Make Up Our Room, Please

Whenever my family is out of town on a family holiday or just tagging along for my work-related field trips, it is given that we will be staying in a hotel. Zek’s face always beam in excitement each time he enters our room, checking out the bathroom for bath-tubs and hot shower amenities, flipping the light switches to see the room illumination, trying and picking out his bed spot, peeking through the window view before finally settling down to press-up and down the remote control of the cable TV looking for his favourite cartoons like he never had any access to TV (Oh well, he is right. We don not have cable TV installed in our home as part of our commitment to homeschooling J ).

My wife and I also relaxes a bit inside this tidily kept room, knowing too well that in a matter of minutes, the whole calm and clean sight will be anything but calm and tidy. Soon, our dear Aim will start to jump up and down and across adjacent beds as soon as he realizes how comfy bouncy the surfaces are. Zek will ask for his favourite food and drinks. Aim will try to grab these away and starts the spilling and scattering frenzy. Aim will soon get bored with his jump routine and pushes the furniture in different positions. Shortly, he will browse through any magazine or reading paraphernalia and toss and leave the pages anywhere. Yes, it will soon cease to look like a hotel room and more like our very own house. Alas, it’s home sweet home.

Luckily for some trips, we needed to stay for more than a night. As a result, we can get another fresh morning chance at cleanliness and orderliness with just the flip of the magic door hang-out – Make Up My Room, Please!

Next week, we will celebrate Ash Wednesday, the traditional Catholic day to herald the start of the 40 days of Lent. It is a day of fasting and abstinence. It is a day of remembering the belief that “from ashes we came, to ashes we will return”. It is a day where we are once again invited to flip over that heart hang-out with the words “Do not disturb” into the one that welcomes God – “Please, make up my room.” We do know that God, despite His overwhelming love for us, will never dare impose His mercy and love on us. He can only lovingly wait at our doorstep. We still hold the key to our life transformation with God as our protagonist.

Be open.

Let Him come inside.

Be forgiven.

Let Him take away the bad stuffs that clutter your life.

Be refreshed.

Let Him give you a new start.

God bless.  

Departing from his prepared statement, the Holy Father spoke on the reservations one might have to confessing their sins to a priest. “Someone may say: ‘I confess only to God.’ Yes, you can tell God: ‘Forgive me’, and say your sins,” he said. “But our sins are also against the brothers, against the Church, and for this it is necessary to ask forgiveness to the Church and to the brothers, in the person of the priest.”

Concluding his catechesis, Pope Francis encouraged those who have not confessed, whether it be for two weeks or 40 years, to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation as soon as possible. “Jesus is there, and Jesus is much better than the priests, and Jesus receives you. He receives you with so much love. Be courageous, and go forward to Confession,” he said.

“To celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation means to be wrapped in a warm embrace.”

( excerpts from http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/39536)

To Whom Shall We Go

Long ago, a friend of mine narrated how his then 7 year-old son, while performing on-stage for the first time, seemed to be glancing at his direction. At first, he did not pay much attention to it and just continued watching the play as it unfolded. But his son’s glances persisted and it finally dawned on him that his son was actually seeking for any sign of approval from him. His son, feeling shy and scared at every turn of the play, was seeking for his approval and encouragement. And so my friend started doing what he reluctantly should have done since the play began. He smiled, nodded, winked his eye and make the thumb-up gesture every time his son glanced at him. From thereon, his son became more confident and played his part better.

Seeking approval is normal and is part of our everyday lives.

Driving on any road entails license from LTO. Putting up business necessitates DTI or SEC certification, amongst other inter-connected government agencies. Food and drug manufacturers seeks BFAD endorsement. Incoming shipment requires BOC approval. Electrical appliances needs BPS mark. Overseas flight involves DFA nod to travel. A legal police raid requires a judicial court’s consent. Even a student does request a mam-may-I-go-out permission before leaving the classroom.

Any approval gives us the confidence to proceed with our plans, that what we are doing is right and without fear from any repercussion.   

In our daily spiritual walk, it is quite understandable that we also seek approval for our thoughts and actions. But the important question that should guide us is - to whom do we seek this approval from? In this modern times, when good friends and even close family, relatives and spouses (as in the cases of the OFW diaspora) , have become easily updatable via social media like Facebook, Twitter and the like, the deep and close inter-personal relationship is slowly being replaced by a simple “like” button. For some of us, we do have spiritual counselors and pastors who can walk us through with our life decisions but this is a such rarity nowadays. Peer groups, oftentimes, offer little substance to any discussions about life, love and righteous living. The information highway brought about by the age of internet has actually contributed to more conflicting, contrasting and confusing ideas that either blur or totally obfuscate our core Christian beliefs (e.g. there are findings that life allegedly begins only at the 22^nd week of conception or that there is supposedly a “gay” genome already found).

Sometimes, we do feel like we are alone and we walk alone in life.

We want to be encouraged.

We seek approval.

Take courage though because God has assured us that He will always be with us no matter what.

In Proverbs 15:3, it is said, “The Lord sees what happens everywhere, He is watching us, whether we do good or evil.”

And in Psalm 33:5, as we take refuge with His approval for our perseverance, it says, ” The Lord loves what is righteous and just; His constant love fills the earth.”

And so, our declaration and our attitude should be similar to St. Peter when most of Jesus’ followers started to leave upon presented with the mystery of the transubstantiation – “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life”, he replied when asked by Jesus.

Knowing and believing that only God can be the source of true guidance and encouragement, we need not look further for other basis of approval.

In Him alone is our source of strength. 

God bless us.

Rite and Right

February 8, 2004

January 21, 2007

May 29, 2011

The priest rector of the Our Lady of Peace EDSA Shrine, shared a thought-provoking homily a few Sundays ago during the feast of Epiphany in which he emphasized Jesus’ important belief in the sacrament of Baptism as He Himself was subjected in River Jordan.  Fr. Nilo went on to catechize us, his parishioners, about the symbolisms of water, oil and candle during the Catholic rite of Baptism. This once-in-a-lifetime sacrament, after receiving, leaves an invisible yet indelible mark as Christians that should guide and enlighten us through our lifetime. The importance of Baptism is made more pronounced by Catholics as we all can see the “mini” baptismal fonts that are located near the entrances of churches as if to remind us daily of our Baptismal vows. At this point, Fr. Nilo reminded us to do remember our own baptismal date since it is as relevant as our biological birth date. It symbolizes our spiritual birth.   

But the greater challenge nowadays is living up to the Christian values and virtues especially when the odds are stacked against us. Do we submit and conform to the worldly standard that emphasizes “selfie” gratification and comfort? Do we succumb to corruption when everyone around us seems to be doing it? Do we keep quiet or even consent to the sinful acts of our friends and family members just to preserve our good standing friendship? Do we look the other way when opportunities to serve others comes our way? Do we pray only when it is convenient to do so? Do we set good and truthful examples to our children? 

As Fr. Nilo puts it beautifully, we should do what is right because it is expected of us as baptized Christians so much so that at the end of our life, God will welcome us with His eternal embrace because He is also expecting us to be there in Heaven.   

I still have to look over my baptismal certificate to ascertain my Christening day but the dates above are the baptismal dates of our three children.

My wife and I know these dates by heart.

So, do you know your baptismal day?

More importantly, do you try to live your baptismal vows?

( from Catechism of the Catholic Church )

An indelible spiritual mark . . .

1272 Incorporated into Christ by Baptism, the person baptized is configured to Christ. Baptism seals the Christian with the indelible spiritual mark (character) of his belonging to Christ. No sin can erase this mark, even if sin prevents Baptism from bearing the fruits of salvation. Given once for all, Baptism cannot be repeated.

1273 Incorporated into the Church by Baptism, the faithful have received the sacramental character that consecrates them for Christian religious worship.The baptismal seal enables and commits Christians to serve God by a vital participation in the holy liturgy of the Church and to exercise their baptismal priesthood by the witness of holy lives and practical charity.

1274 The Holy Spirit has marked us with the seal of the Lord ("Dominicus character") "for the day of redemption. "Baptism indeed is the seal of eternal life. "The faithful Christian who has "kept the seal" until the end, remaining faithful to the demands of his Baptism, will be able to depart this life "marked with the sign of faith,"with his baptismal faith, in expectation of the blessed vision of God - the consummation of faith - and in the hope of resurrection.