ctk parish newsletter 2017-4christthekingparish.ph/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ctk... · 2018. 6....

HERALD Newsletter of Christ the King Parish Greenmeadows Avenue, Quezon City (Diocese of Cubao, Philippines) October-december 2017

1 KingdomofHeavenFair1 Re1rementHomeProjectLaunched1 2018isYearoftheClergyand ConsecratedPersons2 CBCP’sPastoralExhorta1ononYearof theClergy4 Fr.TedGonzaleson‘Life’sDirec1ons’5 AdventSeasonisDone;Christmas SeasonStarts6 CTKCompletesSimbangGabi7 PPCHoldsChristmasDinnerforParish Servers8 Commemora1ngtheFaithfulDeparted9 CTKHostsFiestaEveFellowshipDinner11 ParishCelebratestheFeastofChristthe King12 FirstCommunionRitesattheParish13 Record52ConfirmandsatCTK Confirma1on14 Seniors’FiestaAssembly15 AdventRecollec1onforKasambahays andDrivers 16 ChristmasPartyforFeedingProgram Par1cipantsatLES17 RummageSaleatLOCLingapCenter17 HealthyCookingDemonstra1onbyChef Jessie17 ReunionofFormerLOCScholars18 ManilaCityJailFeedingandRice Distribu1on18 Prac1calNailArtLivelihoodTraining19 More‘CoffeeAZerChurch’20 8thAnniversaryofCTKGawadKalingain Novaliches21 WorshipMinistryCommissioningfor 2018 22 Fr.FredNarvasaSpeaksatVoca1on Forum22 MonsignorTonyMor1llero’s82nd Birthday23 4thQuarterMarriageVoca1onProgram24 MindfulnesstalkbyDr.MyrnaSanchez25 OctoberwasRosaryMonth25 CandlelightProcessionMarksEndof Fa1maCentennialDevo1on26 KingdomofHeavenFairDrawsRecord Crowd28 PPCMinistriesPresent2018Programs30 HangadMusicMinistryCelebrates26th Anniversary30 SherylCoronelonRadioVeritasProgram31 Fr.FrancisAlvarezon‘ChristmasHas TwoFaces’

What’s Inside

At theDecember 2 anticipated 6 pmmass, Fr. BongTupinoIII formallyannouncedforthe?irsttimethat2018willbe theYearof theClergyandConsecratedPersons. The new liturgical year kicked off lastDecember 3, the ?irst Sunday of Advent. The themewas chosen for liturgical year 2018 as part of thenine-year preparation of the 5th centenary of thePhilippineChurch’sChristianizationtobecelebratedin2021.

With the theme “Renewed Servant Leaders for theNew Evangelization,” the Year of the Clergy andConsecrated Persons is the sixth of the nine-yearspiritual journey. The year-long observance beganDecember3,the?irstSundayofAdvent,andwillcloseonNov.25,2018,ontheSolemnityofChristtheKing.

At thesuggestionofFr.BongTupino,wereprint theCatholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines’Pastoral Exhortation on the Year of the Clergy andConsecratedPersons.

Casa de Silencio Retirement Home Project LaunchedLast October 17, at the 69th birthdaybirthday of the head of the RomanCatholic Diocese of Cubao, BishopHonesto F. Ongtioco DD, the Cubaoclergy announced its most ambitiousproject infrastructure project yet, aretirement home for sick and retiredpriests cum retreat and conferencecenter. Prior to this, the biggest projectyet was the ‘Pabahay’ project fordiocesan staff in Antipolo. The renewalcenter had been ‘baptized' as Casa deSilencio, named after one of the streetsnear Araneta Avenue where theretirementhomewouldrise,nexttotheHolyRedeemerParishChurch.

THE

Kingdom of Heaven Fair 2017 Draws Record Number of Children It was a fullhouse lastS u n d a yO c t o b e r22nd witho v e r 1 8 0k i d sshowing up,asChrist theKing Parishce lebratedtheKingdomo f HeavenFair 2017,the Catholicfoil to thevampires, witches, zombies, monsters,devils, slasher-horror villains, andvampire themes that pervade the‘traditional’ Halloween celebration.Displayinggreatcollaborationaswellascooperation, three CTK ministries -MustardSeedMinistryledbySonnyandMina Mejia, Youth Ministry headed byLouieandLeiAbando,andtheFamily&Life Ministry led by Regie and Joanne

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CBCP’s Pastoral Exhortation on the Year of the Clergy and Consecrated Persons

2018 is Year of the Clergy and Consecrated Persons

Fr. Serge Maniba with ‘St.Michael,theArchangel’

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DearBrothersandSistersinChrist,

GraceandPeacetoallofyou!

We are on the 6th Year of our 9-yearSpiritual Journey towards 2021 – the500th Year a f ter the arr iva l o fChristianity to the Philippines. Itwas in1521 that the Holy Mass was ?irstcelebratedandtheSacramentofBaptismwas ?irst administered in the Philippinearchipelago. Then the Santo Niñodevotion began in Cebu. That was thestartofourEvangelization.

Theyear2018isdedicatedtotheClergyandConsecratedPersons.Theycomprisejust a small portion of the Church, yetthey are ful?illing a vital role in hermission. In our culture, they are greatlyinstrumental for the lay tobecometrulyan evangelized and evangelizingcommunityofdisciples.Yet theyarenotimmune to the twin errors of adichotomy of faith and inadequatediscipleshipofChrist.

Renewed servant-leaders for the NewEvangelization – this is the goal of ourprayers and activities this year. We aimtowards the integral renewal of thevalues, mind-sets, behavior and life-styles of the Clergy and ConsecratedPersons. Following the example of theGood Shepherd, they are invited tobecome servant-leaders who care mostespecially for the least, the lost and thelast. It will be a year, too, of revisitingways of seminary and rel ig iousformationandthecollaborationwiththelaityintheworkofmissionandministry.(Cf. Pastoral Exhortation on the Era ofNewEvangelization)

A s we emba rk t owa rd s a n ewEvangelizationwehavebecomeawareofthe bright lights along the way. Ourpr i es t s fa i th fu l ly ce l ebra te thesacramentsdailyinthebusyurbanareasand in thedistantand lonelybarangays.Our men and women re l i g i ousadminister church institutions, teachcatechism, and serve in the parishes.They bring joy to orphanages, hospitalsandprisons.Somehavestartedworkingfor rehabilitation of drug dependents.Working without habits, but no lesscommitted, are the members of layinstitutes, promoting the Kingdom intheirownhumbleway.Theytrulyinspireand strengthen us, like the priest ofMarawi, Fr. Teresito “Chito” Suganob,who almost lost his life caring for his

parishioners caught in the cross?ire’s ofwar.Theymakeushopefulfortomorrow.

On the other hand, the bright lightsundeniablygoattimeswithsomedismalshadows, brought about by someof ourClergy and Consecrated Personsthemselves. There were occasions offrailtyandscandalsthatsaddenus.Suchmisconducts call for sincere re?lectionand humble repentance and reparation.Maythesefaultspointustonewandvastpossibilities of renewal and communionwith those who are weak and broken.May our Priests and ConsecratedPersons , in their weakness andwoundedness, continue to serve andguide fellow sinnerswith the joy of theGospel that leads to the fullness of life.Jesus himself encourages us with hiswords : “ In the world you havetribulation; but take courage, I haveovercometheworld.”(Jn16:33)RenewaloftheChurchrequirestherenewaloftheClergyandConsecratedPersons.Forthis,we take inspiration and example fromthe tender scene of Jesus washing thedisciples’feet.

JESUS IN COMMUNION WITH THEFATHER

“Fully aware that he comes from theFather…”(Jn13:3)–Jesusnever lostthatunitywith his heavenly Fatherwhile helived on earth. His communion andintimacy with the Father moved him toreachouttosinnersandneedy.Itwasthesourceoftheimpactofhiswordsandtheeffectivenessofhismiraculousdeeds.(cf.Jn6:38.46;Jn8:19,29)

AsLay,ClergyandConsecratedpersons,we are invited to share in this“communion”and“intimaterelationship”betweenJesusandtheFather.TheClergyandConsecratedPersonsareunitedwithChrist in the Proclamation of theWord,inthecelebrationoftheSacraments,andintheirSpiritualLeadership.Thatiswhythey are called “alagad ng Diyos,” menand women “of God” or even moreaccurately, “servants of God.” It isthrough the i r very min i s t ry o fsancti?icationthattheytooaresancti?ied(cf.CCC,1534)

Butattimes,theyseemfarfromGodandfrom following his will. Some getentangled in their concern for materialpossessions, in their need for pleasuresand in theirdesire forpower. Insteadofbecomingservant-leadersofcommuniontheymay even leadus to confusion and

disharmony. Let us pray that we mayremainevercloselyunitedtoJesusasheis in constant communion with theFather!We pray that all the Clergy andConsecratedPersonscontinuetoabideinJesusandbecomeperfectdisciplesoftheLord for the New Evangelization. (cf St.JohnPaulII,PastoresDaboVobisIII,26)

JESUSSTOODTOHUMBLYSERVE…

“Jesusstood…”(Jn13:4)–Jesus“roseupfromthemeal”towashhisdisciples’feet.His love for them moved him to servethemhumbly.

With this inexhaustible strength incommunion with the Father, Jesus wasdeterminedtoserveand lovethosewhowere given to him, even to the point ofdeath, death on the cross. (cf Phil 2:8)We, as members of his Church, areinvited to actualize theKingdomof Godpresent in our midst. We are called toreach out to those in greatest need, tolove and to serve those considereddifferentandfarfromus.TheClergyandConsecrated Persons, given their role ofleadershipinourcommunities,andwhooften enjoy privileges and entitlements,shouldstandupfromacomfortableandprivileged position to generously andhumbly serve. May they stand out in aworldthatisincreasinglyindifferentandeven hostile to the Good News, and yethungeringforsomethingitknowsnot.Inthe end, the Gospelwill prevail, faith inJesus will be vindicated, for as he said,“fear not, I have already conquered theworld.”(Jn16:33)

“…AND HE BEGAN TO WASH THEDISCIPLES’FEET.”

“…andhesetasidehisvestments…beganto wash the feet of the disciples…” (Jn13:4-5)TheLord,kneelingat the feetofhis disciples, set aside his garment ofprotection and put on the towel ofservice.Showinghisexampleofhumility,hewashedtheirtiredandsoiledfeet.Helateradmonishedthemtodothesametoone another, “…just as I have done foryou,soalsoshouldyoudo.”(Jn13:15)

“How lovely are the feet of him whobrings the good news!” (Is. 52:7; Rom10:15). The Scriptures acknowledgesthemwhocomewith joyful tidings,whobear the Gospel message. The task ofsharing the GoodNews entails reachingout,andtraversingdistances,hereinourcountryandinneighboringAsia.Wearecarefulnottoneglectanyoneneedingthejoyandhopethat theGospelbrings. “To

CBCP’s Pastoral Exhortation on the Year of the Clergy and Consecrated Persons

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Invited to Bishop Ness Ongtioco’sbirthday dinner at the Obispado inLantana, Cubao were representatives of

theParishPastoralCouncilsfromthe47differentparishesmakingupthediocese.T h e C h r i s t t h e K i n g P a r i s hGreenmeadows PPCwas complete, withBert andMarieAnne Santos,Henry andJoyce Tanedo, David and Fely Ong, andBingandElisedelRosarioinattendance,together with Fr. Bong Tupino and theotherCTKpriests.

Although it wouldn't be formallylaunched in the diocese until the FirstSunday of Advent , the ‘hat’ wasinformallypassedaround,resultinginanunexpected contribution total of nearlyP800,000.

A month earlier, Fr. Bong Tupino metwith the CTK PPC of?icers and asked ifthe team was willing to take on theadditional assignment of Ways andMeans Committee, reporting to him inhis designated role asWays and MeansCommittee Head for the retirementhomeproject.ThePPCof?icerssaid‘yes’.Sothefollowingweek,onSeptember27,the CTK PPC of?icers, together withadditional member Fe Pery, convenedof?icially, with members of the CubaoDiocesecuria-Fr.JunSimon,Chancellor;Fr. Steve Zabala, vice-chancellor; and Fr.

Ronnie Santos, Oeconomus. At themeeting, Fr. Steve ran them through thedetails of the project. Based on thediscussion, the CTK PPC of?icerspreparedadraftplanof action thatwasdiscussedatasecondmeetingtwoweekslater. They also prepared a draftPwerPoint presentation that would beused by Fr. Bong Tupino and Fr. SteveZabala as they made the rounds of the3rd quarter vicariate leadershipmeetings. Finally, on November 27, twoof the CTK PPC members presented tothe Cubao clergy at-large during theirAdvent recollection in Tagaytay and gottheirapproval to formally launchon the?irstweekendofAdvent,December2-3.

ThismeantthattheCTKPPChadtorushthe design of special envelopes, posters,and custom-designed collection boxesthat were shipped out to the differentparishes last December 1 and 2. On thediocese side, Fr. Steve Zabala wasentrusted with getting Bishop Ongtiocoto prepare a video so that the parishmass presiders would not need to talktoo long on the project but more tounderlinehowimportanttheprojectwasand how critical would be the supportfromtheparishioners.

So starting with the December 2Saturdaymasses,thepresidingpriestsofthesemassesinthe47differentparishesmadethesameappeal-withtheaverageageofCubaopriestsat52, thesepriestsare going to be hitting retirement agesoon, and somewill need to retire evensooner as cancer, sickness, dementia,mobility issues and other issues arise.But as a parish priest retires, he has toleave the parish rectory where he mayhave resided for many years, if notdecades. That’s to make room for thenew incoming parish priest. But sincethe Cubao diocese has no of?icialretirement home, retired parish priestswhohavespentseveraldecadeslivingintheirparishrectoryhavenochoicebuttolook for rectory bed space in otherpar i shes , o r ren t an expens iveapartment, which is often beyond theirmeans, or try very hard to look forrelatives who will shelter them duringtheirremainingyears.Andaseverybodyknows, priests have no children to turnto, which is the usual alternative of theveryelderly.Priestsintheir70sand80sneed a home to retire to, where theyhave the companionship in their agingyearsof fellowapostlesof the faith, andwhere the severely ill or incapacitatedcanresideinquietdignity.

As currently designed, there will be 20rooms for retired priests, with most ofthem opening into the garden area onone side, and the main dining hall onanother side. A nurses’ station and amedical ward is also part of the designfor sick or terminally ill priests. Andmost importantly, the main buildingl e a d s t o t h e c h a p e l t h a t c a na c c ommoda t e a s many a s 1 00massgoers.

The upkeep for any retirement facilitywill be costly. So the plan is to build aretreatandconferencecenteraroundtheretirementhome. In thisway, thecentercanearnrevenuesthatcouldhelpdefray

Cubao Diocese Launches Casa de Silencio Retirement Home Project

With gratitude for their years of faithful ministry, the Diocese of Cubao is building a home for elderly priests who have faithfully served the Diocese for many years.

Help Build the Casa Silencio Renewal Center, a Home for Retired Priests and a Center for Retreats and Conferences

‘All elderly people, priests included, need safe havens in their old age. A place they can call h o m e, wh e r e t h ey c a n l iv e e i t h e r independently or with professional assistance. A place where they can enjoy the warmth, support and camaraderie of fellow retirees of the cloth. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cubao is planning to build a retirement home cum retreat and conference center where our retired and elderly priests can opt to stay and spend the rest of their lives with quiet grace. I hope you can join us in this truly worthwhile endeavor!’

– Bishop Honesto F. Ongtioco DD

A Safe Haven for Our Retired Priests



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Above, three of the four oldest priests inthe Cubao Diocese - Msgr. Ben Razon, Msgr.Dan Sta. Maria, and Msgr. Tony Mortillero.Below, retired priests gathered at theEphesusHavenin2016foraretreat.

Above, the specially-designed envelope.Below,thecollectionbox.Bottom,theposterdisplayedinalltheparishes.

the peripheries!” Let us roll up oursleeves and work! The Church is like a?ieldhospital!“Ducinaltum!”

My dear people of God, please continueto support our clergy and consecratedpersons in their journey as “servants totheservantsoftheGospel.”AsshepherdstotheLord’s?lock,maythey“takeontheodor of their sheep.” As vulnerable“lovely feet” of the New Evangelization,maytheyencourageotherstomissionbyservingwithhumility,bylovinginaction,and by strengthening the poor, thehopeless, the victims of injustice andoppression(cf.Is52:7;Rom10:15)

Let us also pray for the youngmen andwomen in theseminariesand formationhouses.As theyprepare for a lifeof selfo f fe r ing and serv i ce may the i rcommunionwith Jesus be the source oftheirinspiration,strengthandjoy.

Let us all together, Lay, Clergy andConsecratedPersons,remainunitedwithJesus. With Mary let us proclaim thegreatnessof theLordandrejoice inGodour savior. May we become servants ofthenewevangelizationtooneanothersothatoneday,Godmay?inallyandtrulybeallinall.(cf1Cor15:28b)

FromtheCatholicBishops’Conferenceofthe Philippines, December 3, 2017, FirstSundayofAdvent

+ ROMULOG.VALLES,D.D.ArchbishopofDavaoP r e s i d e n t , C a t h o l i c B i s h o p s ’ConferenceofthePhilippines

IntheCubaoDiocese,towhichChristtheKing Parish belongs, the Santuario deSan Pedro Bautista in San Francisco delMonte,QuezonCity,hostedtheclosingoftheYearof theParish asCommunionofCommunitiesandtheopeningoftheYearof the Clergy and Consecrated PersonslastDecember2.

Representatives from the basic ecclesialcommunities in the diocese started thecelebration with a karakol, with somemombers of the clergy and religiouscongregations joining in dancing thekarakol.BishopHonestoF.Ongtioco,DDof?iciated the 9:00 am ‘Misa ngSambayangPilipino’, togetherwithsomemembers of the Cubao clergy andFranciscan priests from the Order ofFriars Minor. An agape followed themass.

Fr. TedGonzales SJ, a returning speaker,spoke on ‘Life’s Directions’ at a forumorganized by the Vocation Ministry lastDecember 2, at 10:30 am at the DivineMercy Chapel. His talk was targeted ats ing le young pro fess iona l s andgraduatingcollegestudents.

The Life’s Directions talk aimed to helpyoungadultsprepareforlife'schallengesthrough understanding one's strengths,weaknesses, values and world view intheir journey towardsGod through self-awarenessandone'sinnermostdesires.

Fr. Ted currently teaches at the LoyolaSchoolofTheologyandisconnectedwiththe Ruben M. Tanseco, S.J. Center forFamily Ministries (RMT-CEFAM) asProgram Director, Professor andCounselor.

With Fr. Ted were two volunteers fromthe Life Directions program, who hadthemselves gone through the programthemselves and are now purposed withhelping other younger folks make theright life choices. Fr. Ted said, ‘Think ofLife’sDirectionsnotasaweekendretreatbut as a support organization, amentor ing program, and a f reecounselingserviceallrolledintoone’.

the regular operating cost of meals,utilities, repair and maintenance of thefacility, and salaries of nursing, physicaltherapy, k i tchen , housekeeping ,maintenance, drivers and grounds staff.Retired priests will also be charged aportionoftheirmeagermonthlypensionforrentandupkeep.Asarenewalcenter,the facility will also offer spiritualgrowth, healing and transformation byoffering daily and Sunday Masses;

sp i r i tua l re t rea ts ; meet ing andc o n f e r e n c e s p a c e f o r c l e r g y ,congregations, parochial school faculty,andparish staff; and availability of veryseniorpriestsforconfession,counseling,andfellowship.

Forthe‘renewal’partofCasadeSilencio,there will also be 50 smaller rooms onthe upper ?loors for overnight retreatparticipants, plus two small meetingrooms and one mid-sized conferenceroomgoodfor50participants.

It’saveryambitiousproject,withalotofopportunities to fail, given thehigh cost(some estimates go as high as P200M).But the CTK Parish Pastoral Council isguardedly optimistic that if everyone inthe diocesewho can afford to give doesgive, there’s a ?ighting chance that thedonation targets can be achieved. Thenear-term?ightinggoalistogettoP30Mso as to allow breaking ground on theprojectbyendMarch2018,andtogettoP200M by late-2019 when the buildingcouldpossiblybecompleted.

Fr. Bong Tupino and the CTK PPC echothewordsofBishopNessOngtiocointhevideowhenhesaid, ‘Ihopeyoucan joinusinthistrulyworthwhileendeavor.’

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C a s a d e S i l e n c i o Retirement Home ProjectCBCP’s Pastoral Exhortation


Fr. Ted Gonzales on Life’s Directions

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Above, the architectural rendering of theplanned renewal center. Below, a perspectiveofoneoftheretiredpriestrooms.

VOCATION MINISTRY

The 2017 Advent Season of?iciallybegan December 2-3 with the FirstSundayofAdvent.AsexplainedbyFr.BongTupinoinhishomilyduringthe6 pm First Adventmass, the Adventseason is not the Christmas season,whichonlybeginsonChristmasEve,December24,andendsonJanuary8,2018. Advent is the four weeks ofexpectant waiting and preparationfor the celebration of theNativity of

Jesus at Christmas. The Adventseason offers the opportunity forparishioners to share in the ancientlonging for the coming of theMessiah. With each week as hisAdvent, or “coming,” draws nearer,another candle is lit, with eachcandledispellingthedarknessalittlemore.Thus,theAdventwreathhelpsto spiritually contemplate the greatdrama of salvation history thatsurroundsthebirthofGodIncarnatewhocomestoredeemmankind.

DuringAdvent,theGloriaoftheMassis omitted, so that the return of theangels’ song at Christmas has aneffect ofnovelty.Not just at theCTKMain Church but in all the villagemasseslastDecember2-3,theadventwreath was blest by the masspresider, followed by the lighting ofthe ?irst candle by a pre-selectedparish family. Last December 2nd, itwasFatherBongTupinowhoblessedthe Advent Wreath in the mainchurch.Fr.BongrecitedthewordsoftheprophetIsaiah:

Thepeoplewhowalkedindarknesshaveseenagreatlight;Uponthose

who dwelt in the land of gloom alight has shone. You have broughtthem abundant joy and greatrejoicing,Astheyrejoicebeforeyouas at harvest, as men make merrywhendividingspoils.

For a child is born to us, a son isgiven us; upon his shoulderdominion rests. They name himWonder-Counselor, God-Hero,Father-Forever,PrinceofPeace.His

dominion is vast and foreverpeaceful, from David’s throne, andover his kingdom, which heconfirms and sustains by judgmentandjus1ce,bothnowandforever.

Parish Pastoral Council Head LayCoordinator Bert and Marie AnneSantos, with daughter Kristina andgrandson Enrique ledthe prayer on thelighting of the ?irstc a n d l e wh i l e t h eSantoses’ son Chito(Enrique's father) readtheprayerinlightingoftheAdventCandle.

The re i s a l o t o fsymbolism in the fourcandlesofthewreath:

• The 1st Sunday ofAdvent symbolizesH o p e w i t h t h e“Prophet’s Candle”reminding us thatJesusiscoming.

• The 2nd Sunday ofAdvent symbolizesF a i t h w i t h t h e“Bethlehem Candle”r e m i n d i n g t h e

faithful of Mary and Joseph’sjourneytoBethlehem.

• The 3rd Sunday of Advent, alsocalledGaudeteSunday,symbolizesJoy with the “Shepherd’s Candle”,a reminder of the Joy the worldexperiencedatthecomingbirthofJesus.

• The 4th Sunday of Adventsymbol izes Peace with the“Angel’sCandle”,aremindertothefaithful of the message of the

angels:“PeaceonEarth,GoodWillTowardMen.”

Immediatelyafterthe6pmmass,Fr.Bong Tupino led the congregationoutside to the garden for thetraditional lighting of the CTKChristmastree.

Advent Season Is Done; Christmas Season Starts

Fr. Bong Tupino blesses then incenses theadventwreathanditscandlesatthestartoftheAdventSeason(photofromlastyear)

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Left,EnriqueSantosgoesuptolightthefirstAdventcandleasChitoSantos,right,leadsthecongregationintheprayerinlightingoftheAdventCandle

Above,Fr.BonggivesthesignaltolighttheCTKChristmastree.

•18th: Corinthian Gardens, Greenwich &Arcadia, coordinated by Fe Pery, LindaGuanzon, Vangie Yam, Fe Flores & LitaSambrano,withAPLOCChoir,presidedbyFr.PopsRepoleSJ

•19th: Eton CyberPod, Galleria, Robinson’sGa l le r ia , C rowne P laza & Poveda ,coordinated by Merl in Lumba, DingCastaneda, Gladys Silverio & AzucenaCamagan,withCTKKidsChoir,presidedbyFr.JoeQuilongquilongSJ

•20th:CorinthianHills,coordinatedbyPaul&Linda Uy, with Alumni Choir, presided by Fr.JunjunBorresSJ

•21st: St. IgnaRus Village & La Maison,coordinated by Baby Banal, Lulay dela Cruz,Tiny Perfecto, Fe Reyes, Ceri Yamsuan &Virgie Abas1llas, with Koro Sanctuario,presidedbyFr.JegVillarinSJ

•22nd:WhitePlains&WhitePlainsTerraces,coordinated by Jane Duque, Mel Novales &AlfredContreras,withServiDomini,presidedbyFr.FrancisAlvarezSJ

•23rd:Libis,coordinatedbyChingBotero&JoPiyaw, with Hangad Music Ministry Choir,presidedbyBishopHonestoOng1ocoDD

Ahighlightof theeveningSimbangGabiwaspioneeredbyGreenmeadows1 lastDecember 15, the ?irst night, whencoordinators Eileen de Leon and DulceBarretohad35yayas,kasambahaysanddriver residents of GreenMeadows 1 asofferors.Thegesturewasatributetothepeoplewho have beenworking hard tohelpkeephousesclean,cookfood,washclothes, etc. After the mass, thekasambahays were treated to a dinnerfellowship at the convent veranda. The35 househelp were uplifted with joy,gratitude and appreciation as it wastheir ?irst time to be recognized andgiven the chance to participate on the?irst night of the festive preparation forthebirthofourLord.

• 18th: Diwanihan KrisRyano Prayer Group,coordinated by Mon and Loung Cuartero,withDiwanihanKris1yanoChoir,presidedbyFr.RickyMontanez

• 19th:CatholicWomen’sLeague,coordinatedbyKimCua,with ICCChoir, ,presidedbyFr.ArvieBello

• 20th: Legion of Mary & Buklod ngPanginoon, coordinated by Mila del Fonso,Ruby Borja, and Cita Pabillo, with APLOCChoir,presidedbyFr.HerbieSantos

• 21st:CouplesforChrist,coordinatedbyEd&Cecille Salonga, with Couples for ChristChoir,,presidedbyMsgr.DanSta.Maria

• 22nd: Mother Butler Mission Guild,coordinated by Betsy Tenchaves, with CTKYouthChoir,presidedbyFr.RonaldPlomillo

• 23rd: Life in the Spirit Healing Ministry &KnightsofColumbus, coordinatedbyBobby& Margie San Juan, and Boy Angeles, withLSS Choir, presided by Bishop HonestoOng1ocoDD

• 24th : Chr i sRan Fami ly Movement ,coordinated by May & Leo Nitorreda, withTinigZone5,presidedbyFr.BongTupinoIII

In addition, CTK Parish Greenmeadowsalso mounted evening Simbang Gabimasses, scheduled for8:00pm., startingDecember 15 and ending December 23.Of?iciating priests include Fr. BongTupino plus the other guest priests.Different villages had been assigned assponsorsfortheninedifferentdays:

• 15th:Greenmeadows 1& 3, coordinated byEileendeLeon&DulceBarreto,withAlumniChoir,presidedbyFr.BongTupinoIII

•16th: Acropolis, coordinated by Maan delRosario & Irene Robles, with ICC Choir,presidedbyFr.ManolingFranciscoSJ

•17th:Enclave& Ivory Court, coordinated byReggie Nolido& Joey& Irene Sto. Domingo,withTinigZone,presidedbyFr.BillAbbogSJ

Simbang Gabi, the long-treasuredPhilippine tradition of dawnmasses fornineconsecutivedays,ornovena,beforeChristmas Day, started last Friday,December 15 with the 8 pm MisaAguinaldo.

It is one of the longest and mostimportant religious celebrations in thePhilippines that has lasted over 600years. In the Spanish times, the masseswerecelebratedveryearly,usuallyat4inthe morning, since they took placeduringtheharvestseason,whenfarmershad to be in the ?ields at the crack ofdawn.At the ?irst soundofdawn, at thecrowingof the rooster, the entire familywould get up and walk to the nearestparishchurch.Thenovenaculminatedonthe ninth day, December 24, with theMassoftheGifts,orMisadeGallo(‘gallo’means rooster, in Spanish) whichcelebratesthebirthofJesus.

Three Christmas Eve Vigil Masses onDecember24th-6pm,8pm,and10pm-werescheduledat theMainChurch, toinclude Blessing of the Belen andVenerationoftheImageofBabyJesus.

• 6:00 pm, Youth Ministry & Mustard SeedMinistryasofferors,withAlumniChoir

• 8:00 pm, Family & Life Ministry & SunriseMinistry as offerors,with Couples for ChristChoir

• 10:00pm,ParishPastoralCouncilasofferors,withCTKYouthChoir

F o r C h r i s t t h e K i n g P a r i s hGreenmeadows, the pre-dawn masseswereat5:00am.andreplacedtheusual6:00 amdailymorningmass. Of?iciatingpriests were from the Society of Jesus.Different organizations had beenassigned as sponsors for the ninedifferentdays:• 16th: Ladies of Charity, coordinated by FePerry, with the Cathedral Choir, presided byFr.BongTupinoIII

• 17th: Apostleship of Prayer & AdoracionNocturna Filipina, coordinated by WandaReyes & Rudy Tecson, with Hail Mary theQueenChoir,presidedbyFr.SergeManiba

CTK Completes Simbang Gabi

6

Above left, the 35 kasambahays, yayas, and drivers from GreenMeadows 1 get ready for theOffertory.Below,theGMofferorsenjoyingdinnerfellowship.

The Christmas party of CTK’s ParishPastoral Council, held Wednesdayevening,December13,wasaresoundingsuccess, as fun, laughter and good funkeptrockingtheSocialHalloftheParishFormation Center. The event, organizedby PPC secretary Fely was marked bysong and dance performances, games,andraf?les.

Nearly300devotedserversofChristtheKing Parish - lectors & commentators,extraordinary ministers, greeters &collectors, altar servers, ministry headsand core team members, mandatedorganization of?icers and members,renewal movement o f ? i cers andmembers,villageandBECcoordinators-were in attendance. Also in attendancewere CTK priestsMsgr. TonyMortillero,Fr.SergeManiba,Fr.RickyMontanez

Fr. Bong Tupino gave the welcomeremarks,thenintroducedthepriestsandof?icersof theSacredHeartSeminaryofPalo,Leyte.HeremindedtheCTKfaithful

that the seminary had been completelydevastated by typhoon Yolanda in 2013and since then had been slowly rebuilt,through the kindness of the otherdioceses and parishes, including Christthe King. He then asked the invitedseminarians of the Sacred HeartSeminarytoleadtheaudienceinsinging‘OhCome,OhYeFaithful’.Afterwhichheblessedthepartyfood.

Theperformancesincludedtwosongsbythe Servi Domini, an award-winningchoir that had been a mainstay at CTKled by choirmaster Noel de la Paz, ahighly-applauded violin performance bytalented youngster Nicky Maza, avolunteer of the Mustard Seed Ministrywhose dad Bong Maza was a Knight ofColumbus as well as EMHC. Also well-received was the tap dance by thecolorfully-clad Tapestry Tap DanceGroup of the combined Youth andMustard Seed Ministries. The SacredHeart Seminarians came back for twomoreChristmascarols.The?inalnumberwasbyprofessional singerGirlValencia,a CTK regularwho energized the crowdwithhersing-alongofDecktheHalls.

Last year’s hit game, Dressing Up Santa

Claus,was brought back due to populardemand. And once again, it elicitedsigni?icant participation - and audiencereaction-as?iveteams-GreenMeadows,Catholic Women’s League, Ladies ofCharity, Mustard Seed-Youth Ministry,and BEC Libis - used up their ?iveminutestodressuptheirSantawiththeuse of red crepe paper, a roll of tissuepaper,tape,andapairofscissors.Basedonaudiencevolume, the two ?inalists ofthe ‘Best Dressed Santa Claus’ werethose groomed by BEC Libis and Ladiesof Charity, with LOC bagging home ?irst

Parish Pastoral Council Hosts Christmas Dinner for Everyone Serving in the Parish

continued on next page 7

TheSacredHeartSeminariansofPalo,Leytesinging‘OhCome,OhYeFaithful’

Above,ServiDomini.Below,round2fortheSacredHeartSeminarians.

Above, the Tapestry tap dancers. Below,violinist Nicky Maza. Bottom, Girl Valenciaworkingthepriests’table.

The 10 winners of the Purefoods fiesta hamraffleprizedonatedbyIreneRobles

prize after emcee Bing del Rosarioconsulted with Fr. Bong and gameorganizers Sheryl Coronel andMaandelRosario.

The second game, Bato Pato Pik,organized by Irene Robles, involvedeveryone in the hall betting his or hertwentypesobillbysquaringoffwiththenearest person.Thewinner got theP20billofhisopponent.Afterthe?irstround,the 32winnerswere holding on to P40

each. After the second round, the 16survivors were each holding on to P80.Then the 3rd round saw e igh tquarter?inalists, each with P160. By theend of the fourth round, the foursurvivors each had P320. And by thetimeitcametothe?inalround,involvingFr. Serge - the crowdwas cheering himon, with some shouting ‘God is on yourside, Fr. Serge’ - against Couples forChrist’sCecilleSalonga,eachalreadyhadP640.ThecrowdcheeredwhenFr.Sergeemergedvictorious.

The raf?le draw was also eagerlyanticipated. The ?irst draw involved 10Purefoods ?iesta ham, donated by IreneRobles, plus an electric fan by PPCAssistant Coordinator Henry and JoyceTanedo and a mosquito trapper by PPCCoordinatorBertandMarieAnneSantos.The ?inal draw was for the electricchopperbyPPCsecretaryDavidandFelyOng and the personal refrigeratordonated by Bing and Elise del Rosario,wonbyBingCruz.

P P C C o o r d i n a t o r B e r t S a n t o sacknowledged all who had made theevening possible, but he did theacknowledgmentsearlytomakesurenoone had left yet. Bert also pointed outthat thiswas going to be Fr. Bong’s lastChristmaspartywiththeCTKPPCcrowdsince the transfers of parish priestswouldtakeeffectinJuneofnextyear.Fr.Bong formally closed the evening bythanking everyone who came andwishingeveryoneaMerryChristmas.

Christ the King Parish announced threeinitiatives in preparation for theNovember 2 commemoration of all thefaithfuldeparted.

First, the parish invited parishioners towritedownthenamesofbelovedfamilymembers, relatives and friends on theenvelope provided at the back of thechurchandattheparishof?iceanddropthese at the designated boxes. The CTKpriestsprayedforandblessedthenamesof the departed throughout theNovember 1 to November 9 novenamasses.

Second,CTKcryptswereopenedfrom6amto10pmfromOctober25toOctober30 and from 6 am to 12 midnight onOctober 31 to November 2. Designatedareas for ?lowers, candles, and incensewereidenti?ied.

Third, daily masses were offered for allthose interred in the CTK crypts asidefrom the regular First Monday mass atthe crypt. 9 ammasseswere offered onOctober 31, November 1 andNovember

2at theLowerCryptchapel.Aside fromthese, a special 3 pm mass for the

Commemorating All the Faithful DepartedParish Pastoral Council Hosts Christmas Dinner


continued on page 10

8

Above,the‘quarterfinals’oftheBatoBatoPikgame.Below,thefinalresultofthe‘DressUpYourSanta’.

Right after the 6 pm Saturday masson November 25, Christ the KingParish held the Fiesta Nightfellowship and thanksgiving dinnerfor all Parish Pastoral Councilmembers, Eucharistic ministers,lectors-commentators, greeter-collectors, parish staff, villagecoordinators, and other involvedparishioners.

CTK parish priest Fr. Bong Tupinoformally opened the Fiesta Evethanksgiving dinner by thankingeveryone for coming and doing thegracebeforemeal.Nearly300peoplecame, with the biggest contingentcoming from the Libis community,with some100 in attendance. LeilaBanico, Worship Ministry head, was

overall organizer for the event andshe had arranged two buffet tables,with four separate queue lines thatmadegettingfoodnearlypainless.

The highlight of every parish ?iestadinner is the recognition of retiringparish servers.As some readerswillreca l l , the Diocese o f Cubaoi m p l e m e n t e d a m a n d a t o r yretirement age of 75 for all layliturgicalministers-EMHC,lectors&commentators,greeters&collectors-

similar to priestswhohavetoretireat 75. WorshipM in i s t ry headPeter and LeilaBanico, who ledthe presentationa n d awa rd i n gce remony, d idemphasize thatretirement is notthe end of their

service to our parish as they cancontinuetobemembersofmandatedorganizations,renewalgroups,orthenewly-formed Sunrise Ministry, theministry for Seniors. Fr. Bong thenblessedthestatuesofChristtheKingthatwere going to be given away tothehonorees.

Honoredandawardedwere:

‣ Lector-Commentators LindaFamador, Diana Gozum, andArmine Tagaysay. Fr. Bong andLeCom Coordinator Mel Novalesledtheawarding.

‣ ExtraordinaryMinisterofHolyCommunion Mars Quesada. Fr.B o n g a n d E M H C A s s t .Coordinator Manny de Leon ledtheawarding.

‣ Greeter-Collector RemediosCabanban. Fr. Bong and GreColcoordinator Jeanette Caguranganledtheawarding.

There were two song numbers toregale the evening's ?iesta crowd.FirstoutwasEMHCOggieBenipayo,also a part-time professional singerwho sang ‘Ikaw’. Oggie is part of

CTK Hosts Fiesta Eve Fellowship Dinner


9

Above, Remy Cabanban. Below, Mars Quesada.Bottom,LindaFamadorandArmineTagaysay.

Above, EMHC Oggie Benipayo. Below, singingduoCarloandCherrySubido.

‘Himig Heswita and Friends’ inaddition to singing during CardinalTagle's Sunday morning’s 'WordExposed’ on ANC. The second songnumberwasahusbandandwifeduetby LeCom Carlo and Cherry Subido.Cherry isalso the leadvocalistofanacousticbandmanagedbyCarlo.

In addition, there were two dancenumbers.Firstwasbytheladies(andone gentleman) of BEC Libis. Thiswas followed, as a ?inal ?iestanumber, by the parish staff who didtheir own rendition of the ‘BabyShark’Challenge.

WorshipMinistry’s Peter Banico diddouble duty that evening as musicprovider.A linedancebeganassoonastheformaldinnerprogramended.

departed, presided by Fr. Bong Tupinoand co-celebrated by Bishop RaulMartirez, Msgr. Antonio Mortillero, andFr.SergeManiba,washeldonNovember2atthemainchurch.

After the special November 2 mass forthe dead, Fr. Bong, Bishop Raul, Msgr.Morti and Fr. Sergewent separately toblessthecryptvaultsintheUpperCrypt,LowerCrypt,andGardenCrypt.

Commemorating All the Faithful Departed


CTK Hosts Fiesta Eve Fellowship Dinnercontinued from previous page

10

Above,theBECLibisdancers.Below,theBabySharkChallengebytheparishstaff.Bottom,linedancing.

• 18th:Acropolis,coordinatedbyIreneRoblesandMaandelRosario,withKoroSanctuario,presidedbyFr.AllanSamonte

• 19th:Enclave& IvoryCourt, coordinatedbyJoey&IreneSto.DomingoandRegieNolido,with Cathedral Choir, presided by MostReverendTeodoroC.Bacani,Jr.,D.D.

• 20th: Corinthian Gardens, Greenwich &Arcadia, coordinated by Fe Pery, LindaGuanzon, Vangie Yam, Fe Flores, LitaSambrano,withAPLOCChoir,presidedbyFr.EricCastro

• 21st:White Plains &White Plains Terraces,coordinated by Paul & Dinah Uy, with ServiDomini,presidedbyFr.EdgarJosephMiranda

• 22nd: CorinthianHills, coordinatedby IreneRobles and Maan del Rosario, with KoroSanctuario,presidedbyFr.HerbieSantos

• 23rd: Eton Cyberpod, Robinsons Galleria,Crowne Plaza & St. Pedro Poveda College,coordinated by Merlin Lumba, DingCastaneda, Gladys Silverio, and AzucenaCamagan, with Novo Concertante, presidedbyMsgr.RigdeGuzman

• 24th: Barangay Libis, coordinated by ChingBotero and Jo Piyaw, with CTK Youth Choir,presidedbyMsgr.DanSta.Maria

A t 3 p m , t h eE u c h a r i s t i cA d o r a t i o n ,organized by theA p o s t l e s h i p o fPrayer, was held atW h i t e P l a i n sChapel, the parish’s?irst church, led byFr. Bong Tupino.Songs, prayers, andr e a d i n g sinterspersed withperiods of silence

served to direct the attention of thefaithful.Thenat4pm,themonstrance,orostensorium, with the consecratedEucharistichost,wasledoutbyFr.Bongwho mounted the carroza to begin theEucharistic Exposition. The Eucharisticprocession to Christ the King parishchurch began, with the altar serversleading the entourage, followed by thebrass band, then the Knights ofColumbushonorguards.Fr.BongTupinothen made his way into the church forthe Consecration and Benedictionceremony that concluded with theEucharisticBlessing.

The event-?illed Feast Day of Christ theKingculminatedinthe5pm?iestamasspresided by Cubao Diocese BishopHonestoOngtioco.

Christ the King Parish Greenmeadowsformally celebrated its Fiesta Day lastNovember 26, the last Sunday inOrdinaryTime.

OlderparishionersmightrecallthatonNovember 25, 1979, at the Feast ofChristtheKing,inamassof?iciatedbyHis Eminence Jaime Cardinal L. Sin,then the Archbishop ofManila, a newparish composed of Bgy. Libis, Bgy.Bagumbayan, the gated villages ofWhite Plains and St. Ignatius, and thenewly-openedCorinthianGardensandG r e e nme a d ows wa s f o rma l l yestablished, out of the originalterritory that used to belong to OurLady of Miraculous Medal Parish,Project 4. This new ‘Christ the KingParish’ was placed under the thevicariateofOurLadyofPerpetualHelp(OLPH). The White Plains chapelserved as the temporary parishconvent and Fr. Victorio AntonioLanuevo was installed as the ?irstparishpriest.SoChristtheKingParishGreenmeadows is of?icially 38 yearsold.

The November 26 Fiesta Day waspreceded by nine days of 6 pmNovena Masses starting November11 and ending November 25. ForeachNovenaday,differentpresiders,villagesponsors,andchoirshadbeenassigned, culminating lastNovember25,theninthday,withMsgr.DanSta.Maria, the Vicar General of the

Diocese of Cubao, and previousparish priest of CTK, as presider,Barangay Libis as sponsor, and CTKYouth Choir as singers. The speci?icassignments for each of the novenadayswere:

• 17th:Greenmeadows1&3,coordinatedbyEileendeLeon&DulceBarreto,withCouplesforChristChoir,presidedbyFr.BongTupino

Christ the King Parish Celebrates Feast of Christ the King

11

PhotosofEucharisticAdoration,Eucharisticprocession,andBishopOngtiocoofficiatingthefiestamassarephotosfromlastyear

For 2017, the Christ the King Parish’sF irst Communion was held lastNovember 11. There were 20 ?irst-timecommunicantsallofwhomattendedthe

FirstCommunionCatecheticalclassesonOctober1,October8,October15, October 22, October 29,andNovember5.

R e c e i v i n g t h e i r F i r s tCommunionwere:

‣ Apuad,LuckyBelle‣ Araullo,TyrellAtreides‣ Bicierro,AndreaDionne‣ Chuanico,Ian‣ DelaCruz,Jenella‣ Eroy,JosephLaorance‣ Francisco,NoahYusef‣ Labanza,RyebergXannder‣ Laigo,NathanielJames‣ Mariazeta,ManoloRafael‣ Natores,MoniqueJoy‣ Onabia,Nicole‣ Palma,KaitlynMarie‣ Quizon,GabrielLucas‣ Rivera,RaymondVher‣ Rivera,VeronicaMayee‣ Sanoy,NascheGabrielle‣ Sengson,CharlesCedric‣ Valencia,GabrielAntonio‣ Zalameda,Nino

The First Communion catechesis andriteshavealwaysbeenorganizedby theCatecheticalMinistry,co-headedbyAlmaYeh and Sheryl Coronel. This year, theywere assisted by Mina Mejia of theMustard Seed Ministry. Last year, therewere only eight First Communicants sothetwentyfor2017wasamajorjumpinnumbers.

Thesolemnityoftheritea n d t h e p r a y e r f u ldisposition of the FirstCommunicants, whowere garbed in pristineSundayclothesandveilsfor the girls, left manyteary-eyed. The FirstCommunicants activelypart ic ipated in theliturgyasreadersof theMass read ings andPrayersoftheFaithful,choirleaders,andgiftbearersduringtheOffertory.Fr.BongTupino celebrated the First CommunionMass, witnessed by the children’sparentsandgodparents.

The various catechism topics included‘SalvationHistory’ - fromthe fallofManto the Resurrection of Jesus; Pentecost,theHolySpiritandtheBirthandMission

of the Church; the Apostles, theirSuccessors, the Bishops, and the role ofthe Pope; Grace and Sacraments; the

Eucharist and the Sacrament ofReconciliation as preparation forreceivingJesus.

Inthelasttwosessions,AlmaandSherylpracticed the order of themass and theresponseswiththechildren.

Annual First Communion Rites at the Parish CATECHETICAL MINISTRY

12

CTK’s Sacrament of Con?irmation washeld last November 18, Saturday, at theMain Church, from 9 am to 11 am. TheCon?irmation Rite was of?iciated byMonsignor Antonio Mortillero. Theactualriteswereslightlyheldupwhenitwas found that the Libis con?irmandshadnotyetdoneconfessionpriortothemass. But a quick scramble by theorganizers to get asmany confessors aspossible solvedwhat could have been amajoremergency.

The Con?irmation Rite proceededsolemnly with evocative music and arousinghomilybyMonsignorMortillero.A total of 51 con?irmands, 25 fromBarangay Libis and 26 from the CTKvillages and outside the parish, tooktheir con?irmation rites, escorted bytheir parents, and in some cases,godparents. The 51 boys and girls hadgone through their catechesis for twohours, from 10 am to 12 nn, over sixSaturdays - October 8, October 15,October22,October29,November5,andNovember 11. The classes were

conducted by Sonny and Mina Mejia,heads of theMustardMinistry, togetherwithAlmaYehandSherylCoroneloftheCatechetical Ministry. Parents andgodparents were also given a 3-hourcatecheticalseminarontheSacramentof

Con?irmation and their roles insupportingthecon?irmandsintheirnewlife as young workers of Christ. Theclasses were characterized by lectures,slide shows, videos, re?lections, sharing,andprayers.

The full list of con?irmands are asfollows:

FromLibis:‣ Adlawan,KrystelMarie‣ Baluyot,AngelTrisha‣ Baluyot,VonJoshua‣ Banderado,Stanly‣ Cabrera,Christine‣ Calicdan,RoxanneMia‣ Candido,Michaela‣ Cucio,ReishellBleu

‣ Garen,GraceLeane‣ Gonzales,Daniel‣ Irog,AndreaNicole‣ Kapunan,KylaMarieNicole‣ Macasieb,Jasmin‣ Macasieb,MaryAnn‣ Merculio,RachelleAnn‣ Pactor,HarveyDennyce‣ Paningbatan,Jamaica‣ Samonte,Joycelyn‣ Sayno,Jenny‣ Siong,ArianneJem‣ Somera,AhrishiaMaries‣ Teves,LebronDrake‣ Tria,NinaMae‣ Irog,Janna‣ Domingo,VictorNickoLuis

Fromthevillages:‣ Aldea,JosiahLeandre‣ Araullo,AtreyuAric‣ Calustre,CharlesKendryck‣ Carranza,ChristopherJesse‣ Cervas,AldrinJay‣ Cervas,ArenMay‣ Dearos,JoseEmilio‣ Dearos,MariaAnastaciaLuisa‣ Dearos,MariaSoXiaYsabel‣ Dy,Janpatrick‣ Infante,Alex‣ Infante,Andreas‣ Infante,Jude‣ Joven,SkylerLucas‣ Leal,MarkReinier‣ Natores,MichaelSeth‣ Perez,Anya‣ Perez,Sabin‣ Perez,Santi‣ Tragura,MicaMarie‣ Villegas,JhonPaulVincent‣ Yusay,AndreaGabrielle‣ Yusay,JaimeAntonio‣ Zalameda,Natassia‣ Zalameda,Nathan‣ Zalameda,Nicole

The Con?irmation was open to youngparishionersaged12andup.

CTK Confirmation Rites for a Record 51 Confirmands

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CATECHETICAL MINISTRY

It was another ‘festive’ morning lastNovember 19 as the senior citizens ofChrist the King Parish Greenmeadowsenjoyed the ‘Seniors Fiesta’ event, heldfrom10amto12nnattheSocialHallofthe CTK Formation Center. Over ahundredseniorcitizens-andsomewere‘superseniors’-cametotheassembly.

Not wishing to tinker with a highlysuccessful formula, Sunrise MinistryheadsDoyandEstrelleLopezdrewupaprogramsimilar to thepreviousseniors’assembly.

Thereweretwokeynotespeakers intheprogram. The ?irst was Msgr. SabinoVengcoJr.,whogavethetalk,‘CelebratingChristmasWithaNewHeartandMind:ASenior’s Perspective’. Msgr. Venco, whohadjustturned75,gaveafeel-goodtalkthatfocusedonwhatseniorcitizenslikehim could offer the younger crowd. Hetalked about wisdom that comes withage and experience, why senior ageshouldbetreatedasGod’sgift,andhowsenior citizens should take a proactive

role in imparting life lessons to theirchildren and grandchildren, rather thanwaitingforthemtoask.

What impressed the attendees was notonly how lively and energetic Msgr.Vengcowasandhowarticulatehewasinexpounding on his topic, but how

con?identhewas inengagingthecrowd.Also impressive was that he spokewithoutnotesorslideaids.

Msgr. Vengco is presently a professor oftheology at: the Loyola School ofTheology, ADMU; the San CarlosSeminaryGraduateSchoolofTheologyinMakati; Immaculate Conception MajorSeminaryGraduateSchoolofTheologyinGuiguinto, Bulacan; the EcclesiasticalFacultiesofUniversityofSto.Tomas;andthe Recoletos School of Theology, inQuezon City. He also continues to hostthe Catholic Sunday broadcast ‘EcclesiainAsia-AngSalitangDiyos,airedfrom5amto6amatDWIZAMradio882aswellas write the weekly Thursday column‘AlalaongBaga’ inBusinessMirror.Msgr.

Vengcowasordainedin1965andhas an MA Philosophy, a PhD inSacred Theology (magna cumlaude),andadiplomateinLiturgy( s umma c um l a ude ) f romGermany.

The second keynote talk was on‘PreventingFallsandFractures’.byJose Fernando Syquia, a notedorthopedic surgeon. Dr. Syquiastated that bone fractures inseniorcitizensusuallyresultfromfalls. But then he posed thequestion - why is it that whenchildren fall, they don’t breakanything and they continueon as

ifnothinghadhappened.Thatisbecausechildren’s bones are dense and at thesame time ?lexible. Unfortunately, whenseniorcitizens fall, slip, trip,orstumble,chances are high that it will result inb o n e f r a c t u r e . T h e r e a s o n i sosteoporosis, or degradation andweakeningofthebonesubstance.Aswegrowold,ourbonesbecomespongyandbrittle. To prevent this, seniors are

advised to avoid risk factors, do regularexercise,and takesuf?icientcalciumandvitaminD. Fall risks can be due to pooreyesightorbeingunder the in?luenceofmedications.

Dr. Syquia ?inished his premed at UST,with the honor of being its ?irst summacum laude, then graduated with amedical degree in 1990, magna cumlaude, and a board topnotcher. In 1991,he was awarded Most OutstandingOrthopedic Resident Award by theMakati Medical Center. He was ChiefResident at the Philippine OrthopedicCenterfrom1995to1998. Heholdsthedistinction of being the ?irst and onlyorthopedic surgery resident to beawarded the Most Outstanding SurgicalResident Award, by the PhilippineCollegeofSurgeonsbackin1998.Healsowon the Most Outstanding OrthopedicResident Award from 1996 to 1998,given by the Philippine Board ofOrthopedics. In 1999, he topped thediplomate examinations given by thePhilippineBoardofOrthopedics.

As usual, there were games and prizes.Doy Lopez and Anna Lagman grouped

Seniors’ Fiesta Assembly: Food, Games, Talks, and Swinging


14

Sunrise Ministry

the participants by table and conductedthe game ‘Ganito ang Tawag NiyoNgayon,AnoangTawagNaminNoon’.

TherewasalsoLineDancing, ledby theswingingLadiesofCharity.TogetherwiththeleadDI,theyencouragedtheseniorsinattendancetojointheminswingingtothegroove.

Another highlight was the free bonescreeningforosteoporosis,whichstartedat8:30am.

And?inally,thetraditionaldistributionoflootbags ?illedwith goodies capped theseniors’assembly.

Advent Recollection for Kasambahays, Drivers & Community HelpersThe ka s ambahays , d r ive r s a ndc o m m u n i t yh e l p e r s h a dt h e i r o w nAdvent day ofrecollection lastDecember4and5. Participantshad a choice ofe i t h e r d a t e ,depending ontheirschedules.

F r . B o n gGuerreroservedas recollection leader, replacing Fr.WilliamGarcia,whohad to attend to anemergency.

The event is an annual project of theCatholicWomen’sLeague.Forthis 2017Advent recollection, a total of 48

participants attended, 30 on MondayDecember 4 and 18 on Tuesday,December5.

The CWL ladies prepared the room, theprojection system, the white board, andsound system. They also facilitatedregistration, assisted the assignedcatechists, prepared the morning, lunchandafternoonsnacks,andprocessedthe

release of stipends for Fr. Guerrero andthecatechists.

TheCWLorganizingteamincluded:KimCua, Nadine Navarro, Charito Barredo,Rosario Joson, Flor Cabello, CarminaHidalgo,RubyJoaquin,andEdenAlmirez.

Other CWL ladies attending included:Ching Botero, Ellen Asuncion, TerryLucero, Benita Lozada, Carol Teves,Remedios Cabanban, Nanette Cayme,Dolores de la Cruz, Corazon de la Cruz,andPaulinadeJesus.

The full-day program included severaltalks and lectures by Fr. BongGuerrero,community prayers and singing, andindividualsharingbyeachparticipantonwhat they would like to hear at theireulogy and how far they were fromachieving that vision. They also viewed

several uplifting videos. The last part ofthe program was confession, whereeveryone went through the Rite ofReconciliation.

Seniors’ Fiesta Assembly


15

The Ladies of Charity (LOC) held aChristmaspartylastDecember15forthebene?iciariesoftheirfeedingprogramatLibisElementarySchool.Ahundred?irst-and second -g raders f rom L ib i sElementary School are currently in the

program. With recommendation from

the school administration, bene?iciarieshad been chosen based on nutritionalneeds, and their family and ?inancialbackground.

LESprincipalChelmaCabaticopenedtheprogram with welcome remarks andextended her thanks to Christ the KingParish for its continuing support for theschool. The kids were given a specialJollibee treat of fried chicken andspaghetti. Some of the ladies alsodonated fresh apples and chocolates forthechildren.

The children prepared a song followedby a dance number. Each child left theChristmaspartywithagoodiebag.

Two weeks earlier, on November 28,sevenCTKparishionerswhoareregularsintheCTKmorningexercisegroupatSt.Luke’s Room decided to band togetherandsharetheirblessingswiththekidsofLibisElementarySchool.IncoordinationwithLOC,theybroughtfoodandcheerto

the 100 children under the CTK-LOCfeeding program. The exercise group isheaded by LOC ladies Melanie AquinoandTessieSaulog.Theother ladieswhochipped in included: Irene Almario,DignaPastor,NellieAlleje,DianaGozum,andMarciaFong.

Christmas Party for LOC’s Feeding Program Participants at LES

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LOC’sEileendeLeonwithLibisElementarySchoolprincipalMs.ChelmaCabatic

Social Services & Development Ministry

TheLadiesofCharity-CTKChapterheldtheir rummage sale al l day lastNovember 19 at the LOC Lingap Centerbeside theDivineMercyChapel. For thepast twoweeks preceding, the LOC hadbeen broadcasting their request forparishioners to bring their donations ofused clothes, toys, appliances, etc. Theproceeds always go to fund their socialoutreachprojects.

Ladies of Charity Holds Rummage Sale

‣ Getintothehabitofservingfruitsfirst.Theymake you feel full so you avoid overea1ng.

Also, fruits like bananas soak up thecholesterolthatwillfollow.

‣ Eat dinner early, preferably at least 5 hoursbefore bed1me. Ea1ng late forces thediges1ve system and the heart to keepworkinglateintheevening.

‣ Always keep a clean kitchen and wash yourhandsoZen.

‣ Avoid mixes to get flavors; instead go forsauteeing,star1ngwithgarlicthenonion.

‣ Finally, do not take shortcuts in foodprepara1on. These shortcuts also shortcutsyourfamily’slifeyears..

Seven former scholars of the Ladies ofCharityhadan informalmini-reunionofsortslastNovember12atCTK’sSt.JohnARoom,attheinvitationofLOC’sEileende Leon and other LOC of?icers. Theseven had graduated at different times,asearlyas2005andas lateasthisyear.After a light meal, the former scholarswereaskedtosharewhathadhappened

to t hemsincetheygraduatedand theyv e r ywill inglyobliged.

Chef Jessie Wows Libis Moms with Quick Healthy Cooking

Informal Mini-Reunion of Ex-LOC Scholars

LastNovember25, theLadiesofCharityinvited nationally-renowned Chef JessieSincioco to teach the Libis communitymoms-anda fewdadsaswell -howtocook simple, cheap yet nutritious andnice-to-look-atmealsforthefamily.

Fiftymothers came to the tutorial. ChefJessiedeliberatelypreparedadishusingtypical leftovers found in the fridge. Shealsogaveseveralpointerswhilecooking:‣ Eatonlywhenhungry.‣ Never cook too much. When you do, thefamily feels compelled to eat what’s on thetable.

‣ Focus on breakfast since that is the mostimportantmealoftheday.

‣ Thebiggestservingsshouldbecarbs-brownrice,pasta,etc.-followedbyvegetables,thenmeatsandeggs.Minimizeondessert.

17


November 27was the Ladies of CharitydaywiththeprisonersofManilaCityJail.The LOC delegation, headed by LOCpresidentFePeryorganizedamass,afterwhich theydistributed lunchpacks.Theladiesshared lunchwiththeManilaCityJail prisoners in the chapel. After themeal, sacks of ricewere donated to thejail administrators for cooking futuremealsoftheinmates.

Lastyear,theLOCdonatedplasticchairsforthecityjailchapel.

LOC Serve Lunch and Distribute Rice During Manila City Jail Visit

LastNovember30,theLadiesofCharity,orLOC, conductedaLivelihoodTrainingProgram on ‘Practical Nail Art’. Thedemo-tutorial was conducted by JaninaGutierrez-Tan,aCTKparishioner.

The one-day livelihood project wasparticipated inbythegraduatesofpriorLOC cosmetology livelihood trainingfromBarangayLibis.

The participants were taught basic nailcare; proper use of nail tools; creativewaystobettertheirmanicure&pedicurecraft; and new original designs for naildecorations.

LOC’s Livelihood Training on Practical Nail Art

18


More ‘Coffee After Church’

December 10 by Mustard Seed MinistryandCatecheRcalMinistry

November26byBuklodngPanginoon

November12byDiwanihanKrisRyano

November19byYouthMinistry

October 29 by Couples for Christ &KnightsofColumbus

October 15 by Life in the Spirit PrayerGroup

The Coffee After Church, or CAC, isregularly held after the Sunday 9 ammassinthefrontgarden.EachSundayissponsoredandcoordinatedbyadifferentp a r i sh g roup ba sed on a g reedassignments.

19

The Christ the King GreenmeadowsGawad Kalinga Village in San DiegoStreet, off ZabarteAvenue, BarangayKaligayahan,Novaliches,QuezonCitycelebrated the 8th anniversary of itsfounding in 2009 with its usualFoundation Day festivities at theZabarte Road compound lastNovember 30. And as in previousyears past, Christ the King ParishGreenmeadows demonstrated itscontinuingsupportfortheGKvillage?lagship project it underwrote andjointly sponsored with GawadKalinga for the 50 former residentfamilies of Libis Sitio 1, the areaunder the Santolan-Katipunanoverpass and the ?irst of severalLibissitiostobeforcefullyevicted.UnlikemostotherGKvillages,thisCTK Greenmeadows GK villagew a s d o n a t e d n o t b y o n ecorporat ion but by severalhundredparishioners,parishionerf am i l i e s , CTK chap te r s o fmandated organizations andrenewalmovements.

Village sponsors and CTK PPCmembersBenjieandWinsMirasolonce again visited the 50-unitvillage,spreadoutover3,000sqm,together with regular GK ZabarteFoundation Day-Christmas partyemceeBingdelRosario. To recall,Benjie Mirasol was the projectmanager for the site search andh o u s i n g c o n s t r u c t i o n i n2008-2009 under then-parishpriest Monsignor Dan Sta. Maria.Libis Sitio 1 was already nearingforced evacuation and the 50families, including CTK staffers NoelMiro (Sacristan Mayor), DodongCabintoy (driver-gardener), andRey L l a g a s ( p a r k i n g a r e amaintenance) had nowhere to go.AswithotherGKsites,bene?iciaryfamilies had to undergo trainingand orientation on communitybui ld ing as wel l as va luesformation before they could getcustodyofthehouses;inturn,theCTKdonor-sponsorscommittedtospot livelihood opportunities sothat the bene?iciaries and theirchildren could become valuableassets to their new parish. Since2009, Benjie and Wins had alsobeen taking care of the spiritualneedsofthevillagersandensuringthat the Couples for Christ-GK

ideals and value systems areinternalized by the relocatedfamilies. From being marginalized,the project bene?iciaries havebecome productive communitymemberswithtransformedattitudes,life outlook, and spirituality throughthe formation programs of theCouples for Christ-CTK Chapter. Buteven after eight years, the villageelders continue to regularly consulttheir ‘godparents’ onmany differentmat ters – ? inanc ia l , con ? l i c tr e s o l u t i on , mo ra l c on c e rn s ,emp l oymen t i s s u e s , v i l l a g eleadershipquestions,etc.

The CTK delegation of Benjie, Winsand Bing were met and entertained

by the village leadership team,consistingofpresidentTonyGallardo(whohadbeenpresidentsince2009)

and JulietMendoza (treasurer). Alsoat the event was Benjie’s fellowinstructor at Ateneo’s School ofManagement (SOM), Pam da Silva,who had a team of ?ive graduatingstudents working at the villageidentifying livelihood opportunitiesa s p a r t o f t h e i r g radua t i onrequirements.

The Foundation Day cum ChristmasParty was emceed by Bing delRosario who interspersed gamesw i t h t h e p r e p a r e d mu s i c a lperformances. Bing was assisted insome of the games by the SOMAteneo students. Village presidentgave theclosing remarksat12noonandthevillagelunchfollowed.

CTK GreenMeadows Gawad Kalinga at Novaliches Celebrates 8th Anniversary

20

The Ateneo students helping out Bing del Rosariowithsomeofthechildren’sgames

Below, the older children with their dancenumber

The 140-plus renewing lectors-commentators - not including the ninenewonescommissionedlastAugust13-wereformallycommissionedbyFr.BongTupinoduringtheNovember199:00amSunday mass in f ront o f a fu l lcongregation. He mentioned that thelectors-commentators had gone throughthe renewa l seminar and were

d e l i b e r a t e l yrecommitting to bep r o c l a im e r s o fGod’s Word. So het h a n k e d t h eLeComs and askedthe congregation togive them a bighand. The LeComMinistry is led byMelNovales.

Eight hours later,t h e 9 0 - p l u sr e n e w i n gE x t r a o r d i n a r yMinisters of HolyCommun ion , o r

EMHC, were formally commissioned for2018dutiesduringthe5:00pmmassatthesamemainchurch.

I n h i sintroduction,Fr.Bong told thecongregat iont h a t t h e s eextraordinaryministers hadcompleted ther e n e w a ls e m i n a r ,ful?i l led them i n i m u ma t t e n d a n c erequirementforthe2017vocationtalks,andwered e l i b e r a t e l y r e - c omm i t t i n gt h e m s e l v e s t o f a i t h f u l l yadministering the Eucharist duringCommunionatmass.

The EMHC are currently led byOverallCoordinatorAlbertCuadrante.Torecall,lastAugust27,arecord16newmembers were added to the EMHCranks. CTK Eucharistic Ministers servein the three daily masses, 10 weekendmasses, some of the weekly villagemasses (Acropolis, Corinthian Hills,White Plains) daily village masses(Corinthian Gardens, St. Ignatius) plusgiving communion to the sick in theirhomesonaweeklybasis.

Thedaybefore,November18,atthe7:30pm mass, the Greeters & Collectors(GreCols) renewing their service for2018were similarly commissioned. TheGreCols are currently led by OverallCoordinatorJeanetteCagurangan.

Worship Ministry Commissioning: LeComs, EMHCs, and GreCols

WORSHIP MINISTRY

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Fr. Fred Cristian Narvasa spoke to over125 teenage youth and altar servers on‘What InspiredMetoAnswertheCall toPriesthood’ last November 4. SomeparishionerswouldrecallthatNovemberis always ‘DiocesanandParishVocation’Month hence vocation talks such as Fr.

Fred’s are typically scheduled inNovember. Most of the attendeeswereCTKscholarssponsoredbytheLadiesofCharityandKnightsofColumbus.

Fr. Fred had only been a deacon forexactlyayearwhenhewasordainedasapriest in March 2017. He is currentlyParochialVicar of the Ladyof PentecostParish.

HistalkcenteredonwhatinspiredhimtoentertheOurLadyofGuadalupe MinorSeminaryandcontinuetopursuehiscall

tothepriesthooddespitethechallenges.Fr.Fredtalkedabouthischildhood,howhe and his brothers would put onblanketsandpretend to saymass,usinggrape juice as holy wine and FitacrackersasEucharistichosts.

I t w a s h i sgrandmother whoencouraged him topursue his dream ofbecoming a priest.W i t h o u t h e rencouragement andguidance, he wouldneve r h ave gonethrough wi th h ispriestly vocation, Fr.Fredadmitted.

In the seminary, Fr.Fred admitted thathomesicknesswasthebiggest challenge. Hehad many classmateswho cried at night

and a few who couldn’t stand theseparation from their families and quit.But in theend,Fr.Fredwasunequivocalin proclaiming that the sacri?icewas allworth it,ashe ?inally ful?illedhisdreamofbecominganagentoftheLord.

Fr. Fred Narvasa was supposed to haveshared the podium with his brotherFrederick Carlo who is currently aDeacon, also at the Our Lady ofGuada lupe Minor Seminary butFrederickhadanemergencyandcouldn’tmakeitatthelastmoment.

CTK’s retired resident priest, the stillsprightly Monsignor Antonio ‘Tony’ or‘Morti’MortilleroSJ,celebratedhis82nd

birthday last November 5 with a 7 ammorningmassonNovember4.Thiswasfollowed by a hearty breakfast at the

convent veranda. Msgr. Mortillero hasbeen i n t he p r i e s thood fo r anunbelievable 54 years, having beenordainedonthe23rdofDecember1962.His very ?irst assignment was asAssistant Parish Priest in Pateros,Marikina, He then became the parishpriest of Sta. Rita de Cascia Parish inBaclaran, Parañaque in 1971, andconcurrently,Directorof theSta.RitadeCasciaParochialSchool.Heoccupiedtheposition for 22 years until 1993. From1994to2012,oratotalof18years,Msgr.Morti was assigned as parish priest ofOurLadyofPerpetualHelpParishinQCProject 8. In 2004, Msgr. AntonioMortillero was concurrently appointedthesecondVicarGeneralandModeratorCuriae of the Cubao Diocese. He retiredin2012.

‘What Inspired Me to Answer the Call’ VOCATION MINISTRY

Msgr. Tony Mortillero C e l e b r a t e s 8 2 n d Birthday

22

The CTK Family & Life Ministry,headed by Regie and JoannePolancos, held the 4th quarterMarriage Vocation Program, orMVP,on theweekend of November 4 and5. It was attended by a record 66couples, all slated to get married atCTK main church anywhere fromDecember2017toMarch2018.

At 16 hours long over twoweekenddays, Christ the King has one of thelongest marriage preparat ionseminarsintheMetroarea.Thepre-cana material had recently beencondensed into a book, ‘MarriageVocation Program for the Engaged:PreparingCouplesforMarriage’. It isbased on the package developed bythe original heads of Family & Life

M in i s t r y, Doy andEstrelleLopez,whohadb e e n r u nn i n g t h eprogram since the late1990’s.

For th i s quar ter lyo f f e r i n g , t h e l e adcouple were Aji andAngieRualo, supportedby facilitators CharitoBarredo,LouieandJopsPadrinao, Edwin andMichelle Bernardo, Joel and AnnaviTamor, Jinggo and Ludgie Aldecoa,Jing and Girlie Alampay, Joel andSandraPamo,andPaulUy.

Fr. Bong Tupino, CTK parish priest,addressed the group at 8:30 am onSaturday, November 4. The HolyMass for the engaged couples,conductedthenextday,November5,waspresidedbyFr.SergeManiba.

Couple speakers who gave talksincluded:‣ AlexandTataAlbert,on‘Imagesof

Love’‣ BingandCieloDiño,on‘Sacrament

ofMatrimony’‣ Johnny and Ayen Guevara, on

‘Effec1ve Communica1on inMarriage’

‣ Judd and Paz Balayan, on ‘SexualExpressioninMarriage’

‣ Beng and Debbie Pangan, on‘ResponsibleParenthood’

‣ DoyandEstrelleLopez,on‘NaturalFamilyPlanningandParen1ng101’

‣ Jingoand LudgieAldecoa,on ‘TheJourneyAhead’

Record 66 Couples Attend 4th Quarter Marriage Vocation Program

23

FAMILY & LIFE MINISTRY

Diwanihan Kristiyano organized a talkwith accompanying exercises lastOctober 31 on the increasingly-populartopic of ‘Mindfulness’, a process offocusing on the present. Mindfulness isthe basic human ability to be fullypresent,awareofwhereweareandwhatwe’re doing, and not overly reactive oroverwhelmedbywhat’sgoingonaroundus. Scienti?ic studies had shown thatconsistent mindfulness results in betterlevelsofphysicalandmentalhealthandreducesstress,depressionandanxiety.

Invited by Diwanihan Kristiyano headLoungandMonCuarterotogivethetalkwas Dr. Myrna Sanchez PhD, a seniorcounselor at CeFam, at San Carlos

Seminary, and atLorenzo Mission.S h e i s a l s o afacultymemberatthe Loyola SchoolofTheologyandatSt. Scholastica’sCollege.

Dr. Myrna ?irstment ioned thepioneers in the?ield, speci?icallyJon Kabat-Zinn,founder of the

‘Center for Mindfulness in Medicine,HealthCareandSociety’attheUniversityofMassachusettsSchoolofMedicine,andRichardDavidson,founderofthe‘Centerfor Investigating Healthy Minds’ at theUniversity of Wisconsin. The twopioneershadstagedsimilar studies thatprovedthatexperimentalgroupstutoredfor eight weeks in mindfulness andmeditationtechniquesre?lectedjumpsinleft prefrontal cortex activity comparedto control groups that recorded nochangeinbrainactivity.Andpeoplewithactive left prefrontal cortex tend todescribe themselves as ‘interested’,‘excited’,‘active’,‘alert’,and‘enthusiastic’.The studies have concluded that justeightweeksofmindfulness training ina

busy workp laceenvironment canhave a pos i t iveeffectonwell-being.

Dr. Myrna had theattendees do somesimple meditationexercises. The ?irstw a s ‘ m i n d f u l ’

breathing where the person paysattention to every breath taken in andgiven out, mentally reciting suggestivewords, and visualizing images. Anotherset of exercises was on practicing thevarious senses, especially on touch,smell,soundandtaste.

Shegave?ivetipsforregularlypracticingmindfulness:

1 Setasidesometime.Youdon’tneedameditation cushion or bench, or anysort of special equipment to accessyour mindfulness skills—but you doneed to set aside some time andspace.

2 Observe the present moment as itis. The aim of mindfulness is notquieting the mind, or attempting toachieve a state of eternal calm. Thegoal is simple: we’re aiming to payattention to the present moment,without judgement. Easier said thandone,weknow.

3 Letyourjudgmentsrollby.Whenwenotice judgements arise during ourpractice,we canmake amental noteofthem,andletthempass.

4 Return to observing the presentmomentasitis.Ourmindsoftengetcarried away in thought. That’s whymindfulness is the practice ofreturning, again and again, to thepresentmoment.

5 Be k ind to your wander ingmind. Don’t judge yourself forwhatever thoughts crop up, justpracticerecognizingwhenyourmindhaswanderedoff,andgentlybring itback.

TheCTKYouthMinistry,headedbyLouieand Lei Abando, mounted the annualYouth Fiesta Kick-Off last November 18,

usually staged aweek before the actualfeast day of Christ the King. Theparticipants,mostly inthe15to20yearold range, included village youth, PREX

youth,LadiesofCharityscholars,Knightsof Columbus scholars, plus friends and‘barkada’ofsomeoftheparticipants.

Itfollowedtheusualsuccessfulformula-dinner, followed by a get to know yousegment,thenpraiseandworship,ledbyWhe re ’ s t h e S heep b and . Th i stransitioned into the fun portion of theevening, with games. The eveningconcludedwiththeClosingPrayer.

DK Sponsors Mindfulness Talk Youth Fiesta Kick-Off Starts CTK’s Fiesta Celebration

YOUTH MINISTRY

24

OctoberwasRosaryMonthand the ?irstof October, a Sunday, was celebrated byprayingtheHolyRosary followedbythe?lower offering at 4:20 pm, just before

the 5 pm Sunday mass at the mainchurch.

TheRosarywasprayedthefollowingday,October 2, until October 31 after the 7ammasses andbefore the6pmmasseson weekdays. On Saturdays, the Rosarywas recited before the 6 pm mass andbeforethe5pmmassonSundays.

October 31, a Tuesday, was theculminationofRosaryMonth.The6pmmasswasheldatthemainchurchratherthan at the Divine Mercy Chapel and itwas preceded by the recitation of theChaplet of the Divine Mercy, praying ofthe Holy Rosary, and the ?inal ?loweroffering.Whatmadethemassevenmorespecial was the blessing by Fr. BongTupino of the images of the BlessedVirginMary.

Some of the villages, like Acropolis andGreenMeadows 1, mounted daily HolyRosarysessions.InthecaseofAcropolis,it was done in their Acropolis Park

gazebo while in GreenMeadows 1, therosary recitation moved from house tohouse.

Last October 28, a Saturday, the FatimaCentennial Devotion formally concludedat Christ the King Parish with thecandlelightprocessionafterthe7:30pmanticipatedmass.Theprocessionstartedfrom Christ the King parish church toAcropolisandback.

At the end of the procession, as theFatima image arrived back at the mainchurch,Fr.Bong incensedthe imageonelast time, led the prayers, then thankedEllenChuafordonatingtheFatimaimageand Worship Ministry heads Peter andLeilaBanicofororganizingtheevent.

Twoweeksearlier,theparishhelditslastHoly Hour in honor of Our Lady ofFatima, last October 13 after the 6 pmdaily mass. The next day, Saturday,October14,CTKundertookitslastparishpilgrimageto theNationalShrineofOurLady of Fatima in Valenzuela, MetroManila,from8amto12noon.

October was Rosary Month

Fr.Bongleadsprocessionfrommainchurch

ProcessionthroughAcropolisstreets,above;andpassingbyAcropolisClubhouse,below

Windingitswaybacktothemainchurch

October 28 Candlelight Procession Marks End of Fatima Centennial Devotion

25

Above,OctoberRosaryMonthinAcropolis.Below,RosaryMonthinGreenMeadows1.

Polancos -worked together to stage thebiggest andmost successfulKingdomofHeavenFairsofar,lastOctober22attheParishSocialHall.

The Kingdom of Heaven Fair requestedthechildren in theparishtodressupasbiblical characters, saintly ?igures, andconsecratedpersons.Andindeed,atleast50 children showed up in inspiring andreligion-inspired costumes. Therewas aformalparadeofcostumestocapthefair.

Thoughtheeventwasscheduledfrom 1 pm to 5 pm, therewereso many early arrivers that theorganizers decided to paradethem during the Sunday noonmass,withthepermissionofthepriestpresider. thiselicited loudapplausefromthemassgoers.

Fr. Serge Maniba of?iciallyopened the Kingdom of Heaven

Fairprogramwithanopeningprayer.Heevenstayedaround toplaywithseveralcute little tykes.All thechildren had a chance to parade from the stagedown to the red carpet, with their names and the

Kingdom of Heaven Fair 2017 Draws Record Number of Children Parishioners to Its Pearly Gates


26

Above, parade of early birds at the noonmass

A s a m p l e r o f t h evarious costumes thatthe children came upwith.

Below, a shot of thehuge crowd inside theParishSocialHall.

Mustard Seed Ministry + Youth Ministry + Family & Life Ministry


religious character they representedbeingannounced.

Thereweresevengamebooths,scatteredaround the socialhall,with the childrenhaving to complete all seven games sothey could get the game stamp on their‘passports’. Completing their ‘passport’meant being able to get their loot bag.Loot bag goodies were compliments ofApostleship of Prayer, CWL, MBMG,

Pinky Antonio, Dulce Barreto, Eileen deLeon, Maritel Nievera, Nene Supetran,and Mrs. Tantoco of GreenMeadows,Ana Fernando of CFM, Bet Montecillo,Mrs. Naty andMrs. Pena?lor. There wasanAngryBirdsgamebooth,abasketballbooth,abowlingbooth,ashootinggame,ahooptoss,a ‘pintheBabyJesusonthenativityscene’,andthemostpopularone,‘FishersofMen’,wherethekidsgottoactually ?ish for live aquarium ?ishes.Gameboothsponsors includedHenryTanedo , Ma l i n g Gu t i e r re z o fGreenMeadows, Zeny Palisoc ofAcropolis, and the Ladies of Charity.Cash sponsors included LindaTanjancoofGreenMeadowsandLouieLaudico.

Therewerealsofoodboothsinvitedtosell in the social hall, offeringsiomai, arroz caldo, halo-halo,t u ron , c o ok i e s , n a c ho s ,cupcakes,bakedpenne,shavedice, etc. There was also freetaho, courtesy of DiwanihanKristiyano, and free popcorn,c o u r t e s y o f A c r o p o l i scoordinator Irene Robles. Bythethirdhour,thetiredparentsand guardians were noted tohavecongregated in thecenterof the social hall where chairs

hadbeenthankfullyscattered.

Aside from JoannePolancos,MinaMejiaandLeiAbando,theorganizingteamalsoincluded Jops Padrinao. Jops’ husbandLouie did the emceeing chores whileJoanne Polancos’ daughter Regina tookthephotos.


Kingdom of Heaven Fair 2017 Draws Record Number of Children

27

Wearyparentsandguardianstakingarest

Organizersgivingoutthelootbags

Mustard Seed Ministry + Youth Ministry + Family & Life Ministry

The traditional CTK Parish PastoralCouncil(PPC)planningmeetingwasheldlastOctober28 to29atSonya’sGarden,attended by the ministry heads andrepresentatives of parish organizationswhocomprisedthePPC.

Thefullagendaincludedanintroductionby Fr. Bongwho set the parameters forthe planning as well as the guidelinesand why the exercise was important.Otherdiocesedirectionswerediscussed.Fr. Bong also shared his impendingsabbatical before he moves to anotherPar i sh , capp ing h i s two 3 -yearassignmenttermsatCTK.

This was followed by the presentationsof the ministries’ 2018 plans andbudgets. Prior to this meeting, theministry heads had sat down with Fr.Bongforapreliminaryreview.Questionswere asked, and the ?inal plan andbudget approved,with the assistance ofthe Treasurers Bing and Elise delRosario.

The presentation was started by theyoungestoftheministriescateringtotheyoungest parishioners and led by theyoungest Ministry heads, Sonny andMina Mejia. Innovative ideas were putforth.A signi?icantobservationwas that

thereisanagegroup–fromage9to12-that also needs attention – that fellbetween thepre-communicantsofup toage8(MustardSeed),andthoseintheirteens(Youth).2018activitieslineduptoinclude thissector included:buildingupteaching resources; designation of theFeast of Sto. Nino as the Children’sMinistryAwarenessSunday;Parentsandvolunteers fellowship; greater inter-ministrycoordination;commissioningofchildren’s ministry core team; andvolunteerworkshops.

Led by Joanne and Regie Polancos, theFamily and Life Ministry discussed itsplans to continue conducting theMarriage Vocat ion Program andorganizing: Parenting Talks, ConscienceFormationof theYouth,MedicalMissionprojects, and, in collaboration with theYouth and Children’sMinistries, overseetheKingdomofHeavenFairactivities.

Alma Yeh, who co-heads CatecheticalMinistrywith Sheryl Coronel, presentedtheplansof theCatecheticalMinistry tohold: the regular summer catecheticalclasses, lent recollection for CTKs c h o l a r s , ? i r s t c o n f e s s i o n a ndcon?irmationclassesandrites.

FortheVocationMinistry,LouieLaudico,who heads the ministry together withAnnaLagman,talkedabout:theplannedencounterofaltarserverswithdiocesanseminarians; celebrating vocationmonth;settingupafull-dayprogramforVocation Sunday; and the VocationEucharistic Hour; as well as schedulingtalks to enlighten young men aboutpriesthoodasavocation.

The ministry for the elderly, called theSunrise Ministry, is headed by Doy andEstrelle Lopez. In their absence, theplans already approved after Fr. Bong’sreviewwerepresentedbyLouieLaudico.

Activities centered on physical, creativeand formation concerns of the elderlymembers. Theministry also planned onconductingseniors’‘assemblies’,half-dayaffairs that include community singing,dancing, games, informative talks, freehealthcheck-ups,snacks,andfreebies.Ahighlight is the visitation service byvo l un te e r s o f t h e s i c k e l d e r lyparishioners.

Mila Bangco, ministry head of SocialServices and Development (SSD),explained how the works of themandated organizations Apostleship ofPrayer led byWandaReyes; BuklodngPanginoon by Cita Pabillo, CatholicWomen’sLeaguebyKimCua,KnightsofColumbusbyBoyAngeles,andLadiesofCharitybyFePeryhavebroughttheSSDcloser to its objectives of povertya l lev iat ion and improved l iv ingconditions for the oppressed, exploited,and depressed families. After theindividual activities of the organizationswere completed, Mila categorizedactivities into: Scholarship, Feeding,L i v e l i h o o d , R i c e D i s t r i b u t i o n ,P r i s o n Apo s t o l a t e , C a t e c h i sm -Recollection, and Medical-DentalMissions.

Fr. Bong celebrated mass for theattendees. Participants also had theopportunity to discussministrymattersand shared experiences, problems andsuccesses over ?irst day dinner andseconddaybreakfast.

PPC’s Ministries Present Plans and Programs for 2018

continued on next page 28

Clockwise,fromtopleft:SSDMinistry’sMilaBangco; CWL’s Kim Cua; KoC’s Boy Angeles;Buklod’sLulaydelaCruz

Clockwise, from top left: Mustard SeedM i n i s t r y ’ s M i n a a n d S o n n y M e j i a ;Catechetical’s Alma Yeh; Vocation Ministry’sLouieLaudico;Catechetical’sSherylCoronel

The second day started with thepresentationoftheYouthMinistryledbyLouie and Lei Abando. Activitiesdiscussed were the Youth Pilgrimage,PREX Youth, Days with the Lord,November Fiesta Kick Off, Kingdom ofHeaven Fair, Vicariate Summer SportsLeague, Vicariate Youth MinistryVisitations, Easter Egg Hunt, SocialServiceOutreach,andthemonthlyyouthgathering both for the high school andcollegelevels.

In the absence of Formation MinistryHead JoeyGalvez,BingdelRosario,whowas present during the previousweek’sQ&A with Fr. Bong, presented theministry’s plans of continuing the Biblestudyformationseries.Additionswereanew weekly Familiarization with theFaith series, and the Formation topicsrelevant to the Year of the Clergy andStewardship.

In linewith Formation activities, Life int he Sp i r i t ( LSS ) Pa r i sh P raye rCommunity plans were presented byPepe and Billie Pilar who presented forLSS leaders Bobby andMarge San Juan.The Community’s weekly activities ofhealing mass, praise and worship,sharing and teaching night werediscussed. Pepe discussed the requestsupport for its healing mass during the

WorldDayoftheSick,teachingsessions,andLifeintheSpiritSeminar.

Tiny Perfecto discussed plans for theBEC,amajorpartofwhichistheconductof BEC Awareness and OrientationS em in a r s . I t w i l l c o n t i n u e i t sinvolvementwith theLibisBECprojectsandseektobemoreactiveinthevillages.The Ministry has also planned arecollection activity for the Libis andvillageBECs.

Led by Peter and Leila Banico, theWorshipMinistry,withthemostnumberof members, provides for orderly andmeaningful liturgical celebrations. Thefollowing are the groups within theMinistry, their leaders and number ofmembers: Lectors and Commentators(Lecoms) led by Mel Novales, with52 ;Music ledbyBenjieMirasolwith24choirs, 2 instrumentalists, 2 vocalists;Extraordinary Ministers of the HolyCommunion (EMHC), led by AlbertCuadrante, with 97; Greeters and

Collectors (Grecols) led by JeanetteCagurangan,with28;andAltarServers,ledbyLouieLaudico,with35.Formationtalks and renewals were going tocomprise the most common activity forthe groups, with the exception of themusicministrywhich is still focused onchoir training to provide music forworship.

Jing and Girlie Alampay, heads of thePublic Affairs Ministry, explained whytheactivities scheduled for2017werenotcarriedoutandinsteadproposedalivelihood project for 2018. They alsoplanned for a talk on the ‘7 Habits ofHighlyEffectivePeople’forthepolice.Media Ministry head Bing del Rosariopresentedtheactivitiescarriedout for2017aswellastheplansfor2018with

respect to the CTK website, newsletter,as well as the newly-installed LEDdisplay. Under the leadership of SherylCoronel and Althea Geronilla, the socialmedia, that is,Facebook, Instagram,etc.,armwill remain active and continues tolendsupporttotheMediaMinistrygoals.

Capping the presentations on projectsandcorrespondingcostbudgetwasBertandMarieAnneSantos,headcoordinatorofCTK’sPPC.BertSantosexplainedthattheadministrativeexpensesareincludedunder the PPC, to wit: salary andallowancesofthePPCassistant;supplies;theCoffeeAfterChurchProject,andmid-yearrecollection.2018donationsfortheYearoftheClergyactivitieshadalsobeenincludedunderthePPC.

In her integration, Treasurers Elise andBing del Rosar io presented thecorresponding budget of each Ministry,commenting that the total budgettotalingmorethan8.5millionpesosisupby 30% over that of 2017. More thanhalf of the budget is allocated to SocialServices and Development. PPC has thenext biggest share at 11% andWorshipMinistry at 8%. It was also noted thatdisbursementsrangefromhalftoalmostamillioneachmonth.

CappingoffthepresentationswasthatofStewardship, led by Benjie and CarinaMiraso l . Ben j ie s ta ted that theStewardshipgroupaims tocreategiverswho are Christ-centered as well as towiden thebaseofparishworkers,usingtheuniquetalentsandgiftsofmoreandmorefamiliesintheparish.ItisfromtheStewardshipactivities that funds for thevariousministriesaresourced.

The planning presentations concludedwith Fr. Bong providing the ClosingRemarks. He congratulated the PPC onwell-thoughtoutplans fornextyearbutat the same time, he emphasized theimportance of faithful execution of thevariousplannedprojectsandactivities.

PPC’s Ministries Present Plans and Programs for 2018continued from previous page

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Clockwise, from top left: BEC’s TinyPerfecto; Acropolis’ Maan del Rosario andIrene Robles with GreenMeadows’ Eileen deLeon;Stewardship’sBenjieMirasol;Worship’sLeila Banico; Greeters-Collectors’ JeanetteCagurangan;andWorship’sPeterBanico.

PPCCoordinatorBertSantos

TheHangadMusicMinistry,oneofCTK’sregular weekend choirs, celebrated its26th Anniversary last October 22,

Sunday,attheChurchoftheGesu in AteneodeManilawith aT h a n k s g i v i n gMass a t 5PM,fol lowed by afree concert at6 3 0 P M . T h ee v e n t a l s om a r k e d t h el a un ch o f i t slimited-editiona l b um c a l l e d"Hangad 25 TheA n n i v e r s a r yC e l e b r a t i o n "

which contains songs fromprevious albums plus three

newrecordings.

Hangad Music Ministry Celebrates 26th Anniversary with Gesu Concert

Sheryl Coronel, co-coordinator of theCTK Ca teche t i ca l M in i s t ry, wasinterviewed last August 6 on the RadioVeritas Saturday morning show, “GodWillMakeAWay”, an apostolate run byCatholic psychologists and psycho-spiritualcounselorstoministertopeoplewho have been victims of abuse andpsychotrauma. Manyamongtheshow'slisteners are women and children fromabusive homes; individuals recoveringfrom drug addiction; victims of crime;and others who suffer from differentforms and degrees of mental andemotionalillnesses.

Sheryl gavea ?irst-person testimonyonher own personal struggles againstanxiety disorder, which began sincechildhood. Shespokeof irrational fearsthatprogressedthroughheradolescenceand early adulthood making her doubttheloveofGod. Commiseratingwiththeshow’s audience, Sheryl spoke of herown feelings of hopelessness then, ofsearching for meaning and healing inotherreligions,andofherstraying fromt h e p a t h o f v i r t u e a nd g r a c e .E xpe r i enc ing p regnancy i s sue scompounded Sheryl’s misery, which ledto her developing hypochondria,depression,andsuicidalthoughts.

Sheryl confessed that she reached thedepths of 'spiritual poverty' before Godopened the gates of his mercy for her.She witnessed her own remarkablespiritual healing through the Sacramentof Reconciliation. She discoveredpersonal joy through Eucharisticadoration during daily Masses. And

Sheryl found a deep well of lovingsupport in the Christ the King Parishcommunity. Her life story, Sheryladmitted, has truly been one of hope,redemptionandrecovery.

From her own life experience, Sherylgave the following advice to peoplesufferingfrommentalillness:1Stay in a state of grace. Sin makespeople vulnerable to sp ir i tua loppressionordemonicattacks.

2Receive the sacraments often asfoodtostrengthenthesoulwiththelifeofGod.

3Donotbeinahurrytorecover.TrusttheLord’stiming.Impatiencetobewelltoosooncanonlyincreaseanxiety.

4Be in a community that loves God.Surround yourself with people whohaveastrongfaithinGodwhowillhelpstrengthenyours.

5Serve others. Hell is the perpetualcontemplationof self.Whenyou serveothers, you take your attention fromyourself and see that others haveworseproblemsthanyoudo. Helpingothers opens a spring of joy in yourheart.

6S e e k t h e h e l p o f a G o d l ypsychologistorcounselor.

Catechetical Ministry’s Sheryl Coronel on Radio Veritas’ “God Will Make a Way”

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Christ the King Parish had its AdventRecollection, ‘ChristmasHas Two Faces’,last December 9 at 10 am at theDivineMercyChapel, ledbyFr.FrancisAlvarez,SJ. Fr. Francis was ordained in 2009,completed his Licentiate in SacredTheology with a concentration inScripture in 2013, and then completedhisDoctorateinTheologyandEducationfrom Boston College just this year. In1997, Fr. Francis was awarded ‘TenOutstandingStudentsofthePhilippines’.He ?inished his AB Philosophy degreefromtheAteneodeManilaUniversity in1999, graduatingmagna cum laude andbatchvaledictorian.He then ?inishedhisMAPhilosophy in2002, then completedhis Bachelor's in Sacred Theology fromthe Loyola School of Theology, summacum laude, in 2009, and was classvaledictorian. For his doctorate, hefocusedonhowtoteachScripturetothefaithfultoday.

FrAlvarezbeganhistalkwiththeimageof the Roman god, Janus, with his twofaces, to point out his theme, thatChristmashastwofaces.

Heaskedtheaudienceseveralquestions:Though Advent is supposed to be theseason forwaiting,haveyoureallybeenwaiting for God this Advent season?When you review this past year, howmany times did you need God, if ever?Weretheredayswhenyoucouldn’thavesurvivedthedaywithoutGod’shelp?Orhaspridepreventedyou fromadmittingyouneededGod?IsGodjustanextra,tobecalledwhenwe'redesperateforhelp?

Fr. Francis asked everyone to re?lect ontheir lifeactions,plansandprojectsthatcame to fruition and met with success.Then he asked if we thought we were

successfulbecausewegaveitour100%,ordidwenotexertanyeffortandaskedGodtodo100%,orifwethoughtitwasa50%-50%effort,orifitwas99%usand1% God, or 99% God and 1% us. Therightanswer,hesaid,was-successcamebecauseyougave ityour100%andyouaskedGod to give his 100%.He alludedtoMatthew11:30withthepassage-‘formyyoke iseasyandmyburden is light’.He explained that oxen, the originalbeastsofburden,alwaysworkedinpairs,soa‘yoke’meantthattwooxensharedinthe load, which is what happens in ourlives, where God shares our burden bybeingtheotheroxintheyoke.

Forthe?irst ‘face’ofChristmas,which isa Christmas of vulnerability andweakness, he focused on Chris Rice’ssong,“WelcometoourWorld”.Insteadofsinging Happy Birthday to Jesus onChristmas, Rice sings instead ‘Welcometoourworld’.

Fr. Francis argued that thecountry, and the world, is in amess, what with the senselessviolence, extra judicial killings,sexual harassments, the Marawisiege,thepoliticalcrisesinIsrael,North Korea, etc. Like thegracious guest who, thoughannounced, ? inds the hostscrambling to get everything inorder, God tells us: “You don’thavetosweepthedirtundertherug or hide the embarrassingjunk in the closet. The reason Ihavecomeisyou.If it isamessyyou that I ?ind, then I will enteryour messiness and help youstraightenupthemess.Ionlyaskthat you make room for me –

even if it isonlyamanger. Inyou, Iwillmakemyhome.”ThisiswhyChrisRiceisencouragedtoinvitethisGoddeeperintohimself:

BringYourpeaceintoourviolenceBidourhungrysoulsbefilledWordnowbreakingHeaven’ssilenceWelcometoourworld.

Butweask- if thingsarealreadymessy,whydidGodcome in fragility,asababyJesus born in a manger?Would not theworld’s woes be better addressed withimperviousnessandtoughness–perhaps

by a m i gh t ywarrior or apowerful kingl e a d i n g af o r m i d a b l earmy? Would itnot have beenmoreef?icientifGod just cameswoopingdownlike a great bigballof ?ire fromheaven to burnaway all that isevil in us andpurify us fromallsin?

F r . F r a n c i sprovided thea n s w e r -

because living in amessy chaoticworldmakesusvulnerable.Andbyshowingushisownvulnerabilityasa tinybaby inamanger,weopenup tohimandbecomeintimate with him. God comes inweakness because He desires our love.Attraction to someone much morepowerful can be motivated by sel?ish

‘Have a Vulnerable and Defiant Christmas! Stewardship CommitteeADVENT RECOLLECTION BY


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interests. But being drawn to someoneweakcanonlybelove.

Fr. Francis advises - this Christmas, andthroughouttheNewYear,letuswelcomeweaknessintoourworld.Whenwestandwiththosewhosetearsarefalling,whoseheartsarebreaking–asChrisRice’ssongbegan – we will be more in touch withourneedforGod.

ChrisRiceendshislovesongtoGod:

SowrapourinjuredflesharoundYouBreatheourairandwalkoursodRoboursinsandmakeusholyPerfectSonofGodWelcometoourworld.

So we welcome the Lord God thisChristmas with the words, ‘Have aVulnerableChristmas’.

Forthe‘other’faceofChristmas,whichisaChristmasof‘de?iance’,Fr.Francisusedas a peg the poem ‘Christmas Bells’ byHenry Wadsworth Longfellow. Herecounted that Longfellow heard thechurchbellsringing,andhewrote:

IheardthebellsonChristmasDayTheirold,familiarcarolsplayAndwildandsweetthewordsrepeatOfpeaceonearth,goodwilltome!

But how could Longfellow write aboutpeace and goodwill when, two yearsearlier, his wife Fannie had died due toinjuries she suffered when her dressaccidentally caught ?ire and then thefollowingyear,hereceivednewsthathissonwasseriously injuredandparalyzedafter ?ighting in the American CivilWar.Sohewrote:

AndindespairIbowedmyhead;

“Thereisnopeaceonearth,”Isaid;“Forhateisstrong,AndmocksthesongOfpeaceonearth,good-willtomen!”

How can we greet each other “MerryChristmas”, given the darkness outsideand inside us? But, Fr. Francis argued,Christmas does not end in despair. Itends with care. It does not end withheads hung low and heavy hearts. Itends with peace. Henry WadsworthLongfellowrealized this, too.And sohewrote:

Then pealed the bells more loud anddeep:“Godisnotdead,nordothHesleep;TheWrongshallfail,TheRightprevail,With peace on earth, good-will tomen.”

Outside, it is dark. But still, we hangthesetinytwinklinglightsallaroundus–notbrightenoughforustoseethatfarahead, but bright enough for people offaithtoberemindedthatinthemidstofdarkness, there can still be light. AndLighthasconqueredtheworld.Weneeda de?iant faith to celebratewhat seemslikeadarkanddismalChristmasseason.We need to be able to defy our owndarkness, our many deaths, and ourdistrustandsay,“Thereislight.Thereislife.Thereislove.”Weneedtobeabletoringwith thebellsmore loudanddeepandproclaim,“Godisnotdeadnordoeshesleep.TheWrongshall fail, theRightprevail,withpeaceonearthgood-willtomen!”

The best way to greet each other thisseason is not with “Have a merryChristmas” but with “Have a de?iantChristmas!

‘Have a Vulnerable and Defiant Christmas!It’s been a very busy liturgical year forChrist the King Parish GreenMeadows.This last quarter is usually the busiest,whatwiththeFeastofChristtheKing lastNovember 26 and the novena massesleading up to it, culminating in the 5 pmFiestaMassof?iciatedbyBishopHonestoF.Ongtioco DD, head of the Roman CatholicDioceseofCubao.Thenightbeforewastheparish ?iesta thanksgiving dinner, ingratitude for the services of the variousm i n i s t r i e s , v i l l a g e s , m a n d a t e dorganizations, and renewal movementswho keep the parish spirit alive. It’s alsothetimewhentheretiringEMHCs,Lectors,andGreetersarefetedandhonored.

We then entered the Advent season lastDecember 2, with the First Sunday ofAdventonDecember3.The ?irstweekendof Advent also happened to be the formallaunch in the various parishes of theretirement home project for retired andsick priests. We not only lit the Adventcandlesineverymassleadinguptothe4thand lastSundayofAdvent butwealso litup for the ?irst time this year the CTKChristmastreelastDecember2.

December is usually a busymonth for theVocationMinistry and they sponsored theLife Directions talk by LD director Fr. TedGonzales. CWL sponsored the AdventrecollectionsforKasambahaysandDriverson December 4 and 5 , whi le theStewardship Committee organized theparish-wideAdventrecollection,ledbythecharismaticFr.FrancisAlvarezSJ.ThePPChad its annual Christmas party for itsvariousconstituents.

Thenwebegantheearlymorningandmid-eveningSimbangGabi, fromSeptember15toDecember24.

Our First Communion and Con?irmationwere also held this quarter, as was thequarterlyMarriageVocationProgram.Thefourth quarter is also when the variousWorship Ministry groups are formallycommissioned,forservicenextyear.

So yes, it’s been a busy year, and a verybusy fourth quarter. YourMediaMinistrytrieshardtocaptureasmanyoftheeventsasitcan,toincludeintheelectronicdisplaylocated in thestepsof themainchurch, inour of?icial CTK Facebook page, in thewebsite christthekingparish.ph, and in thequarterlyHerald.

BingandElisedelRosarioMediaIn-charge

From the Editor

Erratum: In the previous issue (3rd quarter), we mistakenly reported that in recognition of his valuable contribution to the Church, Fr. Jim Ferry, our regular guest priest for the Sunday 9 am mass, was offered by the late Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin to be nominated as bishop, but Fr. Jim declined. Fr. Jim corrected us - the offer was for ‘monsignor’; only the Vatican can approve promotions to ‘bishop’. We stand corrected.


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