There was an article recently in the newspaper about the birthrate in the Philippines. In 2017, there were 2.7 children per woman. In 2022, the fertility rate was down to 1.9. The figure is 2.2 in rural areas and 1.7 in urban centers. This is already below the replacement level for two parents. Further, while…
Category: Life and Death
Evil
Since time immemorial, people have asked these questions: The Gospel often reminds us of the reality of evil, the presence of evil and yes, its co-existence with the good in the world today. Hence, as Catholics, three things we can always do to deal with evil: In the world of seen and unseen, there is…
Paradox of Life
It is said that life is a paradox. Five examples: In the Gospel, Jesus gives three paradoxes of life as well: Let us continue to live out a life that is full of paradoxes. One of the greatest paradoxes came from St. Mother Teresa: “That is you love until it hurts; there can be no…
Burden
There are two sayings about people we encounter. First, “Each one of us is either coming off a trial or headed to a trial.” Then there is also, “Be kind to all the people you encounter, you do not know what battles they are fighting.” Either of the two reminds us that whether we like…
The Storms of Life
Ed. Note: This was a homily from a memorial mass for the Laurel family last year. As is always the case with Fr. Mon, we are including it here because his words of wisdom apply to all of us and our daily lives. Someone once said, “Life is like the weather: there are sunny days…
The Laborer are Few
After eight years I once again returned to the seminary. It was then I realized that there are fewer seminarians for the priesthood. When I left for a new assignment in 2015, the count was about 160 seminarians spread within a 10-year program. Now it is less than 100. According to a study, the four…
Peace in the Family
A sociologist once said, if you want to destroy a nation, no need for war, famine, pestilence, economic sabotage, or pandemic. Just destroy the most basic of all social units, which is the family. In other words, it is most essential to keep the family intact. But the reality is how do you keep a…
Forgiveness
As a priest, one of the more meaningful experiences in the ministry is to hear confessions of people who are about to transition to the next life. Typically, it is a long confession: Further, after the confession, the typical question is, “Has God really forgiven me of my sins?” The well-known parable of the prodigal…
3 Ways 2 Your 1 God 