Congregation of the Mission Philippines

   FAITHFUL TO ONE'S SELF, FAITHFUL TO ONE'S OFFERING

                             (Tapat-Loob, Tapat-Kaloob)

It was the will of Jesus that the first missionaries should cross the wide seas and reach my beloved Philippines. One hundred and fifty years have elapsed but His will is still throbbing with life. It was the will of Jesus that the first CMs and DCs should sow the seeds of Charity and Mission and that they should bear much fruit in the spirit of St. Vincent de Paul. It was the will of Jesus that they should nurture the fruits of their labor by calling others to the Vincentian vocation. It was all the will of Jesus Who called, compelled, strenthened, and quickened our hearts so that they would yield much fruit. It was Your will dear Jesus that we should remember and thank You - 150 years hence.

The past one and a half centuries are a reminder of God's fidelity which made it possible for the poor to become part of God's flock. God roused the will of many Filipino Vincentians to offer themselves for the Other and the lowly. they became faithful witnesses to the faithful act of offering one's self in pursuit of Life, Formation, and Commitment to the Poor. Through the fidelity of Filipino Vincentians to the work entrusted to the family of St. Vincent de Paul, the poor are made to realize that they are not forgotten by God. God is faithful to the Promise because God brings it to fulfillment in the lives of servants and disciples in the Vincentian family.

 

This is why this year of praise and thanksgiving to God's loving-kindness, to our Vincentian family an dto the larger family of the poor. We are retracing the past which bears the stamp of God seared in the faithfulness and goodwill of evry Filipino Vincentian. Now that we have reached one and a half centuries which we fondly recall and for which we are thankful, we ask, "What does the future have in store for us?" Whatever act of fidelity we discerned in our re-membering will enable us to give more of ourselves in the service of the Other and the lowly in our time. So the inspiration behind every Vincentian's life of Charity and Mission is nothing else but God's fidelity which we seek to repay with the faithful offering of ourselves. This was true in the past, this is still true today, this will remain true in the Vincentian family for the faithful offering themselves!

Fr. Mars Oabel, CM

(Translation from Pilipino: Mr. Pete Batangan)