Categories
Lent Tradition

The Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ

Why did the Lord needed to be resurrected? St. Paul has said that if Jesus was not resurrected, our faith will be meaningless and pointless. This only shows that if Jesus was resurrected, so do the others who died will be brought to life in the day of judgment. And being the Head of the Church, He offered His life for sinners like us. It is because of this that we, being followers and members of the mystical body, are also hoping to receive the promise of salvation. The resurrection that occurred to Our Lord will also happen to us if we just have faith and follow Him.

Many people have witnessed the death of Jesus at Calvary including His friends and followers and also by those who did not believe that He is the Messiah. His death was also seen by the Roman soldiers stationed at the foot of the cross. St. Longinus, a Roman soldier, was one of the fortunate who had witnessed this important event; afterwards, he became a disciple of the Apostles. They were the ones who professed and confirmed all the things that happened regarding the death and resurrection of the Lord. The officials of the empire during that time did everything in order to suppress their accounts but to no avail.

The people who first witnessed the events also gave their accounts. Our Lord appeared to St. Mary Magdalene on the morning of Easter Sunday. Upon enetering the tomb, she saw two angles near the place where Jesus’ body have been lain. One was at the head and the other at the foot. The angels asked her why was she weeping. She answered “They took away My Lord and I do not know where they have put Him.” She turned around and saw Jesus but she did not recognize Him. Jesus asked her why was she crying and who was she looking for. She thought He was just a gardener, that’s why she answered: “Mister, if you who took him away, tell me where you have placed Him and I will bring Him back.” Jesus called her by her name and she instantly recognized Him. She said to Him, “Rabbouni” meaning “Teacher”. At that moment, her grief vanished. The Lord commanded her to tell everything that had transpired to His disciples and followers. (John 20:11-18)

On the evening of the same day, Jesus appearded to His Apostles. While the Apostles were among themselves, Jesus stood in the midst of them and said, “Peace be with you!”. After greeting them, He showed them His wounds on His hands and side. It happened that of the Apostles, St. Thomas, was not present. And when the Apostles recounted what had transpired, he did not believe them. Adding that he will only believe if he himself would see the wounds with His own eyes. A few days later, the Apostles were again among themselves and this time St. Thomas was present with them. Jesus appeared to them again. He commanded St. Thomas to put his fingers through his wounds so that he will believe that indeed the Lord had resurrected. St. Thomas did what he was told to do and afterwards said: “My Lord and my God!” proving indeed that Jesus was infront of him.

Being Catholic fauthfuls, these proofs are already enough for us to believe that Jesus died abd resurrected for sinners like us. We do not need to look for many more signes that we cannot comprehend. We must only believe in Him and that is enough.

The mystery of His death and resurrection is very profound. He is resurrected by means of His divinity and His own power, a sign that His being God and King of Heaven.

The fulfillment of the resurrection of Jesus is also a sign of the fulfillment of the promise of salvation, the resurrection of the dead. Sin is the reason why we experience death. And in death, the soul leaves the body and go to Purgatory to be cleansed. The souls of the condemned go down to Hell to be punished eternally. The body will rot and goes back to dust from where it came from.

Death came to the world due to the sins of our first parents, Adam and Eve. And because of this, we, as children, need to pay the sin by death. If one man committed that sin and caused our death, one man was needed to repay that sin. Through Jesus, He became a man to save us and defect death in order for us to gain salvation.

In the day of Judgment, Jesus accompanied by angles and saints will go down from Heaven to reward the good with eternal life and punish the evildoers. “For an hour is coming in which all those in their tombs shall hear His voice and come forth. Those who have done right rise to live; the evil does shall rise to be damned” (John 5:27-28). And thus this statement being fulfilled, all those who have died will be resurrected and will go back to their former form. But this new body will not be the same as old. The resurrected body of the blessed will never again experience hunger, thirst, pain and even death. These bodies will be perfect; will never get tired or grow old. The beauty and holiness of these bodies will stay forever.

In the resurrection of the dead, their bodies will be at the prime of life. This only means that it is in the time of their youth. They will not have their body in its state of infancy or old age. These characteristics were shown by the Lord during His resurrection. The evil doers will also rise from their graves with the just. But their new bodies will be filled with loneliness due to sin. Also their bodies will also be complete but this does do them any good at all because they will suffer the eternal fires of hell.

According to Catholic teachings, we must also give respect to the bodies or remains of the dead. Their remains must be blessed with holy water so it cannot be used by the devil; they must also be buried so it can return to dust from which it came in the hope that someday they will be resurrected to receive salvation.

The burning of the dead or cremation can be prohibited by the Holy Church. This is only given permission if the reasons do not contradict that of the Catholic faith.

The crucifixion and death of the cross of Our Lord only shows His immense love for us. He gave His life for us so we can have salvation. And with His resurrection, Heaven is again open for sinners like us. Just follow and believe in Him, with the Blessed Virgin Mother and all the Saints, we too shall reach Heaven.

Categories
Hagiography Martyrs

St. Andrew Kim Taegon

St. Andrew Kim Taegon
(21 August 1821- 16 September 1846)

St. Andrew Kim Taegon is the first Korean-born Catholic priest and also the patron saint of Korea. He came from Catholic parents who were martyred for practicing Christianity, which was prohibited during Joson Dynasty. Andrew Kim studied at a seminary in Macau. He went to Philippines to study at Lolomboy, Bocaue, Bulacan, where the Shrine of Saint Andrew Kim Taegon was built in his honor. After being ordained as a priest in 1844 he returned to Korea to preach and evangelize.

He was accused of being a traitor to his country and the leader of sacrilegious cult, he was then sentenced to death and beheaded on Sept1 6, 1846 in Seoul. On 6 May 1984, Kim was canonized by Pope John Paul II  along with 102 other Korean Martyrs.

Categories
Feast Day Hagiography

St. Philomena

Patron saint of infants, babies, and youth.

Feast Day – August 11

St. Philomena was the daughter of a Greek king who was a Christian convert. When she was 13 years old, she made a vow of perpetual virginity and to be a bride of Christ. After their visit to Emperor Diocletian, the emperor fell in love with Philomena. Diocletian asked for her hand in marriage as a sort of peace treaty but because Philomena had vowed her virginity to God, she refused to marry the emperor. As a result she was put to jail. St Philomena was scourged, drowned with anchor attached to her, and shot with arrows. But every time she was struck, her angels protected and healed her. Having witnessed all these miracles, the emperor’s soldiers were converted to Christianity and began to testify the power of God. These infuriated the emperor and finally he ordered her beheading.

According to the story, she died on a Friday at three in the afternoon. Two anchors, three arrows, a palm symbol of martyrdom, and a flower were found on the tiles in her tomb, as symbols of her martyrdom. St. Philomena is the patron saint of infants, babies, and youth.

Categories
Hagiography

Sister Faustina Kowalska

Not in the beauty of the color, nor of the brush, lies the greatness of this image, but in My grace.  (Diary 299)

Sister Faustina Kowalska
25 August 1905 – 5 October 1938

Maria Faustina Kowalska also known as Helena Kowalska was born on August 25, 1905 at Glogowiec, the third child of Marianna and Stanislaw Kowalska. At an early age expressed her desire of entering a convent to her parent, to which they refused firmly. Helena went to Warsaw and worked as a household helper. Later on she was allowed to enter the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy. In 1930, she was transferred to Plock and assigned as a baker, her prophetic visions began in 1931. Her first vision of the Merciful Jesus and His order to paint the image happened in February 22.

She met Father Michael Sapocko in Vilnius, who later became her confessor and who supported her devotion to the Divine Mercy. Sister Faustina commissioned an artist to paint the first Divine Mercy image, based on her vision of Jesus with the help of Father Sapocko.

The visions and conversations of Sister Faustina with Jesus was written in her diary, later published as as The Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul. She died of tuberculosis at the age of 33, on October 5, 1938 in Krakow. She was canonized by Pope John Paul II on April 30, 2000 at St. Peter’s Square, Vatican City.

Categories
Feast Day Holy Rosary Mariology Miracle

Our Lady of La Naval de Manila

With the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Filipino and Spanish Catholics successfully defeated the invading forces of the Protestant Dutch Republic during the Battles of La Naval de Manila in the year 1646, in a triumph similar to the Battle of Lepanto of 1571.

The Spanish and Filipino forces, consisted mainly of three Manila Galleons miraculously neutralized a Dutch fleet of nineteen warships. Heavy damage was inflicted upon the Dutch squadrons forcing the Dutch to abandon their invasion of the Philippines.

Pope Pius X granted the image a Canonical Coronation on 5 October 1907. In 2009, the Philippine government designated the image and its shrine as a National Cultural Treasure, making it one of the country’s Cultural Resources.

The Grand Lady of the Philippines
Nuestra Señora el Santissimo Rosario La Naval de Manila
Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary

Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City, Philippines was constructed by the Dominicans in 1954. The church also holds a secret vault that contains ivory icons and wooden images of saints.

The church centerpiece is the shrine of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary of La Naval, sculpted in the 18th century by a Chinese artist, who later converted to Christianity. It is said to be the oldest Marian icon in the country. Her oriental features make Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary a uniquely indigenous Virgin.

She is called the Nuestra Señora del Satissimo Rosario de la Naval de Manila in Spanish; in Filipino: Ang Mahal na Ina ng Santo Rosaryo ng La Naval de Manila.

The image of the Blessed Virgin Mary is venerated in the Philippines because devotees believe that she interceded during the Protestant Dutch invasion in the Battle of La Naval de Manila in 1646, just as she ensured victory for allied Christian forces, in the Battle of Lepanto of 1571, against the Islamic Ottoman Empire.

Categories
Hagiography

Blessed Justo Takayama Ukon

Blessed Justo Takayama Ukon was a Japanese Catholic nobleman and samurai who was regarded as one of the pillars of the early Catholic Church in Japan. He was baptized in Catholic faith in 1564 when he was twelve years old. Over a period of time, he was not able to enrich his faith because of his duties as a samurai. But later on life at the age of around 20, he was able to rekindle his faith and decided to abandon his nobleman and samurai status. He devoted himself to his faith and was exiled to Manila in 1615 for refusing to renounce his Catholic faith. He lived a holy life up to his very last days. He died on February 3, 1615; exactly 44 days after he arrived in Manila.

He was the Patron Saint of Japanese Immigrants, persecuted Christians and the University of Santo Tomas Graduate School.

Categories
Feast Day Marian Apparition Mariology Miracle

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Patroness of the Americas and the Philippines.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe, is a Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with a series of five Marian apparitions.

In an early morning of dawn in December 9, 1531, the Virgin  Mother of God appeared to a native convert Saint Juan Diego. Our Lady asked him to go to the Bishop of Mexico and request him to build a church on the barren hill of Tepeyac Hill outside Mexico City in Her honor and to show her love and compassion to all of her children. Juan Zumamaraga, who was then the Bishop asked Juan Diego to ask Our Lady for a sign. Saint Juan Diego did what the Bishop have asked and Our Lady promised for a sign.

On December 12, 1531, The ever Blessed Mother appeared again to Saint Juan Diego on Tepeyac Hill and instructed him to pick the roses of different colors that miraculously bloomed on the hill. These are species of Castillian roses that normally grows in Castile Spain. Saint Juan Diego gather these roses on his Tilma and brought them to Bishop Zummaraga as a sign for him to believe the request of our Lady. He opened the Tilma and to everyone’s surprise, the Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared on it as Juan Diego have seen it on Tepeyac Hill.

After this miracle, the Bishop then built the Church as Our Lady had requested. More than 10 million natives were converted and baptized to Catholic faith for the next 10 years. Her miraculous portrait continued to venerated at the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City until to this day.

The Sanhedrin was the forum for the pharisees, who believed in the resurrection and in angels, and the saducees, who are akin to new theories and philosophies. All beliefs and philosophies concerning God and His creation are allowed to be expressed here.

 

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