Magbagong buhay ka na. We often hear this when other people, especially those whom we know, tell us to change our ways for our own good.

It seems that the Christmas season truly ends on the Feast of the Sto. Nino, which many churches and communities celebrate anytime between the second and the last Sunday of January (although there are some who still extend it to the presentation of the Lord, on the Feast of Candles or the Candelaria). 

If we look at the liturgical calendar for the Christmas season, we see a chronological succession. We first celebrate the Lord’s birth on Christmas Day, then remember that he belongs to a family in the following Sunday.

Today’s gospel is for me one of the most significant episodes in the nativity story, not just because I spent nine years in a seminary that is named after St. Joseph and my ordination anniversary is on the nineteenth of March.

The excitement of the Lord’s coming fills us with joy in this Third Sunday of Advent, which we come to know as Gaudete Sunday.

Reflection for the Second Sunday of Advent by Fr. Earl A.P. Valdez “Gets ko na!” (I get it!) We commonly say this when we come to understand something clearly, that we have gotten or grasped the idea or reason behind things that we do or things that happen to us. This is, after all, what it means to truly understand something, that unless we have a hold, whether fully or partially, of something that was previously incomprehensible for us, we cannot say that we have truly unde

Today, we begin the Advent season, which also marks a new liturgical year, highlighted by patiently waiting and at the same time preparing for the coming of the Lord.

In 1925, in that brief period of time that stands between two world wars, Pope Pius XI affirmed through his encyclical Quas Primas the true reign of Christ the King, who is more than any leader, political system, or worldly order. Let me quote section 33, which is a good reminder for us and what should begin our reflection today:

Truth be told, whenever I hear a prophecy or a speculation of when and how the world will end, I find myself amused over the lengths that people will do math and conjure images of how the Lord’s “second coming” will come.

Reflections on the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica by Fr Earl Valdez / Dominus Est

Historians trace the celebration of All Hallows’ Eve to Celtic and Roman observances of the day in which those who have passed away were given a day to commune with their living relatives and friends.

A few months ago, one of the burning questions that were related to evangelizing in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) was its use in writing homilies and reflections.

It seems rather tiring to speak of resilience in a country that seems to have grown tired of having consecutive natural disasters and of a corrupt system that does not even ease the suffering of the people.

by Fr Earl Allyson Valdez Reflection  for the Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time At times, the way we thank each other becomes too common, that we take for granted the value of gratitude, reduced to becoming a way of exchanging pleasantries. However, if we look at it closely, there’s something that changes in us whenever we come to appreciate things, even in what we consider as “thankless” situations.  If we look at it carefully, gratitude is closely related to attention,

We are so used to hearing conversion stories which arise from “good” feelings.

This Sunday’s gospel reading reminds us of this attention, but with a distinct emphasis on its relationship with mercy. In the parable that Jesus tells us today, one can say that what the rich man truly lacks is this kind of attention to the presence of people.

What we understand as humility can come as a virtue or a vice. On one hand, there is real humility in which we actually accept our talents, achievements, and recognitions as they are, without actually flaunting them or making them too evident for people to see.

For many years, I taught about the experience of believing, beginning with the sense of faith, and ending with the more important question: why believe (or not believe)?

In principle, it should not be hard to understand the idea of poverty that the Church encourages as a virtue, which is distinct from the condition of poverty as a miserable and inhumane situation that must be avoided.

As Catholic Christians (and Filipino at that!), we have become all too used to the Lord’s Prayer that we actually do not appreciate what it means. But if we look at it carefully, not only does it provide a summary of our Christian life; more than that, it presents its difficulty.