WHEN Christ in that parable of the wheat and the weeds (cfr. Mt 13,24-43) advised that it would be better not to uproot the weeds at the moment since doing so may also uproot the wheat, we are practically told that we have to be...
“A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country.” This is Christ’s indictment against the people of his own place who, instead of being amazed and thankful for having among them not only a very special person but the very son of God,...
This expression has both a good and bad meaning. The bad one is an extremely ambitious statement declaring one's thought and desire in place of hard evidence as assurance that some plan will definitely be realized. The good one is simply a humble desire and...
Oratio and Imperata are more than 2,000-year-old Latin words. Oratio is the source of the English word oration -- a formal speech given in a special/ceremonial occasion. Today, it relates to church prayers. Imperata relates to empire (Roman — imperial, emperor, imperium — suggesting awesome...
(An excerpt from the Homily of Most Rev. Romulo G. Valles, D.D., Archbishop of Davao, July 25, 2021 during the live streamed mass on the 1st Grandparents and Elderly Day at San Pedro Cathedral.) I’d like to tell you, to close, three stories, quick. Bag-o lang,...
From the very beginning of this pandemic, scientists and medical experts already informed the world that viruses mutate. It does not take a genius to know that. It is in the nature of viruses to mutate into either less virulent forms or into deadlier strains....
THAT beautiful story of the sisters, Martha and Mary, welcoming Christ into their house (cfr. Lk 10,38-42) teaches us a precious lesson about how prayer and piety should take precedence over any consideration of practicality, no matter how legitimate and praiseworthy such consideration is. Such...
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for...
WHEN Christ explained to his disciples the meaning of the parable about the wheat and the weeds (cfr. Mt 13,24-43), he practically told them to practice restraint in their reactions to all forms of evil in this world while at the same time developing the...
IMPOSSIBLE? Think again. It’s Christ who says it in so many words. “The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed…The Kingdom of heaven is like a yeast…” (cfr. Mt 13,31-35) We need to reconcile ourselves with this happy truth of our faith that we do...