Grand Cathecism with Fr. Jboy

Yesterday, a few minutes past 6:30, Fr. Jboy arrived inside the small Campus Ministries Office (located near the Church), armed with a box of goodies from Goldilocks, and exclaimed: “Aba ang dami natin ngayon. Pano na magkakasya ‘tong dala ko? Akala ko konti lang kayo.” UP Diliman’s parish priest has always delighted me. Fr. Jboy has always made homilies interesting and has a knack for capturing the attention of the Church-goers through his witty stories, reflections, and fun wisdom. I know it’s odd for someone to use fun to describe wisdom but Fr. Jboy knows the little tricks to impart The Message without boring the youth. A breath of fresh air, I would say.

I’m glad I was there for Catechism. Truth be told, I haven’t attended one for years. I think the last actual Cathecism I attended was when I was a little kid, at the Church in Greenhills we used to frequent to when I was a kid. Every time there’s mass, they have a separate Catechism with the little kids. Back then I looked up to the ones conducting the Catechism for us. We had all sorts of fun activities with other kids! Somehow I can still remember how it looks like, but I bet that’s already a distorted image. Oh… and I also used to be a very shy kid then. Would you believe? I wasn’t the perky, sunshiny, makulit girl back then. I was timid. In elementary, coming from a school run by nuns, we always had mass. And Religion subjects. But Catechism like what we had with Fr. Jboy yesterday… I can’t remember. Anyway going back to the topic, the point is it has been a really long time.

One thing that really struck me yesterday was Fr.’s answer to the question What is the most effective way to resist temptations? He laughed a bit at first and said, I don’t know. Haha. But that wasn’t the part that struck me. He gave an answer somehow related to that. And it was about original sin. Embarrassing as it is to admit but in my 18 years of living it was only yesterday when I really understood what it meant. (Yeah, to think that for eight years I was a student in a Catholic School ). According to Fr. Jboy, each time we are tempted we get to experience original sin. All along I thought original sin refers to the disobedience of Adam and Eve. I found out that what original sin pertains to is our tendency towards evil. In Fr. Jboy’s words, “Alam mo nang mali pero gusto mo pa rin. Kahit ‘di mo pa ginagawa/ginawa pero yun yung mas gusto mo, that’s original sin!” Temptation alone is amoral. But when we start feeling an inclination to give in to that temptation, we are already experiencing original sin.

Here are the other topics discussed. Those who have their own questions may also submit their question to the Campus Ministries and it will be discussed next month! J

*The Old and the New Church à the way we worship will change because of the times. But keep in mind that change is only in form. The essence will always be the same.

*What will happen to Christians not belonging to the Catholic Church? Will they be punished? à No!

*Kung mahal ni God ang lahat, bakit may Chosen People?

*Is it okay to question faith? à Yes, but you have to be very careful how. There are two types: questioning within the faith and doubting the faith. I don’t want to discuss it any further because I might relay it ineffectively. It’s better discussed by someone more knowledgeable about it. Trivia: he related this one to love efficiently and it got me thinking. Haha :p

As I have no time to share what the answers were in detail, I encourage all those who are curious and are in wonderment to join us the next time we have Catechism. And it’s open for all- Catholics, other Christians, Muslims, Atheists, etc… Because, as Fr. Jboy emphasized, we are inclusive. The Lord’s love encompasses even our institutional beliefs.

I know a lot of you have questions. I’m thinking about a number of things, too. I highly encourage you to join us next month J