Holy Retreat in Eindhoven
FCC-Gouda Social Gathering
By Maria Lovella I. Modillas
The Filipino Catholic Community of Gouda organized a social gathering event. Members of other Filipino communities, like the FCC Dordrecht, as well all interested guests were welcome to participate. The purpose of the event was to create more social and spiritual conviviality among members and to offer opportunity to people who like to connect with the community, especially those who share similar ideals and needs. It was also meant to offer opportunity for growth and transformation in various areas of the human person. Thus, the activities were planned to touch on the spiritual, emotional, social and relational dimensions such that participants would be enriched in one way or the other.
It was a well attended event and participants were blissfully engaged and fully enjoyed themselves. The hall was packed with over 60 people. It was vividly an evening to remember; an event like no other because aside from the bible reflections and dances presented, there were testimonies given by those who wanted to share their spiritual journey as well as experiences with the FCC community.
The evening started with Father Marcel leading a bible reflection session with the Theme: Encounter with Jesus. The encounter of two biblical figures with Jesus formed the basis of the reflection. The first reading was taken from John chapter 4 verses 1 to 10 . It deals with the meeting of Jesus with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well. Jesus, passing through the town of Samaria , was tired and sat down by the well. Then came a woman of Samaria to draw water from the well, and Jesus asked if she could give him some water to drink. The woman, hesitant, told Jesus, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” ( Bear in mind that during that time, Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) Jesus replied, “ If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you the living water. With that request for water, Jesus opened a conversation with this stranger, who in turn got so engaged in conversation that she began to ask deeper questions regarding true worship as she noticed that Jesus could be a prophet or someone special. “ The conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman so touched the latter that she went to invite members of her village to come and experience the good news regarding this man called Jesus.
Fr Marcel leads bible reading 
Socio-gathering participants
The second reading was taken from Luke chapter 19 verses 1 to 10. This is the story of Zaccheaus, the tax collector, wealthy and despised by his fellow Jews. Tax collectors worked for occupied Roman forces. They collected taxes for the imperial rulers and enriched themselves through smart but corrupt practices. When Zaccheaus heard that Jesus was passing through Jericho, he wanted to see Him. But due to the crowd surrounding Jesus, he could not gain access to Jesus. He ran ahead and climbed a tree. Jesus saw him, asked him to come down and told him that he must stay at his house. Zaccheaus came down and welcomed Him gladly, showed repentance by offering to give half his wealth to the poor as well as pay back fourfold to anyone he defrauded.
These two bible passages were the focal point of the bible reading, though other passages like the call of Matthew (Matthew 9:9-13) and the encounter with Mary Magdalene in the house of Simon (Luke 7:36-39) were brought in to highlight certain points, including the following:
- Jesus did not meet any of these people in the church or where people refer to as holy places.
- Jesus neither looked down on any of them nor condemned them. When you condemn someone, you don’t have time to love him or her. Only love changes people, not force or condemnation.
- None of these people expected that Jesus would meet them and that there would be a great change in their lives.
- People murmured against Jesus meeting with these people due to their reputation in the society.
- The disciples were surprised to see Jesus talking with a Samaritan woman alone in such an open place.
- The ‘holy’ people complained about Jesus eating with Matthew and Zacchaeus. Also against the sinful woman (Mary Magdalene) that anointed Jesus in Luke 7:36-39
Jesus’ encounter with these people brought so much changes in their lives that made them became productive and examples of Christian living. Besides, they ended up being great men and women of God. This is a great encouragement on what we can become with the grace of God.
- The woman at the well became the first evangelist, even before the disciples (He spoke about Jesus to the people even before Jesus could send out his disciple for the first time).
- Zacchaeus became a philanthropist and an example of restitution as a sign of repentance.
- Matthew became the writer of the Gospel according to Matthew which is the first book in the New Testament Bible.
- Mary Magdalene became the first to see Jesus after the resurrection (Mark 16:9).
Sharing reflections 
Sharing ideas 
Sharing smiles 
Sharing thoughts 
Sharing experiences
Participants were divided into groups to discuss on any of the two passages. Guiding questions given to facilitate discussion on the topics were as follows: 1. What encounters have brought something new to your life? 2. What is your personal encounter with Jesus? 3. What are the obstacles to building a strong relationship with God? 4. How has/can the FCC family improve(d) my relationship with God. Members who wanted to share their testimonies about life experiences , spiritual journey , and whatever they want to share with the group could do so.
FCC Dordrecht testimony 
Pascal Kroeze testimony 
Tess Arcilla testimony
Jesus was neither allowed by tradition to have a conversation with a Samaritan woman because he is a Jew nor was he permitted by social convention of his society, as a Godly figure, to be friendly with a tax collector because of the latter’s unpleasant reputation. These, however, did not hinder him from reaching out to these people condemned by society because he is there for everyone, without discrimination. Relating to the two biblical stories, which were interesting and practical, the participants had engaging and fruitful discussions. The testimonies that followed were all uplifting and inspirational.
Participants took time to share how contact with FCC has brought them closer to God, strengthened their faith, gave them new friends and a community that is there for them during their darkest moments. FCC in like manner, extends it’s helping hands to everyone in the community, undertakes visits to prisoners, organizes novena for the departed loved ones or for the sick, helping with some documents, sharing or giving a ride and sending uplifting words or messages. But among the testimonies , two people gave an extraordinary story of strength and faith.
Kathy Grimme shared her personal battle with cancer. She bravely shared that inspite of the hardships she went through during doctor’s appointments and chemotherapy, she saw silver lining on the cloud as she remained positive and trusting in God in the midst of the overwhelming darkness. More important is the fact that she was given time to prepare her loved ones emotionally, especially her two little girls. She gave all her burden to the Lord and that made it easier for her to face the challenges ahead. As she successfully won one battle, another was readily at hand. Eventually her left foot was amputated. But that was a victory considering the fact that most of those who suffered the type of cancer she had never lived to tell their stories. Despite all these trials, Cathy remains unfazed , her strength comes from her family and friends’ support and above all, from her firm believe in Jesus Christ.
Pascal Kroeze’s testimony is also one of triumph. He recalled the difficulties of growing up and being negatively influenced by peers. He lost knowledge of God like most of his peers and took a path of spiritual decline thereby experiencing negative spiritual, emotional and physical consequences. . His life changing moment came when he was diagnosed with a tumor on his right kidney and that gave rise to a chain of bad news: his health deteriorated, he lost his job and lost his car. During those times, he recalled his past mistakes and realized he needed to have a change in the direction his life was going. During this dark period, he needed God to convince him of his loving presence, which he received in an extraordinary manner. With the help of few believers around him, especially his wife who prayed earnestly with him, he made a decision to give his life to Jesus and strengthen his faith in Him. This led to his baptism and active participation in the life of the Christian community. By the grace of God, the operation to remove the tumor was successful and he is now building a stronger relationship with Jesus Christ.
The fun continued after the testimonies. Both the FCC Gouda and FCC Dordrecht members showcased their dancing talents with some Filipino cultural dances as well as other heart-warming dancing steps. The event also provided sumptuous dinner including some Filipino delicacies. The night ended with everyone being happy, inspired and rejuvenated.
2019 Christmas Mass & Celebration
Featured image credit: Bich Tran from Pexels
Socio-gathering: come, meet, eat and greet!
Featured image credit: Ronê Ferreira from Pexels
Filipino community of Gouda celebrates ‘Living Rosary’
The devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary is an important event in the life of the Filipino Catholics. Besides the ‘Flores de Mayo’ celebrated in the month of May during which beautiful flowers are offered to the Blessed Virgin Mary in a colourful ceremony, the month of October is another period when the Marian feast takes a prominent stage. Our Lady of the Rosary was, therefore, celebrated by the Filipino Catholic Community of Gouda on the 4th Sunday of the October, on which they regularly have their monthly community Eucharistic celebration in English language garnished with Filipino songs.
This year’s Living Rosary was a special one. Clothed in beautiful blue dresses signifying the mantle of our Lady of the Rosary, the entire community made a solemn procession, led by well decorated children, starting from the outside the church. Singing Maria hymns, the children lifted ‘Ave Maria’ plaques while the others, holding lighted candles marched solemnly into the Church. Words of welcome, a short and meditative reflection by the leader of the FCC Gouda, Amor who introduced the program, followed by the recitation of the rosary. Each part of the rosary was preceded by a reflection emanating either from the bible, Marian teachings of the church or devotional reflection as already chronicled in the booklet for the ‘Living Rosary’.
Two of the members of the FCC community who had undergone serious medical situations in the recent past recounted their experiences in a testimony to show how God, in the midst of their difficulty, was the source of their strength. Having battled with a terrible sort of cancer, Kathy Grimme was pleased to recount how remaining positive and believing in the strength from within (God) has kept her going.
In the same line, Mary Lynn who was involved in a road accident that nearly cost her her life radiated with joy as she led the community through the painful period where it became clear to her that only by the grace of God is she alive today. Their testimonies were touching. More important was the fact that the community maintained a close relationship with both persons in their times of suffering through visits, prayers and other helpful ways. The compassion and faithfulness of the FCC community to its members during their trying times is underlined as a very important binding factor and a sign of a living Christian community.
Fr. Marcel Uzoigwe encouraged the community to continue to be the sacrament of God’s presence among his people in their difficult times. Moreover, he noted the strengthening power of testimonies in reinforcing the faith of the people and encouraging them to do more, noting that our present world needs love and show of concern more than anything else. Indeed God is love (1 John 7-12).
A Time with God is a Time Well Spent
By Myra Zymelka-Colis
March 9, 2019 was not just a holy retreat. It was not only ‘a moment with the Lord,’ the theme of this day’s spiritual retreat. It was a full day divine encounter that has a lasting impact in the lives of those who came, who saw, and who went home victorious!
Early at 8AM, twenty-one of us from the Filipino Catholic Community of Gouda (FCC-Gouda) and Surroundings made it on time for our one and a half hour bus ride to Handel in North Brabant where the FCC-Gouda Board made plans for a spiritual retreat— the very first for the community! The group arrived before 10AM and three other members from the Filipino Catholic Community in Dordrecht joined us there at the Onze Lieve Vrouw Kerk where the retreat is taking place. Warmly welcoming us upon arrival was Fr. Marcel Uzoigwe, who then introduced us to our retreat master of the day, Fr. Charles Ajogi.
“It’s easy to spend our time shopping, working, visiting places, or chatting with friends. But it’s very difficult to spend solitude with God,” uttered Fr. Ajogi as he wasted no time getting us oriented of the day’s activity. “If having a solitude with God is easy, then it would be one of our top things to do.” He went ahead and talked about the importance of silence and that of prayer.
Prayer is simply a conversation with God, our Heavenly Father and Creator. Just like speaking with our best friend, such interaction is characterized by having full attention to the person— especially when sharing secrets or our inner most thoughts and aspirations in life. When conversing with a loved one, there’s that element of listening, trust and respect; there’s no hiding and pretending. In the same manner, we can tell exactly how we feel when we converse with God.
The week we went for a retreat was also timely for the first week of Lent. As we all know, Lent is a Christian penitential period that involves the disciplines of abstinence and fasting for the sole purpose of repentance. It is a time of the year that should be spent on preparing and strengthening our body and mind through prayers and reflections before Easter. Thus, we’re in the so-called 40-day period prior to Easter Sunday!
As Lent is the time of spiritual preparation before Easter, beginning this season with a spiritual retreat is like doing the right thing at the right time and at the right place with the right people. What could be more awesome than that, right?
But what is significant about these 40 days? What is it that we ought to be doing at this period before Easter? Why are we having this retreat in the first place? These were the questions that were thankfully answered during the first hour before we had our individual quiet times, group discussions and sharing, praying the Rosary, and the mass— all part of the well-planned program prepared for us by the Congregation Sancti Spiritus (CSSp) Community in Handel.
“Numbers have meanings,” began Fr. Charles as he explained the significance of what we were about to do that day. “Just as number 1 signifies our unity with God and number 3 means completeness and number 7 perfection, the number 40 often signifies a period of growth. And before growth is manifested, there comes trials or challenges that needed to be overcome.“
So what is it then that we should be doing during this 40-day period?
As we, the participants, reflected on these questions on solitude, prayer and Lent, we came to realize that we have been observing Lent for compliance sake; we haven’t really taken it seriously as part of our personal spiritual growth. As Fr. Charles put it, this is the best time to make resolutions and do something about it. For instance, some people can make a pledge to do one act of kindness. For some others who haven’t developed the habit of praying yet, they can tell themselves to commit to prayer even for at least 5 minutes upon waking up in the morning and another 5 minutes before going to bed. If say, for example, one managed to get these done within the period of 40 days, then isn’t that something worth celebrating as well in remembrance of the day our Lord Jesus Christ resurrected from the dead?
To further equip us in our journey towards spiritual maturity, Fr. Charles also shared with us eight (8) steps to meet God in silence and in solitude.
1. Pay attention to what’s going on in your soul, in your life.
2. Overcome resistance or whatever it is that is pulling you back.
3. Seek rest for your body, mind and spirit.
4. Let your emptiness lead you to God’s fulfillment.
5. Face yourself as you really are, and allow God to help you.
6. Receive God’s guidance. It is a gift and it is up to you to receive it or reject it.
7. Let that love you receive in solitude helps you to reach out to others in life.
8. Make silence and solitude a part of your daily life.
Following lunchtime was a fruitful and emotional group discussion; four teams were formed and were given a set of three questions to talk about and reflect on…
- Do you think it makes sense to take a step of faith, and why? How does hearing from God affect your daily life? Would you like to hear from God more? What is the importance of solitude in your life?
- Could you share a personal story of a time when you experienced the value of solitude? Define prayer in your own words. What do you think it means to hear from God, and what are some of the ways you experience it personally?
- Do you find solitude difficult or easy, and why? Could you talk about the importance of prayer in your life? Where do you look for guidance and inspiration when you need it, and why?
- How do you balance solitude with your daily activities? Could you talk about a time when you’ve held unto your faith, or to a particular conviction, even when it was hard? What helped you to keep believing? What do you think about the value of prayer in your life?
To sum up what had transpired during the group discussions, to be in solitude is a conscious effort. It’s letting go of the nuisances in our hearts and minds, so we could enjoy that special moment with God’s presence. It’s a time of silence, a time to speak to God and also to listen.
Prayer is not an obligation; it is a lifestyle. We can talk to God anywhere we are at any time of the day and of about anything we have in our minds and in our hearts. In fact, prayer is also something we could give as a gift to others, especially to those in our community who are in utmost need.
In that afternoon, we did experience much more than expected. With thanksgiving in our hearts, below wordart shaped like a clover summed up all that every participant has shared as takeaways from this day’s holy retreat.
SPECIAL WORDS OF THANKSOnce again, we thank the members of the FCC-Gouda Board headed by Amor van Os for making this holy retreat happen. Thank you, Fr. Marcel Uzoigwe for coordinating all these with Martin van Moorsel and Callistus Offor at CSSp Community in Handel. Big thanks to our retreat master, Fr. Charles Ajogi, who did very well not only in facilitating the activity but also in addressing all posted questions. Above all, we give back all the glory to God, who made all these wonderful things possible.
(FCC-Gouda Board Secretary, Susan Horn-Perez, also contributed to this article.)