4/20/2024 0 Comments Sharing Love The Verbum Dei WayVerbum Dei is a Catholic missionary community that brings together individuals and groups of every state of life, age, culture and social condition to live and spread the Word of God. There are several missionaries from Verbum Dei, a Catholic community that we have come to know and love. These men and women live their lives serving our Lord through their charism of prayer, ministry of the Word and testimony of life that brings immeasurable comfort and joy to many. Some have left their native countries, their homes and families to help others right here in the Philippines. For Verbum Dei, a group of grateful souls led by generous couple Boy and Corito de Claro –together with their family, and Friends of Verbum Dei Inc. headed by Gerry Dumancas, Judy Tan and Marichelle Infante – banded together to organize an extraordinary fundraising event called “Share the Love” carefully designed to delight and inspire. This took place at the Valle Verde 6 Clubhouse in Pasig City on Feb. 18. The evening began with a thanksgiving mass celebrated by five Verbum Dei missionary priests. The sumptuous gourmet dinner prepared by Maia de Claro Fonacier of White Linen complimented the amazing entertainment. Singer-comedienne Mitch Valdes opened the show with her own unique blend of wit and humor. This extremely talented one-woman band who performed song, dance and comedy in spontaneous combustion left us all roaring with laughter. Jose Mari Chan generously shared his love songs. The singer-songwriter said, “We must give and use our blessings. God has blessed me with the gift of music all these years and I am very happy that my songs have brought joy to our countrymen.” He began with a song called “Thank You, Love.” He told the audience that he wrote this “on our 25th wedding anniversary to thank my wife Mary Ann for loving me and bringing up our five children.” His duet with lovely daughter Lisa Chan Parpan thrilled the lively crowd. Superstars of the night were Verbum Dei missionary priests who gamely performed renditions of their favorite music idols to the extreme delight of the benefactors. Fr. Filipe Vaz Pardal as Stevie Wonder, Fr. JoJo David as Bruce Springsteen, Fr. Michael Cheong as Axl Rose and Fr. Bong Guinoo as Slash of Guns N’ Roses brought the house down, complete with their instruments, choreography and funky costumes. For their dance number, the younger missionaries chose the popular OPM hit song “Dahil sa ‘Yo” by Iñigo Pascual, which got everyone on their feet smiling and dancing along to the beat. The female misioneras regaled us with a colorful Latin dance. The Verbum Dei missionary team then all came together to sing the finale, “Heal the World,” written by Michael Jackson. The most touching part of the night were two testimonies. The first testimony entitled Beloved, Chosen and Sent, was delivered by 19-year-old John Luiz Valencia, a Verbum Dei youth missionary disciple. He broke the ice by introducing himself as a second year college student of Criminology saying,” I am hoping to be a policeman, not a criminal.” “I want to share with you how Verbum Dei affected my life and those people around me,” he said. “My life was a mess, I was living a life covered in darkness and had no love. Na-adik ako sa paglaro ng computer and cellphone games (I was addicted to computer and cellphone games). My life was like a machine. Wake up – games all day – sleep – and repeat,” John said. “My friends were living the same as me. There is this one kid na lagi na lang napapasubo sa gulo. He was always in trouble. There’s this kid na hindi mo talaga makakausap. You could not even speak to him. There’s this kid na mas malala pa ‘yung addiction. He was worse than me, “ John added. “Each had darkness on their own. Pero alam niyo? You know what? God had a better plan for us. He never planned for us to be stuck in a life like that.” On March 7, 2021, John was invited to attend a Verbum Dei spiritual recollection. Verbum Dei taught him how to pray, practice and preach the word of God. One by one his friends joined the Community too. “Through prayer and the Verbum Dei family, we experienced being loved by God, chosen and sent to help others too,” John noted. “We have experienced a love capable of satisfying our thirst. In a sense, it made us all a better version of ourselves. God transformed our lives.” “May kasabihan nga na kami ay mga dating lulong, ngayon tumutulong. Dating kunsumisyon, ngayon ay nag-mi- mission.” John and his friends are now serving the Lord, having found purpose and meaning in their lives. They have become the “Voice of the Word” proclaiming the Word of God. They organize prayer activities, recollections and retreats. They share their testimonies and give talks to different groups of youth like students of Balara high school, CICL (Children in Conflict with the Law) in Molave Youth Home Payatas and many more. John gratefully concludes, “We were stuck in our circle full of broken people, yet with the Lord’s help we were saved and now we are helping the Lord to save others. We are blessed, chosen and sent by God. On behalf of the Verbum Dei youth, thank you for making all of these possible.” The second testimony was delivered by Rosmarie Andol, 41. She and her husband, Ronilo, received the sacrament of Holy Matrimony through the Verbum Dei Community where they got to know God intimately. Then the entire family experienced a peaceful transformation. From a life full of deep despair, they now live a fruitful life of faith, prayer, service and gratitude. Here are some videos taken from the event:
This article is originally posted from the Life and Culture section of onenews.ph. Credits to Michelle Dayrit Soliven and onenews.ph for writing the article. Credits to onenews.ph for the photos. Videos taken by the guests and credits to their respective owners.
You can read the original article at: https://www.onenews.ph/articles/sharing-love-the-verbum-dei-way.
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3/22/2024 0 Comments Lent, A Journey Towards Freedomby Lucah Flores, VD Missionary Disciple Verbum Dei Tagaytay "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery." - Exodus 20:2 The Verbum Dei Missionary family in Tagaytay facilitated a day of recollection with the staff of Bukid Kabataan on March 9, 2024, with the theme, “Lent, a Journey Towards Freedom.” This event was inspired by Pope Francis's message for this year's Lenten season. The Holy Father centered his message on the book of Exodus 20:2, “Through the Desert, God Leads Us to Freedom.” The staff expressed gratitude to their superior for allowing them to rest with the Lord for at least one day. “Sit back and relax,” the Lord said in the Third commandment. "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work; but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; on it you shall not do any work.” This recollection provided the staff with an opportunity to spend more time with the Lord. It was a time for them to pause, reflect, and meditate on the presence of the Lord in their lives. They believed that this experience would not only give them the energy needed to be more patient and understanding towards the abused children in the center where they work but also help them fulfill their mission wherever they are and whoever is with them. The recollection commenced with a talk by one of the missionary disciples emphasizing that Lent is a journey to draw closer to Jesus. It is a journey hand in hand with Him towards triumph, victory over death, temptations, and all forms of sin. The preacher focused on Chapter 4 verses 1-11 of the gospel of Matthew for participants to contemplate Jesus's temptations in the wilderness for forty days. Subsequently, another talk centered on living with deeper joy derived from spiritual health through loving others as outlined in Rom. 12:9-21 by St. Paul. Participants had time to reflect on their Lenten journey during this day of recollection. Despite its brevity, it provided them with an opportunity to ponder their spiritual state during this season. They also had a chance to receive the sacrament of reconciliation which brought peace, hope, and freedom to them. Attending this recollection was indeed a privilege as they also received the sacrament of Holy Eucharist officiated by Father Titus, an SVD priest based in Tagaytay. Following the mass, a talk focused on emulating Jesus as a shepherd was delivered. The shepherd leads the flock towards greener pastures ahead. This exemplifies Jesus's concept of freedom – guiding His people towards a better life while living in faith and love first. To enhance sensitivity towards others' needs, participants reflected on the story of the multiplication of fish and loaves. The recollection concluded with a sharing session where participants expressed feeling blessed and thankful to the Lord for making it possible. One participant, a social worker at the center and newest staff member, shared her conviction that she was brought into the center by the Lord to care for abused children. She found inspiration in Matthew 4:1-11 when she reflected on the word “dinala.” This activity brought love and freedom not only to participants but also to those who accompanied them throughout this experience. 2/8/2024 0 Comments Permanent Formationby the Word News Team with Fr. Michael Cheong, FMVD A fun-filled sportsfest and lights on synodality. These were the special features of 2023’s annual post-Christmas Day permanent formation for the members of the Verbum Dei Fraternity. The Fraternity consists of the consecrated members of the Verbum Dei Family - consecrated women (sisters), men (priests and brothers) and married couples with special bonds. “No one was expecting a sports festival,” recalls Fr. Michael Cheong, “but everyone thoroughly enjoyed it— the bonding, the team building, the games, the laughing together, the competitiveness. It was truly a refreshing moment of just having fun together, a fraternal bonding in a very natural and uncomplicated way.” A day of formation followed. The resource person was Fr. Jason Laguerta who heads the Office for the Promotion of New Evangelization of the Archdiocese of Manila. He gave rich input on synodality as a way of “being church”. Later, Fr. Michael recalls, “seeing Verbum Dei’s three branches there, listening to how we worked together and realizing that the spirit of synodality was already there right in front of him, he said, ‘I think that you can teach us what synodality is.’ He told us to value and to share this gift that our community has—because what we have been living since our foundation is really something new in the church in the Philippines.” Everyone felt quite encouraged and motivated to share the gifts of Verbum Dei even more. The next day was devoted to preparing for the 2024 Congress on Mission using the dynamics of synodality. Fr. Michael says, "We were able to practice what we learned from the formation by sharing with each other our dreams as individuals, as branches, as a Fraternity - all in the spirit of really listening to one another." This article is part of the 7th issue of the Verbum Dei newsletter in Quezon City, Philippines (page 8).
You can read the whole newsletter at this link. Verbum Dei QC Word News - Issue 7 1/17/2024 0 Comments New DisciplesThis year, Verbum Dei’s 60th, the Lord of the harvest has sent more lay ‘workers’ into His vineyard. On Aug 28, several college students, young professionals, and adults from the Pansol-based Schools of the Word (SOW) made a formal year-long commitment as Verbum Dei ‘missionary disciples.’ The commitment rite was done during mass and witnessed by the Luzon communities and key members of the Verbum Dei General Board. On October 1, more adults from the SOW based in Christ the King Parish made similar commitments. Who are Verbum Dei’s missionary disciples? They are lay people who have experienced the fruits of journeying with Verbum Dei and feel called to grow more in their following of the Lord through the path of the Verbum Dei charism. After discernment and dialogue with Verbum Dei missionaries, disciples make a formal commitment for a year, and may renew that commitment yearly, and at some point, permanently. Disciples commit to daily prayer with the Word of God, seeking a personal encounter with Jesus. They also commit to having a missionary apostolate field where they can accompany others in the faith. They also commit to participating in ‘revision of life’ (a regular faith sharing within a small group of disciples). They are also asked to participate as much as possible in what is called the School of Apostles. This is a special Verbum Dei formation program which offers different opportunities for prayer, formation, training and spiritual accompaniment to help the disciples integrate faith and life—so that they too may eventually also help form others to be followers of Jesus and evangelizers. John Allan Garcia, a college student, shares: “Because of Verbum Dei, my outlook on life changed, and they helped me see God's love for me and they also helped me to grow in my life … so now I am one of the missionary disciples who can help even more people who are looking for God's love…“ This article is part of the 6th issue of the Verbum Dei newsletter in Quezon City, Philippines (page 2).
You can read the whole newsletter at this link. Verbum Dei QC Word News - Issue 6 12/28/2023 0 Comments The Bohol Advent RecollectionThe Bohol Advent Recollection: A Joyful Waiting, Life-Changing |
With many challenges going on in my life, I really welcomed this retreat. Still, with Alert level 1 up because of Taal Volcano’s activity, fear kind of crept in. But I told myself, I have been waiting for this retreat and looking forward to this time alone with my God. So I said, I will just go and leave everything up to Him. To my surprise, when we arrived in the place, the weather was so nice and pleasant When I got to our room, I felt at peace right away. I could hear the birds chirping. It was a perfect atmosphere for me. It would rain from time to time but we didn’t mind because the rain helped us pray silently. Fr. Filipe led us to prayer and gave us many readings to pray with. I started with this: “We should try to put our minds and hearts on God as a Father and as a friend, a God who loves us and is always waiting for us to share a silent moment with Him. As the retreat theme says “I have eagerly desired to be with you (Lk 22:15).” That set my silent retreat! | I have learned again and again about God’s love and mercy for us, but this time in a deeper way. How he loves us is something so hard to grasp or to contain! It is such an outpouring of love. The prayer time and the music were a perfect combination. It was a different experience! I had questions in my head before we started the retreat, and without me really thinking about them, those questions were being answered …through the WORD of God! God was really therewith me!!! I cannot explain the feeling but WOW!! He is really there and heard everything that I had in my mind and what I had to say. My take after this was: To pray is not to talk much, but to learn to listen and to surrender our lives into God’s loving hands. Every moment of the retreat was like magic. A lot of my personal issues re-surfaced on their own, and got answered on their own. I realized that GIVING TIME ALONE with God is when we see the miracles in our personal life, and when we grow deeper in our faith and our love for him, and this humbles us. Like they say, more of Him and less of us. I was so happy that I had much needed quality time to be alone with Him. |
This article is part of the 4th issue of the Verbum Dei newsletter in Quezon City, Philippines (page 11).
You can read the whole newsletter at this link.
Verbum Dei QC Word News - Issue 5
You can read the whole newsletter at this link.
Verbum Dei QC Word News - Issue 5
See the fields ripe for harvest (Jn 4:35)by Fr. Ismael Barros, FMVD Fr. Ismael Barros, FMVD, General Superior of Verbum Dei’s male branch, arrived in July for a month’s visit. He writes with warmth and affection about his days here, as well as his trip to Vietnam and Australia. During my stopover in Thailand on my flight back to Europe I had a moment to reflect on what I have experienced on this trip to the Philippines, Vietnam and Australia. With a grateful heart to God and to the brothers and sisters, I am aware of all that I have received. I was very happy to see each missionary again after three years. During the pandemic we had seen each other and talked to each other through the computer screen but it is not the same as meeting live. This trip has been bathed in affection and joy to hear from so many people how grateful they are for the work the missionaries do. I have felt very cared for and well looked after. I was asked if the work of the General Responsible is difficult, always visiting different communities, but the truth is that I have the feeling of getting the best part of it. In all the visits I am shown the best and I can enjoy the fruits and feel personally proud of the work that my brothers have done. | Everything speaks to me of growth, challenges and development. There is a deep sense of newness that makes us feel small and sometimes inadequate. How to maintain our work of vocation animation and at the same time form the vocations that are already knocking at our door? How to distribute the forces and resources we have? Everything becomes a challenge when we had planned it in a well-defined project on paper and now we have to implement it. The objectives are being achieved and that opens up other steps to take. We have prayed a lot for vocations and when they come we have to form them. We have to have structures to welcome them. It is a change of rhythm similar to that of a young married couple when they start having children — you have to prepare rooms and you have to change lifestyles. I was happy to meet missionaries who, the last time I saw them, had not yet taken their final vows or were not yet priests. I enjoyed concelebrating the Eucharist for the first time with several missionaries. I want to take this opportunity to thank God for all the people who collaborate with our mission. Thank you for all those who pray for new vocations and for the perseverance of those of us who have been serving for years. I also thank God for the welcome that the local Church in each place gives us through the Bishops and other authorities. The Church values our contribution. |
This article is part of the 4th issue of the Verbum Dei newsletter in Quezon City, Philippines (page 11).
You can read the whole newsletter at this link.
Verbum Dei QC Word News - Issue 4
You can read the whole newsletter at this link.
Verbum Dei QC Word News - Issue 4
1/12/2023 0 Comments
Sr. Lucia Herrerias, Shared the “Pedagogy of Jaime” in the 5th Jaime Bonet Series
Verbum Dei Philippines did it again!
Thanks be to God for the successful hosting of the 5th Jaime Bonet Series via the online platforms Zoom and Verbum Dei Facebook Live in the late afternoon Philippine Standard Time last November 19, 2022.
This was attended by Verbum Dei missionaries, disciples, friends and benefactors from the Philippines, Peru, Mexico, and USA.
The Jaime Bonet Series 5th edition recently was entitled “The Pedagogy of Jaime”. The participants were consensus in agreement that the event was both moving and inspiring, which undeniably attributed through the resource speaker, the former president of the Verbum Dei Community Sr. Lucia Herrerias from the Verbum Dei female missionary branch. Her talk made everyone see a glimpse of the life and spirituality of the Verbum Dei founder, Rev. Fr. Jaime Bonet.
The heartwarming talk of Sr. Lucia, centers on the founder’s life and his journey of faith. Since from his conversion when he was young, his formation in the seminary, the founding of the Verbum Dei Community, his life of prayer and his profound love and passion for the Word and mission in bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the five continents of the world where Verbum Dei community strive and thrive for 60 years now and with God’s mercy and grace still counting.
After Sr. Lucia’s talk, Sr. Amy Hernandez, VD-Philippines Zone Responsible, who at the same time serve as Spanish translator and Rev. Fr. Antonio Velasco from the VD male branch and former president of the Verbum Dei Community were made to give their insightful thoughts relative to the sharing of Sr. Lucia as panel of reactors that added significance to the theme of the series.
The afternoon ended with a light moment of group picture for posterity and bringing along the voice of Jaime reverberating in each of the participant’s hearts “Hacer…Hacer.”
Jn. 6:68 “…“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life,…”
Thanks be to God for the successful hosting of the 5th Jaime Bonet Series via the online platforms Zoom and Verbum Dei Facebook Live in the late afternoon Philippine Standard Time last November 19, 2022.
This was attended by Verbum Dei missionaries, disciples, friends and benefactors from the Philippines, Peru, Mexico, and USA.
The Jaime Bonet Series 5th edition recently was entitled “The Pedagogy of Jaime”. The participants were consensus in agreement that the event was both moving and inspiring, which undeniably attributed through the resource speaker, the former president of the Verbum Dei Community Sr. Lucia Herrerias from the Verbum Dei female missionary branch. Her talk made everyone see a glimpse of the life and spirituality of the Verbum Dei founder, Rev. Fr. Jaime Bonet.
The heartwarming talk of Sr. Lucia, centers on the founder’s life and his journey of faith. Since from his conversion when he was young, his formation in the seminary, the founding of the Verbum Dei Community, his life of prayer and his profound love and passion for the Word and mission in bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the five continents of the world where Verbum Dei community strive and thrive for 60 years now and with God’s mercy and grace still counting.
After Sr. Lucia’s talk, Sr. Amy Hernandez, VD-Philippines Zone Responsible, who at the same time serve as Spanish translator and Rev. Fr. Antonio Velasco from the VD male branch and former president of the Verbum Dei Community were made to give their insightful thoughts relative to the sharing of Sr. Lucia as panel of reactors that added significance to the theme of the series.
The afternoon ended with a light moment of group picture for posterity and bringing along the voice of Jaime reverberating in each of the participant’s hearts “Hacer…Hacer.”
Jn. 6:68 “…“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life,…”
Contributor: LUCIO A. PULMONES, Coordinator VD-NATCOMMS PHILS.
Lucio with his wife Jean is consecrated Verbum Dei Missionary Married Couples in Temporal Bonds from Cebu, Philippines
Lucio with his wife Jean is consecrated Verbum Dei Missionary Married Couples in Temporal Bonds from Cebu, Philippines
By: Sr. Dolly Tan
In celebration of the 60th Founding Anniversary of the Fraternidad Misionera Verbum Dei with the theme “Passion for the Word”, an International Symposium on Mission will be held in Madrid, Spain from June 20-30, 2023, as one of the highlights.
In preparation for this international symposium, recently, the Verbum Dei Family in the Philippines held the National Symposium on Mission with the theme “Passion for the Word” at the Monastery of Transfiguration in Malaybalay, Bukidnon last October 21-23, 2022. This was participated by members of the Verbum Dei Missionary Family in the Philippines coming from Tagaytay, Quezon City, Manila-Pasig, Cebu, and CDO-Bukidnon. Every community is represented led by the members of the consecrated missionaries-the celibate female and male branches and from the branch of the missionary married couples. The Lay Consecrated Missionaries and missionary disciples from the different realities of the Verbum Dei family were also represented. In this gathering, all have witnessed that faith comes alive, where the Verbum Dei charism and mission live and thrive through these communities integrating in their lives the “Passion for the Word.”
In preparation for this international symposium, recently, the Verbum Dei Family in the Philippines held the National Symposium on Mission with the theme “Passion for the Word” at the Monastery of Transfiguration in Malaybalay, Bukidnon last October 21-23, 2022. This was participated by members of the Verbum Dei Missionary Family in the Philippines coming from Tagaytay, Quezon City, Manila-Pasig, Cebu, and CDO-Bukidnon. Every community is represented led by the members of the consecrated missionaries-the celibate female and male branches and from the branch of the missionary married couples. The Lay Consecrated Missionaries and missionary disciples from the different realities of the Verbum Dei family were also represented. In this gathering, all have witnessed that faith comes alive, where the Verbum Dei charism and mission live and thrive through these communities integrating in their lives the “Passion for the Word.”
The symposium kicked off in the afternoon of Friday with Mae and Regner, a missionary married couple based in Bukidnon welcomed everyone. The program started with the participants sharing updates from the different communities they represent, sharing how they were for the past three years. It was significant in the sharing the challenges and difficulties of the “new normal” faced by the different Verbum Dei communities due to the pandemic. It was also encouraging to know how each community strived to adapt and adjust to these changes and how apostolates really thrived online.
Day 2, the symposium started with a prayer guideline shared by Sr. Amy Hernandez, Verbum Dei Philippines Zone Head. In her sharing, she reminded everyone to be grateful to God for allowing members of the Verbum Dei community be heard and valued their thoughts, insights, and experiences about the mission. She also shared her joy of witnessing how far the mission of Jesus reached, especially here in the Philippines through Verbum Dei and through this symposium.
Following the guidelines and a heartfelt prayer, all participants were grouped accordingly and shared the results of the SWOT analysis brought and prepared by the different communities beforehand prior to the symposium. Many thought-provoking questions and insights were laid in the afternoon session in which the output will be taken up for further discussion in the upcoming international symposium in Madrid. During the day, holy mass was celebrated with Sr. Grace Gonzales, the responsible of the Verbum Dei female branch gave the homily, she shared her gratefulness-a moment of thanksgiving, of how the day was productive and how she was moved, especially in the contribution of each one’s journey in the mission through Verbum Dei. She ended her sharing with a reminder that as everyone received, it is time for everyone to give. Following the day’s serious thought-provoking discussions, a lively “fiesta” ensued. Fun games, dance, and lively musical renditions whether prepared or impromptu were shared by different participants in which everyone gladly enjoy the experience and fellowship to end the second day.
Capping off the symposium on the 3rd day, the last prayer-guidelines from Fr. Filipe Vaz Pardal, responsible of the VD male branch in the Philippines was shared, Fr. Felipe reminded the participants that the passion for the Word is passion for Jesus and passion for humanity. He invited everyone to constantly look and learn from Jesus and enter in his mindset to live and integrate that passion for the Word in our lives as missionaries of Verbum Dei.
The guidelines was followed by a brief summary of Bro. Darwin Capuras a Verbum Dei missionary from the male celibate branch serving in Vietnam , he eagerly shared a summary to what has been the highlights and challenges on the different issues or concerns shared by everyone during the symposium and ending his sharing with an invitation to continue the work together with the important matters brought about in the symposium as each one is preparing to go back in their respective local communities. As everyone leaving the symposium, it brought a great sense of gratitude among the participants for being called and entrusted to live and share the Verbum Dei charism and mission, and inspired of being co-responsible in the Verbum Dei Missionary Family, the passion for the Word—passion for Jesus and passion for the mission reaching out to the people in all nations of the world to have a living encounter of Christ’s mercy and love.
With this as we go back to each of our mission field, we humbly pray, “Lord, increase our faith, increase our passion for the Word.”
Watch the video highlights of the event here:
Sr. Dolly Celeste Tan is a Verbum Dei Missionary in Temporal Bonds from Singapore assigned in Verbum Dei Pasig-Manila Community.
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