Manila: 20 October 2010 -- With barely three hours sleep after
arriving from Seoul and braving heavy rainfall, Fr Pascual
Chávez, with Fr Adrian Bregolin and Fr Juan Bartolomé,
travelled on 19 October for two hours to Pampanga, north of Manila, for
the first day of his short visit to the Philippines North Province
(FIN). The helicopter service that would have brought the Rector Major
to Pampanga was cancelled due to strong winds caused by a super typhoon
locally (and aptly named Juan!)
But the heavens cooperated with the second coming of
St John Bosco’s ninth successor to FIN. The heavy downfall became
drizzles, which made the atmosphere cooler, when the Rector Major began
the Mass of Bl Michael Rua in the school chapel. In attendance were
around 130 professed confreres of the FIN, plus the more than 50
aspirants and a further 60 students of theology of 12
nationalities. Concelebrating prelates were Salesian Cardinal
Joseph Zen of Hong Kong, Salesian Bishop Patrick Buzon of Kabankalan,
southern Philippines, and Archbishop Paciano Aniceto of San Fernando,
Pampanga. Before the Rector Major’s arrival,
Cardinal Zen shared a Chinese proverb which says that when
important people visit, they bring the
rains with them.
The Rector Major spent an hour with the confreres,
doing away with his prepared speech and speaking extemporaneously from
his heart on matters of concern about consecrated life, not sparing
Salesian life, today. After the Rector Major’s succinct and stirring
speech, the presentation of the heroic virtues of Fr Charles Braga took
another hour. Those who spoke about Fr Braga, a pioneer of the Salesian
work in the Philippines, were the three prelates. FIN is resolved to
formally initiate the cause for sainthood of Fr Braga. Incidentally,
also in Manila for the first East-Asia Oceania Congress of the
Association of Mary, Help of Christians is the new Salesian Postulator
General for the causes of saints, Fr Pier Luigi Cameroni.
The program during lunch presented brass band pieces
by the aspirants and then some more pieces, all of Mexican or Spanish
origin, from selected confreres from different houses of the FIN. The
highlight of the program was the spontaneous number by Frs Pascual
Chávez and Juan Bartolome, accompanied on the accordion by Fr
Adrian Bregolin.
While the confreres went for games after lunch, the
Rector Major and his companions were given time for a much-needed and
well-deserved rest before their flight to Cebu, the Philippines-South
Province (FIS). Thus was the first day.
_________________ AustraLasia is an
email
service
for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions
as an
agency for ANS based in
Rome.
For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com
.
Use Bosconet-wiki
to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on
austraLasia
2010 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser
address bar - add it from there. Or be interactive with the EAO blog Cetera Tolle. Avail
yourself of the Salesian
Digital
Library
at http://sdl.sdb.org
