Feeding the Poor?
by TheDivineMissM!
Sobrang nainis ako when I read this news. SOBRA. As in El Filibusterismo kind of inis.
I have been a Catholic all of my 30 years. NOT ONCE have I ever seen a feeding programme by the church. NOT ONCE.
Magkano sa palagay mo ang nalilikam nang simbahan sa donasyon at kung ano-ano pang fees na kanilang china-charge? Sa maliit na chapel sa barangay kung saan ako lumaki, may 6 to 8 masses tuwing linggo. Sa bawat misa siguro may 500 mahigi na nagsisimba. Kung tig P5 lang ang abuloy nila, that's roughly P15, 000 EVERY SUNDAY. P720, 000 A YEAR. Pero ni minsan di man lang yan nagpa lugaw sa mga mahihirap. Tuwing may repair na kailangan sa simbahan eh nag ngo ngolekta naman sila nang extra.
Sa Manila Cathedral, ang estimate ay may 2, 000 to 4, 000 weddings a year. At P15, 000 per wedding, ilang milyon ang kinikita nun? May narinig ka na bang feeding programme nang simbahan?
Naiinis ako. Sobra. Sa dami nang mahirap at may kailangan nang tulog sa Pilipinas, may narining ka na bang nag sabi na, lalapit ako sa simbahan hihingi ako nang tulong?
Sa sobrang dire nang situation sa Pilipinas, ang sama nang loob ko na walang tulong na naiibibigay ang simbahan sa pinaka kapos na mga Pilipino. NAKAKAINIS.
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PhP4 MILLION BETTER SPENT FEEDING THE POOR: ARCHBISHOP LAMENTS
CEBU CITY, November 27, 2005 (STAR) By Jasmin R. Uy The Freeman - Not
all in Cebu were agog, after all, over the lavish extravaganza that was
the opening ceremony of the 23rd Southeast Asian Games last Friday.
At least one discordant voice rose above the din of praise, and what a
voice it was.
The voice belonged to Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal.
According to Msgr. Achilles Dakay, the Cebu archdiocesan media liaison
officer, the cardinal was dismayed by the lavishness of the preparations.
Dakay said the cardinal felt the P4 million spent for the opening
ceremonies would have been better spent providing food for the hungry.
" If they could spend that much for one activity, they can maybe also
spend that much for our hungry needy people, " Dakay said, quoting Vidal,
in a press conference at the archbishop's residence yesterday.
Of the P4 million reportedly allocated for the grand opening ceremony at
the Cebu City Sports Center, at least P1 million was spent for the huge
fireworks display that lit up the night sky over the center for about 20
minutes.
The money spent, according to Vidal, would have been sufficient for the
needs of feeding centers and other institutions for the elderly and
children, Dakay said.
Sought for comment on the cardinal's apparent displeasure, councilor
Sylvan Jakosalem, chairman of the city council committee on sports and
development, explained that the money used for the opening ceremonies came
from the Office of the President through the Philippine Southeast Asian
Games Organizing Committee and that Cebu City did not spend anything for
the activity.
What the city spent for was only the accommodation and transportation
expenses of some officials and members of Team Philippines for the five
events that are to be played in Cebu.
The cardinal, according to Dakay, even spends his own money to feed the
poor at the two feeding centers maintained by the archdiocese.
Dakay did not say how much the cardinal spends of his own money for
these centers, saying only that at least P1,500 is spent each feeding
session.
At its various feeding centers, the archdiocese feeds no less than 500
people every Sunday afternoon.
Aside from the money it spends for these feeding sessions, the
archdiocese also accepts donations from various charitable sources to
augment the program.
From what it spends and from public donations, the archdiocese feeds the
hungry at the Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in barangay Capitol Site and
the Sto. Tomas de Villanueva parish in barangay Pardo.
In an earlier homily at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral during the feast
of Christ the King, Vidal called for the opening of more feeding centers
to feed the growing number of hungry people in Cebu City.
" I have made the challenge, and asked, for a long time already, that
there should be in our City of Cebu more feeding centers so that we can
daily ensure the feeding of the hungry, " Vidal said at the time.
The cardinal hurled the challenge at Cebu's Catholics, basing his call
on the gospel for the feast of Christ the King, which was " feed the
hungry. "
" In the Gospel that has just been read, we are taught, we are
commanded, as siblings in the Faith, to feed our hungry poor. Have we
learned from these teachings? Have we really obeyed the said commandment?
" Vidal asked.
" The faithful should not play blind and deaf to their sorry plight.
While we are fortunate to go and eat 'all you can' in restaurants, they
should arouse our pity those who have no food to eat, " Vidal said.
" True, there are projects feeding the hungry poor at noontime but few
are those who volunteer for this project of ours. "
CEBU CITY, November 27, 2005 (STAR) By Jasmin R. Uy The Freeman - Not
all in Cebu were agog, after all, over the lavish extravaganza that was
the opening ceremony of the 23rd Southeast Asian Games last Friday.
At least one discordant voice rose above the din of praise, and what a
voice it was.
The voice belonged to Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal.
According to Msgr. Achilles Dakay, the Cebu archdiocesan media liaison
officer, the cardinal was dismayed by the lavishness of the preparations.
Dakay said the cardinal felt the P4 million spent for the opening
ceremonies would have been better spent providing food for the hungry.
" If they could spend that much for one activity, they can maybe also
spend that much for our hungry needy people, " Dakay said, quoting Vidal,
in a press conference at the archbishop's residence yesterday.
Of the P4 million reportedly allocated for the grand opening ceremony at
the Cebu City Sports Center, at least P1 million was spent for the huge
fireworks display that lit up the night sky over the center for about 20
minutes.
The money spent, according to Vidal, would have been sufficient for the
needs of feeding centers and other institutions for the elderly and
children, Dakay said.
Sought for comment on the cardinal's apparent displeasure, councilor
Sylvan Jakosalem, chairman of the city council committee on sports and
development, explained that the money used for the opening ceremonies came
from the Office of the President through the Philippine Southeast Asian
Games Organizing Committee and that Cebu City did not spend anything for
the activity.
What the city spent for was only the accommodation and transportation
expenses of some officials and members of Team Philippines for the five
events that are to be played in Cebu.
The cardinal, according to Dakay, even spends his own money to feed the
poor at the two feeding centers maintained by the archdiocese.
Dakay did not say how much the cardinal spends of his own money for
these centers, saying only that at least P1,500 is spent each feeding
session.
At its various feeding centers, the archdiocese feeds no less than 500
people every Sunday afternoon.
Aside from the money it spends for these feeding sessions, the
archdiocese also accepts donations from various charitable sources to
augment the program.
From what it spends and from public donations, the archdiocese feeds the
hungry at the Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in barangay Capitol Site and
the Sto. Tomas de Villanueva parish in barangay Pardo.
In an earlier homily at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral during the feast
of Christ the King, Vidal called for the opening of more feeding centers
to feed the growing number of hungry people in Cebu City.
" I have made the challenge, and asked, for a long time already, that
there should be in our City of Cebu more feeding centers so that we can
daily ensure the feeding of the hungry, " Vidal said at the time.
The cardinal hurled the challenge at Cebu's Catholics, basing his call
on the gospel for the feast of Christ the King, which was " feed the
hungry. "
" In the Gospel that has just been read, we are taught, we are
commanded, as siblings in the Faith, to feed our hungry poor. Have we
learned from these teachings? Have we really obeyed the said commandment?
" Vidal asked.
" The faithful should not play blind and deaf to their sorry plight.
While we are fortunate to go and eat 'all you can' in restaurants, they
should arouse our pity those who have no food to eat, " Vidal said.
" True, there are projects feeding the hungry poor at noontime but few
are those who volunteer for this project of ours. "
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