Message from the Pastor

                                 "WELCOME"

In many instances of dealing with people, we use the word WELCOME in two different contexts. First, we use it to express that we receive with pleasure someone who is NEW and we show initial hospitality to this arriving visitor. The words: “You are welcome to join us” gives the receiver a pleasant feeling of ACCEPTANCE permitting one to “BE A PART”. Meaning, a person agrees or permits or admits the other to incorporate or to connect. Secondly, it is used as an expression as in “You are welcome” to acknowledge an expression of gratitude (after someone said: ‘Thank You’).

The word “Welcome” to receive someone warmly is almost present in many cultural languages. In my Filipino tongue, it would be, “MALIGAYANG PAGDATING” and in Spanish, it would BIENVENIDO! And so for this weekend, I would like to say to our new parishioners, “WELCOME!”.

There was an old story told by a pastor in a parish that once there was a person who just moved in within the location of his parish. This person visited the church and commented like this to the pastor, “Father, you have such a nice ‘church’, wonderful stained glass windows, awesome flower arrangements, enticing church bell sounds and many more. I think I would like to belong to your parish”. The pastor replied, “Well, that is just our church building; wait till you see the REAL Church this weekend…”

The pastor must be referring here to the COMMUNAL Church (the people) and not more of the church as structure, building or edifice. Of course everything starts with simple beginnings and later develops. Like in our GOSPEL for this Sunday, we are asked to be productive by using one’s ability to MULTIPLY good things or resources. In a way, it is an INVESTMENT!

When two or more people encounter each other, the factor of OPENNESS has to be there. Even when one welcomes the other, it would mean opening your DOOR or your LIFE to that person. But speaking of welcoming a person, there was an incident when I was in New Guinea, not aware that a priest who is to visit us was formerly assigned in that location, my “WELCOME, here Father”, was responded by: “I WAS HERE BEFORE YOU!”…(Oooppss…Sorry). Although it was sarcastically done by the person, the positive side of it is that, this priest still “considers” himself as connected to the place even after many years have passed.

In Jesus’ ministry, we can recall that not all the villages he visited were WELCOMING to him. It is part of life that we cannot please/convince everybody! But to our new parishioners joining us, make St Brendan you home of you faith…

If Jesus has said: “I don’t call you slaves no longer, but I now call you friends”; we can put it in line with this as to say to our new parishioners: “You are visitors  or guests no longer, you are now members of this parish.” Consider yourself as one of us or belonging to us. And responding further to our Gospel, develop your faith by taking some ministries you are comfortable doing to serve others.

Let your talents grow and multiply…. YOU ARE NOW MEMBERS of this PARISH!

WELCOME

 Fr. Ted

MESSAGE FROM OUR PAROCHIAL VICAR

The Mother of All Churches

Today we celebrate the solemn feast of the dedication of the Basilica of John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in Lateran, otherwise called St. John Lateran Basilica. The land upon which this Basilica is built was given to Emperor Constantine by the Laterani family. When Constantine made Christianity the state religion he built a papal palace on this land and gave it to the Church. So for many years John Lateran served as the Apostolic palace until the captivity of the papacy and relocation of the Papal palace to Avignon. Upon the return of the Papacy to Rome, they found this palace in ruins and therefore the Pope had to establish a new palace in Vatican just within St. Peter’s Basilica.

Because of this many people think that the head of the Churches or the mother Church is the Basilica of St. Peter but its not. The mother Church is the Basilica of St. John Lateran, which is by default the cathedral of the diocese of Rome whose bishop is the Pope.

The pope is first and foremost a bishop; he is the bishop of Rome. He is the “Primus inter pares” the first among equals and so, being the bishop of Rome makes him the successor of St. Peter who was the first bishop of Rome, and therefore he becomes the universal pastor hence Pope.

So the celebration today brings out two very powerful points:

1. It highlights the unity and universality of the church. The Bishop of Rome becomes the Vicar of Christ and the visible sign of the unity of the church and his cathedral the mother of all the churches. He is also the universal Pastor. According to canon law, the Bishop of Rome has immediate and universal power over the whole church. This means as Parishioners in St. Brendan, we are united to the Pope not through our Archbishop but we are united with him in an immediate and direct way because of the universal power that he exercises over the universal church.

2. The Basilica we celebrate is the first church. The building has gone through all kinds of attack ranging from war to earthquakes but it has survived. This shows how the church as the mystical body of Christ has also survived and would survive all attacks remembering and holding unto the promise of Jesus that the gates of hell shall never prevail against the church.

So as we celebrate today, let us pray that God will preserve the unity of the Church against all satanic and devilish attacks.

Today too we round up our vocation week, which we started Monday. Vocation is from the Latin “voca – vocare- vocati – vocatum”  (vocatio) which means to call. In Christian parlance, vocation is an invitation by God to you and I, first to the fundamental vocation, which is the Christian Vocation – the call to holiness of life. Then the vocation to Christian family life, from where we get the vocation to the priesthood and religious life.

I consider it a blessing to be called by God to serve him and as a person I have not regretted following God even though I leave with the pain of being separated from my mum, family and home but God who leads continues to be faithful in all his ways to those who follow him. Today I pray that more men and women will be willing to step forward and embrace the priesthood and religious life. In the past you sent missionaries and to us supported them and we are grateful. Our coming over here for mission is not a pay-back but a response to God’s invitation, a response to God’s call, it’s living out our vocation.

I also pray God to bless all families, the nursery bed from where we find the vocation to the priesthood and religious life. God bless you all.

Peace.

Fr. Theo.

Message from the pastor

On this first weekend of November 2014, which has the first and the second day of the month, we both celebrate on each day ALL SAINTS’ DAY and ALL SOULS’ DAY, respectively. And in our 9:30 a.m. Mass this Sunday, we will see the different portrayal of the SAINTS through the pageantry of the children organized by the Women at the Well Ministry. And so…let the SAINTS GO MARCHIN’ IN!!!

If we recall in our Intermediate Catechism, we have three divisions of the church namely: Church Triumphant (those who are in Heaven already); Church Expectant or Suffering (those who are still in

Purgatory); Church Militant (those who are still on Earth/World=we).

St. Paul occasionally addressed the early Christians as “saints” (meaning, called to a life of holiness or sainthood). May be this can be interpreted as “saints-in-the-making “(prospective saints). This might not yet mean to be the CANONIZED saints that we all know, but one can be SAINTLY in one’s ways and good examples.

As we have this weekend devoted for the SAINTS and FAITHFUL DEPARTED, we thank God for the gift of ETERNAL life. We thank the SAINTS of the PAST, and our FAITHFUL DEPARTED of the PAST, for they still live in our hearts in the PRESENT time.

Our PRAYERS are needed for our loved ones’ souls who might still need to be purge (purified). They are not in hell but they still have to undergo purgation. As one theologian said, “it’s like they are walking from a ‘distance’ to heaven but they don’t become nearer unless we offer prayers for them.”

These past few days we saw children in HALLOWEEN Costumes, some with frightening faces/unusual-scary images. Now, it’s about time to NEUTRALIZE that as we look on the BEAUTIFUL faces of the SAINTS in our Pageantry.

It is a great practice to HONOR the DEAD. But one idea came in recently like, why don’t we start HONORING the LIVING (while they’re still with us)? In Hawaii, where I was assigned in the past, they honor annually people who did significant “heroic or saintly simple ways” for their communities, and they call them, “The Island Treasures.” Make sense.

Our HOPE then is not in this present life only, for God puts in the heart of every living person the desire for unending life and happiness. Death claims each of us at the appointed time, but our hope and desire is to see God face to face. Jesus promises that those who accept him as their Lord and Savior and submit to his word will be raised up to immortal life with him in the Day of Judgment.

We thank the SAINTS for their good examples and became brilliant models of faith to us. We thank our departed loved ones for their goodness that we still cherish in our hearts. We love them. There is a saying: “There are only TWO GREAT TRAGEDIES in LIFE, namely, if you don’t love; and if you don’t say to those whom you love that you love them.”

And let me use this opportunity to THANK you ALL for your prayers and presence during my INSTALLATION as your pastor last Sunday at the 11:30 a.m. Mass. I THANK YOU ALL…and I LOVE YOU ALL.

Fr. Ted