PAN DE LA SEMANA

28 th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A October 12, 2014 IN WANT. IN PLENTY. BLEST. IN ALL THINGS! Everybody loves a feast. Fiesta, in rustic Philippine settings, had always been a day to look forward to and look back to. It was, and still is, a time to splurge, a day to be thankful, an occasion to celebrate. All sorts of mirth-making are done with abandon, at least for one whole day in the year. Fiestas in the Philippines refer to ALL. All are invited. All are happy. All are in the mood to act and behave like life is good … all the time. All stops are figuratively pulled to do that once-a-year celebration without restraint. Why do I think of such things today, you might ask? Simple. All three readings are profuse about giving all, doing all, sharing all … to all … for all sorts of reasons … “in verdant pastures,” with “cups overflowing,” “all the days of our lives.” I am one who can appreciate a glass of good, rich, ...

5 th Sunday of Lent Year C March 17, 2013 GREAT AND NEW THINGS! All three readings today may be said to speak about newness. The first talks about new realities for the chosen people of God: a way in the desert and rivers in the wasteland, to name two. The second reading speaks about the need “to forget what lies behind but strain forward to what lies ahead.” The third refers to a new approach the Lord used to tame the old problem of people taking advantage of others to push their own agenda. As a counselor, I am familiar with the tendency to wallow and dwell in the past. When one is hurting, one always remembers selectively, I must add, all the unfortunate and unhappy incidents in the past. One finds it hard to look ahead. One loses, not just serenity and peace, but also, and more importantly, the capacity to hope for better things in future. According to the research of Philip Zimbardo, there are people who are focused on the past: eithe...