Category Church

May 18 2020

Prophet of Love and Messenger of Hope

Remembering Pope St. John Paul II on his 100th Birth Anniversary

Karol Józef Wojtyła, known as John Paul II since his October 1978 election to the papacy, was born in the Polish town of Wadowice, a small city 50 kilometers from Krakow, on May 18, 1920. He was the youngest of three children born to Karol Wojtyła and Emilia Kaczorowska. His mother died in 1929. His eldest brother Edmund, a doctor, died in 1932 and his father, a non-commissioned army officer died in 1941. A sister, Olga, had died before he was born.

He was baptized on June 20, 1920 in the parish church of Wadowice by Fr. Franciszek Zak, made his First Holy Communion at age 9 and was confirmed at 18. Upon graduation from Marcin Wadowita high school in Wadowice, he enrolled in Krakow’s Jagiellonian University in 1938 and in a school for drama. Continue reading →

May 17 2020

31 years of SCJ presence in the Philippines

May 17, 1989, is the official date of arrival of first SCJ missionaries in the Philippines. The original group was composed of eight (8) priests representing seven (7) nationalities and five (5) different entities: 3 from Argentina, 2 from Indonesia, 1 from Germany, 1 from Poland and 1 from British-Irish Province.

The settings of the first assignments were very simple and often challenging. The Priests of the Sacred Heart (SCJ) were offered three parishes in Zamboanga del Sur: Dimataling in the Diocese of Pagadian and Margosatubig and Kumalarang in the Prelature of Ipil. For a long time, they had no TV set, refrigerator or telephone. The roads were rough, dusty and very often impassable during the rainy season.

One of the most difficult moments they had experienced happened in October 2001 when Fr. Giuseppe “Beppe” Pierantoni, SCJ, an Italian missionary, was kidnapped. Fr. Beppe was held in captivity for six months. Nevertheless, it was also a time of grace because that harrowing event strengthened their unity and solidarity. Continue reading →