The Tree of Rights: With due respect to the Author of "The Monkey and the Turtle"

THE MONKEY AND THE TURTLE.
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"The Monkey and the Turtle found a fallen banana tree and they decided to halve it, with the Monkey trying to outwit the Turtle, telling him to get the lower half, because it has roots and that it will surely grow, with him taking the upper half, that which has leaves, thinking that he got the better part since it was the upper part and would soon produce fruit! But it turned out that the humble Turtle got the better part because the lower half had roots which helped the banana tree to grow and bear fruit in due time. However, since the Turtle cannot go up the banana tree to enjoy his fruit, he has to rely on the help of the Monkey who eagerly acceded to the request but instead of taking the bananas down, he ate them while up on the banana tree, throwing the peelings to the poor owner of the fruit. The Turtle put thorns on the tree so that when the Monkey went down after having his fill of the bananas, he got punctured and even got angry. He looked for the Turtle but he was nowhere to be found. The Monkey got tired and sat upon a coconut shell. His tail got inside the shell and suddenly he got bitten: the Turtle was hiding there! The Monkey threatened the Turtle of burning him but the Turtle just smiled and said at last he would become mestizo. The Monkey changed his mind and said that he would cut the Turtle to pieces to which the Turtle simply said that it would be great for he would grow in number. The Monkey thought that it would be a greater problem for him then. So he just told the Turtle that he would throw the Turtle into the river to which the Turtle immediately responded with a prayer that the Monkey does not proceed with the plan for he, the Turtle, would be drowned. The Monkey then threw the Turtle at once into the river. Upon touching the water, the Turtle laughed aloud; the Monkey was outwitted for the Turtle could swim." 

We could get a lesson from this story in relation to Rights and their protection. The roots stand for the most important one, the Right to Life, for without the Right to Life, nothing else could follow. The tree or trunk stand for the Right to Freedom, for it links Life with its goal, Happiness. It is only after Life and Freedom can man pursue Happiness, which is represented by the leaves. The fruit represents succeeding Rights which flow from the three fundamental Rights: Life, Liberty or Freedom, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

The people who would like to make a short cut, that is, to enjoy the fruits without regard for the roots, are like the Monkey who tried to outwit the Turtle. The Turtle represents the people who accept the fact that without roots, that is, the Right to Life, there could be no fruits, that is, other rights. 

The Monkeys in our society want only to enjoy the Fruits, that is, the Secondary Rights, of what the Turtles did, the nourishment of the Tree, that is the Fundamental Rights. For while the Turtles nourish the Roots, that is, protect and fight for the Right to Life in all its stages and forms, the Monkeys do not care for their eyes are merely focused on the Fruits, that is, the enjoyment of the Secondary Rights. It doesn't matter for them how the Fruits got there, how they are able to enjoy Secondary Rights, important thing is that it is already there and that they have the capability to get them while the Turtles do not. 

The Monkeys in our Society are the ones in power. They are the ones making the policies, implementing and protecting them. Even if the Turtles do everything to be heard, the Monkeys won't listen for they are already on top and they only throw the leftovers to the Turtle, that is, they make other policies which they hope to appease the Turtles with, even if these are not the ones that the Turtles want to get, in relation to the enjoyment of the fruits. 

So the Turtles can only put thorns on the base of the trunk, that is, remind the Monkeys that Freedom isn't absolute, that Freedom is only Freedom when expressed in accordance with the Roots, that is, with the most fundamental right of all, the Right to Life. The Monkeys get hurt because of this and they look for the Turtles threatening them with being Burned or Cut, that is, being Persecuted for not conforming to what the Monkeys think and do. However, the Turtles know that even if they are finally thrown into the River, or killed for what they believe in, they shall be able to Swim away from the Monkeys, that is, have their Salvation for death is the entrance to eternal life. For the Monkeys, since they disregard the importance of the Roots, they will surely experience the death of their Tree. 

While on earth the Turtles have to remain fighting so that when they get thrown into the River, they shall truly reap the reward of their labor. 

Simplicity and Chastity

Image from acultureoflife.wordpress.com

One of important virtues that Christians are called to develop and practice is chastity. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, Chastity 

"... is the virtue which excludes or moderates the indulgence of the sexual appetite. It is a form of the virtue of temperance, which controls according to right reason the desire for and use of those things which afford the greatest sensual pleasures."

The call to Chastity is in accordance with the Christian call to holiness [see 1 Thessalonians 4: 3-7]. The same site, Catholic Encyclopedia, also states 

"According as chastity would exclude all voluntary carnal pleasures, or allow this gratification only within prescribed limits, it is know as absolute or relative. The former is enjoined upon the unmarried, the latter is incumbent upon those within the married state. The indulgence of the sexual appetite being prohibited to all outside of legitimate wedlock, the willful impulse to it in the unmarried, the willful impulse to anything unlawful, is forbidden."

Christianity accorded great importance to Chastity by considering it as one of the so-called evangelical counsels, together with poverty and obedience, in accordance with the Lord's statement about people who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the Kingdom of God [see Matthew 19:12] such as those who enter the religious orders. As an evangelical counsel, it is seen as one of the perfect ways of following in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Christ himself.

How do we relate Chastity with Simplicity? 

As we quoted from the Catholic Encyclopedia, Chastity is a form of Temperance: Temperance generally controls our desire for sensual pleasure while Chastity particularly controls our desire for sexual pleasure. As food intake is regulated as to provide sustenance for survival; sex is regulated as to ensure the continuity of the human race. Excessive desire for food, or anything material, leads to Gluttony while unregulated sexual desire leads to Lust. Both are considered among the seven deadly sins. Gluttony is regulated by the Seventh [You shall not steal] and Tenth Commandments [You shall not covet your neighbor's goods] while Lust by the Sixth [You shall not commit adultery] and Ninth Commandments [You shall not covet your neighbor's wife]. The Lord Jesus Christ even made the mere lustful look at a woman as already a matter of adultery [see Matthew 5:28]. 

Since Chastity is a virtue which regulates the sexual appetite, there is a need to live a perfectly simple and prayerful life. By living simply and prayerfully, we can slowly conform ourselves to the Lord Jesus Christ [see Romans 6] and become holy or perfect just as our Father in heaven is [see Matthew 5:48]. If we live in simplicity, we shall not desire for more beyond what is required for our daily sustenance which God in His generosity provides for [see Matthew 6:33]. The simple person does not seek for more beyond that which will give glory to God; only those who aspire to offend God allow lust and other forms of sinfulness to control their minds and bodies. But for us who are friends of the Lord, we know that control and practice of the virtues which help us to overcome temptations and sin are necessary and with God's help we do overcome.

Being at Peace in these Trying Times [Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter]

JESUS PRAYING.
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"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. 

Not as the world gives do I give it to you. 

Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid." 

- John 14:27

In our article written for the Thursday in the Octave of Easter, we discussed that the resurrected Christ brings peace. There we stated that

"the peace which the Risen Lord brings is a peace which is in accordance with the Father's will and design, not on merely human understanding".

It is not in accordance with worldly peace also. It is not a peace due to conformity with the world, or a mere desire for quiet or absence of war, of not having open conflict or of the non-existence of trouble. Rather, it is a peace that even when all of these negative concepts and realities may reign, the Christian still find serenity, calmness, courage and joy. The peace of the Risen Christ is not a negation of pain, trouble or terror but the courage to face all these with the joy of ultimately acquiring salvation after all the pain, trouble or terror. Such peace kept the martyrs steadfast in their faith and sustains the encourage of many Christian even today in places where they are not truly free to exercise the Faith.

With that promised peace, we are admonished to remain firm and courageous: not be fearful or worried. For we, Christians, will always be under constant threat of persecutions even among those who claim to bear the name Christian but in their actions do what their true father, the devil, does [see John 8:44, also 6:70; 1 John 3:10]. But with the Father's love [see John 3:16], the Lord Jesus Christ's peace [see John 14;27], and the Holy Spirit's guidance [see Luke 12:12], we shall prevail for after all, our Lord has already conquered the world [see John 16:33]. Moreover, our enemies might be able to destroy our bodies but won't be able to harm our soul; so we rather remain faithful to the One who could destroy both in hell [see Matthew 10:28; Luke 12:5].

"Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid" assures the Lord. As Christians we cannot disregard this for our faith requires our maximum trust and confidence in Him. Any sign of lack of faith would distract us from achieving true peace, that peace which only Him can ever give, and become worrisome and fearful even in the face of trivial terror.

Let us ask the Lord that He may grant us that peace so that even amid the many trials that we are experiencing right now we may remain serene, calm and joyful. 

Personal Prayer promotes and improves our Participation in Liturgical and Communal Prayers

CELEBRATION OF THE HOLY MASS.
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Example of liturgical prayer is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and of communal or community prayer is the recital of the Holy Rosary if done with others. But we can only derive the maximum benefit out of these prayers if we make them our own, that is, if we internalize the celebration and truly participate in these spiritual and religious activities. If we will not make these celebrations as our own personal prayers, we'll be just passive audience or part of a crowd. 

By making liturgical celebrations and community spiritual activities as our personal prayer too, we make them real sources of graces and blessings and we express more our being members of the Church and of the Communion of Saints. We become one with the Church and each member of the Church in a personal and deeper way.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church Eucharist states that the Eucharist is the Source and Summit of Christian Life [CCC 1322]. It is a memorial of [the Lord's] death and resurrection, a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a Paschal banquet "in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace and a pledge of future glory is given to us" [1323]. Therefore, our optimum presence and participation during the celebration is necessary for if we do not, it would be like snubbing the Lord Jesus Christ, disrespecting His Real Presence, disregarding His great sacrifice for our salvation, rejecting His love, rejecting the call to unity, and more.

The Holy Rosary on the other hand is a prayer whereby we mediate on the significant events in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ and the blessings which God has endowed upon the Blessed Virgin Mary. By truly and personally meditating on the mysteries of the Holy Rosary we make the important act of learning about the life of the Lord and God's generosity to those who obey His will and so become able to apply these into our own lives. 

These are just examples of liturgical celebrations and community devotions. There are more like the Liturgy of the Hours and the Angelus, the Three O'clock Habit, etc. But what is important is that we participate attentively and be truly present - not letting our minds wander - during the activity for when we pray we are in the special presence of the Holy Trinity. Who and what else could be more important than God? We may not be able to do it during the first few times but as it has been stated before, practice makes perfect. We can only not achieve it if we do not make an effort to start and sustain.

By making these liturgical celebrations and community devotions as our own personal prayers too, we can promote and improve our participation in such activities with the Church and even a smaller community. And we can surely maximize the graces and blessings that God endows through such activities when we give our optimum participation.

The Beginnings of the Society of the Holy Friendship

It was in 1989 when I first got the inspiration for the Holy Friendship. During that year, two young friends of mine died due to sickness. Until that time, I was enjoying my life without consideration for the future proven by the fact that I was even an out-of-school youth that time. But those deaths led me to reflect on the reality that life on earth does not last. Even the very young may die. 

O yes, I was born and raised a Catholic and was even an altar boy during my elementary days. I even considered entering the Minor Seminary but did not pass the entrance exam. But it was only after those deaths that I started reading the Bible seriously. It was then that my attention got focused on John 15: 12-17, which is the Lord's discourse about loving one another and that being a true friend means giving one's life for someone. I thought if it was only possible, I would have given up my life for at least of those two young people. Since then I gave more time to Bible reading first finally calling the Johannine passage I mentioned above as the Gospel of Holy Friendship.

However, when I got accepted to the Seminary a few months later, I set aside this Gospel though there are times when I would try to share to others that inspiration. But since seminarians are not supposed to entertain their own inspirations but try to conform to the signs of vocation, I did not pursue the Gospel at that time. Many things happened during my seminary days and a formator finally told me that I don't have a vocation! It was 1996.

I tried to initiate activities that would lead to the establishment of the Society of the Holy Friendship with some students when I was accepted to teach Values Education in a private high school. But was not able to pursue the activity because I got lost along the way completely forgetting everything, both my personal and sacramental relationship with the Lord though still serving in a Parish as a secretary.

Then in 1999, I got appointed as Youth Minister. The following year, Jubilee Year, I was blessed enough to be sent to join other Youth Ministers to the World Youth Day in Rome [and I'll be sharing why I say I was blessed enough next time]. For about four [4] years I served as Youth Minister but once again got entangled with earthly duties that I relapsed to being a nominal Catholic.

In 2011, during the Holy Week, I was alone in a rented room somewhere in Manila, updating my personal Facebook account, when I decided to make the Facebook Page for the Holy Friendship. One of the matters that made me decide to finally give time to it was the raging online debates in various Pages and Groups at Facebook regarding the RH Bill. Personally, I would have supported the RH Bill for I saw it as an opportunity to satisfy carnal lust and desires [which some Legislators call as "safe and satisfying sex"]. But then I realized that as a Christian, it was inconsistent with my faith, with what I ultimately hope for, and what I wish to lovingly express. Satisfying my carnal desires would only be for a lifetime but what about my eternity?

And so I finally set up the Society of the Holy Friendship page at Facebook and started inviting people to like and share the same. I know that I am still a work in progress, like many of us, I am still struggling really. But as I journey I wish to share what I receive from God through inspiration. And hopefully you who are reading this would help me stay along the right path and that we'll journey together toward the Father's house. 

To be Continued

The Promise of the Holy Spirit [Monday of the Fifth Week of Easter]

THE HOLY SPIRIT.
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"The Advocate, 

the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name 

- he will teach you everything 

and remind you of all that I told you.' 

- John 14:26

Of the three Persons composing the Holy Trinity, the Holy Spirit, or Holy Ghost, seems to be the least known. Perhaps it is due to the fact that there are not so many Biblical passages to attest to His Divine Personhood or maybe it is due to what the Lord Jesus himself said about the Holy Spirit, 

"the Spirit of Truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it" [John 14:17a]. 

And yet for us who believe, we do know and possess the Holy Spirit [ see John 14:17b].

The Lord Jesus Christ promised the coming of the Holy Spirit who will teach everything and will remind Apostles and after them, the Church through their successors, about the things which He has taught them for many of these have not been recorded in the Bible [see John 20:30] but have been handed down by word of mouth [see 2 Thessalonians 2:15]. Moreover, the Lord Jesus himself said that He wanted to tell many other things but that the Apostles won't be able to bear so He will leave it to the Holy Spirit to lead them to all the truth and to tell them of things to come [see John 16: 12-13].

Hence the role of the Holy Spirit, though already established in the Holy Bible, is not yet finished and He is still working even if the Holy Bible has been closed after the last surviving Apostle, St John the Beloved, our Patron of the Holy Friendship, died, which signaled the completion of Divine Revelation. It is now the Holy Spirit's role to make all that has been revealed to be fully understood by the Church so that she may be able to fully proclaim the whole Truth [see John 16:13]. 

As we have stated above, the Lord Jesus himself had said that the Holy Spirit cannot be accepted by the world, and so in our days we witness the many attacks against the Church because they cannot understand and accept that it is the Holy Spirit who is guiding her in her work and teachings especially with regards to so many issues that have not been directly answered by the Bible and yet, through the Holy Spirit, have been provided with answers already such as the issues on contraceptives, abortion, homosexuality, same-sex marriage, euthanasia, stem-cell research, etc. Surely, we cannot see any Biblical passage which directly speak about these but the divine principles that guides our understanding and acceptance or denial of these things have been laid down and their proper interpretation and explanation lie within the power of the Holy Spirit already who actively works within the Church as promised by the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Perhaps it is also noteworthy to mention that some dogmas and doctrines of the Church might also have not been directly and exactly revealed in the Bible but their foundations are truly Bible-based and with the Holy Spirit's guidance and inspiration, the Church cannot but proclaim such dogmas and doctrines such as the perfect union of the divine and human natures of the only-begotten Son, the Holy Trinity, the Immaculate Conception, the Assumption, etc. 

As Catholics, we rely on the promises of the Lord Jesus Christ that He will abide by the Church until the end of time [see Matthew 28:20], and that the Church will never be overcome even by the gates of hell [see Matthew 16:18] and that the Holy Spirit will guide her into all the truth [see John 16:13].

Remember what the Lord said about unpardonable sin against the Holy Spirit? The Pharisees have said that the Lord had an evil spirit and so He warned them about blaspheming against the Holy Spirit for such is an unpardonable sin [see Matthew 12: 22-32; Mark 3: 22-30; Luke 11: 14-23; 12:10]. Now, since the Holy Spirit is the one guiding the Church in her activities and teachings, would anyone be guilty of such a sin if he or she declares that Church is doing or teaching evil things, or worse, that she herself is evil?

May the Father who has sent the Holy Spirit through the Lord Jesus Christ to give the Church the power to forgive sins have mercy on us all [see John 20: 22-23].

On the Second Commandment: Giving the Highest Respect for God's Name

HEBREW NAMES OF GOD.
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"You shall not misuse the name of Yahweh your God, 

for Yahweh will not leave unpunished 

anyone who misuses his name." 

- Exodus 20:7

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, 

"The second commandment prescribes respect for the Lord's name. Like the first commandment, it belongs to the virtue of religion and more particularly it governs our use of speech in sacred matters." [CCC 2142].

For this reason we must be careful to use the name of the Lord keeping it in our minds in silent adoration and only to use His name in our speech to bless, praise and glorify the Holy Name of God [CCC 2143]. Such as when the Blessed Virgin Mary said in the Magnificat, "the Almighty has done great things for me. Holy is His name," [Luke 1:49]. The Psalm also states that,

"O God, our Lord, 

how majestic is your name 

in all the earth!" 

- Psalm 8:1

God's name is Holy [see Psalm 111:9]. Since His name is Holy, we must give it the greatest respect and awe for respect for His very name is respect for the mystery of God himself [2144]. Mentioning His name must be made with full veneration and fear of offending Him [2149]. 

The Israelites [also, Hebrews, and later on, Jews] gave God's name due honor and respect by not even mentioning it that is why even Moses had to ask God regarding the Name he has to tell the Israelites when he goes to them to lead them out of Egypt [see Exodus 3: 13-15]. For until then, God was only known to them as the God of Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob, or in short, the God of our Fathers, and they were content with that [see Genesis 24:12; 26:24; 28:13; Exodus 3:6, 15-16; 4:5; 15:2; 1 Kings 18:36; Acts 7:32; Matthew 22:32; Mark 12:26; Luke 20:37]. Such respect for God's Name ought to be one of the important heritages that we have to duplicate from the Jews. 

This Commandment is also worded as follows, "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain." And how do we take His holy Name in vain? We take the name of the Lord our God in vain by

[1] blasphemy, a grave sin, which consists in uttering against God - inwardly or outwardly - words of hatred, reproach, or defiance, in speaking ill of God; in failing in respect toward him in one's speech; in misusing God's name, with St James condemning those who blaspheme the honorable name of Jesus [see James 2:7] [2148]. We must remember that in Jesus' name every shall bend [see Philippians 2:10] for there is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved except in Jesus' name [see Acts 4:12].

This prohibition also extends to language against Christ's Church, the saints, and sacred things. It is also blasphemous to make use of God's name to cover up criminal practices, to reduce peoples to servitude, to torture persons or put them to death. The misuse of God's name to commit a crime can provoke others to repudiate religion [2148].

[2] making promises to others made in God's name that are not fulfilled [2147] and swearing false oaths [2150; 2153] for these are equivalent to making God a witness to lies.

[3] commission of perjury [2152].

[4] invocation of the Lord's name as witness and yet not using it in accordance with truth and justice [2154].

[5] using God's name in trivial matters [2155].

[6] using God's name in magic [2149].

This Commandment also covers the matters regarding our Christian name for every name is sacred, God calls each of us by name, and our name signifies the dignity of our person being made in the image and likeness of God [2156; 2158; 2159; 2167]. Hence making fun of our baptismal Christian name could also mean disrespect for God, the Lord Jesus Christ and His Church for we receive such name through the Sacrament of Baptism in the Church. Christian parents also have to make sure that the names they give to their children are not foreign to Christian sentiment [2156] for our names we shall bear for all eternity [2159].

In closing, we must remember that as Christians, we ought to begin each day and each activity by invoking the name of the Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and through the sign of the cross we ask God's protection and guidance throughout the day and the activity [2157]. Making the sign of the cross should therefore be taken seriously and not hurriedly for it is the Christian's summary of faith and manifestation of due respect to the Holy Name of the Most Holy Trinity.

Christians cannot Not Love One Another [Fifth Sunday of Easter]

THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS.
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via google.com

"This is how all will know 
that you are my disciples, 

if you have love for one another." 

- John 13:35

"This is how the world will know that you are my disciples: if you have love for one another," says the Lord Jesus Christ. In relation to John 15: 12-17, we could also replace the term disciples with friends to read as, "This is how the world will know that you are my friends: if you have love for one another."

The Lord commands us to love one another

It is truly inconsistent for Christians to not love one another. Christians cannot hate or disregard one another. God is love according to St John and anyone who does not love does not know God [see 1 John 4:8]. As Christians we all belong to the one family of God, members of the One Body of Christ, the Church, and are all temples of the Holy Spirit. We are one in the Father, in the Son and in the Holy Spirit and share the same divine life infused into us through baptism. We share the same baptism, we are confirmed through the same Spirit, we celebrate and partake of the same Eucharist, we receive the same forgiveness from sins, we are blessed and graced through the same Lord and Savior. Now, what can make us not love one another but sin and the manifestations of sin? And if we let sin divide us or separate us from one another, we also allow sin to rule our lives and be separated again from God mocking the great sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. And no one can say that he or she loves God if he or she does not love his or her fellow Christian for the same Apostle states that how can we love God whom we do not see or whom we have not seen and yet hate our brothers and sisters? [see 1 John 4:20].

The Lord commands us to love one another as He loved us

The Lord's command to love one another is not general: it has its proper delimitation. The love that He commands us to do is not any kind of love but a love in accordance with the love by which He loved us: a love which shares, saves and sanctifies. There is no other love on earth which can even merely equal more so surpass such love. All the other loves on this earth are nothing compared to that love hence this kind of love which the Lord commands us to love is the only real love which Christians have to love one another. That love which Christ our Lord commands us to love one another is a love which is ready to sacrifice for the sake of someone being loved for He said, "There is no greater love than this - to lay down one's life for the sake of one's friend" [John 15:13]. 

He considered us as His friends and He died for us [see John 10: 11, 17-18]. Therefore the love which He has commanded us to love one another with is a love that is ready to sacrifice for the sake of another. As we stated above, it is a love that shares, saves and sanctifies just like the love of the Father, who created us and shared with us His image and likeness; the love of the Son which saved us and reconciled us back to the Father making us the Father's children; and the love of the Holy Spirit which sanctified us. We too must have a love which shares [not self-centered or for the sake of selfish interests only], saves [leads to the Lord Jesus Christ and His Body, the Church] and sanctifies [does not lead to sin or evil but to God and holiness]. 

The Lord commands us to love one another as He loved us so that the world may know that we are His followers and friends

As followers and friends of the Lord Jesus Christ, Christians ought to be models of peace and harmony, of unity and understanding, of tolerance and peaceful co-existence. Christians shouldn't be the cause of trouble, misunderstanding and war. Christians ought to manifest love in everything.

Now, one might say then that if it's the case, Christians would be passive and would let evil reign on this earth. But that's a mistaken understanding of love. Christian love allows no room for evil and so Christians cannot be passive in case of injustice, nor tolerant when evil asserts itself. It is really because Christians love truly that it cannot let injustice or evil reign and must therefore defend truth, goodness and righteousness. 

It is through this kind of love that the world would identify Christians as people who are different from the rest, truly set apart, and signifies the God who is holy and perfect [see 1 Peter 2:9]. Many times, it is by being signs of contradiction can Christians proclaim the Lord Jesus Christ [see Luke 2:34]. For if we do only that which others do, what good is that? [see Matthew 6: 13-16, 20, 44-48]. 

Love one another as I have loved you, the Lord Jesus commands us. It is not simply an admonition or request: it is a command. It is an obligation which we bear as Christians and a significant mark of our being members of His Body, the Church. For if we do not love one another in the Church, we would be like a human body that has cancer cells which continually wage a battle with healthy cells and ultimately cause the death of a person. For the Church to remain spiritually and morally healthy, Christians ought to love one another. This way we shall be able to give glory to the Father through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Now let us ask ourselves: are we Christians?

Jesus Christ - the Channel of God's Provisions [Saturday of the Fourth Week of Easter]

PRAYING TO GOD  THE FATHER
THROUGH JESUS OUR LORD.
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"If you ask anything of me 
in my name, 
I will do it." 

- John 14:14

As we have discussed yesterday, the Lord Jesus Christ is our only Mediator with the Father. It is He who have made known the Father as He is [see Matthew 11:27; Luke 10:22; John 7:29] and it is He who will present us to the Father when He finally turns over the Kingdom so that everything may be one in the Father [see 1 Corinthians 15: 23-27]. Through Him we have been freed from our bondage to sin and was once again reconciled to the Father [see Romans 5:1, 10-11; 2 Corinthians 5:18]. Through Him we can ask anything from the Father [see John 15:16; 16:23, 26].

But we need to really have strong and unwavering faith in order to avail of the Lord's promise of accomplishing whatever we ask from the Father or from Him. For without faith, it is impossible to please God [see Hebrews 11:6]. And without faith He won't do what we ask of [see Matthew 13:58]. Faith is necessary in order to receive what we ask from the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. If we have faith, we can even more mountains [see Matthew 17:20; 21:21] but if we do not have faith we won't be able to do things [see Matthew 20:21]. Moreover, whenever we ask the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ, we must believe that He will grant it and that we will receive it [see Matthew 7:7; Mark 1:24].

God is truly generous and will give us everything that we ask from Him in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ provided that we ask for the proper things for we certainly cannot ask for evil things [see Psalm 66:18; 84:11; James 4:3; 1 John 3:22; 1 John 5:14; Matthew 7:11; Luke 11:13]. He even gave us His only-begotten Son to be our Savior, how much more much lesser things? [see Romans 8:32; John 3:16]. Didn't the Lord himself said that we just have to prioritize the Father and He will provide us with everything? [see Matthew 6:33; 19:29; Mark 10:29; Luke 12:31].

We only have to ask through our Lord Jesus Christ.

The First Cenacle: The Upper Room at Jerusalem

JESUS OUR LORD AND THE APOSTLES AT THE CENACLE.
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The day of the Unleavened Bread came round, 

on which the Passover had to be sacrificed,

 and he sent Peter and John, saying, 

'Go and make the preparations for us to eat the Passover'. 

They asked him, 'Where do you want us to prepare it?' 

He said to them, 'Look, as go into the city 

you will meet a man carrying a pitcher of water. 

Follow him into the house he enters 

and tell the owner of the house, 

"The Master says this to you: 

Where is the room for me 

to eat the Passover with my disciples?" 

The man will show you a large upper room 

furnished with couches. 

Make the preparations there. 

They set off and found everything 

as he had told them 

and prepared the Passover. 

- Luke 22: 7-13

It was at the Upper Room, or Cenacle, where the following important events before the Lord's passion, death and resurrection took place:

[1] The institution of the Holy Eucharist 

[2] The institution of the Holy Orders

[3] The washing of the feet [see John 13: 1-15] 

[4] The farewell discourses of the Lord [John Chapters 13, 14, 15 and 16] 

[5] The giving of the command to love one another [see John 13: 34-35; 15: 12-17]

The Cenacle is also considered to be the place where the following significant events took place after the Lord's resurrection:

[1] The Lord's appearances to the disciples after His appearance to the women and to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus [see Mark 16:9; Luke 24: 13-16, 36; John 20: 14-16, 19-31]

[2] The election of Matthias to take the vacated seat of Judas Iscariot [see Acts 1: 15-26]

[3] The descent of the Holy Spirit [see Acts 2: 1-4]

[4] The meetings or gatherings of the early Church [see Acts of the Apostles]

Hence every small group that would gather in order to read, reflect and share on the Gospel of Holy Friendship, John 15: 12-17 [and 13: 14, 34-35], will be called the Cenacle. And the First Cenacle will always be considered that which is of the Lord Jesus Christ with His Apostles. 

The Cenacles will therefore be places or gatherings where the nature and Mission of the Society shall be discussed, meditated on and shared. These shall also be occasions to plan, implement and evaluate activities that will pursue the nature and Mission of the Society particularly that of making "friends" of all nations [see Matthew 28: 19-20; see also Acts 1:8; Mark 16: 15-16].

Since the First Cenacle belongs to the Lord and His Apostles, the Second Cenacle shall be composed of people who will administer the Society in order to ensure that all activities shall be coordinated and nothing shall be carried out which is inconsistent with its nature and the Mission. All other Cenacles shall have the freedom to call, name or title their Cenacles in accordance with Christian values, virtues, characteristics and others. Cenacles shall be grouped into Parishes, these in turn shall compose Dioceses which shall be the main divisions of the Society. 

The groupings into Parishes and Dioceses only means that we hope to follow, more or less, the Church's structure in order to simplify coordination - not only within the Society but also with the Holy Mother Church and the particular Churches, that is, Dioceses and Parishes. Of course, proper adjustments have to be made in accordance with the population or physical membership of the Society. With regards to the Online Community, it shall follow the same physical structure as much as possible but there shall be allowance for those who will only remain merely online members, especially due to their lack of membership into a physical Cenacle for whatever valid reason except the mere decision to be alone.

A Cenacle can be composed of at least two or three persons in accordance with the following declaration of the Lord, 

"For where two or three meet in my name, 

I am there among them" 

[see Matthew 18: 29-20]. 

Jesus is the Only 'Mediator' but God allows 'Intercessors' [Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter]

JESUS - THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE.
Image from splendorofthetruth.com.ph via google.com

"I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. 

No one comes to the Father 
except through me." 

- John 14:6

The Apostle Paul wrote, "For there is just one mediator between God and man, Jesus Christ our Lord" [1 Timothy 2:5] while the Beloved Apostle stated, "... we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One" [1 John 2:1].

The passage from the Apostle Paul has been used by anti-Catholics to discredit the Church for making the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Saints as other mediators to God. They continually charge us with the crime of idolatry, idol-worship, of violating the Second Commandment in their own counting, "You shall not make any graven image of anything in the heavens or on the earth, nor shall you bow down to them" [see Exodus 20: 4-5]. The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, in paragraph 50, explains the Catholic veneration of Saints in this manner, 

"The Church has always believed that the apostles and Christ's martyrs who had given the supreme witness of faith and charity by the shedding of their blood, are closely joined with us in Christ, and she has always venerated them with special devotion, together with the Blessed Virgin Mary and the holy angels. The Church has piously implored the aid of their intercession. To these were soon added also those who had more closely imitated Christ's virginity and poverty, and finally others whom the outstanding practice of the Christian virtues and the divine charisms recommended to the pious devotion and imitation of the faithful."

The Catholic Church does not worship the Blessed Virgin Mary or the Saints. We merely acknowledge the special grace that God has endowed upon them for having lived their lives in fulfillment of God's will [see Psalm 40:8; Luke 1:38; and in a special manner, also 22:42] and in accordance with the Lord's requirement to be His disciple: to deny one's self, carry one's cross and to follow Him [see Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23] and His command to love one another as He loved us [see John 15: 12-17]. The Catholic does not worship images or icons, we simply use them to remind us of the Lord and the Saints. To worship the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Saints and their images would be heretical.  

One of the ways by which Catholics are charged guilty of Mariolatry is the recitation of the Holy Rosary. The praying of the Hail Mary's are considered by anti-Catholics as our way of calling upon the Blessed Virgin Mary as if she is divine. But they fail to mention that the greeting, Hail Mary, can be found in the Bible and it was the Archangel Gabriel who used it even calling Mary as full of grace further saying that the Lord is with her [see Luke 1:28]. The other half of the Hail Mary comes from the Bible too and was spoken by someone who was also favored to bear a child even in her old age, Mary's cousin Elizabeth [see Luke 1:42]. Now, the phrase, full of grace, is highly contested by non-Catholics being a direct translation from the Latin while the original passage was in Greek and more appropriately meaning highly favored. Still, Catholic Church believe that the Blessed Virgin Mary is really full of grace and she has reason to do so. But do Catholics take some of God's glory and place them upon her? Are Catholics Mariolaters? Of course not. A good article about our proper treatment of the Blessed Virgin's role in our lives as Catholics can be read here. 

We, Catholics, also believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and man. But God allows that someone may intercede for another. If it is not so, 

[1] St Stephen would have not prayed that God may forgive the people who persecuted and eventually killed him [see Acts 7:60].

[2] St Paul would have been directly healed by the Lord Jesus Christ and doesn't have to be touched by Ananias [see Acts 9: 10-12].

[3] St Peter would have not been able to heal people [see Acts 3: 1-10; 5: 14-16] and would never be able to call someone back from the dead [see Acts 9: 36-41]. 

[4] St Peter would have corrected Simon Magus and told him to directly pray to God when he requested St Peter to pray for him after he was rebuked by the Apostle when he tried to purchase the power to make the Holy Spirit descend on people through the laying of the Apostles's hands [see Acts 8: 18-24].

[5] The Church would not have prayed for the safety of St Peter when he was arrested by orders of King Herod after ordering the killing of St James, the brother of St John [see Acts 12:5].

[6] St Paul would have not been able to perform miracles and healed the sick even through mere handkerchiefs and apron which touched him were brought to them [see Acts 19: 11-12] including the father of Publius and other sick people of the island where they were stranded on their way to Rome [see Acts 28: 7-9].   

There are other passages in the New Testament which clearly show that men may intercede for other men especially the one which says, the prayer of holy people is effective [see James 5:16; see also John 9:31]. In the Old Testament, the Patriarchs, Prophets, Judges, and other holy men and women interceded for others one of the most significant and classic examples is the way Abraham interceded with God, who decided to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah  who have attained extreme sinfulness, for the sake of his nephew Lot and his family who lived in Sodom [see Genesis 18: 17-33; refer also to 19:29]. 

Moreover, if a man cannot intercede for a fellow man, how can we fully express our obedience to the Lord's command to love one another? Wouldn't it be against charity to disregard others when they need help and we can do anything concrete but just pray? Refer back to Acts 3: 1-10 where St Peter tells the lame man who asked for alms, "Silver or gold I have not but what I have I'll give to you ..." and St Peter was able to perform a miracle and make the lame man walk.

And do we not also believe that Jesus Christ is God? The Second Person of the Holy Trinity? Now, who's going to mediate for us with the Lord?

Now if I say before closing this article that I am going to pray for all of you and ask you to pray for me: would you say "THAT'S NONSENSE"?

May God bless us all at all times.