By: Bec L. Yao, Ph.D., AsMIC
August 8, 2021 is a remarkable day for the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception (M.I.C.) as they commemorate the arrival of the first M.I.C. Sisters in the Philippines. A Eucharistic Celebration was held at Our Lady of the Assumption Parish Church, Davao City on that day officiated by Archbishop Romulo Valles, D.D., head of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines and on August 9, 2021 at Mary the Queen Parish, Greenhills, presided by Fr. Guy Peter V. Guibelondo, SJ, the Parish Priest. This momentous event was celebrated with grace and thanksgiving by the M.I.C. Sisters and their benefactors, alumni of their schools and their lay associates, the AsMICs.
Interestingly, Archbishop Valles and Fr. Guy have known the M.I.C.’s in their personal capacity. Archbp. Valles gave testimony to the grace of celebrating 100 years of MIC missionary presence in the Philippines, as part of a tapestry intertwined in the last 100 years of the quincentennial celebration of Christianity in the Philippines. While the celebration is during the days of the pandemic, the Archbishop exhorted the faithful to imagine how daring MIC sisters were, to travel all the way from Canada at that time after World War I and the widespread of the Spanish Flu to come to the east. In his homily, he expounded on the theme of the celebration with the readings of the 19th Sunday in ordinary time:
- Go to the peripheries. This has been the character of the church … and that is what the M.I.C.’s did 100 years ago, to go nowhere …. to people they don’t know.
- Walk for a Mission. From the first reading from the Book of Kings, Elijah walk for a mission…exhausted….to go up to the mountain of the Lord… to find the Lord. When the M.I.C. Sisters arrived in Mati, Davao Oriental in 1947, exhausted from travel, the first order of the day was to go to the presence of the Lord.
- Christlike attitude. In the second reading, St. Paul exhorted the Ephesians to be kind to one another, do away with anger, and every kind of malice. This was paramount in the lives of the M.I.C. Sisters, so that they can become Christlike when they go out and serve… bearing the aroma, the atmosphere, the aura of Christ. On a personal note, Archbp. Valles related his personal experience when he served in Mati in the 70’s as a young priest on how the Sisters educated him in good manners and right conduct and even making sure that his English was impeccable.
- Daily Holy Eucharist. Jesus is the Bread of Life. We are asked to become one, to be familiar with the people. Though we smell like sheep, our service should be bringing people to heaven.
Fr. Guy on the other hand, congratulated the M.I.C. Sisters on their 100 years of missionary presence in the Philippines. He reminded the M.I.C.’s to always remember: “who chose you”, “why you were chosen” and “what you should do”. He also stressed on the need of a re-examination of hearts; to go back to what you learned in the Novitiate, in the initial formation; to adapt without losing one’s soul. Above all – Edification! To be mindful of your spiritual attractiveness…. because before we can inspire others, we have to inspire each other. Most importantly, do not lose hope!
Presently, the M.I.C. Sisters have three schools, two in Metro Manila and one in Mati, Davao Oriental. These are Immaculate Conception Academy, Greenhills, Immaculate Conception Academy of Manila in Gagalangin, Tondo and Immaculate Heart of Mary Academy in Mati, Davao Oriental. They also engaged in the evangelization among indigenous people in the parish of Kiburiao, Quezon, Bukidnon and on the defunct mission with the Mangyans in Mindoro Occidental that enabled the Mangyans to secure ownership of their ancestral lands.
In Davao City, the MIC Retreat House (MRH), beside Our Lady of Assumption Parish, is a preferred place for spiritual renewal among many groups not only in Davao but also from other parts of the country .
One hundred years ago, on August 8, 1921, five (5) Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception (M.I.C.) arrived in the Philippines upon the request of Dr. Jose Teehankee, one of the community leaders of the Manila Chinese, to take charge of the Chinese General Hospital and the new School of Nursing. Dr. Teehankee found an ally in Msgr. Michael O’Doherty, archbishop of Manila who sent a cablegram to his counterpart in Montreal, Canada, Archbishop Paul Bruchesi. The M.I.C. foundress, Venerable Delia Tetreault moved by the Spirit, responded favorably to Msgr. O’Doherty.
MICs have embraced the theme for their platinum jubilee, “In joy and thanksgiving!” which the present pandemic have not managed to dampen.
