Easter, just like Christmas, is a time of gifts. Jesus does not only give us the gift of new life as He exemplifies in His resurrection and symbolized by the light of the Pascal Candle; He also gives us the most intimate gift that can come from His heart – the Holy Spirit.

Even if we will no longer behold the Lord Jesus in His physical form, God promises to be with us in a closeness that cannot be imagined. Did not Saint Paul teach us that we are the temples of the Holy Spirit? By virtue of our baptism and confirmation, we have the Holy Spirit within us.

This month of May, we were blessed here at Saint Raymond’s to have 7 children baptized and 52 teens confirmed; giving us more reasons to be grateful and hopeful for the Church who embodies for us the promise of God’s constant presence in our lives.

This Easter season, the Lord Jesus gives us the help we need to be steadfast in faith and to sincerely and courageously engage people in conversations about our faith. The Lord Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit – the One who will lead us into light and remains within us forever; the One always at work in our lives, especially in our actions and emotions, our kindness and patience, our joy and our smiles.

Speaking of joy and smiles, I am all smiles in this photo taken in Cebu where the first Cross symbolizing the birth of Christianity in the Philippines was first erected in 1521. Such joy to be able to pay homage to the Cross and Sto. Niño, in thanksgiving for the blessing of the 500 Years (plus 1). The Holy Spirit, indeed, makes anything possible!

Sempre grato,
Father Erick

(For the 6th Sunday of Easter, 2022)