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The Ass and the Mule

A Muleteer set forth on a journey, driving before him an Ass and a Mule, both well laden. The Ass, as long as he traveled along the plain, carried his load with ease, but when he began to ascend the steep path of the mountain, felt his load to be more than he could bear. He entreated his companion to relieve him of a small portion, that he might carry home the rest; but the Mule paid no attention to the request. The Ass shortly afterwards fell down dead under his burden. Not knowing what else to do in so wild a region, the Muleteer placed upon the Mule the load carried by the Ass in addition to his own, and at the top of all placed the hide of the Ass, after he had skinned him.

  

A Scorpion Moment

There was this Hindu who saw a scorpion floundering around in the water. He decided to save it by stretching out his finger, but the scorpion stung him. The man still tried to get the scorpion out of the water, but the scorpion stung him again.

A man nearby told him to stop saving the scorpion that kept stinging him.

But the Hindu said: "It is the nature of the scorpion to sting. It is my nature to love. Why should I give up my nature to love just because it is the nature of the scorpion to sting?"

Don't give up loving.
Don't give up your goodness.
Even if people around you sting.

Aurora - Sanctuary Of Nature's Splendor

Brief Description
Beyond the lush forest of the Sierra Madre mountains lies a splendid land so unbelievably rich and untouched - Aurora, otherwise known as the “Sanctuary of Nature’s Splendor.”

The Sierra Madre mountain range covers a large part of the province of Aurora. In fact, next to the Aurora coastline, it is the place where flora and fauna are most concentrated. Waterfalls, rivers, crystal clear streams of varying sizes are located within, if not adjacent to, the area of the Sierra Madre mountain. Special interest trips such as mountain climbing, safari, bird watching, ecological studies, or even as simple as picnics could be rolled into one by taking the trails recommended by local nature trekkers in the area.

When the northeast monsoon winds blow and the usual tranquil white beaches are transformed into deathtraps by angry waves, it is time to come to Aurora to ride the waves on a surfboard.

Geography
Aurora has a total land area of 308,122 hectares. Its main link to the rest of Luzon is a narrow mountain gravel road twisting across the Sierra Madre mountain ranges between Baler and the municipality of Bongabon in Nueva Ecija.

Political Subdivision
Aurora is composed of eight municipalities, with Baler as the provincial capital.

Climate
The climate is characterized by rainfall, which is more or less evenly distributed throughout the year. Because the province faces the Pacific Ocean, it is regularly battered by typhoons coming from the east.

Population
Based on the national statistics survey of May 2000, Aurora has a population of 173,797 with an annual growth rate 1.84%.

Language / Dialect
The province speaks predominantly Tagalog, and in some parts, Ilocano. The working population is fluent in both the English and Filipino languages.

Major Industries
Aurora’s basic economy is agricultural; copra and rice are the principal products. Weaving, especially of buntal hats, is an important cottage industry.

Fishing production can be increased in Casiguran Sound and Dingalan Bay but Baler Bay’s is expected to diminish due to over-fishing and sedimentation.

Aurora has maintained its forest cover but is under serious threats from logging.

Isolation, inaccessibility, and exposure to typhoons have hampered the province’s development.

Bataan - History Hub Of Central Luzon

Brief Description
Discover the magic of the Philippines’ Third Region with this amazing historical and cultural province, only an hour by ferryboat across the bay from Manila. Until recently not a traditional tourist destination, Bataan is now proving to be a tourist haven boasting a multitude of exciting places to visit, and interesting things to do. The province has much to offer – a rich culture and history, the beauty of unspoilt beaches, and a warm hospitality that is truly Filipino.

Geography
Bataan is the peninsula in the western part of Luzon that shields the Manila Bay on its south and east from the South China Sea on its west. Zambales and Pampanga form its boundaries on the north.

Political Subdivision
Balanga City, 124 km. from Manila, is the provincial capital. The twelve towns lying in its coast integrade 238 barangays and 11 cultural minorities or sitios.

Climate
The climate consists of two distinct seasons: dry from November to April and wet during the rest of the year.

Population
The population of Bataan for the year 2000 was 552,000 based on the growth rate of 2.12% in Central Luzon.

Language / Dialect
Tagalog is the main language and is widely used, followed by Pampango and Ilocano. English is used mostly as the medium of transaction in business.

Major Industries
Bataan remains basically an agricultural province in spite of the rapid industrialization during the last decade. Mariveles is the site of an export-processing zone that accounts for heavy industry in the province. Cattle and carabao fattening, hog raising, and poultry industry, especially broilers and ducks and egg production, are some of the promising livelihood programs in the province.

Zambales - Wreck Diving Capital Of The Philippines

BRIEF DESCRIPTION
Zambales has been gifted with the natural beauty of its surroundings. It has been touched by civilization yet has maintained its rustic glory and beauty. The Zambales coastline is most famous for its sandy beaches and deep blue sea teeming with coral reefs.

The province is historical. Located here is the ancestral house of the most beloved Philippine President, Ramon Magsaysay, situated at Castillejos. Mt. Pinatubo, world-famous for its 1991 catastrophic eruption, can be found in the vicinity.

Zambales is perfectly suited for visitors seeking an authentic view of the Philippines without going too far from the national capital, Manila. It is located at the western part of Luzon, 210 kilometers or approximately a three-hour drive from Manila.

Geography
The province has a few lowlands along the narrow coast where the town centers are located. The northern part is basically swampy. Mountain ranges containing most mineral deposits as well as some volcanoes are found in the eastern portion.

Political Subdivision
Zambales has 13 towns and one city, with Iba as the provincial capital.

Population
Zambales has a population of 561,554.

Language/Dialect
Tagalog is the predominant dialect followed by Ilocano and Zambal. English is widely spoken.

Climate
There are two pronounced seasons: dry from November to April, and wet during the rest of the year.

Major Industries
Zambales is basically an agricultural province. The chief products are rice, corn, vegetables, and rootcrops. Major industries include farming, fishing, and mining.

The Olongapo area, once the site of the biggest U.S. naval base in Asia, is fast developing into an industrial and tourism zone under the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority.

Tarlac - Melting Pot Of Central Luzon

BRIEF DESCRIPTION
Tarlac is the most multicultural of the Central Luzon provinces. A mixture of four district groups, the Pampangos, Ilocanos, Pangasinenses, and Tagalogs, share life in the province.

Tarlac is best known for its fine foods and vast sugar and rice plantations. That it has fine cooking to offer is due largely to the fact that it is the melting pot of Central Luzon. It offers some of the best cuisines from the places of ancestry of its settlers, the provinces of Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Zambales, Pangasinan, and the Ilocos Region.

Historical sites, fine food, vast plantations, a beautifully landscaped golf course, and so many other attractions – all these make the province of Tarlac one of the best of the places to visit in Central Luzon.

Geography
The province is situated at the center of the Central Plains of Luzon, landlocked by four provinces: Nueva Ecija on the east, Pangasinan on the north, Pampanga o the south, and Zambales on the west. Approximately 75% of the province is plain while the rest is hilly to mountainous.

Political Subdivision
Tarlac is divided into three congressional districts with 18 towns and an aggregate of 510 barangays.

Population
Tarlac has a population of 859, 222.

Language/Dialect
Ilocano is spoken by half of the population followed by Pampango spoken by 41%. Everybody understands the Tagalog language.

Climate
Like the rest of Central Luzon, the province has two distinct seasons: dry from November to April and wet for the rest of the year.

Major Industries
Principal crops are rice and sugarcane. Other major crops are corn and coconut; vegetables such as eggplant, garlic, and onion; and fruit trees like mango, banana, and calamansi.

Because the province is landlocked, its fish production is limited to several fishponds. On the boundary with Zambales in the west, forestlands provide timber for the logging industry. Mineral reserves such as manganese and iron can also be found along the western section.

Tarlac has its own rice and corn mills as well as sawmills and logging outfits. It has three sugar centrals. Other firms service agricultural needs such as fertilizer. Among its cottage industries, ceramics making has become important because of the abundant supply of clay.

  

Daily Reading & Meditation

Friday (6/23): "They shall look on him whom they have pierced."

Scripture: John 19:31-37

31 Since it was the day of Preparation, in order to prevent the bodies from remaining on the cross on the sabbath (for that sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. 32 So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him; 33 but when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. 35 He who saw it has borne witness -- his testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth -- that you also may believe. 36 For these things took place that the scripture might be fulfilled, "Not a bone of him shall be broken." 37 And again another scripture says, "They shall look on him whom they have pierced."

Meditation: Do you understand that the heart of Jesus was pierced for your sake and for mine? Of all the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ death, John mentions that the soldiers pierced his heart with a lance. This was a fulfillment of the prophecy of Zechariah 12:10: “when they look on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him”. The heart of Jesus was pierced for our sake. He willingly went to the cross and laid down his life as the atoning sacrifice for our sins. If we want to understand the depth and breadth of God’s love for each of us, then look upon the heart that was pierced for you and for me. That is the reason Jesus went to the cross, to redeem us from slavery to sin and death. True love does not count the cost, but gives everything for the beloved. Jesus withheld nothing, but gave everything he had for our sake. Augustine says that “God loves each of us as if there were only one of us to love.” In the cross of Christ we see the love of God broken and pierced for our sake. Jesus reigns triumphant at the right hand of the Father. He has risen in glory for our sake and he intercedes for us in heaven. He stands before the throne of heaven with his marks of victory – his pierced side, hands, and feet. Who can fathom the love of God? For all eternity we will gaze upon him who was crucified and who rose for our sake. The Lord Jesus calls us to lay down our lives in sacrificial love for one another. Only a broken and contrite heart can fathom the mercy of God revealed in Jesus Christ. Do you love as Jesus loves, with a broken heart that yearns for all to know the love and mercy of God?

“Lord Jesus, your love knows no bounds. Break my heart with the things that break your heart that I may love generously as you love.”

  

JUNE 23
ST. JOSEPH CAFASSO

Joseph Cafasso was born in 1811, in northern Italy, near the city of Turin. Four years later, in 1815, one of his most famous students was born in the same town, St. John Bosco. We celebrate his feast on January 31. Joseph had loving parents who were willing to sacrifice for his education. He went to Turin to study to become a priest.

Joseph met John Bosco in 1827 when Bosco was twelve. He talked to Seminarian Cafasso at the church and ran all the way home. "Mom, Mom," John called, "I met him, I met him!" "Who?" his mother asked. "Joseph Cafasso, mother. He's a saint, I tell you." Mrs. Bosco smiled and nodded gently. In 1833, Joseph was ordained a priest. He began his priestly work and went to an excellent school of theology for priests. When Father Cafasso graduated, he became a theology professor. He taught many young priests over the years. They could tell that he really loved them.
Father Cafasso became known as the priest who believed in the gentle and loving mercy of God. Because he was so kind himself, he gave people courage and hope. He guided many priests, religious and lay people. He helped John Bosco begin his great priestly ministry with boys. He also guided Father Bosco in starting his religious order known as the Salesians. Father Cafasso directed other founders, too.

There were many social needs in Father Cafasso's time. One of the most urgent was the prison system. Prison conditions were disgusting. But what most moved Father Cafasso was the custom of hanging in public prisoners sentenced to death. Father Cafasso went to them and heard their confessions. He stayed with them, telling them of God's love and mercy until they died. He helped over sixty convicted men. All repented and died in the peace of Jesus. Father Cafasso called them his "hanged saints."

Father Cafasso also became the pastor of St. Francis Church in 1848. No one could ever measure his great influence on people and works in the Church. Father Cafasso died on June 23, 1860. His devoted friend, St. John Bosco, preached the homily at his funeral.

Pope Pius XII proclaimed him a saint in 1947.