PRAYERS of the HEART

I grew up in a place surrounded by bamboos. There, my cousins and I spent our days playing and resting the whole day. I never recognize the usefulness of bamboos, but what I knew, they provide our place enough shades and cool breeze. As I grow in age and in wisdom, I came to understand what these bamboos can offer me. They can offer me that refreshing feeling when I am under their shades. But there is more that I can learn from them. They can convey a beautiful message as I look deeper into my life and journey.  Bend but don't break. Be flexible yet firmly rooted. One of the most impressive things about the bamboo in the forest is how they sway with even the slightest breeze. This gentle swaying movement with the wind is a symbol of humility. Their bodies are hard and firm and yet sway gently in the breeze while their trun ks stay rooted firmly in the ground below. Their foundation is solid even though they move and sway harmoniously with the wind, never fighting against it. In

Tuesday of the 15th Week - A (Matthew 11:20-24) Chorazin What sometimes disturbs me when I celebrate the Mass is to see a good number of people rushing to leave the church after communion. I instructed some of the volunteers to remind the people in their welcoming and announcement of the importance of each part of the Mass, but still, people seem to be indifferent and they just do what they want to do. Is this a sign that the word of God and the Eucharist didn't take root in the hearts of some Christians. Why they attend Mass without any intention of participating till the very end? Do they really consider that attending the Sunday Liturgy is just an obligation to fulfill? But, where is the real encounter with the Almighty? The people of Chorazin and Bethsaida, in today's gospel, were given the privilege of witnessing and experiencing marvelous gifts of healing and teachings of Jesus, but those miracles and teachings were not enough to transform the hearts of the people of

Monday of the 15th week - (Matthew 10:34-11:1) The La Salette cemetery, located in our Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette in Cavite, is not only a place of our dead brothers in the community. But, it is also a place of prayer and meditation. It is a place of our faithful missionaries who sacrifice their lives to tireleslly make the message of our Lady know to all the world. It is a place where we are reminded of our destiny after we are done with the vineyard of the Lord. And it is, above all, it is a place of God who lavishly shared with us His divine love. Whenever I visit the Shrine, I always stop by the cemetery to say a prayer for those lying in rest there. And what inspire me to stay and reflect in that place is the presence of our American La Salette priests and brothers. These missionaries made a solemn commitment to stay and die in the Philippines --their place of mission, after they decided to leave everything behind, their families and country, for the sake of the kingdom

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time - A   (Matt. 13:1-23)             The place where I was born and came from is a farming community.   Most of the people are farmers, and that includes my family and all the families depended totally on their harvest for survival. Whenever they harvested their crops they would always set aside a certain quantity of seeds for sowing when the following Wet Season began. At the sowing time I noticed how careful they were not to waste a single seed because their future depended each time on how much they harvested. And when Dad notices that we don't take care the rice we eat from our plate, and let a grain fall on the table, he will reprimand us and give us his litany of his difficulty of planting rice before we enjoy eating it on our table.     On reading today’s gospel, what a contrast we see. The Sower of the seed in the gospel parable seems very wasteful in comparison to the poor farmers of my place who just could not afford to do the same. This Sower

The two readings of today helps us see that there are blessings hidden within our sorrow, struggles and pain. In the first reading, Jacob is reunited with his favorite son, Joseph, whom he though was dead. Jacob continued to be faithful to God and did not grow bitter when he thought that God had taken his favorite boy. Instead, He lifted everything up to God whom He worship everyday of his life. And Jacob, because of his faithfulness, received the graciousness of God when Joseph was reunited with him, and now an official that will alleviate the suffering of his people during the time of famine. Jacob received so much blessings in the first reading. First, He is son is alive and back in his arm. Second, His people survived the famine because God will feed his people through Joseph. The gospel speaks of facing difficult times without losing hope and faith in God. Jesus tells his disciples that they will face persecution. But He also assures his disciples of the Holy Spirit that will g

Our church, St. Joseph Church, Makawao celebrated its 100th year of existence last June 26, 2011. This church was built in 1911 by the Portugeese people  that settled in the upcountry area of Maui. And until today, this is still a gathering place that unite the people of Makawao to celebrate the Eucharist. During the centennial celebration, some priests and religious who were assigned in the community were invited to join  in commemorating and celebrating the history of the church. It was an inspiring moment for everybody to reminisce the past, and be inspired by the bright promise of the present and tomorrow for all the faithful . After the Mass, the people gathered at Hannibal Tavares for the Centennial Lua. The food was Ono! But what made this celebration meaningful was the Happiness that each family brings for our dear church...

In today's gospel, Jesus asked His disciples to travel light when they go for their first mission. These instruction --to cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the leper, to go without cost, to take no money, staff, sandals --are meant to keep them in focus as to what they are about to do. They should not allow anything or anything to distract them in their mission to proclaim the Good News. When I first came to Hawaii, and the people noticed that I was only carrying one big luggage and my backpack, they immediately remarked that before I finish my term in the parish, I will have another three big luggages because people will shower me with material gifts. And what they told me was indeed true because I not only gained 3 luggages, I also gained a lot of weight. From 150 lbs, I reached 180 lbs in only matter of one year. The People showered me with material gifts in every parish or personal occasion. and they made sure that I will be well-fed everyday. Perhaps, this is what Jesus

Today, we celebrate the memorial of St. Maria Goretti, the 12-year old girl who refused to submit to a boy's lustful desire and was murdered. Her life is another clear manifestation of God's mysterious guidance in our loves, that He is so powerful that He can work through all the tragedies that occur in our lives to bring about good, to make us better people. The first reading gives us the life of Joseph. When he was flung into a pit, sold as a slave, taken from a foreign land, and then imprisoned for years, Joseph probably thought that he was already in a hopeless situation that nobody and nothing could save him. But, God really works through the events of our lives. God ultimately place him in a position of great power in a pagan land. This gave Joseph big opportunities to feed his people, the Jews, especially his brothers who abandoned him, during the seven years of famine. In the gospel, we can see the calling of the Twelve. When we consider where these men came from and

Mother Hen guarding her child wild chicken just showed up behind the house .. And I know the reason why they showed up...looking for food

God  grant me the serenity  to accept the things I cannot change;  courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference. (Although known most widely in its abbreviated form above, the entire prayer reads as follows...) Living one day at a time;  Enjoying one moment at a time;  Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;  Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it;  Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will; That I may be reasonably happy in this life  and supremely happy with Him Forever in the next. Amen.