Charism in a Year

For 2010, God brought CFC-FFL to a very challenging book for its theme for the year. This is the book of Job. It is challenging because the book of Job is about the great affliction of a man who was blameless and upright. Having come from the book of Lamentations for the year 2007, when CFC experienced a crisis and then split into two, what could God have in store for His faithful remnant? Now, ju...

Do you know that …. It is a blessing for us to have so many poor people around? Our so-called “less fortunate” brethren are more fortunate than we are? The poor man is our brother whom we are to care for? There is a lot of injustice in the world, and we are among those responsible? It is our fault if the poor remain poor? Many rich people are fools? The poor will make it to heaven but we might not...

In the year 2011, CFC-FFL is 30 years old. Its theme for the year is “My God is now my strength!” (Isaiah 49:5). It is an imposing theme, with the Lord offering the fullness of His grace and strength for the work beyond the 30 years. With the world in deep darkness, with anti-life and anti-family forces rampaging, with even the Church buffeted from within, there is a great challenge for followers...

The Catholic Church is one, holy and apostolic. Unfortunately, there are too many divisions within the body, many of her members are far from holy, and most are not going forth to do the work of evangelization and mission. But mission is crucial, given the darkness in the world today, which is being overwhelmed by a tsunami of evil, with the Church herself buffeted from all sides, and even from wi...

The Son of God came into the world through Mary. Jesus redeemed the world and allows us entry into heaven. We return to the Father in Jesus through Mary. The devil caused us the loss of paradise. The Son of Mary is victorious over the devil. Paradise for us is restored in Mary through her Son. Meet the most unique and most extraordinary woman in the world. Meet the disciple of Jesus par excellence...

The most extraordinary woman in the whole world is Mary. She was conceived without original sin. She is full of grace. She gave birth to a Son but is ever virgin. She is the mother of God. She is the mother of the One who is the Savior of the world. She was assumed body and soul into heaven. She is the Queen of heaven and earth. God has done great things for Mary, and all ages will call her blesse...

On February 13, 2007, something happened that sent shock waves throughout the whole global CFC family. Three top elders resigned from the CFC Council, the top governing body in CFC.Shock, disbelief, confusion, sorrow. Speculations abounded. What was happening? CFC had just celebrated its 25th year, basking in the wonderful and awesome work of God that CFC was privileged to do. What was wrong? God...

There is tremendous dynamism in the Eucharistic celebration of the Mass. But as with everything God offers us, what we actually experience depends on our understanding, on our openness to receive, and on our response. The Mass is an encounter with Jesus. It is a life-changing encounter. It is intended to bring us ever deeper in our personal relationship with Jesus, in responding to the call to hol...

How is your life today? Perhaps you feel it is good, or perhaps not. Perhaps you go around with a smile on your face, or perhaps you often wear a frown. Perhaps you look forward to what lies ahead, or perhaps you dread the future. Or most probably you experience these contrasting feelings now and then, in their turn. You go around life with either positive or negative feelings determined by the ci...

Our relationship with God as Christians is covered by a covenant. What is a covenant? It is not just an agreement. It is much more of a solemn promise, involving one’s very being. But in relation to the covenant between God and us, it is even more. A covenant is a deep intimate personal relationship, where God promises to be our God and accept us as His people. Throughout the Old Testament, we see...

Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI have sounded the call to the New Evangelization. It is a very urgent call. It is a call that recognizes the massive assaults on the faith during these times, and the onslaught of the tsunami of evil that is overwhelming the whole world. Now evangelization is not new. It is 2,000 years old. The Holy Spirit came down on Pentecost and the disciples of Jesus went on...

Jesus calls us to become his disciples. This is a very profound call that many Christians fail to understand and properly respond to. As such, there are many who are Christian in name but not in actual living out of the fullness of their faith in Christ. To be a disciple is to have a profound relationship with the Triune God. As a child of the FatherAs a servant of the SonAs a soldier of the Spiri...

The Christian family is struggling for survival, beset by powerful forces all around it. There is the secular and materialistic world, seeking to impose its increasingly pagan values and lifestyles. There is the fallen and sinful flesh in humanity, seeking to be free of all moral restraints. And there is Satan, seeking to thwart God’s plan and dominion. Amidst all these, Christians are confused, d...

The world is in a sorry mess. It is steeped in darkness and sin. What does the future hold? It seems we can only look forward to more of the same—poverty, social injustice, the culture of death, war, terrorism, ecological disaster. Many in their helplessness have resigned themselves to hopelessness. But is this the proper posture? Is there really no hope? Is there really nothing we can do? For man...

(Related to CFC but with spiritual principles relevant to MFC) Today we are at the threshold of the third millennium. And the people of God face a momentous challenge. It has been 2,000 years of Christianity, but the commission of the Lord Jesus Christ to bring the gospel to the whole world has not been accomplished. In fact, the Church itself is being buffeted by dark winds and sinister forces, b...

To those whom Jesus calls to be his disciples, he issues the invitation, “Come follow me.” And we know that if we persevere and live out this call, Jesus will lead us all the way to heaven. But for Christians today, living in the midst of a world environment hostile to Christian ideals and values, it is not that hard to get lost or sidetracked. It is not that hard to lose sight of Jesus. And some...

Jesus has said, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” (Lk 10:2)Today the fields are ripe for harvest. God has prepared a massive harvest that can compare with the heady missionary days after Pentecost. God today is sounding a call to all His people to participate in bringing in this harvest. It is a call of the ut...