Daily martyrdom

By Fr. Roy Cimagala*

I BELIEVE it is a Christian fact of life that if we have to be consistently Christian, then we have to be prepared to suffer martyrdom, one way or another. It may not be a dramatic and bloody martyrdom like the case of the Holy Innocents whose feast we celebrate on December 28, but certainly a certain kind of martyrdom will always be involved.

That’s because the Christian way of life cannot avoid being contradicted even by our own sinful flesh, not to mention, the many allurements of the world that can serve as some kind of honeytrap to us and, of course, the devil, that most subtle and deceptive enemy of God.

Christ already warned us amply about this condition in our life. “In this world you will have trouble,” he said. “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (Jn 16,33) And more directly, he said, “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever desires to save his will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Mt 16,24-26)

We need to see to it that we live this indication of Christ daily. It should be a normal thing for us to do if we want to be truly Christian. We need to die at least a little everyday so that the life of Christ can truly take root and grow in our life. We should never forget that to be Christian is to assume the very identity and life of Christ, and not just going through certain practices for us to appear like Christ.

We should not be afraid to suffer and die. If we believe in Christ and follow what he has taught and shown us, we will realize that there is nothing to be afraid of suffering and death, and all the other negative things that can mark our life.

He bore them himself and converted them into our way for our own salvation. Yes, even death which is the ultimate evil that can befall us, an evil that is humanly insoluble. With Christ’s death, the curse of death has been removed. “Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Cor 15,54-55)

So, we just have to be sport and cool about the whole reality of suffering and death. What we need to do is to follow Christ in his attitude toward them. For Christ, embracing suffering and ultimately death, is the expression of his greatest love for us. We have to enter into the dynamic of this divine logic and wisdom so we can lose that fear of suffering and death.

Thus, we have to understand this very well. Unless we love the cross, we can never say that we are loving enough. Of course, we have to qualify that assertion. It’s when we love the cross the way God wills it—the way Christ loves it—that we can really say that we are loving as we should, or loving with the fullness of love.

We have to realize more deeply that loving the cross the way Christ loved it is the ultimate of love. It is love that is completely deprived of selfishness. It is total self-giving, full of self-abnegation.

May the cross be an indispensable part of our day! It is our instrument for our daily martyrdom.

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

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

GOOD FORTUNE FRUITS

A vendor arranges round fruits at his stall in CP Garcia in Quezon City on Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022. Round fruits are believed to bring good luck and prosperity for the coming year. PHOTO BY MIKE DE JUAN

WINNERS: Metro Manila Film Festival 2022 Gabi ng Parangal

by Robert Requintina

Here are the winners at the Metro Manila Film Festival 2022 Gabi ng Parangal held at the New Frontier Theater in Araneta City on Tuesday, Dec. 27. The pictures were taken by Manila Bulletin photographer Noel Pabalate:

‘Deleter’

Best Picture – Deleter

“Mamasapano: Now It Can Be Told’

2nd Best Picture – Mamasapano: Now It Can Be Told 

‘Nanahimik Ang Gabi’

3rd Best Picture – Nanahimik Ang Gabi

Nadine Lustre

Best Actress – Nadine Lustre, Deleter

Ian Veneracion

Best Actor – Ian Veneracion, Nanahimik Ang Gabi

Mikhail Red

Best Director – Mikhail Red, Deleter

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Mon Confiado

Best Supporting Actor – Mon Confiado, Nanahimik Ang Gabi

Best Supporting Actress – Dimples Romana, My Father, Myself

Best Screenplay – Mamasapano

FPJ Memorial Award – Mamasapano

Gatpuno Antonio Villegas – Family Matters

Vilma Santos

Marichu VeraPerez Maceda Memorial Award – Vilma Santos 

Stars of the Night – Nadine Lustre and Ian Veneracion

Gender Sensitivity Award – My Teacher

Best Cinematography – Deleter

Best Child Performer – Shawn Gabriel (My Father, Myself)

Best Production Design – Nanahimik Ang Gabi

Best Visual Effects – Deleter

Best Film Editing – Deleter

Best Musical Score – Nanahimik Ang Gabi

Best Sound – Deleter

Best Original Song – The theme from ‘Mamasapano’

By the numbers:

Deleter – 7

Nanahimik Ang Gabi – 5

Mamasapano – 4

My Father, Myself – 2

Family Matters – 1

My Teacher – 1

2022 hottest year in Italy since 1800

ROME, Italy — This year will go down as the hottest in Italy since records began in 1800, according to data from the Institute for Atmospheric Science at the country’s National Research Council (NRC). 

“There were record highs all along the way, starting in the spring, all throughout the summer, and now in the winter,” Bernardo Gozzini, director of the NRC’s LaMMA meteorology consortium, told Xinhua.

The new record won’t be official until the end of the year, but LaMMA officials said it is statistically impossible for average temperatures to fall below those of 2018, previously the hottest year on record in Italy.

LaMMA first began reporting in July that this year was on track to be the hottest on record. In October, it said that temperatures in northern and central Italy were 3.2 degrees Celsius higher than normal.

Meanwhile, the organization reported temperatures of 5 to 7 degrees Celsius higher than average in late December across most of southern and central Europe, including Italy. 

This year has been a difficult one in Italy, with a long summer drought reducing water levels by three-quarters in most of Italy’s main rivers, and slashing agricultural production by a third.

The scorching temperatures resulted in hundreds of deaths. In July, a lack of rainfall combined with unseasonably high temperatures caused a glacier in northern Italy’s Dolomites range to collapse.

According to the Italian Meteorological Society, or Nimbus, warm weather currents from North Africa have pushed temperatures in December to unseasonable highs.

Nimbus official Daniele Cat Berro told Xinhua these high temperatures would last at least until the end of the year in central and southern Italy.

At the global level, 2016 remains the hottest year on record, followed by 2020, 2019, and 2022, according to the NRC.

10 areas log below 20℃ air temperature on Dec. 27

by Ellalyn De Vera-Ruiz, MB

Baguio City (COMMONS WIKIPEDIA/ MANILA BULLETIN/ FILE PHOTO)

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said 10 stations recorded air temperatures below 20 degrees Celsius (℃) on Tuesday, Dec. 27.

Based on PAGASA’s monitoring, the stations that recorded the lowest air temperatures on Tuesday morning were: 

Baguio City (12.5℃)

Basco, Batanes (15.4℃)

Laoag City, Ilocos Norte (17.2℃)

Tuguegarao City, Cagayan (17.8°C) 

Tanay, Rizal (17.9℃)

Casiguran, Aurora (18.8°C)

Malaybalay, Bukidnon (19.0°C)

Sinait, Ilocos Sur (19.1°C)

Abucay, Bataan (19.5°C)

Calayan, Cagayan (19.7°C) 

According to PAGASA, the northeast monsoon, locally called “amihan,” continues to bring cloudy and rainy weather over Cagayan Valley, Cordillera Administrative Region, Bicol region, Aurora, and Quezon.

Meanwhile, the rest of Luzon, including Metro Manila, will have partly cloudy to cloudy weather with light amihan rains.

PAGASA said the average minimum temperatures this month will range from 13 degrees Celsius (°C) to 22.3°C in northern Luzon; 17°C to 25.3°C in lowlands Luzon; 9.7°C to 13.1°C in mountainous Luzon; 18.3°C to 23.6°C in Metro Manila; 19.1°C to 25°C in lowlands Visayas; 19.5°C to 23.7°C in lowlands Mindanao; and 15°C to 16.7°C in mountainous Mindanao.

“Generally, surface air temperatures range from below average to above average throughout the country during the forecast period (December 2022-May 2023), with the coldest temperatures expected in January and February,” it said.

The lowest temperature recorded in Baguio City was 6.3℃ on Jan. 18, 1961, while it was registered twice in Metro Manila, on Feb. 4, 1987, and Dec. 30, 1988, at 15.1 degrees Celsius.

PAGASA is expecting cold surges between December 2022 and February 2023.

Gatchalian warns Pinoys about new GCash scam ahead of SIM registration

by Ellson Quismorio

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has cautioned Filipinos on a recently discovered GCash scam ahead of the start of SIM card registration on Dec. 27. 

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian (Facebook)

Gatchalian cited a fraudulent email apparently coming from GCash Promotions advising recipients that their transactions have been restricted and to reinstate the said feature, recipients have to pre-register by simply clicking a link, a process that could potentially compromise their online security. This has been confirmed by the GCash Team as a scam.

SIM stands for subscriber identity module. It is used on mobile devices such as phones and tablets. 

“Ipinaglaban natin ang pagsasabatas ng SIM registration sa nakalipas na maraming taon dahil gusto nating protektahan ang mga gumagamit ng SIM laban sa panloloko ng cyber criminals (We fought for SIM registration enactment in past years because we want SIM users to be protected from cyber criminals),” Gatchalian said.

“Kailangan nating abisuhan ang ating mga kababayan na mag-ingat nang husto laban sa mga sari-saring pambibiktima ng mga kawatan (We need to warn our countrymen to be careful against these fraudsters’ various schemes),” he added.

GCash is a popular e-wallet maintained by one of the country’s major telecommunications companies. 

Starting Dec. 27 this year, SIM users need to register their SIMs within 180 days or six months, or else have their SIM cards deactivated from their respective service providers.

A co-author of Republic Act (RA) 11934, or the SIM Registration Act, Gatchalian also urged SIM users to register their respective SIMs as soon as possible, emphasizing that doing so would enable authorities to track criminal-minded individuals who take advantage of unsuspecting customers.

Gatchalian also said the law includes provisions that would ensure the protection of customers’ personal information.

“Identity theft is precisely one of the online schemes that we want to prevent relative to the enactment of the SIM registration law. The process for the disclosure of personal information is a rigid one that necessitates a court order,” he emphasized.

Gatchalian said SIM users need to make sure that they register only through a secure platform or website provided by their respective service providers. The process of registration requires the following information including full name, date of birth, gender, address, and valid government ID or similar documents with a photo, while business users must provide their business name, business address, and the full name of an authorized signatory.

Six people killed, over 100K affected by Christmas rains, floods

Gaea Katreena Cabico - Philstar.com

This handout photo taken on December 25, 2022 and received on December 26 from the Philippine Coast Guard shows rescuers evacuating people from a flooded area in Ozamiz City, Misamis Occidental. Two

Handout / Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) / AFP

MANILA, Philippines (Updated 12:27 p.m.) — Authorities said six people died and 19 were missing as parts of the country experienced heavy rains and floods during the Christmas weekend.

In a bulletin released Monday morning, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said two individuals in Camarines Sur and four in Misamis Occidental were reported dead. 

Ten people in Bicol region, six in Eastern Visayas, and three in Northern Mindanao were missing. Three individuals were injured.

The shear line—or the point where the cold and warm winds converge—will continue to bring rain showers to Visayas, Caraga, Northern Mindanao, Zamboanga Peninsula, Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, and Palawan that may trigger floods and landslides, state weather bureau PAGASA said.

The rains and floods caused by the shear line have affected 23,762 families or 100,691 individuals. Around 9,216 households or 46,672 people have been staying in evacuation centers.

The NDRRMC said the estimated damage to infrastructure has reached P5.28 million in Bicol region and Northern Mindanao. Forty-eight houses were also damaged in Mimaropa, Eastern Visayas, and Northern Mindanao.

The cost of agricultural damage in Bicol region was pegged at P52.7 million.

The agency said it has provided assistance worth P2.04 million to the affected residents, deployed search and rescue teams, and activated regional emergency operations centers. 

Die Pandemie ist vorbei!

 

Nach Drosten-Aussage: Buschmann fordert Ende aller Corona-Maßnahmen. Im „Tagesspiegel“ hatte Charité-Virologe und Regierungsberater Christian Drosten (50) die Corona-Pandemie für beendet erklärt. „Wir erleben in diesem Winter die erste endemische Welle mit SARS-CoV-2, nach meiner Einschätzung ist damit die Pandemie vorbei“, so Drosten. Bundesjustizminister Marco Buschmann (45, FDP) reagierte umgehend – und sprach sich für ein Ende aller Corona-Maßnahmen aus. Christian Drosten habe in der Pandemie zu den vorsichtigsten Wissenschaftlern gehört, schrieb Buschmann am Montag auf Twitter. „Nun lautet sein Befund: Die Pandemie ist vorbei. Wir sind im endemischen Zustand.“

THE 8 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS? A LOOK AT THE CHRISTMAS OCTAVE

by Kevin J. Jones

Denver, Colo., Dec 25, 2022 / 08:00 am

The Catholic calendar has several ways to divide the Christmas season. The Church’s Western liturgical tradition sees Christmas as an octave, an eight-day celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.

The octave of Christmas begins on Christmas itself, the feast of the Nativity of the Lord. It ends on the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, on Jan. 1, which this season falls on a Sunday in the new year of 2023.

The drama of this time of the Catholic liturgical calendar even includes changes to the liturgical vestments of the clergy.

During these eight days of Christmas, clergy wear white during the Mass.

But there are exceptions when clergy wear red, the symbol of martyrdom: the feast of St. Stephen, Dec. 26, and the feast of the Holy Innocents, Dec. 28.

As the Book of Acts recounts, St. Stephen was a deacon who was the first martyr after the Resurrection of Jesus. He was killed for preaching Christ as the fulfillment of the Old Testament. One of the witnesses of his death was a man named Saul, the future St. Paul.

The Holy Innocents, too, are considered martyrs. They died in place of Jesus when Herod sought to kill all boys under 2 years old.

On Dec. 27 the Church marks the feast of St. John the Apostle, Jesus’ “beloved disciple.” John was a great evangelist and credited with authoring the Gospel of John and three letters of the New Testament. Many credit him with authoring the Book of Revelation.

The feast of the Holy Family continues the story of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph with the flight into Egypt. It usually falls on the Sunday after Christmas. This year, though, the celebration of the Holy family falls on Friday, Dec. 30. This is because the Sunday after Christmas this year is the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.

The solemnity of Mary, Mother of God looks to the role of Mary in the incarnation of Jesus Christ. She is the “Theotokos,” literally the God-bearer. She does not simply carry Jesus’ human nature, nor is she a vessel for his divinity alone. Because Jesus’ divine and human natures are united, she is truly the Mother of God.

The Christmas octave is when so many people have time to rest from a busy year and to spend time with family. One fitting way to observe the octave is to attend daily Mass and prayerfully reflect on the Mass readings.

If you have the talent, try your hand at writing an “Eight Days of Christmas” carol!

When does Christmas end? Here are possible answers

Kathleen A. Llemit - Philstar.com

In this photo taken on Dec. 21, 2022, people take photographs in front of a Christmas-themed house in Manila.

AFP / Jam Sta. Rosa

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines is said to have the longest Christmas in the world, which starts in September, and reaches its peak on Christmas Day, December 25. But when does it end?

There are several dates pertaining to the end of the season explained in an article on The Catholic Telegraph. 

One argument said that Christmas is a one-day affair with the Feast of the Nativity of the Lord. 

In another argument, it said that Christmas should be celebrated for eight days. Citing that the Catholic Church regards Christmas as an "octave or eight-day celebration," it begins on the Feast of the Nativity of the Lord and ends on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God on January 1. 

In a popular Christmas carol, it sings of 12 days of Christmas, which could be interpreted as the duration of the holiday. 

The article said the Christmas carol has basis as the 12th day of Christmas is the Feast of the Epiphany or the day when the Magi encountered Jesus, Mary and Joseph and gave gold, frankincense and myrrh as gifts. 

In another argument, it said that Christmas ends on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord which falls on January 8 next year. 

Another one said that it ends on Candlemas or the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, which falls on Feb. 2, 2023. Catholics bring candles to Church to be blessed and use these candles to light at home during prayer or when facing difficult situations. Candlemas is celebrated in some parts of the world, including Peru, Puerto Rico, France and Belgium. 

In a CBCP article, it states that the Catholic liturgy "indicates that Christmas is not just one day, but an entire season, lasting from Christmas eve, December 24, after sunset, until the feast of the Baptism of the Lord (usually the Sunday after Epiphany)."

Citing Fr. Rolly Arjonillo's Facebook post, the article stressed the importance of Christmas and its real meaning beyong feasting on good food, giving gifts and merrymaking. 

"The Christmas proclamation of the Savior’s birth should pervade every moment of our existence, convinced that God’s immense love for each one of us is ever-ready to do what is necessary to lead us to never-ending happiness and to eternal life. He is with us always and He will never abandon us!” Fr. Arjonillo said.