Living Letters “You are a letter from Christ, the result from our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts” 2 Cor 3:3 Sept 2012/ Issue 10 Living Letters Dear friends, And the king will answer them, "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.' (Matthew 25:40, NRSV) As I write this, it is raining outside. The people in many parts of the Philippines are still recovering from the floods caused by the last monsoon. Today we have Typhoon Igme which is on its way out, and Typhoon Julian is expected tomorrow! Scenes of families displaced, water logged roads, submerged houses fill our television screens and newspapers. As the roads were not accessible in the first days, we were able to assess the situation via sms messages with the Balikatan community members in Montalban. Although they themselves were not severely affected, the houses of the neighbouring areas of Kasiglahan K1 and K2 were submerged, and families moved to safer grounds. The initial needs for food, water and clothes were immediate and urgent. In the midst of the disaster, I was very touched by the Balikatan members as they shared whatever food that they had, and waded through waters to bring the cooked food to those who had none. They also collected clothes for those who were left homeless and clotheless. I could see the Gospel in action in their lives! In the following days, we were able to enter with food packs, canned goods, clothes and 60 water filters provided by Charis Singapore. Thanks also to Atty. Tojun and his friend who contributed 300 food packs for the families. In the first week, we were able to visit around 500 families. Now, in the aftermath, our ongoing work is to help provide materials to enable children to return to school and to help families resettle after their houses have been cleared of mud. A local barangay relief worker shared that many of these families have a psychological fear of rain now. At the first few drops of rain, there is fear if they will again be drenched out of homes. It is a real fear as the typhoon season is merely at letter “J”, and there are quite a few typhoons before we reach “Z”. Our mission continues here... as you read these pages, please know that without your support and prayers, all this is not possible. Thank you for being a partner with us in this mission, and may the Lord bless you for all that you share to the least of His brothers and sisters! Note from our Director Esther Fong Director ICPE Mission Philippines
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Living Letters “You are a letter from Christ, the result from our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God,
not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts” 2 Cor 3:3 Sept 2012/ Issue 10
Living Letters
Dear friends,
And the king will answer them, "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least
of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.' (Matthew 25:40, NRSV)
As I write this, it is raining outside. The people in many parts of the Philippines are
still recovering from the floods caused by the last monsoon. Today we have Typhoon
Igme which is on its way out, and Typhoon Julian is
expected tomorrow!
Scenes of families displaced, water logged roads, submerged
houses fill our television screens and newspapers. As the
roads were not accessible in the first days, we were able to
assess the situation via sms messages with the Balikatan
community members in Montalban. Although they
themselves were not severely affected, the houses of the
neighbouring areas of Kasiglahan K1 and K2 were
submerged, and families moved to safer grounds. The initial
needs for food, water and clothes were immediate and
urgent. In the midst of the disaster, I was very
touched by the Balikatan members as they shared
whatever food that they had, and waded through
waters to bring the cooked food to those who had
none. They also collected clothes for those who were
left homeless and clotheless. I could see the Gospel in
action in their lives!
In the following days, we were able to enter with food
packs, canned goods, clothes and 60 water filters
provided by Charis Singapore. Thanks also to Atty.
Tojun and his friend who contributed 300 food packs
for the families. In the first week, we were able to visit
around 500 families. Now, in the aftermath, our
ongoing work is to help provide materials to enable
children to return to school and to help families
resettle after their houses have been cleared of mud.
A local barangay relief worker shared that many of
these families have a psychological fear of rain now. At the first few drops of rain,
there is fear if they will again be drenched out of homes. It is a real fear as the
typhoon season is merely at letter “J”, and there are quite a few typhoons before we
reach “Z”.
Our mission continues here... as you read these pages, please know that without
your support and prayers, all this is not possible. Thank you for being a partner with
us in this mission, and may the Lord bless you for all that you share to the least of
His brothers and sisters!
Not
e fr
om o
ur
Dir
ecto
r
Esther Fong Director ICPE Mission Philippines
Eucharistic Celebrations
Min
istr
ies
in T
agay
tay
Our ministriesOur ministries OUR VISION: Empowering the poor through
God’s compassionate love in the heart of Asia
Our regular fortnightly Eucharistic Celebrations
continue to draw an average of 30-40 adults and
children. We begin with a short time of prayer either
through songs or a simple reflection before Mass. For those
who are interested, individual prayer ministry is also
available before Mass.
Children Ministry
Every month, around 20 children gather for one and
a half hours of singing, prayer and basic catechism.
For Lent this year, the children had an outdoor
Stations of the Cross and an interactive session on
the different liturgical celebrations of Holy Week.
They also learned about the gifts of the Holy Spirit as
we celebrated Pentecost. We pray that each child
will be able to experience God through these
monthly sessions and to deepen in their knowledge
of Him.
RR eaching out to our neighbours eaching out to our neighbours through...through...
Home Visits What started as visits to invite our neighbours for the fortnightly
Eucharistic celebrations has now led to a ministry of befriending and
praying with the families in our barangay („village‟). Every fortnight, as
we visited the 40 or more families living near our centre, many
opportunities arose to encourage them in their faith and to evangelize
through our friendship. Neil, aged 34 and the father of a 10-year-old
said “Thank you for coming and listening to me. You are really my
friends.” Through the visits, we have also gained a better understanding of the challenges of drinking and
gambling that are prevalent in our area. We pray that the families will encounter Christ‟s transforming love so
that they will be able to fully live out the Gospel values in their lives.
Reading CornerReading Corner
Inside : large calendar, small calendar Min
istr
ies
in M
onta
lban
Balikatan Ministry (Balikatan, ‘shoulder to shoulder’ in Filipino, supports adults in their Christian faith and
empowers them to take responsibility for their lives and families)
Our goal for this year has been to provide for those who desire to grow deeper in their faith and
to strengthen that faith. At the same time, we seek to reach out to those who are seeking God,
who are lost and without much hope. This has been done through the Balikatan Community
meetings, and in the weekly Balikatan prayer meetings.
One major milestone for the Balikatan Ministry is the birth of the Balikatan Community on
4th of March this year. Nine women took another step in making a deeper commitment to being a
disciple of Christ; sharing life as a Christian community that encourages and empowers each
other. In this past year, they have also served as leaders with different responsibilities during prayer
meetings. These are women who have faced adversity: struggling to find the means to support their
families, crying out to God for food, healing for their children and jobs for their husbands. Through all the tough times, they
have continued to hold onto faith despite their doubts and allow Jesus to walk with them. As part of their preparation before
the commitment, they received formation on various aspects of community living and community building that culminated in a
retreat in Tagaytay earlier this year. From women who lacked confidence, they have transformed into women who know their
dignity as beloved daughters of God, and have been given a voice to make a difference in
the world today. It has been a gift for us to have shared this journey with them.
The Balikatan Community reaches out to those in the area through weekly Balikatan
prayer meetings. We see between 30 – 35 attendees regularly. The meetings focus on
sharing and living the Word of God, prayer, praise and worship and in this Year of Faith, we
will be sharing on the Catechism of the Catholic Church. For new members, we had a Life in
the Spirit retreat in May.
We continue with our ongoing project of small loans to help the women set up
businesses, and assist them in finding sustainable livelihood projects. One such project has been the making of pressed
flower cards and 2013 calendars. This is in collaboration with Care Channel International. Below are photos of the calendars
for 2013. If you would like to support them by buying these cards, please email us at [email protected].
Seeds of Faith Youth Ministry (Planting seeds of faith and hope in young lives, this ministry aims to love and
affirm the giftnedness of every child as sons and daughters of God)
In the past six months, we completed a series of teachings on the Sacraments
of the Church and we aim to emphasize the areas of prayer and the knowledge of
Scripture in the coming months. Thus in May, we had a day of Pentecost celebration
where the youth recommitted their lives to Christ and learned how to pray in the Spirit.
It was a beautiful sight as the whole group ended the day in prayer and praise to God.
In October 2011, we selected nine youths with potential leadership skills to
form the core group of Seeds of Faith. They have received on-going training and for-
mation in the afternoons after the big group meetings. As part of their formation, they
also experienced two outreaches in Tagaytay in October 2011 and May 2012. Here,
they learned more about prayer, worship leading and small group leading. They
reached out to the youth in our barangay and the child street vendors by sharing their
testimonies, performing mimes and animating the sessions. As they persevere in making
a difference for Christ in their families, schools and neighbourhoods, they were again
challenged to fix their goal in Christ.
In June, we had our annual Back to School Mass for approximately 100
children to bless them at the start of their academic year.
continue to assist the families of four children in their school needs. In May
2012, just before the start of the academic year, we gave out 120 sets of
school supplies to the children and youth in Montalban. They each received
a set of writing material, paper, notebooks and other stationery needed
to start school.
This year, we also helped two High School graduates obtain further
education in training centres. We are also assisting our youth in the first
year of their college education. Another youth, Riza Ymas, won a year‟s
scholarship to study in a private school in Tagaytay. She is currently in the
first year of her High School education. Although she stays in the school‟s
dormitory from Mondays to Fridays, she returns to our centre for the
weekends. The exposure in a private school setting is a challenge for her
but she is determined to make the best of this God-given opportunity to
study.
Children Educational Sponsorship (Financial sponsorship to empower children and youth through education)
The child street vendors of TagaytayThe child street vendors of Tagaytay In the heart of Tagaytay City, children ply the streets everyday to sell local snacks, steamed
peanuts and candy. Most are school drop-outs between the ages of 8 to 14 while others
start working straight after school to supplement their family income. Last September, we
started „visiting‟ them to listen to their stories, to share food items and to give them school
supplies. From the visits ,two subsequent outreaches were organized to share Jesus with
them. The first was an outreach last Christmas in Jollibee, a local fast-food restaurant. For
most of the twenty-five children who came, it was their first time actually inside a Jollibee
restaurant although they sell snacks outside the restaurant everyday. The second was held
in May this year together with the leaders from Seeds of Faith, our Montalban youth group.
Fifty children between the ages of 10 to 16 joined the session where the Gospel message
was shared through songs, mime and a time of prayer.
Medical Assistance In this past year, we have found sponsors who have provided for
chemotherapy treatment, medication and lab tests for two siblings, Karen
Gacias, aged 15, and Philip Gacias, aged 9. Sadly both Karen and Philip
have been diagnosed with Nephrotic Syndrome disease. They have three
other siblings. Their mother, Noralyn works as a scavenger, and their father,
Julio, is a construction worker with temporary employment. Every month, they
have to visit the hospital for check-ups and treatment. Thanks to the medical Philip and Karen Gacias
Dental Mission Although we occasionally support families in need of
emergency medical assistance and provide first aid care to children and adults in
our ministries, last October was the first time we organized a Dental Mission in
Montalban. Fifty six members of Balikatan, Seeds of Faith and our Children Ministry
received basic dental check-ups and
tooth extractions. A team of dentists and
nurses who volunteer at the St Vincent
Medical and Dental Clinic came for the
one-day mission at the local Health Centre.
Thanks to our generous benefactor from Korea and a
dentist in Manila who waived his consultation fee, Genalyn Naldo,
aged 14, who had severe teeth problems, received a full set of
dentures for her upper teeth. She underwent multiple extractions
and fittings and is now smiling winningly and with confidence.
Genalyn having her dentures fixed and a totally
new look!
T h a n k YO U + Thank you for every donation given to our different ministries. + Thank you to our regular benefactors who support us in our daily living as missionaries in the Philippines.
Prayer Intent ions
We invite you to join us in praying:-
+ For our youth ministry in Montalban and Tagaytay- that
they may find their security and identity in the Lord.
+ For the livelihood project of our Balikatan members-
that it will continue to develop and provide them with a
sustainable means of income.
+ For the Lord to lead us to a more permanent house of
oasis where people may come for rest and encounter with
Him.
Institute for World Evangelisation – ICPE Mission 111 Lourdes Street, Barangay Maitim II Central, Tagaytay City, Cavite 4120, Philippines