Family and Church

I was meditating last weekend on the parallels of a family and the church.

There are big churches too which have grown up with networks of groups and episcopal if not papal commissions. Papal nuncios from Vatican are designated to foreign affairs, while there are veritas in radio, caritas, CFC's , El Shaddai and others in the old and big Catholic church.

The Dalai Lama of Tibetan Buddhism is also a title and a position which also has its goverment leading Tibel though now in exile and crisis.

The Temple in Nara, Japan which was pioneered by a Chinese Buddhist priest some 700 more years ago is now a World Heritage. President of China visited taht place recently. The Zenkoji Temple in Nagano City built 1,700 years ago is a national heritage in Japan. It was in this Zenkoji Temple where the Winter Olympics in 1998 got the ceremonial bell ringing to signal the start as the lighted olympic torch to run and lit the big urn. That is more on social involvement and sports.


Iglesia ni Kristo is a "mandatory friend" to all political parties in the Philipines as they vote by block.

The Central Blessed Family is said to be the seed of "ideal families". It is the upright and united upbringing of the parents of their 2nd generation- children in a God-centered way. And there are priorities in a family like: education, foods, health, discipline and unity, attitude and personality and spiritual development, social growth, future ambitions or visions; clothings, shelter, facilities, techno or appliances too, to mention a few. Except the last five mentioned, all are more internal aspects of a family's needs.

To build-up a family is getting to be a reality for those who have their own family. And difficulties and some challenges are getting bigger once they have their first child. This is seemingly normal and so far most blessed couples are doing their best to stand as central blessed family in the right way. Limitations are present but are over-shadowed by faith and patience. Take it from a father of five!

But I was more thinking and praying on the family church as aimed to be one world family under God; a national family under one God seems to be a goal. Hence, CIG is aimed by TP and us. How about Philippine family under one God? Yes, how about our UM Philippine Family under one God? Is the family thinking of the sungsang and hyung sang needs from education of next generations, their health, discipline, unity, social growth, personality development and the like?

I melted the last time I was in a fellowship with the Catholic church in Suwa, Nagano when the CBPC in the Philippines sent a bishop to visit the 2-year assigned priest and to help the Catholic community safeguard their spiritual life here in Japan. An episcopal Commission for Migrant and Itenirant Workers of CBPC is so active that a fulltime priest was send and is doing his itenirary from place to place. As I have heard, the priest was sent with a one-way ticket but have travelled from north to south of Japan for the hungry sheep-believers. A donation box was passed all around during the fellowhip too.

Thanks to those who come and visit Tokyo once a month to speakto and for Tokyo and nearby crowd and at the same time recieve the collections of tithes and donations for the month. Graces for those more than 150 blessed families who live in Mie ken and nearby where most husbands are individually or collectively working in that industrial prefecture. They are oftenly visited by kuya's and central figures and are "spiritually blessed"during their gathering.

How about the other places, other countries lile Middle East, Canada, Taiwan, etc.? How about on times of needs and consultation or guidance of a church member or anybody? on emergencies when spiritual health is in danger?

How about those blessed fulltimers whose blessed children are fastly growing? Some children are staying in the centers where their parent/s are based for their mission/s; when children of fulltimers need to enrol but have no allowances for their own family as they are busy engaging in missions in the frontline? when fultimers need hospitalization or medicine, or shoes or clothings or a room for his family and priorities are all for missions? This is part of human resource development program supposedly. Local centers in the Philippines have more stories of blessed families. A husband of an Executive Director is bound to go as OFW to help support not only his family but the cluster-region of his wife. And the social cost on OFW's is so "high"! Bishop Cantillas confirmed that and mention that even CBPC is not for OFW's due to the social cost in it, not to mention the social ills it implies to the departed families.

There are needs in the National Family, world family under one God! Like a small typical family, leaders should think and consider too in attending to these internal and external or sungsang and hyungsang needs of the family church.

The speech of Pastor Kook Jin nim Moon last April 26 in FFWPU-Intl hq in S. Korea re subsidy vs tithings, is just so good for all to reflect and act. And church should be developed more to progression to address the ministerial needs of our family church. Pastor kook Jin Moon himslef doesnt recieve any salary or allowances but leads well and victorious the Foundation assigned to him.

Let us open our eyes more on how the Family Church can be led by parental and young leaders like the youngest son of TP, Rev. Hyung Jin nim Moon, considering the vision, mission, goals and the nature and ideals of what a family is from the family, national to global levels.

Allan C. Cadano
May 13,2008