on nationalism by former chief justice maria lourdes sereno

 Re: On Philippine Nationalism

Fr: Former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Maria Lourdes Sereno* (2022 Aug 29 National Heroes Day)

https://tugmalahat.org/pahayag-sa-araw-ng-mga-pambansang-bayani-maria-lourdes-sereno/

 

Alam nating lahat na kailangang kailangan ngayon ng bayani sa Pilipinas. Naririto na tayo sa punto na ang ilan nating mga kabataan ay nagsisimula nang hindi mahiya na sabihing ayaw na nilang maging Pinoy; at kung meron lang oportunidad, tatakas na daw sila sa bayang ito at tatalikuran ang kanilang identity. Kay tagal nating pinaghirapan na ipagmalaki ang sarili natin sa mundo bilang mga Pilipino. First class brains and talent, at world class creativity and personality. Ngunit, totoo nga bang dumating na tayo sa pagkakalugmok sa kawalan ng pag-asa? Maibabalik pa ba natin ang ating tiwala sa sarili? Sukdulan na nga ba nating binigo ang ating mga kabataan?

 Mga kabataan, ang mga nakikita ninyo ngayon na sinasapublikong masasamang pag-uugali ng mga pulitiko at ng ibang nasa-pwesto ay hindi representante ng kabuuan ng lahing Pilipino. Kung ang nakikita ninyo ngayon sa marami sa pamunuan ay animo’y mga asong nakatiklop ang buntot, na hindi mawari kung kakahol at makikipaglaban sa kaaway o kakaripas na lamang sa takot, hindi iyan ang tikas ng lahing pinagmulan ninyo.

 Ang lahing Pilipino ay lahi ng magigiting. Noong nagplaplano ang mga Katipunero na mag-alsa sa mga Kastila, ang mga batang-batang pinuno nila, gaya nina Andres Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto, Heneral Luna, ay hindi nagpadaig sa takot. Alam nilang kulang ang armas nila at wala silang tunay na hukbong sandatahan, ngunit malinaw sa kanila ang mga sangkap upang magtagumpay: pagmamahal sa Diyos, sa bayan at sa kapwa; talino at pagpupursigi; at tapang na kayang hamakin ang kamatayan. Pagkat ang Pilipinong bayani ay naniniwala sa katotohanang binahagi ni Kristo: na matatagpuan ang kahulugan ng buhay sa pag-aalay ng sarili sa kapwa.

 Kung hindi ‘nyo nakikita ang ganitong pagsasakripisyo sa mga namumuno ngayon, huwag kayong panghinaan ng loob. Sa halip, tingnan ang panahong ito bilang oportunidad na sariwain kung paano nga ba hinuhubog ang mga bayaning Pilipino. Ang iyong ideyalismo sa murang edad ay magandang simula upang mangarap ng magandang bukas para sa bayan. Kung handa kang ibigay ang dunong at lakas mo upang ibangon ang bayan at kapwa, halina–huwag mag-atubili at pag-aralan kung paano maitataguyod muli ang ating mga demokratikong institusyon. Kung handa kang ipatupad ang mga minimithi mong pagbabago sa lipunan, lalo na sa pamamahala sa gobyerno, tibayan mo ang iyong dibdib, makisalamuha sa usaping panlipunan, hanapin ang mga pusong kapwa makabayan, magpunla ng mabubuting gawain sa lipunan, at huwag kang bibitiw sa iyong mga pangarap.

Ang kasakiman, pagsisinungaling at pang-aapi ay hindi itinuro sa atin ng ating mga ninuno. Tandaan kung sino ang mga taksil sa ating lahi. Huwag tumulad at sumama sa mga makasarili. Sa halip, pigilan ang paglaganap ng kanilang kapangyarihan sa lipunan. Kung linoko na tayo minsan, huwag nang muli pang magpaloko. At higit sa lahat, gaya ng ating mga ninuno, ialay ang puso at buhay sa pagmamahal sa Diyos at Bayan.

 Huwag kalimutan kung sino ka. Kabataang Pilipino. Magiting, matuwid, makabayan, maka-Diyos. Nananalantay sa dugo mo ang lahi ng mga bayani.

=====================================================

*Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno is living proof that true courage is forged through adversity.

Sereno rose from humble beginnings to become the country’s first female Chief Justice in 2012. She attended public elementary (Kamuning Elementary School - Salutatorian) and secondary (Quezon City High School - with honors) school, then pursued higher education through scholarships. She graduated valedictorian from the UP College of Law in 1984, and holds a Masters of Law degree, specializing in law and economics and international trade law, from the University of Michigan.

 She was a law professor at the UP for nearly 20 years. The World Trade Organization recognized her stellar credentials with her 1998 appointment as Counsellor of their Appellate Body in Geneva, Switzerland. She was also involved in successful international litigation as co-counsel for the Republic and was AIM’s Executive Director for their Policy Center.

 With her modernizing outlook and firm belief in the power of technology, she co-founded a corporation that developed the first annotated electronic research system in Philippine Law. Her tenure as Chief Justice is marked by far-reaching reforms, including eCourts, automated hearings, case decongestion, continuous trials, and expanded small claims courts. At the heart of her reform program is the strong conviction that justice and the law’s protection should be accessible and responsive to the most vulnerable Filipinos. Because she was a staunch defender of judicial independence, Sereno was subjected to intense persecution.

 Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno is now a major voice for people-centered change in Philippine society. She believes this change is part of God’s desire for this country, that every Filipino is precious in God’s sight, bawat isa mahalaga, and that every citizen and community has a role in building up this nation. She is an advocate for faithfulness to the vision of a “just and humane society” in the Philippine Constitution, and integrity and accountability in governance.

 

kulas, the canadian blogger / vlogger in love with the PH

 

kulas at 34 years old, had been in the PH (house background in Davao) since age 25, daily exploring & saving the beauty of the PH

with an indigenous person who told him that despite the many languages in the country, "we are still of ONE HEART"! :-)

biag ni lam ang

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bB6FybqkM9I

(7 mins)

one outstanding lesson I got from this is to try our best to resolve our issues first from our family of origin before moving on & starting our own family

ibalon

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nvvaRKsaE8

(5-min video in filipino)

Ibalon is a Philippines epic that comes from a fragment of 60 stanzas that is said to be the source of the Philippines indigenous identity and the story follows the hero Handiong as he conquers the land of Ibalon, transforming it into the Bicol it is today. The Ibalon epic was first transcribed by Spanish friars who heard the story in its original oral tradition form from the people of Bicol themselves.

https://www.reference.com/world-view/summary-ibalon-2c5d174a1b8c4eb0

 

Re: Summary of Ibalon

Fr: https://sci-marinduque.blogspot.com/2012/07/summary-story-of-epic-ibalon.html#:~:text=Summary%20story%20of%20the%20epic%20Ibalon.%20A%20,its%20field%20and%20to%20plant%20them%20with%20gabi.

 

A long time ago, there was a rich land called IBALONG. The hero BALTOG, who came from Botavora of the brave clan of Lipod, came to this land when many monsters were still roaming in its very dark forests. He decided to stay and was the first to cultivate its field and to plant them with gabi.

Then one night, a monstrous, wild boar known as TANDAYAG saw these field and destroyed the crops. Upon knowing this, Baltog decided to look for this boar with all his courage and patience. At last, as soon as he saw it, he fearlessly wrestled with it, with all his might. Baltog was unafraid. He was strong and brave. Though the Tandayag had very long fangs, he was able to pin down the monstrous, wild boar and break apart its very big jawbones. With this, Tandayag fell and died.
   After this fight, Baltog went to his house in Tondol, carrying the Tandaya'g broken bones. Then he hung it on a talisay tree in front of his house. Upon learning of the victory of their Chief Baltog, the people prepared a feast and celebrated. The very big jawbones of the dead boar became an attraction for everyone. Thus, came the tribes of Panikwason and Asog to marvel it.
   The second hero who came to the land of Ibalong was HANDYONG. Together with his men, he had to fight thousands of battles, and face many dangers to defeat the monster. As warriors, they first fought the one-eyed monster with the tree necks in the land of Ponong. For ten months, they fought without rest. And they never stopped fighting until all these monsters were killed.
   Handyong and his men made their next attack against the giant flying sharks called TRIBURON which had hardly flesh and sawlike teeth that could crush rocks. They continued fighting until the defeat of the last Triburon.
   They tamed the wild carabaos. They even drove away the giant and very fierce SARIMAO which had very sharp fingernails. And using their spears and arrows, they killed all the crocodiles which were as big as boats. With all these killings, the rivers and swamps of Ibalong turned red with blood. It was at this time that the savage monkeys became frightened and hid themselves.
   Among the enemies of Handyong and his men, the serpent ORYOL was the hardest to kill. Having a beautiful voice, Oryol could change its image to deceive its enemies. To capture it, Handyong tried different ways. But Oryol escaped every one of it and disappeared.
   So alone and unafraid, Handyong decide to look for Oryol in the heart of the forest. He followed the beautiful voice and was almost enchanted by it in his pursuit. Days and nights passed until Oryol came to admire Handyong's bravery and gallantry. Then the serpent helped the hero to conquer monsters, thus restoring peace to the entire Ibalong.
   In one the areas of Ibalong called Ligmanan, Handyong built a town. Under his leadership and his laws, slaves and masters were treated equally. The people planted rice and because of their high regard of him they named this rice after him. He built the first boat to ride the waves of Ibalong's seas. Through his good example, his people became inspired and came up with their own inventions. There was KIMANTONG who made the plow, harrow and other farming tools. HABLOM who invented the first loom for weaving abaca clothes, DINAHONGM AN AGTA, who created the stove, cooking pot, earthen jar and other kitchen utensils, and SURAL who brilliantly thought of syllabary and started to write on a marble rock. This was a golden period in Ibalong.
   Then suddenly, there came a big flood caused by UNOS, with terrifying earthquakes. The volcanoes of HANTIK, KULASI and ISAROG erupted. Rivers changed their direction and the seas waves rolled high. Destruction was everywhere. Soon, the earth parted, mountains sank, a lake was formed, and many towns in Ibalong were ruined.
   Then appeared the giant RABOT, half-man and half-beast, with awesome and terrifying powers.
   People were asking who will fight against Rabot. So BANTONG, the third hero was called. He was a good friend of Handyong. He was ordered to kill the new monster on Ibalong. To do this, he took with him a thousand warriors to attack Rabot's den. But using his wisdom against Rabot, he did not attack the giant right away. He first observed Rabot's ways. Looking around the giant's den, he discovered that there were many rocks surrounding it, and these were the people who were turned into rocks by Rabot.
   Bantong also learned that Rabot loved to sleep during the day and stayed awake at night. So, he waited. When Rabot was already sleeping very soundly, Bantong came near him. He cut the giant into two with his very sharp bolo and without any struggle, Rabot died. So Ibalong was at peace once more.

 

chinese-filipino US-PH war hero: gen. paua (+1926)

 https://www.facebook.com/historyphils/

On April 29, 1872, General Jose Ignacio Paua (Pawa) was born as Liu Heng-fu (劉亨賻) in Fujian, Qing China. Migrating to Manila at the age of 18, Paua found himself working as a blacksmith in Binondo. At the same time, he honed his skills in Chinese martial arts (武術).

As one of the Chinese to have ever fought in the Philippine Revolution and the Filipino-American War, Paua would lend to the Filipino cause not only his fighting skill, but also his knowledge as a blacksmith. It was said he convinced Emilio Aguinaldo to build a munitions factory in Cavite. Paua supervised the repair of broken weapons such as captured Mausers, as well as the creation of makeshift ones such as cannons made of bamboo or of metal from melted objects like church bells. He also taught how to make homemade gunpowder to refill cartridges. In addition, he was known as an organizer, doing whatever he could to raise needed funds for the revolution wherever he was sent. By the time war erupted with the Americans, Paua was serving in the Bicol region as chief of military operations.

Such was the reputation of Paua that Mariano Ponce once stated how the Chinese revolutionary was even braver than El Cid (1043-1099), the Spanish hero who fought during the Reconquista of the Iberian Peninsula from Muslim rule. It was his very reputation in the field that brought surprise to Filipino ranks when Paua surrendered on March 27, 1900.

This was after a near-death experience Paua survived during the Battle of Guinobatan a month earlier, on February 23, wherein he suspected a plot to take him down from the Filipinos who he chose to fight with. While charging on horseback, a shot came from behind him that almost hit his head. When he turned around, he realized it was friendly fire. Meanwhile, not even his personal escort of 30 soldiers accompanied Paua in his surrender to the United States, reinforcing his suspicions of ill-will towards him within the ranks. Despite his prevailing thoughts, it remained speculative what might have been the motivations of his fellow Filipino troops to turn against him. In retrospect, Paua has been involved in the apprehension of Andres Bonifacio, among other contentious events during his career.

Paua would settle in Albay after the war until his death on May 24, 1926. Learn more about the history of the Filipino-American War: https://history-ph.blogspot.com/.../president-aguinaldos...

Follow on Facebook, Twitter, and Tiktok: @historyphils

#FilipinoHistorian #History #TodayInHistory #OnThisDay #Paua #Pawa #Chinoy #Tsinoy #Philippines #UnitedStates #MilitaryHistory

an MD's testimony of Filipino Resilience Factors

Posted by one of our anesthesiology residents who just passed the specialty board exams:

[Diagnosis]

"From medschool, I learned how the body works, how the body can fail and how to fix the body when it fails. When I passed the medicine board exam, I thought I already knew how to be a doctor.

But during residency training, I felt tiredness of the body, mind and soul that I realized how it is to be an actual doctor. And when we became a Covid-19 referral center, being a doctor took over all aspects of my life that even in my sleep I can hear hospital announcements of incoming patients and I am haunted by thoughts of patients beyond saving.

[Treatment]

"But I survived these because of my consultants - their appreciation and encouragement, nurses - who despite the fact that they are drowning in their own tasks still manage to offer help, my batchmates - who, if given a chance, I'd still pick to go through the past 3 years with, my juniors - who endured the worst of my angry moments, my family - who I haven't hugged since the pandemic, and Yum - to whom I owe a lot of play time to make up for the times I was away. THANK YOU!!

1st step done "

================================================================

Laigo et al. (2004) Filipino Family Coping Mechanisms: 4Fs -- FAITH, FAMILY, FRIENDS, FUN (use of Fs mine)

leni robredo is interviewed while cooking by chef tatung sarthou (25 min)

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xgZIcM5RXI

25 mins

as a sequel to fr bu's article, here is official church teaching on the world of the spirit

Re: Spiritual Warfare Basics

Fr: Fr. Vincent Lampert, Exorcist of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis (2021 Oct 20), youtube.com/watch?v=KGVyGe3pdO0 (1:33:31)

 

Intro: We may call ourselves Christians, but may be spiritually asleep – in a neutral or lukewarm place. We are either in a relationship with God or something else – the Devil himself. Our ultimate IDENTITY comes from our RELATIONSHIP with God & not apart from Him. Lack of faith in Him can lead us to a different direction.

 

One of our primary enemies is the misguided notion of FREEDOM, i.e. “I can do whatever I want!” thus, making us SLAVES to our passions & desires (cf: St. Pope John Paul II).

 

>To exorcise = “to bind with an oath” (from the Latin root word)

 

>2 Kinds of Exorcism

1. Minor Exorcism = use of Supplicating Prayer directed to GOD (can be done by anyone)

2. Major Exorcism = use of Imperative Prayer directed at the DEVIL (can only be done by a priest authorized by the bishop (who is THE exorcist in the diocese) or officially designated as an Exorcist in the Diocese)

--the Old Rite (1614 – 1998) was revised in 1999 (promulgated by JP II) now contains Minor Exorcism Prayers (2016 English translation)

 

>2 Kinds of Demonic Activities

1. Extraordinary

2. Ordinary

 

PART I. EXTRAORDINARY DEMONIC ACTIVITIES

 

>4 Kinds of EXTRAORDINARY Demonic Activities

1. INFESTATION = LOCATION or OBJECT, e.g. haunted house, voodoo doll, Sto. Niňo statue not blessed by priest dancing

2. VEXATION = PHYSICAL ATTACKS, e.g. bite marks, bruises

3. OBSESSION = MENTAL ATTACKS, i.e., literally, the devil is trying to get into someone’s head & everything they experience in life begins to be filtered through the presence of the devil

4. POSESSION = the devil or one of his demons will take CONTROL of a person’s BODY, treating it as though it was its own, e.g., eyes to see, mouth to speak, arms & hands for gestures, legs & feet to walk

NB: A clear distinction has to be made between the person and the demon using the body.

PS: OPPRESSION = a gift from God ALLOWING one to be afflicted by the devil as an opportunity to show FIDELITY to God & a way to grow in HOLINESS & VIRTUE

--Examples:

 àJob in the Old Testament (“The Lord giveth & taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”)

àSt. Paul’s “thorn in the flesh, a messenger from Satan” sent to torment him to help him from becoming proud

àSt. Jean-Marie Vianney

àSt. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina – called the devil the “Old Blueberry” who kept him from sleep so he could not minster to the pilgrims visiting him in the morning

--Principle: My circumstances mean nothing when it comes to God’s rightful place in my life.

 

>4 Criteria in Evaluating Cases of Demonic Possession

[A. Mental]

1. Ability to speak & understand LANGUAGUES otherwise unknown to the individual

2. Elevated perception – KNOWLEDGE the person would not have otherwise have known

[B. Physical]

3. Superhuman STRENGTH

[C. Spiritual]

4. Aversion to anything of a SACRED nature, e.g. holy water, crucifix, sacred scriptures read, relics of saints

 

>Symptoms of the Demonic (cf: New Testament)

1. Bodily contortions

2. Voice change, i.e. deep, authoritative, & demanding

3. Physical appearance, e.g., eyes rolled back, mouth foam, growl & snarl like an animal

4. Unpleasant odors

5. Change in room temperature, e.g. colder

6. Uncontrollable laughter

7. Sarcasm, hiss, resemble movement of snake (e.g., slither across floor)

8. Levitation

 

 >Protocol Before Using Exorcism Prayers

--Attitude of Skepticism – exhaust all possible explanations c/o other things happening in the life of the person

--MORAL CERTITUDE – belief beyond doubt it is an “extraordinary demonic activity”

NB: False positive can possibly do more harm because it can prevent the person from getting the real need, e.g., MD, Mental Health professionals

 

1.    Psychiatric Evaluation – by qualified Psychiatrist

2.    Physical Examination by an MD

3.    Life History c/o Questionnaire (from Vatican) – demonic, mental health issue, physical

4.    NORMALIZE the Spiritual Life of the Person – exorcism involves two movements: (a) cast out (-), (b) invite God in – put the person in a RELATIONSHIP with God (+)

NB: No amount of exorcism can replace the central need in a person’s life to ACCEPT GOD & to live out their relationship with Christ in an INTIMATE, PERSONAL & COMMUNAL way

5.    Look for the 4 extraordinary signs of demonic presence – languages, strength, perception, aversion

 

>Sacred Scriptures Specific to the Deliverance Ministry

à Ephesians 4:27 “Do not give the devil a FOOTHOLD!”

è 1Pt 5:8 “Be SOBER, be VIGILANT because your adversary the devil is like a roaring lion who walks about seeking him whom he may devour.”

è James 4:7 “RESIST the devil & he will flee from you.”

NB: The situation now is not so much the devil increasing temptation as more people are willing to “play his game” (lack of faith).

 

>Dx: 8 Ways to Open the Doorway to Evil

  Rx: Close all Openings & Deepen Relationship with God

 

1.    Ties with the OCCULT [“occultus” in Latin means “hidden, secret”] – focuses on the PARANORMAL, e.g. palm reading, medium or psychic, Ouija board, tarot cards, pendulums, crystals, magic, horoscope, witchcraft, “knock on wood” (a Druid practice – belief that spirits live in the tress, asking the spirit in the wood to come to your aid & what you’re asking which is a violation of Commandment # 01. No substitute for God!)

 

2.    ENTERTAINMENT industry, e.g. holloween (2^nd biggest spending holiday in the US after Christmas; creates a FASCINATION with the devil), horror movies, TV shows, literature, games, computers, gadgets

NB: The devil plays on our MEMORY & IMAGINATION to instill FEAR.

 

3.    Being CURSED (opposite of blessing) – doing harm to another with help of the devil

NB: Only effective if we are WEAK on our faith because we can’t control what another does. But, we can make sure we remain FIRM in our commitment to God! – regardless of what someone does to us.

 

è Ephesians 6:10-20 “The Spiritual War”

 

[10] “Finally, grow STRONG in the Lord, with the strength of his power. [11] Put God’s ARMOR on so as to be able to RESIST the devil’s tactics. [12] For it is not against human enemies that we have to struggle, but against the Sovereignties and the Powers who originate the darkness in the world, the SPIRITUAL ARMY of evil in the heavens. [13] That is why you must rely on God’s armor, or you will not be able to put up any RESISTANCE when the worst happens, or have enough RESOURCES to hold your ground.

 

[14] “So stand your ground, with truth bucked around your wait, and integrity for a breastplate, [15] wearing for shoes on your feet the eagerness to spread the gospel of peace [16] and always carrying the shield of faith so that you can use it to put out the burning arrows of the evil one. [17] And then you must accept salvation from God to be your helmet and receive the word of God from the Spirit to use as a sword.

[18] “PRAY all the time, asking for what you need, praying in the Spirit on every possible occasion. Never get tired of staying awake to pray for all the saints; [19] and pray for me to be given the opportunity to open my mouth and speak without fear and give out the mystery of the gospel [20] of which I am an ambassador in chains; pray that in proclaiming it I may speak as BOLDLY as I ought to.”

 

è Psalm 91 “I need not fear the terror of the night nor the arrow the flies by day!”

 

Conclusion: If we stand right before the eyes of God, then the devil is really nothing to fear.

 

4.    Being DEDICATED to a demon

NB: Anyone below the age of reason (7 years old: First Confession & Holy Communion) cannot bring evil upon himself because God would PROTECT & safeguard him. Those who have AUTHORITY over them bear the RESPONSIBILITY for that.

e.g. mother dedicated a child to Satan to get even with God for giving her a child she didn’t want when born became possessed [1^st 12 years subjected to Satanic rituals & abuses, run away & became a street child, BUT in late teens met an Exorcist, eventually became a NUN! & dedicated her life to God working with street children),

--Lesson: Use Satan’s ways against him! (turn around)

 

e.g. UNWANTED CHILD, post-abortion syndrome

 

5.    ABUSE à creates emotional wounds à seek HELP from the wrong sources

e.g. father begins to rape child at age 7 for 5 years (till age 12); then, father starts molesting younger sister; child begins to feel ABANDONED by God & goes to WITCHES (mangkukulam), witch doctors, shamans

 

6.    Life of HABITUAL SIN – not following the DIVINE WILL, not being able to call SIN a sin

--BUT keeping on confessing the same sin is a GOOD sign, i.e. “I’m still in the FIGHT!” because you can still call sin a sin [objective] vs. “I’m always just gonna do it, so why bother confessing it?!”

--Principle: Anything we can NAME & HAND OVER to God, we can do something about! Anything we DENY will ultimately CONTROL us!”

 

7.    BROKEN RELATIONSHIPS

--Principle: We all deal with brokenness in our lives, but the way we DEAL with it does seem to matter.

--Dysfunctional in the FAMILY à ANGER, RESENTMENT, BITTERNESS, REVENGE. The devil feeds on this because he loves D I V I S I O N .

--vs. Christ came to create C O M M U N I T Y – to bring us TOGETHER. The devil always wants to divide & conquer! In Mark 5, the man possessed by the Gerasene demoniac, after deliverance, wanted to join Jesus but was told by Him “No, go HOME to your FAMILY!”

 

8.    Cultivating a relationship with a demon or INVITING a demon into your life

--Principle: Exorcisms cannot be performed on anyone against his or her WILL (FREEWILL – to choose for or against God!). We can pray for them, BUT ultimately, the person has to ask for help DIRECTLY.

PART II. ORDINARY ACTIVITIES OF THE DEVIL

 

>4-Stage Plan of Attack

1. DECEPTION

2. DIVISION

3. DIVERSION

4. DISCOURAGEMENT

 

Goal: to pull us further & further AWAY from God! à Loss of sense of IDENTITY

--Our IDENTITY: The human person is created in the image & likeness of God! We have the INNATE desire for God!

--St. Augustine: “Our hearts are restless, O Lord, until they rest in You!

--The devil wants his LIES to become the TRUTH in the mind of the person!

 

1.    DECEPTION – inversion of reality (inside out, upside down)

--The devil puts us off track, then presents his inversion of the truth (lies). He speaks from his nature as a LIAR, the father of all lies. (John 8:44).

e.g. Genesis – Adam & Eve: “You will not die. You will be like God.”

Rx: GRATITUDE for the PAST, LOVE for the PRESENT, & HOPE & TRUST (vs. FEAR c/o need to control by knowing the outcome, no room for hope & trust) for the FUTURE.

 

2.    Dx: DIVISION – disunity

a.    From GOD

b.    From each OTHER

c.    From SELF

    Rx: Redemption: RECONCILIATION with God & share in the UNITY of the HOLY TRINITY

--The devil’s wish is for us to collapse with him into eternal death & everlasting ALIENATION from God c/o world of deceit & untruth.

--Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer: “That they may all be ONE as You & I are ONE so that the world may BELIEVE.”

--Christ’s mission: HEALING / UNIFY.

--vs. The devil wants to stymie, halt, paralyze us on our life’s journey of UNIRTY & COHERENCE to our existence so that we feel OVERWHELMED, out-of-reach beyond our capacity with the following effect that we GIVE UP, we FEAR, we WITHDRAW, we COMPARE self vs. others that we UNDERESTIMATE ourselves leading to CONFLICT & COMPETITION, leading to CONTEMPT, RESENTMENT, AVARICE, IMPATIENCE, AGITATION, DISSATISFACTION, short-circuit coping through DRUGS, ALCOHOL, PORNOGRAPHY, & other behavioral ADDICTIONS, leading to INFIDELITY, BREAK-UP OF FAMILY.

--Principle: We will FIND our life when we GIVE it back to God who gave it to us. (“He who saves his life will lose it & he who loses his life for the sake of God will find it.”) A life with UNITY, INTEGRITY & COHERENCE.

              : We need to have our lives in our HANDS if we want to give them back to our God.

--vs. The devil does not want us to put the PIECES TOGETHER.

--If our lives are FRACTURED, we surrender our lives to our God.

 

3.    DIVERSION – goal: to LOSE FOCUS, our sense of PURPOSE & DIRECTION away from the pathway to God [e.g. Simba, the Lion King] in SUBTLE ways

e.g. Israel à Promised Land: got distracted by creating the Golden Calf (IDOLATRY) = substituting a product of our OWN CREATION for the UNCREATED GOD

--If we are not CENTERD on God, something or someone else will give the sense of joy, meaning, happiness that only God can give.

 

4.    Dx: DISCOURAGEMENT – NB: the most dangerous threat to the spiritual life

--tired, joyless face

--In Dante’s “Divine Comedy,” the sign to hell says: “Abandon all HOPE [leads to suicidal ideations & actions], ye that enter in!”

--The decision to STOP TRYING, to pull back, to do something else, to halt results in DERAILMENT.

--Discouragement does not have to lead to depression.

--The capital sin of acedia (sloth, laziness especially re: religious obligations & practices) comes from the Greek word “acedeo” meaning “I don’t care!” c/o tired, feeling overwhelmed, intimidated

--analogy: At the CROSSROADS, you can choose either the way of death – spiritual & physical or discipleship – meaning, purpose, direction.

 

 Rx: When under attack:

a.    Maintain FIDELITY to God – don’t change course when under attack.

b.    Be PATIENT

c.    Exercise HUMILTY

d.    Have confidence in the HOLY SPIRIT who will lead, guide, direct

e.    Intensify SPIRITUAL PRACTICES – regular mass & holy communion, confess regularly, adoration, Marian devotions in daily routine, e.g., rosary [Remember that Mary is a POWERFUL ally vs. the forces of evil. In Genesis 3:15 the woman will “crush the head of the serpent” c/o OBEDIENCE to God vs. Adam & Eve’s disobedience. “FIAT” vs. “NO!”. other devotions: Divine Mercy, St. Joseph, the Terror of Demons, Patron Saints; SACRAMENTALS – hold water, sacred images, medals, & crosses around neck remind us of the PRESENCE of God!

f.     Ultimately, never give in to the LIES of the devil, e.g. “You have been abandoned by God!”

--Matthew 10:28 “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; fear him rather who can destroy both body and soul in hell.”

--The devil is weak & helpless when CONFRONTED DECISIVELY. He is essentially a COWARD – only attacks when met with weakness; when RESISTED, flees!

--analogy: The lion is weak when alone, away from the herd. He says, “This person is not worth it. I will try someone else.”

--analogy: The cockroach in a dark room scurries into cracks & crevices when you light a candle in the dark.

--NB: The devil always attacks at what he perceives as a WEAK point – the area to grow stronger in relationship with God.

--analogy: The wizard of Oz is only fearful for as long as his FAÇADE is undiscovered; but capsizes as soon as the dog pulls back the curtain & reveals the fact that it’s just an ILLUSION.

--Conclusion: Ultimately, the devil is not to fear!

Rx: REPENT