By December 2024 Davao’s population will be 2 million, double that of Cagayan de Oro. Our land area is 244,000 hectares, one of the world’s biggest. The Finance Department said that as of 2023, out of 147 cities we are the number 9 richest city...
(An excerpt of the homily of the Most Rev. Romulo G. Valles, D.D., during the Laetare Sunday, 4th Sunday of Lent at San Pedro Cathedral Parish, San Pedro Street, Davao City, March 10, 2024.) We are with hope, when we enter into the Easter Triduum starting...
Easter, the cornerstone of Christian faith, heralds a message of joy and renewal after the profound suffering endured by Jesus. As believers celebrate His resurrection and the triumph of light over darkness, it’s a time for reflection and rejoicing. In the aftermath of Jesus’ crucifixion, his...
HAPPY EASTER TO ALL! Yes, we have every reason to be most happy as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Let’s hope that when we greet each other, ‘Happy Easter,’ we would really mean it and know what is behind that greeting....
THE secret, of course, of how to find joy and glory in suffering is to suffer and die with Christ, that is, having the same attitude and understanding Christ had about human suffering and death. Only then would we realize that our suffering and death, in...
“UNLESS I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.” (Jn 13,8) These are words Christ told Peter at the Last Supper when the latter refused at first for his feet to be washed by Christ. And so, Peter immediately changed his mind, and...
THE readings of the Mass of Holy Wednesday (cfr. Is 50,4-9 / Mt 26,14025) somehow remind us that while Christ assured us that everything has been taken care of by him, we should not be so naïve as to think all will be nice and...
WHILE this is something that we should try our best to avoid, we cannot deny that in spite of our best efforts, we are still capable of betrayal, treachery and infidelity. In fact, every sin that we commit, no matter how small, is already a...
WE are now in Holy Week. And the gospel of the Mass for Monday of Holy Week (cfr. Jn 12, 1-11) speaks of how Judas, the traitor, reacted badly when Mary, the sister of Martha and the resurrected Lazarus, anointed the feet of Christ with...
Surot/bedbugs is different from kuto/hair lice. Surots live in beds, furnitures, especially those made of rattan and wood. We can sleep and sit comfortably if there is no surot. Last May 2023, France said they have a big surot outbreak. Because of COVID, from 2020 to...