Engrafting to Life

As 2010 begins, we all wish that this New Year will usher in blessings of peace and prosperity to the world, especially to the poorer countries. For the Philippines, 2010 is another critical year because of the May elections. We pray that our people will really be prepared for this democratic exercise, so that the country's chance to begin anew will not be squandered. May we truly experience being engrafted into the life of God as we begin 2010.

Happy New Year!

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ENGRAFTING TO LIFE

And you, High eternal Trinity

Acted as if you were drunk with love,

Infatuated with your creature.

When you see that this tree could bear no fruit

But the fruit of death,

Because it was cut off from you who were life,

You came to its rescue

With the same love with which you had created it;

You engrafted your divinity into the dead tree

Of our humanity.

O sweet tender grafting!

You, sweetness itself, stooped to join yourself

With our bitterness.

You, splendor, joined yourself with darkness;

You, wisdom, with foolishness;

You, life, with death;

You, the infinite, with us, who are finite.

What drove you to this

To give back life to this creature of yours

That had insulted you?

Only love, as I have said,

And so, by this engrafting, death is destroyed.

-Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)

Welcoming God's Visitation

When we pray the rosary, we simply say, "the second joyful mystery is the visitation." We usually think only of Mary and Elizabeth. But they are not the only characters in this event. The babies they are carrying are also involved in the story: Jesus and John. The simple act of Mary visiting her cousin has brought joy not only to Elizabeth, but also to the infant in her womb, John, who left for joy when his mother heard Mary's greetings. Such is the joy brought by someone who carries Jesus... it is felt not only by one person, but even of those around (in Elizabeth's case, within) them.

On this season of giving and exchanging gifts, may we give and bring to people the greatest gift of all: Jesus Himself, and then we shall see more people, ourselves included experiencing the joy of Christmas.

A Blessed Christmas!

Through you, we touch God...

Pope Benedict on the Immaculate Conception:

"This privilege given to Mary, which sets her apart from our common condition, does not distance her from us, but on the contrary, it brings her closer. While sin divides, separating us from one another, Mary's purity makes her infinitely close to our hearts, attentive to each of us and desirous of our true good. You see it here in Lourdes, as in all Marian shrines; immense crowds come thronging to Mary's feet to entrust to her their most intimate thoughts, their most heartfelt wishes. That which many, either because of embarrassment or modesty, do not confide to their nearest and dearest, they confide to her who is all pure, to her Immaculate Heart: with simplicity, without frills, in truth. Before Mary, by virtue of her very purity, man does not hesitate to reveal his weakness, to express his questions and his doubts, to formulate his most secret hopes and desires. The Virgin Mary's maternal love disarms all pride; it renders man capable of seeing himself as he is, and it inspires in him the desire to be converted so as to give glory to God. Thus, Mary shows us the right way to come to the Lord. She teaches us to approach him in truth and simplicity. Thanks to her, we discover that the Christian faith is not a burden: it is like a wing which enables us to fly higher, so as to take refuge in God's embrace."

Happy Feastday!