwa. Ang paghahangad na
mapaglingkuran, ang pagiging bihag ng virus ni Herodes
(inggit) ang kalawang ng paglilingkod. Syanga naman.
SAN LORENZO CHURCH IN THAILAND
The Catholic Church of San Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila and Companion Martyrs is the first church built
by SLRAA, Inc. outside the United States. It is located on top of a mountain in Muhaki Village, Chang
Mai, Thailand. There are over 400 converts since the church was built.
Bakit higit na “nagdurusa” lagi ang mabubuting tao?
Dahil sila ay mga regalo ng Diyos. Kung hindi sila nagiging
“tinapay ng buhay” katulad ni Jesus, hindi pa talaga sila tunay na regalo ng Diyos. Sa mga matutuwid, ang mga hamon
at misteryo ng buhay ay hindi pagdurusa. Sa kanila, ang
kaligayahan ay hindi ang kawalan ng problema, karukhaan,
karamdaman at mga hamon. Sa katunayan sa kanilang
pakikibaka sa mga pwersang negatibo sa ngalan ni Jesus,
kinukumpleto at isinasa-ngayon nila ang mga ginagawang
pagliligtas ni Kristo. Sila ang regalo ng Diyos. Sila ang
tunay na hulog ng langit. Syanga naman.
Ang sinturon ng Tatay ko. Naikwento ko na sa inyo,
tatlong taon na ang nakakalipas, na isang beses lang ako
na-sinturon ng Tatay ko. Ito ay noong nangupit ako sa
handbag ng Titser ko noong recess, tapos ginamit ko ito
sa panonood ng sine na ang paalam ko sa Titser ay may
lagnat ako. Nagupakan ako dahil ang magka-double na
sine ay inulit ko pa. Hindi ko nalamang gabi na pala at
naipahanap na ako ng Tatay ko sa mga pulis ng Tanauan.
Kaya nga pag-uwi ko, nang makasalubong ako ni Tatay,
ay nagupakan ako. Naramdaman ko ng gabing yaon na
ako na ang pinaka-api sa balat ng lupa dahil hindi ako
sinalubong katulad ng pagkakasalubong sa “Alibughang
Anak”. Sinturon ang sumalubong sa akin. Pero ngayong
53 na ako, nanghihinayang ako at hindi ko naitago bilang
souvenir ang sinturon ng aking Tatay. Dahil sa sinturong
yaon, marami akong natutunan… bagama’t ngayon ay
mahilig pa rin ako sa sine.
Bweno, naikwento ko ito dahil gusto kong sabihin na
bagama’t effective ang pagsaway (correction), sa normal
circumstances, mas-effective ang encouragement. Ang
isang paraan para maturuan ang isang tao ay sa pamamagitan ng appreciation at encouragement. Ang isang salita ng
encouragement sa panahon ng kabiguan ng isang tao ay
mas-mahigit pa kaysa isang oras ng papuri matapos na ang
taong yaon ay magtagumpay. Sabi nga nila, “nine-tenths
of education is encouragement.” Syanga naman.
Fr. Reuter
from page 5
the head, and robs all his money, and the poor priest is in
the hospital for two weeks with a concussion.
The doctors will not let him drive for a while, because
they are worrying about the head injury. On his first day
of driving, he passes a sailor on the road, who has his
thumb out, asking for a ride.
The priest stops, and takes him in. As they are driving
on, the priest says: “This is an adventure, for me. . . .
Because the last one I picked up hit me over the head and
robbed me. . . . But I know that this will never happen
again.”
The sailor looks at him, and smiles, and then pulls a
gun, and says: “Gee, Father! . . . . You really have hard
luck!” He beats him over the head, and robs him, and the
priest goes back into the hospital.
In the hospital bed, the priest is thinking: “Well. . . .
Christ our Lord has Judas Iscariot. He is arrested by the
Scribes and Pharisees. He is tried by Caiphas, condemned
by Pontius Pilate, and executed by the Romans. . . . .
But he says: ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not
what they do!’ . . . . And when the thief on the right says:
‘Remember me!’, He says: ‘This day thou shall be with
me in paradise!’. . . . That is like picking up a hitchhiker.”
He is thinking. . . . . “Not everyone is a Caiphas. . .
. Not everyone is Pontius Pilate. . . . Not everyone is an
executioner. . . . Sometimes you meet Saint John, or Mary
Magdalene, or the Virgin Mary.”
TAGALOG
Rey Lauron
Awit ng Rosang Mahiwaga
Hango sa “Secret du Rosaire” par Saint Louis De Montfort
Ako mandin ay bulaklak na sa langit ay nagbuhat
Upang sa lupa ay ikalat sa halamanan ng gubat;
Bawat putal ay dalangin na sa akin ay hiniling;
Patungkol sa Inang Giliw, ang dalangin ay habilin.
“Ang nais ko’y alamin mo, sa ganitong paglalaban
Ay wala ng hihigit pa bilang tanging kasangkapan
Sa pagsugpo at pag-gapi sa kaaway ng harapan
Kungdi yaong Salteriyo ng Anghel sa kalangitan.”
Ang layon na tutunguhin, mula lupa at langit din;
Ama’t Anak siyang dahil; Pagibig ang siyang turing;
Bawat butil ng bulaklak magsisilbing manga saad
Ng dalangin na nagbuhat sa Anghel na pinalakad.
“Siyang panulukang bato ng lahat ng Bagong Tipan
Ay ang pagbati ng Anghel sa iyong turing na Ginang;
Kung kaya nga at ihayag sa taong makasalanan:
Sila mandin ay hanguin at sa Diyos ay ilaan.”
Tungo sa Birheng Mapalad upang balita’y mahayag
Ng pagsapit niyong Anak sa sala ay magbubuhat;
Tanging dalanging sasagip ay sa Anak pa nagbuhat
Karugtong ay ang Pagbati ng Anghel sa Inang Dilag.
Kung kaya nga at humangos na ma-alab yaong nais:
Baguhin nga ang kaaway at suungin ang panganib;
Tungo siya sa Katedral, ang kampana’y siyang saliw
Upang tao ay tawagin, kanyang sermon siyang dinggin.
Daigdig ay mayayanig; ang lupa ay mawawalit;
Tanging Anak ang sasagip sa buhay na mapanganib;
Ang ugong ng manga ihip, siyang hinga niyong langit
Buhat pa sa Amang nais gisingin ang naiidlip.
Hindi pa man nagtatagal sa kanyang salawikain;
Ang hangin ay bumulusok, yaong araw ay nagdilim;
At ang lupa ay yumugyog, kidlat, lindol tumaginting;
Ating Ginang nagpakitang sa langit ay nakatingin.
Manga dasal na binigkis mula rosas ng pagibig;
Dalangin ng pagiisip; dalangin na bukang bibig;
Siyang pagninilay-nilay ng buhay ng tuwa’t sakit;
Siyang pakikipag-diwang ng bagong buhay sa langit.
Itinaas yaong kamay, tatlong ulit na humiling
Sa Diyos Ama upang tao, yaong buhay ay baguhin;
Ang taong makasalanan, nawa’y Kanyang patawarin;
Aruga ng Inang Mahal bagkus siya ngang hanapin.
Yaon mandi’y pagka-bungkos niyong rosas ng pagibig;
Siyang dahil na masambit dalangin na mayroong himig;
Mandi’y nangungunang dalit Ama’t Inang nasa langit
Tuloy sa lupa ang Anak , ang Pagibig siyang hated.
At sa wakas ng dalangin niyong Banal na Domingo;
Yaong hangin ay humina at humupa yaong bagyo;
Yaong manga taga Toulouse mapayapa na humayo
Kayakap nga ang panata ng banal na pagbabago.
“Ama Namin” siyang turo niyong Anak na sinugo;
Ang pagbati kay Maria, yaong Anghel ang nagbugso;
Kung kaya nga’t pangunahing dalangin ng buong anyo;
Sa buong sangsinukuban, dalangin na walang hinto.
Ang paraang mahiwaga sa Rosaryo ay pag-gawa
Bilang dalangin ng madla ng Kristyano’y siyang tanda
Ang kapara’y sampung utos nuong sa Sinai na bundok
Sa tanan ay inihulog sa kay Moises na may tungkod.
Nuon lamang isang libo, isang daa’t labing apat;
Taong banal ng simbahan, ang Rosaryo’y minarapat;
Paraan ng panalangin, ito’y siyang maging sangkap
Ayon kay Santo Domingo na sa Birhen ay tumanggap.
Siya na nga ang simula niyong sigaw niyong madla;
Salat na nga sa tiwala, wala pa ring paniwala:
“Kungdi putong niyong rosas” ay sapat na yaong wika
(Wisdom 2:8)
“Sa halip na manga rosas ng Rosaryong pinagpala.”
(Pulang Rosas - Para Sa Manga Makasalanan)
Mandi’y makapangyarihan, laan sa makasalanan,
Sa simbaha’y tampalasan gaya nuong Albihensyan;
Ayon sa Aklat ni Alan la Rocha ng kabanalan,
“De Gustate Psalterii” sa Aklat ay pinangalan.
Mandi’y si Santo Domingo ay nanlumo ng totoo;
Kung kaya nga ay nagtago sa gubat ng may Toloso;
Tatlong araw, tatlong gabi ay nagdasal siyang husto;
Mandi’y si Santo Domingo ay naghirap ng totoo.
Sa gutom at tantong sakit, sa katawan ay tinamo;
Hanggang siya ay mauhaw, tila buhay ay naglilo;
Mandi’y yaong Ating Ginang, tatlong Anghel ang kahanggan,
Nagpakita’t nagsalita kay Domingong natauhan.
“Alam mo ba, O Domingo?” siya nganing katanungan
Niyon manding Ating Ina at yaon ding Ating Ginang;
“Alam mo ba ang sandata ng Diyos na Tatlong Persona
Upang tunay na mabata at mundo ay magbago na?”
“Aking Ginang, ang totoo ay inyo pong nababatid;
“Aking Ginang, inyong batid ng higit pa’t labis-labis;
Sunod po sa inyong Anak, Hesukristo na sumambit:
Kayo’y unang kasangkapan ng sa tao ay pagsagip.”
Mandi’y sunod-sunod na nga yaong taong pinagpala
Niyong dahil nga sa rosas naging dasal ng balana
Sa pagbati niyong Anghel at sa Poon ngang winika
Ibinilin kay Domingo sa lahat ay pang-biyaya.
Ang panghuli’t ‘di man wakas bagkus pa nga ay
simula:
Ang hiwaga ng liwanag, sumikat at naging tanda
Ng pagbati ni San Juan Bautista nang magbinyag nga
Kay Hesukristong Kordero na sasagip niyong madla.
Naa-ayon sa sinulat ni Huan Pablong, Santo Papa
Sa kanyang Letra Apostolica nuong dalawang libo’t
dalawa:
Ang Rosaryo ni Maria, “bugso ng buhay” talaga.
Ng lahat na manga banal na ayon nga sa Iglesya.
Mandi’y tugon sa inawit ni San Luis niyong Montfort
Yaong lahat na ginuhit at nasiwalat ng lubos:
“Mandin ang Santo Rosaryo, kaylanma’y ‘di nalalaos
Bagkus pa nga’y Bagong Sibol, tanging tanda ng Pagirog.”
(Papa Benedicto XVI)
Pag-ibig
Peter James R. Alindogan
Nangatog ang aking mga tuhod at parang namalat ang aking
lalamunan, hindi ko malaman kung ako ay namutla o namula,
natulala o natawa, basta naalala ko na nakatuon ako sa kagandahan
niya. Napahinto ata noon ang lahat ng mga orasan. Tumigil sa
pag-ikot ang mundo. At habang tinitigan ko ang kanyang mga
mata, sa aking mga labi lumabas ang mga katagang ito, “Noong
una kitang masilayan, natakot akong ika’y hawakan. Noong
una kitang hawakan, natakot akong ika’y halikan. Noong una
kitang halikan, natakot akong ika’y mahalin. At ngayong kita’y
minahal, natatakot akong ika’y mawala at di na masilayan. “
Mga katagang napulot ko sa isang aklat. Mga katagang ilang
ulit na sinaulo sa mga gabing mukha niya lang ang laman ng aking
mga panaginip. Mga katagang nagpahiwatig ng kumakalabog
kong puso at humihiyaw na damdamin.
Sabi nila, nakakatuwa daw ang pag-ibig. Nakakatuwa nga
lalo na kung iniibig ka rin ng iyong napupusuan. Ngunit kung
walang bahid ng kasagutan sa iyong mga karaniwang tanong,
kung walang pagmalasakit sa iyong kaunting pagmakaawa, kung
walang kibo sa iyong di mabilang na panaghoy, walang katuwaan
sa pag-ibig. Hindi ito pag-ibig, kundi pagpapakamatay.
Mahirap ang umibig. Mahirap ang magmahal. Ngunit mas
mahirap magkunwaring walang minamahal. Mas mahirap
ikubli ang pintig ng puso kapag kaharap na ang minamahal.
At karaniwan ganito ang nangyayari. Maraming nagkukubli.
Maraming nagkukunwari. Maraming nagbabalatkayo.
Kaya siguro malungkot tingnan ang mundo kahit na nagkalat
ang di mabilang na kagandahan nito. Kaya siguro maraming
naghihirap sa mundo kahit na di mabilang ang kayamanan nito.
Kaya siguro maraming nawawalan ng pag-asa sa mundo kahit
na di mawari ang liwanag ng kabutihan nito.
Kung talagang mahal mo ang isang tao, ipakita mo. Iyan ang
dahilan kung bakit mabenta
ang mga tsokolate, bulaklak,
singsing at kung anu-ano
pang nagpapahiwatig na
mahalaga sa iyo ang isang
tao.
Hindi lang bagay kundi
oras din ang maaring ibigay.
Oras na nakalaan para lang sa
kanya. Oras na napapabilis
ang takbo sa mga sandaling
kapiling mo siya. Oras na
mas mahalaga pa sa isang
dakot na tsokolate, isang
basket ng bulaklak, isang
dosenang singsing.
Ipinakita ng Panginoong Hesus ang kanyang pagmamahal sa
iba’t ibang pamamaraan, sa iba’t ibang bagay, sa iba’t ibang tao,
at sa iba’t ibang gawain. Mahal niya ang tao, mahal niya tayo.
Ipinakita niya ang kanyang pagmamahal at pag-ibig ng labis pa
sa libu-libong tsokolate, tone-toneladang bulaklak at milyonmilyong singsing.
Minarapat niyang manaog sa lupang gawa upang mabigyang
saksi niya ang pagkawanggawa. Nanirahan siya sa bahay bata
ng Kanyang Inang si Maria upang mabigyang panahon niya
ang pagbibigay buhay ng bawat ina at amang likha niya. At sa
kanyang kamatayan ay nadama ang kaganapan ng pag-ibig na
kanyang inialay.
Mangatog man ang ating mga tuhod, mamalat man ang ating
mga lalamunan, mamula man tayo o mamutla, matulala man o
matawa, pilit pa rin ang panaghoy ng Panginoon sa kagandahang
likha niya—ang taong binigyan niyan ng buhay, ang taong
matagal at palagian niyang iniibig.
Nagkaroon ng tao dahil sa pag-ibig ng Diyos. Buhay ang
supling ng pag-ibig. At sa bawat pag-iisang dibdib at pagtatalik,
sa bawat pagsasama at pag-ugnay, sa bawat pagsiping at
pagkakaisang katawan at katauhan, may nabubuong panibagong
buhay.
Sa paglipas ng panahon at pagdami ng lahi, isang tawag lang ang
namumutawi sa labi ng Dakilang Pag-ibig—na kinakailangan
tayong magmahal at umibig.
Nakakatuwa man o hindi.
“Hesus Na Aking Kapatid”
Jesus in the Filipino Imagination
(Attempting a Conversation Between Official Christology and Popular Religiosity)
(NOTE: The following is an abridgement of an extended research paper written for a course on
contemporary representations of Jesus taught by Prof. Harvey G. Cox at Harvard.)
CONTINUED FROM LAST MONTH
Popular Religion and Socio-Political Change
One may then safely claim that the Filipino “imagination” of Jesus Christ that emerges
from the lived experiences as well as the hopes and despairs of the so-called grassroots
people has had undeniably potent impact in terms of engender-ing and promoting a new
sense of moral and political agency. A case in point is the bloodless, i.e., non-violent February 1986 “People Power” EDSA Revolution that toppled the Marcos dictatorship. The
Filipino Jesuit priest, Bienvenido Nebres, posits that “There is an ethos and worldview in
the majority of Christian Filipinos, shaped by the symbols and practices of popular Christianity, which can be a basis for social change” (Montiel, in Dy, op. cit., pp.104-105). It
was this Christian ethos that made the EDSA “People Power” revolution of 1986 a unique
event of religious and political agency.
by
Rev.
Phil
James
Laquindanum
The February Revolution of 1986 highlighted the marriage of religion and politics.
Thousands of Filipinos faced the regime’s tanks unarmed. The street revolutionaries had
nothing but prayers and whispered calls to their Mother Mary [and the Sto. Niño] to protect
them from harm. Eventual victory was not only a historical moment of political change,
but also “a profoundly religious experience” (Ibid., p.104).
To this day, many Filipino commentators share the opinion that the event was a uniquely
Filipino religious experience, in which “the presence of . . . religious personalities [such
as the statues of the Sto. Nino and the Blessed Virgin Mary] and other faith-related beliefs
helped topple the dictatorship in an active non-violent manner” (Ibid., p.106).
Thus a new imagination of Jesus as peace-loving and non-violent agent of socio-political
change has emerged, it would seem, from the Filipino experience of adversity. I believe
it is an image that has not come about pre-programmed and plotted ahead of time and
circumstance. It is an image still in need of fur-ther unpacking by an ongoing conversation
not only among the so-called “experts” (such as theologians, scholars, and social scientists)
but especially among, and with, grassroots communities. A full elaboration of this,
however, should be the proper theme and subject of another separate essay. Suffice it to
say, in the meantime, that surprises and twists do characterize the mystery of the ongoing
quest for answers to the question, “Who do you say that I am?” For indeed, new answers
are often found in unexpected places, such as the “uneducated” grassroots communities
(“uneducated” is here used in the sense of “unschooled”). Thus, academic theology and
official ecclesiastical pronouncements alone, with their concern for intellectual rigor,
doctrinal “soundness” and “balance,” cannot determine and provide the answers ahead of
time and for everybody. Conversation demands a “walking together” with the people “on
the ground,” i.e., where they are, no matter how painstaking, fumbling, and stumbling the
walk may be at times. Indeed, theological “God-talk” needs the empowering and sustaining
complement of what Frederick Herzog has called “God-walk” (God-walk:Liberation
Shaping Dogmatics, 1988).
This whole discussion therefore demonstrates how true “theology” can, and does, emerge
creatively and critically from the surprising and unexpected place of “marginality” (Craig
Dykstra, in Daniel S. Schipani, Religious Education Encounters Liberation Theology,
1988, p.230). The so-called “underside” of history and society – particularly intentional
communities of faith from the grassroots – do have something to say and stories to tell,
and they need to be listened to, not because they may be “better” and/or “holier” than
everybody else – in fact, they might not be so at all! – but because it is possible that they
can have a different perspective on truth and reality, and thus, “they [possibly] can conceive
a different project of hope and provide dynamism to a new way of organizing human
life for all” (Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz, En la lucha, in the struggle: Elaborating a Mujerista
Theology, 1993, p.91).
It is therefore imperative – both on the intellectual and on the religious faith levels – that
pastoral ministers and religious educators unearth and mine the wealth that can be found in
what the French philosopher and social scientist Michel Foucault has called “subjugated
knowledge . . . namely, a whole set of knowledges that have been disqualified as inadequate
to their task or insufficiently elaborated: naïve knowledges, located low down on the
hierarchy, beneath the required level of cognition or scientificity” (Power/Knowledge:
Selected Interviews and other Writings 1972-1977, 1980, p. 82). Thus, recognizing the
importance of attending to people’s “lived experiences,” Elizabeth Johnson has affirmed
that “[c]onsulting human experience is an identifying mark of virtually all contemporary
theology, as indeed has been the case at least implicitly with most of the major articulations
in the history of Christian theology” (She Who Is: The Mystery of God in Feminist
Theological Discourse, 1994, p.61).
Conclusion: The Never-Ending Quest and The Unfinished Business of Christololgy in
a Postmodern Word
The question, “Who do you say that I am?” is never definitively settled once and for
all, ahead of time, and for all peoples and all places. Throughout the church’s history and
up to the present, every answer has invariably occasioned new questions, new ways of
framing the basic question itself, new possibilities, and so forth and so on. Nor can we
belittle and ignore the zeal and the passion with which answers have been proposed (and/
or opposed), bearing testimony to the fact that on the answer/s to the question depend
the direction and the meaning of the very life of the disciples of the Christ. And for most
Christians the answer is a sort of gift and truly a responsibility, if only for the fact that,
not only for the present but also for future generations of Christian disciples and believers,
answering the question is often done in reference to our own present creative attempts
at an answer, as we “project a historical horizon that is different from the horizon of the
present” (Gadamer, op. cit., p.306).
Writing in 1999, and therefore fully aware that she was doing her own christological
reflection right at the threshold of the 21st century, Elizabeth Johnson had this to say:
Like the Christians of the first century, we too are being called to write the good news
in an idiom suitable to our time and place. Like them we are living disciples and need
to be about the never-finished business of confessing Jesus Christ in a pilgrim church.
Out of our own experience of salvation, our own telling of the story, our own praxis and
prayer, we must name Jesus Christ again and claim him again for our own people, so that
a living christology will be handed on to the next generation into the twenty-first century
(Consider Jesus, Ibid., pp.145-146).
As Filipinos dispersed throughout different parts of the globe, including the Diocese of
Brooklyn and Queens (New York) - we continue to be caught up, both as individuals and
as communities of faith, in this unfinished business of the probing and challenging (often
disturbing) question that Jesus continues to ask every generation: “Who do you say that
I am?” It is a question which is inescapable and yet whose answer is elusive. Part of its
elusive character is now due to the fact that we search for the answer/s within new contexts
of globalization and multi-culturality where Jesus might not necessarily be “the (only)
answer” anymore – even among many Christians and Catholics! I would thus venture to
suggest that as we attempt to answer Jesus’ original question within our own unique and
distinctive experiences and identities as members of a multi-cultural and globalized world
- whose social, ethnic, cultural, and religious demographics are ever-shifting - we have to
expect to be “pulled up short” (in the Gadamerian sense aforementioned) and to realize that
in such a new postmodern context, the question itself (as well as the questioner/s) may have
changed while we were busy looking the other way, and/or looking at the “other ways” of
looking (at Jesus). And because Jesus, the “un-micro-manageable one,” continues yet to
surprise and to bewilder, it could be that he now invites us not only to answer his original
question but also to creatively and courageously question the unexamined answers that
many “others” have proposed - as being normative, definitive, and final - about him. In
a postmodern world marked by perplexity and ambiguity, we have thus become not just
responders but also questioners. We are all pilgrims not yet in the homeland (in patria) but
on the way (in via) to the Reign of God, searching for the question/s and the answer/s that
we think should matter in the meantime and along the way. We walk with many others to
whom both the question/s and the answer/s are heard and spoken in different “languages,”
and from different locations and/or “dislocations.” And we hope and trust that we walk with
a “catholic” God who, in the best sense of katholos (Greek for “welcoming everyone”),
indeed walks with, listens to, and is hospitable to everyone, as everyone tries to make sense
of the question, “Who do you say that I am?” Which – to borrow from St. Augutine – is a
question “ever ancient and yet ever new”!
FILIPINO CATHOLIC
by Laura Vogel
Profiles
I was sitting on the coveted second row pew at the Shrine of the Lady
of the Island for the Healing Mass of Father Suarez early this year. Our
group from Dr. Norma Pascual gathered the day prior, and also came
many hours early that day as we were part of the organizing groups.
Seated next to me was a group from Queens who rented a bus to be able
to attend the Healing Mass. As it was still about an hour before the
Mass, I started conversing with the two ladies next to me. And this was
how I met Nena, a very vivacious and one of God’s people who works
tirelessly in the vineyard of the Lord. I am sure you already know Nena
from her many activities in 22 churches in the Diocese of Brooklyn and
Queens, the most notable of which is her Parish Line Dance Ministry.
Feliza ‘Nena’ Matela ... working in the vineyard
Nena was born in San Jose, Antique, the sixth child of Guillermo from way up of Northern Luzon
in Batac, Ilocos Norte, and Caridad from the Visayan Island of San Jose, Antique. Early on, her parents
and all children were already involved in the church – the Knights of Columbus, Legion of Mary,
Couples for Christ, Sacred Heart of Mary and Jesus, and many others. Growing up in the Philippines, Nena already exhibited a strong desire in dancing. Her career of being a teacher complimented this talent of dancing and she choreographed many school activities where
ever she taught which was in Cebu, Iligan City, and Bulacan. Privately she also choreographed family
weddings, birthdays, and anniversaries. Nena received the Outstanding Teacher award in Bulacan and
was elected President of the Teachers’ Associations in Bulacan and Iligan City. This is how dynamic
Nena is ... always getting involved and gives her best.
Nena is married to Bart Matela who hails from Calape, Bohol. They have four children: Ricky,
Jane, Reggie, and Ronald, and have six grandchildren. Ricky is also well known to most of you, as he
is currently the self-made and talented Choir director of the Filipino Diocesan Apostolate (FDA) serving Brooklyn and Queens.
The Matela family arrived in New York in 1989. Nena was employed by St. Vincent Hospital and
where she works until now (first in the Manhattan location, and now closer home at Rego Park).
Nena used her gift of dancing at St. Nicholas Church located at Parsons Boulevard, Queens. She
and ten couples from the church were the core group and called themselves the Parish Line Dancing
Ministry. The first and foremost goal of the group is to gather the parishioner back to the church and
strengthen their faith in God. The church is made of a community of people, and through dancing, as
we know, the members get to know one another deeper. Nena wanted to share the feelings she has in
dancing which is a combination of exercise, release of stress, working of the brain to learn the steps,
developing of social skills, and thereby address loneliness, and the like.
From St. Nicholas Church, Nena would go to the next church, form and start a core group of 10
couples who will continue on the Parish Line Dancing Ministry while Nena would move on to the next
REAL ESTATE
Nena
Matela
helps other
dance their way
to the Lord
church. To date, Nena has formed the groups in 22 churches in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens. These churches include the Church of Our
Lady of Pompei, St. Bartholomew, St. Sebastian, St. Lucy, St. Patrick,
Assumption Church, Corpus Christi, St. Raphael, Our Lady of Incarnation, St. Brigid, St. Emeric, Immaculate Conception, to name a few. I
can imagine the many hours of joy Nena felt sharing this talent.
Nena wishes she could do more, and is looking forward to a set of
new knees to do this.
A tireless woman, Nena continues to attend church gatherings and
prayer groups. She is a devotee of Santo Nino who she fondly calls
“Dodong.” (I can attest to this because I was on the phone with her past
midnight, her available time, to go over some data in this article, and
continued on the morning.)
Next Month: A Filipino “Shining Star”
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in
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over their heads.” If the roof is on its last leg don’t you think the buyers will think twice before they
would make an offer? Most buyers want a roof that won’t leak as soon as they move in. Most of them
don’t have that much reserve funds after closing. The idea of replacing the roof scares them because
of the cost. Time and time again I see homes with bad roof that lingers on the market. Reflecting part
of, if not the full cost to the listing price could be the answer. The buyers would not mind paying a
little bit more as long as they have peace of mind.
• Plumbing leaks – Fix all leaks. Homeowners tend to neglect these seemingly little problems – dripping
faucets, leaking pipes, etc. Buyers are again scared of them thinking there may be more problems
hidden somewhere even if there are none.
• Presence of wood destroying insects - There could be a number of pesky insects in the house. The
most common are termites and carpenter ants which thrive in our general area. Have the treatment
done and any damage repaired. You’ll save yourself a lot of grief. Many times buyers are again scared
thinking the house is falling apart even if the damage is only on a two foot sill plate, and back out of
the deal. Make sure termite tunnels are scraped after the treatment.
• Defective heating system – Heating is a very important element of housing. Nervous buyers want a
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pros fix the problem.
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/ Owner of Realty Network in East Meadow, New York. He can be reached at 516542-7936 or by email: Robert@RealtyNetworkNY.com.
Devotees celebrate San Lorenzo
Feast Day in New York and in
parishes in neighboring areas
In different parishes in New York and in neighboring areas, celebrations were held in
observance of the feast day of San Lorenzo Ruiz. Among them St. Raphael in East Meadow,
Our Lady Queen of Martyrs in Queens, St. Francis de Sales in New York City, Our Lady of
the Snows in Queens, Immaculate Conception Parish in Jamaica, Queens … even parishes in
New Jersey and Connecticut.
Left: Dr. Raul and Mrs. Rose Calicdan were installed as
Hermano and Hermana Mayores during the San Lorenzo Fiesta
at Immaculate Conception Church in Jamaica, Queens in a
ceremony officiated by Fr. Jed Sumanpong.
Left: San Lorenzo procession at the
Immaculae Conception Church in
Jamaica.
Below: Bishop Oscar Solis addresses
guests during a dinner in his honor at the
East Manor Restaurant in Queens last
September 19.
Left: Tess Cerna of
the Cofradia de Santo
Niño talked before the
congregation at St. Francis
de Sales in New York City
during their celebration of
the Feast of San Lorenzo.
San Lorenzo Celebration at St. Patrick’s Cathedral
It was a big celebration of the Feast Day of the first Filipino saint at St. Patrick’s
Cathedral in New York City. Devotees honored San Lorenzo Ruiz with a mass,
procession and reception last September 20. Special guest and main celebrant was
His Excellency Oscar A. Solis, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles,
California. In attendance was Archbishop Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of the
Archdiocese of New York. The night before, on September 19, was a dinner held in
Bishop Solis’ honor at East Manor Restaurant in Queens.
Bishop Oscar Solis
The procession by San Lorenzo
devotees around St. Patrick’s
Cathedral in New York City.
Photos by Henry Medrano
by Ate Norma
&
FACES
PLACES
Above: Eddie Antonio of the Filipino Catholic Group (FILCAG)
of Long Beach, Long Island takes on additional non-religious
responsibilities as the newly-elected President of the
Auxiliary to the Philippine Medical Association in America.
Above, he speaks before members of the PMAA and the
APMAA at a dinner dance in Leonard’s of Greak Neck.
ENJOYING THE LAST DAYS OF SUMMER. Volunteers and
members of the Staff of the Filipino Pastoral Ministry of
Our Lady of Pompei relax at the Sunken Meadow Beach.
“Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life.” -- Rev 22:14
Allison ... all dressed up
for a special occasion.
Ethan
Scarlett, Caleb and Quinn ... hiking with Dad and Mom.
FACES & PLACES
EXCHANGING
“I DOs”
Ian Galvez and Suzanne Ly tied
the knot last October 4 at Saint
Robert Bellarmine Church in
Bayside, New York officiated
by Msgr. Jojo Galvez. He is the
son of Dr. Amado Galvez and
the late Mrs. Fe Galvez, and the
newpher of Rita Nepomuceno
who is an active member of the
prayer community. Suzanne is
the daughter of Mr. Thanh T.
Ly and Mrs. Luyen T. Phung.
Reception was held at the
LaGuardia Sheraton Inn in
Astoria, Queens.
Photos by Rick Santisteban, Virgin of
Antipolo Ministry
Cover Girl
Jill Javier appears on the cover of a newly released
paperback, Chelsey by Chelsey Shannon. Jill is the
daughter of Wendel and Carmencita Javier of Queens
Village, New York. They are faithful devotees of the
Virgin of Antipolo or Our Lady of Peace
and Good Voyage.
FACES & PLACES
Group president Mary Ann Montoya
with her family and Fr. George Atok.
The Karakol led by Gene Salle.
Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Families held their 16th Commemorative Eucharistic
Celebration last October 3 at the Marian Shrine in Stony Point, New York. Fr. George Atok celebrated mass. Highlight of the celebration was the
Karakol where devotees of the Blessed Mother had a dancing parade while carrying the image of the Blessed Mother.
Left: Consul General Cecile Rebong
receives a check from Msgr. Romy
Montero for the “Handang Tumulong
Fund” to help the victims of the recent
typhoons in the Philippines.
Right: The Filipino American
Association of St. Mary of the Isle
(FAASMI) held their 14th Annual
Celebration of Our Lady of the Rosary
with the Child Jesus last October 4 in
Long Beach, Long Island. Photo shows
the group’s president, Yollie Padilla
(4th from left) with Pastor Christopher
Nowak and other members of the
association, among them Gwen Gozum,
Ching Atienza and Marie Malvar. This
year’s Hermanas Mayores are: Myrna
Lausingco, Estela Malabunga and Tita
SAINT MARTIN DE PORRES PRAYER AND HEALING MINISTRY
A BRIEF ACCOUNT OF ST. MARTIN DE PORRES HEALING MINISTRY
“Let the Lord God show us what way we should take and what we should do.” -- Jeremiah 42 : 3
by Dr. Juanita Zagala
While a music student of St. Theresa’s College in Manila, Philippines, one of Sister Josie’s favorite past time was to browse around Catholic
bookstores in search for reading materials which would lead her to grow in faith. During one of those trips she had an intense interest in the
story of St. Martin de Porres whose life was so full of wonders and extraordinary grace. He had so many virtues worthy of emulation. One such
virtue is his Humility, a virtue which led him to be of service to the needs of others for love of God. St. Martin de Porres had the extraordinary
virtue of kindness and readiness to be of help for the poor and the sick. This inspired her to be devoted to St. Martin de Porres and continued
on as she reached the United States. Soon after she arrived San Francisco to pursue a post graduate course in piano, she was stricken with
Lupus Erythematosus, an illness which affected her joints, spine, heart and kidneys. She was advised by the doctors to move to Los Angeles
to be in a warmer climate. Still her illness continued to progress. Declared critical on many occasions, her faith in God remained strong. She
always called on the Blessed Mother and St. Martin de Porres to intercede for her. Thanksgiving prayer was always offered by Sister Josie
as she recovered, to the amazement of her doctors. At times when she is well, she shared this experience of answered prayer with the sick by
bringing the statue of the Blessed Mother and St. Martin de Porres for veneration in their homes or in hospitals, a mission she embraced to
bring the knowledge of God’s compassion and mercy.
I am the Lord your God, who grasp your right hand; It is I who say to you “Fear not, I will help you.” -- (Is. 41:13)
In 1969, she rendered her service as official organist for 10 years at St. Columban Catholic Church in Los
Angeles, California. November 1969, the first anniversary celebration of St. Martin de Porres Healing Ministry was held at St. Columban
Church. Fellowship dinner was thereafter held at her residence. Since then, yearly anniversary celebration was held at St. Columban Catholic
Church. November 1979, the parish priest of St. Columban Catholic Church granted her permission to have Holy mass celebrated by priests
assigned by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, California and novena devotions to St. Martin de Porres in her residence every Thursday. She
opened her residence to all who needed help in prayer, led them to reconcile with the Lord and enjoy His loving presence. Since 1991, novena
devotions to St. Martin de Porres was held at St. Kevin Church in Los Angeles, California. Thereafter novena devotions were started in New
York. New Jersey, Washington D.C.
Through her healing ministry, Sister Josephine has brought people closer to God … spreading love, peace and joy in the following
Archdioceses:
In the Philippines :
Archdiocese of Manila - since 1982
“Worship the Lord with holy celebrations…”
Archdiocese of Cebu City – 1985
Psalm 96:9
In Italy:
Archdiocese of Vatican City – since 1985
St. Martin de Porres
Archdiocese of Lucca - 1985
In Portugal:
Archdiocese of Fatima - since 1996
Holyland – 1986
In the United States :
Archdiocese of Los Angeles - since 1969
Archdiocese of Washington D.C. - since 1994
Archdiocese of Virginia - since 1994
Archdiocese of Maryland - since 1994
Archdiocese of New York - since 1994
Archdiocese of New Jersey - since 1994
Archdiocese of Louisiana, New Orleans - since 1995
Archdiocese of Louiville, Kentucky - since 1988
Archdiocese of Connecticut - since 2000
Archdiocese of Kissimmee, Florida - since 1994
Archdiocese of Columbus, Ohio - since 1997
In Canada:
Archdiocese of Toronto, Ontario - since 1997
In Peru:
Archdiocese of Lima - since 1997
In Haiti:
Archdiocese of Port-Au-Prince - since 1999
In Spain:
Archdiocese of Garabandal - since 1996
In France:
Archdiocese of Lourdes - since 1996
Worldwide Healing Ministry
Cordially Invites You To Attend The
40th Anniversary Testimonial Luncheon
Date : November 7, 2009 (Saturday)
10 AM - Mass at Holy Rosary Church
444 East 119th Street, New York, NY 10035
1 PM - Testimonial Luncheon
Marbella Restaurant
220-33 Northern Blvd. Bayside, New York 11361
Luncheon will be $40.00 per person • RSVP by Sept. 28, 2009
For details please call:
Letti Zagala - 212-679-9547 • Malou Cadiz - 718-762-2798
Sylvia David - 718-913-6922
Benefit for orphanages, street children and disaster victims in the
Philippines
November 14, 2009 - 40th Anniversary Celebration
Los Angeles, California
10 AM - Mass at Monastery of the Angels
1977 Carmen Ave. Los Angeles,
California 90068-4098
Let’s study the
Come Holy
Spirit, Come.
CATECHISM
by Sonia S. Salerni
(Continued from last month)
THE PROFESSION OF
FAITH
SECTION TWO
CHAPTER THREE I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY
SPIRIT
683 “No one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except
by the Holy Spirit. “God has sent the
Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying,
‘Abba! Father!”’ This knowledge of faith
is possible only in the Holy Spirit: to be in
touch with Christ, we must first have been
touched by the Holy Spirit. He comes to meet us and kindles faith in us. By virtue of our
Baptism, the first sacrament of the faith, the Holy Spirit in the Church communicates to us,
intimately and personally, the life that originates in the Father and is offered to us in the Son.
Baptism gives us the grace of new birth in God the Father, through His Son, in the Holy
Spirit. For those who bear God’s Spirit are led to the Word, that is, to the Son, and the
Son presents them to the Father, and the Father confers incorruptibility on them. And it
is impossible to see God’s Son without the Spirit, and no one can approach the Father
without the Son, for the knowledge of the Father is the Son, and the knowledge of God’s
Son is obtained through the Holy Spirit.
684 Through His grace, the Holy Spirit is the first to awaken faith in us and to communicate
to us the new life, which is to “know the Father and the one whom He has sent, Jesus
Christ.” But the Spirit is the last of the persons of the Holy Trinity to be revealed. St.
Gregory of Nazianzus, the Theologian, explains this progression in terms of the pedagogy
of divine “condescension”: The Old Testament proclaimed the Father clearly, but the Son
more obscurely. The New Testament revealed the Son and gave us a glimpse of the divinity
of the Spirit. Now the Spirit dwells among us and grants us a clearer vision of himself. It
was not prudent, when the divinity of the Father had not yet been confessed, to proclaim
the Son openly and, when the divinity of the Son was not yet admitted, to add the Holy
Spirit as an extra burden, to speak somewhat daringly.... By advancing and progressing
“from glory to glory,” the light of the Trinity will shine in ever more brilliant rays.
685 To believe in the Holy Spirit is to profess that the Holy Spirit is one of the persons of
the Holy Trinity, consubstantial with the Father and the Son: “with the Father and the Son
He is worshipped and glorified.” For this reason, the divine mystery of the Holy Spirit
was already treated in the context of Trinitarian “theology.” Here, however, we have to
do with the Holy Spirit only in the divine “economy.”
686 The Holy Spirit is at work with the Father and the Son from the beginning to the
completion of the plan for our salvation. But in these “end times,” ushered in by the Son’s
redeeming Incarnation, the Spirit is revealed and given, recognized and welcomed as a
person. Now can this divine plan, accomplished in Christ, the firstborn and head of the
new creation, be embodied in mankind by the outpouring of the Spirit: as the Church, the
communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life
everlasting.
- in the charisms and ministries by which the Church is built up;
- in the signs of apostolic and missionary life;
- in the witness of saints through whom He manifests His holiness and continues the
work of salvation.
I. THE JOINT MISSION OF THE SON AND THE
SPIRIT
689 The One whom the Father has sent into our hearts, the Spirit of His Son, is truly God.
Consubstantial with the Father and the Son, the Spirit is inseparable from them, in both
the inner life of the Trinity and His gift of love for the world. In adoring the Holy Trinity,
life-giving, consubstantial, and indivisible, the Church’s faith also professes the distinction
of persons. When the Father sends His Word, He always sends His Breath. In their joint
mission, the Son and the Holy Spirit are distinct but inseparable. To be sure, it is Christ
who is seen, the visible image of the invisible God, but it is the Spirit who reveals Him.
690 Jesus is Christ, “anointed,” because the Spirit is His anointing, and everything that
occurs from the Incarnation on derives from this fullness. When Christ is finally glorified,
He can in turn send the Spirit from His place with the Father to those who believe in Him:
He communicates to them His glory, that is, the Holy Spirit who glorifies Him. From that
time on, this joint mission will be manifested in the children adopted by the Father in the
Body of His Son: the mission of the Spirit of adoption is to unite them to Christ and make
them live in Him: The notion of anointing suggests . . . that there is no distance between
the Son and the Spirit. Indeed, just as between the surface of the body and the anointing
with oil neither reason nor sensation recognizes any intermediary, so the contact of the
Son with the Spirit is immediate, so that anyone who would make contact with the Son
by faith must first encounter the oil by contact. In fact there is no part that is not covered
by the Holy Spirit. That is why the confession of the Son’s Lordship is made in the Holy
Spirit by those who receive Him, the Spirit coming from all sides to those who approach
the Son in faith.
Source: The Catechism of the Catholic Church
to be continued ...
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ARTICLE 8 - “I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT”
687 “No one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” Now God’s
Spirit, who reveals God, makes known to us Christ, His Word, His living Utterance, but
the Spirit does not speak of himself. The Spirit who “has spoken through the prophets”
makes us hear the Father’s Word, but we do not hear the Spirit himself. We know Him only
in the movement by which He reveals the Word to us and disposes us to welcome Him in
faith. The Spirit of truth who “unveils” Christ to us “will not speak on His own.” Such
properly divine self-effacement explains why “the world cannot receive [Him], because
it neither sees Him nor knows Him,” while those who believe in Christ know the Spirit
because He dwells with them.
688 The Church, a communion living in the faith of the apostles which she transmits, is
the place where we know the Holy Spirit:
- in the Scriptures He inspired;
- in the Tradition, to which the Church Fathers are always timely witnesses;
- in the Church’s Magisterium, which He assists;
- in the sacramental liturgy, through its words and symbols, in which the Holy Spirit
puts us into communion with Christ;
- in prayer, wherein He intercedes for us;
Friday at 7:00 p.m.-10:30 p.m.
Oct 9, 16, 23
Nov 6, 13, 20
White Room
Our Lady of the Snows Church
258-15 80th Ave.
Floral Park, NY 11004
Proceeds will benefit the New Church Debt Reduction Fund
Donation: $4.00
The Gospel Truth
Conversion
of St. Paul
The call to discipleship and mission is presented as a powerful invitation from Jesus himself,
in the opening chapters of Mark and Matthew’s
Gospel. Jesus, walking by the sea, calls to them,
“Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of
men” (Mk 1:16-20). They drop their nets and leave
behind the boat in which they had been sitting.
In Capernaum, Jesus meets Levi, sitting in his
tollbooth. “Follow me,” is the unadorned command. And Levi gets up, leaves his counter, and
by Rev. Joe Cadusale
follows Jesus.
The exquisite story of the call of Peter takes place in Luke’s Gospel. Jesus
asks Simon to cast out into the deep and let down the nets for a catch. “Master,”
Simon replies, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at
your command I will lower the nets.” (Lk 5:5) Such a catch he makes when he
lowers nets! The nets are tearing and the boats are in danger of sinking they are
so full. Simon Peter, overwhelmed, falls down at Jesus’ knees,” Depart from me,
for I am a sinful man.” (Lk5:8) Jesus responds,”Do not be afraid. From now on
you will be catching men.” (LK 5:10)
There are many other stories of the call to discipleship. In the Acts of the
Apostles, Paul is knocked from his horse on the way to Damascus, blinded by
the brilliance of the Risen Christ, and called to be Christ’s chosen vessel. (Acts
9:1-16) When Jesus said ,”Go therefore
and make disciples of all nations,”(Mt 28:19) he wasn’t talking only to the
Apostles -- he meant each of us. The lay faithful have their part to fulfill in
the formation of these ecclesial communities, not only through an active and
responsible participation in the life of the community . . . but also through a missionary zeal and activity towards the many people who still do not believe and
who no longer live the faith received at Baptism.” (CHRISTI FIDELES LAICI,
POPE JOHN PAUL II ).
Join Fr. Joe’s Bible Study Class
For more information, please call: (718) 275-3936
Most Precious Blood Charismatic
Prayer Community
Most Precious Blood Church
32-23 36th Street
Long Island City, NY 11106
Head Servant: Nenett Barbilla
718 937 5242
2nd Tuesday 7:30 PM
El Shaddai Prayer Community
Most Precious Blood Church
32-23 36th Street
Long Island Ciyt, NY 11106
Head Servant: Amerito Gerodias
718 458 8214
4th Sunday 3:00 PM
Light Of Christ Prayer Group
St. Nicholas of Tolentine
150-75 Goethals Avenue
Jamaica, NY 11432
Head Servant: Cookie Fernandez
718 380 1712
Last Thursday 7:30 PM
Family of Christ Prayer Community
Presentation Church
8819 Parsons Blvd., Jamaica, NY 11432
Head Servant: Patrick de la Paz
718 658 2078
1st Tuesday 7:30 PM
Mary Mother of Divine Healer
St. Gerard Majella Church
188-16 91st Ave., Hollis, NY 11423
Head Servant: Raymonde Cesaire
718 445 4423
1st Friday 7:30 PM
Haitian Community
90-33 184th Place
Hollis, NY 11423
Head Servant: Alberte Madame Delatur
718 454 8572
3rd Tuesday 7:30 PM
Sacred Heart Family Apostolate
37-74 6th St.
Woodside, NY 11377
Head Servant: Remy Consoli
718 424 7984
2nd Sunday 6:30 PM
English Community
161 Le Grand St.
Brentwood, NY 11717
Coordinator: Rose Nallie Germain
631 231 8758
1st Thursday 7:30 PM
Filipino Catholic
453 Hawthorne Avenue
Uniondale, NY 11553
Coordinator: Dr. Norma Pascual
516 2921445
Last Monday 8:00 PM
Handmaid of the Lord/Couples for Christ
202-35 Foothill Ave., A-38
Hollis, NY 11423
Head Servant: Dolly Pawal
718 468-8463
Last Sunday 6:30 PM
San Sebastian Charismatic Prayer Group
39-63 57th St.
Woodside, NY 11377
Head Servant: Loida Villacompa
201-993-5599
4th Monday of a 5-Monday Month, 8 PM
Our Lady Queen of Martyrs
110-06 Queens Blvd.
Forest Hills, NY 11375
Head Servant: Nellie Milite
718 544 5141
2nd Friday 7:30 PM
Haitian Community
16339 130th Ave., Apt 5C
Jamaica, NY 11434-3014
Head Servant: Raymonde Cesaire
718 481 9683
4th Saturday 7:00 PM
Filipino Community Our Lady of Angels
2860 Webb Ave., Bronx, NY 10468
Head Servant: Josette Camino
718 543 0884
2nd Saturday 7:30 PM
Flushing, NY 11366
Coordinator: Perla Leonardo
(718) 591-4579
2nd Friday, 9:00 PM
Divine Mercy Devotion Our Lady of Victories
2217 Kennedy Blvd.,
Jersey City, NJ 07304
Head Servant: Tess Alvarez
4th Friday 7:00 PM
The Lord’s Flock Prayer Group
Sta. Rita
281 Bradley Ave., Staten Island, NY 10314
Coordinator: Myrna Leyson
718 983 1410
3rd Saturday 8:00 PM
St. John Prayer Community
272 Boyd Ave
Head Servant: Purita Vasquez
201 333 3136
3rd Monday 7:00 PM
St. Nicholas Prayer Group
122 Ferry St.
Head Servant: Elsa Leonida
210 656 2010
1st Sunday 6:30 PM
Puissance Divine D’Amore
820 Wallace Ave
Baldwin, NY 11510
Head Servant: Yvrose Saint-Urban
516 378 8173
2nd Thursday 7:30 PM
Home Bound Bible Study
St. Rose of Lima
269 Parkville Ave
Coordinator: Violeta Robbins
718 677 8131
1st Saturday 2:00 PM
The Vine & the Branches IncarnationPrayer Group
92-19 212th St., Queens Village, NY 11428
Head Servant: Ofelia Villar
718 465 0087
3rd Friday 7:00 PM
Family of God
160-31 78th Rd
Filipino Community
Our Lady of the Angelus
63-63 98th St., Rego Park, NY 11374
Coordinator: Ofelia Concepcion
(718) 897-4444
2nd Monday 7:30 PM
Saint Martin de Porres Healing Ministry
Flushing Chapter
86-60 Range St., Bellrose, NY 11427
Coordinator: Sylvia David
(718) 913-6922
3rd Thursday 8:00 PM
Friday Night Devotion
40-14 62nd St., Apt. 4F
Woodside, NY 11377
Coordinator: Rosemary Khan
718 457 5877
5th Friday 8:30 PM
Dominican Nuns
Corpus Christi Monastery
1230 Lafayette Ave., Bronx, NY 10474
Coordinator: Sr. Maria Pia
718 328 6996
Last Saturday, 9 AM
God the Father/I Am Prayer Group
150-38 Union Turnpike, Apt. 5-O
Flushing, NY 11367
Coordinator: Cecilia Pang
718-380-0922
2nd Saturday, 2:00 PM
OBERAMMERGAU PASSION PLAY
PILGRIMAGE TRIPS
The Passion Play is performed every 10 years in the city of Oberammergau, Germany. The Oberammergau Passion Play is a play of life and
death, promised in a moment of mortal threat, and so began the history of the play in 1633. The Passion Play takes place outdoors where the
sky and mountains are the back drop. It is a wonderful spectacle of pageantry and world renown for the costumes and music presentation. More
than 2,000 citizens make up the actors, singers, instrumentalists and stage technicians that bring the play to life in approximately six hours of
playing time. The year 2010 marks the 41st time the story will be presented.
MAY 20 to 29, 2010 $3299 + tax (4 seats left)
Milan/Turin/Lugano/Lucerne/
Oberammergau/Munich
MAY 20 to 30, 2010 $3499 + tax (2 seats left)
Warsaw/Krakow/Prague/Vienna/Salzburg,
Oberammergau/Munich
AUG 26 – SEP 4, 2010 $3099 + airfare*(25
seats left)
Milan/Turin/Padua/Innsbruck/Chiemsee/
Salzburg/Altoetting/Regensburg/Munich
SEPT 2 -12, 2010 2,999 + airfare (25 seats
left)
Zurich/Lucerne/Zermatt/St Moritz/Innsbruck/
Salzburg/ Oberammergau/ Munich
SEPT 11 - 22, 2010 $3,599 + tax (waiting list
only)
Munich/Oberammergau/ Salzburg/ Vienna/
Prague/ Krakow/ Warsaw
SEPT 18 - 29, 2010 $2,799 + airfare(24 seats
left)*
Munich/Salzburg/Bled/Zagreb/ Plitvice/
Medjugorje/Dubrovnik
Included:
Oberammergau ticket and accommodations (as selected)
Hotel accommodations during pilgrimage (dbl occ)
Breakfast and dinner daily (except as noted)
Deluxe motorcoach & Professional Escort and Local Guides
All entrance fees to the sites as specified in itinerary
Not Included:
* Airfare Unavailable (approx $999 CA, $699 NY based on 2009
airfare)
Airport Tax ($350 - $450 approx, variable until ticketed)
Tips to Guides and Driver ($9 per day) pre-collected
Optional Travel Insurance ($168 for $3000 0r $228 for $4000 trip
cost)
Single Supplement is from $550
091003
NOELETTE TOURS 845 323 4522 or Toll Free (1 866
NOELETTE)
MAY 20 to 29 (10 days) $3299+tax(4 seats left)
(Includes Middle Class hotel accommodation & Passion Play Cat 2 ticket)
Fr. Paul Ramen - Spiritual Chaplain
ITINERARY:
5/20 Depart USA 5/21 Arrive Milan 5/22 Milan - Turin
5/23 Lugano – Einsideln - Lucerne
5/24 Lucerne
5/25 Fuessen - Hohenschwangu
5/26 Ettal - Linderhof 5/27 Munich
5/28 Oberammergau – Passion Play
5/29 Return to USA
MAY 20 to 30 (11 days) $3499 + tax (2 seats left)
(Includes Middle Class hotel accommodation & Passion Play Cat 2 ticket
With Fr. Mike Semana – Spiritual Chaplain
ITINERARY:
5/20 Depart USA 5/21 Arrive Warsaw
5/22 Warsaw/Czestochowa/Krakow
5/23 Krakow/Lagiewniki/Krakow
5/24 Krakow/Wadowice/Prague
5/25 Prague
5/26 Prague/Vienna 5/27 Vienna/Salzburg
5/28 Salzburg/Oberammergau – Passion Play
5/29 Oberammergau/Neuschwanstein/Munich
5/30 Return to USA
AUG 26-SEP 4 (10 days) $3099 +airfare* + tax (25
seats left) (Includes Middle Class hotel accommodation & Passion Play
Cat 1 ticket) with Bro Carmelo Cortez – Tour Leader
ITINERARY:
8/26 Depart USA 8/27 Arrive Milan 8/28 Milan/Turin
8/29 Milan/Padua/Innsbruck
8/30 Innsbruck/Chiemsee/Salzburg
8/31 Salzburg
9/1 Salzburg/Altoetting/Regensburg
9/2 Regensburg
9/3 Oberammergau – Passion Play
9/4 Return to USA
SEP 2 -12,(11 days) $2,999 +airfare* + tax(25 seats left)
(Includes Middle Class hotel accommodation & Passion Play Cat 2 ticket
With Fr. Tito Ignacio – Spiritual Chaplain
ITINERARY:
9/02 Depart USA9/03 Arrive Zurich
9/04 Zurich - Lucerne
9/05 Lucerne - Zermatt
9/06 Zermatt – St. Moritz
9/07 St. Moritz – Innsbruck - Salzburg
9/08 Salzburg
9/09 Salzburg - Oberammergau – Passion Play
9/10 Oberammergau - Munich
9/11 Return to USA
SEPT 11- 22,(12 days)$3599+tax(waiting list
only)
(Includes 2 night Private Room w/bath(guesthouse) & Passion Play Cat
2 ticket)
Fr. Alex Enriquez – Spiritual Chaplain
ITINERARY
9/11 Depart USA
9/12 Arrive Munich
9/13 Munich/ Oberammergau
9/14 Oberammergau – Passion
Play 9/15 Oberammergau/
Salzburg 9/16 Salzburg/ Vienna
9/17 Vienna/ Prague
9/18 Prague
9/19 Prague/ Wadowice/
Krakow 9/20 Krakow/
Czestochowa
9/21 Czestochowa/ Warsaw
9/22 Return to USA
SEP18-29 (12 days) $2799 +airfare* + tax(24seats
left)
(Includes 2 night Private Room w/bath (guesthouse) & Passion Play Cat
2 ticket
Fr. Peter James Alindogan – Spiritual Chaplain
ITINERARY
9/18 Depart USA
9/19 Arrive Munich
9/20 Munich/ Oberammergau
9/21 Oberammergau – Passion Play 9/22
Oberammergau/ Salzburg 9/23 Salzburg/
Bled
9/24 Bled/Zagreb
9/25 Zagreb/Lake Plitvice 9/26 Lake Plitvice/
Medjugorje 9/27 Medjugorje/
9/28 Medjugorje/Dubrovnik 9/29 Return to USA
NOTES:
AIRFARES are published by airlines only 11
months before travel. AIRPORT TAXES are variable
until ticketed due to fuel/security cost PAYMENT
SCHEDULE:
• Deposit of $500 (non-refundable but transferable) by
October 30, 2009
• Second deposit due December 1, 2009
• Final payment 60 days before departure
091003
NOELETTE TOURS 206 PARROTT ROAD, W NYACK, NY10994
845 323 4522 or Toll Free (1 866 NOELETTE)
TO RESERVE, please fill-in Oberammergau Reservation at www.noelette.com
or Email sales@noelette.com
Sunday, November 1, 2009
8:00am - Mass 4:30pm
Kellenberg Memorial High School
1400 Glenn Curtiss Blvd,
Uniondale, NY • 516-292-0200
Mother Nadine
AGENDA
Convert, Founder of Intercessors of the Lamb - “Fruits of Intercessory
Prayer”
Father Andrew Apostoli
A member of the Franciscan Friars of Renewal – “Spiritual Direction”
Al Barbarino
Mary’s World Troubadour for the poor, Master of Ceremonies, “Spiritual
Retreat Ministry”
Bud Macfarlane
Noted Authority of Marian Apparitions and how they affect our times.
Fino Giordano
Founder OMQOP, will reveal his day with Maria Esperanza
Special Documentary
Dedicated to Maria Esperanza and the Betania, Venezuela apparitions.
Special Guests will be present!
Father Giordano Belanich
Guiradelco
Philippine-Oriental
Restaurant & Grocery
324 Post Avenue
Westbury, NY 11590
(516) 333-9898
Authentic Philippine
Cuisine • Home style
Cooking • Philippine
and Oriental Food
Emma Yuson
Proprietor
Founder of the Croation Relief Foundation - Healing Service Mass,
Adoration, Consecration to the Immaculate Heart Of Mary.
Only 1200 seats are available – First Come – First Served
– Open Seating. Seat Donation $20.00 - At the door $25.00 –
No Refunds. Continental Breakfast & Lunch Voucher $17.00,
includes all drinks, juices, coffee, tea, no soda.
Limited Tables for vendors contact –
Tony Ciuffo – 516-712-7005
All Religious are FREE - Priests, Brothers, Sisters, Deacons,
Seminarians but you must register in advance for a seat.
Send all seat donations and food vouchers payments to Our
Mother Queen of Peace, PO Box 117, Glenwood Landing, NY
11547. You will receive all tickets in the mail. If you can afford
to donate extra this would help us pay for all the expenses and
assist those who cannot afford a ticket. No one at Our Mother
Queen of Peace is salaried. This is why the seat donations are
so reasonable. You may bring your own lunch & beverage. Water
and chips will be available to purchase.
For Ticket Information Call:
Gina DeLucia, 516-676-1669
For Conference Information Call:
Fino Giordano, 631-651-2606
Further information:
www.OurMotherQueenofPeace.com
Violinist Keryn Falco Posecion in concert at Our Lady of the Snows Church last
September 13 accompanied by pianist Jennie Chu. The successful performance
benefits the debt reduction program of the new OLS church.
Msgr. Raymond F. Chappetto officiated at the Memorial Mass
for Remedios R. Ulep held at Our Lady of the Snows Church
on North Floral Park, Queens last September 12. About 100
friends and relatives attended. Lunch immediately followed at
the Pine Court Chinese Bistro in Little Neck, Queens.
Fr. Guthrie ... from page 4
But the crime of murder of the helpless is by any other name
or for any excuse the crime of murder.
The common denominator of these and many other such
horrible massacres and genocides is the subtle, preternaturally
clever and very malicious influence of the evil one in all of similar
instances: Soviet Russia, the Spanish Revolution, Nazi Germany,
and, now, the United States. So many of us are allowing the enemy
of God to actually run our lives by way of accommodation with
the seductions of worldly values, that the small step into murder of
the helpless and the “unwanted” doesn’t seem like a big deal.
A significant factor in our moral deterioration has been the
acceptance by many of us the conveniences of an affluent life - to
the exclusion of the inner fire of the intense pursuit of holiness
called for by authentic discipleship. In other words, those of us
who accepted this accommodation, and the “minor” and serious
sins that may have followed, have fallen into a spiritual sleep
and are oblivious to the call of Jesus to total love of him and true
love of neighbor.
As indicated in last month’s Newsletter and above, a pattern
ominously resembling that of previous atheistic dictatorships is
becoming apparent all around us.
It was to prevent the takeover of just such dictatorships as
the Nazi regime in Christian Germany and the ugly revolution
in Catholic Spain, as well as the on-going rapid deterioration of
morality in our own country, that Our Blessed Mother appeared
in Fatima in 1917.
Apparently, we didn’t follow her requests then. And it seems
clear that, even now, we are still not listening to Our Lady’s still
urgent requests.
Very few of our many otherwise devout Catholics appear
to be taking seriously the simple program given to us by Our
Lady at Fatima, beginning with the daily devout recitation of
the rosary.
As noted above, the persecution of the Church consistent with
the developing atheistic dictatorship which is becoming evident
in the entire Western world has begun with the execution of the
“unwanted” innocent.
But this spread of evil won’t stop without an extraordinary
intervention of divine providence as called for by the Mother of
God at Fatima.
As we have documented, this spread of evil is in full swing
in our schools and in the continuing corruption of our people,
especially our youth by the media of communication.
Most of our young people are already brainwashed into deep
confusion about the faith of their parents and the culture of life
in which our older people were raised. They are immersed in the
culture of death which surrounds us. They are being raised in it
and are being “catechized” by it.
Many good parents who didn’t detect what was happening
are asking “What did I do wrong?” Or “I didn’t raise my children
this way”, or “What has happened to our children?”
But God’s wonderful Divine Mercy is always waiting for us
to respond with trust.
It is not too late to contribute mightily to the salvation of our
souls and to the salvation of the souls of our children. All we
have to do is begin by consecrating ourselves each day to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and by listening attentively to and living
by the urgent requests given by Our Lady at Fatima.
Be faithful to the urgent requests of Our Lady at Fatima!
In the end the Immaculate Heart of Mary will triumph.
NEXT ISSUE: An
update on the world-wide diabolical
attack against morality, truth and human life.
SACRAMENTALS
The Hail Mary Prayer
The origin of the Hail Mary prayer is in the Bible. There are countless
miracles, signs and wonders that have occurred for Catholics and non Catholics
by just saying one Hail Mary Prayer. And as many of you know, we ask the
Blessed Mother to “pray for us” which is in the very words of the Hail Mary
Prayer. We don’t pray to her and think of her as a goddess.
However, she is the mother of God and commands the utmost respect and appreciation.
A little six year old Protestant boy heard and memorized
the Hail Mary Prayer which he said daily, because he liked it
so much. His mother found out about it and caused him to
stop reciting it. Years later he found the prayer in the Bible
and continued saying it while letting no else know. His sister
had spoken vehemently against the Catholic Church until
one of her children was dangerously sick. The boy, now a
teenager asked his sister to say one Hail Mary Prayer for the
cure of her child. She said the prayer, the child was healed
and she became a Catholic.
So, where is this prayer, sacramental, in the Bible? The
first part is in Luke, chapter 1, verse 28. An angel of God sent
by God to Mary to say to her, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord
is with thee: blessed art thou among women.” The second
part is in verse 42. Elizabeth becomes filled with the Holy
Spirit when she sees her cousin Mary who has come to take
care of her. Elizabeth says, “Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.” The Church added
the last part, which is, “Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us now and at the
hour of our death. Amen.”
If while on earth people can ask each other to pray for them, then we can
certainly ask them to pray for us when they pass
on.
So, rounding out the prayer we have. Hail
Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee,
blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of
thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary
Mother of God, pray for us
sinners now and at the hour of
our death. Amen.
by Scapular John
Later on in the same chapter, verse 48, states, “All generations shall call me blessed.”
We need to remember as St. Timothy says “All Scripture is
inspired by God.” 2nd Timothy 3:16.
God is telling us through Scripture the reverence, respect,
and appreciation that are due to the Blessed Mother. Did
Jesus obey the 4th commandment, which is honor thy Father
and Mother? Yes, He did. And if He did, should not we? For
Jesus said in the Gospel of John, 14:6, “I am the way, and the
truth and the life.” No one loved Jesus more than his Mother.
And how Jesus appreciates us when we honor His mother by
giving her flowers and especially when we say the Hail Mary
Prayer.
For a free true story titled, The Hail Mary of a Protestant, contact us at: Dove
Tales, PO Box 3623, Easton, PA. 18043. Phone 610.253.8604. www.TheHolyFamily.com.
“WOE TO THE RICH”
Many still do not get it that following the
ways of the Lord is not about material enrichment as what many false prophets and
false teachers of faith say. The rich young
man in the gospel account once asked the
Lord what he needed to do in order to attain
eternal life and was told to sell all he had
and to give money to the poor. The young
by Deacon Rolando V. Nolasco man left so distraught for we all understand
how difficult it would be to give away in an
instant a lifetime accumulated wealth. Hence Scriptures tell us that we could
not serve both God and money for we tend to love one and despise the other.
We cannot truly and faithfully serve the Lord if our hearts are preoccupied with
the desires for worldly things. In this token, we see many who seek favor from
the Lord to frequent the church but immediately revert to their old self once the
request is granted.
This is not to deny the truth that God provides for all our needs; indeed we
know He takes care of us without doubt. He invites those “who are tired from
carrying heavy loads to come to Him so He can give them rest.” The understanding that we are never alone especially in moments of difficulty is an attestation that God never lets us down when we need Him most. God is always
with us just as he promised His disciples when He was about to go back to His
Father’s place. He laid down the conditions for discipleship: deny our very self
and take up the cross. To deny one’s self is to put to death desires for worldly
things as this can hinder our journey in faith. St. John of the Cross in his writings warns us not to be overwhelmed with so many burdens since our journey
is compared to someone going uphill. We follow in the footsteps of our Lord
Jesus who “humbled Himself by embracing our humanity and walked the path
of obedience all the way to death.” This is a great contradiction to many false
prophets and false teachers who had enriched themselves at the expense of
others. The Old Testament compares them to shepherds who took advantage of
their flock. To temper our appetite for worldly things is a great challenge for all
of us. We need the grace of God if we are to win this battle.
The second condition of discipleship is to carry the cross daily. We are all
aware that life is full of many challenges. The gospel tells us that the road to
eternal life is narrow and rough where few dare to trod. On the other hand, the
road that leads to perdition is wide and smooth and many choose to take it. It is
only human to take the easier way. The cross for many is not easy to accept and
they go for a more comfortable alternative. Many would prefer a smaller or a
lighter cross to carry, but many difficult challenges come our way. All we need
is to trust the Lord and pray for His mercy and compassion. We cannot always
avoid the storms in life. We should to confront them with great faith in God.
We are told that if we “ask, we shall receive. “Every father gives good things to
his children. How much more of our heavenly Father who gives good things to
those who ask Him!”
There was a rich man who had lived luxuriously and a poor man named,
Lazarus who would often be at the doorstep of this rich man hoping to get
some scrap of food so he could eat. When both passed away, the poor man
entered the Kingdom of God while the rich man suffered greatly in hell. So the
rich man begged Father Abraham to ask Lazarus to dip his finger in a water to
cool the rich man’s tongue as a relief from so much heat. He also begged Father
Abraham to send Lazarus back to earth to warn his siblings on earth about the
great torment he suffered. This is an affirmation of our belief that those who
lived pious lives on this earth will be awarded everlasting life. At Last Judgment, eternal life is for those who did good deeds to their brethren and not how
much wealth, power and fame one was able to amass in this world. The rich
man in the end of the gospel was reminded that in his lifetime, he was given all
good things while Lazarus got all the bad things.
The gospel reminds us “not to store up riches for ourselves here on earth,
where moths and rust can destroy, and robbers steal.” On the other hand, it is
better to earn rewards in eternal life but that is not easily attained because of
our weak human nature. We need to constantly subdue our human desires for
earthly treasures and guard ourselves from our propensity to an easy, care-free
way of life. It could be a challenging task since our heart will always be where
our riches are; it can never be divided between two opposing tendencies if we
choose to be hooked on things that are vain. We need to be real teachers of faith
and avoid those who just satiate the appetite for temporary and perishable
treasures. Faith is not about feeding our human desires with material things but
with “goods” that can lead us to everlasting life. Better deny our human desire
for worldly things in our lifetime and let our hearts be open to heavenly things.
The gospel reminds us that “it would be very hard for rich people to enter the
Kingdom of heaven; much harder for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of
God than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.”
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Prayer to
Saint Martin De Porres
O humble saint, you amazed your
contemporaries by your profound humility,
accepting your situation as an illegitimate
son of a Spaniard and a black woman.
You were never ashamed of your family
background, and your father who first did
not like you, made you his favorite son
because of your humility, joy and holiness.
Enable us to accept situations in life which
we consider bad. Make us aware that
realities could only be changed by first
accepting them in the name of Jesus. Amen.
3 Hail Mary and 3 Glory Be
St. Martin de Porres pray for us. JCC
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Third Month
Virgin Mary, you brought Jesus into the
world. You nurtured Him as every mother
nurtures her child. We pray for children and
young people: you know so well what they
need.
Guide teen-agers so that they will find adults
who are capable of listening to them, of
understanding and encouraging them.
Enlighten young adults in their desires for
happiness and their plans for the future.
Give courage, faith and confidence to those
whom Jesus invites to a closer union, and
strengthen their response to follow Him.
And then there are the children and
adolescents who know nothing about Jesus
and who have never heard about you. We
pray that they may encounter along their way
true witnesses of the Christian faith. Our Lady
of the Cape, “watch over the souls of the
young and over the hearts of children.” (John
Paul II). JCC
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Divine Mercy Images in poster, vinyl or canvas print in three designs,
Vilnius (original image), Hyla or Skemp (with a door). Available in all sizes.
Call 718 424 7984
or Cell 917 607 6137
Church Display, framed or unframed.
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Also available, affordable pilgrimages in August and September at Krakow,
Poland, or/and Papal Audience in Rome, and/or Medjugorge, Fatima,
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Please call same numbers.
By The Sacred Heart Family Apostolate
Bilingual Library and Gift Shop.
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Office: 718-424-7984, 718-606-1873, 718-606-2670
Cell 917-607-6137
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* Around 10 persons in every package tour with a priest.
CALL 718.606.1873 or 917.607.6137 for reservations.
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Our Lord to Saint Faustina
This is the hour of great mercy for the whole world.... In this hour, I will refuse nothing to
the soul that makes a request of Me in virtue of My Passion.
My daughter, try your best to make the Stations of the Cross in this hour, provided that
your duties permit it; and if you are not able to make the Stations of the Cross, then at
least step into the Chapel for a moment and adore in the Blessed Sacrament.
The Three O’Clock Prayer
Thou died Jesus, but the source of life flowed out for souls and the ocean of mercy
opened up for the whole world.
O Fountain of Life, immeasurable Divine Mercy, cover the wholeworld and empty
Thyself out upon us.
O Blood and Water which flowed out from the Heart of Jesus as a Fountain of Mercy for
us, I trust in Thee.
Holy God, Holy Omnipotent, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us and on the whole world. (3 times) Amen.
The Chaplet of the Divine Mercy (Divine Mercy Feast Day, April 19)
(To be recited on ordinary Rosary beads) Begin with: Our Father…Hail Mary... The
Apostles’ Creed
On the Our Father Beads
V. Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Thy
most beloved Son, Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ;
R. In atonement for our sins and the sins of the whole world.
On the Hail Mary Beads
V.
Through the most Sorrowful Passion of Jesus,
R. Have mercy on us and on the whole world.
In conclusion
Holy God, Holy Omnipotent, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us and on the whole
world.(3x) Amen.Jesus, King of Mercy, I trust in Thee.
IRS TAX PROBLEMS ...
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Call 646-209-4971 (accountant) or
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GLOBAL CARGO
1.Sacred Heart Family Apostolate (64th St.)
• Family Library, Club -- assist in starting religious libraries
• 2nd Sunday Bible Study, Family Monthly Support Group Meetings
• Assist in Home Enthronement of the Two Hearts
2.Quallity Hands Placement Co. - Employment Services (64th St.)
3.NY Construction - Licensed and Bonded (64th St.)
4.Taxes - Authorized IRS E-File Provider (64th St.)
5.BPI MONEY REMITTANCE-WOODSIDE. Main BPI in Queens. Send Money to the Philippine, only $7. 718-606-1873 / UNITELLER / PLACID”
6.East Coast Llifesavers, Inc. - ACLS and BCLS, and NCLEX review (64th St.)
7.FedEx Authorized Dealer - 64 St. and Roosevelt
8.Five Star RP Sea Cargo, Inc - Special Drop-off Rates: $49-Manila, $54-Luzon, $59-Visayas/Mindanao. 718-606-1873. 718-606-2670. OR Global Cargo - Pick-
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10. Woodside Mailbox rentals.
11. Water Alkaline and Anti-Oxidant, Kangen or Universal Company. Call 718606-1873
DALAW KALINGA FOUNDATION
OPERATION ONDOY/KETSANA RELIEF
DRIVE (for TYPHOON victims)
Drop off center: 56-16 Roosevelt Ave.,
1st Floor, Woodside, NY 11377
(clothing, canned goods, school
supplies, toiletries & monetary gifts)
Relief Drive will run from Oct 3-24, 2009
Divine Mercy
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Ondoy).
Pay at Cost!
Lend a helping hand! Send goods! Be a
Samaritan!
for those who do not have a permanent address
64 St corner Roosevelt
37 - 74 64th Street
Woodside, NY 11377
Tel. 718-424-7984
NYC Tel. 212 731 9662
Mobile 917 607 6137
www.sacredheartfamilyapostolate.net
Library and Religious Book Store is open to public at 64th Street Location
FOR LEGAL HELP IN
ANY STATE OF THE
U.S.A. ON
Working Visas
Labor Certification
Immigrant Petitions
Citizenship
COME, JOIN OUR
FILIPINO MASS
Every First Sunday of the month
at The Shrine of
Our Lady of the Island
CALL:
Atty. Wilfrido E.
Panotes, Jr., Ph.D.
Eastport, Long Island, New York
Mass in Tagalog at 1:30 p.m.
preceded by Rosary in Tagalog
(Practicing Immigration & Naturalization Law since 1973)
• LL. B. (Ateneo de Manila); A.B., Ph. B., Ph. L. (UST); M.A.
(Fordham Univ.); Ph.D. (Graduate Theological
Foundation - Indiana/Oxford/Rome)
• Admitted: New Jersey, New York and Philippine Bars
• Member: Association of Immigration and Nationality Lawyers; National Lawyers Association
3000 Kennedy Blvd., Suite 303
Jersey City, N.J. 07306
Tel. (201) 963-5565
Tel. (212) 244-0581
Fax (201) 798-0636
MAILING ADDRESS
72 Van Reipen Avenue
PMB #405
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL:
Primo & Tessie Carlos (631) 325-1177
• Manny & Norma Pascual
Infant Jesus Prayer Group of Nassau (516) 292-1445
• Helen & Peter Buni
Good Samaritan Prayer Group (631) 543-8775
• Inday Dineros
Santo Niño Prayer Group of Suffolk (516) 822-0270
Directions: Head east on LIE, then take exit 70 South on Port
Jefferson-Westhampton (Capt. Daniel Roe Hwy - Route 111).
Drive for a couple of miles, then turn right to Eastport Manor
Rd. and follow the signs to the Shrine.
Visit the Shrine’s website at:
www.OurLadyoftheIsland.org

The Filipino Catholic

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