Homily on the 5th Sunday in OT (Gratitude Day), 8 Feb 2026, Mary Help of Christians School, Minglanilla
Dearly beloved sisters and brothers, welcome to our Eucharistic celebration on this 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time! Happy feast day to all of you! And most of all, happy gratitude day to you, Rev. Sister Tita Padron, FMA, and to the PEC!
I feel glad and honored to be invited to celebrate this Holy Mass on this special day of gratitude dedicated to your Reverend Provincial Superior for her selfless service to the FMA communities in the Philippines and in Papua New Guinea. And I am fascinated to see all your 18 communities represented right here in this island where our Catholic faith was first planted; right here where we first received the light of faith in 1521. Kayo, masaya rin po ba kayo? Are you also happy to be here? Eh bakit nga ba kayo masaya?
Alam ko na kung bakit kayo masaya. Excited kayo makatikim ng Lechon ng Cebu, ‘no. O, di ba, tama ako?
Last month, I was in Negros for the parish fiesta of St John Bosco. After the Mass, lechon was served during the lunch salu-salo. Na-curious ako na makatikim ulit ng lechon na hindi luto sa Cebu. Kaya lang when I tasted it, sabi ko sa sarili ko “Ay, kakaiba talaga ang Lechon de Cebu!”
Lechon de Cebu is so good, sa unang subo mo pa lang, malalasahan mo na ang ubod ng sarap nito, kahit hindi mo na isawsaw sa Mang Tomas Lechon sauce. So, what is it that makes Lechon de Cebu taste super yummy and amazingly good? It is simply SALT, plus of course, other spices and herbs.
Ganun din ang chicharon ng Carcar. Kakaiba po ito sa chicharon ng ibang lugar, na malutong nga, pero wala namang lasa; kailangan mo pang isawsaw sa suka. Ang Carcar Chicharon, malutong na, masarap pa, hindi na kailangan ng suka! Anong secret ingredient nito? Ganun din po. It is no other than SALT plus other spices and herbs. It is SALT that makes the big difference. Are you also like SALT? Do you make others feel good when you are around?
In the opening words of today’s gospel Jesus says “You are the salt of the earth.” Salt as we all know is a very important food ingredient for cooking because it adds taste and at the same time preserves the food from spoilage. So, with salt every dining and eating activity becomes an enjoyable experience.
What Jesus wants to tell us today, therefore, is that we, his disciples, like salt, should be present everywhere and should live our faith to the full, so that people who encounter us may feel the big difference… to the point that people will begin to spread the good chismis about us, and magiging mabuting “maretes” sila saying to everyone “Alam nyo, si Sr Tita, ang sarap niyang kasama! Masaya kami kapag nandiyan siya. Feeling namin nagiging holy kami kapag kausap naming siya.” That is why we are here to thank Sr Tita for letting her light shine so brightly for the past five years and for making a big difference in the Philippine-Papua New Guinea Province of the FMAs.
I myself am a witness to this. Several years ago, when Sr Tita was the Superior here in this School, and I was still assigned in Lawaan, we Salesians felt the big difference. Kakaiba po talaga siya. This, however, is not meant to demean the other FMA sisters who became the superiors here. With due respect, they are all good and have been able to lead their communities to make the Salesian mission here in Minglanilla sustainable and fruitful for the past 40 years.
We, therefore, express our congratulations to all of them and to all the sisters who have been assigned here in the past and at present. May I request all those sisters to please stand up and be recognized. (Let us give them a round of applause.) Your animating presence here has made a big difference not only in Minglanilla but in the entire province of Cebu, as well as the Salesian Province of the South. Because of the good work you have done, you have inspired Fr Marco Bollozos and Fr Vince Sabal to become Salesian priests. And they are happy and proud to be past pupils of this school.
I have also met Fr Eugene, former parish priest of San Pedro Calungsod in Pulangbato (near Talamban). He proudly claims that he is a past pupil of MHCS Minglanilla. A good number of FMA sisters have also been past pupils of this school, among them Sr Arlene, who is the present Superior. And there are many more of them who look back with gratitude for the big difference you sisters have made in their lives.
One more amazing thing about salt – only a pinch of salt is needed to make the food taste really good. You don’t need much, only a little. Otherwise if too much salt is added, the food becomes too salty and no longer enjoyable to eat. Our strength as Salesian Family is not so much in great numbers but in the quality of our witnessing. Even if we are few, we have the capacity to give an amazing taste and a beautiful experience to every person we meet, to every class we teach, and to every event we organize.
What could be that secret ingredient needed to make every encounter an educative, formative and transformative experience? The secret lies in the very words coming from the greatest Chef and Barista of all, who is no other than Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Do you remember the story when the wine ran out during a wedding feast in Cana? What did she say to the servants “Do whatever He tells you.” And what happened next would go down into the pages of the Gospel as the first miracle performed by Jesus – the water turning into wine. Please tell the one beside you “Do whatever He tells you.”
Every time we do, not what we want, not what we prefer, but whatever Jesus tells us, miracles surely begin to happen. We might not be aware of it. But God knows the difference we make in other peoples’ lives, by the power of His love at work within us.
May this Eucharist make us truly like salt and light capable of making a big difference in the world we live, particularly in the world of the young. May our communion with Him today empower us to make of our young people not only good Christians and upright citizens, but most of all, to make them saints for the Church and heroes for the country. GiGsss!
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