September-October 2018
From the Editor
Moving On with Gratitude and Hope
By Arlenne Villahermosa
Time flies. September is here. We are reminded by the Catholic church to care for the gift that has been given to us – earth, our common home – by declaring this month as the Season of Creation . . .
Laudato Si’: On the Care of Our Common Home, Encyclical by Pope Francis, 2015
The Creation Mandala (A Poem)
By Fr. Vincent Busch
Fr. Vinnie is a Columban priest from the USA who has been serving in Mindanao, Philippines since his arrival in 1975. His great interest in Creation Spirituality brought him to appreciation of life and the cosmos expressed in different forms of art including poetry. He initiated a handicraft project with the Subanens in Zamboanga del Sur in 2001. To see the crafts and cards of the Subanens visit their website, www.subanencrafts.com.
The Birth of the Universe
In the beginning the Spirit said:
"From my fire and its warmth
Let all creation come flaring forth.
Let matter and energy converse
To weave the tale of the universe,
And through the course of time and space
I'll cherish all in my embrace."
A Pilgrimage for Fr. Vernon’s 75th Death Anniversary
By Mary Joy Rile
Fr. Vernon Douglas, a sketch by Gigi Arevalo, Malate, Manila, July 2018
The Columban priests, sisters, lay missionaries, seminarians and co-workers, with Basic Ecclesial Communities (BEC) members and staff of Malate Church went on a pilgrimage commemorating the 75th death anniversary of Fr. Francis Vernon Douglas on July 27, 2018. The group passed by the church in Morong, Rizal where Fr. Vernon was assigned for a few weeks in 1938 while learning the Tagalog language . . .
A Voice for Justice
By Michael Javier
The author is a Columban lay missionary (CLM) from Jubgan, San Francisco, Surigao del Norte. He belongs to PH22, the first group of CLMs from the Philippines assigned in Chile in 2015 and has recently returned after a three-year contract.
Michael in Patagonia, south of Chile, 2017
Language is a basic skill we need to learn in order to communicate, to express our feelings and to understand others. But we are divided by many different languages. For a migrant seeking a good life in another country, how can you express yourself to the locals who do not understand your own language?
This challenge of dealing with language barriers reminded me of a migrant named Jamby, whom I met in Chile. Jamby is a 45 year-old single mother, a Muslim from Zamboanga City, Philippines . . .
A Quiet Home for a Homeless
By Virgenia O. Vidad and Fr. Oliver McCrossan
Virgie Vidad is from Ozamiz City who works with Pedaling to Live and Green Shelter, Inc. since its beginning in April 2006. The project was put up by Columban Father Oliver McCrossan. Here she writes about Mary Joy Tabuco, one of the beneficiaries of the project.
Virgie Vidad (left) and Fr. Oli McCrossan (right) with survivors of typhoon Vinta, Lanao del Norte, 2018
I met a very courageous and determined girl sometime in 2005 in Ozamiz City. Her name is Mary Joy Tabuco. She was born on September 8, 1992 in San Jose, Mahayag, Zamboanga del Sur, the eldest among four siblings. At five, she had a very high fever that caused her deafness. During her teenage years, she helped in the rice seed breeding and promotion of Organic Agriculture in Tambulig, Zamboanga del Sur. Ironically, her father was killed by her uncle in Tambulig while they were having fun in the family . . .
The Impact of Meat Production on the Planet
By Fr. Seán McDonagh, SSC
The author is a Columban priest from Ireland. He is known around the world as an eco-theologian who is working to raise awareness on the connectedness between justice and peace issues, environmental sustainability and faith. He is currently the researcher for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) priorities of the Missionary Society of St. Columban.
Farming and food production are huge industries in today’s world. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, the number of people directly involved in agriculture has been dropping in First World countries. Today in the United Kingdom, only 2 percent of the population are working on farms. Even so, figures from the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in 2014, estimated that the food and drinks manufacturing sector contributed £27 billion to the United Kingdom’s economy. Furthermore, 3.8 million people were employed in these industries (van der Zee, 2018) . . .
Presence, A Source of Healing
By Elbert Balbastro
The author is a Columban seminarian on a two-year First Mission Assignment (FMA) in Pakistan. Here he shares about his pastoral experience while in the Philippines. Both FMA and Pastoral Ministry form parts of the formation program for seminarians preparing to become a Columban missionary priest.
Elbert Balbastro (front) and Jerry Lohera (back) in Pakistan, March 2018
“I want to be healed. Please help me.” This is a very common petition by the patients at San Lazaro Hospital, Manila. My pastoral experience there for eight months visiting Tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS patients opened my eyes to see how these diseases had affected them. Through this ministry, I saw the “poorest of the poor” in them because aside from poor health, most of them were also deprived from material and financial resources . . .
When I was small, I used to pray the rosary with my family. But now that I am an adult, I don’t seem to appreciate it anymore, with its repetitive praying of the Hail Mary. I may sound skeptical, but why pray the Hail Mary much more than praying directly to God? What good will it make to me and to my faith? But I am still making rosary bracelets though.
We must not look at nature as though it was some kind of property or real estate on which we can stake our claim. Nor is nature something over which we can exercise exclusive rights – “All the earth is mine” says the Lord (Ex. 19:5, cf. Lv. 25:23). The biblical view also reminds us that God has bound himself to a covenant with nature and has entrusted humankind with the protection and care of the planet. We have, in fact, a community of living creatures. Therefore we must think of the world as a living organism rather than a machine we have power over to be used at our own whim. Being part of the living earth, we have a task to sustain and nurture creation as we ourselves are sustained and nurtured by it.
Walk for Creation: World day of prayer for the care of Creation, Christ the King Seminary, QC, September 1, 2018
~ Colm McKeating, Light which Dims the Stars: A Christian Theology of Creation (1940-2015)