T0day is H0ly Thursday.
A day 0f the year that I w0uld l00k f0rward where I get t0 attend mass with a l0t 0f priests. They say that 0ne priest is equivalent t0 0ne mass. Imagine h0w many masses I w0uld have attended in just an h0ur 0r tw0. It w0uld have saved me fr0m attending mass daily.But 0f c0urse I d0nt c0nsider it like that, it is the blessings that I c0unt when I attend the Chrism Mass. 0ne blessing is equivalent t0 0ne priest. I remember advising a friend bef0re, a seafarer, that if their vacati0ns falls 0n this days, they w0uld make sure t0 attend this mass because they are unable t0 attend 0ne at sea.
I cant help missing 0ne mem0rable traditi0n that I make with my br0thers and sisters, friends and relatives... *-)))))
Every H0ly Thursday during lent als0 kn0wn as Semana Santa 0r Cuaresma, it has been the traditi0n 0f the Filipin0 Cath0lic faithful t0 d0 the Visita Iglesia, literally, church visit. This practice intr0duced by the Spanish c0l0nizers g0es back t0 the time 0f the early church where Christians w0uld visit seven great basilicas in R0me f0r the ad0rati0n 0f the Blessed Sacrament during Maundy Thursday.
F0r us Filipin0s, it is n0t 0nly the Blessed Sacrament but a c0ntemplati0n 0f the f0urteen stati0ns 0f the cr0ss. Traditi0nally seven churches are visited where tw0 stati0ns were prayed per visit. While 0thers, with m0re time and eff0rt visit f0urteen.
This was als0 0ur practice years back. T0gether with my friends in the Y0uth Charismatic c0mmunity where I bel0ng, we w0uld visit churches fr0m Panay, P0ntevedra, Bailan, Panit-an, Luct0gan, and tw0 churches in the City - Mt. Carmel and the Immaculate C0ncepci0n Cathedral. The f0llowing years we w0uld visit churches that we have n0t visited fr0m the previ0us year. It was fun and a very mem0rable experience.
I remember, I w0uld make a special prayer in every church that we visited. They say a wish is surely granted in the church that 0ne has visited f0r the first time. H0nestly i did n0t n0tice it. I did n0t keep track 0f it s0 I d0 n0t kn0w if it is true.
T0night is different. F0r the past several years n0w, I w0uld 0nly visit tw0 churches.
While visiting their churches, I prayed the Stati0ns 0f the Cr0ss and j0ined the r0sary with the gr0up that was having a vigil. I enj0yed the s0lemnity 0f the atm0sphere. I got t0 see 0ld friends, t00. Th0se that I have n0t seen f0r years.
I w0nder h0w many churches will I w0uld be able t0 visit again next year?...
I will bl0g it here next year.....
A day 0f the year that I w0uld l00k f0rward where I get t0 attend mass with a l0t 0f priests. They say that 0ne priest is equivalent t0 0ne mass. Imagine h0w many masses I w0uld have attended in just an h0ur 0r tw0. It w0uld have saved me fr0m attending mass daily.But 0f c0urse I d0nt c0nsider it like that, it is the blessings that I c0unt when I attend the Chrism Mass. 0ne blessing is equivalent t0 0ne priest. I remember advising a friend bef0re, a seafarer, that if their vacati0ns falls 0n this days, they w0uld make sure t0 attend this mass because they are unable t0 attend 0ne at sea.
I cant help missing 0ne mem0rable traditi0n that I make with my br0thers and sisters, friends and relatives... *-)))))
Every H0ly Thursday during lent als0 kn0wn as Semana Santa 0r Cuaresma, it has been the traditi0n 0f the Filipin0 Cath0lic faithful t0 d0 the Visita Iglesia, literally, church visit. This practice intr0duced by the Spanish c0l0nizers g0es back t0 the time 0f the early church where Christians w0uld visit seven great basilicas in R0me f0r the ad0rati0n 0f the Blessed Sacrament during Maundy Thursday.
F0r us Filipin0s, it is n0t 0nly the Blessed Sacrament but a c0ntemplati0n 0f the f0urteen stati0ns 0f the cr0ss. Traditi0nally seven churches are visited where tw0 stati0ns were prayed per visit. While 0thers, with m0re time and eff0rt visit f0urteen.
This was als0 0ur practice years back. T0gether with my friends in the Y0uth Charismatic c0mmunity where I bel0ng, we w0uld visit churches fr0m Panay, P0ntevedra, Bailan, Panit-an, Luct0gan, and tw0 churches in the City - Mt. Carmel and the Immaculate C0ncepci0n Cathedral. The f0llowing years we w0uld visit churches that we have n0t visited fr0m the previ0us year. It was fun and a very mem0rable experience.
I remember, I w0uld make a special prayer in every church that we visited. They say a wish is surely granted in the church that 0ne has visited f0r the first time. H0nestly i did n0t n0tice it. I did n0t keep track 0f it s0 I d0 n0t kn0w if it is true.
T0night is different. F0r the past several years n0w, I w0uld 0nly visit tw0 churches.
 | |
| Immaculate C0ncepci0n Cathedral |
 | ||
| Mt. Carmel Church |
I w0nder h0w many churches will I w0uld be able t0 visit again next year?...
I will bl0g it here next year.....
