In January 2015, I began a new ministry in Payatas, Quezon City, Philippines, known as the Second Smokey Mountain. The original is in Tondo, Manila – a landfill that had been used for more than forty years. The landfill and the rubbish dumps are the most important means of living for local residents who collect the garbage, sell the recyclable wastes to the junk shops and
November 2, 2020
My heart was filled with gratitude and awe when I finished my first term mission in South Korea meaningfully and gracefully. Praise be to God and Mama Mary. My companion Jenanydel and I went home for our vacation, were reacquainted with our family, relatives and friends happily and meaningfully. Everything was a grace from our loving and generous God. My heart rejoices…
November 2, 2020
O God, the Creator and Redeemer of all the faithful,
grant to the souls of our departed brothers and sisters,
the forgiveness of all their sins.
We humbly ask that they may obtain
the pardon they have always desired.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon them.
May they rest in peace.
Amen.
November 1, 2020
Dear God, thank You for the example of the Saints.
I desire to join in their company,
worshiping You forever in Heaven.
Please help me follow their footsteps,
and yours, Jesus Christ.
Please help me to conform myself to Your image,
seeking Your will in all things, as the Saints did.
Please help me to devote myself, and all that I do,
October 31, 2020
O Maria, transform my heart into yours.
Place around it a wreath of purity,
adorned in virtue.
Take my heart, dear Mother,
consecrated as your own.
Present it to God the Father
as an offering from me to you.
Help me O Maria in each day
to make your heart more known.
Amen.
October 30, 2020
O God, in the faithful service of our brother Alphonsus
You have shown us the way to joy and peace.
Make us ready and watchful companions of Jesus,
who became the servant of all, and now lives
and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
October 29, 2020
O Jesus, I adore You, in union with all Your people
over the Earth, with the holy souls in Purgatory
and with Your angels and saints in Heaven.
October 28, 2020
It is part of our daily morning exercise routine for myself and my fellow lay missionary, Lenette Toledo, to pass by the busiest market in Bhamo. Bhamo is a city in the Kachin State in the northernmost part of Myanmar (formerly Burma). This is the market along the river that we would check out regularly to see if there is something we could buy for the house.
October 28, 2020
O Holy St. Jude, Apostle and Martyr,
great in virtue and in miracles,
faithful intercessor of all who invoke
Your special help in time of need.
To You I have recourse from the depth of my heart
and humbly request assistance.
Help me in my present and urgent petition.
In return I promise to make Your name known
and cause You to be invoked.
The Columbans are a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God.