Impact and Reaction

Mother Candida has a big impact to many people and has established a good Christian community. As a child, she has already done so much for God and yet she remained humble.

 As a teenager, she denied marriage and proved that she was for God alone. At a very young age, she has already shown her great love for the poor. although they were not rich, she still gave everything she had  to the poor.

 Mother Candida is a model to us Manresans so we need to challenge ourselves to be like her. Especially her canonization is fast approaching, we need to try being "holy" like her, to be prayerful, humble, and generous to other people. The canonization of Mother Candida will happen only once so we need to do what we can do, we need to give what we can give, we have to sacrifice what we can sacrifice for her, our foundress, our model, our mother.

Her Sayings (Part 5)

"I would go to the uttermost part of the world in search for souls."

Mother Candida is a very strong and determined person in everything that she does. Knowing she had said the quote above made me believe stronger in her faith in Christ. To "Go to the uttermost part of the world in search for souls" meant that through Mother Candida would be determined to go anywhere to "search for souls" and proclaim God's word. Today, the Hijas de Jesus congregation have so many schools around the globe. Mother Candida was a great inspiration to the congregation for them to be able to achieve and spread her teachings and values to many people.

Often times, we get problematic with so many things(School, work, classmates, etc.). We pray to God for guidance and seek help to Him. But sometimes, we don't feel anything is happening. Why do you think so? I believe that prayer alone can't solve everything you want. I believe that with prayer, there must be sincerity, dedication and determination to do something about a problem. Mother Candida is asking us to be patient and determined to do what we think is right. She said that she would go to the uttermost part of the world in search for souls. We, too, must be determined to go in deeper and deeper to find out solutions to our needs for what we think is right.

Her Sayings (Part 4)

"I am for God Alone."

Mother Candida uttered these words to a wealthy man who asked her hand for marriage. Mother Candida came from a poor family. Her dad is a weaver and they live in a  very small house. The only way for them to end their poverty is for her to marry the said man. Yet, she replied, I am for God alone.

There are times wherein we choose luxury and fame over God. We tend to forget the one who supplies us with everything we need and we ask for. Most of us just cling on our own understanding and wants. Why do we do this? Why are people such selfish and stubborn beings?

Mother Candida wants us to be selfless and serviceable to others' needs. We shouldn't only think of ourselves. Serving God is a way of showing how much we care for Him. He's loved us for who we are and with every thing we've done.

The question is, how do we live up to this saying of Mother Candida? It doesn't mean we have to found a congregation like her. It practically means centering God in our lives. Putting it into action, we must serve God whole-heartedly. What's the use of serving if we don't even mean what we're doing?

So I call out to all people, let's all serve the Lord with all our heart and all our soul. Let's not forget to "serve" each other as well. And by "serve", I mean being good brothers and sisters to one another.

Poverty in our Country

Poverty in our Country

Poverty in the Philippines - Philippine (Filipino) Children from Philippine Children on Vimeo.

It's sad to see so many of our unfortunate brothers and sisters are experiencing these kinds of hardships. Some of us would wake up in the morning, go to a beautiful school, go back home, use the computer, eat so much food,

"I'm Just Like You." - Living with Disabilities

"I'm Just Like You." - Living with Disabilities

"I'm just like you"- Living with disabilities from Dreams for Kids on Vimeo.

I'm inspired by the responses of these children with their disabilities. Not all people can be as optimistic as they are.:) Mother Candida was a person who was poor and had no education. Who would've thought that she would be the foundress of one of the devoted congregations in the world? How did she do it? She had faith in God. She always believed and trusted Him. She let God have it His way; not hers.

Little Juanita: God's young instrument

Mother Candida, knows as "Little Juanita" during her childhood, was a very devoted and prayerful child. She would visit and offer flowers to Mama Mary, and also pray the rosary with her grandmother, who was also the one who taught her how to. Little Juanita was indeed a young servant of the Lord.

Little Juanita may be just a young girl but I believe she's one of the most inspiring kids I've known. Her devotion and love for Mama Mary and her faith in God is ever blossoming. Her kindness knows no bounds. Though they were poor, she still had that strong cling to the Lord. It was probably her undoubted care for others that struck me the most. I couldn't believe such a child would be this excited and ready for the trials that are up to her life. Why? It's because Little Juanita knows and believes God is always with her and her family.

Her Sayings (Part 3)

"Burning with the divine love, you will be able to inflame other hearts with love for God."

Let me start by asking you,

How do you show your love to others?

Most of us show our love to our brothers and sisters through doing good deeds for them. Yes, that's really showing our care. Showing our care for others is one of the values Mother Candida has taught us. I myself can say that she is one of the most loving persons I've ever known all my life. Knowing her life opened my eyes wider to God. She has always showed that with loving others, you love God as well.

There would be times in our lives wherein we'd feel anger and hatred for a person. This happens, right? With this, we throw our love for others; almost, throwing our love for God, too. You see, people are very curious and probably stubborn beings. We always want to be at the top, always the reigning one. That's when misunderstandings come along. Mother Candida wants us to leave these attitudes to the ground. There is no reason for hatred and anger in this world. People are just stubborn. We need to learn how to love and understand each other more deeply. We need to trust in the Lord that He will let us find peace throughout our lives. So let's all cling to Him always. We shouldn't let our anger, our hatred, or even our doubts hinder us from being close to HIm. Let's use God's divine and never-ending love to show and inflame other hearts. 

 

Her Sayings (Part 2)

"The teachers must love the class assigned to them because in serving the poor they serve and honor Jesus more particularly."

Serving from Valleydale Church on Vimeo.

Truly inspiring. Often times, we students would always get mad at our teachers for hundreds of reasons; too much homework, boring class, etc. We shouldn't think our teachers are trying to fail us, you know.:) We just have to hardworking and determined.:)

Teaching is like doing your ideal job. For example, you've wanted to be a great dancer since you were young and you've finally achieved it. In everything you do as a dancer, you put in your all, right? You love your job. You love expressing yourself to others through movement. In everything that we do, we must always do our best. Since you're going do be doing it anyway, why don't you do your best?

That's why Mo. Candida said that teachers should love their class. When we think of it in our modern time today, we must always love everything we do. We should appreciate and do our best that we'd have an opportunity to do something, because, in doing our best, we are also doing our best.. for God.:)

So, let's all be dedicated and determined to do our very best always. Doing your best doesn't mean you'd be the one on top. Doing your best means you know you've done what you can, and you've done it for God.

Her Sayings (Part 1)

"Try to live closely united with Jesus, doing everything, all for Him and with HIm."

Mother Candida was a very loving and and wonderful daughter of Christ. She did all for Him, and with Him. She was very united with Christ, even at a very early age. We people of today have had our hardships, our falls, our trials and also our wins, our success and our happiness. But, in all of the things that happen to us and the things we want to happen to us, do we really know the reason we're doing these? If so, what is it? For fame? For luxury? Or, for Jesus? We pray to Jesus everyday. We ask Him for things that, probably, we wouldn't even need. Yes, we pray everyday. But, do we know the reason why we pray? Do we really know the reason why we're talking to Jesus?


Mother Candida lived closely united with Jesus all through her life. She believed that with God, there is happiness. With God, you will know the reasons to all things you do everyday. Often times, we do things for ourselves, am I right? We may say that we're doing this for others, but, in reality, we're just being selfish people. Pride is always in the way. Mother Candida wants us to realize how important it is to always be connected to Christ. All the things around us are from Him, correct? Do we at least, somehow, say a Thank You once in a while to Him for everything He has given you? Or do we just, ask for more, more and more? Think about it. Know the reason for everything you do. Jesus HImself has His ways, His reasons, His mysteries. We should all try to live closely to one another with Christ. Let us trust Him and do everything for HIm and with Him.

Little Juanita's Little Sacrifice with a Big Heart

Juana Josefa Cipitria y Barriola or "Little Juanita" that's the name that her family calls her. Her family was a relgious family. She was even baptized on the day she was born! As a child, she was really devoted to the Virgin Mary. She learned to pray the rosary when she was only 5 years old, she was thought by her grandmother to pray it. She recieved Jesus for the first time when she was only 7 years old. She offered flowers for Mother Mary by herself without any command by her parents. She conveyed many characteristics and values that a child at her age doesn't have. She was prayerful, faithful to Jesus, kind, humble and generous. There was a time when her grandmother made her favorite omelet sandwich but she tought to sacrifice and give it to the poor. She waited for a poor person to pass by but no one passed by because of this she took a little bite because she was really hungry. Finally, a poor person passed by and she gave the sandwich to him. Can you do that in a very young age?

Who is Mo. Candida?

Mother Candida Maria de Jesus was born on May 31, 1845 in Andoain, Guipuzcoa, Spain. Her baptismal name is Juana Josefa Cipitria y Barriola. She was the eldest daughter of Juan Miguel Cipitria y Aramburu and Maria Jesus Barriola y Querexeta. At a very young age, she had developed a habit of praying. She learned to pray the rosary from her grandmother, Josefa Antonia. At the age of 10, she had her first communion. She was inspired by the saying of St. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus. In April 2, 1869, Mo. Candida received the inspiration from the Blessed Virgin to found the congregation of Hijas de Jesus and to change her name. From Juana Josefa, her name became Candida Maria de Jesus. She was helped by Father Miguel San Jose Herranz, a jesuit. In December 8, 1871, the Congregation of Hijas de Jesus was born in the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. On August 9, 1912, Mother Candida died at the age of 67. Mother Candida was a very kind and selfless person. She is very generous to the poor and she dedicated her life to Jesus.