CACERES INBOX
THE WORD OF THE LORD
Gospel Gospel MT 5:13-16
Jesus said to his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”
SURAT KI FATHER
Dear Father, Pano po nagigin miyembro kan Parokya an sarong parokyano? Minagalang, Jenny
Dear Jenny,
An sarong persona nagigin miyembro nin sarong familia sa pagpangidam asin pagpangaki saiya (birth). An sarong persona nagigin miyembro kan simbahan -kan parokya sa bonyag. An bonyag iyo an espiritwal na pagpangaki (spiritual birth). Sa paagi kaini kita nagigin aki nin Dios, tugang ni Cristo; nagigin kitang kaayon sa Simbahan.
Kaya an apod sa bonyag ‘sacrament of initiation’. ‘Initio’ boot sabihon pagpoon. Kun kaya an bonyag iyo an pinaka-enot na sakramento. Bako makapagkumpisal, bago makapagkumpisal-komunyon, o bago kumpilan kaipuhan na ma bonyagan. Kaya man an pagpabonyag nin omboy, bako sana ining seremonya kundi an pag-ako kan biyaya nin buhay ki Cristo.
Sa paagi kan bonyag nagigin miyembro an sarong persona kan Simbahan asin an saiyang pangaran pinagre-registro sa libro kan bonyag (Book of Baptism). An salud espiritwal kan mga parokyano yaon itinatao sa Cura Parroco.
An pagigin miyembro kan parokya bako sana an pagsurat kan ngaran sa libro, kundi ini man an pagpartisipar sa buhay kan parokya. Ini nagpapahayag sa pagsimba kada Domingo asin mga aldaw nin obligasyon; paghiras nin kayamanan, talento asin panahon para sa mga pangangaipo kan parokya. Igua nin mga mina-volunteer bilang lector, lay eucharistic minister, choir, sacristan, asin iba pa. Igua nin mga parokyano na minagalang sa pagmangno kan mga kagamitan kan parokya; igua nin mga nagtatabang sa manlaen-laen na formation programs arog kan Life in the Spirit Seminar, PREX, Bible Seminar, Catechesis, etc. Igua man nin mga parokyano na nagtatabang sa pagtipon nin fundo para sa mga programa asin aktibidades kan parokya. An iba nagtatabang sa mga charitable works, arog kan pigbisita sa mga bilanggoan, pagpakakan sa mga aki na may malnutrisyon, pigbisita sa mga may helang, pagpakasal kan mga nagsasararo na, pagtao nin formation sa mga jovenes, pagtabang sa pangataman kan kapalibotan. Sa laog kan parokya igua man nin mga comunidad na nagmamantener nin orphanage, harong para sa mga gurang asin magagadanon, hospital o clinic para sa mga may helang, eskuwelahan para sa mga kaakian asin jovenes. An ibang parokyano minaanduyog sa disaster relief actions kan parokya, o pagtabang sa pirilian bilang pollwatcher o pagbantay kan mga balita. Igua man nin mga nagtatabang sa mga programa asin aktibidades sa mga barangay asin sitios.
Dakul na aspeto an buhay kan parokya. Ini tugma man sa buhay nin sarong persona. Kaya an parokya iyo man an lugar kun saen, auot pa man lugod, an banhi kan pagtubod na inako sa bonyag minatalubo.
Kaya orog na karahayan na an sarong persona miyembro nin sarong comunidad Cristiana, na inaapod parokya.
Ngonian na kita nagce-celebrar kan Taon nin Parokya mahiling man lugod niato an halaga kan pagigin miyembro nin sarong parokya.
Minagalang, Father
MAGHOROP-HOROP:
An pagbukas kan pinto trabaho kan paratukdo; alagad an paglaog sa pinto disipulo an magibo. You may contact us at caceresinbox@yahoo.com
Families: Stewards of vocations
PRIESTS, bishops, and even the Supreme Pontiff came from families. All of them grew up in the context of a family. The seed of their vocation began to sprout in one way or another inside the family. Oftentimes, those who respond to the call of God to the priesthood are first inspired by the witness of love and service of their parents even in the simplest ways. Many of them have parents who are actively involved in parish activities. These parents bring their children to church to hear Mass and to involve them in their apostolates. The children may not understand what their parents do but their eyes are slowly opened to what Church life means. And at the end of the day, the whole family prays its devotions such as the holy Rosary. Thus, the seed of vocation is slowly planted in the children’s hearts. This seed, if nurtured, will soon sprout and bear fruit.
The most basic of all communities, the family may be considered every person’s first experience of the Church. It is the domestic Church, a small parish. This basic community ought to discern the will of God for itself through the leadership of the parents. They walk together towards the fulfilment of God’s dream for them. Pope Francis in his homily on August 6, 2014, said that the journey of Israel in the desert towards the Promised Land was a journey of families. There were grandparents, parents and children walking together. Oftentimes they were confronted by the complexities of life but by clinging to the faithfulness of God they overcame it all. Thus, the family is a small unit of the People of God. It is a small pilgrim Church.
From this small Church, God calls young men to be ministers of the Universal Church. In His own mysterious ways He plants the seeds of vocation to the priesthood. The family, even however imperfect it may be, receives this wonderful gift from God. As Don Bosco said, the greatest gift to a family is a son-priest. To give a child to God may be a great sacrifice for parents but God will not take it unrewarded. He cannot be outdone in generosity. The parents, as they give their son, also receive an unimaginable blessing from God.
Thus, families must be grateful when one of their children begins to express his desire to be a priest. Every family must welcome this with open mindedness. It is saddening to know that at times, it is the parents who first discourage their son to pursue this vocation. They must not interfere God in fulfilling His plan for their child and for the Church. Instead, families must help their children discern the will of God. In as much as this vocation is a gift to a family, it is also a responsibility. The family is the steward of vocation. It has the task of nurturing this vocation through constant prayer and dialogue with the child who is dreaming of becoming a priest. The whole family must journey with him in this pursuit. The path he will be taking is not easy. He needs a support system. Vocation to the priesthood, then, is not the child’s solitary journey It is a journey of the family.
Respond to violence with Christ’s love, strength, pope tells churches
VATICAN – Pope Francis prayed for an end to the daily violence and brutality waged by fundamentalist extremists in the Middle East.
“Your sufferings are our sufferings. I join you in praying for an end to the conflict and for God’s closeness to those who have endured so much, especially children, the sick and the elderly,” the pope told representatives of the Oriental Orthodox churches Jan. 27.
The representatives were in Rome for a meeting of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches, PRIESTS, bishops, and even the Supreme Pontiff came from families. All of them grew up in the context of a family. The seed of their vocation began to sprout in one way or another inside the family. Oftentimes, those who respond to the call of God to the priesthood are first inspired by the witness of love and service of their parents even in the simplest ways. Many of them have parents who are actively involved in parish activities. These parents bring their children to church to hear Mass and to involve them in their apostolates. The children may not understand what their parents do but their eyes are slowly opened to what Church life means. And at the end of the day, the whole family prays its devotions such as the holy Rosary. Thus, the seed of vocation is slowly planted in the children’s hearts. This seed, if nurtured, will soon sprout and bear fruit.
The most basic of all communities, the family may be considered every person’s first experience of the Church. It is the domestic Church, a small parish. This basic community ought to discern the will of God for itself through the leadership of the parents. They walk together towards the fulfilment of God’s dream for them. Pope Francis in his homily on August 6, 2014, said that the journey of Israel in the desert towards the Promised Land was a journey of families. There were grandparents, parents and children walking together. Oftentimes they were confronted by the complexities of life but by clinging to the faithfulness of God they overcame it all. Thus, the family is a small unit of the People of God. It is a small pilgrim Church.
From this small Church, God calls young men to be ministers of the Universal Church. In His own mysterious ways He plants the seeds of vocation to the priesthood. The family, even however imperfect it may be, receives this wonderful gift from God. As Don Bosco said, the greatest gift to a family is a son-priest. To give a child to God may be a great sacrifice for parents but God will not take it unrewarded. He cannot be outdone in generosity. The parents, as they give their son, also receive an unimaginable blessing from God.
Thus, families must be grateful when one of their children begins to express his desire to be a priest. Every family must welcome this with open mindedness. It is saddening to know that at times, it is the parents who first discourage their son to pursue this vocation. They must not interfere God in fulfilling His plan for their child and for the Church. Instead, families must help their children discern the will of God. In as much as this vocation is a gift to a family, it is also a responsibility. The family is the steward of vocation. It has the task of nurturing this vocation through constant prayer and dialogue with the child who is dreaming of becoming a priest. The whole family must journey with him in this pursuit. The path he will be taking is not easy. He needs a support system. Vocation to the priesthood, then, is not the child’s solitary journey It is a journey of the family.
Respond to violence with Christ’s love, strength, pope tells churches which include churches with large communities in Syria, Iraq and throughout the Middle East. The Oriental Orthodox churches that officially participate in the dialogue include the Coptic, Syriac, Armenian, Ethiopian, Eritrean and Malankara Orthodox Syrian churches.
The pope said he recognized that “many of you belong to churches that witness daily the spread of violence and acts of brutality perpetrated by fundamentalist extremism.”
Praying for an end to the conflicts, the pope said his heart went out to all those affected, in particular the most vulnerable and “the bishops, priests, consecrated men and women, and the lay faithful who have been cruelly abducted, taken hostage or enslaved.”
Often, he said, such situations of “tragic suffering more easily take root in the context of great poverty, injustice and social exclusion, due to instability created by partisan interests, often from elsewhere, and by earlier conflicts that have led to situations of dire need, cultural and spiritual deserts where it becomes easy to manipulate and incite people to hatred.”
As Christ’s disciples, the pope said, “we are called to testify everywhere, with Christian fortitude, to his humble love that reconciles men and women in every age. Wherever violence begets more violence and sows death, there our response must be the pure leaven of the Gospel, which, eschewing strategies of power, allows fruits of life to emerge from arid ground and hope to dawn after nights of terror.”
Representing the Oriental Orthodox participants, Coptic Orthodox Metropolitan Bishop of Damiette, Egypt, asked the pope to pray for their people and he presented the pope with an icon made by nuns living in the Monastery of St. Demiana.
The icon, he said, represented the “ever-flowing cup” of Mary because it was in her womb “that she carried the body and blood of Christ before it was in the cup of the Eucharist.”
At the end of the audience, the pope asked that they pray the “Our Father” together, each in his own language. (Carol Glatz/Catholic News Service)
