PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan, Feb. 13, 2015 – A day before V-Day, the Bishop of Palawan shares top 3 ways young people can love more –- and not just on the Day of Hearts.
Palawan Bishop Pedro Arigo celebrates the Opening Mass of the CFC – Singles for Christ (SFC) International Conference at the Puerto Princesa Coliseum, Feb. 13, 2015. (Photo: DK Cruz)
During the opening Mass of the CFC – Singles for Christ (SFC) International Conference (ICON) 2015 held at the Puerto Princesa Coliseum earlier this afternoon, Pedro Arigo, a self-proclaimed but “unavailable Single for Christ”, said singles can love more by doing the following:
- Count your blessings. “The more you count your blesings, you become more grateful. You wrap yourself in gratitude,” the prelate said. Arigo observed that “grateful hearts are loving hearts.” The bishop reminded some 4,300 SFCs present at the venue to count their blessings, which often go unnoticed. “There are so many blessings in your life…Count them, appreciate them. The more you do so, the more grateful you are, the more loving you become,” he added.
- Think of those who love you. Arigo said it is always good to remember those “who love you unconditionally, those who accept you for who you are.”He called on the thousands of singles present, most importantly, to think of God loving them. “Think of God looking at you every moment of your life, and loving you with a love beyond imagination,” the bishop said.
The prelate asked the delegates to “listen to God telling you, ‘I love you my child and because of that love I have given you My Son, Jesus Christ.” Arigo said Jesus also tells us, “Look at Me crucified at the Cross. This is how I love you and see how much I love you in the Eucharist. Look at the Host, look at what I have done to myself. I have become a little bread, always available, always present to you. I am doing this for you.”
- Keep on loving. “We learn to love by loving. In other words, loving is like an ability we develop by practice,” the good bishop explained. He said this “practice of love” can be done through “little acts of selfless giving.” Selfless giving of oneself, Arigo explained, develops one’s ability to love and to love more.
This year’s ICON, which runs from Feb. 13 to 15 at the Puerto Princesa Coliseum in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, carries the theme “Love More.”
The event gathers 4,300 delegates from all over the country, as well as leaders and members from Canada, Spain, the Middle East, Thailand, and Singapore, among others. (Nirva’ana Ella Delacruz/CBCPNews)
