BE A DOMINICAN BROTHER
FOR INQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT
THE VOCATION PROMOTER:
BR. MELENCIO GARCIA, O.P.
Saint Albert the Great Pre-Novitiate House
Colegio de San Juan de Letran Bucal, Calamba City, Laguna Tel. no. 545-5431/ 545-1085
Dominican Novitiate of the Annunciation
2430 Manaoag, Pangasinan E-mail: [email protected] Mobile: 09495086529
Pagtugon sa Tawag
Sto. Doming Convent 537 Quezon Avenue, Quezon City 1114 Tel.no/Mobile: (02) 712-6275/0915784728 E-mail: [email protected].
Bahay Dominiko
8 Biak na Bato St. Sta Mesa Heights, Quezon City Tel. no.: (02) 743-7762/743-7763
~ Catechesis ~
God had a Mother? (see page 6)
January 2018 Celebrations for the Month of January 1 Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God 2 St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctor 6 Solemnity of the Epiphany 7 St. Raymond of Penyafort, Priest 8 Feast of the Baptism of the Lord 13 St. Hilary , Bishop and Doctor 15 St. Francis de Capillas and Comp. Martyrs 17 St. Anthony, Abbot 18 St. Margaret of Hungary, Virgin 20 St. Fabian, Pope and Martyr
20 St. Sebastian, Martyr 21 Feast of Sto. Nino 21 St. Agnes, Virgin and Martyr 22 St. Vincent, Deacon and Martyr 24 St. Francis de Sales, Bishop and Doctor 25 Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, Apostle 26 Sts. Timothy and Ttitus, Bishops 28 Feast of St. Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor 31 St. John Bosco, Priest
DOMINICAN NOVITIATE OF THE ANNUNCIATION
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Series 18-07
Let me enumerate some per-sonalities: Manny Pacquiao, Liza So-
berano, Vic Sotto, Willie Revillame,
and Vice Ganda. I am sure these per-
sonalities ring a bell whenever you
hear or read about them. They star in
your favorite shows and teleseryes.
You see them on bill boards. You can
even identify their favorite food, plac-
es where they went for vacation, their
waistlines, and favorite cosmetic prod-
ucts. You know them because of their
extensive media exposure. You even
choose the clothes that somehow re-
semble what they wear in their shows.
And perhaps when you see them, you
would rummage for a camera just to
get a good selfie.
Now, let me try to enumerate
another set of “personalities”: Mario
Bergoglio, Joseph Ratzinger, Karol
Wojtyla, Socrates Villegas, Elmer
Mangalinao, Giovanni Bosco, and
Dominic de Guzman. Do any of these
names ring a bell? Do we know their
favorite food? Do we know what they
wear? Do we know where they go? Or
at least, do we know what they do?
I do not blame you for not
knowing much of these people. The
media do not find their lives to be
profitable. The media found it profita-
ble to commercialize love, miracle,
happiness, sorrow, and friendship.
They have made a star out kilig love
teams that is supposed to be our model
for a meaningful relationship. They
have made a star out of beauty prod-
ucts that are supposed to miraculously
whiten our dark skin. They have made
a star out of money and easy prizes
that are supposed to satisfy the ulti-
mate pursuit of happiness. They have
made a star out of confessional talk shows as channel for reconciliation.
And they have made a star out of bling
-band groups that are supposed to por-
tray as true friendship.
We become like our stars. If
your star is kilig, then you might fall
into the trap of expecting a happy ever
after without struggle. If your star is
your cosmetic products or the beauti-
ful clothes you see on TV, then your
star led you to the vanity of the ex-
traordinary dictatorship of worldly
standard far reaching. If your star is
money, then you are no different from
a slot machine that entices you to gam-
ble more for easy prices – an easy way
out from your boredom and material
problem.
Did you ever realize that
none of your stars could ever make
you happy forever? Yes, they give you
momentary pleasure but that may be
gone in an estimable amount of time
because of too much familiarity. Noth-
ing in this world could make us ulti-
mately happy. Money, kilig, and de-
ceptive standards of beauty are just
lights that need battery. They never
last. Their glow expires. Slowly but
surely their glow dims and suddenly
leaves you behind in darkness without
a sense of direction.
Who is our star? Like the star
of Bethlehem who led the three Magi
to the child Jesus, let us follow the
stars that do not lead us to the dictator-
ship of anger, hatred, gossip, envy,
and pride. Let us look for the stars that
will lead us to our ultimate happiness
–God.
We Become Our Stars By: br. John Wilson F. Nucum, O.P.
Matthew 2:1-12 | January 7, 2018 | Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord
2| BINHI
EXCHANGE THE “KNOWN”
FOR THE “UNKNOWN” By: br. Tommy Riezky Tiyanto, O.P.
John 1:35-42 | January 14, 2018 | Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
WE ARE EQUAL By: Oktavianus Geor, O.P.
Mark 1:14-20 | January 21, 2018 | Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
7| DNA Gospel Sunday Reflection
We greeted the New Year by celebrating the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. This title of Mary sparked controversy because of the question: does God
ever have a mother; does God need to be created by His own creature? To understand this, we must first understand the divinity of Jesus. Jesus is
both God and Man. He is the second person of the Trinity. John the beloved apos-tle started to describe the “Word” in his Gospel. “In the beginning was the Word
and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He is in the beginning with
God. Everything came through Him, and without Him nothing came to be (John
1:1-3).” Jesus is the Word. God became man to save us in the person of Jesus. “He was in the world and the world came to be through Him, but the world did not
know Him (John 1:10).” He came down from heaven to assume our human nature
and thus it is said: “the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us and
we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth (John 1:14).”
A prophecy was fulfilled when angel Gabriel greeted Mary: “Hail Full of Grace the Lord is with you”, and Mary responded: “Be it done to me according to
your Word.” Isaiah prophesies: “Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel
(Isaiah 7:14).” Mary became the mother of the Word made Flesh. God created
Mary to be His passage way here on earth. She was chosen from the beginning for
all eternity. There was no lottery, no audition, and no pageantry. It was prophesied
that this woman would be Blessed for all eternity. Thus, we read from Saint Paul:
“When the designated time had come, God sent forth His Son born of a woman, born under the law, to deliver from the law those who were subjected to it, so that
we might receive our status as adopted sons (Galatians 4:4-5).”
The early church found it necessary to bestow on Mary the title: Mother
of God for the reason of protecting our understanding of the divinity of Jesus. To
call her simply the mother of Christ – is a zip to separate Christ’s divinity from his
humanity. She is the mother of Jesus Christ – God and Man from the moment of
His conception and not a single moment later. The Church never taught that Mary
produced God. It is never taught by the Church that a human creature could ever
produce divinity. She is the Mother of God because of Jesus’ nature as both God
and Man.
God took a human form from Mary. She is the only woman who could
say: “He is the bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh.” She is the only woman on
earth who has the right to say: “He is my body and my blood. I give Him up for
you.” Does this diminish the glory of the Trinity? No. St. Athanasius said, “Even
when the Word takes a body from Mary, the Trinity remains a Trinity, with neither
increase nor decrease. It is forever perfect. In the Trinity we acknowledge the God-
head, and thus one God. The Father of the Word is proclaimed in the Church.”
Now, who is your best Mother? The Mother of God will never claim the
throne that rightly belongs to our own mother. But I am sure our very own mother
would pay homage to the “best of the best mother of all” to ask for her intercession
and protection, to talk to her Son to guide us and take care of us – their children –
because Mary, the “best of the best mother in the world”, always leads us to God,
her only creator.
tagapagturo ng Batas na laway lang ang puhunan sa pagtuturo, inaan-
yayahan tayo ng Panginoong Hesus na tularan ang kanyang paraan: ang pangangaral na hindi lang puro nga-
wa bagkus ay isang pangangaral na pinagtitibay ng kanyang mabubuting gawa at magandang halimbawa.
Hindi pa huli ang lahat. Ang pagbabago ng mga kabataan ay nak-asalalay sa pagbabago ng mga naka-
katandang nangangaral sa kanila. Sa tulong ni Hesus na siyang ulirang
tagapangaral ng mga pasaway na Israelita, ay magagawa din natin magabayan ang ating mga kabataan
patungo sa kagandahang asal at pag-mamahal sa Diyos. Umpisahan natin
ito sa ating mga sarili, gawin natin ang mga unang hakbang ng isang
bagong paraan ng pagtuturo at pangangaral sa kabataan at pihadong mapapa-isip at susunod
ang mga nakababata, gaano man sila kapalalo o kapasaway sa ating pan-ingin.
Takang-taka ang lahat ng mga naki-kinig kay Hesus at nag-usap-usap
sila: “ Ano ito? ISANG BAGONG PAG-
TUTURO NA MAY KAPANGYARI-HAN! Inutusan niya kahit ma-
ruruming espiritu at
SINUNOD NILA SIYA. (Marcos 1:27)
6| BINHI
~ Catechesis ~
God had a Mother?
The Son Who Gave Birth to His Mother By: br. John Wilson F. Nucum, O.P.
My mother is the best mother in the world. I am sure you want to get the
claim that your own mother is the best mother in the world. I will not contest that.
No matter how the glorification of my mother reaches to the highest exaggeration,
no matter how I convince you that my mother is the best mother in the world, I am
sure my mother cannot replace your own mother. Our mothers are the best. No
mother can replace our own mother. We have the guts to say that our mother is the
best because they did a good job in bringing us up.
How do we determine a good mother? We can determine a good mother
by the quality of children she has. I am not talking about physical quality. If the
child is loving, respectful, have a sense of responsibility, and uncontested fear of
God, then we may say that his/her mother did a good job.
I think if someone could boast of the best mother in the world, it would be
Jesus. Jesus would say, “My mother is the best of the best.” Why would He say
that? He being both God and Man was brought up by a poor Galilean woman. He
had every right to say that His mother is “the best of the best” because in His
uniqueness, He was brought up by a woman to be our savior. He had the guts to
say that His mother is the best because His mother brought Him up for the greatest
salvation story the world ever had.
The story about Jesus call-
ing his disciples is personally fas-
cinating for me. Over the years, the
disciples lived their lives in securi-
ty. They had a fixed job, most of
them were fishermen. One of them
was a tax collector. They knew
what they were doing. They were
secure. Jesus came and called them
by name to be his disciple.
To be His disciple was not
easy. It entails an exploration of
the unknown. They did not even
know where Jesus was living or
what His daily activity was. Every-
thing seemed abstract and vague.
Jesus looked at them ten-
derly and said, “Come and see”.
Have you ever thought that it was
such a crazy idea? “Come and see”
required the disciples to leave eve-
rything. They had to let go of their
boat, their net, their job, their mon-
ey, their house, their family, their
friends, and everything. It was a
total surrender to Him. They ex-
changed all they have ever
KNOWN in their lives for some-
thing UNKNOWN.
My friends, how many of
us would say that we would like to
follow Jesus? Do we realize the
great responsibility involved in
following him? Following Jesus
means to let go of everything and
to give everything to Him. Many
of us only give ¼, ½ or ¾ of our
hearts. But it is not enough. He
asks for our whole heart. He asks
for our total surrender in His love.
EXCHANGE THE “KNOWN”
FOR THE “UNKNOWN” By: br. Tommy Riezky Tiyanto, O.P.
John 1:35-42 | January 14, 2018 | Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Hi, my name is Oktavianus
Geor, but you can call me, brother
Ophin. I came from Flores, Indo-
nesia. Four years ago, I entered the
Dominican Order to become a
priest. Some of my relatives,
friends, siblings and even my par-
ents asked me the popular question
to me: “why you want to become a
priest?” I do not have other reasons
except, I just want to follow Jesus.
I believe that Jesus calls
me to follow Him. I also believe
that being at this stage of my for-
mation here in the Philippines is a
confirmation that God is still call-
ing me. Brothers and sisters in
Christ, I believe that this is my vo-
cation. I am now on the way to
follow Him.
How about you? What is
your vocation? I am sure whoever
you are, reading this reflection,
you also have a special vocation.
Maybe you are a nurse, a farmer, a
teacher, a driver, a businessman/
woman, a catechist, or a gardener
etc. Remember! Whatever job you
WE ARE EQUAL By: Oktavianus Geor, O.P.
Mark 1:14-20 | January 21, 2018 | Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
3| DNA Gospel Sunday Reflection
have, you are special in the eyes of
God. As a Dominican brother, I am
no more special than you are. I say
to you, no one is more special in
the eyes of God. We are all equal
in the eyes of God, no one is high-
er, and no one is lower than the
other.
Brothers and sisters, we
are human. We have the tendency
to compare ourselves to others. We
easily say, “I am better than him”.
We easily criticize. But, we must
be grateful because God chose to
become a man. He does not com-
pare each one of us, like we do.
Try to see the moon in the
dark of the night. That moon does
not shine only for those people
who are afraid of darkness. It
shines for all people in the world
including those who do not like the
moonbeam. That is like the love of
God, He never gives His love only
to those people who are good but
also for those who are in darkness.
All of us are special in the eyes of
God. We need to remember that
you and I have different vocation.
It is because God calls each one of
us by name.
I invite each one of you to
love our vocation. No matter how
simple your job is, no matter how
small you salary is, and no matter
how hard you work is. God still
loves you. Remember! You are
one of His beloved children. He
never forgets each one of you.
Again, love your vocation. If you
are a nurse, be a good nurse. Help
the doctor to cure and save lives. If
you are a farmer, be a good farmer.
If you are a businessman/woman,
be a good businessman/woman.
Give your best in your duty for the
sake of God. Amen
4| BINHI
MA„GULANG’ NA MAGULANG By: br. Jimbo M. Mendejar, O.P.
Mark 1:21-28 | January 28, 2018 | Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
“Ibang-iba na talaga ang mga kabataan ngayon!”
Hindi maikakaila na ibang-iba na nga ngayon ang mga kabataan: sa pananamit, sa mga ki-
nahihiligang libangan o di kaya na-man sa paraan ng kanilang pagpapa-hayag ng sarili. Tuluyan na ngang
binago ng panahon ang tradisyunal na mukha ng kabataang Pilipino. Sa opinyon ng mga nakararaming
magulang, isa umano sa kapansin-pansing kaibahan ng mga kabataan
ngayon ay ang kanilang pagsasawa-
lang bahala sa mga pangangaral ang mga magulang. Hindi na daw
marunong makinig at sumunod ang mga kabataan ng ating kasalukuyan. Ngunit kung ating pag-iisipan, ano
nga kaya ang dahilan ng hindi paki-kinig ng mga kabataan ngayon sa mga nakatatanda? Mga kabataan
lang ba ang dapat pagbuntunan ng sisi sa problemang ito? Kung ating pag-iisipan, wa-
la namang bago sa mga pangangaral ng mga magulang noon hanggang
ngayon. Ang mabuti noon ay
5| DNA Gospel Sunday Reflection
mabuti pa rin naman hanggang nga-yon (sapagkat hindi naman nagbaba-
go ang pamantayang moral ng mga Kristiyano). Ang pagpatay, pagnanakaw at kawalang respeto sa
mga nakakatanda na masama noon ay masama pa rin naman hanggang ngayon. Subalit bakit kaya unti-unti
nang nagiging endangered species ang mga ititnuturing nating mga “mabubuting asal” at critically
threatened naman ang mga kabataang nagsasabuhay nito. Buma-
lik tayo sa tahanan at doon mahahan-ap ang kasagutan. Ang tahanan ang unang silid
-aralan at simbahan ng mga kabataan kaya wala tayong dapat isisi sa mga guro o mga pari. Mga magulang,
tanungin natin ang ating sarili: Hinihikayat pa ba nating magsimba
kasama natin ang mga anak tuwing Linggo o maging tayo ay mas pinipi-li nating ipagdamot sa Diyos ang
isang oras ng pasasalamat (1 hour lang po ang Misa!) na hinihingi ng Diyos mula sa 168 hours na meron
ang pitong araw? Nirerespeto ba natin ang ating kapwa o maging ang ating mga anak ay mga saksi sa
kung paano natin siraan at pag-chismisan ang ating mga kapitbahay
gamit ang ating makakating dila? Ang ating tahanan ba ay isang lugar kung saan ang komunikasyon at pag
-uusap ang paraan ng pagresolba ng problema o isang lugar kung saan sigawan, dahas at mga pagmumura
ang karaniwang eksena?Nanalangin pa ba kayo bilang mag-anak o mag-
ing kayo ay nahihiyang mag-antanda ng maliit na Krus sa hapag bago kumain? Kung negatibo ang
sagot mo, sa malamang at sapol ay
may problema ka sa mga anak mo ngayon dahil matitigas ang ulo nila
at ayaw nilang pakinggan ang pan-gangaral mo sa kanila. Sa Bibliya, mababasa natin
na nagulat ang mga tao sa pangan-garal ni Hesus sapagkat nangangaral siya nang may kapangyarihan
(authority), hindi gaya ng mga guro ng batas (Marcos 1: 21-22). Kung ating titingnang mabuti ang pagku-
kumparang ito, ang reaksyong ito ng mga Israelita ay nag-uugat sa kawa-
lang kredibilidad ng mga tagapag-turo ng Batas. Bagaman pareho lang ang itinuturo ni Hesus sa mga ta-
gapagturo ng mga Batas, ang ma-laking kaibahan ay ang paraan ng
pangangaral. Ang mga tagapagturo
ng Batas ay nagtuturo gamit ang
salita lamang subalit ang ginagamit
ni Hesus ay ang salita na mas nagi-ging kapanipaniwala dahil sinasa-
mahan niya ito ng gawa. Ano kaya
ang matututunan natin dito patungkol sa pangangaral sa ating mga anak at sa mga kabataan sa
pangkalahatan? Simple lang. Kailangan lagyan natin ng ka-pangyarihan ( authority ) ang ating
pagtuturo sa mga bata. Ang authori-ty na ito ay hindi patungkol sa pag-
bulyaw o pagggamit ng situron o anumang uri ng dahas sa pagtuturo. Mas higit na kinakailangan ngayon
ng mga kabataan ang isang ma-
gulang na magulang ( isang taong maituturing nilang mas may gulang
(mature) sa buhay, mas malawak ang pananaw at isang taong kayang
isabuhay ang kanyang mga itinutu-rong pangangaral.) Talaga nga na-mang hindi biro ang pangangaral sa
mga nakababata. Hindi tulad ng mga