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Pope: each confession helps the new evangelization

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The new evangelization also begins in the confessional!

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The Cross
A Supplement Publication of KCFAPI and the Order of the Knights of Columbus

World Christian leaders to gather in Manila

LEADERS of various Christian Churches from different countries will meet in Manila this month in a historical event in the world ecumenical movement. Organizers said they will converge at the Traders Hotel in Manila on March 22 to 27 for the pre-assembly mission event of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission of World Mission and Evangelism. Dr. Rommel Linatoc of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines said the occasion will be graced by church leadLeaders / A6

Pope sends condolences on Cardinal Sanchezs demise

POPE Benedict XVI has conveyed his condolence for the passing of Cardinal Jose T. Sanchez in a telegram sent to Cardinal Ricardo J. Vidal, archbishop emeritus of Cebu. Cardinal Sanchez was prefect emeritus of the Congregation for the Clergy. He was head of the Vatican dicastery from 1991 until his retirement in 1996. He died March 9 in Manila at the age of 91. According to the Vaticans Information Service, the text of the popes telegram gratefully recalls the late cardinals dedicated service to the Lord as a priest and bishop in his native country, as well as our service together in the Roman Curia during the pontificate of Blessed John Paul II. The Holy Father commends Cardinal Sanchezs noble soul to the Lord and prays that his witness will inspire others to dedicate their lives to the service of the Lord and His Holy Church, especially in the priesthood. Born on March 17, 1920 in Catanduanes, Sanchez was orCondolences / A6

CEAP upholds tuition hike

By Kris Bayos

March 12 - 25, 2012

Vol. 16 No. 6

Php 20.00

THE Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) supported its member Catholic schools, college and universities, planning to hike tuition next school year, saying the increase is necessary to maintain quality education for their students.
CEAP president Fr. Gregg Baaga Jr., CM, said Catholic schools that seek government permission to hike their tuition rates rarely earn extra or generate savings once an increase in matriculation fee is implemented. He said almost 70 percent of any tuition hike is mainly used to augment the salaries and benefits of the schools teaching and non-teaching personnel, while 20 percent is spent on capital expenditures to upgrade school facilities and equipments. The remaining 10 percent of the tuition increase constitutes
CEAP / A6

Archbishop-Emeritus of Cebu Ricardo J. Cardinal Vidal prepares to bless the casket of the late Cardinal Jose T. Sanchez during the funeral Mass at the Cathedral-Shrine of the Good Shepherd, Diocese of Novaliches, March 12.

The passing of a remarkable man of God

Homily of Ricardo Cardinal Vidal at the funeral of Jose Cardinal Sanchez
the Ministry and Life of Priests, a document that until today serves as the handbook for the clergy in the conduct of their life and mission. Made Bishop in 1968, he occupied various posts in the hierarchy until he was called to Rome by Pope John Paul II to become secretary of the Sacred Congregation of the Evangelization of Peoples. In 1991, in quick succession, he was made Cardinal and became Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Clergy. Yet it would not do justice to the man if all we talk about would be his achievements. There was a more basic truth behind his accomplishments. Jose Cardinal Sanchez was a man truly in love with God and with His Church. Although he was noted for his earnest demeanor, he was in reality a person very much in touch with his feelings. But while emotional men may cry over painful and sad events, Cardinal Sanchez sheds tears at the consecration of every mass. It may confound some observers, why his voice cracks as he pronounces the words of consecration. But Cardinal Sanchez was invariably moved by the tremendous reality that takes place at every Eucharistic celebration, when bread and wine turn into the Body and Blood of the Lord. He was a man of profound faith. Only the man who sees with the eyes of faith can appreciate the profound mystery of the Eucharist. This faith founds him on the solid rock of certitude, a quality not too many people possess today. For in the relativistic spirit of our time, even the little certitude we have are sometimes dismissed as mythological. When he came home almost two years ago at age 90, not a few raised their eyebrows when he declared that he came home because he wanted to lead the fight against the RH Bill. Certainly, there isnt much a 91 year old can do. Certainly, 91 is no longer reproductive age. Yet, knowing him well, I am sure Cardinal Sanchez meant every word he said. If all we ever think of fighting is the open field of battle, we may have missed the more important battle-field of the human conscience. Old people may be easily dismissed by the young as decrepit and obsolete. Yet, it is often the elderly who can speak most effectively to the conscience of people.

March 25 marks Day of the Unborn in PH, other nations

AS the Philippines marks the Day of the Unborn on March 25 along with several other nations, everyone is enjoined to celebrate the day dedicated to unborn children with activities that will communicate pro-life messages and promote the dignity and protection of unborn children. It is a day when all people of goodwill should rededicate themselves to advocating that societies around the world include every unborn child in the human community. It is a day for people of faith to pray for the eradication of abortion from the planet, ProLife Philippines stated in an invitation to all to mark the special day. Suggested activities for the day are candle-lighting activities for the unborn; prayer meetings to spread the message of life and love; poster-designing contests revolving around the pro-life theme; seminars and exhibits related to pro-life issues; printing and distribution of leaflets and other information materials to encourage awareness of culture of life issues; and rallies or small public meetings to propagate the prolife message. March 25, which is also the Feast of the Annunciation on the Catholic calendar, was declared the Day of the Unborn in the Philippines by former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo through of Proclamation No. 586 issued in 2004. This year, however, the Feast of the Annunciation is on March 26 since March 25 falls on the Fourth Sunday of Lent. The Annunciation refers to an important event in the history of salvation, in which the Blessed Mother is told by the angel Gabriel of her being highly favored and being chosen by God to be the mother of Jesus Christ. Day of the Unborn overseas Several other countries had already been celebrating March 25 as a day dedicated to unborn children ahead of the Philippines: El Salvador was the first to decree the observance of the special day, in 1993. It was called Day of the Right to Be Born and was proclaimed by the Legislative Assembly, thanks to the efforts of pro-life groups. In Argentina, the Day of the Unborn was officially proclaimed in 1998. Then 1999 saw the Day of the Conceived and Unborn declared in Chile, and the National Day of the Unborn in Guatemala. From 2000 to the next few years, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Peru,
Unborn / A6

WE lay to rest today a remarkable man who has made history in the annals of the Philippine Church. He was the first Filipino to have been appointed by the Holy Father to head a dicastery of the Roman Curia. He made his mark in the Vatican with the publication of the Directory of

Roy Lagarde / CBCP Media

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Jubilee is celebration of Gods goodness, Malolos faithful told

MANILA Archbishop Luis Antonio G. Tagle said the celebration of the jubilee is the most suitable time to contemplate the goodness and generosity of God towards his people. In his 25-minute homily during the Concelebrated Mass at the Basilica Minore of the Immaculate Conception for the Golden Jubilee of the Diocese of Malolos, Tagle told the Malolos faithful that the occasion is the most appropriate time for contemplating Gods generosity, Gods goodness to us. The Church of Malolos would not have reached its status today had it not been for Gods generosity and goodness, he stressed. Kung ano kayo ngayon ay dahilan sa ginawa ng Diyos sa inyo, he added. He appealed to the faithful not to let the Golden Jubilee celebration pass without a deep encounter with God in prayer. Tagle said if one is to consider the number of priests who have come from the Diocese of Malolos over the years, there may be enough priests to form at least 12 dioceses. He underscored that the achievements made by the Diocese of Malolos, its priests and the Catholic faithful would not have been realized without the grace

Foreign officials thank Sendong survivors for teaching them resiliency

FOREIGN dignitaries visiting Sendong survivors on March 13 have expressed gratitude to typhoon victims for showing and teaching them how to be resilient in the midst of a very bleak circumstance. Swiss Ambassador to the Philippines Ivo Sieber, with UK Ambassador Stephen Lillie and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Country Representative Ugochi Florence Daniels conducted a very low profile visit to the relocation sites of the survivors of Tropical Storm Washi (locally named Sendong), which devastated a huge portion of Cagayan de Oro and neighboring Iligan

Melo Acuna / CBCP Media

Whilssy Candelaria

Catholic priests concelebrate the Mass to mark the 50th Golden Jubilee of the Diocese of Malolos, 10 March 2012.

of God. Grace in itself is good but to produce a vibrant church,

we need human beings to receive the grace, not to waste

Jubilee / A6

City last December. More than 1,000 were killed and another thousand are still missing when floodwaters rampaged through the city, overflowing the Cagayan de Oro River, and destroying everything in its path, night of December

16, 2011. Sieber, Lillie and Daniels expressed happiness for the rare opportunity to visit and hobnob with the Sendong survivors at the tent city in Barangay Canitoan.
Survivors / A6

Illustration by Bladimer Usi

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World News

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

Catholic Church is growing: increasing number of faithful, bishops, priests, deacons and seminarians
VATICAN City, March 10, 2012The Catholic Church appears to be in good health, with a global increase in the number of faithful, bishops, priestsespecially in Asiadeacons and seminarians. The decline of men religious seems to have halted however that of women religious continues, even if contradicted by their growth in Africa and Asia. These are the figures that emerge from the Pontifical Yearbook 2012, which was presented this morning to Benedict XVI, along with the Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae annual Church statistics. The Yearbook has revealed some important novelties regarding the Catholic Church in the world, since 2011. During the year 8 new episcopal sees were built, 1 Personal Ordinariate and 1 Military Ordinariate; 1 archdiocese and 8 dioceses in metropolitan locations were erected; 1 prelature, 1 apostolic vicariate and 1 apostolic prefecture were elevated to diocese and 1 mission su iuris to apostolic prefecture. The statistical data for the year 2010, provides a summary analysis of key trends in the Catholic Church in the planets 2,966 dioceses. In 2010 there were just under 1,196 million Catholics, compared to about 1.181 million in 2009, for a total increase of 15 million faithful at 1.3%. The territorial impact of Catholics suffered noticeable variations between 2009 and 2010: they have reduced their importance in South America (from 28.54 to 28.34 per cent) and especially in Europe (from 24.05 to 23.83 per cent). They reclaimed position in Africa (from 15.15 to 15.55 per cent) and South East Asia (from 10.41 to 10.87 per cent). From 2009 to 2010, the number of bishops in the world increased from 5,065 to 5,104 with a relative increase of 0.77%. The increase was in Africa (+16 new bishops), America (+15) and Asia (+12), while a slight decrease occurred in Europe (from 1,607 to 1,606) and Oceania ( 132 to 129). The growth trend in the number of priests, which began in 2000, continued in 2010, for a total of 412,236 priests, 277,009 of which are diocesan clergy and 135,227 religious clergy, but in 2009 there were 410,593 priests divided into 275,542 diocesan and 135,051 religious. Overall, the number of priests have increased from 2009 to 2010 by a total of 1,643 units. The increases are recorded in Asia (+1,695 priests), in Africa (+761), Oceania (with +52) and America (with +40 units), while the decline has affected Europe (with -905 priests). The number of permanent deacons, both diocesan and religious, continues to show a trend of high growth in 2010. In fact, this year saw an increase of 3.7%, compared to 2009, rising from 38,155 to 39,564. Permanent deacons are present mainly in North America and Europe with a respective share of the global total of 64.3% and 33.2%. The decline that has affected the category of religious seems to have halted somewhat in 2010. In 2009 they counted 54,229 and the number reached 54,665 in 2010. In sharp decline in South America (3.5%) and in North America (0.9%), stationary in Europe, vocations to religious life has increased in Asia (+4.1%), which increase its share of the world total, and Africa (+3.1%). Even the number of professed women religious is undergoing a profound transformation characterized by a strongly decreasing dynamic. Globally, the number dropped from 729,371 in

2009 to 721,935 in 2010. The decline has focused on three continents (Europe, America and Oceania), with significant negative changes (-2.9% in Europe, in Oceania -2.6% and -1.6% in America). In Africa and Asia, however, the increase was very significant, at around 2% for both continents. The number of students of philoso-

phy and theology in diocesan and religious seminaries has steadily increased over the last five years. On the whole, it is up 4%, from 114,439 units in 2005 to 118,990 in 2010. The number of students in the major seminaries is down in Europe (-10.4%) and America (-1.1%), up in Africa (+14.2%), Asia (+13.0%) and Oceania (+ 12.3%). (AsiaNews)

On disasters first anniversary, Japanese Catholics turn to prayer

TOKYO, Japan, March 9, 2012 A year after one of the most devastating Japanese natural disasters in history, Archbishop Leo Jun Ikenaga of Osaka is calling on Catholics to pray for those who died in the earthquake and tsunami and for the reconstruction of the country. What happened on March 11, 2011 will never be forgotten in our lifetime, Archbishop Ikenaga said in a letter to Japanese Catholics. Archbishop Ikenaga urged the faithful to pray not only that the disaster areas will be reconstructed, but also that those who died as a result of the disaster will be given eternal repose in the hands of God. To mark the first anniversary, bishops from all over Japan will celebrate Masses in their dioceses. Archbishop Ikenaga said it is his hope that these Masses will allow people to pray together across the nation. Despite the horror of the earthquake and tsunami, which left the Japanese deeply shocked, Archbishop Ikenaga said he was able to recognize how wonderful it is for people to support each other by the generous donations and support of volunteers all over the world. Koreans showed their support by holding up signs in front of news cameras that said, We love Japan. Japan will overcome the hardship! The archbishop recalled how Japan received donations from all over the world, nuclear specialists from overseas offered generous support, and locals from all over Japan volunteered in the clean up. Facing unreasonable and cruel realities, we are largely impressed and encouraged by numerous people at home and abroad who are making every effort to help the affected persons, Archbishop Ikenaga said. On Feb. 15, all of the active Japanese bishops offered Mass at Tokyos Sekiguchu Cathedral in anticipation of the first anniversary of the disaster that killed an estimated 20,000 people. Approximately 400 people attended the Mass, which was dedicated to the memory of the disaster victims. In his homily, Bishop Tetsuo Hiraga of Sendaiwhose diocese is home to the crippled Fukushima Daiichi power plantoffered his thanks to the volunteers who came from Japan and abroad. Volunteer efforts, mostly being organized by Caritas Japan and the Diocese of Sendai, are now focused on reconstruction and will be carried on for many years to come. The word unimaginable

Vatican Briefing
Vatican museums participate in Etruscan exhibit

www.catholicnewsagency.com

The Etruscans: Heroic Ideal and Lustrous Wine is the title of an exhibition presented this morning in the Vatican Museums, which will open in Palazzo Mazzetti in the Italian city of Asti on March 17. According to the Vatican Information Service, the exhibition brings together more than 300 pieces, some of which are little known or are being put on display for the first time. One hundred and forty artifacts come from the Gregorian Etruscan Museum of the Vatican Museums, and the others from the principal Etruscan collections in Italy. (Zenit)
Cardinal preaching popes retreat loses nephew to violence

has become a regular part of my vocabulary in the past year, Bishop Tarcisius Isao Kikuchi of Niigata and president of Caritas Japan said in a March 11 letter to donors. Less than a week after the March 11 earthquake, Caritas Japan sent staff to Sendai to work with the local diocese to provide relief and assist in the rebuilding process. Caritas Japan opened its first relief base in Shiogama, a major fishing and fish processing city, to help clean up homes that were badly damaged but still salvageable. After shoveling mud and debris out of the homes, volunteers drank tea and spoke with residents, giving survivors a sense of solidarity in rebuilding

their lives. Ishinomaki, the second largest community in the Miyagi Prefecture, lost 4,000 residents to the tsunami that followed the earthquake. Many survivors were left homeless, but were able to find shelter at Kadonowaki Junior High School, one of Caritas Japans largest evacuation centers. In the town of Shizugawa, a fishing town in the MinamiSanriku district, Caritas Japan opened a cafe-style distribution center where listening to survivors facilitated relationships. Since the establishment of temporary housing, Caritas Japan has created mobile cafes to distribute supplies and continue its service of listening. (CNA)

The cardinal who has been preaching Benedict XVIs annual Lenten retreat has just lost a nephew to violence, the Fides agency reported Thursday. A nephew of Cardinal Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya, archbishop of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, was killed in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Feb. 22. The president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference and archbishop of Johannesburg, Archbishop Buti Joseph Tlhagale, sent his condolences to the Monsengwo family, Fides reported. The loss of any life by violence is not according to the will of God, Archbishop Tlhagale affirmed. The fact that another life is lost in Johannesburgwhoever it isis very sad. (Zenit)
Hackers reportedly launch second attack on Vatican website

The loose-knit group of hackers known as Anonymous have reportedly launched a second attack on the Vatican website, after failing in its initial attempt to bring the site down on March 7. The latest attack has not yet been confirmed or denied by the Vatican. The vice director of the Holy Sees Press Office, Father Ciro Benedettini, said the March 7 attack was not successful, as the hackers failed to post their distinctive logo on the Vatican website. On March 12, the hackers stated on their Italian blog that they expect the Vatican to publicly excommunicate them. They accuse the Holy See of damaging public health with the antennas of Vatican Radio and also claim to have broken into the sites database. (CNA)
Migration beneficial to all involved, Vatican diplomat says

Convert priest thrilled to host Pope and Archbishop of Canterbury

ROME, Italy, March 9, 2012Catholic convert Father Peter Hughes prefers to describe himself as an Anglican who is now in full communion with Peter. In a personal sense I have made this journey, and it has been both a fascinating and a demanding one, said Fr. Hughes, the prior of San Gregorio al Celio monastery in Rome, in an interview with CNA. Fr. Hughes was received into the Catholic Church in 2000, after many years as an Anglican vicar in his native Australia and in England. This weekend he will experience his life come full circle as he hosts both Pope Benedict XVI and the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams. The two religious leaders will pray Vespers together to mark the 1,000th anniversary of the monastic Camaldolese Order, which has overseen San Gregorio since the mid 1500s. The thought of living ones own ecclesial tradition in a different context and celebrating what is rich in both is reflected in this whole celebration, said Fr. Hughes. He believes this weekends events signify the deepest desire of the Pope and the Anglican leader to move towards a comThis is the third time that a Pope has met with the Archbishop of Canterbury in the house of Gregory the Great, Fr. Hughes explained. So, this connection with the English, this connection with Canterbury is fundamental to the celebration. In recent years, the search for unity has been made more difficult as many Anglican churches have liberalized their stance on moral issues, such as homosexuality. An internal report published last year also suggested that the rate of decline among Anglican congregations is so severe that the Church of England could be functionally extant or effectively dead in 20 years. But Fr. Hughes is still hopeful for Christian unity. Were always searching for expressions of Gods will. I think the desire for unity is as strong as ever. I think we need to look for ways in which we can stimulate our progress, he said. This weekend is a way of saying, this is another step on the way, another way of lifting our spirits and saying this is still something to hope for and this is still something to work for concretely. (CNA)

www.catholicnewsagency.com

The Vaticans top diplomat to the United Nations refugee agency told a conference in Rome that despite its challenges, migration is ultimately beneficial to everyone involved. In the long run migration has proven to be a benefit for both the countries of arrival and the countries of origin and, above all, for most of the migrants, Archbishop Silvano M. Tomasi, the Holy Sees Permanent Representative to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, told CNA. Archbishop Tomasi was speaking at a March 8 conference in Rome entitled Building Bridges of Opportunity: Migration and Diversity organized by the US Embassy to the Holy See and hosted by the Pontifical North American College. (CNA)

Anglican Archbishop Rowan Williams and Pope Benedict XVI

Thousands attend Bishops funeral

KHUNTI, India, March 5, 2012More than 10,000 people yesterday attended the funeral of Bishop Stephen M Tiru of Khunti in Jharkhand. The 74-year-old bishop died the previous day at his residence in Khunti. Cardinal Telesphore P Toppo, head of the Catholic Church in Jharkhand who joined the seminary with Bishop Tiru, led the funeral services, assisted by 11 bishops and more than 500 priests. The cardinal said illness had forced his seminary companion to lead a very painful life for many years, but he never let his problem affect his dealing with people. A message of condolence from Pope Benedict XVI was read at the three-hour funeral service. (UCAN)

munion which symbolically, structurally, sacramentally, institutionally can finally reach its consummation. The venue of San Gregorio monastery comes with added significance for English Christians. In the late 6th century Pope Gregory the Great dispatched St. Augustine from the monastery to convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity, thus making them not Angles, but Angels. St. Gregory actually built the monastery on the site of his family home.

Against abortion, for life: Vietnamese Catholics mark International Womens Day
HO CHI MINH City, Vietnam, March 9, 2012For Vietnamese Catholics, International Womens Day (8 March) provided an opportunity to reiterate the nonnegotiable values of human life, from conception, and to renew the fight against abortion. Recently, the Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Committee launched a family planning campaign (similar to those in other Asian nations) to encourage poor and young women to end their pregnancy in exchange for US$ 50 and health care insurance. However, in schools, offices and families, International Womens Day was used to promote traditional values and culture, listen to Bible readings and remember that God created human beings as males and females, with equal dignity to complete one another. In todays Vietnam, men still rule. Women are relegated to marginal roles, often discriminated, victims of violence and abuse behind the walls of home. The countrys pervasive socialist culture has led to a moral collapse, and values have imploded, especially among young people who are the first victims of the omnipresent materialism. The latter leads youth to live and work under a rigid political ideology whose ultimate goal current five-year plan (20112015), which aims at imposing population controls, includes the possibility of going to hospital for sterilisation in exchange for US$ 50 and a two-year free health care card. Such policies lead young women to kill their foetus for money. For every 100 live births, 75 have no chance to come into this world because they are unwanted. A recent survey shows that 51 per cent of students and young people who live in the cities are in favour of abortion. Many also think that it is normal for young men and women to live together before marriage. For many, it is acceptable that teenage girls have legal abortions. Figures from local health agencies indicate that each 1,400,000 abortions are performed. That includes 500,000 among women under the age of 18. According to the most recent data (2009), Vietnam has a population of 85,789,573, 43,307,024 of whom are women. Some 25,374,262 or 29.6 per cent live in cities; the rest, 70.4 per cent, live in the rural areas, which are often poor and backward. The fertility rate is 19.58 per 1,000 women. The infant mortality rate is 29.88 per 1,000. (AsiaNews)

is the accumulation of wealth, as confirmed by professors, sociologists and educators. To deal with social problems, the government and the education system need to have programmes of sex education that promote human dignity, said Maria H. T.,

a catechist in Ho Chi Minh City. On behalf of the Catholic Church in Vietnam, we must talk with teens and parents that abortion is murder and a felony In the former Saigon, Catholics are against the governments family planning policies. The

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Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

News Features

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Youth need Catholic vision of sexuality, Pope tells American bishops

Pope: each confession helps the new evangelization

VATICAN City, March 9, 2012Confession and true conversion of peoples hearts is the motor of all reform and an authentic force for evangelization, Pope Benedict XVI told a gathering of priests and deacons March 9. The Pope reflected on confession in an address to 1,300 participants in the Apostolic Penitentiarys annual course on the internal forum, a technical term for the area of personal conscience and judgment in the priestpenitent relationship. In a novel speech, he connected the New Evangelization and confession, saying that the effort to spread the Gospel draws life from the sanctity of the sons and daughters of the Church, from the daily process of individual and community conversion, conforming itself ever more profoundly to Christ. Thus each confession, from which each Christian will emerge renewed, will represent a step forward for new evangelization. Priests are also able to become collaborators in the New Evangelization by hearing confessions, the Pope said. They have as many possible new beginnings as sinners they encounter, he noted, because those who truly experience the mercy of Christ in confession will become credible witnesses of sanctity. Pope Benedict also reflected on what happens spiritually during the sacrament of confession. The repentant sinner is justified, forgiven and sanctified, thanks to the divine mercy, which is the only adequate response to humankinds need for the infinite, he said. The forgiveness of sins has a direct impact on efforts to spread the Gospel, he explained, pointing out that only those who allow themselves to be profoundly renewed by divine grace can internalize and therefore announce the novelty of the Gospel. The Pope also had some words for priests who hear confessions. He stressed the importance of spiritual and canonical preparation, and reminded them that priests must be the first to renew an awareness of themselves as sinners who need sacramental forgiveness to renew their encounter with Christ. He finished his talk by urging his fellow priests to always make novelty of Christ the focus of their priestly lives so that others will see Christ in them. (CNA/EWTN News)

VATICAN City, March 9, 2012In an address that tackled attempts to redefine marriage, Pope Benedict XVI challenged the bishops of the United States to teach young people an authentic Catholic vision of sex and love. The richness of this vision is more sound and appealing than the permissive ideologies exalted in some quarters; these in fact constitute a powerful and destructive form of countercatechesis for the young, he said March 9. The Pope was addressing the bishops of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. They are currently in Rome as part of their ad limina visit, which involves discussing the health of their dioceses with Pope Benedict and various Vatican departments, as well as making a pilgrimage to the tombs of Sts. Peter and Paul. Young people need to encounter the Churchs teaching in its integrity, challenging and counter-cultural as that teaching may be, he told the bishops. Children must see this vision embodied by faithful married couples who bear convincing witness to its truth, but the wider Church also has to give them support as they struggle to make wise choices at a difficult and confusing time in their lives, the Pope said. The Pope focused his audience remarks on outlining the roots of the contemporary crisis of marriage and the family. This crisis is evident, he said, in the weakened appreciation of the indissolubility of the marriage covenant and the widespread rejection of a responsible, mature sexual ethic grounded in the practice of chastity. He noted that these decisions have led to grave societal problems bearing an immense human and economic cost. The Pope dealt first with the threat posed by attempts to legally redefine marriage. He recognized that drive to redefine marriage was being pushed by powerful political and cultural currents, which require a conscientious effort to resist this pressure. This has to be done, he said, with a reasoned defense of marriage as a natural institution consisting of a specific communion of persons, essentially rooted in the complementarity of the sexes and oriented to procreation. Sexual differences cannot be dismissed as irrelevant to the definition of marriage, he

said. This is why defending the institution of marriage is ultimately a question of justice, since it entails safeguarding the good of the entire human community and the rights of parents and children alike, said the Pope. Later this year, voters in Minnesota will accept or reject a constitutional amendment that defines marriage as only a union of one man and one woman. Pope Benedict then addressed how the Christian vision of sex and love is taught to the young. He said the bishops must acknowledge deficiencies in the catechesis of recent decades. This inadequate teaching has often failed to communicate the rich heritage of Catholic teaching on marriage as a natural institution elevated by Christ to the dignity of a sacrament, as well as the vocation of Christian spouses in society and in the Church, and the practice of marital chastity. He called for better instruction of both the young and those preparing for marriage, with programs based upon the Catechism of the Catholic Church. These should also address the serious pastoral problem presented by the widespread practice of cohabitation, often by couples who seem unaware that it is gravely sinful, not to mention damaging to the stability of society. All Catholic family agencies should also give support and reach out to those who are divorced, separated, single parents, teenage mothers, women considering abortion, as well as children suffering due to family breakdown. The Pope identified an urgent need for Christians to recover an appreciation of the virtue of chastity which, he reminded the bishops, is defined in the Catechism as an apprenticeship in self-mastery which is a training in human freedom. Fundamentally, he said, the Christian understanding of sexuality is a source of genuine freedom, happiness and the fulfillment of our fundamental and innate human vocation to love. He concluded by telling the bishops that children have a fundamental right to grow up with an understanding of sexuality and its proper place in human relationships. (CNA/ EWTN News)

Raymond Bandril / CBCPMedia

Recognizing gay unions devalues marriage, official tells UN council

VATICAN City, March 9, 2012The Catholic Church condemns violence and discrimination against homosexual persons, but recognizing same-sex unions as a marriage devalues the unique identity and social contributions of the union of aman and a woman, a Vatican official told the U.N. Human Rights Council. Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, Vatican observer at U.N. agencies in Geneva, told the council March 9 that the Vatican "condemns discrimination and violence against any human person, including those who are so targeted because of perceived sexual differences." The Human Rights Council was discussing a report on "Discriminatory Laws and Practices and Acts of Violence against Individuals Based on their Sexual Orientation." While the report noted international law does not require states to recognize same-sex unions, Archbishop Tomasi said Navi Pillay, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, proposed that states have an obligation to "ensure that unmarried same-sex couples are treated in the same way and entitled to the same benefits as unmarried opposite-sex couples." The archbishop said, "The Holy See expresses grave concern that, under the guise of 'protecting' people from discrimination and violence on the basis of perceived sexual differences, this council may be running the rise of demeaning the sacred and time-honored legal institution of marriage between man and woman." Traditional marriage has "enjoyed special protection from time immemorial within legal, cultural and religious traditions and within the modern human rights instruments, starting with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights," he said. Marriage was afforded special recognition because the relationship between a man and woman, who commit to staying together for life and are open to having and raising children, benefits all the individuals involved, and "makes a unique and essential contribution to the public good," the archbishop said. Marriage "provides the best conditions for raising children; namely, the stable, loving relationship of a mother and a father," he said. Discrimination and violence against homosexuals or any other group of people violates internationally recognized human rights laws, he said, and acts of discrimination and violence should be punished by local or national authorities. However, he said, the Vatican opposes efforts to "define new categories" of persons requiring special protection under international human rights laws. The right to life, liberty and security "should and must be universally respected and enjoyed," he said. "Efforts to particularize or to develop special rights for special groups of people could easily put at risk the universality of those rights." (CNS)

Groups conduct fact-finding mission in Hacienda Luisita

MANILA, March 10, 2012Different causeoriented groups will go to the Hacienda Luisita today to conduct a fact-finding mission to investigate the current situation there, amid reports of militarization and harassments against the farmers by military and private security groups deployed there. In a statement, the Alyansa ng mga Manggagawang Bukid sa Asyenda Luisita (Ambala) said that the Alyansa ng mga Magbubukid sa Gitnang Luson, Karapatan, Unyon ng mga Manggagawa sa Agrikultura, Luisita Peasants and Peoples Alliance, and other organizations will join the fact-finding mission that covers the barangays (villages) of Balete, Mapalacsiao, Lourdes, Cutcut and Asturias in Tarlac City; Motrico and Bantog in La Paz; and Mabilog, Pando, and Parang all in Concepcion. Ambala chair Felix Nacpil Jr., meanwhile urged the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police and other paramilitary groups to withdraw its forces deployed in the hacienda and stop harassing the people there, since they are legitimate owners of the land, in pursuance to the November 2011 decision of the Supreme Court. Earlier, Ambala and other concerned organizations had filed a petition before the Supreme Court to finally resolve the issues in the Hacienda and let the tillers have their share. However, the Hacienda Luisita, Inc. management had been pushing for the reverse of the decision. Although the HLI said that they would respect whatever be the decision of the Court and the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), they are also demanding P10 billion (US$235,294,117.65) as compensation for the 6,000-hectare sugar estate. CBCP-NASSA [Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines-National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace] chief and Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo earlier had issued a statement, saying that the P10 billion compensation the Cojuangcos are asking for the hacienda is totally unfair. The struggle of the farmworkers in the Cojuangco-controlled hacienda has been bloody, ever since. In November 16, 2004, at least 14 farmworkers were killed and several others were wounded when the State forces allegedly fired against the rallying workers. During the height of the anti-insurgency campaign by the former Gloria MacapagalArroyo government, several farmworkerleaders from the hacienda had been felled down, allegedly due to their fight for the ownership of the lands of the disputed hacienda. Marcelino Beltran, chairperson of Alyansa ng mga Magbubukid sa Tarlak (AMT) and vice-chairperson of AMGL, Tarlac City councilor Abel Ladera; Philippine Independent Church Bishop Alberto Ramento and priest William Tadea; ULWU leader Tirso Cruz, Bayan Muna leader Victor Concepcion, were killed by alleged military and paramilitary forces. In the report of United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, Philip Alston had positively identified the military as the brain behind the killings of activists, actively criticizing the socioeconomic and sociopolitical policies of the former administration. There are overwhelming reasons why the military should be pulled out of Hacienda Luisita, farmworkers who are legitimately and morally upholding their rights to land are usual targets of rights abuses and it would continue unless they are out of the hacienda, Ambala leader said. (Noel Sales Barcelona/CBCPNews)

RH bill will only burden, not help Filipinosanti-RH

MANILA, March 4, 2012Proponents of the reproductive health (RH) bill base the controversial piece of legislation on wrong premises that tend to burden not genuinely aid Filipinos, according to those who reject the measure. One of the basic ideas that have come up in Congress debates and in news reports is the unmet need for contraception, which bill sponsors and supporters have claimed exists and which would justify the RH bill being made a top priority. Unmet needs should apply to basic deprivation and not to contraception. Unmet needs for decent shelter, food, education. Unmet need for protection against floods. Unmet need for decent jobs, justice, equal protection, real basic health care, and so on, Willy Jose, a Human Resources manager, pointed out. Jose explained that rather than taxpayers money going into the delivery of such basic services which Filipinos are in dire need of, billions of pesos would be poured into financing bedroom-related activities and their consequences. Safe? Satisfying? Selfish? In effect, they want taxpayers to subsidize the irresponsible satisfaction of uncontrolled sexual urges. Certainly that is not the duty of the State, but they want us to believe otherwise. The right to a safe and satisfying sex life is an invention of the UNFPA, which carries with it an implicit right to have access to contraceptives. The RH bill authors lapped it up, he continued. For them, access means not only allowing but advocating and subsidizing these by force of law. This right is fictitious. For if it really were a human right to be given contraceptives or contraceptive sterilization, it would follow that anyone who refused to provide them would be guilty of a human rights violation. There is no principled basis for this, as authentic human rights claim no exception. Selfish has been the description given by some uninformed RH advocates to the refusal to shoulder expenses by way of taxesfor other peoples use of contraceptives, for the distribution of such birth control supplies, and for programs that work to instruct even the youth on how to achieve a safe and satisfying sex life. Would this conviction be selfish? Its not selfish because its about something thats morally wrong, so why give your money (to pay for it)? What if a poor person whos a gambling addict approaches you and asks for moneyif you dont give him money, does that make you selfish? said writer Nicole Bautista. The RH = development delusion Regardless of values formation and issues of choice (or the lack thereof), the RH bill, some pro-free birth control Filipinos say, ought to be passed immediately because numerous Western and developed nations have their own RH laws already. Essentially, they see the Philippines as lagging behind, RH legislation as jumpstarting the countrys advancement, and thereby vital in catching up with the rest of the world. I guess if advancing means being open to pole dancing kits for kids, Plan B vending machines in the school campus, and tax money going to abortion mills, then I guess we really are behind. But honestly, I dont want that kind of advancement because I dont want to live in a country that insists I have to use a condom to be called responsible. Last time I checked, responsibility builds character, Bautista stated. Distributing contraceptives and making them available to just anybody, regardless of age and status, is counterproductive. We have countries that have adapted this method, such as the United States, to prove that. They have provided free contraceptives and medical care to the youth, and this has just encouraged promiscuity and as a result, countless unwanted, out-of-marriage and teenage pregnancies occur, observed photographer Karen Ilagan. Abortion clinics generate millions of dollars each year, she added. People have now become so desensitized and are now killing their unborn children just because they are found to have birth defects or just because there is a big chance that they might be born with defects. Is this the future we want for the Philippines? (CBCP for Life)

FILE PHOTO

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EDITORIAL

Opinion
The man who loved the clergy

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

HE lived the fullness of his priesthood to proclaim the greatness of Him who has called him out of the darkness into His marvelous light. A priest for 65.8 years, a bishop for 43.8 years, and a cardinal for 20.7 years, His Eminence Jose Tomas Cardinal Sanchez, Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for the Clergy, went home to God from his retirement home at the Dominican Daughters of the Immaculate Mother in Fairview, Diocese of Novaliches, on the early morning of Friday, 9th of March 2012. He would have turned 92 a few days later, on the 17th of March. He was laid to rest on Monday, the 12th of March, inside the crypt of the Good Shepherd Cathedral in Fairview, where he had been saying the five oclock Sunday afternoon mass regularly since he returned from Rome until he was taken ill. His Eminence Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, Archbishop Emeritus of Cebu, presided over the funeral mass, with Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto, the Apostolic Nuncio, and some thirty or so archbishops and bishops and hundreds of priests from the various dioceses concelebrating. People from all walks of life from the Bicol region, where he was born and first served as a priest and bishop, and from the Dioceses of Lucena and Nueva Segovia, where he was assigned later, came in droves to pay their last respects to their beloved cardinal. In his homily, Cardinal Vidal said his brother-cardinal spent his life trying to live Gods will in every way. From the youth of his priesthood, he loved to pray, Teach me to do Thy Will, so when he became a bishop he inscribed that motto on his episcopal coat of arms, and never looked back. Along with the fullness of faith and docility he prayed for, God rewarded him with honors he never sought. In 1985, after helping the Holy Father, Blessed John Paul II, with some of his speeches on his first pastoral visit to the Philippines, the Bicolano prelate, then Archbishop of Nueva Segovia, was called to Rome to become Secretary of Propaganda Fide, or the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. In 1991, the Pope elevated him to the rank of cardinal and made him Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, and president of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See. The first position put him theoretically in charge of the ministry of all the priests in the world. In 1994, he put out the landmark document, Directory on the Ministry and Life of Priests. He retired as prefect in 1996, but was appointed CardinalPriest of San Pio V a Villa Carpegna, and continued to perform special assignments for Pope Benedict XVI. Finally he came home to Manila in 2010 to spend his final days helping in the fight against the anti-life and anti-family scourge, which has destroyed the European family and caused the dechristianization of Europe. He loved the Church, the family and the priesthood so deeply that until the very end his thoughts and words were abouthow Catholics could live their faith as the Church wants them to; how the Filipino family could be saved from the European scourge; how more young men and women could be attracted to the dignity and beauty of the priesthood and the consecrated life. He so identified himself with the suffering and passion of our Lord that many times during Mass, which he always celebrated with great solemnity, his eyes would fill with tears, his voice crack and tremble, as he pronounced the words of consecration and he would have to pause long and hard to regain control of his emotions before he could go on. The Filipino nation tried to claim him for itself, but he was really Gods own.

Bp. Leonardo Y. Medroso, JCD, DD

Tidbits
LENTEN Season is here again. It is a sacred time cherished by the Church for it opens up to her members the opportunity to connect their lives with Christ who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. To go through the variegated religious practices lined up by the Church during these days of Lent is the way to personally encounter Christ, pray to Him, engage Him in a heart-to-heart talk, perhaps, wrestle with Him, and hopefully end up surrendering with that deep feeling that peace of soul has been achieved. Hence, it is not true that the Catholic Church sets aside the forty days of the Season of Lent in order to make people who are happy unhappy; that she is a big killjoy damping an otherwise bright atmosphere with a suffocating air of sober and serious practices of strict penances, long drawn prayers, fasting and abstinence. The Church knows full well that no amount of human effort can erase the gnawing and peren-

Lenten Season 2012

along with the congregation mumbling it, we are actually proclaiming the very core of our Christian faith. It is called the Paschal mystery of Christs cross and Resurrection, the center of the Good News that the Church proclaims to the whole world. All the religious activities, the penances, prayers and works of love and compassion, the liturgical celebrations and private devotions that lead to discipline and self-mastery, connected with the Season of Lent are all about Christ and His Passover. For it is only through our identification with Christ crucified can we participate in the redemption as planned by God. To avail of this life that Jesus merited for us we have to be incorporated to Him, undertake the Paschal journey with Him, suffer with Him, die with Him, and be transformed into His likeness, the pleasing Son of the Father. How are we to be incorTidbits / A6

nial questions of suffering and death from mans consciousness; that they are there forever haunting and gnawing the soul of her faithful. The Season of Lent is meant to lead us to Christ. For only He, has effectively grappled with the stark realities of suffering and death of His existence and effectively transformed it into a new life. Hence, He alone can truly helped man to effectively face these existential problems. Christ is the center of the Church, and central to Him is the Paschal Mystery, his willing acceptance of his suffering, death, and thereby transforming it with the Resurrection. As He Himself declared: Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains but a single grain; but if it dies it yields a rich harvest (Jn 12:24). When in the Mass we sing full-throated the phrase Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again, or, in a drawl of one whose mind is not entirely there we tag

Abused and harassed

ABUSE and harassment often go hand in hand in violent situations. In my work with physically and sexually abused girls and women, one of the pains experienced by the victim and her family is not only the acts of abuse but the harassment that follows for many days, weeks or even months. Observers often wonder why the victim, better referred to as the survivor, did not inform anyone of the abuse immediately after the incident. In fact, abuse could have been repeated over and over again until by some moment of luck, or grace of God (as some would put it), something happens that makes them finally disclose. Listening to their story helps one to understand what depths of fear, shame and even guilt they undergo, thus preventing them from reporting sooner. Girls especially, blame themselves for the incident, plus helplessness and fear, keep them from shouting or reporting. Imagine how a twelve year old is trembling in fear under the huge body of the abuser, her mouth muzzled, a knife or gun by his side, and roughly undressing her while threatening to kill her family if she squeals. Mary Joy, 15 years old, was just an observer. She was with her friends in a drinking session. She claimed she just had a couple of gulps but the other teens were really downing the bottles of gin and beer. One of her classmates was dragged by four boys to the next room. She heard her protest, then

Sr. Mary Pilar Verzosa, RGS

Integrity of Creation
A TRUE and just development must fundamentally be concerned with a passionate care of our earth and our environment. Fishing, mining, and logging contribute enormously to the national coffers but when done with inadequate safeguards for ecological integrity, moral issues are involved. Our natural resources are not to be exploited as though they were inexhaustible. Destruction can be irreparable and irreversible. Much environmental destruction may be attributed to the survival needs of the poor, as in slash and burn upland agriculture and dynamite fishing. But the greater sin against the integrity of Gods creation must be placed at the doorstep of those who with impunity caused the pollution of rivers, seas and lakes by industrial waste and who profit systematically destroy our forest down to the point of unrenewability. Because the integrity of Gods creation is violated, our people suffer the destruction brought about by droughts and floods. Those disasters cannot be traced merely to the uncontrollable powers of nature, but also to human greed for short term economic gain. The physical limitations of our natural resources imply a moral demand, the duty of responsible dominion over nature. The sovereignty granted to us by the Creator is not a license to misuse Gods creation. We are but stewards of creation, not its absolute master. And stewards are accountable to the Creator and giver of all good things. (Acts of the Council, nos. 321-324) --Acts and Decrees of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines, 1991

Love Life
whimper, then some punching sounds until all was quiet. Much later, as she sat in fear wondering what to do, the boys came out of the room one by one with sneers in their faces. Lastly, her friend came out looking dazed and pained. She accompanied her home and informed her parents what had happened. They then all trooped to the Barangay police to report. The boys could not be put in detention as they are all minorsbelow 18 years old. The days that followed were nightmare for her, for her friend, and their families. The boys happened to be children of the Barangay Captain or Tanods who, instead of disciplining their sons, started to harass them to take back their report as if nothing happened! The only thing that the police could do after writing the incident in the blotter was to instruct them to go to the Child Protection Unit of Philippines General Hospital for assistance. The social workers of CPUPGH then assisted them to undergo medical examinations, then placed Mary Joy and her friend into different shelters for safety. Mary Joy was a good high school student. She excelled in academics and sports. But all that was placed on hold while waiting for the processing of the Detention of the perpetrators as what they did was a major crime. But because the social worker in their area was also being harassed, she could not get the proper data in order to
Love Life / A5

Fr. James H. Kroeger, MM

Living Mission
Vatican II Perspectives
GIOVANNI Battista Montini was elected pope on June 21, 1963. He took the name Paul, because of his desire to pattern his pontificate after the Apostle Paul. He continued the Second Vatican Council and served as supreme pontiff for 15 years (1963-1978), laboring tirelessly to implement the vision and mandates of Vatican II. When the second session of Vatican II convened on September 29, 1963, Paul VI named four priorities for the Council: a better understanding of the nature and mission of the Church, continued reforms within the Church, advancement of Christian unity, and better dialogue with the world. Paul VI issued his first encyclical, Ecclesiam Suam [Paths of the Church] in 1964. He asserted that to understand the Church one has to explore and mediate upon its origin, nature, mission, and final destiny. Over half of the encyclical deals with the topic of dialogue, which Paul VI compared to four concentric circles. Thus, to be Church in the contemporary world, the Church must be in dialogue with

Pope Paul VI Servant of Renewal and Mission

politics, economics, culture, religionall dimensions of human life. Based on Vatican II, Paul VI asserts that the task of evangelizing all people constitutes the essential mission of the Church. Evangelization is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity. She exists in order to evangelize (EN 14). Church historians regard Paul VI favorably, especially for the deft manner in which he guided the Council-inspired renewal of the Church. Paul VI named Mary Mother of the Church during the Council; he also gave Mary the title Star of Evangelization (EN 82). Paul VI emphasized the importance of authentic joy in the Christian life, composing an exhortation on Christian Joy (Gaudete in Domino) in 1975. He asserted that if people do not receive the Christian message from joyful evangelizers, they will probably not receive the message at all. Paul VI, Gods faithful servant, died on August 6, 1978, the Feast of the Transfiguration.

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itself, other Christians, other believers, and with all people of good will. Paul VI believed that this multi-faceted engagement was, in fact, a dialogue of salvation. He established a new department in the Vatican on Pentecost 1964: the Secretariat for NonChristians (renamed in 1988 as the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue). As a missionary pope, Paul VI continuously focused on spreading Christs message worldwide. He was the first pope to travel by airplane, visiting all the inhabited continents: Africa, America, Asia, and Oceania. He came to Manila in November 1970, meeting with 180 Asian bishops, a gathering which laid the foundations for the emergence of the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences (FABC). Paul VI is fondly remembered for his 1975 inspirational mission document Evangelii Nuntiandi, Evangelization in the Modern World. He describes evangelization as bringing the Gospel into all strata of humanity (EN 18). Thus, the transforming power of the Gospel is to reach the areas of social life,

Illustration by Bladimer Usi

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

Opinion
Removing Lady Justices blindfold
drastically. They have to be animated by a proper spirit of truth, justice and charity, not inert or dead. This means that those in charge of dispensing justice should be spiritually alive and connected with God. Otherwise, they would be unhinged and can become like a floating mine, dangerous to any passing ship. Its for this reason that Lady Justice also has to learn to remove the blindfold, so she can see, hear and talk to God and the parties involved. Its important that she has a running conversation with all the parties involved. She should not get stuck with a fact in the past. She has to flow with life in its variety of possibilities. What we have to avoid is to dispense justice indiscriminately, relying only on a blind conformity to the letter of the law without discerning its true spirit. We have to be wary of this tendency because there seems to be a strong drift toward it, a growing bias for it. With the eyes of Lady Justice wide open, those in charge of dispensing justice can serve as instruments of Gods justice, and not just human justice, that aside from being imperfect, is vulnerable to be easily manipulated by those with more power, more money, more talents. We cannot really guarantee the objectivity and impartiality of justice by having Lady Justice blindfolded and using only a balance scale and a double-edge sword. A lot more are needed. There is need for Lady Justice to know how to dispense justice with charity and mercy and with healing qualities, and to protect justice from becoming merely an instrument for anger and revenge. Lady Justice has to expand the understanding of justice by going beyond her distributive, commutative, legal and social aspects. Justice has to be the justice of God, because that in the end is what is proper to us who are Gods image and likeness, and made children of his. That may not be easy to achieve, but we can always try. We should use everything we have to reach it. We should avoid confining our understanding of justice to a secularized, positivist kind, where God is taken out of the picture and only human consensus is considered.

A5
Rev. Eutiquio Euly B. Belizar, Jr., SThD

Fr. Roy Cimagala

Candidly Speaking
I CAN understand why Lady Justice is depicted as blindfolded, holding a balance scale and a sword. The idea is to portray justice as objective and impartial (blindfold), able to weigh the arguments and pieces of evidence from both parties (scale), always using reason and sense of justice to carry out her duty (doubleedged sword). For all those reasons, I am for Lady Justice blindfolded and all. They all have a place in the sun. We always have to respect, protect and defend these reasons. But we also have to understand that those reasons are in constant need of rectification and improvement, of refinement and growing conformity to the ultimate basis of justice who is God. Though embodied in some system, they cannot be considered as frozen and rigid. They have to be in vital sync with Gods providence. The balance scale can only weigh things mechanically. It can miss many subtle things, let alone the spiritual requirements of justice and charity. Our reason and a certain sense of justice are always in need of its ultimate grounding and orientation. They cannot really take off unless inspired by God. Without God they will just go in circles and are prone to be taken advantage of. Justice cannot be real justice if it just gets stuck with our own idea alone of what is right and wrong, good and bad, true and false. No matter how wide a consensus we may have about what is just and unjust, if our idea and sense of justice is not vitally linked to God, we would just be making our own brand of justice, open to all kinds of manipulations and the subtle workings of selfrighteousness. Apart from God, the Creator and Author of all reality, we would be at sea as to what is right and fair. We would put ourselves prone to distortions and abuses that can come from our passions and many other factors, like some privileged position we may have over others. Our sense of justice has to flow with Gods mind, will and ways. Obviously, we need structures and systems to carry out justice. But those structures and systems should be such that they remain open to Gods promptings and to the flowing developments of the case that can change the picture

By the Roadside A familys dirty linen, a countrys pain

AN environmentalist once counseled his audience on efforts to protect the eco-system: Think global. Act local. But we could also reverse this mindset model when we look at ourselves as a people. I suggest this: See family. Think country. One of the offshoots of the ongoing impeachment trial of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court has something to do with revelations about his wifes not-so-flattering role in regard to a family corporation whose top leadership position she now holds. An aunt who is a nun and a daughter of the nuns deceased brother have alleged that the CJs wife took over the family corporation without giving its members accountability as well as their just share in the corporations income and assets. Naturally, the CJs wife denied the charge, among others. Its easy to dismiss this story as a case of their word against hers. Im writing about this subject not because I share or savor the tabloid interest its been getting in our national media lately. My interest is in what it says about many Filipino families and about the country itself. The main allegations against the CJs wife still need to be proven true. But the allegations themselves are a window to realities in the country. In fact, they brought me back to when I received a crying lady into the rectory sala of my former parish. For full two hours she poured herself out to me and mainly on her uncles dastardly deed of grabbing her deceased mothers and another deceased uncles shares of their land and other family properties, and claiming them as his, complete with titles and other pertinent documents. Part of me said, This sounds like the book Some Are Smarter Than Others. Another part of me rebutted my initial reaction, No. It simply illustrates the observation Some are greedier than others. I wonder, and so must we all, how many times the injustices we cause on other members of our families are replicated all over the country. The fact is, a grossly huge portion of our population, roughly between eighty-five to ninety percent, is still living in abject poverty while only ten percent wallows in a scandalously enormous amount of wealth and power (that goes with it). So many of our countrymen, as we all notice far too many times, are too poor to live according to their dignity while so few insult their own dignity by having so much in sharp contrast to the destitution of the many. A disconcerting part of the story is how religion, more often than not, amounts to merely a small factor in the landscape. The uncle the crying lady complained to me about in the rectory happened to be a pious church-goer, even a frequent communicant. Didnt we also witness the CJ and his wife figuring prominently in religious services organized on behalf of the magistrate? Add to that a consideration of the high end Catholic education she and the CJ as well as their kind have received throughout their lives. Lest I be misunderstood, I dont subscribe to the view that Catholic education is futile. Perhaps other more pressing factors influence our elite and powerful more than their faith. But doesnt that show our tragedy as the only Christian country in Asia? We have no problem professing the faith. But when we are asked to live it as well, we look away for an exit. Or an excuse. We proudly beam the news of four Filipino tycoons that have made it to Fortunes wealthiest in the world. But we also shake our heads when we consider this against the background of real families in our neighborhoods and communities that have no food for the next meal nor roofs over their heads. Lent gently pushes us into a confrontation with the Cross of Jesus. Its this Cross that effectively welds together love of God (vertical beam) and love of neighbor (horizontal beam) that every Filipino must also achieve for the country to truly move forward. That is why, I said to a group of parishioners, the Cross is also a plus sign. It inextricably adds the love of neighbor to the love of God. And if we do so, it also adds into our mortal nature Gods eternal life. It is also the Cross of Jesus that teaches us that the Commandments are not simply about securing our relationship with God (first to the third, again the vertical beam) but also about doing justice to our neighbor, particularly our poor (fourth to the sixth, especially the one about not killing, not stealing and about not coveting our neighbors wife and goods). Lent is really a necessary ingredient of every familys and countrys redemption and that this is based solely on the Cross of Jesus Christ. Most of all, the love that Lent exposes to us is never possible without the self-emptying, the kenosis of Jesus on the Cross actively living in our every thought and act. I was struck by how a group of college and theology seminarians waxed eloquent when I asked them to recite the famous Philippians 2:5-11 passage we often encounter in the Liturgy of the Hours. Who among us doesnt know by heart the words, Though he was in the form of God, he did not deem equality with God something to be grasped at. Rather he emptied himself and took the form a slave being born in the likeness of men. He was known to be of human estate, and it was thus that he humbled himself, obediently accepting even death, death on a cross. Because of this God highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name above every other name (Phil 2:6-9). No self-emptying, no fullness of achievement. No Cross, no crown. How simple the message, we marvel. But the message is a set of words in search of deeds. Namely ours.
Love Life / A5

The necessity of prayer and meditation

IM just too busy with my work, I dont have time to pray. I really want to pray but when right time comes, I am just too exhausted to do it. Anyway, my work is my prayer. Or I have already gone to Mass and joined the community in reciting the Divine Office, so thats enough. These are the usual excuses of many priests, religious and lay people for failing to find time to pray and meditate alone. Yes, our work or ministry can be so demanding that it depletes our energy. We do so muchpreaching and teaching, conducting evangelization seminars, forming Basic Ecclesial Communities, caring for the sick, the poor and the needy, working for peace and justice, protecting the environment, etc. We get tired and feel the need to relax. So when we have free time we spend it watching TV or the movies, surfing the internet and checking our Facebook, or going out with friends for a drink or a good meal. We dont feel the need to pray or meditate. Besides reminding us of our responsibility to care for our neighbor in need and do penitential acts, the Lenten season is the time that we are invited to spend more time in prayer. We are called to follow the example of Christ who went out to the desert or up the mountain to pray in spite of his busy schedule preaching the Good News and responding to the needs of the poor, the sick, the hungry and possessed

Fr. Amado L. Picardal, CSsR, SThD

Along The Way

stress-relief. High-blood pressure can go down through regular meditation. In their book, Your Mind at its Best Doctors Biebel and Dill report: It has become an undisputed fact that prayer and meditation actually alter the brain in ways that promote physical, emotional, cognitive and relational health. Dr. Andrew Newberg also illustrates how spiritual practices like intense prayer and meditation improve memory, cognition, and compassion while suppressing undesirable responses like anger, depression and anxiety. Prayer and meditation activates the anterior cingulate of the brain that is identified with the capacity for empathy and compassion and which develops a sense of peace and comfort. Thus, if we want to be more effective and long-lasting in our work and ministry, we have to spend time in prayer and meditation. We should do this not only during Lent but as part of the rhythm of our life daily, weekly, monthly, and longer periods. Of course, we cannot spend our entire life on top of the mountain or in the desert. We need to continue our journey and mission, but we need to regularly spend time on top of the mountain. What is important is to integrate action and contemplation, praxis and prayer. This is what a holistic and integral spirituality is all about.

by evil. Well, there is actually no need to climb Mt. Apo or Mt. Banahaw or go to the arid and sandy hills of Ilocos. The desert and the mountain symbolize the time and space that we need to set aside for silence, solitude and prayer. We just have to find our own sacred space and time for this. Why is this necessary? Unless we find time for this, we will burn out. Without this, we cannot sustain our lifes journey, our ministry, our mission. We get exhausted, we deplete our energy. The TV, the movies, the internet and other forms of relaxation are not enough to revitalize or recharge us. It is during the time of solitude, silence, prayer and meditation that we are truly energized by the ultimate sourcethe Triune God. Thus, this keeps us in touch with the source of our energy, power and dynamism. The time we spend in prayer and meditation deepens our intimacy and friendship with Godwith the loving Father, with the risen Lord and with the Spirit that empowers us for mission. Besides the spiritual effect, it also benefits our body and mind. It even changes our brain according to some neuro-scientists who have done studies and experiments using functional MRI on those who pray and meditate (including Catholic nuns using Centering Prayer). We enter into state of relaxation and healing. It brings about

Atty. Aurora A. Santiago

Duc in Altum
I WAS really thinking what topic to discuss in this issue oil price increase, fare increase, rising unemployment, closure of business establishments, impeachment, coup d etat. Problems abound, but do we want to be part of the problems, or do we want to be the solution? After some reflections, I decided to talk about the Gift of Life, partly because March is my birthday month. If we would contemplate how lucky we are that we are alive, we may not only be able to solve the problems in our life but also inspire and extend Gods goodwill to others. *** I sincerely thank the Lord for the life that He has given me, for the courage that He has bestowed on me to follow His light, for His love that He always made me feel wherever I go, and for the person that He had made me become. With a grateful heart, I thank the Lord for my loving parents Gloria and Benito (may he rest in peace) who worked hard to raise me and my siblings to be strong and firm in our faith, to finish our studies and become all professional. I thank the Lord for my siblings for their love and care. I thank the Lord for my friends who are always around when I need them most. I thank the Lord for all the people who touched and continue to touch my life for they inspire me to go on with life. I thank the Lord for all the many blessings He has given me. *** Let me share what I read in one of the websites about Life being a gift. Life is a gift, so today: Before you think of saying an unkind word, think of someone who cant speak. Before you complain about the taste of your food, think of someone who has nothing to eat. Before you complain about your husband or wife, think of someone whos crying out to God for a companion. Before you complain about your life, think of someone who went early to heaven. Before you complain about your children, think of someone who desires children but is barren. Before you argue about your dirty house that someone didnt clean or sweep, think of the people who are living in the streets. Before whining about the distance you drive, think of someone who walks the same distance with his feet. And when you are tired and complain about your job, think of the unemployed, the disabled and those who wished they had your job. And before you think of pointing the finger or condemn-

Thank you Lord for Your gift of life to me

ing another, remember that not one of us is without sin and will answer to one Maker. And when depressing thoughts seem to get you down, try to put a smile on your face and thank God youre alive and still around. Life is a gift, enjoy it, celebrate it, and fulfill it. *** On the canonization of Blessed Pedro Calungsod on October 21, 2012, preparations are being done. This includes Catechesis about the life of Blessed Pedro, the Canonization in Rome and National Thanksgiving Mass in Cebu City and the Pilgrimage. There will be a Triduum in Rome from October 18 to 20 and Thanksgiving Mass on October 22. More updates in the coming issues. *** Congratulations to Sr. Pilar Verzosa, RGS, who received the Mystery of Life Award 2012 from Seoul Archbishop Nicholas Cardinal Cheong Jinsuk. She was cited for her outstanding achievements in the promotion of the dignity, care and defense of human life. Sr. Pilar is the founder of Pro-Life Philippines. *** Congratulations to my nephew Patrick Robby G. Santiago on his high school graduation at Claret School of Quezon City. Congratulations also to all 2012 graduates. Happy Sacerdotal and Episcopal Anniversary to Most Rev. Jesse Mercado, National Spiritual Director of Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas and Bishop of Paraaque, on March 19 and 31, respectively. March 06, 2012 was a very significant day for the three priests who touched my lifeit is their Silver Sacerdotal JubileeFr. Nestor Fajardo, Parish Priest of Sacred Heart of Jesus, Tugatog, Malabon City, Diocese of Kalookan; Fr. Anton C.T. Pascual, Radio Veritas President; and Monsignor Joselito Asis, CBCP Secretary-General. Happy 20th Sacerdotal Anniversary to our very understanding and generous Fr. Adrian Magnait, Chancellor and Moderato Curiae of the Diocese of Kalookan on March 14; greetings also on their 21st Sacerdotal Anniversary to Fr. Jerome Cruz, my Parish Priest in San Ildefonso de Navotas and Fr. Boyet Pedroso, Parish Priest of San Exequiel Moreno; greetings also to Fr. Constantino Conti, San Jose de Navotas Parish Priest, on his birthday and Sacerdotal Anniversary. Birthday greetings to my niece Raiza Elmira S. Imperial; also to Fr. Ruben Maybuena and Fr. Patrick Hiwatig, OP, of the Diocese of Kalookan; Marivic dela Paz, Annie Venzon and Paz de Leon of San Ildefonso Parish.

pin down the boys. The family of Mary Joy had to transfer location as soon as possible as the parents of the aggressors did not let up their threats around their house day and night. It was only the persistence of the mother of Mary Joy who would come to visit her regularly and bring her text books and test papers so she would not fail her third year that fostered the hope and lessened the anger of Mary Joy. Many months after, Mary Joy was able to return to her family who by then had found a location unknown to the abusers. The case has not been resolved as the boys are still at large. The story of Mary Joy is not an isolated case. We, Good Shepherd Sisters, have been helping girls and women in crisis for decades. And indeed, the pattern of abuse and harassment is repeated from one case to another.

So what can society do? Should we keep demanding from government to improve their police and justice system? What can we do to stop abuse and harassment in our neighborhood? How do we warn our youth that drinking leads to abuse? How do we assist parents face and protect themselves, especially their children, from this violence? Should there be more agencies, government and non-government, that will be available to help in the protection and healing of the survivors and their families? What is the role of the Church, the school and media in bringing Gods Words of Truth, Love, Justice and Courage to our people? Contact Pro-life Philippines hotline numbers for counseling and referral: 733-7027, 0919-233-7783, or life@prolife. org.ph

A6
THE P10 billion compensation that President Benigno Aquino IIIs family is allegedly demanding for the loss of the Hacienda Luisita is totally unfair, a Catholic bishop said. Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo said owners of the vast sugar estate do not even have the right to just compensation because the land should have been distributed to the farmers years ago. He said that a different case should be applied to the Hacienda Luisita even if the Constitution mandates the payment of just compensation as a result of the recent Supreme Court order. This is really an issue on social justice. This is not just an economic issue, stressed Pabillo, chairman of the National Secretariat for Social Action of

Local News
the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. In its Nov. 2011 ruling ordering the distribution of the property to the farmers, the SC assured the Hacienda Luisita Inc. of just compensation based on the lands value in 1989 of P40,000. Just compensation for the 4,335 hectares was calculated to a total of P173 million. So its totally unfair for the Cojuangco family to demand P10 billion for the distribution of the Hacienda Luisita to the farmers, Pabillo said. The bishop said the 40,000 per hectare land valuation was the same value which the HLI declared in 1989 when they applied for the approval of the stock distribution option (SDO). As such, he added, they should not be allowed to claim for a much higher valuation. Asking for P10 billion is like they dont really want the land to be distributed, said Pabillo. Theyve long benefited from it. Its about time that they let the poor people benefit from it also. The prelate was reacting to a claim by embattled Chief Justice Renato Corona that the impeachment case against him was triggered by the SC decision to distribute the Hacienda Luisita to the farmers. Corona added that he has opposed the hefty compensation to the Cojuangcos for the loss of their hacienda, thus starting moves to remove him from office. (CBCPNews)

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

P10B compensation for Luisita totally unfair

Hacienda Luisita farmers have held countless more rallies in the past, all pleading for the same thing: ownership of land.

CBCP encourages youth ministers to join teen sexuality workshop

THE CBCP Episcopal Commission on Youth (ECY) is inviting youth directors and ministers in the parishes, schools and organizations nationwide to attend the workshop on Teaching Teachers on Teen Sexuality Workshop being organized by ProLife Philippines. ECY executive secretary Fr. Conegundo Garganta urged diocesan youth directors, coordinators and leaders of member-organization of the Federation of National Youth Organization (FNYO) to participate
Leaders / A1

NYC calls for transparency in tuition fees

THE National Youth Commission (NYC) is calling the attention of schools, colleges and university for transparency and full disclosure in all tuition and other school fees being charged for the next school year. NYC Chairman Usec. Leon Flores III made the call on the reports that some schools are applying for tuition fee increases for the coming school year with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). Flores said that the process of increasing tuition fees requires proper consultation first before imposing it. He encouraged students to use their rights to join in discussions regarding tuition fee increase in their respective schools, colleges or
Condolences / A1

in the event scheduled on May 17 to 19 at the St. Joseph Retreat House in Sampaloc, Manila. Garganta together with the National Secretariat for Youth Apostolate (NSYA), trust that youth collaborators will strongly consider the invitation. Organizers on the other hand said that the training/ seminar aims to strengthen the ability of the participants to respond to the needs of todays teens with respect to issues on human sexuality, marriage, family planning and population

education according to the teachings of the Catholic Church. Furthermore, this years seminar is designed to further the participants knowledge and understanding of the problems of Aids in the country as well as to dissect the objectionable provisions of the RH bill like the mandatory sex education from grade 5 to 4th year high school, they said. Participants will be trained to implement training modules on teen sexuality packaged in the manual

titled Learning to Live and Love and will be provided updated supplementary activity and reading materials, they added. The seminar-workshop requires a fee of Php 1,500, inclusive of snacks, meals, handouts and certificate, from participants. For further inquiries, interested parties are advised to call telephone number 632 7377027, telefax number +632 7349425, mobile number +63 9192337783 or send email atlife@prolife.org. ph. (Jandel Posion)

universities. The call was made citing CHED Memorandum Order No. 03 series of 2012 which is Enhance policies, guidelines and procedures governing increases in tuition, and other school fees, Introduction of new fees, and for other purposes. It is also indicated in the CMO that the enforcement of the memorandum shall be on AY 2013 2014. Flores urged students to remain vigilant in monitoring tuition fee increases and other dubious fees implemented by their respective schools. We dont want to go over with what happened last year when dubious fees arises in order to gain kick backs from students, Flores said. (Jandel Posion)

ers representing the WCCs member churches including the Catholic Church and representatives of independent Pentecostal and Evangelical churches. According to him, it is expected to be one of the broadest international ecumenical gatherings in the Philippines. Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, WCC general secretary, is also scheduled to address the opening worship of the assembly aside from other ecumenical engagements. He is the second leader of the WCC to visit the Philippines in a decade. The event aims to come up with a mission statement that will address the current world situation, the NCCP said.
CEAP / A1

Since 1982, there had been only one official WCC position statement on mission and evangelism. This will be the first after three decades that such a review is being done, the NCCP added, which is very much called for as so much has changed since. Inspired by a passage from the book of JohnI have come so that they may have life, and may have it in all its fullness (John 10:10), this years CWME pre-assembly theme, Together towards Life: Called to live out the Hope in Christ, embodies what this ecumenical discernment hopes to achieve at the end of the gathering a renewed under-

standing and practice of mission and evangelism in changing landscapes. Linatoc said that the event will mark a new phase in ecumenism as delegates and participants also work together for the final draft of the WCCs new affirmation on mission and evangelism which will be presented before the coming WCC Assembly in Busan, South Korea, next year and is expected to gather about 1,000 world church leaders. It is a changing world after all and the rapid change that has affected the political and economic landscape of our world today makes the review of such landmark document all the more imperative, Linatoc said. (CBCPNews) dents of public high school, the cost of additional two years in basic education will be shouldered by the government. Parents oftentimes fail to realize that the additional two years in high school is cheaper compared to four years in college, he said. If students think they are ready to be an entrepreneur or to get employed, they can already do so right after graduating from high school. This means saving two years of college, he added. Government records reveal that at least 300 colleges and universities have sought permission from the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) to increase tuition in the coming school year. CHEd records also disclose that some 324 higher education institutions have reportedly implemented a 10-percent tuition increase last school year.

dained a priest at 26 years old. He was appointed auxiliary bishop of Caceres at age 47. On December 13, 1971, he was named Coadjutor Bishop of Lucena with the right of succession. He took over as ordinary of the diocese on September 25, 1976.
Jubilee / A1

On January 12, 1982, the late cardinal was named archbishop of Nueva Segovia, and three years later, on October 30, 1985, was appointed Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. The Vatican elevated

him to cardinal on June 28, 1991. He became part of the Roman Curia when Pope John Paul II appointed him prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy on July 1, 1991, a position he held until his retirement in 1996, at age 73. (CBCPNews)

the return of investment. But since Catholic schools are registered as non-stock and non-profit institutions, this percentage is also spent on the schools maintenance, Baaga said. Competitive incentive Baaga, who is also the president of Adamson University, said Catholic schools need to hike tuition rates primarily to keep their teachers, who are oftentimes lured to teach at public schools that give them higher salary and better benefits. Many teachers in private schools are going to the public schools because the government pays them better. Catholic schools keep their teachers by paying them better or competitive salaries, he added. The priest-academician also appealed to parents and students to understand why Catholic schools, colleges and universities are planning to hike tuition, saying these academes would not risk
Unborn / A1

losing their students if their tuition hike is unjustified. Baaga said schools generally suffer a five to 10 percent decrease in enrollment, especially during the second semester, not only due to tuition hike. Their reasons are well justified. They will not even think of raising their tuition without justification because every time they hike tuition, there is a risk of losing students and suffer a decrease in enrollment, he said. Cost of quality Baaga said that tuition hike for the next school year is inevitable because quality education is expensive, that is why he advised parents who cannot afford sending their children to Catholic schools to consider other options. Quality education is costly and it is up to the parents (to find alternatives). I say to them, you dont have to send your child directly

to college. You may send them to vocational training institutes and let them finish their college degrees later on, he added. He said the highly criticized governments K+12 basic education program is actually a form of relief to parents struggling to send their children to college. The Department of Education (DepEd) earlier said it would start implementing K+12 program in the incoming school year. Under the K+12 program, the countrys current 10-year basic education, covering six years of elementary and four years of high school, will be extended to 12 years six years of elementary, four years of junior high school (Grade 7 to 10), and two years of senior high school (Grade 11 to 12). Baaga said students on 11th and 12th senior years would be trained on entrepreneurship, employment and pre-college. For stu-

the grace, the 54-year-old archbishop said, adding that faith is another component to make a vibrant church. The Holy Spirit, he said, invites everyone to adhere to the Churchs teachings but individuals may refuse to accept the teachings. Tagle also said the Church offers sacraments for the faithful but the people may refuse them. But he added the Catholic faithful can never go wrong with the teachings offered by the Church. Meanwhile, Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo J. Cardinal Vidal, a former Auxiliary Bishop of Malolos, in his brief message during the Concelebrated Mass noted the deep faith of the Bulakenos. Cardinal Vidal had served in Malolos for two years as an auxiliary bishop. I extend my greetings to all of you who do not remember my brief
Survivors / A1

sojourn in Malolos knowing that your faith blows from the same faith that I encountered when I was part of your community, he said. The 81-year-old prelate also acknowledged the contributions of the missionaries, catechists and pastors of previous years for making Malolos diocese to what it is today. The Papal Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Guiseppe Pinto, Manila Archbishop Emeritus Gaudencio B. Cardinal Rosales, former Malolos Bishops Cirilo Almario and now Infanta Bishop Rolando Tria-Tirona, OCD, were among the other archbishops and bishops who attended the jubilee celebration. A suffragan of Manila, Malolos is now under the leadership of Bishop Jose Oliveros. (Melo M. Acua)

Paraguay and the Philippines were among the nations whose governments declared March 25 as a day dedicated to the celebration of the life of unborn children. In 2011, the Day of the Unborn
Tidbits / A4

was observed in Argentina, Guatemala, Chile, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Uruguay, Panama, Peru, Slovakia, Cuba, Austria, Philippines, and Romania. Though it continues to be closely tied

in with the Feast of the Annunciation, March 25 is now not only a Christian celebration, but also a celebration for all those who believe that every human being has the right to life. (CBCP for Life)

porated to Christ? The story of Nicodemus could give us a glimpse of the way we will be incorporated to the life of Christ. He was a knowledgeable man, a man who knew about God and His commandments. But with the spiritual stuff that he had in his brain, he was nagged by some questions that eventually brought him to Jesus. Before he even could state his question, our Lord told him: Unless a man is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

When Nicodemus intervened with this remark: How can a grown man be born? Can he go back into his mothers womb and be born again? Jesus replied: I tell you most solemnly, unless a man is born through water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God; what is born of the flesh is flesh; what is born of the Spirit is spirit (cf. Jn 3:1-6). The Sacrament of Baptism is the means whereby sinful man is incorporated into the suffering, death, and

resurrection of Jesus. From the day of our baptism, we share Christs death and Resurrection and start the wonderful journey of His disciples. Along this line Benedict XVI in his 2011 Lenten message said: Hence, Baptism is not a rite from the past, but the encounter with Christ, which informs the entire existence of the baptized, imparting divine life and calling for sincere conversion; initiated and supported by Grace, it permits the baptized to reach the adult stature of

Christ. The Season of Lent, then, is our journey towards the center of our faith: an encounter with Christ in his suffering, death, and Resurrection. It is for us a revisit to our original vocation to be holy in Christ. As St. Paul succinctly put it: You have been buried with him, when you were baptized; and by baptism, too you have been raised up with him through your belief in the power of God who raised him from the dead (Col 2: 12).

I am very happy to see all of you and talk with you. I am happy because you are all showing the resiliency and determination to recover from the devastation you all went through last December, Sieber said. Switzerland donated last December some 300,000 Swiss francs (about P14 million) to support the Philippine governments rehabilitation efforts for the victims of Sendong. Aside from the cash donation, the Swiss government through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation dispatched a team of water and sanitation experts to flood-ravaged areas in Cagayan de Oro and neighboring Iligan City. It is very impressive to see all of you here and the determination you have to rise above the situation and making something positive about a very bleak circumstance, Sieber said. Lillie, on the other hand, said that their visit was also an eye-opener for them and for other Europeans in the Philippines. If there is one lesson for us to learn as we visit here, it is that you are a resilient and happy people. Despite the disaster you all went through and despite the great sacrifice you made, you are all still smiling. That is something that we all can learn from you, he said. Canitoan Barangay Chairman Joshua Taboclaon and the climate refugees (typhoon victims) welcomed with open arms the dignitar-

ies and expressed gratefulness for the visit. We are very honored and privileged to be visited by the ambassadors, he said. Taboclaon expressed hope that Sieber, Lillie and Daniels visit will bring good luck and blessings to all of us here in the tent city. All the families here in the tent city are still picking up the pieces and putting it together to make a better life after Sendong, he added. After hobnobbing and talking for several minutes with the Sendong survivors at the tent city in Canitoan, Sieber, Lillie and Daniels paid a courtesy call to Archbishop Antonio J. Ledesma at his official residence. Ledesma then briefed them about the efforts of various government agencies, civil society organizations, academe and the Archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro to help the Sendong survivors. Daniels personally thanked Ledesma for his and the Churchs efforts at helping women, particularly mothers, through his Natural Family Planning advocacy. Ledesma is a staunch advocate of the natural methods of family planning. He has already written a book on it, a copy of which he gave each to Sieber, Lillie and Daniels. The Jesuit prelate also accompanied them when they visited the survivors taking refuge at the Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Barangay Camaman-an. (Bong D. Fabe)

Roy Lagarde / CBCP Media

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

Diocesan News

A7

Cebu launches local logo of Calungsods canonization

www.cebuarchdiocese.org

CEBU City Following the declaration from the Vatican of the canonization of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, the Archdiocese of Cebu has launched the local logo for his canonization slated on October 21 this year. Centering on the theme: Kinabuhing Gi-ula, Pagtuong Gimantala (Life that is Offered, Faith that is Proclaimed), the local logo, consisting of five basic elements was designed following the rules of uniqueness, timelessness, adaptability, scalability and simplicity. Organizers emphasized that some other elements were

inserted in the design such as the title of the event done in red color, converted image of Blessed Pedro, ten green leaves of the palm of martyrd o m, i s l a n d s o f G u a m a n d Cebu inserted in the palm, the Cross in red color at the tip of the palm and the year 1672 and 2012. In terms of the elements used, we chose the color red for prominence and visibility, the converted image of Blessed Pedro as a timeless image and contemporary comic art form, the ten green leaves on the other hand signifies the ten themes in

the life of the blessed, the islands of Guam and Cebu as the place of his origin and martyrdom and the year 1672 and 2012 as the year of his martyrdom and canonization, explained the organizers. The local celebration of his canonization will take place in Cebu City in November. Calungsod, a Filipino lay catechist and martyr (1654-1672) was among the blesseds and venerable from whose intercessions miracles were attributed and approved by the Vatican. Authorized miracle of Blessed Pedro Calungsod reportedly

happened in 2003 at a hospital in Cebu City when a woman who was clinically pronounced dead for two hours was brought back to life through the intercession of Calungsod. Calungsod, together with companion Blessed Diego San Vitores, were killed while doing missionary work in Guam in 1672. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2000. After his canonization, Calungsod will be the second Filipino Catholic saint after Saint Lorenzo Ruiz, who was elevated to sainthood in 1987. (Jandel Posion)

Briefing
Bacolod holds seminar on new English translation of Missal

Jaro gears up information and education campaign vs RH Bill

JARO, IloiloThe Archdiocese of Jaro has intensified its information and education campaign to defend life and save the Filipino family by organizing a forum on the controversial reproductive health bill. The Commission on Family and Life of the Archdiocese of Jaro has teamed up with Citizens for Life, a group of parents and professionals in Iloilo concerned with family and life issues in organizing the seminar titled Update on the RH Bill. Rev. Fr. Randy G. Doromal, Director of the Commission on Family and Life of the Archdiocese of Jaro, explained the need for a more vigorous information and education campaign as regards the RH Bill. Confusion is the work of the devil to make its prey fall to its trap. So to address this, information and education are necessary, he said. Invited speakers are Hon. Cong. Karlo Nograles of the 1st Dist. of Davao City, the Hon. Cong. Fatima Dimaporo of the 2nd Dist. of Lanao del Norte, Renelyn Tan from the World Youth Alliance, and Oliver Tuazon, a youth leader and author of Back to the Basics. Organizers sent letters, duly noted and endorsed by Bishop Gerardo Alminaza, Auxiliary Bishop of Jaro, to the 93 parishes in the Archdiocese, urging the clergy to encourage parishioners to attend the talk on March 16, at the University of San Agustin Gym, in Iloilo City, from 2 to 5 p.m. They are also actively using the social network services to reach more people especially the youth and educators. Iloilo City is known as the center of education in Western Visayas. The city has many educational institutions with more than 30 tertiary, 200 secondary, and 1100 elementary level schools. There are 8 universities in Iloilo, 6 of them are private universities while 2 of them are government-owned. (Fr. Mickey Cardenas)

BACOLOD City Bacolods Diocesan Commission on Liturgy conducted the second of a series of catechesis on the English translation of the Roman Missal last Feb. 25 at the St. John Vianney Hall of San Sebastian Cathedral. Fr. Joevic Lemoncito, director of the Commission on Liturgy explained that the catechesis of the new translation aims not only to clarify the rationale behind the changes, but most of all, to enliven the appreciation by the faithful of the beauty of the liturgical celebrations especially the Eucharist. A series of catecheses will be held until the implementation of the new missal on the first Sunday of Advent this year. (Modesto P. Sa-onoy)
San Pablo Bishop calls for Laguna-wide rally vs RH Bill

SAN PABLO City San Pablo Bishop Leo Drona called on the faithful to join the Laguna-wide pro-life march next weekend to defend life and save Filipino families. Drona has commissioned the Diocesan Family Life Ministry and the Knights of Columbus Laguna Chapter to led the Walk for Life 2012 which will coincide with the nationwide prolife march-rally set on March 24. Hundreds of participants of the rally are expected to be coming from the 83 parishes in the diocese. (Fr. Romy O. Ponte)
DepEd partners with civil society orgs to advance IP, Muslim education

Letter to the Editor

What an outrageous lie!

I WOKE up early this morning. This news item from Inquirer via UCA News kept on nagging me in my prayers. Somethings got to be said. The news item Im referring to is this http://www.cathnewsphil.com/2012/02/15/religionhelps-spread-leprosy-stigmasays-health-chief/ For hundreds of years, the Church was the only one preaching for compassion on the lepers. For hundreds of years the Church was the only institution caring for the lepers. And along comes Health Secretary blaming religion for spreading leprosy stigma! I smell a rat here. Was Secretary Ona playing to the World Health officials? Was he USING the church and religion as a scapegoat? Was he using the church and religion as an EXCUSE for the high incidence of leprosy in the country compared to other countries? Was he deflecting the attention of the WHO officials from his own departments lack of action? Were there funds from WHO and other international agencies to be used for the eradication of leprosy involved that he had to account for? And when was the last time Secretary Ona was in church listening to a sermon stigmatizing leprosy? For no priest in his right mind would preach this not even on a bad nothing-to-preach-about day. For Compassion for the Leper comes from the Gospel and from our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The Church should not let this pass. - Fr. Rey V. Culaba, CSsR

NASULI, Malaybalay CityThe Department of Education in Regions X and XIII have opened its doors wide to a partnership with civil society organizations (CSOs) and indigenous peoples organizations (IPOs) in order to advance IP and Muslim education and development in Mindanao. Dr. Luz Almeda, regional executive director of DepEd-X, and Dr. Gloria Benigno, regional executive director of DepEd-Caraga, committed to help in the development of Mindanao by bringing education to the IPs and Muslims not just because it is the mandate of the department but because it is the right thing to do. Almeda said the Education department is now focusing on using the students mother tongue as medium of instruction from Kinder 1 to Grade 3. (Bong D. Fabe)
Xavier University marks Pro-Life Month with Quiz Bee contest

BROTHERS. Professor Abhoud Syed Lingga, member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) peace negotiating panel, and Talaandig tribal leader Victorino Datu Migketay Saway exchange bolos during the Reaffirmation of Kinship Ritual in Sungko, Lantapan, Bukidnon on March 8, 2012. Both Indigenous People and the Moro of Mindanao in their declaration acknowledged to follow the principles and doctrines of kinship as basis of their cooperation, understanding, and unity as descendants of the early inhabitants in the island of Mindanao. (Bong D. Fabe)

CAGAYAN DE ORO City, March 2, 2012 In celebration of the Pro-Life Month the Mission and Ministry Cluster of Xavier University in Cagayan de Oro City hosted a Quiz Bee Contest for high school students on Blessed Pope John Paul IIs encyclical Evangelium Vitae (Gospel of Life). The event was held Feb. 29 at SM-Cagayan de Oro with third year high school students from nine schools in Northern Mindanao as participants. Chosen winners were Jae-ann Carmina Asperin (La Salle AcademyIligan, Iligan City), first place; Jaya Minorca Docdoc Bautista (Kong Hua School, Kauswagan, Cagayan de Oro City), second place; Keith Moon T Abellanosa (Sacred Heart Montessori School, Gusa, Cagayan de Oro City), third place. (Lovenia P. Naces)
Fisherfolks ask Church to open parishes, schools for oil talks

16-19 April 2012, Hotel Centro, Puerto Princesa City From Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela to Delicta graviora: A Case for Liturgical Fidelity
IN 2001 Pope John Paul II issued Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela (Safeguarding the Sanctity of the Sacraments), a document typifying abuses against the Sacraments of Confession and the Holy Eucharisttogether with abuses against Catholic doctrine and sexual misbehavior of clerics as very serious crimes to be given special treatment in Church Law. Less than a decade later, in 2010, Pope Benedict XVI issued the Norms on Delicta Graviora (Most Serious Crimes) updating the provisions of the former document. Although the contents are substantially the same, the focus has shifted: while the 2001 document focused on abuses against the sacraments and against Catholic teaching, the recent document focuses on the sexual misbehavior of clerics. Could the lack of care in sacred liturgy be a cause of the gradual deterioration of priestly life, which seems to be the underlying reason for the sexual scandals that have shaken the Catholic Church in the past decade? Could the solution to the problem of clerical sexual misbehavior lie in partperhaps in great partin a renewal of liturgical law and liturgical life in the Church? With the support of the Apostolic Vicariate of Puerto Princesa, the Canon Law Society of the Philippines shall focus on this issue in its 20th National Convention, to be held in Puerto Princesa this coming April 16-19, at the Hotel Centro, Puerto Princesas newest boutique hotel. PROGRAM OF ACTIVITIES April 16 (Monday) 12-2:00 pm - Lunch for Early Birds at Badjao Seafront Restaurant. 2:00-4:30 - Registration at Hotel Centro (special registration stations at Centro Ballroom, ground floor adjoining entrance driveway). 4:30 - Drive to Immaculate Conception Cathedral. 5:30-6:45 - Solemn Inaugural Mass 7:00 - Drive to Plaza Hotel for Welcome Dinner 7:15-9:00 - Welcome Dinner at Plaza Hotel 9:00 - Drive to Hotel Centro for the night. April 17 (Tuesday) 6:45 am - Morning Praise and Holy Mass at main Centro Ballroom (Main Convention Venue). 7:30-8:30 - Breakfast at Expressions Caf, Verde Garden and Inner Garden. 9:00 - Opening ceremonies of 20th CLSP National Convention 9:30 - Lecture 1: Lex orandi, lex credendi: Mutual Relationship between Liturgical Practice and Doctrine of the Faith. Prof. E.Bermejo, STD (formerly of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross) 10:30 - Open Forum 11:00 - Lecture 2: The Process for the Dismissal from the Clerical State. Abp. Oscar V.Cruz, JCD (National Appellate Matrimonial Tribunal) 12:00 - Open Forum 12:30 - Lunch Break 2:30 - Lecture 3: Proposed Guidelines for Handling Cases of Sexual Misbehavior of Clerics Msgr. Bernardo Pantin, JCD (President, CLSP) 3:30 - Open Forum 4:00 - Refreshments. Free Time. 6:30 - Fellowship Night: Hawaiian Luau at Emerald Playa. April 18 (Wednesday) 6:45-8:30 am - Same as previous day. 9:00 - Lecture 4: The New English Translation of the Roman Missal: Challenges to the Pastoral Promotion of Liturgy. Prof. E. Bermejo. 10:00 - Open Forum 11:00 - CLSP Business Meeting 12:30 - Lunch Break 2:30 - CLSP Workshop: 1) Draft Statutes for a Personal Circumscription for OFWs. 2) Draft Guidelines for BECs. 3) Draft Guidelines for Handling Cases of delicta graviora. 4:00 - Refreshments. Free Time. 6:30 - Farewell Dinner at Libayen Restaurant. April 19 (Thursday) 6:30 am - Morning Praise and Holy Mass at main Centro Ballroom (Main Convention Venue). 7:15 - Check-out. Luggage at concierge [for excursionists]. 7:30 - Departure for Sabang [for those joining the Underground River Tour]. Breakfast on board. Those flying out at midday can have City Tours and early lunch. 3:00 pm - Arrival at Hotel Centro from Sabang [from Underground River Tour]. 4:00 pm - Leave for Airport. [Those staying overnight will check in at St.Ezekiel Moreno Spirituality Center.] 6:00 pm - Dinner at Kalui for those staying overnight.

20th CLSP National Convention

ANTIPOLO CityThe Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) urged the Catholic Church in the country to open its doors for discussion of the controversial Downstream Oil Industry Deregulation Act of 1998 for the faithful to understand how the law affects the current state of affairs in the oil industry and why it is necessary to repeal the said law. In a statement, Pamalakaya leadership appealed to the bishops to open their parishes, schools and other institutions for discussions about the law, the realities existing inside and outside the oil industry as a whole, and how the people, especially the 89 million Catholics all over the country, can stop the weekly oil price increase. (Noel Sales Barcelona)
Partylist files resolution against black sand mining in the North

ANTIPOLO CityAnakpawis Partylist had filed House Resolution 2203 urging Congress to investigate the impact of black sand (magnetite) mining in Northern Philippines to the environment and livelihood of the people living in the coastal areas where the mining operations are taking place. Anakpawis Rep. Rafael Mariano said the resolution is a response to the call of fisherfolk group, Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas to stop the black sand mining operations in Ilocos Region due to its ill-effect on the ecosystem of the waters and shores of the towns of Ilocos Norte and Sur, La Union, and Pangasinan provinces, not to mention the possible eviction of residents along the coastline and loss of livelihood among small fisherfolks there. (Noel Sales Barcelona)

A8
SEVERAL hundred college students, young professionals, family and life ministry workers, members of civic and faithbased organizations, ordinary citizens and a handful of children joined a demonstration of pro-life/pro-family and anti-RH bill convictions, February 25. Starting from the premises of St. Paul University in Quezon City, the Pro-Life March: Life Chain participants walked the stretch of Hemady Street, donned in attire with life-affirming messages and bearing placards that showed the general sentiments of a life-loving, God-respecting and pro-Filipino people. Messages written on dozens of banners and placards carried by the marchers were Every life is worth living, Sagipin ang susunod na salinlahi, Dayuhang IPPF: Huwag makialam sa Pilipinas! Pro-life kami! Save the unborn! No to the RH Bill, Children are a blessing and Edukasyon at trabaho, hindi condoms at pills. Marchers stopped briefly in front of the Family Planning Organization of the Philippines (FPOP), where Pro-Life Philip-

People, Facts & Places

pines president Eric Manalang and Operation Outcry Internationals Kay Painter delivered brief messages to the crowd. Both reminded the hundreds of participants of the crucial need to maintain vigilance and the action being carried out by pro-lifers, and to inform as many people as possible about what FPOP is really involved in. The truth about the NGO started to unravel in December last year when senators expressed concern over its connections with the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), after Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III discovered that FPOP had been getting millions of dollars in subsidies from IPPF, the largest abortion provider in the world, as well as from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). FPOP, the local arm of IPPF, admitted in a press release read by Sotto during floor debates on the reproductive health (RH) bill that it provides services related to abortion. After prayers led by Manalang and Painter, the group resumed the march, continuing the route to E. Rodriguez Ave. and stopping in front of Christ the King Seminary, holding up the signs for motorists to see. Painter, a post-abortive woman who has been traveling to different parts of the world to tell her story, held a sign that read My abortion hurt me. Inside the church, Manalang, Lito David and Pro-Life Philippines founder Sr. Pilar Verzosa, delivered messages to give the crowd a clearer idea of the details of the RH bill, the strategies employed by proponents and supporters of anti-life legislation, and the vital need to uphold the culture of life in the Philippines, starting with the protection of the most defenseless members of societythe unborn. Painter shared her testimony of finding healing after abortion and enjoined the crowd to remain strong and stand up for life. In a separate interview, the American pro-lifer said that she and fellow Operation Outcry International speaker Luana Stoltenberg are scheduled to attend and speak at pro-life gatherings in Ukraine, Romania, Poland and Australia in the

CBCP Monitor

Vol. 16 No. 6

March 12 - 25, 2012

Pro-life advocates gather for Life Chain march

One of the highlights of the celebration of Pro-life month, the Life-chain march on February 25 gathered participants from various sectors who oppose the RH Bill.

next several months. The pro-life movement is getting stronger in those countries, she remarked. Buhay Party List Rep. Irwin

Tieng made his appearance in the rally and assured the life advocates that the pro-life side has fighters in Congress who are working tirelessly so that only

pro-life and pro-family legislation succeed. He also said that the RH bill will not make it in the present congress. (CBCP for Life)

CBCP invites Aquino to Calungsod canonization

THE Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines has invited President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III to attend the canonization of Blessed Pedro Calungsod in Rome this October. CBCP president and Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma together with Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo J. Cardinal Vidal personally delivered the invitation letter to the president during a meeting in Malacaang on February 29. The invitation letter, jointly signed by Palma and Vidal requested for President Aquinos presence at the Canonization Rites on October 21, 2012 at the St. Peters Basilica in Rome. Palma described the meeting as cordial but the President had to decline the invitation due to his hectic schedule. President Aquino explained he has limited his foreign travel to six a year and that he has a tight schedule for October this year, Palma told CBCPNews. But he added that President Aquino said he may find time to attend the National Thanksgiving Mass scheduled in Cebu which will likely be held in November. Its a bit near so I can probably join the event (National Thanksgiving Mass) in Cebu, Archbishop Palma quoted President Aquino. Both Vidal and Palma said the Filipino people are highly honored as another Filipino will be included in the Canon of the Saints of the Universal Church. Palma said they did not discuss any other issue with President Aquino during the short meeting. (Melo M. Acuna)

Thousands join Bible fun run

THOUSANDS of people joined a multisectoral bible fun run aimed at raising funds to finance millions of bibles to be given to poor Filipino families. The May They Be One (MTBO) Bible run is part of a nationwide campaign that aims to bring 5 million Bibles to 5 million poor Filipino families in 7 years. Held on March 3, the marathon began in front of the Quirino Grandstand in Luneta, proceeding to Roxas Boulevard, up to Vito Cruz and back to the starting point. Most runners came from various schools and colleges including San Sebastian College, Philippine Womens University, St. Scholasticas College Manila, St. Paul UniversityManila, Sta. Isabel College, Don Bosco Technical Institute Makati, Xavier School and Dominican School. Some 20 blind members of the Resources for the Blind also participated in the run. Themed Takbo Mo Bibliya Para sa Pilipino, the Bible Run not only aims to raise funds but also to increase bible awareness in the country, and to improve interest in bible reading. Launched in September 30, 2008, the MTBO Bible campaign is a joint project of the Philippine Bible Society ( P B S ) , E p i s c o - Participated by representatives from various sectors, the MTBO fun run pal Commission aims to increase Bible awareness and raise funds to finance the f o r t h e B i b l i - distribution of 5 million bibles to 5 million Filipino families. ca l Ap ost ola t e (ECBA), National Council of Churches like-minded groups who believe that in the Philippines, Philippine Council genuine national transformation can of Evangelical Churches, Chinese Con- only be achieved through the guidance gress Center on World Evangelization and transforming power of Gods Word. Fellowship Philippines, Inc., and other (Ronalyn Regino/CBCPNews)

Markings
AWARDED. Sr. Pilar Verzosa, RGS, was among the list of awardees cited by the Committee of Life of the Archdiocese of Seoul in Korea for her contribution in the promotion of the dignity of life. Considered the mother of pro-life movement in the Philippines, Verzosa received a Mystery of Life Award 2012 from Seoul Archbishop Nicholas Cardinal Cheong Jinsuk, during a formal dinner held at Royal Hotel, near the Myeong-dong Cathedral in Seoul, last February 15. Chosen as a winner in the field of Social Action, Verzosa was cited for her outstanding achievements in the promotion of the dignity, care and defense of human life. Part of her award was a sum of 30,000,000 KRW. During the ceremonies, Verzosa gave a short presentation on the programs and projects of the organization that she foundedPro-life Philippinesof which she was National Coordinator for 30 years. Aside from giving educational seminars, PRO-LIFEs mission also include advocacy and lobbying against the introduction of the D.E.A.T.H. bills, particularly the reproductive health (RH) bill in Congress. The Mystery of Life Award was set up by the Archdiocese of Seoul at the beginning of the Committee for Lifes foundation in October 2005 to support the scholars in the field of Bioscience and Humanities, and people in the field of Social Action who are acknowledged to have made great contribution to pro-life activities. Awarded together with Verzosa were Miss Emma Freisinger, an 80 year old Austrian nurse who has been working with the Koreans who have Hansens Disease (leprosy) since she was 27 years old; Professor Oh It Wham of Catholic University of Seoul, who has been researching and developing the adult stem cell therapy to prove its greater effectiveness over the embryo stem cell therapya procedure that the Catholic Church considers immoral; and Rev. Fr. Cheon Hyun-Ho, an environmentalist activist. ORDAINED. Rev. Norman S. Egay, Rev. Jess Elmer J. Ebro, and Rev. Dominic M. Derramas to the Sacred Order of Priesthood for the Diocese of Bacolod, March 13, 2012. Most Rev. Vicente Navarra, DD, led the ordination rites at the San Sebastian Cathedral. CELEBRATED. Golden Jubilee of foundation of the Diocese of Malolos, March 10, 2012. The celebration was highlighted by the canonical coronation of the image of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of Malolos diocese, during the Eucharistic celebration held at the Basilica Minore. Malolos Bishop Jose Oliveros placed the crown on the Blessed Virgins head. Papal nuncio to the Philippines, Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto led the Holy Mass concelebrated by at least 40 bishops and 200 priests. The papal nuncio read the Holy Fathers message congratulating the Diocese on its 50th anniversary of foundation. The festivities marking the golden jubilee officially began March 9 with a Holy Mass followed by a youth vigil at the Basilica Minore. At 11:45 p.m. on March 9, the Jubilee Door was formally opened with the blowing of the tambuli and the ringing of the Cathedral bells, followed by a Jubilee Walk from the Cathedral to the Santisima Trinidad Parish in Barangay Barihan. CELEBRATED. The Philippine Catholic Lay Mission (PCLM) celebrated its 35 years of existence in Davao City last March 1. The PCLM broke new ground in the missionary life of the Philippine Church when it was established in 1977 and started to form and send lay missionaries in mission areas. To date, PCLM has already sent 190 lay missioners in 132 mission areas in the Philippines and abroad. The celebration was held at PCLM Formation House in Davao City because the lay mission program was first conceptualized by the Maryknoll Fathers in the area and most of the missioners came from the Davao Provinces and other parts of Mindanao. Fr. Socrates Mesiona, MSP, National Director of the Pontifical Mission Society (PMS) gave the opening remarks during the program. He said the 35th anniversary celebration was very timely as it coincides with the Philippine Churchs celebration of the Year of the Mission and later this year the opening of the Year of Faith by the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI. The event was highlighted by a Eucharistic Mass led by Davao Archbishop Fernando Capalla. Capalla affirmed that lay missionary vocation is a gift to the Church. He also pointed out that for 35 years, the group remembers the past with gratitude, celebrates the present with thanksgiving and looks forward to the future with hope. More than a hundred came to the event, including active and former missioners, families of lay missioners, sponsors and benefactors, former mission area leaders, and friends. Guest priests from nearest dioceses were also present, such as Fr. Precious Gonzales of Digos diocese and Fr. Ricky Bermas of Legazpi. The celebration was themed PCLM@35 We Remember, We Celebrate, We believe. DIED. Msgr. Jose Diestro Diva, H.P., 92, of the Archdiocese of Jaro, March 3, 2012. Born on April 15, 1921, he was ordained priest on March 25, 1950. The funeral Mass was offered on March 12, 2012, at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Candles, Jaro, Iloilo City. He was interred at the Iloilo Memorial Park, Balantang, Jaro, Iloilo City.

CBCP officials to speak at Catholic educators assembly

CBCP PRESIDENT and Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma and Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education Executive Secretary Msgr. Gerardo Santos are among the Church leaders who will speak to administrators of Catholic schools, seminaries and catechetical centers at the Summer Festival of Catechesis next month. CBCP National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace and Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo, Zamboanga Archbishop Romulo Valles and CBCP Episcopal Commission on Liturgy Fr. Genaro Diwa are also scheduled to preside over Mass and give talk on the three-day gathering slated on April 24 to 26 at Sienna College in Quezon City. According to organizers, the 4th Pope Benedict XVI Summer Festival of Catechesis and Christian Formation is primarily meant for officials and teachers of member-schools of the Manila Archdiocesan and Parochial Schools Association (MAPSA) and the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP). But it was also opened to registrants from parishes, catechetical centers, congregations and seminaries. Preregistration of MAPSA and CEAP members and payment of assembly fee, which is P800 per participant, is due last February 29 while the deadline for the others is set on March 30. There will be conferences on The Holy Spirit in the Life of the Church and the World, The Holy Spirit the Sanctifier in the Sacraments and The Holy Spirit in the New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith. But the main highlight of the national religious education conference is the discussion of

the integration of governments K+12 program to the religious education curriculum. It was recalled that the Department of Education is set to implement the K+12 program on the next school year. Under the K+12 program, the countrys current 10-year basic education, covering six years of elementary and four years of high school, will be extended to 12 year program that include six years of elementary, four years of junior high school (Grade 7-10) and two years of senior high school (Grade 11 to 12). (YouthPinoy)

Youth urged to attend JP II youth confab in May

MANILA, March 1, 2012The CBCP Episcopal Commission on Youth (ECY) is inviting youth ministers in the parishes, schools and organizations nationwide to attend the 8th Blessed John Paul II Catechetics and Youth Ministry Conference in May. ECY executive secretary Fr. Conegundo Garganta urged diocesan youth directors, coordinators and leaders of member-organizations of the Federation of National Youth Organizations to participate in the event slated on May 16 to 18 at the Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati City. Garganta said the conference, themed "Mary: Mother of God's Word and Mother of faith," will be a beautiful deepening of our CBCP Year of the Youth and a fitting prelude to the Year of Faith proclaimed by the Holy Father. Based on the event schedule, the ECY will be handling three workshops in the three-day conference and lead the animation of the Taiz prayer at the conclusion of the first conference day. It is our earnest hope that you come and register for this learning event, and share this to those youth ministers and leaders in parishes, campuses, organizations, etc. in your networks, Garganta said. Early registrants for the conference will only pay P800 until April 7 while the others will have to shell out P1,000. Registrations can also be done online by logging on to http://www.blessedjp2cymc.com/. For inquiries, interested parties are advised to contact the secretariat of the Blessed JP II CYMC Office at 2/F, Multipurpose Bldg. St. John Bosco Parish Compound A. Arnaiz Avenue cor. Amorsolo St., Makati City. They can also be reached via telephone number +632 8450721, mobile number +63 9266219711 or email address jp2cymc@gmail.com. (YouthPinoy)

Bacolod launches environmental manual for schools

BACOLOD diocese and the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos jointly launched an environmental stewardship manual that would serve as a guide on how to foment and create ecological awareness and action in schools. Br. Jaazeal Jakosalem, OAR, one of the authors, said the manual will also be used in indoctrinating students to develop values and formative skills in caring for the Earth.. It aims to teach and inspire teachers and students to be active ecological stewards; to provide an area or space within the campus to recycle and manage wastes, turning them into resources; and envisions a green school, turning schools into sustainable communities, Jakosalem explained. Launched at St. John Marie Vianney Hall of St. Sebastian Cathedral last March 3, the book is titled Environmental Stewardship Manual for Schools. Attended by 250 participants, mainly of principals, teachers and students of the Negros Occidental division, the manual will be used by all schools in the province of Negros Occidental. Last year, Education Secretary Br. Armin Luistro, FSC, endorsed the project, emphasizing that the initiative is a big step towards achieving a vibrant environmental movement in the country. Despite threat of disasters caused by climate change, the education sector offers an untapped opportunity to combat the effects of climate change and protect the environment, Luistro said. The book launching event was organized by Fr. Felix Pasquin, Rector of the San Sebastian Cathedral and Ms. Mely Flores of UNO-R Community Development Office. After the conference, each participant received a free copy of the manual. Jakosalem, of the Greenheart Hermitage together with Kathryn DAnjou designed the manual. (Jandel Posion)

Henry Alviz

Juan Carlo Argo

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

(Address of Pope Benedict XVI gave to some 1,300 priests and deacons who participated in an annual course regarding confession and matters of conscience, organized by the Apostolic Penitentiary; held in Rome on March 9, 2012)

The new evangelization also begins in the confessional!

Pastoral Concerns

B1

Dear friends, I am very happy to meet with you on the occasion of the annual course on the internal forum organized by the apostolic Penitentiary. I address a cordial greeting to Cardinal Manuel Monteiro de Castro, the Major Penitentiary, who, for the first time in this vesture has presided over your study sessions, and I thank him for the cordial remarks he addressed to me. I also salute Monsignor Gianfranco Girotti, regent of the Penitentiary, the personnel of this body and each one of you, who, with your presence, remind everyone of the importance that the Sacrament of reconciliation has for the life of faith, demonstrating both the permanent necessity of an adequate theological, spiritual and canonical education for confessors and, above all, the constitutive bond between sacramental celebration and proclamation of the Gospel. The Sacraments and the proclamation of the Word, in fact, must never be conceived as separate, but, on the contrary, Jesus says that the proclamation of the Kingdom of God is the goal of his mission; this proclamation, however, is not only a discourse but at the same time includes his action; the signs and miracles that Jesus works show that the Kingdom comes as a present reality and in the end coincides with his very Person, with his gift of himself. [...] The priest represents Christ, the One sent by the Father, he continues his mission, through the word and the sacrament, in this totality of body and soul, of sign and word (General audience, May 5, 2010). Precisely this totality, that sinks its roots down into the mystery itself of the Incarnation, suggests to us that the celebration of the Sacrament of reconcili-

ation is itself a proclamation and thus a path that must be traveled in the work of the new evangelization. In what sense, then, is sacramental Confession a path for the new evangelization? In the first place this is so because the new evangelization draws its lifeblood from the sanctity of the sons and daughters of the Church, from the daily journey of personal and communal conversion to an ever more profound conformity to Christ. and there is a close connection between sanctity and the Sacrament of reconciliation, testified to by all of the saints of history. The true conversion of hearts, which is an opening up to the transformative and renewing action of God, it is the engine of every reform and it translates itself into a true evangelizing force. In Confession the contrite sinner, by the gratuitous action of divine Mercy, is justified, forgiven and sanctified, he abandons the old man and puts on the new man. Only he who has let himself be deeply renewed by divine Grace can bear, and therefore proclaim, the newness of the Gospel in himself. Blessed John Paul II, in the apostolic letter Novo Millennio ineunte, stated: I am also asking for renewed pastoral courage in ensuring that the day-to-day teaching of Chr ist i an communi t ies persuasively and effectively presents the practice of the Sacrament of reconciliation (n. 37). I would like to repeat this request, in the awareness that the new evangelization must make the face of Christ known to the man of our time as mysterium pietatis, the one in whom God shows us his compassionate heart and reconciles us fully with himself. It is this face of Christ that must be rediscovered through the Sacrament of Penance

(ibid.). In an age of educational emergency, in which relativism questions the possibility itself of an education understood as a progressive introduction to the knowledge of truth, to a deep sensitivity to reality, and so as a progressive introduction to the relationship with the Truth that is God, Christians are called to proclaim vigorously the possibility of an encounter between the man of today and Jesus Christ, in which God drew so near that we could see and hear him. From this perspective the Sacrament of reconciliation, which is necessitated by a consideration of ones concrete existential condition, helps in a singular way that opening of the heart that permits us to turn our gaze toward God that he might enter into our life. The certainty that he is near and that in his mercy he assists man, even when he is in sin, to heal his infirmities with the grace of the Sacrament of reconciliation, is always a light of hope for the world. Dear priests and dear deacons who are preparing for the priesthood, in administering this sacrament, you are given or will be given the possibility of being instruments of an ever renewed encounter of men with God. Those who come to you precisely in their condition as sinners, will experience a profound desire in themselves: the desire to change, the request for mercy and, definitively, the desire that, through the sacrament, there occur the encounter with Christ and his embrace. You will therefore be collaborators and protagonists in as many possible new beginnings as there are penitents who come to you, knowing that the authentic meaning of every newness does not consist so much in the abandonment or the denial of the past, as in wel-

coming Christ and opening up to his Presence, ever new and able to transform, to enlighten all the regions of shadow and to continually open a new horizon. The new evangelization, thus, also begins in the confessional! It begins, that is, from the meeting between mans inexhaustible plea, the sign of mystery of creation in him, and Gods mercy, the only adequate response to the human need of the infinite. If the celebration of the Sacrament of reconciliation will be this, if in it the faithful will really experience that mercy that Jesus of Nazareth, Lord and Christ, has bestowed upon us, then they themselves will become credible witnesses of that sanctity, which is the goal of the new evangelization. all of this, dear friends, if it is true for the lay faithful, will have even greater relevance for each of us. The minister of the Sacrament of reconciliation collaborates in the new evangelization, first renewing in himself the consciousness of being a penitent and of needing to ask sacramental forgiveness, that there be renewed that encounter with Christ, which, begun in Baptism, found a specific and definitive configuration in the Sacrament of Holy Orders. This is my wish for each one of you: that the newness of Christ always be the center and the reason of your priestly existence, that those who meet you might, through your office, proclaim with andrew and John: We have met the Messiah (John 1:41). In this way, every Confession, from which every Christian will emerge renewed, will represent a step forward in the new evangelization. May Mary, Mother of Mercy, refuge of us sinners and Star of the new evangelization accompany your journey. I thank you from my heart and gladly impart to you my apostolic benediction.

Lent
124. Lent precedes and prepares for easter. It is a time to hear the Word of God, to convert, to prepare for and remember Baptism, to be reconciled with God and ones neighbour, and of more frequent recourse to the arms of Christian penance(134): prayer, fasting and good works (cf. Mt 6, 1-6. 16-18). Popular piety does not easily perceive the mystical aspect of Lent and does not emphasize any of its great themes or values, such a relationship between the sacrament of forty days and the sacraments of Christian initiation, nor the mystery of the exodus which is always present in the lenten journey. Popular piety concentrates on the mysteries of Christs humanity, and during Lent the faithful pay close attention to the Passion and Death of Our Lord. 125. In the roman rite, the beginning of the forty days of penance is marked with the austere symbol of ashes which are used in the Liturgy of ash Wednesday. The use of ashes is a survival from an ancient rite according to which converted sinners submitted themselves to canonical penance. The act of putting on ashes symbolizes fragility and mortality, and the need to be redeemed by the mercy of God. Far from being a merely external act, the Church has retained the use of ashes to symbolize that attitude of internal penance to which all the baptized are called during Lent. The faithful who come to receive ashes should be assisted in perceiving the implicit internal significance of this act, which disposes them towards conversion and renewed easter commitment. Notwithstanding the secularization of contemporary society, the Christian faithful, during Lent, are clearly conscious of the need to turn the mind towards those realities which really count, which require Gospel commitment and integrity of life which, through self denial of those things which are superfluous, are translated into good works and solidarity with the poor and needy. Those of the faithful who infrequently attend the sacraments of Penance and the Holy eucharist should be aware of the long ecclesial tradition associating the precept of confessing grave sins and receive Holy Communion at least once during the lenten season, or preferably during eastertide (135). 126. The existing divergence between the liturgical idea of Lent and the outlook of popular piety need not prevent an effective interaction between Liturgy and popular piety during the forty days of Lent. an example of such interaction is to be seen in fact that popular piety often encourages particular observances on certain days, or special devotional exercises, or apostolic or charitable works which are foreseen and recommended by the lenten Liturgy. The practice of fasting, characteristic of the lenten season since antiquity, is an exercise which frees the faithful from earthly concerns so as to discover the life that comes from above: Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (cf. Dt 8,3; Mt 4, 4; Lk 4,4; antiphon for the first Sunday of Lent). (Excerpts from the Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy: Principles and Guidelines; issued by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments)

Photo courtesy of Reajoy San Luis, FSP

B2

Updates
the impugning of an administrative act before the author of such act or before his hierarchical superior. The foundation of the administrative recourse lies in three realities: a) The discretionary prerogatives of the ecclesiastical administratorwhich enable him to unilaterally carry out executive acts, with a certain degree of marginal indetermination, that affect the juridical situations of individuals. This is especially acute in the case of the ecclesial juridic order, where the three powers (legislative, executive and judicial) are concentrated on the same capital offices. b) The non-infallible nature of such administrative actsgiven the imperfections of human nature, of the stipulations of the legal norm, and of the possible applications of the latter to specific cases. c) The dignity of the human person the protection of whose subjective rights had become an increasingly acute concern in the Church, as reflected in such b) It is a real instance that demands resolutionand not just a denunciation or a petition for grace. c) It is an administrative instance before the competent administrative authority, which reviews the impugned act. Thus, it implies a broader perspectiveeven including opportuneness than a judicial instance, which is always based on legal grounds. c. Subjects in the Hierarchical administrative recourse 1) active Part: The one taking recourse (c.1738)is the person who feels injured by an administrative act (cc.1733 & 1737). a) This can be a physical or juridic personwhether public or private, who is subject to the jurisdiction of the administrative authority. b) exempted are administrative organs as suchso that they cannot take recourse against an act of their Superior (e.g., Vicar General or episcopal Vicar against an act of their Ordinary), since interest in the recourse, who should be heard, according to the tenor of c.50.

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

By Fr. Jaime Blanco Achacoso, J.C.D.

aDMINISTraTION is that aspect of the power of government which, respecting the principle of legality, promotes the public good by executing the laws andto some extentinterpreting them, if necessary by supplying for the law and completing it through various normative techniques, by resolving controversies in a disciplinary as distinct from a strictly judicial fashion, and by imposing certain penalties. Given the fallible nature of human administrators, it can be expected that on occasion administrative acts may seem to violate the rights of the faithfule.g., the removal of a pastor, the dismissal of a religious, the suppression of a parish, arbitrary changes in the liturgy or even unsatisfactory provisions for the administration of the sacraments. This is the reason for the provisions for administrative justice in the new Code of Canon Law. 1. Notion of Administrative Justice

Administrative Justice in the Church

negative, as far as the presentation of a further recourse is concerned. d. The Competent Superior 1) The Hierarchic Superiorthe immediate Superior within the hierarchical organizationof the author of the administrative act being impugned is the one who receives the recourse and who must resolve it. For example: a) roman dicasteriesfor recourse against the acts of the diocesan Bishop and similar authorities (cc.368 sq., 381 & 295). b) Local Ordinaryfor recourse against the acts of his subordinates (c.1734, 3, 1). 2) The author of the act: The recourse can be proposed before the author of the decree, who must immediately transmit it to the competent hierarchic superior (c.1737,1). 3. The Conduct of an Administrative Recourse 3) The motive of the recourse can be any just reason (c.1737)an expression that is equivalent to just cause, which is of a very wide content: a) reasons based on justice and legality. b) also reasons of opportuneness, convenience or good governance. b. Preliminary acts prior to an administrative recourse In an analogous spirit to that encouraging the subjects in a prospective contentious process to work for a settlement out of court, the Code also requires previous steps to avoid the contentious relation that an administrative recourse constitutes. 1) attempt at Conciliation: It is very desirable that whenever someone feels injured by a decree, there not be a contention between this person and the author of the decree, but that care be taken by common counsel to find an equitable solution between them, perhaps through the use of wise persons in mediation and study so that the controversy may be avoided or solved by some suitable means (c.1733, 1). The following means are suggested to arrive at this amicable settlement between the parties: a) Intervention of wise persons in mediation and study. The Code does not specify, but it has been suggested that this functionespecially given the difficulty of creating the aforementioned Council of Conciliationmight be given to the College of Consultors (c.502, 1). b) Diocesan Office or Council for Conciliationthe creation of which is to be determined by the episcopal Conference or by the diocesan Bishop (c.1733, 2). 2) Petition prior to recourse: Before proposing recourse, a person must seek the revocation or emendation of the decree in writing from its author; when such a petition is proposed it is understood that the suspension of the execution of the decree is also being petitioned (c.1734, 1). This petition has the following characteristics: a) a privilege of the administrator rather than a right of the petitioner since its direct pretension is to give the administrator a chance to make a previous decision and not be surprised by a recourse. b) In formal writingby way of a letter or petition directed to the author of the administrative act, presented to the corresponding Chancery directly or by registered mail with certificate of receipt, containing clearly what act is referred to and what is being asked. c) Within peremptory period of 10 days (tempus utile) from the legal notice of the act in question (c.1734, 2). d) exceptions to the requirement of Prior Petitionare the following recourses: (i) Those proposed to the Bishop against decrees issued by authorities subject to him (c.1734, 3, 1). (ii) Those proposed against a decree by which hierarchic recourse is decided unless the decision has been made by the Bishop (c.1734, 3, 2). (iii) Those against a presumed by administrative silence (c.57), or against a decree issued as a consequence of a petition (c.1735) (c.1734, 3, 3). c. Decision of a recourse The Superior who examines the recourse should dictate sentence within a period of three months. There are several possibilities c.1739): 1) attending strictly to the tenor of the administrative act being impugned, he may (c.1739): a) confirm it or declare it null; b) rescind or revoke it. 2) Going further than the recourse (ultra petita), he may amend, subrogate or obrogate the administrative act.

a. The Place of administrative Justice in Canon Law 1) The System of administrative Justice in the Code of 1917. The PioBenedictine Codein its c.1601prohibited complaints against the decrees of Ordinaries from being taken to regular tribunals, reserving such administrative recourse to the competence of the Holy See. Thus, it was necessary to approach the hierarchical superior of the person against whom the complaint was being made, if one wished to challenge an administrative acte.g., the Bishop for a complaint against the parish priest, the Holy See for a complaint against the Ordinary. The above-outlined system posed significant difficulties. It seemed to favor ecclesiastical authoritiesmaking it difficult for anyone to question their decisions. The difficult access to the roman Congregationsfor most faithfulaccentuated the difficulty for administrative recourse. Many canonists thought that if administrators could be made accountable in open court for their actions, not only would their subjects be able to vindicate whatever subjective rights may be trampled by administrative acts, but also they themselves would be more careful not to violate those rights in the first place. 2) The Provision for administrative Tribunals was a major concern of the Code Commission efforts to re-structure administrative justice in the new Code. Thus the penultimate version of the new Code (the Schema of 1980) contained 28 canons (cc.1688-1715) on administrative procedure in general, including detailed references to different kinds and grades of administrative tribunals. Unfortunately, the option of such multiplicity of administrative tribunals did not find its way into the final version of the revised Code of 1983. 3) The Code of 1983 limits the safeguarding of administrative justiceto two possible routes (c.1400, 2): a) administrative recoursewith the last part of Book VII containing only a slightly expanded set of canons regarding the traditional hierarchical recourse (cc.1732-1739) as well as some provisions on the removal and transfer of parish priests (cc.1740-1752). It has been noted that even if the Code speaks of administrative recourse, in fact the thrust of this part of the Code is better reflected by the term hierarchical recourse. b) Judicial recoursefor which the Code only provides one tribunal: the apostolic Signatura (c.1445, 2). 2. The Administrative Recourse a. Notion of administrative recourse in General Properly speaking, recourse is the impugning of an act of authority through the same route that produced it. administrative recourse, therefore, is

documents as Pope John XXIIIs Pacem in Terris and Vatican IIs Declaration Dignitatis Humanae. Thus, the 1967 Synod of Bishops, in approving the principles for the revision of the Code, called for new administrative procedures designed to afford greater protection for the rights of persons affected by administrative acts. b. The Hierarchical administrative recourse The paradigm of administrative recoursesif not the only one actually provided for in the legal texts of the Churchis the hierarchical administrative recourse, regulated by cc.1732-1739 (Book VII, Part V, Section I) of the CIC. The hierarchical administrative recourse is the impugning of an administrative act before the hierarchical Superior of the authority who emitted it, with the end that the Superior eliminates, reforms or substitutes it with another. The following characteristics can be pointed out: a) It is a contentious recoursein the sense that it involves the constitution of a veritable situation of conflict between two subjects of law who become parts: the subject of administration (active part) and the administrator (passive part).

these organs are jurisdictionally identified with the Superior. They can only take recourse as individual persons. c) The juridic capacity of the one taking recourse is regulated by the general norms (cc.96 sq., 113 sq. and 1476 sq.). d) For the active legitimation (to act in the recourse as such), it is enough that one has a direct and actual personal interest in the matter in order to take recoursei.e., one who claims to have been injured by a decree can make recourse for any just reason (c.1737, 1). e) advocates and procurators: The one taking recourse always has a right to use an advocate or a procurator, avoiding useless delays; and indeed an advocate ex officio is to be constituted, if the one taking recourse lacks an advocate and the superior thinks one necessary (c.1738). 2) Passive Part: The author of the impugned administrative actwho logically would be opposing the recourse, since otherwise he would have conceded to the one taking recourse in the previous petition that this latter would have made (cf. infra). This can be any authority with executive power, with the exception of the roman Pontiff and an ecumenical Council (c.1732). 3) Other Subjects: aside from the parts, there could be other subjects with

a. Object and Motive of the recourse 1) The object of the recourse is the particular administrative actwhether decree or rescriptwith the following requirements: (c.1732): a) Posited in the external forumi.e., truly juridical act (c.37). b) extra-judiciali.e., not given within a judicial process. c) exceptions: acts of the roman Pontiff or of an ecumenical council, for which there are no hierarchical Superiors to have recourse to. 2) Without a particular administrative act, no recourse is possible. Thus, in case of a perceived injustice but in the absence of a particular administrative act, there are only two avenues for a recourse to prosper: a) Provoking a particular administrative actthrough an opportune petition or complaint. b) Through the discipline of administrative silence, as provided for by c.57: 1. if an interested party legitimately presents either a petition or a recourse to obtain a decree, the competent authority should provide for the matter within three months from the receipt of the petition or recourse, unless another time period is prescribed by law. 2. When this period of time has passed, if the decree has not yet been given, the response is presumed to be

Friday abstinence and local solemnities

(Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum university, answers the following query:) Q: In england and Wales the episcopal conference has decided that abstinence from meat on Fridays should be reintroduced according to Canon 1251. Under that canon abstinence from meat applies on all Fridays except those that are solemnities. Therefore, when a parish patronal festival falls on a Friday and is celebrated as a solemnity in that parish only, can every Catholic living in the parish eat meat on that Friday even if they attend a different church? Can a non-parishioner, realizing that it is a solemnity locally, go out and have a fine meal with meat at a restaurant in that parish?S.P., archdiocese of Birmingham, england a: The following are the relevant canons regarding Days of Penance: Canon 1249. The divine law binds all the Christian faithful to do penance each in his or her own way. In order for all to be united among themselves by some common observance of penance, however, penitential days are prescribed on which the Christian faithful devote themselves in a special way to prayer, perform works of piety and charity, and deny themselves by fulfilling their own obligations more faithfully and especially by observing fast and abstinence, according to the norm of the following canons. Canon 1250. The penitential days and times in the universal Church are every Friday of the whole year and the season of Lent. Canon 1251. abstinence from meat, or from some other food as determined by the episcopal Conference, is to be observed on all Fridays, unless a solemnity should fall on a Friday. abstinence and fasting are to be observed on ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Canon 1252. The law of abstinence binds those who have completed their fourteenth year. The law of fasting binds those who have attained their majority, until the beginning of their sixtieth year. Pastors of souls and parents are to ensure that even those who by reason of their age are not bound by the law of fasting and abstinence, are taught the true meaning of penance. Canon 1253. The conference of bishops can determine more precisely the observance of fast and abstinence as well as substitute other forms of penance, especially works of charity and exercises of piety, in whole or in part, for abstinence and fast. What the bishops of england and Wales have done is to restore canons 1250-1251 to full effect. Previously, abstinence had been limited to the Lenten Fridays. I would say that given the territorial nature of such celebrations, any such exemptions would apply only to those within the parish territory. Parishioners outside of the parish would fall under the universal law. In theory at least, a Catholic, aware that a parish was celebrating a solemnity on a Friday, could go there for some meat. Mind you, this would mean that such a person is a fairly well-formed Catholic, so it is to be hoped that he or she would also share the joy of the parish by attending the solemn Mass before heading to the nearest restaurant. During ordinary time many parishes transfer the solemnity of the patron saint to the nearest Sunday. In such a case the Friday exemption would no longer apply. The exemption would also apply to diocesan solemnities. Most dioceses have one solemnity of their own for the principal patron of the diocese or a representative saint. The application of this possibility, however, is not uniform. For example, both Subiaco and Montecassino have St. Benedict as principal patron. However, while the whole town of Subiaco celebrates the solemnity, in Montecassino only the abbey itself enjoys this celebration. In both cases the rest of the diocese celebrates the recurrence as a feast. even though every Friday is a penitential day, those of Lent are especially important. Hence it is customary in many places to observe abstinence even when a solemnity coincides with a Friday during this season.

www.info.riscassi-davis.com

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

Year of the Missions

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PMS gives talks on Mission to San Pablo Clergy
MOre than 100 priests from the Diocese of San Pablo participated in a forum on the Year of Mission facilitated by a staff from the National Office of the Pontifical Mission Society. The talk was given during the clergy meeting and recollection last February 20 at the bishops house. resource speaker anthony Dameg, a staff from the PMS national office discussed to the clergy the declaration of the Year of the Pontifical Mission Societies by the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP). Dameg also gave details of the forthcoming Grand Mission Festival that will be held from april 18 to 20, 2012. an open forum followed the talk where most of the priest-participants asked about the role of the priest when it comes to mission. I answered that priests are already missionaries, they are missionaries of God for they are spreading Gods word to His children, said Dameg. The talk on Mission was an initiative of the diocesan mission director, Fr. rolo alcasid, SDB, in an effort to re-orient the clergy of San Pablo about the role of PMS in the Church. The clergy meeting and recollection is a monthly activity of the clergy of the diocese. (Jandel Posion)

THe Pontifical Mission Society (PMS) strengthened its campaign to promote the CBCP Year of the Missions by holding talks and discussions in various dioceses and parishes across the country. PMS National Director Fr. Socrates Mesiona, MSP, discussed on mission awareness to 40 parish leaders of St. andrew Parish in Makati last February 25 as part of their campaign to promote the year-round celebration. Centered on the theme renewing Faith, rekindling Missionary Spirit, the talk focused on the participants desire to know more about the relevance of faith and mission. Mission is the accurate indicator of our expression of our faith, Mesiona said, citing Blessed John Paul II. He also mentioned some signs of hope for the missionary activities of the Church like the vibrant Church in africa, the awareness of the laity to be part of the mission of the Church and the OFWs who are also giving witness to their faith. The said activity ended with an open forum, and participants expressing their willingness to support the missionary activities of the Church. In response to the campaign of PMS for the Year of the Missions, Msgr. Dennis Odiver of St. andrew Parish remarked that Manila archbishop Luis antonio Tagle has challenged the priests of the archdiocese to volunteer for the mission. (Jandel Posion)

PMS promotes Year of Mission in parishes

aS part of the celebration of the Year of Mission, the Diocese of Boac held a congress of the Holy Childhood association or the Sancta Infantiaone of the four associations under the Pontifical Mission Societies last February 25 at the San Isidro Labrador Parish in Mogpog, Marinduque. More than 700 children from the different schools in the diocese attended the 5th Childrens Congress focusing on the Mission year theme, remembering our History, Proclaiming Jesus story, Celebrating our faith. Fr. Ian retardo, Mission Director of Boac, said the event aimed to encourage children to join and support the mission activity. retardo also said that during the congress, participants have been made aware that they have a role to fulfill for the mission year. as children, their simple gestures like offering prayers for the year of mission, material help and sacrifices in helping their fellow children is a valuable help [in] celebrating [meaningfully] the year of the mission, retardo explained. retardo furthered that the children can apply what they learned during the congress to become role

Boac holds childrens congress to mark Year of Mission

Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara receiving a certificate from the Pontifical Mission Society (PMS) through Fr. Soc Mesiona, MSP, PMS National Director. See story below.

March 5, 2012 The 12th and the Last Beatification Anniversary of Blessed Pedro Calungsod Before His Canonization on October 21, 2012
By Msgr. Ildebrando Jesus Alio Leyson
YES, March 5, 2012 is the 12th and the last Beatification anniversary of Blessed Pedro Calungsod before his Canonization on October 21, 2012. But this does not mean that we will never celebrate the beatification anniversary anymore. March 5 will alwaysand should alwaysremain a very memorable day because it marked the end of the 328-long years of forgotten memory of this Visayan proto-martyr. after the martyrdom of Pedro Calungsod on april 2, 1672 in Guam, his body was thrown into the deep ocean together with that of his Jesuit mentor Padre Diego Lus de San Vitores. The ground that was soaked with their blood was burned. These the assassins did in order to erase the memory of these martyrs from the earth. and so it seemed. In 1673, the Jesuits tried to process the beatification of Padre Diego, but the attempt went into oblivion. although the accounts of the martyrdom on april 2 were written down by the remaining missionaries in Guam, these documents seemed to be consigned to the grave together with their authors. But God is never vanquished and he does not forget. There is a song composed for the devotion to Blessed Pedro that goes: Sulod sa daghang katuigan Ikaw ning kalibutan hikalimtan Apan didto sa Kahitas-an Sa Dios dugay nang gigantihan The Catholic Faith that was planted in Guam and in the rest of the Mariana Islands in 1668 did not die with Padre Diego, Pedro and the first missionaries. It remained. It survived. It grew, thanks to the blood of the martyrs and the perseverance of the succeeding missionaries. On September 17, 1902, the Marianas became an apostolic Prefecture and were separated from the old Diocese of Cebu. On October 14, 1965, Guam became a diocese by the name of Diocese of agaa. On March 8, 1984, agaa became an archdiocese. In 1981, when agaa was preparing for its 20th anniversary as a diocese, the 1673 beatification cause of Padre Diego was rediscovered in the old manuscripts and taken up anew until Padre Diego was finally beatified on October 6, 1985. It was his beatification that brought the memory of Pedro to our day. The archdiocese of Cebu, where Pedro belonged by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, also started to process his beatification cause in 1994. The endeavor was rewarded when, on March 5, 2000, Pedro was beatified by Pope John Paul II at Saint Peters Square in rome. Beatification is the act by which the Church, through papal decree, permits a specified diocese, region, nation, or religious institute to honor with public cult under the title Blessed a Christian person who has died with a reputation for holiness. The cult usually consists of a Mass and Divine Office (liturgical prayers) in the persons honor. Formal beatification is a positive declaration, following a canonical process, that a person did practice heroic Christian virtue, or suffered a true martyrdom, and after death worked authentic miracles upon being invoked in prayer. Besides witnesses testimony to his virtues, evidence of one first-class miracle is required, though this requirement may be waived in the case of a martyr, the martyrdom being itself the miracle. In proclaiming a person Blessed, the Pope does not exercise his infallibility but his magisterial authority, for he does not declare definitively that the person is in glory. Beatification, then, does not demand faith yet gives moral certainty of its truth, and to deny it would be temerarious. Pedro Calungsod was beatified together with forty-three other martyr Servants of God: andr de Soveral, ambrsio Francisco Ferro, priests and twenty-eight companion martyrs of Brazil; Nicolas Bunkerd Kitbamrung, priest and martyr of Thailand; Maria Stella adela Mardosewicz and ten fellow sisters of the Congregation of Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, religious women and martyrs of Poland; andrew of Ph Yn, lay catechist and martyr of Vietnam. Of these beatified martyrs, Blessed Pedro Calungsod will be the first to be canonized as a saint come October 21, 2012.

Children interpreting a prayer during the 5th Mission Congress in Marinduque.

THe diocese of Dumaguete through the Commission on Mission and evangelization held its first diocesan Eucharistic Mission congress at the Marian Priests Center of Dumaguete Cathedral, February 28-March 1. Diocesan Mission Director Fr. Mark Vilos said the event is the local response of the diocese on the occasion of the 80th year of the Pontifical Mission Society (PMS) and also the Year of the Missions. The highlight of the three-day congress is introducing to the participants the four foundations of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS). But we also went back to the very source of our missionary call which is the eucharist, Vilos said. Basing on the introduction, our understanding and appreciation on the work of PMS is grounded by the Sacred Scripture and the very core of Christian life that is eucharistic

Dumaguete holds first Diocesan Eucharistic Mission Congress

in nature, Vilos added. Speakers during the congress were anthony Dameg, a PMS National Staff; Fr. ramon Ofredo, a professor from the Seminario Mayor de San Carlos in Cebu City and Fr. andrew recepcion. Dameg gave the keynote address while Ofredo discussed the topic eucharist: Source of the Missionary Life of the Church. recepcion explained the different organizations under the Pontifical Mission Society in a talk titled A look at the Four Pontifical Mission Societies. Outgoing Dumaguete Bishop John F. Du presided the send-off mass which ended the three-day congress. It is the Lord who calls us to do the mission work, Du emphasized in his homily. He added that without the Lord, there can be no fruitful and meaningful missionary

model to their fellow children by being prayerful, by going to Church, by reading the bible and by sharing their experiences and learnings from the said event. anthonyDameg,aPMSstaff,gave an insight in the spirituality of the Holy Childhood association during

the morning session. The afternoon activities include a bible hunt, paper rose origami and praying for missionaries around the world. Boac Bishop reynaldo evangelista presided over the Holy Mass that ended the congress. In his homily, the bishop empha-

sized the importance of children growing up active in helping the mission of the Church. The Society of the Holy Childhood fosters mission awareness and commitment of children through its children-helping-children initiatives. (Jandel Posion)

endeavor. Du stressed on the participants that they must not be afraid to engage in mission work. When the time comes that a missioner seems to be overtaken by fear, uncertainties and weariness, he or she just simply need to invoke that mission and the Lord will never fail to come to his/her aid, he explained. Lastly, the eucharist is par excellence the source of missionary fervor in each of the chosen missioner. Hence, the life of a missioner must be nurtured and sustained by the grace that flows every time the Eucharist is celebrated and its saving action is proclaimed in every corner of the world, Du furthered. around 105 participants mostly lay people from the different parishes, religious communities and schools attended the congress. (Jandel Posion)

Pasig holds first convocation program for Holy Childhood Society members
aS the Grand Mission Festival looms ahead, the diocese of Pasig held the first convocation program of the Holy Childhood Society as a groundwork for the big event at St. Pauls College in Pasig, last March 10. Diocesan Mission Director Fr. Vic Virtudazo said the event is the local preparation of the diocese for the upcoming Grand Mission Festival on april 18-20 at the Marikina Sports Complex. The highlight of the program was the eucharistic celebration because it is the prime mover of all our missionary works, Virtudazo said. a program was also conducted before the Mass, aimed to deepen the awareness and understanding the missionary spirit of the children, to value the family as a gift from God and to live out the missionary challenge of Jesus. Speakers during the program were Bernard Canaberal, anthony Dameg and Mariz Umali. Canaberal pointed out that television shows such as teleseryes and the so-called entertainment shows are not entertaining at all. Children should be selective as regards to watching television programs. Likewise, they should be vigilant in using the internet, gadgets like iphone, ipod and cell phones, and other modern and hi-tech gadgets which are not really that helpful to children, Canaberal explained. Dameg on the other hand discussed to the children the birth of HCS and what inspired Bishop Jansen de Forbin to establish this society. He invited them to express their understanding of the mission through a simple workshop. Umali, one of the mission ambassadors shared her faith experience with the children. She also encouraged them to be prayerful and to stay in touch with the Blessed Virgin Mary, for she never fails to help the children. Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara presided the eucharistic celebration. He underscored the need for gospel proclaimers and heralds and stressed that this work must be done at early age. He also encouraged HCS members to tell the stories of Our Lord Jesus Christ to other children. around 175 participants, mostly children from parochial and Catholic schools around the diocese who are members of the Holy Childhood Society attended the program. (Jandel Posion)

Photo courtesy of PMS

Photo courtesy of PMS

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Features

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

By Bishop Jose C. Sorra, DD

In memoriam, Jose Cardinal Sanchez 9 March 2012

By Francisco Kit Tatad
IT is with profound sorrow that we mourn the passing of our beloved Mamo, His eminence Jose Cardinal Sanchez. and it is with genuine faith and hope that we believe he is now with our Lord in Heaven. He loved the Church, the family and the priesthood so deeply that until the very last his thoughts and words were always about themhow more Catholics could live their faith as the Church wants them to; how the Filipino family could be saved from the scourge that has destroyed the family in europe and many other parts of the world; how more young men would be attracted to the dignity and beauty of the priesthood. He so identified himself with the suffering and passion of our Lord that many times during Mass, which he always celebrated with great solemnity, he would find it difficult to pronounce the words of consecration without almost literally breaking down. His eyes would fill with tears, his voice choke and tremble, and he would have to pause long and hard to regain control of his emotions before he could go on. He loved the Pope with all his heartespecially the present Pope Benedict XVI and his predecessor Blessed John Paul II, who had called him to the Vatican and made him Secretary of Propaganda Fide, or the Congregation for the evangelization of Peoples, before making him Cardinal and Prefect of the Congregation of the Clergy. He was the first Filipino cleric and so far the only one to have served in the roman Curia as head of a dicastery, where he stayed until his retirement. Inside his apartment near St. Peters, where he joyfully welcomed his friends and guests all the time, he told the most moving anecdotes about Blessed John Paul II. He saw the saintly pope as a tireless workaholic, who refused to be slowed down by age, fatigue or illness, but worked himself for the Church like a candle burning on both ends. When Blessed John Paul II died, my wife and I instantly flew to rome to pay our last respects to the Pope, who had received us in many audiences, including a couple of private masses inside his papal apartments. There was literally no room for us in any inn. But His eminence sent Sister Mary, his loyal sister-secretary, to meet us at the airport and offer us a room in his apartment. rome was bursting at the seams. Millions of pilgrims from Poland and all over the world filled the streets, making it impossible for anyone to move around. It took those crowds ten to 17 hours, inching their way from outside the Vatican walls, to get inside St. Peters basilica and have a passing glimpse of the Popes body inside. But just by walking with the Cardinal from his apartment to St. Peters, my wife and I were able to get past the cordon in a few minutes and pray beside the catafalque for more than one hour. We stayed with His eminence throughout the papal wake and burial and through the papal conclave to elect the new Pope. He could no longer participate in the conclave, having reached past the age (80) when cardinals could participate in the election of the Pope. But he got regular visits from ricardo Cardinal Vidal, then archbishop of Cebu, who was in the conclave. Cardinals are sworn to secrecy on what goes on during a conclave, so they could not talk about it, even after the event. But as we chatted with his brother-Cardinal, I asked His eminence who, he thought, had the best chance of getting elected pope. Without any hesitation, His eminence

I FIrMLY believe in hope that the City of Mans loss at the passing of His eminence, Jose T. Cardinal Sanchez, is the City of Gods gain and glory. In the early years of His eminences retirement from his Holy Sees position as Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation of the Clergy (of the Universal Church), I have had several times the opportunity to visit with him in his centuries-old apartment at the Vatican, he being my kababayan and brother in the episcopacy. Whenever our conversation touched on the globally besieged family and our unfairly maligned Church apparently for some wrong doings of even just a minimal number of the Universal Churchs clergy, His eminence would almost always wax emotional and shed tears. evidently, it was indeed all because of his deep love and anxious concern for these two indispensable divine Institutions of the Church that were closest to his good shepherds heart. He would admit that he often suffered prayerfully in tears, especially for europe, the cradle of Christianity but has now almost lost its Christian faith. He would always single out Spain which is our countrys Mother Nation in www.op54rosary.ning.com the faith. In fact, this had prompted him, he said, to ask His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI, to allow him to come back homeif only to be of help to our countrys pro-life staunch and save our Filipino family from the scourge that is now raging and bringing havoc to the families in europe and many other parts of the secularized Western and asian cultures. But now that he has finally gone home to the Fathers House, we can now even all the more expect of his more powerful intercession, together with his former most trusted Father mentor, Blessed John Paul II, especially for our Filipino families, our Church and country, and us all! Cardinal Pepito, as we all prayerfully bid you Godspeed and farewell, do remember us always in your Fathers Kingdom. amen.
Remarkable Man / A1

replied that if the election did not take all that long, Cardinal Joseph ratzinger, who was the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, would most probably be elected pope, being already known to all the other cardinals. and with great insight, His eminence added that if ratzinger was elected, he would probably take the name of Benedict, the patron saint of europe, and dedicate his pontificate primarily to the rechristianization of europe, which had lost so much of its Christian faith. all that came to pass within days. The Cardinal stayed on in rome, despite his annual pilgrimage to the Feast of Our Lady of Peafrancia in Naga City, and his repeated statements that he would finally retire in the Philippines. His heart seemed torn between two lovesthe eternal city and home. But he finally came home. His constant prayer was that europes loss of its Christian faith would never happen in the Philippines. and he would contribute his last strength to the fight of the Filipino family against the international reproductive health lobby, which has destroyed the family and killed the Christian faith in many parts of the world. So from his home with the Dominican Daughters of the Immaculate in Fairview, Novaliches, he continued his ministry, teaching the Sisters and saying a Sunday afternoon mass regularly at the Good Shepherd Cathedral under Bishop antonio Tobias. Until he lost his speech, he spoke of love and forgiveness. When I visited him at his sickbed last, I held his hand and told him he had done so much for God and His Church, and that our Father in Heaven must be looking forward to giving him his final reward. I could see the end was near, and around his face shone a great light. I ask for forgiveness, he said, and I want to forgive all, to forgive all, from the bottom of my heart. and then as though in the deepest prayer he closed his eyes. He finally went to God at 4.50 am today, Friday, 9 March 2012. For giving us this saintly pastor, we thank the Lord, Deo gratias!

There are other fields where Cardinal Sanchez took the fight against the rH Bill. In the field of suffering and in the field of prayer, no one can match a man who offers his physical condition and his prayers for the salvation of his country. as the Letter of St. James r emi nds u s, t h e p r a y e r s of a good man works very powerfully. and I would

hasten to add: the prayers of a good man who offers his sufferings as atonement for his country works even more powerfully. Only a man of profound faith can appreciate the power of prayer and vicarious suffering. If only we could learn from him the discipline with which he conducted himself all throughout his life and

which he shared in detail to priests through the Directory on the Ministry and Life of Priests, we could find more hope and betterment for our country. This is also another important reason why he came back to the Philippines; it is principally to offer help for the upliftment and strengthening of priestly vocations. Needless to repeat, that as Prefect of

the Congregation for the Clergy, his utmost concern is the spirituality of priests and the ministerial priesthood. The document is really for priests, thus, if our Philippine clergy would only read this document and review their lives according to its directives, our Philippine church would be so much more dynamic and uplift-

ing. and if thus the clergy, so would be the people. The Philippine Church has lost a valiant crusader against mediocrity, licentiousness and moral relativism. But in the other life, the Church has gained a powerful advocate for its cause. While we pray for the eternal repose of his soul, we are also sure that his prayers will as-

sist us in the challenges we face as a Church and as a people. We commend his soul now to the mercy and love of God, who has chosen him as a faithful steward of so many missions on earth. In the heavenly liturgy, Cardinal Sanchez will perhaps no longer shed any tear. For the longing in his will have been fully satisfied. amen.

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

Statements

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Statement of the National Secretariat for Social Action (NASSA) for the International Solidarity Mission on the issue of Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority (APECO)
The righteous is concerned for the rights of the poor; the wicked does not understand such concern. (Proverbs 29:7)
THe National Secretariat for Social action (NaSSa), as the development and social advocacy arm of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), joins the Prelature of Infanta in organizing the International Solidarity Mission to listen to the cry of the poor and affected marginalized sectors that will be displaced by the project. We believe that true and sustainable development must benefit primarily the poor and all sectors of society, not just a select and influential few. It is not true development when the powerless population is harassed, threatened and live in insecurity due to imminent, forced and deceptive land grabbing, putting its livelihood and social security of its generation into question, not to mention the environmental destruction that comes with this so-called development. We affirm the observation and the social teaching of the Church that . . . too many people are suffering. While some make progress, others stand still or move backwards; and the gap between them is widening. However, the work must proceed in measured steps if the proper equilibrium is to be maintained . . . The development we speak of here cannot be restricted to economic growth alone. To be authentic, it must be well rounded; it must foster the development of each man and of the whole man. As an eminent specialist on this question has rightly said: We cannot allow economics to be separated from human realities, nor development from the civilization in which it takes place. What counts for us is man each individual man, each human group, and humanity as a whole. (Populorum Progressio Nos. 29 and 14) CarPer law, IPra and the Local Government Code of 1991. We are one with the residents, indigenous peoples, farmers and fisherfolks we met in Bianoan, Casiguran and Disigisaw, San Ildefenso and Cozo in aurora, in calling for the repeal of ra9490/10083 that allows the aurora Pacific Ecozone and Freeport Authority (or aPeCO) to increase its scope of coverage from 500 to 12,427 hectares, and to grant extensive powers to private enterprise clearly upholding the interest of foreign investors, enriching the few while sacrificing the interest of the poor. In the light of the undemocratic nature of this enterprise, we call on President Benigno Simeon C. aquino, who ran on the platform of good governance, to immediately call for the review of the aPeCO law, and meanwhile suspend its operation and budget. We challenge the sincerity of this government to effect promised changes and we hope it starts by upholding the well-being of the poor and marginalized over the designs of the powerful politicians behind questionable legislations like aPeCO. and we reiterate our expression of solidarity with and prayers for Bishop rolando Tirona, Fr. Joefran Talaban and the Prelature of Infanta, who bravely face risks and harassments to ensure that the rights of the farmers, fisherfolks, and indigenous peoples are respected. For the National Social action Network + BRODERICK S. PABILLO, DD auxiliary Bishop of Manila National Director of CBCP-NaSSa February 20, 2012

The right to progress, insofar as community development is concerned, becomes acceptable only if it is inspired by moral values that consider the integral development of people, and if the advancement of the few will not be a cause of the suffering of many. Clearly, this is not the case with aPeCO. If the lands will be appropriated for said economic zone, many

indigenous peoples in San Ildefonso Peninsula will be displaced from their ancestral domains, covering around 11,900 hectares. also, food security of the province will be imperiled as wide tracks or irrigated and productive lands in Casiguran will be converted to other uses, and farmers will be deprived of their livelihood. Likewise, the fisherfolks will be displaced from their source of income when the coastal

areas will be populated with high-end luxury resorts and facilities, like the airport now being constructed. We denounce the injustice and human rights violation in the process of pushing through with the construction of projects including absence of consultation and consent of the affected people, legalized land grabbing and eviction, as well as violation of various national legislation, namely, the

70% of the worlds population lives in countries with high restrictions on religious beliefs and practices
(The text of a speech given on March 1 by Archbishop Silvano M. Tomasi, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations at Geneva, during the course of the 19th ordinary session of the Human Rights Council.)
MaDaM President, The implementation of human rights is a difficult challenge today, particularly with regard to the fundamental and inalienable right of every person to freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief. among other elements, the evolving political situation, wrong perceptions of the role of religion, expediency, and subtle ambiguities in the understanding of secularism lead to intolerance and even outright persecution of people because of their faith or religion. The freedom to manifest ones religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance, which is guaranteed by human rights law and international instruments, is disregarded in several places in the world. Such stifling policies and practices place at risk the contribution of many citizens to social life and progress in their respective countries. The Holy See appreciates the regular attention of the Human rights Council to this major issue as well as the related efforts and decisions taken by Special Procedures. In many countries, however, the gap is growing between widely accepted stated principles, and their daily application on the ground. Serious research provides reliable data on current and repetitive patterns of gross violations of the right to freedom of religion. Christians are not the only victims, but terrorist attacks on Christians in africa, the Middle east and asia increased 309% between 2003 and 2010. approximately 70% of the worlds population lives in countries with high restrictions on religious beliefs and practices, and religious minorities pay the highest price. In general, rising restrictions on religion affect more than 2.2 billion people. The affected people either have lost the protection of their societies or have experienced some government-imposed and unjust restrictions, or have become victims of violence resulting from an impulsive bigotry.[1] The evidence shows that additional efforts are required from the international community in order to assure the protection of people in their exercise of freedom of religion and religious practice. Such actions are urgently required since in several countries the situation is worsening and since the factual reporting of such violations is underplayed, despite the fact, it should be highlighted in the pertinent reports. The Universal Declaration of Human rights points to respect for the human dignity of all people as the foundation on which the protection of human rights is built. In the present circumstances, it is worth recalling that States should ensure that all their citizens have the right to enjoy freedom of religion individually, within the family, and as a community, and to participate in the public square. religious freedom, in fact, is not a derived right, or one granted, but a fundamental and inalienable right of the human person. a religious belief should not be perceived or considered as harmful or offensive simply because it is different from that of the majority. The task of the Government is not to define religion or recognize its value, but to confer upon faith communities a juridical personality so that they can function peacefully within a legal framework. respect for the religious freedom of everyone may be at stake in places where the concept of State religion is recognized, especially when the latter becomes the source of unjust treatment of others, whether they believe in other faiths or have none. above the institutional considerations, the critical problem facing the promotion and protection of human rights in the area of religious freedom is the intolerance that leads to violence and to the killing of many innocent people each year simply because of their religious convictions. The realistic and collective responsibility, therefore, is to sustain mutual tolerance and respect of human rights and a greater equality among citizens of different religions in order to achieve a healthy democracy where the public role of religion and the distinction between religious and temporal spheres are recognized. In practical life, when managed in the context of mutual acceptance, the relations between majority and minority allow for cooperation and compromise and open the way for peaceful and constructive coexistence. But to achieve this desirable goal, there is a need to overcome a culture that devalues the human person and is intent on eliminating religion from the public life. Pope Benedict XVI has clearly describes this situation when he writes: Sadly, in certain countries, mainly in the West, one increasingly encounters in political and cultural circles, as well in the media, scarce respect and at times hostility, if not scorn, directed towards religion and towards Christianity in particular. It is clear that if relativism is considered an essential element of democracy, one risks viewing secularity solely in the sense of excluding or, more precisely, denying the social importance of religion. But such an approach creates
Population / B7

Ayoko sa APECO/www.facebook.com

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Ref lections
alludes to an event in the Old Testament in which a bronze serpent was raised on a pole by Moses. Of course, in europe, there was a healing cult of asclepius and Glycon, and the caduceus has become a symbol of medicine in european tradition. In hospitals, serpents are displayed as a sign of hope, salvation, healing and life. and it is possible that the story of the bronze serpent image in the Old Testament (Num 21:8-9) reflects this aspect of serpent symbolism: hope, healing, salvation and life. Here, the Jews impatiently grumbled against God for leading them from egypt through Moses, but the Lord punished the rebels by sending them a great number of serpents. realizing their folly, they asked forgiveness, and God instructed Moses to raise a bronze serpent so that those who were bitten, by just looking at itthat is to say, by believing in Gods power manifested in the bronze serpentcould recover. In appropriating the serpent image to Jesus, John wanted to say that just as the contemplation of the bronze serpent in the desert brought healing and salvation to the Israelites bitten by the fiery serpents, so the very sight of Jesus lifted up on the cross can bring life and salvation to those who have faith in him, in more or less the same way that as long as the crew and the passengers of the ship look on and not lose contact with the lighthouse that beacons, the will be saved from the raging storm at sea. Hence, the statement of the Jesus in John: Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that all who believe may have eternal life in him (John 3:14). This saying represents Johns theology of the cross. It is in the crucified Jesus that eternal life is found. The crucifixion, which is also Jesus glorification in John, is therefore Gods invitation to share his life, and all man has to

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

How can we attain eternal life?

An exegetical reflection on the Gospel of the 4th Sunday of Lent B (John 3:14-21) March 18, 2012
By Msgr. Lope C. Robredillo, SThD
WHeN a ship wanders off course in a stormy night, what gives life and hope to its passengers and crew is the lighthouse that beacons. If one is lost in the forest, he gains hope when he finds a footpath, and there is hope for him as long as he follows it. When one walks the boulevard at night, he is assured of safety as long as he does so along the lighted path. The more he wanders from it, the greater the danger of losing his life. In these instances, the image of the lighthouse, the footpath and the lighted path describes an opportunity which one must not miss or neglect if he is to be saved, if he is not to perish. In todays Gospel, which is really a part of the dialogue between Jesus and Nicodemus that turns to a monologue, John stresses a similar point. The image he uses for this purpose do is to accept the offer. But does this mean that one can acquire eternal life by just trusting in the crucified Lord? Far from it. In John, to believe in means to have personal allegiance to him (John 1:12; 3:18; 12:46). First of all, this includes an acceptance of his revelation. In the 1st reading (2 Chron 26:14-16.19-23), the Jews did not enjoy safety, but were delivered to the Chaldeans because they refused to listen to the revelation by the prophets, or, more accurately, to the prophets who were the interpreters of Gods revelation (2 Chron 36:16). Second, it implies putting oneself entirely in the hands of Jesus (John 6:37; 17:2). In the language of Paul in the 2nd reading, this is because life, salvation or healing is Gods work, not a consequence of our good deeds or our efforts to save ourselves (eph 2:8). In our response to the life and salvation Jesus gives from the cross, it is important, therefore,
Life / B7

The Fathers universal life-giving love

Reflections on the 4th Sunday of Lent (B) March 18, 2012
By Fr. Sal Putzu, SDB
FaTHerS are expected to be loving, forgiving, and selfless. Unfortunately, not a few fall short of this expectation. and even the very good ones sometimes do fail, due to the weakness of human nature. There is only one father who never lets down any of his children, and continually takes to heart the full happiness of all of them. This ideal father is GOD. He alone meets the standard of perfect fatherhood. From Him all fatherhood on earth derives its meaning and authority. The perfect Father has a personal nameLOVE, a name which expresses the essence of His nature. He is love in person. (See 1 Jn 4:8.16.) all His deeds are deeds of love: a love that is like a symphony resulting from the combination of the many harmonious notes of His power, mercy, forgiveness, providence, faithfulness, self-giving, communion . . . Israel experienced Gods love with a special intensity and clarity. The Lords love for His Special People was ever-mindful (see Is 49:15f), both tender and firm (see Hos 11:1.3-4.8-11), Gods love is rooted in his own eternity. He has loved His people with an everlasting love. (See Jer 31:3.) But Gods love is not limited to Israel. It encompasses all human beings. Creation in all its richness is for all. For all is the call to eternal happiness in heaven. (See 1 Tim 2:4.) But the greatest sign of the divine love for all men is the gift of Gods only Son. all men have sinned. In one way or another, they have all rejected God. But God never rejected men. True to His nature, He did not abandon sinful mankind. True love never gives up. (See 1 Cor 13:7.) as a proof of His persistent love, when men were yet sinners, God allowed His only Son to die the just for the unjustthat all of them might have eternal life and enjoy the gift of an undeserved sonship. (See rom 5:8 and 1 Pt 3:18.) So much did God love an unloving and uncaring world! What else could He have done that He did not do? Jesus revealed all the depth of the Fathers love to Nicodemus on the night of the secret meeting, and he would prove it by dying on the cross. The same message is addressed to us today. We, too, need to know and be convinced of Gods tremendous love for us. Knowing this, we should respond with appreciation, gratitude, cooperation, and imitation. There is nothing that we can do to deserve Gods love, but there is a lot we can do to make it bear fruit in ourselves and around us. Jesus learned from the Father to love till death, and he taught his disciples to do the same. It is now our turn to show in practice that we have learnt the most important lesson in life: to love God in return and to love one another as He has done. (See Jn 13:34 and 1 Jn 4:11.)

Unless the grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies

Reflections on the 5th Sunday of Lent (B) March 25, 2012
By Fr. Sal Putzu, SDB
VaLUaBLe items have a high price. Important achievements are the crowning of courage, determination, effort, and perseverance. Medals, whether gained in sports, civil service or war time, are never a formality. Behind that small piece of metal there lies a world of self-sacrifice and dedication. In our existence on earth, there is nothing more precious than our spiritual life. Such a treasure initially comes to us as a gift from God a living gift that has to be protected and developed. Our spiritual life the best part of our selvesis more like a seed than like a diamond. every seed has immense (often unsuspected) potentialities: endless riches of colors, flowers, fruit, life . . . all this will come to light, the richness that is within will be made visible only if the seed undergoes the process of transformation which, in many aspects, is a form of death. This miracle, in fact, will happen only if the shell opens up and rots away, and even the internal part is consumed and disappears in order for the tender shoot to sprout and grow to fullness. The best part of us is often wrapped in a shell of ordinariness and defects like wrong attachments to ourselves, other people or the material world; resentments, grudges, envy, lust, pride . . . These defects are like fetters that cripple us and hamper the development of our personality and spiritual life. If we really mean to attain a new life, or enjoy a fuller life, we must

www.radiolighthouse.net

rid ourselves of them with the help of Gods grace. This will be possible only on one condition: that we be ready to die and be transformed like a seed. The hard shell of selfishness must be opened wide and shattered to give way to a sincere concern for others. Layers of makeup and pretense have to be removed to reveal sincerity and truthfulness. Hotbeds of decay and moral corruption of all denominations have to be scraped in order to allow the roots of a new life to strike deep into our personalities and bear fruits of honesty, dedication, purity . . . The new life will flower in us only at the cost of the death of our

lower, sinful selves. This is the meaning of Christs saying, The man who loves his life loses it, while the man who hates his life in this world preserves it to life eternal (Jn 12:25). Jesus did not just teach this as a striking, paradoxical theory. He lived it out, and paid the price which this principle entails. Son though he was, Jesus learned obedience from what he suffered; and when perfected, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him (Heb 5:8f). That was a wonderful fruit indeed, sprouting from the seed of his life given for us. We can share in it only if we accept to share in his self-offering and death.

Fr. Francis Ongkingco

WHATEVER

Bishop Pat Alo

Visit Tayo
YaHOO! Two more exams and its summer vacation for me! Sal exclaimed as he entered the cafeteria. Dont forget the two projects we still have to submit, dude! his best friend Chris reminded him. That? Theyre not gonna even make me lose any sleep. I can do them while I enjoy my tan, music, drinks and gals in Bora during Holy Week! Okay, but dont go around texting me for help coz Im not going to lend you any this time. Sides, you call that holy week? Why not give yourself a spiritual facelift this year? Facelift? Sal was a bit confused. Hey, I bet youre thinking that we spend our Holy Week there like pagans. I didnt say that nor did it ever cross my mind, Sal. We never stay in the party zone, sides its too noisy and I want a paradise with peace and quiet. Moreover, we make sure to follow the Holy Week services celebrated in the island. Glad to hear that, Chris started peeling a banana. How bout you, Chris? What are you going to do this Holy Week? Im gonna do my yearly visit to seven Churches, he gobbled almost the entire banana in one bite. Visit to seven churches? Suddenly, Sal became excited. I know that! We did that before. It was fun going from one church to another, meeting lots of people, seeing pretty faces [CHUCKLe!], and then racing to a fast-food joint or resto for a last hefty meal before the clock struck twelve beginning Good Friday which requires us to fast and abstain. Bravo, youre not so pagan after all! Chris cheered. But thats pretty boring for me now, Sal sighed. Whats in this local custom for you Chris? Oh, Im excited to visit some new churches I havent yet seen. By the way, it isnt just a local custom like you think it is, Sal. really, dude? Then how did we catch this Lenten thingy? actually I read that it goes all the way back to the early years of Christianity. There werent as many Christians then so the Pope gathered all of them, usually during Lent, in one place around the eucharist. This was to stress their unity by receiving the one Body in our Lord. Wow! Can you imagine how moving it was to see everyone together in one place? The rich sat with the poor, the educated with illiterates, businessmen chatting with street cleaners, etc.? The early Christians became a sign of how Christianity was truly for everyone and made no distinctions whatsoever. It also became a symbol of unity around our Lord in the eucharist and also with the Pope who convoked that yearly meeting. So what did they do together? relax, Chris smiled. What about buying me some potato chips? Sure, Sal jumped to buy the junk food. as I was saying, Chris opened the chips. When Christianity began to grow and spread, it was no longer possible to physically gather everyone in one place. Thus, began the custom of the statio. The statio? It means standing before the Lord. Chris explained. Standing? The custom consisted of the Pope, as romes sole bishop, leading all the roman faithful in worship and going right through each of the titular churches. Titular? also known as principal or designated seven pilgrim churches which the faithful would visit as a form of penance. Geez! and what were these seven churches? Sal asked. There are the four patriarchal basilicas St. John Lateran, St. Peters, St. Pauls Outside the Walls, St. Mary Major, and the three of the citys minor basilicas St. Lawrence Outside the Walls, the Holy Cross in Jerusalem and the Shrine of the Madonna of Divine Love. awesome memory you got there, dude! and what else did they do?
Whatever / B7

ENCOUNTERS

The Secrets of Business

SOMeTIMe ago I heard it mentioned by a Focolare group member that the Holy Bible is the best business book. I do remember the bestseller book by robert Townsend where he states in his book (1970) titledUp the Organization, in page 62 under the sub-title Family Baggage, The worst wives (from the standpoint of the effect on their husbands) in my experience are the overly ambitious ones. They dont understand that money, like prestige, if sought directly, is almost never gained. It must come as a byproduct of some worthwhile objective or result which is sought and achieved for its own sake. The reason why I cite this here is so that we may learn the correct ways of doing successful business which is even in accord with Gods infallible truth in the Bible. You may find such reference in the gospel of Lk. 6:38 and in 1 Tim. 6:10. The first text in Luke chapter 6 somehow projects the attitude of sincere love and service to the fellowman or woman: Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge, and you will not be judged yourselves; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned yourselves; grant pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap; because the amount
Encounters / B7

Photo: CBCP-NASSA

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

Social Concerns

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Alay Kapwa National Launching 2012

CBCP-NASSA National Director and Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo at the national launching of Alay Kapwa 2012 in Iligan City, urged the faithful to make a difference in todays society by helping neighbors in need through sharing of time, talent and treasure.

By National Secretariat for Social Action

THe Social action Center of the Diocese of Iligan has organized the alay Kapwa National Theme Launching 2012: Stewardship is Discipleship on 24 February 2012 at the St. Michael the archangel Cathedral, Iligan City. Some 157 delegates representing the parishes of St. Michaels Cathedral, San roque Parish, Our Lady of Fatima Parish, Immaculate Conception Parish, Beato Pedro Calungsod Parish and San Lorenzo Parish, as well as host families and volunteers from various groups attended the event. National Director of CBCP-NaSSa and Manila auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo and Iligan Bishop elenito Galido led the eucharistic Mass with the Iligan clergy concelebrating. Bishop Pabillo creatively started the program by inviting the congregation to reflect on the reality of poverty and marginalization through pictures and the song Pananagutan and encouraged everyone to get in touch with their own feelings. History and meaning of alay Kapwa, or aK, was then introduced. He emphasized that aK is an education-action program that encourages people to put into practice sharing for
Population / B5

evangelization towards total human development sharing time, talent, treasure out of earnest concern for neighbor. evangelization means preaching and living the Gospel through formation, worship and social service; and that the aim of total human development is to achieve for everyone the quality of life that befits mens dignity as children of God. One question everyone should consider when we see the poor and marginalized is: Is this the life that a person in the image of God deserves? How can we make it according to the will of God? aKs goal is both formational and financial to relate the message of formational campaign with the spirit of sacrifice inspired by Lent. It is timely launched during Lent because Filipino devotion to suffering Christ is directed towards care for his suffering neighbors. Reflecting on others suffering is to be reflected in the action of sharing with others what we would have enjoyed for ourselves. aKs strategies for overcoming poverty include: works of mercy (poverty alleviation); works of development (poverty reduction); and works of justice/ advocacy (poverty eradication). It was clarified that 20 percent of Diocesan aK collection go to relief and rehabilitation stand-by fund of the
Life / B6

Diocesan Social action Center; while 40 percent of the remaining 80 percent go to aK National Solidarity Fund c/o NaSSa. In this way, each diocese shares in solidarity with another diocese in need through relief and rehabilitation, advocacy work/ effort and other activities and program. This years aK program is themed, Stewardship is Discipleship. as practiced annually, modules have been produced to be distributed to all Dioceses and Catholic Schools in Metro Manila. The modules would serve as guide for clergy, religious teachers, pastoral workers and all faithful in their evangelization-action program for their locality on the issues and situations we face today, such as uncontrolled mining and illegal logging, landless farmers fighting for agrarian reform, retrenched and contractualized workers of Hanjin Shipyard, the Philippine airlines, and national debt, among others. In practicing good stewardship of Gods creation, we are called to take care of the environment for the enjoyment of the future generations as well, and thus we should be responsible for their welfare and promote the rights of our fellow children of God, and workers who are co-creators of our Creator. Only then can we express our efforts to follow Jesus Christ as true disciples.
Whatever / B6

The aK program starts with life situation of our people, draws inspiration from Social Teaching of the Church, and challenges us to take action. SeeJudge-act can also be known as aaa: awareness, analysis and action, where action is manifested through sharing of Time, Talent and Treasure. at the end of the session, Bishop Pabillo distributed campaign stickers to support retrenched and contractualized workers of Philippine airlines, as well as the manifesto of K99 movement composed of various civil society groups and NGOs working with marginalized sectors of the community. To further concretize the aK Launching, Ms. Finda Lacanlalay, Program Manager of Hapag-asa Integrated Nutrition Program of the assisi Development Foundation, shared about their effort to help malnourished children through a six-month feeding program that supplements nutrition of children. The program has already been introduced in many other provinces and districts nationwide. Different groups with identified beneficiaries are encouraged to join together and may invite Hapag-asa personnel to present/ introduce the program. at the conclusion of the program after the Eucharistic celebration, Certificates of appreciation were presented to the hosts, Diocese of Iligan and the Social

action Center. Prior to the aK Launching, Bishop Pabillo gave an input on the Catholic Social Teachings. a three-day Training Program on Project and Financial Management for the Caritas Village Housing project, also hosted by the Social action Center of Iligan diocese was held on 21-23 February. Fr. albert Mendez of the Social action Center of the Diocese of Iligan, Fr. Nathan Lerio of the Social action Center of Cagayan de Oro, together with their Social action teams participated. This is part of the response of CBCP-NaSSa to support local dioceses affected by the recent typhoon Sendong. For 37 years since the first Alay Kapwa or National Lenten action Program in 1975, CBCP-NaSSa has been launching the annual event that invites the faithful to consider all as neighbors and share with the needy and the deprived what one has, out of an awakened social consciousness. In general, it attempts to respond to four basic problems of the Philippine Catholic Church, namely the split level spirituality: pastoral ministry vs. social involvement; inequality/social injustice; fragmentation; and dependency on financial aid from foreign countries. alay Kapwa means that sharing, giving or helping are but fruits of this self-giving love.
Encounters / B6

confrontation and division, disturbs peace, harms human ecology and, by rejecting in principle approaches other than its own, finishes in a dead end. There is thus an urgent need to delineate a positive and open secularity which, grounded in the just autonomy of the temporal order and the spiritual order, can foster healthy cooperation and a spirit of shared responsibility.[2] Madam President, religions are not a threat, but a resource. They contribute to the development of civilizations, and this is good for everyone. Their freedom and activities should be protected so that the partnership between religious beliefs and societies may enhance the common good. a culture of tolerance, mutual acceptance and dialogue is urgent. The educational system and the media have a major role to play by excluding prejudice and hatred from textbooks, from newscasts and from newspa-

pers, and by disseminating accurate and fair information on all component groups of society. But lack of education and information, that facilitates an easier manipulation of people for political advantages, is too often linked to underdevelopment, poverty, lack of access to effective participation in the management of society. Greater social justice provides fertile ground for the implementation of all human rights. religions are communities based on convictions and their freedom guarantees a contribution of moral values without which the freedom of everyone is not possible. For this reason, it becomes an urgent and beneficial responsibility of the international community to counteract the trend of increasing violence against religious groups and of mistaken and deceptive neutrality that in fact aims at neutralizing religion. Thank you, Madam President.

that we do not deviate from his revelation, especially from his teaching. Just as one who goes off course shown by the beacon coming from the lighthouse navigates dangerously, so one who does not accept the teaching of Jesus cannot hope to acquire eternal life. Faith in Jesus, according to John, therefore requires that we follow him, both his words and his examples. The second implication of the Johannine concept of faith urges us to unite ourselves spiritually with Jesus by sharing in the power that comes from the cross. Just as a man who does not walk under the light of the boulevard is in danger of being stabbed or held up, so we must walk under the power of Jesus, under his light, for this is the one that gives us spiritual life, strength and sustenance. That power or light is none other than the love of God in Christ who, in his mercy, made us alive (eph 2:4). Gods love consists in his sending of his Son to us that we may have life through him (1 John 4:9).

Pretty much the same as we do it here. They met together and went to the church together and thus in each church the unity of the Church becomes visible and touches every person. Thats really cool, dude! Sal remarked. So it also means that when we visit our local visitas here, we are somehow united to the entire Church, the Pope and all Christians! Not only somehow, but we are really united because we stand around the source of this unity, Who is Jesus in the eucharist, Chris further clarified. Super! I never saw it that way, Sal said. and what do we do inside church? Well, we do the statio, or what we now call the major stations sort of standing before the Lord with our prayers. Major stations? Yup! It means six sets of Our Fathers, Hail Marys and Glory Bes recited before the altar of repose in each of the seven churches. If theres a major, then there must be a minor, right?

Yes, that means a minor consists only of three sets which can be done before any Tabernacle. Thats makes all of this so meaningful. Its like re-living those awesome World Youth Days vigils like in Sydney and Madrid, Sal nostalgically recalled. and do you know why these set of prayers? Yeah, why? Well, Blessed John Paul II once said that theyre the most natural prayers to recite for the stations. While we stand before the Lord, the Our Father reminds us that we are Gods children through the Son. The Hail Mary teaches us that Jesus came to us through Mary and the Glory Be leads us to give all this glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Chris concluded. You know, Chris? Sal remarked. What, Sal? Its bye Bora for me and its statio this Holy Week with you. rather, you mean, visit tayo kay Jesus? Chris joked. Yeah, I meant that too, Sal laughed.

you measure out is the amount you will be given back (Lk. 6:36-38). I guess this means that we should realize that how we do or treat others will somehow or similarly bounce back to us. The text from St. Paul to Timothy tells us why its wrong business to be enslaved to money or make it a prime concern. The love of money is the root of all evils and there are some who, pursuing it, have wandered away from the faith, and so given their souls any number of fatal wounds (1 Tim. 6:10). If you care to be in the right path these biblical texts do clearly point out that we must not be enslaved, deceived or illusioned by monetary gain but rather be always motivated by a sincere love and service of God and our neighbor, and then all the rest will follow. as Jesus had said: Seek ye first Gods kingdom and His righteousness and all other things will be given you besides (Mt. 6:33).

May They Be One

Help Put a Bible in Every Filipino Home

Bible Campaign

Members of the MTBO Advisory Committee: Bishop Broderick S. Pabillo DD, Fr. Oscar A. Alunday, Mr. Rod G. Cornejo, Mr. Rene E. Cristobal Sr., Dr. Philip C. Flores, Mr. Dante M. Lanorio, Fr. Antonio B. Navarrete, Fr. Art B. Orense, Dr. Natividad B. Pagadut and Mr. Albert S. Tanlimco. Praise God for using the May They Be One campaign to spread His Word to more than half a million people so far since the campaign began in late 2008. Pray that the MTBO Bible Run will be a showcase of unity among Christians in the love of the Word that transforms lives, communities and even countries. To learn more about how you can be part of the Campaign and make significant change, call us at PBS 526-7777, ECBA 527-9386 or visit www.bible.org. ph and www.ecba-cbcp.com. Donations can be made by making a deposit to the following bank accounts: PBS-MTBO Account #393-0649-34 (BPI Sta. Mesa Branch) Fax deposit slip to 521-5803 or ECBA-CBCP Account #0251-021376 (BPI-Tayuman Branch) Fax deposit slip to 527-9386. For credit card payments go to PBS website (www.bible.org.ph)

vita Rodriguezs mother and brothers strong commitment to church work went to the extent of them even building a chapel in Tagum, Davao. But amid her familys passion, Evita herself was indifferent, not even getting involved in church. Things changed, however, when Evita received a Bible under the May They Be One Bible campaign. Her curiosity got her started in reading her new Bible. This in turn gave her motivation to get involved in the activities of the church attending different seminars and distributing Bibles to the poor. Among the places where she and her church colleagues conducted Bible distribution were Nabunturan, Compostela Valley, Davao City, and Tagum City, the site of the chapel built by her family members. During the distribution both Catholics and Protestants queued to get their Bibles. Even a Muslim asked for a Bible, saying that he would like to read it. Being exposed to peoples hunger for Gods Word served as an eye opener for Evita. One of her sources of joy nowadays is buying Bibles and giving them away to others who cannot afford them. ..how wonderful is the coming of messengers who bring Good News!? (Romans 10:15b) No. of Dioceses participating in the Bible Campaign 82 out of 86 Dioceses Bibles Distributed (Jan 1, 2012 - Feb 23, 2012): 29,085 copies Bibles Distributed by Languages - Cebuano (3,972 cps.) English (2,119 cps.), Hiligaynon (602 cps.), Ilocano (1,090 cps.) Samarenyo (1,034 cps.), Tagalog (20,668 cps.) Parishes/Communities served in 2012: 24 Total Bible Distribution: (Jan 2009- Feb. 21, 2012): 562, 943 cps. Target No. of Bibles for Distribution for 2012: 600,000 cps. Total Funds Needed for Printing and Transport of Bibles in 2012: P60M

Messenger of the Good News

www.tripwow.tripadvisor.com/Dexter King

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Entertainment
Moral Assessment

CBCP Monitor

Vol. 16 No. 6

March 12 - 25, 2012

Technical Assessment

Abhorrent Disturbing Acceptable Wholesome Exemplary

Poor Below average Average Above average Excellent TITLE: The Devil Inside CAST: Fernanda Andrade (Isabella Rossi), Evan Helmuth (David), Simon Quarterman (Ben), Suzan Cowley (Maria Rossi) DIRECTOR: William Brent Bell, Joaquin Perea GENRE: Horror DISTRIBUTOR: Paramount Pictures LOCATION: Rome, Italy RUNNING TIME: 85 minutes TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT: MORAL ASSESSMENT: CINEMA RATING: For viewers 18 years old and above

IN recent years, the Catholic Church has established a course in rome for exorcists and those interested in these experiences of the devil. The course featured in the 2011 film with Anthony Hopkins, The rite, and also features in this film. The Devil Inside might be seen as a commercial rip-off of such films as The Riteand it probably is. However, quite some thought has been given to the screenplay and its plausibility and checking out a lot of Catholic details. Critics will say that too little thought has been given to the screenplayand with some justification concerning the ending since the film just stops with a more than melodramatic moment. Perhaps, the makers had run out of ideas and/or budget. again, the makers use the now tradition of The Blair Witch Project, disguising fiction as fact. They also do quite a bit of handheld camera work to pretend that it is all authentic footage (often with dates and times indicated as in the Paranormal activity series). It opens with a video of a crime scene walk through by detectives with commentary introducing the deaths of two priests and a nun during an exorcism of a housewife. after being declared criminally insane by the Connecticut courts, she was

transferred to a roman institution for the criminally insane. That was in 1989. Now, in 2009, her daughter, Isabella, wants to understand what happens and decides to make a documentary. For the first part of the film, it continues in a documentary style, a film that you might see on television. Isabella sits in on the course in Rome, which gives the film a chance to offer some thoughts on possession and raise questions about true possession and mental states. In the class are an american doctor become priest and an english priest whose uncle was an exorcist. They use technological equipment for their exorcisms and reveal that they are doing their work without church approval (with some comments in the vein of hierarchy cover-ups and bureaucratic mind-sets). They take Isabella and her cameraman to an actual exorcism echoes of The exorcist with contortions, hurlings and prayer in english and Latin. Isabella agrees to a similar exorcism for her mother who has recognized her but is hostileand has been officially declared mad rather than possessed. By this time, the skeptic audience is probably in full scorn mode. The believers are wondering whether this can really happen. Those who have been

following it sympathetically are hoping that the exorcism will be a success but their movie-going experience is probably warning them that this is the stage where you surrender belief and just go with the ever-increasing melodramatic and violent flow. It actually does become more melodramatic than expected and then that stop and the final credits. Its only a small-budget, 83 minute possession thriller so better not to make a mountain out of a mole hill. (In 2010, there was a Protestant/ evangelical variation on this theme, The Last exorcism). There is an initial disclaimer that the Vatican did not give any official approval of the film or help in its making!

MAC en COLET

Ni Bladimer Usi

Buhay Parokya

Look for the images of St. Lorenzo Ruiz, St. James, the Apostle and St. Cecilia. (Illustration by Bladimer Usi)

TITLE: Chronicle CAST: Dane DeHaan, Michael B. Jordan, Michael Kelly, Alex Russell DIRECTOR: Josh Trank GENRE: Fantasy / Sci-fi / Thriller LOCATION: United States RUNNING TIME: 83 minutes TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT: MORAL ASSESSMENT: CINEMA RATING: For viewers 18 years old

CHrONICLe sounds a fairly straightforward title though the film runs for only 84 minutes, rather a short time for a chronicle. This is another hand-held camera story, allegedly using footage taken by andrew (Dane de Haan), the central character, with his new camera. In the latter part of the film, other alleged footage from surveillance cameras and other sources is edited in. So, we are in the Blair Witch tradition, though the story takes us in quite a different direction. All seems rather domestic at first: Andrews room, his alcoholic father, his ailing mother, school where he is put down all the time, a party where he irritates people by filming. His main friend is his cousin Matthew (alex russell) who tries to put the brakes on all the filming, hoping Andrew will get a life. He does, but the most hoped-for. Matthew is joined by class president, Steve (Michael B. Jordan) as they explore a mysterious hole in the ground and ask Andrew to film. Something in the hole exercises a strange power and they become telekinetic as well as finding they can soar into the air. Strong change of pace at this juncture. What first seems something jokey and a bit of horseplay becomes something dangerous, fatal for one of the group. and andrew seems to be taken over by the power, becoming extremely vindictive, cruel to friends and his many foes, ultimately becoming, not a superhero, but a supervillain. He could have become a Spiderman type for good but turns into the Green Goblin and the other evil characters from the Spiderman films. The film becomes rather spectacular by the end as Andrew wreaks his revenge as well being destructive just because he can. He rationalizes his attitudes with theories of evolution and survival of the fittest, rather Nietschean (though Schopenhauer and Plato are quoted), an evil super-man beyond morality. Chronicle was filmed in South Africa with quite some interesting special effects South africa did a very good job with District 9 and its effects some years ago. Younger audiences will identify with the characters and the situations and then be challenged by andrews behaviour. This one has proven popular and may be on its way to cult movie status.

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - March 25, 2012

A Supplement Publication of KCFAPI and the Order of the Knights of Columbus

The Cross

C1

Participants of the 35th Fr. George J. Willmann SJ. Annual Family Service Award held from March 9-11, 2012 in Cebu City.

KCFAPI achieves record-breaking 2011: Highest ever FYC and number of awardees
The Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc. (KCFAPI) held the 35th Fr. George J. Willmann Annual Family Service Awards from March 9-11, 2012 at the Marriott Hotel in Cardinal Rosales Avenue, Cebu City. The annual event recognizes the outstanding Area Managers and Fraternal Counselors who have achieved exemplary performance against their assigned targets. This years Annual Family Service Awards highlighted the two (2) enviable milestones of 2011: 1) the most number of awardees bringing in for the first time a record high of 75 Awardees and 2) the attainment of P127.4 million in First Year Contribution Income (FYCI) for the year 2011 which did not only hurdle the P125 million 2011 target but also marked the highest every first year contribution eclipsing the previous highest of P124 million established in 2009. With this, KCFAPI is pleased to announce the awardees of the 35th Fr. George J. Willmann Annual Family Service Awards (please see C4 for the complete list). During the program proper, KCFAPI President, Guillermo N. Hernandez gave his opening remarks while the former Chief Justice and KCFAPI Chairman, Hilario G. Davide, Jr. delivered a very inspiring message and led the toast for the winners. The 2012 Fr. George J. Willmann Annual Family Service Awards Night was

integrated with a costume parade, for which the attendees dressed like their favorite Hollywood celebrities and with group presentations by the Area Managers and Fraternal Counselors. The awardees and their spouses headed for home inspired by the 3-day event and pledged to themselves that they will do better in 2012. Cheers was the final word of Chairman Hilario G. Davide, Jr. and this word became their challenge. (Ma. Kristianne G. Pascual)

KCFAPI, KC Luzon hold silkscreen printing training

THE Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc., (KCFAPI) and the Knights of Columbus Luzon Jurisdiction held a skills training and entrepreneurship development program on Photographic Silkscreen Printing at the KCFAPI Building in Intramuros, Manila last March 5. The training was conducted in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare (DSW) Manila Manpower Development Center. Luzon Deputy, Arsenio Isidro Yap delivered the opening message together with KCFAPI President, Guillermo N. Hernandez and Feliza Onanad of the Manila Manpower Development Center. State Program Director, Ramoncito A. Ocampo welcomed seminar participants while State Church Director, Vicente Ortega led the opening prayer. The days session ended with closing remarks from Brother Eduardo A. Lara. The affairs Master of ceremony was Brother Rolando E. Mirande. (KCFAPI News)

300 trekkers join KCFAPI-CLCs 21st Trek

By Yen Ocampo
MORE than three hundred trekkers including four priests participated in the 21st Trek to Mt. Taklang Damulag in Palayan City, Nueva Ecija last February 24 to 25. The event was organized by the Central Luzon Conquerors (CLC) of the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc. (KCFAPI) and the Round Table of District Deputies (RTDD) of Nueva Ecija and Aurora. A Eucharistic celebration officiated by Fr. Orly Valino and Fr. Nezele Lirio was held during the event in line with this years theme, In Communion with God and Nature and Walk for National Pride and Discipline. The College of Immaculate Concepcion chorale sang during the Mass. Fr. Orly in his homily emphasized that praying in the mountain is an imitation of what Jesus did, while Fr. Nezele shared some of his experiences. During lunch, Bro. Rene Odulio, 7th ID Army, and Camp Commander General Arnulfo A. Atendido provided a boodle feast for the participants. KCFAPI-CLC Area Manager Manuel Naldoza narrated that on the first day, they were welcomed with hot coffee and pandesal by the Fort Magsaysay Council 10638. Our first activity was to witness the static show of the army artillery regiment and the platoon maneuver by the special forces, and around 3:30 p.m. we began to climb Mt. Taklang Damulag, he said. He added that it took two and a half hours to reach the top. Trekkers brought their own water, sleeping gears and tents. While we were up there, we all learned to conserve water. Other participants were Camp Chaplain, Fr. Aldrin Domingo, Fr. Rex Armena, brother Knights from different councils in Nueva Ecija, Columbian Squires, military escorts and other guests with 16 ladies. The 21st Trek to Mt. Taklang Damulag was initiated by the Chairman Emeritus of the Round Table of District Deputies (RTDD) of Nueva Ecija and Aurora, Bro. Rene Odulio and Ret. Major General Restituto Padilla, Sr. and coordinated by the RTDD Chairman, Bro. Gil Dindo Berino and KCFAPICLC Area Manager, Manuel Naldoza.

Boodle Fight: A boodle fight lunch was hosted by Camp Commander General Atendido at the pahingahan place for the participants of the 21st Trek to Mt. Taklang Damulag.

FBG to hold Family Photo Contest

THE Fraternal Benefits Group (FBG) is spearheading a photo competition dubbed KCFAPI Family Photo Contest to be sponsored by the Knights of Columbus in the Philippines (K of C) and the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc. (KCFAPI). FBG said special awards and prizes await category winners and the winning photographs will be published in the official newspaper of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), on the website and Facebook page of the Knights of Columbus in the Philippines and other promotional materials of KCFAPI. Although the guidelines are still up for review, FBG encourages interested parties to reminisce and look for old family photos taken within two years before the date of entry. Photos should not have won any awards in photography contests, or have been published in any printed ads and materials. For inquiries, you may call the FBG office and look for Bro. Mike Medina at telephone number (+63) (02) 527-2243. (KCFAPI News)

Meet the New Vice President of the Fraternal Benefits Group

MR. GARI M. San Sebastian is a Fourth Degree Knight of Mary Help of Christian Council 8256 since 1997. Bro. Gari, as he is fondly called in the Order of the Knights of Columbus and in KCFAPI, is a graduate of San Beda College with a degree in Human Resource Management and Communication. He displayed admirable balance with his studies and extra-curricular activities as he remained a consistent deans lister while actively heading various organizations during his college years. He later passed with higher honor the two-year certificate course in Training and Development under Philippine Society for Training and Development (PSTD). Prior to joining KCFAPI, he worked as a Training Specialist in a holding company of a telecommunications corporation and joined other commercial companies from various industries. In 1998, he joined KCFAPI as a Human Resource Assistant. He transferred to Fraternal Benefits Group (FBG) the following year as a Training Assistant and eventually worked his way to becoming a Training Specialist in 2001. He was later promoted as

Area Manager of the Year, Bro. Salvador Aspuria (center, in white coat) with his family and KCFAPI officers led by Chairman Hilario G. Davide, Jr.

Assistant Manager of the Fraternal Benefits Services (FBS) Department in 2002 then as a full-fledged Department Manager of the FBS Department in 2006. Proving his skills and
Vice President / C3

Visayas Deputy aims to recruit more members

VISAYAS Deputy, Rodrigo Sorongon of the Knights of Columbus in the Philippines aims to recruit more members and hit the 20 members per council quota by the end of March. State Deputy Sorongon has called a meeting with the Regional Deputy of Region 6, the three provincial deputies of Iloilo and 20 District Deputies of the same Province to discuss the need to recruit more members and to reactivate suspended councils. Sorongon also stressed the importance of Membership Growth Plan, tagged as One Member, Per Council, Per Month. This one member, per council, per month might work but this will bring you all the way to the end of the Columbian year and it will not give you a leeway in case some councils will not be able to perform as expected thus, not meeting the membership goals set by the supreme council. One member per council, per month pretty much explains what needs to be done, he said. Sorongon reiterated the need to recruit, organize new council, reactivate suspended councils, submit required reports and observe timely payment of SCA during the four provincial meetings in the Eastern Visayas area particularly in Tacloban, Ormoc, Catbalogan and Borongan. Meanwhile, a group of State Officers went to Aklan and subsequently to Roxas City to conduct third degree exemplification and to meet with the District Deputies (DD). (KC News)

Fraternal Counselor of the Year , Sis. Nena Gumapac (center) with her husband, Bro. Manny (2nd from the left) and KCFAPI officers led by Chairman Hilario G. Davide, Jr.

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Hilario G. Davide, Jr.

The Cross

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

Chairmans Message
For the KCFAPI, the month of March traditionally marks a significant milestone in its mission and writes in its history a chapter of gratitude for those who worked hard to pursue the mission in the preceding year. I refer to the Fr. George J. Willmann, SJ, Annual Family Service Awards, the 35th of which was held last 9-11 March in Cebu City. The 35th awards Sister Emma Nena G. Gumapac as the Fraternal Counselor of the Year with Bro. Teofilo Samson and Bro. Reynaldo Segismundo as Runners-up; Bro. Salvador R. Aspuria of the Cordillera Administrative Region as the Area Manager of the Year, with Bro. Victor Pulangco as Runner-up; eight awardees for the Fr. Willmann Knights of the Round Table; and 64 awardees for the Chairmans Circle. So far, the 35th produced the biggest batch of awardees. To the awardees I express my warmest congratulations and profound gratitude. Many of them have been awardees for several times. The awards are not just recognition of the awardees efforts to reach or exceed the targets, but a tribute to their passion to serve, with utmost dedication and commitment to our brother knights and their families in the areas of primary concerns of KCFAPI, which are all aimed at strengthening and promoting the cardinal principles of the Knights of Columbus: charity, unity, fraternity and patriotism. That passion is founded on Love for others. Love is the greatest of all virtues, and far more embracing than faith and hope (1 Cor. 13) for it is a reflection of the Divine Love; Jesus Christ is the ultimate example of Gods love (John 13:34); Love is the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22); Love it is bond of unity (Col. 3: 12-16). It is passion which must inspire us to empty ourselves for the sake of others. May the awardees tribe increase in the name of and for love. VIVAT JESUS!

The Cause for the Beatification of Father George J. Willmann, SJ

EMULATING the virtues that bespeak of sanctity of a person, like Father George J. Willmann, is what we need today to draw us into a deeper living out of the fullest meaning of our Catholic Faith in the context of increasing secularism. Thus, we believe, is one of the most important objectives in initiating the Cause of the good Father George. As prescribed by the Congregation for Causes of Saints in Rome, a person may be elevated to the honors of the altar if he has lived up to a heroic degree of the supernatural virtues of faith, hope and charity, as well as the cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance. We believe that Father Willmann practiced them all to an exceptional degree. In order to establish and widen the fame of Sanctity of Father Willmann, may we call on all Brother Knights, their families and friends to respond to the following appeal: Submission of testimonies on Fr. Willmanns heroic virtues; Recitation of Prayer for his Beatification in private and during K of C meetings and affairs; Invocation of his intercession in our prayers; Submission of Reports on answered prayers through the intercession of Father Willmann; Visitation of his tomb in the Sacred Heart Novitiate Cemetery, Novaliches, Quezon City. Membership to Fr. George J. Willmann Fellows. This is a challenge for all of us Knights of Columbus members, who dearly love Father George J. Willmann, SJ.

Prayer for the Beatification of Father George J. Willmann, SJ

Lord God, look down upon us, your children, who are trying to serve You with all our hearts, in our beloved land, the Philippines. Deign to raise Fr. George J. Willmann, of the Society of Jesus, to the honors of the altar. He is the wise, strong, cheerful, dauntless model that all of our Filipino men need in this new era, in this new millennium. He was your Knight, Your gentle warrior, especially in his ministry with the Knights of Columbus. A man leading other men, in the war of good against evil, in the war of the Gospel of Life against the Culture of Death. Make him the lamp on the lamp stand giving light to all in the house. Make him the city set on the mountain, which cannot be hid, so that all of us may learn from his courage, his integrity, his indomitable spirit in the struggle to lead men to God, and to bring God to man. We ask you this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Pedro P. Lubenia Guillermo N. Hernandez

Presidents Message
KCFAPI, a trailblazer in Christianizing Philippine business and Society
The Father George J. Willmann Annual Family Service Award, now on its 35th year, is a much awaited event in KCFAPI. Not only because this is the perfect occasion for KCFAPI to recognize and award deserving area managers and fraternal counselors who have achieved exemplary performance against their assigned targets but because it is also the most opportune time for a yearly fellowship between the board of trustees and management of KCFAPI, and the area managers and fraternal counselors. In a three day event recently held in Marriott Hotel in Cebu last Mar. 9 to 11, 2012, said annual awards for the year 2011 paid tribute to a Record 75 Awardees. An exceptional accomplishment indeed we should all be proud of, and my heartfelt Congratulations goes to all the awardees, especially the Area Manager of the Year, Bro. Salvador Aspuria of the Cordillera Braves, the Fraternal Counselor of the Year, Sister Emma Nena Gumapac of the Metro Manila Achievers. The runner up Area Manager of the Year, Victor Pulangco of Central Luzon Diamonds and Area Manager, Manuel Naldoza of the Central Luzon Conquerors for garnering the top grosser award, the most number of insured award and the area with the most number of Fraternal Counselor awardees. Like the previous years, I saw mostly familiar faces from amongst the awardees. Those who have been making it year after year for a long time now, those who have made it almost every year for quite sometime now, and the first timers....not because they are not as capable, for on the contrary, most of them actually did not have to wait that long to make it to this elite roll. That is why in my book, the awardees are not just achievers... but undoubtedly Over Achievers. While KCFAPIs target for First Year Contribution Income (FYCI) or first year insurance contributions for new regular insurance coverages (the single most important financial item in our Annual Plans, Programs and Budget as this largely defines our annual financial performance and serves as the primary target for our AMs and FCs on an allocated basis per assigned territory) has been continuously increasing every year, the number of awardees has been on the uptrend likewise coupled with exhibited growth in their respective FYCI. Little wonder therefore that another milestone was also achieved by KCFAPI last year...that of the highest ever FYCI of P127 Million. This of course could not have been made possible without the wisdom and guidance of our Board Of Trustees led by our Chairman, Former Chief Justice Hilario G. Davide, Jr., which together with the able day-to-day administration and support of the management and staff led by our EVP Ma. Theresa G. Curia motivated no end our AMs and FCs to achieve greater heights. For the current year 2012, our year to date February figures are very encouraging. FYCI which historically has been below target of significant amount for the first few months of the year, is doing very well and we expect our first quarter 2012 to post a surplus. At this juncture, allow me to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate Bro. Joseph Teodoro, former VP for Fraternal Benefits Group who just retired effective February 1, 2012 for a job very well done and best wishes on his future undertakings. Congratulations, likewise to Brother Gari San Sebastian for having been promoted to his new post as the new Vice President for Fraternal Benefits Group. I am confident he will do well in his new task, given his talents and experience. In the midst however of KCFAPIs remarkable performance highlighted by the two enviable milestones of 2011, there is actually a deeper meaning to the Fr. Willmann Annual Family Service Awards.... more than just the giving of recognition, awards and fellowship. That deeper meaning is actually aligned and attuned to the Principles of the Knights of Columbus, especially Charity and Patriotism. It is also in keeping with the teachings of the Church that it is the role of the laity to help in Christianizing Philippine Economy.... Philippine Business. In the second Vatican Council, no less than Pope John XXIII said that By reason of their special vocation, it belongs to the laity to seek the Kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and directing them to Gods will...(Lumen Gentium, no. 31). Hence, the laity has to renew economic life, activities in business and financial transactions, with the values of the Gospel and of the Kingdom of God, which are authentically human values, such as integrity, justice, equity, service, preferential option for the poor, responsible stewardship. The CBCPs pastoral exhortation also reiterated this: They (laity) fulfil their vocation best by assuming a prophetic role in word and deed. In word, for example by encouraging business leaders to adhere to the principles that truly promote the economic good of all; in deed, by faithfully practicing in their own business life those same principles, courageously resisting the pressure of an unbalanced economic structure to succumb to its evil demands. It is therefore incumbent upon KCFAPI to move according to these values, otherwise it will just be a pure business enterprise bereft of deeper meaning or Christian values. Little did we know however or perhaps even oblivious at times that KCFAPI was in fact heeding the call of the Church to Christianize Philippine Society, much less Philippine Business in our own little way... but certainly worth emulating. As the first and only Catholic life insurance entity in the Philippines and even in the region, we take pride in being a non-stock, nonprofit firm, in offering the cheapest group mortuary benefit coverage for as low as one Peso per day, in giving back 50% of our financial bottomline to our regular benefit certificate holders via dividends, in continuously providing scholarships to priests, seminarians and other deserving students, in helping the CBCP in its pro-life crusade and other causes, among others. This makes KCFAPI in a way a trailblazer in Christianizing business and in Christianizing Society. To the Area Managers and Fraternal Counselors, particularly the awardees in the 35th Fr. Willmann Annual Family Service Awards, please always remember that as Christianizers, the life of an AM or FC should bear witness to what he is selling... lest you end up being a mediocre insurance agent or underwriter. Together lets Christianize the KCFAPI way!

Corporate Governance

Duties and Responsibilities of Board Committees

This function shall include receiving from senior management periodic information on risk exposures and risk management activities. Preferably with accounting and finance background and related audit experience, the committee should have at least three members and the chairman must be an independent trustee. The Corporate Audit Department of KCFAPI reports functionally to the committee who reviews and approves the departments annual audit plans, programs and budget. The committee is responsible for the setting up of an internal audit department and the appointment of an internal auditor as well as an independent external auditor, the audit fee and any question of resignation or dismissal. It periodically receives and reviews reports of the internal and external auditors and regulatory agencies, where applicable and ensures that management is taking appropriate corrective actions, in a timely manner in addressing controls and compliance issues. The committee evaluates the adequacy and effectiveness of KCFAPIs internal control system. At least once every three years or as it deems necessary, the committee reviews and assesses the adequacy of the corporate governance principles and policies of KCFAPI, including the Manual on Corporate Governance, the revised Code of Ethics and the Anti Money Laundering Manual, to ensure they are still appropriate for KCFAPI and in compliance with applicable laws and recommends to the board any desirable changes. From time to time, the committee advises the board with respect to the governance structure and business practices of KCFAPI in relation to maintenance of good governance and high ethical standards. This includes corporate governance training and continuing education programs for the board members and development of corporate governance principles, structure, best practices and rules for adoption by KCFAPIs wholly owned or majority controlled corporations. Establishing a formal and transparent procedure for developing a policy on executive remuneration and for fixing the remuneration packages of corporate officers and trustees are some of the major responsibilities of the Human Resource committee. Composed of at least three members, it provides oversight over remuneration of senior management and other key personnel ensuring that compensation is consistent with KCFAPIs culture, strategy and control environment. In order to attract and retain corporate officers who are needed to run KCFAPI successfully, the committee shall determine the amount of remuneration which shall be sufficient or at least at par with other corporate entities if not superior in level. Our organization is so unique that our trustees are referred to as fraternalists who share their time, talent and treasure without any compensation. Moreover, trustees are not entitled to the payment of compensation other than reimbursement of actual expenses (i.e., transportation, hotel accommodation and food/meals) incurred in attending board and/or committee meetings of KCFAPI. Reviews existing Human Resource Development or Personnel Handbook, to strengthen provisions on conflict of interest, salaries and benefit policies, promotion and career advancement directives and compliance of personnel concerned with all statutory requirements that must be periodically met in their respective posts. Composed of at least three members, the Strategic Planning and Budget committee formulates the strategic thrust of KCFAPI in accordance with its Vision, Mission and Values (VMV). It evaluates KCFAPIs annual Plans, Programs and Budget (PPB) and as the need arises, discusses matters that warrant change/s and make proper recommendation to the Board of Trustees. The Investment committee constitutes a think tank for investment opportunities or new ventures to be undertaken by KCFAPI. It evaluates and recommends guidelines on accreditation of financial intermediaries, annual investment and dividend policies in line with the regulatory requirements and prescriptions. This covers investments in affiliated companies, stocks, bonds and other financial instruments. Responsible for recommending new plans, contribution rates including rides and supplementary contracts, or withdrawal from the market of existing plans and products is the Fraternal Benefit committee. Appointment of Members of the Board Committees The Board shall appoint the members and chairman of each Board Committee following the annual meeting of the Founder Members at which the Trustees are elected. In case of any vacancy in the Committee, the Board shall appoint a replacement who will fill the vacancy at any meeting of the Board. As Members, they can invite experts to be members of the committees.

In an organization, the board functions more effectively by having the necessary board committees to set the standards and provide proper directions to management. Committees which are intended to function continually are referred to as standing or operating committees while ad hoc committees are intended for a limited time and for specific needs of the organization. KCFAPI's Nomination and Screening committee is composed of three clerics, three Territorial Deputies, the Vice Supreme Master, Territorial Secretary/Treasurer and an independent trustee. Having limited experience in the daily operations of the Association, the committee may consider inviting the Chairman, President and/or the Executive Vice President of KCFAPI as resource persons whenever the need arises. Due considerations are also given to the inputs of the Chief Operating Officers and Presidents of the wholly owned or majority controlled corporations of KCFAPI. Qualifications of all persons nominated to the Board as well as those nominated to other positions requiring appointment by the Board of Trustees are reviewed and evaluated by the committee. It prepares a description of the roles and capabilities required of a particular appointment. It also prescribes general guidelines for the use of all wholly owned or majority controlled corporations. For the election of the Chairman of the Board, it should prepare job specifications, including an assessment of the time commitment expected of him, recognizing the need for his availability in the event of crisis. The Chairmans other significant commitments shall also be disclosed to the Board before his appointment and included in the annual report. Any change thereof shall be reported to the Board and included in the next annual report. The Committee considers the following guidelines in the selection of nominees for trusteeship in the board of KCFAPI: o The nature of the business of the corporation, where he is a director; o Age of the Trustee; o Number of directorships/active memberships and officerships in other corporations or organizations; and o Possible conflicts of interest. Generally, the optimum number shall be proportional to the capacity of a Trustee to perform his duties diligently. Audit, Compliance, Risk Management and Governance committee provides oversight role over the senior managements activities in managing credit, market, liquidity, operational, legal and other risks of KCFAPI.

CBCP Monitor
Vol. 16 No. 6
March 12 - 25, 2012

The Cross

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Only a morality rooted in love can adequately address the worlds economic and political challenges
By Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson
THE year will mark the fourth year of a global financial crisis. Government officials and financial leaders continue to propose technical and legal fixes with varying degrees of success, but public confidence remains low, and there remains widespread lack of trust in both government and business. Obviously, technical and legal action is necessary. But people intuitively sense that a more fundamental change is necessary to achieve longterm economic sustainability. Americans believe that the nations moral compass is pointed in the wrong direction but can still turn in a way consistent with their deeply held moral values. What has been missing from the public discourse of the economic crisis these past few years has been a candid discussion of the importance of these values. It is here that Catholics have a very important role to play under the leadership of Pope Benedict XVI. In his first encyclical, Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict set forth the fundamental Christian vision of how we are to act. If we say, God is love, we are saying something much more than God sometimes acts in a loving way or acts out of love. If he himself is love, then every expression, every manifestation, every revelation of himself is an expression, a manifestation, a revelation of love. Thus, if the Christian life is a call to conform ones life to God, then love becomes the context of not just some, but of every human action. We see this in the commandment to love ones neighbor as ones self and in the scriptural admonition that states, If anyone says, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen (1 Jn 4:20). In his most recent encyclical, Caritas in Veritate, Pope Benedict writes, The development of peoples depends, above all, upon a recognition that the human race is a single family (53). The pope reminds us that the fundamental Christian attitude toward our neighbor is brotherhood and family. The family is the place where we are first called to love one another, where we learn to make a sincere gift of our selves rather than cheat one another and look out for number one. In the family, we experience deep personal sharing and learn that I must give to others not only something that is my own, but my very self (Deus Caritas Est, 34). Yet, this attitude of fraternal charity cannot be limited to family life. It is, Pope Benedict insists, fundamental to economic development and civil society. Some might dismiss this as unrealistic idealism or sentimentality. But in our efforts to achieve economic justice, we might remember the lessons we learned in the struggle for racial justice. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, Justice is really love in calculation. Justice is love correcting that which revolts against love. When he said this, King was not being sentimental he was preparing to go to jail. King knew, and Pope Benedict continues to remind us, that love is intrinsic to justice. If we love someone, we insist that he or she be treated fairly not only within our family, but also within society. Love is the necessary condition of justice. This realization is at the very heart of our moral witness as Catholics. In January, Pope Benedict said, It is imperative that the entire Catholic community in the United States comes to realize the grave threats to the Churchs public moral witness presented by a radical secularism which finds increasing expression in the political and cultural spheres. This radical secularism can erect government barriers to the Churchs public moral witness, but it also seeks other ways to exclude this witness from the nations public discourse. In the face of these challenges, the 1.8 million Catholic men of the Knights of Columbusmen known for their determined

Our Moral Witness

public moral witness have an important role to play: We must continue to be in the forefront, demonstrating in word

and in deed that truly God is love. This can make all the difference. Vivat Jesus!

Joseph P. Teodoro

For Brother Knights by Brother Knights

IT is quite easy to go to Cebu City. The actual flight time coming from Manila is just a little over one hour. From those coming from Davao City or Cagayan de Oro City, flight time is even less than one hour. To earn a free plane ticket, lodging at one of the best hotels there and receiving a plaque of recognition from Hon. Hilario G. Davide, Jr. (KCFAPI Board Chairman) is harder. It requires thorough knowledge about KCFAPI and its products, having the right and positive attitude, good selling skills and sound hard working habits. Seventy five fraternal counsellors from all over the country passed the test. They were granted a trip to Cebu together with their spouses to receive the honours of membership in the much coveted KCFAPI Annual Family Service Awards. One of the awardees, Sis. Emma Nena G. Gumapac of the Metro Manila Achievers under the leadership of Area Manager Vimar L. Trinidad is the second lady Fraternal Counsellor. Sis. Emma was a former employee of the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc. for thirty six (36) years. This years Area Manager of the Year Award was conferred to Cordillera Braves Leader, Bro. Salvador Aspuria. He was a past Grand Knight and a former District Deputy. It took him 2 years to learn the ropes of agency management needed for him to pull the rug from under the feet of Veteran Area Managers. Part of the prize of the awardees is a choice between a side trip to Bohol and Cebu city tour. For those who chose Bohol, they were brought to the majestic sight of the Chocolate Hills, treated for a lunch at the famous Loboc river and visited one of Bohols old churches,

Angelito A. Bala

The Road to Cebu City

the Baclayon Church. On the other hand, the other group was treated to a tour around the famous places in the Queen City of the South such as the Sto. Nino Cathedral, Magellans cross and Taboan market which is known for its famous danggit or dried fish. The second night was allotted for fellowship where the areas battled for Supremacy in their prepared presentations. Garbed in their choices of Hollywood stars, everyone prepared for the "best dressed" competition. But it was none other than the 'power couple' Mr. and Mrs. Rex and Moriel Blanco of Central Luzon Conquerors who bagged the "Male and Female Best Dressed Awards." On their way home, the awardees were given pasalubongs: small boxes of Lechon, package of Otap and dried mangoes and other things from Cebu City. (KCFAPI News)

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. When is the best time to buy life insurance? A. The best time to buy life insurance is when you are qualified, capable and there is a need. Qualified means you are healthy, not necessarily in the pink of health. Most individuals are healthy when they are young, and health conditions deteriorate as a person gets older. At younger ages, you will have a wide range of products to choose from, in addition to having to purchase at lower rates per thousand of insurance coverage. Older people or those not usually in the best of health pay steeply higher rates for their insurance. Some are even slapped extra contributions to cover their being classified as substandard risks. These are contributions higher than standard rates. Some companies, instead of outright denial of application for insurance, offer two choices: higher insurance rates or lower coverage. Capability refers to a person having the capacity to pay the insurance contributions as they fall due. The applicant has the financial means to settle the required insurance dues. By paying on time, the beneficiaries are assured of the maximum benefits offered by the insurance plan. Besides, the applicant/insured can sleep soundly knowing that his loved ones are adequately provided when the time comes. If you are the breadwinner in the family, insurance protects your dependents from financial loss due to death. Insurance can cover part of your familys monthly expenses. You need to get yourself insurance if you have elderly parents who depend on you for financial support. Some companies now offer college education plans to secure your childs future. If you recently applied for a mortgage or car loan, your family may face foreclosure of your home or car in the event of early demise. A mortgage insurance protects your family from any foreclosures. If you have saved for the future, and now have considerable estate, life insurance can help you prepare to settle estate taxes. As one can see, life insurance is available and beneficial in almost all stages of life. Most companies have developed insurance products based on a persons general needs but your financial planner can craft an insurance product according to your special needs. Buy insurance based on your needs, although you can purchase insurance as much as you can as there is no such a thing as being overinsured. Tell the truth when you file your application form. There is no sense in shading the facts to get lower insurance rates. Remember, if a claim is made, the insurance company shall investigate before paying any insurance benefits. If you still dont have any insurance coverage, grab your phone. Call and talk to your fraternal counselor now. There is no time to waste, act now!

Luzon Deputy attends Council Chartering in Rizal

Parish in San Mateo, Rizal. The ceremonies began with a Mass at the newly-established Sto. Nio Parish, situated on the top of a hill, overlooking Manila, Quezon City, and Makati. Yap led the entrance of State Officers and Chaplain, together with District Deputy Joaquin Sta. Maria and Fr. Efren N. Reyes, MJ. The entrance of colors was done by Hen. Kicerio I. Geronimo Assembly 2809 Color Corps. The newly chartered officers and members were Charlie Maghanoy, Grand Knight; Andrew Venezuela, Deputy Grand Knight; Miguel Talaue, Chancellor; Jose Ong, Financial Secretary; Napoleon Taracatac, recorder; Jose Pedro, warden; Eugenio Viray, treasurer; and Alvin Alcaraz, lecturer. Trustees were Rolando De Lemos, Benjamin Vito, and Bonifacio Bonifacio; Arturo Pombueno, advocate; Alfredo Barcelo, inside guard; Marciano Bugarin, outside guard; Eduardo Puyawan, program director; Agerico Rayala, membership director; German Albino, Church director; Arthur Jaravata, community director; David Mercado, council director; Esteban Castillo, pro-life director; Antonio Cino, family director; and Michael Angelo Taracatac, youth director. Others present during the ceremony were Rolando Barroa, Augusto Borromeo, Rodolfo Canoy, Prospero Falle, Jimbo Jaravata, Carlo Jian Joson, Sherwin Laxamana, Raque Legson, Henry Magdaraog, Ricky Mantua, Fajardo Sara, Rosendo Sacdalan, Avelino Foscalbo, and Gony Alfredo Sarvida. (KC News)
Vice President / C1

Sto Nio Modesta Council 15370: The newly chartered officers form a living cross during the Council Presentation and Installation of Officers of the Sto Nio Modesta Council 15370 held at the Sto Nio Parish in San Mateo, Rizal.

THE Knights of Columbus Luzon Deputy, Arsenio Isidro Yap together with State Membership Council Retention Chairman, Aurelio Caparas and State Semi-

nar Chairman, Rolando Luciano have attended the Council Presentation and Installation of Officers of the Sto. Nio Modesta Council 15370 at the Sto. Nio

KCFAPI FB Manager for Visayas

Mr. Rudolph Gerard M. Elizaga or Bro. RG as he is often called, graduated from the Central Philippine University in Iloilo City with a Bachelors degree in Commerce, Major in Management. He is married to Sister Norie Jean and is blessed with two children ages ten (10) and five (5). He joined KCFAPI in May 2002 as a Service Office Assistant (SOA) assigned in its Iloilo Service Office. Through his good work performance, dedication and commitment to his craft along with his exuding geniality towards his colleagues, he worked his way up from being an SOA to being a Fraternal Benefits Associate then recently promoted to the position of Fraternal Benefits Manager Visayas last February 2012. As a Fraternal Benefits Manager, he will be in-charge in the conduct of market research, analysis of product and modal mix per area and will likewise be responsible for training, supervision and motivation of Area Managers, Unit Managers, Fraternal

Benefits Associates and Fraternal Counselors in the Visayas area. (April G. Vasquez)

KCFAPI FB Manager for Mindanao

Mr. Adrian B. Boston or Ian, as he is fondly called is a B.S. Physical Therapy graduate from the Liceo De Cagayan University. He took MBA units from the Ateneo De Davao and was hired by the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc. (KCFAPI) on August 28, 2003 as Service Office Assistant for its Cagayan De Oro branch. In 2006, he was appointed as Cagayan De Oro Administrator then was later on transferred to Davao Service Office on September 1, 2007 to handle the said branch. He became one of the Fraternal Benefits Associate in 2009 and was promoted to his present position as Fraternal Benefits Manager Mindanao in February 2012. Ian has always been active in the Order of the Knights of Columbus even before his employment with KCFAPI. His association with the Knights of Columbus started when he became a Columbian Squire at the St. Anthony Circle No. 1646. He became a charter member of Our Mother of Perpetual Help Co. No. 13414 in Barra, Opol, Misamis Oriental. Then in 2008, he was elected as Grand Knight of Davao San Pedro Council No. 6512 from 2008-2010. It

ability to handle more complex tasks, Bro. Gari was recently elevated to the position of Vice President Fraternal Benefits Group last February 2012. With his new role, Bro. Gari is now in-charge of KCFAPIs National Marketing and Sales, Product Formulation, Sales Education, Recruitment, Training & Development and is likewise responsible for the formulation of the long-term thrusts of the Fraternal Benefits Group in accordance with the strategic thrust of KCFAPI that is to spread fraternal service among the brother knights and their immediate families. (KCFAPI News)

FBG holds service training program

THE Fraternal Benefits Group (FBG) of the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc. (KCFAPI) held a twoday fraternal service training program last February 28 and 29 at the KCFAPI Social Hall in Intramuros, Manila. Training participants were from Bicol, Nueva Ecija, Metro Manila, Quezon, Cavite, and Ilocos Sur. The training provided the participants with an orientation regarding the Order of the Knights of Columbus and its insurance arm, the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Association of the Philippines, Inc. (KCFAPI) whose primary objective is to provide optimum mutual benefits to all its members and their immediate families. The participants also learned the featured plans of KCFAPI like KC Cares and other insurance products. Benefit Certificate Holders Relations Office Manager, Edwin B. Dawal and Underwriting Department Manager, Carmelita S. Ruiz discussed the various functions of their respective office, while KCFAPI Medical Director, Dr. Jaime Talag talked about medical writing. The new FBG Vice President, Gari San Sebastian and FBG Assistant, Jemwel Santillan tackled the fraternal service program and incentives, sales technique, and updates regarding the various KCFAPI products. (KCFAPI News)

was during his term when Co. 6512 became a two-time recipient of the Star Council Award. At present, he serves as the District Deputy of District -09 in Davao City and as a Mindanao State Promotion Chairman. (KCFAPI News)

C4

The Cross

CBCP Monitor

Vol. 16 No. 6

March 12 - 25, 2012

Male and Female Best Dressed Awardees, Mr. & Mrs. Rex and Moriel Blanco of Central Luzon Conquerors.

Female Best Dressed Candidates

Bro. Joseph P. Teodoro receiving a plaque of appreciation from KCFAPI Chairman Hilario G. Davide, Jr. for his 23 years of Service as former KCFAPI employee.

Male Best Dressed Candidates

Photo op before the program

One of the fun group presentations during the Awards night.

Tinikling dance presentation at the Loboc River in Bohol

35th Fr. George J. Willmann, SJ.

Annual Family Service Award
Salvador R. Aspuria (CAR) Teofilo A. Samson (SL) Reynaldo Q. Segismundo (NWL)
FC OF THE YEAR RUNNERS UP : FRATERNAL COUNSELOR OF THE YEAR

Emma Nena G. Gumapac (MMA)

AREA MANAGER OF THE YEAR

AM OF THE YEAR RUNNER UP:

Victor D. Pulangco (CLD)

FR. WILLMANN KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND TABLE (WKRT)

Bonifacio M. Morales (CLB1) Clodualdo R. Fernandez Sr. (CLD) Eduardo V. Cruz (CLB1) Melissa Lourdes Z. Reyes (CLD) Luis F. Ferrer (CLB1) Danilo M. Tullao (NEL) Jeffrey Rey S. Guillermo (CLC) Rodante B. Sultan (EVB)

(CENTRAL LUZON CONQUERORS)

Larry M. Santos, Rene P. Cruz, Benjamin R. Pecson, Nazario A. Timbresa, Nancy L. Baluyot, Rex E. Blanco, Eleno R. Sta Ana, Roberto T. Espinosa, Rolando Y. Frany, Edwin M. Dela Cruz, Francisco C. Ballesteros, Delfin H. Lazaro, Rolly DV. Ramos Joselito C. Guzman, Reymundo L. Tolentino

(NORTHWESTERN LUZON THUNDERS)

Mauricio V. Tolentino, Benedicto A Burgonio, Lorenzo D. Dufale, Sr.

(SOUTHERN LUZON LAKERS) (SOUTHERN LUZON PALAWAN TAMARAWS)

Teodoro E. Rada, Joseph Erwin P. Alagon, Angel C. Casiding Jr., Venancio F. Capiral, Apolinar G. Olipernes, Lauro E. Villamayor, Jr. Luis S. Castillet

Jocelyn G. Ravina, Vicente O. Espiraz

(SOUTH WESTERN LUZON STARS) (CENTRAL VISAYAS ACES) (WESTERN VISAYAS BULLS) (WESTERN VISAYAS CHAMPIONS) (CENTRAL MINDANAO COWBOYS)

(CENTRAL LUZON DIAMONDS)

Joel A. Flordelis

Leonardo C. Dela Cruz, Jaime G. Gacita, Jose Rolando G. Sanoria

(METRO MANILA ACHIEVERS)

Maria Teresa G. De La Mota Wildy D. Devela

(METRO MANILA CHANCELLORS)

Danilo C. Cosme

CHAIRMANS CIRCLE
Andres A. Malecdan, Efraim P. Bautista, Anthony N. Boaging
(CORDILLERA-BRAVES)

(METRO MANILA DRAGONS)

Bonifacio B. Martinez, Juan G. Castillo, Jr.

Lorenzo E. Almelia

Evelyn A. Caparas, Dionisio C. Marasigan, Rodrigo B. Saligumba, Teodulo C. Sandoval, Danilo T. Carungay
(METRO MANILA EXCELLENCE)

Jose Larry A. Mendoza, Caridad Y. Blantucas, Alliondo C. Saromines

(DAVAO EAGLES)

Lauro L. Evangelista, Joselito T. Enriquez, Ronando M. Rodriguez Diego DJ. Marquez, Alfredo T. Noriega, Zenaida S. Fabregar, Veronica O. Casupan
(CENTRAL LUZON BELIEVERS)

(NORTHERN MINDANAO HUNTERS)

Marteliano A. Alcontin

Mauricio P. Pangda, Jose M. Domogdog, Pedro T. Domingo, Lerio A. Cagampang, Rogelio D. Oriel
(NORTHEASTERN LUZON CAVALIERS)

(NORTHERN MINDANAO PROTECTORS)

Rolando A. Sta. Teresa, Reynaldo B. Sabellano, Felix M. Templa