I am still hanging on to that compassion… from previous entry LSS.

I Love the Lord

I love the Lord, He is filled with compassion.
He turned to me on the day that I called.
From the snares of the dark, O, Lord, save my life,
be my strength.

Gracious is the Lord, and just.
Our God is mercy, rest to the weary.
Return my soul to the Lord our God who bids tears away.
I love the Lord.

How can I repay the Lord for all the goodness He has shown me?
I will raise the cup of salvation and call on His name.
I love the Lord.

I shall live my vows to You before Your people,
I am Your servant.
I will offer You my sacrifice of praise and of pray’r.
I love the Lord.

I just want to share this song to everyone.  Prayers my friends… let’s bombard heaven with it, do not stop knocking, I know that He will open the door and listen.

For those asking for the memorare prayer, Here it goes.

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided.

Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me.

Amen.

YOU ARE NEAR
Hangad ~ Hangad Acapella

Yahweh, I know you are near,
standing always at my side.
You guard me from the foe,
and you lead me in ways everlasting.

Lord, you have searched my heart,
and you know when I sit and when I stand.
Your hand is upon me protecting me from death,
keeping me from harm.

Where can I run from Your love?
If I climb to the heavens You are there;
If I fly to the sunrise or sail beyond the sea,
still I’d find You there.

3sulok ang makikita dito… isa para sa tupi, isa para sa aninong tupi, ang isa? nasaan na, idilat ang mata… maaring ika’y namamalikmata.

Few days from now and it’s already Maundy Thursday. We’re all set for the Visita Iglesia! so let’s have a recap:

Hotspot no.1 Diocesan Parish of Peñafrancia
Hotspot No. 2 San Marcelino Church
Hotspot no. 3 Iglesia de Sta. Ana
Hotspot No. 4 Ermita Church

And lastly, Hotspot No. 5 Malate Church

Declared as a national historical monument by the Philippine Historical Commission, this church houses the Nuesta Señora de los Remedios or Our Lady of Remedies. Flocked by devotees, the church attracts young Filipino mothers praying for swift recovery from childbirth or cure for their sick young children. The practice became customary with the passage of years thus the image came to be known as the Virgin of Remedies and Patroness of Mothers and Children.

This tradition of women-centered devotion is both indigenous and universal as explained by Niko Rio Arevalo in his papers entitled “Origin of Nuestra Señora de los Remedios”

Traditional in the old days was the “churching” of women who had just delivered… [When] a mother rose from the childbed, she was supposed to go to the church to be blessed. The practice recalls the “churching” of Mary after the nativity in Bethehem. But in the Philippines, the favourite church for this ceremony was the Shrine of Malate… for the Remedios was famed as the Virgin of Healing especially for women’s ills and children’s diseases.

Visita Igelesia map illustration by jeprocks

Hotspot no. 3 Iglesia de Sta. Ana

One of the Philippine’s oldest landmarks that used to rule the rotunda of Old Panaderos and Calle Herran (now called Pedro Gil). This church was dedicated to St. Anne, Mary’s mother, the titular Patroness of the district. Sta. Ana Church enshrines the image of Nuestra Señora de los Desamparados, or the Lady of the Abandoned a.k.a. Inang Mapag-Ampon, the giver of refuge, asylum and surrogate care. The title “Desamparados” was conferred to the image because it was appointed as the Patroness of social outcasts such as the orphaned, the insane, the abused, the imprisoned and condemned, and the poor.

It was Fr. Ingles who transported the Desamparados devotion to the Philippines, dedicated his lifetime to the building of the church, the Franciscan congregation, and Marian advocacy. Miracles of the Desamparados were found in the healing waters of the fountain behind the church; the non-occurrence of Japanese atrocities in Sta. Ana during the war; the quick resolution of house fires in the district; and notably, the convergence of insane persons in church at any time of the day. According to church documents:

“There has never been a time when the church was without the presence of at least one person who is mentally ill. Every generation yields a man, woman, or young person thus afflicted who regulary visits the Blessed Mother. Sometimes, there are as many as three or four of them coming at the same time. For a while, each would prove distracting to worshippers. But every parishioner knows that the Blessed Mother wants them there”. (Diaz Rivera 1991, 15-16).

Another item of interest is found here. After the death of former Archbishop Pedro de la Santissima Trinidad Martinez y Arizola, his heart was removed, encased in metal, and interred under the main altar table in his request as a sign of his undying love for Mary.

Hotspot No. 4 Ermita Church

The Church enshrines the Patroness of the City of Manila, the Nuestra Señora de Guia or Our Lady of Guidance considered one of the oldest extant Marian images discovered inshore found in 1571 by a member of the landing party of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi on the shores of Manila bay. The image was found propped upon makeshift altar made of pandan palms worshipped by natives who regarded it as a “diwata” (a female deity), claiming that the statue belonged to their ancestors.

The image was officially given the name “guidance” because it served as a beacon to incoming ships in early times, particularly during stormy weather. Many ship captains claimed to have sighted a large beacon on shore that guided them smoothly into the harbour. Upon disembarking, the sailors found no sign of a lighthouse or structure other than the church itself. The brightness was attributed to a heavenly source since church candles could hardly have been expected to give off light of such intensity, much less on windy nights and from long distances.