For this year's Lent Pilgrimage, the mass was celebrated at the first church the parishioners visited, at St. Peter Martyr of Verona Parish in Hermosa, Bataan. In his homily, Fr Ferdie said that the theme of CBCP for this year is Year of Ecumenism, Interreligious Dialogue, and Indigenous People. Ecumenism refers to the various efforts, movements or tendencies to come together by Christians of different Church traditions, journeying toward worldwide Christian unity or cooperation. In the t-shirt the pilgrims wore, there was a verse from the bible that stated, "I pray that they will all be one," hailed from John 17:21. He explained that the meaning of the theme is the dialogue towards harmony. We can achieve peace if we communicate effectively even though we have different beliefs, cultures, and religions. We should open our eyes and know the worth of being united, to strive for better dialogue so that we can achieve peace. The CBCP gave four proposals to achieve dialogue: 1. The dialogue of life, where people strive to live in an open and neighborly spirit, sharing their joys and sorrows, their human problems and preoccupations. 2. The dialogue of action, in which Christians and others collaborate for the integral development and liberation of people. 3. The dialogue of theological exchange, where specialists seek to deepen their understanding of their respective religious heritages and to appreciate each other’s spiritual values. 4. The dialogue of religious experience, where persons, rooted in their own religious traditions, share their spiritual riches, for instance with regard to prayer and contemplation, faith and ways of searching for God or the Absolute. Christians are known for being respectful about different religions, and most importantly, they love Christ deeply. As we celebrate 500 Years of Christianity in our country, let us pray that each of us can be an instrument of unity and let us be a bridge in achieving unity, not a wall that forbids other religions to connect with us.
.
Holy Family Parish held a Pilgrimage where many Parish Workers and parishioners visited 7 churches in Bataan. A total of 9 buses was used as transportation. The Buses left at 3 in the morning and arrived at the first church around 6:50 AM.
After the Holy Mass, a representative of the St. Peter De Verona Parish shared the history of the church. Virgen Milagrosa Del Rosario Church was visited next. The pilgrims visited the museum where they store the clothes used by the Virgin Mary and other images and artifacts of the church. They also visited the replica image of the Virgen Milagrosa in a chapel.
St. Catherine of Sienna Church in Samal is one of the oldest churches in Bataan. A tunnel in the church going to the convent and parish office where a huge image of the crucified Christ is located was an old chamber where the Katipuneros place the prisoners. They have 2 images of St. Catherine, one is 400+ years and the other is 300 years old.
Sto. Domingo de Guzman Church in Abucay is also one the oldest church in Bataan, the same as St. Catherine of Sienna. The church was heavily damaged during an earthquake and destroyed by fire but it was constructed. The church was also a witness of a ruthless war and massacre from the Dutch invasion.
St. Joseph Cathedral in Balanga is the next church to be visited by the pilgrims. The church was used as artillery during the Japanese invasion. After the war, the church was renovated Emeritus Bishop Celso Guevarra D.D. made St. Joseph as the patron saint.
The Our Lady of the Pillars Church is located at Pilar, Bataan. When the Spaniard arrived, the natives welcomed them. The place has no name, so the natives and the Spaniards named the place "Pilar" in honor of the Our Lady of the Pillar.
The last parish the pilgrims visited was St. Michael the Archangel Church is also known as the Orion Church. The church is a barn-style Baroque, common design during the Spanish-era, with a four-level belfry. The main retablo is a Rococo Style, done in the early 18th Century.
Article by Jizelle Juntayas and Marianne Aragon
Photo by Anjie Tanguilan
Comments