Christmas Greetings 2010

Transcription

1 Servants of the Paraclete PO Box 048 Tagaytay, Cavite 4120 Philippines Dear Friends, addresses It is a little over six months since Fr. Benedict Livingstone and I exchanged roles: Fr. Benedict moved to the Servants of the Paraclete center known as Vianney Renewal Center in Missouri USA and I came over to the Philippines to be Student Director at Mount Carmel House of Formation in Tagaytay, Philippines. Personally speaking, it will be a challenge for me to follow in the footsteps of Fr. Benedict after his seven year period in the Philippines which began with the founding of the formation program in 2003 and continues right now with twenty one young members in various stages of formation: three finally professed brothers, thirteen brothers in temporary vows and five novices. In addition we have two temporary professed brothers studying in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. These brothers live with three candidates who hope to enter postulancy and novitiate soon. We have about twenty inquiries from the continents of Africa, America, Asia and Europe. This season of new life is certainly being made manifest in the Servants of the Paraclete at this time and Fr. Benedict, like a good gardener, tended to that new life day in and day out for seven years. The unfolding of the new creation which we anticipate at this time of year also carries with it something of penance and dying, as is always the case in our Faith. This bittersweet dynamic of dying and birthing has accompanied our seven years here in the Philippines, the ripples of which have been felt in the UK and the USA. It was necessary to prune our presence in both countries for several reasons, one of which was to provide resources, human and otherwise, to facilitate the birth of our new foundation here in the Philippines. Your own experiences of witnessing the Servants of the Paraclete reduce and reshape its presence are not lost on us. Father Benedict, Father Liam, Brother Bernard and I have strong connections with the church and ministry in the UK and Ireland as we are hail from Scotland, Ireland and England and were based for varying periods of time at Our Lady of Victory in Brownshill, UK. We have clearly retained our nationalities and identities regardless of which location we find ourselves appointed to. However, a more pertinent strand of continuity is that although the European members of the congregation are not physically present in Gloucestershire and Our Lady of Victory no longer offer the ministry and service it used to, we are still connected to our community and individual heritage through you, our friends and supporters. Your prayer support and We all are the Priestly People of God. Together, we are leaders in responding to the emotional and spiritual needs of Priests and Brothers. Christmas Greetings 2010 UK Christmas Edition 2010 continual urging us on to continue the Lord s work is both a connection and an energy which sees us safely through the ongoing dying and birthing which so far has seen new life in abundance. Whether we will be back in Europe remains to be seen as the congregation grows slowly but surely; however, the connectivity with all of you friends is experienced by all members of this community, especially across the miles. To acknowledge and thank God for the pruning and dying which often involved your own sacrifices is totally appropriate at this time of anticipating new life. We can do so as we rest assured that God will lead us all from a good place to a better place. He has always worked that way with this congregation and with you, its supporters. The fathers and brothers of the Mount Carmel House of Formation pray that abundant blessings and graces are showered upon you, and upon all who are dear to you at the great Feast of Our Lord s birth. And a happy and grace-filled New Year to all! Sincerely in the Lord, Fr. Philip, s.p. Your responses to this letter may be sent to: Servants of the Paraclete Ministries PO BOX 354 STROUD, GLOS. GL6 1FN U.K. N.B. Cheques may be made payable to SERVANTS OF THE PARACLETE MINISTRIES. If you have any queries you may call Pam, our agent in Europe at 0044 (0) (Your donations are of incalculable assistance to us. We are able to fulfill your Mass requests promptly. Thank you!) You may also send a cheque directly to our bank with a note to them, & perhaps separately to us too. The details are: For the account of Servants of the Paraclete Ministries Account No (Bank Sort Code ) Lloyds T.S.B., 12 Rowcroft, Stroud, Glos.GL5 3BD, U.K.

2 Water of Life cleanse and refresh us; Raise us to life in Christ Jesus Br. Jose Marlon, s.p. This lyric of a song composed by Stephen Dean is very significant for me; it speaks to me of the journey which lead to my vocation as a Servant of the Paraclete. When I was in first grade, in Manila, in the Philippines, I had the dream of becoming a priest. This began when I saw Pope John Paul II on television, surrounded by millions as he celebrated Mass in Manila. My young heart was filled with wonder and I said that someday I will be a priest and will be there, sitting alongside the Pope. This childhood dream faded as I grew. However, I loved to sing and was a member of a parish choir from childhood to my teenage years. I was fascinated by the beauty of music, and eventually I decided to take up a Bachelor s in Music at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Manila. In addition to studies and sessions at the Conservatory of Music at UST, my life was filled with many other activities: bible studies, visiting orphanages and leading the block rosary. I also joined a world-wide Catholic Organization for Students and Scholars, called Pax Romana. In this group we dedicated ourselves to promote among our members, friends, and university students, the study and implementation of Catholic social, ecological and spiritual teaching for the regeneration of ecological, social, and spiritual life in the new global civilization. We were very idealistic and I loved it. In fact I was elected president of our local chapter for two years. Among these activities I was particularly attracted to our bible studies, which we called in our Filipino language Bibliarasal (Biblia means the Bible and rasal or dasal means to pray, and asal means values; hence Bibliarasal means to study the bible, pray and attain values). Through Bibliarasal I became acquainted with the animators: seminarians and priests, who led our sessions. They seemed to be not so much involved with the world, and yet they seemed happy. Profession Day 2010 All this while, my studies and development in music continued and eventually I graduated with distinction. I count as one of my greatest blessings the training I received by a very good voice professor; Maestra Salvacion Yniguez. After graduation I taught music at the Lourdes School in Mandaluyong (a district in Manila). Here I also became involved in musical stage acting. Playing a part in a musical production about St. Francis of Assisi, however, affected me more than I had ever expected. I was brought face to face with what I was really seeking in life: material comfort, career, friends, my own satisfaction, etc., or seeking to leave it all behind and follow Christ, as St. Francis did. After some serious soul searching and prayer, I entered a Capuchin Friary in Lipa (a city about 100 miles S.E. of Manila, in the Province of Batangas). My previous experiences have prepared me for life in a Franciscan Friary or so I thought. But, as I entered my second year of postulancy, my formators

3 Celebrating Servants of the Paraclete Profession of 1st vows, renewal and final vows, the men are welcomed into the community at the House of Formation in Tagaytay City, Philippines. recommended that for my own growth and formation I should spend a year back in secular society. This was a humbling thing for me to hear. Perhaps, I reflected afterwards, God has other plans for me. So, I returned to the world of teaching. Luckily I was admitted to teach at Colegio San Agustin in Dasmari as Village in Makati (the business district of Manila). Within a short time I was back again, teaching music and handling the boys choir. I was also signed the task of being a moderator in the grade school department. Although the children were generally well behaved, I did experience a few difficulties with some of the students from foreign countries whose parents were working in the Philippines. Generally I felt contented and satisfied with my life in San Agustin. Then one day I went for a retreat in Tagaytay, an area in the mountains to the South of Manila. There I stayed in a Franciscan seminary for a few days. I met a group of Franciscan seminarians there and we became friends. One of the seminarians was from Thailand and invited me to go with him to the nearby Canossian Sisters to see their relic of St. Josephine Bakita. She was formerly a slave in the Sudan, but was sold to the Italian Ambassador in that country and eventually obtained her freedom. She went on to become a Canossian Sister, lead a very holy life and was canonized a few years ago. I agreed to accompany the Thai brother and came to meet the Canossian Sisters. On that same day, two of the sisters were going to visit a new Congregation in Tagaytay, the Servants of the Paraclete. One of sisters, Mother Elsa, insisted I come to visit the Servants of the Paraclete with her. I gave in to her insistence and to my amazement I became attracted to the life of that community: its prayer in the Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, and its warm loving reception. After that I often visited the Paracletes and had several conversations about my life and vocation with them. I attended the Holy Week celebrations at their house, and made a monthly visit to their community. I prayed earnestly and asked God if I should go back to religious life again. I do not know if it was the right thing to do, but I asked God for a clear sign because admittedly I did not know what to do. I was afraid to let go of a job I loved. I was helping my parents and relatives financially. I was enjoying the company of friends and I was attending post graduate classes in counseling. In fact I was able to combine my interest and experience in music with what I was learning in counseling. My master s thesis was on music therapy for hyperactive and attention deficit disordered children. I thought I am doing fine where I am, but I knew there was something more. I asked for a sign... I chose water, in any form, may it be in its natural form like rain or water in a bottled container. It was summer (in the Philippines it does not rain in the summer we have two seasons, dry and wet, and the summer is in the dry season) and I had just arrived in Manila from a Holy Week retreat with the Servants of Paraclete in Tagaytay. And Yes! On my way home, a soft gentle rain fell in Manila. It never occurred to me that prior to that event I was already being prepared for that sign because Fr. Benedict asked me to sing the song for the blessing of water on Holy Thursday. Water of Life cleanse and refresh us, raise us to life in Christ Jesus. Not only that, it so happened that Fr. Peter was also coming to Manila on that day and when he took his bag from the car the first thing I saw was a bottle of mineral water placed at the side pocket of his knapsack. I received the sign not once but thrice. I entered on Pentecost of I started the journey of my vocation in this wonderful community of men, having the desire to continuously learn the life of a religious thru the evangelical counsels. On May 9th, the 5th Sunday of Easter, I professed, for the first time, the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. My prayer, and I ask you to please join with me, is that I may allow the Holy Paraclete to guide, form and inflame my heart to draw His priests and religious back to His loving embrace. Lake Taal, Tagaytay City, Philippines...Servants of the Paraclete House of Formation

4 Vocation in Faith Brother Anthony s.p. As I begin to share the story of my vocation I would like first of all to give thanks to God, who has called me to follow Him and has been faithful to His promises through many persons in different times and places. I was born in a Catholic family in an Asian country that is 7% Catholic. My faith was awakened and grew in the loving and nourishing environment of my family and our parish. Because Catholics are a small minority in my country and have suffered much for our faith over the centuries -- my people are very close to our Church, to each other and to our God. We also love life, nature s gifts, and people. We learn early in life to respect older people and are taught many things by them, especially our prayers, morals, spiritual life, and courtesy toward others. For us a vocation is a great gift from God, but also a great duty toward others. My own vocation came about in the following way: After finishing national compulsory military service I entered college. One day while near the end of my college education, I was playing soccer with my friends. My younger brother called me and said that a priest, Fr. John, had come to our village from another country. He came to the field where my brother and his friends were also playing soccer and called out to them: anyone who would like to become a Servant of the Paraclete come and meet me. Even for us this was a little unusual, but I had been thinking about becoming a priest and I thought why not? I left the playing field to meet this priest. We had a conversation about my thoughts of a possible vocation, about the Servants of the Paraclete and their special mission to help priests. As we spoke I believed somewhere within my heart that maybe this was for me. This was the beginning of my vocation to the Servants of the Paraclete. Fr. John was not himself a Servant of the Paraclete but he knew them and was their friend. Later he introduced me to the Servant General of the Servants of the Paraclete who came to our country after Fr. John told him he had interviewed many young men who were interested in his Congregation. The Servant General was happy to meet us, and we spent several days together. At the end of his visit we all met with him as a group. He told us that although he could not send priests to start a Paraclete house in our country, he thought it would be a good idea if several of us could at least come, live and pray together This would not be difficult for us to do because most all of us were students in Universities. By doing this we would be able to grow in our vocation until the Servants of the Paraclete knew what to do about accepting us into their congregation. He was thinking that maybe we would live in small groups together because students in our country do that. But we all decided to live together -- over 20 of us. With the help of Fr. John we were able to find a parish house where we could stay. We lived like a religious community, getting up at 4:00 in the morning, saying prayers together, exercising, working and playing together, studying, cooking and doing housework. The living conditions in the parish house were not the best for us; we lacked many things, but we had faith in God. Then in six months the parish house had to be used for something else and we had to move to another house. There we found more difficulties we had to live many in a few small rooms, our kitchen flooded in heavy rains; we did have a small room as a chapel but you had to crawl through a narrow space to enter it (churches and public places of worship need special permission in our country).

5 Because of what was happening I began to doubt my vocation. But in those difficult times I learned something about faith in God. No one wants to face certain challenges, but they help us to grow strong in faith, and this can turn our difficulties into something of great value for our life. I believe that the aid of the Holy Spirit guided me and helped me to learn the true meaning of my vocation as a Servant of the Paraclete. And so I was able to overcome the first difficulties in the early stage of my vocation in my country. After one year the Servants of the Paraclete made a small foundation in the Philippine Islands. Four of us were invited to come and be the pioneering group with two Servants of the Paraclete who were priests from Scotland and the United States. In leaving my country for the first time and going to a foreign land, I came to know much better the faith of Abraham who left his land and trusted totally in God. In the Philippines we lived in a small house, named in honor of the African St. Bakita, on the grounds of the Canossian Sisters retreat house in Tagaytay. The Paraclete Fathers were very good to us, but we had to use English for everything which was difficult for us, even though we had studied English in our own country. The four of us lived in a small bedroom, which with our beds and desks left little room for us when one brother wanted to leave or get to his desk, sometimes the other brothers had to stand and move. The food was nourishing -- we had rice but we missed all the fresh vegetables, fruit and fish we had back home. We did not have any means of transportation -- at least back home we had a motorcycle; and we missed having certain books, computers, and telephone. Here again we had very little, but we trusted in God as we started the first Paraclete foundation in Asia. Then I entered the novitiate and time passed quickly. Before the year ended God blessed us again: we were able to find and purchase our own house in Taygaytay; it was a large house in a beautiful place where we are able to grow many vegetables and much fruit. Because the house was in a high place, and because we are affiliates of the Carmelites, we named our house Mount Carmel Formation House. On Nov. 24th of 2004, which is one of the feasts of our National Martyrs, I made my first vows in a Mass celebrated by our local Bishop. Shortly after that I went to LaSalette

6 University for necessary courses in Philosophy (I already had a BA from my home country). After completing philosophy, I entered theology at a nearby SVD Seminary. Now I am a seminarian in the third year of theology. The most wonderful grace God gave me in this time was being able to take final vows on May 30th, Then I knew for sure that God had called me to be a Servant of the Paraclete. As I look back on the journey of my vocation as a Servant of the Paraclete, I am coming to understand better God s plan for our growth. We now have many new members in our formation community at Mount Carmel. I can say, in faith, that all has been a gift from God. Although God has called each one of us in different ways, each of us came to respond to Him by faith. Each day I wonder who I am that I have been called to religious life? And, how can I grow in my vocation? Only faith can give me the answer to these questions. Faith helps me to respond to God, our Father, who knows all our needs and gives each one of us a share in His divine life. I believe that each of the answers of faith is to be found in His Church, our Mother who takes care of her children. Through my vocation I have been chosen to live in the Church as part of a religious family; I have been called to be a witness to Christ, and one day I hope to be sent to help priests and brothers in their vocation in my own country or anywhere in the world. I believe that this is an important work in the Church, and one which will always be helped by the Holy Spirit for the glory of God, our Father. My vocation has been helped by the Holy Mother of God and the Saints who are blessings from God. Our Blessed Mother suffered many trials and overcame them through the faith given to her by God. The saints were challenged by all kinds of trails against their faith and in my country hundreds of thousands died for their faith. The Saints suffered temptations, like selfishness, pride, greed, lust, envy, riches, etc.; they were human persons like us but they faced every challenge with a faith that totally submitted all to God. As St Paul said, our faith must be purified as gold tested by fire. In all challenges to faith we have to look at Jesus Christ, the Word of God, who obeyed His Father to death, even death on the cross. In addition, St. Peter taught us that the devil is prowling around like a roaming lion looking for someone to devour and told us to resist him, steadfast in faith. In conclusion, what I have seen in my few years as a religious is that the way leading to holiness means purification of our faith through many challenges. Today when many countries of the world are in a time of development, economic growth, modernization and globalization, I wonder what will I do for God and how can I serve Him? How will we live out the three vows: poverty, obedience and chastity among others? For me, nothing can help us find a way to fulfill our vows in our situations more than faith in God, in His Word and the love of Jesus Christ. Vatican II teaches us, by faith the people of God try to discern the true signs of God presence and purpose in the events, the needs and the desires which it shares with the rest of humanity today. (GS. #11). In this way, each of us will become a new man in Christ (GS. 22). With you I pray that the Blessed Mary, our Mother, and St. Joseph may always intercede for each one of us so that we may be good servants of God, listening to Him and keeping His Word, and always respond to God as Mary who said yes Lord may it be done to me according to your word (Luke 1:38).

7 Vocation story of Bro. Boakye Yiadom Isaac s.p. Brother Isaac s.p. I remember well the beginning of my vocation. In 1993, three years after my baptism at 15 years of age, I had the following experience: While serving Mass one day I suddenly felt quite moved, during the Consecration, by the words This is my Body... This is my Blood... followed by the elevation of the Body and Blood of Christ by the priest. I found myself saying quietly that same day I would like to serve the Lord and his people in this way. From that day on I often asked myself whether this was possibly the Lord himself speaking in some mysterious way within me, or it was just from my own feelings and imagination. Then something else began to happen, Whenever I participated in certain religious promotions or inter religious programmes that we have in my country, Ghana, my experience of the Eucharist from that day three years after my Baptism kept coming back to me. When it returned to my memory it was as if a reminder to enter some form of religious life dedicated to the beautiful and joyful reality of Christ coming to us through the Eucharist through the words and actions of the priest. Then one day through my brother, who was himself already a priest, Father Emmanuel Banahene, I came to hear about a new Congregation called the Servants of the Paraclete. He had a friend who was going to be interviewed as a vocational candidate by a Paraclete priest who was making a visit to West Africa in March of I was quite happy to meet with this priest, but felt rather shy. I felt hope but also I did not want to build up my hopes too much. A few weeks after the interview, the Paraclete priest wrote to me and said that after consultation with other members of the Paraclete vocation team, he felt I have a vocation, and seemed suitable for their Congregation. I was quite glad to hear this. We wrote back and forth by and after several months, in November of that year, two Paraclete priests, one from England and one from the USA and a Paraclete religious brother from Viet Nam came to Ghana to undergo an enculturation and community building programme with 5 of us from various parts of Africa. We underwent a crosscultural programme in a Northern region in Ghana, called Tamale, which is under the supervision of the SVD Fathers. Living and sharing with them gave me a clearer picture of the charism and spirituality of the Servants of the Paraclete. It also gave them a better understanding and love for our culture and way of life. We are a people who love family, have a deep sense of respect for our parents and leaders, who teach us important values in life. Above all we see God as the creator or originator of all things. Our language is full of references to God and we like to tell stories that have a good point to them. We do love music and rhythm, but many Western ideas about us are a little exaggerated. When I go for a walk in the local town where I am now in the Philippines, many people say hello, Joe to me. They think that I am an Afro American. The little kids ask me to teach them basketball. Actually, soccer is what we play in most of Africa, and I am happy to say that the Ghana national team almost made it to the semi finals of the World Cup this year. Beauty surrounds us

8 But to continue with the narrative of my vocation: on my way with a fellow Ghanaian to the Philippines we met with a test of our vocation: Because of difficulties with documentation (we brought an ed copy of a letter of welcome from the Servants of the Paraclete in the Philippines, instead of an original letter) we were turned back by the immigration authorities in Manila, and had to return on the same plane to Ghana. Chapel at Mount Carmel We had never been outside our own country before and here on the other side of the world, in a strange land; we were told we had to return home. How much we had looked forward to our new vocation, and how disheartened we were by such treatment. To make matters worse we had to wait three days in an airport in Dubai for the next plane to our destination with no place to stay and hardly anything to eat. In our desperation, we kept sharing consoling stories with the other deportees at the Airport, minute by minute, hour by hour for three days and three nights. We were not so much troubled about our unsuccessful journey, because we believed that it was an act of God. Perhaps it was not the accepted time for us to appear in the Philippines. I am convinced that failures and disappointments in our lives can serve as an opportunity for showing God s glory in our lives. Eventually everything was straightened out and on December 1st we returned to the Philippines this time ushered through immigration procedures by a friendly official who was the brother in law of a religious sister who is a friend of our community in the Philippines. For some it is a matter of who you know. For us it is a matter of God showing His love and care for us through others. Somehow this is at the heart of my vocation. Now I am Servant of the Paraclete, in my third year of temporary vows. I am in my third year of Philosophy and have completed one quarter of Clinical Pastoral Education. In the Diocese of Kumasi in Ghana I belonged to a large Legion of Mary Group and have been able to help start a local Legion group here in our area in Tagaytay in the Philippines. Each day I am able to spend an hour before the Eucharist that means so much for my vocation and for what I hope to dedicate my life to in the future. I am praying for God s grace and ask your prayers also that I may be able to live and adhere to the three evangelical counsels more profoundly through daily integration of all that happens in my life with gospel values.