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).
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.
Getting started with introductions and cups of coffee and tea
“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.
Retreat participants led by Fr. Charles Ajogi
“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.
When participants were asked what their takeaways are from this one-day retreat, above clover-shaped wordart sums up the answers.
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.)
