Holy Tuesday: the Double Passion of the world’s poorest and most forgotten in these times of global illness

The Parish: general vison

The Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage Parish was established in 1971, as a result of the exhortation by St. Paul VI who, during his visit to Tondo (Manila) while in the country in November 1970, wanted that the big Parish of Santo Niño de Tondobe divided into smaller parishes for better spiritual administration of the people.

The next year, 1971, our parish and Don Bosco Parish were created and shortly after, two other parishes were established. It is located in Zone 2 of Manila, considered the poorest zone. There are 24 barangays in the parish jurisdiction. A barangay is the smallest local government unit and is headed by a chairman and his councilors.

There are an estimated total of 38.000 families in all the barangays combined, roughly some 162,000 people. Two of our poorest areas are Isla Puting Bato and Parola. In those areas we say mass on Sundays.

A Catholic Parish

The main apostolate of Recoletos in Tondo is Parish work. On weekdays two masses are celebrated at the parish church, 6 am and 6 pm (except Mondays, only 6 pm). On Sundays we celebrate six masses at the parish church (6 am, 7.30 am, 9 am, 4 pm, 5 pm, 6.30 pm) and two masses in the depressed areas (9 am, Isla Bungad; 10.30 am, Parola).

We also take turns in celebrating mass at Colegio de Santa Rosa, Intramuros, at 6 am, Mondays – Fridays and hearing confessions of their students on the Thursday preceding the first Friday of each month.

In the parish church, Baptisms are regularly held on Sunday mornings, at 11; and funeral masses at 1 pm. Regular visitation of the chronically sick in nearby Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Medical Center by one or two priests, accompanied by some lay women, is held on Wednesdays. The sicks are able to confess, receive communion and sacramental anointing.

We also celebrate occasional and first Friday masses at Philippine Ports Authority offices (head office and north harbour office), at the nearby hospital, and at the main branch of Rosauro Almario Elementary School (6 thousand plus students).

In the months of May and October, a priest and/or deacon accompanies the members of the Block Rosary Federation in visiting houses and reciting with the family therein the Marian devotion.

The Augustinian Recollect Youth is also present and recently the association of Saint Monica Christian Mothers has been established. Other active parish organizations include the Legion of Mary (with junior and senior presidia), the Apostolate of Prayer, El Shaddai, PREX (Parish Renewal Experience), Catechists, Caritas, CARAS (altar servers), Lectors’ Guild, Ushers and Collectors’ Group, LEA (Liturgical Environment and Arts), Couples for Christ, Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist, LEO (Labora et Ora – some sort of property administration/ physical committee). There is ongoing formation of the parishioners through homilies, catechism, formative talks.

50 years

Since next year is the 50th anniversary of the parish, the Parish is seeking approval by the national government (through the Department of Public Works and Highways) and the city government (through the Department of Tourism) to put up a monument at a prominent place, facing one of the gates of the harbor, by the sculptor Frederic Caedo.

Another initiative started two years ago with a four-year road map of pastoral work, ratified by the parish pastoral council in June 2018. It starts with the vision and mission statement and goals (Liturgy celebration, Bible formation, Family integration, Community immersion and Parish evangelization).

Social work

There is ongoing a 6-month feeding program for poor children; the project is financed by an NGO and is partnered with the SAR. The SAR is present in parish events and events of the Order; they help with the physical work as well as with the logistics. But there is need for more regular ongoing formation for them.

The Parish is one of the channels of the help from Caritas – Manila: gift certificates worth 1 thousand pesos are given to 3,000 families. They can use the certificates for purchases at Puregold, a donor supermarket not far from Tondo. Students who are scholars of Caritas, accompanied by barangay personnel, distribute the GCs to the beneficiary families.

Caritas – Manila has lent to the parish 5 sewing machines; these are now used to make tote bags that Caritas itself will purchase, and which will be used to pack the goods that Caritas will give to the poor.

COVID-19

We knew the initiative of a priest from the US, prevented by quarantine rules, who gave an online blessing to a nonagenarian parishioner. I thought that I could do it from my room too, using the cellphone. So I posted a notice on my Facebook account, and many people have commented positively, not only from among the parishioners, but also from other places – such is the power of our interconnectivity – and many offered suggestions.

So far, I have been able to pray over the phone in a number of cases; we would set the time, and they would call me when the family is already around the sick person, they put their phone on speaker phone, I read to them a reading from Scripture and pray over them.

The prayers are from the ritual of the anointing of the sick, but I make sure they understand that I am not administering a sacrament online but just a prayer. At least the patient or the family can have the consolation of the individualized presence, though virtual, of the pastor during their moment of trial.

The online service is expanding, not just for the sick people: just earlier this morning, I blessed a deceased person over the phone; the family then sprinkled holy water, given to them earlier by their neighbour, the same who had facilitated the contact, and I made the final prayer, before they led him to the cemetery.

Another day, I livestreamed a mass for a dead person, an official of one of the universities near San Sebastian College. The university’s Information Technology Department set up the program so that many could attend the mass.

On Palm Sunday, I gave a recollection using Zoom, an application for meetings, to a covenanted community called Ligaya ng Panginoon; I had given them retreat two years in a row, using the ARSE material, which they love!

We used the app: I joined in their meeting and worship, then celebrated mass for them from the safety of our Tondo convent chapel. There were almost 200 people in that 4-hour gathering!

We as community do what I call “guerrilla war” against the enemy, poverty, during these COVID times. While one of us wages a systematic war, with ammunitions provided by Caritas and foot soldiers (Caritas volunteers), we guerrilleros make use of community, personal and donated funds, to give a little to those poor who are not reached by the Caritas donations.

We are also helped by Caridad Bantolinao, SAR-Tondo president who, together with her household, cooks meals for the people of who live under the northern portion of the bridge.

Adjacent to the Parish church is a hospital, the Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Hospital. We go there on Wednesdays to visit the chronically sick, hear their confession, give them communion, and anoint them with holy oils. COVID has prevented those visits now.

There are some “persons under investigation” and “persons under monitoring” within the parish jurisdiction, and maybe a few COVID-positive persons, we don’t have exact data. What I learned today is that the possible COVID cases who come to the adjacent Gat Andrés hospital are referred to other hospitals so as the Gat Andrés can remain as the largest kidney center treatment in the country and avoid possibly infecting the kidney patients.