Epiphany - Religious Significance of the 12 Days of Christmas

Epiphany - Religious Significance of the 12 Days of Christmas

Epiphany (from Koine Greek ἐπιφάνεια "appearance", "manifestation") is a Christian feast day which celebrates the revelation of God made Man in the person of Jesus Christ. It falls on January 6 or on a Sunday close to that date. January 6 in the Julian Calendar, which is followed by some Eastern Churches, corresponds at present to January 19 in the Gregorian Calendar, which is the official civil calendar in most countries. On this day, Western Christians commemorate principally the visitation of the Biblical Magi to the child Jesus, i.e., his manifestation to the Gentiles; Eastern Christians commemorate the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, seen as his manifestation to the world as the Son of God. It is also called Theophany, especially by Eastern Christians. read full story wikipedia

12 Days of Christmas

The feast of Epiphany begins on Christmas day and ends twelve nights later. Twelfth Night has long been thought to be the day the Magi of Three Wise Men arrived from the East with their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to attend the infant Jesus.

The new and old testaments of the Holy Bible are represented by the 2 turtle doves.
The theological virtues of faith, hope and charity by the 3 French hens
and the 4 gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John represented by 4 calling birds.

The five golden rings represent the Pentateuch which are the first 5 books of the old testament of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

The biblical story of the six days creation are represented by the 6 geese a laying
and the seven swans a swimming are the seven sacraments, the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The 8 beatitudes are represented by the 8 maids a milking
and the nine fruits of the holy Spirit are the 9 ladies dancing.

The most obvious aspect for many will be the ten commandments and the 10 Lords a leaping,
with eleven faithful apostles of Jesus Christ as the 11 pipers who pipe out their call to the faithful.
Finally the Apostle's Creed has 12 points of principle which are drummed by the 12 drummers.

Happy New Year and Let There Be Peace on Earth 2010

Happy New Year and Let There Be Peace on Earth 2010

Let there be Peace on Earth

Let there be peace on earth,
and let it begin with me.
Let there be peace on Earth,
the peace that was meant to be.

With God as our Father,
brothers all are we,
Let me walk with my brother,
in perfect harmony.

Let peace begin with me,
let this be the moment now.
With every step I take,
let this be my solemn vow,

To take each moment and live each moment
in peace, eternally.
Let there be Peace on Earth,
and let it begin with me.

God bless everybody!

In this coming year let us pray that there be love, hope and peace on earth, in our country, community and family. And let it begins within ourselves.

New Year's Traditions in Philippines

New Year's Traditions in Philippines

Filipinos have many customs and traditions during New Year's Eve. We have inherited from our ancestors, influenced by foreign settlers, words of mouth or commercialism.

Here are some of the practices...

Foods

On our table top, we usually prepare 12 kinds fruit. Rounded fruits is preferable. Three bowls fill with rice, salt and cotton. Each one have some coins on top. A pack of Fiesta Hams. A red Keso De Bola. Some sweets, buko pandan, buko salad and fruit salads. Plus other mouth watering dishes.

Dress

To attract money for the coming year, you should wear Polka Dots dress or shirt.

To Do

If you wish to gain extra height, you must jump as high as you could.

You keep on smiling and be happy. It is nice to start the year with jolly heart.

Make your New Year's resolutions.

Drive away bad spirit and bad luck. Here are some practices that we got from the Chinese.

Sprinkling of rice and salt around the house. Make noise in and out of the house with cymbals, trumpets and drums. And the most awaited event is the fireworks.

The best seller firecrackers are Judas belt, sawa, fountains, super lolo, bawang, crying cow and more. For cheaper and safety, it is advisable to use "lusis, labintador or watusi".

To avoid any kind of accidents, some local officials have designated firecrackers zone. Specially in some congested and slum areas. They event organized a party or concert. And then followed by colorful and majestic fireworks display as the New Year strike.

After the the festive celebration. Families are gather around in order to give grace and have a midnight meal or medya noche. It is a belief that family member should stay together before the separation of year. Well this will be an exemption for Expats like us.

Some of the faithful Christians prefer to attend the church service instead of enjoying the firecrackers and party.


These traditions are the manifestation of our imagination. Other said its a pagans practices. In general, it's just for fun in order to have a joyful celebration. For whatever reasons. We must not put our fate in such traditions. But instead focus on our life and have faith in the Lord. Work out for our success.

We can do all things through Christ Jesus!

Happy New Year to Everyone!

Our National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal

We Salute Our National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal

José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896, Bagumbayan), was a Filipino polymath, nationalist and the most prominent advocate for reforms in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. He is considered the Philippines' national hero and the anniversary of Rizal's death is commemorated as a Philippine holiday called Rizal Day. Rizal's 1896 military trial and execution made him a martyr of the Philippine Revolution.

The seventh of eleven children born to a wealthy family in the town of Calamba, Laguna, Rizal attended the Ateneo Municipal de Manila, earning a Bachelor of Arts. He enrolled in Medicine and Philosophy and Letters at the University of Santo Tomas and then traveled alone to Madrid, Spain, where he continued his studies at the Universidad Central de Madrid, earning the degree of Licentiate in Medicine. He attended the University of Paris and earned a second doctorate at the University of Heidelberg. Rizal was a polyglot conversant in at least ten languages.He was a prolific poet, essayist, diarist, correspondent, and novelist whose most famous works were his two novels, Noli me Tangere and El filibusterismo. These are social commentaries on the Philippines that formed the nucleus of literature that inspired dissent among peaceful reformists and spurred the militancy of armed revolutionaries against the Spanish colonial authorities.

As a political figure, Rizal was the founder of La Liga Filipina, a civic organization that subsequently gave birth to the Katipunan led by Andrés Bonifacio and Emilio Aguinaldo. He was a proponent of institutional reforms by peaceful means rather than by violent revolution. The general consensus among Rizal scholars, however, attributed his martyred death as the catalyst that precipitated the Philippine Revolution.

Full story at wikipedia

Life Moto life is worth living for...

Ang Diwa ng Pasko

Ang Diwa ng Pasko

Konting Trivia muna sa kapanganakan si Jesus (biblically) Mateo 1
¹⁸Ganito ang naging kapanganakan ni Jesucristo. Ang kaniyang inang si Maria ay nakatakdang mapangasawa ni Jose. Ngunit bago pa sila nagsama, si Maria ay natagpuang nagdadalang-tao na sa pamamagitan ng Banal na Espiritu. ¹⁹Si Jose na kaniyang asawa ay lalaking matuwid at hindi niya ginusto na mapahiya sa madla si Maria, kaya nagpasiya siyang paalisin nang lihim si Maria.

²⁰Samantalang iniisip niya ang mga bagay na ito, narito, isang anghel ng Panginoon ang nagpakita sa kaniya sa isang panaginip. Sinabi ng anghel: Jose, ikaw na nagmula sa angkan ni David, huwag kang mangambang tanggapin si Maria na iyong asawa. Ito ay dahil ang dinadala niya sa kaniyang sinapupunan ay sa Banal na Espiritu. ²¹Siya ay manganganak ng isang lalaki. Ang ipangangalan mo sa kaniya ay Jesus sapagkat ililigtas niya ang kaniyang mga tao sa kanilang kasalanan.

²²Ang lahat ng ito ay naganap upang matupad ang sinabi ng Panginoon sa pamamagitan ng mga propeta. ²³Sinabi nila: Narito, isang dalagang birhen ang magdadalang-tao at manganganak ng isang lalaki. Tatawagin nila siyang Emmanuel na ang ibig sabihin ay: Ang Diyos ay sumasaatin.

²⁴Sa pagbangon ni Jose mula sa pagkakatulog, ginawa niya ang ayon sa ipinag-utos sa kaniya ng anghel ng Panginoon. Tinanggap niya si Maria upang maging asawa. ²⁵Hindi niya sinipingan ang kaniyang asawa hanggang sa maipanganak niya ang kaniyang panganay na anak na lalaki. Pinangalanan siya ni Jose na Jesus.

Ang Pagdating ng mga Pantas Mateo 2
¹Pagkatapos na maipanganak si Jesus sa Bethlehem ng Juda, sa panahon ng paghahari ni Herodes, may dumating sa Jerusalem mula sa silangan, na mga lalaking pantas sa pag-aaral ng mga bituin. ²Sinabi nila: Saan naroroon ang ipinanganak na Hari ng mga Judio? Ito ay sapagkat nakita namin ang kaniyang bituin sa silangan at naparito kami upang sambahin siya.

³Nang marinig ni haring Herodes ang mga bagay na ito, naligalig siya at ang lahat ng mga tao sa Jerusalem. ⁴Tinipon niya ang lahat ng mga pinunong-saserdote at mga guro ng kautusan ng mga tao. Tinanong niya sa kanila kung saan ipanganganak ang Mesiyas. ⁵Sinabi nila sa kaniya: Sa Bethlehem ng Judea sapagkat ganito ang isinulat ng propeta: ⁶Ikaw Bethlehem sa lupain ng Juda, hindi ikaw ang pinakamaliit sa mga gobernador ng Juda sapagkat mula sa iyo ay lalabas ang isang pinuno na siyang mamumuno sa aking bayang Israel.

⁷Nang magkagayon, tinawag ni Herodes nang palihim ang mga pantas na lalaki. Itinanong niyang mabuti sa kanila kung kailan nagpakita ang bituin. ⁸At pinapunta niya sila sa Bethlehem. Sinabi niya: Pumaroon kayo at matiyaga ninyong ipagtanong ang patungkol sa bata. Kapag natagpuan ninyo siya, balitaan ninyo ako upang makapunta rin ako at sambahin siya.

⁹Pagkarinig nila sa hari ay tumuloy na sila sa kanilang lakad. Narito, ang bituin na kanilang nakita sa silanganan ay nanguna sa kanila. Nanguna ito sa kanila hanggang sa sumapit at tumigil sa tapat ng kinaroroonan ng maliit na bata. ¹⁰Nang makita nila ang bituin, lubos silang nagalak. ¹¹Nang sila ay nasa loob na ng bahay, nakita nila ang bata, kasama ang kaniyang inang si Maria. Sila ay nagpatirapa at sinamba ang bata. Nang mabuksan na nila ang kanilang mga kayamanan, naghandog sila sa kaniya ng mga kaloob. Ang mga ito ay ginto, kamangyan at mira. ¹²At nagbabala ang Diyos sa kanila sa isang panaginip na huwag na silang bumalik kay Herodes. Kaya sila ay nag-iba ng daan pauwi sa kanilang sariling lupain. source http://www.biblegateway.com

Hindi man eksaktong December 25 ang araw ng kapanganakan ng Panginoon Jesus. Ang mahalaga ay ang pagdating Nya para maligtas ang bawat isa.


Christmas is a time of; gift giving, noche buena, pag decorate ng mga Christmas ornament sa bahay, party all the way, pagsabit ng parol, pagkaroling, simbang gabi, pagkain ng masasarap na fiesta ham, puto at bibingka, pagkaroon ng bagong damit at sapatos.

Ano nga ba ang tunay na diwa ng pasko?

Peace - Ang kapayapaan ay magsisimula sa ating sarili.
Share - Kung paano natin natatanggap ang mga blessing ay marapat na ipamahagi natin.
Love - kalimutan ang ang mga adhiwaan at magmahalaan tayo. Katulad ng pagmamahal ng Diyos sa atin.
Humility - si Jesus ay ipinanganak sa sabsaban. Dito ipinakikita ang kababaang loob na ating Panginoon.

Ilan lang yan sa mga diwa ng pasko. Dapat natin ipamuhay ang tunay na diwa, hindi lang sa pagsapit sa buwan ng December kundi sa buong taon. Sana araw-araw ay magiging Pasko lagi. Bukod sa materials, higit dito ay spiritual nating pamumuhay.

Para sa inyo ano nga ba ang essence ng pasko?

Maligayang at Mapagpalang Pasko sa inyong lahat!
Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan
Glaedelig Jul
Joyeux Noel
Selamat Hari Natal
Shinnen omedeto. Kurisumasu Omedeto
Maupay nga Pasko ngan Mainuswagon nga Bag-o nga Tu-ig
Sawadee Pee Mai
Merry Christmas!

Life Moto
life is worth living for...