tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9339990221581443562024-03-05T20:01:46.887+08:00ADZU FORMATION OFFICEOver the centuries, the Ignatian Spirituality has given us a particular structure, being and action to the Good News. Such particular charism or gift the first Jesuits received is also given to us to continue the mission. The aim of Formation Office is to allow our faculty, staff and students discover their own talents and giftedness, to renew, re-interpret and re-vitalize our Ignatian charism and mission.ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-22847567999572267342011-12-13T10:00:00.026+08:002011-12-15T05:01:32.930+08:00INSTITUTIONAL ADVENT RECOLLECTION 20011<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinv1EXTHjxKn4y8HOKteg18N_9IGFviq1LPV3LKdUkK40DWLHFRZ1tS4zVDmSmxNEFRr-CWIIrHJ_qt0ZKQI6LkOciBSvH2TsugwB9d5MpAnQ28hixYhhER2ObwRyvEkftYo2wASXauSo/s1600/ABPoster.bmp"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 244px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinv1EXTHjxKn4y8HOKteg18N_9IGFviq1LPV3LKdUkK40DWLHFRZ1tS4zVDmSmxNEFRr-CWIIrHJ_qt0ZKQI6LkOciBSvH2TsugwB9d5MpAnQ28hixYhhER2ObwRyvEkftYo2wASXauSo/s320/ABPoster.bmp" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5685428395129555458" border="0"></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">YEAR OF CITIZENSHIP<br />“Duyan ka ng Magiting”<br /><br /><br />December 21, 2011 / 730AM - 12:00NN <br />Centro Pastoral</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">I. REFLECTION</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Theme: “Duyan ka ng Magiting”</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Grace to Ask: </span> I will ask for the grace not be deaf to His call, but prompt and diligent to accomplish God’s most holy will.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">OPENING PRAYER</span>:<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Here I am, Lord, standing before you just as I am at this moment. <br />I sit in your presence, Lord, in peace and tranquility. <br />I am in your presence and allow myself to be directed by you. <br /><br />I open myself to you who are near. You are the font of life, <br />the force of life which permeates my very being. <br />You are my breath which maintains me in existence. <br /><br />Let peace dwell within me. <br />Give me the grace to let myself be cleansed by you, <br />to be a shell filled only with you, my God. <br />Let all my thoughts and feelings, my will and liberty, <br />be totally directed to your honor and service. <br /><br />Amen.</span><br /><br /><br />Scripture Passage for Reflection:</span><br />1. Matthew 5: 3 – 10 The Beatitudes<br />2. Jeremiah 1: 7 – 8 The Call of Jeremiah<br />3. Psalm 51: 1 – 19 The Call to Repentance<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">1. JEREMIAH’S CALL AND COMMISSION</span><br /><br /> Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you;<br />I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’ <br /> <br /> Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.’ But the Lord said to me, ‘Do not say, “I am only a boy”; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you. <br /><br />Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.’ <br /> <br /> Jeremiah 1: 7-8<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Reflection Guide:</span><br /><br />Jeremiah was called by God to announce the coming of God’s judgment upon the people of Judah. Jeremiah had never done this before and he was not an eloquent speaker. Fear and insecurities entered in his heart. But God assured Jeremiah of His presence and support. God called him to speak in His authority. God doesn’t require us to equip ourselves before he calls us; but he equips with his grace us whom he has called. When God calls, he provides. <br /><br />In the film Agawan Base, see how the main characters transcended their own fear and limitation in order to do right thing for the country. <br /><br />In the context of our lingering problem of peace, poverty and injustice in our country, what is the calling of God to me? to our community? What are our fears? <br />As we celebrate the Year of Citizenship, how do we respond to the signs of times?<br />Ateneans are called to be men and women for others/country, are we faithful to this call?<br /><br />Allow the film to give us some insights and encouragement. Enter into the shoes of the main characters and feel their own struggles, transcendence, and victories.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">2. THE BEATITUDES</span><br /><br />"Blessed are the poor in spirit, <br />for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. <br /><br />Blessed are they who mourn, <br />for they shall be comforted. <br /><br />Blessed are the meek, <br />for they shall inherit the earth. <br /><br />Blessed are they who hunger <br />and thirst for righteousness, <br />for they shall be satisfied. <br /><br />Blessed are the merciful, <br />for they shall obtain mercy. <br />Blessed are the pure of heart, <br />for they shall see God. <br /><br />Blessed are the peacemakers, <br />for they shall be called children of God. <br />Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, <br />for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." <br /><br /> Matthew 5:3-10 <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Reflection Guide:</span><br /><br />Listening to God and following His will is not easy. There is always fear, feeling of unworthiness and uncertainty in following the will of God. <br /><br />Enter into silence. Allow the Beatitudes to console you in your silence. Reflect. What word or phrase that struck you most? Why? <br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiKsccdJiCpsChdbIQTWqV9E8jZs7d7Mt3ETcpPU-SE5TNawR8ZNcqaHXcy2Oiz2eVNfc_0E59cwcPo35IMNJMaZjMeXWCm3pt4IWAns4uxWTQck4QVaxVgm9wJquklalWJqCThw7xxFc/s1600/poster2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 273px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiKsccdJiCpsChdbIQTWqV9E8jZs7d7Mt3ETcpPU-SE5TNawR8ZNcqaHXcy2Oiz2eVNfc_0E59cwcPo35IMNJMaZjMeXWCm3pt4IWAns4uxWTQck4QVaxVgm9wJquklalWJqCThw7xxFc/s320/poster2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5685428817821654354" border="0"></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">II. Film Viewing: AGAWAN BASE</span><br />A FILM BY CESAR BUENDIA<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">A. SYNOPSIS:</span> <br /><br />This film is about the faith of a child in God and how this faith can overthrow earthly powers and entities, which seems too large to budge. Mano’s story will prove that truth until even the unbeliever in Richelle, can be transformed. This movie also gave Kovu his acting debut!<br /><br />Agawan Base is a victorious adventure-comedy-drama where the lead character is someone who we always fail to see in the stories of the films we commonly watch. God is the lead character of this film as He is in real life. Agawan Base is a love story not between two lovers, but between God and all of us - His children.<br /><br /> -------<br /><br />March 1, 2016 – it is election season in Manila. The candidates for Philippine President are battling it out to be the leader of a country that has become even poorer in the past six years. Corruption and poverty continue to oppress the Filipino people and the candidates are dishing out the same old promises and lies. But the children - the innocent victims of a corrupt society - go on playing the dangerous games of life.<br /><br />Mano is 12. His mother Lita taught him well to have faith in God. She used to be a devoted public school teacher, but poverty has forced her to accept a job as a domestic helper in Jeddah. Rudy, Mano’s father has a low paying job which comes and goes. His younger sister Angge has just begun schooling and his grandmother has diabetes. Mano has stopped school and has become like most of his friends in the slums - a petty thief.<br /><br />Richelle, a graduate student, has been using Mano and his friends as the subject of a documentary film about poor children in conflict with the law. But Richelle fails to find meaning in her own documentary... even in the lives of the children... nor in her personal life. Richelle is an unbeliever in contrast to Mano who has a faith in God, which could and would eventually “move mountains”.<br /><br />Mano has one constant prayer - to see his mother walking into their small shanty once again. But she is an OFW and the OFW’s lives are always in peril. Alas, one day, after a long hard day of playing in the open field with his friends, Mano comes home to see a casket surrounded by lighted lamps and his grandmother sobbing profusely. Lita has arrived home lifeless; her body still fresh with proof of foul play and rape.<br /><br />Since it is election time and all issues are fair game, the strongest Presidential candidate Senator Conde takes special interest in Lita’s case. After a much publicized visit to her wake, Conde decides to use Lita’s death to further boost his image. He hires the poor children to act in a TV commercial and secure his image as a philanthropic politician who loves the OFWs. And Mano, the orphaned child, is chosen as the lead “star” in the commercial.<br /><br />During the studio shoot of this TV ad, Mano’s friend Yuri steals the cellular phone of Conde’s assistant. Unknown to the children, this phone would later be the key to changing their own lives and later, the life of this nation.<br /><br />Soon, for a reason unknown to them, the children find themselves running for their lives. The men of Conde are out to get them. With the help of Richelle, they discover that the cellular phone they had stolen contains information on Senator Conde’s involvement in the illegal drugs trade.<br /><br />It is at this point when Mano’s faith in God is put to the test.<br /><br /><br />Source: http://www.teamkovu.com/support/agawan-base-indie-movie<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"> B. HOW TO DO AN IGNATIAN GAZING (CONTEMPLATION) </span><br />(How to watch "Agawan Base" in the Ignatian Way)<br /><br />One form of prayer in the Spiritual Exercises is Contemplation. Using our five senses, we enter into the scripture scenes, and be one of the participants.<br /><br />1. Enter into the film’s scene. <br /><br />2. Try to see, contemplating each person in the scene. Just look without trying to explain or understand. <br /><br />3. Try to listen, paying attention to the spoken or implied words. What might they mean? What if they were directed to you? <br /><br />4. Observe what the people in the scene do. They have names, histories, sufferings, personal quests, joys. How do they react? Note the gestures, feelings, and attitudes, above all, of Jesus himself. <br /><br />5. Place yourself actively in the scene. Allow yourself to be involved in what is happening. <br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Questions for Reflection:</span><br /><br />1. What scene/s touched you the most? <br />2. What feeling, sentiment, emotion, or effect predominated? Why? <br />3. Did you feel some calling, a desire, or an inspiration? <br />4. Did you experience some difficulty or resistance? <br /><br /> And we end our reflection by reading the Psalm 51 prayerfully.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">III. RESPONSE</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Prayer for Repentance</span><br /><br />Have mercy on me, O God,<br /> according to your steadfast love;<br />according to your abundant mercy<br /> blot out my transgressions. <br />Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,<br /> and cleanse me from my sin. <br /><br />You desire truth in the inward being;<br /> therefore teach me wisdom in my <br /> secret heart. <br />Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;<br />wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. <br /><br />Create in me a clean heart, O God,<br /> and put a new and right spirit within <br /> me. <br />Do not cast me away from your presence, <br />and do not take your holy spirit from me. <br />Restore to me the joy of your salvation,<br /> and sustain in me a willing spirit. <br /><br />O Lord, open my lips,<br /> and my mouth will declare your praise. <br /><br /> -Psalm 51: 1 – 19 <br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">TO PREVIEW THE FILM "AGAWAN BASE" visit this site:</span><br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJ9WXiEb7m0&noredirect=1<br /><br /><br /> <span style="font-weight:bold;">RECOLLECTION FLOW</span><br /><br />AM<br />7:00 Registration<br />8: 00 Holy Eucharist (Main Presider: Fr.Tony Moreno,SJ)<br /> Muslim Prayer Service<br />9:00 Short Break<br />9:15 Opening Prayer / Short Orientation<br />9:30 Introduction of the Resource Person<br />9:40 Talk by Director Cesar Buendia<br />10:00 Film Gazing : "Agawan Base"<br />11:30 Synthesis / Silence / Closing Prayer<br />12:00 End <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Note: </span> <br />Transportation will be provided from Main Campus to Centro Pastoral<br />from 7:00AM - 7:45AM, and also from 12:00PM back to Main Campus. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">SEE YOU THERE!!!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW8EZQbGGUemPJNnXEsBv8YTgup2t9Jy7b9sJOQ1mJu-aCor5Xkzp0ubE45w9WNkapHiP0rrqo3qIKt7wtsyqpd667sqxffsKOVz96kjjmXRxZOuVCfDxdeL_ah9JrZ22_-EaCbv-dT3A/s1600/citizenship_logo.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 319px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW8EZQbGGUemPJNnXEsBv8YTgup2t9Jy7b9sJOQ1mJu-aCor5Xkzp0ubE45w9WNkapHiP0rrqo3qIKt7wtsyqpd667sqxffsKOVz96kjjmXRxZOuVCfDxdeL_ah9JrZ22_-EaCbv-dT3A/s320/citizenship_logo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5685435379096812002" border="0"></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-64783625098485975612010-08-19T16:08:00.002+08:002010-08-19T16:13:37.790+08:00Homemade Parables<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZaHzKYzMdtatJtUJKRM9EVaVnxoAelN4nJOAyX2h7msLAP1bkcc5yvSJJ1sRxTmYfBdM-1avY_f799WLGYRGtNHFKT9xRt7CrDN5qGcRebp8w8JNipSEpNdTqzGTkGWAQm0pNvnb6IIg/s1600/top.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZaHzKYzMdtatJtUJKRM9EVaVnxoAelN4nJOAyX2h7msLAP1bkcc5yvSJJ1sRxTmYfBdM-1avY_f799WLGYRGtNHFKT9xRt7CrDN5qGcRebp8w8JNipSEpNdTqzGTkGWAQm0pNvnb6IIg/s320/top.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507030987695567602" /></a><br /> <br />ANDADORS. Babies learn how to walk with the help of andadors (cane walkers or strollers). When their legs are strong enough, the strollers are removed, and they learn how to stand, walk and eventually run. Someday they may become marathon runners in the Olympics. We all learned to pray with words, thoughts or methods, and most do not know how to pray without these. We do not know how to run in the marathon of the spiritual life. Just try to imagine Olympic marathoners running with andadors. <br /><br />BABIES. A baby brings joy to the family and is the center of attention. Some parents wish their cute babies never grow up. This is unnatural, because everyone grows up. Babies will not grow only if they are frozen or embalmed. What about our beliefs? What is the difference between our childish beliefs and our adult beliefs? Is it grown up and mature, or stunted and retarded?<br /><br />BANANAS. A single banana does not look impressive. A bunch of healthy bananas look nice and attractive. A faith that is self-centered is like the single banana. A faith that loves God by serving others is united to the bigger community. It is part of the bunch.<br /><br />BRUSHING OUR TEETH. Long ago, we learned to brush our teeth because our parents obliged us to do so. We grew up appreciating this and now we brush regularly. This is similar to religion. An immature faith obliges us to follow our human traditions, while a mature faith motivates us to love God by serving others. This is not a burden-some thing. This should be as natural as brushing our teeth every day. There is a difference between “I have to” and “I want to.” <br /><br />BUTTONS & CLOTHES. Buttons are useful in wearing clothes. Too many buttons get in the way of conven-ience. What if you are in a hurry inside the toilet and there are too many buttons? Clothes are worn for protection and modesty. When clothes are too elaborate, expensive or uncomfortable, they do not serve their purpose. So is religion with its complicated and abstract beliefs. <br /><br />CAKE AND ICING. The cakes on display in bake shops look very attractive and beautiful. Some of them are for display only. Beneath all that decorative icing is some cardboard or styrofoam. Religion can be like this, for dis-play only. God’s truth and goodness may not be there under all the fervent religiosity. An unspiritual religion is all icing, no cake; all form, no substance; all law, wrong spirit.<br /><br />CELL PHONES. Today cell phones are as common as watches. Cell phones are useful when properly charged and the signal is strong. There are millions of followers of different religions around the world, like the millions of cell phones. A cell phone that miscommunicates is useless. A religion that does not guide or teach correctly is also the same. Although all religions teach love, peace and truth, why do we not know how to live in peace and harmony?<br /><br />COFFEE. Coffee is a favorite drink of many. They feel the day is incomplete without coffee. Some cannot get through the day without consuming several cups. There are also daily churchgoers who feel the day is incomplete if they do not attend mass. Someone said they probably experience what addicts go through without their daily fix. Is the mass something truly spiritual, or just something programmed into our daily routine? <br /><br />COMPUTERS. Thanks to computers, the physical laws of time, space, motion and gravity can be defied in the animated movies that we see today. Computers connect people around the world, aid science and research, design skyscrapers, fly airplanes, fight wars, perform microscopic medical operations and so on. But computers do not function when there is no power. The same is true of religion. All the religious fervor in the world is useless when it does not have the spirit of God, which produces compassion, peace, truth and justice. <br /><br />DAG-DAG BAWAS. The term means to add and subtract and refers to the doctoring of election returns in Philip-pine politics. This term applies also to communicating information and ideas. Messages can get misunderstood or distorted. Twenty centuries have watered down, diluted, exaggerated or even distorted the Christian faith. This is why liturgical rules, doctrinal assertions and theological disputes seem more important than being just, loving and humble. Essentials can be forgotten while emphasizing non-essentials. <br /><br />DRIED FISH. Salted fish is dried to preserve it. Dried fish reminds us of the dried bones mentioned in the book of Ecclesiastes. All obsolete and unrealistic beliefs are like the preserved dried fish. Now, is our faith a living faith or is it drying up? Is our God a God of the living or of the dead? A faith that is in touch with reality continually adapts and reforms itself. This is why the faith taught by Jesus is called a new covenant, even if it is already 2,000 years old. His call to repentance is a call to transformation and renewal.<br /><br />DURIAN. The durian is the king of fruits. Many love it, but many also hate it. They say that it smells like hell (we don’t agree) but tastes like heaven. It is extremely nutritious and is alleged to restore health, lower cholesterol and clean the blood. For all its positive qualities, it can have bad effects when too much is eaten. It is known to raise one’s blood pressure. Like the durian, religion’s good qualities attract many followers. But religion can also be dangerous when self-interest, narrow-mindedness, fanaticism and bigotry enter the picture. So many people throughout history have suffered and died in the name of religion.<br /><br />GOLDEN CALF. Alluding to the worship of the golden calf in the Book of Exodus (Ex 32:1-6), critics say that Catholics worship a golden child and a golden lady.<br /><br />HALO-HALO. Religion is like the halo-halo, a mixture of the holy and unholy, the spiritual and unspiritual, faith and superstition, good and evil. Our task is to separate the grain from the chaff, as Jesus pointed out. We must distinguish the essential from the non-essential; substance from form; spirit from law.<br /><br />HERMIT CRAB. The hermit crab or umang does not produce its own shell. It scurries around looking for empty seashells and moving in once they find the right size. Once they grow bigger, they abandon the shell to look for a bigger one. When we were born, our religious beliefs were ready-made and waiting for us. We can be like the hermit crab and move on to look for bigger shells when we outgrow our childhood notions, or we can stubbornly cling to our obsolete beliefs and get stuck. <br /><br />LAMINATED FAITH. We have pictures or diplomas laminated to preserve them. How laminated is our faith in God? As Christians, is Jesus he real to us, or is our religion more real to us? Do we worship in spirit and in truth, or do we worship our religion and its beliefs? What is more real to us – to love God by serving others, or to go to church and receive communion? If all that matters to us is to celebrate the sacraments, attend retreats or memorize the bible, then our God has become laminated by our human traditions.<br /><br />LECHON. The lechon is our favorite food during fiestas, weddings, birthdays and very special occasions. When lechon is served too often, it is no longer special. When religious devotions are endlessly repeated with little or no understanding, they become mechanical and mindless practices. <br /><br />MAKEUP. Women believe that makeup makes them more beautiful. Someone said that older women with more wrinkles tend to have thicker makeup. How old is our religion? How thick is the doctrinal, theological, devotional or liturgical makeup of our faith in God?<br /><br />MOVIE STAR. Movie fans have their favorite movie stars. They adore them, watch their movies, collect their pictures and read many things about their idols, but they never get to meet the star personally. Many of us call ourselves followers of Jesus. We say many things about Jesus and we teach many things about Jesus, but do we really know him and follow him? Is he real to us, or are we just adoring fans of a distant movie star?<br /><br />NEW CARS AND OLD ENGINES. All new cars have new engines. Some old cars may get a new engine. Old cars can represent the old covenant and new cars can represent the new covenant. Our usual notion of religion obliges us to worship God by offering sacrifice. Instead of duty and obligation, Jesus taught us to focus on love, truth, understanding and compassion. Although we call our faith a new covenant, most see it in terms of ritual and tradition, reverting to the worship and spirit of the old covenant. When this happens, we turn Christianity into a new car with an old engine.<br /><br />OCEAN. The surface of the ocean seems empty, but underneath it is a vast world of teeming life forms. Religion is like the ocean when we stay on the surface and focus only on external practices. Beneath its traditions can be a spiritual reality with its limitless possibilities of flexibility, openness, freedom and depth of meaning. <br /><br />PILI NUT. The pili nut is the seed of the pili tree. It has a hard shell that needs to be cracked open to get the seed, which is cooked in sugar and turned into a tasty treat. During his lifetime, Jesus saw that their ancient Jewish faith had become encrusted with a hard shell of religious observances. He taught that the essence of faith is to honor God by serving others. This is why he healed even on the Sabbath day. He cracked open the shell of their tradi-tions and exposed the seed of goodness within. 2,000 years later, Christianity is now sugar-coated with all sorts of pious beliefs and practices. Many of us never taste the pili nut itself. We just lick the sugar coating. <br /><br />RADIOS. Long before computers came around, radios were the most important means of communication. They still are. But radios work only if they are tuned to the right station. Religion is like the radio. If it is tuned to God, it will produce the right results. It will bring peace and harmony. If not, it will cause division and conflict. It will lull or blind people and it will produce fanatics who attack or kill others.<br /><br />RAIN. The rain waters the parched earth and gives life to the crops and trees. Too much rain causes floods and even deaths. Religion can teach us about God and life. It can give us the right values and attitudes when it has God’s spirit. Without the right spirit, it can also make us self-satisfied and complacent. This is why critics say re-ligion is the opium of the people. Religion can also make us narrow-minded and fanatical. Like the rain, it can have good or bad effects.<br /><br />RECHARGEABLE LIGHTS. The lights went out at a retreat house during a power outage. The sisters hurried to get their rechargeable lights and turn them on. No lights came on, because all the lamps were not recharged. How about our rechargeable faith with its rechargeable love, peace, truth and compassion?<br /><br />RELIGION'S TRAGEDY & FAILURE. The tragedy and failure of religion is due to these things: worshipping a spiritual God in a religious yet unspiritual way; approaching a simple message of goodness and transformation in a very contrived and complicated way; and teaching others about God in a very abstract, academic and unrealistic manner.<br /><br />SEA SHELLS. Sea shells with their myriad sizes, shapes, colors and designs provide inspiration to artists and de-signers. Many of these shells start out the size of a rice grain. From tiny specks they grow and grow spirally until they are hundreds of times bigger. The helmet shell or the Triton shell is as big as a watermelon. Our faith is like a speck of belief that should mature spiritually as we grow older. It can remain a tiny shell that never grows, or it can grow hundreds of times to carry us through the vast breadth and depths of the ocean of life. <br /><br />SHOES. Shoes protect our feet and make our walking comfortable. Many wear expensive and branded shoes to show off. Others torture their feet and cultivate corns by wearing pointed shoes designed for single-toed feet, not the normal five-toed human feet. One misstep with stiletto heels and these slaves to fashion risk a broken ankle. Shoes are for feet, not the other way around. Isn’t this also true of religion? Didn’t Jesus say the Sabbath is for us, not the opposite? Why do we mindlessly follow what others say or do? Many imagine they worship God, when in fact they are worshipping their religious beliefs or their own selves.<br /><br />SIOPAO & PAOSIO. Siopao is a piece of steamed bun stuffed with meat inside. The meat of Christianity is the story of Jesus and his message of transformative love. 21 centuries have wrapped this in a thick coating of beliefs and practices. When these traditions become more important than loving God by serving others, things are turned inside-out. The siopao is now paosio. Instead of doctrines and sacraments surrounding the life and teachings of Jesus, the story of Jesus becomes an add-on to our liturgical rites. What do we seek when we keep going to church – God and the story of Jesus, or the priest and his rituals?<br /><br />STRAWBERRIES AND CASHEW NUTS. Strawberries and cashew nuts are unique because both produce their seeds outside the fruit. The strawberry seeds dot its red skin while the big cashew seed grows outside and below its fruit. They remind us that religion can be like this. Good religion brings us to God and the truth. Bad religion pushes God aside to pursue its own agenda. Is Jesus still at the center of our faith, or has he turned into a straw-berry or cashew nut and relegated to the outer fringe?<br /><br />WATERING PLANTS. People who do not know how to care for plants think they have to water their plants every day. They do not realize roots can rot from overwatering. Water gives life to plants, but too much water can kill the plants. Worship and devotion give life to religion, but too much worship without understanding can produce the same result. A reality check will reveal the diminishing mass attendance and disappearing religious vocations. Perhaps we worship too much but do not love others enough. <br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Salvador C Wee, SJ<span style="font-style:italic;"></span></span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirJtCkR3h5KfsalBUlwjZ1hJXNXd1I_pkNB4cV8CTfvYe1OeXr4IIPJgxXgB-cC8_TeGgrQPBUEdL0m9h5nJOQQ2Oz9zzHrFc_G4KYHXzruBogFBA8xNAmYBKu_BNR55TMCBaFs-rjNQs/s1600/bottom.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 277px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirJtCkR3h5KfsalBUlwjZ1hJXNXd1I_pkNB4cV8CTfvYe1OeXr4IIPJgxXgB-cC8_TeGgrQPBUEdL0m9h5nJOQQ2Oz9zzHrFc_G4KYHXzruBogFBA8xNAmYBKu_BNR55TMCBaFs-rjNQs/s320/bottom.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5507030470879987634" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-58842969192532925222010-07-26T05:28:00.001+08:002010-07-26T05:30:51.351+08:00Isang Pagmumuni-muni<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT7eoH9wV5OJ9kLqKphZhYXZW1fZ89bZV4qQIk3i1sgu9kfloTCMvqTdhZl5zod6Q8iB3SuLs-axcsy7763wAprTekdtsVwb67NVr52JH2cji11TJauU5mZa4fxPsujL7Ls_RlZ6PVjgc/s1600/fiesta+122.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT7eoH9wV5OJ9kLqKphZhYXZW1fZ89bZV4qQIk3i1sgu9kfloTCMvqTdhZl5zod6Q8iB3SuLs-axcsy7763wAprTekdtsVwb67NVr52JH2cji11TJauU5mZa4fxPsujL7Ls_RlZ6PVjgc/s320/fiesta+122.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497959225698385010" /></a><br /><br />O kay sarap mabuhay sa mundong ibabaw.<br />Lalo na kung ang kapaligiran ay puno ng pagmamahalan.<br />Mga puno’t halaman, hayop, karagatan ay dapat ring pangalagaan.<br />Upang sa darating na panahon ito’y mapakinabangan.<br /><br />Bawat nilalang ay binigyang laya.<br />Para matamasa ang ipinagkaloob na biyaya.<br />Ito’y mula sa langit ng Poong Dakila.<br />Walang sawang nagmamahal at nagtitiwala.<br /><br />Kaya laging bukas ang pinto ng inilaang tadhana.<br />Maging matatag at h’wag mabahala.<br />Tibayan ang loob at matutong magpakumbaba.<br />Manindigan rin sa bawat desisyong ginawa.<br /><br />Ganyan talaga ang buhay sa mundong ibabaw.<br />May lungkot, may saya, may sayaw at musika.<br />Ngunit ang lahat ng ito’y hamon lamang at pansamantala.<br />Nang sa gayon ay responsibilidad magampanan ng tama. <br /><br /><br /> - Ms. Jing Q. Dela Cruz -<br /> Grade School Faculty<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyx1X6HBBxgEGJScnK2MxoPshScB6rDu1aCo0x7k8PYBhtHBLICvEYVYHjcjVXgXRwPOX3ljXjyLTn5Ueo3UTQ3mtTUxlM6qo9gPzQEZKKrFeWYFbraAI1DkhhgQRvTyChQbBh0RVcqaQ/s1600/fiesta+104.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyx1X6HBBxgEGJScnK2MxoPshScB6rDu1aCo0x7k8PYBhtHBLICvEYVYHjcjVXgXRwPOX3ljXjyLTn5Ueo3UTQ3mtTUxlM6qo9gPzQEZKKrFeWYFbraAI1DkhhgQRvTyChQbBh0RVcqaQ/s320/fiesta+104.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497959027131449570" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-19052721824992625412010-01-18T21:45:00.002+08:002010-01-18T21:48:09.090+08:00Prayer to be a Good Steward<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAQqZvGn4YyJgCQDQ7dIWZlRn8UvWVDsSu3kfP0kO0Ob0fC3fTojjX74eOavtzmbVH-YgJFDP4J5t0Vkyj-M5DOhGxnmhXNugtSvFtLtzmOkWY8_Aq36YGMPrNtwYElEk1zp_-idzV9Vc/s1600-h/steward.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 193px; height: 294px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAQqZvGn4YyJgCQDQ7dIWZlRn8UvWVDsSu3kfP0kO0Ob0fC3fTojjX74eOavtzmbVH-YgJFDP4J5t0Vkyj-M5DOhGxnmhXNugtSvFtLtzmOkWY8_Aq36YGMPrNtwYElEk1zp_-idzV9Vc/s320/steward.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5428076109965622754" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Almighty and ever-faithful Lord,<br /><br />gratefully acknowledging Your mercy<br /><br />and humbly admitting our need,<br /><br />we pledge our trust in You and each other.<br /><br /><br />Filled with desire,<br /><br />we respond to Your call for discipleship<br /><br />by shaping our lives in imitation of Christ.<br /><br />We profess that the call requires us<br /><br />to be stewards of Your gifts.<br /><br />As stewards, we receive Your gifts gratefully,<br /><br />cherish and tend them in a responsible manner,<br /><br />share them in practice and love with others,<br /><br />and return them with increase to the Lord.<br /><br /><br />We pledge to our ongoing formation as stewards<br /><br />and our responsibility to call others to that same endeavor.<br /><br />Almighty and ever-faithful God,<br /><br />it is our fervent hope and prayer<br /><br />that You who have begun this good work in us<br /><br />will bring it to fulfillment in Jesus Christ,<br /><br />our Lord. Amen</span><br /><br /><br />http://www.catholicsaintoftheday.com/Catholic_Saint_Of_The_Day/Prayers/Entries/2009/11/12_Prayer_For_Good_Stewardship.htmlADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-10934531704590981922010-01-09T22:23:00.002+08:002010-01-09T22:27:51.395+08:00Looking Back and Looking Forward (Magadia,SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPJsKUsg8tEowdbZ34a3WWymWC7OTBx9jyCAj_w-5Lzy1apVh1tneeM-a8yEzt0vKp8tzXWUF9SWM0RfKvG9ywY8RVlt-LVSSSDQXiPp44LrV0Li7Xb6t0l8vQSlVsW57aMmCtEQjuVUs/s1600-h/phpThumb.php.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 284px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPJsKUsg8tEowdbZ34a3WWymWC7OTBx9jyCAj_w-5Lzy1apVh1tneeM-a8yEzt0vKp8tzXWUF9SWM0RfKvG9ywY8RVlt-LVSSSDQXiPp44LrV0Li7Xb6t0l8vQSlVsW57aMmCtEQjuVUs/s320/phpThumb.php.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424746431571280946" /></a><br /><br />It is January again, the month of Janus, the two-faced Roman god of gates and doors (Latin, ianua), beginnings and endings, able to look backward to the past and forward to the future. So now, let us simply do that – look back to 2009, and look forward to 2010.<br /><br />First, we look back...<br /><br />Like all years, the year 2009 brought good news and bad. Worldwide, it was a difficult year as the financial meltdown that began in 2008 continued till the middle of 2009, before the start of some recovery. The AHIN1 virus showed up in over 200 countries and alarmed many peoples. The violence in Afghanistan and Gaza intensified. A gathering in Copenhagen for climate change ended ambivalently at best. It was the year Obama took over as the first African American president of the US. It was the year of Slumdog Millionaire and Susan Boyle. It was the year of the passing away of Michael Jackson and Farah Fawcett. <br /><br />Here in the Philippines, 2009 was the year of chacha’s HR1109, GMA’s 20-thousand dollar dinner in New York, Maguindanao’s shocking massacre, Western Mindanao’s many kidnappings, and the revolting scandals of Katrina Halili and Hayden Kho. A few weeks ago, Mayon began to heat up, even as it continues to stay deadly still to this day. It was the year of Ondoy and Pepeng, which hit some of our own Jesuit families and many of our friends. But it was also a great year for heroes, from Manny Pacquiao, to Efren Peñaflorida, to the much loved and respected Cory Aquino, to the many little heroes who gave their lives to save those who were trapped by the floods. It was the year of Santino, telling us about how to talk to Bro and to believe na May Bukas Pa!<br /><br />For us Jesuits of the Philippine Province, in 2009, we celebrated the 150th anniversary of the return of the Society of Jesus to the Philippines after the suppression, and the sesquicentennial of the Ateneo de Manila University. On this occasion, Father General, himself, blessed us with his presence last July. Exactly a year ago, Joey Fermin was in his last days, and Rey Ocampo and Tom Green were still with us for the January 1 gathering. Now they have passed on, as have Mike Bernad and Jim Mckeough and Ignacio de Moreta. Six men have died, and we accepted four men into the novitiate, and ordained six baby priests and seven deacons. We discussed the futures of our presence in Mindanao, our work with the Chinese-Filipino communities, and our responsibilities in basic Jesuit formation. We are still bleeding financially, and yet we are strengthened and encouraged by many of our friends who have continued to support the Province and our works.<br /><br />Through these peak times, we struggle with our daily routines, as we work through our classes and papers, our meetings, our planning. We do our best to live our vows. We face whatever challenges and crises come our way. We resist the fatigue and the weaker knees and the more frequent senior moments. Things happen, at a time and in a manner we only frequently just slightly understand, and only in hindsight do we discover the wisdom behind it all – truly, the Lord’s inscrutable ways.<br /><br />Every year, we say that we have to give thanks to God for the blessings of the past year. But really, as I get older and become more pragmatic or even cynical, I find it more and more difficult to see God’s hand in everything, and often, giving thanks can become so routine and banal. More frequently, I have the experience of Moses who hears the thunder and the lightning and the trumpet blast, who has a sense of a powerful presence, who sees the fire and the cloud, but when he comes near, all he sees is smoke. (Exodus 19)<br /><br />God revealed is also elusive and mysterious and ungraspable. Why has it gotten so much more difficult to see God’s hand in everything and so, give thanks?<br /><br />One author (Mark Galli) provides an answer by comparing our relationship to God with his experience of falling in love with his wife.<br /><br />“As I started to fall in love with the woman who was to become my wife, I became increasingly fascinated with her. I wanted to know what books she liked, what hobbies she enjoyed, what her favorite color was. I wondered what her family was like, if she had previous boyfriends, and what goals she had for her life.<br /><br />“The more I probed, the more I became curious…. Each time I found something out, I wanted to know why and how. And I could not get enough of her. I was madly in love.<br /><br />“We got married. And the years passed. Little by little, things changed. There came a time in our marriage when, sadly, my wife no longer seemed a mystery to me. I thought I pretty much had her figured out. I knew her so well, she began to grate on me—her opinions, her habits, her turns of phrase were all so predictable! Instead of longing to be with her more and more, I wanted to get away.<br /><br />“The problem was not that she had become boring; it was that I had put her in the Barbara Box, a neat little container that defined who Barbara was.<br /><br />So it is with God. We do fall in love with Him. But time does pass, and things change.<br /><br />“A little knowledge of God is a dangerous thing, and after a while, we think we've got him figured out. And we put God in that neat little container.<br /><br />“Then one day, we go to get God out of that container—we expect him to answer a prayer or bless a venture, or we look for an answer to some tragedy we face—and we open it and find he is not there. Just when we needed him, he's up and gone! And we are angry.<br /><br />“We stomp around the room in a fury, and we pout, and we vow never to be so naïve again about religion. And then we start to cry. <br /><br />That’s what has happened. So every now and then, it is good to look back to the early days. We remember our first love, and those days “when our desire to love God was far stronger than our desire to manipulate Him. More than wanting to merely use God, we simply want God.”<br /><br />And so for now, let us look back to the early days of loving God, and maybe we might be able to really give thanks to this God who very quietly moves in our lives. But if you cannot say thank you yet, I invite you to do as Mary did … and to just keep these in our hearts for now, and wait and pray, and ask for the grace of that moment when we can truly say from the depths of our hearts, thank you!<br /><br />Now let’s look to the future. Let’s look to 2010... <br /><br />Since none of us here are fortune-tellers, we cannot do this second task with great detail, as we did the looking back. But maybe, what we can do is to try to provide an optic to help us live the coming year, in fidelity to who we are and what we have been called to do.<br /><br />Last June 2009, the Holy Father led the Church in opening the Year for Priests, which is ending this June 2010. So I invite you to look at the coming year, as members of this priestly Society of Jesus. In an article he wrote in 2002, Father Michael Buckley points out that as Jesuits, our priesthood is not mainly cultic, nor mainly pastoral. These belong more properly to our bishops and our brother diocesan priests. For Jesuits, our priesthood is mainly prophetic...<br /><br />(This reflection was intended mainly for Jesuits, but all Christians, by virtue of our Baptism are called to be priests and prophets...)<br /><br />...and this involves speaking God’s Word to people, and making men and women hear this word, and assimilate it into their hearts, and incarnate it in their lives. In short, it means telling the world in a powerful way, something that we often only half-believe most of the time – that yes, we can be holy, and that yes, it is possible for us to be saints. <br /><br />St Hippolytus writes: (On the Refutation of All Heresies, Office of Readings for December 30): <br /><br />We know that by taking a body from the Virgin he re-fashioned our fallen nature. We know that his manhood was of the same clay as our own; if this were not so, he would hardly have been a teacher who could expect to be imitated. If he were of a different substance from me, he would surely not have ordered me to do as he did, when by my very nature I am so weak. Such a demand could not be reconciled with his goodness and justice. <br /><br />No. He wanted us to consider him as no different from ourselves, and so he worked, he was hungry and thirsty, he slept. Without protest he endured his passion, he submitted to death and revealed his resurrection. In all these ways he offered his own manhood as the first fruits of our race to keep us from losing heart when suffering comes our way…. He was truly Word made flesh, and …<br /><br />The saying "Know yourself" means therefore that we should recognise and acknowledge in ourselves the God who made us in his own image….<br /><br />So let us look forward to 2010, not knowing what it will bring. For some of us this year will be a year of transitions, for some a year of major shifts and decisions, for some a time of crisis and difficulty, for some a time of facing debilitation or diminishment or death, in our families, in our selves. For many, it will very well be more of the same. We do not really know how it will end, but as Jesuits belonging to this priestly Society of Jesus (and as Christians baptized into Christ), we are called to be prophets, and to tell all those around us that through it all, we can be holy. We have it in us to be saints, and recognize that we are creatures, dependent on the unfathomable power of God.<br /><br />- Fr. Jojo Magadia, SJ<br />Provincial Superior of the Philippine Jesuits<br />January 1, 2010<br /><br />http://www.jesuits.ph/articles/looking_back_and_looking_forwardADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-64655594578289725512009-12-16T08:13:00.003+08:002009-12-16T08:18:46.199+08:00IF YOU WANT TO CULTIVATE PEACE, PROTECT CREATION<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyezQ2hrUrdSlM8bnkPOYrSh2jp9kdt4ggjYO0oJNzICMHKzG3AGucw706xA-37zXqPZHsYtkcEyMxZMmAsLgUWzhFhMBdxc_3X_IF7nTJXDUffdey_SAezpw7CxGNT3GEPDU2tGZj1Mg/s1600-h/pope_benedict+1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 230px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyezQ2hrUrdSlM8bnkPOYrSh2jp9kdt4ggjYO0oJNzICMHKzG3AGucw706xA-37zXqPZHsYtkcEyMxZMmAsLgUWzhFhMBdxc_3X_IF7nTJXDUffdey_SAezpw7CxGNT3GEPDU2tGZj1Mg/s320/pope_benedict+1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415621795385435234" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS<br />POPE BENEDICT XVI<br />FOR THE CELEBRATION OF THE<br />WORLD DAY OF PEACE<br /><br />1 JANUARY 2010</span><br /><br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />IF YOU WANT TO CULTIVATE PEACE, PROTECT CREATION</span><br /><br />1. At the beginning of this New Year, I wish to offer heartfelt greetings of peace to all Christian communities, international leaders, and people of good will throughout the world. For this XLIII World Day of Peace I have chosen the theme: If You Want to Cultivate Peace, Protect Creation. Respect for creation is of immense consequence, not least because “creation is the beginning and the foundation of all God’s works”,[1] and its preservation has now become essential for the pacific coexistence of mankind. Man’s inhumanity to man has given rise to numerous threats to peace and to authentic and integral human development – wars, international and regional conflicts, acts of terrorism, and violations of human rights. Yet no less troubling are the threats arising from the neglect – if not downright misuse – of the earth and the natural goods that God has given us. For this reason, it is imperative that mankind renew and strengthen “that covenant between human beings and the environment, which should mirror the creative love of God, from whom we come and towards whom we are journeying”.[2]<br /><br />2. In my Encyclical Caritas in Veritate, I noted that integral human development is closely linked to the obligations which flow from man’s relationship with the natural environment. The environment must be seen as God’s gift to all people, and the use we make of it entails a shared responsibility for all humanity, especially the poor and future generations. I also observed that whenever nature, and human beings in particular, are seen merely as products of chance or an evolutionary determinism, our overall sense of responsibility wanes.[3] On the other hand, seeing creation as God’s gift to humanity helps us understand our vocation and worth as human beings. With the Psalmist, we can exclaim with wonder: “When I look at your heavens, the work of your hands, the moon and the stars which you have established; what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” (Ps 8:4-5). Contemplating the beauty of creation inspires us to recognize the love of the Creator, that Love which “moves the sun and the other stars”.[4]<br /><br />3. Twenty years ago, Pope John Paul II devoted his Message for the World Day of Peace to the theme: Peace with God the Creator, Peace with All of Creation. He emphasized our relationship, as God’s creatures, with the universe all around us. “In our day”, he wrote, “there is a growing awareness that world peace is threatened … also by a lack of due respect for nature”. He added that “ecological awareness, rather than being downplayed, needs to be helped to develop and mature, and find fitting expression in concrete programmes and initiatives”.[5] Previous Popes had spoken of the relationship between human beings and the environment. In 1971, for example, on the eightieth anniversary of Leo XIII’s Encyclical Rerum Novarum, Paul VI pointed out that “by an ill-considered exploitation of nature (man) risks destroying it and becoming in his turn the victim of this degradation”. He added that “not only is the material environment becoming a permanent menace – pollution and refuse, new illnesses and absolute destructive capacity – but the human framework is no longer under man’s control, thus creating an environment for tomorrow which may well be intolerable. This is a wide-ranging social problem which concerns the entire human family”.[6]<br /><br />4. Without entering into the merit of specific technical solutions, the Church is nonetheless concerned, as an “expert in humanity”, to call attention to the relationship between the Creator, human beings and the created order. In 1990 John Paul II had spoken of an “ecological crisis” and, in highlighting its primarily ethical character, pointed to the “urgent moral need for a new solidarity”.[7] His appeal is all the more pressing today, in the face of signs of a growing crisis which it would be irresponsible not to take seriously. Can we remain indifferent before the problems associated with such realities as climate change, desertification, the deterioration and loss of productivity in vast agricultural areas, the pollution of rivers and aquifers, the loss of biodiversity, the increase of natural catastrophes and the deforestation of equatorial and tropical regions? Can we disregard the growing phenomenon of “environmental refugees”, people who are forced by the degradation of their natural habitat to forsake it – and often their possessions as well – in order to face the dangers and uncertainties of forced displacement? Can we remain impassive in the face of actual and potential conflicts involving access to natural resources? All these are issues with a profound impact on the exercise of human rights, such as the right to life, food, health and development.<br /><br />5. It should be evident that the ecological crisis cannot be viewed in isolation from other related questions, since it is closely linked to the notion of development itself and our understanding of man in his relationship to others and to the rest of creation. Prudence would thus dictate a profound, long-term review of our model of development, one which would take into consideration the meaning of the economy and its goals with an eye to correcting its malfunctions and misapplications. The ecological health of the planet calls for this, but it is also demanded by the cultural and moral crisis of humanity whose symptoms have for some time been evident in every part of the world.[8] Humanity needs a profound cultural renewal; it needs to rediscover those values which can serve as the solid basis for building a brighter future for all. Our present crises – be they economic, food-related, environmental or social – are ultimately also moral crises, and all of them are interrelated. They require us to rethink the path which we are travelling together. Specifically, they call for a lifestyle marked by sobriety and solidarity, with new rules and forms of engagement, one which focuses confidently and courageously on strategies that actually work, while decisively rejecting those that have failed. Only in this way can the current crisis become an opportunity for discernment and new strategic planning.<br /><br />6. Is it not true that what we call “nature” in a cosmic sense has its origin in “a plan of love and truth”? The world “is not the product of any necessity whatsoever, nor of blind fate or chance… The world proceeds from the free will of God; he wanted to make his creatures share in his being, in his intelligence, and in his goodness”.[9] The Book of Genesis, in its very first pages, points to the wise design of the cosmos: it comes forth from God’s mind and finds its culmination in man and woman, made in the image and likeness of the Creator to “fill the earth” and to “have dominion over” it as “stewards” of God himself (cf. Gen 1:28). The harmony between the Creator, mankind and the created world, as described by Sacred Scripture, was disrupted by the sin of Adam and Eve, by man and woman, who wanted to take the place of God and refused to acknowledge that they were his creatures. As a result, the work of “exercising dominion” over the earth, “tilling it and keeping it”, was also disrupted, and conflict arose within and between mankind and the rest of creation (cf. Gen 3:17-19). Human beings let themselves be mastered by selfishness; they misunderstood the meaning of God’s command and exploited creation out of a desire to exercise absolute domination over it. But the true meaning of God’s original command, as the Book of Genesis clearly shows, was not a simple conferral of authority, but rather a summons to responsibility. The wisdom of the ancients had recognized that nature is not at our disposal as “a heap of scattered refuse”.[10] Biblical Revelation made us see that nature is a gift of the Creator, who gave it an inbuilt order and enabled man to draw from it the principles needed to “till it and keep it” (cf. Gen. 2:15).[11] Everything that exists belongs to God, who has entrusted it to man, albeit not for his arbitrary use. Once man, instead of acting as God’s co-worker, sets himself up in place of God, he ends up provoking a rebellion on the part of nature, “which is more tyrannized than governed by him”.[12] Man thus has a duty to exercise responsible stewardship over creation, to care for it and to cultivate it.[13]<br /><br />7. Sad to say, it is all too evident that large numbers of people in different countries and areas of our planet are experiencing increased hardship because of the negligence or refusal of many others to exercise responsible stewardship over the environment. The Second Vatican Ecumenical Council reminded us that “God has destined the earth and everything it contains for all peoples and nations”.[14] The goods of creation belong to humanity as a whole. Yet the current pace of environmental exploitation is seriously endangering the supply of certain natural resources not only for the present generation, but above all for generations yet to come.[15] It is not hard to see that environmental degradation is often due to the lack of far-sighted official policies or to the pursuit of myopic economic interests, which then, tragically, become a serious threat to creation. To combat this phenomenon, economic activity needs to consider the fact that “every economic decision has a moral consequence” [16] and thus show increased respect for the environment. When making use of natural resources, we should be concerned for their protection and consider the cost entailed – environmentally and socially – as an essential part of the overall expenses incurred. The international community and national governments are responsible for sending the right signals in order to combat effectively the misuse of the environment. To protect the environment, and to safeguard natural resources and the climate, there is a need to act in accordance with clearly-defined rules, also from the juridical and economic standpoint, while at the same time taking into due account the solidarity we owe to those living in the poorer areas of our world and to future generations.<br /><br />8. A greater sense of intergenerational solidarity is urgently needed. Future generations cannot be saddled with the cost of our use of common environmental resources. “We have inherited from past generations, and we have benefited from the work of our contemporaries; for this reason we have obligations towards all, and we cannot refuse to interest ourselves in those who will come after us, to enlarge the human family. Universal solidarity represents a benefit as well as a duty. This is a responsibility that present generations have towards those of the future, a responsibility that also concerns individual States and the international community”.[17] Natural resources should be used in such a way that immediate benefits do not have a negative impact on living creatures, human and not, present and future; that the protection of private property does not conflict with the universal destination of goods;[18] that human activity does not compromise the fruitfulness of the earth, for the benefit of people now and in the future. In addition to a fairer sense of intergenerational solidarity there is also an urgent moral need for a renewed sense of intragenerational solidarity, especially in relationships between developing countries and highly industrialized countries: “the international community has an urgent duty to find institutional means of regulating the exploitation of non-renewable resources, involving poor countries in the process, in order to plan together for the future”.[19] The ecological crisis shows the urgency of a solidarity which embraces time and space. It is important to acknowledge that among the causes of the present ecological crisis is the historical responsibility of the industrialized countries. Yet the less developed countries, and emerging countries in particular, are not exempt from their own responsibilities with regard to creation, for the duty of gradually adopting effective environmental measures and policies is incumbent upon all. This would be accomplished more easily if self-interest played a lesser role in the granting of aid and the sharing of knowledge and cleaner technologies.<br /><br />9. To be sure, among the basic problems which the international community has to address is that of energy resources and the development of joint and sustainable strategies to satisfy the energy needs of the present and future generations. This means that technologically advanced societies must be prepared to encourage more sober lifestyles, while reducing their energy consumption and improving its efficiency. At the same time there is a need to encourage research into, and utilization of, forms of energy with lower impact on the environment and “a world-wide redistribution of energy resources, so that countries lacking those resources can have access to them”.[20] The ecological crisis offers an historic opportunity to develop a common plan of action aimed at orienting the model of global development towards greater respect for creation and for an integral human development inspired by the values proper to charity in truth. I would advocate the adoption of a model of development based on the centrality of the human person, on the promotion and sharing of the common good, on responsibility, on a realization of our need for a changed life-style, and on prudence, the virtue which tells us what needs to be done today in view of what might happen tomorrow.[21]<br /><br />10. A sustainable comprehensive management of the environment and the resources of the planet demands that human intelligence be directed to technological and scientific research and its practical applications. The “new solidarity” for which John Paul II called in his Message for the 1990 World Day of Peace [22] and the “global solidarity” for which I myself appealed in my Message for the 2009 World Day of Peace [23] are essential attitudes in shaping our efforts to protect creation through a better internationally-coordinated management of the earth’s resources, particularly today, when there is an increasingly clear link between combatting environmental degradation and promoting an integral human development. These two realities are inseparable, since “the integral development of individuals necessarily entails a joint effort for the development of humanity as a whole”.[24] At present there are a number of scientific developments and innovative approaches which promise to provide satisfactory and balanced solutions to the problem of our relationship to the environment. Encouragement needs to be given, for example, to research into effective ways of exploiting the immense potential of solar energy. Similar attention also needs to be paid to the world-wide problem of water and to the global water cycle system, which is of prime importance for life on earth and whose stability could be seriously jeopardized by climate change. Suitable strategies for rural development centred on small farmers and their families should be explored, as well as the implementation of appropriate policies for the management of forests, for waste disposal and for strengthening the linkage between combatting climate change and overcoming poverty. Ambitious national policies are required, together with a necessary international commitment which will offer important benefits especially in the medium and long term. There is a need, in effect, to move beyond a purely consumerist mentality in order to promote forms of agricultural and industrial production capable of respecting creation and satisfying the primary needs of all. The ecological problem must be dealt with not only because of the chilling prospects of environmental degradation on the horizon; the real motivation must be the quest for authentic world-wide solidarity inspired by the values of charity, justice and the common good. For that matter, as I have stated elsewhere, “technology is never merely technology. It reveals man and his aspirations towards development; it expresses the inner tension that impels him gradually to overcome material limitations. Technology in this sense is a response to God’s command to till and keep the land (cf. Gen 2:15) that he has entrusted to humanity, and it must serve to reinforce the covenant between human beings and the environment, a covenant that should mirror God’s creative love”.[25]<br /><br />11. It is becoming more and more evident that the issue of environmental degradation challenges us to examine our life-style and the prevailing models of consumption and production, which are often unsustainable from a social, environmental and even economic point of view. We can no longer do without a real change of outlook which will result in new life-styles, “in which the quest for truth, beauty, goodness and communion with others for the sake of common growth are the factors which determine consumer choices, savings and investments”.[26] Education for peace must increasingly begin with far-reaching decisions on the part of individuals, families, communities and states. We are all responsible for the protection and care of the environment. This responsibility knows no boundaries. In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity it is important for everyone to be committed at his or her proper level, working to overcome the prevalence of particular interests. A special role in raising awareness and in formation belongs to the different groups present in civil society and to the non-governmental organizations which work with determination and generosity for the spread of ecological responsibility, responsibility which should be ever more deeply anchored in respect for “human ecology”. The media also have a responsibility in this regard to offer positive and inspiring models. In a word, concern for the environment calls for a broad global vision of the world; a responsible common effort to move beyond approaches based on selfish nationalistic interests towards a vision constantly open to the needs of all peoples. We cannot remain indifferent to what is happening around us, for the deterioration of any one part of the planet affects us all. Relationships between individuals, social groups and states, like those between human beings and the environment, must be marked by respect and “charity in truth”. In this broader context one can only encourage the efforts of the international community to ensure progressive disarmament and a world free of nuclear weapons, whose presence alone threatens the life of the planet and the ongoing integral development of the present generation and of generations yet to come.<br /><br />12. The Church has a responsibility towards creation, and she considers it her duty to exercise that responsibility in public life, in order to protect earth, water and air as gifts of God the Creator meant for everyone, and above all to save mankind from the danger of self-destruction. The degradation of nature is closely linked to the cultural models shaping human coexistence: consequently, “when ‘human ecology’ is respected within society, environmental ecology also benefits”.[27] Young people cannot be asked to respect the environment if they are not helped, within families and society as a whole, to respect themselves. The book of nature is one and indivisible; it includes not only the environment but also individual, family and social ethics.[28] Our duties towards the environment flow from our duties towards the person, considered both individually and in relation to others.<br /><br />Hence I readily encourage efforts to promote a greater sense of ecological responsibility which, as I indicated in my Encyclical Caritas in Veritate, would safeguard an authentic “human ecology” and thus forcefully reaffirm the inviolability of human life at every stage and in every condition, the dignity of the person and the unique mission of the family, where one is trained in love of neighbour and respect for nature.[29] There is a need to safeguard the human patrimony of society. This patrimony of values originates in and is part of the natural moral law, which is the foundation of respect for the human person and creation.<br /><br />13. Nor must we forget the very significant fact that many people experience peace and tranquillity, renewal and reinvigoration, when they come into close contact with the beauty and harmony of nature. There exists a certain reciprocity: as we care for creation, we realize that God, through creation, cares for us. On the other hand, a correct understanding of the relationship between man and the environment will not end by absolutizing nature or by considering it more important than the human person. If the Church’s magisterium expresses grave misgivings about notions of the environment inspired by ecocentrism and biocentrism, it is because such notions eliminate the difference of identity and worth between the human person and other living things. In the name of a supposedly egalitarian vision of the “dignity” of all living creatures, such notions end up abolishing the distinctiveness and superior role of human beings. They also open the way to a new pantheism tinged with neo-paganism, which would see the source of man’s salvation in nature alone, understood in purely naturalistic terms. The Church, for her part, is concerned that the question be approached in a balanced way, with respect for the “grammar” which the Creator has inscribed in his handiwork by giving man the role of a steward and administrator with responsibility over creation, a role which man must certainly not abuse, but also one which he may not abdicate. In the same way, the opposite position, which would absolutize technology and human power, results in a grave assault not only on nature, but also on human dignity itself.[30]<br /><br />14. If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation. The quest for peace by people of good will surely would become easier if all acknowledge the indivisible relationship between God, human beings and the whole of creation. In the light of divine Revelation and in fidelity to the Church’s Tradition, Christians have their own contribution to make. They contemplate the cosmos and its marvels in light of the creative work of the Father and the redemptive work of Christ, who by his death and resurrection has reconciled with God “all things, whether on earth or in heaven” (Col 1:20). Christ, crucified and risen, has bestowed his Spirit of holiness upon mankind, to guide the course of history in anticipation of that day when, with the glorious return of the Saviour, there will be “new heavens and a new earth” (2 Pet 3:13), in which justice and peace will dwell for ever. Protecting the natural environment in order to build a world of peace is thus a duty incumbent upon each and all. It is an urgent challenge, one to be faced with renewed and concerted commitment; it is also a providential opportunity to hand down to coming generations the prospect of a better future for all. May this be clear to world leaders and to those at every level who are concerned for the future of humanity: the protection of creation and peacemaking are profoundly linked! For this reason, I invite all believers to raise a fervent prayer to God, the all-powerful Creator and the Father of mercies, so that all men and women may take to heart the urgent appeal: If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation.<br /><br />From the Vatican, 8 December 2009<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOyYbT01p4m-98k6Hra8iMcHW5F4xAXzHy9Gw2cqMIb_czbfjm2ECFaOFmozVuedCWvR7HeSWPKzTnTP4XrgpqYWY7VOMZUEo-9MLMv3kt7f-P-FA4nDITiZTi0j-VouS639vlg914Evc/s1600-h/pope-benedict1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 255px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOyYbT01p4m-98k6Hra8iMcHW5F4xAXzHy9Gw2cqMIb_czbfjm2ECFaOFmozVuedCWvR7HeSWPKzTnTP4XrgpqYWY7VOMZUEo-9MLMv3kt7f-P-FA4nDITiZTi0j-VouS639vlg914Evc/s320/pope-benedict1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415621623894717906" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-6798670843225313542009-11-05T18:27:00.003+08:002009-11-05T18:30:11.112+08:00Buhay Boksing<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKwsbZM4kPqDZc-ZVC-IhhaXSGy3BDPozoh_iNuP2XdgNdo1utjeYCjmbtflbl1fTJRQvz2NEy5s77xMbUhw_3N4XgPOrYAXnj3SZYbcHvDkyPxZK9Bl_qzFTfbW-_L4QHdTjoSUNT760/s1600-h/boxing.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 229px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKwsbZM4kPqDZc-ZVC-IhhaXSGy3BDPozoh_iNuP2XdgNdo1utjeYCjmbtflbl1fTJRQvz2NEy5s77xMbUhw_3N4XgPOrYAXnj3SZYbcHvDkyPxZK9Bl_qzFTfbW-_L4QHdTjoSUNT760/s320/boxing.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400564647427839426" /></a><br />Dear Fr.Willy<br /><br />My new life here in the US has been a boxing match between me and my self. It sounds funny but yes, my greatest enemy is myself - my own temperament, my being indecisive and dependence to some people to suggest decisions for me, my impatience, my ungratefulness to God, etc...<br /><br />Many times in my life here, I come to HIM for help when I am already at the cross roads or in very rough times and in most cases when my journey seems okay, I seldom thank HIM! I realized that God never used them against me, but I feel the shame/guilt. I usually embraced negativity over things, became impatient and made bad decisions. In turn, I ended up regretting over them.<br /><br />YET, God in his His unconditional LOVE, never abandoned me. If my mathematical mind is right, God's help/guidance/company... is enormous that I could not count them, because no matter how bad my decisions were, God still makes me feel that I am truly loved by HIM. I wrote you about "When it rains, it pours" but I feel, it should be "When God pours, HE keeps on pouring." <br /><br />There are many times that I thought I would ran away from the boxing ring we called “life” because I could not raise my hands to give another punch to my opponent and yet when I hear the “ting-ting-ting", I feel God's hands leading me to the seat in my corner to coach me- to breath, relax my muscles, clear up my mind and then FIGHT AGAIN at the sound of the bell. God in HIS most loving voice saying: "I am here and I will be watching you. No matter what, I will be here waiting for you after each round!" <br /><br />HE continuously pours blessing, no matter what I do, no matter how bad my sins are, it is just that I feel that no matter what I do, HE is always there to give me the blessings I need to survive and in most cases, the blessings are always overflowing. Kahit sa dami ng aking mga “ungrateful moment,” … isang pasalamat lang, bubuhos na kaagad ang mga grasya galing sa KANYA! Nakakahiya nga, pero ganoon nga siguro magmahal ang DIYOS! Walang kupas, walang kondisyon, "walang iwanan" sa lahat ng pakiki-boxing ko sa buhay -- Pilipinas man o Amerika, walang tigil ang buhos ng mga grasya!<br /><br />Sa Buhay-boksing, may pahinga naman dahil may "ting, ting, ting." Sa lahat ng pakikibaka na nagawa ko na, kitang-kita ko ang Diyos at ang galaw NIYA na misteryoso---paibaiba ang style, pero iisa lang ang pinanggagalingan - PAGMAMAHAL NIYA SA AKIN!<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Mimosh<br /><br /> - taken from my homily blogspot: http://willysamson.blogspot.com/</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFrO56sLRJeLG2i5PxnYf6crgKL27OKW5F0h6HSnzgyhUkslOqalGkdVAACMXqsTFk8HHPiszKVcY7Lhu94MeLHLmj2qSSAF0sjEJ_37vjcXf3mzYUNd9J3dieAB7Z3yocZieA82nDkB8/s1600-h/boxing+winner.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFrO56sLRJeLG2i5PxnYf6crgKL27OKW5F0h6HSnzgyhUkslOqalGkdVAACMXqsTFk8HHPiszKVcY7Lhu94MeLHLmj2qSSAF0sjEJ_37vjcXf3mzYUNd9J3dieAB7Z3yocZieA82nDkB8/s320/boxing+winner.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400564348010194562" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-27426049985188606972009-11-02T16:41:00.003+08:002009-11-03T08:19:38.792+08:00Vote Wisely<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTeV0J0yMZGbIdmuRs0j62CZoj77eOfHi1x8WxfDS_lMqpjRfraaDxBA93waHJ5c37BuQrUhcVqOsSPXuFOxIINE25BSjfdCPIglUlnIU9X51CeeSRixtFLD6s9DOVFrBAC6PpbiOp9OE/s1600-h/God_Vs_Devil.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 310px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTeV0J0yMZGbIdmuRs0j62CZoj77eOfHi1x8WxfDS_lMqpjRfraaDxBA93waHJ5c37BuQrUhcVqOsSPXuFOxIINE25BSjfdCPIglUlnIU9X51CeeSRixtFLD6s9DOVFrBAC6PpbiOp9OE/s320/God_Vs_Devil.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5399426875429251090" /></a><br />While walking down the street one day a Congressman is tragically hit by a truck and dies.<br /> <br />His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance.<br /><br /> Welcome to heaven,' says St. Peter. 'Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem.<br /><br /> We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we're not sure what to do with you.'<br /> 'No problem, just let me in,' says the man.<br /><br /> 'Well, I'd like to, but I have orders from higher up. What we'll do is have you spend one day in hell and one in heaven.<br /><br /> Then you can choose where to spend eternity.'<br /> 'Really, I've made up my mind. I want to be in heaven,' says the Congressman. 'I'm sorry, but we have our rules.'<br /><br /> And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell.<br /><br /> The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course. In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him.<br /><br /> Everyone is very happy and in evening dress. They run to greet him, shake his hand, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the people.<br /><br /> They play a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster, caviar and champagne.<br /> Also present is the devil, who really is a very friendly & nice guy who has a good time dancing and telling jokes.<br /><br /> They are having such a good time that before he realizes it, it is time to go.<br /> Everyone gives him a hearty farewell and waves while the elevator rises.<br /><br /> The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens on heaven where St. Peter is waiting for him.<br /><br /> 'Now it's time to visit heaven.'<br /><br /> So, 24 hours pass with the Congressman joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and, before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns.<br /><br /> 'Well, then, you've spent a day in hell and another in heaven. Now choose your eternity.'<br /><br /> The Congressman reflects for a minute, then he answers: 'Well, I would never have said it before, I mean heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better off in hell.'<br /><br /> So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell.<br /><br /> Now the doors of the elevator open and he's in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage.<br /><br /> He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in black bags as more trash falls from above.<br /><br /> The devil comes over to him and puts his arm around his shoulder. 'I don't understand,' stammers the Congressman.<br /><br /> 'Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and clubhouse, and we ate lobster and caviar, drank champagne, and danced and had a great time.. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable.<br /><br /> What happened?'<br /><br /> The devil looks at him, smiles and says,<br /><br /> 'Yesterday we were campaigning. ..<br /><br /> Today you voted!'<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyjyqz0MmlF3UcF7Z7QEKMtvhOhFNqUgMzMLwBiUokbas0e7WAkvjyu0R5_Yr7eDRxcS7nnf7hWqmdgpvCiIKnFEWrxYWNRX-2IdiftAssF05BGf0zFROw_sBZjizzhPwUFbQXagVxtCM/s1600-h/temptation.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 306px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyjyqz0MmlF3UcF7Z7QEKMtvhOhFNqUgMzMLwBiUokbas0e7WAkvjyu0R5_Yr7eDRxcS7nnf7hWqmdgpvCiIKnFEWrxYWNRX-2IdiftAssF05BGf0zFROw_sBZjizzhPwUFbQXagVxtCM/s320/temptation.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5399664819600501314" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-5950389364457246522009-10-27T18:47:00.003+08:002009-10-27T18:59:15.627+08:00My Daily Bread (S.Dimaguila)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibi4MeGCh1xR56bOVEdNCjyue_I9NxWu_8qYStv2xAXpC6U1DM6lkcWclxKJCMnAU-8vKaze4xWGJ2RaTztgMKr5G-ajRYB9v72PesJbf27LZAxLji7r5bBIKOufzFBzoeIClwd0QwGJQ/s1600-h/Work-as-Prayer.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 261px; height: 297px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibi4MeGCh1xR56bOVEdNCjyue_I9NxWu_8qYStv2xAXpC6U1DM6lkcWclxKJCMnAU-8vKaze4xWGJ2RaTztgMKr5G-ajRYB9v72PesJbf27LZAxLji7r5bBIKOufzFBzoeIClwd0QwGJQ/s320/Work-as-Prayer.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397232251962870706" /></a><br /><br />Our prayer is God’s gift to us…and God is continually blessing us with prayers…prayers in so many forms. <br /><br />Work is God’s gift to us…and we work for several reasons…and perhaps one of the most common reasons is, we work because we need to earn a living…but work could be more than just a living…it could become a form of a prayer…an offering to God. <br /><br />The story of Cain and Abel makes me wonder, why was God displeased with the offering of Cain when both Cain and Abel offered to God the fruits of their work?…but towards Cain and his offering He showed no pleasure (Gn:4:5). Was it perhaps, because Cain failed to offer it to God as a prayer? <br /><br />I strive to make my work my prayer to God. If as I work, I am conscious of the Lord, this consciousness allows me to strive to do my best...putting my whole self…heart, body and mind into my work…then I feel I am truly giving myself to God. <br /><br />There are times, I must admit that, I feel I have to drag myself to do what I must…or I am unsure…or I was not as honest as I should be…and I would feel bad…and ashamed…but it is also during these times that I get to feel Jesus’ love…and I would asked for His forgiveness, or I would asked His guidance or consolation…or His grace to do my best…and then I am able to offer my thanks…and my praise…my sacrificial praise and thanks to God. <br /><br />At the end of the day…in all sincerity…and in all honesty, I offer to God what transpired during the day…the good moments, the not so good moments…the difficult and the not so difficult…my disappointments…my accomplishments…asking God for forgiveness for my shortcomings…knowing that God has sustained me…and provided me with my daily bread. <br /><br /><br /><strong>Stevan S. Dimaguila<br />ADZU College Faculty <br />October 23, 2009 </strong><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuieYRsOounDWW30wuimdtKsjuLC1fJ_s5h2_OuG1VUyIy1WdfFAeUDXakNauEzbEFrimWHKN9E8qXrG83pJG2tcCkXYLi5ppgN5VqZCdvRpR5BFn-ob2yOhyxv6w72rNesjNNczocUGw/s1600-h/work-pray-grow-love_cycle.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 319px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuieYRsOounDWW30wuimdtKsjuLC1fJ_s5h2_OuG1VUyIy1WdfFAeUDXakNauEzbEFrimWHKN9E8qXrG83pJG2tcCkXYLi5ppgN5VqZCdvRpR5BFn-ob2yOhyxv6w72rNesjNNczocUGw/s320/work-pray-grow-love_cycle.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5397232001071488450" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-34146817689039532682009-10-15T23:03:00.003+08:002009-10-15T23:07:33.762+08:00Zamboanga (Doyle)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwvipGi7o6NUbmY24V75CTjPaXOlRj-6MvWkSRkzOoJjdOO6JNqgMFrlg0pCcX4UKT-znBym5v2pnXWnAtUIJRnTQ5l0pupqiwcYHqBzOoBHUUjslJebP9mEPW-6v22JOlUMCiEmTgQ4g/s1600-h/fiesta+081.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwvipGi7o6NUbmY24V75CTjPaXOlRj-6MvWkSRkzOoJjdOO6JNqgMFrlg0pCcX4UKT-znBym5v2pnXWnAtUIJRnTQ5l0pupqiwcYHqBzOoBHUUjslJebP9mEPW-6v22JOlUMCiEmTgQ4g/s320/fiesta+081.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392843552489122914" /></a><br /><br />Zamboanga is a really big city in the Philippines- the third largest, with nearly a million people, at the tip of the western peninsula of the island of Mindanao, the second biggest island in the Republic of the Philippines. What a great name, Zamboanga- a name with music and joy in it.<br /><br />But Zamboanga and Mindanao have a long history of Christian- Muslim tension and conflict. Muslims first came to Mindanao in the late 14th century, says a Muslim Web site on the internet. They resisted the Spanish conquistadors who followed, then America’s occupation, and some conflict has continued into Philippine independence, right up to the present. <br /><br />I am pleased to report, however, that Zamboanga City today is a place where Christians and Muslims are learning to get along and live peacefully together. And these days, with Christian- Muslim tension and that is certainly something to take notice of and to rejoice in, don’t you agree?<br /><br />I’ve just been reading about Zamboanga and this new Christian-Muslim dialogue in an article in “St. Anthony Messenger” magazine, the Franciscan monthly, sent to us by one good friend and written by another: Father Jack Wintz, O.F.M., a fine writer, great priest and all-around special person.<br /><br />Zamboanga, Father Jack wrote, “is sometimes known as the City of Flowers or the City of Romance. But I will always remember it as the ‘Land of Hope for Christian-Muslim Dialogue.’” And that’s the title of his article.<br /><br />Father Jack once taught in a Franciscan seminary in Manila, the capital, he said, and was eager to get back to the Philippines, so he went last year to get back to the Philippines, so he went last year with a study group sponsored by the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging, a lay Catholic organization working with people of all faith traditions to bring about a global community of compassion and service.<br /><br />“ In 1984,” he wrote, “ a popular dialogue movement was launched in Mindanao to overcome conflicts among Christians, Muslims and people of other faiths. The movement calls itself the Silsilah Dialogue Movement and sees itself as promoting understanding among these groups. Silsilah is an Arabic word meaning ‘chain’ or ‘link’, and suggests the image of people drawing together ( like links in a chain) as one universal family united by a shared vision of dialogue and peace.”<br /><br />Founded in Zamboanga City by an Italian priest, Father Sebastian D’Ambra, P.I.M.E., with a group of Muslim and Christian friends, Silsilah “ holds seminars and a wide variety of training programs, promotes friendship and interfaith dialogue and provides opportunities for prayer.”<br /><br />Along the way Father Jack met a number of wonderful Muslim people and their Christian counterparts who are learning to get along. One highlight, he reported, was a big outdoor concert featuring music from various religious and cultural traditions, helping respect and love many wonderful Jewish, Protestant and Buddhist friends, as well as other nice people I couldn’t describe in any religious terms, except that we like them.<br /><br />I’m sorry to say we haven’t met any Muslims personally yet, although we see more and more of them around, as I expect you do also. One day soon, I expect we’ll get to meet some Muslim people, and we’ll get to like them. It’ll be a pleasure. <br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Copyright 2009 by James A. Doyle<br /> New York Times<br /></span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqvbeUjsQkoWZNFpvVhCYzw4paPn9uecNpf_JpfWNbtXUL_SDOpF7kWqqQglczKbhgSJ0xw8eHOO7DbQus1vqU_WBtQhQ46Q8sI6akzVhAS9La0eA0nHrrieG3ZVWzNwgch87ykJQ8Lg4/s1600-h/zambo2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 260px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqvbeUjsQkoWZNFpvVhCYzw4paPn9uecNpf_JpfWNbtXUL_SDOpF7kWqqQglczKbhgSJ0xw8eHOO7DbQus1vqU_WBtQhQ46Q8sI6akzVhAS9La0eA0nHrrieG3ZVWzNwgch87ykJQ8Lg4/s320/zambo2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392843203798172850" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-15073823473078274862009-10-15T05:46:00.003+08:002009-10-15T05:55:58.275+08:00What Does Eucharist Stand For? (Whalen)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoYc6WgmjaAC3klfj-i0SP3jjP3n3oP6HYNVNKHmWfIw9Vk5hAaTTajbAAzzb81ASv6sjce1NlY3fWd0rIlx51myP4isgbeJ1BblphfiR0MEsEeCpRgrrCurlUvYQbuK5KO904-VzJZGc/s1600-h/e.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoYc6WgmjaAC3klfj-i0SP3jjP3n3oP6HYNVNKHmWfIw9Vk5hAaTTajbAAzzb81ASv6sjce1NlY3fWd0rIlx51myP4isgbeJ1BblphfiR0MEsEeCpRgrrCurlUvYQbuK5KO904-VzJZGc/s320/e.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392577478895190834" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What does E-U-C-H-A-R-I-S-T stand for?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">E - Eternal life. </span><br /><br />"Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day" (John 6:54). Jesus gives us everlasting life. Eternal life is a desire in the heart of every person. Every time we eat the body and drink the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ Jesus Christ<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">U - Union with Jesus Christ, Who is our Life.</span><br /><br /> "Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him" (John 6:56). Our union with Jesus is intensified in every reception of the Holy Eucharist by increasing sanctifying grace in us. Mother Teresa of Calcutta explained that in Holy Communion we touch Jesus. St. Vincent de Paul Vin•cent de Paul stated we leave Jesus in prayer to find Jesus in people. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">C - Christ Jesus, totally truly present. </span><br /><br />Pope John Paul II's call for Perpetual Adoration which brings about tremendous spiritual healing spiritual healing, "Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed" (John 20:29). We in our lives accentuate the positive and celebrate this great gift of Jesus' real presence, the gift of real life. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">H - Healing. </span><br /><br />It is important to come to the Eucharist open to Healing of mind, body, soul and life. The Eucharist can help to nourish and sustain us. It is at Communion when we are closest to Jesus that we can ask for whatever we need.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">A - Abandonment. </span><br /><br />"Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me" (John 14:1). Jesus abandons Himself, His Life to us on the Cross and again in the Sacred Host. This calls us to great respect for the Eucharist, Jesus Christ, present in our midst, Emmanuel. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">R - Reconciliation. </span><br /><br />"If you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions" (Matthew 6:14). Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II has said that the Holy Eucharist restores life, and leads to Reconciliation and Reconciliation leads to the Eucharist.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">I - Intimacy. </span><br /><br />"Remain in me, as I remain in you" (John 15:4). The Eucharistic Presence of Christ begins at the moment of consecration and endures as long as the Eucharistic species subsists. The most personal relationship in our lives is that with Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. Jesus waits for us to come and share with Him as a friend, our best friend. We should approach Him with the heart of Mary, who was closer to Jesus than anyone else, asking her to show us the way to His Sacred Heart. Pope John Paul II spends hours before the Blessed Sacrament every day. He challenges us to visit regularly. Jesus calls to us: "Will you not spend an hour with Me." Mother Teresa stated that the hours spent before the Blessed Sacrament are some of the most important hours of our lives. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">S - Sacrifice. </span><br /><br />"Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me" (Matthew 10:37-38). Archbishop Fulton Sheen stated that we should never let our suffering go to waste. We should give it to the Lord so He can take it to the Father and intercede for us, our families, our loved ones and our lives. We should join our lives, our sufferings and joys, with the suffering of Jesus Christ, with the offering of the bread and wine which becomes the body and blood of Christ.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">T – Transformation / Thanksgiving</span><br /><br />Like St. Paul we are challenged to convert, to put aside what is not of God. We should give God permission to change what needs changing in our lives, and to imitate Mary and do only the Will of God. "Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus" (Phil 2:5). All the lepers were healed by Jesus. Only one of the ten came back to thank Jesus. Let us thank Him daily for the Gift of Life by participating in Mass as often as we can.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">• Article written by Father James Whalen, the parish priest of Sainte-Marguerite-Marie parish in Cumberland, Ontario.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHskuwjZ0o06-ttO0a-hK0dfETjHmYJCkZaW8giPJLiiNkyQPqJ6JnRjkXkd5riZJO4fwrUnNbtlDDqweHyyUQTtJ_yFQFP2jD6YQCDoxITZZmSb5dRodod3JJLUcl65hiOGtikjvAQwU/s1600-h/e2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 270px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHskuwjZ0o06-ttO0a-hK0dfETjHmYJCkZaW8giPJLiiNkyQPqJ6JnRjkXkd5riZJO4fwrUnNbtlDDqweHyyUQTtJ_yFQFP2jD6YQCDoxITZZmSb5dRodod3JJLUcl65hiOGtikjvAQwU/s320/e2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392577310259655538" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-26926081044748366742009-10-14T10:59:00.002+08:002009-10-14T11:14:03.610+08:00A Future Not of Our Own (Romero)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNaZaF4nCqrttK28j4kbqiGDKqxouLRMue90csSYy7tDzO-VYYsjVVjmur5E7uUR1ijimLN6lHO90fdzfDLTJuoXd7UkwylAb5JYHOWH5FE9snDg5mA09voyOgJsmwOMuNWCURA065iD8/s1600-h/RomeroA.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNaZaF4nCqrttK28j4kbqiGDKqxouLRMue90csSYy7tDzO-VYYsjVVjmur5E7uUR1ijimLN6lHO90fdzfDLTJuoXd7UkwylAb5JYHOWH5FE9snDg5mA09voyOgJsmwOMuNWCURA065iD8/s320/RomeroA.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392287280139140066" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">A prayer / poem by Archbishop Oscar Romero</span><br /><br />It helps, now and then, to step back<br />and take the long view.<br />The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts,<br />it is beyond our vision. <br /><br />We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of<br />the magnificent enterprise that is God's work.<br />Nothing we do is complete,<br />which is another way of saying<br />that the kingdom always lies beyond us. <br /><br />No statement says all that could be said.<br />No prayer fully expresses our faith.<br />No confession brings perfection.<br />No pastoral visit brings wholeness.<br />No programme accomplishes the church's mission.<br />No set of goals and objectives includes everything. <br /><br />This is what we are about:<br />We plant seeds that one day will grow.<br />We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.<br />We lay foundations that will need further development.<br />We provide yeast that produces effects beyond our capabilities. <br /><br />We cannot do everything<br />and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that.<br />This enables us to do something,<br />and to do it very well.<br />It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way,<br />an opportunity for God's grace to enter and do the rest. <br /><br />We may never see the end results,<br />but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.<br />We are workers, not master builders,<br />ministers, not messiahs.<br />We are prophets of a future not our own.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRn3QfP_quJPVmUSRZIN14j40NkxdYzT5kNDpIi4xCiKZ0GgL5BDNNJA89y6QE8AcVatdJiTiqL_-ojKClVIH5R4WAO0f4GZBOHueUqNOWWdn9ZZ4OZGugbDwZXDbjtTuOt5KW6hiVvEg/s1600-h/romero2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 215px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRn3QfP_quJPVmUSRZIN14j40NkxdYzT5kNDpIi4xCiKZ0GgL5BDNNJA89y6QE8AcVatdJiTiqL_-ojKClVIH5R4WAO0f4GZBOHueUqNOWWdn9ZZ4OZGugbDwZXDbjtTuOt5KW6hiVvEg/s320/romero2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392287711904022514" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-74226376998949697172009-10-14T05:22:00.000+08:002009-10-14T05:28:20.721+08:00Jesuit Colloquim Prayer<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3IxQTpy13tF5Un7aTtyG2NB_0h5FrqZo4AeZn1RIf_Jj4NlCqCf1rKedRBAyUjTihl23w98enajtBoUt2ODq8LXxmsPFTYic28MEjL6nGPpadklMpTm7X8vnrM9DB9Nse2V1UnpBGkjs/s1600-h/pray.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 276px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3IxQTpy13tF5Un7aTtyG2NB_0h5FrqZo4AeZn1RIf_Jj4NlCqCf1rKedRBAyUjTihl23w98enajtBoUt2ODq8LXxmsPFTYic28MEjL6nGPpadklMpTm7X8vnrM9DB9Nse2V1UnpBGkjs/s320/pray.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392199527414870290" /></a><br />Jesus, Teacher,<br />Who kindled the light of truth<br />In the hearts of all,<br />You have chosen us for the mission<br />Of teaching others,<br />Even as you taught,<br />And have given to us, this community of educators,<br />The ministry of celebrating life<br />And of consecrating the earth.<br /><br />Give us new hearts:<br />Open, understanding, committed<br />To all that is true, good, loveable;<br />Make us docile—to learn to serve<br />Even from those we seek to serve.<br /><br />Infuse in us the spirit of collaboration<br />To enable us graciously to give<br />Even as we gratefully receive.<br /><br />Pour forth your spirit into this,<br />Your community of educators,<br />So that the zeal of our personal commitment to YOU,<br />And the ministry of teaching<br />Be kindled in our hearts.<br /><br />Praise and thanks to you Christ Jesus, Teacher<br />For calling us to be educators,<br />And for all others who teach in your name. Amen<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpjnlmtlNtvQjLzqsmVqdZYGI9jDSHeTp8SW1teDkB717eNEyLLVGsAeQtmBMC-kH7zw5sW3v0jhFmVCT4CsDyoQMtEudtsABr8-efC29f9ywIwYzUjVmaMQoLoQ0dvN1VWbRJtyrn5SI/s1600-h/pray2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpjnlmtlNtvQjLzqsmVqdZYGI9jDSHeTp8SW1teDkB717eNEyLLVGsAeQtmBMC-kH7zw5sW3v0jhFmVCT4CsDyoQMtEudtsABr8-efC29f9ywIwYzUjVmaMQoLoQ0dvN1VWbRJtyrn5SI/s320/pray2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392199375288139138" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-1952635714903994402009-10-14T05:10:00.000+08:002009-10-14T05:18:42.928+08:00Life (Mother Teresa)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTty85aUnCxkWPialR53s37EvfThYJWoletijZGAwOJc8LsLDS5iy2NYzISXJzjruQHe0IPp6Bvsw0LR2pRfadNTywQtElzWklhBXiXY9uXTdF0v-ewJmI__zNZG5SOiamW9-UP8huaHQ/s1600-h/life2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 258px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTty85aUnCxkWPialR53s37EvfThYJWoletijZGAwOJc8LsLDS5iy2NYzISXJzjruQHe0IPp6Bvsw0LR2pRfadNTywQtElzWklhBXiXY9uXTdF0v-ewJmI__zNZG5SOiamW9-UP8huaHQ/s320/life2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392197031066179922" /></a><br /><br />Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.<br />Life is beauty, admire it.<br />Life is bliss, taste it.<br />Life is a dream, realise it.<br />Life is a challenge, meet it.<br />Life is a duty, complete it.<br />Life is a game, play it.<br />Life is costly, care for it.<br />Life is wealth, keep it.<br />Life is love, enjoy it.<br />Life is mystery, know it.<br />Life is a promise, fulfills it.<br />Life is sorrow, overcome it.<br />Life is a song, sing it.<br />Life is a struggle, accept it.<br />Life is tragedy, confront it.<br />Life is an adventure, dare it.<br />Life is luck, make it.<br />Life is too precious, do not destroy it.<br />Life is life, fight for it.<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">- Mother Teresa</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdDip8zW-zvuRw5HT3acKS1ThNxtJkO2fO5U9aYFvRR3lsL1pFI1Hxac4QDHJALUuRwwpU42zf7b75RLsSNA7_gsvxWVAPW-FcV6rpsOaES2gFA6jDesjnEQ4MQu-xVRZbAgo3lAktKAA/s1600-h/life.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 318px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdDip8zW-zvuRw5HT3acKS1ThNxtJkO2fO5U9aYFvRR3lsL1pFI1Hxac4QDHJALUuRwwpU42zf7b75RLsSNA7_gsvxWVAPW-FcV6rpsOaES2gFA6jDesjnEQ4MQu-xVRZbAgo3lAktKAA/s320/life.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392196859346896770" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-45678708621617186982009-10-14T04:58:00.000+08:002009-10-14T05:01:36.806+08:00The Asceticism of Non-partisanship (Huang,SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwtrRPitzQDNQinksH2ZdGD0sSw_S2HcCPw6e_F4T1_j188Y-iCZ865Ma_O1ZjqxraxuGGivkFuUjZukRSsogMfqh1D2VZOo90zQcsBVGSIjJn263usWXRSCl8EkOjkwX0weaHJQZTwl0/s1600-h/vote3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 230px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwtrRPitzQDNQinksH2ZdGD0sSw_S2HcCPw6e_F4T1_j188Y-iCZ865Ma_O1ZjqxraxuGGivkFuUjZukRSsogMfqh1D2VZOo90zQcsBVGSIjJn263usWXRSCl8EkOjkwX0weaHJQZTwl0/s320/vote3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392192473429675394" /></a><br /><br />I am convinced that, unless morally necessary, priests and religious should practice the asceticism of not announcing their personal preferences for political candidates. Particularly not on Facebook.<br /><br />Like it or not, the moment one is ordained or takes religious vows, one becomes a "public person." As "public persons," clerics and vowed religious speak not just for themselves but for the Church. And since ordination constitutes priests as publicly authorized preachers, priests have to be careful not to seem to confuse particular political choices, within a morally permissible pluralism of options, with the Gospel. Otherwise, one unfairly limits, often without knowing it, the legitimate freedom of the faithful with regard to political choices, and also needlessly jeopardizes the unity in Christ of the Christian community, a unity that transcends parties and which the pastor has particular responsibility for building up.<br /><br />I think priests and religious have to be more aware of their power, both the official power granted them by the Church in view of their ministry, and the symbolic power that they bear within cultures, particularly cultures in which religion remains a determinative aspect of common life. And they have to be careful and responsible in their use of it, particularly in the way they speak and express themselves in the political realm. Unthinking speech, in which private opinion and public teaching become confused, can only devalue and cheapen the moral authority of the church in the public sphere.<br /><br />This is an ascetic practice, because it involves some sacrifice: giving up the gratification of expressing personal political preferences, often strongly felt.<br /><br />But unless those preferences can be justified as morally obliging on the community, or virtually so,I think priests and religious should not give relief to their private feelings on specific political candidates by public expression. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsqT0gnp6a9Beq5iJwXVe1WBJ61iJg_djDa6-Kky_0VnMXpbgw3kiKvuBsnZprBV2ywoZBjdNubuj16XEdzE6M860lJMGzopGZPelIoGIuoYw78jo6PsKSrlh9bLByES8Q5CYWhXg5Ct0/s1600-h/vote2.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 302px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsqT0gnp6a9Beq5iJwXVe1WBJ61iJg_djDa6-Kky_0VnMXpbgw3kiKvuBsnZprBV2ywoZBjdNubuj16XEdzE6M860lJMGzopGZPelIoGIuoYw78jo6PsKSrlh9bLByES8Q5CYWhXg5Ct0/s320/vote2.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392192229521701762" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-59276177159579255442009-10-13T21:41:00.000+08:002009-10-13T21:50:08.547+08:00We Give Her Back to You (Arevalo,SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Fk_49u63wMLFGAvJqQIYFvu-w1rtLet8-n97XenNO5SeD2p3le2nKg1hMxFDgXz74_Jx1AFMytjg_-vOqv6s-L_Z9EnNtDl8s7D2LUzoiypwcAfqRNIDXyvA_WfGglNdsOfK8qmWZvE/s1600-h/cory2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 220px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Fk_49u63wMLFGAvJqQIYFvu-w1rtLet8-n97XenNO5SeD2p3le2nKg1hMxFDgXz74_Jx1AFMytjg_-vOqv6s-L_Z9EnNtDl8s7D2LUzoiypwcAfqRNIDXyvA_WfGglNdsOfK8qmWZvE/s320/cory2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392081430517995890" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">“We give her back to You, with grateful but breaking hearts"<br /> <br />By Catalino Arevalo, SJ <br /> <br />(Homily at the Funeral Mass for former President Cory Aquino, Manila Cathedral, August 5, 2009)</span><br /> <br />IF I may, I will first ask pardon for what might be an unseemly introduction. In the last days of President Cory’s illness, when it seemed inevitable that the end would come, the assignment to give this homily was given to me by Kris Aquino. She reminded me that many times and publicly, her mother had said she was asking me to preach at her funeral Mass. Always I told her I was years older, and would go ahead of her, but she would just smile at this. Those who knew Tita Cory knew that when she had made up her mind, she had made up her mind. <br /> <br />What then is my task this morning? I know for certain that if liturgical rules were not what they are, she would have asked Congressman Ted Locsin to be here in my place. No one has it in him to speak as fittingly of Cory Aquino in the manner and measure of tribute she uniquely deserves, no one else as he. Asked in an interview, she said that the address before the two Houses of Congress at Washington she considered perhaps the supreme shining moment of her life. We know who helped her with those words with which she conquered America . These last few days, too, every gifted writer in the press and other media has written on her person and political history, analyzed almost every side of her life and achievement as our own “icon of democracy”. More powerfully even, images of her and of Edsa Uno have filled hour after hour of TV time. Really, what else is left to be said?<br /> <br />SO, Tita Cory, you’ll forgive me if I don’t even try to give a shadow of the great oration that should be given here this morning. Let me instead try to say some things the people who persevered for hours on end in the serried lines at Ortigas or here in Intramuros can (I hope) more easily follow. This is a lowly tribute at one with “the old sneakers and clothes made tighter by age, soaked by water and much worse for wear” of the men, women and children who braved the rain and the sun because they wanted to tell you, even for a brief and hurried moment, how much they love you. You truly “now belong among the immortals”. But these words are for those mortals who with bruised hearts have lost “the mother of a people”. Maybe less elegantly than the seminarian said to me Monday, they would like to say also: “She was the only true queen our people have ever had, and she was queen because we knew she truly held our hearts in the greatness and the gentleness of her own.”<br /> <br />One of my teachers used to tell us that if we really wanted to know and understand a position held, we would have to learn it from someone fully committed to it. Just as only one who genuinely loves a person, really knows him or her also. So to begin with, I turned to three real “experts on Cory”; to ask them where for them the true greatness of Cory Aquino lay. My first source thought it was in her selflessness, seen above all in her love of country—surely above self; yes, even above family. Her self-giving, then, for us; what she had received, all became gift for us. The second, thought it was in her faith her greatness lay, in her total trust in God which was also her greatest strength. And the third said it was in her courage and the unshakable loyalty that went with it. It was a strength others could lean on; it never wavered; it never broke....Cory’s selflessness and self-giving; her faith (the Holy Father just called it “unwavering”); her courage, her strength. May I use this short list to frame what I will say?<br /> <br />O, let me name my experts now, if I may. They were three, all of them women close to her: Maria Elena Aquino Cruz, whom we know as Ballsy, Maria Aurora Aquino Abellada, Pinky to her friends; and Victoria Elisa Aquino Dee, Viel to the family. Kris and Noynoy are the public figures; they can speak for themselves. I hope they will forgive me that I did not ask.<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">First, selflessness</span><br /> <br />First, then, her generous selflessness. For us this morning what is surely most to the point is her love of country. When her final illness was upon her already, she said—most recently at the Greenmeadows chapel (her last public words, I think)—that she was offering her suffering, first to God, then for our people. I heard that grandson Jiggy asked her why first for country and people, and she said that always the priority line-up was God, our country and our people, and then family. On radio, the other night, the commentator asked an old woman in line why she stood hours in the rain to get into La Salle . “Ito lang ang maibibigay ko po sa kanya, bilang pasasalamat.” “Bakit, ano ba ang ibinigay ni Cory sa inyo?” “Di po ba ang buhay nya? Ang buong sarili nya? At di po ba ang pag-asa? Kaya mahal na mahal po namin siya.” Early on, on TV, they ran many times the clip from a last interview. She says, “I thank God, and then all of you, for making me a Filipino, for making me one of you. I cherish this as one of the truly great gifts I have received.” A few weeks from her death, she could say that; without put-on or the least insincerity. “I thank you, for making me one of you.”<br />Her selflessness, her self-gift. Pope Benedict likes to say that the God whom Jesus Christ revealed to us, is Father. A Father who is wholly self-gift; the God “whose nature is to give Himself”—to give Himself to us, in His Son. And, the Pope says, that is what is the meaning of Jesus and the life of Jesus, and, by discipleship, what the Christian’s life is meant to be. We Christians, too, we must give ourselves away in the self-giving of love.<br />“Ang buhay po nya at sarili. Kaya po mahal na mahal namin sya.” In the last days, when finally and reluctantly still she admitted she had much pain, I kept thinking that only a couple of weeks before, for the first time publicly, she said that she was offering it up first of all for us.<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Second, her faith</span><br /> <br />Second, her faith. Pinky says, it was her mother’s greatest strength; it was what was deepest in her. Her faith was her bedrock, and it was, bedrock. Frederick Buechner the ordained minister and novelist likes to say that through his lifetime, he’s had many doubts, even deep doubt, daily doubts. “But I have never really looked down into the deep abyss and seen only nothing. Somehow I have known, that underneath all the shadows and the darkness, there are the everlasting arms.” I think Cory’s faith was like that, not in the multiplicity of doubts (even if, in a life so filled with trial, there surely were doubts too), but in the certainty of the everlasting arms. More than once she told me, “Every time life painted me into a corner, with seemingly no escape, I always turned to Him in trust. I knew He would never abandon us if we trusted in Him. And you know, somehow, He found a way out for us.” And so Pinky says, “Mom was always calm even in the most trying times. She trusted God would always be there for us, She was our source of strength. She made this world seem so much safer and less cruel for us. And now that our source of strength is gone, we have to make our faith something more like hers. But we know in our hearts that in every storm she will watch over us from heaven.” <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"> <br />Devotion to Mary</span><br /> <br />Within this faith was her devotion to Mary, the place Our Lady of Fatima and the rosary held in her life. All we can say on this, this morning is that Our Lady truly had a special, living presence in her life: Mary was, for Cory, true mother and incomparable friend; as we say in the hymn—vita, dulcedo et spes: life, sweetness and hope. No, Mary was not the center of her faith, but its air, its atmosphere; and the rosary, her lifeline through every trial and crisis. In the long harsh months of her illness, Sister Lucia’s beads almost never left her hands. She was holding them, as last Saturday was dawning and her years of exile were at last done, when we know her Lady “showed unto her, the blessed fruit of her womb.”<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Third, courage</span><br /> <br />Lastly, her courage, her strength. Her children tell us that their father was only able to do what he wanted to do, because her loyalty and her support for his purposes was total, so she practically raised them up as a single parent. Ninoy himself wrote, again and again, that he endured imprisonment and persecution, leaning so much on her courage and love. And after his death, when she could have withdrawn in a way “safely” to her own life with her children at last, she stayed on her feet and fought on in the years that followed, through the snap elections and what went before and after them, through her presidency and the seven coup attempts which tried to bring her down. Even after she had given up her rule, could she not have said “enough”, and we would all have understood? But with not the least desire for position or power again, whenever she thought the spaces of freedom and the true good of our land were threatened, she went back to the streets of struggle again. Once again she led us out of the apathy we so readily fall into; once again she called us out of our comfort zones to the roads of sacrifice.<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Purity of heart</span><br /> <br />Here, even hesitantly, may I add one trait, one virtue, to those her daughters have named? One day Cardinal Stephen Kim of South Korea asked if he might visit her. Through Ballsy, she said yes. It was a day Malacañang was “closed”; they were making up the roster of members of the forthcoming Constitutional Convention. Someone from the palace staff ordered us turned away when we came; it was Ballsy who rescued us. Stephen Kim, hero and saint to his own people—perhaps, along with Cardinal Sin, one the two greatest Asian Catholic prelates of our time—spent some 45 minutes talking with her. When we were on our way back, he said, “I know why the Lord has entrusted her with power, at this most difficult time...It is because she is pure of heart. She has no desire for power; even now it is with reluctance she takes it on. And she has done this only because she wants to do whatever she can for your people.” He said, “She truly moves me by the purity of her spirit. God has given a great gift to your people.” <br /> <br />With this purity of heart, in the scheme of the Christian Gospel, there is joined another reality which really, only the saints understand. It is suffering. How often (it is really often; over and over through the years) she spoke of suffering as part of her life. Much contemporary spirituality speaks of suffering almost as the epitome of all evil. But in fact for all the saints, it is a mystery they themselves do not really understand nor really explain, Yet they accept it quietly, simply as part of their lives in Christ. There is only one painting she ever gave me. Kris said then, when her mom gave it to me, that it was her mom’s favorite. The painting carries 1998 as its date; Cory named it “Crosses and roses.” There are seven crosses for the seven months and seven weeks of her beloved Ninoy’s imprisonment, and for the seven attempted coups during her presidency, and many roses, multicolored roses all around them. At the back of the painting, in her own hand, she wrote a haiku of her own: “Crosses and roses/ make my life more meaningful./ I cannot complain.” Often she spoke of her “quota of suffering.” When she spoke of her last illness, she said: “I thought I had filled up my quota of suffering, but it seems there is no quota. I look at Jesus, who was wholly sinless: how much suffering he had to bear for our sake.” And in her last public talk (it was at Greenmeadows chapel), the first time she spoke of her own pain: “I have not asked for it, but if it is meant to be part of my life still, so be it. I will not complain.” “I try to join it with Jesus’s pain and offering. For what it’s worth, I am offering it up for our people.” Friends here present, I tell you honestly I hesitated before going into this, this morning. But without it, part of the real Cory Aquino would be kept from view. Quite simply, this was integral to the love she bore for her people. <br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Thanks to her children</span><br /> <br />AT this point, may I, following the lead Mr. Rapa Lopa has given, just speak a word of thanks to President Cory’s children, who shared so much of her service and her sacrifice. They have almost never had their father and mother for themselves. For so many years, they have been asked to share Ninoy and Cory with all of us. And because of the blood and the spirit their parents have passed on to them, they too gave with generosity and grace the sacrifices we demanded of them. Ballsy and Pinky, Viel and Kris, your husbands and your children, and Senator Noynoy, may we thank you this morning from all our hearts, and may we offer also the gratitude of the hearts of a people now forever in your debt.<br /> <br />I have used up all my time, some of you will say, and I have not even approached the essential: her political life, that she was our nation’s unique icon of democracy, that Cory Aquino who is know throughout the world; was TIME magazine’s 1986’s woman of the year; she who led the ending of the dictatorship that had ruined our nation, the bearer of liberation, of freedom, and of hope for a prostrate people. <br /> <br />So, by your leave, may I add one item, along this line at last. In October 1995, Milano’s Catholic University , conferred on her the doctorate honoris causa in the political sciences (incidentally, only her twenty-third honorary degree). This was only the fifth time this particular one had been given since the university’s inception: the first time to an Asian, the first ever to a woman. She wanted, at the end of her lectio magistralis, to spell out, perhaps for the first time with some explicitness and completeness, her personal political creed. She listed seven basic beliefs which, regarding political life , she said she tried to live by. Then she spoke of one more, “one more I may not omit.” Perhaps the paragraph which followed is worth citing here, even without comment, because it has something to say to our present hour.<br /> <br />(We cite her words now.) “I believe that the vocation of politics must be accepted by those who take up the service of leadership as a vocation in its noblest meaning: it demands all of life. For the life of one who would lead his or her people—in our time as never before—such a life must strive for coherence with the vision aspired to, or else that vision itself and its realization are already betrayed. That vision must itself be present, in some authentic way, in those who seek to realize it: present, in the witness of their example; present, in a purity of heart vis-à-vis the exercise and usages of power; present, in an ultimate fidelity to principle, in a dedication that is ready to count the cost in terms of ‘nothing less than everything.’ It is Cardinal Newman, I believe, who said that in this world, we do good only in the measure that we pay for it in the currency of our own lives. For us Christians, there is always the image of Jesus, and the price his service demanded of him. And for me there has been, as a constant reminder, the sacrifice my husband offered, and the word that it has spoken, to me and my people.” (Cory Aquino, end of citation)<br /> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Conclusion</span><br /> <br />With all this said, I am done. Ma’am, tapos na po ang assignment ko. It has been so hard to do what you asked. But I comfort myself that these so many words really do not matter. What counts in the end is really—what all this week has been; these past few days’ outpouring of our people’s gratitude and love; what will come after all this today; what we will do, in the times ahead, in fidelity to your gift. I received a text last night from a man of some age and with some history behind him. “She made me proud again, to be Filipino.” Maybe that says it all. Cardinal Sin used to put it somewhat differently. “What a gift God has given our people, in giving Cory Aquino to us.” The nobility and courage of your spirit, the generosity of your heart, the grace and graciousness that accompanied you always. They called it “Cory magic”—but it was the truth, and the purity and beauty, clear and radiant within you, that we saw. And the hope that arose from that. And when the crosses came to you and you did not refuse to bear them, more to be one with your Christ and one with your people and their pain. “Blessed are the pure of heart; for they shall see God.”<br /> <br />Thank You Father in heaven, for your gift to us of Cory Aquino. Thank You that she passed once this way through our lives with the grace You gave her to share with us. If we give her back to you, we do it with hearts of thanksgiving, but now, oh, with breaking hearts also, because of the greatness and beauty of the gift which she was for us, the likes of which, perhaps, we shall not know again. Salamat po, Tita Cory, mahal na mahal po namin kayo.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhueDQYTKK4B96eFciLXTa2jwc2S9wxzucbftpaLHmOGLpXkgBG46dX8LExwk93GrkPUWODw34cPCW_WK0KhtLrtLWokfNXF3rEiKihTtMbtpJ1mYPuS_NII2BTfOIb8nVlYEZ5LotPaPA/s1600-h/cory.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 313px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhueDQYTKK4B96eFciLXTa2jwc2S9wxzucbftpaLHmOGLpXkgBG46dX8LExwk93GrkPUWODw34cPCW_WK0KhtLrtLWokfNXF3rEiKihTtMbtpJ1mYPuS_NII2BTfOIb8nVlYEZ5LotPaPA/s320/cory.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392081261929865330" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-14520138787372303522009-10-13T21:39:00.000+08:002009-10-13T21:55:46.440+08:00Scars from Cambodia (Lamug-Nañawa, SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlDQmF_6jSxBZVcmtsuyU25jUymtItWIphODnFEivHJER6St3PMgu-y4QAfgF-osSpMwGfny08oHS_FyhbWRar6RLXxZIWa1Br7Lm99EuGCeYPRPnMcraNKGKztP0yUKjdJpm12Q3D0h0/s1600-h/cambodia2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlDQmF_6jSxBZVcmtsuyU25jUymtItWIphODnFEivHJER6St3PMgu-y4QAfgF-osSpMwGfny08oHS_FyhbWRar6RLXxZIWa1Br7Lm99EuGCeYPRPnMcraNKGKztP0yUKjdJpm12Q3D0h0/s320/cambodia2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392082890078152114" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Reflections of a Newly Ordained Priest <br />Returning from Foreign Mission Gabriel Lamug-Nañawa, SJ</span><br /><br /><br />I didn't expect to get scarred in Cambodia . When I was missioned to Cambodia during our ordination to the priesthood nearly four years ago, an event which brought both tears of joy and anxiety to my parents, a number of people warned me about landmines and other dangers. Young and eager as I was back then, I didn't think much of their words of warning. Now, three and a half years later, I do find scars on my body, true gifts from Cambodia , and for which I am most grateful to God.<br /><br />Until recent years, Cambodia had the highest number of landmine accidents in the whole world, averaging around two to three explosions a day, everyday. Within Cambodia , the province with the highest number of landmine accidents is Battambang. That is where we live. Although the number of incidents has fortunately gone down due to demining efforts and greater awareness of the people, our team from the Arrupe Welcome Center would go out to the villages everyday to seek out victims of mines and war, mothers, fathers, children with a disability, finding different ways of helping them.<br /><br />The scars on my feet and legs remind me of this. We would ride motorbikes to the villages, along unpaved dirt roads that are dusty and slippery during the dry season, and muddy and slippery during the wet. I have fallen off the motorbike several times, into ditches and muddy pot holes, leaving scars that remind me of our team and their dedicated efforts to reach out to those whose very bodies, lives and families have been broken by war.<br /><br />Once there was a poor man who used to be a Khmer Rouge soldier, a father of six who had lost his left leg to a landmine many years ago. He and his family lived two and half to three and a half hours away depending on how rough the road had become. Although we had been helping his family with land and a simple new house, we would oftentimes arrive at his home and find him drunk with his fellow neighbors. Expressing his willingness to change, we asked another NGO to give the community a workshop on alcoholism and domestic violence. Only days after the seminar, his wife rang us around eleven in the evening to say that he had just fallen from a tractor-drawn cart. He was seriously injured and couldn't move his body from the neck down. He was also drunk.<br /><br />Since he was nowhere near any medical facility, the Cambodian team together with some foreign volunteers left in the middle of the night to pick him up and take him to the nearest hospital. This for me was simply heroism of body and soul. It was the Good Shepherd at work, God's fearless love reaching out to God's children, despite darkness, despite disappointments. They did reach him on time. He is alive and recovering from a fractured bone in his neck. I am happy to have scars that remind me of this breadth and depth of love.<br /><br />A longer scar is on my belly. It took three operations within five months in two countries to put it there. It was due to an internal infection which I acquired because of my participation in the Passion play for Holy Week. But more than anything, this scar reminds me of a Buddhist lady who approached me on that Good Friday. She asked me if she could wash my feet. Sensing the purity of her intentions, we sat by a corner in the house. As she was washing my feet, just before the dramatization of Christ's Passion and Death, she started to cry and "confess her sins," telling me of the things she had done that weighed heavily upon her. As she finished she calmly said, "Please take all these with you to the cross." I was deeply moved. This Buddhist lady's intuitive action had touched my own faith and has ever since been a source of grace and inspiration for me. The scar on my belly will forever remind me of people's faith that continuously strive<br />to find God in different contexts.<br /><br />Leaving Cambodia has not been easy. They are a simple people, with basic needs and uncomplicated relationships, and as of now still undistracted by the "noise" of consumerism. The people of Battambang, and the staff and students with disabilities of the Arrupe Welcome Center have all been wonderful. Simply to be in their presence was truly a humanizing experience. Those with whom I worked were fantastic, mostly Buddhists, some former Khmer Rouge soldiers and supporters, but many of whom have been my heroes and models for generosity and loving kindness. They have been most edifying, and their ways of doing things and of dealing with other people have unwittingly called me, even challenged me to be a better priest. The daily actions of our Apostolic Prefect, Msgr. Enrique Figaredo SJ, inspire the community around him to be joyful, always looking forward with a positive and loving disposition, always searching for creative ways to help the poor. Putting<br />this altogether, I dare say that within these years of living and working in Cambodia, I have experienced a sliver, a bit of something of the Kingdom of God.<br /><br />Hence, having to leave all this behind has etched my third scar. Though not visible, I know it is there, for it reminds me of its existence every time I remember Cambodia .<br /><br />In the end, our scars remind us of our past wounds. Some wounds we have inflicted on ourselves caused by our own mistakes, some we have received from other people. But at their best, some of our scars are there because we have dared to love, having borne wounds as the cost of reaching out beyond ourselves towards our neighbors in need. Jesus Himself freely received the Cross out of love, His wounded and broken body reminding us of God's fearless love.<br /><br />I can honestly say that I have seen this love not so much in words but in everyday deeds, lived out and personified by many people I have met. The mere witnessing of this love at work is a grace in itself.<br /><br />In Cambodia , there is a growing devotion to an image of Christ on the Cross with only one leg. More than just a scar or a wound, Christ is missing a leg. Although some may call it blasphemous, irreverent tampering with a holy image, it remains to be a meaningful icon that speaks to the people of Christ's compassion and fearless love.<br /><br />In gratitude for the wounds that others have borne for us, may our own scars be out of love for God and for God's people.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidcQn9_k49eSRa8Q8ecT6ThJdlCdCzrRWfcQRPsq072iwmrUUsWwNsVzNzp6GCMRAWzTmvgYXiLkpSOCHfD_WQCWGrtKzK77KsVmj_KDG5pBG_vjSE3-pRnWyOFN_XP_Qm7siHHpyw7ls/s1600-h/cambodia.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 215px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidcQn9_k49eSRa8Q8ecT6ThJdlCdCzrRWfcQRPsq072iwmrUUsWwNsVzNzp6GCMRAWzTmvgYXiLkpSOCHfD_WQCWGrtKzK77KsVmj_KDG5pBG_vjSE3-pRnWyOFN_XP_Qm7siHHpyw7ls/s320/cambodia.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392082707599118994" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-220518920764845402009-10-13T17:47:00.000+08:002009-10-13T17:58:45.772+08:00Homily: Opening of Sesqui Celebration (Magadia,SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjulDJEIDEIjN2ioq3o9NS4IgTJX8mjSamS12Vq_R_w7B3hDEe78k1EJyHyv6dGf8fe-aWM2GOcLdQhW8ZiJTl0CMM_K4I_t2K243wHXcbynx68szlSIF_VKCpEapMgOCD5nyV4MaRqhvc/s1600-h/return2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 281px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjulDJEIDEIjN2ioq3o9NS4IgTJX8mjSamS12Vq_R_w7B3hDEe78k1EJyHyv6dGf8fe-aWM2GOcLdQhW8ZiJTl0CMM_K4I_t2K243wHXcbynx68szlSIF_VKCpEapMgOCD5nyV4MaRqhvc/s320/return2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392021807225733666" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Homily for the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ<br />Kick-off Celebration of the 150th Anniversary of the Province and ADMU<br />14 June 2009, Manila Cathedral, Intramuros … By José CJ Magadia, SJ<br />Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus</span><br /><br />This homily has two parts. The first part is historical, and reflects on the special celebration for which we are gathered this morning. The second part considers the Church feast that we commemorate this day.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">I. First, on the special celebration. </span><br /><br />Exactly 150 years ago, on June 14, 1859, a Tuesday morning, ten Jesuits of the Aragon Province disembarked from the frigate Luisita. After months of voyage from Spain, braving often rough seas and sailing through with the uncertainties of nineteenth century travel, the ten missionaries finally end their long journey, setting foot on their destination, led by their Superior, Father José Fernández Cuevas. They entered this walled city of Intramuros, where we are gathered today, were warmly welcomed by the Augustinian friars who were there to meet them, and take them into their villa house, where the Jesuits stayed for a month and a half, while the new mission house was still being built. This special friendship with the Augustinians carried through in those early days in Intramuros, as each year thereafter, a Jesuit would sing the Mass and preach in San Agustín Church on the Feast of St Augustine and an Augustinian would do the same in the San Ignacio Church on the Feast of St Ignatius.<br /><br /><br />On that very same day, June 14, the Jesuits promptly made the rounds of the city officials, going through the protocol, presenting themselves to the colonial authorities, and informing them of their very specific purpose, “for the missions of Mindanao and Joló.” And the Jesuits subsequently did just that. Beginning with Tamontaca in the delta of the Rio Grande de Mindanao, they set forth to Tetuan and Zamboanga, Manicaán and Davao, Dapitan, Surigao, and Jolo. They climbed mountains and explored rivers, on foot, on horseback, old and young. They set up missions and built up parishes. They opened up mission schools, and administered the sacraments, and taught children their catechism. They wrote the first grammars and compiled the first dictionaries, in Maguindanao, and Tiruray, and Bagobo. And by the end of the 19th century, the Society of Jesus had taken over all the mission posts of Mindanao and Sulu. <br /><br /> <br />But there was a not so minor matter that distracted them from Mindanao. In the 1850s, there was only one primary school in the city – the Escuela Pía on Calle Real, founded in 1800, but of far-from-ideal quality. On August 5, 1859, a group of Manila residents petitioned the Spanish Governor-General for the newly-arrived Jesuits to begin a school. The response from Father Cuevas was “no,” because the Jesuits mission was to be in Mindanao. But the petitioners did not allow themselves to be easily defeated by this refusal. They represented and insisted. So, Father Cuevas met with his men to discuss the matter. In the end, he told them that the answer was still “no,” unless the Governor-General would issue an order in writing. On October 1, 1859, a decree was promulgated transferring the direction of the Escuela Pía to the Jesuits and renaming it the Escuela Municipal. Thus, on December 10, 1859, twenty-three boys came to class on the first day under the new management. By March of 1860, there were already 170 students. <br /><br /><br />Thus re-commenced in this archipelago the great tradition of Jesuit education. Father Horacio de la Costa describes those early days well. “Classes were held from 8:00 to 11:00 o’clock in the morning and from 3:00 to 5:00 in the afternoon, except on Sundays and holy days. On Thursdays, the afternoon class was omitted.” There were no vacations, but during the months of April, May and June, there were no afternoon classes. There was life in that school, with voices chanting the Latin declensions or reciting the rosary or shouting at play. They studied reading, writing and ‘rithmetic; they read history and studied astronomy and discussed religion. They followed Cicero closely, “paraphrased him, imitated him, learnt him by heart, used his speech and idiom in the classroom, in ordinary conversation….” <br /><br /><br />By 1909, when that school was formally renamed the Ateneo de Manila, it had primary, secondary and tertiary levels well established. And since then, other Ateneos have been built in Zamboanga and Cagayan de Oro, in Naga and Davao, along with other schools from the former Chinese delegation, and likewise in many small parishes in Mindanao and Culion – schools driven by the same ideals of excellence, sapientia et eloquentia, of seeking to do more for love of God and neighbor and country. Today, the Ateneo de Manila University has indeed become a much respected institution, led by professors, both Jesuit and lay – made great by its students, the many men and women who have walked its corridors, who have sat in its classrooms, who have brought their Ateneo spirit to worlds beyond the walls of their alma mater, who have offered their lives for causes beyond themselves, who have battled on many a field with their “Halikinus” and their “one big fight” over and over again through the years.<br /><br /><br />Yes, in all that has happened in the last 150 years, it is good to be grateful, since after all, gratitude is the most basic of prayers, because it is a recognition that all is from God, and that the opportunity to take part in God’s work is a privilege not a right, a gift not an entitlement, that in the end it is the Lord that works through creation and gives it life anew.<br /><br /><br />Today, as we remember 150 years of continued Jesuit presence in this country, we thank the Lord for the blessing of not a few good men – Jesuits from Cataluña and Valencia and Madrid, from New York and Buffalo and Syracuse, from Italy and Hungary through China, from Ilocos and Pampanga, Cebu and Misamis and Manila. They were scientists at Manila Observatory. They were pioneers and explorers in Mindanao. They were catechists and pastors. They were fantastic teachers and exacting administrators. They were social scientists like Father Frank Lynch, historians like Father de la Costa, martyrs like Father Manuel Peypoch and Father Godofredo Alingal. They were dedicated scholars and energetic preachers. They were in Bukidnon and Ipil, Cebu and Iloilo, Tuguegarao and Vigan. They gave retreats, ministered to prisoners, organized farmers and laborers, composed liturgical music, built churches, wrote poems, worked among lepers, ran seminaries, directed plays. They were priests and brothers, missionaries – gifted, not just with talent, but more so with a sense that the world had to be conquered for God, that there was no aspect of human life that cannot be touched by the healing presence of the Almighty. There was a sense that so much good had to be done, and so little time to do it in. There was an urgency, a drive, a fire that could not be quenched. There was a sense that there was “no reality that was only profane,” that somehow, somewhere, the finger of God would always leave its print. This was the gift of the missionary, for which today, we give special thanks.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">II. Now, to the second part – we look to today’s feast. </span><br /><br /><br />Today is the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, a fitting feast for the 150th anniversary of the return of the Jesuits to the Philippines. For it is in the Eucharist that the Jesuits and the Ateneo truly find spirit, strength, drive. It is not a coincidence that when Jesuits pronounce their vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, it is done before the Body and Blood of the Lord. After the vows are pronounced, the bread is eaten and the blood is drank, and once again, a covenant is sealed, like the covenant of the First Reading.<br /><br /><br />On the one side of the covenant is the human person who says he will follow God, who says he will obey all his commandments, who says he will sacrifice everything for the sake of his faith. But often, he fails, and he breaks his covenant. Such are the Jesuits, such are Ateneans, indeed, such are all human beings, sinful and unfaithful. Yet, the covenant remains sealed for on the other side is God, who on his part, pledges his unconditional love, despite the weaknesses and imperfections and sinfulness of human beings.<br /><br /><br />Whenever we recount the history of the Society of Jesus in the Philippines, we usually go down a list of the many institutions built, the many works that have grown, the great successes and contributions made. But every now and then, it is good to also take note that in many places, we also came and went, and sometimes with a sense that the mission was not yet quite accomplished. In Mindanao, we gave up our missions in Surigao and Caraga and Ipil. We left Tuguegarao and San Pablo. We sent men to Indonesia and Korea and Thailand, and those experiences did not last too long. Ours is not just a history of building works, but also of moving on. Sometimes we leave when the mission is done, but other times, we leave for other reasons, and there is a feeling that many things are still left hanging. But when we go, we are also confident that something is left behind, something stays, the work is picked up again by others, many of whom are more gifted and bring what we began to far greater heights. And in the end, despite our shortcomings, the work of God gets done. This is because of a presence far stronger. <br /><br /><br />This is what Eucharist is, a distinct and special presence. It is the fulfillment of a promise of the Lord. I will be with you always to the end of the world. I will linger, long after all are gone. <br /><br /><br />And this is why the Body and Blood of the Lord are at the heart of any Christian work. When the Lord is received into our human bodies, we are healed, we are empowered, we are given new strength and new spirit. We are impelled by the Eucharist to partake in the work of salvation, and do whatever good is asked of us, even if its fruits are not seen. And as good is accomplished, and community is built, the Church is made stronger, as men and women who are filled with the Lord create a community of the good.<br /><br /><br />This, then, is what we can offer a broken world, we who continue to look to the Body and Blood of the Lord, and receive him into our hearts. As we move towards the frightening future, in a Philippines that continues to be pained by poverty and inequality and injustice, where Filipinos are left with little choice but to leave the country for lack of a more stable future at home, where we remain bothered by a politics that is so mired in and stained by corruption, where the challenges of a new secularism and materialism have led to new forms of atheism, new philosophies that reject or undermine the transcendent, for whom God has disappeared into the mists – to such a world, we should offer new missionaries, like the missionaries of old, new bearers of the fire, new heralds of the good news, willing to win the weary world for the Kingdom of God, even if at times we seem to fail. Still, we carry on, fired by the Eucharist. We need new missionaries, who are no longer just blackrobed as the Jesuits of old. We need new missionaries who can play with the images of modern media, who can sing the music of our young, who can speak the language of government and politics, who can tap comfortably on keyboards, who can remain unfazed by new technologies and new ideas and new trends. The new missionaries are many of you, our alumni and friends, who share our spirituality, who go forth in businesses and family life and parishes and NGOs and movements, for it is there that you must call special attention to the subtle yet penetrating presence of God.<br /><br /><br />Finally, we turn to Our Lady once more, our patroness, in her white and blue, she who was the very first to bear the living Eucharist in her body, when she carried the Lord in her womb, who knows what it means to be filled with His Spirit and His love. We turn to Our Lady, and ask her to intercede for us, and to give us the gift of being called to be her son’s missionaries once more, to the world of the 21st century, and in this world to become true apostles, bringing hope and healing and peace.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Vhq_9vtFn7-9pMPsaBS5yFNOCGLmcwzWj_EBQexjPAfNsmkBFDw2qIYl-Jl_jBQ7WIzm7EonNTVyHkIO1temdWIBhKHn4Ge96Z15eePkYmenmgTCakXx8p2jI5qw863n6HGH2z-lqJ8/s1600-h/return.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Vhq_9vtFn7-9pMPsaBS5yFNOCGLmcwzWj_EBQexjPAfNsmkBFDw2qIYl-Jl_jBQ7WIzm7EonNTVyHkIO1temdWIBhKHn4Ge96Z15eePkYmenmgTCakXx8p2jI5qw863n6HGH2z-lqJ8/s320/return.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392021621866247666" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-9909712375906494182009-10-13T08:14:00.000+08:002009-10-13T09:22:36.637+08:00History of Ateneo de Zamboanga (Arcilla,SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNwnKmvtYUa6fNOnLvrIvBXZELsSaAzYSzEYKUqygQ94IgmPy1jWFJiiec1Eyvd3AJIGvC35__q5pcx7gdDtQCZ0BRVIs0l0bl6suzO2mq9lIW2cnwgfj4j_Mt-R3yDOqDXj3WlPaNXcM/s1600-h/ateneo2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNwnKmvtYUa6fNOnLvrIvBXZELsSaAzYSzEYKUqygQ94IgmPy1jWFJiiec1Eyvd3AJIGvC35__q5pcx7gdDtQCZ0BRVIs0l0bl6suzO2mq9lIW2cnwgfj4j_Mt-R3yDOqDXj3WlPaNXcM/s320/ateneo2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391888521264521314" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">ATENEO DE ZAMBOANGA<br /> José S. Arcilla, S. J.<br />3 July 2009</span><br /><br /> I understand there is a minor controversy on the foundation of Ateneo de Zamboanga. Actually, our calendar dates are the result of an error of the 5th century monk, Dennis the Small, whose calculations on the exact date of Easter led to a mistaken date that our Lord was born between A. D. 4 and 7. <br /><br /> To understand the story of Ateneo de Zamboanga, we must keep in mind two things: the Ignatian ideal, and geography.<br /><br /> The Ignatian ideal for schools for externs he expressed in his instructions to the Jesuits who founded the first Jesuit college in Messina in 1534, that they must teach “letras y doctrina cristiana.” The ideal has not changed, and was later formulated in the Jesuit Ratio Studiorum, the constant guide for all Jesuit schools. Did Ateneo de Zamboang fulfill the Ignatian ideal?<br /><br /> Geography tells us that Zamboanga is at the southwestern tip of Mindanao. “Zamboanga,” or “sambo-ang,” is the stake to which a boat is tied when mooring it. Samboangan, then, means mooring place. But before the Castilians arrived, there is no certain information about the place, except some legends still to be analyzed.<br /><br /> The Lutaos, the “floating people,” were its original inhabitants. Some were slaves, other were free tribute-payers to their Magindanao lords, who controlled the Pulangi and enjoyed power over lower lords who, in turn, had vassals on both coasts of the Zamboanga peninsula until Dapitan.<br /><br /> Compared with stormy Surigao, Zamboanga was described as an “earthly paradise,” the source of the “heavenly fruit,” durian, extremely delicious despite its penetrating smell. A Jesuit wrote that one walking along the streets easily knows wher you can find the fruit. The climate was drier here than in Joló, where, in a Jesuit’s words, “heaven sells rain at a high price.” In January 1640, a destructive eruption destroyed two villages about 10 kilometers from Bwayan. It was so loud that people in Manila (actually only Intramuros) mistook it for an uprising in Cavite, while people in Cavite thought there was fighting in Manila. Volcanic ash hid the sun, leaving Zamboanga in total darkness, forcing people to use candles. Believing the world was coming to an end, they prepared to die. The world did not end, and as soon as they could, people shoveled off the thick ashes that had accumulated on their roofs.<br /><br /> In Sibugay, a Pampango soldier came face to face with an unusually huge white monkey. Because it refused to budge and was blocking his way, the soldier tried to frighten it away. But the animal picked up a stick, reared to its full height, and positioned itself to hurl the stick at the soldier. The two grappled together, but the monkey was much bigger, and the poor Pampango turned around to flee, closely pursued by the animal until the camp. Exhausted, out of breath, and scared out of his wits, the soldier fell sick and died three days later. <br /><br /> The Jesuits brought Christianity first to northeast Mindanao in 1595, but lack of men forced them to discontinue their ministry. The Recollects followed them a few years later. From the start, the Manila colonial government was faced with stubborn Muslim resistance, and they wanted to garrison Magindanao. But a Jesuit missionary suggested that Zamboanga was a better choice because of its strategic position. A naval post at the tip of the peninsula could pick off not only the Sulu vintas flying north before the seasonal habagat, but also the Magindanao fleets rounding Basilan Island. In this way, the colonial government hoped to clear the sea. <br />In 1634, Fort San José (better known as “Del Pilar”) was inaugurated. Workers had come from various Philippine provinces and in due time their distinct dialects merged with Castilian and became Chabacano, the first hybrid idiom in the world. <br />By 1655, there were two Jesuit mission centers in Dapitan and Zamboanga. We have no time to detail their history, but we may mention that some Jesuits died for the faith. <br /><br />One of them was a 36-year old Italian Jesuit, Francesco Palliola, assigned to Ponot. In 1648, a Christian apostate snuffed out his life out of hatred, because he insisted on Mass attendance, in their words, “Always Mass, always Mass.” <br />Fr. Juan del Campo was a 30-year old from Spain, who had been assigned to Siocon. He had converted some of the Subanen chiefs in the mountains, and persuaded them to dismiss their extra wives and live in permanent communities in the lowlands. But the future lay in the young, and he took in some promising boys from Christian families in Zamboanga to raise them as Christians. Ponot was not too far, where some renegade Christians had poisoned the minds of the Siocon elders. Fr. del Campo, they said, was gathering the boys to enslave them. By coincidence, the Manila government needed men for the polo or obligatory public service and fight against Sumuroy in Samar. In 1650, Imutum led his stalwarts who pounced on the Jesuit building a church in Siocon. A well aimed lance opened a deep gash, but the bleeding priest staggered to the river where the conspirators overtook him as he clambered aboard a patrol boat anchored there. They finished him off, as well as a Spanish corporal and five Pampanga troops with him. <br /><br />Still the missions expanded, until in 1768, the Spanish Crown expelled the Jesuits from all his dominions. The people behind the move soon regretted their action, and petitions for their recall mounted in Rome. Reestablished all over the world in 1814, the Jesuits returned to the Philippines in 1859, and two years later, they opened their first modern mission in Tamontaka, now part of Cotabato City. <br />In 1862, the barrio La Malama became the civil town of Tetuán, and two Jesuits left Tamontaka to start the new parish of St. Ignatius. Tetuán had no convento, and Don Balbino Natividad offered his house as the priests’ temporary residence. In one month, the people enthusiastically finished a bamboo and nipa shed and, on New Year of 1863, the Holy Eucharist was celebrated there for the first time.<br /><br />The new parish was soon buzzing with life. Sermons and, catechetical classes followed a regular schedule, Sunday morning Mass was at 8:00 o’clock, and at 5:30 in the afternoon, the bell rang again for the common recitation of the Rosary, followed by another hour of catechism. The day ended with common prayers and devotions. On weekdays, Mass was offered at 6:00 o’clock in the morning, and the common Rosary was recited after the Angelus at 6:00 o’clock in the evening.<br /><br />The results were soon apparent. Public morality improved, illicit unions decreased, and more people received the sacraments. As the mission diary records, the. first Lent after the Jesuits arrived, there were mission sermons on Sundays, catechetical lessons on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and morning and afternoon daily in the sacristy, examination on the Catechism.<br /><br />In 1880, a Jesuit wrote from Zamboanga that, if the reception of the sacraments was a “safe index” to public morality, Zamboanga would “not fare too badly. On important feasts, between 150 and 200 went to sacramental confession and received Holy Communion. On All Souls’ Day, about 300, “not only women . .. but also a good number of men.” Two years later in August, a Spanish warship from Joló arrived with troops stricken with cholera. Some recovered, but they had brought a dreaded plague, which, for four months devastated Zamboanga, Tetuán, Mercedes, Ayala, and other places nearby. <br /><br />In Zamboanga alone, there were days when more than 100 died, and people buried as many as 170. A good number, a missionary wrote, “appeared before God without the help of religion.” At first, the priests stayed up night and day to help the plague-stricken, but exhausted, they, too, were forced to take some rest. People volunteered their help, but fatigued, they collapsed exhausted and many in turn died.<br />The plague soon ended, and Zamboanga became the most important town in Mindanao. In 1860, the island was divided into six administrative districts under a politico-military Governor. Initially, Cotabato was the seat of the Mindanao government, but in time, Zamboanga expanded and became the capital of Mindanao.<br /><br />The Bonifacio uprising in Manila in 1896 hardly affected Mindanao. When news of the uprising reached Cotabato, an old man from Zamboanga residing there became furious, calling the rebels ingrates and helpless people without hope.<br /><br /> The Jesuits had intended to remain at their posts, but political uncertainty forced the Jesuit Mission Superior in Manila to recall them. When peace returned, General J. C. Bates, American commander of Mindanao-Joló, forwarded to the Jesuit Superior the petitions from Zamboanga and other Mindanao towns to send the Jesuits back to the towns and missions they had left. The priests, Bates wrote, would guarantee the peace, especially since the Jesuits enjoyed good relations with the Filipinos and the Muslims, and perfectly understood their needs.<br /><br />All this while there was no talk of opening schools. But by 1906, a new situation challenged the Jesuits. Public schools had opened all over, and volunteer American teachers, not all of them Catholc, doubled as well-financed Protestant proselytizers. Fr Antonio Arnalot wrote about the new problem he faced from the non-sectarian schools. They were, he reported, the cause of religious ignorance and indifference . . . even of contempt for religious issues.” <br /><br />The people themselves saw the difference, while the Jesuits quickly felt the need to open schools in their parishes. And when they opened parochial schools, these practically emptied the public schools. While hardly 20 children remained in the public school at Ayala, 70 boys and girls were studying at the Catholic school there. A public school in Tumbamor (or Recodo near Ayala where the Muslims repaired their boats) was totally emptied. In Mercedes, the public school pupils transferred to two Catholic schools there, which counted more than 105 boys and girls. At Tetuán, 65 pupils were at the Catholic school two months after it had opened, while the public school had only 12 girls under a Filipino Protestant teacher.<br /><br />The previous Spanish colonial government had promoted the work of the Church, but the American democratic government, with their tradition of separation of Church and State, was at least indifferent. The American Protestants were actively hostile to the Filipino Catholic priests, and probably because they were fewer numerically, the American Catholics in the Philippines hardly did anything. But against all odds, the Jesuits refused to stop. By 1914 in Ayala, they had reorganized the Hijas de María, which soon formed an Academia de Santa Cecilia to promote liturgical music.<br />Frank Carpenter, the governor of the newly formed Moro Province, was openly a Protestant and a Mason. But he was friendly to the Jesuits, and assured them of his support. With his official staff, he attended the solemn exequies for the Pope and for the Jesuit Superior General, and even asked permission from the Archbishop of Manila to allow some Muslim sultans and datus to attend the ceremonies. But his friendly attitude was not enough to counter the problem of the youth growing up indifferent to religion, and the Jesuits believed the solution lay in Catholic schools.<br /><br />Only the public schools could issue the título oficial on completion of studies. In 1916, hoping they themselves would be able to grant this same academic certification, the Jesuits in Zamboanga thought about working to “register or incorporate” their school under the title “Ateneo de Zamboanga.” They also hoped the Jesuit Superior in Manila would assign at least two Jesuit teachers to help them. Then, they could grant primary and intermediate academic certificates, as the public schools. This was how the Ateneo de Zamboanga began.<br /><br />That year, Bishop Michael J. O’Doherty of Zamboanga wrote to the Mission Superior, Fr. Francisco J. Tena, that he wanted to open a high school “like that of the Ateneo de Manila under the charge of the Fathers of the Society of Jesus.” Initially, there would be only seven elementary grades, and classes would be held at the convento. Financial support would come from a fourth of the parish revenue, donations from Cathlic associations and other sources, and an annual subsidy of P1,000. The diocese would be financially responsible for the school, but academic programs and school discipline would the exclusive concern o the Jesuits. If the Society agreed, the Bishop would grant the necessary license and the land for the building. <br /><br />The Jesuits accepted the offer, the incorporation papers were drawn up, but there were no funds. Not long after Bishop O’Doherty was reassigned to Manila.<br />But his plan did not die. In 1928, a group of active Catholics in Zamboanga wrote to the newly named Jesuit Superior, Fr. James Carlin, about a “matter of vital importance, momentous and of utmost importance to the Catholics of this region, and more particularly to the Catholic youth.” Silliman Instittue, a “Protestant institute in the full sense of the word,” had just opened in Dumaguete, and, for lack of a better choice, Catholic families were forced to send their children there. It behooves us, the letter continued, “to counter-check the dangers to which the Catholic youth of Zamboanga is exposed.” At Silliman, the young Catholics, “impregnated with Protestantism,” later spread it around, while the Protestants themselves are “using their best to deviate the Catholic youth.” <br /><br />Among the signers of the letter, significantly in English, were the leading personalities of the town: S. Mendoza, editor of Voz del Pueblo; José Vicente Mapa, Justice of the Peace; J. M. García, Manager of the local branch of the Bank of the Philippine Islands; J. Arquiaga, lawyer and editor of El Fenix; P. S. Rodríguez, director of the Zamboanga General Hospital; J. S. Álvarez, and Pablo Lorenzo, lawyers and farmers. To a man, they recognized that education was of great service to society and formed its personality. They were convinced that a Catholic school in Zamboanga would preserve and transmit the traditional values civil society develops. And they were willing to pay the price.<br /><br />The Ateneo would need a monthly budget of P155 for teachers’ salaries: 40 for a teacher of Spanish, 35 for a teacher of English, 10 for an assistant teacher.. Where would the money come from? The men’s section of the Acción Católica donated P15, its ladies’ section 10, the Jesuit Mission Superior another 10, a small amount from the yearly tuition fee of P4, the profits from benefit programs, and a share in the stole fees.<br /><br /> Apostolic reasons, then, were at the heart of the beginning of Ateneo de Zamboanga. Parochial schools had preceded it, but for the first time, the Jesuit Catalogus for 1918 lists the Jesuit Francisco X. Ágreda as a teacher at the elementary school of the “diocesan Ateneo de Zamboanga.” Then in 1925, Manuel Mª Sauras was listed as the director of the parochial school, and the following year, Fr. John J. Monahan, took his place. In 1930, a year after coming to the Zamboanga mission, Fr. Thomas Murray became the director of the parochial elementary and high schools. In 1932, he was writing of the “large and busy” parish of Zamboanga and its barrios, and a “full school – kindergarten, seven grades, and a four-year high school. In the middle of 1931, Fr. Henry L. Irwin relieved Fr. Murray as director of the Ateneo.<br /><br />Classes were held on the third floor of an office building, formerly a movie house the Jesuit Bishop José Close had bought for P8,000. It had five rooms, and a large corridor was converted into a biology and a physics laboratory, a library, an office, and a convertible assembly hall. The elementary school continued at the convento. For games and recreation, the children had to be satisfied with a rather limited yard adjoining the convento.<br /><br />At the start of each school day, the high school students assembled for prayers and a hymn in the Cathedral close by. On Sunday mornings, they assisted at Holy Mass as a group, and on First Fridays, all the students were obliged to receive Holy Communion. There was no dormitory in town, and many of the lay teachers were not necessarily models of religious behavior, and this proved to be a drag on the religious life of the school. A letter at this time described the school as “make-shift” with limited funds and inadequate personnel.<br />Suddenly, on visitation of the diocese, Bishop Clos died in Bohol. Fr. José Roma became the temporary diocesan administrator, and Fr. Murray decided to separate the parochial finances from those of the school. In 1932, the first school prospectus was published in Spanish and English.<br /><br />Ateneo de Zamboanga, the cover announced, was the “school with ideals,” a Catholic school where knowledge was not enough, for it can be used also for evil. More<br />respect and affection, and achieve what appeared impossible. In other words, schools were an instrument of evangelization.<br /><br />Frank Carpenter, appointed Governor of the newly created Moro Province, was openly a Protestant and a Mason. But he was friendly to the Jesuits, and, convinced that cooperation with them would promote his policies, he assured them of his support. With his official staff, he attended the solemn exsequies for the Pope and the Jesuit General, and had even asked the Archbishop of Manila’s permission to allow the sultans and datus to attend the ceremonies. But this friendly atmosphere he created was not enough to solve the problem of he youth growing up indifferent to religion, and the Jesuits found the answer through Catholic education and Catholic schools.<br /><br />By 1916, the children who attended the parochial schools were forced to study at the public schools, which could grant the título oficial after completeion of studies. Hoping that they could themselves grant this academic degree, the Jesuits in Zamboanga worked to “register or incorporate, as we say here, the school under the title “Ateneo de Zamboanga.” They also hoped the Jesuit Superior in Manila would send them at least two teachers. If the plan succeeded, they believed they could grant primary and intermediate academic certificates, as in the public school. Thus was started the Ateneo de Zamboanga. <br /><br />A school necessarily implies four things: a program of education, teachers, infrastructure (classrooms, books, etc.) and, money. When established, the “Ateneo de Zamboanga” needed a monthly budget of Ph P 155, just to pay the salaries of the teachers: Ph P 40 for a Spanish teacher, 35 for an English teacher, 30 for a Spanish-English teacher, 10 for an assistant teacher, and 40 for five RVM Sisters at Pilar College for 150 girls. Where did the money come from? Ph P 15 from the men’s section of Asociación Católica, 10 from the ladies’ section of the same Asociación Católica, 10 from the Jesuit Mission Superior, a small amount from the yearly tuition of Ph P 4, the net gain from benefit programs, and part of the stole fees.<br /><br />These details are not unimportant. Before Rome encouraged Catholic lay action, the people of Zamboanga were already aware of their duty in order to carry out a community project. This is all the more impressive, since books, besides paper and pencil, were freely supplied in the public schools. But in 1932, financial problems stood in the way. Few studied at the Jesuit school, Fr. Irwin noted, and these were reluctant to pay “even the inkimu tuition fee.” And the students were not getting the advantages of a true Catholic school should offer, because of the type of teachers the Jesuit school could afford to employ. And yet college tuition fees totaled only P20 each semester, payable in three installments.<br />Lack of money frustrated the noblest ideals, and for financial reasons only a limited number could be accepted into the Jesuit school. In the time of St. Ignatius, generous friends funded the Jesuit schools, for example, the first Jesuit school for externs in Messina, Italy in 1534. In 1595, Esteban Rodríguez de Figueroa who died trying to conquer Magindanao, funded the first Jesuit school in the Philippines, the Colegio de San José. But there were no families in Zamboanga who made similar bequests, despite their concern for their children’s education. In 1935, the local newspaper, Antorcha, mentioned that some families wanted Spanish to continue at the Jesuit school, for it was the language in the town and at the Asamblea Nacional. And they preferred their boys to have less time for games, “con tal que estudien y a prendan el castellano.” <br /><br /> Despite its problems, the Ateneo expanded. In June 1938, a night school offered classes in commerce and pre-law, for which the government required a library of at least 500 books on commerce. The official Ateneo fortnightly, The Atenean, came off the press on 22 November 1941, announcing a Christmas literary contest, which one of the students Guillermo Macrohon, won. The paper also described the reception of candidates to the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin Mary (today, Christian Life Communities), a list of the intramural basketball teams, and, of course, the Grade School and High School honor students. And there was a column, “XYZ,” with an unsigned article, which read in part;<br /><br /> If girls would only spend as much time in thinking as they spend<br /> before the mirror . . . perhaps there would be less failures in the<br /> exam, less embarrassing moment in class, and the teacher could<br /> reasonably be proud of his students. <br />Under Fr. Eusebio G. Salvador, assigned to the Zamboanga mission in 1937,the pre-war Ateneo expanded, with an enrolment of 230 in the Grade School, and 376 in the High School.<br /><br />Then war came. Ateneo was ruined. When peace returned, Bishop Luís del Rosario, S. J. asked the Jesuits to revive the Ateneo before the Protestants cornered the market. The Jesuits themselves were still recovering from the war, but in 1946, three Jesuits reopened the Ateneo in Zamboanga: Frs. Salvador, who continued as the Director of the school, Kyran Egan, and Cesar Maravilla. In April a year later, the first post-graduation exercises for 22 students from the High School and 26 from the Grade School. Two years later, in 1948, the first two scholastics were assigned to the Ateneo de Zamboanga: Lucio Codilla, to take care of the Sodality (CLC), and Eduardo Hontiveros, the Sanctuary Society and the Glee Club. Finally, in 1949, Rome separated Ateneo de Zamboanga was separated from the Zamboanga mission, and raised its Jesuit community into a “domus reliogosa,” with Fr. Alfred E. Paguia as its first Rector. <br /><br />We now witness the rapid growth and expansion of Ateneo de Zamboanga. The Bishop approved co-education at the school, and in 1950, the Bishop expressed his wish for a high school and at least two more Jesuits for the Ateneo. There was need to counter the “bad influence” of certain city schools. But there were no Jesuits to implement plans, although in 1952, a college department opened with more than 160 students. Four years later, 20 graduated with Arts degree.<br />In 1953, a high school class issued it own mimeographed newsletter, Literary Digest, to encourage the students to discuss and discover “budding writers” for the school organ, The Beacon. It asked the English teachers to submit “top-flight themes every third week of each month” to publish in the Digest. <br /><br />Meantime, what kind of students and graduates did the school produce? In 1948, a Protestant team, “Youth for Christ,” arrived. Its leader, Dr. Robert Cook from Chicago was advertised as the “Foremost Leader of Youth.” The group organized a rally on 29 February, a Friday night, at Plaza Pershing. About 12 select and properly trained Ateneo students stationed themselves at various vantage points in the crowd. Their questions embarrassed the leader, who failed to answer some of their more pointed questions on the bible. One of the unanswered questions was “How do you know the bible is God’s word?” Dr. Cook hastily gathered up his mike and hurried away in his car. The rally quickly melted, Dr. Cooke was never heard of again. <br /><br />This year, a film from Hollywood, “The Outlaw,” was banded in Manila, but its sponsors took umbrage and asked for a second judgment by a different group of censors. It was approved provided certain sections of the film were excised. Then, in Zamboanga, an alert Ateneo student spotted an announcement that the film was coming soon. He alerted Fr. Cesar Maravilla, the Moderator of the CLC, who immediately went see Mr. Villacora, the proprietor of the theater<br />The latter, a good Catholic, had already made arrangements to show “The Outlaw” together with a second box-office film. If he cancelled the first, he stood to lose hundreds of pesos. To his credit, Mr. Villacorta agreed to take the financial loss. He could not afford to make enemies of the Catholics in Zamoanga. Two other movie houses agreed to show the condemned film.<br /><br />Then, a local newspaper columnist wrote:<br /> Who are these defenders of public morals who attempt to tell<br /> the people what can see and what they cannot see on the silver<br /> screen? The movie is a mere cowboy picture with Jane Russell<br /> thrown in. People who have not seen the picture are condemning<br /> it because of the lurid advertisements. <br /><br />The students, led by their Ateneo mentors, reacted. They checked, and learned that in Manila the Board of Censors headed by the Solicitor General, not the Legion of Decency, had condemned the film. It was not, the Board declared: <br /> . . . the travesty on marriage that the picture conveys, not the <br /> portrayal of lurid scenes, but . . . the government and civic-<br /> minded organizations are cooperating in the nation-wide for<br /> the diminution, correction and possible elimination of the<br /> current problem known as Juvenile Delinquency. The exhibition<br /> of this picture will counteract and destroy totally this joint effort.<br /> The wave of criminality . . . in this country . . . is a factor that <br />urges the Board to suppress motion pictures that may inflame <br />the imagination of the misguided youth and may be misinterpreted<br />as glorification of forces that seek to make law and its representatives<br />ridiculous. <br /><br /> And the Ateneans mimeographed and distributed copies of the decision, making sure the local news reported received his copy. Magnanimously, the admitted never having seen the film himself, but he had written his article on the suggestion of some friends. Fr. Salvador, Superior of the Zamboanga Mssion District, organized a month’s boycott (18 April-18 May) of the theater which had threatened to show the banned film. Result? The file was not shown, a triumph of Catholic action led by the sodalists of the Ateneo.<br /><br /> The Ateneo alumni helped reconstruct the Ateneo, inaugurated with a mammoth parade around the city. Scheduled to start on1 September 1956, the Ateneans began soliciting funds as soon as the parade ended, asking P0.20 from everyone to help fill the ground that would serve as the foundation of the new building. The details of the reconstruction we omit, but we may mention an unexpected difficulty the Jesuits faced when they planned to build the students’ chapel. <br /><br /> By 1958,various projects to raise fund for the chapel had already been started. A group of career ladies, for example, staged a musical program at the mayor’s private lawn in Sta. María, charging P10 from each family that came. Benefit movies also helped raise more money.<br /><br /> Then, in November, the Jesuits received notice that the Claretian Fathers would not object to the new chapel if it was exclusively for the Ateneo students. Building the school chapel would prejudice the interests of the Cathedral parish, for which a fund drive to renovate that façade had already been started. And the Archbishop, it was pointed out had not given any permission for the Ateneo project since he had never been informed about it.<br /><br /> The surprised Jesuits answered that, actually in several previous conversations with them, the Claretians had not objected in any way to the chapel. It was not meant to be a parish and, although with no faculties to administer the sacraments of marriage or baptism, it was hoped rather to help the Cathedral parish. Besides, no one could ban anyone from worshipping anywhere he wanted. The Ateneo chapel fund drive for only to reach P6,000 could not affect the Claretians’ campaign. <br /><br />A students’ chapel for the Ateneo was justifiable, the Claretians admitted, but it would not do if it became the habitual and ordinary center for religious service. And it would be inconvenient to allow non-Ateneans to fulfill their Sunday obligations there, for the better educated in Zamboanga who could be the best parish helpers, would soon become “stranger” to the cathedral parish.<br /><br /> When it was brought to his attention, Archbishop del Rosario asked the Jesuits to sign a waiver to all their rights. To make sure they acted properly, the latter consulted the canonists.<br /><br />The faithful, the latter answered, had the right to go and worship in any canonically erected public or semi-public oratory, although owners of a semi-public oratory could at discretion ban certain people from it. Furthermore, exempt religious Orders, like the Society of Jesus, had the right to erect a church or public oratory without the local Ordinary’s license, although its location needed his approval and license. In the Philippines, not only did the Jesuit Provincial Superior enjoy full authority to erect a semi-public oratory, but also all the Jesuit school chapels were semi-public oratories and did not need the Ordinary’s license. No one could ban attendance at any Jesuit semi-public oratories, and no license was needed for a fund drive to build one. Otherwise, it would violate the vow of poverty of members of the mendicant Orders, like the Jesuits.<br /><br />On the other hand, a canonist wrote that it was “the obligation of priests, especially of parish priests, to look for means so that the faithful cold fulfill their Sunday obligation,” an opinion a Claretian canonist also expressed. The Jesuits, then, in Zamboanga could legally and with full a clear conscience continue their fund campaign and build a school chapel.<br /><br />Finally, on 28 October 1961, in the presence of a large number of guests and friends, Archbishop de Rosario solemnly blessed the Ateneo students’ Chapel of the Sacred Heart. The dream, first envisioned by Fr. Paul Hugendobler, S. J., and realized in stone and concrete by Fr. Manuel Regalado, was turned into a reality through the united efforts of the Ateneo students, faculty, alumni, friends, and benefactors. Part of the drive for funds was a contest to sell tiles for the chapel, a contest won by Cesar Ledesma, a Grade Six pupil, who project, “”Buy-<br /><br />And-Sell-A-Tile-for-the Chapel,” earned P500. <br />.Geradro Madrazo, Jr., editor-in-chief of the Ateneo students’ organ, The Beacon, wrote perhaps the best description of the new chapel:<br /> The new chapel is now finished, a fitting home for Christ the King <br /> . . . built by all the Ateneans, not simply supplying material things<br />-- but homage and praise. It takes only a few minutes to visit Him,<br />but what peace and consolation we can derive from that short visit, <br />and what great blessing He will impart to us. <br /> Another wrote in the same editorial page:<br /> . . . the ultimate aim of the Ateneo is to save your immortal souls.<br /> If one comes to the Ateneo only for the academic subjects . . .<br /> without having learned what it means to be an exemplary <br /> Catholic and without that determination to try to be that kind<br />of Catholic, you have wasted your time and ours. Remember<br />that the Philippines is the only Catholic nation in the Orient,<br />and can only be as Catholic as the Filipinos who comprise it. <br /><br /> As we asked earlier, has the Ateneo followed the Ignatian ideal? At the end of the Vietnam War in 1954, millions migrated to live in the non-coummunist South Vietnam. But they had literally nothing, not even relatives who could have helped them start a new life. Shocked by what he saw, Oscar Arellano, president of the Philippine Jaycees, hoped to do something to help them. Earlier he had already seen in Zamboanga a program called “Help-the-Barrio” Mayor Cesar Climaco of Zamboanga and an Ateneo alumnus had initiated for the poor. Volunteers went to the barrios, and while their children played with the local barrio children, their parents discussed means to improve their living, earn a livelihood, better health habits, etc. When he saw the conditions in South Vietnam, Arellano already knew what to do. He started the well-known “Operation Brotherhood,” which sent thousands of Filipino physicians, nurses, and other volunteer helpers to humanize life in South Vietnam. It is not too far fetched to say that the seed of that work of Christian charity and concern for one’s neighbor came from Ateneo de Zamboanga. <br /><br /> In 1986, the Ateneo awarded diplomas to more than 700 graduates of the three departments of the school. The college valedictorian was Jane Bacar, only the second graduate in the school’s history to receive the highest academic honors, summa cum laude. The commencement speaker began by admitting he was not an Ateneo alumnus, but<br /><br /> . . . I am mighty proud to tell this audience that Ateneans formed<br /> the front line in the past Aquino revolution. Those brave Ateneans<br /> forced the formidable tanks and soldiers of Marcos equipped with<br /> the most modern firearms to turn around without firing a single<br /> shot. The courage and bravery of those Ateneans was the beginning of that triumphant revolution now called the “people power.” <br /><br /> As if it was the thing to do, those Ateneans, not just from Manila, but also from all over the country, who had braved the guns of Marcos, had externalized the Ignatian ideals. <br /><br /> Ateneo de Zamboanga had its share of successes and admirable exploits. Collegiate activities – spots, drama, elocution contest, music – have brought out the best in its students. For seven successive years, its nursing graduates recorded a perfect passing rate in the government exams. Vocations to the religious life have not been wanting. This is as it ought to be. St. Ignatius wanted only the best, and the Jesuits should strive only for the best of their students.<br /><br /> In 1987, Fr. Pedro Arrupe described his dream of what a Jesuit school ought to do, to form “men for others.” Faced with the rapid changes world wide, Jesuit education should form teachers and students deeply concerned with the serious issues of our day. Schools can never be ivory towers, splendid to look at, but isolated and elevated about the real world. Jesuit education should develop a fine sensitivity to the possible effects a school can have on the life of the larger community in which it tries to fulfill its mission. That is why he warned that we must never be “tied down by structures which become real straight jackets, [but] remain flexible and able to changer to meet the pressing human problems and, specifically, to study the dominant ideas that determine the march of history.” His words are famous:<br /><br /> Today our prime educational objective must be to form men-<br /> others; men and women who will live not for themselves but<br /> for God and His Christ – for the God-man who life and died for<br /> all the world; men and women who cannot even conceive of <br />love of God which does not include love for the least of their<br />neighbor; men and women completely convinced that the love<br />of God which does not issue in justice for man and women is a<br />farce.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRPylMqgv0eAsqi6eHZoV_wLXomWBei6oa7vOt2UwzJGpMYQktQbSOLtFlL-4LiCwS0VES2_Qe01DJ7u6Izti2Nfrly6VRidhAvUVq0m7XbAQTi2bLY2bnU4dqsw6hoP8mozESi9fbf6E/s1600-h/ateneo.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 290px; height: 179px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRPylMqgv0eAsqi6eHZoV_wLXomWBei6oa7vOt2UwzJGpMYQktQbSOLtFlL-4LiCwS0VES2_Qe01DJ7u6Izti2Nfrly6VRidhAvUVq0m7XbAQTi2bLY2bnU4dqsw6hoP8mozESi9fbf6E/s320/ateneo.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391888705908137762" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-22009355530832438012009-10-13T08:02:00.000+08:002009-10-14T05:04:21.329+08:00Return of the Jesuits (De Castro,SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2pKncRFSFO4b42XdOAA4xfx586I9qxEMx75AP0BGUKk9Kx4-B7V8OUQcwgyvPTtd0VJbfwXIoSGHQifr67kDq-OVr1TI7YFUID_mJI2cG7vWd6vM2aUsqJo80jD9btT1d9Wf8wLh037o/s1600-h/fiesta+129.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2pKncRFSFO4b42XdOAA4xfx586I9qxEMx75AP0BGUKk9Kx4-B7V8OUQcwgyvPTtd0VJbfwXIoSGHQifr67kDq-OVr1TI7YFUID_mJI2cG7vWd6vM2aUsqJo80jD9btT1d9Wf8wLh037o/s320/fiesta+129.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391869160083150978" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Mindanao as Jesuit Frontier: Lessons from History <br />in celebration of<br />The 150th Anniversary of the Return of the Jesuits to the Philippines<br />University Convocation, Xavier University,<br />Cagayan de Oro<br />4 September 2009</span><br /><br /><br />Three Preliminary Points<br /><br />There are three preliminary points before I go to the main topic of my talk this afternoon.<br /><br />1) First, I present the following considerations in the spirit of “tantum quantum,” i.e., insofar as you find this talk helpful in understanding what you are all about as members of the academic community of Xavier University looking to the future. I cannot satisfy all the expectations of all the people gathered here this afternoon, given the limited time we have. Nevertheless, I hope that you may be able to learn a thing or two about the history of the Jesuits in the Philippines and their apostolic work, particularly here in Mindanao, and see what relevance this has for you and the whole academic community of Xavier University.<br /><br />2) Second, before we begin, let us ask ourselves: what grace do we ask for on the occasion of this university convocation, a convocation we are holding while we continue to celebrate 150 years of the return of the Jesuits to the Philippines? I suggest that we be conscious of the “id quod volo” (the grace to be asked for) of the Contemplatio ad amorem of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Let us “beg the Lord to give us an intimate knowledge of the many gifts received so that, filled with gratitude for all, we may in all things love and serve the Divine Majesty.”<br /><br />3) Third and final preliminary point: I would like to dedicate this talk to Fr. Miguel A. Bernad, S.J., Mindanawon par excellence, he who loved this “great island,” Mindanao, he who loved Xavier University to which he dedicated the most fruitful years of his life. He was graciously present at the defense of my doctoral dissertation at the Gregorian University in 2001 and even shared a few thoughts on Jesuit history in the Philippines with the people gathered in that aula. He was always kind and generous with his time, sending me essays that he had written for Kinaadman and other publications. As Series Editor of the Mindanao Studies section of the Ateneo de Manila University Press, I welcomed Fr. Bernad’s book, The Great Island: Studies in the Exploration and Evangelization of Mindanao, which came out in 2004, as the first book published in that series. I thought it was fitting for his book to inaugurate this series which wants to promote a “Mindanao consciousness” among the peoples of this great island, a consciousness “that graciously respects and creatively expresses the irreducible richness and interconnected particularities of Mindanao and its inhabitants.” We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Fr. Miguel Bernad for promoting that consciousness in his life and published works. I believe that this is a legacy Fr. Bernad has left to Xavier University, one that is particularly acute and appropriate given the circumstances of our great island, Mindanao, and the new and challenging frontiers that beckon to us from all directions, especially in the field of basic and higher education.<br /><br />The 150th Anniversary of the Return of the Jesuits to the Philippines<br /><br />Introduction<br /><br />1. The Function of Story Telling<br /><br />What do I propose to do at this university convocation? It is rather simple: I will be telling stories, describing in brief narrative form what Jesuits were doing in the past and drawing lessons from these stories for us today. In doing this, I hope to encourage you to tell each other stories as well, stories of the Jesuits you have known, stories about how you and these Jesuits have collaborated in making Xavier University what it is today, and to draw the appropriate lessons from them for the present and for the future. But why should we be sharing stories with each other? What is the significance of engaging in this narrative activity?<br /><br />In his study of Paul Ricoeur’s philosophy, Richard Kearney helpfully outlines four central tasks of “narrative.”<br /><br />1) First, he says, we tell stories in order “to realize our debt to the historical past.”<br /><br />2) Second, Kearney notes that we tell stories in order “to respect the rival claims of memory and forgetfulness.”<br /><br />3) Third, we tell stories in order “to cultivate a notion of self-identity.”<br /><br />4) And fourth, we tell stories in order “to persuade and evaluate action.” Implicit in this fourth task, I submit, is a profound engagement with the present and a proleptic concern for the future.<br /><br />What then are the stories we tell each other as Jesuits and lay partners? What is the context of our story-telling today? I am sure the stories we tell each other are stories that honor the memory of our dead, that are crucial to our understanding of who we are, that enable us to negotiate the rival claims of what needs to be remembered and what needs to be forgotten, and that allow us to gauge in some way how far we have come in our apostolic works and institutions and how far we still need to go, given the shifting frontiers of our changing times. We are perhaps not conscious that these are in fact what we are doing when we engage in story-telling. But the celebration of an anniversary such as the one we have in the return of the Jesuits to these islands 150 years ago very often awakens us to the significance of a basic human need and activity. <br /><br />2. The Context: General Congregation 35<br /><br />Not too long ago, Jesuits met in what we have come to know as GC 35. Their primary goal was to elect a new Superior General for the Society of Jesus. That accomplished, they also discussed various crucial concerns that had to do with Jesuit life and mission. GC 35 in fact sets the context for the life and mission of the worldwide Society of Jesus; in doing so, the GC 35 calls us Jesuits, and by extension, you, our lay collaborators, to pay attention to three things:<br /><br />1) First, we Jesuits need to rediscover once again our charism as an apostolic body of men, i.e., to rekindle in ourselves the Ignatian fire that kindles other fires (that fire is nothing else but the Spirit of Jesus Christ). Jesuits and you, our Ignatian lay collaborators, together need to rekindle in our hearts, again and again and again, this Ignatian fire that kindles other fires.<br /><br />2) Second, we Jesuits and, in collaboration, you our lay partners need to discover the new challenges to our mission today; we need to hear once again that call that sends us to the new and challenging frontiers of Church and World.<br /><br />3) Third, we Jesuits need to renew between and among ourselves, and between us and you, our lay partners, deep bonds of friendship.<br /><br />Fire, Frontier and Friendship: these are the catchwords of GC 35. <br /><br />It is within the context of this call to rekindle in ourselves that Ignatian fire that enkindles other fires, to discern the new frontiers of our time and to respond to them, and to strengthen and deepen our bonds of friendship, this triple call set for us by the last general congregation, that we are invited to tell our Ignatian stories as Jesuits and lay collaborators, to tell each other our Ignatian story.<br /><br />Given our limited time, I would like to focus my sharing with you this afternoon on the theme of Frontiers.<br /><br />“Frontiers” is a beautiful word. It connotes at least three things for me. First, it connotes a world that is familiar to us, comforting, affirming, and nurturing. It is our everyday world, the world of family, friends, colleagues, of our community here at Xavier University as well. Second, it also connotes something that lies beyond that familiar world, something new, something exciting, but also something frightening. Third, the boundary between this familiar world and that which lies beyond it is, precisely, what we know as the frontier. Between the known and unknown worlds lies a boundary, a limit; it is the frontier. This boundary, this limit may be seen as an imprisoning wall or as a liberating gateway. But however it is looked at, the frontier beckons by the very fact that it is there and invites those who are aware of its existence to cross over, to go beyond the familiar and to engage the new, the challenging, and the frightening space that awaits the intrepid adventurer...<br /><br />Fr. Adolfo Nicolas, in his talk to the participants of a recently concluded congress on Jesuit Basic Education, quotes the Holy Father, Benedict XVI:<br /><br /> I think the key to understanding the word “Frontiers” is to return to what the <br />Holy Father said when he addressed us Jesuits during the recent 35th General <br />Congregation. Many of you are very familiar with this wonderful speech, when Pope Benedict XVI said to us and, by extension, to all of you: “The Church needs you, counts on you, and continues to turn to you with confidence, particularly to reach the geographical and spiritual places where others do not reach or find it difficult to reach.” (Allocution, No. 2) “The geographical and spiritual places where others do not reach or find it difficult to reach”: these places are our “frontiers.” <br /><br />I do not pretend to know what these “new frontiers” are for you at Xavier University here and now. A profound and comprehensive discernment is obviously required of those who form the body of stakeholders of this university. Fr. General spoke of the new frontiers of depth and universality to which Jesuits and their lay partners are called; these new frontiers after all are rooted in God who is our ultimate frontier. The Ignatian Exercises and Ignatian spirituality insist on this: God, creator and redeemer, our ultimate frontier, our deepest and most universal frontier, is revealed to us in and calls to us from the new frontiers that beckon to us in this world. But I imagine that in speaking of “frontiers” it is helpful to attend to the following. First, Xavier University as a Filipino, Catholic, and Jesuit educational institution located in Mindanao must define what the “frontiers” are for itself. Second, Xavier University must ask itself what it needs to do in order to help administration, faculty, students and the communities that it serves meet the challenges posed by these new frontiers.<br /><br />In recognizing and accepting the context set for us by GC 35, I would like to propose therefore the following points drawn from the stories of our past 150 years, for you to recall and to pray over, because after all the notion of “frontier” is an analogous and shifting one and there are lessons to be learned from how Jesuits and their lay partners engaged the frontiers of the past. I have had to limit myself of course to several stories, but hopefully they are stories that tell us the kinds of frontiers that our predecessors of happy memory struggled to engage, with greater or lesser success, given their lights and shadows. We no longer live in that past; but if today we are able to see farther and better than our ancestors did, it is because we stand on their shoulders, the shoulders of the men and women of the past for whom our today was their frontier...<br /><br />There are two questions that I would like to pose with regard to the theme of “frontiers.”<br /><br />1) First, in searching the historical past, where can we find some of the “frontiers” indicated to us, particularly those frontiers as collocated here in this “great island” of Mindanao?<br /><br />2) Second, what lessons can we learn from history that would indicate to us the disposition for and requirements of mission to and service at the frontiers?<br /><br />Let me insert at this point a summary of the history of the Jesuits in the Philippines from 1859 to the present.<br /><br />3. Summary of the history of the Jesuits in the Philippines, 1859 to the present.<br /><br />The Jesuits, who first arrived in these islands in 1581, were expelled from the Philippines in 1768. They would return in 1859 to a country that was quite different in many ways from the one that they had left 91 years before.<br /><br />On 7 August 1814, Pope Pius VII restored the Society of Jesus to existence in the Universal Church. Close to a year after, the King of Spain, Fernando VII, would authorize the restoration of the Jesuits in Spain; he would allow them re-entry into Spain’s overseas territories several months after.<br /><br />In 1824 and then again in 1827, requests were made for the return of the Jesuits to the Philippines. In October 1832, the Bishop of Cebu, Santos Gomez Marañon, wrote a letter to the Spanish monarch, asking that Jesuits be sent to work in his huge diocese, which then included the whole island of Mindanao. The aim was “to expand and revitalize missionary work in Mindanao, especially among the pagan tribes.”<br /><br />After another Jesuit expulsion and restoration, Queen Isabel II formally re-established the Society of Jesus in the Philippines.<br /><br />And so it happened that, on 4 February 1859, ten Jesuits from the Aragonese, Basque and Catalan regions of the then still one Province of Spain and under the leadership of Fr. José Fernandez Cuevas left Cadiz for the Philippines on board the “Luisita”. On the night of 13 June 1859, they dropped anchor off the city of Manila and would set foot on Philippine soil once again the following day.<br /><br />[Insert at this point a ppt presentation on Jesuit history from 1859 to the present.]<br /><br />I. Frontiers: Rizal and the Jesuits in Dapitan (1892-1896)<br /><br />To go back now to the first of our two questions: what were some of the frontiers that our Jesuit and lay forebears had to contend with, particularly here in Mindanao?<br /><br />Mindanao: that was the primary missionary frontier that the Jesuits desired to understand and to engage in their return to the Philippines. And Mindanao was a frontier both geographically and spiritually. Gradually but surely spreading themselves throughout the major districts of Mindanao, the Jesuits first of all ministered to the so-called “old Christians,” descendants of Boholanos, Cebuanos, Ilongos, and others who had settled in the coastal areas of the island in an earlier time, particularly in the north. The frontier however was in the more interior places and highlands, along rivers and in valleys ringed by heavily forested mountains and hills. The Jesuits would seek to evangelize the Tirurays, Manobos, Mandayas, Tagacaolos, Mamanuas, Bagobos, Subanons, and Bukidnons... They also tried to bring the sea-faring peoples of Basilan and the Sulu archipelago into the faith: Samals, Yacans and even the Taosugs. The Jesuits, taking over almost all of the existing missions run by the Recollects by the end of the 19th century, characterized their work in the great island as apostolic, because it was work for the Church, patriotic, because it was work for Spain, and civilizing, because it was work for the people. Of this work much has been written.<br /><br />What I would like to highlight however is something that perhaps might surprise even Jesuits. In an essay entitled “Rizal in Dapitan” that Fr. Bernad wrote for his book The Great Island: Studies in the Exploration and Evangelization of Mindanao, he starts out by distinguishing between the private and public life of Jose Rizal during his time of exile in Dapitan, from 1892 to 1896. He counts as belonging to the private story of Rizal such episodes as his relationship with Josephine Bracken and his correspondence with Fr. Pau Pastells regarding his faith life. He then enumerates five areas where Rizal’s story is clearly a public affair, and it is this area that should interest us at this point. These are:<br /><br />1) the projects undertaken by Rizal with Father Francisco Paula de Sanchez in Dapitan;<br /><br />2) Rizal’s innovative approach to education in the school for boys he set up;<br /><br />3) Rizal’s practice of his medical and surgical profession;<br /><br />4) Rizal’s social consciousness evident in his commercial ventures;<br /><br />5) Rizal’s efforts toward relocating the poor farmers and their families who were evicted from Calamba to Mindanao.<br /><br />If we look closely at these 5 points, do we not see Rizal here engaging the frontiers of human and social life as he saw them in Mindanao by his activities, activities which, if you ask me, are somehow relevant to what Xavier University has been all about in all the years of its existence? Allow me to elaborate a bit on these five frontiers by using Fr. Bernad’s narrative:<br /><br />1) First: the projects Rizal and his Jesuit friend Fr. Francisco de Paula Sanchez collaborated on in Dapitan were scientific, archaeological, historical, linguistic. <br /><br />Bernad narrates:<br /><br /> ... It must have been...with great joy for Jose Rizal, newly arrived as an exile in a lonely place like Dapitan, to welcome upon his arrival in Mindanao the same Father Sanchez who had helped form him in his youth.<br /><br /> Rizal’s joy must have been all the greater when he found that Father Sanchez had brought along scientific equipment. Among them was a surveyor’s transit, which was to prove useful in their project to construct large relief maps in the town plaza. An aneroid barometer...proved useful for measuring the altitude of a hill. An apparatus for testing the potability of the water was also part of Father Sanchez’s luggage, while another instrument that Sanchez brought, a compass with an accompanying notation on the degree of divergence from the true North, later figured in Rizal’s investigation and trial in Fort Santiago.<br /><br /> One of the projects of Rizal and Sanchez was an archaeological excavation on a hill named Linamon, just south of Dapitan. It had been the site of a native settlement. ... From their aneroid barometer, Rizal and Sanchez had calculated the hilltop to be 324 meters above sea level.<br /><br /> A shallow exaction yielded a treasure, namely, a rough and primitive gold ring with a pea-sized ruby. Thus encouraged, they dug some more and found a tin medal of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Digging even deeper they found a real treasure trove for archaeologists: broken earthen jars, one of them adorned with the figure of a dragon swallowing the sun (probably intended to represent a solar eclipse). There were also various types of Chinese pottery and a Japanese celadon. After preparing an inventory and classifying the ceramics, Rizal sent the entire find to the Ateneo Museum of Natural History.<br /><br /> During their afternoon walks, Father Sanchez and Rizal went to the seashore and collected four hundred different kinds of shells that they sent to Manila for classification by a conchologist. These shells were later given to the Ateneo to augment its shell collection, which had so entranced the young Rizal as a student of natural history.<br /><br /> The very first project of Rizal and Sanchez together, though, involved looking up the history of Dapitan...<br /><br /> Their interest in local history later led Rizal and Father Sanchez to undertake a comparative study of the local language (Cebuano Visayan) and Tagalog... In (a notebook) Rizal had written his brief but brilliant treatise on the Tagalog language. On the first page was the title and dedication that read:<br /><br />Estudios<br />sobre la lengua tagala<br />dedicados<br />al P. Francisco de P. Sanchez<br />por su antiguo discipulo<br />Jose Rizal<br />en el dia de su Santo<br />2 de Abril de 1893<br />Dapitan, Isla de Mindanao<br /><br />Fr. Bernad comments that this dedication was “a delicate touch, a sign of affection” on the part of Rizal for his old Ateneo teacher, mentor, and friend.<br /><br />Perhaps the most ambitious project undertaken by Rizal and Sanchez was the construction of a relief map in the plaza at the center of the town of Dapitan. Bernad quotes Fr. Sanchez’s account of the plan and its construction. Though not completed, the plaza relief map was supposed to show Mindanao, Luzon and six of the largest islands in the Philippines (presumably those of the Visayas and perhaps including that of Palawan). Geography here is translated into stone and steel cartography.<br /><br />I quote this story from the pen of Fr. Bernad because, in its brevity, we see various things: geography, topography, natural history, cartography, archaeology, human history, even linguistics... These projects of Rizal and Sanchez, do they not tell us of Mindanao itself as a frontier of knowledge, of human, social and natural sciences, of disciplined research and investigation? When I was a regent here more than 20 years ago, there were names that stood out in the studies they made on Mindanao: Bernad of course, Demetrio, the Burtons, Madigan, McKeough, Costello, Ledesma, etc. The projects point to Mindanao as a frontier of study.<br /><br />I dare say that today Mindanao continues to be a frontier of disciplined research in the natural, human and social sciences and their technologies. The problems that beset this great island, particularly those that have brought on the shedding of blood and the impoverishment of many due to social, political, economic, religious, ethnic, cultural differences and to the untrammeled exploitation of its natural resources demand even more intensive and comprehensive studies of Mindanao considered not just in its parts but as an integral whole. Xavier University, more than any other university in this great island, is perhaps in an ideal position to do this. Certainly, the three Ateneos on the island of Mindanao, forming the triple axis of an institutional triangle and closely collaborating with each other, are definitely in the best position to do this.<br /><br />2) Second: Rizal’s innovative approach to education in the school for boys he set up.<br /><br />This school has its origin in the “academy on education and fine arts” that Rizal and Father Sanchez conducted on the ground floor of the parish convento after Sunday mass. They wanted to do something for the young people of Dapitan, and so they decided to run what today we would call “seminars” and “workshops” in such areas as drawing, mathematics and geography. After the departure of Fr. Sanchez from Dapitan, Rizal decided to transform the “academy” into a regular school. Again, Fr. Bernad tells us the story:<br /><br /> His was an unusual school in several respects: in its curriculum, in its objectives. And it was also unusual in the sense that the students paid for their board and lodging, as well as for their tuition, not in cash, but with work. They all lived and worked on the farm thereby learning agronomy while also learning to support themselves instead of depending on their parents for their needs.<br /><br /> The school was small, with no more than sixteen boys, who were the sons of some of the principal families of the town. ... The “principal families” of Dapitan were, however, not wealthy, for in another letter to Blumentritt Rizal said, “These are poor but good boys whose parents cannot afford to buy books.” Apart from Rizal’s belief in the value of work, there was a more practical reason for his starting his school: he wanted to give the boys “some work to do.”<br /><br /> From his letters we have a list of the academic subjects taught in his school. Contrary to his own classical training, he did not teach the ancient classics (Latin and Greek). Instead, he taught Spanish and English, geometry and algebra (“up to the first degree of equations”), and geography. It is noteworthy that in the 1890s – before anyone had any inkling that the Philippines would become an American colony – Rizal was already teaching English in Dapitan. He explained the reason: “Por si acaso viajan” – in case they should travel.<br /><br /> In addition to the academic curriculum, his students learned by working on the farm. As the streamlet that ran through the property was too sluggish in the dry season to provide enough water all year round, Rizal and his students constructed a dam with walls of lime, clay, and stone (the ingredients of modern cement). Its base was 2 meters wide so the water dammed up to create a deep pool. When Rizal wrote to Blumentritt in March 1895, the water was 3 meters (9 feet) deep.<br /><br /> The construction of this irrigation dam was done by fourteen- and fifteen-year-old students led by a twenty-year-old foreman. Their biggest project ever, it entailed hard work, but they seemed to enjoy it. As Rizal said, “lo han hecho jugando jugando” (they did it as if they were merely playing).<br /><br />And so that his students would not get bored with their studies and their work, Rizal even composed a school hymn for them!<br /><br />Los problemas de ciencias exactas,<br />de la patria la historia estudiamos,<br />tres y cuatro lenguas hablamos<br />acordando la fe y la razón.<br />Nuestros brazos manejan a turno<br />el cuchillo, la pluma, la azada,<br />la piqueta, el fusil y la espada<br />compañeros de fuerte varón.<br /><br />We study the problems of the exact sciences,<br />and the history of our country.<br />We speak three or four languages,<br />reconciling Faith and Reason.<br />With our hands (arms) we handle in turn<br />the knife, the pen, the spade,<br />the pickaxe, the gun, the sword –<br />companions of the brave man.<br /><br />These lines reveal to us, according to Fr. Bernad, Rizal’s idea of the educated person. They reveal to us in fact Rizal himself. And they reveal to us as well some of his ideas on education.<br /><br />I myself have questions about the gun and the sword, but in everything else, what Rizal here reveals to us as components of education seem to resonate with some of the programs of a Jesuit university like Xavier. The accent on agriculture and engineering for example... Has not the reputation for excellence of Xavier University been built as well on these twin pillars? There has always been that desire to translate the sciences into practical and effective strategies that produce food and build roads, bridges, dams, irrigation systems, and other infrastructure. Abstract knowledge must issue in programs, technologies and machines. And all because Jesuits like Masterson and their lay collaborators have seen them as necessary for engaging the frontier that was Mindanao...<br /><br />3) Third: Rizal’s practice of his medical and surgical profession.<br /><br />In Rizal’s time, health was a major issue and, in many areas far from the major cities of Manila and Cebu, people did not have the proper medical care in easy reach. In Fr. Bernad’s essay, we read:<br /><br /> From 1894 until Rizal left Dapitan a year and a half later, patients came not only from the vicinity, but also from the Visayas – Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, Negros, Panay. In one well-known case, a patient came from Hong Kong.<br /><br /> Because patients were generally accompanied by relatives, Rizal allowed them to construct temporary shelters on (his) property. To his brother-in-law he said: “Tengo muchisimos enfermos que vienen de diferentes pueblos, y ahora mis terrenos están sembrados de casitas-hospitales” (I have very many patients who come from various towns, and now my property is sprouting with hospital huts).<br /><br /> It was known that he was an eye specialist, and undoubtedly many of those who came from distant places had eye ailments. (Among Rizal’s extant papers are instructions for a blind man in Cebu.) Nevertheless, many, or, perhaps, most of the patients had other ailments. Rizal had to become a general practitioner.<br /><br /> ...Rizal was more successful in more ways than one. Not only did his clinic attract patients from many places, but there was also the fact that he had to practice medicine and perform surgical operations in what might be called “primitive conditions,” without the benefit of hospital facilities and without the aid of a trained nurse.<br /><br /> Possibly, it is...no exaggeration to say that for at least three and a half years, or from 1893 to 1896, Mindanao, particularly Dapitan, became the most famous medical center of the entire Philippine archipelago.<br /><br />Does Fr. Bernad exaggerate? I do not think so. But it is interesting to note that medicine and public health care were already frontier issues in Rizal’s time in Mindanao. They remain frontier issues in Mindanao even today. It is no secret that Xavier University recognizes this, and not just because the world demand for medical and health care personnel shows no sign of a significant decline but because right here and right now the practice of medicine and public health care remains a vital but unmet need of our people, particularly those in this great island of Mindanao...<br /><br />4) Fourth: Rizal’s social consciousness evident in his commercial ventures.<br /><br />That Rizal was a businessman when he was in Dapitan is not a very well known fact about the national hero. That he was a businessman with a social conscience is perhaps even less well-known. Bernad writes:<br /><br />…Rizal was a businessman, although there was a social angle to his being one. While he was in Hong Kong, Rizal and Jose Ma. Basa had discussed the idea of a Liga Filipina, which Rizal promoted during his two weeks in Manila prior to his incarceration in Fort Santiago. The group’s purpose was to promote self-help and economic progress, the very same ideas Rizal propagated in Dapitan…by actually engaging in business himself. He was concerned that many of the townspeople were poor and that those who were farmers were being exploited by…middlemen who got most of the profits from farm products. Hence, Rizal, for his part, engaged in business to make a modest profit for himself, and also (as he told a brother-in-law) “to help them (the townspeople) a little.”<br /><br />He had two business ventures, both of them partnerships. One entailed buying abaca and shipping it to Manila, in effect competing with…middlemen. The other venture consisted of fishing and fish marketing, for which the partners bought several boats.<br /><br />This image of Rizal as a socially-minded businessman, though unusual and perhaps even strange, is attractive and appealing to us today. Rizal was a humanist, but a humanist who was also a realist and a pragmatist: what was also important was helping others make a better life. And this meant paying attention to economic life, to business, to improving standards of living among the ordinary people of Dapitan.<br /><br />Jesuit schools are known for their management, accounting and business courses. And Jesuit schools are now becoming better known for promoting the social responsibility of business enterprises. To make profit, yes, but to make profit not at the expense of making life more miserable for people; it is to make profit that actually promotes a better life for other people. Given the financial and economic crises of the past few years in the world, the new frontier of doing business that embodies social responsibility is fast becoming familiar because recognized as necessary if we are to survive in a globalizing world. Globalizing business must carry global social responsibility.<br /><br />5) Fifth: Rizal’s efforts toward relocating the poor farmers and their families who were evicted from Calamba to Mindanao.<br /><br />Finally, the last activity under our consideration in Fr. Bernad’s essay “Rizal in Dapitan” looks at his efforts to relocate the poor farmers and their families who were evicted from the friar hacienda of Calamba to Mindanao. In the story told by Fr. Bernad,<br /><br />Rizal came to own three farms in Dapitan. In addition to his seaside homestead in Talisay, where he lived and had his clinic and school, he acquired another piece of property inland, with money he had won in a Manila lottery. The property was located away from the sea, but beside a river that reminded him of his hometown, Calamba. To his family he wrote:<br /><br />I have bought here a piece of land near a river that is much like the river of Kalamba, the only difference being that the one here is wider and more full, and its waters much clearer. How it reminds me of Kalamba! My land here has 6,000 abaca plants. … The land is fertile. Besides abaca, there is enough land for planting two cavans of corn.<br /><br />He invited his family to come and live there.<br /><br />He also bought a third strip of land, much larger and farther from town.<br /><br />To (this) tract of land…he gave the name “Nueva Kalamba,” or New Calamba. In it he proposed to relocate the poor tenants and families (estimated at three hundred persons) evicted from Calamba in Laguna province.<br /><br />Bernad says that Rizal had earlier made a<br /><br />trip to British North Borneo, now known as Sabah, to obtain permission from the British authorities to establish a Filipino ‘colony’ (i.e., settlement). The British authorities welcomed the idea. Sabah, after all, was then very sparsely populated so that there was much virgin land available for cultivation.<br /><br />The Spanish authorities however would reject this idea. Rizal was then arrested and imprisoned in Fort Santiago and then exiled to Dapitan. It was this concern for the landless farmers of his hometown<br /><br />that impelled him to buy the large tract of land near Dapitan, naming it “Nueva Kalamba.” Two leaders from Calamba who inspected the place found it suitable. In order not to attract too much unfavorable attention, however, it was decided that the Calamba refugees would not be brought to Dapitan all at once, but in small groups, a few families at a time.<br /><br />Fr. Bernad then says:<br /><br />The Revolution, Rizal’s imprisonment and execution and the confiscation of all his properties (by the Spanish colonial government) prevented what would have been a great humanitarian project.<br /><br />What we find narrated in these pages has been part of the larger history of Mindanao. Mindanao is populated today not only by the Moro communities and the Lumads but by the descendants of migrants and settlers who poured into Mindanao by the thousands in the course of the 20th century. Rizal’s intention was to help the poor tenants who had no land of their own. Migration therefore had a particularly social justice dimension to it. In an excellent article written by Michael Costello, the author analyzes the demographics of Mindanao. In 1903, he notes that the population of Mindanao and Sulu was 670,833, with a density of 6.58 persons per square kilometer!!! (Let me just note that, at the beginning of the 20th century, the population of the country stood at around 8 million inhabitants; Metro Manila at 12 million today had a much larger population than the whole country.) In 1980, the population stood at 10,905,243 with a density of 106.92 persons per square kilometer. In 2000, an internet resource puts the population of Mindanao at 18,100,000 people. I can imagine that today the population of Mindanao has crossed the 20 million mark.<br /><br />People and natural resources, including land…and the conflicts born out of their interaction, particularly through migration, settlement, displacement of indigenous peoples, etc: Mindanao as a “frontier land of promise” is now a land of bitter contestation and armed confrontation. What role does a university like Xavier need to play in order to move us on the road to peace and sustainable development and progress for all? <br /><br />In all these five activities of Rizal’s public life in Dapitan, we find frontiers in Research, Education, Health, Business and Migration delineated for us here in Mindanao.<br /><br />What then are the new frontiers that define Mindanao for us today? What do the men and women of Xavier University think the frontiers are that beckon to them not only here and now but elsewhere and in the foreseeable future?<br /><br />II. Requirements of Mission to and Service at the Frontiers<br /><br />From a consideration of Mindanao as frontier engaged in by Jesuits and Jose <br />Rizal, we now need to consider the relevance of this engagement for us today. What lessons can we learn from Jesuit history in the Philippines that would indicate to us the disposition for and requirements of mission to and service at the frontiers? What virtues were required by work on the frontiers then? What form of these virtues is required by work on the frontiers of today?<br /><br />1) Generosity<br /><br />Tamontaca (1861), Pollok (1861), Isabela de Basilan (1862), Tetuán (1862), Zamboanga (1865), Mercedes (1867), Ayala (1870), Bolong (1896), Davao (1868), Sigaboy (1870), Samal (1870), Sarangani (1875), Mati (1886), Peña-Plata (1896), Manay (1897), Dapitan (1870), and from Dapitan, Dipolog and Lubungan, Bislig (1874), Gigáquit (1874), Dinagat (1877), Taganaán (1877), Cantilan (1879), Caraga (1881), Cabuntog (1883), Numancia (1883), Tandag (1884), Lianga (1884), Baganga (1884), Butuan (1875), Bunauan (1878), Talacogon (1878), Játiva (1887), Veruela (1895), Esperanza (1897), Prosperidad (1897), Tolosa (1897), Alubijid (1878), El Salvador (1879), Tagoloan (1887), Balingasag (1887), Jasaan (1887), Gingoog (1887), Sumilao (1889), Linabo (1889), Sevilla (1893), Oroquieta, and Jolo (1878), Cagayan de Oro (1905), Cabadbaran (1913).<br /><br />In pre-revolution times, thirty-six years after they started the mission of Tamontaca, Jesuits worked in at least 43 missions in Mindanao.<br /><br />I realize of course that perhaps, for most of us, these are just names, names of towns and villages. But each name tells a story, a story of generous Jesuits, priests and brothers, and their lay collaborators, who labored long and hard to form Christian communities in Mindanao. We are allowed I think to boast: what would Mindanao be without the labor of all those Spanish Jesuit missionaries, and later the American and Filipino Jesuits that succeeded them? What would Mindanao be without Guerrico, Juanmarti, Gisbert, Heras, Urios, et alii? Without Hayes, Shea, Cullen, Krebs, Cunningham and others? Without Raviolo, Leoni, and Moggi? Without Alingal, Pacquing, Dagani, Tapiador, Sanchez, etc.?<br /><br />Whatever one thinks of the “españolismo” of the Spanish Jesuit missionaries or the “Americanism” of the American Jesuits, no one can seriously dispute the generosity with which they plunged into missionary work in Mindanao.<br /><br />Before the revolution, a full two thirds of the total Jesuit manpower of the Philippine Mission was assigned to Mindanao. In 1898, out of a total of 167 Jesuits, 60 Jesuits (36 %) were working in the Manila institutions of the Society, and 107 Jesuits (64 %) were assigned to the Mindanao missions. In 1924, Jesuits were responsible for 379 towns and barrios, with a Catholic population of 301,262, and 65 parochial schools. Here the generosity of the Province of Aragon, mother province of the Philippine Mission, must be acknowledged; in 1896, Aragon had 164 Jesuits (16 %) of its men working in the Philippine Mission, with 276 Jesuits (27 %) working in its other mission, Chile-Argentina (for a total of 43 % of Jesuits in mission lands!).<br /><br />The difficulties that our ancestors had in Mindanao were various. I remember being struck by the frequency with which the word “neurasthenia” appeared in letters written by Mindanao Jesuits to the Mission Superior in Manila. One internet resource defines neurasthenia as “characterized by general lassitude, irritability, lack of concentration, worry, and hypochondria.” The term was introduced into psychiatry in 1869 by G. M. Beard, an American neurologist. Neurasthenia covers a wide spectrum of symptoms, including painful sensations or numbness in parts of the body, chronic fatigue, anxiety, and fainting. Some medical historians believe that neurasthenia may actually be the same as the modern day disorder of chronic fatigue syndrome.” Chronic fatigue syndrome...or, as Jesuit Father Vic de Jesus would put it, GFW, a “general feeling of weakness...” It is classified as a mental disorder triggered by stress or anxiety.<br /><br />And yet the Jesuits did not allow this or any other reason to induce them to abandon the Mindanao missions. Despite the many problems and difficulties, they remained generous in serving the needs of Mindanao. The one and only time they left the missions was when the Mission Superior compelled them to return to Manila in 1898, after the 2nd phase of the revolution had broken out.<br />We must ask ourselves this question then: in our present context, what does it mean for us, the men and women of Xavier University, to be generous? What mission frontiers today need our generosity, and what kind of generosity is asked of us?<br />2) Flexibility<br />The Jesuit missionary mandate in the Philippines had to do with the evangelization of Mindanao. And yet Jesuits were flexible enough to adjust apostolic goals and strategies by responding to other needs brought to their attention. Thus it came about that Jesuits took on the running of schools as part of their apostolic work.<br />First example: in 1859, the Jesuits, freshly arrived from Spain, would be requested to take over the moribund Escuela municipal de Manila. This school would be renamed Ateneo municipal de Manila and, after the establishment of American rule, would become a private institution with the name Ateneo de Manila.<br />This coming year, we therefore also celebrate 150 years of the return of Jesuit education in general to the Philippines and 150 years of the Ateneo de Manila University in particular.<br />Second example: when the Spanish colonial government finally got serious about setting up a system of primary education for the whole country, a committee was set up. The Superior of the Jesuits then, Fr. José Fernandez Cuevas, presented “a complete plan in harmony with the one used in Spain.” He proposed that a normal school for the training of teachers be established under the direction of the Piarist Fathers (the “Escolapios”). The Queen however decided to assign the Escuela Normal de Maestros de la Instruccion Primaria to the Jesuits instead. And so it came to pass that the Jesuits showed their flexibility once again by accepting the direction of this institution in 1865, an institution that, by 1894, would be raised to the status of an Escuela normal superior. By the time the school lost its government subsidy in 1901, it had graduated 1,693 primary school teachers and 340 assistants, for a total of 2,013 teachers.<br />From the Ateneo and the Escuela Normal would emerge Filipino nationalists and leaders of the Revolution. It was not quite what the Jesuits intended, but given the circumstances, it was something that Jesuit education nevertheless produced.<br />The question that we must ask ourselves today then: how flexible are we, the men and women of Xavier University, in meeting the challenges of the times and in serving at the new frontiers opened up to us by Mindanao and the world of today? What kind of flexibility is demanded of us so that we may effectively allocate human and other resources to the service at these new frontiers?<br />3) Mobility<br />I am sometimes under the impression that “mobility” is no longer a characteristic of Jesuit apostolic work, due in great part to the on-going revolution in communication technologies. Jesuits seem to be rather immobile, set their whole lives to be rooted in one place.<br />It is also a mark of institutions, particularly our schools, that they require a certain kind of stability in personnel for them to function properly and efficaciously.<br />Nevertheless, I have always been impressed by the extraordinary mobility of our men in previous times. It is not unusual to find the Rector of the Ateneo municipal or the Escuela Normal or even the Mission Superior based in Manila to be assigned at some point in his apostolic life to some mission station in Mindanao, and for our men in the Mindanao missions to be assigned to the Manila institutions. Stability of personnel was then much more clearly demanded by the Observatorio de Manila for obvious reasons: scientific work demanded highly specialized knowledge and skills.<br />Nevertheless, the question remains, given the new frontiers beckoning to us: what kind of mobility and therefore what kind of stability as well are demanded of us, the men and women of Xavier University, by the new frontiers of apostolic work to which we are being invited to respond?<br />4) Creativity<br />After the Jesuits first arrived in the Cotabato delta and successfully established a presence there in 1861, they hit upon the creative idea of ransoming the children of slaves from their Moro masters during a time of famine. From these ransomed slaves the “Tamontaca reductions” would rise. Fr. de la Costa tells us this story in his Light Cavalry in vivid terms.<br /> By 1875, sixty boys and thirty girls had been ransomed. With them the Jesuits founded the reduction—now the town—of Tamontaka...<br /> As soon as they were of age, they were free to marry. Marriage constituted man and wife free citizens of Tamontaka. After the wedding ceremony, they were led to the Fathers’ wedding gift: a house, two hectares of land, household utensils, instruments of tillage, food and money until the next harvest.<br />And then there is the story of the Observatorio de Manila. This venerable Jesuit institution had its beginnings in the scientific experiments that two Jesuit scholastics, Francisco Colina and Jaime Nonell, conducted on the rooftop of the old Ateneo municipal de Manila. With primitive instruments that they themselves made, they sought to measure humidity in the air, plot wind patterns, gauge atmospheric temperatures, and other things as well. The arrival of another scholastic, Federico Faura, would boost the scientific stature of the incipient Observatorio. So much so that, with the assistance of interested businessmen and the Spanish colonial government, the Jesuits would engage in, among other tasks, procuring the latest scientific instruments and indeed inventing them, instruments that for example enabled them to predict typhoons that then never failed to ravage an unsuspecting country, decimate populations and hurt economic life.<br />The question then that we must pose to ourselves: what kind of creativity is required of us, the men and women of Xavier University, by the new frontiers of apostolic work? Here, it is interesting to note that scholastics such as Colina, Nonell, and Faura were creative, and allowed to be creative, in the matter of starting what would later become the Manila Observatory engaged in the frontier work of predicting typhoons, studying earthquakes, observing the skies and other such things.<br />It is also interesting to note that Nonell would become later in life an expert in the Spiritual Exercises, so much so that Fr. Louis Puhl, in his “Translator’s Preface” to his The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, would say: “All of the standard commentaries have influenced the translation, but it is not surprising if the influence of Father Jaime Nonell, S. J., is evident at every turn. For many years his books on the Exercises have been the translator’s constant companions, and have been used by him as their clearest and most logical interpretation.” Here was a scholastic-scientist who would also become a master of the Exercises. Here is an example of Jesuit creativity.<br />5) Openness to New Initiatives<br />In the aftermath of revolution and war, the Jesuits, much reduced in manpower (some one third of Jesuit manpower would return to Spain, to come trickling back in the next two decades or so), would nevertheless strike out in new apostolic ventures.<br />The first that must be mentioned is that Jesuits would accept the challenge of chaplaincy work in the Lepers Colony that the American colonial government would organize on the island of Culion. At some point in time, Culion would be the largest lepers colony in the world, with 5,000 lepers needing care and attention. Today we are still there, but now under a different set of conditions. Culion today is no longer a lepers colony but a young and vibrant municipality that has dreams of its own.<br />Perhaps the most important new initiative that the Jesuits would undertake in post-revolution and post-war years would be that of seminary formation and education.<br />In 1905, the Jesuits would accept the invitation to run and staff the Colegio-Seminario de Vigan in Ilocos. We would be there for 20 years. Problems with the local ordinary (is this an inevitable part of what it means for Jesuits to serve at the frontiers of Church and world?), among others, would push the Jesuits to leave Vigan in 1925.<br />The Escuela Normal would at some point be transformed into the Colegio-Seminario de San Francisco Javier, otherwise fondly known as San Javier.<br />Jeremias Harty, the new Archbishop of Manila, would entrust the San Carlos Seminary to the Jesuits in 1905 and for some 8 years San Carlos would be a Jesuit-run institution. In 1913, the Archbishop would take back his seminary and entrust it to the Paúles or the Vincentians.<br />In 1915, five years after the restoration of the Colegio de San Jose properties to the administration of the Society of Jesus, Jesuits would finally open the Seminario de San Jose as an apostolic school.<br />And now, not too far from here, is the Jesuit-founded St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, the theologate of the bishops of northern Mindanao. Though with a diminished presence, Jesuits continue to serve the dioceses of Mindanao through their administration of this important institution for the spiritual formation and theological education of the future priests of the Mindanao Church.<br />The question that we must pose to ourselves then is this: how open are we, the men and women of Xavier University, to new initiatives coming from sources in Church and society? What kind of openness is demanded of us by the new frontiers of apostolic work on the horizon?<br />6) Humility, and therefore Collaboration with Others<br />The post-revolution Jesuit Mission would suffer a rather prolonged manpower crisis at a time when Jesuits had to carry a terrible burden unloaded on them by historical circumstances. The missionary strategy that we insisted on when we first arrived in Mindanao, i.e., that only Jesuits be allowed to work there, and the pride that we took in our accomplishments in the Mindanao missions had to give way to the dictates of humility: there was no way we could continue to work for the flourishing of the Mindanao Church without asking missionaries from other religious congregations to help us. And so it came to pass that in 1908 the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus took over the Surigao and then the Agusan mission fields, the PME of Quebec would take over Davao in 1937, the Columbans would come to northern Mindanao in 1938, and the Oblates of Mary Immaculate would take over Cotabato and Sulu in 1939. We were responsible of course for bringing in the Religious of the Virgin Mary to Mindanao, and in Culion we collaborated with the SPC Sisters.<br />The question that we must pose to ourselves is this: humbly acknowledging our own limited manpower and resources, how willing are we, the men and women of Xavier University, to engage in genuine and meaningful collaboration with other institutions and groups, not just here in Cagayan de Oro City but across this great island, including the archipelagic sections of the south, so that the challenges of the new frontiers of Mindanao may be met? <br />III. Final Remarks<br />Just in passing, I would like to note that the apostolic work engaged in by Jesuits and their lay partners is never without a context, a context that is at the same time ecclesiastical, social, political, economic, cultural and, today more than in the past, environmental. Just to cite a few examples. The Spanish Jesuits and their lay partners labored under the centuries old system of the Patronato real de la Iglesia. To some extent, this limited their vision and would create problems for the Spanish Jesuits when confronted with the rise of Philippine nationalism and its challenges articulated by such as Rizal. The American Jesuits, those that came in the first two decades of American rule and those of the first big group that came to take over the Ateneo de Manila and the Colegio-Seminario de Vigan in 1921, were told to be careful about pronouncing themselves one way or the other with regard to the question of Philippine independence from the United States, a sensitive and thorny political issue.<br />Fr. de la Costa narrates a story of Faura conversing with Rizal on the occasion of a visit by their famous alumnus and the author of the novel Noli me tangere in 1887: “Father Faura, seeing the dismal change wrought in this gentle boy of ten years ago, now so hard of heart, said in a moment of bitterness a bitter thing. If he was so obdurate in error, the Jesuit said, then the Fathers washed their hands of him, because it was greatly to be feared that he would end his life on a gibbet.” I cannot help thinking that, for as long as Rizal lived (in exile in Dapitan and incarcerated at Fort Santiago) and even as he walked to his execution, the Spanish Jesuits would exert every effort to rectify their virtual excommunication of Rizal.<br />In 1900, Fr. Algue, with the permission of Mission superiors (but to the distress it seems of the Spanish Superior General in Rome), would allow the American Government in Washington D. C. to publish the two-volume and truly tremendous work authored by Jesuits: El Archipiélago Filipino: Colección de datos geográficos, estadísticos, cronológicos y científicos, relativos al mismo. Entresacados de anteriores obras u obtenidos con la propia observación y estudio, with its own Atlas Filipino, a precious work that obviously interested the Americans because of the variety of maps that it contained, navigational, mineralogical, ethnographic, etc. This work of scholarship was a useful resource for the new colonial masters. It cannot be helped that a scholarly work is used for political and economic ends not intended by the authors.<br />The new frontiers that are marked out for us by the signs of the times are not free from ecclesiastical, social, political, economic, cultural and environmental determinants. But Jesuits and their lay partners have always been imbued with a certain evangelical and pragmatic prudence that enabled them to divine what was more important and significant in their apostolic work.<br />Celebrations are expressed in the stories we tell each other as Jesuits and lay partners. As we tell our stories, we pray for the grace of gratitude for all the good things the Lord has done for us in the course of this year of celebration. We pray for the grace of gratitude as well for the great things the Lord has done for us the past 150 years. And as this anniversary year continues to unfold, let us pray then for two things: first, let us pray that we may have the courage to discern the new frontiers of the future, and second, that we may have the right kind of generosity, flexibility, mobility, creativity, openness to new initiatives, humility and collaborative spirit so necessary to our triple task of spreading fire that kindles other fires, deepening our friendship, and engaging the new frontiers of apostolic work to which the Lord calls us.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Antonio F. B. de Castro, SJ<br />Loyola School of Theology<br />Ateneo de Manila University Campus<br />Loyola Heights, Quezon City</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLGtQjnYeUW-LNMer9gWwb6_MuT-VHMAA_S3JIpRkH0Dibrh37eTt0PApMJLTocUj6nTFsrsvckGpd-Vix5l5zBLw8xHRCRKdJvFOwqkalGfYh0b84cN83JDin9y3Mm2DM2-3k1Gt9vj8/s1600-h/fiesta+081.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLGtQjnYeUW-LNMer9gWwb6_MuT-VHMAA_S3JIpRkH0Dibrh37eTt0PApMJLTocUj6nTFsrsvckGpd-Vix5l5zBLw8xHRCRKdJvFOwqkalGfYh0b84cN83JDin9y3Mm2DM2-3k1Gt9vj8/s320/fiesta+081.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391869296164942130" /></a><br />pictures of fort pilar taken by Fr.Wilfredo M. SamsonADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-6071269690924578362009-10-12T10:49:00.001+08:002009-10-13T07:53:46.280+08:00Sesquicentennial Homily in ADZU (Magadia)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6s98rSvYWu85WFCfNPaihR5f7q9XxBeDqq4334cTgQkJP9gZVoCgQFvxXLWMGr2t3SmA_49AJKnUPpGhK6aO0FreeykvNPS4Nrri2SWZc2bs8_FZ52gFef5HRY2S8JjTNH6Pav-yq5p4/s1600-h/sesqui.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6s98rSvYWu85WFCfNPaihR5f7q9XxBeDqq4334cTgQkJP9gZVoCgQFvxXLWMGr2t3SmA_49AJKnUPpGhK6aO0FreeykvNPS4Nrri2SWZc2bs8_FZ52gFef5HRY2S8JjTNH6Pav-yq5p4/s320/sesqui.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391542229702057538" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Homily for the Celebration of the 150th Anniversary (1859-2009) of the Return of the Jesuits to the Philippines Province of Jesuit educational apostolate in the Philippines of Jesuit presence in Mindanao And the Launching of the Centennial Jubilee of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University (1912-2012)<br />3 July 2009, La Purisima Campus, Ateneo de Zamboanga University<br />by Fr. José CJ Magadia, SJ (Provincial of the Society of Jesus, Philippine Province)</span><br /><br /><br />It was barely three weeks ago, in Intramuros, that the Philippine Jesuits gathered for the Eucharist, along with the Ateneo de Manila community, to give thanks to the Lord for the 150th anniversary of the return of the Jesuits to the Philippines. On that very day in 1859, June 14, six priests and four brothers from the Province of Aragon, Spain, re-established a mission that has continued to bear fruit to this day. A few months after, the Jesuits began the Ateneo Municipal, which also re-initiated its educational apostolate.<br /><br />Today, we gather to celebrate the same anniversary of the return of the Jesuits to the Philippines. But what makes today’s event special is that for the first time, we bring this commemoration to Mindanao, the land that was the very reason for the Jesuits’ return, the land to which we have dedicated ourselves continually to this very day. After all, we must always remind ourselves that when the Jesuits came back to the Philippines, it was not to start schools, but to take on the mission posts in Mindanao and Joló.<br /><br />So we look back and give thanks for the great missionaries of Mindanao – the pioneers like Father José Ignacio Guerrico inTamontaca, Father Saturnino Urios in Agusan, Father Ramón Barúa in Tetuan, and many others. Then followed the equally impassioned and indefatigable American Jesuits like Father John Pollock in Camiguin, and Father James Hayes in Talisayan and Cagayan. More recently there were Fathers Vincent Cullen, John Krebs, Luigi Moggi, and Godofredo Alingal in Bukidnon, along with Brothers Agustin Sinayan and Wenceslao Caberio, Fathers Benigno Dagani, Raimundo Argárate, and Robert Walsh in Ipil. The lists can go on and on, of men who have given up home and country, who have gone on foot, on horseback, on banca, who have preached and catechized and administered the sacraments – for love of Mindanao and its peoples.<br /><br />But of course, there is an added reason for our gathering. Today, we officially launch the three-year preparation for the 100th anniversary, the centennial, of our very own Ateneo de Zamboanga. We are told of its humble beginnings in 1912, as the Escuela Católica, headed by Jesuit Father Manuel Sauras, its re-naming as the Ateneo de Zamboanga, and its slow but steady growth through the years. It was rebuilt after the war and relocated in this La Purisima land, under the leadership of the unforgettable Father Eusebio Salvador, a native Zamboangueño and alumnus of the Escuela Católica, who served as Parish Priest of the Zamboanga cathedral, Vicar-General of the Diocese, and Director of the Ateneo de Zamboanga. What began as an elementary school, added a secondary school, and then later, developed into a college. Then, in 2001, Father William Kreutz finished what Father Ernesto Carretero began, and ushered Ateneo de Zamboanga into university status. Today, the Ateneo de Zamboanga stands proud, with its top-level grade school and high school, its tertiary education units which are among the best in the region, its outstanding nursing college, its uniquely service-oriented medical school.<br /><br />Truly, there is much to thank for as we prepare for the centennial in 2012. We pay special tribute to the many men and women who have become part of Ateneo’s history and growth, especially the dedicated lay teachers, and the loyal staff of so many years. Then of course, many still remember those unique Jesuit creatures who have inhabited the Ateneo, who have come and gone, especially those who have passed away, who have shared so much of their lives with and for Zamboanga – the ever-gentle Father Bo Bomeisl who walked this campus for many years, the wide-grinned Father John Chambers with his signature colorful tubao draped on his shoulder, the clownish Father Johnny Sanz, the smiling Father Asterio Katigbak with his hand to his ears trying to catch every word from those he talks to, the untiring and intense Father Agustin Bello, and many others. In the next three years, let us remember them and ask them to pray for us.<br /><br />When I asked Father President Tony Moreno what the theme of the celebration was going to be, he said that today will be focused on the re-dedication of Ateneo de Zamboanga to her patron, Our Blessed Mother in the image of the Immaculate Conception. We look to her as patron, as someone whose life and spirit inspires us and gives us direction and provides special energy. This is why we read once more the narrative of the angel Gabriel’s Annunciation to Our Lady, and find in her three distinct characteristics that can give us new life as well. We see in Our Lady a woman who was first, open to God, second, actively engaged in mission, and third, committed to the end.<br /><br />First, openness to God. When Gabriel appears to her, and announces her mission, Mary’s response was not a “no,” nor a “let me think about it,” nor a “sige na lang.” Her answer was a quiet but compelling yes, “I am the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to your word.” Her response was one of complete openness to the Almighty and whatever might be brought upon her. She said yes, without thinking about the shame and embarrassment that could come, resolute even if unaware of the forthcoming pain of losing a son. She said yes without certainty, without clear and detailed directions, without security. Hers was an extraordinary trust in God and in God’s ways.<br /><br />So too, the Ateneo de Zamboanga is called to openness, particularly to its very special quest of nurturing true and lasting peace in Mindanao, of taking advantage of her unique position as an academic institution, where authentic inter-religious dialogue can create space, for Christians to begin to understand Muslims and Muslims to begin to understand Christians, and so make room for mutual respect and reconciliation. This is not an easy task. There is no certainty. There are many obstacles from history, from deeply embedded prejudices, from personal hurts. No sure-fire solutions are in store. No clear imperatives can be set in place. But the Lord calls and challenges, and so we ask Our Lady to give the Ateneo the conviction to imitate her and say yes to this unsettling undertaking, trusting that the Lord will always accompany us and somehow shed his light along the way.<br /><br />Second, active engagement in mission. When the angel told Mary that she would bear a child, she did not simply submit like an unthinking sheep. She asks, “How can this be, since I do not know man?” She asks because she is a human being with her own mind and her own will. She asks, not out of lack of faith in God, but out of lack of knowledge of the means. She asks, not in contempt, but in simple inquiry and in all humility. She took on the enterprise, not passively, but actively, not out of powerlessness, but with all consciousness and deliberation.<br /><br />It is this same spirit that should mark the Ateneo graduate – marked by a mind that continues to question and search for answers, that thinks straight, able to make distinctions and logical connections, able to discern patterns and analyze statements and get to the heart of ideas and propositions, never satisfied with just a simple resignation of “ansina gayud,” but always ready to pursue what is true and good, what is nobler, what is beyond what the eyes can see – ansina gayud pero tiene maga cosa-cosa mas importante pa que con ese. That is really why we pursue academic excellence in all our schools, and particularly in Zamboanga – not to get high percentages on board exams or boast of topnotchers, not to have as many honors and awards, not to win recognition from CHED or PAASCU – not really – but to produce men and women who can think on their feet, who have active minds that engage the issues of the day, who can see beyond to what is more important, who are not simply cowering and unthinking vassals of powerful masters. Our Lady was such a person, with an inner strength that made her resilient, a mind of her own that kept her engaged, and a heart that never ceased to care.<br /><br />Third and finally, commitment to the end.<br /><br />In his book, Light Cavalry, Father Horacio dela Costa writes about the arrival in 1865 of Father Francisco Javier Martín Luengo in “Zamboanga la bella” which “was beautiful even then; beautiful with that dark and dangerous beauty which has always been hers and her women’s” – el maga mujer de Zamboanga. Dela Costa tells us about how Zamboanga had become a town of ill repute in those days, where Spanish soldiers would come to rest after their battles, seeking only alcohol and pleasure, and how Zamboangeños came to be known as gente perdida, the lost people. But that did not stop Father Luengo and the Jesuits who came after him. Slowly but surely, Dela Costa says, they worked quietly to convert the people, not by condemnation or denunciation, not by fire-and-brimstone threats from the pulpit, but through private conversations and gradual persuasion. And so, Zamboanga was transformed. Gente perdida became gente perdonada, through the perseverance and determination and commitment of those early missionaries.<br /><br />It is with that same commitment that Ateneo de Zamboanga must now continue to move forward. Yes, these years of jubilee are a time for looking back to a century of existence, for counting blessings, for thanksgiving. But I would like to think that jubilees are not only about cherishing and savoring the past. They are also a re-commitment to the future, with a firm resolve to forge ahead, while making sure to promote the same timeless Christian values of love and generosity and forgiveness, the Ignatian magis, the formation of men and women who should always be for others.<br /><br />When I think of commitment, I am reminded of the many classical paintings in Europe depicting the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. What one would frequently see in these paintings is a young girl walking up the steps of the temple. Legend has it that Mary’s parents were childless for a long time. In their old age, God blessed them with a daughter, and so, thankful to God for this gift, Joachim and Anne dedicated Mary to the Temple in Jerusalem, where she was presented to the high priest, whom she had to reach at the altar, by climbing the Temple’s many steps. Hence, the paintings. Pious tradition has it that once Mary set foot on those steps, she never looked back.<br /><br />That, then, is the third gift we shall ask of the Lord today for Ateneo de Zamboanga. We shall pray for the gift of unwavering commitment to do the good up to the very end. We beg for the gift of setting our feet on the right path and never again looking back. It is the gift of marching into the future, come what may, with great courage and daring.<br /><br />So, this is why on this day of celebration, we come back to our patron, Our Lady, the Immaculate Conception. We beg for her powerful intercession that we might receive the graces of the Annunciation – profound openness to God, active engagement in mission, and unwavering commitment to the end. Ánimo Ateneo!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiBmLCTxMcMgdWXCn21tE6foSZWSkustWz7wMYqF2rjyuA6hSiAPgwUmJIs6ByttNQBAKjExHQEv3InS9AMOSMMKxkF4V0XaSNkEIRpHQqwijeyU8TnzYXTTpyOrEdOD2gZ62K0ecSjT4/s1600-h/New+Image.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 210px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiBmLCTxMcMgdWXCn21tE6foSZWSkustWz7wMYqF2rjyuA6hSiAPgwUmJIs6ByttNQBAKjExHQEv3InS9AMOSMMKxkF4V0XaSNkEIRpHQqwijeyU8TnzYXTTpyOrEdOD2gZ62K0ecSjT4/s320/New+Image.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391542000465274370" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-19415350986839888952009-10-12T10:27:00.000+08:002009-10-13T07:52:38.195+08:00Sound as a Rock (S.Dimaguila)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimhFobMtLIWeqVrQ-aCUR_W-vPPync0e8vDP0esbG3EgpkT2VYe3WR38NWP58G-_tQaYrI2nHMHuw7RkAjSzRwmrqzItaaKsAf79U8rhyfVI9cR5dGjXSt9CeVkx3JMzYMhiTASmraysg/s1600-h/found.gif"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 297px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimhFobMtLIWeqVrQ-aCUR_W-vPPync0e8vDP0esbG3EgpkT2VYe3WR38NWP58G-_tQaYrI2nHMHuw7RkAjSzRwmrqzItaaKsAf79U8rhyfVI9cR5dGjXSt9CeVkx3JMzYMhiTASmraysg/s320/found.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391535875054414866" /></a><br />One of the secret to happiness is to remain docile to God…docile to His Holy Spirit. <br /><br />Life is so uncertain, but if by the grace of God one becomes aware of His Presence even in the smallest details of life, as he wakes up, as he does the very ordinary and routines of the day…as he relates to his family, friends and relatives…in his work…in all that he does…and in all the things around him.<br /><br /> Then he begins to experience God’s love…it allows the person to know the Lord…to know Him better, to know Him in the ordinary and in the routines of his life…to know Him in a very personal way.<br /><br />One knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ is…He would do anything, even shake the foundation of the universe to give…to give His all…all that is good for us according to our individual needs…pressed down and overflowing.<br /><br />This is the love that brought Jesus to the cross…to give His best…to give His all…including His life…at a cost of a very slow, painful and agonizing death.<br /><br />Knowing and experiencing Jesus’ love…makes one secured to face the uncertainties of life…secured that God would never abandon…whatever comes in life…difficulties, trials or success…we face it with joy in our heart. <br /><br />Joy, because we know that we allow God’s work to be fulfilled in us and through us…joy because we sense meaning and fulfillment in living life’s uncertainties. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Stevan S. Dimaguila<br />Faculty<br />Ateneo de Zamboanga University<br />October 11, 2009</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwz9QJvmCJlUxIFJdtHfRnnl85CTtpBGeqTytUueP3OULwOAeSnfZJvBGLYDUMbIv_CqNkrcP3MpgwSMjE0W_dv5B-m0sssZpT_SPUcASaBrdTJv1kWnuq2tkg2omWjbg9sAIP9iMTh_I/s1600-h/found2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 234px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwz9QJvmCJlUxIFJdtHfRnnl85CTtpBGeqTytUueP3OULwOAeSnfZJvBGLYDUMbIv_CqNkrcP3MpgwSMjE0W_dv5B-m0sssZpT_SPUcASaBrdTJv1kWnuq2tkg2omWjbg9sAIP9iMTh_I/s320/found2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391535997056341378" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-723160782097187532009-10-12T10:10:00.000+08:002009-10-14T05:03:28.993+08:00Challenges in Jesuit Education (Nicolas,SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjorU9x2m82ItWY-Xz3rgfx6Aw4o_KgpV_lq6-ctMDJfOHSmahoUc7ZftgbYKNpi2MMFTLTXVQBUSUSzeD3H0xxXcq5dFcgBuAF8tO0W-Do8LUC4GqrdRAKEWt6yUYzclxwl_gFaMOw8aQ/s1600-h/education.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 293px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjorU9x2m82ItWY-Xz3rgfx6Aw4o_KgpV_lq6-ctMDJfOHSmahoUc7ZftgbYKNpi2MMFTLTXVQBUSUSzeD3H0xxXcq5dFcgBuAF8tO0W-Do8LUC4GqrdRAKEWt6yUYzclxwl_gFaMOw8aQ/s320/education.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391531485453276626" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">CHALLENGES AND ISSUES IN JESUIT EDUCATION<br />Fr. Adolfo Nicolás, S.J.<br />Superior General, Society of Jesus<br />Irwin Theater, Ateneo de Manila University / 13 July 2009<br />On the Occasion of the 150th Anniversary Of Jesuit Education in the Philippines<br /><br />INTRODUCTION</span><br /><br />(1) I am delighted to be with you this morning, as we celebrate together the gift of<br />a hundred and fifty years of Jesuit education in the Philippines. There is so much to be grateful for. There has been amazing growth, from the tiny Ateneo Municipal of 33 students in 1859, to the nine institutions which now comprise the Jesuit Educational Association and which have educated hundreds of thousands of students over these years. We have been blessed with outstanding students who have truly made a difference, among whom I need only mention the most famous, your national hero,<br />José Rizal; through him and so many others, Jesuit education has been such a force<br />for good in this country. And of course, we cannot but be grateful for the many gifted and generous Jesuits and co-workers and companions who have served together over this century and a half, of whom you are the present-day representatives. We thank the Lord together; but today, allow me to begin by congratulating and thanking you all, in the name of the entire Society of Jesus.<br /><br />(2) But I am even happier that you have chosen to celebrate this century and a half<br />of mission in education, not in self-congratulation, but in a very Ignatian way: by<br />looking forward and by asking what more you can do for God’s glory and the service<br />of his people. The Basic Education Congress organizers have designed a wonderful<br />logo that expresses the spirit of our gathering today beautifully. The logo I have seen shows a ship, a sea vessel moving forward in full sail—with a sail that resembles both dove and flame! The ship, of course, reminds us of the journey across the seas of the first group of Spanish missionaries who returned to the Philippines in 1859. But it is also a symbol of all of you together, moving on a journey to new frontiers, moved by the fire and wind of the Holy Spirit!<br /><br />(3) This logo tells me two important things about the educational sector of the<br />Philippine Province. First, that it is forward-and-outward-looking. The world has<br />changed in many and important ways since the Characteristics of Jesuit Education<br />came out; certainly since the Ratio Studiorum was first produced. I am happy to see,<br />for example, that later in the program Principal Tyler Sherwood will speak about the<br />fact that “our students and education are evolving. Are we?” In other words, you are<br />asking about new needs, searching for new answers, in a new world.<br /><br />(4) But the second thing this logo tells me is that this gathering is meant to be<br />inward looking too. We hear a lot today about being competitive in the rapidly<br />changing educational environment, and certainly this is important. But your logo tells me that what this assembly aims at is not just professional updating but listening to the Spirit, letting the Spirit really be the wind that fills the sails and directs the boat of our schools. In other words, I understand that these days are meant to be spent in a discerning, listening, spirit and attitude.<br /><br /><br />(5) That gives me more confidence to speak because I know that you will not be<br />looking for ready made and complete answers for me, even though you have given me<br />a frighteningly ambitious title: “Issues and Challenges in Jesuit Education”! After all, YOU are the experts in education, not I. You have been deeply involved in this<br />apostolate for a long time and you know much better than I, I think, what the issues<br />and challenges are. Besides, you are already familiar with many excellent documents<br />that still have much to say to us: The Characteristics of Jesuit Education, the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm, Fr. Arrupe’s classic 1973 talk, Men for Others. So, my<br />contribution will be much more modest. I aim to contribute a few thoughts, to evoke<br />your own thinking and listening and exchange. In fact, I hope to raise more questions<br />than to provide answers; and they are not “trick questions” in the sense that I already have the answers myself. Sometimes, questions are ways by which we can create<br />chinks, openings in thick walls of defense, for the wind of the Spirit to blow.<br /><br />(6) My experience though is that if people really try to listen to the Spirit, you end up in strange, surprising places! That is how I ended up, without my planning or<br />foreseeing it, as General of the Society last year. So my hope is that at the end of this Congress, you will find yourself surprised to find yourselves, as individuals and schools and as a network, in strange new places! Some of you might even find<br />yourselves in Rome (this is not a threat)! But that will be the test, I think, of the<br />success, of this gathering: if at the end, you have let go of something that you have<br />been holding on to for security, and sailed forward a little further, a little deeper.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />THE BASIC QUESTION</span><br /><br />(7) One of the favorite words from GC 35 that has captured the imagination of so<br />many Jesuits and friends in mission is “Frontiers.” Many in the Church, many other<br />congregations are using it, too. We do not own the term. But, that word is a very<br />evocative word. One can more easily understand it in its original geographic sense.<br />When the first ten Jesuits from the Aragon Province sailed on the ship Luisita to<br />Manila in 1859, in those days when travel took so much longer and involved so much<br />risk, obviously that was a journey to the frontiers. They were going to a country very distant from their own, and they could not use “Google Earth” to get information or statistics or to show them images of their new home! Today, there are new Jesuit schools in places like Kosovo and the Sudan, places where there remain such need, such risk, such challenge, that it is easy to understand that, in opening these schools, we have gone to the “frontiers.”<br /><br />(8) But what might the word “frontiers” mean for you, most of whom have to go,<br />day after day, to the same campus, to the same office, to the same classrooms? What<br />are the “frontiers” for a well established, successful, respected Jesuit educational<br />system such as the one we find here in the Philippines?<br /><br />(9) I think the key to understanding the word “Frontiers” is to return to what the<br />Holy Father said when he addressed us Jesuits during the recent 35th General<br />Congregation. Many of you are very familiar with this wonderful speech, when Pope<br />Benedict XVI said to us, and by extension, to all of you: “The Church needs you,<br />counts on you, and continues to turn to you with confidence, particularly to reach the geographical and spiritual places where others do not reach or find it difficult to reach.” (Allocution, No. 2) “The geographical and spiritual places where others do not reach or find it difficult to reach”: these places are our “frontiers.”<br /><br />(10) As you know well, we in Jesuit education do not have small goals, but an<br />enormous dream: to assist our students to achieve what Fr. Kolvenbach described as<br />“the full growth of the person that leads to action—action, suffused by the spirit and the presence of Jesus Christ, the Man-for-Others.” What are the frontiers we need to “go” to in order to achieve this goal?<br /><br />(11) As I have said, I do not have all the answers to these questions; and I think the whole point of this congress is for us to search together for these answers. But let me share a few of my own reflections that might stimulate your own reflection. Basically, I would like to propose two frontiers. They are two of my most important concerns for the Society of Jesus today, which I feel also are concerns for our mission in education.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">THE FRONTIER OF DEPTH</span><br /><br />(12) The first frontier I would like to propose is the frontier of depth. Depth, for<br />me, is perhaps a better translation of Ignatian Magis. The trouble with translating<br />Magis simply as “More” is that it can too easily be understood as the “More” of a<br />competitive, consumerist culture. If we have more awards, higher rankings, more<br />computers and sports facilities, more faculty members with advanced degrees, then<br />we can too easily fool ourselves into thinking that we are living the Magis. I am not<br />saying that these are not important; they are vital for a good school. But to be a good Jesuit school, they are not enough.<br /><br />(13) Ignatius was always concerned with depth. You have heard many times, I am<br />sure, his principle of Non multa sed multum, literally, “Not many, but much,”<br />originally one of the annotations in the Spiritual Exercises, but applied often to<br />Ignatian pedagogy as well. One could paraphrase this as “not quantity, but depth”:<br />“what satisfies the soul,” Ignatius says--in other words, what really matters in the<br />business of becoming human and Christian--is not many superficial bits of knowledge<br />and information, but a deep understanding and appreciation of what is most<br />important.<br /><br />(14) When one looks at the Gospels, we see that Jesus always responded in depth.<br />Look at any healing story: the way Jesus heals the paralyzed man brought in by his<br />friends through the roof; the leper; the woman with the issue of blood. Jesus first<br />responds to a concrete, immediate need: the healing of a sickness. But then he goes on to respond to a deeper need: the burden of guilt or the sense of hopelessness or<br />rejection and isolation. Finally, he goes deeper still and offers what they long for<br />most, often without knowing it: the gift of the Kingdom of God, of friendship with a<br />God of unconditional love, in a way that transforms them at the core of their persons.<br /><br />(15) What is the depth of the education we provide, and how might we be called to<br />go deeper? Let me offer a few questions that might help explain what I mean.<br /><br />(16) How deeply do we respond to our students’ needs? If our instruction is good<br />and up-to-date, then we respond to their need for forming and developing their talents. But beyond that are deeper needs. Even the brightest and most talented of our students are struggling. Beyond the normal struggles of youth, many of them struggle with families that are broken, wrestle with problems of isolation and misunderstanding and insecurity deeper than their minds. And how do we respond to their deepest hungers for meaning and purpose, for strength and hope that is the Kingdom of God experienced in their lives?<br /><br />(17) These days, in the liturgy, we have been reading from the story of Jacob and<br />his struggle with God. His first vision is consoling, promising, full of light: he sees angels ascending and descending on a ladder to heaven. But his last vision is much darker and more mysterious because it is deeper. He wrestles with a stranger, who turns out to be God, and Jacob wins the struggle, but comes out limping, walking a little like Ignatius did. Perhaps this should be the image of what our students turn out to be: not just walking out of our schools straight, tall, completely confident and sure of themselves, but rather, limping, even a little, because they have struggled deeply.<br /><br />(18) How deeply do we help them see? When you live in Rome, you enter many<br />beautiful churches adorned with glorious images, frescoes, statues, paintings, stained glass windows, and you realize that in an earlier age, these were the images that filled people’s imaginations. They were images that taught people to aspire to a certain model of humanity. But our young people are growing up in a world where the media floods them with other glittering images, on billboards, on websites, on magazine covers and MTV’s. They are images that are filled with promises. They sell dreams that tell them that they become more human when they have the right gadgets and wear the right clothes. What these images do is hide the face of the poor and the<br />suffering, and make them invisible. How can we help them see more deeply, to truly<br />see the real beyond the virtual, to see beyond these images that make false promises<br />so that they can see the face of the hidden humanity of the poor in a way that moves<br />them to want to serve in compassion?<br /><br />(19) How deeply do we invite them to think? Our students today, as you know, are<br />flooded with an incredible amount of information that keeps entering our houses, our<br />computers, our lives. The sheer amount of information and the ease with which one<br />can “surf” from one page to another can promote superficiality. How deeply do we<br />help them screen, digest, connect, decide about this flood of data and the<br />accompanying (albeit camouflaged) values that accompany them? There is evidence<br />that the capacity of people for sober understanding and a critical sense have<br />weakened. When I look around and see so much fundamentalism and fanaticism<br />around the world, and the suffering that these escapes from sober thinking have<br />produced, I wonder whether we have to think more creatively of how we can ensure<br />that our students learn how to think deeply?<br /><br />(20) How deeply do we form their inner persons, their commitments and<br />convictions, their faith and their strength? You are aware of how quickly even a<br />religious culture like that of the Philippines is becoming secularized and pluralistic. All around, our young people are being given more and more choices—not just choices of websites on the Internet, or choices of TV stations on cable TV, or choices of stores in malls, but choices of values and beliefs. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does mean that one cannot expect that external structures and traditions alone will support them in the Christian faith, beliefs or values. I have worked with Filipino migrant workers, and I have seen how easily, in a different environment, they have gone over to other groups. As the external supports become weaker, then the inside must become stronger. Depth of knowledge and, even more important, depth of experience, must mature into a depth of conviction that is able to remain peaceful and steadfast even in a confusing and hostile world.<br /><br />(21) In the end, the test of whether our education is one of depth, is whether we are<br />able to produce people who can “decide from inside”—which is another way of<br />saying, the test of our education as Jesuit education is if we are able to produce people of discernment. More and more, people are making choices, not from the inner realm of faith, conscience, values, truth, but from the seductive voices coming from the outside, of gain, profit, public opinion, convenience and fashion. People are becoming weaker in the habit of finding in the depths of the heart the answers to difficult emerging questions. On the other hand, if one looks at the alumni we are proudest of as products of the Jesuit educational system, I think we will find in them a certain of depth of perception, thinking, commitment, and character, and the habit of deciding from inside.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">THE FRONTIER OF UNIVERSALITY</span><br /><br />(22) The second frontier I would like to propose is the frontier of universality. You<br />may be aware of a letter I wrote recently on the subject of the universality of our<br />Jesuit vocation, inspired by the spirit of GC 35. Today, I think a challenging frontierzfor Jesuit education is to be a more universal education in the Ignatian sense of breadth of belonging and wideness of concern and responsibility.<br /><br />(23) Again, universality translates Magis but in a way that challenges the<br />competitive way we sometimes translate Magis simply as “Excellence.” Of course,<br />we strive for excellence, but sometimes we fall into the trap of measuring excellence<br />only if we see ourselves as better than some other schools run by other religious<br />groups, or even worse, better than other Jesuit schools!<br /><br />(24) When I travel around the world, I see the violence and suffering caused by a<br />terrible narrowing of the sense of belonging and competitiveness. It is a paradox of<br />globalization that as technologies allow us to grow in knowledge of those very distant from us, at the same time, there is greater fear of the Other, the one who is different,who does not belong to my tribe or my race or my caste. Because of their fears,people end up with very small, suffocating worlds, and regard those who do not belong to those tiny kingdoms as insignificant sub-humans, at best, or as threats to be eliminated, at worst. And, I am afraid that if we are not careful, the prestige that attaches to our schools, the fame of the “Jesuit brand” of education may tempt us to make our schools a new but still narrow base for belonging, which we use to distinguish and separate ourselves from others.<br /><br />(25) But there is nothing of this narrowness of belonging in Ignatius’ vision of life. He was always a man of large vistas: he loved to look at the stars, at the vastness of the sky that reflected the universal, all-embracing love of God. Ignatius’ concern was always the more “universal good”: he always wanted Jesuits to be ready to serve anywhere where there is hope for God’s glory. And he gathered around himself such a diverse group of men, of different languages, cultures, nationalities and personalities, to form a single group of friends in the Lord, who transcended their little differences, in their common dedication to the same universal mission.<br /><br />(26) GC 35 further heightened this Ignatian universality by pointing out how<br />urgently a more universal perspective, which allows us to see beyond our narrow<br />concerns and to work with others, is needed in our world. The great challenges of the<br />world cannot be responded to by one province, one region alone, or by Jesuits alone.<br />The enormous challenges of the Philippines and Asia, to come nearer to home, cannot<br />be responded to by one school or by one university alone. They require the breadth of<br />vision and spirit that overcomes little sectarianisms so we can work with each other,<br />Jesuits and other co-workers and companions all together in mission.<br /><br />(27) What might this frontier of universality mean more concretely for Jesuit<br />education in the Philippines?<br /><br />(28) First, do our students, as a result of their time with us, end up with a broader<br />sense of belonging and responsibility than their own families, classes, clans? My<br />predecessors, Frs. Arrupe and Kolvenbach, spoke famously of the goal of Jesuit<br />education as forming men and women for others and with others—men and women<br />whose hearts have been universalized and broadened, so they feel this compassion for<br />the poor and the suffering who are not members of their blood family, but who are<br />now part of their larger human family?<br /><br />(29) Second, with regard to the schools themselves, can we break out of our narrow<br />sense of belonging to this particular school? I am very happy, for example, to see that the nine Jesuit schools in the Philippines are gathered here together for this congress. I am aware of the ways the Jesuit Basic Education Commission, and more recently, the Jesuit Higher Education Commission, have tried to promote this wider sense of belonging and cooperation—but not without resistance, too, I know! It would be more consoling to find out that this kind of gathering is not something that happens only once in one hundred and fifty years, but that more and more, the schools do not live in indifference to and competition against one another, but rather address their many common concerns together.<br /><br />(30) Third, can we break out of our particular school system and serve those<br />outside the Jesuit system in the Philippines? Our schools have been so blessed with<br />human, material, academic and spiritual resources beyond many others, in a country<br />where poverty remains crushing for so many, and where good education can serve as<br />the most effective way out of this dehumanizing situation. What more can we do, for<br />example, to serve, support, improve the many other schools in the Philippines, which<br />have such scarce resources? Are the benefits of Jesuit education only to be limited to these nine schools, or can we think more creatively of more permanent, ongoing ways in which, even with our limited personnel, we can share the heritage and resources of Jesuit education with a wider group of people, especially the poor, in the ways, for example, the network of Cristo Rey and Nativity schools in the United States, or the Fe y Alegria network in Latin America are doing?<br /><br />(31) Fourth, can we break out of our concern for the Philippines and start thinking<br />of how more we can serve the wider world of Asia around us? I am happy to hear that<br />there is much interest in and exchange with China in some of your schools: this is a<br />very positive development. But what of the other poorer nations and less established<br />Jesuit missions in East Asia? Can the Jesuit educational system in the Philippines<br />reach out to serve and share with East Timor, Myanmar, Cambodia, to name just a<br />few possible places where the needs for what you can share are great?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">FRONTIERS OF DEPTH AND UNIVERSALITY FACING UNIVERSITIES</span><br /><br />(32) I would now like to address a special word to those involved in higher<br />education who have come to join us this morning. I hope that what I have said earlier<br />about the frontiers of depth and universality is relevant to you too. But I would like to elaborate a bit more on what the frontiers of depth and universality might mean for Jesuit universities.<br /><br />(33) When he visited the United States, the Holy Father used a very striking image<br />to describe the Church. He said the Church is like a cathedral decorated with stained<br />glass windows. When you are inside the Church, with the light shining through them,<br />the stained glass windows are glorious and beautiful. But if you see them from the<br />outside, they seem dark and unattractive. And the Holy Father said that in today’s<br />world, unfortunately, too many people stay outside and see only the grim and<br />unappealing exterior.<br /><br />(34) Recently, my Council and I have been reflecting on this present reality of the<br />apparent unattractiveness of the Church in today’s world. It is a very serious problem. I have heard that a recent survey in Britain showed that the majority of the people surveyed felt religion did more harm than good in the world. This is obviously not the same everywhere, but this kind of attitude is more and more prevalent, in many parts of the world, not just in the West, and it weakens the ability of the Church to gain a listening for the message of life and hope of the Gospel. We have been seeking to understand the causes of this apparent weakening of the credibility of the Church, hoping to see how the Society of Jesus, as servant of the Church, can help.<br /><br />(35) The causes are complex, and this is not the place to discuss them. But, one<br />thing that emerged very clearly when we discussed this problem from the perspective<br />of various continents is that there are two groups who especially feel this alienation: intellectuals and the youth.<br /><br />(36) Obviously, these groups are present in our universities. And thus, it seems<br />clear to me that our Universities can play a special role in responding to this present challenge to the Church. And the universities can respond precisely by going more boldly and creatively into the frontiers of depth and universality precisely as<br />universities.<br /><br />(37) Perhaps I can best explain by referring to some concrete ideas taken from the<br />recent and very rich new encyclical of Pope Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate.<br /><br />(38) First, the Holy Father, reflecting on Pope Paul VI’s teaching in Populorum<br />Progressio in the light of our present globalized world of inter-connection, makes<br />this striking statement: “As the society grows ever more globalized, it makes us<br />neighbors but it does not make us brothers. ” (CiV, 19). Reason, he says, can grasp<br />“the essential of equality” of people, our disciplines and technologies can help us<br />control our “civic coexistence,” but the felt sense and conviction that others are really my family, my brothers and sisters, for whom I am responsible, can only come with an experience in the heart of God’s fatherly love for all. How deeply do we reach the young people entrusted to us, so that as we give them rigorous intellectual and professional training, we go further and touch them “at the level of the heart,” to use the Holy Father’s words? (CiV, 20)<br /><br />(39) Second, Pope Benedict quotes Paul VI, who said very truly: “the world is in<br />trouble because of the lack of thinking.” (CiV53). This is one of the convictions of<br />the Holy Father throughout his encyclical: the present world economic crisis and the<br />continued suffering of millions reveals to us that many of our old solutions do not<br />work, and require new solutions based on deeper, more adequate, more creative ways<br />of understanding the many complex realities of human life and the world: business,<br />finance, culture, the role of the State and politics, the environment, the family,<br />migration, international relations and cooperation, human rights and duties, the very<br />meaning of what it means to be human. Here is a clear call to depth: How can our<br />universities, with all the gifted and highly trained intellectuals, teachers and<br />researchers in them, promote still deeper reflection and research into these crucial<br />areas on which the creation of a better future for the world depends?<br /><br />(40) Finally, in this encyclical in which the Holy Father memorably describes<br />globalization as the “explosion of worldwide interdependence,” (CiV 33), it is not<br />surprising that he calls for a similar kind of inter-dependence and cooperation in the search for truth in love. “In view of the complexity of the issues,” he writes, “it is obvious that the various disciplines have to work together through an orderly<br />interdisciplinary exchange. . . in a collaborative effort to serve humanity.” (CiV 30,<br /><br />31) How can our Jesuit universities—the word “university” itself shares the same<br />root as “universal”—heed this practical call to universality, breaking out of parochial enclaves of disciplines, departments, universities, and even countries to engage in the kind of collaborative work that is a service of the future of our people and our world?<br />How can the Jesuit universities in the Philippines, for example, deepen their<br />commitment to the very promising, but still fragile collaborative efforts, for example, of AJCU-EAO?<br /><br />(41) If our universities can deepen formation and intellectual work, and make more<br />truly collaborative and universal our work together, our universities will truly serve the Church’s mission of integral human development, and at the same time, give a convincing witness in today’s secularized world of the presence of the life-giving love and truth at work in the Church.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />CONCLUSION: MOVING FORWARD IN HOPE</span><br /><br />(42) You have many more talks ahead of you, and I am sure they will present you<br />with many more challenging things to reflect on. In the spirit of non multa sed multum therefore, I shall leave you with these two frontiers which, as I said, are for me, two of the most important frontiers for the whole Society of Jesus in all its life and mission today: depth and universality. I trust that later, you will have time to reflect more deeply on what I have said, to confirm, to correct, to concretize.<br /><br />(43) Before I end, however, I would like to share with you a little anecdote from<br />the life of Fr. Arrupe. One of his valued possessions, I heard, was a picture given him by the first man who walked in the moon, the astronaut Neil Armstrong. It was a<br />picture of the earth taken from the moon, and Fr. Arrupe kept it on his desk. It proved a very helpful reminder for him. When he was confronted with a very heavy or<br />demanding problem, he would look at the picture and ask himself: “Where is Italy in<br />that picture? Can I see Rome? Can I see Borgo Santo Spirito 4 (which is the address<br />of the General Curia)?” Of course, he could not Rome or Borgo Santo Spirito. And he<br />would say to himself: “Well, if I cannot see Borgo Santo Spirito, maybe the problem<br />I’m concerned about here in Borgo Santo Spirito isn’t that big, after all!” And he<br />would be at peace!<br /><br />(44) It’s a good story, I think, for many of you teachers and administrators when<br />you face what seem like very heavy problems in your work! I hope you remember it,<br />and find comfort in it! The point of the story, however, is not to trivialize problems or pretend they are not real. It is about seeing things from a wider perspective.<br /><br />(45) More precisely, I think this picture helped Fr. Arrupe see things—our work,<br />our service, the problems and challenges we face—from the truer perspective of<br />God’s infinitely larger point of view. What we do, how we plan and choose, matter a<br />great deal; but something larger—God’s universal plan of bringing life, hope and joy<br />to the world—gives those specific plans and choices their true depth, value and<br />meaning.<br /><br />(46) In a sense, that is what I have tried to do in my small way with this opening<br />talk. I have not spoken technically as an educator. By reminding you, however, of an<br />education that promotes depth and universality, I have been speaking to you not of<br />general educational goals, but of specific goals of Jesuit education that make it not<br />just a noble humanitarian work, but a service of the Gospel. If we dream of an<br />educational system that teaches people to decide from inside, from the depths of their hearts, and to serve generously not just a tribe, but as broad a slice of humanity as it can, it is because these were the goals of Jesus, and the only reason Jesuit schools exist is to serve humanity according to the vision and the spirit of the Gospel.<br /><br />(47) Let me put it another way. Recently, during an intensive meeting of the<br />General Council, one of the Councilors pointed out that we were using, over and over<br />again, the same verbs: pianificare, coordinare, organizare: to plan, to coordinate, to organize. These are organizational verbs, very important, necessary for moving ahead. But, that evening, when we celebrated the Eucharist, the Gospel of the day showed Jesus sending out his disciples and the verbs he used were very different: preach the gospel to the poor, heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, expel demons, raise the dead. All these were verbs of life, verbs of giving life, which show that the mission of God in<br />Jesus, the business he is about, is making life flow more abundantly for humanity<br />wherever it is lacking or blocked. And the real secret of mission is not to get rid of the organizational verbs or the Gospel verbs, but to somehow make the organizational actions that we have to perform expressions of the life-giving actions of the Gospel. Yes, we plan, coordinate, organize—but only so that we can preach the good news to the poor, heal the sick, liberate the enslaved, raise the dead!<br /><br />(48) I think it is the same with Jesuit education. We use many verbs in the course<br />of our lives as schools: we prepare lesson plans, practice classroom management,<br />attend department meetings, write papers, evaluate and grade our students. But in<br />reflecting on depth and universality, we are reminding ourselves that all these actions we only do so that we can somehow be instruments of sharing, increasing, enriching life according to God’s plans.<br /><br />(49) This thought not only challenges us, but encourages us. The problems and<br />challenges are many, but we are reminded that in the end, we are servants of Christ’s<br />mission, and as Fr. Arrupe saw in his picture, we do our best, but in the end, it is all in God’s hands. As you continue your congress, therefore, I pray that the challenges do not overwhelm you, but you welcome them with joy and eagerness, with optimism and hope. Like all the first Jesuits who returned in 1859, like all the founders of your respective schools who began without road maps and guarantees but with energy and conviction, may you move forward to the frontiers with courage, trusting that you are doing a share of God’s life-giving work!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZRsAYSUomOdKKHnNFl5p57YL1PpiutnVgtTDAtlTWNh1Q3z4_tUIlcD-uWwB00k_T70OznQA-OxcEIfiGQBmne0eXT62Iwm5suT90zx6bK64RLHQ0QyZ027ObNwKQz_BTGoAclMW3MA4/s1600-h/education+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZRsAYSUomOdKKHnNFl5p57YL1PpiutnVgtTDAtlTWNh1Q3z4_tUIlcD-uWwB00k_T70OznQA-OxcEIfiGQBmne0eXT62Iwm5suT90zx6bK64RLHQ0QyZ027ObNwKQz_BTGoAclMW3MA4/s320/education+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391531367553711170" /></a>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-41113135483887287972009-10-12T10:04:00.000+08:002009-10-12T10:08:29.248+08:00Law of the Garbage Truck<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9dw3N15lV_WIqCWrPtIshb8hiZHs4DEb0a8IO2C2-zWnLZnAxuMQtjQbCGswZ4s6uRryGS1CQJsz6tFZdNIAm899NfQ3QCuMdYt-3q0PJ4gTpfBzZb9XI9bbYiSFtO6NZzbMXiuVo2S8/s1600-h/garbage+truck.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 192px; height: 144px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9dw3N15lV_WIqCWrPtIshb8hiZHs4DEb0a8IO2C2-zWnLZnAxuMQtjQbCGswZ4s6uRryGS1CQJsz6tFZdNIAm899NfQ3QCuMdYt-3q0PJ4gTpfBzZb9XI9bbYiSFtO6NZzbMXiuVo2S8/s320/garbage+truck.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391529479439894930" /></a><br />One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport.<br />We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.<br />My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches! The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us.<br /><br />My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really friendly.<br /><br />So I asked, 'Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!'<br /><br />This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call, 'The Law of the Garbage Truck.'<br /><br />He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment.<br />As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally.<br /><br />Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets.<br /><br />The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day. <br />Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets,<br /><br />so ... Love the people who treat you right.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Pray for the ones who don't.<br /> Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!<br /> Have a garbage-free day!</span>ADZU Formation Officehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16413337463131775529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-933999022158144356.post-55370842951833555292009-10-06T23:36:00.000+08:002009-10-14T05:05:04.668+08:00Jesuits as Bridge Builders (Martinson,SJ)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_DhLLcp8SX0g5OpWIWGUb_5NFwCAAs8qwOwu8H-6IPeJL0gB9Xt1Ucl6vxWYUfFfr1mj2-NQbiJNsa9CJoDUv3-t-KCiI0ve_RmLQDifJGKW-ke9U_nXuNLImjgSfKzrgcoFPCnTLVIc/s1600-h/jesuits.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 209px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_DhLLcp8SX0g5OpWIWGUb_5NFwCAAs8qwOwu8H-6IPeJL0gB9Xt1Ucl6vxWYUfFfr1mj2-NQbiJNsa9CJoDUv3-t-KCiI0ve_RmLQDifJGKW-ke9U_nXuNLImjgSfKzrgcoFPCnTLVIc/s320/jesuits.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5389513089492968274" border="0" /></a>
<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Talk delivered by Fr. Jerry Martinson, SJ on the 100th Anniversary Celebration of the California Province of the Society of Jesus</b> <p class="MsoNormal">Introduction</span>
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<br />I want to thank you for inviting me to back to my native province on the occasion of the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">California</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype></st1:place>’s 100th Anniversary. If our old friend 'Pop' Silva were in my shoes now, I’m sure he would quote Shakespeare's Juliet and say "This is an honor that I dreamed not of.” That is also my sentiment at this moment.
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<br />As you may know, I belong to that protected species formerly referred to as “foreign missionary;” and I’ve been living in <st1:place st="on">Asia</st1:place> the past 42 years. Also, I’ve been working mainly in the field of communications and media; so I’m not sure how much my experience can help you in envisioning the future mission of the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">California</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype></st1:place>.
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<br />On the other hand, I think Jesuits now are more conscious than ever of our common ‘global mission.’ In fact, the term “global missionary” should apply to all of us now. The boundaries between ‘foreign’ and ‘domestic’ missionaries are no longer clearly defined in today’s world. So as partners in our global mission, I hope that my experiences and reflections will stimulate some useful thought and discussion.
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<br />I would like to group these experiences and reflections under the general theme or symbol of bridge and bridge-building. There are all kinds of bridges. Huge bridges like the Golden Gate and Oakland Bay Bridges, graceful stone bridges over rivers and canals in China; and the practical wooden and bamboo bridges that connect people and communities throughout the developing world. Bridges are meant to be practical and functional, but can be creative and beautiful as well.
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<br />Jesuits have a long history of spiritual and cultural bridge-building, much of it very creative and ground-breaking. Take <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>, for example. In the beginning, there was no one to tell Jesuits how to proceed in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> and no model to follow.
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<br />Let me start by sharing with you an historical example of outstanding bridge building from a recent documentary co-produced by our Kuangchi Program Service in <st1:city st="on">Taipei</st1:city> and Jiangsu Broadcasting Corporation in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Nanjing</st1:place></st1:city>. It is being broadcast frequently these days in <st1:country-region st="on">China</st1:country-region> and tells the story of the 17th century German Jesuit missionary Adam Schall von Bell who continued Matteo Ricci’s mission in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>.
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<br />Adam Schall was assigned to <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> because he was a brilliant mathematician, scientist, and astronomer. His talents, determination, and ingenuity made him a valuable asset in the late Ming and early Qing Empires, where he became a friend and adviser of not one but three Chinese emperors.
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<br />Some of you may have seen Bertolucci’s film “The Last Emperor,” about Puyi. In our documentary, you see Puyi’s ancestor, the first emperor of the Qing Dynasty—the 6 year old Shunzhi Emperor.
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<br />Schall was allowed inside the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Imperial</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Palace</st1:placetype></st1:place>, and even attended the coronation of the Shunzhi Emperor, because the emperor’s uncle, the Prince Regent Dorgon, had learned that Schall had completed work on a new and accurate calendar, begun by Matteo Ricci and Paul Xu Guangqi during the former Ming Dynasty. For Chinese emperors, nothing was more important than an accurate calendar. If the emperor was able to correctly calculate time and predict celestial phenomena, it gave his dynasty great credibility, proving that it was synchronized with the Lord of Heaven and possessed the Mandate of Heaven.
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<br />Schall became friends with the young emperor as well as his teacher and mentor. Shunzhi called Schall “Mafa” or “Grandpa,” and on more than one occasion, Schall was able to help the emperor and even change the course of historical events in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>.
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<br />For instance, when Dorgon conspired to consolidate his power over the Empire by moving the young emperor and his mother to another residence outside the <st1:place st="on">Forbidden City</st1:place>, Schall intervened. Schall suggested that recent signs and movements he had observed in the heavens indicated that it may not be a good time for changing residences. This alarmed the superstitious Dorgon, and he abandoned his plan, to the relief of the entire <st1:street st="on"><st1:address st="on">Imperial Court</st1:address></st1:street>.
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<br />From that time on, the Empress Mother and her son both regarded Schall as a holy man and someone who understood not just the stars, but human affairs as well. Schall became an intimate member of the Imperial Family.
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<br />When Shunzhi was older, he once took up with a concubine and abandoned the palace and his imperial responsibilities. The Empress Mother went to Schall and begged him to talk to her son. Schall convinced Shunzhi to return to the palace and resume his responsibilities. Never in Chinese history has a foreigner had this kind of influence over a Chinese emperor. It was simply unheard of.
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<br />Schall had become a master bridge builder, proving that it was possible to bridge geographic, linguistic, cultural, religious, and social barriers in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>.
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<br />Finally, when the young emperor contracted small pox and was on his deathbed, he asked Schall’s advice on whom he should name as his successor. Generally, this would be the eldest son, but Schall suggested another son who had already survived smallpox. Knowing that he would be immune to the plague, he would be more likely to live a long life. Shunzhi followed his advice and picked the one who became the Kangxi Emperor—the longest reigning and most highly respected emperor in Chinese history. It was Kangxi who eventually issued the edict permitting legal status to the Catholic Church in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>.
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<br />Schall never converted any of the emperors to Catholicism, but by his creative bridge building, he helped establish the Church in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> and actually changed the course of Chinese history.
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<br />The first Jesuits in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>—Valignano, Ricci, Schall, Verbiest, Castiglione—are often heralded as giants for their wise and creative initiatives in inculturation. Do all Jesuits have to be giants? Does this mean that the rest of us, who are not endowed with such brilliance and heroism, are inferior or ineffective Jesuits? I am convinced that this is not the case.
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<br />Once, I heard a Jesuit in the <st1:placename st="on">China</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype> speaking poetically about how Jesuits, following in the footsteps of a Generation of Giants, have a deep and mystical bond with <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>. True, I thought, but it is also true that most of us, more often than not—and please don’t be insulted by this—may bear a closer resemblance to a generation of hobbits—small, clumsy, and limited, but well-intentioned, hardworking and persistent in carrying out a mission that we are convinced is extremely important. We may not see too many Jesuits with the genius of a Ricci, a Schall, or a Castiglione, but we frequently see Jesuits bravely using whatever gifts they might have—even if only ‘hobbit sized’—energetically pursuing their mission. I think that this is all God asks of us.
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<br />Well, maybe God asks a couple more things: like cooperation; mutual tolerance and support; and encouragement to develop and use the talents we have.
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<br />Let’s take another, closer look at these heroic figures we have been talking about. While they are praised today as brilliant examples of inculturation, giants and saints—and this is true—they were also fallible and imperfect human beings. They could also be troublemakers. For instance, they were quite often the ones that caused the biggest headaches for superiors and church officials. To be frank, they were sometimes looked upon as the ‘bad guys,’ the ones that moved too fast, demanded too much, and stretched the rules and traditions to the breaking point.
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<br />Matteo Ricci, for instance, constantly pestered his European superiors to send more precious gifts, more books, more scientific instruments, and more brilliant Jesuits to <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>. You can imagine how superiors felt each time they received a letter from Ricci! He also proposed that Chinese Catholics be allowed to participate in ceremonies reverencing their ancestors. Many, outside and even within the Society opposed him; and for <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">centuries</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Church</st1:placetype></st1:place> authorities suspected Ricci of favoring Chinese rituals dangerously close to the worship of idols.
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<br />Adam Schall was forced by Chinese emperors to manufacture cannons, to adopt a son, and to live the life of a powerful Mandarin in the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Imperial</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Palace</st1:placetype></st1:place>—a lifestyle far removed from that of a simple Jesuit missionary. At one time, he was almost expelled from the Society because of this lifestyle. And yet without Schall’s relationship with the emperors it is almost certain that the fledgling church in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> would not have survived.
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<br />Bro. Giuseppe Castiglione is famous for introducing color and perspective into Chinese painting, and yet for years his apostolic mission meant painting not only animals, such as birds and horses, but also the wives and concubines of the emperors. Not quite what you would expect from a pious Jesuit brother; and as you can imagine, he was not totally free from suspicion. Yet he, too, used his personal relationship with the Emperors to protect the life of the Church in critical times.
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<br />These Jesuits faced criticism, misunderstanding and sometimes condemnation from their colleagues in the Church and sometimes even in the Society. And yet they are now among the tiny handful of Catholic figures widely known throughout <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> and admired for their contributions to Chinese culture and respectful service to the Chinese people. Most Chinese do not know the name of the Pope; but they do know the names of these Jesuit missionaries.
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<br />These men were truly creative bridge-builders. They developed the necessary skills; they took the necessary risks; they pushed the limits; and they remained faithful to their mission. They are, I believe, models of what Fr. Kolvenbach called creative fidelity.
<br /><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--> <!--[endif]--></p> <p class="MsoNormal">1. Bridging Time
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<br />While we were working on our productions of Adam Schall, Paul Xu and Matteo Ricci, we relied very much on George Dunne’s book Generation of Giants. It seemed to be the best and most dependable source we could find. And I could often sense George looking over our shoulders, encouraging us and helping us write the script. And of course, Kuangchi Program Service’s infrastructure, reputation, and experience—started 50 years ago by Phil Bourret—was indispensable in seeing our productions to completion.
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<br />So my first point this afternoon is that the Jesuit mission bridges time. It does not begin or end with any one of us. Jesuits stand on each others shoulders in mission. We build on what others have started. Each one’s ‘fire’ lights other ‘fires;’ and is passed on from generation to generation. That is why we don’t need to be too worried about our individual limitations and 'hobbit-sized' talents. Nor do we have any reason to be jealous of others who seem to be more gifted; because each one of us has a unique and indispensable role in the whole Jesuit drama. As we remember the Jesuit heroes of the past, it is helpful to recall that each one was part giant, part hobbit. Each one had his special charisma or talent, as well as his faults, weaknesses, and shortcomings. Each one’s contribution is important and unique. Over time, all these blend together and make up the complete mosaic, the whole tapestry, of the Jesuit mission.
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<br />Take George Dunne and Phil Bourret, for example. Without either of these men, TV viewers in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> would not now be seeing and learning about Matteo Ricci and Adam Schall. George was an excellent scholar with a deep sense of justice and the courage to act boldly. By his own admission, he also had a prickly personality that frequently caused him to be misunderstood and got him in trouble. Phil Bourret had the vision and the expertise to launch <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s first TV production center at a time when there was not even a TV station or a TV set on the island. He was one of our greatest pioneers in social communications. Sorry, Phil, but as you know, you also lacked prudence, certain management skills and at times sound judgment, which sometimes led to disaster. But both of these men did things the rest of us could not do. Their ‘fire’ was passed on to other Jesuits and provided fuel and energy for the continuing Jesuit mission.
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<br />It might be helpful to examine ourselves on this point now and then. Sometimes the faults and shortcomings of our dear brothers may be so annoying to us that we are blinded by the role they are playing, or could play, in our on-going mission. Sometimes we may hinder, or even tear down their bridges because they look strange to us; they are not our style.
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<br />Superiors need to exercise shrewd discernment in giving freedom and encouragement to bold and creative initiatives and in exploring new vistas. They also need to know how to restrain the unprepared or ill equipped bridge builders from embarking on projects that are not needed, not safe, or not sustainable. Sometimes a Jesuit may think he is building a bridge to heaven when he is actually building a bridge to nowhere; or worse, he may unknowingly be building a wall that actually divides the human community rather than a bridge that connects it. As we know, Superiors do not have an easy job.
<br /><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--> <!--[endif]--></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">2. Bridging Space
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<br />Our documentary about Adam Schall, as well as many other projects that I could mention, was accomplished with the help of the Jesuit Provinces of Germany, Switzerland, Austria, China, and of course California. Without the combined support of Jesuits in different parts of the world, we could not have done it. I am convinced that an essential aspect of our mission is that Jesuits bridge space.
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<br />From the day I arrived in <st1:country-region st="on">Taiwan</st1:country-region>, I was keenly aware of the indispensable role that the provincials and mission offices of the <st1:placename st="on">California</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype>, and other Jesuit provinces, played in establishing and building the Jesuit mission in <st1:country-region st="on">Taiwan</st1:country-region> and <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Frs. Bill Klement, John Houle, Ed Murphy, Ted Taheny, all the way down to Ted Gabrielli—and their Provincials, including today’s John McGarry—have always been the ones we turned to when we had a great project, a good idea, an important initiative—but insufficient resources to complete it. And in all these years, I can never remember being disappointed or let down. The <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">California</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype></st1:place> helped build the current Jesuit mission that is now an important bridge between the Church and the Chinese people.
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<br />Solidarity and interaction across the globe strengthens and activates our apostolic community. Through community, we reinforce and complete each other and our work.
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<br />The <st1:placename st="on">China</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype>’s Assistant for Mainland <st1:country-region st="on">China</st1:country-region>, recently announced a plan that makes it easier for Jesuits to participate in the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> mission. No longer does one have to sign up for life. An interested Jesuits could volunteer for only 5 or 6 years. The first 2 years would be spent studying language and culture; then he would temporarily replace a Chinese Jesuit working in <st1:country-region st="on">Taiwan</st1:country-region>, Macau, or <st1:place st="on">Hong Kong</st1:place>. This would free that Chinese Jesuit for work in Mainland <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Why this system? Well, if a foreigner visits the countryside in the PRC, he is immediately surrounded and inspected by the local children; then a few minutes later, he is surrounded and inspected by the local police. It is more convenient for an ethnic Chinese Jesuit to work in the PRC, while foreign Jesuits temporarily relieve them of their duties elsewhere. After a certain time, that foreign Jesuit could return to his province, enriched by his experience of living and working among the Chinese people and learning to speak their language.
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<br />This opens up new possibilities for Jesuits to bridge space and pursue our mission on a global scale.
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<br />3. Bridging Religions
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<br />Now let’s turn to a different kind of bridge building—creating bridges that extend beyond the borders of the Society of Jesus into very different communities, cultures, and religions.
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<br />The Buddhist monk, Master Shengyan, was a Zen Master and one of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s most respected and scholarly Buddhist teachers. His writings were highly critical of the Catholic Church until he met and became friends with a French Jesuit, Fr. Albert Poulet-Mathis. Many meetings and discussions with Poulet-Mathis and other Jesuits gradually cleared up misunderstandings that Master Shengyan had about our Catholic faith. When he died last year, he had become one of the Church’s closest friends, collaborators, and admirers. And of course, his views influenced tens of thousands of his disciples and students.
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<br />Some years ago, Kuangchi had a weekly religious program called “Catholics around the World,” financed by the local church. I remember getting into a taxi one day in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taipei</st1:place></st1:city> and noticing that the driver kept staring at me through the rear-view mirror. Finally, he said to me “I’ve seen your TV program. How is it that you Catholics are so tolerant of other religions? Aren’t you here to sell your religion?” The driver had seen a number of our programs about a Buddhist monk, Master Xin Dao, and noticed that we were helping him raise funds for a “<st1:placetype st="on">Museum</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename st="on">World Religions</st1:placename>” that he was building in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taipei</st1:place></st1:city>. He was surprised to see us using precious air time, paid for by the Catholic community, to promote a Buddhist project. This was indeed a far cry from the days of “rice christians” when only those within the fold were allowed take home the hand-outs.
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<br />Master Xin Dao became a close friend of many Jesuits. Although Buddhist monks don’t normally touch others, whenever he meets me he always embraces me; because in his mind, Catholics follow Roman customs and are always hugging and kissing like Italians. On the other hand, whenever I meet him or his disciples, I take care to bow and use the Buddhist greeting “Amitofo,” invoking a blessing of the Goddess of Mercy. Then, my Buddhist friends usually respond with a hastily improvised Sign of the Cross and a “Tianzhu baoyou”—or “God bless you.” It is one way of building small bridges.
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<br />One of <st1:country-region st="on">Taiwan</st1:country-region>’s—and <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s—most prominent religious figures is the Buddhist nun, Master Zhengyan. She leads a huge charitable organization with about 8 million followers called Tsu Chi that helps the poor and victims of natural disasters all over the world. They call her the “Mother Theresa of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>.” Once I had the opportunity to congratulate her for creating a culture of giving among the Chinese people. She very humbly informed me that her inspiration to do charitable work came from Catholic nuns working near her home in eastern <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Later, she started a big TV station and called it “Da Ai” or “Universal Love,” a term that Buddhists rarely use. She asked me to speak at the opening of her station, after telling me that she wanted her station to be for people of all religions like Kuangchi Program Service. She said that that even before she had “shaved her head” and become a nun, she had watched Kuangchi's programs.
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<br />If I ever had any doubts about the importance of interreligous dialogue and cooperation, they totally evaporated at that moment. The Holy Spirit is so obviously working through her projects and organizations to help the needy. Whatever we Catholics might have done to inspire her to take this direction in her life is something we can only be grateful for.
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<br />I believe that this kind of bridge-building is what our conflicted world desperately needs today; and GC35 reconfirms that interreligious dialogue, including dialogue with non-believers, should be one of the hallmarks of the Jesuit global mission.
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<br />Someone brought to my attention the other day that intra-religious dialogue is badly needed in the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">United States</st1:place></st1:country-region>. The <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">American</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Church</st1:placetype></st1:place> itself is fragmented and split into conflicting factions. Jesuits are often well positioned and capable of initiating dialogue and building bridges to help bring these groups closer together.
<br /><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--> <!--[endif]--></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">4. Bridging Cultures
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<br />My Chinese friends sometimes accuse me of what they call “san ju buli benhang” or “unable to depart from my field of interest for even 3 sentences.” Well, let me try to drag myself away from communications and media for a few minutes and mention some examples of how Jesuit education can bridge cultures. Here is one example very close to home.
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<br />Not too long ago, I took a short break with my good friend John Privett and a couple of Filipino Jesuits at a tiny and very remote beach resort on <st1:placename st="on">Cebu</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Island</st1:placetype> in the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Philippines</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Among the handful of guests at this remote place were two American girls. One evening after dinner, John and I were sharing our snorkeling and diving adventures, and then began to talk about more familiar territory: <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Santa Clara</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">University</st1:placetype></st1:place>, LMU, USF, etc. Soon the two girls came over and asked, “Hey, did we hear you say '<st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Santa Clara</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">University</st1:placetype></st1:place>?' We just graduated from SCU.” Well, John and I really hadn’t expected that topic of conversation to attract female company! We asked what they were doing so far from home. We supposed they were vacationing or taking a trip around the world. They said they had been volunteering in a poor clinic in <st1:place st="on">Cebu</st1:place>. With obvious admiration and affection, they spoke of Jesuits at SCU like Sonny Manuel, “Papa” Locatelli, and other Jesuits that had influenced them during their university years. Clearly, they had absorbed the right values. They were spending their vacation serving the poor on the other side of the world. They were being women for others. They were building bridges.
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<br />Former California Jesuit, Dan Ross, has taught Sociology for many years at <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>'s Catholic Fu Jen University. He noticed how much Chinese love to travel around <st1:place st="on">Asia</st1:place>; and how they spend most of their time on these trips eating, shopping, and taking photographs. Chinese business people travel with sharp eyes on the look-out for money making opportunities, frequently at the expense of the local people and their environment. Dan began taking groups of students to poorer parts of Asia, such as <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Cambodia</st1:place></st1:country-region>, and giving them the opportunity to serve the people there. Needless to say, in addition to making many friends for <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region> and improving the reputation of the Chinese, their experiences of service, advocacy and solidarity with the poor marked these students for life and helped transform them into men and women for others.
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<br />Now Dan is now engaged in cooperative educational projects called Partner-based Learning in <st1:country-region st="on">China</st1:country-region>, <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Cambodia</st1:place></st1:country-region>, and other countries, building bridges between well-established educational institutions and areas that still need assistance.
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<br />Many Jesuit educational institutions—hopefully all of them—run similar projects providing students with exposure and service opportunities, advocacy and solidarity experiences with the poor, with refugees, prisoners, the homeless and the marginalized. What impressed me about Dan’s work was that he did not have to do it. He was busy enough with his teaching, administrative work, Assistancy job, etc. To make these projects work he had to find resources, sacrifice his free time, establish contacts in unfamiliar surroundings, take risks and accept added responsibilities. He did this all on his own initiative; to build bridges that he saw needed to be built; and to ignite this same flame in the lives of his students.
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<br />I think the best way to evangelize cultures is first of all to identify and promote the values of the Kingdom already embedded in those cultures. GC35 (II, 8) reminds us that the Jesuit “mode of proceeding is to trace the footsteps of God everywhere, knowing that the Spirit of Christ is at work in all places and situations…”
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<br />In Taiwan, Kuangchi Program Service makes it a priority to produce TV series and documentaries for marginal groups like the indigenous, aboriginal tribes, foreign migrant workers, the mentally and physically challenged, refugees, even smaller groups like so-called “mail order brides” purchased from other countries and married—not always happily—into Taiwanese families.
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<br />Jesuit Refugee Service in the Asia Pacific and Jesuit Cambodia Service does tremendous work in areas afflicted with particularly insidious and devastating situations like widespread land mines and cluster bombs. These create a culture of fear and misery. Jesuits help to remedy those situations by creating a culture of hope through their bridge building.
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<br />I have always admired the great work done here in the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">California</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype></st1:place> where Jesuits build bridges with Hispanic and Asian cultures and other minorities, with the poor, with youth who have been drawn into the urban gang culture, with people afflicted with various addictions, etc. You know better than I all the other groups and cultures that need to be bridged and connecteds; e.g., the world of pop culture, the mall culture, entertainment and music cultures, art and drama cultures, the sports culture, the business community, and so many more. All are in need of bridge builders connecting them with the wider community and the right values.
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<br />5. Bridging People
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<br />In Fr. General Nicolas’ letter on The Universal Vocation of the Jesuit (April 2009), he recommends that we “encourage our men to be exceptionally good ‘at something’” so that “the world will need us and our expertise. Some parts of the world are regulating and reducing more and more the role of so-called ‘outsiders’…” “…Special capabilities will open many doors for new apostolic opportunities.”
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<br />Some years ago, the Beijing Transportation Department conducted a world-wide search for an expert to re-design their traffic light system. Guess who they found? A Canadian Jesuit. At a time when not many religious personnel could conveniently work in that country, the doors opened to this Jesuit because of his particular and unusual expertise.
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<br />During one of our China Province Assemblies, everyone was brainstorming on the Province Plan—which ministries should be continued, which ones abandoned or restructured, etc. Former California Jesuit Fr. Bob Ronald, sitting in his wheelchair, added his suggestion. He thought our work would be most effective if every Jesuit were allowed and encouraged to do what he does best; as opposed to letting a man join an apostolate which needs someone, but for which he is not qualified or has little or no interest.
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<br />Those of you who knew Bob remember that he contracted polio as a scholastic in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Nevertheless, he went on to be ordained and, full of optimism, returned to <st1:country-region st="on">Taiwan</st1:country-region> where he worked for 30 years in the rehabilitation department of one of <st1:place st="on">Asia</st1:place>’s best hospitals. His work was designing programs that helped mentally and physically challenged patients discover what work they were best suited for. He also started an organization called “Operation De-handicap.” In spite of his own very serious physical limitations, Bob became one of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s most respected and loved Jesuits. When he died in January of this year, it was obvious how many people his life had touched deeply.
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<br />Bob assessed his options, discovered what expertise he might have or be able to develop, and where this expertise was needed. He then he presented a plan to his <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Superior</st1:place></st1:city> for approval. Then for 30 years he proceeded to use his expertise to open doors and build bridges. No one could ask for a more meaningful life or ministry.
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<br />Fr. Chuck Welsh, originally from the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">California</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype></st1:place>, noticed long ago the need in Taiwanese society for facilitators of group communication and for group counseling. Year after year, Chuck took courses, acquired a degree, and regularly upgraded himself with the skills needed for this work. Now, he is highly sought after and valued as someone who can facilitate communication and increase understanding among members of organizations and communities. All he does is build bridges between people and light fires.
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<br />My brother Fr. Barry Martinson’s first and only assignment was to Chingchuan—a village parish of the indigenous Atayal tribe in the mountains of northern <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>. He began learning the art forms of that tribe in order to help the people recover a sense of respect for their traditional culture. Then, with the help of one of <st1:country-region st="on">Taiwan</st1:country-region>’s most popular writers, he published books relating his experiences with <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Taiwan</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s indigenous peoples and illustrating them with his art and photographs. Soon his books and murals and mosaics were famous and attracting visitors from all over the island. Now he also runs a small workshop that designs and produces stained glass windows for churches throughout the island. While to some Barry looks more like a resident artist than a parish priest, I’ve had many of his parishioners tell me that without Barry and what his art and writing has done for them, they don’t know what would have become of the people of Chingchuan. He just followed his instincts and did what he felt he could do best.
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<br />Some years ago, the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Australian</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Province</st1:placetype></st1:place> had a vocation promotion activity with the simple but effective slogan “We do that.” They distributed posters, leaflets and cards listing all the activities of Australian Jesuits—from bee keeping to parishes, from advocacy to wine making, from large educational and media organizations to small day care centers—with the claim “We do that.” The impression given was that there wasn’t too much Australian Jesuits did not do. Jesuits made room for all kinds of people to build all kinds of bridges.
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<br />Conclusion: Discerning our Mission Today and Tomorrow
<br />Based on the assumption that one of the best things every Jesuit can do today is to be an effective and creative bridge builder in any area where there is a need and where we are competent, I would like to conclude with a short list of questions for reflection.
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<br />1. In promoting creative fidelity among our Jesuits, is creativity valued and encouraged just as much as fidelity? Or is it regarded with some fear and suspicion? If so, what can we do to correct and maintain a balance?
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<br />2. In assigning and directing Jesuits in their various missions, is care taken to see that their talents are identified and then fully developed and used in their mission? Is this aspect properly balanced with the needs of our institutions? Could still wider use of lay partners be employed to fill positions where no competent or suitable Jesuit is available, contributing their expertise and creativity, and at the same time freeing Jesuits to do what they can do best?
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<br />3. In our Province Planning, do we leave room for adjustments that might be called for by the occurrence of unexpected and unplanned events and opportunities? Are we sufficiently sensitive to the kairos as it unfolds in the world around us? Do we allow for serendipity to change or modify our carefully and logically planned programs?
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<br />4. Finally, in planning and executing our Jesuit mission, how can we effectively increase the levels of:
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<br />• Imagination in uncovering hidden opportunities and brand new possibilities for mission?
<br />• Desire, motivation, and initiative among our men in vigorously pursuing and participating in our mission?
<br />• A resilient and irrepressible hope that simply smiles and serenely moves ahead, with confident discernment, whenever we encounter obstacles, disappointments, or apparent failures in our mission of responding to the call of Christ.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
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