In 1979, President Marcos, a Catholic, believed that the Bible can do something for the country, and thus, proclaimed that the entire nation should celebrate the National Bible Week and National Bible Sunday....
here is a reflection from Sambuhay: A Pastoral Ministry of the Priests and Brothers of the Society of St. Paul. Each Sunday, this guide is prepared with all of the readings and mass responses/parts, so that everyone can follow along. There is a wonderful reflection on the front page of the guide, and here is an excerpt from this week, in relation to National Bible Sunday:
If there is one thing that Catholics should develop, it is the passion for the Word of God. Among the Christian groups, we, Catholics, lag behind in the knowledge of the Bible. Born again Christians show more interest in the Bible than most Catholics. We may not agree with their interpretations, but the fact remains that they spend more time reading and studying the Bible.
Though more and more Catholics attend Bible studies nowadays, still our efforts are not enough. In the Bible study, when they are asked to share what they have learned, they are often out of focus. They talk about themselves and their problems, not about the Word of God. At least, they should relate their sharing to the readings. Even the highly educated Catholics have a fear of committing errors with regard to interpretation. With this sad state of the Catholic mind, we cannot produce Christians, who are committed to the Word of God. How can we transform people into God-fearing citizens of the earth, nurtured by the Word of God?
I have studied the Bible, being raised in Catechism classes since I could remember, but since coming here to the Philippines, the Bible has pretty much become a staple in my bag! We have my journal, my camera, and a book to read, and what else? Oh yeah, a Bible. Sr. and I are always in and out of barangays, in and out of our bible studies - the Bible kind of just never leaves my bag. One of the initiatives here in the Diocese of Baguio, is for every family to have at least one Bible. As a result, one of the projects that Sr. T and I have been working on, is helping to make this happen - at least, with the families that we have access to. As soon as we started giving out the Bibles, after the families give what they can afford, the families get so excited!
Being able to provide the Bible in English, Tagalog, or Ilocano - there is no reason why these families will not be able to dive into it (unless they have trouble reading of course, but we try to help them too!) It's wonderful, and I am so glad to be a part of it. I have seen so much progress in our bible studies, in that the families have been more open to share their thoughts and their reflections, and their desire to learn more about the Word, is visible on their face and noticeable from their attentiveness.
Along with the Bible study, something that I have noticed is that it is important to teach the families - yes, both the parents and the kids simply how to read. When we ask for lectors for some of our liturgies, a lot of them are shy because they are not able to pronounce specific words - well, shoot. sometimes it's even difficult for me! and so, there is a lot of practice that happens before hand, but moreso, it's helping to build the confidence of the readers! a lot of the times they sound perfect - with a few mistakes here and there, but nothing major, but they will still be down on themselves. but no! we motivate, we help them, and they carry it out, and it is perfect. :) Many, many things involved with every bible study we have, and it is all very enriching, and I think my teacher skills are stretching themselves where needed. haha, i think that's what being a missionary is all about. :)
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Saturday, January 22, 2011
just a thought
disponibilita is...
* teaching 4th, 5th, and 6th graders - 3 different classes, for a total of about 2 hours, on religion
* waiting an hour for a taxi to come, only to find that a taxi would not come - even after calling on mother cabrini and st. anthony, and so, leaping into a jeepney with sr. terezinha, only to get back into a taxi to finally make it home
* training lectors that have never been lectors before, for a mass that would start in 15 minutes THEN, being voted, "it" and getting involved with a game of tag, not knowing that we were playing until a group of 8 kids started running away from me, THEN becoming the other member of the choir, AND singing songs in ilocano!
* realizing that i can sing ilocano mass songs without needing the words anymore
* being open to the spirit on saturday mornings with the kids at SOSCFI - all of a sudden, i'm leading the catechism in the morning, and all of a sudden, i'm teaching yoga to the kids, and they were having fun!
* making conversation with the people right in front of you
* not freaking out if something doesn't work out with a schedule, but rather, learning to redefine the word, "priority," and being honest with the reality of the situation
* being available, but knowing your limits/boundaries
* adventure
* the story of my life, everyday here in baguio city.
* teaching 4th, 5th, and 6th graders - 3 different classes, for a total of about 2 hours, on religion
* waiting an hour for a taxi to come, only to find that a taxi would not come - even after calling on mother cabrini and st. anthony, and so, leaping into a jeepney with sr. terezinha, only to get back into a taxi to finally make it home
* training lectors that have never been lectors before, for a mass that would start in 15 minutes THEN, being voted, "it" and getting involved with a game of tag, not knowing that we were playing until a group of 8 kids started running away from me, THEN becoming the other member of the choir, AND singing songs in ilocano!
* realizing that i can sing ilocano mass songs without needing the words anymore
* being open to the spirit on saturday mornings with the kids at SOSCFI - all of a sudden, i'm leading the catechism in the morning, and all of a sudden, i'm teaching yoga to the kids, and they were having fun!
* making conversation with the people right in front of you
* not freaking out if something doesn't work out with a schedule, but rather, learning to redefine the word, "priority," and being honest with the reality of the situation
* being available, but knowing your limits/boundaries
* adventure
* the story of my life, everyday here in baguio city.
napapagod, pero hindi ako nasasawa.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
join hands
christian unity. this week, we are called to be mindful and intentional about praying for christian unity. from the 18-25, we are to be unified in our faith in Jesus Christ, and to be in solidarity with one another. beyond this week though, too, we are called to be in unity with one another.
today i legit taught 3 classes, for 40 minutes each. how the HECK i was able to do that, i have no idea, but thank you mother cabrini high school! i taught the 4th, 5th and 6th graders religion, while doing an activity with them. i started off by teaching them a song with hand motions, "peace before us, peace behind us, peace under our feet..." and we closed with that song too. in between. i had some readers for the scriptures talking about the birth of jesus. i ended up doing some solo acting for the class, and with my broken tagalog, i made it through! :) the students were super shy, but they were super fun too. this is going to be so great! sister terezinha worked with the 1st-3rd graders, while i worked with the older kids, 4th-6th grade. it was perfect!
i surprised myself in that, i really improvised a lot. not gonna lie, i did not have a lesson plan prepared, cause i really had no idea what to expect...and well, so the spirit led me to teach! it was really funny because i had to make the stories real for the children, and so, i said, "the three kings were having chika-chika" which is like, "gossip" in tagalog, "and then, they saw a star!" hahaha...so, i improvised a little bit, and they got it. haha!
after teaching, we caught up with the teachers, had some snacks with them, and then waited for our taxi/jeepney to get home. in the hour long duration that we were waiting...no joke! we waited a full hour, until we decided to just take a jeepney, there was this young man who was also waiting for a ride, and because i had all of our stuff down in the little waiting shed, i decided that i needed to watch my stuff! so i was very careful with our stuff, and i was NOT about to make small talk with this guy.
but anyway, he kept telling sister and i, don't worry - a ride will come...and then he heard me say, "sister," so he asked, "what were you guys doing here? were you teaching?" and so, i didn't want to give out too much information, but i figured he deduced it from all the children's books we had. and i said, "yes. what are YOU doing here?" haha, and so, he told me he was preaching down by the school too. turns out, he is a jehovah's witness, and he preaches in the local barangay.
after discovering this similarity in our ministries, i loosened up a bit, and i thought to myself, maybe a ride isn't coming because this is such a great opportunity to learn more and to have good conversation. and so, i talked about one of my friends who is a jehovah's witness and doing her mission in the DR, and we talked about how there are a lot of jehovah's witnesses who come from california and canada to the philippines. it was really cool actually - really random. i then got hungry, so i ate some of my crackers, and gave him some too. he broke off one of the crackers, and then put the other crackers in his bag. it was really interesting though, because these were just like sheets of crackers. i don't know, there was a very simple, serene, very peaceful vibe i got from this young man - he seemed like a nice, faithful guy.
anyway, a jeepney arrived, and we said bye to each other and then sr. and i were on our way! at prayer tonight, reflecting on today's Gospel reading, on how Jesus shows himself to us in different ways throughout our day, i thought about how this was totally a God moment. looking back, i realize that now. there was fear and apprehensiveness at first, but then, the situation eased itself, and how fitting that it happen during the week for christian unity! it was great! :) it caught me off guard, but it was good.
together, let us pray for unity among all christians, and for solidarity with one another in the world. amen.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
how fitting.
this is something i just found scribbled onto one of my notepads...the mission experience in a nutshell:
mission is not meant for you to do things on your own. do not lose focus, but truly ask yourself, what would jesus do? how would Jesus say it? where would Jesus go? we can not lose focus on mission - there are too many things pulling us on mission. we can get emotional - there's too much balancing of feelings and being pulled in so many directions - being in a foreign context, struggling with the language, social cues, finding your place, and assuming your role. we have to stay physically active, mentally stable, and personally close with others. we must maintain relationships near and far, and truly ask the question, what is a big deal, what is not a big deal, what can be fixed with a day off? we must know our boundaries and discover what boldness looks like - when is it effective, and when are we just venting? we are working in the international context, so everything is amplified 100x. without giving ourselves moments to stop and reflect, we may really lose our sense of self, and forget where we are, what we are doing, and why we are doing it.
this might be one of the most useful resources i have here. this pertains to you too, wherever you are. :)
mission is not meant for you to do things on your own. do not lose focus, but truly ask yourself, what would jesus do? how would Jesus say it? where would Jesus go? we can not lose focus on mission - there are too many things pulling us on mission. we can get emotional - there's too much balancing of feelings and being pulled in so many directions - being in a foreign context, struggling with the language, social cues, finding your place, and assuming your role. we have to stay physically active, mentally stable, and personally close with others. we must maintain relationships near and far, and truly ask the question, what is a big deal, what is not a big deal, what can be fixed with a day off? we must know our boundaries and discover what boldness looks like - when is it effective, and when are we just venting? we are working in the international context, so everything is amplified 100x. without giving ourselves moments to stop and reflect, we may really lose our sense of self, and forget where we are, what we are doing, and why we are doing it.
this might be one of the most useful resources i have here. this pertains to you too, wherever you are. :)
balancing act.
in the new year, taking a little evaluation of myself, i have realized what works/what doesn't work. nothing is really consistent about my experience here as a missioner, except that dinner is at 6:30pm, haha, well except for saturdays. so i guess, in a way, even that is not consistent! and so, i am learning to balance the following tenets: spirituality, community, ministry, my personal life, and misc. (this is the other category - so, everything else. HAHA)
i think when i first told people i would be a missioner in the philippines, some of the first reactions were, "great! you will get to travel, and you will get to do so many wonderful things!" now i can say, yes, that is true. but really, being a missioner is a lot of hard work. it's not work, in the sense of a 9-5 work, but it is a lot of energy, a lot of emotion, and yes, a lot of activity. and yes, a lot of prayer too.
new york was different. a lot different - my mission here in the philippines is a whole 'nother world, with so many more elements thrown into it! i'm dealing with basically no infrastructure in place, a whole other culture, a whole different look to my spirituality, a whole other community, a new ministry, and then there's me - i have to make sure that all is well with things in my personal life too! so, where does prayer come in? EVERYWHERE. i need it - so, thank you for the prayers - they really get me through each day here!
sometimes there just is not enough energy - sometimes i can't even get myself to email others' back or send emails, or skype, or i end up putting off things, because there is just not enough energy left. no, this is not in a dramatic way, but it is a very real reality that i have come to face. though it may not sound like a lot of energy is needed to wait for a jeepney, get onto a jeepney, travel, and then get to your destination point, it is. why? people everywhere, dodging people left and right, breathing in the polluted air, keeping an eye on your stuff, and being 100% alert at all times...there's a lot of energy in even just sitting on a jeepney. and THIS is why it is important that i know my limits - when am i overextending myself and when do i need to take a step back? luckily, i have been pretty good at saying "no" for things that i am not able to commit to. good thing! :) i just need to remind myself, i can't do everything!
it is emotional in that, i work with very poor people. i do. sr. terezinha and i have been going in and out of the barangays, leading bible studies, leading religious classes, training catechists, and working with children, and you know, i know, that we can not function at our 100%, if our tummies are grumbling and our faces are screaming hunger. it would be easy for my mission to not be emotional, if i didn't notice all the holes in the kids' clothing, or lack of clothes, or if i didn't hear the stories the families would tell me, or if i didn't hear that many of our children go the whole day without eating. or if i didn't see where our families sleep.
at the end of my every day, i try to think about the people i came into contact with, the conversations i had, the things i felt, and how i feel about it all - i can not let it overwhelm me, because that would paralyze me from even attempting to move, or to provide hope, or to be with. no, i am not a savior, sr. terezinha and i do not work with our families with that mindset, but rather, to share love - in whatever way we can - through sharing god's love via the Gospel, and in showing our families that yes, it is ok to shake hands or give a smile during the "peace be with you" part of the mass. we have been missioned here, and here we will 100% dedicate ourselves. as she said, we have 150 baby jesus' that we must attend to. we support about 150 families at SOSCFI, and so, we must treat each one, like a baby jesus. :)
we have some really special conversations together, and one of them was about how we were both called to come here to the philippines - such perfect timing, and what a blessing it is that we work very well together. we are able to balance ourselves with one another, and we serve as support to each other when things get tough. this is sr. terezinha (she's from brazil!):
it's pretty radical the changes that i am seeing around here - we have started to do some re-organizing with the way things are run, and also here, taking an evaluation of what programs work/what don't work, where do we need to see some modifications/revisions? it's great! things are lookin' up. sometimes tiredness will set in, but in no way am i sick of what i am doing - i can't believe i have already been here 5 months! i don't want to get ahead of myself, but i feel like time will go by fast...and i'm not thinking of the end of the 2 years, because i can't. there is so much already going on right now - there's no time, and no need! i believe that God has it all under control!
lastly, let me leave you with this (something that sr. t and i have committed to):
whoever abandons themselves totally in God, in all circumstances, keeping peace and a calm of heart, is a martyr of providence. (this was translated from italian --> portuguese --> english). :)
peace be with you!
i think when i first told people i would be a missioner in the philippines, some of the first reactions were, "great! you will get to travel, and you will get to do so many wonderful things!" now i can say, yes, that is true. but really, being a missioner is a lot of hard work. it's not work, in the sense of a 9-5 work, but it is a lot of energy, a lot of emotion, and yes, a lot of activity. and yes, a lot of prayer too.
new york was different. a lot different - my mission here in the philippines is a whole 'nother world, with so many more elements thrown into it! i'm dealing with basically no infrastructure in place, a whole other culture, a whole different look to my spirituality, a whole other community, a new ministry, and then there's me - i have to make sure that all is well with things in my personal life too! so, where does prayer come in? EVERYWHERE. i need it - so, thank you for the prayers - they really get me through each day here!
sometimes there just is not enough energy - sometimes i can't even get myself to email others' back or send emails, or skype, or i end up putting off things, because there is just not enough energy left. no, this is not in a dramatic way, but it is a very real reality that i have come to face. though it may not sound like a lot of energy is needed to wait for a jeepney, get onto a jeepney, travel, and then get to your destination point, it is. why? people everywhere, dodging people left and right, breathing in the polluted air, keeping an eye on your stuff, and being 100% alert at all times...there's a lot of energy in even just sitting on a jeepney. and THIS is why it is important that i know my limits - when am i overextending myself and when do i need to take a step back? luckily, i have been pretty good at saying "no" for things that i am not able to commit to. good thing! :) i just need to remind myself, i can't do everything!
it is emotional in that, i work with very poor people. i do. sr. terezinha and i have been going in and out of the barangays, leading bible studies, leading religious classes, training catechists, and working with children, and you know, i know, that we can not function at our 100%, if our tummies are grumbling and our faces are screaming hunger. it would be easy for my mission to not be emotional, if i didn't notice all the holes in the kids' clothing, or lack of clothes, or if i didn't hear the stories the families would tell me, or if i didn't hear that many of our children go the whole day without eating. or if i didn't see where our families sleep.
at the end of my every day, i try to think about the people i came into contact with, the conversations i had, the things i felt, and how i feel about it all - i can not let it overwhelm me, because that would paralyze me from even attempting to move, or to provide hope, or to be with. no, i am not a savior, sr. terezinha and i do not work with our families with that mindset, but rather, to share love - in whatever way we can - through sharing god's love via the Gospel, and in showing our families that yes, it is ok to shake hands or give a smile during the "peace be with you" part of the mass. we have been missioned here, and here we will 100% dedicate ourselves. as she said, we have 150 baby jesus' that we must attend to. we support about 150 families at SOSCFI, and so, we must treat each one, like a baby jesus. :)
we have some really special conversations together, and one of them was about how we were both called to come here to the philippines - such perfect timing, and what a blessing it is that we work very well together. we are able to balance ourselves with one another, and we serve as support to each other when things get tough. this is sr. terezinha (she's from brazil!):
 |
| haha, could we be any more of a contrast? |
lastly, let me leave you with this (something that sr. t and i have committed to):
whoever abandons themselves totally in God, in all circumstances, keeping peace and a calm of heart, is a martyr of providence. (this was translated from italian --> portuguese --> english). :)
peace be with you!
maligayang pasko!
merry christmas hello everyone! where have i been? what did i do over the holidays? here it is! :)
Home for the Holidays
One of the big blessings I have here in the Philippines, is that I have family in Manila (only about a 5-6 hour bus ride away). This is a place where I can go to retreat, celebrate holidays, and be rejuvenated. That being said, this Christmas/New Years holiday, I did just that, and it was perfect! This was my first Christmas/New Years away from my family in California, but that was actually not as bad as I thought - I made them a little slideshow with some pictures of me and some of the things that I have been doing here in Baguio, and they loved it! Yes, exactly what I was going for :) That way, I had to make sure they didn't forget that I was missing. Haha, I don't think they did.
Here is one of the pictures I included in the slideshow (this is a picture of me during the medical mission here - one of the child patients took this picture):
And here is my family's response:
yay! love them! :)
meanwhile, in manila, i got to do lots of fun things, including, getting myself a yoga mat and a pair of 3 lb weights to assist in my efforts to get active over here! i have been finding that because i no longer have my yoga outlet, i have had to resort to workouts that i can find online and other resources i can find via the wonderful world of the internet. good thing, because otherwise, i would be in big trouble! AND, because of all of the delicious treats here in the philippines, i am learning to be more disciplined with the way i eat too. :) haha, who would have thought!
i got to spend a lot of time with my cousin, and where did we go? check out good places to eat...
during my time in manila, i also got to attend mass at Quiapo Church. Now, it was really good visiting, and to be back at the church, and to reflect on my ties with this church. One of the first times I visited this Church, was with my mom, wayyyyyy back when, and i never really understood the concept of the Black Nazarene (Jesus) . when i visited the philippines during my first missions trip back in 2005, i remember walking into the doors of the Church, and really STILL not understanding the concept, and could not even get myself to WANT to understand, because i was distracted by all of the religious items/articles being sold outside, all of the various practices that i now realize stem from a hodgepodge of other "religious" practices, and i just didn't understand who this Black Nazarene was.
well, i know that my grandpa has a strong devotion to the Black Nazarene, my home has had a figure of the Black Nazarene since i could remember, and now, 6 years later, i was back in this Church.
who is this Black Nazarene? it is Jesus, but depicted with the cross, in a lavish red robe. Quiapo Church is a place where Filipinos from all over, come to pilgrimage. more specifically, during the Feast of the Black Nazarene, this is where people have a procession through the streets, mostly barefoot, and carry the Nazarene, in front of the Church, around the city. many times people will try their best to touch their handkerchiefs to the Nazarene, with the hopes that it would touch the figure, and treat it like a relic. well, i have never witnessed the procession, and i have never had a strong devotion to this Jesus, but it is all beautiful, nonetheless. :)
what hit me this time though, was the faith of the people. this time around, 6 years later, my aunt and i were able find some breatheable space in the back. i realize i am somewhat taller than the typical filipino here, and so i would go on my tippy toes, trying to gasp some air! i remember thinking to myself, "make yourself small, crystal. make yourself small!" haha! when it was time for communion - wow, yeah, that was a hardship - squeezing through people, but it somehow got organized. how was that even possible? haha, we all got disciplined in that moment, it seemed! good thing.
something beautiful that i witnessed during my visit to the Church that morning, was the body of Christ. yes, there were probably a thousand or more people in that church, and at any given point, there were probably 16 people touching me at any given time, but i felt the spirit really moving in that church. i wanna say the "our father" has never been sung more beautiful, the "amen"s were never so confident, and people's faith were really written all over their faces. after i received communion, as i was looking for my aunt, i was looking at the communion line - i saw people in tears, i saw some of the pains and health complications that were physically on people's faces, and as i walked, i found i was not praying for myself - but praying for the people i saw, and in thanksgiving for being witness to the body of christ in this way.
something that is really difficult in terms of the spirituality here in the philippines, is that while people are catholic (the majority), sometimes there is such great emphasis on the saints and on mama mary, that sometimes some churches don't even have a picture,statue, or figure of jesus, but they will have every other saint, mary, and maybe joseph, in the church. it's really interesting, and the spirituality here is similar to Spanish descent because of its influence in the philippines.
and then, one of the best parts of the holidays...was the fireworks!! for new years even, we bought every kind of firework they had - we joined the neighbors all over the streets, and in the sky at any given time, there were about 5 different "firework shows" going on! here is some of the goodness:
lastly, i want to share with you a tradition we have here in the philippines called simbang gabi. in other words, "night/dawn mass." this is a novena (9 days) of consecutive mass (once a day) leading up to christmas time. more specifically, it is a novena to the blessed mother, to prepare as she gives birth to her child, Jesus. well, this being my first christmas in the philippines, i was all game to participate! well, what i realized, is that the masses are at 5am. yes, that is right, 5am or 5:30am! BUT, i also heard that good shepherd had masses with a Jesuit priest in the evening for simbang gabi! so, that meant, i had options! yes! well, because i wanted to see as many "simbang gabi" masses as i could, i ended up doing some two-a-days. going to good shepherd in the evening, and attending the morning masses at either SLU or the cathedral. one of my biggest motivations to go to these early morning masses, was this:
because some of the novena was still going on when i got to manila, i got to attend simbang gabi masses at the padre pio church in eastwood, and also in the neighborhood. they had delicious morning treats after too. i made it all the 9 days! YAY! the experience was beautiful, and i can't wait till next year! :)
and that, my friends, in a nutshell, was my christmas and new years in the philippines. it was a great time. :)
Home for the Holidays
One of the big blessings I have here in the Philippines, is that I have family in Manila (only about a 5-6 hour bus ride away). This is a place where I can go to retreat, celebrate holidays, and be rejuvenated. That being said, this Christmas/New Years holiday, I did just that, and it was perfect! This was my first Christmas/New Years away from my family in California, but that was actually not as bad as I thought - I made them a little slideshow with some pictures of me and some of the things that I have been doing here in Baguio, and they loved it! Yes, exactly what I was going for :) That way, I had to make sure they didn't forget that I was missing. Haha, I don't think they did.
Here is one of the pictures I included in the slideshow (this is a picture of me during the medical mission here - one of the child patients took this picture):
And here is my family's response:
meanwhile, in manila, i got to do lots of fun things, including, getting myself a yoga mat and a pair of 3 lb weights to assist in my efforts to get active over here! i have been finding that because i no longer have my yoga outlet, i have had to resort to workouts that i can find online and other resources i can find via the wonderful world of the internet. good thing, because otherwise, i would be in big trouble! AND, because of all of the delicious treats here in the philippines, i am learning to be more disciplined with the way i eat too. :) haha, who would have thought!
i got to spend a lot of time with my cousin, and where did we go? check out good places to eat...
 |
| soft boiled egg with some soy sauce and a sandwich...BEST combination ever! really. |
 |
| butter and coconut jam sandwich |
 |
| the instructions! this was at TOAST BOX (origins in Singapore) DELICIOUS. |
 | |||
| sonya's garden in tagaytay - everything they served was organically grown in their garden! |
 |
| we met "sonya!" - she came over to our table, and taught us how to eat the sweet camote - she picked off a piece of mint from the plant on our table, placed it on the camote, and said, "it is a lot better with that! enjoy!" and she was right! |
well, i know that my grandpa has a strong devotion to the Black Nazarene, my home has had a figure of the Black Nazarene since i could remember, and now, 6 years later, i was back in this Church.
who is this Black Nazarene? it is Jesus, but depicted with the cross, in a lavish red robe. Quiapo Church is a place where Filipinos from all over, come to pilgrimage. more specifically, during the Feast of the Black Nazarene, this is where people have a procession through the streets, mostly barefoot, and carry the Nazarene, in front of the Church, around the city. many times people will try their best to touch their handkerchiefs to the Nazarene, with the hopes that it would touch the figure, and treat it like a relic. well, i have never witnessed the procession, and i have never had a strong devotion to this Jesus, but it is all beautiful, nonetheless. :)
 |
| the Black Nazarene |
 |
| this is what the procession looks like in the street during the Feast |
something beautiful that i witnessed during my visit to the Church that morning, was the body of Christ. yes, there were probably a thousand or more people in that church, and at any given point, there were probably 16 people touching me at any given time, but i felt the spirit really moving in that church. i wanna say the "our father" has never been sung more beautiful, the "amen"s were never so confident, and people's faith were really written all over their faces. after i received communion, as i was looking for my aunt, i was looking at the communion line - i saw people in tears, i saw some of the pains and health complications that were physically on people's faces, and as i walked, i found i was not praying for myself - but praying for the people i saw, and in thanksgiving for being witness to the body of christ in this way.
something that is really difficult in terms of the spirituality here in the philippines, is that while people are catholic (the majority), sometimes there is such great emphasis on the saints and on mama mary, that sometimes some churches don't even have a picture,statue, or figure of jesus, but they will have every other saint, mary, and maybe joseph, in the church. it's really interesting, and the spirituality here is similar to Spanish descent because of its influence in the philippines.
and then, one of the best parts of the holidays...was the fireworks!! for new years even, we bought every kind of firework they had - we joined the neighbors all over the streets, and in the sky at any given time, there were about 5 different "firework shows" going on! here is some of the goodness:
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| happy 2011! |
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| bibingka! |
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| YUM |
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| puto bumbong! fresh! |
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| available right after mass! |
and that, my friends, in a nutshell, was my christmas and new years in the philippines. it was a great time. :)
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