Category Archives: *FAITH

I belong to the Roman Catholic Church, and I choose to still be in this Church, but there is more to my faith than just my religious affinity. Read all about that here!

*FAITH, Reviews

All about “Hallow”

Hallow. It’s another term for holy.

These days, Hallow is also the #1 prayer app in the world that helps Catholic Christians, like me, to connect with God despite being busy and whatnot.

I’ve been a Hallow user (I even paid for an annual subscription!) since 2022, that’s why I’m thrilled to announce that I’ve partnered with them just this month in “influencing” others to learn more about the faith and strengthen prayer lives. 🙂

I live in the Philippines — a predominantly Catholic country — but to be honest, it’s sad to say that the Catholic Christian faith has been taken for granted by most Filipinos, especially by the new generation. I mean don’t get me wrong, most of us are “Cradle Catholics” (born and raised with the faith) who eventually became “Cafeteria Catholics” (those who just choose to follow the teachings of the Church that suit them), and I guess it’s part of human nature to “ignore” something that has been bombarded to us since time immemorial. As they say, we never know the true value of something until it’s gone… or until we hit rock bottom.

Which is exactly what happened to me.

Sure, I went to Catholic schools from elementary to college, but I’ve nurtured my faith more outside the four walls of the classroom. I experienced God firsthand through my fair share of “rock bottoms” in life and it was only Him that sustained me through it all. That’s why faith is such a sensitive topic because more than being taught, it’s something to be experienced — which is unique for each person. I mean, for example, you can tell me all the wrong things you can think about Catholicism but I’ll just listen and move on because all the good things about it have been ingrained in my heart and mind because of my unique experience.

And no, I’m not perfect, I’m still a sinner who needs God’s grace and mercy every single day, heck I still don’t get to pray the rosary daily (the struggle is real, my friends!). That’s why it’s really refreshing to have faith-based apps like Hallow because it’s as simple as clicking a button and being reminded that I’m not alone in this journey.

Having said that, what do I really love about Hallow? Well, personally, these are what I use the app for:

PRAYERS – As mentioned, I struggle to pray the rosary every day. I know how powerful it is (during an exorcism, Satan admitted that each Hail Mary is a blow to his head — so imagine if we all pray the rosary! That’s why I can also imagine why it’s such a struggle to do so — there’s spiritual oppression in the background!). With Hallow, I just go to their Daily Rosary section, then choose a guide and length (I usually choose Jonathan Roumie who played Jesus in The Chosen series and the shortest option which is 18 minutes; I also include the “Light Piano” background music which is also an option in the app).

Aside from the rosary, it’s also now easier for me to pray the Divine Mercy chaplet as well as novenas because of one click of a button through Hallow!

COURSES – Similar to podcasts, Hallow also has a vast collection of exclusive audio series or courses you can listen to. The ones I already tried are Feminine Genius by Lisa Cotter and Routines Course by Leah Darrow.

MUSIC – Oh yes, there’s also Christian music in the Hallow app! From Gregorian chants and instrumental music to beautiful worship songs, you can explore Hallow‘s different playlists to incorporate in your day. My favorite track to listen to so far is Adoro Te Devote by Matt Maher.

AUDIOBOOKS – Some books written by Saints are quite long and to be honest, hard to read. So it’s good to have the audiobook versions of classics like Story of A Soul by St. Therese of Lisieux (narrated by Sr. Orianne) in Hallow.

I hope they also include audiobook versions of Confessions by St. Augustine of Hippo and Divine Mercy in My Soul a.k.a. Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska soon! *hint, hint*

BIBLE – One of the main tabs in the app, the entire Catholic Bible can be accessed and read in Hallow (my favorite translation is NABRE). There’s also the Daily Readings section which is supplemented by an audio version of the readings and a reflection for further listening.

COMMUNITY – You can also create groups in Hallow. Similar to other messaging apps, you can create a group with certain people who also use Hallow. Once you create or join a group, you can then exchange messages and prayer requests, as well as reflections and sessions in the app you’ve completed.

Currenly, I’m part of Catholic Woman Daily (CWD) created by my friend and fellow sister in Christ, Carissa Roque-Magbiray — for my other fellow females out there who want to grow in their Catholic faith, I highly suggest you join us by using this group code: M31RP6. But first, you gotta download Hallow for free! ❤

CHALLENGES – Ah, one of the things I look forward to during the seasons of Advent and Lent — Hallow‘s prayer challenges! Ever since I started using Hallow two years ago, I’ve never missed joining one!

The current challenge as of this writing is called Lent Pray40: He Leadeth Me. It started on Ash Wednesday, but it’s not yet too late to join this! You can start by trying Hallow here. 😉

❤

So if you don’t have Hallow in your apps yet, this is your sign to download it. Haha! Seriously, though, it can make wonders for your faith life just as it did to mine.

And if you’re already a fellow Hallow user, maybe you can share some of the things you also love about Hallow. ‘Cause why not!

Kaya tara, dasal tayo! 🙂
#StayPrayedUp

TO GOD BE THE GLORY ALWAYS AND FOREVER!

❤

“for we walk by faith, not by sight.”
-2 Corinthians 5:7

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*FAITH

Apps for Our Faith Journey

With New Year comes resolutions and whatnot. It’s almost the end of January, how are your resolutions so far? I pray that you keep going and that on top of being physically healthy, we also strive to be spiritually strong too! 😉

Based on my experience, using apps to help me in my faith journey as a practicing Roman Catholic proved to be one of the advantages of our technology today. Being “busy” isn’t an excuse to put our faith at the back burner; in fact, the busier we get, the more we need to be intentional in carving out time with God because it’s not about not having enough time but about making time.

So if you’re wondering how to do that, you can start by playing the rosary or reading the Bible and more through one of these apps:

Ascencion app – The app of Ascension Press, here you can read the Bible as well as listen to podcasts. What I love about it is it has The Great Adventure Catholic Bible — the easiest way to learn about God’s Word, at least for me. 🙂 There’s a paid version monthly or annually to unlock some of the features, though.

Formed app – It’s basically like Netflix but purely with videos that’s all about the Catholic faith! Most of their content is produced by the Augustine Institute and it has a monthly or annual subscription option too.

Hallow app – Claiming as the “#1 prayer app in the world”, it’s no wonder because Hallow has “premium” content that offers a lot of options for its users. It also collaborates with artists such as Jonathan Roumie who played Jesus in The Chosen series, Mark Wahlberg, even Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle plus more! It has a free trial version for three months, then you can choose to continue by subscribing either monthly or annually.

Laudate app – This app is my go-to when I need to look for prayers and am too lazy to do a Google search. Haha. Seriously, I also love that it allows me to bookmark certain prayers, so it’s easier for me to just pray them when I prefer reading over listening. It’s free, too!

Tabella app – This is a FREE app for all your Catholic podcasts, prayers, etc. As in it doesn’t have a subscription fee, but I noticed that it’s purely streaming and offline downloads aren’t available. Still, if you don’t want to pay but want to have an app for all your faith needs, then this is the one for you!

The Feast app – This is my favorite among all the apps listed here! Save the best for last, no? Call me biased or not but as someone who’s been part of The Feast family since I was 14 years old (I started in the youth ministry), reading the devotionals, Companion / Didache / Sabbath, has been somewhat my own tradition and having them on an app has made things easier for me to keep up with them daily! This also has free and paid versions, but I suggest you go with the latter because it allows you to read a book by Bro. Bo Sanchez EVERY MONTH through the Growth Plans. And since it’s part of The Feast media arm, a portion of your subscription goes to The Feast Mercy Ministries too. Win-win!

For the record, I’m not paid for endorsing the aforementioned apps. They are apps that I use during my personal time and my observations are purely based on my experience. No more, no less.

I pray that this new year, whether or not you use these apps, you finally get to renew your relationship with God if not get closer. 🙂

TO GOD BE THE GLORY ALWAYS AND FOREVER!

❤

“Your word is a lamp for my feet,
    a light for my path.”
-Psalm 119:105

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*FAITH, Books, Relationships, Reviews

Just a (Royal) Thought: “Spare” by Prince Harry

So, I finished reading Spare by Prince Harry in just three days. Those close to me know that I’ve always been an Anglophile ever since I was young (I used to joke that I could pass as someone who graduated with a degree in Bachelor of Arts in History, Major in Royal Studies – if there ever was one! LOL!) — mostly due to my childhood crush on Prince William, which then transitioned to my admiration for his wife, Kate Middleton… then I visited the U.K. in 2016 and somehow my Anglophilia subsided after that. Add to that binge-watching The Crown on Netflix and suddenly, my overall “fairytale” view on the British Royal Family faded slowly.

I realized that I became fascinated with the British royal family because on the outside, they were the epitome of living the ideal (if not perfect) life. Blame it on Disney for adding fuel to my already burning interest for princes and princesses while growing up! But if there’s one thing I learned about the royal family, they’re just like any other family – imperfect, with human beings (sometimes borderline “human doings”) as family members, and a little bit dysfunctional just like the rest of us. And I don’t mean this in a bad way because truth betold, we’re all “broken” in one way or another.

“They can’t break me, I thought. Is it, I wondered, because I’m already broken?”

from “Spare” by Prince Harry

And that’s basically the overall theme I got from reading this book: brokenness. Ever heard of the term “hurt people, hurt people”? It was obvious that Prince Harry has unresolved issues and trauma within his family (all the way back from his childhood), especially because of what happened to his late mother, Princess Diana (may she rest in peace).

Prince Harry is a hurt person (aren’t we all?) and writing this book is somehow a way for him to cope. But since that “hurt” isn’t completely healed yet, he somehow “hurt” others, too, along the way — especially his family, the royal family, unfortunately.

I picked up this book because as mentioned, I’ve always been interested in the British royal family (albeit not as interested as before). What I liked about the book is first, as Prince Harry claims it, the source is himself — straight from the horse’s mouth although ghostwritten by another author. He talked about his unresolved grief about his mother’s death, his military experience, his relationship with his family (current King Charles III which he calls Pa; Prince William which he calls Willy; and the late queen, Queen Elizabeth II, which he calls Granny — may she rest in peace as well), his love story with his wife, Meghan Markle, and their growing family, and of course, his unending anger toward the British press (referred to as “paps” in the book, short for “paparazzi”). I find everything in the book relatable — even though he’s from the royal family, Prince Harry definitely gave me a glimpse of how imperfect his life is, how imperfect being a royal is — and that’s okay because yes, at the end of the day, they’re still just human beings like the rest of the world when stripped off of those titles, wealth, and whatnot. Plus, I valued my status as a “private citizen” more after reading all about his horrible experience caused by the media (and yet many people still chase after fame in this day and age — be careful what you wish for!).

Then there’s the part that I don’t like: well, it’s basically the underlying (or maybe unconscious?) motive of revenge on his own family members through words. As a devout Roman Catholic striving everyday (you know this blog’s theme, right?), I truly believe in Sr. Lucia dos Santos‘ message that the “decisive battle between the kingdom of Christ and Satan will be over marriage and the family.” Yes, MARRIAGE and the FAMILY. Just look at what’s happening in our broken world today. And well, Prince Harry sure did prove this message with the way he wrote his book. Then again, we already established the fact that hurt people have a tendency to hurt others in return; I can only pray for Prince Harry that his acknowledgment of his brokenness (see quote above) will truly pave the way for his healing — and despite a very challenging feat by the looks of it, reconciliation with his royal family members… eventually.

Okay, the aforementioned “battle” needs to be discussed in another post altogether. I suggest you read Prince Harry‘s memoir, Spare, with an open mind to get a glimpse on his struggles and whatnot. However, if you end up hating and even blaming him or any of his family members after reading the book (which is quite the tendency), maybe just offer a prayer for them. I’m not one to impose my faith and religion on another person because that is a unique and personal journey for each of us. This isn’t about taking sides nor supporting this and that because at the end of the day, who are we to judge? We all have our daily struggles to begin with. So if you can’t pray for them, maybe just remember that not. one. of. us. is perfect and just like us, Prince Harry and the British royal family have their own struggles to deal with. It’s just unfortunate for them that they’ve been public figures from the time they were born.

At the end of it all, it all comes down to LOVE. That’s all we seek, really. It just so happens that in our imperfect and broken world, we search for love without realizing that we’re looking in all the wrong places and outlets. Hence, the vicious cycle of brokenness across generations. So help us God. *hint, hint*

TO GOD BE THE GLORY ALWAYS AND FOREVER!

❤

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue; those who choose one shall eat its fruit.’”
-Proverbs 18:21

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