Bishop Lusito Occiano’s circular on the singing of the Gozos during the Misa de Aguinaldo this 2025 celebration of the birth of Christ formally affirms the use of the cherished Marian hymn within the Holy Mass.
The circular cites as basis the Catholic church’s General Instruction on the Roman Missal allowing the singing of another suitable liturgical chant at the Offertory and Communion with the approval of the diocesan bishop.
The move is likewise in keeping with the teaching of the Second Vatican Council on the integration of legitimate local traditions, which the singing of the Gozos has been in the island since people could remember, into the liturgy.
Most Rev. Occiano’s circular lays down the norms to be observed during the Misa de Aguinaldo as far as the Gozos singing is concerned, starting with the obligatory praying of the Holy Rosary before the Mass, followed by the singing of the first three verses of the Gozos to conclude the Rosary.
On the other hand, the bishop stated, the Gozos may be sung as the proper and primary hymn for the Offertory and Communion hymn.
“The Gozos is to be sung with faith, reverence, and prayerful attentiveness, respecting the sacred character and its role within the liturgy,” the circular emphasizes.
Though the circular never said so, the Gozos is usually sung with the singer kneeling in prayerful respect.
In keeping with the tradition in the Diocese of Virac, the entire 16 verses must be sung during the Misa de Aguinaldo, concluding with he Adios.
“The Gozos is a prayerful hymn, not a performance,” Bishop Occiano reminded the Catholic faithful. “It must never be treated as a contest, exhibition, or form of entertainment; such practices are therefore strongly discouraged.”
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A gardener was caught in a drug sting mounted by the police in San Andres last Saturday and would likely spend Christmas and New Year in jail instead of being with family.
The report from the Catanduanes Police Provincial Office said that the buy-bust operation went down at barangay Rizal on Dec. 19, 2025, with the man identified only as “Adoy” yielding a plastic sachet containin suspected shabu that he gave an undercover police officer in exchange for the buy-bust money.
A search found in his possession eight more sachet containing the same white crystalline granules believed to be methamphetamine hydrochloride, along with other evidence.
He is now in custody of the San Andres police pending the filing of appropriate charges for violation of Section 5 and 11 of Republic Act 9165 for the sale and possession of dangerous drugs.
This month, he is probably the third individual to be apprehended in the still continuing campaign against the proliferation of illegal drugs in Catanduanes.
The police has yet to catch who supplies the shabu to the jobless men, tricycle drivers and gardeners who get caught in buy-bust operations every now and then.
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For Christmas, a man decides to get his new girlfriend a pair of gloves.
They’ve only been dating for three weeks, so it seems like the perfect gift – romantic but not overly personal.
He asks the girlfriend’s younger sister to accompany him to the store so she can choose a pair. They go to the mall, and the sister shows the guy a pair of white gloves, which he purchases.
The sister then goes out and buys a pair of pantyhose for herself.
However, the clerk mixes up the parcels during the wrapping process. As a result, the sister receives the gloves, while the guy receives a gift box containing the panties.
Without checking, the guy rushes the gift to his sweetheart, but only after drafting this loving and helpful note to accompany it:
“I chose these because I notice you are not in the habit of wearing any when we go out in the evening. If it had not been for your sister, I would have chosen the long ones with the buttons, but she wears the short ones that are easier to remove.”