The Silence of the Night

Coming home from the evening Mass, a familiar tune is playing on the radio. Silent Night, Holy Night. All is calm, all is bright. Tonight is a holy night. For this is the eve where we celebrate the birth of our Savior. It is a holy anticipation.

I've always enjoyed this night of all nights of the Christmas season. It is the culmination of the Simbang Gabi celebration where all homilies in the Mass, as well as choir performances, become the best in the lot. Then the childlike excitement of opening the gifts, concluding with a sumptuous feast of Noche Buena.

But the real joy in this night is in its silence. In silence, we can feel the Spirit of God moving among us, filling our hearts with positive love, joy and peace. It is in real silence that Jesus comes and is born in our hearts.

Parties, celebrations, gifts, food - we can live without them. But the silence of this night, it is an important condition for us to accept Jesus. And that - we can't live without.

Merry Christmas. Sssshhh :)

An appeal to bishops and priests

I just came from Simbang Gabi and I am enjoying it. It's not just the beautiful church lights and the heavenly singing of the choir that was so inspiring. It's the whole liturgical experience. Perhaps this old age kicking in that I'm more excited about the Simbang Gabi than going to the malls this holiday. I don't truly appreciate the traffic, difficult parking, and the hordes of shoppers in a mall.

I look forward to Simbang Gabi again. Tomorrow, the last of the 9, is the culmination. It should be the most exciting liturgical celebration for Christmas.

But I'm a little bit apprehensive. The last thing I want to hear in what I expect to be an inspiring and spiritual celebration of the Christmas season, is another apologetics against the RH Bill. Be it in homily form, or a pastoral letter, I've had enough hearing about the subject within the Holy Mass. In the Mass I attended, the priest mentioned a little of it. Thank God he did not elaborate.

I think the bishops and some priests are given enough media mileage to be able to say what they believe is needed and necessary against the RH Bill. Let the Mass be for the real spirit of the season, the birth of Christ, which we want to feel in our hears, through the liturgy.

So I am appealing to priests and bishops who will celebrate the Holy Mass tomorrow, Christmas Eve. Please spare us from any mention of the RH Bill, or anything connected to it, the state of our Congress, or what will happen after the law is signed. Your laity watches the news and reads the papers. We are all informed.

Through the liturgy, we feel the Spirit of Newborn Jesus. Please don't corrupt it with the RH Bill issue.