Refelction on the Talk, "The Spirituality of Stewardship" by Cardinal Vidal

NOTE:

This reflection paper is the fruit of our class discussion  on the talk of Cardinal Vidal in the gathering of clergy in the Diocese of Malolos. The title of his talk is "The Spirituality of Stewardship." Our teacher in Pastoral Management, Fr. Rannielle Pineda, extended the good cardinal's talk to our class. Thank you Fr. Rannielle. 

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               I have been in the religious life for at least three years already since my first profession in 2010. According to our Plan of Augustinian Formation, the time of temporary religious profession is a vital process. It is in this period that we are expected to take a more intimate part in the community that shares faith, life and work, and in all that Augustinian life implies.  As we are being prepared for our solemn profession, we are being exposed to the kind of life that we are expected to do particularly our responsibilities as servants of Christ. Hand-in-hand with our responsibilities, the dark side of religious life plays also a salient role in our formation.

            The talk on the Spirituality of Stewardship shares a lot of positive insights regarding the role of priests in stewardship. But, as seen in real life, a number of bad experiences were given as examples. Even in the introduction of the copy of the talk its first example is really negative. It is like out of a bad experience we are trying to learn something good. I felt depressed, every time I hear mischievous practices of priests. I am worried of the future that I might do the same.  Knowing my weaknesses, it is really disturbing that I might do the same. Despite all the things I’ve heard, I have to flip the other side of the coin. I should not be worried of the uncertain future but rather to the certain present. The talk of Cardinal Vidal showed me that aspect. He was not simply talking about stewardship, but “good stewardship”.

            It is good that once in a while, talks like this remind us of our role as consecrated religious. The three important points, Entrustment, Empowerment and Espousal, regarding good stewardship shares also the same sentiment in my level of formation at present. The three points seems to be directed to the three objects of love namely, towards the self, towards others and towards God, respectively. I want to share this in relation to my level of formation.

Reflection on the Fathers of the Church: Ignatius of Antioch

IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH

At the beginning of my formation in Theology, I only knew a few names of the Fathers of the Church.  I did not appreciate their lives and works in the Church because they had long been existing for more than one thousand years ago. I did not find them relevant in the modern world. They are antique and should remain in the attic in a small box. This was my negative prejudice against the Fathers of the Church. That biased gradually changed into a fruitful gathering of knowledge. I have come to realize their significance. Maybe there are at least three salient points to consider. First, the Fathers of the Church are our witnesses of our link with the Apostles of Jesus and the Apostolic Fathers. Second, the Fathers of the Church are the builders of the foundation of our theology, which until now is still being used. Third, the Fathers of the Church are still relevant to the issues of the contemporary world.

St. Ignatius of Antioch is among the Fathers of the Church, who belonged categorically in the ante-Nicene and Nicene Fathers. He was the third bishop of the primacy of Antioch (Turkey) since St. Peter founded it according to the traditions. He is a link to our Lord Jesus Christ, who was incarnated, suffered, died and was resurrected. He is a proof that the foundation of the Church was not a mere wimp of thought of a human being. It was founded through Peter, to whom Jesus commanded to build His Church upon a rock. I cannot now fathom how come a 1914 founded church claim that they are the link to Jesus. They claim that to whom the Scriptures refer to as the Church was theirs. It is like a person is trying to jump from a cliff a kilometer empty space in order to reach the other side. It is a bluff.

St. Ignatius of Antioch is called as the “Doctor of Unity”.  According to the catechesis of Benedict XVI on the Fathers of the Church, Ignatius was the first person in Christian literature to attribute to the Church the adjective "catholic" or "universal": "Wherever Jesus Christ is", he said, "there is the Catholic Church" (Smyrnaeans, 8: 2). And precisely in the service of unity to the Catholic Church, the Christian community of Rome exercised a sort of primacy of love: "The Church which presides in the place of the region of the Romans, and which is worthy of God, worthy of honour, worthy of the highest happiness... and which presides over love, is named from Christ, and from the Father..." (Romans, Prologue). Ignatius witnessing is a reminder to us, particularly of the greater Middle East turmoil at present. There is a constant call for unity among human beings to stop violence. As Ignatius was hoping for the unity in Christian faith, we also hope for the same goal. In our context,we can never be united in our faith, but at least we can be united in peace and love. Love is the ultimate law and peace could be achieved if we are true to our goal. But as Christians we are called to participate greater because Jesus has taught us well how to love.

St. Ignatius of Antioch shows us also the role and significance of a bishop. His theology on the importance of the bishop in the church is still being applied to the present theologies. He says, "Let no man do anything connected with the Church without the Bishop", he confides to Polycarp: "I offer my life for those who are submissive to the Bishop, to the presbyters, and to the deacons, and may I along with them obtain my portion in God!” (Polycarp, 6: 1-2). The authority of the bishop towards his flock is being emphasized by St. Ignatius. Even the priests and deacons are subject under the bishop.

With these three salient points I learn to appreciate one of the Fathers of the Church. These are the things I want to remember about this person. Thus, I can say St. Ignatius of Antioch is still relevant in our times. 

Reflection on the Fathers of the Church: Clement of Alexandria

CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA

            Another great Father of the Church is Clement of Alexandria. I want to remember at least three things about St. Clement of Alexandria. First, he is considered one of the pioneers of the dialogue between faith and reason. The second importance is Clement’s explanation of the sacrament of baptism. Third, it is about the importance of marriage and virginity.

            Because of globalization and secularism, the people’s perspective on faith has changed abruptly. An additional ingredient to this change is the fast technological development of the world. Science seems to be the answer to all the problems and issues of the world. According to Pope Francis’s Lumen Fidei, faith seems to be the last resort and answer if science cannot reveal the truth. If science can’t prove anything, then faith comes in to shed light to the mystery. People forget that faith is truth itself. This dialogue between faith and reason is only a continuation of what may be the saint of Alexandria has started. Clement of Alexandria is a good example of how we can appropriate faith and reason with each other in our explanation of the contemporary issues of the world. This time it is not much about doctrinal aspects but rather on the means of spreading the faith. The Fathers of the Church have already given us almost all the content of our faith. What we can do now is how in our means of evangelization we can share the importance of faith and reason in the lives of the people. True to the words of Pope Francis, we should do something to help the people enlighten their minds about the role of faith in our daily lives. A greater responsibility is shared to us consecrated persons to fulfill this calling of the Pope to help him in this new mission.

Talent: The Seed that was Planted

Talent: The Seed that was Planted

A Reflection on the Parable of the Sower

            It’s difficult to understand somebody when he or she starts to compare talents. Some thought of themselves that they have nothing good to contribute to the community or to the society. They admire one’s talent and yet they can hardly look into their potentials. It is confusing to identify either they envy or admire somebody.

            I believe that I was not born as a gifted person like a genius of anything. I am not a geek. I am not a nerd. And, I am not an imbecile. Instead, I believe that I have potentials to do great things. It turns out that one’s skills and talents are rooted from how one has developed and improved them. It depends on how the seed has been planted and taken care of. The seed that was thrown into the good soil would not grow into wheat unless the farmer has not taken good care of it. Still less if he has not watered it, he won’t know the result. The effect comes after the cause. The same thing goes to other seeds thrown into the barren and rocky grounds. No matter how the farmer waters, the seeds won’t really grow.

            There are at least two salient points that the parable mean. For a seed to grow into a wheat, one needs first of a good soil to plant it and second, he needs to take care of it. It is like planting rice seedlings into a well-prepared soil but one does not water them by irrigation. Nature speaks the same thing too. If without rain plants won’t grow. Nature is both the ground and farmer.

            Nevertheless, talents are like the seeds that were thrown into the good soil. For the seeds to reach being wheat, one needs to water them regularly. Even genius persons are improved in order to achieve their greatest potentials. For a talent or skill to develop, one must nurture and strengthen it. To do a leap without taking the precautionary measures, it would likely be a suicide.

            My talents and skills would not be like what it is now if I stopped exploring and developing them. In eight years, my knowledge and skills grew that originally started from scratch. As it grew, it even reached a bigger potential. The playing field also grew. I consider this playing field as to the people whom I helped. Before, my talents were only limited to committee involvements. Now, my talents have been involved into the international arena. This outcome has not crossed my expectations. I just simply do things out of love and out of service.

            Because of love and service, I was able to hold on to the demands of the responsibilities attached to my talent. I underwent also struggles and hardships. Maybe like the wheat, different insects and birds would come over to the field to destroy and pester.

When harvest time comes, the wheat can now be served to the people. The fullness of one’s talent can later be of greater helped for those who are much in need.

The parable of the sower was narrated by Jesus, in this manner God also plays an important role in the story. It was God, who threw us into the good soil. We were created out of his love in the beginning. Our being human depended on how much we use our freedom. It is a responsibility that was given to us. It is how we freely use our talents in order to fulfill its real end, which is to serve the good of the community.

            It is indeed a two-way process. It is always an interaction between God and human beings. God plants and we maintain. God has given each one of us different kinds of talents, but to reach its fullness depends on how we have handled the responsibility well.