We Sow, God Make Them Grow, Reflection on the 1st Sunday after the Trinity Sunday, Rev. Fr. Christopher N. Ablon

It’s a privilege
The gospel reading clearly illustrates the
never failing character of the mission of God.
It says that,
(1) regardless of the knowledge and working of the sower,
the seed “sprouts and grows” (v27) and;
(2) “all by itself the soil produces” (v28).

Apart from our participation therefore,
the mission of God will prevail. The harvest is certain!

The good news is that
- He gave us the opportunity and privilege to take part in His mission.
- Engaging in God’s mission therefore is something for us to be thankful for.
- For although He does not need us in order for his salvific plan
to succeed he still gave us the space to take part in His mission
and eventually become part of its victory.

Give our best
So now, we view our engagement in
God’s mission in a positive light.
In fact, a very positive light.

Since it is a chance given to us by God
in order that we may become part of His victory,
then we do not grumble.

We do not mind the hardships as we do mission,
instead we are overjoyed by the fact of this very
great opportunity God has granted us.

We see everything positively.
So our attitude should be that we give
our very best in this undertaking.
The best thing that we can do is to give our best.

Most of all let us give the best of our patience.
Since we engage in God’s mission and not our own,
the time component of this mission is not our lifetime.

This is not a fast paced movie that most of us would like to see.
Like the mustard seed, it begins almost unnoticed, irrelevant,
unpromising.

Our dilemma is that
(1) We live in a very fast world so “instant” is almost
a part of our daily life, our culture.
Instant coffee, instant results, instant make-over,
all instant.
(2) We always want something “big”.
Think big! Aim high! Etc.,

And so we want our mission to have fast results
and we do grand activities.

We forget that the kingdom of God
is like a mustard seed – very small.
If we must engage in advancing
the kingdom of God,
we must learn to do little things,
bible study, panon, family prayer, etc.

Entrust our work to God
As we engage in God’s mission,
we are confronted by the harsh realities of the world
that most of the time becomes like huge walls
that hinders us to pursue mission.

Inside and outside of ourselves there can be reasons
that discourage us from pursuing mission.
Even inside and outside the Church there can also be
hindrances to our commitment to do mission.

These realities can be very destructive to us if
we forget to entrust our work to God.
We personalize our work too much so that
we grab the mission from God,
who is the mission owner.

So when we fail, we hurt badly.
And when we succeed, we become foolishly boastful.
Remember, we become stakeholders of this mission
only at the discretion of God.
So we must serve at his pleasure.
And do our part and entrust to Him everything.

Why?
(1) Because the mission we engage in is God’s mission.
(2) Because our boss in this job is no other than God Himself!
(3) Because He is not just boss owner the mission and boss of our job but also our partner as we work!

We sow the seeds, God make them grow.
Let us do our best in sowing and
Entrust to God everything as we
Celebrate his great works of salvation
In many little ways in our daily lives. ###

Trinity sunday Reflection: Picked by Fr. Vic Arellano

Over thirty years ago, Karl Rahner, one of the finest theologians of this century, lamented the fact that most Christians are “mere monotheists.” By this he meant that if the doctrine of the trinity were eliminated from the faith, then the bulk of popular Christian thinking, preaching, writing, and singing, and the mind set it reflects, would not have to be changed much at all. That’s still true. We don’t pay much attention to the Trinity -- to what it says or to what it means. We know we believe in God -- the same God everybody believes in -- and that, pretty much, is that.
But it’s not that simple. We Christians do have a different and distinctive way of understanding God, one that sets us apart from everybody else. And even though the prayers, the creeds, and most of the symbols we use in worship are thoroughly Trinitarian, the bulk of our thinking about God is not.
So, since today is Trinity Sunday, the day we are called upon to pay special attention to the way God has been revealed in the Christian faith, we should consider the Trinity. Of course, God is a whole lot bigger than anything we can say or imagine, so all references to God will be both metaphorical and incomplete. At the same time, this vision of the Trinity of God is true, and it matters, and it makes a difference.
There are two fundamental perspectives we can bring to the Trinity, to the doctrine that one God exists in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. On the one hand, the Trinity describes the way that we, as Christians, experience God. We know God as God is revealed in the person and life of Jesus -- and this revelation happens by and through the Holy Spirit. That is, the Trinity speaks to how we discover and experience who God is. This is the perspective usually offered when talking or preaching about the Trinity.
But there is more. The doctrine of the Trinity also talks about who God is; it talks about what God is really like inside. This is where the mystics and the theologians sort of run together, and speak perhaps with more poetry and awe than precision. But let’s look for just a minute at what they say about God, borrowing some language from the third century.
Once upon a time, way before the beginning of everything -- not at the beginning, but before the beginning -- God the Father, who is love and who therefore must love, God the Father speaks his own name; He says his own word. And God the Son is begotten -- true God from true God, begotten not made, of one being with the Father. The Son is the second person of the Trinity. Later, after the beginning, the Son will become incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and will be born as Jesus of Nazareth. The Son is what happens when the Father expresses Himself, when the Father reaches out in His love. Now, the Son loves the Father, for the Son is the Father’s word, the Father’s self. And the Father loves the Son, totally and without reservation, and so the Father and the Son are bound together in love.
This love, which binds together the Father and the Son, is also real. This love is God the Holy Spirit -- the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. And the Son and the Spirit are of the same substance, the same stuff, as the Father; that’s the only stuff there is. In this way the Godhead is complete. Three persons, each distinct, each real, each from before the beginning, each and all are one God. The one-ness of God is discovered precisely in the free act of love by which the three persons of the Trinity choose to give all to each other. This relationship is what makes God who God is. Put another way, God is what happens when the Father loves the Son in the Spirit.
St. Augustine says this about the Trinity: “Now, love is of someone who loves, and something is loved with love. So then there are three: the lover, the beloved, and the love.” This relationship of love, God the Holy Trinity, is the foundation, the bedrock of the universe; it is the heartbeat of all creation. Everything that is begins here, has its purpose and its meaning here, and will find its fulfillment here.
Such is the living center of the Christian understanding of God. We insist that God is not a mean old man with a beard; that God is not some unconscious force out of Star Wars; and that God is not that peculiar little committee -- two guys and a bird -- that we often imagine. Instead, God exists, at His heart, as a relationship of love -- one God in three persons, the well-spring of existence.
That’s a quick look at the Trinity, at our alternative to the “mere monotheism” that Rahner decries. It is a complex, dynamic, and exciting understanding of who God is and what God is like. Like any good theology, it has consequences, and it sets the stage for how we can live.
If you think about it for a minute, it’s no wonder, as we heard the Epistle of Peter say a few weeks ago, that the Church learned very early that they could tell whether they were truly entering the mystery of Christ by how well they were managing to love one another. Remember that? Of course. Relationships of love are what God is all about.
And it is no wonder that the one new commandment that Jesus gives us is the commandment to love one another; which is the commandment to imitate Jesus and his life -- to imitate his life as a human being among us, and at the same time to imitate his life as the only begotten Son.
It is through this command, seen in the light of our notion of God as the Trinity, that we can begin to see what God really wants from us and what God really wants for us. God’s will for us, God’s desire for us, is, first of all and most of all, that we choose to share his life -- that we become more and more deeply a part of that conversation of love, that constant, obedient, and joyful relationship that is the very core of who God is.
After all, we are created in God’s image -- in the image of the Trinity. So, the more our lives are shaped and formed by the life of love we see in the person of Christ and in the life of God, the closer we get to our best and truest selves. The more we become who we really are.
This business of the Trinity is not just abstract theology, it is very immediate, and very personal. In some very important ways, it is about us -- about us here and now; and about us forever.
The heart of creation is love, and we are both created and invited to enter that love, and to share that love. The divine love is our source, our vision, and our final end. That is good news. It is good news about why we exist; and it is good news about our destiny. It is worth paying some attention to.

**********************************************************************************************
(The Rev. James Liggett is a native of Kansas and a graduate of the University of Houston and the Episcopal Divinity School. He has served parishes in Kansas, Texas, and Oklahoma)

Reflection for Pentecost Sunday, Fr. Vic E. Arellano

Reflection on the Sunday of Pentecost
Acts 2:1-21 or Ezekiel 37:1-14; Psalm 104: 25-35,37; Romans 8:22-27 or Acts 2:1-21; John 15:26-27, 16:4b-15

Background:
Samtang ang mga kristyanos associate Pentecost with the coming of the Holy Spirit, sayop ang paghuna-huna nga ang Espirito was not in existence prior to the Pentecost celebration nga gi-describe sa Acts of the Apostles (2:1-21). Ang Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church nagpasabot nga sa panahon sa Old Testament, ang Espirito was understood as the “active but impersonal power of God.”
However, diha sa New Testament, the Spirit undergoes two developments. Una, kini nasabtan nga ang Espirito Santo gihatag officially og gipakunsad sa tanang mga kristyanos sa panahon sa dihang nakadawat sila sa sakramento sa bunyag (ug confirmation). Ang sulat sa Acts of the Apostles (2:1-21) is a prime example niini, ingon nga ang Espirito Santo mingtugdon ug mingpuno niadtong tanan nga nagkatigom pinaagi sa porma sa hangin ug kalayo and they began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Diha sa Holy Scriptures ang hangin gigamit to designate a person’s ‘breath’ or ‘spirit’, ‘Ruah’ in Greek (cf. Gen. 2:7; Acts 17:25). Ang Holy Spirit is supposed to ‘inspire’ or ‘breathe life into’. Sa Jewish tradition, ang hangin ug kalayo mao ang timailhan sa presensya sa Dios. Ang kainit nga nagagikan sa kalayo nagpasabot ug gugma, affection and compassion.
Ang ikaduhang development sa Holy Spirit diha sa New Testament, sumala pa sa Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, mao nga kini “personalized and given ethical content.” Example sa personalized nature sa Espirito atong makit-an ug mabasa sa atong gospel, sa dihang atong nadungog ang assurance ni Hesukristo nga ang Advocate, the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, will be sent to us and that the Spirit will be with us, mag-giya kanato, guiding us into all truth (v.13).
Sa First Corinthians, we are assured nga anyone united with the Lord nahimong usa kaniya diha sa Espirito. Example sa ethical content of the Spirit makita usab diha sa atong gospel. For example, si Hesus nagsulti kanato nga ang Espirito will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment (v. 8).
Reflection:
Si San Pablo nagsulti nga may nagkalain-laing mga hiyas nga Espirituhanon, apan mao rang espiritoha ang naghatag niini (cf. 1 Cor. 12:4). Mao rang espiritoha ang naghatag sa iyang mga gasa dili lamang sa mga apostoles apan hangtud usab sa matag usa kanato. Atong nasabtan nga ang Holy Spirit is bestowed upon all Christians at their baptism.
Si San Pablo nag-described sa mga kinaiya ug buhat sa Espirito Santo, ug matud pa niya kini mao ang buhat sa “gugma, kalipay, kalinaw, pailob, kaluoy, kaayo, pasaylo, matinud-anon, mapa-ubsanon, mapinugnganon sa kaugalingon ug ang pagka-masinimbahon.” (cf. Gal. 5:22).
Unfortunately, kini nga mga kinaiya ug ang idea that the power of the Holy Spirit is at work within us wala makita diha sa atong tagsa-tagsa ka mga kinabuhi tungod kay atong gisirhan ang pultahan sa atong kasing-kasing aron kini maoy maghari sa atong kinabuhi. Our gospel says, “The Advocate, the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, will be sent to us and that the Spirit will be with us, mag-giya kanato, guiding us into all truth” (v.13). Kini unta ang mopadilaab sa atong kinabuhi alang sa padayon nga pagpangalagad ug paghigugma sa uban.
Mahadlok kita nga kon atong hatagan sa kagawasan ang bulohaton sa Espirito Santo nga mopatigbabaw sa atong kinabuhi, kita nahibalo nga we have to change gikan sa daotan nga kinaiya ngadto sa maayo nga kinaiya, we have to reform, we have to renew, a new outlook and a renewed confidence to face the world.
Ang mga apostoles sa dihang ilang nadawat ang Espirito Santo, way kukahadlok silang nagmantala sa Maayong Balita ug pagsangyaw sa kamatuoran bisan pag nag-ungaw ang ilang kinabuhi.
Mao kini ang mga hinungdan nga dili ta gusto nga ang bulohaton sa Espirito Santo mo-trabaho sa atong kinabuhi. Ato kanunay kining gibilanggo aron dili ta mapugos sa paghimo ug mga butang nga supak sa atong kabubot-on apan kabubot-on sa Dios ug iyang kagustohan.
For our own reflection and application:
1. Nagdilaab ba ang atong kinabuhi sa gahum sa Espirito Santo? Kon wala ngano man?

2. Ato bang gitugotan nga ang bulohaton sa Espirito Santo maoy mopatigbabaw ug maghari sa atong tagsa-tagsa ka kinabuhi? Kon wala ngano man?
3. Ato bang gipa-ambit ang mga gasa sa Espirito Santo diha sa atong isigkatawo ug sa simbahan?
4. Nagmadasigon ba ang atong kinabuhi diha sa pagpangalagad para sa Dios ug bayan?

5. Makita ba diha sa atong kinabuhi ang mga hiyas Espiritohanon sama sa gi-ingon ni San Pablo sa Galatian 5:22? Kon wala unsa may mga kalisod niini.

SCB Elects two new bishops

EPISCOPAL COUNCIL MEETS, ELECTS TWO NEW BISHOPS

The regular meeting of the Supreme Council of Bishops (SCB) was called to order by its Chairperson, the Rt. Reverend Vic Esclamado, who warmly welcomed the venerable body amidst a heavy downpour on May 7, 2009. The bishops, who came in spite of the intermittent weather condition, gathered for their three-day meeting in Tagaytay City, Province of Cavite, from May 7 to 9, 2009.

The Obispo Maximo, the Most Reverend Godofredo J. David, stressed in his message to the bishops the importance of their meeting as a “precious opportunity to come together in brotherly consultation as a Council” given the many issues that currently challenges the Church. He exhorted the Council to consistently “safeguard the unity of the Church and to instruct God’s people in the faith” as part of its role in making the Iglesia Filipina Independiente a living and witnessing Church in the world.

The Council seriously discussed the status of bishops who have either opted to take a leave of absence or voluntarily resigned from the ministry. The faculties of bishops under such cases have been declared by the Council to be temporarily withdrawn. Their privileges and rights to participate in the affairs of the Council are declared suspended, as well, for the time being.

The Council is saddened that there are, at present, quite a large number of dioceses that are without bishops. The absence of episcopal leadership in some dioceses is a long overdue problem. The Council nevertheless expressed optimism with the election of two new bishops which they hope would help to address the situation of episcopal vacancies.

The two new bishops-elect are Reverend Alger Loyao and Reverend Rudy Juliada. Reverend Loyao was elected to the Diocese of Masbate in the Visayas, while Reverend Juliada was elected to the Diocese of Libertad in Mindanao. The schedule of their consecration is still to be determined.

The need for more bishops prompted the Council to speed up the actions of the National Search Committee (NSC). The NSC, headed by the Right Reverend Ephraim Fajutagana, is the body that is responsible for the selection of qualified candidates to the episcopacy. The NSC reported that there are about forty new endorsees from the different dioceses. The NSC is expected to come up with a final list of endorsees in July 2009 after making a thorough and complete examination of the endorsees.

The Supreme Council of Bishops held a Memorial Mass for the Most Reverend Gregorio L. Aglipay, the first Obispo Maximo, in commemoration of his 149th birth anniversary on May 8. The Council also had an initial plan to spearhead a nationally-coordinated activity in commemoration of Bishop Aglipay’s 150th birth anniversary in May 2010.

At A Glance: Parish Triennial Assembly, November 22, 2008

Bible reflection on John 17:6-19 by The Rev. Fr. Vic E. Arellano

Bible reflection on John 17:6-19 by The Rev. Fr. Vic E. Arellano

Ang pag-ila o pagka-amgo nga kita gitawag dili sayon nga tahas
Sa mga BOA (Board of Admission) interviews kasagaran nga ipangutana sa mga aspirants, “Nganong mag-pari man ka?” “Do you think you are called?” Kasagara ang ilang tubag, “Yes” without mentioning the reason unsay mga hinungdan nganong gusto silang mag-pari, ang ila nga magpari lang kay ganahan sila. Alang kanako, ang pagka pari should be reserved for the tough. Usa ka irrevocable decision, a point nga wala nay pagbalik, pagsibog ug pag surrender diha sa bulohaton sa pagpangalagad. It is a mission suited only for the brave souls. Ug tungod niini ang pag-ila ug ang pagka-amgo nga siya gitawag alang sa maong bulohaton dili diay sayon nga tahas ug dili diay sayon nga proseso. Sa English word gitawag siya ug discernment, kini nag-describes sa proseso sa pagsabot kon giunsa sa Dios pagtawag kanato ug nagdapit kanato sa pag-serve kaniya. Usa ka spiritual and personal journey. Usa ka journey of understanding, of seeing, and acting.
Ania na kita sa katapusang Domingo sa pagkabanhaw. Sa tibuok season of Easter atong nadungog ang mga sugilanon nga nag-asoy mahitungod sa pagkabanhaw ug pagkayab ni Hesukristo, ug atong nabasa ug nadungog kon gi-unsa sa mga disipulos pagpahiayon ang ilang kinabuhi tungod ug alang sa nabanhaw’ng Kristo.
Sama sa mga disipulos, kita gihatagan ug panahon sa pagsabot how this spiritual and personal journey and especially how the resurrection nagtabang kanato kon unsa ug kinsa kita karon. Mao kini ang panahon sa pag-ila, o pagka-amgo ingon nga atong gi-redefine unsa ang kahulogan sa Easter diha sa atong kinabuhi ug giunsa pag-usab ang atong tagsa-tagsa ka mga kinaiya.
Ang text (gospel) nagdala ngadto sa sunod nga level. Kini mao ang point diha sa atong pag-journey diin kita mangutana ug mamalandong kon giunsa sa Dios pagtawag kanato ug unsa ang buot ipabuhat sa Dios kanato diha sa atong tagsa-tagsa ka mga kinabuhi.
Ang pag-ila, o ang pagka-amgo nga kita gitawag sa Dios dili sayon nga tahas. Sa dihang ang mga disipulos gitawag ni Hesus aron sa pagsunod kaniya, diha-diha ug sa way langan ilang gibiyaan ang tanan. Kita mahingangha sa ilang clarity ug direction. Ug sa dihang nagkinahanglan ug tawo nga mopuli sa dapit ni Hudas Escariote, nahimong klaro kanila nga ang pag-ila, o ang pag-amgo nga siya gitawag dili diay sayon nga proseso. Nganong dili man sayon ang pag-recognize niini nga tawag, or to affirm a call, or to act on a call?
Ang sulat sa mga Buhat sa mga Apostoles (1:15-17, 21-26) naghisgot kini mahitungod sa pagpili sa usa ka tawo nga mohulip sa dapit ni Hudas Escariote. Whether it is calling a priest, o sa usa ka Obispo alang sa usa ka bakante nga diocese, ang pag-ila, o ang pag-amgo nga siya gitawag ug angay sa maong bulohaton gikinahanglan pag-ayo.
Ang pagpili hulip sa dapit ni Hudas usa ka simpli nga proseso tungod kay natapos lamang kini pinaagi sa pag ripa lamang, ug dili kita makadawat niini nga proseso kay alang kanato ang pag-ila o ang pagka-amgo nga kita gitawag usa ka lisod apan importante nga proseso. Kay kon wala kini, unsaon nato pagsubay sa dalan nga gitagana kanato ug paggamit sa mga gasa sa Dios nga gihatag kanato para sa atong isigkaingon.
Ang text naghatag kanato ug pipila ka mga guidelines mahitungod sa proseso sa pag-ila, o pagka-amgo nga kita gitawag.
Ang text nag-describe unsay gi-ampo ni Hesus sa iyang katawhan. Siya nag-ampo nga kita mapanalipdan batok sa mga panulay, nga kita magkahiusa, nga kita magmalipayon, nga kita magasubay sa dalan sa katarong ug nga ang kinabuhi sa simbahan lahi kay sa kinabuhi niining kalibutana.
Ang mao nga pag-ampo naghatag sa usa ka particular nga sangputanan mahitungod sa mga proseso diha sa pag-ila ug pagka-amgo nga kita gitawag ilabina when taken in the context of this post-Easter period. Usa ka bag-ong kinabuhi nga ming-abot gikan sa daan nga kinabuhi ug sa pagtugot nga ang bag-ong kahayag ni Kristo makita diha sa atong kinabuhi. Ug aron usab nga mahingpit ang kalipay ni Hesukristo nga iyang nakita nga kita nagkinabuhi ingon nga mga matarong ug ligdong and living the gospel imperative to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Jesus’ simple but profound prayer diha sa text has the potential nga makapausab sa kinabuhi ug nga andam niyang itahan ang iyang kinabuhi tungod ug alang sa uban. Imagine pagbutang niini nga pag-ampo diha sa sentro sa atong kaugalingong pag-ila o pag-amgo nga kita gitawag. Nangita sa insakto nga dalan, coming to understand this path after considering every angle, seeking to understand it through the lens of resurrection and God’s love will most certainly set us apart.
Ingon nga kita nagapadulong ngadto sa Pentecost, atong buksan ang bulohaton sa Espirito Santo diha sa atong mga kinabuhi. Let us move from the joy of Easter ingon nga usa ka re-creation sa usa ka bag-ong kinabuhi.
Ang calling para sa usa ka special nga bulohaton, nagagikan sa Diyos diha sa nagkalain-lain nga mga paagi, ug ang response gikan kanato nga tinawag nag requires ug careful preparation. Ang pagkahibalo nga ang Diyos nagtawag kanato para sa usa ka relihiyosong kinabuhi ug special nga bulohaton makita ug maila pinaagi sa atong pagsabot, pag-amgo, ug pagpaminaw.

Is He one of our saints in the IFI?

St. Isidore the Farmer
DOES HE BELONG TO OUR SAINTS AS STIPULATED IN OUR ARTICLES OF RELIGION NUMBER 15? It says... The Saints:
"Persons universally recognized for their holiness of life, loyalty and courage, especially the Blessed Virgin and the New Testament Saints, are to be held in reverent remembrance. Veneration of Saints is not contrary to God’s commandments as revealed in the Scriptures; but their deification is condemned by the Church as a monstrous blasphemy. Veneration of the Saints must not obscure the duty of the faithful to direct approach to God through Jesus Christ. Honor rendered the Saints must in no wise detract from the honor due the Three Persons of the Holy Trinity."

You read this information and discern it for yourself... May God bless you. Amen.

1070-1130
Isidore was born to very poor yet very pious Catholic parents in Madrid, Spain. His parents were unable to support him when he was a youth and sent him to work for a wealthy landowner, John de Vergas (He ended up working for him for the rest of his life).

He married a very religious woman named Maria Torribia (also known as Maria de la Cabeza). She, like Isidore became a saint. They had one son who died unexpectedly as a child. Their grief inclined them to believe their son's death to be a sign from God and consequently vowed to live a life of perfect continence.

Isidore frequented Holy Mass every morning but often reported to work late. Late, though he was, his plowing was nevertheless accomplished by angels that resulted in three times more productivity. His coworkers and his boss witnessed such miraculous events and accorded Isidore with great respect.

St. Isidore loved the poor and loved the animals. The miracle of the multiplication of food occurred when Isidore fed a flock of starving birds and on another time when Isidore shared his food with a large group of beggars.

Isidore died on May 15, 1120 at 60 years of age and was canonized in 1622 along with four very notable Spanish saints. The group, known as "the five saints", included St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Francis Xavier, St. Phillip Neri, and St. Isidore. His body has been found incorrupt. His memorial is celebrated on May 15th on the Roman Calendar.

St. Isidore is known as the patron of Madrid, Spain as well as Leon, Saragosa, and Seville. He is also considered the patron of farmers, peasants, day laborers, and rural communities. Lastly, he is the patron of the United States National Rural Life Conference.

Summarized and adapted from:
1.Leonard Foley, O.F.M., Editor "Saint of the Day: Lives and Lessons for Saints and Feasts of the New Missal"
2.Joan Carroll Cruz, "Secular Saints: 250 Canonized and Beatified Lay Men, Women, and Children.