Theological Reflection on the Papal Visit in the Phils.

When I first started this blog, I was still studying in the seminary. It started as my reflection of my experiences before it was commercialized, Five years later, I am going to theologize about the Papal visit.

Just a background, I am baptized as a Protestant but I was also baptized secretly as Catholic later which is why my mother was wondering why was it allowed without her consent. Even though I was raised as a Protestant, I was told that once I was baptized as a Catholic, I am automatically a citizen of the Vatican as any Roman Catholic.

During my year at the seminary, I was told that the late Pope John Paul II was an ecumenical pope. When John Paul II died, we thought there will be no pope like him that is willing to break barriers. And then Ratzinger resigned and for the first time, the new Pope was not from Europe. Pope Francis is a native of Argentina. Just like the Philippines, his native Argentina is also a former colony of Spain.

Just like John Paul II, Francis I also breaks barriers. He was able to accept gay people as fellow believers as long as they are not doing anything sinful. He is also open to reproductive health which is his cardinals are opposed to as well as the local bishops here.

In preparation of his arrival and his papal visit, I was able to see how Pinoys are preparing for the event, One of the news broadcast features a house that was repainted because the baranggay funded it because they are aware that the Pope's motorcade will pass there. When the owner was interviewed, a grandmother, told the reporter that they are doing this because the Pope is second to God. I find this Biblically wrong. According to general Christian faith, the Church is second to Christ since he called the Church the Bride. The Catholic Church should orient their believers more like how we Protestants do in Sunday School. But I prefer the world as second to God since majority of the people believes in God.

As a Protestant, I still have respect for the Pope as a head of state, Besides, protestants during the Reformation never intended to break away from the Universal Church which was the Roman Catholic Church. They were excommunicated and even executed by the Inquisition.

But that is history. Back to the main event, I am not surprised how people prepared for this. Even though according to the owners of the commercial establishments complained that 5 days is too long but they have to comply since it is for the Pope and the government already made it a holiday. It did affect the public transportation even our LRT. Some of the stations are affected and people have a hard time going home. On Day 2, the mobile networks were down the whole morning in the Metro Manila area especially in Manila and Pasay. I already knew that it was intentionally planned during the papal convoy.

But again, it is not about religion. It is about mercy and compassion as the current Pope is emphasizing. Today, there is an Encounter With Filipino Families at The Arena in Mall Of Asia. I just hope that Reproductive Health will also be addressed by the Pope in the event. But I am glad that the Pope emphasized to the leaders to reject corruption. Hope it does not fall on deaf ears even though I am doubtful. Follow this blog for more theological reflections or like L.E.N.S. blogs on Facebook.

NEW BLOOD, NEW MACHINES, NEW CLAIMS. THE MINERS ARE BACK FOR A BRAND NEW SEASON OF GOLD RUSH

Press release

Discovery Channel's ambitious gold miners are at it again and the stakes have never been higher. Who's in and who's out? In season five of GOLD RUSH, everything has changed – new miners, new claims, and new tools, technologies and methods to get gold out of the ground. Will big risks lead to even bigger pay outs? GOLD RUSH 5 premieres on Discovery Channel every Monday at 8:00 p.m., kicking off with a two-hour special on January 26. Encores every Thursday at 11:00 p.m., Saturday at 5:00 p.m. and Sunday at 10:00 p.m.

 

Photo courtesy of Discovery Channel

Returning this season is 20-year-old Parker Schnabel who proved himself in his rookie season mining the Klondike - raking in over 1,000 ounces of gold worth USD1.4 million dollars. Parker is taking off his "training wheels" this year, setting an unprecedented goal of 2,000 ounces worth more than USD2.5 million dollars - double his take from last season. Parker re-invests every last cent in a mad scramble to get to good gold, asks more of his crew than ever before and manages to steal one of rival gold miner Todd Hoffman's top mechanics. If Parker can hit his lofty goal, he could be on his way to becoming a Klondike legend. Otherwise, it will become clear that his first season was simply a stroke of good luck.

Last season, Todd Hoffman rolled the dice and fell flat on his face. He hit rock bottom after braving the jungles of Guyana, South America, in an attempt to make a fortune along with his father Jack, Dave Turin, Jim Thurber and the rest of the Hoffman crew. This year, Todd is back at square one. His right hand man, Dave, has had enough, deserting Todd to mine with legends Freddie and Derek Dodge. Not only has Todd lost his land, most of his money, his crew, but worst of all, he has lost his dignity. His dream of mining in the jungle nearly destroyed him, but will he be able to rise from the ashes and turn things around? Or will this be the season that Todd throws in the towel? One thing is for certain - Todd will not go down without a fight.

Meanwhile, Tony Beets and his crew dive in full-time to take on the unthinkable. Tony, known throughout the Klondike as "The Viking," buys a million-dollar 75-year-old floating gold dredge. But to resurrect the gold-catching monster, he needs to take it apart piece by piece. The 210-foot (over 64 metres) dredge has not been used in over 30 years and is a risky proposition. Can The Viking resurrect the machine capable of pulling millions out of the ground or will he be left with 1,000 metal pieces of junk?

Catch more gold than ever seen before, as well as shocking twists and turns in the all-new season of GOLD RUSH. 

ABS-CBN PRESENTS DIFFERENT FACES OF LOVE VIA “NASAAN KA NANG KAILANGAN KITA”

ABS-CBN release

ABS-CBN will introduce to viewers four women who will depict the different faces of love this Monday (January 19) as it airs its newest afternoon drama series “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” starring Denise Laurel, Jane Oineza, Loisa Andalio, and Vina Morales.

After being abandoned by her father at such a young age, Cecilia (Vina) vowed to do everything to finish her studies and see her family whole again someday. Despite all the pain she endured, Cecilia eventually finds the love through Leandro (Christian Vasquez).

What will Cecilia do when she begins to experience the pains of her past all over again? How will her daughters make her even stronger when her family faces a big challenge? Will love be able to erase all the anger and bitterness in Cecilia’s heart?

Completing the cast of “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” are Jerome Ponce, Joshua Garcia, and Aleck Bovick. Also joining the cast are Arron Villaflor are Sue Ramirez for their special participation. It is directed by Jeffrey Jeturian and Mervyn Brondial.

“Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” is based on the ‘80s movie written by multi-awarded screenwriter Ricky Lee

Don’t miss the beginning of the newest teleserye that will show the different faces of love, “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” this Monday, after “Flordeliza” on ABS-CBN’s Kapamilya Gold. For more information about “Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita,” log on www.abs-cbn.com, or follow @abscbndotcom on Twitter.

SEASON 2 OF OFF THE HOOK: EXTREME CATCHES

PR 1142015

immediate release

PRO WRESTLER “SHOWTIME” ERIC YOUNG CONTINUES HIS JOURNEY

INTO THE WORLD OF EXTREME FISHING

IN SEASON 2 OF OFF THE HOOK: EXTREME CATCHES

- Each episode is a unique adventure into a fishing subculture, where a crazy idea turns into a working technique for hauling in the catch -

 

Photo courtesy of Discovery Channel

OFF THE HOOK: EXTREME CATCHES  follows “Showtime” Eric Young as he travels across North America to learn about some of the most extreme fishing techniques some people have come up with to land the big one, including using pantyhose to catch sharks in the Atlantic Ocean and launching live bait with fire extinguishers on Lake Michigan! This season, he’s on the hunt for even larger fish, stranger characters, and bigger challenges. From tarpon fishing on stand-up kayaks and underwater spearfishing for toxic lionfish, to slingshot bait fishing for sturgeon and a massive ice fishing festival on a frozen lake, you can be sure Showtime Eric Young will dive right in. Starting January 15, two episodes of OFF THE HOOK: EXTREME CATCHES  premiere back-to-back every Thursday at 9:00 p.m.

This season on OFF THE HOOK: EXTREME CATCHES, Eric’s quest is taking him to even more extreme environments. In Alaska, he will join a hardened crew of cod fishermen on the dangerous Bering Sea and snowmobile to remote lakes to ice fish for invasive northern pike and free-diving for smallmouth bass under the winter ice. On the tropical side, Eric will be spear fishing and dodging sharks in the wide-open Atlantic Ocean off Puerto Rico. We’ll also see him returning to Florida and Texas to try new challenges, like hunting alligators and hand-lining a 300-pound goliath grouper.

It’s not just the catch and environments that are extreme – on each trip, Eric will meet and fish with some of the most unusual characters in the fishing world. Guys like Awesome John and Gary “The Toad”, extreme surfcasters who brave heavy waves in Montauk, New York, for striped bass and bluefish; and Rattlin’ Randy, a Texas sling-bow fisherman with a huge arsenal of weapons for hunting and catching fish at night.

For Eric, it’s all about achieving that adrenaline rush – so he’s going to continue putting himself on the line, all for the sake of the catch. These adventures are not just on the edge, they’re OFF THE HOOK!

Encores every Friday at 2:00 p.m., Saturday at 7:00 p.m and Sunday at 10:00 a.m. 

CARMUDI RESHAPES ONLINE CAR BUYING, SELLING EXPERIENCE

With online shopping being the trend nowadays, more and more websites have emerged over the Internet. But only some guaranteed and dished out positive results. One of which is Carmudi.

Carmudi, the leading vehicle platform around the world, has recently tapped the Philippine automotive scene in providing buyers, sellers, and car dealers an opportunity to experience safe and convenient online transaction.

Carmudi Philippines—through its website www.carmudi.com.ph—has been generating positive leads for potential car buyers and sellers in the country since it started January 2014. The website currently has close to 25,000 vehicles in its inventory spanning from cars, motorcycles and commercial vehicles; brand new or used.

According to Subir Lohani, managing director of Carmudi Philippines, “Having the most number of listings is not the main thing that defines Carmudi.com.ph and Carmudi in general. We look on the quality of listings and value of proposition that we offer both buyers and sellers of vehicles that defines us.”

Lohani explained, “We envision Carmudi Philippines to become a complete one-stop shop for anything vehicle related such as loans, finding an auto repair shop, tips and tricks for your car, and more. Cars are essentially a lifestyle product. Whether it be the brand, model, make, or color, it tells about your individual personality so Carmudi must also evolve into a lifestyle product which we are in process of doing.”

Lohani also shared, “Our search functionality is one of the most important things that differentiates us from the traditional classifieds and online general classifieds. As a dedicated vehicle platform, we realized that buyers want to have the ability to search with certain parameters for their dream cars.”

The company prides itself on how both buyers and sellers will experience customer satisfaction by looking on the complete data list of each vehicle from multiple pictures, descriptions, identifications, and even on the details of map of dealership.

“Being online and having a mobile app has a definite advantage as prospective buyers of vehicles can quickly search with a few swipes of a screen on the go anytime they have a few minutes. Furthermore, once the user sees a vehicle that they are interested in, they can directly sms, email, or call the dealer directly through our online and mobile platforms, which improves efficiency in the overall process,” adds Lohani.

Globally, Carmudi has 250,000 up-to-date listings, 9,000 of which are vehicle dealers. Through Carmudi.com.ph, individual vehicle owners can list their vehicles on the platform, while professional sellers can list their vehicles through the platform and receive professional support on how to present themselves and their offerings.

Carmudi was originally founded in Berlin, Germany in 2013 under the Rocket Internet Group, who also ventures company such as Zalora, Easy Taxi, Lazada, PricePanda, Lamido, Lamudi, and Tripda.

AQUABEST LANDS SUPPLY AGREEMENT WITH SELECT SM MALLS

Press Release

Aquabest the country's premier water franchise has landed agreements to supply water to tenants of select SM Malls.

To date the company would be supplying the water requirements of mall tenants in 24 SM malls which include SM North Edsa and SM Fairview. It is also set to supply to other SM malls all over Luzon and Cagayan de Oro in the coming months. "We are pleased with the supply contracts we signed since they would not only benefit our company but also our franchisees to whom we are farming out part of the mall's supply requirements. We look at this development as a vote of confidence in our strategy of delivering the best quality product with added value for our customers" says Carson Tan the company's CEO.

To meet its supply commitments the company is opening strategically located production facilities in Metro Manila some of which are housed in SMDC property developments. Some of these new company owned facilities are located in SM Sea and SM Blue Residences. Part of the supply requirements would also be allocated to its franchisees.

The company is making a push towards institutional and corporate accounts as it seeks to expand its market share. Apart from SM malls, the company also has existing supply contracts with Globe Telecom, Ali Makati Hotel Property Inc. (Fairmont), PMFTC (Fortune), Loreal, Radio Mindanao Network, Shell Depot, and Ajinomoto.