Come & Join Us!
For more than 11 years . . .
the only Misa sa Wikang Tagalog
every Sunday in the Chicagoland area.
News and Upcoming Events
SEMANA SANTA Schedule 2012
WAY OF THE CROSS PRAYER SERVICE FOLLOWED BY BLACK NAZARENE NOVENA & MASS |
Every Friday, 6:30 PM, Feb. 24 thru Mar. 30, 2012, English Service |
PABASA ( Chanting of the PASSION of CHRIST ) |
Mar. 28, 2012, Friday, 8 PM to 11 AM, Church Hall (Basement), Tagalog Service |
LINGGO NG PALASPAS (PALM SUNDAY) |
April 1, 2012, Sunday, 5:00 PM, Misang Tagalog |
DAAN NG KRUS (Way of the Cross) Followed by MISANG TAGALOG |
April 3, 2012, Tuesday, 7:00 PM, Tagalog Service |
TINIEBLAS (TENEBRAE, A Service of Light & Lamentation) & ENGLISH MASS |
April 4, 2012, Wednesday, 7:00 PM, English Service |
BIERNES SANTO (GOOD FRIDAY) SIETE PALABRAS (SEVEN LAST WORDS), VENERATION of the CROSS, COMMUNION and VENERATION of the SANTO ENTIERRO |
April 6, 2012, Friday, 7:00 pm, English Service |
PASKO NG MULING PAGKABUHAY ( EASTER SUNDAY ) |
April 8, 2012, Sunday, 5:00 PM, Misang Tagalog |
REVISED MISSAL in TAGALOG, OUT NEXT DECEMBER
While Roman Catholics in the United States started using a revised missal this past Christmas season, Catholics in the Philippines as well as Catholic Filipinos outside the Philippines who celebrate Mass in their native language, such as the Misang Tagalog here in Chicago, will have to wait next Christmas season to do so.
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) already had an English version of the Roman Missal. But it needs to be translated into various native languages in the Philippines, and will be used starting the First Sunday of Advent 2012.
The CBCP Episcopal Commission on the Liturgy, headed by Zamboanga Archbishop Romulo Valles, is leading the translation of the missal into Tagalog, Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Bicolano, Waray and other major languages of the Philippines in consultation with various dioceses.
The 4-decades-old liturgy, with its everyday-English phrasings, will be replaced by a revised Roman Missal that's word-for-word more literally tied to the original Latin Mass.
Also called Order of the Mass, the Roman Missal, is the liturgical book that contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the Mass in the Roman Rites of the Catholic Church.
Pope John Paul II authorized the revision of the missal way back in 2001 to reflect the Latin original. Pope Benedict XVI approved the revisions last year.
The Only U.S. Marian Apparitions Approved by the Church
In 1859, Our Blessed Mother appeared to Sr. Adele Brise on three separate occasions. These apparitions were formally approved by Bishop David L. Ricken, DD, of Green Bay, Wisconsin as "worthy of belief" in December 8, 2010. The declaration makes the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary at the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help the first and only in the United States to be approved by the Church. Along with his decree on the apparitions, Bishop Ricken further approved the Shrine as an official Diocesan Shrine of Green Bay.
The Shrine, which preserves the same spot where the Queen of Heaven appeared to the said young Belgian immigrant woman, is situated on six acres of peaceful farmland in Champion, Wisconsin.
For more information, visit the Shrine's official website through the
following link: www.shrineofourladyofgoodhelp.com
Photo, courtesy of Agie Gallarin.
Legion of Mary pilgrims around Sr. Adele's grave marker
It all began with an idea. . .
"Why not a regular Tagalog Mass here at the Transfiguration of Our Lord Church?" Father Robert Florido
posed this question many times to the Filipino-Americans who were helping him organize the 2000 Holy Week Services, which were formerly held under the auspices of FILCA
(Filipino Clergy Association in Chicago).
Father Florido actually toyed with the idea since he became a resident priest at Transfiguration of Our Lord Church in 1999. He believed there was a deep spiritual thirst and hunger in the hearts of Filipino-Americans and Filipino expatriates residing in Chicago and its suburbs. Besides, they had pastoral needs that were waiting to be addressed. A regular celebration of the Holy Eucharist in Tagalog could be a concrete step towards responding to those needs.
By 2000, one could feel the growing, vibrant presence of Filipino-American in Transfiguration of Our Lord Church. Since the early 90s, several
movements with significant Filipino involvement had thrived at this particular church. Two of them were, the Legion of Mary and Our Lord Jesus Nazarene devotion. Most of
the members of these group belonged to the parish community of Transfiguration of Our Lord. It was from them that the majority of the first members of the Tagalog Mass Core
Group would come. Right after the 2000 Holy Week, preparation began in earnest for the regular Misang Tagalog. People were invited to attend the Mass, and liturgical
guides such as missalettes and copies of song were printed. It was decided that the novena in honor of the first Filipino saint, San Lorenzo Ruiz, should be prayed before the Mass.
It was remarkable that the first regular Misang Tagalog at Transfiguration of Our Lord Church took place during the Millennial Year, when the
archdiocese of Chicago celebrated the Vigil of the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ on June 24, 2000 in Soldier Field, led by Francis Cardinal George and participated in by all
the parishes of the archdiocese. On May 28, 2000, Father Rene Pareja had the privileged of celebrating the first regular Misang Tagalog at Transfiguration
of Our Lord Church. Although nobody thought of taking photos of this humble beginning, it has stayed in the memory of those who attended and led it. The singers
accompanied by a lone guitarist, made up an "instant choir" since the regular Filipino-American choir were at the Our Lady of the Snow Shrine in Belleville for the
Penafrancia Mass that Memorial weekend.
Now is the time to look back at those years during which, through the Misang Tagalog, the command of Jesus, "Do this in remembrance of me," has
been heeded at the Transfiguration of Our Lord Church. Sunday after Sunday, week after week, those attending the Tagalog Mass were nourished at the Table of the Word and the Table
of the Eucharist. They became increasingly aware that the Holy Eucharist is the summit and center of their Christian life. Throughout the entire liturgical cycle, they regularly
came together to celebrate their being one body and one people in the Eucharistic Lord.
The inclusion of the Misang Tagalog at the Catholic Chicago, an exhibit mounted at the Chicago History Museum, served to highlight the place of Misang
Tagalog in the Archdiocese of Chicago. The exhibit examined the role of the Roman Catholic Church throughout 335 years of Chicago history. After its founding in 1843, the
Archdioces of Chicago became the home of people with remarkable ethnic diversity - - Native American, Irish, German, Polish, Italian, French Canadian, Hungarian, Dutch and Belgian
Catholics. 
The
cultural and ethnic variety took a new configuration at the turn of the century as African American, Lithuanian, Bohemian and Slovak communities grew. Now the multicultural face
of Chicago Catholicism is enriched by Filipinos, Koreans, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Chinese, Spanish-speaking people, and a new wave of Eastern European
immigrants. Catholics of Filipino descent are a dynamic part of the 21st century Catholic community in Chicago. They are thriving in the midst of change, always carrying with
them their cherished spiritual heritage, with its deep Eucharistic focus and strong Marian devotion. They constantly draw sustenance from the spiritual
resources of the Church as they strive to witness to their faith in this challenging and exciting age, with its many opportunities and hopes but also its uncertainties and doubts.
The Misang Tagalog is a kind of special ministry that Transfiguration of Our Lord Church exercises since many of those who regularly attend Misang
Tagalog come from different parishes and places, including the suburbs, and for a lot of them Transfiguration is virtually their parish and spiritual home.
Today we are pausing to thank God for leading us this far in our journey of faith sustained by our Eucharistic Lord. As we count our graces, we look
forward, imbued with hope, to many, many more years of celebrating Misang Tagalog at Transfiguration of Our Lord Church.
