Love

This is time of the year when the Seminary takes a break - two months of it, to be exact!

During such moments, the place here resembles a little bit more on the side of a cemetary than that of the Seminary. Much of the main activities here have slowed off or shut down. The staff is almost a skeletal crew. Yet, it still doesn't stop some parish groups from having their time for retreats and other related engagements in the Seminary.

In this lull moments, one would be forgiven to think that I would be free and have much more time than during the term times. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Besides having to prepare and do up the notes for the next semester's classes in the Philosophy cycle, I also have to contend with my other Archdiocesan work in the Priestly Life and ad-hoc committees, and other minor talks and retreats, all with need to do some preparation and research, etc. These, again, means time needed to work on the items trying to juggle all of them, finding a decent balance to what my body and mind can cope with.

Tomorrow, for the entire day into the night, I shall be at IHM retreat house giving a session to one of the parish choir on the theme of God's Love For Us. It is an apt moment to consider this and also for myself, because for most of the time that we exist, we don't ever find the time to look into the awesomeness of this love that is always enveloping and sustaining us and providing life all the time.

This coming Sunday's celebration happens to be Trinity Sunday and is also a great day to celebrate this love for it speaks of the fiery and deep relationship between the Father and Son which the Holy Spirit unites in the embrace of utter unconditional love that wants to ignite the world with its power.

Our human version of what love is all about pales in total comparison with what the prophets of the Old Testament experienced, the apostles and disciples of Christ engage it, and the early Christians felt when they allowed themselves to be wrapped up in this ferocious and passionate love that knows no end but only limited by how we response to it.

No matter what we can say about this, perhaps no one can put it in a better way than Paul himself who touched that powerhouse of love and was burned to the very core by its fiery passion:

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels,

nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us

from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Rom 8: 38 - 39

Afraid, Be Not!

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It's a message centered on prayer, on penance and conversion, that is projected beyond the threats, dangers and horrors of history, inviting mankind to trust in the action of God, to cultivate great hope, to experience the grace of the Lord so as to fall in love with Him, source of all love and peace.

Pope Benedict XVI, Mass at the Fatima Shrine, May 13, 2010

We are fast approaching the feast of Pentecost and, once again, be made aware of the presence, power and fruits of the Holy Spirit. For many of us, this feast only comes once a year and promptly places us  in its midst and after that, it is put aside and life carries on like it did before.

The homily given by our Holy Father at Fatima, during his visit there recently, is a timely reminder that we need to recover our lifeline and relationship on a better footing with God, our Creator and Father.

It is certainly not an easy task when you have to juggle between what affects you in your daily dealings with the world and what is required of you as a follower of Christ and a member of the Catholic Church. We speak of the dichotomy that tends to exist between the two (world vs faith) and there are grounds for concern when one is torn or struggling to find one's proper footing in the effort to find the middle ground.

Thus, the homily given at Fatima carries with it profound elements of joy and peace that we can hold on to without having to wring our hands in panic and hopelessness in the face of great turmoil. When we begin to relate ourselves appropriately with God through prayer, penance and conversion, we can hear with acute distinction, the calming voice of the Father, "Be not afraid!". This therefore starts a whole new outlook in life where we begin to sense with greater assurance that God is in control and can be truly trusted.

It is a reminder for myself that even with what I am experiencing in the parish and elsewhere, in relation to the ministry, there is always this sliver of hope under every dark cloud.

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