Perpetual Vows 2008

On a rather cloudy morning of May (it rained later), the annual profession of perpetual vows was held here at the seminary chapel. Five young men pronounced "to live for life poverty, chastity and obedience according to the Constitutions of the Society of Divine Word." Representative of the Superior General in Rome and mass presider is Fr. Ernesto Lagura, SVD, member of the Provincial Council of the SVD Southern Province and former president of Holy Name University (Tagbilaran, Bohol).

Perpetual profession makes one a permanent member of the congregation, legally speaking. I wonder whether these young men are aware and convinced of the implication of such a solemn and public oath before God and community, spiritually speaking. I remember some 14 years ago, when seven of us pronounced the final vows. I was preoccupied with visitors and food; it was my first experience of being at the center of public attention. Nonetheless, when finally I came to the line that said, "to live for life," it brought me chills. Such "chilling effect" is still felt whenever I witness perpetual professions of vows.

It's also interesting to see how the celebration of perpetual vows is refined through the years. There is always something new every year. This time, tarpaulin banners are much bigger (biggest) and seminarians begin to wear I.D's.

Although the rite of perpetual vows seems to be the culmination of around 10 years of seminary formation, it is also the start of the different rites of passage to become a full-pledged SVD missionary, usually lasting a year or two. In a matter of days, the five will receive their mission assignments. After few weeks, they will be ordained deacons and will be assigned temporarily to help in the parishes especially in SVD parishes nearby.This December or February next year, depending on the circumstances, they will be ordained priests. The next rite is graduation from Theology which signals the beginning of the preparation to the mission assignments. For those assigned as missionaries abroad, this includes securing a passport and visa, the first experience of an international flight, learning the language of the country---and finally, a missionary.

Sometimes, the experience is so overwhelming and fast-phase that some young missionaries within just a few weeks abroad decide to come home. This abbreviated mission assignment occupied my mind as I prayed for the newest full-pledged members of the Society of the Divine Word.

Fr. Jerome Marquez, SVD
and former parishioners from the Nazareno Parish

Request for Transcript of Records, Divine Word Seminary, Tagaytay City, Philippines

This blog has been receiving requests from our alumni for their transcript of records at Divine Word Seminary. You may direct your request to:

Fr. Alex Muaña , SVD
Dean of Studies
Divine Word Seminary
4120 Tagaytay City
Email: aqmdg42564@yahoo.com

Trinity, Pink Sisters and Fr. Dom Flores, SVD

Pink Sisters' Chapel in Tagaytay City

and its sweet-sounding carillon
(photo grab: dczypher.wordpress.com)

For my commentary on the biblical readings for Trinity Sunday, please click on this. Again, may I remind my blogreaders that the materials here may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without my explicit permission.
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Tagaytay City is not only known for its refreshing weather and breath-taking view of Taal Lake, it's also famous for its more than 30 religious houses in the city and its environs. One particular place of destination these days is the Pink Sisters' Convent (officially called Adoration Convent of Divine Mercy). It's amazing to see so many visitors coming from all over the country, sometimes from abroad to visit the convent especially to attend mass on Sundays (7:30 am and 5:00 pm). Although a few come for sightseeing, most are her to pray with the sisters.

Last Saturday (May 17), one of the sisters pronounced her final profession to the congregation - meaning she makes a solemn promise to live for life the evangelical vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. It's a mystery and grace that in this rapid world, there are still young people who commit themselves to a life of silence, prayer, and anonymity in the contemplative life.

The final profession was presided by Bishop Pablo David,
auxiliary of San Fernando in Pampanga
where the professing sister hails.

Part of the rite of profession is to receive a ring
and the sister accepting to be "betrothed"
to Jesus, the bridegroom.


The pink sister who took the name Mary Chrisanne
signs her "marriage contract"

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Fr. Dom Flores, SVD who is the rector of the SVD seminary in Melbourne, Australia and my uncle blogs about their life in Down Under, click on this and bookmark it.

Pentecost, CTS, Diwa, New Dean, Library, Perpetual Vows, Summer, etc

Followers of this blog have been prodding me to update it. I didn't know blogging is no luxury. I can imagine the difficulty of Luke who "blogged" the missionary journeys of Paul in the second half of the first century A.D. Without it, we would not have the Acts of the Apostles, the only narrative account of the life of the early Church which we read in the mass during Easter Season. Here's a short write-up on Acts especially 2:1-11, the reading for this coming Sunday's Pentecost feast. Click on this.

CTS Students with German theologian, Fr. John Fuellenbach, SVD

Certificate in Theological Studies
Enrollment is now going on for those interested to join the Certificate in Theological Studies program. Classes are held during Saturdays here at the Divine Word Seminary following the official schedule of the academic year. This is a two-year (or four semester) program of studying in depth the Bible, Theology, and Spirituality. For more information, click on this.

Diwa 33 (2007)

The latest issue of Diwa, the academic journal of Divine Word Seminary (Theology) and Christ the King Seminary (Philosophy) is off the press soon (after much delay!). Please place your order to: ctstagaytay@yahoo.com. Here's the table of contents:

New Dean of Divine Word Seminary
We just elected Fr. Alexander Muaña, SVD as our new Dean of Studies (2008-2011). Fr. Alex holds a licentiate in Missiology from the Gregorian University in Rome (2006) and teaches mission theology here. He replaces Fr. Michael Layugan, SVD who has been accepted in the doctoral program at the Catholic University of Louvain. Fr. Laguyan will specialize in the area of church history.

Dean Alex M. (4th from left)
with long time rector of DWS, Fr. Antolin Uy, SVD

New Librarians
Yours truly has been appointed as a librarian of the Arnoldus Library. Expect then that once in a while in this blog I will write on some recent books on theology and exegesis. Ms. Joyce Pascua, a young licensed librarian will join us at the end of the month. We are also putting up a homiletic collection where students and preachers can have access to excellent and recent literature on how to preach well. The room is called Nicasio Preacher's Collection since most books and materials come from the personal collection of our homiletics professor, Fr. Linus Nicasio, SVD. With all these and other improvements done last year, Arnoldus Library is an exciting place to visit.

The artistic building of the Arnoldus Library

Perpetual Vows
Five in-coming 4th year theology students will profess their perpetual vows to the Society of the Divine Word on May 25 at 9:00 am at the Chapel of Divine Seminary here in Tagaytay: Gil Rochar Dulay, Felmar Fiel, Jonathan Letada, Aris Martin, and Jaekel Solde. This means that after a month or so, months they will be ordained as deacons then few months later, as priests.

Summer Out There
I spent a short yet unique vacation sometime last week in Labangan, a village in the island of Iling which belongs to San Jose, Occidental Mindoro. I was here as a regent in the early 90's. A number of SVDs has also spent summer camps here like Fr. Raymun Festin and Fr. Raul Caga whose names are "written" in the names of some teen-agers here. People here are very warm; despite the poverty in the place, you'll find so many good souls here. I thank the Fabular family, esp. kagawad Lorie Fabular-Dugenia, for their warm hospitality.

This was my "hotel" for a week; thanks to Ate Tina and Kuya Gaspar

our shower place and everything


In the passenger boat: drink "Ursos," the best way to face big waves

this is at the next island, Ambulong


Menu for Lunch: Fresh Sea Urchins
and six-kilo Talakitok

That's Bulaklak, our tourist guide after she brought us up the summit of the island.


She also brought us to one of the caves;
Old friends from the Labangan: Kgd Lorie and Vicky;
Vicky is vacationing with her
husband from the US.

The Suffering Servant of the Lord: A Holy Week Reflection

Fr. Fransiskus Madhu (1976-2007)

Fr. Gerry Gudmalin, SVD, former classmate in the seminary, sent a text message last Saturday informing me that he is going to say the Palm Sunday mass in Lubuagan in Kalinga, the place where he was assigned until last year. The town became notorious as the place where one of our young Indonesian SVD missionaries was killed, last year, on Palm Sunday April 1. 2007.
Click here to read more....

Jesus and Judas

Behold Lent!
On Feb 16 and 23, 2008, both Saturdays, here at the Divine Word Seminary, I will be conducting a public presentation on Jesus and Judas history taking into consideration the four Gospels, extra-biblical sources, Gnostic Gospels, and the Gospel of Judas.

In the afternoon, my colleague and friend Fr. Ronnie Crisostomo, SVD, professor of Liturgy in this institution and former missionary to Argentina, will explain the history and theology of the liturgical services during Holy Week.

For details , please contact/text Bing at 09157884117 or email at bingkasilag2002@yahoo.com

Simbang Gabi 2007 Homilies

For commentaries on Simbang Gabi readings from Divine Word Seminary, please click on this or on the title above.

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C): "He feasted sumptuously everyday"

For my commentary on Luke 16:19-31 The Rich Man and Lazarus (26th Sunday in Ord Time - C), please click on this or on the title above.

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C): "Dishonest Wealth"

Please click on this or on the title above for my commentary on Luke 16:1-3 (25th Sunday in Ord Time - C).

Old Testament Group Meet in Fairview

Members of the OT Group of CBAP

September 2007 meeting

Although this post is not exactly about news in and out Divine Word Seminary, this may interest readers of this blog.

Last Sept. 19 (2:00 pm - 4:00 pm) the Old Testament group of the Catholic Biblical Association of the Philippines (CBAP) met in the hall of the Holy Spirit Church in B.F. Homes, Fairview (QC) to listen to and discuss the papers of two pastors/professors.

Pastor Leo F. Galanza, Jr delivered a paper on "Biblical Interpretation in the Second Period" where he outlined the complexities of this period. The body of literature in the Second Temple Judaism is not only diverse but also bigger than the canonical texts of the Old Testament. He assured that this period provides a better background to the New Testament rather than the Old Testament. He recommended to the group to take a look at George W. E. Nickelsburg, Ancient Judaism and Christian Origins: Diversity, Continuity, and Transformation (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2003). The group also also referred to Gabriele Boccaccini, Beyond the Essene Hypothesis: The Parting of the Ways between Qumran and Enochic Judaism (Grand Rapids, Mi / Cambridge, U.K.: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1998) and idem, Roots of Rabbinic Judaism: An Intellectual History, From Ezekiel to Daniel (Grand Rapids, Mi / Cambridge, U.K.: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2002).

Pastor Leo is a senior pastor of Marikina Christian bible Church and faculty member of Center for Biblical Studies. He is working on an MA degree at the Asia-Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary.

The second paper was delivered by Pastor Noli Mendoza on "The Threat of Chaos: Jeremiah's Vision of a Suffering Earth". He argues that the "in the book of Jeremiah there exists and intimate relationship between God, human community, and the environment... the threat of chaos... in Jer 4:23-26 portraying the reversal of creation into disorder, is cuased by a profound violation in the symbolic relationship between God, the environment and human community" (from the abstract).

Pastor Noli is a faculty member of Asian Theological Seminary teaching where he also finished Master of Divinity in Biblical Studies (2001). He is writing a thesis for his Master of Theology in Biblical Studies at the Asia Graduate School of Theology - Philippines. he is a chaplain and translator in the Philippine Bible Society, pastor of Family Christian Fellowship of the Conservative Baptist Association of the Philippines (also abbreviated CBAP). He is married to Ma. Melissa Mendoza with whom he has two daughters, Haraya Marikit and Biyaya Marilag.

Listening to these pastors before a Catholic organization such as CBAP in Catholic parish, I remember what the late Raymond E. Brown said of biblical studies as the greatest achievement of ecumenism ("The Contribution of Historical Biblical Criticism to Ecumenical Church Discussion," in Richard John Neuhaus (genearal ed.), Biblical Interpretation in Crisis: The Ratzinger Conference on Bible and Church, (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1989), pp. 24-49.

Present in this meeting were Sr. Arleene Riccio, DSMP who hosted the meeting; Sr. Helen Graham, MM; Fr. Fruto Ramirez, SJ; Msgr. Noe de los Santos (who came all the way from Naga); Fr. Mer Viuya, MJ; Fr. Chris Pine, OFM; Bishop Ambo David; Pastor Caleb Dignadice; Mr. Resty Adoremus; and Ms. Bing Kasilag acted as the coordinator.

Important Announcements

1. The next OT meeting will be on February (date to be fixed yet) in Villa San Miguel in Mandaluyong. Speakers will be Bishop Ambo David and Carmelo Sorita (author of The Son of Man as Jesus and His Messianic Community (Naga: Ateneo de Naga, 2005). They will be discussing collective messianism and the "son of man". Bishop Broderick Pabillo will host this February meeting.

2. The New Testament group will meet here in Divine Word Seminary (Tagaytay) on October 6 (Sat) beginning at 9:00 am. Frs. Vic Nicdao and Carlito Reyes will discuss issues in Paul as preliminaries to the celebration of the Year of St. Paul (2,000th birthday; celebration is from June 29, 2008 - June 29, 2009).

3. The Ad-Infinitum group (members are lay who are into biblical studies) will hold their regular meeting tomorrow (22 Sept) beginning at 2:00 pm where Mr. Mike Lapid will deliver a paper on the Crisis of the Documentary Hypothesis and will also share his experiences with the Bat Kol program in Jerusalem.

24th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C): "Until one finds it"

For my commentary on the Gospel reading, please click on this or on the title above.

Canon Law Festival held

Fourth year students of Canon Law under Fr. Jerome Marquez, SVD, JCL hosted a Canon Law festival last Friday (14 Sept) at the Mariapolis Center auditorium here in Tagaytay City. They presented an audio-visual production on the Teaching Office and Temporal Goods of the Church elaborating the canonical, theological, and pastoral aspects of these legal provisions. The production was divided into these six themes:

• 1) Understanding CBCP
• 2) “How Catholic is your School?”
• 3) Sustaining Dioceses
• 4) Sustaining Poor Parishes
• 5) Banking Options for the Church
• 6) Microfinance for the Poor

The festival, which began at 9:00 am until 11:00 am, was attended mostly by members of the academic community of Divine Word Seminary and a number of religious brothers and sisters. Fr. Nielo Cantilado, SVD and current provincial of the Philippine Central Province was one of the board of judges. Show director was Fr. Joey Guinto, SVD, parochial vicar of Hesus Nazareno Parish in DBB, Dasmarinas, Cavite.

23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time (C): "Hate Your Family"

For my commentary on the 23rd Sunday of Ordinary Time year C: Luke 14:25-33, please click on this "Hate your Family"or on the title above.

Family Feast 2007

Fr. Antolin Uy, at 70 something,

still plays tennis and wins;
here with Fr. Alex Muana playing
doubles for his family.

Not a few readers of this blog wonder why its hibernation. The double demand of teaching and dissertation writing was taking toll on me plus the ongoing operation to locate our missing seminarian. This holds true, likewise, for my other blog Misalinggo (commentaries on Sunday readings) whose last post was on May 5.

Nonethless, here's an opportunity to resume blogging - on the 132th anniversary of the SVD (founded in Steyl, Holland in 1875) celebrated traditionally in the seminary with a Family Feast.

Family Feast kicks off with a cheering competition

Ate Cory Belardo, the most senior of the employees,
leads this cheering squad

Ate Viray of the laundry department

Manang Andring and some of the girls

Volleyball game:
Basketball used to be the major game,
times have changed.

In his book Witness to the Word (Logos, 2005), Fr. Estioko portrayed Arnold Janssen with these four characteristics: hard worker, silent type, true to his ideals, closeness to God (pp. 23-24) In short, the founder is a serious person or, or as we often say of him, “strict”.

In all that seriousness,, we are surprised that he knew how to have fun. The founder established July 2 as the common feast day for all priests, brothers, and sisters, in order to foster a feeling of belongingness. It was to be celebrated this way: a free day for everyone; solemn High Mass with deacon and subdeacon; celebration in the aula with a missionary theme; a community excursion in the afternoon. The joint celebration was restricted to the priests, brothers and seminarians; sisters were not invited (Alt, Journey in Faith, p. 841).

In 1905, he wrote to his assistant with the suggestion “to introduce a celebration in connection with our patrons and the goals of our Society. It should be on the feast of the Transfiguration (Aug 6) or on the following Sunday.” After the Founder’s death, this feast developed into what we call and celebrate every year as family feast.

Fr. Schenk and Fr. Ronnie perform
at the cultural night --
a rare appearance of Fr. Schenk,
the most senior of the confrères,
to bring his team to no. 1

Also starring: Frs. Gerry Paat,
Lito Reyes (guest professor),
Meng, and Mike Layugan

scholastics and staff

audience

Board of Judges

Update (2) on Frt. Eliseo Cadivin, SVd

We are entering the third week of the disappearance of Eliseo Cadivin, SVD scholastic and 2nd year theology student of Divine Word Seminary, Tagaytay City. He was last seen at the vicinity of Olivarez Plaza in this city.

Tagaytay Police has insisted he could not have been forcibly abducted. His relatives think he is kidnapped for still unknown reason. We, his confreres in Divine Word Seminary, do not see any reason that could have pressured him to leave us without informing his superiors. We do not doubt Ely's integrity.

With the help of his relatives and an agency, we are doing all what we can to locate him. We continue to pray for his safety.

In the meantime, GMA's 24 oras had aired a news on Ely last Monday August 6. QTV 11 "Sana Muling Makapiling" hosted my Ms Jessica Soho will feature a story on Ely on Tuesday 14 August.

Update (1) on Eliseo Cadivin

Eliseo "Ely" Cadivin, SVD
Missing since 23 July 2007
Time: between 1:00pm - 3:00pm)
Place: Olivarez Plaza, Tagaytay City
Age: 34
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 120 lbs
Body: Slim, fair complexion
Wearing black shirt with collar and carrying a black bag.
Any information, pls. contact: 09209475791; 09179952275; 046-4131253
email: rrandy33@yahoo.com


This is an update and correction on the previous post on this blog and on newspaper reports on our seminarian, Eliseo "Ely" Cadivin, SVD. Our search is still negative, although we are pursuing an important lead.

Established Facts
1. Ely rode with our driver before 1:00 pm 23 July 2007 (Monday). Ely got off in front of Mercury Drugstore (Aguinaldo Hi-way, near Rotunda).

2. Ely withdrew money from Western Union (few meters from Mercury) amounting to P1500 at 1:17 pm. The guard saw him getting out of the establishment, “parang nagmamadali”, walking northward.

3. Between 3:00 - 4:00 pm, He bought candies from a stall at the Olivarez area (along the Mr. Quickie side). When his picture was shown, the sales woman immediately recognized him. She claimed that her buyer (Ely) was wearing a black shirt and carrying a black bag.

4. On that Monday afternoon also, his brother received a message from Ely informing him he got his money transfer. The brother read the message around 3:00 pm.

Corrections 1. It was posted earlier that he sent text message to his brother at 3:00 pm. The brother thought he could have sent it even earlier. Unfortunately, the message was deleted.

2. It is not sure whether he went to Metrobank or not.

3. It is not also sure that he told our driver that he is going to Manila.

4. Likewise, it is not sure that he was receiving money to shop for his birthday (report from a tabloid).

5. It is not also true that his cell phone keeps on ringing (report from Philippine Star).

Suspicion
After a week of search and analysis of the situation, we suspect that he was kidnapped.
When we told this to the police, they disagree for the following reasons:
1) The amount he had was too small to attract kidnappers.
2) It happened during the day and just few meters away is a police station.
3) He could have gone underground or disappeared on his own.

The following is our rebuttal:
on 1) How could kidnappers know ahead that he had only P1500? How about cases of mistaken identity, "pinag-tripan", innocent people killed for just only a few bucks?

on 2) Only yesterday, a car parked in front of Shakey's Pizza and it was robbed of a laptop computer right under the nose of the police whose station is just across the rotunda.
-We also gathered information on the following robberies that happened in the city since summer.
(1) A Carnapping incident in Olivarez Plaza.
(2) Owner of a Forex center in the same area abducted but released alive.
(3) A missing Indian businessman until now.
(4) Thieves posing as costumers to buy cell cards from a store in Olivarez.
(5) Theft at the Seminary Tahanan ng Mabuting Pastol.
(6) Car forcibly opened in front of Shakey's.

on 3) If he went underground or disappeared on his own, do the you think we still go the police? His fellow seminarians, superiors, and relatives see no indications that Ely would do such a police suspicion (or imagination).

Eliseo "Ely" Cadivin, SVD seminarian missing

Eliseo "Ely" Cadivin, 34, SVD Seminarian
Missing since Monday afternoon 23 July 2007
any information, please contact: 09179952275 (Fr. Meng)
046-4131253; e-mail rrandy33@yahoo.com

It is with anxiety and sadness that I resume this blog. Eliseo “Ely” Cadivin, 34 a second year theology student of this seminary has been missing since Monday afternoon 23 July 2007.

We suspect that he was snatched after he picked up a money transfer at the Western Union along Silang Crossing (Rotunda), Tagaytay City.

Ely is a SVD seminarian (scholastic) who was born in Sta Clara, Zamboanga Sibugay. He finished BS Medical Technology at Unibersidad de Zamboanga.

He became an SVD seminarian in 2003 joining the associate program in Christ the King Seminary in Quezon City.

He came to Divine Word Seminary (Tagaytay) in 2006. He has been assigned as his weekend apostolate to Phoenix Drug Rehabilitation Center of Tagaytay (2006); Dampalit in Malabon (Summer 2007); and Magallanes, Cavite (present apostolate area).

He is slim, weighing 120 lbs and 5"4 in height.

Around 1:00 pm Monday, our driver dropped him at Western Union in Olivarez Plaza. He received his money transfer at 1:17 pm. The security guard saw him walking northbound. Between 3:00 – 4:00 pm he went to Metrobank located few meters away from Olivarez Plaza and few meters before the city’s jeepney terminal and bus stop. Around this time too, he bought candies at a stall near Mr. Quickie. The saleslady noticed that he was wearing a black shirt and carrying a black bag. Around 3:00 pm, his brother received a text message from Ely with notice that he received the money transfer. It appears that this was his last communication.

We have reported this case for blotter to the police of Tagaytay, Mendez, Indang, Trece, Silang, Dasmarinas; Sta Rosa; and Talisay & Laurel. DZMM and DZBB have also announced it last Monday evening (Dr. Love program of Jun Banaag) and Tuesday morning (Saksi sa Double B of Mike Enriquez) respectively.

Around 9:00 last night, we received a text from a psychic that he was dumped but still alive somewhere in Trece Martires. Since I read elsewhere that “Pentagon Has Spent Millions On Tips From Trio Of Psychics...” (written by R. Jeffrey Smith, Washington Post November 29, 1995; Page A1 Section), I joined, with skepticism, the search team composed of SVD Seminarians, Priests, Ely’s two brothers, and Trece Martires Police.

By the way, Ely’s brother and a sister belong to the police force of Mindoro. The brother was with us.

For three hours, we searched in the areas that looked the place described by texter-psychic described.

The result was negative.

I will keep you updated in this blog on our on-going search. Please pray that nothing bad happened to our seminarian, Eliseo Cadivin.

By Fr. Randolf Flores, SVD

5th Sunday of Easter (C): New Way of Loving

Pleae click on this or on the title above for my commentary on the5th Sunday of Easter.

Certificate in Theological Studies Program: Enrollment Going ON

Fr. Ronnie Crisostomo, SVD
New Member of the Faculty of Divine Word Seminary
CTS Professor in Liturgy
Licentiate in Sacred Liturgy (2007 San Anselmo, Rome)

Divine Word Seminary, southern Luzon major school of Theology, is offering for the first time a Certificate in Theological Studies Program. Classes are held every Saturday in one of the most pleasant cities of Southeast Asia -- Tagaytay City. The program is meant for everyone, the lay and religious, the faith-seekers and the retired - those who are interested to deepen their understandng of the Bible and the Christian Faith.

Registration is going on! Please send a message to Bing at 0915-7884117
Phone 046-4131253 (the seminary phone number); fax 046-4131251
write to ctstagaytay@yahoo.com
or to me rrandy33@yahoo.com
For more information visit our blog: www.ctstagaytay@blogspot.com

View of Taal Lake from Tagaytay City

4th Sunday of Easter (C): Good Shepherd

Wanted: Good Shepherd
(Fr. Ed Panlilio, alumnus of Divine Word Seminary,
carries with him the seminary tradition
of socio-political involvement ["babad"])

For the 4th Sunday of Easter, please click on this.