Honoring the Caretakers of Our Past

Recently, we celebrated the Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the grandparents of Jesus. So we also unofficially launched the “feast of grandparents.” It was a day we salute our elders.

Grandparents and elderlies have an important role in the community. They are caretakers of the past, the keepers of our heritage, and the bearers of the memories of the community. Sila ang mga tagapag-alaga ng mga alaala ng sambayanan.

This November, we will be celebrating forty years as a parish community. We officially start our celebration on the month of September. Each activity will have the flavor of looking back to our storied past as we continue our journey as a parish.

Our Fortieth Fiesta Celebration will have these objectives:
1. Celebrate with gratitude the defining moments of CTK for the last 40 years.
2. Celebrate with gratitude the defining character of CTK.
3. Leave a legacy to the youth based on these defining moments and traits. 4. Promote devotion to CTK our patron.

Six Defining Moments
Our pioneers, our elders, recalled and shared some inspiring stories in the past in their enormous task of starting, establishing, building up and developing this community. There were so many inspiring memories still alive in their hearts. Based on these stories, we’ve identified six defining moments of CTK’s forty years.

1. Construction of the church
2. Growth of ministries
3. Gawad Kalinga Village
4. PREX and other formation Programs
5. Msgr. Jaime Mora
6. Stewardship Program

In line with these defining moments, we have culled six defining characters of the parish community. These are the following: 1. C-oncrete expression of generosity 2. H-ome with an embracing community 3. R-eaching out to the poor 4. I-nformed and formed community 5. S-hepherding with a vision 6. T-hankful sharing I could not have identified these defining moments and character by myself since I’m a newcomer here. But our elders and pioneers are keeping CTK’s beautiful memories in their hearts. Thus, we have those defining moments. What is clear to everyone, however, is that CTK has evolved as a community that has embraced the faithful and shared beyond its borders. It takes its role as a Stewardship Parish seriously. It has become a community that finds its fulfillment in becoming a parish for others.

If you notice, the defining traits derived from the six defining moments spell out C-H-R-I-S-T. Then, as now, CTK’s community will continue its journey with Christ in their midst, as their core.

Elders carry with them the memories of the past. In these memories are stored the values our community upholds, the culture that we treasure, and the many lessons that formed and shaped us into what we are now. They are able to collect and preserve these memories so that the youth can continue their legacy and make new parish memories.

But just as through our elders we are connected with our past, our fortieth parish fiesta is a reassurance that the work of the Lord continues in the hands of the young.

I enjoin you to participate in the parish fiesta activities starting on September and culminating in November to feel the inspiration of the past and the hope of the future of the parish of Christ the King Greenmeadows—a parish for others.