| TRIP
MAGAZINE VOL. 4
The Grace of the Mission
Mass
Well-wishers of the 25th batch of Jesuit
volunteers overflowed at The Oratory of St. Ignatius of
Loyola at the Loyola House of Studies last May 29, 2004.
It was the day of the Mission Mass, a celebration to send
off the JVP volunteers with the blessings and graces of
the Lord. The JVP community, family and friends of the volunteers
and of the foundation came to join in the meaningful event.
Former Jesuit Provincial Superior, Fr.
Romeo J. Intengan, S.J., officiated the mission mass. Concelebrants
were Fr. Bill Abbott, Socius to the Provincial; Fr. Mario
Francisco, National Chaplain of JVP; Fr. Jett Villarin and
Fr. Patrick Falguera, both former volunteers; Fr. Rudy Fernandez
and Fr. Eli Lumbo, friends of JVP. Fr. Bill Kreutz, President
of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University and JVP Founder, was
homilist.
Fr. Bill fondly recalled the beginnings
of the JVP from his providential meeting with the Jesuit
Volunteer Corps when he was in the United States in 1978.
A year after, the first JVP Mission Mass was held in the
same chapel where the mass last May 29 was celebrated. That
was twenty-four years ago when nine brave souls were sent
off to different Jesuit mission areas in Mindanao devoid
of any skills training seminars that the volunteers now
undergo. That first batch of JVP was armed only with the
burning desire to serve their countrymen at a time when
the nation was in political turmoil. Fr. Bill narrated how
volunteers of that first batch, like Fr. Jett, were merely
given directions on how to get to their area of assignment
and who to look for once they had reached their destination.
Now, 24 years later, the call to serve remains. There are
still many areas in need of volunteers willing to share
their skills and talents, offering a part of themselves.
And the 32 volunteers of Batch 25 heeded the call.
In the solemn celebration, the 32 volunteers
received their JVP cross. It serves as a reminder of what
JVPs call the “5 Ss” or the core values that
JVPs try to live by: simplicity, solidarity, service, social
justice and spirituality. The cross will identify them as
JVPs in their respective mission areas whether up north
in Payatas, Metro Manila or down south in Cotabato. The
cross allays the fears of the volunteers for as Fr. Bill
reminded them, just as Christ was with the first and every
batch of JVP, He is also with the 25th batch. He challenged
the volunteers to follow Christ and be fishers of men.
In the eyes of a former volunteer
Mission mass is also a time when former
volunteers of JVP see their batchmates and reminisce about
their JVP year. Excited exchanges before and after the mass
usually start with the phrases “during our time…”
or “remember when…” followed by bursts
of laughter.
But seeing long lost friends and batchmates
is not the only reason former volunteers go to the Mission
Mass year after year. Sitting in the chapel, one will notice
that it is not only volunteers about to be sent off, or
their parents who will be missing them terribly, that get
teary-eyed. My guess is that, a good number of those discreetly
pulling out their hankies and tissues to dab at the corner
of their eyes are former volunteers like me.
The mass moves me every time. There is
happiness in knowing that others are willing to carry on
the JVP mission. When we former volunteers take part in
praying over the current volunteers, and in the singing
and the hugging of peace, we feel we belong to a community
with one purpose, although we do not know everyone. It is
wonderful, touching and inspiring.
As I am drawn into the celebration, I
am brought back to the time when I decided to join JVP.
I am reminded of my reasons for doing so. I look back to
where I have been and what I have done since my JVP year
to see how my JVP experience had changed me to become a
better person. The Mission Mass is a time to renew my commitment
to the core values of JVP. As I pray for the volunteers
of Batch 25, I find myself praying that the Lord will guide
me along the path where I will fulfill the mission that
is uniquely mine.
| The author, 25,
is currently JVPFI’s Program Officer for Communications
and Continuing Service (POCCS). She was part of JVP
Batch 20, assigned as an English Teacher and Guidance
Counselor for the Fr. Leoni Memorial High School in
Cabanglasan, Bukidnon. She is also a self-declared,
“mababaw ang luha.” |
|
 |
Trip Vol 01
Trip Vol 02
Trip Vol 03
Trip Vol 04
Josephine G. Maribojoc, Batch 13
Tina Pineda
Fr. Jose Ramon “Jett” T. Villarin, SJ
Nathaniel "Nikki" Hipolito
Jesus Enrique "Jay" G. Saplala
Sarah S. Balane
|