Participants of the ECFL Central Luzon Regional Conference, July 12-14, 2018, Saint Michael Retreat House, Antipolo City. (Marylee San Buenaventura)
Antipolo City, July 19, 2018
Parañaque Bishop Jesse Mercado set the tone of the 3rd Central Luzon Seminar-Workshop of the Episcopal Commission on Family and Life (ECFL) Regional Conference: Seminar-Workshop on Pastoral Discernment and Response on the Culture of Death and Violence. He stressed that discernment is needed in order to find meaningfulness in the “situation in which the culture that we see is precisely the opposite of the message of God—violence, fear, anxiety, and despair”.
Addressing the 83 delegates from Metro Manila, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Zambales, Pampanga, Bulacan, and Cavite, “Discernment” he said, “is one of the most important things that we can offer the world today”. The seminar- workshop was held at Saint Michael Retreat House, from July 12 to 14, 2018.
The workshop challenged the participating family and life ministers to respond to violence and death being experienced by migrant families and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), victims of extra judicial killings due to government war on drugs, and children victims of domestic violence.
The prelate emphasized that asking “What is the best thing to do?” is not the right question. In the midst of “apparent absurdities”, he said we need to ask “What is God saying to us?” because the question leads to finding answers that give meaningfulness. He clarified, however, that accompaniment of our brethren in need is “critical because accompaniment leads to discernment”.
“Our accompaniment will not suggest that answers lie in ourselves. It is to look beyond ourselves and discover the presence of Him who has called us, who has strengthened us, who sustain us all the way to the end. Help them discover that,” he further explained.
“When life becomes meaningul, then you can always embrace the challenges of life, the difficulties, persecutions that come to our life. We can face that because even that can have meaning.”
Jesus, he said, challenges us to “trust Him” and his message today is the same message that He gave his apostles as he sent them on missions: “Go, proclaim! The Kingdom of God is here.”
The challenge on the other hand is “whether we believe that God’s kingdom is at hand, “ he said. In the midst of violence and killings, how can we say that God’s kingdom is here? “God’s kingdom is here because Jesus is with us,” he affirmed.
In the midst of all the negative things that we encounter, we need to fix our gaze on God, and ask what His message is for us.
The “answers may not be what people expect; but, because they come from God it gives peace”.
God’s response “may not be too possible, because with God, nothing is impossible”.
Tinig Laiko/ Marylee D. San Buenaventura
