King Solomon is considered the wisest king in the Bible? Aside from being king he was a thinker and a great writer. Consider these lovely verses found in the Bible books that he wrote:

First He said, “This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you”. Then He described the fullest extent of . . . → Read More: SACRIFICIAL LOVE]]> What does it mean to lay down our lives for Christ and for our friends? In John 15, notice Christ’s logic as he taught about sacrificial love.

First He said, “This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you”. Then He described the fullest extent of such love, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends”.

Jesus didn’t say we are His friends only if we die for Him. We are also His friends if we obey Him. In God’s eyes, obeying Him as a living sacrifice is the way we can lay down our lives for Him.

Similarly, we may not have to die for our friends. We can lay down our possessions to make provisions for the poor. We can lay down our plans or tight schedules to focus someone in need.

Such sacrifices though small can be of a powerful way to lay down our lives for other people. If we sacrifice willingly and in the spirit of Christ’ love.

This is one thing that I can say, “the closer we are to God, the bigger our hearts for people”.

]]> http://www.mymixideas.com/sacrificial-love.html/feed 0 http://www.mymixideas.com/about-the-feast-of-the-black-nazarene.html http://www.mymixideas.com/about-the-feast-of-the-black-nazarene.html#comments Sat, 10 Jan 2009 13:00:56 +0000 admin http://www.mymixideas.com/?p=64 The Black Nazarene is a life-sized, dark-skinned statue of Jesus Christ that a priest bought in Mexico, carved by an Aztec carpenter. The image is now enshrined in the minor basilica in Quiapo, Manila, Philippines and the day on which devotees go to the church is Friday.

. . . → Read More: About the Feast of the Black Nazarene]]> The Black Nazarene is a life-sized, dark-skinned statue of Jesus Christ that a priest bought in Mexico, carved by an Aztec carpenter. The image is now enshrined in the minor basilica in Quiapo, Manila, Philippines and the day on which devotees go to the church is Friday.

-History-

The statue was brought to Manila by the first group of Augustinian Recollect friars in May 31, 1606.[1] The image was enshrined at the first Recollect church in Bagumbayan (now part of the Rizal Park), which was inaugurated on September 10, 1606, and placed under the patronage of Saint John the Baptist.

In 1608, the second bigger Recollect church dedicated to San Nicolas de Tolentino(Saint Nicholas of Tolentine ) was completed inside Intramuros (where the building of the Manila Bulletin now stands), where the image of Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno was transferred. The Recollect Fathers then vigorously promoted devotion to the Suffering of Our Lord represented by the image that in fifteen short years, the Cofradia de Jesus Nazareno was established on April 21, 1621. The confraternity obtained Papal approval on April 20, 1650, from His Holiness Pope Innocent X.

Sometime in the year 1787, the Archbishop of Manila, Basilio Sancho de Santas Junta y Rufina, ordered transfer of the image of the Nazareno to the church in Quiapo, again providently placed under the patronage of Saint John the Baptist.

The image survived the great fires that destroyed Quiapo Church in 1791 and 1929, the great earthquakes of 1645 and 1863, and the destructive bombing of Manila in 1945 during World War II.

Recently, however, in 1998, a replica of the original Black Nazarene was first paraded due to the repeated damages on the statue. Today this replica is still used in processions while the original rests inside the church, and other, even smaller replicas can be found in other churches.

-Devotion-

The devotion to Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno has attracted an even bigger following. Its popularity, which initially spread to the northern and southern provinces of Luzon, spread over time throughout the country.

The uniquely Filipino devotion to the Black Nazarene merited the sanction and encouragement of two popes: Innocent X in 1650, with a Papal Bull canonically establishing the Cofradia de Jesus Nazareno, and Pius VII in the 19th century, by granting indulgence to those who piously pray before the image of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo.

Today, despite the rough-and-tumble that usually accompanies the thrice-yearly procession of the image, the Filipino people’s devotion to God in the special appellation of Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno continues to flourish and shows no sign of warning; death, wounds, bodily pains and physical discomfort notwithstanding.

For more than 200 years, the statue has been placed on a gilded carriage every January and pulled through the streets of Quiapo by male devotees dressed in maroon. People who touch the Nazarene are reported to sometimes be healed of diseases. Catholics come from all over Manila on the chance that they will be able to get close enough to touch the image and perhaps receive a miracle. They also throw towels to the people guarding the statue and ask them to rub the towel on the statue in hopes of carrying some of that power away with them.

The procession, and the accompanying Feast of the Black Nazarene, takes place every year on January 9. It is usually the single largest festival of the year in the Philippines

Plaza Miranda, Quiapo, Manila, Philippines

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