THE DEDICATION OF MAAM GIOVANNA FONTANILLA (1958-2020)
A Eulogy by Rev. Fr. Louie Coronel, OP
Mere words and gestures are not enough to express our gratitude to Assoc. Prof. Giovanna Villarama-Fontanilla, PhD,. APR for her unwavering dedication until the end. I have many stories to tell about her but let me share a very vivid testimony of her dedication. The visit of Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of the Kingdom of Thailand to the University of Santo Tomás (UST) was held on June 4, 2019. As expected, the Office of Public Affairs headed by Maam Giovanna was very engaged in that event. However, the royal visit was held on the same date and time as the Graduation Rites of the UST College of Science. Coincidentally, it was also the graduation of the son of Maam Giovanna, who finished a degree in BS Psychology. I was already in the line, about to march as the Regent of the College of Science, when Ma'am Giovanna discreetly approached me asking for a very special favor. She told me: “Father, I approached you as a friend. May I kindly request that in the event that my son is called on stage and I am not yet here, because there is another event in the other building, please, father, kindly accompany my son in his graduation march.” My heart melted with such manifestation of maternal love and dedication to her alma mater, UST, as I replied affirmatively. When her son was about to be called, she was not able to make it; and therefore, I fulfilled her kind request. May Ma'am Giovanna’s selfless dedication inspire us to remain faithful in this challenging time.
Maam Giovanna, we miss your energy, your laughter, your indefatigability, your dedication. Whenever I visit you in your office, you have always accommodated me. Thank you for sharing your joys and pains, your doubts and your faith experiences. Lagi po ninyong sinasabi sa akin na napakalaki ng utang na loob ninyo at pasasalamat sa mga Dominican fathers. Ngayon naman po, hayaan po ninyong magpasalamat kami sa inyong paglilingkod sa UST at sa simbahan ng buong puso. Malaki pong kawalan ang inyong paglisan subalit harinawa ang inyong iniwan ay aming maipagpatuloy nang may pananampalataya tulad ng inyong ipinamalas hanggang sa huli.
Salamat, Maam Giovanna!
Paalam, Maam Giovanna!
Saints are heroes of the Catholic faith. They lived in holiness dedicated to serving God and spreading the message of salvation. Indeed, many Catholic saints courageously met their deaths simply because of their faith. Each saint’s story is a fascinating one. They lived at different times in different places through history but they all shared the love of God that has been meticulously documented through the teachings of the Catholic Church (ewtn.com/catholicism/saints). The world around us is changing faster than ever before. The use of social media has skyrocketed that greatly influenced the movement and lifestyle of the people particularly to the youth. “For example, it is true that the digital world can expose you to the risk of self-absorption, isolation and empty pleasure. But don’t forget that there are young people even then who show creativity and even genius” (Christus Vivit, n.104). That was the case of Blessed Carlo Acutis, an Italian teenager who used the internet to spread his faith and the first Catholic Church’s millennial saint and dubbed as the patron saint of the internet.
Born in London, in 1991, Carlo and his family soon moved back to Italy, where he grew up as an ordinary only child. He loved football, Pokémon, action films, and all animals (he had four dogs, two cats and many goldfish as pets). From early childhood, his first love was Our Lord in the Eucharist. Neither of his parents were religious, yet from an early age Carlo never wanted to pass a church without going in to “say hello to Jesus.” As a result, his mother came back to faith, then his father. Carlo received his First Holy Communion early, at his own request, in a local convent, entering under a doorway that said “God is enough” (catholicherald.co.uk/carlo-acutis-his-life-and-legacy).
Carlo’s love, appreciation and reverence for the Eucharist were exceptional. “The Eucharist is my highway to Heaven!”, he would say. And, “If we get in front of the sun, we get sun tans, but when we get in front of Jesus in the Eucharist, we become saints.” He never missed daily Mass, even when (from the age of eleven) he began visiting Eucharistic miracles all over the world with his parents, documenting them. A “computer genius” and possible future patron saint of the internet, by age fourteen he had created a Eucharistic Miracle display that would tour the world, along with a website. He believed that if people knew that Jesus was truly in the Eucharist, they would turn to God (ibid.).
Carlo knew he would die young, even predicting the cause of his death and his weight at the time. His mother said, “Carlo always had a sense that he couldn’t waste time.” He hated to be enslaved by anything, so although he loved computer games, he allowed himself to play for only one hour a week, and gave the rest of his time to good works helping children, the elderly, and the poor. As soon as he was confirmed, age eleven, he became a catechist. He met and chatted with many migrants, standing sponsor for one when he got baptized. He was popular at school, but also befriended children who were unhappy at home, defended the disabled, and treated girls with an old-fashioned purity that challenged everyone. He would defend his Catholic faith — including his pro-life views fearlessly in class (ibid.).
Then, in early October 2006, Carlo became ill with flu — so it was thought, until his condition deteriorated. He was admitted to hospital, receiving a terrible diagnosis: “It is a devastating leukemia.” The fifteen-year-old boy who loved to laugh had days to live. Carlo took the news calmly, immediately offering all his sufferings for the Pope, the Church, and his own direct entry into heaven (he had a horror of purgatory). “I am happy to die,” he said, “because I have lived my life without wasting a minute on those things which do not please God.” “I would like to leave this hospital,” he told his mother, “but I know I will not do so alive. I will give you signs, though, that I am with God.” He died on October 12. Some of his last words were to a nurse who offered to wake his mother, since he was suffering. He refused: “She is very tired as well and she will only worry even more” (ibid.).
Exactly four years later, on the anniversary of Carlo’s death, at the age of forty-four, his mother gave birth to the promised ‘signs’ Carlo’s twin brother and sister. Carlo’s mother has said that God chose Carlo to be “an example for the young people of this period in history” (ibid.).
The life of Blessed Carlo Acutis is for me an example that sanctity is not limited to adults who lived in the distant past. Amidst the fast-changing world of technologies he proves that, there is an ordinary teenager in the 21st century too who can be worthy of veneration. He showed how to use the new communications technology to transmit the Gospel, to communicate its values and beauty. He showed great self-control and did not became be a slave to what the social media are alluring humans particularly the youth. I really like his motto that says, "everyone is born original, but many people end up dying photocopies,” because many were already greatly influenced by the social media platforms. He showed that we all have unique character and talents given by God, and that we can all live the fullness of life according to what God has given us not because of who and what we are trying to copy that leads us to forget who we really are as children of God. Blessed Carlo is a proof that holiness knows no bounds and that in the Church it is far from dead; indeed, it continues to be vitally up to date. The world is changing, yet the saints, while changing with the changing world, always represent the same living face of Christ. That despite all the changes happening around us the face of Christ is still the same as well as His love, mercy and grace to us.
2020 Instructions on the Celebration of Aguinaldo Masses, Misa de Gallo or Simbang Gabi during the Pandemic
One of the powerful expressions of Filipino Catholic faith is the practice of novena Masses (Aguinaldo Masses, Misa de Gallo, Simbang Gabi) traditionally held at dawn from December 16 to 24. These are solemn votive Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, whom Filipinos honor with great devotion as they prepare for the festivities of Christmas. By way of exception from the sober character of Advent liturgy, the said Masses are festive (white vestments, singing of the Gloria, ornamentation). For the Filipinos the celebration of the Lord’s coming in the flesh starts with Aguinaldo Masses, or Simbang Gabi on December 16.
In the past months, we have been limited and sometimes even prevented in our participation from the liturgical celebrations of the church due to the COVID-19. Social distancing is necessary to help stem the spread of the virus. Evening Curfew hours have also been imposed in almost all places to prevent people from big gatherings.
During this time of the pandemic, the Church has adjusted the forms of important seasonal celebrations of the Sacraments and the liturgy. We have witnessed these in the Lenten, Easter Triduum and Easter time in which the secondary elements of the celebrations have been modified but still maintaining the essential elements of the Sacraments especially of the Eucharist.
It is also in this context that we are issuing these guidelines concerning the Aguinaldo Masses or Simbang Gabi and Christmas celebrations. These adjustments are applicable only during this time of the Pandemic. These adjustments are done because of the great number of mass-goers during the Simbang Gabi, and the limitations in the number of mass-goers due to the strict social distancing demanded by the IATF as a safety protocol in the prevention of the spread of the virus. It is our great desire to help our faithful find spiritual nourishment, which they so desire and need, from the liturgical celebrations of the church during this season in this time of the pandemic.
1. It is important to understand and consider the original nature of the Aguinaldo Masses,Misa de Gallo or Simbang Gabi. These were nine consecutive early morning or dawn Masses. People would wake up early in the morning and participate in Mass before they would start to work. It was only in the Martial law years that these Masses were transferred to the previous evening, because of the curfew hours that prevented the people to go to church early in the morning. The practice became popular and beneficial to many catholic workers. Even after the evening curfew hours were lifted, the practice of the Simbang Gabi persisted until today. The spiritual benefits drawn from this practice has helped our faithful prepare themselves spiritually for the festivities of Christmas and combat the strong spirit of commercialism of the season.
Since it is necessary to implement social distancing even in our liturgical celebrations, and this will prevent us from accommodating the many who would participate in these Masses, we recommend that for Simbang Gabi, the Masses in the evening can start as early as 6:00pm and for the morning the last Aguinaldo Masses, Misa de Gallo or Simbang Gabi Mass can be at 6:00 am. The Bishop of the place in consultation with the pastors of the parishes and in coordination with the LGU could schedule more Simbang Gabi Masses in different venues which can be large enough to accommodate more people and still observing social distancing.
We still encourage the live streaming of these liturgical celebrations for our faithful who are still unable to join us, physically, in our Aguinaldo Masses, Misa de Gallo and Simbang Gabi.
2. The Bishop of the place in consultation with the Commission on Liturgy and the priests of the diocese, need to decide if it is helpful as a pastoral accommodation during this time of the pandemic, the “anticipation” of the following day during evening Simbang Gabi Masses will be allowed, with the exception of the “anticipation” of Monday during the evening Masses of Sunday. This is to emphasize the primacy of the Sunday over the weekday celebration. During the evening Simbang Gabi Masses of the Sunday, the readings and prayers of the Sunday ought to be used. While during the weekday evening Simbang Gabi Masses, the readings and prayers of the following day will be used. The Gloria is prayed/sung and white vestments are used. The Creed is said only on Sundays of the Simbang Gabi, not on weekdays.
3. On Christmas Eve, the Vigil Mass of Christmas may be celebrated from 6:00 in the evening. The last Mass of December 24 would take the liturgy of the Midnight Mass of Christmas. The dawn Mass of Christmas may also be celebrated early morning of December 25.
4. Since the kissing or touching of images is still prohibited during this time of the pandemic, families may be encouraged to bring their family image of the infant Jesus during the Christmas Masses.
5. In the midst of the meaningful and popular Filipino symbols of the Advent and Christmas seasons, it is important not to lose sight of the basic components of the celebration, namely the Word of God and Holy Communion.
The celebration of Christmas may be different this year. We will not have the same frenzy and stressful preparations that we had before the pandemic. But we pray and help our faithful to see the heart and the essence of the season in the simple, sober, silent but strong and loving truth of the God who comes to us in Jesus’ incarnation. He became one with us even in suffering and darkness of human sinfulness, helplessness, and illness to bring us to the kingdom of light and salvation of the Father.
For the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines:
+ ROMULO G. VALLES, D.D.
Archbishop of Davao
President, CBCP
27 November 2020
SAINT DOMINIC GUZMÁN
General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI
3 February 2010
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Last week, I presented
the luminous figure of Francis of Assisi; today, I want to talk
about another Saint of the same period who made a fundamental contribution to
the renewal of the Church of his time: St Dominic, the Founder of the Order of
Preachers, also known as Dominican Friars.
His
successor at the head of the Order, Bl. Jordan of Saxony, gives a complete
picture of St Dominic in the text of a famous prayer: "Your strong love
burned with heavenly fire and God-like zeal. With all the fervour of an
impetuous heart and with an avowal of perfect poverty, you spent your whole
self in the cause of the Apostolic life" and in preaching the Gospel. It
is precisely this fundamental trait of Dominic's witness that is emphasized: he
always spokewithGod andofGod.
Love for the Lord and for neighbour, the search for God's glory and the
salvation of souls in the lives of Saints always go hand in hand.
Dominic
was born at Caleruega, Spain, in about 1170. He belonged to a noble family of
Old Castile and, supported by a priest uncle, was educated at a famous school
in Palencia. He distinguished himself straight away for his interest in the
study of Sacred Scripture and for his love of the poor, to the point of selling
books, that in his time were a very valuable asset, in order to support famine
victims with the proceeds.
Ordained
a priest, he was elected canon of the Cathedral Chapter in Osma, his native
diocese. Although he may well have thought that this appointment might bring
him a certain amount of prestige in the Church and in society, he did not view
it as a personal privilege or as the beginning of a brilliant ecclesiastical
career but, rather, as a service to carry out with dedication and humility. Are
not a career and power temptations from which not even those who have a role of
guidance and governance in the Church are exempt? I recalled this a few months
ago during the consecration of several Bishops: "We do not seek power,
prestige or esteem for ourselves.... We know how in civil society and often
also in the Church things suffer because many people on whom responsibility has
been conferred work for themselves rather than for the community" (16 September 2009).
The
Bishop of Osma, a true and zealous Pastor whose name was Didacus, soon spotted
Dominic's spiritual qualities and wanted to avail himself of his collaboration.
Together they went to Northern Europe, on the diplomatic missions entrusted to
them by the King of Castile. On his travels Dominic became aware of two
enormous challenges for the Church of his time: the existence of people who
were not yet evangelized on the northern boundaries of the European continent,
and the religious schism that undermined Christian life in the South of France
where the activity of certain heretical groups was creating a disturbance and
distancing people from the truth of the faith. So it was that missionary action
for those who did not know the light of the Gospel and the work of the
re-evangelization of Christian communities became the apostolic goals that
Dominic resolved to pursue. It was the Pope, to whom the Bishop Didacus and Dominic went to seek advice,
who asked Dominic to devote himself to preaching to the Albigensians, a
heretical group which upheld a dualistic conception of reality, that is, with
two equally powerful creator principles, Good and Evil. This group consequently
despised matter as coming from the principle of evil. They even refused
marriage, and went to the point of denying the Incarnation of Christ and the
sacraments in which the Lord "touches" us through matter, and the
resurrection of bodies. The Albigensians esteemed the poor and austere life in
this regard they were even exemplary and criticized the riches of the clergy of
that time. Dominic enthusiastically accepted this mission and carried it out
with the example of his own poor and austere existence, Gospel preaching and
public discussions. He devoted the rest of his life to this mission of
preaching the Good News. His sons were also to make St Dominic's other dreams
come true: the missionad gentes,that
is, to those who do not yet know Jesus and the mission to those who lived in
the cities, especially the university cities where the new intellectual trends
were a challenge to the faith of the cultured.
This
great Saint reminds us that in the heart of the Church a missionary fire must
always burn. It must be a constant incentive to make the first proclamation of
the Gospel and, wherever necessary, a new evangelization. Christ, in fact, is
the most precious good that the men and women of every time and every place
have the right to know and love! And it is comforting to see that in the Church
today too there are many pastors and lay faithful alike, members of ancient
religious orders and new ecclesial movements who spend their lives joyfully for
this supreme ideal, proclaiming and witnessing to the Gospel!
Many
other men then joined Dominic de Guzmán, attracted by the same aspiration. In
this manner, after the first foundation in Toulouse, the Order of Preachers
gradually came into being. Dominic in fact, in perfect obedience to the
directives of the Popes of his time, Innocent iii, and Honorius iii, used the
ancient Rule of St Augustine, adapting it to the needs of apostolic life that
led him and his companions to preach as they travelled from one place to
another but then returning to their own convents and places of study, to prayer
and community life. Dominic wanted to give special importance to two values he
deemed indispensable for the success of the evangelizing mission: community
life in poverty and study.
First
of all Dominic and the Friars Preachers presented themselves as mendicants,
that is, without vast estates to be administered. This element made them more
available for study and itinerant preaching and constituted a practical witness
for the people. The internal government of the Dominican convents and provinces
was structured on the system of chapters which elected their own superiors, who
were subsequently confirmed by the major superiors; thus it was an organization
that stimulated fraternal life and the responsibility of all the members of the
community, demanding strong personal convictions. The choice of this system was
born precisely from the fact that as preachers of the truth of God, the
Dominicans had to be consistent with what they proclaimed. The truth studied
and shared in charity with the brethren is the deepest foundation of joy.
Blessed Jordan of Saxony said of St Dominic: "All men were swept into the
embrace of his charity, and, in loving all, he was beloved by all.... He
claimed it his right to rejoice with the joyful and to weep with the
sorrowful" (Libellus de principiis Ordinis Praedicatorum autore Iordano de
Saxonia,ed. H.C. Scheeben [Monumenta Historica
Sancti Patris Nostri Dominici,Romae, 1935].
Secondly,
with a courageous gesture, Dominic wanted his followers to acquire a sound
theological training and did not hesitate to send them to the universities of
the time, even though a fair number of clerics viewed these cultural
institutions with diffidence. The Constitutions of the Order of Preachers give
great importance to study as a preparation for the apostolate. Dominic wanted
his Friars to devote themselves to it without reserve, with diligence and with
piety; a study based on the soul of all theological knowledge, that is, on
Sacred Scripture, and respectful of the questions asked by reason. The
development of culture requires those who carry out the ministry of the Word at
various levels to be well trained. I therefore urge all those, pastors and lay
people alike, to cultivate this "cultural dimension" of faith, so
that the beauty of the Christian truth may be better understood and faith may
be truly nourished, reinforced and also defended. In this Year for Priests, I
ask seminarians and priests to esteem the spiritual value of study. The quality
of the priestly ministry also depends on the generosity with which one applies
oneself to the study of the revealed truths.
Dominic,
who wished to found a religious Order of theologian-preachers, reminds us that
theology has a spiritual and pastoral dimension that enriches the soul and
life. Priests, the consecrated and also all the faithful may find profound
"inner joy" in contemplating the beauty of the truth that comes from
God, a truth that is ever timely and ever alive. Moreover the motto of the
Friars Preacherscontemplata aliis traderehelps
us to discover a pastoral yearning in the contemplative study of this truth
because of the need to communicate to others the fruit of one's own
contemplation.
When
Dominic died in 1221 in Bologna, the city that declared him its Patron, his
work had already had widespread success. The Order of Preachers, with the Holy
See's support, had spread to many countries in Europe for the benefit of the
whole Church. Dominic was canonized in 1234 and it is he himself who, with his
holiness, points out to us two indispensable means for making apostolic action
effective. In the very first place is Marian devotion which he fostered
tenderly and left as a precious legacy to his spiritual sons who, in the
history of the Church, have had the great merit of disseminating the prayer of
the Holy Rosary, so dear to the Christian people and so rich in Gospel values:
a true school of faith and piety. In the second place, Dominic, who cared for
several women's monasteries in France and in Rome, believed unquestioningly in
the value of prayers of intercession for the success of the apostolic work.
Only in Heaven will we understand how much the prayer of cloistered religious
effectively accompanies apostolic action! To each and every one of them I
address my grateful and affectionate thoughts.
Dear
brothers and sisters, may the life of Dominic de Guzmán spur us all to be
fervent in prayer, courageous in living out our faith and deeply in love with
Jesus Christ. Through his intercession, let us ask God always to enrich the
Church with authentic preachers of the Gospel.
ANECDOTE: Class Recitation
Me: According to tradition, St. Andrew, the Protoclete (Πρωτόκλητος), whose feast day we celebrate on November 30, was persecuted on a cross of the form called ‘crux decussata’. What letter in the alphabet depicts that cross?
Student: Ahh…ahhh… Z-shaped cross?
Me: [huh? Paano?]
San Ándres, ipanalangin mo kami!
___________________________
Photo: Juan Correa de Vivar - Galería online, Museo del Prado.
La obra representa la crucifixión del apóstol San Andrés.
THE DETECTOR
Sa tingin ko, isa ako sa mga taong magaling mag-detect kung nananaginip lang ako. Dati napanaginipan ko mala-‘Nightmare on Elm Street’, na-detect ko agad… nagising talaga ako! Dati naman, napanaginipan ko mala-‘Indiana Jones’, na-detect ko agad… nagising din talaga ako! Ngayong umaga, napanaginipan kong may ‘two songs’ daw ako sa isang concert. Practice daw ako nang practice pero di ko naman makuha-kuha… Ayun… di ko na-detect! Nakalimutan ko…di pala ako singer! Tinanghali ako ng gising! Ilusyonado! Hahahaha!
100th ANNIVERSARY OF SAINT JOHN PAUL II' S BIRTH
PRAYER OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
Dear brothers and sisters, as we remember the centenary of the birth of Saint John Paul II let us turn to him to ask for his intercession:
Intercede so that we may always remain faithful to the Gospel. Intercede so that we may know how to open wide the doors to Christ. Intercede so that in these difficult times we may be witnesses of joy and mercy. Intercede so that we may know how to respond to the needs of our brothers and sisters who suffer, recognizing in their faces, the Face of the Lord. Help us with your intercession not to allow ourselves to be robbed of hope, and to be men and women who journey in the certainty of faith.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
"The apostles returned to Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught" (Mark 6:30).
O God, most faithful, just as the apostles returned to Jesus, so do we return to you as we gather this morning. As our Rector speaks, let his voice be our voice, let his report be our prayer and offering and may it be a report of what we have done and taught. May you recognize our works as your own handiwork.
O Lord, let this gathering be an exercise of remembering. That we may be ever mindful and ever grateful for your enduring love. Because of your faithfulness may we be ever hopeful even when we pass through difficult and trying times.
As in the parable of Master and servant in Matthew 25, when the servants made an accounting of the talents that were given to them so too we make an accounting before you. You know that we’ve tried to multiply and share the blessings you have given the University and each member of this community. May we merit to share in your joy and for whatever shortcomings, your mercy.
Lord, continue to bless this University and bless your people as we are about to enter another year of blessing: the Dominican jubilee to celebrate our 800 years of blessing: the Dominican jubilee to celebrate our 800 years and the special jubilee of mercy in the Church.
Time and again, you have made your presence felt in our midst. We own it and we believe, pinagpala kaming pamantasan. The most significant among the many blessings was the visit of Pope Francis. Thank you. May we remain with you as you are with us.
With Mary our Mother, the Lady of the Rosary, with St. Thomas Aquinas and the Thomasian martyrs, we praise and thank you, amen.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit…
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Fr. Filemon I. dela Cruz Jr., O.P.
October 16, 2015
Where the Pope is coming from
To our brothers and sisters in Christ, and to all people of goodwill:
A lot of people have sought clarification about the recent remarks Pope Francis had presumably made with regard to “civil unions”. Allow us to share some thoughts on the matter through the following reflection entitled, “Where Pope Francis is Coming From.”
The Pope speaks mainly as a shepherd who is willing to leave behind the ninety-nine (99) in search of the one lost sheep. Just because they stray doesn’t mean they don’t belong to the fold anymore. He is like a loving parent who just would not give up on any of his children. Just because they behave differently, or they live their lives in a manner that he does not approve of, does not mean they are not his children anymore.
This Pope has been consistent with the radicality of Jesus of Nazareth whom he calls the human face of the Merciful God. It is easier to save the good and the law-abiding; it is something else to choose to save even sinners and law-breakers with no other motive than the fact that they too are children of God and have been entrusted to his care.
In his own time, Jesus was misunderstood and judged by people because he associated with people of questionable reputation in Jewish society: the tax collectors, prostitutes, the lepers, the Roman soldiers, the rebels, the Samaritans, the people who were regarded as “sinners” in orthodox Jewish society.
What did he do? He did not avoid them. He also did not tell them that what they were doing was right. He did not openly approve of prostitution, or the use of violence to gain justice, or collaboration with the Roman government. He didn’t openly say he approved of the religion of the Samaritans or the politics of the Romans. He just treated them with the same kindness and compassion that he extended to any human being; and he was judged for it.
He refused to judge the woman who had been caught in adultery without saying that what she did was right. He just did not think that condemning people or judging them was right thing to do in order to work for their conversion.
He didn’t bring them to conversion by judging them, but by loving them, caring for them, being compassionate to them. He was never of the opinion that people who did bad things were to be treated as bad people. He hated the sin but continued to love the sinner.
He also did not approve of the manner in which the guardians of morality and orthodoxy in his time conducted themselves. He did not think building the kingdom of God was a matter of teaching people proper doctrine and morals. He did it rather by emptying himself, by immersing himself fully in the human condition.
He immersed himself in the human conditions of people, including sinners and deviants. Instead of pointing an accusing finger on them, he preferred to draw near to them, journey with them, listen to them, and break bread with them. Yes, even if doing so could mean he could get himself misunderstood, misjudged, ostracized and rejected.
Because he loved even sinners, he was willing to go down to hell for them. He looked at every human being as a fellow sufferer. He did not want to add to their burden. He struggled instead to know where they were coming from, why they were who they were, and why they did what they did.
This is how we understand what Pope Francis doing. He is not out to destroy our morals and orthodoxy. He just wants to do as Jesus himself did. He valued being kind and compassionate more than being right and righteous.
When he read the letter of the man who was raising three children with his homosexual partner, and who expressed his longing to be part of a parish community but was afraid because he knew his kind of life was not approved of in the Church, Pope Francis said, “Go and join the parish anyway.”
He did not say “Follow the Church laws first before you join the parish community.” And yet he did not tell him outright that he approved of his homosexual relationship and his effort to come up with a semblance of family by adopting three children and trying to raise them into decent human beings.
Pope Francis is being consistent with his motto, MISERANDO ATQUE ELIGENDO, “wretched but chosen.” If God could choose a wretched person such as he, why not these people as well? If God does not judge us even when we do stupid things, why will we judge these people? If He who knows them better does not judge them, WHO AM I TO JUDGE?
He is aware of the extent of the bullying, rejection, and exclusion that many homosexuals normally go through. He personally knew because he had dared to extend pastoral care to people like them when he was the archbishop of Buenos Aires. When the move to legalize same-sex marriage became very popular in Argentina, despite his sympathy for homosexuals, he stood his ground. Later he would look back and say in an interview with the French sociologist, Dominique Wolton on April 23, 2018:
“What to think of marriage of persons of the same sex? The word ‘marriage’ is a historical word. Ever since, in humanity and not only in the Church, it has always been between a man and a woman. One cannot change that; it is the nature of things. This is how they are.” And so he suggests, “Let’s call them ‘civil unions.’ Let’s not play with the truth.”
Take note he is saying this as a pastor, without compromising anything about the Church’s understanding of marriage and family. It is just that he consistently refuses to reject those who are unable to enter into marriage and build family because of circumstances in their lives.
For this reason, Pope Francis recently wrote the following reminder in his encyclical, Fratelli Tutti: “Today we have a great opportunity to express our innate sense of fraternity, to be Good Samaritans who bear the pain of other people’s troubles rather than fomenting greater hatred and resentment. Like the chance traveller in the parable, we need only have a pure and simple desire to be a people, a community, constant and tireless in the effort to include, integrate and lift up the fallen.” (FT #77)
For the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines:
+ MOST REV. PABLO VIRGILIO S. DAVID, D.D.
Bishop of Kalookan
Acting CBCP President
26 October 2020
MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
ON THE OCCASION OF THE PLENARY SESSION
OF THE PONTIFICAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES
7 October 2020
To the Distinguished Members
of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences
Meeting in Plenary Session
I offer you cordial greetings and I express my gratitude to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences for devoting this year’s Plenary Session to placing basic scientific research at the service of the health of our planet and its inhabitants, especially the poorest and most disadvantaged. I likewise greet the invited experts and leaders, all of whom have weighty international responsibilities, and I look forward to their contribution.
Before all else, I express my support for the work of the Academy, actively promoted by its President, Prof. Joachim von Braun, and the Council. In these days, my interest in your work is even keener, because you have devoted this Plenary Session to what is rightly a topic of profound concern for all humanity. You are focusing on the notion of Science at the service of people for the survival of humanity in light of the SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic and other global issues.
In effect, the pandemic brought to light not only our false securities, but also the inability of the world’s countries to work together. For all our hyper-connectivity, we witnessed a fragmentation that made it more difficult to resolve problems that affect us all (cf. Fratelli Tutti, 7). It is significant, then, that this virtual Plenary Session of the Academy brings together a number of different scientific disciplines; in this sense, it offers an example of how the challenges of the COVID-19 crisis should be addressed through coordinated efforts in the service of the entire human family.
Your efforts are largely concentrated on the study of new immunological and immunochemical pathways to activate the body’s own defence mechanisms or stop the proliferation of infected cells. You are also studying other specific treatments, including vaccines now being tested in clinical trials. As we know, the virus, in affecting people’s health, has also affected the entire social, economic and spiritual fabric of society, paralyzing human relationships, work, manufacturing, trade and even many spiritual activities. It has an enormous impact on education. In many parts of the world, great numbers of children are unable to return to school, and this situation runs the risk of an increase in child labor, exploitation, abuse and malnutrition. In short, being unable to see a person’s face and considering other people as potential carriers of the virus is a terrible metaphor of a global social crisis that must be of concern to all who have the future of humanity at heart.
In this regard, none of us can fail to be concerned for the impact of the crisis on the world’s poor. For many of them, the question is indeed one of survival itself. Together with the contribution of the sciences, the needs of the poorer members of our human family cry out for equitable solutions on the part of governments and all decision makers. Healthcare systems, for example, need to become much more inclusive and accessible to the disadvantaged and those living in low-income countries. If anyone should be given preference, let it be the neediest and most vulnerable among us. Similarly, when vaccines become available, equitable access to them must be ensured regardless of income, always starting with the least. The global problems we face demand cooperative and multilateral responses. International organizations such as the UN, WHO, FAO and others, which were established to foster global cooperation and coordination, should be respected and supported so that they can achieve their goals for the sake of the universal common good.
The eruption of the pandemic, within the broader context of global warming, the ecological crisis and the dramatic loss of biodiversity, represents a summons to our human family to rethink its course, to repent and to undertake an ecological conversion (cf. Laudato Si’, 216-221). A conversion that draws on all our God-given gifts and talents in order to promote a “human ecology” worthy of our innate dignity and common destiny. This is the hope I expressed in my recent Encyclical Fratelli Tutti on fraternity and social friendship. “How wonderful it would be if the growth of scientific and technological innovation could come along with more equality and social inclusion. How wonderful would it be, even as we discover faraway planets, to rediscover the needs of the brothers and sisters who orbit around us!” (No. 31).
The reflections of your Plenary Session on the sciences and the survival of humanity also raise the issue of similar scenarios that could originate in the most advanced laboratories of the physical and biological sciences. May we remain quiet in the face of such prospects? As great as the responsibility of politicians may be, it does not exempt scientists from acknowledging their own ethical responsibilities in the effort to halt not only the manufacture, possession and use of nuclear weapons, but also the development of biological weapons, with their potential to devastate innocent civilians and indeed, entire peoples.
Dear friends, once again, I thank you for your research and your efforts to confront these grave issues in a spirit of cooperation and shared responsibility for the future of our societies. In these months, the entire world has depended on you and your colleagues to provide information, to instil hope and, in the case of countless medical professionals, to care for the sick and the suffering, often at the risk of their own lives. In renewing my own gratitude and offering my prayerful good wishes for the deliberations of your Plenary Session, I invoke upon you, your families and your associates God’s blessings of wisdom, strength and peace. And I ask you, please, to remember me in your prayers.
Rome, from Saint John Lateran, 7 October 2020
POPE FRANCIS
THE FIRST SANTO DOMINGO CHURCH AND CONVENT
When the Dominicans arrived in the Philippines in 1587, they were temporarily lodged at a Franciscan convent until their own convent and church, built in a marshy and mosquito-infested place, were completed. On January 1588, the community headed by the first Prior, Fr. Diego de Soria, OP, transferred to their mother house, the first and wooden Sto. Domingo Convent and Church in Manila. There were interment chapels allotted for benefactors. An image of our Lady of the Holy Rosary was enshrined in the Church while “the candles in the chapel of our Lady burned without wasting”.
SOURCE: cf. "History of the Dominican Province of the Holy Rosary" in The Philippine Islands: 1493-1803, pp. 139 and 142.
"Three things are necessary for our salvation: to know what we ought to believe; to know what we ought to desire; and to know what we ought to do."
---St. Thomas Aquinas
I. The Life of Thomas Aquinas
Thomas of Aquino was born between 1224 and 1226 at the castle of Roccasecca near Aquino. His birth came only five years or so after the death of Dominic, the founder of the Order of Preachers, and a year or so before the passing of Francis of Assisi. Thomas was the youngest son of Landulph of Aquino, master of Roccasecca and Montesangiovanni, and of his second wife, Theodora of the Rossi branch of the family Caracciolo, a woman of the Naples region but with some Norman ancestors.
Thomas was born at an important cultural moment. Pope Honorius III was continuing the renewal and prestige of Innocent III, Frederick II reigned as Holy Roman Emperor from Sicily to Germany, Louis IX was about to begin his long reign as king of France. The Muslim continued to expand in parts of Spain, while the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem established by the crusades became increasingly fragile.
In 1231, at the age of about six, Thomas was entrusted by his parents to the Benedictine monks of the Abbey of Monte Cassino for elementary education according to the custom for noble families. The impact of the monastic life in that great and ancient institution must have impressed the young Thomas. When he was about fifteen years old, Thomas was sent home because of the occupation of the monastery, and being used as a fortress by Frederick II. The abbot gave a recommendation to Thomas` family that he should pursue studies at the University of Naples. There from about 1240 to 1244 Aquinas studied the seven liberal arts. When he finished his basic education, he was taught natural philosophy and most probably the metaphysics of Aristotle.
In 1256 Thomas became a master, roughly the equivalent of a professor of theology, though the word ‘theology’ is not quite right, since Thomas`s discipline was not divided into specialties. It is perhaps better to retain his full title, namely magister in sacra pagina, master of the sacred page (scripture). The title appropriately draws attention to the master`s focus upon the Bible.
During his residence in Naples, studying at the Imperial University, Thomas had ample opportunity to encounter and to observe the lives of the handful of Dominicans who had arrived in Naples in 1227. Thomas could not have helped being impressed with their zeal for soul and evangelical poverty. Probably in 1243 he determined to enter the Dominican order; but on the way to Rome he was seized by his brothers and brought back to his parents at the castle of S. Giovanni, where he was held a captive for a year or two and besieged with prayers, threats, and even sensual temptation to make him relinquish his purpose. Finally the family yielded and the order sent Thomas to Cologne to study under Albertus Magnus, where he arrived probably toward the end of 1244.
After completing his education, St. Thomas Aquinas devoted himself to a life of traveling, writing, teaching, public speaking and preaching. Religious institutions and universities alike yearned to benefit from the wisdom of the “Christian apostle.” In this time, St. Thomas devoted his life to reconcile the relationship between theology (faith) and philosophy (reason), something impossible at that time. Combining traditional principles of theology with modern philosophic thought, St. Thomas Aquinas' treatises touched upon the questions and struggles of medieval intellectuals, church authorities and everyday people alike.
II. Socio-Ecclesiastical Context
The intensification of ecclesiastical life in the eleventh century led to a stronger differentiation of theological thinking in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. The more the Christian West develops unity under papal leadership, the more active became the spiritual intercourse of the people. The expansion of the European horizon by the crusaders also provided new aspects, and the centers of learning shifted from the monasteries to the newly developing universities. The education system was changing from monastic to university system. It is because the Church wanted not only educated the monk but also all people.
The University of Paris around 1200 becomes the school of schools and also the counselor of princes and prelates. In the phrase of the pope, Paris was the oven where the intellectual bread of the Latin world was baked. Its fame, which is come from its schools of arts and theology, attracted students, even monks, priests, and bishops, from England and Germany. Primarily philosophy and theology were of importance in Paris, while at Bologna the school of law dominated. One of the most interesting chapters in the history of the university is the struggle over the admission of the mendicant friars in the middle of the thirteenth century. The papacy secured victory for the friars. And the unwilling university was obliged to recognize them as a part of its teaching force.
There are two mendicant Orders which were arising at that time: the Franciscans (Fratres Minores) and the Dominicans (Order of Preachers). The first is called such because it is founded by St. Francis of Assisi by asking pope's approval in 1209/1210. This saint taught the ideal of poverty in imitation of Christ and at the same time refraining from blindly scolding others for their wealth. In the same time, Dominic who was a canon regular, became acquainted with the destructive effects of the movement of the Cathari in southern France. He thought about the necessary of a good theological training to produce a good sermon. Because of his idea, the Dominicans stressing the importance of study in their life until now.
III. His Works
Most of the writings of St. Thomas are the product of the requirement of his university teaching, and these works are in the form of disputed questions (quaestio disputata). This was the university`s style of expression par excellence in its programs of higher studies. Beginning with the reading of source texts in all areas of study, from the pagina sacra of the Bible to treatises on medicine. Questions were raised about both facts and doctrines. Based upon that, a disputatio or debate ensued between qualified Masters both “for” and “against” the point under discussion.
Aquinas` disputed questions are classified and entitled according the major theme of each one of the series. So we have De Veritate (1256-1259), De Potentia (1259-1268), The Questiones disputatae De Malo (1269-1272), De Anima, De Virtutibus, De Unione Verbi incarnate, De spiritualibus creaturis, and some other isolated disputed questions.
The Summa Theologiae is not the outcome of teaching, but a work motivated by personal considerations and become his greatest work. It is intended as a manual for beginners in theology and a compendium of all of the main theological teachings of the Church. In this great work, Thomas adopted the great platonic theme of emanation and return which provides the intelligibility to the project both at the human level and in terms of a vision of the universe and a conception of nature. So in this science of theology we have to study all things in their relation to God, whether with respect to their original production or to their final destiny.
IV. Thomas Aquinas and Theology
Thomas viewed theology, as a science, the raw material data of which consists of written scripture and the tradition of the Catholic Church. According to Thomas, the source of this science is God's revelation to man throughout history. And then we process this data of theology with faith and reason, as primary tools in doing this. In Summa Theologiae we can see that each of its elements is intrinsically referred to God and to the Word of God by reason of its situation within the theological program. Nonetheless, the truth of Catholic doctrine as well as a true reading of history insist that we do not break spiritual teaching away from its theological substructure. Theology is one reality; otherwise it risks being ripped away from the frame of the Gospel upon which it is woven. As a son of Dominic, the vir evangelicus, Thomas Aquinas is a spiritual master even in laboring scientifically at his theological work.
The most famous discussion is about how Thomas proves the existence of God. He believed that the existence of God could be proved in five ways, mainly by:
Observing movement in the world as proof of God, the “Immovable Motor”;
Observing cause and effect and identifying God as the cause of everything;
Concluding that the impermanent nature of beings proves the existence of a necessary being, God, who originates only from within himself;
Noticing varying levels of human perfection and determining that a supreme, perfect being must therefore exist; and
Knowing that natural beings could not have intelligence without it being granted to them it by God. Subsequent to defending people's ability to naturally perceive proof of God, St. Thomas Aquinas also tackled the challenge of protecting God's image as an all-powerful being.
Shortly after his death, St. Thomas Aquinas' theological and philosophical writings rose to great public acclaim and reinforced a strong following among the Dominicans. Universities, seminaries and colleges came to replace Lombard's Four Books of Sentences with Summa Theologiae as the leading theology textbook. The influence of St. Thomas Aquinas' writing has been so widespread, in fact, that somewhere in the range of 6,000 commentaries on his work exist to date. But one thing that we should understand that to St. Thomas, theology always remains doctrina sacra: it always seeks its answers in the Gospel. Ultimately theology finds its fulfillment in the Word of God.
Bibliography
O’Meara, Franklin Thomas, OP, Thomas Aquinas Theologian, University of Notre Dame Press, NotreDame, 1997.
Chenu, Marie-Dominique, OP, Aquinas and His Role in Theology, trans. Paul Philibert, OP, the Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota, 2002.
Franzen, August, A History of the Church, Palm Publishers, Montreal.
Healy, Nicholas M., Thomas Aquinas Theologian of the Christian Life, Ashgate Publishing Limited, Hants, England, 2003.
Weisheipl, James A., O.P., Friar Thomas D`Aquino, His Life, Thought, and Work, Doubleday & Company, Inc, New York, 1974.
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