September-October 2017
From the Editor
September – October 2017
Yes to another day!
Each day every day we say our YES . . .
- to life
- to love and care for creation and each other
- to be open and be grateful to God’s beauty around us and within us
- to His invitation to share in Christ’s mission here on earth
- to our commitment to live out our faith in joy and thanksgiving ...
Painting done by Jason Antiquera
Jason is a Columban priest assigned in Korea.
Blessed to be a Columban, Blessed to be a Parish Priest
By Fr Leo Distor
Fr Leonito Distor is from Marbel, South Cotabato and is the fifth of six siblings. He was installed as the First Filipino Columban Parist Priest of Our Lady of Remedies Parish, Malate, Manila on May 1, 2014. He is currently a member of the Regional Council of the Society of St Columban in the Philippines.
Before I became a Columban, I was with the tribal people in Lake Sebu, South Cotabato for six years, teaching elementary grade school students and working as kind of a liaison to the different tribal communities in the area. That's where I was coming from. I discovered that I have the inclination to this kind of work and I found joy in it. When I learned about the Columbans’ understanding of mission which is very different from those I had in mind, I told myself that this is where what I experienced and what I learned will have a place, where I can grow as a missionary...
The Ladies who are called Maria
By Marjorie Engcoy
The author is from Ozamiz City. She has been in Fiji as a Columban Lay Missionary since 2012. She is currently the editor of Kaulotu, a Columban magazine circulated in Fiji.
Marj (center) in Fiji with Nau Merelita, mother of Lanieta and Sainiana Tamatawale (Columban lay missionaries), and their cousin, Penina
In my new parish assignment, I am blessed to have met wonderful ladies who are named after our Blessed Mother. And I would like to share my experience with them...
The Moment I Felt God Embraced Me in the Community Life
By Columban Hkun Myat Aung
The author is a Columban seminarian from Myitkina, Myanmar who joined the Columban formation program here in the Philippines in 2015. At present he is studying Philosophy at the University of Santo Tomas.
I am Columban Hkun Myat Aung. I am from Myanmar. I came to the Philippines on 1st of November 2015 to join the formation program of the Missionary Society of St. Columban. When I arrived in the Philippines, I was not able to speak English very well. Most of the time, I was silent during our community meals because I could not understand what my companions were talking about. I could not catch even a word they said. Learning a new language is not easy for me. I went to language school in the morning after breakfast then came back to the formation house in the afternoon at around 4 p.m. Studying English the whole day drained my energy the moment I arrived at the house...
A Light of Hope
By Mary Joy Rile
I first met the Light The Life (LTL) Candles Community of the Shrine of Our Lady of Mercy, Novaliches on their second anniversary and blessing of Light the Life Learning Center on May 6, 2017. Looking at the mothers and how excited they were at the products of their labor, I knew there was something more that I ought to listen to. Two months later, Korean Columban lay missionary Anna Noh Hyein, who initiated the Light the Life candle-making project, brought one of the mothers, Mrs. Joy Price Sullano, to our office, so I grabbed the opportunity to interview her...The author is Assistant Editor of MISYONonline.com and Columban Mission.
Joy Price Sullano (left) being interviewed by Mary Joy Rile (right) at the Columban Mission House, Singalong, Manila
The Impact of Columban Formation on My Life
By Jose Isagani Flores
This is an extract from the sharing of Jose Isagani Flores, PhD, from Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, a member of the first group of seminarians to enter the College Formation Program of the Missionary Society of St Columban in Mabolo, Cebu City, in 1994. He is on the college faculty at Colegio San Agustin, Bacolod City, where his wife, Jo Ann A. Flores, PhD, RN, is Dean of the College of Nursing.
When asked to share at our Homecoming on ‘The Impact of Columban Formation on Our Lives’ I felt both nostalgic and hesitant.
It was through the Columbans that I learned to live in a community where there is friendship and love. The Columbans taught me the importance of caring for those who are in need, whose rights are not respected and are trampled upon...
The Man in White Garb
By Gregorio O. Pelaez III
The author is a nurse from Cagayan de Oro City and hopes to be in Ireland in October to practice his profession.
The author
After graduating from high school I had nothing in mind but my ambition to become a lawyer and I was ecstatic about it. It was a grand plan that I laid down for my future, and I was convinced that going through four years to get a bachelor’s degree and another four for law school is never a pick-and-shovel undertaking. I was young, full of vigor, and was up for the challenge. With my parent’s backing, I was certain of the steps to take ahead to become a lawyer. But, the inevitable adverse event unfolded on May 11, 2003 when my father died of Hemorrhagic Stroke just a month before the school year opened. Consequently, my dream of going to law school remained just a dream and the financial constraints and hard choices that followed were the biggest impediments I had to endure throughout my college years.
September – October 2017
Why do Catholics pray the Angelus?
Angelus is a short devotion in honor of the incarnation of Christ. The devotion is called the Angelus because the first words of the prayers to be said begin as follows, “The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.” The Angelus, therefore, reminds us of the message of the Angel Gabriel who brought good news of the birth of Jesus Christ. And Catholics are asked to begin the day by remembering this great benefit; to recollect it again at noon, and at sunset or the close of the day...
September – October 2017
By standing together in unity, solidarity and love we will heal the wounds in the earth and in each other. We can make a positive difference through our actions.
~ Julia Butterfly Hill, Environmental Activist, Motivational Speaker