BY Nerso C. Lujan

San Dionisio Iloilo – Identical twins made history when they were ordained priest in this town 112 km. northwest of Iloilo City.

Historic Event

Frederic I and Frederic II Lauricio, 33, took their vows a priest of the Society of the Divine Word in a ceremony officiated by Jaro Archbishop Alberto Piamonte.

The St. Vincent Ferrer Parish Church was packed with people who converged to witness a historic event not only for the two new priests and their family but also for the Roman Catholic Church. The identical twins are the first in the Philippines to become priest on the same day, church official said.

Nono and Nene

Frederic I and Frederic II, nicknamed Nono and Nene, completed their degrees in theology at the Divine Word Seminary in Tagaytay City in 1994. it was also there that they completed their master’s degrees in pastoral works last year, both graduating ‘cum laude’.

But while their ordination marked an important milestone in their lives, it also signaled their separation.

A few weeks hence, Frederic I is to proceed to Nagoya, Japan to continue the missionary work he started there during his overseas training in 1992-1993.

Frederic II, on the other hand, is to help evangelize the inhabitants of Botswana, a country in Southern Africa with a population of 1.6 million.

It is not know when the twins would see each other again.

‘We are happy and thankful to God for this significant day of the church ,,, two boys born together have now become men, reborn again, ‘ Piamonte said.

Devout Catholics

Piamonte also praised the twins’ parents, Federico Lauricio of Laoag City and Carmen Roa of this town, for allowing the youngest of their four children to answer God’s call. Their father, 73, is a retired civil engineer. Their mother 69, retired in 1988 form Ateneo de Davao University where she taught Spanish and Biology.

Their two other children are Anthony, 35 a former councilor of this town, and Benadeth, 34, a nurse at the Singapore General Hospital.

They are devout Catholics whose three sons initially wanted to become priests. But Anthony, a philosophy graduate, left the St. John of the Cross Seminary in Manila and decided to go into business in Iloilo.

Frederic I entered the Divine Word Seminary in 1987. Four years later he acquired a philosophy degree form Ateneo de Davao University. He worked for some threw years with the Mindanao Development Corporation.

Frederic II an Agriculturist followed his twin at the seminary two years later.

In 1992, Frederic I went to Nagoya [third largest city in Japan] to undergo the order’s overseas training program. When he returned in 1993, he found himself in the same class as his twin.

Born on December 14, 1962, the twins attended the Assumption School of Davao in 1969-75 and the Davao City High School in 1975-79.

After their graduation from college, they joined the Jesuits Volunteers of the Philippines program. Frederic I was assigned to Zamboanga and Frederic II to Bukidnon

Mixed Emotion

Mixed emotions were mirrored on the faces of their parents, the twins’ sibling and their relatives, friends and townmates who flocked to the Church on a hill overlooking the sea.

“We have long waited for this day and went to share with you all the blessings of the Almighty”, said Frederic I.

‘I hope you will all include us in your prayers so we can be worthy of our vocation,’ said Frederic II.

I am now wholeheartedly giving my sons to the Lord. What I am now asking from Him is to make them worthy of their calling’, said their mother Carmen.