Jesus
lives! This is the day the Lord has made!
Today’s
Homily centers on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It assures us that God has
accepted Christ’s sacrifice for our sins; it assures us that there is life
after death; and it assures us that Christ is with us in the present and in the
eternity future.
As we celebrate Easter Sunday, let us sing together Bill Gaither’s
Because He Lives:
God sent His son, they called Him, Jesus;
He came to love, heal and forgive;
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives!
Because He lives, I can face tomorrow,
Because He lives, all fear is gone;
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living,
Just because He lives!
How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy he gives;
But greater still the calm assurance:
This child can face uncertain days because He Lives!
Now,
let us sing Fanny Crosby’s Blessed
Assurance:
Note: Blessed
Assurance is one of my favorite hymns written by blind hymnist and Queen of
Gospel Song Writers Fanny Crosby. It has touched my heart since my childhood
days and even until now I hum this whenever I remember with my heart at peace.
Indeed, God has given us a blessed assurance through Christ.
Blessed assurance,
Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
This is my story,
this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long...
Perfect submission,
perfect delight!
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels descending bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.
Perfect submission,
all is at rest!
I in my Savior am happy and blest,
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.
Let’s
move on to the old Jerusalem, the birthplace of Easter!
Note: On this page
are pictures at the village of the Compassionate God in Barangay Fatima, Inabanga
town.
***
The
Holy Week started with the celebration of the Palm Sunday to commemorate
Christ’s passion and death by marking His triumphant entry to Jerusalem.
Several
important events for the Christian faith were the Last Supper, the washing of
the disciples’ feet, Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, the kiss of Judas, the
Calvary, the death of Christ, Deposition and the Burial and Resurrection.
Inside
the St. Joseph the Worker Cathedral in Tagbilaran City, a giant scaffolding
rose right before the church’s interior. It has reached to the ceiling of
the dome which is being painted.
The
painting is expected to finish on or before May 1, the city’s fiesta, church
officials said.
The
St. Joseph Cathedral the Worker Cathedral is one of the parishes founded by the
Jesuit missionaries in 1595.
Although
the bamboo scaffolding might be distracting during a worship service, it didn’t
hinder hundreds of Boholano Catholics to attend Palm Sunday o Bendita sa Lukay.
Many
brought palm fronds to church and re-enacted Christ’s entry to Jerusalem,
waving the leaves at the priest as he made the entrance procession to the altar
before the start of the Mass.
Bringing
palm fronds, Florencia Dacaldacal, 72, was able to attend the 9 a.m. holy Mass
officiated by Tagbilaran Bishop Leonardo Medroso of the Diocese of Tagbilaran.
In
his Homily, Bishop Medroso reminded the Boholanos to reflect on the
sacrifices of Christ for our salvation and carry the cross of Christ. He
also reminded the people that Christ is the only hope amidst trials and
failures in life.
“This
Holy Week, we should be like Jesus. We should follow His cross. The Holy Week
is also a perfect opportunity for us to be reunited with the Church,” said Bishop
Medroso in local dialect.
After
the Mass, the faithful waved their palm fronds as the priest blessed them with
holy water. In Catholic belief, the waving of palms symbolizes the
discipleship and a sign of the faithful’s desire to follow Christ.
Outside
the church, several vendors were selling palm fronds since Saturday night. They
sold palm fronds at P10, P20, P30 and P100.
For
cotton candy maker Vic Maamo, 64, Palm Sunday was an opportunity to earn a
living.
He
said he ordered 50 bonds of lukay
(young coconut leaves) from Catigbian town, at least 33 km from Tagbilaran. He
bought it for P25 per bond.
Maamo
said he could earn as much as P5,000 in a day compared to selling cotton candy
which earn him only P1,000 on Saturdays and Sundays in front of the church.
“God’s
mercy helps my family. We can buy rice and viand. And there is a little left
for us to buy clothes for the kids,” he said.
After
the Mass, the churchgoers returned home and hanged their blessed palm fronds on
their front doors or windows as a sign of welcoming Christ in their homes.
But
Dacaldacal believes that hanging the palms can also ward off evil.
“It
has power because it was blessed by a priest,” she said.
Other
faithful observed that while the St. Joseph the Worker Cathedral has an ongoing
painting, the Holy Week was also a perfect time to repainting the Christian
faith.
* * *
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