            Back in my old seminary days over four decades ago, there was this antiquated but interesting book in our library entitled, “The World, the Flesh, and Father Smith.” The book became the object of covetousness among us seminarians, and not a few of my peers would dare sneak it out from the library for fancy reading, notwithstanding the prying but beneficent eyes of our librarian. The book is a 1944 novel by Scottish writer Bruce Marshall. It uncovers the activities of Fr. Smith in his urban Scottish parish from 1908 until his death in 1942.

‘What is concealed, not what is revealed, makes the mind impure’

One key to finding happiness in life is living in the present moment – neither grieving over the past nor being anxious about the future. This is because LIFE UNFOLDS IN THE PRESENT.

Happiness Is Living In The Present Moment

AT 7:40 a.m. when the sun has barely made its ascent, Natalie, 19, and Mark, 17 are standing by outside the OpinYon e-Library in Tolosa, Leyte waiting for it to open.

Free E-Library In Leyte Town Transforming Youths

            O poverty, thou hast been a perennial scourge! Lives are battered, happiness stifled, creativity destroyed, and freedoms are eradicated by your tragedy!

Coming To Terms With My Poverty

 What’s the difference between mistake and failure?

Mistakes And Failure Are Nothing To Be Afraid Of

I still recall, with nostalgic tinge, the prayer line we used to recite daily back in my seminary days: “The grandeur of the mountains and the vastness of the oceans, the breathtaking wonder of the interstellar space, all these proclaim the glory and majesty of God!”

Finding God’s Presence In Our Universe

            All of life is change. And by “change,” I intend to mean the never-ending process of transformation or conversion in all aspects of life – physical or scientific, metaphysical, social, psychological, spiritual, etc. Not only is change always happening, it is also unavoidable.

We’re Hardwired to be Dissatisfied With Life

 In my past column, “Daily Life’s Pure And Simple Joys Are Sufficient Miracles,” I propounded that miracles comprise not only of extraordinary wonders but also of the daily ordinary blessings like having a good night sleep and waking up fresh in the morning.

Manifesting Miracles

Natural evils, like the devastating magnitude 7 Abra earthquake and other natural calamities, occur independently of human volition or causation. Unlike moral evil, which results from a perpetrator (usually a person, either through intention or negligence), natural evil has only victims, and is generally taken to be the result of natural processes.

If God is all-powerful and all-good, why do Abra earthquake and natural evils happen?

            I spent eleven years of my life – that is, from age 12 to 23 – inside the seminary. Four years in high school or minor seminary, four years in college or Philosophy studies, and three years in Theologate. I went out on my penultimate year of priestly formation.

Unforgettable Vignettes From My Old Seminary Life

The Inspired & Blessed column by OpinYon News columnnist, Bob Acebedo.

Inspired & Blessed

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