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Philippines

Donna Cypriana Keeper of the Keys

By Ariel Presbitero

Japanese Filipino

On her favorite porch in front of her little two-room house, day after day, 78 years old Donna Cypriana sits quietly and watches as the streams of people pass along her street. I sense a little flicker of joy in her face ad she spots me, her ‘Japanese’ friend, approach. (For some reason, Donna Cypriana and most of the folk in this part of Brazil think we Filipinos are Japanese.)

Keeper of the Keys

Becoming Donna Cypriana’s friend didn’t come easy. Her little world is this little front space and her sparsely furnished sala and kitchen. Her son, Honesto, a cook in the nearby naval base lodges with her at night and on an occasional weekend, a grandson comes to stay with her. Her most important office is ‘Keeper of Church Keys’.

Thailand of Smiles

By Sr. Roslyn Rivera, CM

Some years ago there Carmelite Missionaries left the Philippines to assist in the Pastoral Youth Ministry in the Diocese of Ratchaburi, 130 kms. southwest of Bangkok. Sr. Roslyn Rivera describes their first tentative steps in a strange but hospitable land.

Hospitality

We spent the first few months studying the Thai language which was difficult. This experience brought a lot humbling situations. Like when I asked or the post office, I ended up at the train station. But hospitality towards the stranger. Another day I was driving to a village under the torrent of rain to bring something to close a family. The road was so bad that I did not realize how the close I was to the edge. I ended up by going into the ditch. The car got stuck. So I had to get down and walk back to the nearest house to asked for help. Two men readily came back with me after a few minutes, more people came on their bicycles and motorcycles, including children and women bringing with them a rope, hoe and spade to help pull out the car.

Mining: Threat to our Tribes

By Sr. Kathleen Melia

The people of Midsalip, Mindanao, in the Southern Philippines feel threatened by the authorization given to the British and Australian mining giants RTZ-CRA to begin explanatory work on half a million hectares of their land. The bishops and Columban missionaries who work in Mindanao share the concern that the transnational’s quest for profits will destroy ancient people. Their land and their culture.

Help us to Understand the Mystery of Your Love

By Malou Saranza

My daughter has a halo brace on her head. To many, it seems as if she is in a cage. But my husband and I see that Therese is one of the freest children this world has ever known.

“Mommy! My head is hurting again!” exclaimed my daughter Therese. “Really, sweetheart?” I said, concerned, “Why does my head hurt everyday Mommy?” I turned to my husband Boy, who looked at me a little helplessly. “Mommy you know as well as I do the doctors can’t find anything wrong with Therese. I mean, wasn’t it a relief to know it isn’t it a brain tumor?”

Try the Basic Communities!

By Fr. Melanio R. Viuya Jr., CICM

I just arrived from the village of Lida, 70 kms away from the parish convent. Even on foot it’s difficult because one has to cross the forests and the rivers with my Land Cruiser. Fortunately this old and rusty vehicle still runs rather well. It has already done more than 60, 000 km on very bad roads in the forest, I guess one has to multiply every kilometer by 3 to have an accurate picture of its true suffering.

A Taste of the World

By Fr. Rey Tejico, CICM

Like tribal people everywhere, the Mayan Indians of Guatemala are under siege from the Government, the military and intrusive lowlanders. Fr. Rey Tejico, a young Filipino missionary, tells us how the Church is trying, albeit belatedly, to respect and integrate the Mayan culture into the liturgy and to ensure that it enriches our Christian life.

Guardian Of The Angels

By Claire Wallerstein

The Philippines is a target for sex tourist. Thousands of children are exploited and degraded by pedophiles. A journalist in Manila profiles a missionary priest who has despaired of the authorities and taken a personal initiative against the trade.

A middle-aged tourist in a baseball cap sits at the sleazy bar sipping a beer, and watches the young Filipina dancers gyrating suggestively on stage. After a while, the owner of the joint sidles up to him. “You like the girls? You wanna take one out for the night? Only 500 pesos.” “Maybe, but I really wanted something younger.” “No problem”, replies the proprietor. “I’ve got girls, 14, 15 – virgins too. But they’ll cost you more.”


Fr Shay Cullen

This scene is typical of the sordid deals brokered any night of the week in the girlie bars of Angeles City, capital of the Philippines’ thriving child sex trade. There is just one thing which is not as it seems. The tourist in the baseball cap is not a pedophile -- he is a priest. And in his shirt picket is a tiny, hidden camera which may have recorded enough evidence to put this brothel, one of a staggering 200 in Angeles, out of business.

The Magic Of Ordination Day

By Fr. Neil Collins

There is such a long preparation for ordination--sometimes 12 years--that no wonder it’s a day of magic and a day of destiny. Fr. Neil Collins tells us about Abe Sumalinog’s big day and Fr. Abe shares his personal feelings.


Fr Abe presents himself.

Our neighbor’s rooster woke us early which was just as well for the bus to Kumalarang was at the door just after 6:30am. Within minutes, we were all on board and climbing the hill to Dumalinao. We reminisced about all kinds of farces and tragedies and fell silent as bus passed the cemetery where one of our Columban confreres is buried. A flat tire stopped us briefly in Tubud, a place of cool and clear mountain air. Nobody complained at the delay but all enjoyed the sun or the sound of falling water. Further down the same barrio somewhere was Abe’s house. Them, we were out of the hills into broad rice fields of Kumalarang.

Nicaragua Still Hopes

By Sr. Margarita Jamias, MM

Nicaragua, land of lakes and volcanoes, is a small Central American country the size of Massachusetts. It has a population of 4 million people. Like the Philippines, it is tropical and has similar flora and fauna. The church has been deeply involved in the people’s struggle for liberation. Sr. Margarita Jamias, MM from Masinlok, Zambales, educated in Maryknoll College and Ateneo, tells us of the struggle to promote Basic Christian Communities in Nicaragua.

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