23rd anniversary

Reading the succession story of Elijah and Elisha in our first reading today I am reminded that I never became a priest nor will I ever remain a priest alone.  Like Elisha I need an Elijah.  I will have a need for a mentor, a tutor, a guide, a supporter, a counselor, a cheering squad, a booing squad as well, or even just an idol to look up to.  The fact is, I was never alone in my dream and struggle to become a priest and I can never be alone in the ministry.

In this my 23^rd year I would like to thank and recognize some of them.

I never discovered the priesthood on my own.  I was introduced to the priesthood by my lola who alluded to me that priests have a better chance of going to heaven and going to heaven then was all I wanted. 

My mother too introduced me to God, to mass, to the Barangay sang Birhen rallies, praying the rosary, to our Mother of perpetual help, going to mass and praying novenas on first Fridays, walking in procession, joining church activities – in all these, learning to love early what would become later as the deeper meaning of my priesthood. 

My friends in the neighborhood introduced me to the Flores de Mayo, waking up early every morning for the whole month of May to look for flowers to decorate the altar in our barangay chapel and to offer these to Mary in the afternoon.  Looking for flowers would eventually include panamang, pang-uyog labog-labog, paningit lomboy kag bayabas and running to the nearest tree when the neighbors' dog would catch sight of us and chase us.

My Father was like Elijah too.  He would shake me off from my desire to become a priest, to discourage me, to dishearten me, perhaps to test my resolve.  Eventually because of his silent disagreement I became even stronger in my resolve to become a priest.  In short his opposition allowed me to choose the priesthood.  If he did not oppose it, I would not have fought for it.  If he did not oppose it, I would not have worked hard to attain it.  Gani wala lang ako nagpaanod kay may mga nagpamalabag kag may nagpaganot.

Then the seminary cows were like Elijah too.  We have around 5 to ten cows here in the seminary then.  When I was grade 6 I was attracted to the seminary because of my curiosity about these cows.  I wanted to see the cows which can open the faucets on their own and drink water from them.  My curiosity was satiated when I entered the seminary but then I found out that they did not know how to close these faucets after opening them.  That would have been more interesting.

Then there was this priest who came to my rescue when I did not pass the seminary interview.  This priest grabbed my hand, got me inside the car, went to the seminary, introduced me to the rector and asked him to give me a try.  The rector gave me 3 months.  The 3 months became a year, then one year became 4 years, then 8, then 13 years.  I made it to the priesthood because when I was twelve somebody believed in me – in my capacities and in my possibilities.

Then there was this priest who would make things hard for us – he would give us low grades, he would always put us down, everything that we did was not good enough.  He made us work harder, he was too demanding, inflexible and unbending even.  But from him we learned perseverance, we learned that persistence always paid off, that from the hardest toil comes the sweetest joy; we learned to become the best and not just make do with what is.

I have many more Elijahs and I can't narrate all of them in just one homily.  You too have your own Elijahs.  You may not like them at this point in time but you will appreciate them later, perhaps in your future when you look back in time and see in hindsight how they helped you become what you are - who you will become.  You don't have to like them.  No, but value them, embrace them.

When he was asked what he wanted, Elisha told Elijah to give him a double portion of his spirit.  A double portion, not just a portion, but double.  Value your mentors.  A good student would always receive from his mentor a double portion.  And what does that mean?  It means that you will become better, greater, finer, grander than him.