I have a friend who described himself as the “ultimate bachelor”–apathetic, swinging, selfish prick (his own words, not mine!). He got a girl pregnant at a young age. He told me how much he changed since their baby was born. Before that, he would only think about basketball shoes, and his car, and how he … Continue reading On Love
Mustard Seed
It is the nature of man to be naturally drawn to the best, the biggest, the brightest, the most beautiful or handsome, the fairest, the most popular. That is why show business is one of the most lucrative businesses around. And yet one of the more popular stories in the Gospels is the parable of … Continue reading Mustard Seed
Hanapbuhay
The Filipino word for work is HANAPBUHAY. It is such a beautiful word because it captures what work is supposed to be in our culture. Work is not just about earning money, it is about finding life (hanap = to find + buhay = life). The word hanapbuhay reminds us that we should see work, … Continue reading Hanapbuhay
Love and Beauty: Meaning, Death, and Faulty Stars (Last Part)
by Pat Nogoy SJ The Beauty of Faulty Stars Despite it being a shout out to the void, Augustus profession of love to Hazel Grace is not without real meaning. Meaning finds its concrete existence in the encounter between the lover and Beloved. Meaning is the fruit of lovers revealed as beautiful in love. What … Continue reading Love and Beauty: Meaning, Death, and Faulty Stars (Last Part)
Love and Beauty: Meaning, Death, and Faulty Stars (Part II)
by Pat Nogoy SJ Infinity and Beauty It is neither the quotable words of Augustus nor the bravado he exudes that defines his rare ability to live in the moment. Even this “ability” goes beyond the labels of “gift,” “talent,” or “choice.” Beneath the exchanges of thoughts and dialogue with Hazel Grace is Augustus’ transformative … Continue reading Love and Beauty: Meaning, Death, and Faulty Stars (Part II)
Love and Beauty: Meaning, Death, and Faulty Stars
by Pat Nogoy SJ “Everything has beauty but not everyone sees it.”― Confucius Life is not exactly beautiful. Being born into this world means wrestling with life’s givens. What we received from life is often measured according to our own expectations. Talents in its kinds and levels, physical appearances, family pedigrees, and cultural identities are … Continue reading Love and Beauty: Meaning, Death, and Faulty Stars
Greater Than Death and Absurdity
For the reality of God persists; its notion knocks hard on the doors of minds and imagination. People seem to not stop in talking about it. Blame it on the culture or the institutional Church, perhaps. However, if one chooses to be open and to simply listen, may be one can stumble upon some truth of this reality we call God. Not only an abstract concept or a reality proven by logic. Not only a reality that exists and in which all other beings participate in their existence. Not only a trace of a completely Other. Not only something or someone that can be dismissed in silence. Not only an idea to be talked about.
The Legacy of the Two Aquinos
Today, Corazon Aquino, eleventh President of the Republic of the Philippines, first female President of the Philippines and of Asia, the Woman who took over the Presidency after a 20-year dictatorship, the wife of national hero Ninoy Aquino, mother of five, Mother of the nation, will be sent to her final resting place.
