Poem composed by Sis, Inocencia Rodrigo, September 21,2012 ,Jogjakarta
CLARETIANAS EN FILIPINAS, @ “25 YEARS”
FILIPINAS,
PERLA DE ORIENTE, EL SEÑOR TE ESCOGIO
ENTRE MILES
PARA PLANTAR
LA SIMIENTE DEL EVANGELIO DE VIDA.
TU ERES
TIERRA PROMETIDA PARA QUE EN TI LA FE
VIVA,
FUENTE DE
PAZ Y ALEGRIA SEA ANTORCHA QUE ILUMINE
HACIA LA
VERDAD DIVINA. OTROS PUEBLOS DEL
ORIENTE.
DESDE JAPON
EL ESPIRITU EMPUJO NUESTRA BARQUILLA
CON UN VIENTO FAVORABLE HACIA EL PUERTO DE MANILA.
ALLI NOS
MANDO ESPARCIR DENTRO Y FUERA DEL PAIS
LA LUZ DE
NUESTRO CARISMA, LUZ DE EVANGELIO Y
VIDA.
EN ESTOS 25
AÑOS, GRACIAS TE DAMOS, SEÑOR
POR LA
ABUNDANCIA DE AMOR CON QUE HACES
FRUCTIFICAR
LOS DONES
QUE TU NOS DAS.
TU ESPIRITU
NOS ANIME, NOS FORTALEZCA Y NOS GUIE.
ILUMINANOS,
SIEMPRE, SEÑOR, PARA SER NUEVOS
APOSTOLES
DE TU
EVANGELIO DE AMOR.
by :
InocenciaRodrigo,rmi
Jogajakarta 21 Sept. 2012
On the
25 years of Foundation in Philippines
Even shortly
I would like to write here something that I remember about our desire of starting
a mission in the Philippines.
The first
trip from Japan to Philippines, was with the purpose to participate on the First
Meeting of the CLARETIAN FAMILY in the Philippines. We were invited by our
Claretian Brothers in Japan, and two Claretian Sisters: Inés Sakaguchi and Delfina Llamas, together with a group of
Claretian Fathers and Lay Claretians, we traveled to Philippines.
Our experience
in those days was of an encounter with a true Family: We were welcomed warmly
by our Claretian brothers in the Philippines, their care in any place and at
all time, still are very present in our grateful memories. Really there were
days that we cannot forget. There was an Encounter in which our common
Claretian charism was deepening and the links that united us as a Claretian
Family were strengthened.
But, not
only this, there were more, because our brothers in Philippines, and especially
one of them, at that time was the Provincial Superior, Fr. José María Mazquez,
invited us to start our Foundation in the Philippines and he was insisting on
this invitation. We felt enthusiastic with the invitation and expressed all of
this to our Mother General. But it seems to be that the time of the Lord was
not yet and we have to wait 7 years more until the desire become a reality.
Along this time the desire matured and through discernment was known clearly
that the Lord wanted us to stay in the Philippines. The Foundation became a reality.
,On the
other hand, one day, in Madrid, one of our sisters assigned in Japan, Maria del
Pilar Andreu Cid, in our house of San Francisco de Sales, could meet Fr.
Bernardo Blanco, cmf.,, and he insisted on the idea of the Foundation in
Philippines, encouraging us and saying that some Filipina girls wanted to
become Claretian Sisters and they were waiting for us. At last, the trip to
Philippines to talk with our brothers about the Foundation, became a reality. With
the help and fraternal care of our Claretian brothers we were looking for a
house to be rented, and other necessary things needed for the new foundation. The house were found near the place of CMF
house and a walking distance to the Parish Church, facilitating us the daily
participation in the Holy Eucharist. Until all the that was necessary to live
in the renting house was ready, we were living in the convent of the cmf.
On
October 7, Day of Our Lady of Rosary, we could stay already in our house and on
the day 12, Feast of Our Lady of Pilar, we have in the house the first
Eucharistic Celebration, presided by Fr. Domingo Moraleda, CMF, and
participated by other Claretian brothers and of a group of three Claretian
Sisters: Eduarda Pérez, María Ruth Villalba and Delfina Llamas.
Eduarda Pérez and María Ruth Villaba were the
first Sisters assigned to the new Foundation.
After
the Eucharist Celebration, the Holy Sacrament remained in the tabernacle in our
house. Soon the first three aspirants joined with the sisters, and short time
later, another sisstrs from Japan arrived: Cecilia Kondo, Teresita Noi and
Inocencia Rodrigo.
The
Claretian Fathers have continued helping us in all we needed and also offered
to us part of the land where they have built the new Seminary in Quezon City.
Soon we bought the land and three years after our arrival in the Philippines,
we could build our House of Formation and House of Spirituality.
With a
heart full of thanksgiving to God, to the Congregation and to our Claretian
Brothers, I give thanks for all we have received along these 25 Years in our
Mission in this Country, and because the
help of our sisters from Japan, their encouragement and financial support; the availability
of the sisters in the Philippines; the prayers of all the sisters in the
Congregation, the Lord gave to us the grace of being able to expand from the Philippines
to other countries in Asia: India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and East Timor, and
maybe in the future Vietnam…
My
desire is that the Lord accompanies us always in our journey and helps us to
fulfill His Will in all our apostolic endeavor for His Kingdom, giving fruits
for the Glory of God.
María Delfina Llamas RMI
Guimaras, Philippines. The Sto, Nino Catholic School religious activities in charge Sis. Frigidia Stanislaus had initiated a Mission Exposure for grades 4 and 5 ,to visit the site of the Child and Youth Care Institutions of the Good Shepherds Fold Academy. This institution was founded in 1946 , the only orphanage in Guimaras Province. The purpose of the visit is to deepen in them the values of Compassion, Generosity and Availability.
The activity was realized last October 25, half day encounter. There were sharing of goods from our side, shared merienda, games ,simple presentation from both sides and house viewing. At the end of the day , the different level took time to listen from each other share their experiences of the day. After all , in the midst of wind and heavy rain, they managed to come and made themselves and others happy with their donations and presence. It was indeed a meaningful experience for each one. 
Coming this far is a blessing
that each one should humbly recognize. This only shows how faithful God is. Your
commitment to your different ministries is also an expression of your generous
response to God’s fidelity to you. Yes, you may have gone through some bumpy
experiences in the past twenty-five years, but as you look back, you will
realize that these were avenues that paved the way for a more relevant
missionary presence of your Congregation. 
Today, we are celebrating
with joy the 25 years Anniversary of our Foundation of Quezon City. Many things
are coming to my memory of these 25 years. The day of foundation was October,
7, 1987 and the first Eucharistic Celebration in our house was on October 12. At
that time, the Provincial Superior was Sister Delfina Llamas and from the year 1988
to the year 2000 the care of the sisters who were sent to Quezon City was
entrusted to me. At the beginning, the sisters were living in Maginhawa Street
and they were doing their best to learn the language and the culture, following
the charism of our Founders Saint Anthony Mary Claret and Venerable Maria
Antonia Paris to make known the love of God manifested in our Lord Jesus
Christ. In this our journey, starting
with Father Moraleda, we had experienced the continuous support of the
Claretian Missionaries, always encouraging us to go on. 
The
first Sisters been sent to Philippines from Japan, were: Ruth Villalba y
Eduarda Pérez(Oct. 1987); Cecilia Kondo y TeresitaNoi (2 months later) ;Inocencia
Rodrigo (Julio 1988). 
From
Philippines the expansion of the Congregation became reality. Inside of the country: Quezon City, Zamboanga
and Guimaras. In other Asian countries: Indonesia and Timor Leste; Vocation
Promotion in India and Sri Lanka and the formation in Quezon City of the first
sisters than later have accomplished the foundation in their own countries.
FILIPINAS,
PERLA DE ORIENTE, EL SEÑOR TE ESCOGIO
ENTRE MILES
But, not
only this, there were more, because our brothers in Philippines, and especially
one of them, at that time was the Provincial Superior, Fr. José María Mazquez,
invited us to start our Foundation in the Philippines and he was insisting on
this invitation. We felt enthusiastic with the invitation and expressed all of
this to our Mother General. But it seems to be that the time of the Lord was
not yet and we have to wait 7 years more until the desire become a reality.
Along this time the desire matured and through discernment was known clearly
that the Lord wanted us to stay in the Philippines. The Foundation became a reality.
