Happiness is Holiness:La Naval de Manila 2018

The theme of this year’s celebration, Maria: Huwaran ng Kabanalan, enriches the annual commemoration of the 1646 Batallas de las Marinas de Manila fought and won through the miraculous intercession of Our Lady of Rosary. The theme is aligned with the declaration of 2018 as the Year of the Clergy and Consecrated Persons in the Local Church in the Philippines, in view of the nine-year spiritual journey towards the 500th Jubilee of Christianization of the Philippines in 2021.

It is an opportune time for integral renewal of values, behavior, and lifestyles of the clergy and consecrated persons. The La Naval Festivities centers on holiness which embodies the value that should animate the life of the clergy and religious, along with the rest of the faithful. Mary is our model and paragon of holiness.     

Most people nowadays want to be famous or rich. But who among us aspire to be saints? Holiness is a state and task of life often ignored or neglected by many. Our world is in chaos because we have a surplus of rich and famous people, but we are wanting of saints and holy men and women.

Holiness has often been associated with great suffering and sacrifice, as portraited by some images of saints martyred in the name of our faith. As one sees the image of St. Peter Verona during the procession, with his head hacked and backstabbed, who would desire to suffer the same fate as he did? But holiness is not all about suffering and death. In fact, it points to overcoming the fear of suffering and death assured by the resurrection and eternal life Christ promises to us. “If we died with Him, we will also live with Him; if we endure, we will also reign with Him.” (2 Tim. 2:11). 

The image of Our Lady of the Rosary of La Naval, adorned with jewels and gold, reflects the glory that awaits anyone who dares to live a holy life. The life of the Blessed Virgin Mary points to the reality that the suffering which comes from the pursuit of holiness is but transitory. There is joy in a life dedicated to God. The joy brought forth by holiness in our life and by our closeness to God is not experienced only after the end of our life. As we pursue holiness, there is gladness. There is no sadness in holiness. No saint wears a long face. And so it is with the clergy and the religious.

As Mary lived a holy life by remaining close to her Son, she rejoiced. She holds Jesus in her loving arms. She has Jesus in her heart. How can the clergy and religious not rejoice? They hold Jesus on their hands in the Eucharistic celebration. How can Christians not be joyful and holy as they take Christ into their hearts and receive Him in Holy Communion? Pope Francis says: “Wherever there are consecrated people, seminarians, men, and women religious, young people, there is a joy.” There is always joy in holiness.      

The Batallas de las Marinas de Manila ended on October 4, 1646, with the defeat of the Dutch Protestant Armada in the Five Naval Battles in the Philippine waters. The Filipino-Spanish Catholic forces walking barefooted to the Shrine of La Gran Señora de Filipinas, Nuestra Señora del Santísimo Rosario - La Naval de Manila in Santo Domingo Church in Intramuros fulfilling a promise made in exchange of an intercession sought. The battle of La Naval continuous to this day in a different form, with holiness as a goal, with various temptations and sins as enemies.  

In our unfinished battle to becoming holy and saints, Mary, La Gran Señora de Filipinas, Nuestra Señora del Santísimo Rosario- La Naval de Manila, accompanies us as our Model of Holiness; as she holds Jesus on her hand; as she dwells in the presence of God.      

The grand feast of Our Lady of La Naval will be on October 14, 2018, at Santo Domingo Church, Quezon City. The grand procession will start at 4:00 p.m.

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YOU HAVE BEEN PREPARED BEFOREHAND

The gospel admonishes to be always prepared; to be vigilant in our lives; to be always faithful in our responsibility and calling as Christians. To gird our loins is to roll our sleeves and to assume the responsibility expected from us as Christians.

The demand for vigilance should not bring us panic and fear for lack of preparedness for an impending trial and judgment. Christ is our peace. The Lord speaks of peace to his people. Even before we prepare and live our lives as children of God, know that Christ already prepared us. The death and resurrection of Christ prepared us for a new life. He gave us peace by putting the order in our life; by directing our life towards God. Through the teachings and instructions of Christ, we come to know the will of the Father. Through the graces He bestows upon us in the sacraments He instituted, we receive the necessary help and strength to pursue our life in Spirit.  

But we have preoccupied ourselves too much on mundane things; we have believed too much in our capacity. Thus, when confronted by the demands of our Christian life, we try to prepare ourselves, by ourselves, that we may be worthy children of God. We end-up terrified by the demands of our Christian calling, for no human effort can fully enable us to respond in God’s call. We end up afraid. We miss the gift of peace of Christ.

As we roll our sleeves and assume our life as Christians, be at peace; know that Christ prepared us beforehand. 

WHAT DOES GOD EXPECT FROM US?

Often, when we pray, we ask for many things; for many favors and petitions to God. Some are answered, while others are still waiting for answers. But surely in our lives, we have received from God a lot of things we never prayed for. Maraming bagay tayong hinihingi sa Diyos. Maraming bagay ang hindi binigay sa atin ng Diyos. Ngunit mas maraming bagay ang binigay ng Diyos na hindi naman natin hiningi.  

The greatest gift we have received in our life is the gift of faith we have received during our baptism. By the gift of faith to us, Christ made us coheirs of the Kingdom. This is the greatest gift God entrusted to us. With this greatest gift, great is expected from us. 

What does God expect from us? God does not want our worldly riches. He owns the whole world. With God’s trust in us, He wants us to be responsible stewards of the gift of faith we have received, not for His sake but for our and of our fellow human beings. God wants us to be responsible and faithful Christians that we may help others to be better persons. Thus, by entrusting the gift of faith to us, He provides that atmosphere of trust. Only when trust is present, being responsible can flourish. 

How can we be responsible stewards of this gift of faith? The faith we have received ought to be nurtured. Our faith matures through studying and living it out. And the greatest compliment we can give in return for this gift of faith is to share it to others especially to those who haven’t realize that the Lord saves them. Though Christ died and saved the entire human race, not everyone has heard and received the Christian faith yet. By living and sharing our Christian faith (the greatest gift entrusted to us by God), we can be responsible stewards of God. 

With the gift of faith, not to mention riches and comforts we might be enjoying at present, much has been entrusted to us. Much is expected from us.

Let us not break the trust of God in us. Let us be faithful and responsible stewards of the gift of faith. 

ONE END

As a novice, I often quarreled with my fellows in the novitiate. I argued over the way things were done. I was angry and disappointed when things were done not in the manner I thought they should be done. I insisted on my way. Thus, discord ensued among us. As I grew in our formation, I realize we all have our ideas (different ways), though we have ONE goal. We are a community with one heart and one mind towards God, but we remain to be individuals with unique traits; unique personalities; unique ways of going to God. Respect becomes an operative word that peace and harmony may exist among us, mindful of the ONE end we all yearn. 

Our oneness does not refer to uniformity. We have our differences, but we should direct these differences to our common END; Christ. Our end unites us. We are one in Christ.

As we go along in our life, we realize our differences and mistakenly lose sight of our common goal. We highlight too much our diversity. We quarrel thinking we are better than the others. As our common end blurs, we end up not understanding our present.

Detach from Christ; we become indifferent with each other. Detach from Christ; things, events, and our very own life make no sense. Our unity in Christ does not seek uniformity but rather a harmonious coexistence with one another, complimenting and helping each other to achieve our desired end. Our unity with Christ enables us to make sense of the conflicts in our lives. 

With our differences, we can harmoniously live and coexist, understanding and accepting our difference, by keeping in our mind the sole purpose why we are together. We form one body, the Church. We have one Lord, one faith, one baptism. Christ is the source of our unity. 

Unless we realize our end, we can never peacefully live in and understand the present, and worse we will never achieve the very purpose why we are gathered; our ONE end.