Maligayang Pasko sa inyong lahat!

Belen scene from the "Belenismo" exhibit in Tarlac City in 2009. 

Source for the picture: Dennis Capulong's blog.

The Philippines just got a second venerable... did you notice?

Note: Some have asked me why I did not count Ven. Isabel Larranaga Ramirez (1836 - 1899) as the "first" Filipino venerable. Here is my reason: although Ven. Isabel Larranaga Ramirez was born in Manila in 1836 (to a Spanish father and a Peruvian mother), she left the Philippines with her mother shortly after her father died when she was only 2 years old. She never returned. 

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On December 20, 2012, the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, authorized the Congregation for Causes of Saints to recognize miracles attributed to a group of Beati, two individual Beati and five Venerables; the martyrdom of thirty-five Servants of God; and the heroic virtues of nine individuals (who thereby gained the title "Venerable"). 

Among the nine new Venerables, most media attention has gone to Pope Paul VI. Few -- even among Filipinos -- have paid attention to the fact that one of the new Venerables is a Spanish-born nun who spent most of her religious life in the Philippines, and who co-founded what is now a Filipina religious congregation:  Joaquina Mercedes Barceló y Pagés, known in religious life as Mother Consuelo, who was the co-foundress (along with her blood sister, Mother Rita) of the Philippine-based (and predominantly Filipina) Congregation of the Augustinian Sisters of Our Lady of Consolation.

Born in Barcelona in 1857, she died in Manila in 1940. Although she was born in Spain and had purely Spanish blood, the fact that her life in religion and spiritual heritage unfolded mostly in the Philippines and among Filipinos, makes her truly "one of us" as well. 

Ven. Consuelo Barcelo y Pages is the second person from the Catholic Church in the Philippines to receive the title "Venerable". The first was Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo, who was recognized as Venerable on July 6, 2007. The two Filipino saints (SS. Lorenzo Ruiz and Pedro Calungsod) were martyrs rather than confessors and so did not have to have to be declared "Venerable" prior to beatification. 

The following biography of the new Venerable is now in Archive.Org (LINK):

Mother Consuelo Barcelo Y Pages, OSA

 

Joaquina Mercedes Barceló y Pagés was born in Sarriá, Barcelona on July 24, 1857. She was the youngest of the five children of Salvador Barceló and Maria Pagés. In early 1883, she entered the “Beaterio de Mantelatas de San Agustin” in Barcelona, Spain. As a Postulant, she was allowed to join the second group of Spanish Sisters for the Mandaluyong Orphanage (Asilo de Mandaloya). She arrived in Manila on October 6, 1883. She was thus encouraged because her sister Mother Rita had already joined the first group of four (4) Sisters on April 6, 1883. They responded to the invitation of the Spanish Augustinians to take care of children orphaned by cholera epidemic in 1882.

On Dec. 26, 1884, Joaquina Barceló made her profession of vows and was given the name Sor Consuelo. As of 1888, only Mother Rita and Mother Consuelo were left to care for the orphans because the other Spanish Sisters had returned to Barcelona, Spain due to poor health. The Philippine Revolution of 1896 and the Spanish-American War of 1898 led to the separation of Mother Rita and Mother Consuelo from their Filipino Sisters. They were bound by obedience to return to Spain on March 13, 1899 and were both recommended for readmission to the Beaterio in Barcelona by the Augustinian Vicar Provincial in the Philippines.

Upon petition of the Filipino Sisters and also of their Spiritual Director, Fr. Bernabe Jimenez, Sor Consuelo sought permission from her Superiors to return to the Philippines for she was then the Superior of the Beaterio de Barcelona. She returned to Manila on July 1904. It was in the First General Chapter in 1915 that she was elected Superior General and in every succeeding General Chapter elections every six years for four terms.

The small congregation continued to grow and expand its mission in several provinces. Mo. Consuelo’s 25 years of firm and gentle leadership manifested her outstanding virtues: Love of God / Love of Neighbor, Faith, Hope, Human Justice, Humility, Poverty, Prudence, Obedience, Fortitude. She had a special affection for the poor, the sick, the miserable and the unfortunate. She was attentive to everyone in their spiritual and temporal needs. She was always uncomplaining and mortified even in her last days of pain and suffering. Mother Consuelo quietly celebrated her 83rd birthday on July 24, 1940. She died on August 4, 1940, having been called home by God to her eternal rest and reward for having served Him faithfully for 56 years in the religious life.

Photo source: Hagiography Circle. 

Videos on the history of the Archdiocese of Palo

The Diocese of Palo was erected on November 28, 1937 and raised to an Archdiocese on November 15, 1982. As such, November 2012 marked the 75th anniversary of its founding and the 30th anniversary of its raising to Archdiocesan rank. In belated recognition of these two anniversaries I'm embedding the following videos here in this blog. 

Bishop of Antipolo calls for prayer and fasting on December 3 versus the RH bill

The Rites of Thanksgiving for the Canonization of St. Pedro Calungsod, Nov. 30, 2011

Part 1: 

Video streaming by Ustream

Part 2:

Video streaming by Ustream

Part 3:

Video streaming by Ustream

Part 4 (including the first part of the Thanksgiving Mass):

Video streaming by Ustream

Part 5 (including the second part of the Thanksgiving Mass):

Lech Wałęsa in the University of Santo Tomas

Video streaming by Ustream

Video of Pope Benedict XVI bestowing the ring and red biretta on the six new cardinals (including Cardinal Tagle)

The consistory for the formal elevation to the cardinalate of the Church's six newest Cardinals, including the Archbishop of Manila, Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, took place today.

Last living Filipino Council Father at Vatican II passes away

January 31, 1920 - November 20, 2012. 

The first bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Pablo (Laguna, Philippines) has died. He was 92, and was about to turn 93 in a little more than two months. He was the last living Filipino bishop who had been a Council Father of Vatican II and the last living member of the pre-Vatican II Philippine Catholic hierarchy.

From the website of the Diocese of San Pablo (Laguna, Philippines):

His Excellency MOST REV. PEDRO N. BANTIGUE, JCD, D.D., Bishop Emeritus of San Pablo, was born on the 31st of January, 1920 at Sta. Monica Hagonoy, Bulacan. The son of Marcos Bantigue and Eusebia Natividad.

He was ordained priest in the Archdiocese of Manila on May 31, 1945. On May 29, 1961, he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Manila and Titular Bishop of Catula. Finally, on July 25 of the same year, he was ordained Bishop by Rufino Jiao Cardinal Santos. 

On April 18, 1967, six years after being lifted to the Episcopate, he was appointed the First Bishop of San Pablo (Laguna) and remained in the same office until July 12, 1995. He retired at the age of 75.

The old website of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines notes that Bishop Bantigue was once a member of the Marriage Tribunal, chairman of the CBCP Commissions on Life, Clergy and Prisoners' Welfare. He was Treasurer of the CBCP in 1976.

When the "Year of Faith" marking the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council was launched on October 11, 2012, Bishop Bantigue was one of 76 living Catholic bishops who had been Council Fathers. (See the list here.)

A photo gallery of the bishop's life and times as priest and bishop can be found at the Catholic Hagonoeño website: Pedro Natividad Bantigue: Obispong Bulakeño, Paring Hagonoeño

Tomorrow in UST: Greek Catholic Divine Liturgy

Tomorrow, the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom will be celebrated by a Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest, the Rt Rev. Mitrat Olexander Kenez, in the UST Central Seminary Chapel at 3:00 PM. 

Fr. Olexander Kenez is the Chancellor / Protosyncellus of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Australia, with its seat in Melbourne. 

I have been told that at least part of the Divine Liturgy will be in Filipino, using a provisional translation. 

There have been occasional Greek Catholic (as opposed to Eastern Orthodox) Divine Liturgies in the Philippines in the past, either by visiting biritual or Greek Catholic Jesuit priests at the Ateneo de Manila or by the late Msgr. Moises Andrade at San Beda, but to my knowledge this is the first one in recent years in the Philippines to be announced and opened to the general public. 

Archbishop Socrates Villegas: the separation of Church and State should not be absolute

Consecration of the Philippines to the Sacred Heart of Jesus by President Ramon Magsaysay, December 2, 1956.  Picture scanned from the souvenir album for the Second National Eucharistic Congress of the Philippines, November 28 - December 2, 1956. 

From the article "Church and State Collaboration and Cooperation" on the blog of the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan:

...the Archbishop paid attention to what our constitution, and what the Church law state that “there should be inviolable separation of the Church and the State…Hindi dapat pagsamahin ang gobyerno at simbahan. Hindi puwedeng ilipat ang katedral sa kapitolyo, at hindi puwedeng mag-office si governor sa katedral…Mayroong separation of Church and State.”

But he also stressed that that separation is not absolute, because there is no separation between God and citizens, between God and man. When we separate God and man, it is not only immoral, it is also unconstitutional, because in the constitution we all recognize that all of us have a God. Citing the late Cardinal Sin, the Archbishop said that the Church and the State are like railroad tracks parallel all throughout and not too near, not too far from each other so that the train could move forward. The train is our country, our nation.

Then Archbishop Villegas mentioned several areas of collaboration and cooperation between the Church and the State:

The First is Peace. Everyone is longing for peace. It is the responsibility of the State to promote peace, and it is also the mission of the Church to take care of peace. Stating it in Filipino, he said: There will be no peace if the people are fighting against each other; there will be no peace if God is not there. There will be no peace if we do not treat each other as brothers and sisters, and there will be no peace if we destroy our environment and natural resources.

The Second is Progress. As the election campaign progresses, all candidates promise to work for progress. We will not vote for any candidate who does not guarantee progress when he/she is elected. But this progress that the candidates promise to promote, this progress of the people is also the concern of the Church. When people progress, the Church is also happy with the progress. But it is not an absolute progress. It should be a progress with God; it should be a progress walking with God, because the Gospel says: What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but suffers the loss of his soul. “Anong kuwenta ng progress kung nahiwalay tayo sa Diyos; anong kuwenta ng pag-unlad kung nawala ang Diyos sa ating kaunlaran. Progress of the people is the duty of the government, and the Church supports governments in promoting total human progress."

The Third is People. It is the people that relate the Church and the State. “’Yung taong nagsisimba, ‘yun din ho ang bumuboto; ;yung taong nagpapa-bless, ‘yun din po ang nagbabayad ng buwis. Ang ibig sabihin po, ang ating pagmamalasakit sa tao ay hindi lamang pagmamalasakit ng gobyerno; ang pagmamalasakit sa tao ay pagmamalasakit ng Diyos para sa atin. Thus, there must be proper distance between the Church and the State so that we can serve the people best. There is what we call in the Church “Common Good”, the good of all, of the many. And this is the duty of both the Church and the State.

He concluded by saying that “before the Lord, we are only brothers and sisters. And in the presence of the Lord, let us promise together, government and Church, munisipyo and Kapitolyo, and the Cathedral and the parishes, let us work together, hand in hand, for peace, let us work together hand in hand for true, Godly progress, let us work together keeping in mind the people always. Because it is only in caring for one another that we can show our love for God...

Archbishop of Manila to be elevated to the cardinalate

The Vatican Press Office has just announced the forthcoming elevation, on November 24, 2012, of six prelates to the cardinalate, among them our very own Luis Antonio Tagle, Archbishop of Manila.

Therefore, on November 24, 2012, the short absence of Filipinos from the ranks of the cardinal-electors since Cardinal Rosales turned 80 on August 10 of this year will come to an end. The same for Colombia, which has had no cardinal-elector since September; the currently reigning Archbishop of Bogotá, Rubén Salazar Gómez, is one of the six prelates who will be created cardinals. At present, the Philippines and Colombia, which respectively have the 3rd and 7th largest Catholic populations in the whole world, are the only ones among the 15 countries in the world with the largest Catholic populations to have no cardinal-elector.

Congratulations to the new Cardinal-elect!

For the record: the full video of the canonization rites in Rome, October 21, 2012

This is the ceremony where St. Pedro Calungsod and six others were canonized. The broadcast is from the US, hence the focus on St. Kateri Tekakwitha, one of the newly-canonized.

    

Two Popes on St. Pedro Calungsod

The section of the Pope's homily during the canonization Mass regarding St. Pedro Calungsod:




From the website of Rome Reports comes the following transcript of the Pope's remarks on the second Filipino saint. Emphasis mine:

Pedro Calungsod was born around the year sixteen fifty-four, in the Visayas region of the Philippines. His love for Christ inspired him to train as a catechist with the Jesuit missionaries there. In sixteen sixty-eight, along with other young catechists, he accompanied Father Diego Luís de San Vitores to the Marianas Islands in order to evangelize the Chamorro people. 

Life there was hard and the missionaries also faced persecution arising from envy and slander. Pedro, however, displayed deep faith and charity and continued to catechize his many converts, giving witness to Christ by a life of purity and dedication to the Gospel. Uppermost was his desire to win souls for Christ, and this made him resolute in accepting martyrdom. He died on the second of April, sixteen seventy-two. Witnesses record that Pedro could have fled for safety but chose to stay at Father Diego’s side. The priest was able to give Pedro absolution before he himself was killed. May the example and courageous witness of Pedro Calungsod inspire the dear people of the Philippines to announce the Kingdom bravely and to win souls for God!

This echoes the statement of Pope John Paul II twelve years ago, during his homily at the Mass of beatification for Pedro Calungsod and 43 other martyrs (March 5, 2000):

If anyone declares himself for me in the presence of men, I will declare myself for him in the presence of my Father in heaven" (Mt 10: 32). From his childhood, Pedro Calungsod declared himself unwaveringly for Christ and responded generously to his call. Young people today can draw encouragement and strength from the example of Pedro, whose love of Jesus inspired him to devote his teenage years to teaching the faith as a lay catechist. Leaving family and friends behind, Pedro willingly accepted the challenge put to him by Fr Diego de San Vitores to join him on the Mission to the Chamorros. In a spirit of faith, marked by strong Eucharistic and Marian devotion, Pedro undertook the demanding work asked of him and bravely faced the many obstacles and difficulties he met. In the face of imminent danger, Pedro would not forsake Fr Diego, but as a "good soldier of Christ" preferred to die at the missionary's side. Today Bl. Pedro Calungsod intercedes for the young, in particular those of his native Philippines, and he challenges them. Young friends, do not hesitate to follow the example of Pedro, who "pleased God and was loved by him" (Wis 4: 10) and who, having come to perfection in so short a time, lived a full life (cf. ibid., v. 13).

San Pedro Calungsod, ipanalangin mo kami!

(10/22/12 - I've replaced the original picture in this post with the following photo from News.Va)

St. Pedro Calungsod, pray that before long, your fellow Filipino martyrs of the Marianas missions will also be recognized and raised to the honors of the altar...

Philippine Daily Inquirer Front Page, October 21, 2012

Way Sukod ang Pagmahal (Love Without Recompense) -- Song in Honor of St. Pedro Calungsod

I first heard this at the performance of the "Teen Saint Pedro" musical in Meralco Theater on October 17 and was quite impressed by it. It was originally written for the beatification of Pedro Calungsod (and other beati) on March 5, 2000.

San Pedro Calungsod: Huwaran ng mga Kabataan

On Liturgical Dance: Congregation for Divine Worship answers a query from a Filipino Catholic

UPDATED: Defensores Fidei Foundation to hold its 8th Annual Apologetics Seminar

UPDATED 10/8/12: The previous poster has now been replaced with a new one that corrects a typo and contains the dates for each lecture.  

Originally posted on Sept. 25, 2012:

Since 2005, Defensores Fidei Foundation has held an annual seminar introducing Filipino Catholics to the whys and hows of Catholic apologetics. Broadly speaking, Catholic apologetics as it is now understood is the art of charitably but firmly defending the Catholic faith in the face of attacks against it. Since 2005, hundreds of Filipino Catholics have learned the basics of Catholic apologetics through these lectures. It should be noted that H.E. Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales endorsed the work of Defensores Fidei while he was Archbishop of Manila. 

Every year except for 2011, the seminar was primarily led and taught by laymen. Last year, DFF decided to hold the apologetics seminar in the Alabang area and to have priests take the lead in teaching the course, with a greater emphasis on a catechetical approach and shorter sessions. For this year, DFF has decided to go back to its earlier pattern for the apologetics seminar, with each session consisting of more than 3 hours of lectures and wide-ranging Q&A. However, unlike the annual seminars from 2005 to 2010 which had 12 or 13 sessions each, this year's seminar will have only 9 sessions. Topics not covered in the course of the 9 sessions will be touched in the course of the Blessed to be Catholic monthly lecture series that DFF will hold in 2013, except in March (to make way for a planned apologetics-themed pilgrimage) and October to December, when the 9th annual apologetics seminar will be held (God willing!). 

Who are the speakers?

1. Rev. Msgr. Carlos Estrada -- Regional Vicar of the Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei. Msgr. Estrada has long been a friend of Defensores Fidei and it has been a 'tradition' for him to give the Christology lecture during the annual apologetics seminar. 

2. Fr. Stanislaus Kostka Balucanag OATH -- The (tentative) speaker for the "Sacraments II" session, which will focus on the Eucharist and the Priesthood. "Fr. Stan" is a 30-year-old priest of the Oblates of the Alliance of the Two Hearts. He takes up the lecture traditionally given from 2005 to 2010 by DFF associate member and blogger, Fr. Abe Arganiosa. He moved to the United States this year. (Yes, Fr. Arganiosa is a priest in good standing.)

3. Ed "Chief" De Vera -- A founding member of Defensores Fidei Foundation, author of two books (Catholic Soul and Mysteries of Salvation History – Promise and Fulfillment in the Holy Rosary) and columnist for Kerygma magazine.

4. Bro. Marwil Llasos OP -- A lawyer (educated at UP College of Law), formator of the Company of St. Dominic (a secular institute canonically subject to the Archdiocese of Manila that practices Dominican spirituality) and without question the Philippines' leading lay Marian apologist. His many activities and voluminous writings on apologetics, especially Marian topics, can be seen in his blogs such as The Knight of Mary and its predecessor Marwil N. Llasos.

5. And, finally.... nah, no need to talk about him. =)

The "Graduation" will take place on December 15, 2012. It will be preceded by the ninth and final talk of the whole apologetics seminar, and will be followed by Mass. From 2007 to 2010 the closing Mass of the Defensores Fidei Foundation apologetics seminar was in Latin, celebrated ad orientem; from 2007 to 2009 it was in the Forma Ordinaria / Novus Ordo (with the 2008 Mass being concelebrated by Bishop Angel Hobayan and Fr. Abraham Arganiosa with Fr. Carlos Estrada as Master of Ceremonies) and in 2010 it was according to the Extraordinary Form / Traditional Latin Mass. At present, the plan is to conclude the seminar once more with a Latin Mass, although there is no word yet on what Missal will be used. After the Mass there will be lunch followed by an informal reunion of Filipino Catholic apologists, the first since 2007.

It should be noted that the DFF seminar for this year will occur entirely within the Year of Faith (October 11, 2012 - November 24, 2013) proclaimed by His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI. In its Note with Pastoral Recommendations for the Year of Faith (Jan. 6, 2012) the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith noted the need for apologetics:

It would be useful to arrange for the preparation of pamphlets and leaflets of an apologetic nature (cfr. 1 Pt 3:15), which should be done with the help of theologians and authors. Every member of the faithful would then be enabled to respond better to the questions which arise in difficult contexts – whether to do with sects, or the problems related to secularism and relativism, or to questions “arising from a changed mentality which, especially today, limits the field of rational certainties to that of scientific and technological discoveries,”[26] or to other specific issues. (Recommendations II.8)

It's final: "ecumenical version" of the Lord's Prayer will no longer be used at English Masses in the Philippines beginning Dec. 2, 2012

Source: Clarification on the use of the English version of the “Lord’s Prayer”