Continuing discipleship

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

          WE, of course, are meant to be ‘another Christ.’ That is our

radical identity, since we have been created in God’s image and

likeness. And since Christ as the Son of God is that perfect image God

has of himself, we can say that we are patterned after him, and as Son

of God who became man, Christ is the savior of our damaged humanity.

          We have to understand though that for us to be truly

‘another Christ’ would require the supernatural power of God. We

cannot achieve that status by our powers alone, although we have to

put ourselves in the proper condition to be elevated to that dignity.

It is Christ who will do it for us, but, of course, with our free

cooperation.

          This is where the duty for us to be Christ’s disciples comes

in. To be ‘another Christ’ we need to constantly look for him, find

him, follow him, love him and do the things he wants us to do. That,

in a nutshell, is what Christian discipleship is all about. We have to

find ways of how we can turn this theoretical definition of Christian

discipleship into a living reality, spanning our whole life.

          We are reminded of this truth of faith about ourselves in

that gospel episode where John the Baptist sent two of his disciples

to see Christ and ask him if Christ was really the one they were

expecting or whether they should still look for another one. (Lk

7,18-23) Let’s hope that the need for us to be Christ’s disciples is

sharply and abidingly felt by us.

          At the moment we can examine ourselves if we have the proper

understanding of the ultimate purpose of our life, the ultimate status

and dignity that is meant for us, that is, we are supposed to be

‘alter Christus.’ We also need to ask ourselves whether we realize

that we need to be a true disciple of Christ to put ourselves to

become ‘alter Christus’ ourselves, as God wants us to be.

          To be a true disciple of Christ requires us first of all to

look for him and find him. Encountering Christ should not be a

problem, since Christ is always with us. It’s rather us who have to

learn to acknowledge his presence and to start dealing with him. We

should have the same interest in Christ as those who first met Christ

had.

          From the gospel of St. Matthew (8,18-22), we have this

interesting episode of a scribe who approached Christ and said,

“Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” He must have felt such a

serious admiration for Christ that he had to say this intention and

his willingness to follow Christ wherever he would go.

          To which Christ responded by telling him what to expect.

“Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man

has nowhere to rest his head.” In other words, to be Christ’s disciple

is no joke. It will entail extreme difficulties and inconveniences.

          We can get an idea of the kind of difficulties we can expect

as a disciple of Christ when someone told him, “Lord, let me go first

and bury my father.” But Christ answered him saying, “Follow me, and

let the dead bury their dead.” This can only mean that we have to be

willing to leave everything behind, even those who are dear to us,

just to follow Christ.

          We have to understand then that to be a true disciple of

Christ we have to learn how to be properly detached from everything in

our life.

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO YOU IN LIFE?

What counts: Faith? Hope? Charity? Very often I ask myself: What's the sense of doing like and like that? What's the real meaning of life?

Nearly every morning, we get up and hurry to work. We see so many remorseful faces of people as if there are full of problems that a smile to them is like a sunbeam trapped behind the black clouds. Yes, sure, in these pandemic times, many of us might have already forgotten to smile.

Whether in good or bad times, our day at the workplace or in the home office goes on with our colleagues, employees or employers. And leisure time is there, no matter how great or small our zest for life is. 

So, we live our life in a logical sequence: day by day, week by week, month by month, year by year.  Every day is a cycle of life: every morning is like a birth and every night like a death.

But how do we live our life? Often we can notice people living an easy-go-lucky way of life. Others feel good and satisfied when they can make someone else's life hell. Others have to escape with their bare life while still others experience life-and-death-struggle.

What counts for us? Success? Power? Or money? Is it contentment? Peace on earth and in our souls? Really zest for life? 

If I observe people who really choose to be unhappy even without any reason at all, I feel sad. Being unhappy makes life miserable. Whatever happens around me, I don't like to be unhappy. For me, the meaning of happiness is to try to manage life even with problems and difficulties. Easier said than done! I know, I know.

The Bible states that love is greater than both faith and hope. We couldn't live our lives without faith or hope: without faith, we cannot know the God of love; without hope, we would not endure in our faith until we meet him face to face. Thus, love is the virtue upon which all Christian faith and hope now stand.

Dinah Maria Mulock Craik (20 April 1826 – 12 October 1887) was an English novelist and poet. Allow me to quote her, "When faith and hope fail, as they do sometimes, we must try charity, which is love in action".

Ano ang mahalaga? Paniniwala? Pag-asa? O kaya pagbibigayan at pagtutulungan?

LPA off east of Mindanao develops into tropical depression

Photo courtesy of Dost_Pagasa Facebook page

IVAN REY R. TAN, SunStar

THE low pressure area outside the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) has now developed into a Tropical Depression (TD).

Based on the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) Tropical Cyclone Advisory Number One issued at 11 a.m. Sunday, December 12, 2021, the center of the tropical depression was located at 2.095 kilometers east of Mindanao.

The tropical depression is expected to enter the PAR on Tuesday, December 14, and will be named “TD Odette.”

Due to favorable environmental conditions, the tropical cyclone will likely continue to intensify and may reach the Typhoon Category with a maximum sustained wind of 120 kilometers per hour.

According to the forecast of Pagasa, by the evening of December 15 or the morning of December 16, the tropical cyclone will begin to move westward and may make landfall over the Eastern Visayas-Caraga area.

The highest possible wind signal that may be hoisted for this tropical cyclone is Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal Number Four.

Doing God’s will

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

          WE need to realize more deeply the crucial role of doing the

will of God in our life. We have to understand that it is doing God’s

will that would make us his image and likeness as we are meant to be.

It’s how we live our life with God, as it is meant to be. This truth

of faith should be very clear in our mind and should be made an

operative principle in our daily life.

          We are reminded of this truth of our faith when Christ

talked about the two sons who were asked by their father to work in

the vineyard. (cfr. Mt 21,28-32) The first said, yes, but actually did

not go, while the second said, no, but eventually went.

          Christ concluded, of course, that of the two, it was the

second who did the father’s will which is what is truly important.

It’s an episode in the gospel that somehow wants to convey the truth

that it is in obeying and doing God’s will that we truly become his

image and likeness.

          No wonder then that Christ said that the greatest

commandment is to love God with our whole heart, which, in concrete

terms, means that we have to carry out God’s commandments. St. John in

his first letter said as much: “This is the love of God, that we keep

his commandments.” (5,3)

          We have to find ways of how we can always feel the impulse

and the urge to be guided by God’s will and commandments rather than

simply guided by our own will. We have to realize more deeply that our

will cannot and should not be working simply on its own, and that by

working on its own puts it in a dangerous condition. Our will needs to

be always referred to and be animated by God’s will.

          For this purpose, we may have to develop certain practices

of piety that would help us in this direction. Like, spending time in

prayer, in meditation, in regularly reading the contemplating the

gospel, in rectifying our intentions, referring them always to God. We

have to develop virtues like humility, detachment, holy purity,

patience and optimism, fortitude, etc.

          Very important in this regard would be to familiarize

ourselves with the teaching, deeds and the very life of Christ

himself, fully convinced that he is the very pattern of our humanity.

We have to make Christ alive in us to such an extent that we can truly

say that we are “alter Christus,” another Christ, as we are meant to

be.

          In this regard, we have to be convinced that our life should

also be a liturgical life, since it is in the liturgy where the whole

mystery of Christ and his redemptive work is made present and

effective in our life. It is in the liturgy, especially in the Holy

Mass, where we can most fittingly do our part in corresponding to that

whole mystery of Christ and his mission. It’s where we can be one with

him, sharing in his redemptive mission.

          We need to feel the need for doing a widespread catechesis

on this truth of our faith. With gift of tongue and making use of

today’s powerful technologies, let us reach out to others, leading

them to realize the crucial role that doing and living God’s will has

in our life.

          Just like what St. Paul once said, we have to “preach the

Word, be prepared in season and out of season…” (2 Tim 4)

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

THOU ART THE ONE

The faults we see in others often reveal our own imperfections. We frequently criticize our own shortcomings when we see them in others. 

Very often, we hear from friends and others things they seem to hate. They even criticize others about their looks or activities during weekends, vacations or off days. 

In social networks, we are able to read comments and posts in a very bad manner about other people's houses and gardens. 

Most of the time, gossiping ruins one's life. Gossips come about because of envy. 

I know it's not that easy. But why not try to love the unlovables instead of giving them so many negative comments. And one step further: why not examine ourselves first before criticizing others?

Upon examination of my own life, I am annoyed when others are late for an appointment and keep me waiting. I feel angry when parents speak harshly and treat their children cruelly. I feel upset when individuals in a meeting monopolize the conservation. I could give you more and more examples, my dear readers.

But, at such times when I look inward, I hear the words, "Thou are the one"! I realize that imperfections I see in others are often my own.

When the Lord looks at us, He sees not only what we are but what He enables us to become. Very important - we can learn not to expect  too much for ourselves that we become discouraged. The grace of God does not change us unless we respond. It can change our outlook and with our outlook, our attitudes. With changed attitudes, we can become whatever we would never be.

Kindness, helpfulness, hospitality, obligingness, ready to do favors - and our moment of virtue  will not be destroyed by time's storm. Love and mercifulness from the bottom of our heart shared with people who will cross our path - and nobody will forget us.

Trapped in one’s own trap

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

          IN the Bible, there are a number of passages that talk about

how some people, usually the wicked and evil ones, fall into their own

snare that were supposed to be made for the others.

          For example, in the Book of Psalms, we have the following

passages: “Let the wicked fall into their own nets…” (141,10) “I did

nothing wrong, but they tried to trap me. For no reason at all, they

dug a pit to catch me. So let them fall into their own traps. Let them

stumble into their own nets.” (35,7) “They have dug a pitfall in my

path. But look! They themselves have fallen into it!” (57,6)

          This was also what happened when the chief priests and some

elders of the people tried to trick Christ by asking him about the

authority he had for doing what he was doing. (cfr. Mt 21,23-27)

          As the gospel narrated, Christ, of course, outsmarted them

and asked them a question that they themselves could not answer, since

any answer they would give would put them on the spot.

          We have to be most wary of any temptation to trick God by

playing around with the truth. We just have to be very truthful even

if we may have to suffer because of it, since by resorting to some

trickery, we would just expose ourselves to greater shame sooner or

later.

          In this regard, St. Augustine once said, “They love truth

when it enlightens them, but hate when it accuses them. In this

attitude of reluctance to be deceived and intent to deceive others

they love truth when it reveals itself but hate it when it reveals

them. Truth will therefore take its revenge: when people refuse to be

shown up by it, truth will show them up willy-nilly and yet elude

them.”

          We should therefore be most truthful, knowing how to grow in

that virtue of truthfulness especially these days when things can get

very complicated. In this we need to understand that truthfulness can

only start with our proper relationship with God. Other than that, our

truthfulness, even in what we may consider as its best form, would

always be suspect and vulnerable to elements that undermine the truth.

          In short, we can only be truthful and sincere when we are

with God who revealed himself in fullness insofar as we are concerned

in his Son who became man, Jesus Christ.

          Thus, Christ clearly said that he is “the way, the truth,

and the life. No one goes to the Father except through him.” In other

words, we can only be truthful through him. We can only find the

proper way for whatever is good for us through him. We can only have

the real life, proper to us, in him.

          Christ said it very clearly. “Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and

your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the Evil One.” (Mt 5,37)

          Truthfulness therefore starts with our relationship with

God, and with how well we maintain that relationship. This is

something we have to realize more deeply, since very often we get

contented with mere human criteria for truthfulness, that are often

subjective, incomplete, imperfect, and vulnerable to be maneuvered and

manipulated.

          When we are not with God, then we can very easily play

around with the facts and data, and pass them around as truth, but

serving some self-interest instead of the common good, for example.

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE),Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

PAL plane skids off runway; several flights diverted

PLANE TROUBLE. A Philippine Airlines plane skids off the runaway at Mactan-Cebu International Airport in Lapu-Lapu City on a rainy Friday morning, Dec. 10, 2021. No one was harmed during the incident. 

AT LEAST 34 flights to and from Cebu have been diverted or cancelled after a Philippine Airlines flight from Caticlan, Aklan skidded off the runway upon arrival Friday, December 10, 2021.

The Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) confirmed this, saying the wheels of PAL flight PR 2369 veered into the grass at the side edge of the runway as it arrived from Caticlan, Aklan around 11:40 a.m. It was raining at the time.

GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corp. spokesperson Edilyth Maribojoc said the plane encountered the issue during the landing.

All the 29 passengers and four crew members on the plane were safe and were taken to Terminal 1.

The aircraft was retrieved and cleared from the runway at 2:18 p.m., said Maribojoc. The runway was opened for operations at 2:38 p.m., she added.

PAL issued an apology over the incident.

“We apologize for the inconvenience caused by the partial blockage of the runway,” it said in a statement.

PAL said its operations teams assisted the passengers and promised to provide assistance.

The airline carrier said safety is its top priority and it is fully cooperating with the airport and aviation authorities conducting an investigation on the incident. (FVQ, JOB)

DO LIVE FOR SOMETHING!

Admittedly, this sounds like a very easy request. Already, Thomas Chalmers (1780-1847), a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland, treated that topic already with plenty of flowering words. 

“Innumerable human beings live, move and have to pass away – free from worries but unknown and unnoticed. Incomprehensible and inscrutable: no line written and no word talk by themselves are still in the memories of their bereaved. Their gleams of light switched out in the darkness of life’s night”.

Why do people like to live like this even knowing they have to leave the platform of their lives one day? Still in mind is the one question of Brother Francis Castro of the Little Brothers of Jesus about the “burning flame inside him that makes him jump out of his bed … and hurry to work…”. The Little Brothers of Jesus congregation was established in the Philippines in 1977. It now has two communities — in the Diocese of Antipolo, northeast of Manila, and in the Quezon City district of the Archdiocese of Manila. Four brothers — three Filipinos and a native Vietnamese with French nationality — live in the communities with a French priest of the order.

Brother Francisco C. Castro, head of the congregation´s Philippine region, reflects on his experiences of quiet witnessing among poor Filipinos as part of spirituality.

In our daily life, we do have plenty of situations where we could show our real calling. Thomas Chalmers describes it as follows, “Good deeds are shining like stars from heaven”!

So, do live for something. For your beloved fellow creatures in your private surroundings as well as at your workplace. And do it for yourself. Do it now!
Kindness, helpfulness, hospitality, obligingness, ready to do favors – and our moment of virtue  will not be destroyed by time’s storm. Love and mercifulness from the bottom of our heart is shared with people who will cross our path – and nobody will forget you.

I really wish you time for this. Time for special thoughts and doings. I wish you time, but not for haste, hurry and precipitation, but time for contentment and satisfaction. I wish you time to sort out yourself everyday and every hour, simply to find strength. I wish you, my dear reader, a continued blessed Advent season.

+++

Email: doringklaus@gmail.com or follow me on Facebook, Linkedin or Twitter or visit my www.germanexpatinthephilippines.blogspot.com or www.klausdoringsclassicalmusic.blogspot.com .

Being Compassionate

 

By Engr. Carlos V. Cornejo *

* Former Chairman of the Electronics Engineering Department of Mary Our Help Technical Institute, a Don Bosco Engineering School for Women in Minglanilla, Cebu.  Teaches subjects on engineering, business, values and Catholic doctrine.  Has Masters in Business Administration from University of San Carlos and Masters in Telecommunications Engineering from University of Melbourne.  

Compassion means empathizing and caring for the unfortunate situation of others.  When we have compassion, we put ourselves in the shoes of others in their misfortunes and feel what they feel.  Compassion is supposed to not only feel pity but also to try to remedy the sufferings of others.  

When we feel compassion for a friend who has lost a loved one, we try to tell him we feel his sorrow and that we are united with him in his suffering, perhaps with a word or two of condolence.  We could not fully remedy his pain and our condolences are all we could offer. But it would be a big help to alleviate his pain.  

St. Thomas Aquinas discussed the virtue of compassion in his Summa Theologiae by asking a question: “Whether pain and sorrow are alleviated by the compassion of friends?” The question may seem odd to the modern mind because the answer seems obvious.  But St. Thomas' reasoning however is enlightening.  He offers two reasons.  First, as mentioned it is to lessen the weight of the burden of others by telling them we are united with their sufferings.  His second reason however is more positive.  He argues that because the virtue of compassion is rooted in love, when a person who is suffering witnesses the love his friends have for him, he experiences a care that he has not experienced before.  In short, it’s not just compassion but also love.  The friends of the grieving person are therefore telling him, “We love you, that’s why we feel sorry for your misfortune.”

Being compassionate also means being generous with others or being helpful especially to those who are in need materially or spiritually.  The Catholic Church lists down two kinds of compassionate actions that we could render to others that are based on Scripture.  One is corporal or bodily in nature and the other spiritual.  These are the corporal works of mercy and the spiritual works of mercy.  The corporal works of mercy are:  to feed the hungry, to give drink to the thirsty, to clothe the naked, to give shelter to travelers or homeless, to visit the sick, to visit the imprisoned, and to bury the dead.  The spiritual works of mercy are:  to instruct the ignorant (especially with religious knowledge), to counsel the doubtful (especially giving spiritual advice), to admonish the sinners (correcting others with love or practicing tough love), to bear wrongs patiently (patience with the weaknesses of others), to forgive offenses, and to pray for the living and the dead.  

Compassion seems to be the modern world’s favorite virtue.  It is the slogan of those seeking social justice.  We often hear cries of compassion towards the poor and the marginalized, the downtrodden of society, the discriminated people such as those of different skin color other than white, the bias against women in the workplace, etc. These are good causes in themselves but sometimes there is a kind of compassion related to this that is misplaced.  We refer to the kind of compassion that is used to justify abortion and euthanasia.  With abortion some groups feel compassionate towards the distraught mother who perhaps could not afford to raise the child therefore the baby ought to be aborted.  With euthanasia on the other hand, it seems to offer a stronger argument because they are trying to relieve dying people of unnecessary pain when death is inevitable.  Dr. Peter Kreeft, would counter that the life of a person is more important than our feelings of compassion for the dying.  We are not the creators of life therefore we have no authority to take it away.  We can’t act like gods.  Only God is God.  As the Muslims would say in their Shahadah, there is no god but God.  Therefore, only God can decide when to take away a person’s life.   

The joy of Advent

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

          THAT’S what the main theme of the 3rd Sunday of Advent

reminds us of. There is joy in this season of Advent even as we

prepare ourselves for the birth of Christ with practices of penance

that are proper to this season.

          The 3rd Sunday of Advent is also called the “Gaudete”

Sunday. The expression comes from the entrance antiphon of the Mass

that cites some words of St. Paul, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again

I say, rejoice! The Lord is near.” (Phil 4,4)

          It’s important that we don’t lose sight of our need for joy

even as we go through the exercise of penance which is what is called

for in this season of Advent. And that’s because, as St. Paul said,

the Lord is near. This piece of news should gladden our heart even as

we intensify our penitential acts to prepare ourselves properly to

receive him.

          This Good News, which with faith we can consider as already

done, should remind us of the bigger picture about ourselves. We come

from God and not just from our parents. We are meant to be with God in

our definitive state of life in eternity. Our life here on earth is

simply a training and testing ground to see if what God wants us to be

is also what we want to be.

          Joy is the ideal condition for us to be in while we are here

on earth. Yes, even when we encounter difficulties and all the

negative things in life, we can and should try to live in joy, but

understanding it as a joy in and with Christ. Especially in these

pandemic times, we should avoid feeling sad, empty, helpless, or

feeling overwhelmed.

          This was what Christ promised to give us if we are united to

him, like a branch to the vine. “If you keep my commands, you will

remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain

in his love,” he said. “I have told you this so that my joy may be in

you and that your joy may be complete.” (Jn 15,10-11)

          With these words, we are clearly told where our true and

complete joy will come from. It’s from Christ, from God, and not just

from some earthly and temporal source. It’s a joy that we can always

have in any season or weather, fair or foul. It’s a joy that

transcends whatever earthly and temporal condition we may be in.

Whether we are up or down, successful or defeated and lost, we can

still have that joy.

          We need to work out our true union with Christ to have this

kind of joy. To be sure, Christ is already with us. We should just be

with him. And it’s not difficult to be with Christ, because he is

already with us always. Being the pattern of our humanity, the savior

of our damaged humanity, he cannot be absent from us. It’s rather us

who can dare to ignore and resist him. We have to be wary of that

tendency and do something about it.

          For this, we really have to activate our faith that, if

lived well, can always give us hope, in spite of the tragedies that we

can encounter in life. Faith lived well also gives us the ability to

love everybody, whatever the conditions may be. A faith-based love

makes everything beautiful and lovable, even if by worldly standards

things are bad and ugly. This is what makes us live in joy despite

whatever!

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com