You plan to move to the Philippines? Wollen Sie auf den Philippinen leben?

There are REALLY TONS of websites telling us how, why, maybe why not and when you'll be able to move to the Philippines. I only love to tell and explain some things "between the lines". Enjoy reading, be informed, have fun and be entertained too!

Ja, es gibt tonnenweise Webseiten, die Ihnen sagen wie, warum, vielleicht warum nicht und wann Sie am besten auf die Philippinen auswandern könnten. Ich möchte Ihnen in Zukunft "zwischen den Zeilen" einige zusätzlichen Dinge berichten und erzählen. Viel Spass beim Lesen und Gute Unterhaltung!


Visitors of germanexpatinthephilippines/Besucher dieser Webseite.Ich liebe meine Flaggensammlung!

free counters
Showing posts with label God. Show all posts
Showing posts with label God. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Sports as preparation for Christmas




By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


CHRISTMAS being the birth of Christ our Redeemer, we should be properly prepared for it in both body and soul. The spiritual preparation, of course, takes precedence over the bodily preparation, but the latter also needs to be given due attention, otherwise our spiritual readiness to receive Christ on Christmas Day would be undermined.


One good way to make ourselves bodily prepared for Christmas is through sports. If its true purpose is understood and lived well, sports can give us a tremendous help in properly welcoming Christ into our lives.


We have to understand that sports should not just be a matter of winning in a game or in a race. While that is the immediate intention of anyone who plays, we should go beyond that level and capture the more important purpose of sports.


Sports should train our body and all its faculties—the senses, emotions, passions, imagination, memory, etc.—to be properly aligned to the true dignity of man which is that of being the image and likeness of God, children of his, sharers of his divine life and nature. 


In short, sports should make us like Christ, the pattern of our humanity and the savior of our damaged humanity. How? By seeing to it that we regard our life here on earth like a sport too, where we have to train ourselves, submitting ourselves to a certain discipline, etc.


We should echo what St. Paul once said: “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore, I do not run like someone running aimlessly. I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.” (1 Cor 9,25-27)


This discipline required in sports and in our life is somehow indicated in the readings of the Mass of December 19 where we are told about Samson whose hair should not be cut (cfr. Judges 13,2-7.24-25), and about John the Baptist who would not take strong drinks. (cfr. Lk 1,15)


The real victory that our sports should give us is not so much a matter of winning a particular game, or of making a lot of points, etc., as in making us more a child of God, filled with love for God and for everybody else, whether we win or lose in a game.


Aside from a strong sense of self-discipline and submitting ourselves in a continuing training program, an indispensable ingredient of this healthy sporting spirit is the sense of acceptance and abandonment that we need to deliberately cultivate. This does not come automatically, as if it’s part of our genes. We have to develop them.


We have to be sport and adventurous in facing the different conditions of our life. And it would greatly help if we too can have an abiding sense of humor. Otherwise, we would just fall into states of sadness, pessimism and despair which actually are unnecessary and are avoidable.


This we can do if first of all we have a strong and deep faith in God, our Creator and Father. If we have that faith, we know that God holds everything in order through his providence. He takes care of everything, irrespective of how things go. Ours is simply to relate everything to him and to go back to him everytime we go astray, especially at the end of the day.


Monday, December 18, 2023

Christian confidence amid mysteries


 

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


WE are now days before Christmas. Our longing for the birth of Christ is heightened, thanks to our tradition of the Simbang Gabi that up to now enjoys vast popularity especially among the simple people who are gifted with a lot of faith. Let’s hope that this tradition continues “sine fine” or “in aeternum.”


In the readings of December 18, we are told about a branch of David that will be raised up, a king who is wise and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. (cfr. Jer 23,5-8) This is, of course, referring to Christ himself. We should feel the excitement of his coming.


Thus, in the responsorial psalm, we are made to declare with joy, “Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.” (Ps 72,7) Obviously, that’s what Christ would accomplish, although his kind of justice and peace may not coincide with our own ideas of them.


The gospel of the day talks about Joseph who thought at first to divorce from Mary when he found her with a child in her womb even before they lived together. But a special divine intervention was made to clarify the matter to him. And he immediately changed his mind and followed what God had wanted him to do and to be. (cfr. Mt 1,18-25)


All these readings somehow tell us that we have every reason to be confident and happy even amid some mysteries and unpleasant circumstances, as long as we stick to God in his will and in his ways. This trust in God should always be nourished by us.


We need to realize that our life always has more to offer to us than what we can understand, let alone, cope. In the face of all this, I believe the attitude to have and the reaction to make is to be calm, pray hard, and while we do all we can, we have to learn to live a certain sense of abandonment in the hands of God.


In this life, we need to develop a sportsman’s attitude, since life is like a game. Yes, life is like a game, because we set out to pursue a goal, we have to follow certain rules, we are given some means, tools and instruments, we train and are primed to win and do our best, but defeats can always come, and yet, we just have to move on.


It would be unsportsmanlike if we allow ourselves to get stuck with our defeats and failures, developing a loser’s mentality. That would be the epic fail that puts a period and a finis in an ongoing narrative, when a comma, a colon or a semicolon would have sufficed.

We need a sporting spirit because life’s true failure can come only when we choose not to have hope. That happens when our vision and understanding of things is narrow and limited, confined only to the here and now and ignorant of the transcendent reality of the spiritual and supernatural world.


This should be the attitude to have. It’s an attitude that can only indicate our unconditional faith and love for God who is always in control of things, and at the same time can also leave us in peace and joy even at the worst of the possibilities.


We have to follow the example of the many characters in the gospel who, feeling helpless in the many predicaments they were in, earnestly rushed to Christ for some succor. They went to him unafraid and unashamed and they got what they wanted.


Wednesday, December 13, 2023

What’s your greatest desire?



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


IT should be to look for Christ, to be with Christ, to follow Christ. That’s where we can find what is good for us in any situation we can find ourselves in. If that is not yet our greatest desire, then it’s about time that we train ourselves to acquire such desire.


Why is that? The simple answer is because Christ himself said that he is “the way, the truth, and the life” proper to us. In the Book of Isaiah, we are told that “they that hope in the Lord shall renew their strength: they shall take wings as eagles; they shall run and not weary; they shall walk and not faint.” (40,31)


Besides, in the Gospel of St. Matthew, Christ clearly tells us: “Come to me, all you that labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you.” (11,28) And he reassures us that he will be the one to give us rest. He also tells us that his yoke is sweet and his burden light.


Thus, if we find looking for Christ and living with him not sweet and light, we can be sure that we are not truly with him yet. Let’s do something about it immediately. To be with Christ should give us the sensation of lightness, peace, joy and confidence, irrespective of the situation we may be in. It should fill us with energy to do a lot of good.


Even in our difficulties and suffering, such conditions of lightness, peace, etc., should be felt. After all, it would be Christ who would be bearing them more than us. We simply share a little of the weight. And when we share it with him, we would know that such difficulties and suffering have some positive value.


We should be wary when we are complacent in this duty of looking for Christ in everything that we do. We have to look for him, so we can find him and be with him, and share what he has with us.


We have to be wary when we would just allow ourselves to be dominated or ruled by our earthly condition—our moods, bodily health, the temper of the times, etc. We should be guided always by our faith which, by the way, is a gift God gives us always in abundance. The gift of faith is no problem. It’s never in short supply.


Right at the start of the day, let’s take the decision to be ruled by our faith, and not simply by our earthly condition, and to start looking for Christ. With him, we are assured of a happy life despite whatever. Our outlook in life would always be marked by optimism and confidence. Yes, Christian life is always a happy life.


Let’s help one another develop this greatest desire to look for Christ. That way, we can help many people deal properly with problems, challenges and trials. Just looking around, we can see many cases of people in states of sadness, discontent and depression. Mental illness is becoming a kind of epidemic these days. Sad to say, some people, especially the young ones, choose to commit suicide.


This business of looking for Christ in order to have a happy and meaningful life, should be made a culture in our place. It should be an ordinary and commonplace thing around. It’s not meant only for a few chosen ones. It’s meant for all!


Monday, November 27, 2023

Lavish or austere?



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


IN our liturgical celebrations, we can either be lavish or austere depending on the circumstances. What is important is what is in our heart—whether there is real love or not, whether there is a sincere effort to worship and please God or we are just making a show, whether we are making present the redemptive action of Christ or just playing games.


We are somehow reminded of this consideration in that gospel episode where Christ observed some wealthy men putting their offerings into the treasury while a poor widow just put in two small coins, and praised the widow more than the wealthy people since the widow put in all that she had while the wealthy men put what was an extra thing for them. (cfr. Lk 21,1-4)

Obviously, if our motives are sincere and our understanding about the liturgy is clear, we would really give the best that our capabilities can give. If we can give diamonds instead of just gold, then we would do it. We can never give enough to God. We can never be too extravagant in this regard.


But if all we can afford are just stones and pebbles picked up from the road, no problem. God looks at the heart more than the things we give him. And to God, there is no more precious thing than our heart if it is fully given to him. One good heart, faithful and full of love for God and others, is worth much more, infinitely more, than a world of precious gems.


What we have to avoid at all costs is hypocrisy in our liturgical celebrations. If we are really sincere in our liturgical celebrations, we will do and give our best. Even those little details of kneeling, genuflecting, singing and praying should be done in such a way that genuine piety can readily be seen. Such behavior not only would draw more graces from God but also would inspire others in their own piety.


I am happy to note that there is a marked improvement in the way our churches are built and furnished these days. The altars, the reredos, the ambos and the general interior decoration are being done in a splendid manner. The sacred vessels and vestments, the linens have, in general, improved in quality.


They somehow show the kind of faith and piety of the people in general, even if we also know that we still have a lot of economic difficulty around. They somehow show people’s knowledge of what truly matters in this life, what truly gives them eternal joy and not just a transient one. Their sense of beauty transcends the economic costs and all other sacrifices involved.


We just have to make sure that our liturgical celebrations are done with the proper dispositions. This is something that has to be studied and put into practice, since it is no joke to be involved in the liturgy properly either as a celebrant or a participant.


To be sure, the liturgy is not just some kind of dramatization. It is nothing less than the making present and effectiveness of Christ’s sacrifice and his entire redemptive action. Both the celebrants and those who attend the celebrations should never miss this reality and should act accordingly. In the liturgy, everyone steps into the spiritual and supernatural world where Christ works out our redemption.


Again, this requires us to have a deeply theological mind, where faith more than anything else rules all our human faculties.





Monday, November 20, 2023

An example to follow

 



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


ESPECIALLY when we enjoy a lot of blessings and privileges in our life, and yet also carry with us our share of shameful weaknesses, failures and sins, the example of Zaccheus, the rich chief tax collector who had great love for Christ, (cfr. Lk 19,1-10) should inspire us.


As we read in that gospel narrative, Zaccheus knew well who and how he was with regard to his spiritual and moral life. He had great faith and love for Christ, but given the nature of his work, he also had his dark and ugly part of his life. 


The life of Zaccheus resonates with many of us who find ourselves grappling with contrasting features of our life—an abiding, if dormant, faith in God, and a load of weaknesses and sins. We can have both love of God and a certain attraction to evil or concupiscence. What we should do is to follow the example of Zaccheus.


We should not be ashamed of our weaknesses and sins, and instead of letting them be the reason to stay away from God, they should rather urge us to go to God as quickly as possible. 


God always forgives. In the book of Ezekiel, we read, “Do you think that I like to see wicked people die? says the Sovereign Lord. Of course not! I want them to turn from their wicked ways and live.” (18,23)


And in the Gospel of St. John, we read, “For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” (3,17-18)


And so, we should not stay long feeling guilty, sad, burdened, worried, afraid and ashamed when we commit sins. All we have to do is to ask for forgiveness and the grace of God, so we can start healing our weaknesses that gave an opening to temptations and sins, as well as gaining strength to do more good things.


We have to remember that Christ has already paid the ransom for all our sins. We should just be quick to ask for that ever available mercy of God and move on, atoning for our sins and doing a lot of good things.


Yes, in spite of our weaknesses, failures and sins, we can afford to live a happy, peaceful, hopeful and confident life, because Christ has assured us of divine mercy. In fact, Christian life is such a life.


This mercy of God, of course, is not meant to spoil us. Rather, it is meant to teach us how to repay love with love and to be God-like as we should. There should be an impulse in us to grow better and mature in our spiritual life of love for God and others. Absent this impulse, the only possibility is to get spoiled.


This love is shown when we develop a true and deep spirit of penance. We have to learn to acknowledge our sins and weaknesses and to go to regular confession. We cannot return to the right path unless we first acknowledge our mistakes. We should be man enough to do that, always at the impulse of grace which God never refuses to give.


As we can see, Christian life is truly a happy life. When we are not happy or when we are not at peace and hopeful, it can only mean one thing: we are not yet with Christ!


Thursday, November 9, 2023

The synodal Church



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


ON the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome, celebrated on November 9, we are reminded of that gospel episode where Christ visited a temple area and was angered to see it turned into a marketplace. (cfr. Jn 2,13-22)


He, of course, immediately drove the vendors away, even with a whip, and told them in no unclear terms, “Take these out of here, and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.”


This gospel episode rings a most relevant if not a delicate note since at present, under Pope Francis’ mandate, the topic of synodality is taking center place in the minds of many people.


Synodality, of course, is an effort to hear, know and see what can be done in the different levels and aspects of the Church. It’s an effort to reach out to everyone in every level and sector of society, listening to each other, and moving together toward God, without confusing the distinctive character and mission of each one.


It’s a way of making the Church more organically vibrant, with all her members in the different levels and walks of life making an effort to relate themselves with each other. It’s like putting life to the social principles of the common good, solidarity and subsidiarity in the Church.


But it is not without its dangers either, foremost of which is the possibility of understanding it as a way for anyone to have his own idea of how the Church should be, or how the Church should be governed, etc. It can open a way of understanding it as some kind of democratizing the Church without anymore recognizing the supreme power of the Pope and the bishops in union with the Pope, especially in the area of faith and morals.


We have to be properly guarded against this danger, and the way to do synodality should be given a clear guide of how it should be properly done. In this regard, we need to be more conscious and skillful in our Christian duty to love the Church and the Pope. This cannot be taken for granted anymore, especially these days when the world is developing in a very rapid pace that often leaves behind our spiritual and religious responsibilities.


The Church is nothing other than the people of God, gathered together at the cost of his own life on the cross by Christ. This is because we from the beginning are meant to be God’s people, members of his family, partakers of his divine life.


We have to understand that this gathering of the people of God is not achieved merely by some political, social or economic maneuverings. It is a gathering that is described as “communion,” where our heart and mind work in sync with the mind and will of God.


At the moment, the common understanding that many people have about the Church and their duty toward the Pope is far from perfect and functional. If ever there is such concern, it is limited to the sentimental or some mystical feelings that hardly have any external and, much less, internal effects.


We have to know the real nature of the Church, going beyond its historical and cultural character, or its visible aspect, because right now we need to do a lot of explaining, clarifying and defending the role of the Church in our life.


Tuesday, November 7, 2023

God’s invitation to all



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


INDEED, God invites all of us to be with him in heaven which is meant to be our definitive home for all eternity. We should just be prepared to accept that invitation promptly and to be in the proper condition to enter there.


We are reminded of this truth of our faith in a parable Christ told those in a dinner with him. (cfr. Lk 14,15-24) That parable talked about a man who gave a great dinner to which he invited many. And yet, all those invited started to refuse to go to the dinner, offering all sorts of excuses. 


So, the man ordered his servants to go to the streets and alleys of the town and to bring in everyone they would meet, including the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame. And when after this, there was still space in the dinner, the man told his servants to go to the highways and hedgerows and to bring in anyone they would meet, so that his dinner would be filled.


This parable, of course, shows us how much God really wants everyone to be with him in his Kingdom. That’s because heaven is actually where all of us truly belong since we are children of his, made in his image and likeness, sharers of his life and nature. He would even go to the extent of “pressing” us to enter his kingdom (“compelle intrare,” Lk 14,23).


We should sharpen our awareness that God is truly inviting us to be with him, and that he has given us everything so that we can actually be with him. It’s the best deal we can have. And yet, we can dare to refuse that invitation. We should do something to correct this attitude.


Let’s realize more deeply and abidingly that we are meant to be with God for all eternity. Said in another way, we are meant to be like him, that is, to be saints, to be holy. That should be the main and ultimate goal of our life here on earth. Everything in our life should be made as an occasion to pursue that goal.


We have to realize that we are all called to holiness, because everyone is a creature of God, and as such is therefore created in the image and likeness of God, adopted a child of his, and meant to participate in the very life of God.

  

There is a basic and inalienable equality among all of us insofar as we are God’s creatures and children called to holiness. Regardless of our position and state in life, whether we are priests, religious men and women, or ordinary lay faithful, we have the same calling and purpose in life.

      

Corollary to this truth is that there is also a basic and inalienable quality of everything in the world to be an occasion and means for our sanctification. To be holy does not mean that we only spend time praying, going to church, availing of the sacraments, etc.

 

To be sure, prayer, the sacraments, the doctrine of our faith, obedience to the Church hierarchy are important, even indispensable, but these would hang on thin air if they are not supported and made as the goal and expression of a sanctified life that is consistent to the teachings and the spirit of God.

     

To be holy also means that we have to use our ordinary work, all the things of the world, like the sciences, arts, politics, technologies, etc., properly purified, and all the other circumstances that define our daily life as an occasion and means to look for God, then find, love and serve him.


Monday, November 6, 2023

Total self-giving




By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


ONE clear characteristic of a true Christian is that of willingness to do everything with total self-giving. He avoids having any ulterior motives in all this actions. His intention is purely out of love—love for God and for everybody else. Even if his love is not reciprocated by the others, he would still continue to love them.


We are somehow reminded of this mark of Christian life in that gospel episode where Christ told the person who invited him for dinner that when he would hold a banquet, he should also invite “the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind” or those who would be unable to repay him. (cfr. Lk 14,12-14) Christ told him that he would be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.


We definitely need to learn how to give ourselves totally to others, since we cannot deny that we have a strong tendency to put some strings attached whenever we have to give something to others.


We have to make an effort, always asking, of course, for the grace of God first of all, so that we can learn to assume this attitude with respect to our self-giving. In the end, this will make us to be like Christ who gave himself totally to us, including giving his life for our sins.


Let's remember what he told his disciples once: "Freely you have received, freely you have to give." (Mt 10,8) Gratuitousness should characterize our self-giving to God and to others, just as gratuitousness characterizes God's love for us. Such gratuitousness will gain us much more than what we give away.


In this regard, we have to do some continuing battle against our unavoidable tendency to be calculating in our self-giving. Not only do we have to contend with our personal weaknesses in this regard. We also have to contend with a tremendous cultural environment, so prevalent these days, that not only is not conducive to this attitude of Christian generosity but is also hostile to it.


We constantly have to rectify our intentions when we have to give to others—be it things, a service, or a matter of attention and affection. This is especially so when our giving is for God. Let's never forget that God cannot be outdone in generosity.


We should always be encouraged to give ourselves to others gratuitously without strings attached, without conditions. Even if instead of being reciprocated properly and requited, our love is misunderstood and rejected, we just have to go on loving. The only reason for loving is because that is what true love is. It is this love that is the real essence of God, of whom we are his image and likeness.


Loving in this way can only mean giving all the glory to God. We have to be careful because we always have the tendency to give glory to ourselves, if not totally then at least partially. Our motto should be “Deo omnis gloria,” all the glory to God.


We should not worry about our own glorification because God will take care of it. This is what St. Paul said in this regard: “For those God foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son…And those he predestined he also called. Those he called he also justified. Those he justified he also glorified…If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom 8,29-31)


Monday, October 30, 2023

Our laws’ constant need for the proper spirit



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


WE are reminded of our laws’ constant need for the proper spirit in that gospel episode where Christ was accused by the leader of a synagogue of violating the Sabbath law because he cured a woman of her crippled condition on a Sabbath. (cfr. Lk 13,10-17)


“There are six days when work should be done. Come on those days to be cured, not on the sabbath day,” the synagogue leader said. But Christ immediately corrected him by saying, “Hypocrites! Does not each one of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his ass from the manger and lead it out for watering? This daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound for eighteen years now, ought she not to have been set free on the sabbath day from this bondage?”


We obviously have to be governed by the rule of law. Without the law, we can only expect disorder and chaos, and all the forms of injustice. But we need to distinguish between the letter of the law and the spirit of the law, and know how to understand and apply the law properly.


Ideally, both the letter and the spirit of a certain law should be in perfect harmony. But that is hardly the case in real life. The problem, of course, is that the articulation of the law is conditioned and limited by our human powers that cannot fully capture the richness of human life, considering its spiritual and supernatural character that will always involve the intangibles and mysteries and the like.


That is the reason why we can go beyond but not against a particular law, when such law cannot fully express the concrete conditions of a particular case. 


But, first of all, we have to understand that all our laws should be based on what is known as the natural law that in the end is a participation in the divine eternal law of God, our Creator and the first and ultimate lawgiver. And that part of natural law that is specific to man is called the natural moral law that would recognize, as its first principle, God as our Creator and source and end of all laws.


A legal system not clearly based on this fundamental principle about laws would already be a system that is defective ab initio. A legal system that is based only on some human consensus would put the spirit of the law in full subservience to the letter of that law.


That's why any human law should always be a dynamic one, always in the process of refining, polishing and enriching itself. It should never be considered as static, irreformable, or unenriched.


That's simply because charity, truth, justice, and mercy, which our laws should embody, have aspects that can be mysterious and that will always demand new requirements from us.


Let's hope that the proper structures are made available to address this ongoing need with respect to continually polishing our laws. The task is definitely daunting. But rather than be daunted, it should challenge us to do it whatever it costs. We actually have the means. God, for his part, will always give us the grace for it. We just have to have the necessary attitude, will, and skills to do it.


We have to understand that for this task to be properly undertaken, those involved should be vitally in contact with God, the source of all good things, of all truth, charity, and justice. Being the creator, he is the foundation of reality and the supreme lawmaker and lawgiver.


Wednesday, October 25, 2023

“Much will be required of the person entrusted with much”



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


CHRIST clearly said this. In that gospel parable where he told his disciples to be always prepared for judgment, (cfr. Lk 12,39-48) Christ clearly admonished his disciples to be ready to face the Lord, able to account for all the things that have been entrusted to them. If they are given much, much will also be expected from them.


The lesson Christ wanted to impart to his disciples, and to us, is that whatever blessing, gift or privilege given to us should never lead us to feel entitled. Rather, we should feel that a greater responsibility is actually given to us, for which we have to do some accounting on Judgment Day.


That gospel parable somehow reminds us that we are just stewards, not owners, of the things of this world. Thus, we have to be responsible and accountable for how we use the things of this world. In this regard, we have to see to it that we be as fruitful and generous in the use of the things of this world, not wasteful and prodigal. We need to distinguish between generosity and prodigality.


We have to learn to distinguish between the two since both can look the same and can involve more or less the same amount of money, time, effort, etc. Generosity is, of course, not prodigality, though it is never sparing of the resources that may be needed to pursue a real good. 


Prodigality is simply a matter of wastefulness, oftentimes of the thoughtless and selfish kind, as dramatized in that parable of the prodigal son. (cfr. Lk 15,11-32) It is an irresponsible way of using one’s resources, endowments and blessings that are made to respond simply to one’s whims and caprices.


It’s always good that whatever service we do for others, we should be as generous as possible without spoiling them. And whatever attention we give to ourselves, we should try to be as sparing as possible without, of course, harming us or jeopardizing our health, etc.


Pertinent to this point, Christ said: “Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” (Lk 6,38)


In other words, the more we give, the more we actually will receive. Christ promised as much when he said: “Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children of fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” (Mt 19,29)


We have to realize then that any privilege, honor or praise given to us is a call for us to be more generous in our self-giving to such an extent that we would not run away from making the supreme sacrifice of giving our life for God and the others, just like what Christ did. Our attitude should be to sharpen even more our desire to serve and not to be served. 


We should never feel entitled. Christ himself was the first one to live by this principle. Being God, he emptied himself to become man and to bear all the sins of men by dying on the cross, all for the purpose of saving mankind. (cfr. Phil 2,7)


He reiterated this point when he lamented about the domineering sense of entitlement of some of the leading Jews of his time while praising the poor widow who put all that she had into the temple treasury. (cfr. Mk 12,38-44)


Monday, October 23, 2023

“Be rich in the things of God”




By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


ONCE again, we are reminded in that gospel episode where a man asked Christ to arbitrate in his matter of inheritance with his brother (cfr. Lk 12,13-21) that we should be focused more on the things of God rather than on our earthly affairs.


Not that our earthly affairs are not important. They are, but only as a means or an occasion to lead us to God. Our usual problem is that we get trapped in the drama of our temporal affairs without referring them to what has eternal value, and that is, to be with God, to be like God. That is how we can be rich in the things of God.


We need to see to it that in our temporal affairs, even as we take care of their technical and other human and natural aspects and requirements, we should build up things like the virtues of honesty, integrity, patience, compassion, etc., because these are what would make us rich in what matters to God.


We have to have the good sense of living the basic social principles of the common good, subsidiarity and solidarity that would constitute the proper sense of responsibility for us. And we have to understand that by the common good, we mean God first before we think of any good for man.


To be rich in what matters to God is not so much a matter of how much wealth and possessions we have as it is of how much love we have for God which is always translated in our love for the others, expressed in deeds and not just in intentions.


We may be rich or poor in our worldly standards, but what should be pursued with extreme care and seriousness is that our heart gets filled with love for God and love for the others.


Yes, one can be rich materially—he can be a millionaire or a billionaire—but he should see to it that he fits the category of what one of the beatitudes regarded as “poor in spirit” because in spite of or even because of his great wealth, his heart is fully for God and for the others.


This, of course, will require tremendous struggle and constant purification and rectification of our intentions and ways, given the fact that we are always prone to get attached to the things of this world and to the ways of greed, envy and the like.


We have to continually check ourselves especially these days when we are bombarded with many tantalizing and intoxicating things that can capture our heart and remove God from it. It always pays to lead a very simple and austere life in spite of the great wealth that we may have.


And to be clear about this also: that the more wealth we have, the greater also would be our responsibility to show our love for God and others with deeds. The scope and range of that love should grow exponentially, so to speak.


We should be wary of our tendency to get complacent in this duty of living true Christian poverty and detachment. We really have to fight tooth and nail against this tendency because the likelihood for us to fall for this sweet poison of the new things today is high.


At the end of the day, we should be able to say that with our struggles and rectitude of intention, we are truly getting rich in what matters to God!


Tuesday, October 17, 2023

Missing the forest for the trees



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


IT’S an idiomatic expression that means “to not understand or appreciate a larger situation, problem, etc., because one is considering only a few parts of it.” It’s an expression that aptly describes what was dramatized in that gospel episode where Christ was accused by a Pharisee who invited him for dinner of not observing the protocol of washing hands before the meal. (cfr. Lk 11,37-41)


“Oh, you Pharisees!” Christ said. “Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, inside you are filled with plunder and evil. You fools! Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?”


With those words, Christ was trying to tell his host that he, being the son of God which the Pharisees could not believe, ought to be exempted from that detail of washing since he was trying to show them that he was the maker of both “the inside and the outside” of things.” In other words, the host missed the bigger and more important point Christ was showing him due to a tiny detail that blinded him from seeing it. 


It’s a danger that we should be most wary about, because it can also happen to us quite often. It’s when we become too legalistic or too formalistic in our interpretation of certain things that we miss the more important part of a situation or issue. We would be missing the true spirit of a law, or get so trapped in the details that we fail to see the whole picture.


We need to be keenly aware of this common danger and do everything to protect ourselves from it and to fight it, since it will always be around, given our human condition here on earth.


The secret again is to be in vital union with Christ, referring everything to him, especially our legal and judicial systems, and the ways we make, interpret and apply our laws.


Christ clarified this point in so many words when he told the Pharisees who questioned him about why his disciples were doing something that was forbidden in the sabbath, that “the sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.” (cfr. Mk 2,23-28)


We have to understand that all our laws should be based on what is known as the natural law that in the end is a participation of the divine eternal law of God, our Creator and the first and ultimate lawgiver. 


And that part of natural law that is specific to man is called the natural moral law that would recognize, as its first principle, God as our Creator and source and end of all laws. It is the law that would lead us to be God’s image and likeness, and children of his, sharers of his divine life.


A legal system not clearly based on this fundamental principle about laws would already be a system that is defective ‘ab initio.’ A legal system that is based only on some human consensus would put the spirit of the law in full subservience to the letter of that law. 


This kind of legal system is what is referred to as legal positivism. This means that the laws are valid not because they are rooted in moral or natural law, but because they are enacted by some human authority and are accepted by society as such.


Monday, October 16, 2023

Faith plays a foundational role in our life



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


“THIS generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, 

except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.” (Lk 11,29)


Words of Christ that expressed his disappointment at the weakness of the faith of the people then. Despite the many signs that showed his divinity and his mission as the redeemer of humanity, they were still doubting Christ.


It’s a complaint that can still be addressed to us today. We cannot deny that even if we pride ourselves as a Christian country, already for 500 years, we can never say that our faith is already invincibly rooted in our mind and heart. There are many signs that point to this reality.


The increasing cases of mental illness can be traced to a large extent to the lack or the weakness of faith. That many people do not know how to deal with their problems and difficulties can point to that.


Our life of faith is an ongoing affair. It needs to be taken care of, regularly nourished and fortified. In fact, among the many concerns that demand our attention, our faith should rank as the first. That’s because everything else in our life depends on it. Our faith plays a foundational role in our life. It’s the main light that should guide us. Our intelligence and other faculties depend on it.


Taking care of our faith means that it should not just remain at the theoretical or intellectual level. It has to be a functioning one, giving shape and direction to our thoughts and intentions, our words and deeds. In fact, it should shape our whole life. 


The ideal is that we feel it immediately. Indeed, it should be like an instinct such that whatever we think, say or do, or whenever we have to react to something, it is our faith that should guide us. 


For this to happen, we should take the conscious effort to let faith guide us rather than be directed simply by our senses and our reasoning. It’s a Christian duty to acknowledge this need, since we have the tendency to simply rely on our human faculties.


We have to understand that it is our faith that gives us the global picture of things, since it is God’s gift to us, a gratuitous sharing of what God knows about himself and about the whole of creation. It is meant for our own good, for us to live out our true dignity as children of God.


It is a kind of knowledge that will lead us to our eternal life. It will make us relate everything in our earthly life, both the good and the bad, to this ultimate goal in life which is to be in heaven with God, a state that is supernatural. But it is a divine gift that we need to take care of. It is like a seed that has to grow until it becomes a big tree that bears fruit.


For this, we really need to have a living contact with Christ who is the fullness of God’s revelation to us. He is the substance, the content and the spirit of our faith. So, the first thing that we have to do is to always look for him in whatever thing we are thinking, saying or doing.


Wednesday, October 11, 2023

The relation between God and our work



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


THAT rather amusing story of how the sisters Martha and Mary received Christ in their home highlights a very important aspect of our life. (cfr. 10,38-42) And that is that we have to know and live well the proper relationship between God and our work.


As the gospel story narrates, both sisters were obviously very happy to have Christ in their home. But Martha, the elder one, showed that joy by busying herself preparing things for Christ. It was Mary, the younger one, who appeared to be doing nothing other than staying close to Christ.


When Martha complained about Mary to Christ, she was corrected and clearly told, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is a need for only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”


While what Martha did was truly good, what made it somehow wrong was when she failed to recognize the priority of prayer over work. Better said, she failed to make her work a form of prayer as it should be, since any work should be a form of prayer. Work should be a means to lead us to God, to glorify him even as it contributes to the good of everybody else also. It should sanctify us.


We need to make this truth of our Christian faith better known, appreciated and lived. We cannot deny that many are those who fail to see, let alone, live the intimate relationship between our work and God and the others.


Very often, our work has become a function of our self-indulgence or self-interest only. Very often, we work to achieve self-satisfaction, or at best, to meet the needs of the family or of some special group. Its relation to God is often taken for granted. Its purpose of sanctifying us, the others and the world itself, is practically ignored.


We need to remember that as our Christian faith tells us, God created us to work just as He created the birds to fly. (cfr. Job 5,7) As such, God designed any work we have as a way to relate ourselves with God, and because of God, with everybody and everything else in this world.


It’s when we work with this truth of our Christian faith in mind that we can truly do a lot of good. Ignoring or, worse, contradicting this truth would only lead us to a lot evil that can cover itself with a lot of transitory and false joy and sense of achievement.


Let’s also remember that God has designed any work in this world as a way to lead us to God. If we work with God always in mind, we would always follow the moral and spiritual laws that govern our work. Ignoring God in our work would only lead us to all kinds of immorality—greed, avarice, lust, envy, etc.


We need to spread this truth of our Christian faith about work more widely. Our different institutions of learning should be experts in carrying out this duty. Of course, the parents should inculcate this truth as soon as their children can understand things.


We should not be interested only in acquiring knowledge and skills. Their pursuit should lead us to God and to the others, never just self-interest. We should not be interested only in gaining money, power and prestige. Most important and indispensable should be desire to be truly holy as God wants us to be.


Monday, October 9, 2023

Charity means all in



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


INDEED, that’s how charity is. It’s all in, irrespective of how the objects of our charity are. They may reciprocate our love for them or not, they may like us or not. On our part we should just continue to love them if charity truly dwells in our heart.


We are reminded of this truth of our Christian faith in that gospel episode where a scholar of the law asked Christ what he had to do to inherit eternal life. And Christ simply said that he had to love God with everything that he had and to love his neighbor as himself. (cfr. Lk 10,25-37)


And when asked who his neighbor was, that was when Christ told the parable about a man who fell victim to robbers in his journey and was left half dead on the road. A priest saw him but passed by. A Levite also just passed him by. But a Samaritan, who at that time had the least relation with the man, was the only one who took pity on the man. It was the Samaritan who proved to be the good neighbor to the victim.


Yes, charity is for everyone. It has a universal coverage. It’s not only for those who are right in something. It’s also for those who are wrong. It’s not only for the winners. It’s also for the losers. Not only for friends, but also for enemies! 


But the universal inclusivity of charity does not do away with the exclusivity of truth. It does not do away with the distinction between good and evil, between right and wrong, between truth and falsehood. In fact, it sharpens that distinction. And yet, it still works in all that distinction.


Yes, charity is all-inclusive, though it is expressed, of course, in different ways. As they say, we have to have different strokes for different folks. And that’s simply because at the end of the day, whether we like it or not, we are all creatures and children of God, brothers and sisters to each other. We have been created by our Creator out of love and for love.


We have to realize that our life here on earth can be described as a journey toward our ultimate home, which is to be with God our Father and Creator in heaven. It will be charity that would keep us going and that would enable us to leap to eternal supernatural life with God.


While here on earth, we have to realize that we form one body and that we are actually on the same boat. Despite our differences and conflicts, we have a common origin and a common end. We are bound to care for one another. We are meant to love one another.


Charity is what binds us together despite our unavoidable differences and conflicts. Yes, we form one body, but we are different parts of that body. We play different roles and carry out different functions.


So, we have to develop with God’s grace the true charity that is a living participation of the charity God has for everyone, including those who go against him. Let’s remember that Christ went to the extent of loving our enemies.


St. Paul describes charity in these words: “Love is patient, is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” (1 Cor 13,4-7)


Wednesday, October 4, 2023

Just be cool when contradicted



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


REMEMBER that gospel episode where the disciples of Christ were not welcomed in a Samaritan town because their destination was Jerusalem? (cfr. Lk 9,51-56) They suggested to Christ that they “call down fire from heaven to consume them.” To which Christ just rebuked his disciples and instead went to another village.


The obvious lesson to learn is that we should not make things worse by adding fuel to the fire, or by responding to evil with evil, out of a hurt sense of righteousness or of a zeal that has gone bitter and has done away with the duty of charity. We should rather look for other ways of defusing the situation, just as Christ did.


Sometime ago, there was this drag queen who made fun of Christ. His video became viral in an instant as strong negative reactions rained on him or her or whatever pronoun may now be applied to this individual. Several cities declared the drag queen as persona non grata.


But the drag queen stood his ground, trying to rationalize his/her actuation by saying that he was misunderstood, and that no one bothered to talk to him about why he did it, and that he meant well with what he did since it was done for the sake of art.


Well, everyone will always have some reason for any action he takes. Of course, not all reasons are right. But for as long as the person concerned feels he was right in doing something that objectively is wrong or is considered wrong by the majority, he deserves to be heard and given some clarification, correction and penalty that may be due. 


He should not be simply dumped, ostracized and practically considered an untouchable evil. That’s not human, let alone Christian. The proper way to deal with him is to reach out to him to help him.


The way to go is to love everybody, irrespective of who or how one is. Christ even told us to love our enemies. If we have this kind of love, then we would have zero bitterness against anyone who may contradict us, because as St. Paul said, true charity “takes no pleasure in evil, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” (1 Cor 13,6-7)


We have to learn to be patient in handling the contradictions that we can encounter in our life. We just have to look for an alternative way in resolving issues and situations like this.


We have to learn the art of loving with the love of God as shown by Christ on the cross. It is a love that is patient, willing to suffer for the others. It is gratuitously given, even if it is not reciprocated.


We have to make sure that we are always burning with the zeal of love. We have the danger to fall easily into complacency, lukewarmness, mediocrity. We should always be on the lookout for these perils.


We need to fill our mind and heart with love, and all that love brings—goodness, patience, understanding and compassion, mercy, gratuitous acts of service, generosity and magnanimity.


Yes, there’s effort involved here. Great, tremendous effort, in fact. But all this stands first of all on the terra firma that is God’s grace, which is always given to us in abundance if we care to ask and receive it. Nothing human, no matter how well done, would prosper unless it is infused also with God’s grace.


Wednesday, September 27, 2023

Be aware of the power God shares with us



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


OUR Christian faith tells us that we are meant to share the same life and nature of God in whose image and likeness we have been created. That is why we are all called to be holy as God is holy, as well as to love everybody as God is all love. This love for everybody is expressed in doing apostolate which we have to understand as meant for all of us. Yes, we are all meant to be apostles also in our own way.


We are somehow reminded of these truths of our faith in that gospel episode where Christ, after choosing his apostles in some random way, gave the tremendous powers, a sharing in the powers of Christ himself. “Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” (Lk 9,1)


We have to be most aware of what we all have in our hands. We may feel unworthy of all this, as we should, but the undeniable truth is that Christ is sharing his powers with us. Let us do our part in corresponding to this stupendous truth of our faith.


And the only way to do that is give our all to God. Let us be generous and magnanimous as God is overwhelmingly generous and magnanimous to all of us. There has to be that mutual dynamic of love and self-giving that has been initiated by God himself. God loves us first, and we have to learn to love him in return, a love that is also expressed in loving everybody just as God loves everybody irrespective of how they are!


This is a call to generosity. “Without cost you have received, without cost you are to give,” Christ told us. (Mt 10,8) Christ himself embodied this principle when he, being God, became man, and not contented with that, he went to the extent of offering his life to conquer all our sins. He finally gave himself to us in the sacraments, especially in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, which is a real madness of love.


Everyday, let us grow in our identification with Christ. Let’s hope that slowly but steadily we can feel the conviction that we are becoming “other Christ” (alter Christus), if not “Christ himself” (ipse Christus).


Let’s not be afraid of the effort and the sacrifices involved in this process. It will all be worthwhile. If we truly try to identify ourselves with Christ, we would be confident that Christ himself would give us the same peace and joy that he had as he went through his own passion and death on the cross.


We are, of course, aware of our limitations and many times we have to say enough. And that’s good to do. It shows we are humble and realistic enough to acknowledge them.


But there’s one area in our life where we should never say enough. And that’s in our spiritual life, in our duty to love God and others as Christ himself has loved us, that is, all the way to death on the cross.


The duty itself of loving knows no bounds. As St. Francis de Sales said, “The measure of love is to love without measure.” And we might ask, is this possible, is this doable?


The answer, of course, is yes. In the first place, there is in us a spiritual capacity that would lead us to the world of the spiritual and supernatural, the world of the infinite.


Friday, September 22, 2023

Careful with the danger of envy



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


THIS danger usually arises when we are not content with what we have or with what is promised to us. It arises when we tend to compare ourselves with others in an improper way—that is, not for the glory of God but rather for our own self-interest only.


We are reminded of this danger in that gospel parable about a landowner hiring workers at different hours of the day. (cfr. Mt 20,1-16) The landowner saw idle people around and decided to hire them, promising to pay them a certain amount of money. When he saw other idle people in the latter part of the day, he also decided to hire them, promising them to pay them something.


As it turned out, when the time came to pay them, the landowner decided to pay the same amount to everyone, irrespective of the time they were hired. That’s when those hired in the first hour thought they would receive more than what was promised, obviously because they rendered longer time of work.


But the landowner noticed that those hired in the first hour grumbled about their pay, and so, he corrected them saying, “Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you?”


That’s when the parable ended with the intended concluding lesson with these intriguing words of Christ: “Are you envious because I am generous? Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”


Indeed, we need to be most wary of this danger of envy that would lead us to feel entitled just because we came ahead of the others, or more gifted and privileged than them. That would lead us to think that those who came later than us or who are less gifted than us to be better rewarded by God than we are if they were given the same treatment.


What we should rather do is to be content with what we have as given by God through his different ways, and just focus on what we have to do to fulfill our duties and responsibilities. Anyway, in the end God knows what to give us in return, and he can never be outdone in generosity.


We should just be generous in our self-giving without feeling entitled. This was the example of Christ himself who, being God, emptied himself to become man and to bear all the sins of men by dying on the cross, all for the purpose of saving mankind. (cfr. Phil 2,7)


He reiterated this point when he lamented about the domineering sense of entitlement of some of the leading Jews of his time while praising the poor widow who put all that she had into the temple treasury. (cfr. Mk 12,38-44)


While it’s true that we obviously are entitled to our rights, we should not feel entitled to privileges and favors that are above our rights and needs. If they come and we cannot avoid them, then let’s be thankful. 


But let’s be reminded that these privileges, favors and blessings are meant for us to strengthen our desire to serve more and not to be served. But as it is, we should try to avoid them, since they tend only to spoil and corrupt us.


We have to be most wary when we happen to enjoy some privileged positions or status in life because we tend to think that we deserve more entitlements. And not only would we expect them. We may even demand them for us.



Sunday, September 17, 2023

Faith always works wonders



By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


INDEED! That gospel episode where a centurion begged Christ to cure his dying slave (cfr. Lk 7,1-10) simply shows us that with a strong faith like that of the centurion, miracles can happen.


“Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof,” was the response of the centurion when Christ said he was going to his house. “Therefore, I did not consider myself worthy to come to you; but say the word and let my servant be healed,” he continued. It was this manifestation of the centurion’s great faith that Christ immediately did what was requested. The slave got cured at that instant.


We need to understand that since our life is meant to be a life with God, a life in the Spirit which is a supernatural life more than just a natural life, our Christian faith has to be taken care of, nourished and developed to full maturity.


We need to be more aware of this duty and develop the appropriate attitude and skill to carry out this responsibility effectively. We have to go beyond mere good intentions or being merely theoretical in order to be truly practical and be vitally engaged with this obligation.


Faith is a tremendous gift from God who starts to share with us what he has, what he knows about himself and about ourselves. It gives us the global picture of reality, covering both the temporal and the eternal, the material and the spiritual, the natural and supernatural dimensions of our life.


It is what gives permanent value to our passing concerns, the ultimate, constant and unifying standard to all the variables of our life. The perishable things of life can attain an imperishable quality when infused with faith. What is merely earthly and mundane can have a sanctifying effect when done with faith.


By its very dynamics, it prepares us for a life of charity which is how our life ought to be. It is also nourished and is the effect of charity, indicating to us that faith is organically united to charity, the very essence of God in whose image and likeness we are.


Besides, given the character of journeying of our earthly life, faith is also what nourishes our hope, that principle that enables us to move on before all kinds of possible situations and predicaments we can encounter in our life. It gives us the reason, the basis, and the vital impulses of our hope.


Especially these days when many people are confused, if not lost, in the complex drama of life, faith is what would give us the proper light to guide us as we navigate the waters of life.


Faith contains the medicine and the remedy to all our spiritual inadequacies and illnesses. It is what is required for miracles to happen, as attested many times in the Gospel.


When one has faith, even if it is just little, we can see the marvels of God taking place all around everyday. That one perseveres in prayer, or decides to confess his sins after a long period of sinfulness, or a husband being faithful to his wife in spite of the strong temptations, etc., these are miracles too.


They are miracles because these situations often defy human logic and worldly wisdom. But then again, they can only be acknowledged if one has faith. Faith enables us to see beyond appearances and the reality painted only by human and worldly values. 


It is faith that lets us enter into the spiritual and supernatural world. It brings us to share in God’s wisdom and power. Remember those stirring words of Christ: “If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain, Remove from there, and it shall remove, and nothing shall be impossible to you.” ((Mt 17,20)


Thursday, September 14, 2023

Why do we always have to forgive?


 

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

Chaplain

Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE)

Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com


MANY reasons can come to mind to answer that question. One is that Christ himself said so. When asked by Peter how many times one should forgive, he stretched to practically infinite times the suggestion of Peter of 7 times to 70 times 7.


On another occasion, Christ also said that we need to forgive others if we want to be forgiven ourselves. “Forgive and you shall be forgiven,” he said (Lk 6,37) He reiterated this injunction when he said: “For if you will forgive men their offences, your heavenly Father will forgive you also your offences. But if you do not forgive men, neither will your Father forgive you your offences.” (Mt 6,14-15)


It’s clear therefore that we can only be forgiven if we also forgive others. This injunction is meant for everyone, and not only for a few whom we may consider to be religiously inclined. 


That’s also why he easily forgave the woman caught in adultery. And to those whom he cured of their illnesses, it was actually the forgiveness of their sins that he was more interested in.


To top it all, Christ allowed himself to die on the cross as a way to forgive all of our sins, and to convert our sins through his resurrection as a way to our own redemption. What he did for us he also expects, nay, commands that we also do for everybody else. 


If Christ can offer forgiveness to those who crucified him—and there can be no worse evil than killing Christ who is God—why do we find it hard to offer forgiveness to others?


It is presumed that all of us sin one way or another. That’s why St. John said: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 Jn 1,8) I am sure that our personal experiences can bear that out easily.


No matter how saintly we try ourselves to be, sin always manages to come in because of our wounded humanity and the many temptations within and around us. As St. John said, we have to contend with three main enemies: our own wounded flesh, the devil and the world corrupted by our own sin.


But the most important reason why we should always forgive is, I believe, the fact that forgiving others likens us with God, with Christ, who is the pattern of our humanity and the savior of our damaged humanity. Forgiving is the ultimate act of love which is the very essence of God and which is also intended for us since we are supposed to be God’s image and likeness.


Thus, we have to learn to always be forgiving of others, no matter how undeserving we feel they are of forgiveness. That’s how God forgave us. He took the initiative. He offered forgiveness and continues to do so if only to bring us back to him.


The awareness of this truth should also help us to develop the attitude to forgive one another as quickly as possible, since that is the only way we can learn to love. When we find it hard to forgive others, it is a clear sign that we are full of ourselves, are self-righteous, proud and vain.


We have to continually check on our attitude towards others because today’s dominant culture is filled precisely by the viruses of self-righteousness, that feeling that we are superior to others, etc. We have to do a constant battle against that culture that undermines our duty to always be forgiving.