From the 21st to 26th of
September, 2015, the Orionine religious of the Philippines gathered at the
Sacred Heart Retreat House of Quezon City, Manila, for their Annual retreat.
From Montalban (St. Luigi Orione Seminary, Noviciate and Cottolengo Filipino),
Payatas (Mother of the Divine Providence Parish) and Lucena, they were driven,
five days to reflect on different aspects of their personal life as Orionine.
The preacher, Rev. Fr. Oreste Ferrari, Superior of the Missionary Delegation
"Mother of the Church", which includes the Philippines, Kenya, the
USA, Jordan, India, Ireland, and Great Britain with seat in Rome did not fail
day after day to invite his confreres to build and feed themselves on a
personal and intimate relationship with the Lord.
The participants, Father Julio
Cuesta, director of the Orionine Community of Payatas, Fr. John Castillo Socorro, parish priest of the "Mother of Divine Providence" parish, Fr. Stefan
Bulai director of Cottolengo Filipino and Vicar of the Montalban Community, Fr.
Stan Achi, Rector of the Saint Luigi Orione Seminary, Fr. Martin Mroz and Fr.
Joseph Van Cu of the Lucena Community, Brother Justin Bamouni newly
appointed brother from Our Lady of Africa Province, and their other young
brothers John Carl Binos Volante, Aldrin Relano Magsilang, Augustus Omumani,
Alex Bonagua Tusi, Rowel Ropio Obal, Sapa John Paul Jr. and Romulo Gallente
have, through these five days of grace, reenergized in the divine goodness
which want of them, cooperators of his work of love. For practical reasons and
formation requirements, Fr. Antonio Eucinei De Souza, coordinator of the
Mission in the Philippines was unable to participate in this spiritual
exercise, as well as Father Diego Lorenzi.
Fr. Oreste has opened these five
days meditations by inviting his brothers to become “religious prophets and mystics”,
understanding mystic as a person that realizes that whatever he hears, sees or
happens to him, comes from God and is for him. Then he has invited them to
experience the true Joy, Mercy, Liberation and Truth on the footsteps of Pope
Francis in order to make the choice for « God Alone », because prayer
and union with God that's all that is needed for and from the religious. We
come from God, we go to Him, and only united to Him we find the real meaning of
everything. The religious is able to discover and experience this reality only
in following Jesus, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This passes necessarily through
temptations the same as Jesus in the desert and we need to make choices. The 1st
Temptation relates to the vow of Poverty (Mt 4:1-4), the 2nd Temptation to the vow
of Chastity (Mt 4:5-7), and the 3rd Temptation to the vow of Obedience (Mt
4:8-10). They have also been leaded to reflect on the reality of the Cross and
the Community life with a special accent on the Orionine Spirit.
This spiritual exercise ends up
with the renewal of the vows and a Community Meeting in Payatas on Saturday 26,
where we have been with profound sadness informed of the definitive leaving of
Father Diego Lorenzi, from the Philippines to his homeland Italy.
A Contribution from Fr Stan ACHI, fdp
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