Fr. Ramon Bautista SJ on God’s Love
Last June 17, Saturday, starting at 10 am, the Formation Ministry, led by Joey Galvez, mounted Part 3 of the 19th Annotation Retreat, which was the expressed thrust and focus of the ministry for 2017.
The 19th Annotation Retreat, especially in its more practical form for non-clergy career professionals, The Spiritual Exercises in Daily Life, forces people caught in the treadmill of career, family, relationships, advancement, and life to take a step back, pray, reflect, and discern what are the truly important things and to recognize that, as God is the source of everything, we should be grateful and dedicate our lives to his service.
The first installment was held Last March 18. The second had been scheduled last May 6 – but insufficient marketing and a conflict with the 2nd General Assembly for Lectors and Commentators resulted in not enough participants so the session was cancelled. Part 3 of the Spiritual Exercises in Daily Life, entitled ‘God’s Love’, was led by Rev. Ramon Maria Luza Bautista, SJ.
Fr. Mon quoted St. Bernard of Clairvaux: ‘Love seeks no cause, no reason beyond itself. It seeks no fruit beyond itself. It is its own fruit. It is its own enjoyment. I love because I love. I love so that I may all the more love.’
He cited Adolf Hitler, Hugh Hefner, and Floyd Mayweather as infamous examples of the antithesis of the loving, caring, selfless, generous and grateful individual that we should all aspire to be. Fr. Mon asserted that sincere gratitude for God’s love and gifts can lead to humility, realization of our uniqueness, generosity, trust, and finally, surrender to God’s will. He brought up the story of Lizzie Velasquez, the girl afflicted with a rare disease that made her look like a skeleton with skin, and who has become an inspiration to people everywhere with her optimism and loving attitude. When asked if she could change anything in her life, she answered – ‘no, because everything I have gone through in my life had been part of the learning experience for which I will always be grateful.’
He repeated St. Ignatius de Loyola’s prayer for generosity: Dearest Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve you as you deserve; to give and not to count the cost; to fight and not to heed the wounds; to toil and not to seek for rest; to labor and not to ask for reward save that of knowing that I do your will.
He then gave examples of the persons we should aspire to, including George Muñoz, the so-called Angel of Queens. George is a regular bus driver who cooks food in the morning then after getting off at work makes the rounds of the homeless of Queens every night with the food he and his family cooked in the morning.
Fr. Mon took a little time to take a dig at Filipino Christianity. Quoting Fr. Horacio dela Costa, he said, ‘The problem with Filipino Catholicism is that it is a given. It is a social fact. It is not really a personal commitment.’
He concluded by positing that God manifests his love for us as:
– the God of Abundance and Generosity
– the God of Commitment and Faithfulness
– the God of Vulnerability
– the God of Celebration
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Fr. Mon entered the Society of Jesus in 1977. He holds a doctorate in Spirituality from the University of London and has had many years of experience in forma8on in San Jose Seminary inside the Ateneo de Manila campus, St. John Vianney Seminary in Cagayan de Oro City, as the Novice Master of the novices for over twelve years at the Sacred Heart Novitiate, and currently the Assistant Tertian Master for the international tertian program of the Assistancy. He is also much sought here and abroad for his gift in giving talks on spirituality, spiritual direction, and retreat-giving. Fr. Mon has written several books on Ignatian Spirituality, Ignatian discernment, and prayer, including ‘Schooled By the Spirit’ which received the Catholic Mass Media Award for Best Book in Spirituality.
