Easter Message from the NCCP Chairperson

Coke and the Cross: An Easter Message*

It is said that Coca Cola has the most globally recognizable commercial logo. Coke’s advertisers capitalize on that by associating images and messages to it to sell its product. Logos and symbols through recognition and association have come to possess effective influences on people.

The three great faiths of the world have their own powerful symbol – Christianity has the Cross, Judaism has the Star of David, and Islam has the Crescent. Our Roman Catholics brethren have the Crucifix celebrating the Crucified Christ. Protestants have the empty Cross celebrating the Resurrected Christ.

Be that as it may it seems people may have personalized views of the cross on utilitarian reasons. We know Peter Cushing, I mean Count Dracula of the movies is horrified by it. A cross tattooed on the powerful bicep of an NBA player… does it help bring down more rebounds? Or a public display of faith? Makes me wonder… More commonly a cross is worn as a pendant, an adornment on a necklace. This has somewhat elicited the acerbic comment that we are supposed to be cross “bearers” and not cross “wearers.” I also wonder about that…

Seriously now… while the cross is also viewed as an instrument of death, it does not represent the end of Christ. Jesus died on a cross but rose again from the dead. That is the significance of the empty cross! The resurrected Christ lives and continues to live in us to empower us to work in partnership with God in bringing about God’s eternal plan.

This partnership began when we trusted the claims of Christ that he died for our sins on the cross, and he rose again so that we too may live forever. We were saved by the grace he extended to us and by our faith response. We must be reminded that “we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10)

Through Christ we are a “new creation,” ministers of reconciliation, that “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ…” (II Corinthians 5:17-19) We are to partner with God to help transform this torn, hurting, unjust, oppressive world into a realm of freedom, well-being, and justice.

If Coke claims to be the “real thing” and you go buy and drink it, how does the “real meaning” of the empty cross influence you? Happy Easter!

Bishop Nathanael P. Lazaro

NCCP Chairperson

The National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP) will hold its 62nd Easter Sunrise Service on April 24, 2011, at the Liwasang Aurora of the Quezon City Memorial Circle.  Click here for the area map.

*taken from the NCCP website

Message for Cordillera Day 2011

Update as of April 16, 2011

The NCCP General Secretary notice a glaring error in his message and noted that the 3rd to the last paragraph should read:

"Then the elders will dance.  It is the dance in rhythm with nature.  They sway elegantly as the pine trees.  They bend lightly then stand firm like the majestic golden grain on the stairway to heaven.  The dance celebrating community and harmony with the land and ancestors is a declaration to uphold for all time all that is noble and just."

Our apologies for the error.

The Library staff

“Let the mountains bring prosperity to the people, and the little hills bring righteousness.”  (Psalm 72:3)

Time will come, and now is, when our children will ask what we mean by the annual observance of Cordillera Day.

Then their elders will tell of the unceasing chant for peace.  They will speak of the women and men who guarded the mountains and rivers for our sake; of the reverence to land and life that went beyond the commerce of human  beings; of the painstaking weaving of the tapestry of unity amidst systematic and furious attempts to break that unity; and of them, some in the prime of their youth, who shed their blood in defiance of principalities whose designs eventually meant death to a race.  They will speak of the past not so much for its grandeur but to pass on the tradition of vigilance against any desecration.  As stewards of creation, they shall make certain that the resources on the mountains and under it are to be used sparingly for the prosperity of the people of the Cordillera and of this country.

Then the children will ask their elders if such a cause is worth preserving in these days.

Then their elders will dance.  It is the dance in rhythm with nature.  They sway elegantly as the pine trees they bending lightly than stand firm like the majestic golden grain on the stairway to heaven, hearts pumping to the solemn beat of the gong.  The dance celebrating community and harmony with the land is a declaration to uphold for all time all that is noble and just.

To chant and dance is to declare the legitimacy of the right to dignity; free from the distraction of money and power in exchange for land and identity; and, strong in the resolve to be counted worthy descendants of a race who held fast to the inviolability of land and life.

To chant and dance is to affirm the prosperity that the mountains bring.  May it be so for generations to come.

.

REV. REX RB REYES, JR.
General Secretary

April 11, 2011

NCCP support...YIFI Ruby!

NCCP message for the YIFI Ruby anniversary celebration.


For the friends and supporters of the Youth of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (YIFI), or if you have the burden or extra cash to help, below is the form where you can find the details on how you can help.


Update as of September 24, 2009: Ms. Agong Capus sent me the updated flier for the ruby anniversary. see below: