Talk about one's faith.

I had been taught that you don't discuss politics and religion over dinner at friends or at social gatherings.

Even in family gatherings, these two subject matters could sometimes lead to explosive debates and arguments, especially if there's alcohol ingestion.

Today's churches and theologians lament about the disappearing faithfuls.  As Fr. Catalino Arevalo, SJ, mentioned at the San Andres Apostol Parish Advent Recollection last Dec. 5, 2012, only about 6 percent of Filipino Catholics go the mass on Sundays these days.

Then where do the 94 percent of the Catholics go or do?

Pope Benedict proclaimed Oct. 11, 2012 to Nov. 24, 2013 as Year of the Faith and The Year of Faith is connected to Synod by subject matter which is, of course, faith. The official title of the Synod is: "the New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith".

At the opening of the recently concluded Synod held last Oct. 2012


The Year of Faith, in the mind of the Holy Father, is an occasion for a renewal of the Church through the deepening of the faith of her members.  The Pope says in 'Porta Fidei', the document which establishes the Year of Faith, that this year is: "a summons to an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord, the one Saviour of the world."

Fr. Arevalo continued to say in his talk that that it is the duty of Catholics to talk about one's faith in order to bring new faithfuls to the Church, to help the poor, to bring back those who left the Church, and to bring the young into the Church.

We must talk about our Catholic faith. We must live our Catholic faith in order to be shining examples to others and become shepherds too, like Christ,  in seeking those who got lost and in finding new flocks.

We were at a Christmas party of a family and marriage- oriented community last Sunday and in the dance presentations, the youth was well represented.  But we were a bit disheartened to see the kids brought out dances like 'gangnam' and other street dances such as hip hop and break dance without any reference to Christmas.

The mis-step is likened to the growing secularization in churches today.

To talk about one's Christian faith is a crime in some countries.  For us who live in free nations, it is doubly expected that we talk about our faith.

Pope Benedict, in his homily at the Synod said,  "Our role in the new evangelization is to cooperate with God."  "We can only let people know what God has done."