(February 22, Sunday) — Two Redemptorist priests and two Perpetual Help sisters joined Fr. Nonie Dolor in the regular 8:00 am Sunday Mass at Villa San Jose to kick off what Fr. Nonie called the “re-evangelization” of Villa San Jose. In what was a very opportune way of preparing for the Year of St. Joseph, the patron of this housing village for the poor of the Archdiocese of Lipa. According to Fr. Pete Katigbak, C.Ss.R., the coordinator of this “mission”, they would “be living among the people, talk to them and listen to them.” The four missionaries would be conducting house visitations and communally discern with the residents of Villa San Jose.
“We carry no program,” continued Fr. Pete. ”The program will come from our common discernment. We will discern God’s will for us — for them as residents of VSJ, and us, as fellow sojourners. This is the Redemptorists’ new way of doing missions.
Villa San Jose is composed of the 4 puroks of the old housing village started by the late Archbishop Mariano Gaviola in the mid-80s and the 5 Gawad-Kalinga-built communities encircling the 4 zones. The GK communities are named thus: Modesto I, Modesto II, Texas, San Lorenzo and Kalinangan. Fr. Nonie has emphasized the thrust of his stewardship of this housing project. ”Archbishop Ramon Arguelles was very specific in telling me to unify this into one Christian community. I don’t intend to erase their own character as communities. We maintain being small communities. However, we will try to be a living witness of that one basic Christian community that we are called to be.”
Aside from the re-evangelization program, two livelihood programs have been lined up. The Social Action Center of the Archdiocese, under Fr. Clarence Patag, has made Villa San Jose its pilot area for sustainable agriculture. There are more than fifty farmers involved in this project on behalf of the community, which are very much into waste management. Soon to open is Pondong Batangan-initiated program on commercial cooking.
All these are designed as the church’s concrete expression of “option for the poor” and in solidarity with them, according to the social teachings of the Church.
March 2, 2009 at 11:17 am |
about time. thank God for this program. VSJ should be a model community, if only to give reverence to the memory of Archbsp. Gaviola. thank you for your and RCA’s initiative.