REFLECTIONS TODAY Jesus’ encounter with the demoniac happens in the territory of the Gerasenes, a Gentile region. Though the man possessed by the unclean spirit shows extraordinary strength that no man can subdue him, yet the demonic forces are no match for Jesus, who is the “stronger one.”...
BETTER DAYS According to Department of Health (DOH) data, pulmonary-related illnesses were the first, fifth, seventh, and ninth top causes of morbidity in the Philippines in 2022. In fact, acute respiratory tract infections remained the top ailment reported by Filipinos from 2012 to 2022....
REFLECTIONS TODAY Gospel • Mark 1:21-28 Then they came to Capernaum, and on the sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and taught. The people were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes. In their synagogue was a man with an unclean...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Mark summarizes Jesus’ usual activity as going into the synagogues, preaching and driving out demons. He would remain outside in solitary places so people could come to him and be healed. No wonder, traveling with his disciples in the boat, Jesus, tired as he is, falls...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Today, we honor two of St. Paul’s collaborators: Sts. Timothy and Titus, his “true sons in the faith.” Of Timothy, Paul writes to the Philippians, “I have no one comparable to him for genuine interest in whatever concerns you. You know his worth, how as a child with a...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The Word of God bears or fails to bear fruit depending on the type of “soil” that receives it. The soil represents the disposition of people who hear the Word. There are the superficial people who are attentive to fads and fancies of life, and are swept away by mundane...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The scribes are so biased against Jesus that they attribute his power to drive out demons to his being in league with Beelzebul, the prince of demons. Jesus’ own family does not look kindly on some of his actuations, thinking that he is out of his mind. The “they” who say...
REFLECTIONS TODAY “If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand” (v 25). This saying of Jesus is true in all human affairs and undertakings—social, political, economic, even religious. This is also true in the realm of the devil, and so to think of Jesus driving...
BETTER DAYS Since assuming the chairmanship of the Senate Committee on Finance in 2019, we have been committed toward strengthening our public health care system. Providing access to quality health care to all, particularly to our disadvantaged countrymen, is one of the most important...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The late Bible scholar Fr. John Meier entitled his books on the “historical Jesus” A Marginal Jew. Jesus does not act and teach in the mold of a Jewish rabbi. He is a celibate, teaches with an authority equal to or greater than Moses’, and loves the company of people...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The late Bible scholar Fr. John Meier entitled his books on the “historical Jesus” A Marginal Jew. Jesus does not act and teach in the mold of a Jewish rabbi. He is a celibate, teaches with an authority equal to or greater than Moses’, and loves the company of people...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The choice of the Apostles is a personal initiative of Jesus who “appoints” them as Twelve to refer to the community of believers constituting the 12 tribes of the “new Israel,” the chosen people of God, now called the Church (Greek ekklesia). With the selection of...
