Join us in reading about the Laity’s News from December 2024! And for all the other months: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1eEK3M8Rdcc3HYSsxHZVhtk8qxxRCHyV_?usp=drive_link
STATEMENT OF THE SANGGUNIANG LAIKO NG PILIPINAS ON ACCOUNTABILITY AND SAFE SPACES IN THE CHURCH The Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas firmly supports the call for...
The Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas is inviting you to the 1st Laiko Conversation for 2021 entitled: “Consecration Conversation with Fr. Calloway”. This will be on Feb 13, 2021 at 2 PM. We have invited the author of the book Consecration to St. Joseph, Fr. Don Calloway, MIC to share with us how to make “The Year of St. Joseph” more meaningful and life-changing.
Fr. Don will be in Texas during that time and 2 pm in the Philippines is 12 midnight in Texas. He is therefore taking this time with us as a joyful sacrifice. We are asking all of you therefore to register ahead of time so we would know how many slots we need for our Zoom meeting, in order to make this short conversation worthwhile. We also ask you to invite your members, especially the youth, to attend either through Zoom or FB Live.
Lastly, below is a link to a video which we are asking you to watch ahead. Please this message and link to others.
For those interested, pls email the Laiko Secretariat (laiko_phils@yahoo.com.ph).
This we declare with you: we survived 2020, we will thrive in 2021!
As we begin another year, we have high expectations, we make plans, we are hopeful, and we anticipate good things to happen. We are so looking forward to better days ahead!
Would you like to know how you can be confident as you plan for your life, your ministry, your work, your family, and even for your relationships this 2021? Join the Bible Fest 2021 (Jan. 23, 24, and 25, 2021) and reap a slew of blessings!
The Bible Fest is a collective endeavor of Christian churches and organizations in the country. It is the highlight event in the celebration of the National Bible Month with emphasis on the theme, “God’s Word Restores”. The Philippines is the only country in the world that holds a month-long celebration of the Word of God.
Let us fill our hearts with hope instead of fear! We intend to imbue the social media platforms with the truth from God’s Word. Join our online sessions via Zoom and FB Live! Learn and be inspired in the testimonies and sharing of God’s people about the healing power of God’s Word (Jan. 23), on the uniting power of God’s Word (Jan. 24), and on the transforming power of God’s Word (Jan. 25). Let us crown the year with God’s promises that He will restore our health, our souls, our fortunes, our society and our nation with immeasurable blessings!
And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. – 1 Peter 5:10 ESV
PIT SEñOR. Devotees young and old raise images of the young Jesus to be blessed with holy water, shortly after an early morning eucharistic celebration in honor of the Feast day of Senor Santo Niño at the Sto. Niño parish church in Moriones,Tondo, Manila. EY ACASIO
Today we celebrate the oldest devotion in the Philippines, the Feast of the Santo Niño. With the Cross of Magellan, the Santo Niño is one of the first icons of the Philippine Catho-lic Church.
Interestingly, two feasts close to the Filipino’s heart and soul come close to each other at the start of the year— the Feasts of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo and the Santo Niño na-tionwide. The processions for both are well- attended, running into the millions of devotees.
The Black Nazarene shows one side of the Filipino Catholic devotion, millions joining the procession as a panata — no English word comes close: commitment, pledge, vow, devo-tion? — for favors or miracles given or sought through the Black Nazarene.
It is the element of the psyche of a people who, when the chips are down, draw strength from their faith in a God who will not abandon them because He suffered for them. It is a concrete manifestation of faith in Christ “who loved us and gave Himself up for us.” (Gala-tians 2:20)
Another element in the devotion to the Santo Niño is a childlike trust in God’s providence, often described as a “bahala na ang Diyos” attitude (God will provide).
Reflection points
There are two reflection points to integrate the two elements of our faith. One is the Gos-pel for today’s feast, the Finding in the Temple. Two is from Thomas à Kempis’ 15th-century classic, “The Imitation of Christ”: “Man proposes, God disposes.”
The latter gives a synthesis point of these two elements. In the devotion to the Black Nazarene, we propose to God, and in the devotion to the Santo Niño, we allow God to dis-pose of us, with childlike confidence.
Man proposes — we see it in the devotion of the millions of namamanata during the Black Nazarene of Quiapo procession. Beyond the supplication for a miracle, the panata is an ex-pression of putting trust in a God one believes will take care of us.
The proposal is in the total surrender and offering of self in faith, the pananalampataya. Then, and only then, can one acknowledge that God disposes — the freedom of living life knowing God is in charge, though a loving providential presence.
Childlike devotion
The grace is the childlike devotion to God that He “may dispose of us totally according to his will.” The childlike devotion is expressed in the revelry of the Ati-Atihan and the Sinulog in southern Philippines, where people dancing in the streets pay tribute to the Child Jesus.
God disposes — this comes to a deeper synthesis in the reflection on the Finding in the Temple. Here the Child Jesus is catching a glimpse of who He is and what His mission will be.
In the Child Jesus will be fulfilled the coming of the Kingdom. He is Emmanuel, God-with-us.
The Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas stands in opposition to the current moves in both houses of Congress to change the constitution.
Clearly, this is not the opportune time to deal with Cha-cha! We are in the midst of a pandemic with millions of our countrymen suffering from lack of food, shelter, job, education and a decent and comprehensive health care system. This is our priority! The whole exercise posed by the resolutions advocating for charter change is a sheer waste of our precious time, energy, effort and money! With the 2022 elections just about a year and a half away, who will not suspect other underlying political motivations?
We cry out in a loud and categorical manner that we oppose these moves! We urge our countrymen to be Vigilant, Pray, Discern and Speak Out!
We call on our lawmakers: address the needs of the people now. They need your attention.
