Spirit Moments | From minutes to moments . . . .

Visitations

Posted on May 31, 2019 by Spirit Moments

Kinabuhayan Cafe, Dolores Quezon

Today is the Feast of the Visitation: a cousin visits her cousin to assist her in the final months of her pregnancy before going home herself to give birth to her own child. It is a poignant story of loved ones reaching out and caring for one another.

I love making visits and being visited. It is a custom I got from my Ima. I remembered how we would go and visit cousins in the next town, specially when there are occasions like fiestas, holidays, and celebrations. But often, we’d go even when there is no special occasion. Ima just loved company. And she loved hosting people as well. When we were growing up, I also remembered how excited she would get when we bring home friends to come and visit her as well.

Visiting friends and family is an act of caring. It is something I love doing and it is my way of showing that I care for others when I go and visit them. When Anabelle and I travel, we make sure there are friends and family we can go and see in addition to the usual tourist places there are in a destination.

Posted in Family, Friendship, Love, Relationships | Tagged joy | Comments Off

Be Careful What You Pray For

Posted on May 30, 2019 by Spirit Moments

Mont La Salle, Napa California

These days, with all the bad things happening almost everywhere and everyday, I pray that God corrects all the wrongs and evil in this world. But when I come to my spiritual senses, I realize how presumptuous I am. Sometimes, I even suggest solutions to the problems as I see them. Okay, I practically tell God what to do, pretending I knew everything and I had the correct answer.

The sin I often commit and confess is that I would pray and ask God for more blessings as though the ones that he has sent me are not enough; and I need to ask him for more. I am not only being ungrateful but even suffer from a misplaced sense of entitlement, specially when I pray for material blessings.

Be careful what you pray for. God might just be given to you. I remember Mama who used to caution us against praying for long life – this, towards her end-days when she was feeling weary and lonely. Life has a strange way of turning hoped for blessings into burdens and unwanted burdens into blessings in disguise.

Life is fleeting and fragile to be spent in misguided wants and desires. Every moment we live is already a blessing and it will be as meaningful and as joyful as I make it. In the same manner, it will be as problematic and difficult as I allow it to be.

Posted in Faith, Spirituality | Tagged Prayer | Comments Off

Pueblo Amante de Maria

Posted on May 29, 2019 by Spirit Moments

Our Lady of the Abandoned, Marikina City

Filipinos have always taken great pride in being the only Christian nation in Asia. We have even fancied ourselves as “Pueblo Amante de Maria” – Mary’s Beloved People. And to reciprocate that Marian love, we have dedicated two months of the year as Marian months – May and October.

And yet, what have we to show for being the only Christian nation in this part of the world in the middle of Muslim and Buddhist seas. We have lagged behind many of our Asian countries in economic development. Today, we are so divided our non-Christian neighbors are wondering if this is what it means to be Christians. We seem to be very poor witnesses to being Christians.

I have often wondered along with Peter: “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” There have been moments in out history when I felt the Spirit was with us as a people. But right now, we are struggling through a parched and very dry desert as a people. Lost. Bewildered. Divided.

We may not be economically prosperous but I know we have our hearts, minds and spirit in the right places. I believe that the Spirit of Truth will guide us through these difficult and perilous times – as in days gone by. It is when the night is darkest that we seek and see the light.

Posted in Discipleship, Faith, Philippines/Filipino | Tagged Gratitude, joy, Relationships | Comments Off

Togetherness and Solitude

Posted on May 28, 2019 by Spirit Moments

Shrine of Our Lady of the Abandoned, Marikina City

One of the most common postings I have seen lately in Facebook is “Invest in Travel, not Things.” I could totally relate to it. I have experienced longer lasting joys, more learning and insights, photos and memories that last longer than things bought after visiting places rather than after buying and acquiring things. Travelling has opened new perspectives and realizations for me that no thing could even do.

Yet, many people who travelled also realize that, in their excitement to share their experiences, the sights they saw, the foods they ate, the adventures they went through, people would listen politely but are generally not interested. And the poor traveller wonders.

Consider another experience, this time shared. Yesterday, I spend practically the whole day with friends. We started in the morning with a Eucharistic celebration in the Adoration Chapel of Our Lady of the Abandoned Shrine in Marikina City. We gathered in thanksgiving for the successful bypass operation of Fr. Ety and the angioplasty for another friend, Romy Suarez. Then, we went to Rustic Mornings for lunch. And after a ligering lunch, we retired to the Rectory for more shared stories and memories, many of which we have shared before multiple times in the past. We finally parted ways in the afternoon, but not before we have agreed on our next get-togethers for the coming two months. Nothing extraordinary, nothing to write home about. And yet, we all went home with our hearts aglow.

I love being alone but these moments of silence and solitude need to be balanced with times of sharing and community. Travel, if solitary, in unrelatable to others and therefore, not truly interesting for them. Gatherings of friends and family for shared meals and moments, even of the most ordinary and commonplace, are most precious and happiest. Thus, I often love to travel in company. And when we travel we make sure we have friends or family to visit along the way.

Posted in Family, Friendship, Life | Tagged Relationships | Comments Off

Evil is Real And It is Alive in the World

Posted on May 27, 2019 by Spirit Moments

Yukon Territory, Alaska

“I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling.
They will put you out of the synagogues.
Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think
that by doing so they are offering worship to God.”

There is an apocryphal, popular among preachers, that told of how Satan was devising a way to convince people to do evil. He tried tempting people with wealth, power, and fame. And it was rather effective. But Satan, being Satan, was happy with the results. he wanted to see everyone going to hell. And some thought, he told his minions, the devils, to go forth and tell people that he did not exist. And they did.

And it seems to be working. People do not believe in evil anymore. One only has to look around and see what moves the world these days: fear, anxiety, anger, greed, hate, violence, vengeance, lies, falsehoods. There were things people were afraid or not willing to do because they were evil. Today, even supposedly respectable people do things that are patently evil, like waging wars, killing innocents, taking advantage of the weak and defenseless, exploiting the poor and the vulnerable. And they all can justify these actions.

Often, I get the feeling that the voice and inspiration of the Spirit, whom Christ promised to send to teach us, is getting drowned out by the Evil One. By their fruits, you shall know them. And the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Christ did warn us of these times. And he admonished us that this evil spirit can be driven away only by prayers and fasting.

Posted in Evil, Faith, Spirituality | Tagged Prayer, Sadness | Comments Off

How Love Is Life-Giving

Posted on May 26, 2019 by Spirit Moments

Early Sunday Morning in Alaskan Waters

The Gospel that Christ preached is built on but one imperative – his great commandment of love. God created us out of love and it is our nature to love. But love is never easy. It is demanding and it takes a lot of effort to love. It is easy to love in good times. It is the bad times that makes it difficult. And yet, It is these bad times that make us truly realize what true love is.

Love is live giving. Babies who are showered with love grow up to be happy persons. And babies who are denied it are often sickly and encounter a lot of developmental problems. Animals, specially pets, often respond with love when treated with love. Even plants tend to bloom with more beautiful flowers when tended with loving care. I can imagine how living things evolved out of inanimate matter when these were animated by the power of God’s love.

And yet, in everyday life, it is not always easy to love. It does really take a lot of effort, specially if the person to be loved in not at all lovable. What if we were wired just to love? What if we had no choice but to love?

There is a genetic condition known as Williams Syndrome. Children with this condition tend to be very social, friendly and endearing. Families with such children often say the joys that they bring into the family is very touching and unimaginable. But there can be problems with such children. They can sometimes be too trusting for their own good. They can be so loving, they’d sometimes overstep the boundaries of acceptable social behavior. But that is because these children do not know any better.

Free will is an essential component of loving. We can choose not to love. And that is how God made it to be. He wants us to love but he wants love that we have decided to give. Love is a decision. We have to work on it. That is what makes love beautiful and life-giving in the end. God’s abiding presence in the world, the Holy Spirit, will show us the way.

Posted in Life, Love, Nature | Comments Off

In Life’s Final Exam, Love is the Answer

Posted on May 24, 2019 by Spirit Moments

Christ the Light, Oalkand CA Cathedral

Of late, the daily Gospel readings have been taken from Christ’s Farewell Discourse in John’s Gospel, mainly about his new commandment of love. Aside from LOVE, which is mentioned 179 times in the Gospels, there are a few other recurring themes/words in the gospels: JOY (335 mentions), PEACE (105 mentions), “DO NOT BE AFRAID.” (365 mentions).

The good news proclaimed by Christ indeed revolves around these themes. The cynical might say that Christ was just playing to the crowds and told them what they wanted to hear. But for me it all makes sense. Love is the only real choice, real decision in this restless world. With love, I can face anything and not be afraid. And in the process I have learned to live in peace with most situations I have been in and been blessed with an abiding joy.

Christ did not come to take away our pains and sufferings. Instead, he showed us how suffering can make us better and stronger persons. In spite of all the pain, it is possible to live a meaningful and joyful life. Even to the extent to dying for one’s friends. And even in the face of unjust and undeserved pain and punishment, he told his followers to forgive.

Christ could have given us all the material comforts we desire. But he did not. Instead, he taught us how to be generous and share with one another. There is more joy in giving and sharing than in hoarding and possessing.

Yes, love is the answer. If only we asked the right questions.

Posted in Generosity, Love, Spirituality | Comments Off

Is This the Philippines or What?

Posted on May 22, 2019 by Spirit Moments

IMG_20190519_104915-COLLAGE

I was awestruck when I first saw the renovated Podium Mall over the weekend. Its escalator ramps spiral upward so imposingly, they seem to lift me up as I gazed agape to the glass roof. It is an impressive expression of Filipino creativity to be able to come up with such a magnificently designed and built structure. It is indeed something to be proud of.

And as I was looking up and around, I kept asking myself, “Am I indeed in the Philippines?” Such grandeur and beauty cannot be happening here where we lag behind most of our Asian neighbors. This must be meant for the upper one percent of the population. For many others, it is the aspirational vision of the kind of life they want for themselves and for their families. And for many, it must be an unreachable fantasy that mocks them in their illiteracy, ignorance and poverty.

I felt like Philippine reality is made up of several parallel universes, all existing at the same, in the same place, and yet never really interacting with each other. I live oblivious to the poverty and pain of many of our country men. I walk cheek by jowl with the super affluent, never really knowing the opulence they exist in. And somehow these parallel universes intersect in a few places like the inside of the newly renovated Podium Mall.

Posted in Environment, Philippines/Filipino, Relationships | Comments Off

Doors, Portals, and Thresholds

Posted on May 20, 2019 by Spirit Moments

I love doors, portals, thresholds.
I love even more what they open up to.
There is mystery behind every door,
an adventure beyond every portal,
and a new level of being beyond
any threshold.
Doors, portals, thresholds.
They are the visuals for the questions
that often play in my mind.
And answers are the passage from one side to the other.

Like, I have often realized that there is no compelling reason why I should be here. There is no irreducible mathematical formula the answer to which would be my particular existence.

In the face of such simple fact, science tells me I am a totally random event, which conclusion I instinctively and intuitively refuse to accept. I love science for the answers and explanations it can give me. I cling to my faith for things I cannot answer nor explain. Just as a flower reaches out to the sun, finding life and nourishment in its warmth, I reach out for the unreachable, seek to know the unknowable and dare to dream the impossible. It is crossing the threshold.

“There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.” Or in science for that matter.

There is always deep inside me a desire, a yearning for significance, for meaning, for making an important contribution or doing something great and heroic. At the same time, I am often overwhelmed by my own insignificance, smallness and ordinariness. ‘Small is Beautiful’ is the title of a best-selling book that tried to re-write economics as if people mattered. In human health, micro-nutrients have been proven essential to overall well-being. In nanotechnology, micro-bots are fast becoming the trend. Man is but a speck of star dust in the cosmic scheme of things. And when Christ came, he chose to work with the small and insignificant people of his times: the fisher-folks, ordinary workers, tax collectors, sinners and prostitutes. He went out of his way to seek out the least, the lost and the last. But he transformed them all and showed what he can do with what is small and considered insignificant.

I keep on seeking, therefore I open doors.
I keep on yearning, therefore I go through portals.
I long for forever and the fullness of life, therefore i pass through thresholds.

Posted in Life, Mystery, Spirituality | Tagged Search | 2 Comments

The Greatest Commandment

Posted on May 19, 2019 by Spirit Moments

P1550512

“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.
Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.
By this everyone will know that you are my disciples,
if you have love for one another.”

The greatest of all the commandments.
The noblest of all human emotions.
The most powerful of all human motives.
The most neglected of all human powers.
And we have have experienced this:
in the embrace of a loved one,
in the warmth of mother’s bosom,
in the tender crock of father’s arm,
in the safety and comfort of the family.

Just imagine what would happen if love were to reign supreme:

“Behold, God’s dwelling is with the human race.
He will dwell with them and they will be his people
and God himself will always be with them as their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes,
and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain,
for the old order has passed away.”

And yet, the world is a mess.
Because we find it hard to love those who hate us.
We refuse to turn the other cheek, instead we hit back.
We cannot forgive those who have wronged us; we want revenge.
We are too proud to ask for forgiveness from those we look down upon.
We cannot give away what we have afraid there’d be nothing eft for us.
We seek our own pleasures and comforts and to hell with the rest of humanity.

But there are those who dare and struggle.
There are those who give and not count the cost.
They struggle and fight without heeding the wounds.
They toil and not seek for rest.
They labor and ask not for reward.
All these they do, because it is the will of the Savior who taught them how to love.

And with the One who sits on the throne,
They are able to make all things new,
bringing about a new heaven and a new earth.

Posted in Family, Life, The Good News | Tagged Home, joy, Relationships | Comments Off