December 31, 2018 – Looking for You

The Seventh Day in the Octave of Christmas

John 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light but came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came to be through him, but the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, but his own people did not accept him. But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name, who were born not by natural generation nor by human choice nor by a man’s decision but of God. And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth. John testified to him and cried out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.'” From his fullness we have all received, grace in place of grace, because while the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. The only Son, God, who is at the Father’s side, has revealed him.

Introductory Prayer:  Jesus, I believe that you are the Word come into the world. I know you speak to me of the Father, of his truth and love. I know that I can trust you to bring me to the Father. In spite of the smallness of my heart, you come in search of me. Thank you for coming to look for me.

Petition: Help me look for you more today, Lord.

1. He Came to His Own: Our God came looking for us. “It is not that we have loved God, but that he has first loved us” (Cf. 1 John 4:10). What is it that so attracts God to us? The Bible uses images of the love of a spouse or a parent to help us understand how deeply God desires to make us his own. He knows that this is where our true happiness lies. Often, he looks for man in mysterious ways, but in Jesus Christ he plainly shows himself and his desire to be with us. Do I appreciate the gift of the Incarnation? Do I understand a bit better each day how humbly and powerfully God looks for my love?

2. Born of God: Our transformation into Christ is a gift. God offers us this gift, and if we are open to it, he deeply changes our relationship with him. Through Christ we have confidence to come before the Father and call him our “Father,” not just our “Creator.” Through Christ we have the power to lay aside sin and put on the holiness of God. Through Christ we have the possibility of leaving a mark on the history of salvation, helping to bring his Good News to the world. This comes from God’s goodness and mercy. Do I appreciate the gift of my divine adoption? Do I try to live as a new man or woman, born of the Spirit?

3. Full of Grace and Truth: Jesus Christ shows us what it is to be truly human. The power and beauty of his life, the unselfishness of his total love, help us see the heights to which we are called. He shows us that it is possible to be holy. He leads the way; we have only to follow in his footsteps. With him we can be confident that the good we have done in our lives will last forever. Do I let myself fall in love with Christ each day? Am I fascinated with him to the level that I discover something new in him each day? Can I say that each day he wins me more and more for his cause?

Conversation with Christ: Lord, thank you for coming to look for me. Today I want to look for you, too. Help me to discover you in faith. Help me to see the signs of your presence in the Church, the sacraments, and the good you sow in those around me. Give me new ears and an open heart to listen to your Word, and to welcome you into my life.

Resolution: Today I will speak with someone about Jesus’ love for us as demonstrated through his Incarnation.

December 30, 2018 – A Joy for the Whole Family

Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph

Father Jason Smith, LC

Luke 2:41-52

Each year his parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover, and when he was twelve years old, they went up according to festival custom. After they had completed its days, as they were returning, the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Thinking that he was in the caravan, they journeyed for a day and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances, but not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions, and all who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.” And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said to them. He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor before God and man.

Introductory Prayer: Lord, I believe in you. I place myself before you. Thank you for the gift of faith. How can I ever repay you for it? Jesus, I hope in you. May your presence today keep my will set on glorifying you. Lord, I love you and I long for my heart to be filled with your love.

Petition: Lord Jesus Christ, help me to value and promote the sanctity of the family.

1. The Holy Family: Today we celebrate the solemn memorial of the Holy Family: Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. A family blossoms with the birth of a child. Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem marks the beginning of the blossoming of the Holy Family. In today’s Gospel, with Mary and Joseph to guide him, the Son of God grew and was educated. “He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them.” It is a model for every family: love, care, education, obedience. Am I grateful to my parents for my upbringing, and do I seek to express this gratitude in concrete ways? Do I fully grasp the essential elements of family life and try to promote them the best I can?

2. Parenting Is Never Easy: Mary and Joseph were attentive to Jesus’ every step. But no parent is perfect — there are times when the child can slip away. Here we see them racing back to Jerusalem in search of Jesus, as well as their delight at finding him once again. Mary and Joseph experienced the same emotions every parent does while raising a child: moments of anxiety and joy. Do I patiently embrace the moments of anxiety in my family life? Do I strive to spread joy to all the members of my family?

3. The Obedience of Jesus: Every child needs the authority and direction of parents. Number 532 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “Jesus’ obedience to his mother and legal father fulfills the fourth commandment perfectly and was the temporal image of his filial obedience to his Father in heaven. The everyday obedience of Jesus to Joseph and Mary both announced and anticipated the obedience of Holy Thursday: ‘Not my will. . .’ The obedience of Christ in the daily routine of his hidden life was already inaugurating his work of restoring what the disobedience of Adam had destroyed.” Do I appreciate the important role of obedience in my life, and am I seeking carefully to instill it in my children? Within the family of the Church do I have a filial attitude towards the Holy Father? Do I know, understand and support his teachings and guidelines?

Conversation with Christ: Lord, help me to keep my mind on the things above. How little I reflect on the Incarnation, even during the Christmas season! Help me to be ever more mindful that you dwell in my heart. Let me radiate your presence today in my own family. Let them see your goodness reflected in my words and actions.

Resolution: Today, I will pray for the sanctity of the family.

Netizen Burns Karen Davila for Saying "Palakasin Natin any Ating Demokrasya"

Veteran TV Host alleged Pro-Yellow Media personality, Karen Davila made headlines on social media after she reiterated on national TV that one of the lessons she learned in 2018 is to Strengthen our Democracy. The statement of Davila caught the attentions of concerned netizen and blogger Vincent Marcus.

Concerned netizen Vincent Marcus burned down Karen Davila by asking relevant questions to Karen Davila on why she keeps on using the term democracy, and to really explain the real problem whether it's lack of democracy or the biased reporting of the mainstream media.

The concerned netizen asked if the lack of democracy is the reason why they keep on reporting only the news that could discredit the Duterte administration. Marcus also asked if the lack of democracy is the reason why they failed to report more about the accomplishments of the Duterte admin.

Karen Davila was also asked if the lack of democracy is the culprit why the mainstream media did not pay attentions to more pressing issues such as the rampant election cheating allegedly committed by the COMELEC and Smartmatic.

Here's the Complete Statement of Vincent Marcus:

'Isinangkalan na naman ang demokrasya'…

Hindi ko talaga maintindihan kung ano pa bang demokrasya ang hinahanap partikular ng media lalo na itong si Maria Ressa at Karen Davila. Lagi na lang demokrasya ang hinaing at argumento nila.

Sa pagkakataong ito, bago rin matapos ang taon ay nais kong itanong at linawin lalo na kay Ms. Karen Davila kung ano ang totoong problema - 'kakulangan' ba ng demokrasya o biased na pagbabalita ng media.

Para sa inyong mga nasa field of broadcasting/journalism:

Dahil ba sa kakulangan ng demokrasya kaya karamihan ng inyong mga ibinabalita ay sa ikasisira ng administrasyon? Dahil ba sa kakulangan ng demokrasyya kaa maraming accomplishment ng pangulo ang hindi nyo naiipakita sa telebisyon?

Kulang pa pa ang demokrasya kaya ang malawakang pandaraya ng pinagsamang sindikatong COMELEC at Smartmatic ay hindi nya binibigyan ng pansin? Na kaya pinatay n'yo ang inyong mga camera nu'ng minsan na magsalita si Atty. GLENN CHONG sa isang Joint hearing ng senado para sa kanyang ELECTION FRAUD EXPOSE? Na kulang ang implementasyon ng demokrasya kaya ayaw n'yong ipaalam ito sa maraming tao?

Nung patayin ng mga tiwali at tila demonyong pulis si RICHARD SANTILLAN na isang napakabuting tao, demokrasya ba ang dahilan kaya halos dalawang araw na ang nakaraan bago nabigyan ng kakapirasong ulat diyan sa programa ninyo?

Dahil ba sa demokrasya kaa hindi n'yo man lamang na-interview at kinumusta ang PAO kung ano ang resulta ng kanilang pagsusuri sa bangkay ng biktima? Ni hindi nyo man lamang inalam ang panig ng COMELEC at Smartmatic kung ano ang kanilang masasabi sa pagdadawit sa kanila ni Att. Glenn Chong?

Hindi nyo ba naramdaman ang demokrasya kaya marami kayong hindi ipinaaalam sa taumbayan dito sa ating bansa? Kelan ba kay0o ginipit ng pamahalaan dahil sa inyong tamang pagbabalita-meron ba? Kung tunay sana kayong makatao at makabayan, hindi nyo hahayaan ang ating bansa na magkaroon ng mag dibisyon dahil lamang sa mga MISINFORMATION.

Hindi nyo yata alam na napakahalaga ng papel na inyong ginagampanan para sa ika0agkakasundo ng mamamayang Pilipino. Kung tama ang kanilang napapakinggan kung tama ang kanilang napapanood, hindi mahirap pagisahin ang puso at isipan ng taumbayan. Ngunit kung mananatili kayong ganyan, kayo mismo ang dahilan kungbakit nagkakaganito ang ating bayan!

BE A RESPONSIBLE NEWSCASTER. BE A RESPONSOIBLE JOURNALIST.

• Vincent Marcus

Source: From Yellow Into Red FB Page

https://www.philnews.xyz/2018/12/netizen-burns-karen-davila-saying-palakasin-natin-ating-demokrasya.html?fbclid=IwAR2kRU69qMIdDn9jzlBytManpMuqeTVO3HEDucsXsl3DWvVfhZlx-Ock5gA

HOW TRAVEL CHANGES YOU

SOY DEL SUR

Desperately wanted: COMPETENT Opposition bloggers!

December 30, 2018 - by benign0 - 2 Comments.

In her recent Manila Times piece, A social media wish list for 2019, social media “expert” Noemi Dado issues a call-to-action for Netizens for the coming new year 2019: “It is time to replace or concentrate on personal websites or blogs, instead of Facebook, as the main platform.”

Dado likely built this idea on the long-observed decline in blogging — political blogging, specifically — since its heyday in the mid-2000s. Most stark is the void left by the clique of “influencers” associated with today’s Opposition; supporters of the Liberal Party more broadly known as the Yellowtards — people loyal to the Aquino-Cojuangco clan, the prayerful ones, the chi-chi private school activistas and even some fashionista consumer influencers who sneak in a political tweet once in a while in between product endorsements. Left to monopolise this intellectual wasteland is Jover Laurio, a.k.a. Pinoy Ako Blog, who stands as the top Yellowtard blogger separated by a vast margin to whoever comes second to her in today’s Opposition camp.

It is difficult to gauge how much (if at all) the Philippine Opposition realise how big a ball they have dropped and how much trouble they are in having been left banking on a single mediocre blogger to cover the playing field Dado encourages everyone to jump into in 2019. At the dawn of 2018 last January, leftist Netizen Katrina Stuart-Santiago was being kind in her seminal piece State of blogging, microblogging, media #crisiswhen she described much of Laurio’s work as “but a series of questions dripping with malice and insinuations that are based on unnamed sources” but nonetheless goes on to cite the lack of rigour and coherence in the material she subjects her readership to and, most important of all, the intellectual dishonesty that is at the core of Laurio’s work…

Laurio does not hyperlink to her sources — something that RJ Nieto (one of her favorite nemesis) actually takes seriously — and I’ve caught her often enough leaching off other Facebook pages’ content and passing the content off as her own. She then gets comments like “ang talas talaga ng mata mo Pab!” Yet the same information was posted on the Facebook page of We Are Collective days before she even put it on her blog.

She is clearly a Liberal Party ally, but pretends to be otherwise by putting in pretend-critical posts of say, Leni Robredo; but also revealing her LP ideology in posts about say, the Kidapawan Massacre of farmers (it was scripted, she says), or questioning the takeover of abandoned decrepit housing by members of Kadamay in Pandi Bulacan. She equates Judy Taguiwalo with the New People’s Army (NPA), and then defends herself by saying Duterte did it too after the DSWD Secretary was not confirmed by the Commission on Appointments.

Indeed, to reiterate, if this is the best “blogger” the Yellowtards can cough up, the Opposition are in real trouble. Looking even further back, James Jimenez, spokesperson of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) made a similar call in his 2013 piece Write! where he observes…

One of the unfortunate side-effects of the rise of Facebook is that kids nowadays have actually drifted further and further away from writing. Not banging away quick and easy retorts to Facebook comments and current events; not the tortured compositions that pass for profundity in various status updates throughout the social webs; not the gonzo “ansaveh???” reactions to equally ludicrous statements by others.

No, not any of that. I mean real writing; the act of setting words down that, in their various combinations, communicate ideas, meaning, insight, and thereby enrich the minds of their readers.

Jimenez gets on top of the key reason why this decline in long-form online writing is problematic. An ability to string together ideas into a coherent unified work such as a substantial essay, a blog post, or an opinion article is what separates the men from the boys in the business of leading a people and shaping public opinion in a truly meaningful way. The context of Jimenez’s 2013 piece was the Sangguniang Kabataan elections coming up in October of the year he published that piece. Lamenting the dearth of quality content put online by the crop of young Filipinos vying for positions in the SK, Jimenez issues a call-to-action more prescient than what Dado issues today…

People, I think, especially those who intend to go into public service in one way or the other, have to write more. Especially these youngsters who are gunning for SK in a few months. They’re the ones who should be putting their ideas on paper and submitting those thoughts to the wild wild web for comment, review, and criticism just as much as for praise and recognition.

In that, Jimenez leaves off where Dado starts several years later — the barren wasteland that the Philippine blogosphere has become save for the detestable work of Jover Laurio solely representing the voice of the Opposition in this digital land of vote-converting opportunity. Beyond this are all the mere bottom-feeders: self-described “influencers” who find comfort in social media echo chambers congratulating one another for their quaintly clever 256-character opinion snippets. Perhaps the Yellowtards are comfy in this easy space where not much thinking is required to get that vital validation fix retweets and likes deliver. Surround yourself with enough like-minded “followers” and you will get exactly that in much the same way your mother is your biggest fan. The competition they have shied away from is, of course, the harder game — where a battle of real wits is waged and where only those with the wherewithal to craft deeply-insightful work and issue intellectually-stimulating challenges to these thrive.

This is the real reason why “fake news” and “misinformation” spread — because the content produced by this generation’s “influencers” have regressed in boldness and declined in quality and, as a result, have dulled the once-acute bullshit detector of vast swathes of Netizens. In place of boldness and quality is the currency that determines ascendancy in social media: popularity. Unfortunately, the popularity of an idea has never been a good indicator of its validity. Devoid of substance (and enough space to articulate that substance), social media provides a poor platform for intelligent discourse. I join the call-to-action issued today by Dado and, much earlier, by Jimenez. Filipinos need to write more. Today is Jose Rizal Day after all. This Filipino “national hero” wrote a lot and angered a lot of people with his writing. If you are not pissing off someone, you are probably not doing anything important. Write more. Piss people off. Take what you dish out. Do it intelligently. Write on!

About benign0

benign0 is the Webmaster of GetRealPhilippines.com.

https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2018/12/desperately-wanted-competent-opposition-bloggers/

Easy hand acupressure points for stress relief

Communism in the Philippines should be CRUSHED once and for all!

December 30, 2018 - by benign0 - 2 Comments.

Why does communism continue to plague the Philippines? Its elements openly defy the government, incite unrest, and spread their obsolete ideology. Across the Philippines, communists infest Philippine university and college campuses, radicalise various “cause-oriented” groups and steal precious classroom hours that could have been used to educate Filipinos students. Communists are also behind labour unrest in many Filipino companies and the propagation of the notion that people are entitled to employment. This is communism, after all. It is an ideology that demands equality and implements egalitarianism by force. Under a communist regime, people’s right to “freedom” goes out the door in favour of the idea that you are only as free to pursue wealth as your comrades’ ability to find work or partake of government dole-outs.

This is, after all, a system of government and economics that denies human nature rather than work within its context. Thus, whereas capitalism has, in practical terms, existed as an economic system since the dawn of civilisation, the communist society envisioned by Karl Marx is so unnatural that it will require a period of “revolutionary” transition before the utopian “classless” state is achieved. Vladimir Lenin, leader of the Bolshevik Revolution that created the Soviet Union which he then became the first leader of described this period as one where a “suppression of the exploiting minority by the exploited majority” will be effected after which “equality” will presumably reign supreme. And under what mechanism would this transition be overseen? Why under no less than a “dictatorship of the proletariat”. Here, the “proletariat” are the workers’ classes — people who “derive income solely from their labour”.

We can see here that communism is not only obsolete, it is an ideology that insults the human spirit and is an affront to self-determination. It is an idea attractive to people who are unable to or, worse, unwilling to compete. Perhaps this is the reason why communism still exists in the Philippines — because competing and developing one’s self or organising people into groups capable of competing at scale is not a key feature of the Filipino cultural character. The idea of a “dictatorship of the proletariat” appeals to a people whose most valuable export is human labour. Makes sense now, doesn’t it? Rather than see life as a competition for scarce resources and opportunities, proponents of communism see the present world order as one rigged against their needs. Under a communist regime, allocation of resources, after all, is based on need.

The way communism is being interpreted and promoted by Filipino “activists” is just as confused. This is not to mention the fact that virtually every “activist” organisation in most Philippine educational institutions had been infiltrated by communists. Thus any organisation that, by name or creed, is engaged in one form of social advocacy or another be it “women’s issues”, student politics, or campus “journalism” is infested with communists. Because of this mishmash of people focused on disparate “activist” goals cobbled together into a “front” to arbitrarily resist any government programme, it is impossible to achieve any form of consistency. For example, communists are currently allied with the Philippine Opposition which, in turn, is led by the Liberal Party which is a bastion of rule by elite business and feudal oligarchs, specifically the Aquino-Cojuangco clan. This alliance alone makes the communist goal of revolting, massacring the aristocracy, and establishing a “dictatorship of the proletariat” an utter impossibility.

The short of it is that communism is a parasitical system of thought that clings onto Philippine society by taking advantage of Filipinos’ habitual laziness in thinking. Their claims and assertions simply don’t add up. Their front organisations in university campuses may be the butts of many jokes but remain sources of warm bodies to fill their street rallies nonetheless. The continued existence of the New People’s Army (NPA) as a terrorist arm disguised as that “revolutionary” force that supposedly will pave the way for the rise of that “dictatorship of the proletariat” is proof that communists continue to successfully con Filipinos into tolerating their crooked activities.

Communism cannot be crushed by killing members of the NPA. There are just too many gullible young Filipinos coming into the educational system that ensure a fat pipeline of conscripts for this “army”. The key to crushing communism is for Filipinos to become smarter and more adept at spotting the glaring contradictions and inconsistencies in the way communists conduct themselves and their activities and tochallenge the slogans being chanted by participants in communist-organised street rallies and communist “influencers” in social media. The core of this challenge lies in the idea that there is no such thing as a state where “equality” rules simply because human beings are not created equal.

Humanity is diverse in character as many liberals ironically point out. Talent and skill are not equally-distributed across societies. To force people to be “equal” is as absurd as feeling entitled to “fairness”. Much of what is important and valuable in life are things one must compete for. This is the inconvenient truth many Filipinos are unwilling to embrace. This unwillingness to handle this truth in the Filipino is what communists are exploiting to their ends. Only when Filipinos learn that anything worth having requires one to compete for it, will communism truly disappear from Philippine society. It is all up to us to decide which story to subscribe to — the true story or the quaintly-entertaining fiction of the Communist Party of the Philippines.

About benign0

benign0 is the Webmaster of GetRealPhilippines.com.

https://www.getrealphilippines.com/2018/12/communism-in-the-philippines-should-be-crushed-once-and-for-all/

Acupressure points for overall health

December 29, 2018 – In the Spirit

The Fifth Day in the Octave of Christmas

Luke 2:22-35

When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,” and to offer the sacrifice of “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons,” in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord. Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the Temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.” The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, I long to abide in your presence. You refresh my soul and fill me with your light, although I don’t turn to you often enough or exercise enough faith when I do remember you. But here I am now, Lord, ready to spend a few precious moments with you in the room of my heart. I want to pick up more readily on the inspirations of your Spirit. I want to be a docile instrument in your hands to serve you and your Church.

Petition: Lord, teach me to be open to your Spirit.

1. Simeon, a Man of the Spirit: Luke tells us three times in this short passage that Simeon was a man who was attentive to the Holy Spirit. The “Holy Spirit was upon him” since “it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord.” Simeon was in conversation with the Spirit and learned to listen to his holy inspirations. Just as in Christ’s life we see him many times moved by the Spirit—for example, to come to be baptized by John and subsequently to be “driven by the Spirit” into the desert—so in Simeon’s life, he is not only inspired, but also powerfully moved by the Spirit. We should take a moment in our meditation to admire this man who lent himself totally to the movements of the Spirit.

2. Mary, Overshadowed by the Spirit: There is no one who demonstrates docility to the Spirit more than Mary Immaculate. She didn’t  put up any obstacles to the work of the Holy Spirit; as the Spirit expresses to us through the Gospel writer, “the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Luke 1:35). As John Paul II describes it, Mary “responded with faithful obedience to every request of God, to every motion of the Holy Spirit.” As she stands here at the presentation of her firstborn son, she now hears words spoken to her through the Spirit’s instrument: “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” Once more, Mary acquiesces to the Holy Spirit and accepts the foretold suffering far in advance.

3. Amazed by the Spirit: All of us have heard incredible stories of moments in which the Holy Spirit clearly intervened or directed a situation. Maybe we have experienced this in our own lives. Is there any reason why we shouldn’t? Are there any obstacles that the Holy Spirit would find in our lives? He should be the soul’s gentle guest. But how do we foster this friendship with the Holy Spirit? We have to bring silence into our hearts so as to distinguish his voice from the noise of so many worldly voices trying to drown out his word, and it also means we have to be docile and obedient once we have heard it.

Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, there are so many lessons to be learned from your presentation in the Temple. I have taken one of them: the presence of your Holy Spirit so evident in this Gospel passage. In the Christmas season we celebrate your being among us as a tiny child. Yet, your whole life will show us how to be docile to the Holy Spirit. You have sent him so that we might not be alone. May he always accompany me in life, and may he always remind me of the many things you did and said, as you lead me to the Father’s house.

Resolution: I will spend the day attentive to the Holy Spirit and make this a particular point for my examination of conscience.

HOW TO SURVIVE AN EMERGENCY WHEN YOU'RE ALONE

Pope Francis' speech on family and children

This is the speech that was read yesterday at the retreat by Pope Francis. Regardless of religion, see how beautiful what Pope Francis wrote about the family and children.

* There is no perfect family. We do not have perfect parents, we are not perfect, we do not marry a perfect person or have perfect children. We have complaints from each other. We disappoint each other. So there is no healthy marriage or healthy family without the exercise of forgiveness. Forgiveness is vital to our emotional health and spiritual survival. Without forgiveness the family becomes an arena of conflict and a stronghold of hurt. *

* Without forgiveness, the family becomes ill. Forgiveness is the asepsis of the soul, the cleansing of the mind and the liberation of the heart. Whoever does not forgive does not have peace in the soul nor communion with God. Hurt is poison that intoxicates and kills. Keeping heartache in the heart is a self-destructive gesture. It's autophagy. Those who do not forgive are physically, emotionally and spiritually ill.

* Parents are the children source of life. They are there to protect their sons and daughters and not to compete with them. * 

That is why the family must be a place of life, not of death; Territory of cure and not of illness; Stage of forgiveness and not guilt. Forgiveness brings joy where sorrow has produced sadness; Healing, where sorrow has caused disease.

* Forward to all families you know.

More bullying

BY JOJO ROBLES      DECEMBER 28, 2018

THE trouble with the former acolytes of Noynoy Aquino is that they sometimes forget that they no longer are the undisputed Masters of the Universe that they once were. But then, you can’t really blame the political warlord clans once closely identified with Aquino because, in their local milieus, they remain as powerful as ever regardless of who sits in Malacañang.

This is what appears to have happened this week in Guimbal, Iloilo, in that province’s first district. The district is controlled by the Garin family, overseen by local political underboss Sen. Franklin Drilon and counting as one of its members a most trusted Aquino consigliere, former Health secretary Janette Garin, who implemented the billion-peso Dengvaxia vaccine scandal.

Playing the heavy in last week’s drama is the local congressman, Oscar “Richard” Garin, the husband of Janette Garin, currently known as the “most well-suited” of the former lieutenants of Aquino because of the sheer number of lawsuits filed against her by the alleged victims of the Dengvaxia mess, a hurriedly put-together program to vaccinate up to a million public school pupils in the last months of Aquino’s term using an untested drug. In the role of backup bad guy was Richard’s father, also named Oscar, the mayor of Guimbal.

Garin pere et fils appeared one fine day at the Guimbal police station and demanded an audience with a local cop, PO3 Federico Macaya, over a recent incident. When Macaya was presented to the two officials, he was allegedly repeatedly punched, threatened with a gun, disarmed and even spat on by the mayor and his congressman son.

I doubt very much if the two Garins are related to the young bully of Ateneo de Manila junior high school, who was dismissed last week for using his martial arts superiority to force his classmates to submit to his will. But that young man appeared to have channeled the spirits of the two Garins, his spiritual kin, before he embarked on his reign of terror at his school.

Now, lowly police officers like Macaya, placed in such a situation, would normally just prefer to keep silent because the balance of power was so heavily tilted in his assailants’ favor. In fact, quiet submission must have been what the Garins were expecting from Macaya and any other witness to the bullying incident — except that they figured wrong.

Macaya filed a complaint against the two political big shots on the basis of a police report drawn up on what happened. His station commander was fired for failing to keep things under control and the police regional director, an upstanding officer by the name of John Bulalacao, demanded that the two be charged and held accountable criminally, brushing aside a half-hearted, non-specific apology proffered by the younger Garin.

The political fallout from the incident could also be significant, if still unquantified, at the moment. There is a local election scheduled this coming May and the people of Iloilo’s first district will get to decide if the Garins (including Janette, who reportedly intends to reassume her House seat that was kept warm by her husband Richard) should be made to pay for what they did to a low-ranking, practically powerless — compared to them, anyway — law enforcer.

In the calculus of local politics, it’s perfectly possible that the Garins, including various other politicians of the same surname who currently hold elected seats in the provincial board and other positions in their tightly controlled district, can still win in the next polls. It’s just going to cost them a little more, especially Jannette Garin, who must already be spending a lot more money than she did in her three previous terms as congressman because of the Dengvaxia scandal and who intends to replace her now-disgraced husband.

(But then, Janette is no political spring chicken who just lucked into joining an established warlord clan by marriage. No, she is from Leyte province across the water from Iloilo, where she belongs to the powerful Veloso-Petilla clan of political stalwarts and survivors, who have a reputation of durability at least as longstanding as that of the Garins’.)

* * *

That said, it really makes no sense for the Garins to keep acting like they own Guimbal and the rest of their district, at a time when they should be lying low and preparing for the political winds in Manila to change in their favor once again. But people are creatures of habit, after all, and when you’re bitch-slapping a “disrespectful” local policeman who doesn’t even know who he’s dealing with, it can seem like the most normal thing in the world to do — especially if you’ve been doing it for so long.

Ultimately, the fate of the Garins will not be decided by any number of outraged pundits in the faraway nation’s capital. No, that is only something that the people of the first district of Iloilo, who keep electing the Garins to office, can do.

That is what democracy is, and until a better system is put in place, it will have to be the one that prevails. Does it surprise anyone, for instance, that the House of Representatives, in proposing wide-ranging changes to the 1987 Constitution, will still not impose a ban on political dynasties or touch the gamed provisions on term limits for elected officials?

The rest of the country can only hope that the voters of Guimbal and its environs ultimately take the courageous step that PO3 Macaya made when he filed his complaint against the Garin father and son tandem. Because unless the voters decide that they’ve had enough of the abuse and bullying of their political overlords, nothing will really change.

https://www.manilatimes.net/more-bullying/488803/

Parehas ba yung pananapak ni Sara Duterte sa isang sheriff at yung pambubugbog ng mag-amang Garin sa isang pulis?

By Van Ybiernas

Unang-una, MOTIBO.

Yung kay Sara Duterte nangyari kasagsagan ng isang demolisyon na pinakiusap ni Sara na ipagpaliban hangga’t humupa ang tensyon sa pagitan ng mga informal settlers ng ide-demolish na dwellings at mga awtoridad. Btw, nagkasakitan sa demolisyon kasi ayaw paawat ni sheriff at tinuloy talaga yung demolisyon at hindi na hinintay si Sara na makikipag-negosasyon sana sa mga informal settlers. Kaya nabwisit bigla si Sara.

Sa kaso nina Garin, hindi kinasuhan ng pulis yung pinapakasuhan ni Garin na nambugbog daw sa anak ng isang konsehal dahil sa inuman.

Pangalawa, PARAAN.

Hinanap ni Sara sa demolition site yung sheriff tapos sinapak bigla hanggang maawat siya.

Si Garin pinatawag yung pulis sa hepe nya, tapos dinisarmahan, pinosasan, pinagsasapak, pinagsasampal, tinadyakan at dinuraan.

Pangatlo, DIGNIDAD.

Nakakawala ng dignidad yung binugbog ka na, dinuraan ka pa. Iba yung nasapak sa tindi ng galit sa SINET-UP para mabugbog at dinuraan pa!

Pang-apat, PAGGAMIT NG PODER.

Sinapak na lang bigla ni Sara yung sheriff. Sina Garin ginamit ang awtoridad nila pati yung chain-of-command ng lokal na pamahalaan at pulisya para ma-set-up yung pagwarak sa dignidad ng pulis.

Panlima, ANDAMI TALAGANG DI MARUNONG NG PAGKUKUMPARA.

Panahon na siguro para isama sa curriculum ng mga propesor at estudyante ang comparison at contrast.

Manigong Bagong Taon sa mga hindi marunong magkumpara!

December 28, 2018 – Angel Wings

Feast of the Holy Innocents, martyrs

Matthew 2:13-18

When the magi had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child, to destroy him.” Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed for Egypt, and stayed there until the death of Herod, so that what he had said through the prophet might be fulfilled, “Out of Egypt I called my son.” When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi, he became furious. He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under, in accordance with the time that he had ascertained from the magi. Then was fulfilled what had been said through the prophet Jeremiah: “A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; and she would not be consoled, since they were no more.”

Introductory Prayer: Father, I come into your holy presence this day aware that you guide my life with love. I believe that nothing happens to me unless you will it. I renew my faith in your promise of heaven, where every tear will be wiped away. Thank you for getting involved in our cruel world in order to heal it with your love.

Petition: Lord, may my presence today be a help to those in need.

1. Angels: We want to cry with these women who have had their children stolen from them in the most defenseless time of their lives. Human cruelty reaches so deep that it desires to maintain power by snuffing out the lives of others! Yet these children silently remind us of another reality. They remind us that there is a place where tyranny does not reign. There is a King who rules by love and whose kingdom cannot be defeated by cruelty. These children are messengers of that kingdom. They have been called to give a brief but powerful witness of the fight that this King will wage for love. They have gone ahead of him, and their mothers will find them and hold them forever one day in the presence of their King.

2. Prophets: Thy Kingdom Come! This is the cry of these children. One day this new King will reign, but it will happen through a terrible fight with death and cruelty. These children are powerful prophets of the struggle of this King. They are prophets of the drama of human history where everything is at stake. Their cries are powerful prayers that will be heard by the Father, and their cries begin to stir in that special Child the desire to give his life as a ransom for souls. He will reign by pouring out his life as a gift for these children and for many souls.

3. Children: The Church has declared these children martyrs. The first saints of Christ are infants. Infants speak to us at Christmas, and their witness does not go unnoticed. These children inspire the Church and pray for her. A child speaks to us of goodness and innocence. A child reminds us of the attitude we should have before God. Christ always lives with a heart of a child, a heart that trusts completely in his Father. He shows special predilection for children. He knows that often they are his most powerful apostles, inviting others to God’s house by the simplicity and intimacy of their love for him. How many parents have been converted or discovered a deeper relationship with Christ through the example of their children!

Conversation with Christ: Jesus, it saddens me so much to see how these children were taken from their mothers and killed. It tears my heart apart to see how today so many children are never given the chance to know their mother’s love because of the evil of abortion. I want to be a consolation to your heart, Lord. I want to give the very best of myself to you today in order to offer you some of the love that these children wanted to give. Let my life be a witness of unselfish love. Let me be like you.

Resolution: I will find some way of encouraging a mother of a young child

December 27, 2018 – Eager Heart

Feast of Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist

John 20:1a and 2-8

On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don´t know where they put him.” So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed.

Introductory Prayer: Lord, today I am reminded of the intensity of love that you stir in the hearts of your followers. I want to be your follower today. I believe that you love me. I believe that you have overcome sin and death. I believe that you walk with me.

Petition: Lord, give me the joy of discovering you as St. John discovered you.

1. Eager: St. John had been enthused by Christ from the very beginning. Early on Christ had won his heart. In his Gospel, John would record many things about Christ in a very personal way, giving us special insights into Christ. Christ allowed him into his heart, and John’s faith gave him reason to hope in the Resurrection. That is why he runs with such eagerness to the tomb. He does not yet know that Christ is risen, but he wants to know. He wants to be where Christ is. Am I eager to be with Christ? This time of Christmas is a special time in which I can naturally feel attracted to Christ. Do I take advantage of this grace and try to converse more with him?

2. Fast: No hesitation; Get there as quickly as possible. John knows where he has to go. Nothing else is as important. He does not let anything get in the way. A saint lives his life quickly, even if his years are long. He lives it quickly because he lives each day, each moment, intensely for Christ and souls. He lives his prayer life intensely—in spite of the natural fatigue and moments of dryness—because he knows the time spent in prayer is the most important moment of the day. A saint lives his service to his family and to others with the intensity of love. Rather than tiring him, love brings him closer to God. Am I afraid to love and to live with intensity?

3. Believing: John was rewarded for his faith. His Lord is alive! No amount of cruelty and evil—not even death itself—can defeat his Lord. John teaches us to believe in Christ, to discover with joy the signs of his presence. Am I using this Christmas season to reaffirm my faith in Christ’s presence in the world? Do I cultivate a supernatural outlook in the things I do, in the way I deal with those around me? Do I build up confidence in Christ’s victory in souls and discover the signs of that victory?

Conversation with Christ: Lord, thank you for St. John’s faith. He was close to your heart. Help me to place my heart in your heart. I want to run to you, Lord, throughout the ups-and-downs of my life, the good times and the bad. Today I will stay close to you in my heart. Stay close to me also.

Resolution: I will pray the Creed in front of a manger scene today and make a special effort to talk about God’s providence in my conversations with others.