Priestly Formation in the Asian Contexts

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❚Special Issues❚ □ Priestly Formation in the Asian Contexts

Priestly Formation in the Asian Contexts: Application of the Church’s Teachings to the Philippine Church and Society*

1 Fr. Rodel E. Aligan, O.P. 〔Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, Philippines〕

A. The Philippine Situation as a Catholic Nation 1. Evangelization Context 2. Socio-Cultural Context 3. Economic and Political Context 4. The Present Situation of the Catholic Church in the Philippines B. Priestly Formation in the Philippine Context: Application of the Church Teachings to Philippine Church and Society 1. Circumstances of Present-Day Asia 2. Priesthood in the Asian Contexts 3. Priesthood in the Philippine Context 4. The Vision-Mission Statement of the Church in the Philippines 5. Nine Pastoral Priorities of the Church in the Philippines in the Light of PCP II and the National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal 6. New Pastoral Priorities of the Church in the Light of the New Evangelization in the Philippines 7. The Implications of the Pastoral Priorities to Priestly Formation in the Philippines 8. The Role of Inculturation on Filipino Priestly Formation

*1이 글은 2015년 ‘재단법인 신학과사상’의 연구비 지원을 받아 연구·작성된 논문임.

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More than twenty years ago the Philippine Church held the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines on January 20-February 17, 1991, the first being held 38 years ago (1953). It was to take a stock of where the Philippine Church was; to look at where it was going; to reanimate its life in Jesus Christ; and to unite all things in Him.1 During its conclusion after four weeks of discerning it was hoped to be another Pentecost; Christ descending upon the Filipino people, going forth spirited to renew the

face of the world ― the Filipinos world first, and through this little world, the wider world of Asia and beyond, giving of ourselves unto the renewal and unity of God’s creation.2 PCP II in the Spirit has looked back in wonder over the Filipinos’ journey as a Christian nation. There are lights, there are shadows, successes as well as failures, but through them all the Spirit breathes mightily and palpably, guiding, prodding, and leading them, on to where they are now.3

A. The Philippine Situation as a Catholic Nation

1. Evangelization Context

The faith came to the Filipinos, though not always without an element of duress, in an age which glorified the union of cross and sword. It was an age of colonization that accompanied Christianization. But the faith was implanted deeply, making the country over time “one people, one nation, though driven, even as they are by geography, cultural traditions,

1 Eph 1:10. 2 CBCP, “Introduction”, Second Plenary Council of the Philippines, Manila: CBCP, 1992, n. 7. 3 PCP II, n. 9.

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languages and ethnic origins.”4 The outward symbols of the faith were alien to the Filipinos but they made them their own: enriched them, transmuted them and invested them with the spirit that is truly theirs. The controversial character of the cross is mirrored in Philippine reality. In many books of Philippine history the Spanish conquest of the Islands has often been described as have been achieved through the cross and the sword. Many Filipinos see the cross as a despicable reminder of conquest and centuries of colonization by a foreign power.5 Yet, at the turn of the century when Filipinos sought their independence against Spain, they remained loyal to the faith. They kept the tradition of their forebears in the faith even to these days: fiestas and festivals, the Filipino rites on Christmas and Holy Week especially the Pabasa,6 devotion to the Santo

Niño (Holy Child), the Virgin Mary, the saints and the dead ― all witness to the strength of those traditions. They may be external rites but speak nonetheless powerfully of an internal faith. We look at expressions of popular piety and the strong influence of pre-Spanish religion in them ― superstitious, they often are: sacramentals becoming “anting-antings” (amulets) saints taking over “anitos” (ancestor spirits), the Supreme Deity approachable only through lesser intermediaries.7 Analysts of Philippine culture distinguish between official and folk Christianity. The first only includes those beliefs and practices which are approved by Church authority. The second includes all other beliefs and practices derived from popular and folk culture which though not officially approved, are nevertheless supported and encouraged by tradition in the community.8

4 PCP II, n. 10. 5 Fr. Guillermo Villegas, SVD, The Cross and the Philippines: The Good News for Our Times, Manila: Logos Publications, Inc., p. 1. 6 Rodel Aligan, O.P., “The Biblical and Folkloric Elements of the First Tagalog Pasyon”, Philippiniana Sacra, Vol. XXVII, No. 81, 1992, pp. 341-394. 7 PCP II, n. 12. 8 Douglas Elwood / Patricia L. Magdamo, Christ in the Philippine Context, Quezon City:

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Studies in the Visayas, the Ilocos, Panay and the Bicol Region all agree in concluding that the traditional belief system has been enlarged more than it has been modified through contact with Christianity.9 Folk Christianity is an unconscious blending of Christian teaching with popular religious beliefs and practices of earlier origin. John Phelan traces the difference between official and folk Christianity to the two early forms of Christianity assumed in the Philippines: the “cabecera” (poblacion church-type) and the “visita” form (barrio chapel-type) introduced by the Spanish missionaries in their attempt to adapt Hispanic Catholicism to the Philippines.10 As a consequence, two distinct forms of Christianity have developed: (1) rural Christianity, in which Christian beliefs are generally weakened by locally supported beliefs and practices; and (2) urban Christianity, in which traditional beliefs and practices are generally weakened by Church-approved rites. 11 Catholic concepts in the rural areas are often articulated with the people’s way of life; in urban areas with ritual performance.12 In other words, rural people tend to integrate their religious beliefs with their social, economic and cultural activities; whereas urban dwellers more often separate their religious commitments from their ways of life. Thus for most Filipinos nowadays, faith is centered on the practice of the rites of popular piety, not on the Word of God, doctrines, sacramental worship beyond Baptism and Matrimony. Such religiosity is not even community-based or of building up the world

New Day Publishers, 1971, p. 18. 9 Agaton Pal, “A Philippine Barrio”, Journal of East Asiatic Studies, Vol. 5, (October 1956), pp. 449-452; also Landa Jocano, “Conversion in Malitbog”, Philippine Sociological Review 13, No. 2, (April 1965), pp. 96-119. 10 John L. Phelan, The Hispanization of the Philippines, Madison: University of Wisconsin, 1959, p. 47. 11 Elwood, p. 19. 12 F. Landa Jocano, “Filipino Catholicism: A Case Study in Religious Change”, Asian Studies (April 1967), p. 45.

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into the image of the kingdom of God. Given the historical, cultural and religious background the vast majority of Filipinos greatly lack knowledge of and formation in the faith. If we go to the Philippine crime index especially of violence, graft and corruption, abuse of power, the many grave ills that plague the country, we have to wonder about the nation’s claim to Christianity. Filipino Christians have to accept their failures but also cling to hope. There is so much of the Gospel that has become part of the Filipino faith ― compassion, forgiveness, caring, piety making the Filipinos decent. They have a solid base to build on. As PCP II tells us: “They are the great mass of our Catholic people. There are not so many of them because there are not enough priests, religious and other Church personnel to work with them. And the lack of workers in the vineyard is due in turn to a lack of Church-going, of catechesis and formation, the very factors that would encourage more vocations of service to the Church. A vicious circle.”13

2. Socio-Cultural Context

The Philippines is a pluralistic society and the prime factor of our pluralism is the diversity of cultural heritage. Lowland cultures have been heavily influenced by three centuries of Spanish colonial rule, the Muslim peoples of the south by Islamic traditions, and the mountain tribes especially in Luzon, Mindanao and Mindoro have retained much of their pre-Hispanic characteristics.14 Despite the differences we can speak of a generic Philippine culture. Filipinos can do so if they focus on the structuring of so many social and ethnic groups and the basic values that

13 PCP II, n. 16. 14 PCP II, n. 18.

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go with that structuring.15 Basic values (family itself, loyalty to family, concern for security, stress on authority and respect for elders) which antedated contact with Muslim and Christian traditions are supportive of the sociological fact. The commonalities are more striking than the differences, and we can conclude there is indeed common culture and common social structure that we can truthfully call Filipino.16 Even as we note the basic soundness of Filipino values as a whole it is rather too particularistic being too focused on the good of small social groups (the extended family, the clan, little in-groups). This has led to factionalism and regionalism depriving one of a wider perspective: wider groupings, the community, the nation, humanity and the world at large. Therefore, one should take a look at how Filipino Christian faith values can strengthen the good in the people’s cultural values or correct what is excessive in them and supply their deficiencies.

3. Economic and Political Context

The socio-cultural background has a tremendous effect on the political and economic context and vice-versa. The social environment of the Filipino is characterized by remnant of feudal structures as in plantations, “warlordism” and the” datu system” in Muslim Mindanao, where there are great gaps between the rich and the poor majority.17 These gaps are not merely economic but cultural as well, with the elite being highly westernized and alienated from the masses. This feudal structure develops

15 Miguel Bernad, S.J., “Our Ages of Discontinuity”, Proceedings of the Conference/ Dia- logue on the Role of Christianity in Philippine Education, Armando de Jesus(ad.), Manila: UST Press, p. 8. 16 PCP, n. 19. 17 Arch. Arsenio Mabutas, D.D., “Evangelization in the Philippines”, East Asian Pastoral Re- view, Vol. 4, 1988, p. 374.

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dependence and passivity. The Filipino is raised in an environment where he/she has to depend on our relationship with others in order to survive. In a poor country where resources are scarce and where the systems meant to respond to people’s need can be insensitive, inefficient or non-existent, the Filipino becomes very dependent on kinship and personal relationships.18 This has led to inequalities, often of the grossiest kind. On the economic side, the poverty and the destitution of the great mass of Filipinos are only too evident, contrasting sharply with the wealth and luxury of the relatively few families, the elite top of our social pyramid. On the political side, power and control are also elitist, lopsidedly concentrated on established families that tend to perpetuate themselves in political dynasties.19 Until now, the Philippine government seems to pay lip-service only to the economic plight of the country. The Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) has not been fully implemented. The proposed Basic Bangsamoro Law (BBL) has not been thoroughly studied before being approved. The government has contented itself in giving us cold statistics on economic growth and poverty alleviation, so that the Filipinos have never been experiencing its trickle-down effect. It has contented itself in palliative solutions like Conditional Cash Transfers (CCT) to the poor like monthly dole-outs. However, the growth of NGOs (non-government organizations) and people’s organizations (often led by the Church) have led to a concerted effort to face the country’s grave and interlocking social problems: ecological concerns, health and lively-hood projects for the poor, national sovereignty and non-traditional politics, gender equality, protection of the rights of children, the physically and mentally challenged sector, peace-making and conflict resolutions and human rights. It is with the intent of empowering the powerless to act for

18 Ibid. 19 PCP II, 24.

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themselves for the good of all, a concrete putting into practice key ideas of the Church’s teaching on social issues: solidarity, preferential option and love for the poor.

4. The Present Situation of the Catholic Church in the Philippines

Undoubtedly, the Catholic Church in the Philippines enjoys unprecedented prestige in the history of the country. Because of the role of the Church in the past years, and particularly of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, the Church is considered as a powerful moral and spiritual force and offers excellent opportunities and challenges for evangelization. The Church finds itself in a position, due to its

credibility, to institute social reforms ― preferential option and love for the poor through hard working programs of social development of the government and even institutionalizing social dynamism in society in the light of Christian values. In the field of social justice, emphasis is placed on reconciliation, redress of past times, human rights and amnesty; but always with non-violent ways. These past years we witness in the Philippines progress in evangelization characterized by a tremendous proliferation of Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs) especially in

Mindanao, a widespread acceptance of the Bible movement ― for study and liturgical services, greater emphasis on the mass media as instruments

of evangelization, a tremendous increase in lay participation ― liturgical rites, church organizations, and movements and a great emphasis on catechetics.20 We see a Church that is growing and on the move. It has made significant contributions in applying Gospel values and the

20 Mabutas, op. cit., p. 378.

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Church’s social teaching to the cause of social justice but has not yet successfully resolved the tensions created by opposing movements both inside and outside the Church. One of the most critical problems concerns relationship between the Church and politics, since it permeates all aspects of the Church’s social mission. Essential to this activity are the promotion of external evangelization, the fostering of the Church as a community and the exercise of the prophetic role of the Church, especially as it is manifested in the concern for human rights. In summary, where is the Philippine Church today in the face of the present realities?

What does our corporate faith have to say ― and do ― to the Philippines and the world now?

B. Priestly Formation in the Philippine Context: Application of the Church Teachings to Philippine Church and Society

1. Circumstances of Present-Day Asia

The Fifth Plenary Assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) in 1990 at Bandung, Indonesia following the Lineamenta and Instrumentum Laboris for the Synod on Priestly Formation took up the contemporary and contextual realities as a point of discussion concerning the situation of priestly formation in Asia. Taking cognizance of the need for formation in the present milieu responsive to the sign of the times, it expressed the desire that the future priest be a man of communion being able “to face the various challenges that confront the Church of Asia: the threatening ecological imbalance, poverty, the challenge of other religions to the Christian faith, the need of dialogue

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with all persons of good will, the hard-to-control population explosion, consumerism in the economic macros-system and the proper use of the mass media”.21 The increasing openness of the Church and her increasing concern for the secular, religious and cultural realities of society, enable us to recognize the encouraging developments as well as the paradoxes in today’s Asia. However the rapid transformation sweeping over Asian societies are destabilizing, if not destroying, some rich and specifically Asian values. The sinful structures of injustice that have crept into the length and breadth of our societies give rise to violence, youthful unrest, bribery and corruption to a massive scale.22

2. Priesthood in the Asian Contexts

While emphasizing the Christological and ecclesiological foundations of his being, the Asian churches must duly insist on the local and contextual dimension the priest must have by reason of his specific ministry to the Asian peoples. Besides being a man of God, a disciple of Christ, an apostle of his message and a shepherd and a servant of his community, the priest is also called to be a man of the people, especially among the poorer and suffering sections.23 The priest must be a prophet espousing the cause of human dignity and rights. He must also be an exponent of justice and peace which are essentially concrete expressions of the Gospel he is called to preach. This leadership should go beyond the bounds of the Eucharistic assembly and the parish to make him a “man of dialogue” with faiths and cultures of all people, without any distinction of

21 FABC, “The Formation of Priests in Circumstances of the Present Day Asia: Seminar for Rectors and Spiritual Directors”, Final Statement, Hundredfold Harvest, Vicente Cajilig (ed.), Manila: UST Press, 1992, p. 16. 22 Ibid., p. 16. 23 Ibid.

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caste, creed or race. Thus, the man of God becomes a “man of unity and communion” among his people.24

3. Priesthood in the Philippine Context

In the Philippine cultural context, nothing on the human plane will influence both the shape of the Church and its impact on Philippine society as palpably as the leadership of its ordained ministers.25 Bishops, priests and deacons are needed to propel the Church according to the mind and spirit of Christ to a new and evangelizing thrust in the decades to come. It must be an ordained ministry that responds to the signs of the times. What kind of priests do we need?

a. The Priest as Servant-Leader in the Christian Community

The priesthood is instituted within the People of God for the sake of the People of God.26 The priests of the New Testament are by their vocation to ordination set apart in some way in the midst of the People of God.27 The priest and their ministry cannot therefore be understood apart from the community setting. He does not stand outside the Christian community. He remains in the community. He is ordained for the community. But what is the priest in the Christian community? The priest is the representative of Christ the Head both in and before the community. Through the sacrament of Order priests are signed with a

24 FABC, Fifth Plenary Assembly, Bandung, Indonesia, 1990. 25 PCP II, n. 507. 26 Presbyterorum Ordinis, n. 2. 27 Ibid., n. 3.

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special character and so are configured to Christ the high priest in such a way that they are able to act in the person of Christ the Head. Through the words of the consecration the grace of the Holy Spirit is given, and a sacred character is impressed in such wise that bishops, in a resplendent and visible manner, take the place of Christ himself, teacher, shepherd and priest and act as their representatives.28 It is Christ himself who through their signal service preaches the word of God, administers the sacraments, incorporates new members into his body and directs and guides his people on their journey to eternal salvation.29 Priests then are representatives of Christ, not in the sense that they replace Christ but in the sense that they are the signs and the instruments of Christ’s presence and activity among his people. As representatives of Christ the Head, they are leaders of the community: “with priests and deacons as helpers, the bishops receive the charge of the community, presiding in God’s stead over the flock of which they are shepherds in that they are teachers of doctrine, ministers of sacred worship and holders of office in govern-ment.30 Hence, priests are servant-leaders of the community. They are in charge of the community. They are to build up the Christian community and to the formation of a genuine Christian community.31 One should always be reminded that the community over which the priest presides is a prophetic and ministerial community.32 In his task of serving the com-munity, the priest has to remind himself of the words of Vatican II so urgent in today’s situation: “In building up a community of Christians, priests can never be servants of any human ideology or party. Rather their task as heralds of the Gospel and pastors of the Church is the attainment of spiritual growth of the Body

28 Lumen Gentium, n. 21. 29 Ibid. 30 LG 24. 31 PCP II, n. 518. 32 Ibid.

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of Christ.”33 In the Philippine context, inasmuch as the priest is seen as a servant leader, this leadership is not simply exercised in church worship and administration of the Sacraments but in initiating Christian community projects in a particular locality or parish; championing the cause of human rights especially in far-flung communities where truth and justice can only be found in the person of the priest; that of being mediator between the people and government. So many priests have lost their lives championing such causes. Servant-leadership often encounters such risks and challenges.

b. Filipino Priestly Spirituality

Servant-leadership will only be effective only to the extent that priests are spiritual. They must be indeed all things to all and they can possess many gifts and skills but what is necessary for their ministry to be fruitful and what Filipinos most expect from them is authentic spirituality ― beginning with an encounter with Christ, being rooted in Christ and is ministerial. The priest grows in holiness through the faithful performance of his ministry ― the ministry of the Word, ministry of the sacraments and the ministry of shepherding the community.34 The rise in many vocations to the priesthood in the Philippines are attributed to the example of the lives of priests who have been their teachers in schools and universities, pastors in their parishes and servant-leaders in their particular communities espousing faithfulness and holiness in their ministry. Priesthood in the Philippine context epitomizes what should be the future priest of Asia as a man of communion: man of the sacred, man of

33 PO 6. 34 PCP 2 n. 536.

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dialogue, and a man of humble service.35

(1) Man of the Sacred

He must have a deep faith experience. He must be witness of holiness and capable of communicating holiness to others.

(2) Man of Dialogue

This requires the priest to be available for dialogue mentally. He must pursue dialogue with depth. The priest should know the necessary skills for creative and effective dialogical understanding.

(3) Man of Humble Service

A humble servant-leader. He must be familiar with the signs of the times and must acquire a true understanding of such signs. The acquisition of skills to serve society is a must.36

4. The Vision-Mission Statement of the Church in the Philippines

In the light of PCP II’s vision of a “new way of being Church in the Philippines” CBCP has made a concise vision-mission statement in 1992. It tries to summarize the vision of the Church and the mission by which

35 FABC, “Main Recommendations on Priestly Formation: Fifth Plenary Assembly”, Clergy of Asia: Lights and Shadows, Vicente Cajilig (ed.), Manila: UST Press, 1997, p. 169. 36 Ibid., p. 170.

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the vision is realized.37

Vision: Immersed in a society fragmented by divisive conflicts and afflicted by widespread poverty yet deeply aspiring for the fullness of life in God, we, as a Church in the Philippines with total trust in God’s love, envision ourselves as the Community of Disciples who firmly believe in the Lord Jesus and who joyfully live in harmony and solidarity with one another, with creation and with God. Following the way of the Lord, we opt to be a Church of the Poor which demands evangelical poverty of all and harnesses the transformative power of the poor among us toward justice and love of God in this world.

Mission: To achieve the vision, under the leading of the Spirit of God and with Mary as our guide, we shall embark on a renewed integral evangelization and witness to Jesus Christ’s Gospel of Salvation and Liberation through our words, deeds and lives. As bishops, priests and religious and laity we together commit ourselves to implement the spirit and decrees of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines in order to inculturate Gospel values in our milieu. By this shall order and harmony (kaayusan) be achieved through persons who are “maka-Diyos” (God- fearing), “maka-bayan” (patriotic and nationalistic), and “maka-buhay” (pro-life). Ours will be a civilization of life and love, a sign of the in- breaking of the Father’s Kingdom.

From the vision-mission statement of the Church in the Philippines we

37 Arch. Orlando Quevedo, O.M.I., D.D., “Pastoral Priorities in the Church and their Implica- tion to Priestly Formation”, Gathered Around Jesus: Proceedings of the Consultation Con- gress on Seminary Formation and the Diamond Jubilee Alumni Homecoming, Noel Abalajon / Carmelo Arada (eds.), Manila: UST Press, 2004, p. 32.

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can derive the following movements of integral renewal:

a. A Movement toward Authentic Discipleship

God is calling the Church to what it really is ― in word and deed, a faithful disciple of the Lord. At the beginning of this journey of discipleship is an encounter with the Lord and conversion.38

b. A Movement toward True Community

The Church must truly become communion. In the diversity of its members, it must become a community, united in mind and heart, whose central and primary focus is Jesus and the kingdom that he proclaimed. It is a community that is a countersign to the destructive economic, political, and cultural divisions that we find.

c. A Movement toward a Participatory Church

The Holy Spirit gave each one of us at Baptism and Confirmation various gifts that are not only meant for personal salvation so as to enable every member of the Church to participate actively in the growth and renewal of the Church and in the transformation of our society according to the values of the Kingdom of God and the Gospel.

38 Quevedo, p. 34.

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d. A movement toward an Inculturated Church

The Church does not exist in a Vacuum, nor is it an island unto itself, impervious or insensitive to the way of living, valuing and relating that various peoples and communities have. It is the Church that brings to the culture of the Gospel into human creatures, interacting with them, enriching and purifying them and at the same time is enriched by the varieties of culture. It thus becomes incarnate in a particular place and a particular people.

e. A Movement toward a Church of the Poor

Following the example of Christ, Head and Shepherd, the Church must practice evangelical poverty, be in solidarity with the poor, promote justice for them, and be not only their voice but also their home. A Church of the Poor realizes heavily on the power of the people to evangelize.39

5. Nine Pastoral Priorities of the Church in the Philippines in the Light of PCP II and the National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal

In 1991, the Church held a historic assembly in San Carlos Seminary. Called the National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal (NPCCR) they gathered to assess the renewal that had taken place in the ten years after PCP II and to plan for the future. To facilitate renewal NPCCR translated the grand vision of PCP II into more understandable terms.40 It narrowed down the vision into several major and concrete pastoral

39 Ibid., p. 35. 40 Ibid., p. 36.

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activities. NPCCR limited itself to nine pastoral priorities. If according “Novo Millenio Ineunte” that the overall goal of renewal is holiness, in understanding the vision of “a new way of being Church” the call to holiness is patterned after these nine priorities. The vision of a new way of being Church in the Philippines is a radical response to the challenges that face the Church and society. The Church has realized for a long time that the way we live our Christian life is far from exemplary. The economic, political, cultural and religious problems can be partially traced to the way we have handed down our faith from generation to generation. It is a faith that has been very much of a private nature without any thought of influencing the public sphere. It has also been too much focused on rituals and devotions whose profound meanings have either been lost or misunderstood. As many have observed we have been “sacramentalized” but not evangelized.41 The vision that the Philippine Church presented and consequently its pastoral priorities would have far-reaching implications to seminary and priestly formation. This is especially important because Philippine culture places so much emphasis on the role that leaders in the community play, the role particularly of bishops and priests. The Pastoral Priorities42 are the following:

a. Integral Faith Formation

At the heart of pastoral renewal is faith formation. We must have integral faith to fulfill our vocation and mission. It has to be faith that does justice and liberates. A tool for this is the Catechism for Filipino

41 Quevedo, p. 38. 42 Arch. Antonio Quevedo, “Behold, I Make All Things New”, Message of the National Pastoral Constitution on Church Renewal, January 27, 2001.

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Catholics.

b. Empowerment of the Laity toward Social Transformation

We shall promote and support the exercise of the God-given gifts and charisms of lay people. Lay people must take the lead in social transformation. In particular we shall consult a wide range of women’s experience in different life situations and explore new possibilities for women in Church and society.

c. Active Presence and Participation of the Poor in the Church

If we are to be a Church of the Poor we must be evangelically poor. We shall learn from the poor and seek to liberate ourselves from values, behavior and lifestyles that discriminate against the poor. As poor among the poor, struggling with them toward integral liberation, we shall live, celebrate and share our common faith in Jesus, crucified and risen.

d. The Family as the Focal Point of Evangelization

Because the family is the basic cell of the Church and society, the Gospel has to be shared first in the family. Integral faith formation, must take place in the family for all members. Through a more intensive evangelization focused on the family, the family has become a key agent proclaiming the Gospel.

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e. Building and Strengthening of Participatory Communities that Make Up the Parish as Community of Communities

We shall support the growth and strengthening of Basic Ecclesial Communities and other forms of faith as vehicles of renewal. We shall strive to integrate them in parish life and activities and develop structures of coordination and participatory decision-making.

f. Integral Renewal of the Clergy

To address the lack of witnessing by some clergy, we shall ensure deeper dialogue of life between the clergy and the poor so that lifestyles may conform to that poor Christ, the Servant-Leader through his poverty.

g. Journeying with the Youth

The youth are the most numerous in our population. They are some of the most active workers for renewal in the Church and in society. But they are also most vulnerable to the negative developments in our rising technological society. We affirm their gifts and immense capacity to pursue the Christian ideal in their lives and in society. We shall dialogue with them, enter their world and journey with them toward the maturity of Christ to which we all aspire.

h. Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue

To achieve the unity that Christ willed, we shall strive to eradicate prejudices, grow in deeper understanding and appreciation of other faiths and religious tradition, especially Islam. As a way of healing, reconcile-

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ation and national unity, we shall encourage dialogue among all sectors of society.

i. Animation and Formation for Missio ad gentes

We shall respond to the Holy Father’s challenge that Filipinos become the “foremost missionaries for all Asia”. Therefore, we shall ensure that mission animation and formation will be integral to religious formation in the family, schools and other institutes of formation.

6. New Pastoral Priorities of the Church in the Light of the New Evangelization in the Philippines

As the Philippines will celebrate its 5th centenary of Christianity on March 16, 2021 the Philippine Church has embarked on the theme of “New Evangelization”. What we are being called to do and all Asia as well by this task of “new evangelization” is to consider anew “the new methods and means for transmitting the good news” more effectively to our people. The CBCP Pastoral Letter “Live Christ, Share Christ” (2012) states: “We are challenged anew to foster in the Church in our country a renewed commitment and enthusiasm in living out the Gospel in all diverse areas of our lives, in “real-life-practice”, challenged anew to become more and more authentic witnesses of our faith, especially to our Asian neighbors as fruit of our intensified intimacy with the Lord.”43 The Era of New Evangelization would consist of four pillars:

43 CBCP, “Live Christ, Share Christ”, Pastoral Letter on the Era of New Evangelization”, http://cbcpon-line.net/v2. (Retrieved 4/16/2015).

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a. Fostering and fulfilling the Missio ad gentes as a special vocation of the Church in the country, effectively involving our lay people, our priests and seminarians; men and women in consecrated life.

b. Bringing the Good News to the poor. Again and again, Filipino Catholics coming together to discern priorities, have seen that the Church must become genuinely “a Church for and with the poor”.

c. Reaching out to those among us whose faith-life has been largely eroded and even lost due to the surrounding confusion, moral relativism, doubt, agnosticism; reaching out to those who have drifted from the Faith and the Church, and have joined other religious sects.

d. Awakening or reawakening in faith, forming and animating in Chris- tian life our young people and youth sectors, in both urban and rural settings.

A nine-year journey for the New Evangelization has already been charted climaxing with the Jubilee Year 2021 as follows:

a. Integral Faith Formation (2013) b. The Laity (2014) c. The Poor (2015) d. The Eucharist and the Family (2016) e. The Parish as Communion of Communities (2017) f. The Clergy and Religious (2018) g. The Youth (2019) h. Ecumenism and Inter-Religious Dialogue (2020) i. Missio ad gentes (2021)

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These are the nine pastoral priorities of the Church in the Philippines not much different from the pastoral priorities laid down by National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal (2001). These nine major pastoral priorities are efforts to intensify a vision of renewed integral evangelization toward a renewed Church. This is also in line with the call of Pope Francis especially in his encyclical Evangelii Gaudium for the need to encounter Jesus, the importance of joy in evangelization and all other issues that concern the Church.

7. The Implications of the Pastoral Priorities to Priestly Formation in the Philippines

a. Formation to the Authentic Discipleship

The beginning of authentic discipleship is a deep encounter with the

Lord ― leading to conversion into his life, His values and way of thinking. Integral faith is a requirement.44 It is to be a renewed personal encounter with Jesus or an openness to letting him encounter them.45 This formation to authentic discipleship is a process that lasts through the whole seminary period and beyond. That is why the seminary should always be “a school of the gospels” where young men reflect, pray over and start to live out and cultivate the values of the Kingdom.46 Holiness and pastoral charity must already be firmly planted before someone is ordained. Intellectual expertise should be rightly situated at the service of the ministry. He must be contemplative and needs to cultivate a deeply contemplative spirit, one

44 Quevedo, Pastoral Priorities, p. 38. 45 Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium, n. 3. 46 Jaime cardinal Sin, D.D., “Seminary: a Home of Holiness and Joy”, Gathered Around Jesus, Carmelo Arada (ed.), UST Press, 2004, p. 24.

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that gives access to the deeper realities of life and encounter Jesus. He must be a man of prayer.

b. Formation to Community

The priest today has to be immersed in building community since the Church is a communion. At the first level is the strengthening of the sacramental bond of ordination among his fellow priests. The seminary should be experienced not as something external and superficial, or simply a place in which to live, but in an interior and profound way. It should be experienced as a community, a specifically ecclesial community, a community that relives the experience of the group of the Apostles who were united with Jesus.47 On the second level, he also has to form his flock into a community. He has to train collaborators to do this. He has therefore to learn the skills of community building especially where the pastoral thrust is building Basic Ecclesial Communities.48

c. Formation toward Participatory Leadership

Priests and bishops need to exercise authority in a framework of communion, co-responsibility and participation. For this reason the priest has to be deeply aware of the relationships between his vocation and other vocations in the Church. He also has to be aware of and facilitate the activation of various charisms in the Church.49 The priest has to have skills in participatory leadership and the imagination to draw the members of the flock out of their shell to become active participants in the Church

47 Pastores Dabo Vobis, p. 60. 48 Quevedo, op. cit., p. 39. 49 Ibid.

Rodel E. Aligan / Priestly Formation in the Asian […] 197

and its mission of evangelization.

d. Formation to Servant Leadership

Philippine culture places the priest on a pedestal of authority, dignity and honor. We need to go against the natural grain and do what Jesus did

― become servants. Humility, self-abnegation, sacrifice and kenosis ― are not only meant to be particular characteristics of the many qualities that a priest needs. They should describe the very being of a priest. The call to be servants is fundamental to priestly life and ministry.

e. Formation to Evangelical Poverty

Evangelical poverty is the poverty of Christ. It is a universal requirement for the Church of the Poor, whether one is rich or poor. The lesson that Christ taught is a hard saying: deliberately he became poor for our sake, he lived among the poor, walked with them and called them his friends. He ennobled the poor and called them blessed. To them he announced the Good News. The priest in turn has to be converted to the poor. A priest must be able to say to people: “No one must say they cannot be close to the poor because their own lifestyle demands more attention to other areas. While it is quite true that the essential vocation and mission of the lay faithful is to strive that earthly realities and all human activity may be transformed by the Gospel, none of us can think we are exempt from concern for the poor […].”50

50 Evangelii Gaudium, n. 201.

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f. Formation to Mission

The whole Church is missionary and therefore in whatever assignment a priest has it always involves a missionary dimension. Pope Francis reminds us: “Though that the work of evangelization demands greater generosity on our part, it would be wrong to see it as a heroic individual undertaking, for it is first and foremost, the Lord’s work, surpassing anything which we can see and understand.”51 This conviction enables us to maintain a spirit of joy in the midst of a task so demanding it engages our entire life. God asks everything of us, and yet at the same time he offers everything to us. As missionaries we want to have a better training, a deepening love and a clearer witness of the Gospel. But this does not mean that we should postpone the evangelizing mission or missionary work; rather, each of us should find ways to communicate Jesus wherever we are.52 Awareness of and prayer for the need of Missio ad gentes, forming members of the flock toward a sense of mission, and encouraging them to give support to

mission ― these are things that a priest should have and should do.

g. Formation as Person of Dialogue

Skills in dialogue are required for participatory leadership. So is dialogue required by the Gospel message of Peace?53 Peacemaking, re-

solving difference and conflict and building harmony in community ― these require a priest to be skilled in dialogue whether it be in the micro or macro level. As in the case of true inter-religious dialogue, true openness

51 Ibid., n. 12. 52 Ibid. n. 121. 53 Quevedo, n. 41.

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involves remaining steadfast in one’s deepest convictions, clear and joyful in one’s identity, while at the same time “being open to understanding that those of the other party” and “knowing that dialogue can enrich each side”. What is not helpful is a diplomatic openness which says “yes” to everything in order to avoid problems, for this would be a way of deceiving others and denying them the good which we have given to share gener- ously with others.54 On the local level, the exercise of priestly authority is not through wielding a heavy stick but through a word of respect, of compassionate understanding and if necessary, even of humble admission of fault. The road to communion is through fraternal and community dialogue.

h. Formation to Integral Spirituality and Role Modelling

Formation to the priesthood “ought to provide for the development of true shepherd of souls after the model of our Lord Jesus Christ”55 that is, to form and develop pastors. Thus, John Paul II for his part teaches in Pastores Dabo Vobis that “whole formation imparted to candidates for the priesthood aims at preparing them to enter into communion with the charity of Christ the Good Shepherd”.56 In this context, priestly formation must be endowed with a formation to integral spirituality that introduces him to a deep communion with Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, and leads to the total submission of one’s life in the Spirit in a filial attitude toward the father and a trustful attachment to the Cross.57 For pastors this intimacy with Jesus has a pastoral efficacy.58 This very meeting with God,

54 Evangelii Gaudium, n. 251. 55 Optatam Totius, n. 4. 56 Pastores Dabo Vobis, n. 57. 57 Ibid., n. 45. 58 Ibid., n. 40.

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and with his fatherly love for everyone, brings us face to face with the need to meet our neighbor, to give ourselves to others, to give ourselves to others, to serve in a humble disinterested fashion, following the example which Jesus have proposed to everyone as program of life when he washed the feet of the apostles.59 The priest grows in holiness through his ministry. The priest has to be a man of prayer. People expect this of him. The one thing people want the priest to do is to teach them how to pray.

8. The Role of Inculturation on Filipino Priestly Formation

In Ecclesia in Asia Pope John Paul II admitted that the Church of Asia, in spite of its Near East origin, has a Western face. It is unlike the other religions which has been asianized. For example, although Buddhism has acquired a Chinese and Japanese face through the centuries.60 The diffi- culty lies in the fact that Jesus is often perceived as foreign to Asia. It is

paradoxical that most Asians tend to regard Jesus ― born on Asia soil ― as a Westerner than an Asian figure.61 Ecclesia in Asia points out two things: Christianity as foreign and that Christianity is associated with Western colonial influence.62 The view of Christianity as a Western religion has many levels: phys-

ical, personnel, doctrinal. The material perspective ― physical features

like buildings, institutions like churches, and schools ― replicates their Western counterparts. Foreign missionaries, out of their ethnocentric perspective, unconsciously wanted to make themselves as the image and likeness of what it meant to be a Christian. But the more invisible and

59 Ibid., n. 49. 60 John Paul II, Ecclesia in Asia, Pasay City: Pauline Press, 1999. 61 Leonardo Mercado, SVD, Power as the Holy Spirit and Grace, Manila: Logos Publications, 2013, p. 3. 62 Ecclesia in Asia, n. 20.

Rodel E. Aligan / Priestly Formation in the Asian […] 201

influential factor has been the intellectual and theological colonialism.63 Vatican II and post-Vatican II documents have stressed inculturation, dialogue with other religions, dialogue with the poor and the marginalized as well as the integrity of creation. To be concrete, Filipinos as Asians have to rediscover our categories, our way of thinking, and our world view. As the Philippine Church and its priests as well when we theologize and act as missionaries, we have to rediscover our categories and our way of thinking, too. Such will be the important missionary tools in spreading the Good News. It should be noted that it will have its impact on the Filipino priest. Priesthood in the Philippines is Western because it has kept its Christo- centric model with little emphasis on the Holy Spirit. In the Asian context, the Holy Spirit is more in keeping with the Asian desire for spiritual power. This power has its counterpart in the Holy Spirit if seen as energy or power. Asian priesthood must therefore be attuned not only to Christ but equally to the Holy Spirit. What then is the desired Filipino face of the priest? It has to be seen between the balance of the Christological and the Asian nature of power by which the Holy Spirit is seen as such. Thus, the Trinitarian model of the priesthood will make it relevant in the Philippines and in Asia. This direction will also lead to reorganizing Church structures and the formation of future priests.

63 Mercado, n. 5.

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Bibliography

1. Church Documents

Paul VI, Lumen Gentium, Documents of the Second Vatican Council, Austin Flannery (ed.), 1966. ______, Optatam Totius, Documents of the Second Vatican Council, Austin Flannery (ed.), 1966. ______, Presbyterorum Ordinis, Documents of the Second Vatican Council, Austin Flannery (ed.), 1966. John Paul II, Pastores Dabo Vobis, Pasay City: Pauline Press, 1992. ______, Ecclesia in Asia, Pasay City: Pauline Press, 1999. Francis, Evangelii Gaudium, Pasay City: Pauline Press, 2013. CBCP, Acts and Decrees of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines, Manila: CBCP, 1992. _____, National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal, San Carlos Seminary, 1991. _____, To Be His Companions: A Reader in the Seminary Formation of the Dioce- san Seminaries in the Philippines, Manila: Episcopal Commission on Semin- aries. FABC, Hundredfold Harvest: Seminars for Rectors and Spiritual Directors of Asia, Fr. Vicente Cajilig (ed.), Manila: UST Press, 1992. _____, Fifth Plenary Assembly, Bandung, Indonesia, 1990. _____, Clergy of Asia: Lights and Shadows: FABC Fifth Plenary Assembly, Vicente Cajilig (ed.), Manila: UST Press, 1997.

2. Books

Crollius, Aru (ed.), Faith and Culture: The Role of the Catholic University, Rome: Pontifical Gregorian University, 1989. Elwood, Douglas / Patricia, Magdamo, Christ in the Philippine Context, Manila: New Day Publishers, 1971. Mercado, Leonardo, Power as the Holy Spirit and Grace, Manila: Logos Publica- tions, 2013. Phelan, John, The Hispanization of the Philippines, Madison: University of Wis- consin, 1959.

Rodel E. Aligan / Priestly Formation in the Asian […] 203

Tesoro, Dindo / Joselito Aliviar Jose, The Rise of Filipino Theology, Psay City: Pauline Publishing House, 2004. Villegas Guillermo, The Cross and the Philippines: Good News for Our Times, Manila: Logos Publications, 1991.

3. Articles

Aligan, Rodel, “The Biblical and Folkloric Elements of the Tagalog Pasyon”, Philippiniana Sacra, Vol. XXVII, No. 82, 1991. Bernad, Miguel, “Our Ages of Discontinuity”, Proceedings of the Conference/ Dialogue on the Role of Christianity in Philippine Education, Armando de Jesus (ed.), Manila: UST Press, 1991. Huang, Daniel Patrick, “Living God’s Dream of Communion: Conference on Community Formation”, Gathered Around Jesus: Proceedings on the Consult- ation Congress on Seminary Formation, Noel Abalajon and Carmelo Arada (eds.), Manila: UST Press, 2004. Jocano, Landa, “Conversion in Malitbog”, Philippine Sociological Review 13, No. 2, April 1965. ______, “Filipino Catholicism: A Case Study in Religious Change”, Asian Studies, April 1967. Mabutas, Arsenio, “Evangelization in the Philippines”, East Asian Pastoral Review, Vol. IV, 1988. Pal, Agaton, “A Philippine Barrio”, Journal of East Asiatic Studies, Vol. 5, October 1956. Tagle, Luis Antonio, “Entering into Communion with Jesus the Good Shepherd: Conference on Pastoral Formation”, Gathered Around Jesus: Proceedings of the Consultation Congress on Seminary Formation. Noel Abalajon / Carmelo arada (eds.), Manila: UST Press, 2004. Quevedo, Orlando, “Pastoral Priorities in the Church and their Implications to Seminary Formation”, Gathered Around Jesus: Proceedings of the Consult- ation Congress on Seminary Formation and the Diamond Jubilee Alumni Homecoming, Noel Abalajon / Carmelo Arada (eds.), Manila: UST Press, 2004.

투고(접수)일(2015년 5월 12일), 심사(수정)일(2015년 6월 4일), 게재확정일(2015년 6월 12일)

204 Priestly Formation in the Asian Contexts

❚Abstract❚ □

To better understand priestly formation in the Philippine context is to set it against the background of the vision of the Church and society as inspired by the Second Vatican Council’s call for renewal. The general question that the Second Plenary Council grappled with in 1991 was: How can the Church be a more effective and credible evangelizer given the present pastoral situation of the Philippines? The general answer was: by being a renewed Church and by being faithful to its mission of integral evangelization. “Integral evangelization” means that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has both eternal and temporal dimensions. Surveying the national situation, PCP II described the imbalances of the economic and political situation and saw these imbalances as reinforced by the negative features of our cultural life. From such situation PCP II proceeded to describe a vision of a society toward which the Church would carry out its task of social transformation. Such vision of Philippine society expresses the following values of the kingdom of God: freedom and sovereignty, human dignity and solidarity, primacy of morality in the social order, justice and love as driving force of development, respect for cultural values and traditions, common good as the goal, participation and service as responsibility, unity and diversity, harmony with creation and with God. The general response of the Church to this vision is the vision itself and its fundamental components namely: church of authentic disciples, church of communion, a participatory church, church engaged in integral evangelization, an inculturated church and church of the poor.

Rodel E. Aligan / Priestly Formation in the Asian […] 205

In 2001, ten years after PCP II, the National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal (NPCCR) stated that the reading of PCP II is still valid and that the imbalances remained generally the same. The economic, political and cultural and religious problems remained the same. Nonetheless there were many significant advances like that of the BEC. In the spirit of PCP II to make the goals of renewal more simple the NPCCR drew up nine pastoral priorities for the Church in the Philippines namely: integral faith formation, empowerment of the laity toward social transformation, active presence and participation of the poor, the family as the focal point of evangelization, building and strengthening of participatory communities that make up the parish as a community of communities, integral renewal of the clergy and religious, journeying with the youth, ecumenism and religious dialogue and animation and formation for Missio ad gentes. In 2012, the CBCP Pastoral Letter “Live Christ, Share Christ” challenged the Philippine Church and society for a renewed commitment in living out the Gospel in the light of the “New Evangelization” towards a meaningful celebration of the 5th centenary of Christianity in the Philip- pines (March 16, 2021). A nine-year journey for the new evangelization has been charted climaxing with the jubilee year 2021 as follows: integral faith formation (2013), the laity (2014), the poor (2015), the Eucharist and the family (2016), the parish as communion of communities (2017), the clergy and religious (2018), the youth (2019), ecumenism and interreligious dialogue (2020), and Missio ad gentes (2021). From all these priorities comes the challenge to priestly formation in the Philippines and in the context of Asia namely: formation of authentic disciples, formation to community, formation toward participatory leadership, formation to servant leadership, formation to evangelical poverty, formation to mission, formation as a person of dialogue, formation to integral spirituality. There also lies the challenge of inculturation on

206 Priestly Formation in the Asian Contexts

priestly formation.

▶ Key Words: Priestly Formation, Philippine Seminaries, Church and Society, Philippine Church, Priesthood in the Asian Contexts.

Rodel E. Aligan / Priestly Formation in the Asian […] 207

❚국문 초록❚ □

아시아 상황에서의 사제 양성: 필리핀 교회와 사회에 대한 교회 가르침의 적용

로델 E. 앨리건 신부 〔필리핀 교황청립 성 토마스 대학교 신학대학 학장〕

필리핀 상황에서의 사제 양성을 더 잘 이해하려면 이를 제2차 바 티칸 공의회의 쇄신 요구에 따른 교회와 사회에 대한 전망의 배경과 대조해 보아야 한다. 1991년 제2차 필리핀 전국 공의회(PCP II)가 다 루었던 일반적인 질문은 이것이었다. 필리핀의 현재 사목 상황에서 어떻게 해야 교회가 더욱 효과적이면서도 신뢰할 만한 복음화 일꾼 이 될 수 있을 것인가? 일반적인 답변은 이것이었다. 쇄신된 교회가 됨으로써 그리고 통합적 복음화라는 사명에 충실함으로써 가능하다. “통합적 복음화”란 예수 그리스도의 복음이 영원성의 측면과 한 시성의 측면을 모두 가지고 있음을 의미한다. 국가 상황을 진단하면 서, PCP II는 경제·정치적 불균형을 이야기했고, 이 불균형이 우리가 누리는 문화생활의 부정적 요소 때문에 강화되고 있음을 목격했다. 이러한 상황으로부터 PCP II는 교회가 사회 변혁이라는 자기 사명을 수행할 장소인 사회에 대한 전망을 제시하였다. 필리핀 사회에 대한 이 전망은 하느님 나라에 뒤따르는 가치들을 드러내고 있다. 즉, 자 유와 자주, 인간 존엄성과 연대, 사회 질서에 있어 윤리의 으뜸성,

208 Priestly Formation in the Asian Contexts

발전 동력으로서의 정의와 사랑, 문화적 가치와 전통에 대한 존중, 목표로서의 공동선, 책임으로서의 참여와 봉사, 일치와 다양성, 창조 와의 조화와 하느님과의 조화 등이 그것이다. 이 전망에 대한 교회의 일반적 응답은 전망 그 자체와 그 기초 요소들이다. 즉, 참제자들의 교회, 친교의 교회, 참여하는 교회, 통합 적 복음화에 뛰어든 교회, 토착화된 교회, 가난한 이들의 교회 등이 그것이다. PCP II 10년 후인 2001년, 전국교회쇄신사목자문회의(NPCCR)는 PCP II의 이해가 여전히 유효하며 불균형도 전체적으로 똑같이 남아 있다고 밝혔다. 경제·정치·문화·종교적 문제들도 마찬가지였다. 그러 나 기초교회공동체(BEC)처럼 의미 있는 진전도 많이 있었다. 쇄신의 목표들을 좀 더 단순화하자는 PCP II의 정신에 입각하여 NPCCR은 필리핀 교회의 9가지 우선순위를 선정하였다. 즉, 통합적 신앙 양성, 사회 변혁을 향한 평신도에로의 권한 부여, 가난한 이들의 적극적 현존과 참여, 복음화의 중심점으로서의 가정, 본당을 공동체 중의 공 동체로 만들기 위한 참여하는 공동체 건설 및 강화, 성직자와 수도 자의 통합적 쇄신, 젊은이들에 대한 동반, 교회 일치와 종교 간 대화, 민족들을 향한 선교(Missio ad gentes)의 시행 및 교육 등이다. 2012년, 필리핀천주교주교회의의 사목 서한 “그리스도를 삽시다, 그리스도를 나눕시다”(Live Christ, Share Christ)는 필리핀 그리스도교 전래 500주년(2021년 3월 16일)을 의미 있게 기념할 수 있도록 필리 핀 교회와 사회로 하여금 “새 복음화”의 빛 안에서 복음을 살아가는 데 쇄신된 헌신을 하도록 촉구하였다. 2021년 희년에서 그 정점을 맞 이할 새 복음화를 향한 9년간의 여정은 다음의 과정을 거칠 것이다. 통합적 신앙 양성의 해(2013), 평신도의 해(2014), 가난한 이들의 해 (2015), 성체와 가정의 해(2016), 공동체 중의 공동체인 본당의 해 (2017), 성직자와 수도자의 해(2018), 젊은이의 해(2019), 교회 일치 와 종교 간 대화의 해(2020), 민족들을 향한 선교의 해(2021). 이 우선순위들에 필리핀과 아시아 사제 양성의 도전 과제들이 자

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리하고 있다. 즉, 참제자 양성, 공동체로의 양성, 참여하는 리더십에 로의 양성, 섬기는 리더십에로의 양성, 복음적 청빈으로의 양성, 선 교로의 양성, 대화자로서의 양성, 통합적 영성으로의 양성 등이 그러 한 과제라고 할 수 있겠다. 또한 사제 양성 토착화의 도전 과제도 남아 있다.

▶ 주제어: 사제 양성, 필리핀 신학교, 교회와 사회, 필리핀 교회, 아시아 상황에 서의 사제 양성.