Silence

I woke up last Sunday without my voice. I don't why or how it happened.  I struggled to talk. I couldn't sing during the Mass. During our night prayers, it was only Chiara singing the Salve Regina. When I went to work the following day, our team leader wondered why I was silent.  Someone called and I have to pick up the phone. Luckily, the conversation wasn't that complicated. I didn't go to work for three days.

I slowly gained my voice as the days go although it's still husky (and couldn't sing!) as I write this. In a way, I accepted my 'silence' as a Lenten penance.  As a member of the Apostleship of Prayer, I offered it for the Sacred Heart of Jesus' intentions and those of the Holy Father. On the bright side, silence meant that I could focus on what I am doing be it at home or at work.  It also meant to listen attentively to the one you communicate with, otherwise you'll end up asking (read: talking) for more. Silence also provided a way for me to be careful with the words I say, to speak with tact. 

But there is more than these to silence.  Hidalgo Del Arrabal, one of our contributors in the web, wrote this last year:

Tanging sa katahimikan

Diyos nakikipagtalastasan;

Tanging sa mapagkumbaba

Poon nagbibigay-biyaya.

Purihin ka, O San Jose

Pinakinggan mo ang mensahe

Mag-inang sa Ama nagbuhat

Pinangalagaan mong tapat!

(Only through silence

Does God communicate;

Only to the humble

Does He give grace.

Praise you, O Saint Joseph

You listened to the message

Mary and her Child who came from the Father

You faithfully looked after!)

It's nearly the feast of St Joseph. This humble carpenter from Nazareth was known as a silent worker, someone who would prefer to work in the background.  Both the poor in the Philippines and the religious worldwide (2015 is a special year for both groups of people) can draw inspiration from St Joseph. 

For the poor whose abject condition has silenced them to the whims of the powers-that-be, this great saint comes as an example of complete trust in the Lord and working diligently. St Joseph lived in poverty too, but didn't buy into any shortcuts or 'instants' (instant rich, instant ginhawa, etc.).  

For the religious, St Joseph is a very good example of following the evangelical counsels - poverty, chastity, and obedience. Through their faithful witness to these three vows, they offer the world something different, something of more value, something that isn't just a fad, but has lasting character.

May St Joseph's silence inspire us in our Lenten journey to become more attentive to that message which God is conveying us. May his silence transform us into faithful stewards looking after those who were entrusted to us - family, community, environment, the poor and needy.

Mabuhay si San Jose!

***

It's Mother's Day (or Mothering Sunday) here in the UK tomorrow. My fervent prayers and best wishes to all moms, especially to my wife and to my mother, on their special day.  May St Joseph watch over you. May his silence encourage you to keep up the good work and become more open to God's grace. Happy Mother's Day!

Sister Act

Last New Year, the movie featured on TV was "Sister Act 1".  Most would remember it as the story of Deloris Van Cartier, a lounge singer in Nevada, who was hidden in a monastery as Sister Mary Clarence after witnessing a crime committed by her mobster boyfriend Vince LaRocca.While in the monastery, she 'woke up' the sisters to their calling by her involvement in the choir.  When this movie was shown in 1992, I wasn't able to watch it for some reason. I only had a glimpse of it when some friends from the Legion of Mary performed it during the farewell party to Fr. Mario Enriquez who was then parish priest of Gagalangin. Never thought how some of the performers such as Jeanette Guevarra, Margie Quinio, and Nana Tayang Bernardo could belt out the songs, and dance with gusto.Their performance was a hit! 

I only saw this movie years later over 2 pitchers of Red Horse Beer (never thought it was Red Horse until we finished drinking!) with a friend in Bulacan. The songs were great such as these 2.

Friends, here's "My God"!

"More, sisters!", you said? Right, here comes "I will follow Him"!

This year has been designated by Pope Francis as the Year of Consecrated Life.  We oftentimes wonder how religious priests, nuns, and brothers could live up to their vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.  For the world, it seems that their lives in the convent is boring and meaningless.  I came across an article about a lady who works for a magazine staying for a few days in a monastery.  To her amazement, she found the nuns to be happy and content with their decision to leave the world for Christ and their role in the Church and the world: 

http://www.poorclaresarundel.org/Content/Stylist_Life_in_a_convent.pdf

Another interesting article I read was from a Filipino Dominican priest who was all praises to the cooperator-brothers in his order: http://opphil.org/ph/the-glory-of-cooperator-brotherhood/

I must say that I am touched by the Poor Clare nuns in our parish for their simplicity, kindness, generosity, and cheerfulness.  Christmases won't be complete without a gift from them, be it a rosary or a doll for Chiara, a cake they baked, a bottle of jam they made, or a Mass offered for our intentions.

The nuns (and their fellow religious across the globe) have something - no, someone -  deep in their heart: Jesus to whom  "There isn't an ocean too deep, a mountain so high it can keep, keep me away, away from His love".

Each of us has been touched by the unique charism of these religious. We have been molded in the schools they run, we may have fostered a devotion or two which they promoted (e.g. Rosary by the Dominicans, Stations of the Cross by the Franciscans, Brown Scapular by the Carmelites, Sacred Heart of Jesus by the Jesuits, Perpetual Help Novena by the Redemptorists, etc.), or we may have sang songs they have composed.  Let's support them in our prayers and other good works so their lives would be a continuous chorus waking up the world.

***

Pope Francis has done it again!  A year ago, when he announced the names of the new cardinals, people - including those whom he appointed -  were surprised.  This year, he surprised us again with his selection of prelates who will be receiving the red hat during the Consistory on Valentine's Day. Gone are the days when prelates from 'cardinalatial' sees would automatically be chosen as a 'prince of the Church'. It already happened in the Philippines last year when the Holy Father selected the ordinary in Cotabato instead of his counterpart in Cebu.  (My hunch is, if this will go on, time will come that archdioceses like Manila or New York or Westminster might not be led by a Cardinal.) Pope Francis is indeed showing us the right way of looking at these positions not as career, but service.  (Prior to his first consistory, he already mandated that only priests aged 65 and up can be named 'Monsignor'.) I hope and pray that our pope would live longer to continue his reform of the Church and that his selection of cardinals, bishops, and other servants of God's people would continue his legacy. I hope and pray too that everyone would support him. Finally, let's ask God to guide and protect him in his pastoral visit to the Philippines this month.

***

May the good Lord have mercy on the souls of Josephine Darang, Ricardo Leyson, and Estelle Carson.  These three have passed away towards the end of last year. Ms. Darang was a columnist of the Philippine Daily Inquirer known for her fervor in spreading various devotions to our Lord, the Blessed Mother, and the saints. One time, she wrote an article in our annual "The Seven Last Words" online devotion. She also helped us publicize this and other projects.  Mr. Leyson was the father of Richard Leyson, former President of Tanghalang Anluwage, Inc. Ms. Carson was an elderly fellow parishioner here in Bulwell whose gentleness and smiling face have often touched me. May they rest in peace! My sincerest condolences to the bereaved families.

A Decade of Sharing the Good News

Happy New Year! I hope you and your loved ones had a great celebration of the Lord's Birth and welcoming 2015.

2015 is a special year for all of us in anluwage.com for it marks our 10th anniversary. It seems it was just yesterday when Art Reyes and Mike Flores created the web as an online ministry of Tanghalang Anluwage, Inc. Among its first items were "Before Sundays", the forerunner of what is now "God-speak", a regular feature of the web containing  reflections on the Sunday Mass readings are shared. 

There were also "The Nine Gifts" and "The Seven Last Words" special online devotions for Advent and Holy Week respectively. There were also columns such "Bits and Bobs" and "Tanggero".

Since then, more people and more items were added into the web. The vision and mission statements were drawn up. An editorial board was organized.  We also created a group page in Facebook to reach out for more people.

It is through your generous support that we have achieved such blessings. I could not thank you enough for all the help that you have given the web. 

Our 10th anniversary coincides with 2 important events: the Year of Consecrated Life in the Universal and the Year of the Poor in the Philippine Church. I hope our web would be able to contribute in promoting and supporting religious life and also in proclaiming the Good News of Jesus to the poor.  Sharing in Facebook of articles featured in the web would be a simple way of proclaiming that Good News to others. Another suggestion is to get to know more about our very own Fr. Shay Cullen who apart from being a religious, is also involved in reaching out to the poor via the PREDA Foundation. Finally, we would welcome more writers and other supporters to help us keep the fire of the Spirit burning.  

May Jesus, the Word-made-Flesh, continue to be THE source of inspiration in our ministry. May the Virgin Mary, Mother of God and ours, and St. Joseph, our patron, intercede for us for a fruitful 2015.

God bless us all! God bless anluwage.com!