Sharing daily kindness and prayer

What if instead of negative news, we wake up to good news instead? What if, within the front page of every newspaper, within the headlines and news of all TV and radio programs, as well as social media, there is a daily portion dedicated to sharing good news, especially news about our people’s daily acts of kindness?

Would not our people instead feel inspired and upbeat to look for the good in people, rather than be accompanied by more bad news that fill their hearts each day with fear, anxiety, and concern?

If our people were exposed daily to more positive and good news, will we see more, including ourselves, doing kind acts daily? Will we all witness daily the encouraging, ripple effects of kindness and good deeds? Who knows? Shall we try practicing, highlighting, and spreading kindness daily?

The inspiring kind acts of our people may touch the hearts of those trained, paid, or raised in family, community, work and societal settings to honor evil and wrongdoing. The unkind hearts may finally realize and recognize that there are more good, than bad, among our people and may resort to doing kind acts instead in their lives. Rather than continuing with daily sensationalized negative news about killings, corruption, abuse and other crimes, shall we now all demand for a shift to more positive news about kindness and good?

Would we rather not want to start and continue each day surrounded by more news and information about “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable— and if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things?”

Highlighting and spreading the kind and positive simple acts of our people, for the environment, for others, even just for one person, will surely result in more kindness practiced and shared daily. Churches, schools, media, other institutions and groups can unite to highlight and spread kindness, as well as prayers, to spread God’s love, to inspire all.

Kindness and prayers, done together daily, may just bring about the healing we are asking God in the recent beautiful and powerful Oratio Emperata issued by Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma.  Here are the Bisayan and English versions of the Oratio we can pray daily:

“Langitnon namong Amahan, tinubdan sa kinabuhi ug sukaran sa kalinaw, kaming imong mga anak nasubo, nabalaka ug nahangawa tungod sa sunod-sunod nga pagpatay sa among mga igsoon. (Heavenly Father, the source of life and foundation of peace, we your children mourn, worry, and are anxious because of the successive murders of our brothers and sisters).

Nangaliyupo kami kanimo: pukawa ang hunahuna sa wala magpakabana, samoka ang tanlag sa nagpasiugda, kablita ang kasingkasing sa mga miuyon, hupaya ang dughan sa mga naguol. (We beg you, awaken the minds of those who don’t even care, disturb the conscience of those who author the killings, touch the hearts of those who support the murders, and comfort those who mourn).

Panalipdi kami sa mga bakak sa yawa, ug palingkawasa ang among nasud sa gahum sa dautan. Kini among gipangayo pinaagi ni Kristo among Ginoo. Amen. (“Give us the strength to fight evil with good, and to reject crooked ways. Protect us from the lies of the devil, and free our country from the power of Satan. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen).

Maria among inahan, iampo mo kami. San Miguel Arkanghel, iampo mo kami. San Pedro Calungsod, iampo mo kami. (We ask Mama Mary, our Mother, St. Michael the Archangel, and St. Pedro Calungsod to pray for us).