Let the article speak for itself.
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MANILA (2nd UPDATE) -- Not even the rains, flood and traffic could stop Manny Pacquiao from attending a Christian fellowship.
The fighting congressman was forced to take the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) to attend a Christian gathering at the Dolphy Theater in the ABS-CBN Compound on Tuesday evening.
“Sobrang traffic, so naglakad kaming puntang MRT,” Pacquiao said after the fellowship.
“Bumaba kami sa Kamuning, tapos naglakad kami papunta dito.”
Pacquiao and his bodyguards were supposed to pass through EDSA but could not due to traffic and floods.
He boarded the MRT from the Ayala station to Kamuning station.
From Kamuning station, Pacquiao's party could not get a ride to take them ABS-CBN, so Pacquiao and his group walked along Sgt. Esguerra Avenue until they reached the network.
ABS-CBN reporter Dyan Castillejo said she tried to have Pacquiao fetched from Kamuning.
“’Yung driver ko [naman] hindi naabutan, so naglakad siya (Pacquiao) tuloy papunta dito,” she said.
The boxer said he didn’t mind walking.
“Anything, basta Word of God,” said Pacquiao.
Pacquiao is set for a November 24 clash against Brandon Rios.
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I heard one priest say that he is already back.
I heard another friend say the same thing.
We'll the photo says it all.
He ain't Catholic....again...yet.
PART 1/3
ReplyDeleteMost of my friends who were lulled into the simplified yet positivistic theology of the Born Again Christians finds it quite hard to turn their back from this for some reasons, valid or invalid.
They say that they find the RC Mass boring, impersonal, and does not help in the personal relationship with God -they reason out. Too bad, so many Catholics think the Mass is an Entertainment even if they did not think so or would not admit as such. Hence they criticize the Mass as boring and sleepy. The fact is so many of these do not understand the mystery that the Mass is celebrating, the eternal Merit of Christ that the Church is re-offering in an endless memorial to the Father. All they expect is what tickling homily they will hear, what lively perky music they want to hear, what comfortable seats they need to be on. In the end, to make these reasons more rational and militant, they will say we don't grow spiritually and have no personal relations with God. Later on, they will apply out of context scriptural passages and will accuse progressively that the Mass is a mere human tradition, that it was humanly invented and mere human rituals, and not totally Scriptural.
Later on, they will progress more to absorb the badly misled the Sola Scriptura viewpoint that they criticize anything Catholic as unBiblical.
E.g. they will pull down the Papacy as a mere invention and a personality cult by a positivistic interpretation of Matt 16 (You are Peter), by saying that the word POPE was never mentioned in the passage, a severe case of literal interpretation and confusion of the Petrine office versus the title of the Bishop of Rome.
E.g. that Catholics worship graven images as forbidden in Exodus and Deuteronomy again by simply picking Biblical passages out of context, at the same time no longer distinguishing between mere veneration and adoration by Catholics.
PART 2/3
ReplyDeleteE.g. that Catholics does not read the Bible, without knowing that about 75% of the Mass and 80% of the Liturgia Horarum are Biblical lines.
E.g. that Catholics worship Mary and the Saints, again without making the clear distinction between the Adoration ONLY to God and the Veneration to the Saints that were sanctified by the blood of Christ.
E.g. they will insist that the Sacraments were all inventions of the Church, yes even Baptism - even if it already positively mentioned by Christ. In fact, some of them will insist on a mere dedication (of their babies) as Joseph and Mary did to Jesus in the temple. In fact, they simplistically say that it is simply by being Born Again by "Accepting the Jesus as our personal Lord and Saviour" and by "accepting the authority of the Bible and only of the Bible". But they themselves cannot find in the Bible that we must believe the Bible and Only the Bible as the sole authority. They cannot even point where in the Bible does it mention that we should [accept Jesus as our Personal Lord and Saviour]. To push this baloney another mile more, no one can find the phrase BORN AGAIN in the Bible, yes, not even in John 3.3 - because the actual Greek wording was GENEThE ANOTEN (= begotten by Above) and not Genete Deuteron (=born again). In fact the next verse was a clear misunderstanding and a clarification by Nikodimus of a rebirth and Christ was quick to clarify that what he was speaking of in this dialogue was the birth by Water and Spirit, actually was a theological treatise on the matter and essence of baptism, and NOT of being Born Again (which is totally not in the Bible).
In the end, they are erroneously led to believe that anything not positively mentioned in the Bible as not part of the deposit of Faith.
There are more that I cannot mention in this limited space.
Another reason are the the gripes they have against the Church in the areas of doctrinal incompatibility or real scandals happening with the Church. They may have had a brush with a rude priest or a parish worker, and had allowed their resentment to decide to leave the Church. But what they fail to consider was that while it is true that when Christ built the Church, he built it on frail faulty humans, and NOT on the Bible. These 'born agains' will even insist that the early Apostles were bringing the Bible when they spread Christianity even if the canon of Scriptures were not yet ratified at that time yet. Hence, they all the more rationalize their departure from the CHurch with legitimate gripes such as fight with a priest or sexual abuse. As I have said, the gripes could be valid, but it does not make their leaving the Church justify. If I am mad at my mom, do I leave my family? Even Peter had his faults, yet it was to Peter that he entrusted the office of binding and losing, NOT to the John or Jame even if they were of the inner circle, more so NOT to Ellen Gold White, not to Erano Manalo, not to Joseph Smith, not to Eli Soriano, not to Apollo Quiboloy, and surely NOT to any other pretenders. They will be quick to undermind the Authorities within the Church but they will be as quick to accept anyone brandishing the Bible. While we find some exceptions among the clergy whose lives may not be exemplary or worth emulating, it does not follow that the power of Christ no longer works in them. Yes Christ works in these faulty instrument and his Power supersedes these human frailties of his human instruments. The Sacraments, so long as performed by a validly ordained clergy and in the intention of the Church, takes effect regardless of the looks, degree of holiness or sinfulness of the administering clergy, even if he was schismatic.
PART 3/3
ReplyDeleteBottom Line:
The Church must take a more aggressive step in catechizing its laity on the basic tenets of Faith and their Apostolic Basis, not on Scriptures alone. It is but natural for someone to easily give-up something whose value one does not realize. Surely Manny was one of this.
The Church must return to the old Mass or reform the new one to reflect the Sacrifice of Christ more than the Supper or gathering, and yes, to take a draconian step in returning to the communion by the mouth only to further strengthen its doctrine on the real presence. Unless the Liturgy can again reflect the splendor of everything we Believe and Treasure, then this will remain an unnoticed gateway for departure.
The Church must take the hard decision that its clergy be educated in the classics, real Liturgy, Church Music, and clerical decorum so that the laity will look up to them and respect the ministerial character that was etched forever into their person unto eternity. Unless the clergy recovers its dignified look, then they will continue to drag down the image of the Church along with them.
May the Spirit of God keep us all in the True Church he founded.
May He lead back to the fold all those who were misled by erroneous doctrines.
Emitte Spiritum tuum at creabuntur, et regnovabis faciem terrae.
Catholics do more damage to our faith than protestants. It is the Catholics in the faith who weaken its pillars by not knowing and sharing the Catholic truths. Truths that cannot be found or be understood anywhere. Jesus did not leave a book before he ascended to the Father. He left a Church, and that Church not only has the Word of God, that Church has all the fruits of salvation to be shared with the Lords living Body. Those gifts we Catholics know as sacraments cannot be found in any other Church. Only the Eastern Orthodox can make some claims to these gifts, but even they don't have the fullness, and deposit of faith..
ReplyDeleteNever be deceived by the lies of Sola Scriptura. Protestantism and this personal relationship with God is no where to be found in the New Testament. Prayers are made to God at the altar by angels and Saints. Read Revelation 6. The closest way to be in Gods presence is to receive and eat his flesh. All of us Catholics, every single one of us me in America and you my Filipino brothers and sisters are One with the Lord when we receive His Body and Blood. This is what Catholicism is all about. Universal unity. The Lords living, visible body on Earth. He lives in you and me. We're not an invisible church like protestants believe churches are. . As the Lord and the Father are one with the Holy Spirit. We are also. Never be deceived by the man made heretical innovations of Protestantism, their lack of unity was never the will of our Lord. That in itself should prove to you their beliefs are false. Let them promote the personal relationship. Let us remain where we have always been for 2000 years. One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. To all my Catholic brothers and sisters. may the peace of the Lord be with you always. Please keep and share the faith. Big hello and salamat from , Florida USA. If any of you are on Google+ let me know, I have some great Catholic prophecy stuff :) Google: paulr3167