BROTHERHOOD OF CHRISTIAN BUSINESSMEN AND PROFESSIONALS
n
DECEMBER 2012 VOL. 1 NO. 12
n
JOYCE MARIE PAJARES
Oh come, Emmanuel!
Isaiah 40:3 In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord, make
straight in the desert a highway for our GodNovember 24, 2012,
after the joint breakfast fellowship, about 75 members of our
Chapter proceeded to the Betania Retreat House in Lahug, Cebu City,
for our Chapters annual Advent retreat. When we entered the room,
the above-quoted bible verse was prominently written in the board
for all to see. It was the prophesy about the coming of Jesus which
was fulfilled in the John 1:19-28 which partly says John answered,
I baptize you with water, but among you stands the one you do not
know. He is coming after me, but I am not good enough even to untie
his sandals The above verses were perfect reminder for our Advent
preparations. It was the time to sort out all our worldly concerns,
put everything into perspective and create our own highway to God.
The retreat was in a three-in-one format. The first part was the
talk on the Catholic Churchs thrust on evangelism and faith
building by Sr. Virgie M. Ligaray, RVM, the Parish Catechists
Coordinator of the Sacred Heart Parish in D. Jakosalem Street.
Since it is Advent and the time for each and every one of us to
prepare for the Lords coming, Sr. Virgies talk aptly placed
emphasis on moments of silence and listening to enable us to truly
reflect and lead us to the discovery of who we really are. She used
the humility of St. John the Baptist as an example and said that
awareness is the key to the creation of our highway to God. It was
important to find out whether we are already teaching our gospel
and not Gods gospel anymore. Sr. Virgie then proceeded with the
video presentation on Take it to the Top, by Mr. Joe Mauk of the
Caliraya Recreation Center in Caliraya, Lucban, Quezon. The video
used the TOP (kasing) to represent the different kinds of
persons/personalities around and each had its own characteristics
vis-a-vis its relationship with the Lord (see meaning of tops
below). The top has three main parts - the string, the anchor and
the knot. The string represents faith, the anchor represents Jesus
Christ and the knot represents the Holy Bible. The video
LAST
presentation called us to have the right relationship with the
Lord and keep a faith in the Lord Jesus based on the Bible. Without
faith, it is impossible to live, says Sr. Virgie. After the film
showing we were given time to reflect and determine what kind of
top each one of us - a Warbling Wilbur, a pessimistic top a
magnetic top, a diabolical top, a double trouble top, a New Zealand
top, a Kauri top, an unimportant top, a Philippine top, or the
biggest top in the world. After lunch, Bro. Ani reinforced the talk
of Sr. Virgie with another video showing entitled Amazed and
Afraid: The Revelation of God Becoming Man, the first lesson of the
Catholicism Series by Rev. Robert Barron of the World on Fire
Catholic Ministry. It emphasized that Jesus Christ is unique, fully
human and fully divine; he is the privileged door by which each man
can be restored to right relationship with God. The video
presentation clearly defined the four tasks of Jesus as the
Messiah: a) Gathering the tribes, b) Cleansing the temple of
God,
CONTINUED ON PAGE 7
2 3 4 5
Happiness in giving... Solemnity of Immaculate conception
Baptism for the children... Celebrating Christmas day
Inside:
There is more happiness in givingNo one can be honest and say He
had received nothing from the Lord
THE time has come to countthe blessings each one of us have
received during the year. God may have blessed us with good health,
good and profitable business, success in our jobs, successful
children, family vacation, etc He may have lifted us up from
trials, sacrifices, pains, challenges, strained relationships,
financial problems, and other concerns. When our fingers are not
enough to count all the blessings and favors we received from God,
our hands should continue to be open to share those blessings with
others. Christmas is just two weeks away. As we all know, it is the
time to spread the message of love, harmony and peace. It is also a
time either to express our generosity or to be showered with gifts.
What do you think is the best action this holiday season, to give
or to receive? For me, giving is the best action if done out of
love and selfless motive just like Jesus giving up His life for our
salvation. Acts 20:35 says,
there is more happiness in giving than in receiving, and if we
seek joy in our hearts this holiday season, then we must extend our
hands for others. Giving is not all about money and expensive
gifts. No one is too poor as to have nothing to give. A person who
never has enough money this holiday season may have too much of
something else. These could gifts of time and love which are the
basic ingredients of a truly merry Christmas. Looking around, there
are several opportunities and people whom we can share our
blessings. Hopefully, the victims of typhoon Pablo, the fire
victims, the street children, our sick brothers and sisters in the
community, the prisoners, and others in need, will find place in
our generous hearts. Lastly, we wrap each other as a family united
by our faith in Christ and commitment to BCBP, and present
ourselves as our gift to God this Christmas. Merry Christmas!
EDITORIAL STAFF
n
ANI & TESS SERRATOCHAPTER HEAD
n
BOBBY & T ESS SUAREZPROGRAM AND SERVICESS HEAD
n
EDWARD & GWEN OCAMPOPUBLICATION MINISTRY HEAD
n
JOHANN TEPRINTING SERVICES
REGULAR CONTRIBUTORSn LOLOI ATEGA n JOYCE MARIE PAJARES n REY
MONTECLARO n CONIE RALOTA n TINA MATEO
PHOTOGRAPHERS
n REYNAN PANES n NOEL FUENTES n JOYCE MARIE PAJARES
The Kaigsuonan sa Central is a monthly newsletter of the
Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals (BCBP) Cebu
Central chapter. Anchored at Bringing Christ into the Marketplace
and Winning the Marketplace for Christ. The team welcomes original
manuscripts and photographs from its members and reserves the right
to accept and reject articles for publication. Please send articles
in MS WORD File For your comments, suggestions, corrections and
articles, please email it through: [email protected]
2
DECEMBER 2012
KAIGSUONAN sa CENTRAL
Solemnity of the Immaculate conceptionn
LOLOI ATEGA
catholics, myself included believed that the immaculate
conception was the phenomenon of the conception of our Lord Jesus
Christ, through the intervention of the Holy Spirit. Research,
however reveal that the title Immaculate Conception, is defined as
the sinless state on the conception of the Blessed virgin Mary by
Her mother Saint Anne. The conception of our Lord by Mary is
rightly termed as the Annunciation of our Lord, a feast that we
celebrate on March 25, exactly nine months before Christmas. It
would take Pope Pius IX in December 8, 1854 for this to be declared
a church dogma, or a declaration of the church as a manifestation
from God, and an infallible teaching of the church. Another
misunderstanding is that, by her immaculate conception, Mary did
not need a saviour. When defining the dogma declared by Pope Pius
IX , it explicitly affirmed that Mary was redeemed in a manner more
sublime. He stated that Mary, rather than being cleansed after sin,
was completely prevented from contracting Original Sin in view of
the foreseen merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race.
Mary found favor from God and was given this special privilege as
she was destined to be the mother of our Saviour. Actually,
doctrines are defined formally only when there is a controversy
that needs to be cleared up or when the magisterium (the Church in
its office as teacher) thinks the faithful can be helped by
particular emphasis being drawn to some already-existing belief.
The definition of the Immaculate Conception was prompted by the
latter motive; it did not come about because there were KAIGSUONAN
sa CENTRAL
MANY
widespread doubts about the doctrine. In fact, the Vatican was
deluged with requests from people desiring the doctrine to be
officially proclaimed. Pope Pius IX, who was highly devoted to the
Blessed Virgin, hoped the definition would inspire others in their
devotion to her. Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception is the
titular Patroness of the Philippines. Many parishes and towns were
named Concepcion in honor of Our Lady. The two principal shrines
are the Manila Cathedral in Intramuros, Manila and the Parish of
the Immaculate Conception in Malabon. No doubt the veneration of
the Blessed Virgin as the Immaculate conception is a tradition that
has strengthened our faith in God our Saviour and our King.3
DECEMBER 2012
BCBP Central supports the baptism of childrenn
Masbate outreach... on the risen
REY MONTECLARO
CONNIE RALOTA
Nov 18, 2012, BCBP Cebu Central, extended again their love to
the residents of Sitio Kaimbol and Sitio Kadasig by cosponsoring a
baptism ceremony and welcoming into the Christian world twentythree
(23) children. The two sitios were the beneficiaries of our
Medical/Dental Mission last July 29, 2012. After learning from the
residents that many of their children are not yet baptized, the
Chapter answered to the call of helping them bring these children
to Christ. The baptism ceremony was held at the San Lorenzo Ruiz
Church in Tisa, Cebu City. Bringing with us one big lechon from the
Chapter together with some bam-i, fried chicken, and rice donated
by our brothers and sisters with big hearts, we immersed ourselves
with the families of 23 children. That gesture of love and
generosity brought a lot of happiness, smiles and thank yous from
the Gods flock. As we watched the delight on the faces of the
children and parents, we could say that, indeed, it was one big
welcome to the Christian World for the children. The feasting on
the food and the festive atmosphere brought us to realize the
impact of our support to the spiritual lives of the children. This
event was timely and special since Cebu is also celebrating the
sainthood of our very own teenager saint, San Pedro Calungsod who
went across the globe and sacrificed his life so that people will
be baptized and Christianized. As we went home tired but happy, we
realized that we were pursuing the works of San Pedro Calungsod and
by being part of making another baptism possible, it was a better
way of emulating his values. It was indeed one meaningful, blessed
and fruitful way to celebrate and to say Thank You Lord, for using
us to make your presence felt by your sheep that you love so
dearly. It may a small part we played but still we feel blessed
that we celebrated it not just in words but in action.
LAST
all take a peek at our Masbate Outreach after it was launched
more than three months ago. Since I wrote about its successful
launching last August 12, 2012, where we had forty-three (43) fresh
new breakfasters, it is just about time to update you on its latest
happenings and developments. The latest count on the accumulated
number of breakfasters is about seventy (70) as of end of November.
The last two joint breakfasts in November were the big haul of
first timers since the launching. On November 10, we had thirty-six
(36) breakfasters from the outreach, twenty-four (24) were first
timers and twelve (12) were regular breakfasters On Nov. 24, we had
thirty-nine (39) breakfasters from the area, thirteen (13) were
first timers, twenty-four (24) were regular breakfasters, Our
couple sharer was the former Chapter Head of Iligan, Bro. Buddy and
Sis. Chillie Gerona. Brother Buddy is a Masbatenio who is now a
successful businessman in Iligan. Since its launching, we have
joint breakfasts twice a month. Our chapter is lovingly taking care
of its new baby hoping and praying that soon this, too, would
become a new chapter. For now, we already have some able and
faithful regular breakfasters. The Mission Team is now in the
process of forming the governance team of the outreach. This core
group will soon undergo the first Brotherhood Christian Life
Program (BCLP) in the outreach this coming February 2013. The
sustainability of Masbate Outreach remains our great challenge. We
need enormous financial resources to keep the two regular
breakfasts in a month. We encourage sharers and servants who can
take the rigors and sacrifice in travel, servants who are willing
to offer two days (Friday and Saturday) of their time for the Lord.
We must keep the momentum of the growth. Please sign-up as sharer
or servants with our Outreach Coordinator, Bro. Jay Aviles. Let us
all pray that God will continue to bless our efforts for the
Outreach. May He protect us all who unceasingly support the
evangelization work of bringing Christ into the marketplaces in
Masbate. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works
among all the peoples! 1 Chronicles 16:24
LET US
4
DECEMBER 2012
KAIGSUONAN sa CENTRAL
Celebrating Christmasn
CONNIE RALOTA
UNLIKE any other baby, the one born that night in Bethlehem was
unique in all of history. He had a heavenly pre-existence (John
1:1-3, 14). He is God, the SonCreator of the universe (Philippians
2:5-11). This is why Christmas is called the incarnation, a word
which means in the flesh. In the birth of Jesus, the eternal,
all-powerful and all-knowing Creator came to earth in the
flesh.Stores and malls have been revved up about Christmas since
the beginning of the ber month. And in malls, by far, are the
biggest retail sales almost every week. Festive decorations, big
ads, Santas Villages and all the rest are part of that process.
Christmas has become a very commercialized holiday. In the rush to
buy presents and outdo last years gift- giving, many people tend to
submerge the true meaning of Christmas beneath busyness and
consumerism. Aside from big dinners and expensive gifts, there are
other ways to celebrate this important event in the Christian
calendar that reflect the true meaning of the holiday, and give the
gifts to the One whose birthday it is! At our chapters Christmas
party last December 1, we had this theme: Preparing our Hearts for
Christ, thus the early celebration. This brings to encourage all of
us to reflect on the true reason for the season- Jesus Christ. The
following are some ways to celebrate Christmas: Consider preparing
some special foods for the poor and needy, visiting friends or
relatives who live alone or have no family close or dropping in to
see the sick in hospital. You might even give handmade gifts to
people who arent likely to get much this season. Spend time with
others to celebrate. Gather together at the homes of friends and
family, and spend some time in fellowship with others who believe
as you do about this special time. Wish others a Merry Christmas.
Wishing others a Merry Christmas helps spread the cheer. 4.Give to
others. Whether to your family and friends, or to others less
fortunate, spend some time this Christmas in giving--love, time,
forgiveness, understanding, patience or material things. We give in
remembrance of the gifts of the Magi to the Savior, but at the very
heart of it all, recall that we are to give because He first gave
to us. Spend time quietly being thankful for the gift of Jesus to
the world that we celebrate on Christmas. This is the day that
Christians have set aside to celebrate the beginning of the
greatest gift mankind has ever received. Coming into the Christmas
season with a grateful heart is essential if you really want to
make the extension from Jesuss giving of His amazing gift to your
giving and receiving. Invite God to come and celebrate the day with
you, in your home. Some people choose to do this by attending a
Christmas Eve service with the whole family. Some do it by sitting
before the Christmas tree and silently inviting God to just be with
them. Also talk about the cheer, camaraderie, and general goodwill
that goes around during this season. Have a very Merry Christmas
and a bountiful New Year 2013! 5
KAIGSUONAN sa CENTRAL
DECEMBER 2012
BCMR... a renewaln
TINA MATEO
NOVEMBER 16 - 18, 2012 was the appointed weekend and Betania
Retreat House was the appointed place for 16 married couples to
rediscover each other and renew their commitment as a pastoral team
in the Brotherhood Christian Marriage Retreat (BCMR) of BCBP Cebu
Central. There were 8 couples from the home chapter, Cebu Central,
5 couples from Talisay Chapter, 2 couples from Cebu North Chapter,
and 1 couple from the San Carlos Outreach of Cebu North.Indeed it
was a powerful weekend with powerful messages in a solemn
environment with a very lean service team headed by Mike and Joyce
Fernan. Though schedule was really tight, everything fell into
place that there was order in the flow of activities. We had very
responsive and cooperative couples. It was heartwarming to see them
intently listening to the different talks and diligently doing
their reflections and dialogues too. We had a good mix and range of
participants. We had couples married for a little less than 2 years
with the longest at 33 years married. Although strongly discouraged
to socialize with other couples during the weekend, meal time would
be used for getting to know the other participants. By the end of
the retreat, we were just like one big happy family. Judging on the
way our participants were when they arrived Friday afternoon and
how peaceful and joyful they were on Sunday, we could just thank
and praise God for touching all of them. In the mini sharing we had
Sunday afternoon, our couples expressed how delighted they were for
eventually choosing to spend time with each other in the BCMR in
spite of being reluctant to leave their families behind.
Realizations of their specific roles as Christian husbands and
wives strengthened resolutions to build a Christian home with the
husbands leading the domestic church and the wife as a support and
a helpmate. Healing and forgiveness were also evident in 6
most of the couples present. Many of them shared how touched
they were in the session. One even shared that her husband had
finally gone to Confession after 25 years. Communicating and
understanding each others differences was a big step many couples
achieved in the weekend especially from one couple who had a wide
age gap. Even the topic of sex in marriage was openly discussed,
better appreciated and understood. Altogether, we had a meaningful
and fulfilling weekend that we even had a participant who was so
excited to share that she likened her response to the weekend to an
enthusiastic movie fan coming out of a blockbuster movie. The
success and the victories won in this BCMR wouldnt have been
possible without Gods loving hand, the power of the Holy Spirit and
of course, the support and prayers of the community. AD MAJOREM DEI
GLORIA! COMMENTS FROM THE PARTICIPANTS: BCMR is a very effective
tool for the couple to strengthen their relationship and lead a
married life in accordancetothewillofGod. I commend the hard work
and effort of all the BCMR service team, chapter leaders, AGLs and
Intercessory Group members. To God be the Glory Always! Thank you
BCMR 4 for a wonderful and enlightening weekend. We gathered a lot
of learnings andrealizations.GodBlessBCBPandmorepower.
DECEMBER 2012
KAIGSUONAN sa CENTRAL
FROM PAGE 1c) Dealing with the enemies of Israel, and d)
Reigning as Lord of the Nations. The whole video brought us to a
deeper understanding of who Jesus is in our present lives with
perspectives back in the ancient times.The final speaker for the
day was Fr. Jason Dy, S.J. (also from the Sacred Heart Parish) and
his topic was about the Sacrament of Waiting. Most of us find
waiting a very mundane and arduous task and we all dislike being at
the waiting end. But as Fr. Jason went along, he showed us several
video presentations that opened our eyes to different dimensions of
waiting. The video clip Godot showed us waiting as a mystery. The
video clip about the life cycle of the Monarch butterfly showed us
waiting as a sacrament. It showed us the value of the process of
growth and that waiting for others to grow and to mature was an
expression of real love. The video clip about Typhoon Ondoy showed
us that we are all longing for deliverance and are all waiting for
God to make us whole, complete and reconciled. Fr. Jason also
talked about our call to servanthood and he used the image of Mama
Mary in the Visitation as an example of the perfect image of a
servant-in-waiting. Mama Mary did not just sit at home and wait for
her time to deliver, but rather she went to the home of Elizabeth
and took care of Elizabeth until she gave birth. The final video
clip of the day was the Christmas Shoes, a beautiful depiction of a
boy, because of his deep gratitude for all the love his mom had
shown him, bought a pair of shoes for his dying mom to wear in
meeting Jesus after her death. After Fr. Jasons talk we had a
beautiful exercise with the result was shared to each other. You
might want to try this during your time of reflection and
preparation this Advent by following these relatively simple steps
we were asked to do. Trace your dominant hand on an empty sheet of
bondpaper. Write your name on the wrist portion. On the thumb,
write the best gift/favor you received from God lately that made
you proclaim his goodness. On the pointer finger, write the name of
a specific person/s (one or 2 names only) and what you want most
for him/her to grow and change. On the middle finger, write what
God wants you to grow and change in your life. On the right finger,
write what God wants you to proclaim to others. On the tiny
finger/pinky, who is the God you are waiting for this Advent (e.g.,
God the healer, God the provider, etc.) The day ended with the
celebration of an anticipated Mass in honor of Christ the King. As
an added bonus, Fr. Jason asked us all to offer our drawings of our
hands and he blessed these. He asked us to keep our drawings on our
possession during the entire four weeks of Advent saying who knows,
you might be in for a surprise after the four weeks are done! All
in all, it was a very productive recollection, full of new insights
and revelations, and I was really blessed that I came. I have
always made it a point to attend our Advent recollections because
it grounds me and reminds me to prepare for the coming of the babe
in the manger. Sometimes, in the frenzy, busyness and anticipation
of the Christmas, we get carried away by the magic of the season
and just jump straight to the material and physical celebration of
Christmas. TOGODBETHEGLORY!
BIRTHDAYS2 7 9 10 12 19 23 24 25 25 26 29 29 30 30 DELIA
CABINIAN RONNIE FONTANOZA TOMMY ALONSO JUN PRESAS DANNY KHO KEITH
BUYCO JINGLE GAID SUSAN ADAMSON DODONG MACATISBIS NOEL FUENTES
ALBERT SANTOS ROMY MAURO ATHEL ESTELLA BERT DE LEON MAUREEN
SANTOS
ANNIVERSARIES1 13 15 17 19 21 23 23 23 27 MON AND GAIL TADLE
ALBERT AND MAUREEN SANTOS JIMMY AND ELLEN ESCANO JINGLE GAID JOHNNY
AND CORA MONTECALVO BERT AND TATA PEPITO JULIE BERNARDO CERILA
ABINGOSA ED AND TING COLA RAYMUND AND RONA PRIAGULA
KAIGSUONAN sa CENTRAL
DECEMBER 2012
7
GLAM NIGHTstyle of salsa. The Fernan with their courtship dance
popularized in Mexico and the Governance team doing the Samba
medley. Each could not help but enjoyed the time being together as
a family united in waiting for the coming of our saviour. Below are
the smiles caught on camera. Enjoy!
CALENDARSDECEMBER ACTIVITIESn DEC. 1, 2012@ Casino Espanol BCBP
Cebu Centrals Christmas Party n DEC. 7, 2012 @ USP First Friday
Mass and Teaching n DEC. 8, 2012 @ Casino Espanol Centrals Joint
Breakfast n DEC. 15, 2012 @ Casino Espanol Centrals Joint Breakfast
Masbate Joint Christmas Breakfast @ Jollibee n DEC. 16, 2012
Christmas Social Action n DEC. 29, 2012 Christmas Feeding
LAST December 1, the BCBP Cebu Central held its annual Christmas
party at Casino Espanol dubbed as BCBP Glam night. Each sisters
arrived in their glamorous attire while the brothers could not be
beaten when itcomes to getting themselves dressed up also for the
special event. The most awaited portion of the night were the dance
presentation by each unit. The Presas unit doing the boogie and
mambo dance. The Orbita unit doing the cha cha dance. The Fuentes
unit with the sensuous
JANUARY ACTIVITIES
n JAN. 4, 2013@ USP National Day of Thanksgiving and Family Mass
n JAN. 5, 2013 @ Casino Espanol Mens Breakfast 2013 Plans
Finalization @ Don Mertos n JAN. 7-12, 2013 Action Group Meeting n
JAN. 12, 2013@ Casino Espanol Simul Breakfast Masbate Joint
Breakfast @ Jollibee n JAN. 12-13, 2013@ Betania Brotherhood of
Christian Business Retreat n JAN. 18, 2013@ USP Prayer Assembly n
JAN. 19, 2013@ Casino Espanol Mens Breakfast n JAN. 21-26, 2013
Action Group Meeting n JAN. 26, 2013@ Casino Espanol Joint
Breakfast Masbate Joint Breakfast @ Jollibee
