MAKE HIS PATH STRAIGHT!

St. John the Baptist told the people who came to him to be baptized in the Jordan River: “Prepare the way of the Lord; make his path straight” (Mt 3:3). Obviously, he knew that Jesus Christ would reveal Himself soon. In fact he would introduce Him by saying, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” (Jn 1:29).
John the Baptist was not talking about the path to mean the way, the road, made of dirt, ground, sand, etc. He meant our way of doing things, our way of living, our way of relating to our fellowmen. Certainly, there are crooked ways of thinking, saying, doing, transacting, relating. These are the ways to be made straight.
Advent season is an acceptable time, for we are awaiting the coming of the Lord on the day that we commemorate His birth, December 25. It is time to cast aside our dishonest, crooked, immoral thinking, saying, doing. It is for our own good, for our own benefit. The good thing we do will redound to our salvation. Leaving behind crooked, winding ways is a sure sign of repentance. And repentance leads to forgiveness; forgiveness to salvation. Advent can be the time of salvation for many. May it be so. Amen.

RH BILL CONTROVERSY

SEPT 10--In the TV program "Bottom Line"  of Boy Abunda,  Bishop Deo Iñiguez was interviewed regarding the RH Bill.  In his answers the controversial points were clarified such as:  1) In the RH Bill what the Church opposes is the use of contraceptives. Other matters in the RH Bill are good; 2) Sexual act must be open to life and must  not be  artificially obstructed; 3) Those who use contraceptives commit objective sin (act considered in itself), but not everyone commits subjective sin (act considered sinful by the person concerned); 4) Nobody knows whether the person who use contraceptives will go to hell; only God knows; 5) The issue of "excommunication" was "not a proximate possibility", meaning the media made a "miscommunication" with or without malice by omitting the word "not"; 6) The person who demonstrated in the cathedral carrying a placard "Damaso" showed disrespect and abuse of freedom to the holy occasion; his right to speak was done in a wrong time and in a wrong place; 7) His act is punishable by civil law, that is why he was put in jail; 8) The Church is for responsible parenthood, provided there is no use of contraceptives; 9) The Church and the State may have a common ground for approving the good and not controversial issues of the RH Bill; 10) There can be no compromise when the issue is morality; the Church can never approve what is evil or sinful, even if many of the Catholics will transfer to non-Catholic groups.--(Romy Hitosis)

INTERNATIONAL SURFING CUP

In the last week of September 2010 the International Surfing Cup was held in the island of Siargao, Surigao del Norte, Philippines. Several surfers from foreign countries participated in the competition. Truly, surfing as a sport is becoming popular in the Philippines where big waves abound in places like San Juan in La Union, Baler in Quezon, and most of all, Siargao in Surigao del Norte. In Siargao there is a long boardwalk at the end of which is a roofed structure from where spectators can watch the surfers.  It is quite interesting to see surfers riding on the crest of the wave and making turns that produce big splashes.  Besides watching the surfers one can also enjoy island hopping to several islets near Siargao like the Naked Islet, Guyam, Dako, Yohoho etc. One can choose from several resorts along the Siargao shoreline. Prices differ according to the type of accommodation ranging from P500 to P1500/day. Going to Siargao is easy, either by plane or by sea. Here are some photos I took in Siargao...

THE SONA OF PRES. AQUINO

President Noynoy Aquino delivered his SONA in Pilipino, clear and direct to the point, for about 40 minutes, punctuated with about 30 applauses.  The majority of those who heard him approved of what he was talking about, but there were a few who just sat "silently", without clapping their hands. I guess they were hit by the biting words of the President.  He enumerated only some of the anomalies of the previous administration under GMA.  But he also hinted at what he has to do to solve the many ills, the cancer of corruption afflicting the fibers of society.  With the establishment of the Truth Commission, hopefully, there will be closure of the unresolved cases of graft and corruption.  He pointed to the Right Way towards Renewal: "ang tuwid na landas tungo sa Pagbabago".  With an 85% trust of the people on the new President, how can the Filipinos endure again the poverty, the rebellion, the drug menace, the illegal and immoral deeds of a few greedy countrymen?  Now is the time for a renewed good governance that will highly uplift the lives of the Filipinos! Ang sabi ni Senator Enrile: "Gusto ko happy ka".  That's right. We all want to be happy with the new government.

BIRTH OF JOHN THE BAPTIST

JOHN THE BAPTIST was born of Elizabeth and Zechariah, who were both advanced in years. He was given the name John which means "God is gracious", for God has given a miracle baby to aged parents. He grew up strong in spirit and lived in the desert like a hermit in preparation for his mission to prepare the coming of the Messiah, his cousin Jesus Christ. John was baptizing people in the Jordan River as a sign of their repentance.  He even baptized Christ.  Then he introduced Christ to the people: "Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world."  Later on, he was imprisoned for having criticized the king who was living an adulterous life. Then on the birthday of the king, Salome, daughter of Herodias, asked for the head of John the Baptist. So the king ordered John to be beheaded. John gave his life in defense of God's command: "You shall not commit adultery."



(Painting: John the Baptist by Murillo)

KAWASAN FALLS IN BADIAN, CEBU

Last June 20, Sunday, my friends and I went to Kawasan Falls situated in the town of Badian, about 100 kilometers from Lapu-Lapu City.  It took us about 2 hours and a half to reach the place.  From the highway where we got off we had to walk for about ten minutes to reach the waterfalls.  Along the way we saw women washing clothes in the river and people who came from the Falls.  We also passed by a hydraulic electric plant that provides electricity to the vicinity. There were already some people swimming, eating, riding on the bamboo raft when we arrived.  After a little rest after a good lunch of lechon, posó, fried chicken etc. we rented a bamboo raft and went under the waterfalls... Amidst shouts of joy and camera clicks we underwent a hard "water massage".  Later on, some of my friends went up to the second-floor where there are three waterfalls and they swam and took pictures.  The whole afternoon spent in that place far compensated the long trip... Here are some photos of that beautiful place called Kawasan Falls....