UST Rector Fr. Herminio Dagohoy, O.P. said celebrating Jesus Christ’s resurrection must be accompanied by genuine conversion during the Easter Vigil Mass at the Santisimo Rosario Parish on Black Saturday.
“Hindi tayo binubunsod sa pagkilos, hindi tayo [dinadala] roon sa pagbabago, iyon ang mensahe ng muling pagkabuhay. [D}apat nakikita natin na dinaanan natin ang Mahal na Araw na ang buhay natin ay tawag tungo sa pagbabagong-buhay,” he said.
Hope should reign over despair, Dagohoy added.
“The hope of the resurrection is not because the hope died here on Earth but because Jesus lives here on Earth,” he said.
The Easter Vigil marks the end of the Holy Week Triduum. It is signified by the lighting of the Paschal Candle depicting Christ’s triumph over darkness. The faithful also renewed their baptismal promises in the vigil liturgy.
Holiness in small things
Fr. Louie Coronel, O.P., parochial coordinator of the Santisimo Rosario Parish, urged parishioners to be bearers of the Gospel through simple acts of goodness.
“Kahit simpleng tao tayo, puwede tayong mamahagi rin ng Mabuting Balita… [l]agi tayong mayroong gagawin at simulan natin iyon sa galak na natanggap natin dito sa ‘Salubong,’” he said.
Coronel stressed that Easter is a time to experience the joy of Christ’s resurrection by changing one’s approach to life’s troubles.
“Hindi naman po tayo mawawalan ng problema sa buhay, pero ‘yong ating pagtingin sa problema, ‘yong ating matinding pananampalataya… iyon ang pinagkaiba,” he said.
“Salubong,” which was held inside the University before the Mass at dawn on Easter Sunday, is a Filipino tradition depicting the reunion of the Risen Christ and the Blessed Mother.
