Quezon City, Philippines. After a 12-year hiatus, as I prefer to call it, a second Mission Encounter among Claretian and Claretian-related entities in the Father Rhoel Gallardo (FRG) Province took place on May 7-10, 2024, in Palayan City, Nueva Ecija. On the second to the last day of the encounter, a suggestion to group us lay partners according to the sector we were most active in facilitated a smoother transition into what to do next. Much has happened in the Province since that initial Mission Encounter in 2012 in Euntes, Zamboanga City, the change of name to Fr. Rhoel Gallardo Province in honor and remembrance of that supreme sacrifice a follower of Christ could give. As Fr. Larry pointed out, some 90% of the priests present this year were not in the first Mission Encounter. For that matter, only a handful of us lay partners who were present then, were also present this time. More importantly, the serious health impact of the two to three years of the Covid-19 pandemic at its height cannot be discounted.
This time around each of the Claretian entities have many new lay partners. Added to this Encounter was the presence of the Claretian Sisters, both the Religious of Mary Immaculate, Claretian Missionaries (RMICM), and the Missionary Sisters of St. Anthony Mary Claret (MC), plus two purely lay entities, that of the Kapatirang Claretiano Inc. (KCI), a group of those who once were part of the CMF, and the Fraternidade Eclesial Claretiana who are part of the charismatic family of the MC Sisters and whose current consecrated members are active in some Claretian entities. Furthermore, other groups that may not have been represented then have become part of the Encounter now: CCFI, ICLA, Ako ang Saklay, Accounting/Curia. Such presence and their individual participation in the various groupings enriched the sharings.
Hence, beyond the avowed objectives, the coming together, the presence of each other, the group sharings, and the emphasis on “Tao, higit sa lahat” and “doing mission together” added more dimensions to the theme “Shared Mission,” something that has to be discerned even further by both Claretians and lay partners.
Three aspects of Shared Mission were shared by Fr. Larry: (1) Participation of the laity in the life of the Congregation/Province in its different ministries and areas of animation: discernment and reflection towards action guidelines as well as policies; (2) Spirituality, economy, government: not only apostolate but to mold adults in the faith with whom we walk in the faith, and (3) Distinction between working “with” and “for”, being present, evaluating experiences.
For this layperson though what was of keen interest was the session on Discernment, done on May 8. Actually, the first and last of 12 modules of the Claretian Discerning Leadership, the eight points we focused on in the Discernment process made me realize just how important this process is, a step that many times busy lay people do not have the luxury of time and space to undergo. Much like the “Judge” portion in the classic See-Judge-Act methodology of the Church’s Social teachings, discernment on decisions previously made, as well as possible courses of action to be taken, arising from results of those decisions, has to take place.
Hopefully, what was begun in this second Mission Encounter can continue more regularly: a mission encounter after two years involving all entities who were present this year, and some concrete actions undertaken in the smaller groups such as those in the basic education sector and the parishes. Not to mention more creative output such as the fervent poem of Ms. Agie Inocencio of CCFI which she joyfully shared.
Ma. Rosario K. Garcia
23 May 2024
