The celebration of the 174th Birth Anniversary of Fr. Leo John Dehon on March 14, 2017, in Cagayan de Oro Formation House was composed of two main parts: short recollection in the morning and Holy Eucharist in the afternoon.
The recollection was prepared and guided by Fr. Rico Lapinig, SCJ, the Master of Aspirants. In his reflection, Fr. Rico focused on the three temptations of Christ in the life of priests and religious today. The participants were asked to identify the different temptations in life, which on one hand can lead to a sin, but if rejected to a personal growth. They were also asked to share what are their inner strengths in rejecting the temptations and how do they try to preserve their priesthood and religious life and grow in holiness.
In the afternoon, members of the Dehonian Family, which also include the Dehonian Youth Missionaries and Lay Dehonians, employees and friends of the Priests of the Sacred Heart joined the concelebrated Thanksgiving Mass, presided by Fr. Francis Pupkowski, SCJ. Before the end of the Mass, members of the Dehonian Youth Missionaries made their renewal of commitment. As usual, the celebration was followed by a common meal.
On February 25, 2017, fifty one (51) couples from the Jesus Nazareno Chaplaincy in Dansolihon got married in the Catholic Church. According to the parish priest Fr. Jan Krzyściak, SCJ, this was the first batch of three hundred twenty (320) couples being prepared for the Sacrament of Matrimony. Due to the different circumstances like lack of money or papers many of the couples were living in this irregular situation for several years. With the help of the local SCJ community (Fr. Jan Krzyściak, Fr. Szymon Bendowski and Br. Yohanes Sismadi) and some lay leaders, they were able to correct this irregularity. The SCJs helped them to gather all the needed documents and organized special catechesis. Each couple had to attend five preparatory meetings. All the administrative expenses were handled by the chaplaincy.
On February 28, 2015, the Immaculate Concepcion Parish in Aluba, Cagayan de Oro City, started officially the construction of a new parish church. After two years of work, the new church is almost completed and looks impressive. To commemorate this anniversary, on February 26, 2017, the parish held its special “Thanksgiving Mass.” The Eucharistic celebration was presided by Fr. Florencio Salvador, SSJV, a former pastor of this parish, who was assisted by Fr. Pedro Sumbilon, also a former parish priest, Fr. Klaudiusz Rokicki, MIC and three SCJs from the neighbor community of the Sacred Heart Formation House.
On February 13, 2017, three SCJ scholastics (Fra. Victor Lingasa, Fra. Julius Socorro and Fra. Joel Bolo) were instituted for the ministry of Acolyte. The rite of installation was carried out during the celebration of the Eucharist presided by Fr. Francis Pupkowski, SCJ, superior of the Philippine Region at the chapel of Dehon House, Tierra Verde Homes II, Quezon City.
Members of the Continental Dehonian Theological Commission of Asia (CDTC AS) met for the first time on February 11 – 12, 2017 in Manila. The commission composed of 7 members coming from 6 SCJ entities (Indonesia – 2, Vietnam – 1, India – 1, Taiwan – 1, ICA – 1, and the Philippines -1) was officially created during the Major Superiors’ Meeting in Rome last November 2016. The meeting was also attended by two General Councillors from Rome Fr. Artur Sanecki and Fr. Paulus Sugino who helped the commission to start. Until now the Asian Zone was represented on the Theological Forum of the Congregation only by one person, Fr. Francis Purwanto from Indonesia.
SCJ Philippines Region 