XVIII 02

Don Bosco Academy, Mabalacat, Pampanga (Junior & Senior High School Building)

August 2, 2016.  It is one year since I arrived in the Philippines, after 15 years in Japan. I have come up with 5 realizations about myself and the things I am thankful for today. 

1) I left Japan with a heavy burden in my heart.  It was a combination of frustrations, disappointments, discontentment, discouragements. When that ANA plane left Haneda Airport that morning, I felt something light descend upon my heart.  When it landed in Manila, I felt I was finally free from all that burden. No. I do not blame whatever and whomever I encountered in Japan.  Perhaps (hopefully, perhaps!) they did not mean any harm.  It was just that things did not fit anymore with personal expectations... things did not anymore serve to make me grow in my vocation as a Catholic, a Salesian and as a priest. I saw the worst in myself in those years, at the same time that many in Japan (both Japanese and non-Japanese) were thankful they saw what they regarded was my best. After a year, I still feel a great tendency in me to block off from my memory anything that I experienced in Japan, sort of like an unconscious tendency for a voluntary amnesia.  But I consciously refuse to do that, with some effort!  I admit I came back to the Philippines convinced I did not meet God in Japan. But now, I am getting more and more convinced I was actually encountering Him there. The mode of meeting Him was not as comfortable as I had expected.  And I resolve to be patient that I can, piece-by-piece, reconstruct the puzzle He wanted me to solve through those years.

2) A man of God should never make definite plans. Once a man of God becomes a man of God, he cannot anymore make plans for himself.  God takes over.  He becomes in-charge of his life.  A 15-year old priest like me should have known that even before. But I only came to realize that 15 years later! I already had a big plan when I came back to the Philippines. I was planning to study, too! The contact persons were all listed. The virtual schedule, enthusiastically lined up.  But all the circumstances for all these plans were not dancing with time. I was made to wait. I was made to stand and sit on the sidelines, living far from where I could have been. There were times I felt people looked at me suspiciously, like some fugitive-priest hesitantly given the least harmful faculty -- offering mass. I faced myself in the mirror and saw a "jobless" priest. I even had to reckon where I should live while waiting. I did not want to be a burden to anyone.  But God had other plans.

3) There will always be someone who will treasure you, respect you and value you. I felt really awkward seeing some of the people I encountered in Japan hold back their tears in the few, accidental, unplanned despedida moments for me. I felt grateful for this particular former student who came to the rescue and offered me his place for some days. I felt loved by my father's text message telling me that I "was always welcome" at home. I felt I was treated as a real brother by the Salesians who offered their places for any pastoral opportunity. I felt I was a treasure to be invited by the Rector of Batulao to stay for an indefinite time for prayer, silence and rest. And when I remember those days when you all gave me some words of welcome, encouragement, consolation and invitation, my eyes still fill up with tears of joy.

4) Take it easy. Be quiet. Let God do the talking. The first month in Batulao saw me literally not having any assigned work. It was the first time in my life when I was the one willing not to do anything at all... And Prayer was the best I could do.  I have opted to make the usual working hours of the Salesians and the personnel as my time of silence.  In those moments, the Scriptures paved the way for my silence to listen to this Caring God.  God does correct things in us if we have swayed from what we are supposed to be for Him.  There were years in Japan when I have lost the taste and longing to pray... a result of the unwilling mixture of stress, depression and discouragement.  But He does care: He gave me those many "free" moments to bring back that longing for prayer, to replant that urge to pray, and to let blossom the joy of fulfilling that time I have to give for God, as a man of God.

5) Don Bosco paved the way. "Bob, you're asking for a sign? Well. Don Bosco's 200 years old!", as my good friend (a Salesian priest) told me a day before St. John Bosco's 200th Birth Anniversary. I arrived at the school where he was because I was invited to be part of the instruments for the Holy Mass the next day. I, who opted to go away from Don Bosco's Congregation, was being invited to be part of this important event! In those days of confusion and sense of loss, the same Don Bosco (through his Salesians) was there to tell me that everything would be alright. It has been more than 10 years since I have played the trumpet. I cannot really say I flunked.  I knew I couldn't sustain those 2nd octave notes that long anymore. But this wonderful opportunity paved the way for many, many more Salesian things!... Hearing Confessions of the Caritas Don Bosco students (for almost a month), staying in Batulao and being made to feel that I was never an outsider, the warm and brotherly love of the Salesian Community of Batulao, the trust they gave me to teach the young over there, those confessions and masses for student-retreatants who came, the Salesian events I was given the opportunity to participate, the welcoming attitude of the Salesians I met (many of whom asked, "Are you coming back?", with those happy, expecting eyes -- some were even so direct to say, "Welcome back!", even when I wasn't even that determined and decided to come back yet.  And, of course, the highlight of those wonderful months: the coming of the Rector Major... Being so blessed to find myself staying in the same place where he stayed with the other General Councillors.  Our Blessed Mother had always been there, giving me hints and signs that the Salesian way was, truly, the best WAY for me.  The approval for me to enter the ad experimentum stage (and to be the Spiritual Moderator of Don Bosco Mabalacat) was given to me by Fr. Provincial on the day Mary, Help of Christians was re-enthroned in Manila Cathedral!

Don Bosco Batulao Community with the Rector Major (center)

All through the year that passed, it was like Don Bosco had always been there, waiting, ready to embrace me and tell me, "I had been waiting for you all these years. I am so happy to have you back!"
... Me, too, Don Bosco!  I am so happy to be back! ... I have never been this happy in life!

(Written during the late hours of August 1, while assisting and accompanying a section of our Grade 9 students of Don Bosco Mabalacat.)

with the loving Community of Don Bosco Mabalacat

UNCERTAINTY, GRATITUDE, REST

COME TO ME, ALL YOU WHO ARE WEARY

Uncertainty.  Undefined path ahead.  And it brings me worry.  It makes me sink into anxiety.  

This has always been the feeling I had in the past, especially in the moments in the seminary when we had to submit our application letters to our superior.  This was the usual norm if we wanted to express our desire to be admitted to the next stage of our formation to the priesthood:  a handwritten letter expressing our desire, made freely in the spirit of prayer and discernment.  What comes after that is a period of worry… “Will I be accepted?  What if they reject me?  Where will I go from here?  Is there any other option if ever I don’t get accepted?”    And this kind of feeling?  Well, in the 17 years of formation that I had to become a priest, I had that feeling for like 10-12 times.  It did not last long.  Just a month or two. 

I have the same feeling again.  It is because of formalities.  

And as I come to get into this usual feeling, the worry comes up more than it was in the past because of the mere fact that there is no definite time frame ahead of this.  Would this be for a couple of weeks?  A month?  2 months?  3 months? 

Waiting does make you worried… especially when you realize that the waiting does not have a definite end.   People usually give limits to waiting:  9 months to meet a newborn child, 4 years to college graduation, 3 years to renew a visa, 15 days to a salary… perhaps the nearest I can be at this moment is the feeling of the unemployed.  Ah yes, that feeling.  “Will I be accepted?  Will I be secure in my work?  Will I have term limits?”  

Days have past since this feeling has bugged me.   And I realize that the anxiety of waiting also brings with it that feeling of gratefulness.  

Yes, gratefulness.

http://www.justcris.com/category/christianity/page/3/

JUST LIKE THE SHEEP

Grateful for the fact that I come to feel the very situation of what many of the unemployed feel: that anxiety of doing nothing, that temptation to fall into the stereotype of being “inutil” (useless), that worry if one’s personal funds will last.   I am very sure I will also be given the chance to practice my Priestly Ministry, perhaps even double or triple the load that I had in Japan.  But for now, I experience what the usual people experience.  I undergo the very worries they have for themselves and their loved ones.  I go through the same inconveniences they go through.  I pray the same things they pray for.  Grateful for this chance.  This is the real thing!  This is my little experience of what Jesus, Himself, has in being Immanuel (God with us). 

AND I WILL GIVE YOU REST

I am also grateful for the fact that I can rest.  I love being busy.  I love being “useful” for others.  There is this persisting temptation to fall into the feeling of being “needed”, of being “affirmed for what I do”, of being “praised and thanked for what I have done”.  But now, as I wait, all these have wait, too… and perhaps undergo purification.   But now, there is literally nothing to do.  My priesthood in this period of waiting does not have anything to do with “doing”.  It only thinks of BEING.  And BEING a PRIEST means being with God — spending more time with Him, spending time with His Word, being literally in front of Him in the Blessed Sacrament (longer than the usual busy priest’s day), loving the silence, getting used to having a Holy Hour with Jesus, reflecting on the past 15 years of priesthood and see the points where I have put myself over this Precious Gift, setting or resetting of priorities, conversion, self-renewal, getting ready when the go-signal comes…. 

My father told me something over the phone (after I finally got my mobile number).  It was because I told him I was going for a movie, something I haven’t done in the Philippines for a very, very long time.  He said, “Good!  Watch a movie!  Relax!  You have to honor those 15 years!”   And now, I honor those 15 years in Japan… those 15 years of adjustment, trepidation, thirst for God, yearning for meaning, discouragements, anxieties, humiliation, praise, support and prayers… with a much needed rest.  

So, this is what “doing nothing” feels!  
                                                                                                                    (Inspired by John 10 and Matthew 11)

http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/s/a/f/safearms.htm

45 LESSONS

Today I turn 45.  
And today, I look back and 
just randomly retrieve from my heart 
45 lessons I have learned through life.  
These are in random order.  
Please read them with a grain of salt, 
a pinch of humor 
and a prayer of gratitude.  

1) Show kindness and make sure someone who is pregnant lives in a relaxed and pleasant condition.  Say good words, talk to the baby inside and tell the baby we can’t wait to see him.  If not, he might not even want to be born.  

2) If you are a father, be present, be encouraging, show good example, be firm but be kind. You are needed for your child’s whole personality and values. 

3) If you are a mother, be calm.  Your voice has more decibels and is naturally high.  It does not need to be raised with panic when your child does something wrong. 

4) If you are a parent, stop bad and discouraging words when your kids say them to each other.   Even if it might sound funny and teasing, never laugh.  Stop them. 

5) Make sure your child’s godparents are truly God-fearing, have a great respect for Religion and the Church, have self-control, moderation and have good example in word and deed.  That is why they are “GODparents”.  

6) Make sure that your older kids say kind and encouraging words to their younger siblings.  They are good for forming a healthy self-esteem. 

7) Do not laugh at the mistakes of children.  It would encourage a secretive attitude.  He will hide shameful things in his life, will never admit them and will bring them to his grave.  

8) Correct anything wrong with reason and not with a loud voice. 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2606443/Why-I-stop-shouting-little-boy-This-confession-mother-three-year-old-shock-tweak-consciences.html

9) Your kids are human.  They are not robots, servants, statues or even feces. (Based on true statements!)

10) No name-calling.  No branding.  No biased adjectives that stick to a child’s way of looking at himself.   The first person who should be careful of blurting out adjectives at home should actually be the parent. 

11) Love prayer.  Love God.  Go to church.  Pray.  BUT BE CONSISTENT.  Your children have to see that what you believe and pray are worth living. 

12) Respect to those older than you is a basic thing in educating a child.  But it is not the reason for them to be at their elder’s beck and call. 

13) Never compare your kids’ performance, achievements and personalities in school or out of school. 

14) Your kids are not your source of entertainment, but your source of joy.  If they don’t want to sing or dance in front of you, even if they just feel embarrassed, don’t bribe them with rewards or make them feel guilty that you won’t love them anymore. 

15) Your kids are not measured by the grades written on their report cards. 

16) Never share your anger or disappointments to those around you, as if they also have to get angry and disappointed because you are.  Anger and disappointment… they are, indeed, contagious… and deadly, too!

17) PRAY THE ROSARY AS A FAMILY… DEVOTEDLY, CONSCIENTIOUSLY, CONSISTENTLY. 

18) PRAY BEFORE AND AFTER MEALS.  Food will always be a blessing.  

19) MORNING and EVENING PRAYERS… TOGETHER!   Prayers with a FAMILY DIMENSION make your sense of Faith more “Church”, more “communitarian” and never merely personal. 

20) Your Family Altar is not a decoration.  IT IS THE FAMILY ALTAR.  HAVE THE FAMILY GATHER THERE so that you can pray your MORNING and EVENING PRAYERS, TOGETHER. 

http://www.catholichomeandgarden.com/Why_Keep_A_Catholic_Home.htm

21) Punctuality in Church is important.  Leave early for church.  Prepare for the Mass inside the church while waiting for It to start.  Stay a bit after Mass to pray your thanksgiving.  Avoid greeting friends and relatives inside the church itself.  They’ll have their time.  PRIORITIZE JESUS first!

22) If you are a teacher, don’t air your dismay about one pupil’s low or failing test grade in front of the whole class.  That child will eventually come to hate that particular subject. 

23) If you are a school staffer, open your eyes more.  The middle and high school boys love to bully and pick on the primary school kids. 

24) If you are a school staffer, be professional.  Even if the other person in front of you is merely a primary school kid, you get part of salary from his tuition. 

25) When teaching kids a song, make sure you know the song very well… VERY, VERY WELL!

26) Trusting your kids builds their sense of responsibility and self-esteem. 

27) Never laugh at your kids’ defeat in any game, no matter how trivial it may be.   It will make him ashamed of himself and may even hate the game he lost. 

28) Make your older kids be aware and accept the reality that whatever they think, say or do, will all have a great influence on the character and/or weakness of their younger siblings. 

29) When your kids ask you things are not supposed to be fit for kids, don’t tell them, “Don’t say that!  Don’t ask that!  You’re still a kid!”  That will make him suspiciously curious and will look for the answer himself.  

30) Listen to your kids when they talk, no matter how childish it may seem.  Your child actually thinks he is saying something very important… VERY, VERY IMPORTANT.

31) Never call your kid to stand from the table during meals just to say something important or even to scold him.  Let him finish his meal first. 

32) Never wake your child from his sleep just to scold him.  Who knows, sleeping was his petty escape from the ill feeling of doing something bad.  

33) Never exaggerate your anger.  Things do not need to be damaged because you are angry. 

34) Don’t make fun of others who are serious of who they are and what they have to do.  They also have their own way of loosening up. 

35) Praise the effort, not the result.  

http://idillionaire.net/blog/page/6/

36) Your children are not your trophies.  Their achievements are commendable.  But they are not decorations that they carry later in life, especially in moments of failure.  Take note, they don’t wear their medals the day after graduation!

37) Even superiors, teachers, parents and elders have the right to apologize when they make mistakes.  Oh yes, they have to!

38) Offering one’s irritation when it’s too hot, too rainy or plainly dull weather for the Poor Souls in Purgatory is really worth it!

39) No matter how much you get away from something you don’t like or you think you don’t deserve, it will always haunt you.  Escaping from something will never be a solution.  Facing it will.  

40) If you feel bad and want to air out your grievances to your friend or relative, make sure it is not his birthday.  Don’t ruin his birthday.  It only comes ONCE A YEAR!

41) No matter how fast you type on the computer keyboard, writing with your own hand, filling a page with your handwriting is worth it!   Write about your day, EVERYDAY!

42) Be who you are.  No, not who you are as your “identity”… that is already presumed.  BE WHO YOU ARE.  If you are married, be a faithful married person.  If you are single, be an integrated single person.  If you are a priest or a religious, LET THE WORLD KNOW.  Leave the “undercover job” to the lay. 

43) To know yourself is important… not to make an array of justification for your own weaknesses, but to make use of the gifts that God has given you.

44) A regular, consistent prayer time everyday gives you a clear mind and balanced heart. 

45) Devotion to Holy Eucharist.  Devotion to Mary.  Devotion to the Pope.  Devotion to the Church.   Heaven is the goal.  If one has to deserve it, he has to work for it!

http://www.catholiclane.com/blessed-pope-john-paul-ii-and-st-don-bosco’s-dream-of-the-two-columns/st-don-boscos-two-column-dream/

Oh, there are still a lot more. 
But they are the more insistent 45 this day!
I am sure you also have 
your own set of lessons.
I look forward for more. 
But please, with the many things 
that have stressed me through the years... 
I don't think I'd even have another 45!  

BULLY

Do all people encounter being bullied from the time they become aware that they are not alone in this world?   If you can just recall the earliest feeling that you were bullied, when would that be?  Where would that be?  Who do you think did something that made you feel you were bullied?

I am thankful to God that I have a good memory.  Some people here in Japan warn me that I can actually lose this strong memory when I get old... I really don’t know.  It can be close to Alzheimer’s.  Or it can really be Alzheimer’s itself!  But before I get to that stage, before I get to that age when I would actually actuate and remember things so remote, I might as well first apologize to the people who would be taking care of me at that time, for all the burden and for all the trouble it might bring them.  I do hope that when that happens, my innocent, remote memories could bring more smiles to you and make you pray to God more and more. 

I will be turning 45 soon.  And my earliest memory was way back around the time I turned 1.  It is because I still remember the name, “Paula”, the name of our housemaid, then.  As early as that time, I knew that my brothers and sisters had to go to school.  I remember that blue Canossa school bus (whose shape is like the Neko-Bus of the Japanese Anime, “Totoro”) with a number “2” stopping in front of our house, reversing into the small alley behind it and going out of that narrow road beside our neighbor’s.  I remember that big, blue car that we had, where the front seat was long enough for me and my other brother to sit between our parents.  I remember that brown Radiowealth TV.  I remember the cool breeze coming from the ricefields nearby.  I remember the orange sofa.  I remember our stairs used to appear they were so many and so high.  

It has become common nowadays to use the word, “BULLY”.  Here in Japan, some bullied kids, as young as in primary school, have even committed suicide.  It is a word that is now familiar even in the workplace, in the neighborhood, among relatives and friends.  It is a word that makes everyone become vigilant on how to prevent it.  It is also a word that angers anybody after someone suffers badly because of it. 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/johansfoto/518499330

If I were to look back at the past 45 years, I can see that many of the hurts I still have in my heart were a product of consciously or unconsciously-done bullying.  And from these, allow me to share some lessons that we can apply in life. 

GOOD WORDS START AT HOME.  We, Filipinos, love name-calling.  We are very, very skilled in coining and inventing words to describe a certain characteristic of anybody.  But it is important that parents should start getting vigilant at what their kids say to each other.  Parents and elders should immediately stop kids when they say words that offend or make the younger ones cry.  Some words may be heavy, like “Gago” (Dumb) or “Hindi kaya” (Unable).  We may lightly call it “TUKSO” (Just teasing) or “Tinutukso ko lang naman, eh!”  But a child cannot fully grasp what is the humor behind it.  Worse, it can even pave the way for a child to walk the path of low self-esteem or no self-confidence at all.  The child would be lucky if he comes to have good friends outside the home who can actually show him that there is something great budding in him.   (That is, IF, he gets to know good people! )  We should encourage encouraging words at home, maybe even make it a home ritual!   We do not need to succumb to uneasy or corny feelings when we say affirming and supporting words.   It is at home where a child learns to be nice.  It is at home where a child first hears the good.  

LET YOUR WORDS BE YOUR ACTIONS.  I am one of the few (or many) who get to school and gets teased for acting or speaking just because I could not do “like the usual boys!”   In the seminary, they have a word for that, “SOFTIE”.  You get to hear that when Father Principal calls you to echo the remarks of the superiors after they have met to deliberate our conduct grade.  “You are soft.”  “Your way of speaking, make it more manly.”   It goes on even in our seminary years as young adults when sometimes I see somebody smurking behind me just because my inflections or actuations are not as “manly”.   And please, let us not think of this as some advocacy to justify sexual orientation or for whatever “alphabet movement” there is in society nowadays.   This is just an issue between what is “softie” and what is “manly”.   Honestly, I would get out of the office of the priest with an open sense of obedience -- that what I have heard was God’s will! -- but at the same time a silent scream of protest against some force.  I would have appreciated it if my superiors have praised my eloquence and good pronunciation.  I would have appreciated it if I was told to be more GENTLEMAN, rather than “manly”.   Come to think of it, even in the seminary, the “manly” seminarians were those who were excelling in sports.  However, if I look back, the same “manly” great players were also the same ravage eaters in the refectory (bakaw), the same beastly selfish we-can-get-away-with-it-because-we’re-not-caught people (nakakalusot), the same minimalist students in class (dinadaan sa patawa).  Now what is “manly” in that?  Jesus is a MAN.  A Male MAN.  A Manly MAN.  Don Bosco was, too.  They are the real “manly” ones.  They were gentlemen, full of love and firmness in convictions.  Their words.  Their actions.   Not their actuations!

RESPECT THE ONES BEHIND YOU.  The first Sunday that I served as a deacon was some days after our Diaconal Ordination.  It was very ironic.  The priest whom I served was someone who was ahead of me since our minor seminary days.  Even from that time, I knew he did not like me. (He did not need to like me, anyway!)  There was always something that would make him comment on my good work, say words that make others laugh at me, make faces of disbelief.  He became a Salesian. Years later, I also became one.  He is still a Salesian. I am not anymore.  I was very good friends with his classmates.  He was someone I came to dread.  Honestly, until today, I still do not like to meet him.  I still do not even like to see him in some pictures I see in Facebook!  Until now, I can still say, “He is the bully personified!”   No, I don’t despise him.  In fact, I forgive him.  But the trauma still stays.   This is a good lesson:  that there will always be someone younger than us, perhaps, someone not yet even born, who would be better than us, who would produce good ideas that can drive a community, who can be an inspiration.  They deserve respect from us, their elders in life and experience.  It is easy to distinguish a challenge from a discouragement.  It is naturally felt.  (Kudos to some of my junior companions in the seminary and former students who now serve as dedicated inspiration for me in their fidelity, convictions and deep faith!)  

APPRECIATE WHAT IS PROPER.   I remember in our minor seminary days, many of us, classmates, opted to go and visit the Blessed Sacrament after supper.  (We usually do our personal prayer in these moments.)  And so we went into the small chapel of the seminary.  This classmate of ours who led the prayer started uttering half-jokes and humurous intentions that made many laugh.  I kept my composure, thinking that I just had to keep on being serious, (because we were inside the chapel!) in respect to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.   When the prayers were finished and we got out, word came to me that this guy told the others, “Beware of plastic people, like THAT Bob!”  I just wonder what made me plastic that time.  I just did what I had to do.    This goes on until now.  You do your priestly duty well, you are the one who gets mocked.  You wear what a priest should wear, you get branded as “so 17th century!”   You wear your Roman Collar when you go out, and another priest in his casual clothes would sarcastically say, “Hey, we’re safe, we have a PRIEST among us!”    People who do what they have to do, the PROPER thing, at the PROPER time, in the PROPER place do not deserve to be bullied.  They are encouraged. 

PROPER EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE.  One beautiful thing I learned in the seminary was to keep quiet for some minutes before sleeping and look back at how the day transpired.  The Examination of Conscience before sleeping is a very important prayer and routine.  It makes you see and face the past day with a sense of courage: to face your fears, your disappointments, discouragements and sorrow, especially in those moments when you have been hurt by someone who consciously or unconsciously bullied you.  It also makes you brave enough to face and confront yourself in those moments during the day when you have been the bully yourself -- when you laughed with others at the honest mistake of someone, when you made joking but hurtful comments on the clothes or physical appearance of another, when you purposely showed force because you did not want to be dominated upon, when you said scathing words with the intent to leave a scar on that person’s heart.  The Examination of Conscience humbles you.  It makes you say sorry to God before your sleep.  It gives you hope for another day... another day, hoping that you and others would be gentle and kind to one another.  

Oh I still live with it.  I still carry the hurt in me.  It really does take time for all these to shed. I sometimes see myself confronted by these hurts when some trouble, problem, or situation stimulates me again.  I can feel some shiver traveling through my body, some floating feeling.  Then, I get awakened to the reality that I, too, have been a bully to someone for sure!

For those whom I have hurt. 
For those whom I have unconsciously bullied with ill words and arrogance. 
For those whom I may have incurred any scar in the past. 
I am very sorry. 
I have learned my lesson.  
And I still hope and pray
that I walk the path of Jesus, Himself. 

You are in my prayers!

CHRIST THE KING

Pope Pius XI

The SOLEMNITY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, KING OF THE UNIVERSE, started as “The Feast of Christ the King” in 1925.  It was instituted by Pope Pius XI and was celebrated on the last Sunday of October (logically celebrated on the Sunday before the Church celebrated All Saints’ Day on November 1st).  

And the reason of Pope Pius XI for instituting the Feast?  The world was high with NATIONALISM and SECULARISM.  Nations were high with their race and nationality.  They had leaders who lifted their spirits, opened their minds with strong nationalist influence, and burned their hearts even with hatred for others.  It was love for one’s country despite obvious problems of morality.  It was nationalism defaced by sin.  Add to that, the growing Secularism that made people lose their belief, trust and sense of God… a growing distortion of self-confidence, fading sense of religion, and an intoxicating spell of materialism.   Personally, I am sure Nationalism and Secularism were factors that drove the world to its 2nd World War.  

Rise of Nationalism in Russia

CHRIST THE KING was meant to shift the focus of the ordinary Catholic from the Nationalist and Secularist trend of those days… that JESUS is far superior than any leader, that JESUS is far better than any ideology, that JESUS has authority over the world and each one of us.  This is CHRIST THE KING.  And when we celebrate this Solemnity every last Sunday in Ordinary Time (or the Sunday before Advent begins), we are once again asked to make a CHOICE.  

I remember when the President of the Philippines came to Japan.  There was a date set aside to meet the Filipinos.  Months before this event, the Embassy sent invitations to the different Filipino communities.  (Filipinos like to form groups: geographical groups, language groups, civic groups, church groups… add to that the feuds, gossips and competition happening within and among the groups!  But I digress.)   For security reasons, those who wanted to meet the President had to register beforehand.  Since the date was set, some of them also had to file a leave from work that day.  


The day came.  They were early at the venue.  They were dressed in Filipino attire, business suits, pantsuits… They were asked to put off their cellphones or put in manner mode.  The President arrived.  Loud cheers.  Attentive eyes and ears on the usual self-promoting-pat-my-own-back achievement speech.  The event ended with lots of them taking selfies and pictures… with, of course, the President at the background on top of the stage having his own picture taken with a selected few.  

I feel bad about it.  Even today. 

Here was a majority-Catholic crowd setting a leave from work just to meet the President, when they cannot even consistently go to church on Sundays (or Saturday evenings) because of work.  

They were early at the venue, yet, they think it is normal to be late for the Holy Mass. 

They were dressed so well in their suits and best attire, yet, they don’t mind going to Mass with their casual or sexy clothes. 

Their cellphones were quiet when the President was speaking, yet, in the Holy Mass, a cellphone rings.  Some even stand up, get out of the church, answer the call or send a text back. 

They were attentive to the President’s words, yet, they don’t mind being noisy inside the House of God. 

They posed well for pictures with the President at the background, yet, they make wacky or sexy, profile, flatter-the-curves poses in front of the Blessed Sacrament in church. 

Don’t get me wrong.  I do not have any intention to put down anyone.  (I have not mentioned any particular group here.)  I just want to make a point:

The majority was not even able to approach the President and say, “Uy, kumusta na! Ba’t hindi ka sumasagot sa mga tawag ko?!”   But we can actually say the same thing to Jesus.

The President didn’t even tell any ordinary Filipino that day, “Oh, kumusta ka na?  Ang nanay mo, kumusta na?  Mukhang pagod ka ha,” as if that Filipino was known personally by the President.  But Jesus can actually tell that to anyone in his / her heart. 

After the event, the Filipinos who were excited to attend, were joyful to participate and ecstatic at the end left the venue still remaining the usual ANONYMOUS Filipino to the President.  That will never happen with Jesus.  He is God.  He knows us by name.  We are carved in the palm of His Hand.  

It really makes us think… WHO really is important for us?  A leader who gets changed every six years?… or JESUS?

Giant Statue of CHRIST THE KING (Swiebodzin, Poland)

When one is faced with a choice between a human President (whose thoughts, words and actions are willing to go against what God has designed in nature) and Christ the King (the ever loving, gentle, forgiving and just King of kings), one does obviously know the answer.

And yet, we still fail.  

And So I Resolve

It's March 16, Wednesday, 7:21 pm here in Kamakura.

It is only 5 degrees Celsius outside, but it is nothing compared to the cold of those affected in Northeast Japan. They have suffered so much: the earthquake, the tsunami, the threat of radiation. And now, they suffer more: the snow, the cold, the lack of food, drinking water, a hot bath.... And so, I resolve not to complain about 5 degrees.

It is 15 degrees in my study room now... a far cry from the cold darkness of whoever might still be under the ruins left by the tsunami, or in some car hoisted somewhere by the violent waves of March 11. And so, I resolve not to complain about 15 degrees.

It is the 3rd hour that we have electricity tonight after a 4-hour power interruption. Electricity is being rationed around the country as 6 nuclear reactors are being repaired, with one in Fukushima on the brink of a meltdown. But what's a 4-hour loss of electricity to a lifetime loss of loved one up north? And so, I resolve not to complain about power outages.

It is cold in my room now. All around the country, everybody is asked to cooperate to save as much electricity. It is quite uncomfortable to work indoors with your thick winter jacket on. My metal desk is just too strong cold despite the blanket on my legs. My ankles are cold, and so are my feet. But what are these compared to those who have lost not just heaters and blankets, but their whole house, their farm, their fishing boats... yes, their source of living. And so, I resolve not to complain about saving electricity.

It is so quiet now in Kamakura. I have already gotten used to the local and foreign tourists coming over. But these days are just too quiet. Yet, what have I to say when confronted with many cities and towns bereft of even the annoying sound of a railroad crossing siren, places that have been erased from the map by the unforgiving sea. And so, I resolve not to complain about the silence.

It is just so irritating -- these itchy eyes, this runny nose, this pollen allergy! No matter how much you put those new "minus ion" ointments, no matter how devoted you put drops in your eyes, the allergy will never go away. But what is this compared to the many old people whose maintenance medicines were forgotten and washed away by the tsunami. What is this to the usual call of the evacuees of the lack of medicine, just a little dose that can extend their life and see their cities and towns come back again. And so, I resolve not to complain about my pollen allergy.

It is just confusing! No, it's not the government. It's not the long lines at supermarkets and gas stations. It's not the stubborn aftershocks and plate movements under. It's the many news that come out, and many of them edited to sow over-reaction. It's the many opinions of people who feign knowledge of almost anything from nuclear science to social work and rescue. It's the many words that get written on social networks and comment boxes that make you tempted to hate, to get selfish, or just plainly to discriminate. Yet, there are a lot of people out there who cannot even get hold of any computer to mail their loved ones, people who have to fall in line and use specially set-up phones for just one minute to call their relatives and tell them they made it out, people who have no other words to say in front of TV cameras but cry and hope their loved ones might be in another far away shelter. And so, I resolve not to complain about the confusion.

And if there is anyone who has the right to complain right now,

it is the grandmother who left her glasses in that washed-away house,

it is the town mayor who saw 20 of his workers washed away by the waves as they held on the railing of their 3-floor town hall,

it is the father who cries because not even one photograph was left,

it is the high school kid who might have passed the university exams but cannot go any further, it is the little girl who still does not know if her parents are alive or not,

it is the baby who has not even a good clean diaper for change,

it is the farmer who has lost his land or has his land tainted by radiation,

it is the old man who knows that destruction is never the end and prays that he sees the rebirth of the place he has always called "home".

And so I resolve not to complain.

And so I resolve to offer any whatever can be made into a worthy prayer and sacrifice.

And so I resolve to wait and get my chance to help.

Photo taken from http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/03/14/article-1366155-0B2A6F2600000578-79_634x470.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1366155/Japan-earthquake-tsunami-4-month-old-baby-girl-father-reunited-Ishinomaki.html&usg=__val68k-GtoRcKg1tLfvgaGwXxNE=&h=470&w=634&sz=108&hl=en&start=13&zoom=1&tbnid=eXtvsA5iqIuxIM:&tbnh=102&tbnw=137&ei=3MCATaLsBcrXcf_zpeIG&prev=/images%3Fq%3DJapan,%2Bbaby%2Bfound%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Den%26biw%3D1176%26bih%3D1084%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C6&um=1&itbs=1&biw=1176&bih=1084

It’s another Sunday.

But not the usual Sunday.

I do not have any other mass in the afternoon since I only go to Sueyoshicho for their afternoon English every other month.

But it was just the right timing. Today, we had the Parish Assembly. And I am not happy for what ever was discussed or for whatever happened in there. Why?

Try to get the picture. 2, 137 in the 2010 list of parishioners. That is a lot compared to other parishes. Yet, for today’s Parish Assembly, there were not even like 80 who participated

Of the less than 80 who were there, I and another one were the youngest... at 40! They could have just called the gathering “Middle and Old Aged Assembly”!

The Parish has 41 groups. And I am very sure not even half of the groups were there.

It was actually an open invitation. The only ones who attended were those who had concern for the parish. The rest... well, they were hurrying to go home or spend some time drinking coffee or tea at the parish hall. I do not like to regard them as people with no concern at all with parish life. They also contribute to the financial life of the church. Yet... but....

Parish Assembly... from 11:45 - 12:45. Only an hour. Only an hour would be OK for me. But 35 minutes of that time was devoted to discussion on money. Ah yes, another 5 minutes on trash collection and separation. Only an hour... not enough time even to renew parish goals. Only an hour... not enough time to discuss vital matters like improving pastoral action, promotion of vocations, youth ministry....

I am only in my 3rd year in parish life as a diocesan priest and I now see a lot of things that are really lacking, or should I say, slow, compared to the pace of the real Japanese corporate world. Yes, the church is not a company and the company is not a church, but there are things in the companies that can actually make the church more effective in the way it moves.

After this Assembly, I see some points that need improvement:

1. Require all the 41 groups to send representatives to the Parish Assembly and not just limit it as open to anyone. Even the middle and high school kids, even the elementary kids deserve to be there. If you open it for ANYONE, eventually NO ONE will come.

2. Have a definite theme for a definite Parish Assembly. Preparations are needed months before the actual day, like, working paper, surveys to answer, collation and summary. A committee is the best body to prepare for this rather than just one person.

3. Use more media, preferably the projector, or if handouts are needed, print on the backside of used paper so that the church itself can answer to the ecological call of society to reuse and reduce.

4. A moderator should handle the meeting and not the President. This will prevent long discussions and one-on-one debates because if the one who holds the microphone is the President, he will always have an answer for any question asked even if it is not directly to him.

5. Have an agreed order of presentation, questions and suggestions. The content and order will be planned and implemented by the Committee In-charge. Have someone act as time-keeper to minimize the usual Japanese tendency to lengthen their line of thought.

6. There has been so much discussion on money, and electricity was 1/3 of it. Yet, there were other people using other rooms and halls during the Parish Assembly -- yes, using the rooms with lights and heaters! The Parish has to decide that the Parish Assembly is the ONE and ONLY activity allowed at that particular time. Close the coffee shop. Early notices have to be handed out to the groups and or people who do not intend to join.

7. Focus. We are a church. We are not a company. Money is not supposed to be the bulk of the discussion. It is the reflection and discernment if we are truly fulfilling the mission that Jesus has given to each one of us and to us as a church.

8. Have a goal. After the Parish Assembly, what is it that each participant would be able to bring home in their hearts?

9. If there are other things to be discussed in detail, most especially if it concerns finances, let it be discussed in another assembly, or sort of like an open-for-all discussion.

10. The Parish Assembly is not just information. It is formation.

Be my Valentine!

Yes, romantic!

Valentine’s Day has become the romantic, dating, chocolate-and-roses, kissing, hugging and motel-reservation-traffic-and-have-to-wait that it has become today. Pity.

Lately, I have had a lot of talk about LOVE. It was the topic of the 4 masses I had in Seisen International School and also during the 2 lectures I had with the Stella Group (the mothers of the St. Paul-de-Chartres School called Shonan Shirayuri). These requests for talks and lectures are moments I love. They make me study more and see the angle of the faith on such cherished and abused topics such as LOVE. And part of it is, of course, is the February 14 Valentine’s. ( Uggghhh... I remember the art classes in elementary! The red art papers and red cartolina... all cut into heart shape decorations and cupid assortment... the red crayons that you rub out to form a shining pattern of red heart... ugggh!)

Here in Japan, Valentine’s is the day when a girl gives chocolates to the boy she has a crush on. Japanese society sort of like gave this chance for the female to confess her love to the male only on this day -- long ago, it was considered improper for women to propose. And it seems the ones who gave this chance were the chocolate companies. Yes, on the context that chocolate was not as popular yet to the Japanese palate. Talk about business! In the late 70’s, when white chocolate was starting in the market, they put it out as a product the guy can give to the girl as a sign that he reciprocates her love... and so, the relationship starts! Talk about business as a bridge to love!

Nowadays, it is now a common practice. Little girls giving chocolates to their dads. High school girls to their boyfriends. Ladies to their male officemates. Even old women to the priests! Lots of boxes lined up in supermarkets and convenience stores. Lots of recipes in the internet for homemade chocolate treats. Yes, February... the month when the calorie count of males in Japan just shoot up! I still remember a Russian female classmate in Japanese language school who gave each of her male classmates a chocolate bar on Valentine’s Day while saying, “This is so embarassing!” Well, no one told her to buy and give them in the first place!

For those of you who are going to celebrate Valentine’s Day in such romantic settings, be it in a reserved hotel dinner by candlelight or just corned beef on plain candles-during-blackout at home, please do remember that Valentine’s Day had a very CATHOLIC ORIGIN.

Yes... Valentine’s Day had a CATHOLIC ORIGIN!

It was religious by nature.

... and not the chocolate-eating, flower-shop-boom, nor the let’s-be-promiscuous-day that the present world has made it so. It’s like us making your own birthday a “Let’s-all-have-diarrhea-day”!

Want to know more about the real st. valentine? there's google!