Pastoral Visit: Day 1

This morning His Eminence Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, DD arrived around 9:15am for the first ever two-day Parish Pastoral Visitation. After a brief opening liturgy, the Cardinal met with the Parish Pastoral Council at the Cardinal Sin Hall. He listened to the pastoral report of our Punong Lingkod Bro. Johnny Cosep, he praised our 8-year old parish for the many accomplishments ( he said he was happy that MMJP is "lumulusog" and that he appreciates what we have accomplished in a manner he described as "maliksi"), he also entertained questions from our lay leaders.  What was thought at first to be a very formal dialogue became a light moment with the Cardinal.  

After the dialogue we went to visit Zone 7 of our barangay.  Thanks to our chief of police Major Gary Reyes and his staff who provided security and to the many parish volunteers who also made sure the Cardinal's walk was safe and secure.  A short program followed his walk where he also shared his 3-point message to the people: first, know what is good and do it; second, know what is bad so you can avoid it and lastly, the golden rule, love God and love your neighbors. Other pictures of the first day of visitation at http://eyikcastro.multiply.com

The Pastoral Visitation: A Primer

What is a Pastoral Visitation?  Every 5 years, the local Ordinary (bishop or archbishop) is directed by the laws of the Church to embark on a pastoral visitation of parishes and church institutions. The purpose is to strengthen these communities of faith and to draw out the spiritual energies of the church for the mission of evangelization. Evangelization is the “raison d’etre” of the church: it exists in order to evangelize.

“A bishop is obliged to visit the diocese annually, either in whole or in part, so that he visits the entire diocese at least every five years either personally or, if he has been legitimately impeded, through the coadjutor Bishop, an auxiliary Vicar general, Episcopal Vicar, or another presbyter.” (Code of Canon Law, c. 396)

 “The pastoral visit is therefore an apostolic activity to be carried out by the Bishop in true pastoral activity, which reveals him to be the principle and visible foundations if the unity of the particular church. For the communities or institutions visited by the  Bishop, it is an event of grace, reflecting in some measure that great visit with which the “chief shepherd” (1 Peter 5:4) and Guardian of our souls (1 Peter 2:25), Jesus Christ, has visited and redeemed his people (Luke 1:68)

The Archbishop of Manila, His Eminence Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales,DD, is the real shepherd of the parish.  Since the Archdiocese has more than 80 parishes and shrines, the Cardinal appoints Parish Priests to shepherd for him.  His pastroal visit is an occasion to rejuvenate the energies of those engaged in evangelization, to praise, encourage and reassure them. It is also an opportunity to invite the faithful to a renewal of Christian life and to an ever more intense apostolic activity. The pastoral visit helps the Bishop to evaluate the effectiveness of the structures and agencies designed for pastoral service, taking account of the circumstances and difficulties of the task of evangelization, so as to determine more accurately the priorities and the means required for overall pastoral provision.

The following are the objectives of the pastoral visit:

1.     “In the spirit of Communio”: to strengthen the bonds if communion among the people of the Archdiocese of Manila and the Cardinal Archbishop as the visible sign of unity. The apostolic vision is the binding force of communion among the members of the Church in Manila.

2.     “In a state of Mission”: to identify the “best features” and “areas of improvement” of a parish/school/community. The following domains to be presented are: catechesis, liturgy and popular religiosity, social services and development of the poor, family life and youth, ecumenical and inter-religious affairs, ecology, financial/logistical and organizational culture and climate.

3.     “In the service of the Pondo ng Pinoy Movement: the level of commitment of the community in the catechesis and collection of the “crumbs.”

 Let us pray for the success of the first ever Pastoral Visitation in our parish.  Let this occasion be a source of blessing and communio for all of us.