Spread Holiday Cheer!

Transcription

1 November 16, 2014 Solemnity of Christ the King Forbes Park, Makati Spread Holiday Cheer! Once again, the holiday season is almost here! How about sharing your abundant blessings with our SSAP JPIC-scholars? It is time to bring out from storage the NUMEROUS UNUSED CLOTHES, TOILETRY AND TRAVEL KITS, BACKPACKS, HANDBAGS, WALLETS, TOWELS, UMBRELLAS AND OTHER ESSENTIALS. There are many young men and women who certainly appreciate these and could use them. Our Annual SSAP JPIC Scholarship Program-Christmas Party on the 1st Saturday, December 6, 2014 at the Parish Center is an eagerly anticipated event where entrance raffle prizes, games, and hearty party fare bring a lot of good cheer to about 250 of our JPIC Scholars. Do bring your donations to the Parish Office c/o Ms. Jackie Rafales, our Parish Pastoral Worker soonest and no later please, than Wednesday, December 3, As we anticipate your overwhelming response, we do appreciate your labeling the items M (male), F (female) or U (unisex) to facilitate our volunteers task of sorting, wrapping and listing them. Be generous, a sense of joy and fulfillment are guaranteed for all. Happy Holidays! Dear SSAP Parishioners, The Continuing Catholic Development (CCD) Ministry invites you once again to be part of our annual Christmas fundraising project, Light-A-Parol 2014 (LAP). A parol is a traditional Filipino Christmas decoration, a five pointed star lantern representing the star of Bethlehem that guided the Three Wise Men on their way to Baby Jesus. Each parol will represent a gift from you, and by Christmas Eve, we hope to fill the church with parols and welcome our Savior with your acts of generosity. Now on its 20th year, this project has been the only channel of CCD to raise funds for select charitable organizations for this coming year: Binhi, Grace to be Born, Dream Big Filipinas, Marillac Hills, CCD Disarter Fund, other CCD Special Projects, and the Franciscan Mission parishes. Our annual drive begins today. Each donor shall be entitled to a 9-inch, 14-inch, 20-inch or 30-inch parol, the size of which may be chosen depending on donation amount. Each parol will carry the donor s name and hung in the Church, complemented by the elegant Christmas décor (courtesy of Rustan s Flower Shop) throughout the Christmas season. The LIGHT-APAROL 2014 Donors list will be published weekly in the Parish Bulletin. Please join us for the LAP 2014 official lighting event on November 29th (Saturday) during the 6PM Mass at the Santuario de San Antonio (Main Church). You may start submitting donations and pledge forms as follows: Tue to Sun Submit to CCD Office beginning today (9am-6pm) Mon to Sat Submit to SSAP Parish Office beginning today (9am-6pm) Saturday & Sunday Masses LAP Booth outside Church entrance beginning Nov29th onwards Please make checks payable to SSAP-CCD. Donations will be accepted until December 29th. For inquiries and pledge forms, please contact Leah at or or ccd.office.ssap@gmail.com You can also download the pledge forms at the SSAP website We are counting on your support in this community endeavor. SSAP JPIC Scho. Comm. / Marietta Cuyegkeng Christ the King procession Sunday, Nov. 23, is the Solemnity of Christ the King. Please join the procession at 3:45PM from Colegio de San Agustin chapel along Palm Avenue, Dasmarinas Village, to the church. Liturgy starts at 3:30PM. Thank you very much!! Katty Roxas-Chua Qua LIGHT-A-PAROL 2014 CHAIRPERSON Lia Marie Te Marivic Borromeo CCD LIGHT-A-PAROL 2014 COMMITTEE

2 Parish Bulletin SUNDAY GOSPEL REFLECTION By Fr. Reu Jose C. Galoy, OFM CHRIST THE KING Today marks the closing of the church s liturgical year with the celebration of the feast of Christ the King. Jesus came as our Good Shepherd and entrusted us to one another. When he comes again at the end-time, we shall come face to face with him and see our worth through his eyes and from our own. We anticipate him asking us: Have you cared for one another? What have you done for the poor and weak among you? Put in another way, only one criterion will matter when the time comes love and compassion for others. As followers of Christ, our lives can best be examined on the basis of what we have done to alleviate six conditions of poverty and suffering: hunger, thirst, exile, nakedness, illness, imprisonment. Jesus tells us that our faith in God is manifested in our action in behalf of compassion and in the passion and perseverance with which we pursue the work to combat these inhumane conditions. The kingship of Christ is not one of dominion, power and control. His kingdom is not about building empires, about prestige and popularity. Rather, it is the kingdom of love, service, justice, reconciliation and peace. It is about the transformation of our hearts into his vision that all may have life and have it to the full or abundantly. Jesus uses the image of the final judgment not to scare us as to what will happen at the end of the world 2 RANDOM THOUGHTS Voices from yesterday and today By: Peachy Maramba ST. CATHERINE of ALEXANDRIA: Patroness of Philosophers, Maidens and Preachers d. c. 310: November 25 It is almost unbelievable that the feast day of a saint long venerated in the East and one of the most popular saints of the Middle Ages so that she has been a favorite subject of canvases and icons through the ages has been erased from the calendar of the church. This came about as an aftermath of Vatican II, which reformed the universal but to teach us on the essentials of life, on what really counts or matters. This gives us an opportunity to evaluate what concerns us in developing a healthy and joyful life. This gives us a chance to look at our service as an act of deep faith. And so on in this feast of Christ the King we ask ourselves: What holds dominion over us? What drives us in this life? How are we growing in Christ s vision? Are we becoming Eucharist to one another? How are we working for the transformation of our world and of our community into a kingdom of love, peace, reconciliation and service? Perhaps, truthful answers to these questions will reveal to us that we have other gods that capture our allegiance and attention. The image of the last judgment is not only serving those in dire need. Rather it is about serving God, for the neighbor in need is no other than Christ himsef. liturgical calendar by dropping out what they considered in all likelihood to be nonexistent saints. St. Catherine of Alexandria was one such saint demobilized from active service even if her cult had flourished since as early as the eighth century. Since the church could find little or no evidence to connect her to her supposed adventures in Roman times it was with great reluctance that the church concluded that no such person ever existed. Amazing! While it is attested that it was Catherine s voice that was one of the heavenly voices that Joan of Arc supposedly heard encouraging her to defend the faith in France and empowering the peasant maid to defy every authority, there is little historical proof of this. And yet to this day her reputed remains located in a monastery on Mt. Sinai, still annually attracts great numbers of pilgrims to this holy site. According to the legend, which exists in various versions Catherine (Aikaterine) of Alexandria, Egypt was an extremely learned young daughter of a noble family sometime in the third century during the Roman era. It was through her study of turn to page 3 Editorial Team & General Information Marilou Consing Editor in Chief Jeannie Bitanga Assistant Editor/Website Administrator Dece Myra C. Urdaneta Art & Design Colorplus Production Group Corp. Production Submit articles, pictures, announcements, notices to: ssappb@yahoo.com Deadline for submission is every Tuesday of the week. The Parish Bulletin reserves the right to edit articles for clarity and space. Santuario de San Antonio Pastoral Team Fr. Reu Jose C. Galoy, OFM Parish Priest Fr. Baltazar Obico, OFM Guardian Fr. Efren Jimenez, OFM Fr. Jesus Galindo, OFM Makati Medical Center Chaplain Fr. Serge Santos, OFM. Santuario de San Antonio Parish Center Office Tel. nos ssap_info@yahoo.com Website: Website webi@ssaparish.com Foundation website: Parish Pastoral Council Jayme Blanco President Edmund Lim Vice President Cristina Teehankee Secretary To submit articles/pictures to the Parish Bulletin/Website Please submit photos with your articles, if at all possible. Submit them by (not in paper form) with photos in.jpg format and a minimum photo file size of at least 80 KB (800 x 530 pixels). Articles submitted should be a minimum of 150 words and not more than 300 words. to: ssappb@yahoo.com

3 Random Thoughts...from page 2 philosophy that she became so convinced of the truth of Christianity, that she converted to the faith even if it was illicit at that time and its believers persecuted. Another version that dates from the late middle ages says that she became a Christian when immediately after her baptism she had a mystical vision of her marrying Christ. Whatever the reason for her conversion she became an eloquent fearless preacher of the Word of God who by word and example inspired many to be baptized. After Catherine bravely denounced Emperor Maxentius for his persecution of the Christians he had her converts burned to death and had her seized. At her trial the 18 year old highly educated virgin underwent intense examination by fifty of the leading philosophers of the court. She not only managed to confound them in a religious debate defeating the most eminent scholars in argument but also in fact persuaded all to convert. Consequently they too were burned to death. As for Catherine because she so impressed the emperor with her beauty and brilliance the Emperor actually tried to persuade her to be his consort if only she would renounce her faith. Only Catherine staunchly declined. She would rather be imprisoned and tortured. But she put her time behind bars to good use. She befriended the Emperor s wife and managed to convince her along with many of her household to convert to Christianity. Even her jailer and two hundred of the imperial guards took up the Faith and became Christians. On the Emperor s return from a camp inspection he found what had happened and consequently put to death all the new converts including his wife. Enraged the Emperor condemned dangerous Catherine to be starved and then tortured on a spiked wheel. This is why the spiked wheel is the The ABC s of Catholic Doctrine by Lianne Tiu Can we choose to die at our own terms? Recently, we heard the sad and highly publicized story of 29 year-old Brittany Maynard, who was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and decided to take her own life. Some suicide advocates are using her story to fuel emotions and to market the idea of death with dignity that people should be able to have a choice to famous emblem of Catherine and she is the patron saint of wheelwrights. Once strapped to a wheel of spikes the machine miraculously broke apart killing many onlookers. In exasperation the Emperor or his son Maxentius had the unharmed virgin beheaded on November 24 or 25, 304. Supposedly after her death angels took her body to Mt. Sinai where it was discovered about AD 800. Veneration for Catherine extended to Rome by the 8th century and by the 11th century had become one of the most popular saints. However as earlier mentioned her feast on November 25 was dropped from the universal liturgical calendar in 1969 because of doubts about her existence. Catherine is one of the 14 auxiliary saints or Holy Helpers and served for centuries as the patroness of maidens and women students, of philosophers, preachers and apologists, of wheelwrights, millers and others. SOURCES of REFERENCE: Butler s Lives of the Saints Vol. IV pp ; The Illustrated World Encyclopedia of Saints p. 112; The Book of Saints p. 291; and others. November 16, 2014 end their lives if they are suffering. They also want the government to legalize physician-assisted suicide. Maynard s story is making us consider an issue, which we haven t thought of before that of accepting suicide and euthanasia. Suicide is taking our own life. Euthanasia is assisting death to someone who is suffering. We have to be reminded that both are sins against the fifth Commandment, Thou shalt not kill. Nowadays, we hear people talking about their rights, their choices. Who has the right to tell me that I deserve to suffer greatly for years? Why can t I have the right to choose when, how and where to die? God alone is Lord of life and death. (Deuteronomy 32:39; Job 12:10, 1Samuel 2:6) He created us. He alone has the right to decide when we should die. We are not the master of our own lives. If we are in pain, if we are unhappy with our lives, God wants us to endure our suffering patiently for a higher purpose, which we sometimes cannot understand. Euthanasia, on the other hand, is actually false mercy. Our intention may be good; we want to alleviate or cease the suffering of the sick, elderly or the dying. But such action or omission, which causes death is evil. We do not have the right to dictate when and who should live or die. When a person in extreme pain expresses his desire to end his life, we must refuse (even if his sickness is incurable and is at the last stage of life). True compassion is to help him, to give him our love and patience, to pray for him, and to teach him about the redemptive and purifying value of suffering. We also ask the priest to administer the sacrament of anointing the sick (which can help eliminate his fear and anxiety and can help him accept suffering and death). Our help is not to hasten death or to assist him in killing himself. (Reference: The Faith Explained Today by Joe Babendreier; Brittany Maynard Ends her Life by Sheila Liaugminas {Sheila Reports Nov. 3, 2014}) 3

4 Parish Bulletin 4 HEALTH CARE MINISTRY INDULGENCES By: Barbie Young November is the month that the Church remembers and prays for its departed members. Every November 2, All Souls Day, priests can celebrate Mass for their benefit, and all the faithful can gain special indulgences to expedite their entrance into heaven. Indulgences have often been misunderstood and misconstrued. This may be due to the many abuses that took place throughout the history of the Church. In fact, one of the causes of the Reformation was the selling of indulgences. Some individuals, the best known of them being the German Dominican Johann Tetzel ( ) did sell indulgences, but in doing so, they acted contrary to explicit church regulations. The Philippines was not spared from these abuses; many Spanish friars during the Spanish era were guilty of the same exploits. The Council of Trent ( ) issued a decree that gave Church teaching on indulgences and that provided stringent guidelines to eliminate abuses. The most famous biblical example of someone getting an indulgence is when Jesus, from the cross in Luke 23:43, gave the good thief complete remission for his sins, promising him that he would be in paradise that day. What is an indulgence? It is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven. There are two kinds of indulgences, plenary and partial. In layman s terms, even if we have gone to confession and the priest has absolved us of our sins, we still need to make reparation for having violated God s justice even after the sin itself is forgiven. For example, if you wreck someone s car, the owner can forgive you, but you still owe the debt of fixing his car. In the bible, God forgave David for his sin of killing Uriah and stealing his wife Bathsheeba, but his temporal punishment was the death of his son. We pay for this by our sufferings in purgatory when we die or we can do it through indulgences. We can gain indulgences everyday. Each prayer and good work to which an indulgence is attached is like a check that we can draw upon from the Church s spiritual treasury. How does the church remit the temporal punishment due to sin by means of indulgences? By applying to us from her spiritual treasury part of the infinite satisfaction of Jesus Christ and the superabundant satisfaction of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of the saints. Saints throughout history have offered up their sufferings, mortifications, alms, and good works as capital in the Church s spiritual warehouse. The Church teaches that we can also add our present sufferings to this repository by offering it up. What must we do to gain an indulgence for ourselves? We must be in the state of grace, have at least a general intention of gaining the indulgence, and fulfill the requirements laid down by the Church. All indulgences and devotions to which indulgences have been attached are published in an official book of the Church called The Enchiridion. What are the requirements for gaining a plenary indulgence? First, the exclusion of all attachment of sin, even venial sin; second, the performance of indulgenced work; third, the fulfillment of three conditions namely, sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion, and prayer for the Pope s intentions. If all these are not satisfied, it only becomes a partial indulgence. Can we gain indulgences for others? We cannot gain indulgences for other living persons, but we can gain them for the souls in purgatory, applying them either in general or to anyone in particular. Remember that we can gain partial indulgences daily. Below are listed some of the easily gained indulgences with which we can keep our account paid up and thus lessen our stay in purgatory: 1. Prayers; say some pious invocation 2. Acts of mercy; give of oneself or one s goods to serve others in need 3. Penance; accepting crosses 4. Recitation of the rosary SOURCES: Q&A CATHOLIC CATECHISM, by Fr. M. Guzman; THE FAITH EXPLAINED, By Leo J. Trese; indulgences.html CALENDAR OF MINISTRIES FOR THE WEEK SUNDAY-NOVEMBER 23 * 9:15AM - CCD Sunday Religion Class * 3:45PM - Christ the King Procession from San Agustin Chapel * 4:00PM - CORO Practice MONDAY - NOVEMBER 24 * 1:30PM - OFS Formation TUESDAY - NOVEMBER 25 * 9:00AM - JPIC Hospital Ministry PGH Visitation * 9:00AM - CWL FREE Clinic * 2:00PM - Health Care Ministry Dancersize Open to All Parishioners * 4:00PM - Marian Cenacle Group Prayer meeting WEDNESDAY - NOVEMBER 26 * 4:00PM - CCD Religion Class THURSDAY - NOVEMBER 27 * 9:00AM - Health Care Ministry Visitation at Rizal Medical Center, Pasig, City * 7:00PM - SYA prayer meeting FRIDAY - NOVEMBER 28 * 8:00AM - LUKE 18 Weekend *11:00AM - Adoration Chapel monthly mass * 3:00PM - SSAP Employees monthly mass * 2:00PM - Health Care Ministry Dancersize Open to all Parishioners * 7:30PM - Household Help Charismatic Prayer Meeting * 9:00AM - TigAwit Choir Practice SATURDAY - NOVEMBER 29 * 8:00AM - LUKE 18 Weekend * 4:00PM - VOSA Choir Practice

5 November 16, 2014 St. John Berchmans Eldest son of a shoemaker, John was born at Diest, Brabant in He early wanted to be a priest, and when thirteen became a servant in the household of one of the Cathedral canons at Malines, John Froymont. In 1615, he entered the newly founded Jesuit College at Malines, and the following year became a Jesuit novice. He was sent to Rome in 1618 to continue his studies, and was known for his diligence and piety, impressing all with his holiness and stress on perfection in little things. He died there on August 13, Many miracles were attributed to him after his death, and he was canonized in He is the patron of altar servers. His feast day is November 26. From Catholic Online CALENDAR OF SAINTS FOR THE WEEK November 23 Last Sunday in Ordinary Time CHRIST THE KING November 30 Andrew, apostle Andrew, born at Bethsaida, was a disciple of John the Baptist before he became a follower of Christ, to whom he also brought his brother Peter. With Philip he presented the Gentiles to Christ and, before the miracle in the desert, it was Andrew who pointed out to Christ the boy carrying the loaves and fishes. After Pentecost, he preached the Gospel in many lands and was put to death by crucifixion at Achaia. Reference: Christian Prayer: The Liturgy of the Hours. Published and distributed by Paulines Publishing House, Daughters of St. Paul, 2650 F.B. Harrison St., 1300 Pasay City, Phil. 13th printing ISBN Nov-14 Bernard Denis Almeda Datoc & Maria Carolina Rivera Cuyco 23-Nov-14 Tom Adrian Valera & Laiza Wong 03-Dec-14 John Vincent Sales Castro & Michelle Olivia Gonzalez Lolim 04-Dec-14 Vincent Edward Uy Tintoc & Jimmy J Luansing Go IV 05-Dec-14 Tristan Enrico S. Timbol & Nicolai Anne B. Terry 07-Dec-14 Victor Eleazar SJ Santos & Gemma V. Laderas 09-Dec-14 Richard E. Gutierrez & Camille Bettina Dona Kabamalan 10-Dec-14 Angelo Roman Estrada Cabalona & Mycah Cortez Sarmiento 12-Dec-14 Gino San Diego Trinidad & Eryn Jade Echavez de Leon 14-Dec-14 Jeffrey Cabinta Vinluan & Jerissa Leonardo de Jesus 24-Nov-14 Nena Lehmann Candy Lehmann Joey Carpo Martin Pantangco 25-Nov-14 Lourdes Abela Margie Abary Martin Tordesillas Nathania Villonco Danielle Kaylet Shana Lao 18-Dec-14 Adrian A. Sanchez & Ma. Cecilia Manalad 18-Dec-14 Herbert Roy Mirondo Cruz & Maylen Katherine Ponferrada Blanquiso 19-Dec-14 Miguel Luis M. Ferrer & Chiara Jaimee C. Fojas 20-Dec-14 Kim Loyola Zamora & Jacquelyn Po Chan 22-Dec-14 Deuz Mark Anthon B. Gueriña & Caroline Marcel B. Ramos 23-Dec-14 Jose Antonio Jobim B. Garcia & Katrina Mae S. Gamponia 23-Dec-14 Armando Casibang & Ma. Barbara Tarrosa 27-Dec-14 Nels An Castillo Badillo & Mary Francis Roa Yu Mapinlac 28-Dec-14 Jordan Nerizon Diola & Katherine Ignacio Buhain 29-Dec-14 Syfeuang Maokhamphiou & Melissa Patricia Bautista Ong WEDDING BANNS BIRTHDAYS 26-Nov-14 Cristina Weber Justin Lina 27-Nov-14 Milette Zamora Rafael Santos Ian Zafra 28-Nov-14 Twinky Lagdameo Tina Jacinto Karen Limpe 03-Jan-15 Deogracias M. Natividad & Diana Grace V. Lopez 04-Jan-15 Vincent Uy Tintoc & Jimmyjay Go 05-Jan-15 Lenin Ramos Madlangbayan & Shanna Zane Casayuran Delos Santos 06-Jan-15 Carlo William Evangelista Lim & Patricia Kalaw Feria 08-Jan-15 Paolo Katipunan Escalona & Pauline Anne Marie Alejandrino Martinez 09-Jan-15 Dennis Cristoffer Babista Tagaza & Marion Angelle Ordas Rivera 10-Jan-15 Santino Miguel A. Audencial & Micaela Nicole Fae A. Tamayo 11-Jan-15 Jaime Joseph Trinidad & Stephanie Shaw 15-Jan-15 Ricardo Ramos Ong, Jr. & Pearl Trisha Marcelo Padilla 17-Jan-15 Ryan March B. Mateo & Mary Grace Cindy B. Garces 18-Jan-15 Jan Erwin Manalo Veloso & Ma. Christina Gay Macasieb Dantes 23-Jan-15 Michael Martin Nomorosa Merchan & Terecy Joyce Pasion Chia 24-Jan-15 Clarence Paul Aguilar Canlas & April Joy Rogacion Ocampo 19-Feb-15 Jose Velmore Vidad & Joanna Marie M. Trono 21-Feb-15 Mikael Sy Coyiuto & Jennica Grace Santiago Tañeca 01-Mar-15 Eduardo Martin Legasi Chua & Vanessa Joan Chua Chan, St. Bede Catholic Church, Pyrmont NSW Australia 04-Mar-15 Bradlee Zigfrid Cagampan Dungo & Elizabeth Dy Castañeda 29-Nov-14 Marissa Araneta Hector Quesada Lester Teodoro Pia Velasquez Ana Tanato Anthony Ty 30-Nov-14 Maya Gomez For corrections and additions to this list, contact Susan at the parish office. 5

6 Parish Bulletin Please Pray for the Sick Meldy Cojuangco Connie Gomez Marilou Arteficio Ma. Pilar Oledan Iggy Clavecilla Cecille Reynoso Maxima Amah Sy Aurora Gonzalez Tommy Dy Buncio Naning Bagabaldo Remedios Maceda Berris Cedric Castro Anselmo Trinidad Jr. Pilar del Gallego Nena Jalandoni Rosario Lopez Victoriano Chung Erlinda Miranda-Oledan Zwei Lopez Gadi Shallouh Bancil Swinnerton Tony Boy Floirendo Jr. Francisco Tankiang Cynthia Arms Felicisimo Alcantara Rosario de Leon Tobias David B. Lu Gloria Syjuco Raffy Chan Edric Co Peter Soo Chito San Jose Ron Jacobs Nancy Imperial Johnny Lopez Lisa Alvendia Letty Ligon Norma J. Carlos Sony Lopez Gonzalez Corazon M. Samaniego Shaina Budhrani Gia Gonzalez If you want a name added or deleted, contact Bernadette at the Parish office tel. nos % OFF FULL SLAB OF BABY BACKS & FREE ROOTBEER FLOAT! Exclusively yours with a flash of this advertisement. (Snapshot or print acceptable) FOR RESERVATION, PLEASE CALL Visit us at Bonifacio Global City (The Fort Strip), 28th St. Cor. 5th Ave. 6 Terms & Conditions: Valid for dine-in at Tony Roma s The Fort. Discount applies to full slab of Baby Backs only. One Free Rootbeer Float with every full slab of Baby Backs purchased. Maximum of three full slabs of Baby Backs on discount, per table, per visit. Not valid with other promotions. Offer is valid until 15th December INTRODUCING THE RIBVOLUTION CARD! Enjoy more than P3,000 worth of savings for just P1,000. Scan QR Code for detailed benefits.

7 November 16, 2014 LEASE / SALE FORBES DASMA URDA SAN LO BEL AIR MAGA CONNIE PERIQUET GATMAITAN CYNTHIA GATMAITAN MENCHACA TELS.: CELL (0917) /F SEDCCO BLDG., RADA ST., LEGASPI VILL., MAKATI CITY Our Latest Chapel, Crematorium and Columbary in Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon City 7

8 Upcoming Advent Recollections! This upcoming season of Advent, we would like to invite everyone to join us as we prepare for both the upcoming Christmas season and the papal visit of Pope Francis next year. The theme for next year s visit is Mercy and Compassion and it is certainly something that each and every one of us called to deepen in ourselves. Cardinal Tagle has said that The Pope s visit draws all Christians to personal and social responsibility. As disciples of Jesus Christ driven by the Holy Spirit, we will be challenged to reach out with love to the neglected and abandoned, to help heal the wounds inflicted on children, women and families, to respect who differ from us, to form the youth in responsible freedom, to value life and creation, and to imbue our culture and society with mercy and compassion. With the Pope let us spread the Gospel of hope with joy. Our first Advent recollection will be on December 6 from 10am to 12nn in the parish center. It will be given by Fr. Maxell Aranilla on the topic of God as a God of Mercy and Compassion. Fr. Max is a priest for thirteen years in the Archdiocese of Manila and holds several key positions such as Secretary for Academics of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines Episcopal Commission on Seminaries. He has a long history of forming individuals for ministry and service in the Church. On December 6, he will guide us in deepening our understanding of what is means when he say that God is Mercy and how that applies to our lives today. The second recollection will be on December 13 from 10am to 12nn in the parish center, which will be given by Mr. Leo-Martin Ocampo. He ll be challenging us on Becoming People of Mercy and Compassion. After all, it is not enough that we understand what it means for God to be Mercy, but we need to be able to become people of mercy ourselves. This is what Pope Francis and Cardinal Tagle are calling us to do. Mr. Ocampo teaches Theology, Philosophy and Sociology at the University of Santo Tomas. He finished A.B. Philosophy at the Ateneo de Manila University in 2007 and is due to complete his M.A. Theological Studies from Loyola School of Theology at the same University. We would like to invite everyone to both of these recollections, in order to guide us in developing and deepening our faith life this Advent. We hope to see you all there! By Javier Luis Gomez You are cordially invited on November 29, 2014 (Saturday) at 3:00 PM to the LAUNCHING OF THE BOOK Echoes of God s Love (Homilies for Liturgical Year Cycle B) by: Fr. Roberto B. Manansala, OFM Venue: St. Bonaventure Conference room, Convento bldg., Santuario de San Antonio Parish, Forbes Park, Makati City The book Echoes of God s Love includes homilies for the Advent Season, Misa de Gallo, Christmas Season, Lenten Season, Easter Triduum, Easter Season, Ordinary Time, and Major Solemnities and Feastdays. It is intended to humbly contribute to the task of evangelization and to help provide some food for the spiritual journey. All proceeds from the sale of this book will be for the benefit of the Our Lady of the Angels Seminary-College Library Renovation Project. Fr. Robe rto B. Ma the Ph nansala ilippine, OFM, Francisc a memb Bautista an Pro er of, hails vince of from Sa San Pe He se n Ferna dro rves as ndo, Pa presiden Angels mpanga t of Ou Semina. r Lady ry-colleg Quezon of the e (OLA City, de S) in No an of Theolog valiches the Fra y (FST),, nciscan friar-in School School -charg Directio of of e of St. Quezon n (FCSS Francisc Francis City, an D), all an Ce based d direc He holds nter for at OLAS tor of a Docto Spiritua. the Theolog r of Minis lity an ical Un d Spirit try degre ion (C ual e in the system hicago, atic the field of USA), olo sp irituality a doub gy from an MA le MA/ST from the the Ka degree tho Ca L in pasto lieke Un degree tholic (MST). ral minis iversitei in spirit He obtai t Nijme uality an try from ned ce gen (N the Cla d the CIC rtificates etherlan ret Cente M Maryh in spirit ds), an r for Ps the Ins ill Scho ual dir d ychoth titute for ection ol of Th erapy, and rel Religiou eology Counse igious s Form ling an He wa for ma ati d Spirit tion fro on (Chic s pasto ual Dir m r of Sa ago), res del Mo ec tio ntuario nte, Qu n and pectively de San from ezon Cit. 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