Mass for Filipino martyrs

FILIPINO SAINTS  Marking the Year of Mercy, Bishop Serratelli was the principal celebrant of a Mass for the Filipino martyrs in St. Clare Church, Clifton, Sept. 17. The Bishop is pictured with (from left) semin­arian Elmer Nieto, Father Vidal Gonzales, Father Lemmuel Camacho and Deacon Javinez.

CLIFTON  Dressed in “barong Tagalog,” the native formal attire of the Philippines, Filipino American Catholics from all three counties of the diocese joined together to celebrate a feast day Mass for their country’s two saints — St. Lorenzo Ruiz and St. Pedro Calungsod, both martyrs, in St. Clare Church here Sept. 17.

Marking the Year of Mercy, Bishop Serratelli was the principal celebrant of the Mass for the Filipino martyrs, which was sponsored by the Diocesan Commission for Catholic Filipino Ministries. Father Vidal Gonzales, who is the adviser of the Filipino ministry and the first Filipino-born priest ordained for the Paterson Diocese, and Father Peter Glabik, pastor of St. Clare’s, along with priests who have Filipino communities in their parishes, were concelebrants of the Mass.

The feast day celebration in the two saints honor featured music sung in Tagalog, the official language of the Philippines. The Prayers of the Faithful were recited in six different dialects that are spoken in the Philippines.

In his homily, Bishop Serratelli said, “These two Filipino saints faced obstacles but nothing — not terrible persecution, not suffering, not death itself — deterred them because the Word of God had taken root in their hearts and in their souls. From them, we learn, first and foremost, to listen everyday to God’s Word and not to let any other voice distract us.”

The Bishop spoke about the relativism, materialism and secularism in our age that can distract us but said, “No obstacle can prevent us from producing the rich harvest of God’s Word. When we are so attentive to God’s Word, it becomes part of our every day life.”

Canonized by Pope John Paul II in Rome on Oct. 18, 1987, St. Lorenzo Ruiz was martyred during the persecution of Christians in Japan during the 17th century while on a missionary expedition. A layman with a wife and three children, he lived out his faith as an active member of his church community. In addition to being a patron for laypersons and married people, he is known for being a saint of the poor because he was a poor sacristan from Binondo, Manila and a patron saint for artists because he was skilled in calligraphy when the Dominicans employed him. His feast day is Sept. 28.

Pope Benedict XVI canonized St. Pedro Calungsod on World Mission Sunday in 2012. The saint was martyred April 2, 1672 when he was 17, one week before Palm Sunday. He began serving God when he was 13 as a missionary for the Jesuits. With Jesuit Father Diego Luis de San Vitores, he traveled to Guam to catechize the native Chamorros. They were attacked and killed when the village chief learned his baby daughter was baptized. It is believed St. Pedro could have escaped the attack but did not want to leave Father Diego alone. His feast day is April 2.

At the close of Mass, Father Gonzales along with Mila Burdeos, a member of the Diocesan Commission for Catholic Filipino Ministries and coordinator of the diocesan Mission Office, thanked the Bishop, priests, ministers and the congregation.

Following the Mass, Filipinos gathered in St. Clare’s parish hall where they enjoyed native foods, fellowship, and entertainment by young Filipino people, who played instruments and danced.

At the end of the Mass, the Bishop told the Filipinos: “It’s very important for the Filipino community to come together. All of us come together from different backgrounds in the United States. Diversity is a great gift, but it is very important we never forget our roots and we remain faithful to the traditions our parents and grandparents gave us — especially our Catholic faith — and the Filipino community is very strong in the faith, which is so needed today.”