‘Spotlight’ bags SAG top prize

LOS ANGELES—“Spotlight,” a drama about sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, landed the top prize on Saturday at the 22nd Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards that also saw black actors score major wins.

The SAG Awards, seen as a bellwether of the all-important Academy Awards, were being closely watched as they were taking place amid a controversy over the lack of diversity in this year’s list of Oscar nominees.

“Spotlight” took the prize for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture, the SAG equivalent of an Oscar.

It bested “Beasts of No Nation,” a drama about a child soldier; “The Big Short,” about the subprime mortgage crisis; “Straight Outta Compton,” a biopic about the NWA rap group; and “Trumbo,” about the life of acclaimed screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, who was the target of a witch-hunt during the McCarthy era.

In the acting honors, Leonardo DiCaprio won the best actor award for his portrayal of fur trapper Hugh Glass in the revenge thriller “The Revenant.”

DiCaprio, 41, an Oscar favorite for the gritty survival story, beat competition from Bryan Cranston (“Trumbo”), Johnny Depp (“Black Mass”), Michael Fassbender (“Steve Jobs”) and Eddie Redmayne (“The Danish Girl”).

In the best actress category, Brie Larson won for “Room,” in which she plays a kidnapped young woman living in captivity with her son.

But perhaps most notable at the star-studded ceremony were the number of black actors honored as Hollywood reels from a fierce backlash over the lack of diversity in the Oscar nominations.

Idris Elba scooped two awards, one for best supporting actor for Netflix’s “Beasts of No Nation,” and one for best actor in a TV series for his role as a detective in the British crime drama “Luther.”

‘Diverse TV’

“Welcome to diverse TV,” joked Elba, who was passed over for an Oscar nomination, as he presented an award during the ceremony at Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium.

Uzo Aduba took home the award for outstanding actress in a comedy series for her role as Suzanne “Crazy Eyes” Warren in Netflix’s prison comedy-drama “Orange is the New Black.” The TV series also won for the second consecutive year for best comedy ensemble.

“Look at this stage, this is what we talk about when we talk about diversity—different race, color, creed, sexual orientation,” actress Laura Prepon, who plays Alex Vause in the series, told the audience, referring to the #OscarsSoWhite controversy.

Viola Davis won best actress for legal drama series “How to Get Away With Murder,” while Queen Latifah won for outstanding actress in a television movie or miniseries for her role in HBO’s “Bessie,” a biopic of the blues singer Bessie Smith.



‘Society of trending topics’

“We’ve become a society of trending topics,” Davis told reporters backstage after her win, addressing the diversity controversy.

“Diversity is not a trending topic…. Regardless of what’s going on at the Academy (of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences), we will always find a way to be excellent,” she added.

A number of actors, including Will Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith, have said they will not attend the Oscars ceremony on Feb. 28 over the diversity issue.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which picks the Oscar winners, has responded to the criticism by vowing to make major changes to promote diversity. AFP

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Mother Teresa sainthood hailed

CATHOLIC bishops yesterday welcomed the news from the Vatican that the late Mother Teresa was on her way to sainthood, saying her canonization would help teach Filipinos to be more compassionate to the poor.

“This is a great joy for us. She founded [charity] houses here and she exemplifies selfless service, which is an antidote to the corruption and greed in our country and in the world,” said Novaliches Bishop Emeritus Teodoro Bacani.

Malolos Bishop Jose Oliveros said the forthcoming canonization of the late nun was “great news” not only for the Filipinos but for the people all over the world.

“Mother Teresa is a living image of God’s mercy because she dedicated her life in the service of the poor and the abandoned. Let us ask her to intercede that we may also be the bearers of God’s mercy to those who desperately need his mercy,” Oliveros said.

The prelate also noted that Mother Teresa’s canonization would come at a time when the Catholic Church was celebrating the Jubilee Year of Mercy.

Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles noted that Mother Teresa was close to the Filipinos. “She loved the poor and she had a lot to tell us still,” Arguelles said, remembering the occasion he escorted the late nun in one of her visits to the Philippines in 1978.

Mother Teresa is expected to be officially canonized in Rome on Sept. 4 next year. The move comes after Pope Francis recognized a second medical miracle attributed to the late nun, who dedicated her life to the poor, the sick and the dying in the slums of Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), India.

Cubao Bishop Honesto Ongtioco said the canonization was timely since the world needed more models “who live and work not for themselves but for others to glorify God.”

“Love was best expressed in her whole life as a witness to Christ,” Ongtioco said.

A Nobel Peace Prize winner for her work among the poorest of the poor, Mother Teresa died on Sept. 5, 1997, age 87. At the time, the Missionaries of Charity based in Kolkata had nearly 4,000 nuns and ran roughly 600 orphanages, soup kitchens, homeless shelters and clinics around the world.

The nun was born to Albanian parents in Skopje in what is now known as Macedonia as Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in 1910. Nicknamed the “saint of the gutters,” she dedicated her life to the poor, the sick and the dying in the slums of Kolkata, one of India’s biggest cities, founding the Missionaries of Charity order of nuns there. She won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.

She was beatified by then Pope John Paul II in a fast-tracked process in 2003, in a ceremony attended by some 300,000 pilgrims. Beatification is the first step toward sainthood.

The miracle needed for her canonization concerned the inexplicable cure in 2008 of a man in Brazil with multiple brain abscesses who, within a day of being in a coma, was cured, according to a report in Avvenire, the newspaper of the Italian bishops’ conference.

The Vatican ascertained that his wife’s prayers for Mother Teresa’s intercession were responsible, the report said.

Mother Teresa is expected to be canonized as part of the Pope’s Jubilee Year of Mercy.

“The Holy Father has authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to proclaim the decrees concerning the miracle attributed to the intercession of blessed Mother Teresa,” the Vatican said in a statement.

In the Vatican’s jubilee calendar, Sept. 4 is marked as a day dedicated to the late nun’s memory and her canonization is likely to take place then, experts say.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Pope begs forgiveness for ‘scandals’ hitting Rome, Vatican

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis is asking forgiveness for recent scandals that have hit Rome and the Vatican.

The pope didn’t cite specific examples in his off-the-cuff request for pardon at the start of his Wednesday general audience.

But the past week has seen its fair share of problems: On the eve of Francis’ big meeting on the family, a Vatican monsignor came out as gay. Then Rome’s mayor resigned amid scandal and criticism by the church. And recently, a leaked letter revealed grave concerns by a dozen cardinals about the way Francis’ synod was being run.

Francis said: “Before beginning the catechesis I want in the name of the church to ask forgiveness for the scandals which recently have hit Rome and the Vatican. I ask forgiveness.” TVJ

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Pope: Concern for the poor is Gospel–not communism

VATICAN CITY—Pope Francis is insisting that his concern for the poor and critique of the global economic system isn’t some novel, communist-inspired ideology but rather the original and core “touchstone” of the Christian faith.

Some US conservatives have branded the first Latin American Pope a Marxist for his frequent critiques of consumerism and focus on a Church “that is poor and for the poor.”

But in an interview contained in a new book, Francis explains that his message is rooted in the Gospel and has been echoed by Church fathers since Christianity’s first centuries.

“The Gospel does not condemn the wealthy, but the idolatry of wealth, the idolatry that makes people indifferent to the call of the poor,” Francis says in “This Economy Kills,” a study of the Pope’s economic and social teachings, excerpts of which were provided on Sunday to The Associated Press.

Specifically, Francis summarized a verse from the Gospel of Matthew that is the essential mission statement of his papacy: “I was hungry, I was thirsty, I was in prison, I was sick, I was naked and you helped me, clothed me, visited me, took care of me.”

“Caring for our neighbor, for those who are poor, who suffer in body and soul, for those who are in need: this is the touchstone. Is it pauperism? No. It is the Gospel.”

He cites Church fathers dating to St. Ambrose and St. John Chrysostom as expressing the same concerns, and noted somewhat wryly that if he had said the same “some would accuse me of giving a Marxist homily.”

“As we can see, this concern for the poor is in the Gospel, it is within the tradition of the Church, it is not an invention of communism and it must not be turned into some ideology, as has sometimes happened before in the course of history,” an apparent reference to the Latin American-inspired liberation theology.

“This Economy Kills,” by two seasoned Vatican reporters, comes out this week in Italian.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Pope faces key test with vote on divorcees, gays

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis was set to sort his allies from his enemies Saturday with a Vatican vote on a document drafted at the end of a fierce two-week debate over opening the Catholic Church’s doors to remarried divorcees and gays.

The vote will close a special synod of bishops from around the world which has seen conservatives clash publicly with liberals over a Francis-backed drive to reform the Church by softening its approach to sinners.

Ahead of the vote, the cardinals overwhelmingly approved a message to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics stressing the value of “unique and indissoluble conjugal love” but without touching directly on the hot topic of non-traditional unions.

Several told a news conference they were confident the final synod document would pass with the necessary two-thirds majority later Saturday after Vatican experts raised the real possibility it could fail.

The vote has turned into a referendum on the pope’s audacious line.

Francis, 77, has called for the Church to take a more merciful approach to unwed mothers, remarried divorcees and gays, famously saying of homosexuals, “Who am I to judge?”

A preliminary report on Monday made waves around the world by suggesting the Church should reach out to homosexuals, who have “gifts and qualities to offer the Christian community”, outraging traditionalists who had to be reminded by the Vatican that it was a work in progress.

A fresh report Thursday summed up the reactions of 10 working groups of bishops, which mixed declarations of respect for homosexuals with fierce insistence that any opening up to sinners would imply the Church condoned their behaviour.

The final document is expected to take into account the bishops’ amendments, but will be written by a drafting committee made up of perceived progressives appointed by Francis himself.

‘Soap opera’

The fallout in the corridors of power, which Boston Globe Vatican expert John Allen described as “like a daytime soap opera”, has already caused at least one head to roll.

Outspoken Cardinal Raymond Burke, currently head of the Vatican’s top canon law court, confirmed to Buzzfeed that he will be removed from the job to be made patron to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, an honorary post.

He told the US news website: “The pope is not free to change the Church’s teachings with regard to the immorality of homosexual acts or the insolubility of marriage or any other doctrine of the faith.”

The vote will reflect the attitude of the top echelons of the Church towards reform — and ultimately towards Francis’s rule, which has been coloured since his election in March last year by a determination to show the more humane side of the centuries-old institution.

“The Synod splits over gays and divorcees: there’s a risk of an anti-pope vote,” read a headline by Franca Giansoldati, Vatican expert for Italy’s Il Messaggero daily, which described the vote as “a nasty test for Pope Francis”.

“The risks are high. If the amendments are not inserted in the text the biggest surprise could come from the vote. The majority, for now, do not seem to be in favour — and the count could prove fatal,” she said.

Possible ‘revolution’

German Cardinal Walter Kasper, an ally of the pope’s who has been pushing for reform, has said he believes the “majority” of those taking part in the synod are open to change.

Kasper suggested in February that remarried divorcees should be allowed to take communion under certain conditions.

Critical bishops have said the initial document placed “too much emphasis on the problems facing the family”.

“Many bishops have asked that the document be thoroughly re-written. There have been such a number of negative reactions that the risk is it won’t pass the vote unless its heavily revised,” Marco Tosatti, who writes for La Stampa’s Vatican Insider, told AFP.

Some resent the intense media glare on the proceedings. Cardinal Robert Sarah of Guinea told the Catholic News Agency that all the attention on gay couples was “an attempt to push the Church to change its doctrine”.

This synod will be followed by a year of consultations, and a follow-up questionnaire will be sent out to dioceses around the world. A second, larger synod will then be held in October 2015.

After that, the results will be handed to the Argentinian pope, who will have the final say in outlining the Church’s stance on family matters.

Adolfo Nicolas, superior general of the Society of Jesus, or Jesuits — to which Francis belongs — told the I.Media religious news agency to watch for a possible “revolution” a year from now.

Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich, an ally of the pope, said there was no turning back. “There have been two steps forward, there may be one step backwards, but certainly not two.”

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Pope Francis overhauls Catholic image but real reforms await

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis has turned around the way the Catholic Church is seen but his promise of Vatican reform awaits next year and key problems remain, observers said on Tuesday, as the pontiff celebrated his 77th birthday.

After years of stagnation and turbulence, the first ever Latin American pope has brought a down-to-earth style to the papacy and has shown a willingness to tackle problems like the Vatican’s secretive finances.

Francis has also established himself as a global voice on the side of the dispossessed with his critique of unfettered capitalism — earning the label of “Marxist” from conservative commentators in the United States.

In terms of the Vatican’s sluggish view of time, he has moved quickly in his first months, installing a council of world cardinals to advise him and calling for a less “Vatican-centric” kind of Church with more power for local bishops.

He has accumulated over 10 million followers on Twitter under the @pontifex handle, nearing rock star popularity, and has been named “Person of the Year” by Time magazine.

The change of mood has been all the more remarkable given the strife in the Church before his election, including outrage over child sex abuse scandals and divisions between the Vatican and local churches.

Those issues are far from gone away, however. And analysts warn that progressives in the Church hoping for a raft of reforms of Catholic teachings will be disappointed.

Francis remains a moral conservative, although a compassionate one, who is virtually certain to stick to doctrine on hot-button issues like abortion or contraception, or priestly celibacy and women priests.

Even the pope’s widely-praised comment about gay people — “Who am I to judge?” — is seen as showing tolerance but unlikely to alter the Church’s fundamental condemnation of homosexual acts as a sin.

“Exaggerated expectations will necessarily lead to new disappointments,” German cardinal Walter Kasper was quoted as saying in a new biography of the pope by Rome-based Argentine journalist Elisabetta Pique.

“The new pope can renew the Church but he cannot invent a new Church,” Kasper said, adding that progressives and conservatives alike would be “disappointed.”

Aside from memorable phrases like his call for a “poor Church for the poor,” there have in fact been few major decisions taken by Francis in his first nine months that allow for a deeper analysis of his intentions.

Francis has begun consultations on reforming the Vatican administration and the Vatican’s scandal-tainted bank, the Institute for Works of Religion, and has set up a committee on child abuse.

About to tackle scandals of child sex abuse

On the issue of abuses and cover-ups by Catholic clergymen dating back decades, which continues to anger many Catholics and non-Catholics alike, two events next month could give an indication of the pope’s direction.

One will be the assembly on January 8 of the Legion of Christ, a troubled conservative religious order whose late founder Father Marcial Maciel was discovered to be a sexual predator who molested seminarians and fathered three children despite taking a vow of chastity.

The order has been put under Vatican tutelage as more abuse cases have emerged, but there have been internal tensions over its future ahead of the meeting, when the Vatican will have to show what it intends to do.

Then on January 16, Vatican representatives will travel to Geneva to testify before a meeting of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child over its handling of abuse cases after saying it was not legally competent over the actions of individual clergymen.

Seen trying to do too much?

Some experts believe Pope Francis may be trying to do too much and creating confusion among Catholics with his multiple interviews and ad lib speeches.

“Pilot and navigator, accelerator and brake: Pope Bergoglio’s driving is like that,” said Vatican expert Sandro Magister, using Francis’s surname from birth.

He added that the pontiff’s style had led to “misunderstandings and over-the-top expectations.”

And while his public image is that of a kindly parish priest, Vatican gossip is that he can be sometimes be brusque and authoritarian behind the walls.

With the pope’s popularity growing among many non-Catholics too, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi expressed concern in a rare critical moment that the focus on him could draw attention away from the message.

At a recent book presentation, he was quoted by Vanity Fair Italy as saying: “The extreme concentration of attention on Francis creates a communication problem.”

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Pope issues mission statement for papacy

VATICAN CITY—Pope Francis has issued the mission statement for his papacy, outlining how the Catholic Church and the papacy itself must be reformed to create a more missionary and merciful church that pays particular attention to the poor.

In a document released Tuesday, Francis amalgamated the priorities he has laid out in eight months of homilies, speeches and interviews and put them in the broader context of how to reinvigorate the church’s evangelical zeal in a world marked by indifference, secularization and vast income inequalities.

He explained his most controversial remarks criticizing the church’s “obsession” with transmitting a disjointed set of doctrines, saying that in the church’s “hierarchy of truths,” mercy is paramount and that what counts is inviting the faithful in.

He criticized the church’s centralization as impeding missionary outreach.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Blessed John Paul II and Blessed John XXIII may be canonized Dec. 8

After Pope Francis approved the canonization of Blessed John Paul II and Blessed John XXIII, a buzz emerged from Rome that the canonization date might take place on Dec. 8, feast of the Immaculate Conception.  If this is true, how blessed we are that the canonization of the two popes will fall on a very important feast of the Mother of God.

Since the news came out, I have been praying to Blessed John Paul to intercede for the healing of June Keithley, whom I saw in Rome on May 1, 2011, during the beatification ceremonies. She is very devoted to Blessed John Paul II and to Mama Mary, of course, about whom she wrote about under her title, Our Lady Mediatrix of All Grace, in her book on the Lipa apparitions.

Very popular

The canonization will be a historic  day for 1.2 billion Catholics around the world. The two very popular popes in contemporary times contributed hugely to Church and global history.

Pope John Paul II was the most traveled pope in history. He also beatified and canonized the most number of saints and martyrs. The ebullient, down-to-earth Pope John XXIII launched the Second Vatican Council  to introduce reforms in the Catholic Church.

Adam’s Express Travel sent large delegations to the canonizations of Josemaria Escriva on Oct. 6, 2002, and Sister Faustina in 2011, and the beatification of Mother Teresa and Blessed Pope John Paul II in 2011.  Although there is no official canonization date yet, Adams Travel encourages pilgrims to reserve ahead because millions are expected to attend the canonization. Call Adam’s at 5223876 or 5211651 or text Anna Ayo at 0917-5514468.

Legion of Mary is 73


The Legion of Mary will celebrate its 73rd anniversary in the Philippines with a Thanksgiving Mass at the Senatus of the Northern Philippines headquarters at Dangay Street, QC, on July 21, 11 a.m., with Msgr. Celso Ditan, spiritual director, as Mass presider.

In addition, the Senatus will sponsor the first Friday Mass and vigil, with Sangguniang Layko ng Pilipinas, on Aug. 2 at the CBCP Chapel in Intramuros, Manila. Vigil will be at 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Mass at CBCP Chapel will be at 12 noon.

The Legion of Mary was founded by Servant of God Frank Duff on Sept. 7, 1921, in Dublin, Ireland. It is a lay apostolic organization serving the Church under ecclesiastical guidance.

Frank Duff passed away on Nov. 7, 1980, and the cause of his canonization was introduced by Dublin Archbishop Desmond Connell  in 1996.

An alleged miracle interceded by Frank Duff on the healing of John David Arcega has been submitted to the Dublin church. It will be one of the miracles to be submitted to Rome. John David is now back in school after he recovered from his illness.

Those who want estampitas can write to me c/o Phil. Daily Inquirer at Chino Roces Ave., Makati City. Please enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope for easier mailing.

St. Mary Magdalene fiesta


Thanks to Mila Que, I became devoted to St. Mary Magdalene, patroness of Kawit, Cavite, whose feast day falls on July 22.

I met Jovita Peregrina  who survived cancer through the intercession of  the saint.

Now, Aling Jovita is taking care of the image especially during the novena and fiesta Masses.

Imus Bishop Reynaldo Evangelista will officiate the concelebrated Mass  tomorrow, 9 a.m.  Masses in the afternoon are at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m.  Fr. Romeo Ner is the parish priest.

In the parish of St. Mary Magdalene in Amadeo, Cavite, Fr. Oliver Genuino, parish priest, will lead the celebration of the fiesta tomorrow.

Bishop Evangelista will say Mass at 4 p.m.

I visited this church before Holy Week this year and was impressed by the beautiful image of the saint enthroned on the left side of the altar.

Father Genuino expressed the opinion that Mary Magdalene was not the adulterous woman about to be stoned for her sin, whom Jesus forgave. Neither was she the prostitute who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears and rubbed them with expensive oil in the house of Simon, the Pharisee.

Feast of St. Anne

I became devoted to St. Anne, the mother of Mary, way back in 1981. I had achalasia and I remember placing her prayer near my bed in PGH where I was confined at the time.

I still pray to her, especially when I visit Sta. Ana Church during the feast of Our Lady of the Abandoned. On July 26, Masses in her honor will be said there at 5:30 and 6:30 a.m., and 6:30 p.m.

Try to seek her intercession; especially pray to her and St. Joachim every Tuesday before 9 a.m. and say “St. Anne and St. Joachim, please grant me a pleasant surprise today.”

This prayer was taught to me by the late Albert Seeland, manager of Tempura Misono in the old Hyatt Hotel. Please pray for the repose of Albert Seeland’s soul on Aug. 13, his birth anniversary.

St. Martha fiesta


We who hear Mass at Harrison Plaza Chapel are blessed to have the image of St. Martha there.  The chapel is named after her.  Every Tuesday,  devotees come to pray to her and  click the light in front of her.

The feast of St. Martha falls on July 29. It is also celebrated in Pateros, Rizal.   Her miraculous image is enshrined there in San Roque Church.  Fr. Roy Rosales is the parish priest.

St. James the Apostle feast


The feast of St. James the Apostle  (called Santiago de Compostela in Spain) falls on July 25, Thursday. Fr. Manny Domingo, SDB, will celebrate Holy Mass at 6 p.m. in Don Bosco Chapel on Pasay Road, Makati. St. James is also the patron saint of Dapitan, Zamboanga del Norte, and Bolinao, Pangasinan.

source: lifestyle.inquirer.net

Benedict begins final day as pope before retiring

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI is beginning a final quiet day as pontiff, meeting with his cardinals before flying off into retirement.

No major speech is expected during his morning farewell Thursday with his closest advisers, just a simple greeting to each one inside the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace.

Shortly before 5 p.m., Benedict will leave the palace for the last time as pope, head to the helipad on the top of the hill in the Vatican gardens and fly by helicopter to the papal retreat at Castel Gandolfo south of Rome.

And there, at 8 p.m. — the exact moment Benedict’s resignation goes into effect — the doors of the palazzo will close and the Swiss Guards in attendance will go off duty, their service protecting the pope now finished.

source:  newsinfo.inquirer.net