THAT’S the main message of the readings and prayers of the 3rd Sunday of Advent, otherwise 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,...
We take for granted the healing power of water. Consumer Reports are concerned about this because the human body is 60% water. It’s the main ingredient of our blood which keeps our brain, heart, kidney another organs functioning. Generally, men need sixteen (16) 8 ounces glasses...
We will be celebrating a different Christmas this year as the pandemic, that is COVID-19, continues to loom over us. Though there are already vaccines discovered in countries like Great Britain, China, Russia and United States, among others, of which our country is lining up...
An excerpt of the Homily of the Most Rev. Romulo G. Valles, D.D., Archbishop of Davao and CBCP President during the Ordination to the Sacred Presbyters of Rev. Fr. Efren Gubac, Jr. in the Immaculate Conception Parish, Mintal on September 21, 2020. (Part 2 of...
IT’S an art that is most worthwhile to learn and to have. Whenever there are drastic changes in life, like what we are having now when our movements are significantly restricted, we should know how not only to survive but also to prosper. Impossible? Well, that...
In last week's Shalom I made a slight mention of one level in our practice of interreligious and ecumenical dialogues. I was referring to what we call faith sharing as a form of dialogue. For the past 45 years or so we Catholic bishops, Muslim ulama,...
THAT’S how true love is, a love that is a clear sharing of the love that is in God as shown and lived by Christ himself. It’s a love that is not scandalized by anything. It, of course, continues to maintain that what is wrong...
THE spirit of Advent is supposed to remind us that we have to be focused on our ultimate end while cruising in the shifting conditions of our earthly life. We are supposed to keep our eyes, mind and heart on our final destination which is...
WE need to develop a certain yearning for Christ, a longing, an urge, a passionate desire, since this is a basic necessity for us, given the fact that Christ is everything to us. He is our savior. He is the pattern of our humanity. We...
THOUGH there is a close relationship between the person and his acts, we should try our best just the same to distinguish between the two. True, how the person is somehow determines how he acts. And how a person acts reveals the kind of person...