Message of Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales, Archbishop Manila during the second launching of Katesismong Pampamilya on January 13, 2005 at the Arzobispado de Manila, Intramuros.

We welcome the new gift of the church, the Katesismong Pampamilya, as a working tool for strengthening Filipino families, sanctifying Filipino families and for uniting even closer Filipino families.

The remark that in less than a year we are launching the second volume is actually an indication and appreciation of what God is doing for families in the country. The apostolate for family and the catechesis, the catechism that is addressed to families is not in the interest even to families. It’s nothing short of the plan of God. If we look at that negative side first, say that if you want a wicked world, if you want an immoral world, if what you want is citizen of the world who does not respect and love God, if you want an immoral world and their fellow humans, the natural way to start that wickedness is to attack, weaken and destroy the families. Conversely, if what you want is to strengthen society, enrich our country with good citizens and into the church holy, dedicated, committed Christians, the way to this is in the family.

I will prove to you that this was the plan of God. As early as the first book, the first chapter of the first book of the bible called Genesis chapter 1:27, Yahweh said after He had already created the whole, and the planet complete with the sea, rivers, land, mountains, trees, sun, moon, everything the stars, all the planets balancing, animals in the forests, fish, sea and the oceans. In Genesis 1:27 God says “let us make humans to our image and likeness.” Let us tayo na, what does it mean? Was God speaking for others? How come let us make humans to our image and likeness? God was speaking as God. This is not the editorial we. God is speaking as God. And who is God? What you call God?

Some are mumbling. May sound effect pa. Well, listen to John writing in the first letter, the fourth chapter beginning with the seventh verse and he said something like this: “If one loves, he is one of God, he is born of God and knows God. If that person does not love, he will never know God and is not born of God because God is love so that’s God. And then he said let us make man to our image and likeness.

Come back again, what did you say God is? Love. You know love is a relationship. You cannot fall in love unless you enter a relationship, with whom? With the dog? Some people love dogs by the way. On pets and cats, can you ever fall in love with the dog? Tell me? I love dogs. The way you use that word you are abusing the meaning. You can only love a person and fall in love with the person because love is a personal relationship.

You need persons to love and before it happens you’ve got to start with someone. Somebody had started, and anyone with someone. Somebody had started, and anyone who starts love, you call it a lover. Anyone who starts giving you call him a giver. Love must begin with someone. Anyone who falls in love is called a lover. But you didn’t say I love everyone. To whom it may concern I love you! That’s not personal. You’ve got to direct your love for someone. If you’re a lover there must be a receiver to that love and you call him a beloved.

See, the one who starts is always called a father. No matter what you’ve started you’re called a father. God the father is the beginner. Don’t think of this as something happening in time or a prior there’s no such thing in God. It all took place in eternity and still going on as you sit here inside the chapel. God is still doing this at walang sawa ang Diyos in caring and love. Yet, the father loving the son. If the son is a good son or beloved, the son is not only a receiver of love. A good son is going to return that love to the lover. Now you’ve seen a series of exchanges. Binding that two, that chain, that union of receiving, loving, giving back. Father loving the son, son loving the father, that exchange binds the two and calls that spirit.

You’re going to see Father, Son and Spirit. By the way in God there’ll be no sex. Yes because sex is a limitation of being. Limitasyon ng pag-iral ng kasarian. Kaya pagbaba ng pag-iral, pagtindig, paglakas ng kasarian. The higher the being, the lower the being, it comes in sex. Pagtaas wala. Tignan mo ang mga aso. Now, when God said let us make humans to our image and likeness, God wants that the community of the Father, Son and Spirit must be repeated on earth. And that of course can be done only when a man falls in love with the woman. The woman becomes a mother, the man becomes the father and here comes the son, a channel.

Don’t be imprisoned by the word son, to be a child. And don’t be imprisoned by the father as only male. The mama can start loving the papa and the papa becomes the child, the receiver. And between the two, the bond of the spirit better still in the family, the love of the mother for the father begets the bond that binds the two. The symbol, the sign of love between the two. So when God said let us make man to our image and likeness what he was after was let the love born in eternity in the community of the trinity which is eternity , let it be reproduced on earth through that community in time which is the family. Those of you who are fathers and mothers, the parents and your children, when you go back home tonight please as you enter at the front door realize that you brought the community of God as Father, Son and Spirit, the trinity, to your married life. You’ve made Father, Son, Spirit present in our family.

Kaya when you said pangalawang aklat ng Katesismong Pampamilya, brothers and sisters, it takes falls to the original plan of God. Let us make humans, groupings in the world to our image and likeness. We welcome the idea, we thank God for this and please God, make this catechesis alive in each family in the Philippines. You know our Lord Jesus never had a catechesis, never. And do you think he did not? Because first of all there are many reasons. He had Joseph and Mary, very good catechists. But there is one more reason, because Jesus was an original member of the community in heaven, of the trinity. Don’t forget he is a member. So when he came down to become member of the family of Joseph and Mary he knew the role already. Alam na niya, he knows how to play his role and even encourage Mary to play her role and Joseph too.

So as a parting word be happy, thank the Lord, praise God tonight before you make your evening prayer that because of what you did you enter the family and the children. You had perfectly brought the living image of God to your home. I know there’s no force in the world that could weaken the family from now on. There’s always an answer because this was the initial plan of God. Let us make humans to our image and likeness. We should not frustrate that plan of God. May the Lord bless you and your families and may you continue living the catechesis that fall into your hands this afternoon. Thank you!