REFLECTIONS TODAY The angel Gabriel comes to Mary with a greeting filled with joy (Chaire!). The good news announced by the angel can only be joyful. The content of the announcement is something that is freely bestowed by God. And what else can seal such a joyful announcement but the assurance that...
REFLECTIONS TODAY In John’s Gospel, Jesus is portrayed as the one who is from the Father and is returning to the Father. Jesus is revealing the Father and making the Father’s love known to the world. Those who believe in Jesus as the one sent by the Father are the ones accomplishing God’s...
Gospel • John 5:17-30 Jesus answered the Jews: “My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.” For this reason they tried all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the Sabbath but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God. Jesus answered and said to them,...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The man had been ill for 38 years. When Jesus asks him if he wants to be well, he begins to tell Jesus about his situation — he has no one to put him into the pool when the water is stirred up and that someone else gets into the water ahead of him. The stirred-up water is...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Today we celebrate the Solemnity of St. Joseph, the Spouse of the Virgin Mary. In the Gospel of Matthew, the very first description of Joseph is that he is the husband of Mary. Being the husband of Mary is connected to another description of Joseph as a “righteous man”...
BETTER DAYS Last week several jeepney organizations staged a nationwide transport strike to protest the implementation of the public utility vehicle (PUV) modernization program. Under the modernization program, the ubiquitous jeepneys that have been around since the end of the second World War,...
REFLECTIONS TODAY John 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38 [or 9:1-41] As Jesus passed by he saw a man blind from birth. He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva, and smeared the clay on his eyes, and said to him, “Go wash in the Pool of Siloam” — which means Sent. — So he went and washed,...
Today’s Gospel reiterates the Shema (“Listen!”) passage found in Deuteronomy (6:4-5) and the love of neighbor found in Leviticus (19:18). Jesus puts the love of God and the love of neighbor together. These are inseparable. Toward the end of the passage, Jesus commends the scribe whom he...
BETTER DAYS Last March 1, 2023, the Senate Tourism Subcommittee on Select Senate Bills on Ecotourism and on the Proposed Senate Resolution on Nature-Based Tourism held a hearing to discuss various measures and, ultimately, to find solutions and initiatives to advance the domestic tourism...
CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama signs his oath of office following his inauguration Thursday, June 30, at Plaza Sugbo. (Photo from Councilor Dondon Hontiveros FB) CEBU CITY – Reelected Mayor Michael Rama vowed to make this city second to none as he revealed his plans for the first 100 days of his...
BETTER DAYS Senator Sonny Angara A recent Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) report showed an alarming increase in girls getting pregnant during their formative years. The data indicates that births to mothers aged 10 to 14 years old have increased every year since 2016 even while the overall...
BETTER DAYS Senator Sonny Angara In January this year, the Senate Committee on Basic Education chaired by Senator Sherwin Gatchalian conducted a hearing to tackle Senate Bill No. 379 which aims to strengthen the promotion and delivery of mental health services in basic education schools through the...