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Category: Reflection

  • Sacrament: Love made visible

    Sacrament: Love made visible

    Prayer

    Our Loving God who has been with us since the very beginning. You are our ever faithful friend and companion in the journey. Many times, you have shown to us in concrete ways what love can do.

    Because of so much love, you created us in your image and likeness. When we first sinned against you, though the paradise has been closed for us, yet, you walked with us. When we were made slaves in Egypt, you rescued us. When we grew hungry in the dessert, you provided manna for us. When we felt that our enemies made blows in every corner, you sent saviors to tell us that we are never alone.

    When, we felt that you were too far from us, you have become like us except sin. You were born as an infant and grew up into a man. You walked with us, ate with us, taught us and even cried with us. You have brought hope and life in us even to the point of offering your life for us. Though you never sinned, but because of us you suffered. We were the ones who crucified you, yet, you forgave us. We were the ones who put you to death, yet, you resurrected for us – to tell us that we are never beyond redemption, that there is always hope in us, there is more in our sinfulness and weakness. You see love in us.

    Indeed, you are a God who have showed us concretely what love is, now expressed through the sacraments of the Church. And so grant us Lord, the spirit to understand and embrace fully the grace that flows from the sacraments of your love, so that each of us will also become the very sacrament of your presence, of your faithfulness and love to people around us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

    Have you been in love? I am sure that you have been in love too. The first time I realized that I was in love, it made me restless until I could have a glimpse of her. I realized that my attitude towards her had changed. I suddenly became more caring and thoughtful towards her. Though that puppy love did not last as it was based on emotional and physical attraction only, but that gave me a bit of understanding how love can change a person’s behavior.

    With that, how would we define love? Can we really define it? According to my Tita, Miss Meriam-Webster, she gave 9 different definitions of love. Yet, I am not personally satisfied with her definitions since most are descriptions of love. Well, she said that love is a strong affection towards another, or attraction based on sexual desire, or based on admiration, or devotion, or an assurance of affection or a concern for another, etc.

    Moreover, our Christian understanding of Love is much deeper than that. It is beyond romantic love, beyond physical attraction or emotional attachment. It is more concrete than those. If you have been listening to the prayer earlier, what we have prayed described “who love is.” Notice, I did not say, “what love is,” but “who love is.” Meaning, love is a person who concretely showed to the beloved that love. Yes, love is a person, God’s self-revelation is love and made visible through Jesus. What I prayed and shared with you in that opening prayer is the story of love being revealed to us, in our human history. It’s love that creates, that liberates, gives life and gives hope.

    This is what sacrament is. This is what I want to share with you, to always remember that the sacraments in our Church are concrete expressions of Love, expressions where the grace of love, of loving and of being loved made visible. Thus, Sacraments are expressions of love made visible.

    You may have some knowledge about the Sacraments already, and it would be too long to share in details the theology and historical development of each sacrament. So, just let me share with you in short its background and how each sacrament is an expression of love made visible.

    What are the seven sacraments?

    The seven sacraments are baptism, confirmation, Eucharist, penance/ reconciliation, anointing of the sick, marriage and holy orders. They are divided into three categories: sacraments of initiation, sacraments of healing and sacraments of service.

    What is a sacrament?

    Before we get into the details of each sacrament, I want to reiterate one of the most important things about the sacraments — that they are means which God uses to show His grace and help us achieve salvation. The word sacrament means “a sign of the sacred,” which is fitting as they are all outwards signs from God to us.

    Not only are they signs, they’re also celebrations of a continued journey and relationship with God, teachings to help live out His word and ceremonies to show devotion to Him. This means that our participation in the sacrament is our response of love to the one who loves us.

    Take for example, a parent who does everything to send his/her child to school, provide basic needs and give a good life and ensuring that the parent’s presence also provides comfort and assurance to the child, and a child who out of gratitude to the parent maximizes everything given to him/her succeeds in life and makes the parent proud – is an image of sacrament.

    Where did the sacraments originate? (origin?)

    In the Bible, Christ gives his followers instructions on how to administer and receive each of the sacraments. This is seen through his work with the Apostles, in healing the sick, in the parables, feeding the multitude and giving his body and blood for the salvation of all and in forgiving sinners. The Church now administers these holy sacraments as instructed, in order for all to worship God and receive God’s gift of salvation.

    This means that all the sacraments have a biblical origin. Though each of them have developed and has its own vast history over centuries until its present form. Hence, there might be some changes in performing the rituals, changes in languages, differences in doing it that varies from one culture and rite to another, but the very essence of each sacrament remains the same, it is the grace of LOVE MADE VISIBLE.

    The Sacraments of Initiation

    The three sacraments of initiation are baptism, confirmation and Eucharist.

    Each is meant to strengthen our faith and forge a deeper relationship with God. Baptism frees us from original sin and making us children of God. Confirmation strengthens our faith and gives us fully the Holy Spirit. And Eucharist allows us to taste the body and blood of eternal life, be reminded of Christ’s love and sacrifice, and becoming one with the whole Church.

    Sacrament of Baptism

    In particular, baptism is the first sacrament where we become united with Christ and with the Church – no other sacrament can be received without it. Matthew 28:19 says, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

    A priest performs this rite through the use of water, which is the matter, by immersion or by pouring, and while using the formula, “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

    This is the first step in our relationship with God. This is the only sacrament also that can be administered by anybody as long as he has the right intention and using the matter and the formula, but only in case of emergency.

    Remember also that it is in baptism that God claims us as His children. The name of God is imprinted in us. That is why, baptism gives us an “indelible mark.” Meaning, once we are baptized, the grace can never and will never be taken away from us, because we have been claimed and marked as God’s beloved.

    Hence, baptism is indeed love made visible because we are being assured of God’s faithful presence in our life, as a parent, as a friend and a companion in our journey. That is why, just as we remember our birthday every year, it is also good to become aware of the day of our baptism and celebrate it, because on that day we were formally received in the Church and had been claimed as God’s child.

    Sacrament of Confirmation

    Peace be with you! Receive the Holy Spirit. – This is the greeting of the Risen Christ to the terrified Apostles. At Pentecost, each of the disciples of both men and women received the Holy Spirit with an image of fire resting on their head. And filled with the Holy Spirit, they begin to speak though in different languages but understood each other and by the people around them.

    with Most Rev. Edwin dela Peña, MSP, DD, Prelate of the Prelature of Marawi

    Indeed, this is the sacrament where the candidate receives the gift of the Holy Spirit and continues their journey with Christ. During Confirmation, the candidate is anointed on the forehead with holy chrism (oil made of olive oil mixed with some perfume or aromatic oil) by a bishop or by a priest delegated by the bishop and saying the formula, “be sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

    Since baptism typically happens when we were babies, confirmation allows an older child to acknowledge that he or she still wants to continue the journey with God and grow in relationship with Him. Like the baptism, confirmation also leaves an “indelible sign” in us, meaning, it is something that cannot be repeated and will never be taken away from us.

    Remember, it was the promise of Christ given to the apostles that as he was going back to the Father, he assured them that He will be sending an ADVOCATE also called as PARACLETE – the comforter, consoler or helper. In this way, the sacrament of confirmation is indeed love made visible because it is a testament that God comes to comfort us, to console us and help us. And since we have received it, be assured, be confident because the Holy Spirit is with you to give comfort, consolation and help especially when you need it the most. Thus, as a response also, be a helper to others, be the sacrament of God that gives comfort and consolation to those who are in pain, confused and suffering.

    Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist

    Eucharist means thanksgiving. This is when Christ’s body and blood are offered and then received by us in the form of bread and wine. Matthew 26:26-28 says, “While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.”

    Now the priest, through the words of consecration, blesses and administers the Holy Communion during every mass to remind followers that they are one with Christ. Food and drink nourishes our bodies ‒- Christ’s blood and body being shared to us nourishes us.

    Moreover, this sacrament  reminds us of this wonder of being grateful and of sharing. This tells us that when we become grateful of the gifts that we have no matter how small that could be, we also become generous. Thus, the bread and wine turning into true body and blood of Jesus is not done out of “magic.” This happens really, because of the act of thanksgiving of Jesus and his willingness to share his very self to us. Jesus is grateful of the love of the Father and so he gives himself to us as his concrete action of loving us. And the Lord does it every time we celebrate the Mass. Indeed, this is love made visible.

    The eucharist that we celebrate and receive calls us now towards sharing. And to be able to share the body and blood of Jesus means that we become one with him or that we actually become him, becoming the Jesus of today!

    That’s why, during the consecration, before raising the chalice, the priest remembers what Jesus said, “Do this in memory of me!” I find this very powerful because this is also the only sacrament that Jesus said explicitly, do this to remember me. Every time we celebrate the eucharist, it is not just a thing of remembering a distant past, but making the memory of Jesus alive again today.

    Thus, “To remember Jesus means to become part of Jesus.” To know that Jesus is with us and within each of us is to be able to find peace and serenity, satisfaction and contentment despite the troubles, problems, concerns and hungers, wants and other desires that we have. When we become more conscious of the meaning of being one with Jesus and having Jesus in us, we also become, hopefully, Jesus for others.

    This is the implication when we participate in the memory of the Eucharist because the Eucharist is not supposed to stay only inside the church building. When we go out from Church, it also means that we carry in us the Eucharist, we carry in us Jesus. The Eucharist continues when we step out from the Church and go back to our homes or to your workplaces and meet people.

    This is the call of the sacrament of the eucharist, “to be the Jesus today! Consciously, with gratefulness in our hearts and with generosity bring Jesus with us because he is truly in us!” express the Jesus in you, through your words and deeds as you meet people today and tomorrow, as you talk and dine with your friends and family, and as you encounter strangers and the needy on the street and in the places where you go. In this way, we also become the sacrament of God’s love made visible.

    The Sacraments of Healing

    The two sacraments of healing are penance/reconciliation and anointing the sick. Penance allows for spiritual healing and absolution for people who have distanced themselves from God through sin. Anointing the sick allows for both physical and spiritual healing. When one falls seriously ill, a minister anoints them and prays over them, calling on Christ for strength and the gift of healing.

    The Sacrament of Penance or Confession or Reconciliation

    Personally, I actually like its other name, “RECONCILIATION.” Penance focuses of the punishment of sin while reconciliation focuses on the grace received in this sacrament.

    During the sacrament of reconciliation, a person confesses his/her sins to God through me (as the priest). I forgive the confessed sins through God’s mercy, and I order the penitent to live a more faithful life through the gift of absolution.

    Confession is essential in cultivating and fruitfully living out the word of God. We are not perfect people, even if we try to be. Many times we fail and commit sin and that’s why it is good that we are always conscious of our sinful nature in order to counter healthily those tendencies. By acknowledging our sins, we also acknowledge our need of God. This helps us have a stronger relationship with God and better awareness of ourselves and of our needs and desires.

    As a priest, I find this sacrament really powerful because as it brings healing to a soul wounded by sin, this sacrament also heals a heart wounded and bruised by painful, shameful and traumatic experiences of the past. Despite being young in the ministry, I have heard confessions that brought shocks and terrifying chills. I have heard sins confessed that I thought only in movies could happen, yet, those happened and to be able to console a penitent through God’s gift of mercy and peace, that gave me the joy of being a priest. It is not easy to sit down and listen to the sins of the people. Being in the confessional for two hours is physically and emotional draining. However, the joy and peace that I always see and feel in the person after the granting of absolution would always paint a smile on my face.

    Hence, this powerful sacrament of reconciliation is indeed love made visible because God reminds us always that His mercy and gift of peace is never far from us. God through this sacrament tells us that God is always willing and waiting to embrace us. Hopefully, each of us too, who received such embrace of forgiveness becomes a witness of God to others by being compassionate to sinners like us, by forgiving those who have hurt us and embracing those who feel unworthy like us.

    The Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick

    This sacrament is the most misunderstood and even taken for granted by many. Before, this was called as the “Extreme Unction” meaning the “Final Anointing.” This sacrament was usually administered to those who are about to die. That’s why, even until now, people think that this sacrament of anointing of the sick is only for those who are at point of death. People refuse to receive this sacrament because of the fear of dying.

    Anyhow, this sacrament now is bestowed upon those who are ill or suffering, which then are united with Christ’s passion. Anointing the forehead and hands of the person with “oil for the infirm” or “oil for the sick” while a priest is saying the words or the formula of the sacrament. (on the forehead: Through this holy anointing, may the Lord in his love and mercy, help you with the grace of the Holy Spirit. Amen; the hands: May the Lord who frees you from sin, save you and raise you up. Amen.)

    This special blessing is a way to make the sick receive the strength in his body and spirit and be more connected with God in both mind and body.

    In the letter of James 5:14, it says, “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”

    And since, people only asked for it when most of them are dying, this is the sacrament also that as a priest, I would always hold myself not to cry. Though there were times that I was not able to hold my tears and administered it with broken words in between my silent sobbing. Indeed, it is just painful and terrifying as well to witness a person who struggles for his/her last breath on earth while those who love him/her gathering around. Despite the pain, but I always feel blessed to have been part of those moments where the reality of death is being embraced.

    Moreover, many times also I have witnessed how those were sick recovered after receiving the sacrament. It is a joy for me to witness that wonder and miracle of simple healing stories. Indeed, this sacrament of the anointing of the sick is love made visible because God continues to touch us to bring healing to our tired, wounded and sick body as well as our spirit. Thus, with this sacrament, this calls us too to become God’s healing touch to others. Yes, touch others to bring healing and comfort. Touch them with your presence of assurance and friendship especially those who are ill at the moment. Let them know that you remember them, that you are praying with them and for them. In this way, we too become the sacrament of love made visible.

    The Sacraments of Service

    Through marriage and the holy orders also called Ordination, couples and the clergy promise to serve and build up the church community.

    The Sacrament of Marriage

    Marriage is a very important sacrament. Just think, without it, no one will come for baptism and confirmation. Nobody will gather to celebrate the Eucharist. And since no one is there, nobody will get sick and ask for the anointing. And most of all, no one will be ordained to the priesthood to celebrate the sacraments. 🙂

    The commitment, love and union of husband and wife extends and bears fruit. This is how a wife and a husband enrich the church, and that is through procreation. The openness of the couple to God’s grace of children, makes the church more alive. Without their commitment and openness to the grace of having children, there will be no people, no community at all.

    Of course, we also know that there are many couples who were not gifted with children because of some physical difficulty, yet, this does not stop them from becoming fruitful in the community. All couples are called to build up the church in ways they can.

    Thus, through marriage, a couple promises to help build each other up, in faith, serve each other and the church and be faithful to each other until death. Through this lifelong commitment, this also mirrors God’s faithfulness in us. Remember, our covenant with God is always in the image of marriage. As God makes a covenant with us (I AM your God and you are my people), God expresses concretely His faithful and abiding love for us.

    For those who are called to this life, prepare yourself and always make yourself welcoming to God’s invitation. Faithfulness is a key element in this life. For those who are not called for this life, let those married couples around you like your parents especially as well as your friends, be your inspiration in your other relationships. They may not be perfect but let them know also that you pray for them and supportive for their lifelong commitment.

    Thus, this sacrament, indeed, is love made visible in many ways. God reminds us of his faithfulness in our covenant through this sacrament. The couple mirrors the love of Christ with the Church and the Church’s response of love to Christ. Hopefully, each of us too will become sacrament of love made visible by being faithful and committed to our relationships, with our friends, families and communities.

    The Sacrament of Holy Orders/Ordination

    This sacrament is for those who choose and called to become a priest, bishop or deacon. This is the composition of the clergy. Through ordination, they are able to perform sacred duties and serve the church community. This is a sacrament that everyone cannot partake in, rather it is reserved to those who are called by God chosen among God’s people.

    Yet, this does not mean that this kind of life is higher than being married. As married couples have their own mission and call in the Church, we priests, deacons and bishops also have our own calling and mission in the Church.

    Like the baptism and confirmation, ordination also leaves an “indelible mark.” As there are three different categories among us clergy, there are also different rites for ordination for deacons, priests and bishops.

    Without going deeper into these three categories, all three share a common ground and that is the gift of ordination is received through the imposition of hands and the words of the consecratory prayer that also differs from one another.

    Moreover, we priests and the bishops, receive the mission and the capacity to act in the person of Christ the Head, while the deacons are empowered to serve the people of God in the ministries of the liturgy, in preaching and in charity.

    Thus, through this sacrament, God reminds us too of His continuing presence in the world, in our communities and in our hearts through the gift of person whom God has called and chosen to be his image in the Church. This indeed, is a sacrament of love made visible.

    For all of you who do not share in this vocation, I would like to ask you humbly to pray for me, to pray for us clergy. Pray not just for our perseverance, not just for our good health; pray that we may always be faithful as God is faithful to us, pray that our commitment is for the church and not for our personal comfort and enrichment, pray that we always find joy in this life because there are many of us who are sad and lonely.

    Hopefully, you have found this empowering and life-giving.

  • CONTINUING CHALLENGE TO RENEW THE CHURCH

    CONTINUING CHALLENGE TO RENEW THE CHURCH

    A REVIEW: A VISION OF A CHURCH RENEWED, Living The Ecclesiology of Vatican II and PCP II

    Fr. Amado L. Picardal  CSsR, Claretian Publications, Foundation Inc., 2022

    Amidst the disturbing news that the highly esteemed Holy Father, Pope Francis’s health is deteriorating (most of his photos these days show him seated in a wheelchair and needs to be lifted up), there are all kinds of speculations as to the consequences if he decides to resign.

                First, there is the question who can then be elected in the papal conclave where cardinals all over the world gather in Rome to elect his successor. Luis Cardinal Tagle has been named as one possibility along with a few others.  Only time will tell, however, who the next Pope will be and if he will be continuing the reforms that Pope Francis has earnestly pushed despite objections from the Roman Curia. Or following – the usual pendulum that takes place with social institutions –  the movement will be to return  to the conservative mindset of an institutional Church characterized by the likes of St. John Paul II.

                Since he got elected on March 13, 2013 – almost a decade ago – replacing Pope Benedict XVI who resigned from the papacy,  Pope Francis has opened the windows of the Vatican so that the Church can co-exist with the complexities of the post-modern world. He has issued some of the most important pastoral documents to come out of the Vatican from the Apostolic Exhortation of  Evangelii Gaudium to Laudato Si! to Fratelli Tutti.

                There was even a rumor earlier that he was set to convene Vatican III in the hope that all the recommendations that were approved by Vatican II can be more seriously pursued by Local Churches especially those who have remained indifferent to the concerns of Vatican II. As it proved to be far too controversial to organize, Pope Francis shifted two years ago to convening a Synod on Synodality.

                In order to facilitate the active participation of the laity – including those who are not practicing Catholics or even those who may feel completely alienated from the institutional Church – all Local Churches (BECs, parishes and dioceses) across the globe were tasked to hold local consultations on the theme “Journey with the Church in the Contemporary Times.”  This Synodality asks the question – what does God expect of the Church in the 21st century?  A ten-minute report was to be submitted by BECS/parishes to their Diocese and all dioceses around the world are to submit to the Vatican their 10-minute summary report.

                October 2021 to April 2022 was the allotted period for the Diocesan Phase. A second continental phase began in September 2022 until March 2023. And finally, the third or the universal phase will begin with the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the theme “For the Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission” to be held in the Vatican in October 2023. An Apostolic Exhortation will then be issued by the Pope. The question remains: can Pope Francis hold on to his Chair until then to preside over this Assembly?

                Meanwhile, organizers for the 17th Mindanao Sulu Pastoral Conference (MSPC) on the theme – THE GIFT OF FAITH AND NEW EVANGELIZATION AS A SYNODAL CHURCH – are gearing up for the Conference to be held from November 7 to 11,  2022 at the Chali Beach Resort & Conference Center, Cugman, Cagayan de Oro.  Once more the delegates will again assess where the Local Churches are in their quest towards their continuing renewal. Once more the focus will be what is happening at the level of the grassroots Church, namely the hundreds of BECs spread across Mindanao.

                Now comes, Fr. Amado L. Picardal’s continuing effort to provide the Philippine Church with a textbook on understanding its ecclesiological in these contemporary times. As the author writes in the book’s Prologue: “Ecclesiology is the discipline that reflects in a systematic manner the self-understanding of the Church in the light of faith. It seeks to answer the question about the Church’s identity, nature and mission. It is  a theological reflection on the mystery of the Church which is distinct from Church history. While it is possible to study the history of the Church even without faith, Ecclesiology requires a faith-perspective. It is the work of a believer for the sake of the community of believers.”

                The author contends that this book does not promote new and radical ideas about the Church. What he intended to do was “to explicate the vision of a renewed Church espoused in Vatican II and received by PCP II and explore its meaning and implication in the Philippine context.”  The writing of this book goes back to when the author was doing his dissertation – An Ecclesiological Perspective – with the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome way back in 1995. Most of what appears in this book is the product of his research and the updating and revisions he has made through the years.

                There are 11 Chapters in this book, covering 377 pages. Before presenting again his thoughts of BECs, the first chapters involve an explanation of the ecclesiological models of the Church (Church as Communion, Institution, Herald, Sacrament and Servant); the Church as People of God (Prophetic, Priestly and Kingly People) and The Church of the Poor. After the  Chapter on the BECs, the remaining Chapters include an explanation of the Family as a Domestic Church, the Church in Dialogue (with the world, Inter-religious Dialogue, with the poor) and a Renewed Clearly in a Renewed Church.

                Across the pages of this book are quotes from the Decrees of Vatican II,  various apostolic exhortations issued by the Popes and CBCP statements. At the end of each Chapter there is a long list of citations, a testament to the persistence of the author to do rigorous research before writing the manuscript. Concrete examples of pastoral practices cover all corners of Mindanao and the rest of the world.

                There are, however, Church workers – especially in Mindanao who were witnesses to the glory days of the Mindanao-Sulu Conference – who could not help but compare how the Local Churches and BECs were in the 1970s-80s compared to how they function during the contemporary period. Then most of the bishops, clergy and religious – and a growing number of lay leaders – were actively collaborating to make their BECS truly kingly and prophetic. As a result, a number of lay leaders and priests and religious got red-tagged by the military, consequently a number of them were arrested, imprisoned and even killed.

                Today one can hardly hear of any single story of a BEC or a lay leader being harassed by the military in the same manner that indigenous communities opposing mining and other development projects have been subjected to. What is this indicating? That the State has become more tolerant of a militant Church or the fact is that the militant Church has disappeared to give way to a conservative model interested only in providing spiritual care to the faithful? For gone are the days when BECs were in the forefront of struggles for justice and peace and the integrity of creation!

                Towards the end of this book, the author contends that: “The pre-Vatican II model of the Church appears to still persist in the mind of many… There is still a gap between the vision and the reality. There are still some dioceses and parishes where Vatican II and PCP II vision of the renewed Church has not yet been fully implemented. For the new generation, Vatican II seems to be ancient history and the documents remain unread, gathering dust in the libraries.”

                The book offers some suggestions to pursue the project of a renewed Church, but it will require a pro-active commitment on the part of all – from bishops down to the BEC leaders – to break the  impasse that seems to make the members of the Church complacent and apathetic to the social and ecological issues that are only worsening. The economy is in shambles and poverty levels are again on the upsurge. Indigenous communities remain at the periphery with little assistance from the State.

    While there is peace in Mindanao for the moment, there are still conflicts that cause the eruption of violence. Corruption remains well entrenched in the State agencies demanding good governance practices. Our place in the planet remains precarious as mining, logging, expansion of plantations and inefficient waste management combine to worsen climate change.

                For the BECs to once more become fully alive and contributing to the transformation of our society, we need to double our efforts at renewing the Church. Otherwise, the future may not be too bright for Roman Catholicism in this country if and when the general population think of the Church as irrelevant in responding to the challenges of a complex society today and the days still to come!

  • WRITING MINDANAO, RIGHTING MINDANAO – ONCE MORE WITH FEELING!

    WRITING MINDANAO, RIGHTING MINDANAO – ONCE MORE WITH FEELING!

    A SOJOURNER’S VIEW by Karl M. Gaspar CSsR

    It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”  Many of us know that these are lines from perhaps one of the most known books of all time, A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens. It is said that in this book, Dickens referred to an age of radical opposites taking place across the English Channel, in France and the United Kingdom respectively, during the French revolution more than two hundred years ago between 1787 and 1799.

    But these contrasts and comparisons we might be able to appropriate for our very own times here in our own troubled country in the post-pandemic, post-May 2022 election period and as we faced an unknown future where everything from an economic collapse (along the lines of Sri Lanka and Pakistan)  to a political turmoil to an ecological disasters with more destructive calamities can take place. It certainly can bring a season of darkness and a winter of despair. But for those who hold on to the adage that “hope springs eternal,!” this very same context could also provide us with a season of light and a spring of hope!  Who is to tell what the future brings?

    But the more pessimistic among us might see the glass half empty and fear the worst that is still to come!  A recent post appearing in social media following the Marcos Junior’s selection of the presumptive Vice-President Sara Duterte as Secretary of Education led to speculations about revising history books and getting rid of those considered critical of the Marcos martial law  regime. It would amount of what could be considered book-burning, not in its literal sense but to make sure these are kept locked and not be read by any schoolchildren anymore! As Ray Bradbury – the author of Fahrenheit 451, a science-fiction novel – wrote:  “You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.”

    Bro. Karl signing a book during the Book Festival. Photo by Leila Rispens-Noel Facebook Account.

    As an immediate response to this fear, a thousand academics across the Republic made a brave stand reported by the Philippine Inquirer on May 20, 2022 which read:

    “More than 1,000 scholars and educators based in the Philippines and abroad have issued an online manifesto calling for the defense of historical truth and academic freedom, as they expressed concern over escalating attempts to revise narratives about the martial law years and erase ‘traumatic personal and collective memories of plunder and human rights violation’ under the Marcos dictatorship.”

    Book-burning! Could it happen in this Republic considered by political scientists as a weak State constantly facing the threat of authoritarian rule? Well, this does not only take place in novels like those in Bradbury. Through history, book-burning has taken place when those who hold power fear the impact of critical minds that arise as people read. These took place as far back as the time of the Chinese Emperor Shih Huang Ti,  in 213 BCE, up to the mid-20th century e.g. during the World War II period.

    The defining moment of book burning was in 1933 in Berlin, when the Nazi forces burned tens of thousands of books, from the works of Sigmund Freud to those of Jack London. As Matthew Fishburn wrote in Burning Books:  “Along with the Nazi ideology that there existed a superior race of people came the idea that there was one true cultural and ideological canon; that which didn’t fit was consigned to the fire.”

    For the moment, however, let’s put aside our fears and face the future with a bit of optimism for, indeed, who knows the coming years will again allow us to have a glimpse of another cycle of our historical narrative. 

    What impressed me most in these past electoral exercise was how the youth of the land responded to the challenge of the moment.  Many of us elders have naturally been disappointed at how the youth of the land have shown no interest at all in regard to socio-political issues impacting on the majority of the masa. But these rallies showed another face of the youth of the land; here they were re-activated by the spirit of nationalism. Like us when we were the youth of the land, they now showed a promise that they would pick up where their elders left off the social movement in the 80s-90s.

    And it made me realize that indeed, history repeats itself again. Just like the youth of the social movement that gave rise to the likes of Hermano Pule Gregorio del Pilar, the La Solidaridad clique led by Jose Rizal and the Katipuneros led by Bonifacio, to the youth of the guerilla movement during the resistance against Japanese imperialism, and the youth resisting the Marcos dictatorial rule and now the youth of the 2020s are advancing into another stage of dissent and resistance. I have been filled with a tremendous sense of hope and pride watching all these young people at these rallies.

    There may be dark clouds in the horizon, but somehow light manages to find a crack and it is the youth of the land today that provides an opening. So we could be in for the best of times if this youthful generation like their elders through our historical cycles find the strength, courage and energy to lead the dissent and resistance movement.

    As for us – who I guess are mostly their elders –  are gathered here together at this five-day event which is our own modest way of expressing what were encapsulated in the words of the Irish poet Dylan Thomas: “Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” And who – but authors, writers and journalists – are the human beings who are best at raging so they can challenge the citizenry towards constructive action for the common good.

    In the next week (June 13-17, 2022), we celebrate the best that have been offered by Mindanawon authors along with non-Mindanawon authors interested to write about Mindanao.  In many of their works, their writing (WRITE)  has also led to the righting (RIGHT) of Mindanao. There was a time when Mindanao was written from a colonial  lens even as some of these – like the ethnographic studies done during the American period – tried to capture the reality on the ground.

    But viewed from biased and even discriminatory optics, the early writings about Mindanao tended to highlight that which today have been debunked. In the exhibit, you can see examples of these. This was to be expected if the authors were foreigners (with tendencies towards racism and ethnocentrism) or Filipinos from imperial Manila – who monopolized publications for a long while – who relied on secondary data with very little triangulation enriched by immersion among Mindanao’s peripheries.

    However, in the past few decades as there have been more non-Mindanawon authors who have abandoned their colonial/neo-colonial gaze and as more Mindanawons began to get involved in publications, a shift has taken place. Thus beyond the w-r-i-t-e, there has now been a movement among Mindanawon writers to r-i-g-h-t Mindanao, through advocacies for justice and peace, respect for human rights and  civil liberties, solidarity for the downtrodden especially Lumads and for a] advancing ecological concerns.

    One can find this out by goggling the available data on Mindanao Bibliiographies and there have been a few. Perhaps the first Mindanao-Sulu Bibliography was that W.E. Retana’s in 1894. It would take a long while before another one appeared, namely Alfredo Tiamzon’s Mindanao-Sulu Bibliography published in Davao City in 1970.  In the following decades, there were more attempts at compiling a more comprehensive Mindanawon Bibliography, the last one being convened by the Technical Working Group (TWG) just before the onset of the pandemic. This hopes to produce a RoadMap asserting  the importance of Mindanao histories and studies. .

    Why history? Because, in the words of the philosopher George Santaya – “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” And the novelist Maya Angelou posits that “the more you know of your history, the more liberated you are.”  History is of course the telling of stories of the past with the view of parceling lessons to guide us for the future. There is no question that stories are powerful.

    The author Jeff Goins wrote: “I believe in the power of story. Story is where we came from. Story is where we’re going. Story is what connects us and binds us to each other. It is in the story of humanity, amongst love and fear and failure, that we make meaning of our lives. Story is what defines us and sets us apart. It’s what allows us to connect with each other to truly know and be known.”

    Stories is what brought to reality the Second Mindanao Week Festival. And privileged are we that during these rare occasions we can gather together with authors, writers and journalists – they who can conscientize, educate, inform, agitate, mobilize,  entertain and humor us through thick and thin!  They whose witness to truth and actual practice in peace-building and promoting justice and development make possible a society that will not allow stupidity, idiocy and ignorance to dominate over our knowledge and information production.

    For otherwise, we will all be living in a world of lies, corruption and power manipulation that could bring us back to the Dark Ages!  It is their presence in our midst  that help to provide us with the possibilities that despite a winter of despair we can still look forward to a spring of hope! 

    (This article was first addressed during the Mindanao Book Festival II at the Redemptorist Community in Davao City as part of the 50th anniversary of Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish, in collaboration with the MindaNews Media Cooperative Center/Institute of Journalism, SATMI and of the Parish. The exhibit is until Friday, June 17.)

  • Serve Ta: On Being an OMPH Parishioner-Redemptorist

    Serve Ta: On Being an OMPH Parishioner-Redemptorist

    (This article was first published in the BULAWANONG GASA: OMPH Parish Golden Jubilee 1972-2022 coffee table book.)

    At 52, on my 29th year as Redemptorist Missionary & on my 25th year as ordained priest, I have much to be thankful of the many graces God has shared me all throughout these years. Along the vocation & privilege of serving our Lord as Redemptorist missionary priest, I am humbly given a chance to witness how the Lord has continually worked His wonders in us through us, His followers.

    In 1996, being its first ordinand, I have been part of the birthing & have witnessed the growing years of Redemptorist Cebu Province. To revive the stagnant mission-efforts in Negros Oriental region, as a young priest, I have organized Dumaguete Redemptorist Mission Team doing mission around Negros Oriental & Siquijor Island, that somehow awaken missionary dynamism within Dumaguete Diocese, which has paved a way for collaborations with the local church’s BEC ministry, organization & formation endeavors, and the missionary formation of Redemptorist postulants-then, whom some of them are now promising Redemptorist missionary priests & brother .

    While studying in Leuven, Belgium, I have been involved with various Filipino Catholic communities in Belgium, Netherlands & Germany during weekends & breaks. After gaining my licentiate & some stints with teaching at SATMI, as our collaborative effort with other units & explorative initiative for migrant ministry, I found myself in Gwangju in South Korea, ministering to our OFWs & all English-speaking migrants as spiritual director for all Filipino Catholic Communities in the Archdiocese.

    Journeying with our Lord, humbly grateful I am indeed, to have witnessed & been part of God’s wonders being revealed & God’s miracles being offered to all us now & always.

    Be as it may be, all of these graces I take great credit not only on my missionary experiences & journey as Redemptorist missionary priest, but on my growing & formative years as parishioner of Our Mother Perpetual Help-Bajada.

    Yes, I am a Redemptorist for life & I am also a parishioner of OMPH-Bajada in life. Since as a kid until adulthood, I have grown under the tutelage of Redemptorists and of the OMPH Bajada Parish all my life. And now happens to be also the Only REDEMPTORIST so-far whose family is originally from our OMPH parish.

    Daily gazing at the backdrop of the great Mt. Apo, I remember, growing as a kid in Buhangin, I cannot help but wonder about the world beyond out there. From a protective and less-involved but regular church-goer family (of seafarer father), world-out-there, life-beyond family & school was made known to me with a simple invitation: “SERVE Ta”.

    At a young age of eight, me & my classmate buddies found ourselves serving Sunday masses as Knights of the Altar – or altar boys in our parish church. There, we come not only to learn how to serve, participate, & understand sacraments, but also were able to meet and grow with other kids & people from other BEC communities. Through these experiences, we were initiated to our Catholic religion & church life, most especially to parish life – a life beyond family, schools, & neighborhood. Since then, the words “Serve ta” became part of our vocabulary as we grew in age & maturity as parishioner and as Christians.

    As OMPH Bajada parish has grown & evolved these years, for us parishioners who have been part of the parish ever since before and even until we have branched out into other parishes and countries, the challenges & responses to the invitation of “SERVE ta” has always been part of the language-vocabulary of our parish church life within our BECs & families in whatever capacities & talents.   

    As Parishioners, we are also grateful to the Redemptorist charism and for the witness of Redemptorists we have journeyed with, here in Davao, as we have been formed & grown in the spirit of involvement, voluntarism, and charitable service for our dear parish. Through the Redemptorist we have come to know, love & serve our Lord & our Church. In our parish, we also come to experience Redemptorists as missionaries. They are dear & close to us but they are transitory – never permanent. Redemptorists come and go. Some left but most, still remains. Same way as part of our parish is now apart from us, as they are now a new parish, Redemptorists as well as us OMPH parishioners as we are, evolves not only for our good but moreso for the better version of our faith-life in Christ.

    However & Whatever might be in store for us now & for the near the future, the challenge for us OMPH parishioners here at home & abroad,  & for me – specifically as OMPH parishioner Redemptorist, remains still and always: “SERVE Ta”.

    Proficiat. 축하합니다Congratulations to OMPH Bajada Parish on our Golden Anniversary    

  •  My ASSIGNMENT AS DAVAO PARISH PRIEST:  “Galloping Around the Barrios” 2002-2004

     My ASSIGNMENT AS DAVAO PARISH PRIEST:  “Galloping Around the Barrios” 2002-2004

    After having been unexpectedly and abruptly transferred to join the mission team in Tacloban, I was given another unexpected and sudden assignment as parish-priest of our parish in Davao. Again this was a change in venue and type of apostolate I was totally unprepared for. On top of this, it happened in the middle of the triennium (the usual three-year term).

    God must have smiled when He let our Council approve this assignment. Their decision was a response to a request made by Fr. Sean Purcell, then parish- priest of Davao. As Fr. Purcell put it:  he had been parish priest for 23 years and he was now 60 years of age. So, he wanted a change to a more restful and reflective assignment. He then suggested that in his place be assigned a “younger man that we could let loose to gallop around the barrios.”

    The “younger man’s” appointment “to gallop around the barrios” did not materialize. Instead the Council appointed me, one senior to Fr. Purcell in age by three years and in ordination by two years. My galloping around the barrios as the new parish priest of our Davao parish lasted two years (2002-2004) when I was again abruptly given another short-term appointment.

    Now at 71 years of age, I was appointed parish priest for the first time. At that time our Bajada (Davao) parish was a sprawling territory covering some 62 small chapel communities, spread out from the national highway in front of the church to the rural communities into interior villages from behind the church. Challenging as the task ahead might have seemed to me after Archbishop Capalla officially installed me as pastor of our Bajada parish, I started in my old age to learn to be parish-priest by doing. 

    Fortunately, by this time the struggle for “liberating” the parishioners of Buhangin area from their eviction the agitation for relocation had become a thing of the past. This is a story that is told in another article “The Buhangin Story”.

    When I started taking over the care of our Davao parish, I faced many challenges, but at the same time I was blessed inherited many blessings. I  had no full-time parish assistant. All the other priests in the community were engaged in formation or teaching  work in the Davao Studentate (Redemptorist Major Seminary). However, one of the formation teachers was officially assigned as my part-time assistant. The other priests on the teaching staff generously helped with the sacramental and liturgical services in the busy parish church. 

    It was a blessing that I had a good team of full-time lay parish workers. One or other of them would accompany and assist me as I made the rounds of the small chapel communities, driving the ADVENTURE ,  the reliable all-purpose parish vehicle.

    I was also blessed in having inherited a very active parish, thanks to the creative and tireless efforts of the previous parish priests and their parish collaborators.  The parish was noted for its liturgical celebrations and social concerns ministry. Evangelization and catechetical activities kept the parish workers on their feet most of the time.

    The youth in particular were actively involved in parish life. They participated fully in National Youth Day celebrations and held parish Alphonsian Pilgrimage gatherings. Contests among the BEC youth groups included “Cheer-dance” and talent competitions.

    The youth revealed their talent in a special way in colorful and reflective liturgical celebrations of Christmas and Holy Week. These celebrations are memorialized in album pictorials of the Nativity and Passion plays.

    With all these activities to animate and accompany, this ageing parish priest was not given a chance to grow old! It did not take me long to not only adjust to but even to get to love my uncharted journey as parish priest in my twilight years.

    But just as I was getting to feel at home in my assignment as parish priest of our Davao parish, I was shaken out of my comfort zone by a new appointment.  A phone call from Archbishop Capalla informed me that the Apostolic Nuncio was in the archbishop’s residence and wanted to speak to me. His Excellency, the Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Antonio Franco, after getting me to sit down in front of him, broke the news of my new appointment as gently as he could, saying, “I have come to ask you a favor in behalf of the Holy See.  The bishop of Iligan is resigning officially for ill-health and they are asking to take care of the diocese as its Apostolic Administrator until a new bishop is assigned. It was the last “favor” I would have dreamed of being asked no matter how gently.

    Thus ended without a formal goodbye my short two-year term as parish priest of our Davao parish. I  had to rush my entrance to Iligan as the outgoing bishop said he had no more jurisdictional power once I had been formally appointed as administrator of his diocese. So, in the evening the following day, I took the night bus to Iligan arriving there at dawn to begin my life in the uncharted life in the unknown.

    Thank God for the Tacloban hiatus, even though it was only for two short years. One never knows what lies ahead.