Vocation Month and 6 Deacons

Excerpt from Archbishop Romulo G. Valles’ homily during the Holy Mass of the Ordination to the Sacred Order of Deacons of 6 Seminarians and launching of the Vocation Month last September 3, 2018 at San Pedro Cathedral, San Pedro St., Davao City.

Pasalamat kita sa Diyos, it is so beautiful that as we launch this month for vocation, we have this particular gift nga apil sa atong launching, the ordination of our new six deacons. Now, we always say that an occasion like this is a day of thanksgiving and joy. Thanksgiving to the Lord for several reasons. Among those reasons… part of our thanksgiving to the Lord, would be the richness of God’s people in Davao and richness of faith, kalig-on pod sa pagtoo particularly in the hearts of individual persons, young people, like in the hearts of our soon to be ordained deacons. And then, close to that, ang pagtoo sa ilang mga families, mao nang fertile for vocations ang Davao, that is why we are able to offer to God six young men to be ordained deacons. Gasa kana! Nabati nato ang presensya sa Diyos, the goodness of the Lord sa atong kinabuhi that we are touched to the point that some of us, 6 among the people of Davao, young men of Davao niingon: “Yes we will offer ourselves to the Lord.”

Busa kining adlawa, nagpadayag ang presensya sa Diyos sa atong kinabuhi dinhi sa Davao, sa pagka-local Church sa Davao. And close to that, another note, magpasalamat kita sa Diyos, dili man tang tanan… indirectly yes! Parents, friends, small circles, yes! Pero we have to realize that there are particular persons accompanying them, observing them nga makaingon kita: “Yes they are worthy.” Seminary formators, kuyog nila… to see nga tinuod na gitawag sila sa Ginoo. Maayo ba ang pagtubag nila sa tawag sa Ginoo. Tan-awon pod sa formators, sakto ilang yes, ang ilang personalidad. Busa, in particular my dear friends, I’d like us really honestly and sincerely to thank those priests who helped accompany the six young men para maklaro ang ilang tubag sa Ginoo. That indeed… it is a call from the Lord, a gift from the Lord and that they are responding to it beautifully.

We thank the Lord for the formators who have helped these six individuals who are here. But also, formators have crucial work, ministry and apostolate to concretize the presence and the call of the Lord to the six individuals… the grace of office, the grace that the Lord gives to these formators to be able to accompany beautifully and wonderfully a single seminarian, two seminarians, six seminarians in the crucial stage so that they themselves would say Yes. Yes indeed.

My dear soon to be ordained deacons, you have heard in the opening prayer, so beautiful, mag-ampo ang Simbahan together with the grace given to you. We pray for you that you will be effective in your action, effective because in many ways ang trabaho sa clergy ug deacon, failure in the eyes of the world… that people would be convinced that our actions would be effective and truly these are actions of the Lord through our hands, effective in action… Gentle in our ministry… Challenge again; to be simple, concrete gentleness sa atong dating sa mga tao, gentle in our ministry, constant in prayer.

The first reading from Prophet Jeremiah today reminds us nga dili ni atoang business, a beautiful reminder for us clergy and religious but also to all of us baptized that the Lord has a plan for us. Largely it is your action, our action but don’t forget that this vocation we call gift, is in the sight of the Lord, gazing upon us and He chooses us. Reasons that we cannot fully understand… We continue the journey clinging to the mystery that it is the Lord that in our frailty who has chosen us. And again and again, the Lord will send angels to purify us. The constant offer of grace, conversion along the way that hopefully we improve along the way simply because the Lord is faithful and good to us who has called us to serve his people. My dear soon to be ordained deacons, keep that sense of mystery that the Lord has called you. Way kumpyansa gyud. It is always going back to that mystery of God’s calling to us.

Another point to see the beauty of this day, very clear challenge: what kind of service do we give our people? Our gospel today reminds us, “not according to the standards of this world”… at the core of it, is the style of Jesus and that style is not of this world… it’s painful days of the Church kini nga time but simply because in the gospel of today, we have developed the culture of self-entitlement, the culture that we are above the law, the culture that we have developed that we are a gift to the Church, that the Church will be greatly impaired kung wala ta, self-referential… that’s not what the gospel is saying. Service according to Jesus, a service according to the cross, a service according to Pope Francis that we would really smell like the Shepherd. So it is a constant countersign to the world today.

In the end, when we are graced by this beautiful occasion in the Church of Davao, six new deacons… Do not forget, let us not forget, let us remember that the Church is a reality, community of sinners… leaders who would fall again and again. Very simple, frail and in need of conversion; the one side, the human side of the Church. We will not be discouraged. We must know that we are all weak and sinners and in need of conversion. The grace of the Lord at the same time, the Church is so strong because in the darkness and sinfulness, the grace and presence of the Lord is there. “I would not abandon you. I will be there with you until the end of time.” There it is! When we claim ourselves Church, it is a community where sin is still active, Satan is still working hard double time but also the beauty and power of the grace of God, the mercy of God, the compassion of God and such grace, the saving grace of the presence of Jesus, unta, unta kanunay mamanifest sa Clergy and Consecrated Persons in the days that we journey in the world today.