[The University Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary stands prominently at the heart of Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan, a Catholic, Jesuit and Filipino university in Northern Mindanao.]

Text by Mary Antoinette M Magallanes

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines’ Episcopal Commission on Culture (CBCP-ECC) has declared Xavier University as an official Catholic Cultural Center (CCC) in the country.

The formal conferral of the title was held at the Eucharistic Celebration presided by Rev Elenito Galido DD, CBCP-ECC chairman at the University Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary on September 7 as part of the Mission and Ministry Week celebration of XU.

Being a Catholic Cultural Center, XU is tasked to carry out a decisive role in cultivating the relationship between faith and culture through opening opportunities toward understanding and inclusiveness. It also means proclaiming the joy of the gospel, promoting peace in Mindanao and enriching the values formed through the Catholic culture and using these as guides in various academic disciplines.

“This is very good in the sense that this reminds us of our role as a university — to promote the joy of the gospel and to really strengthen our Catholic identity,” shared Irene Guitarte, XU vice-president for mission and ministry.

Just like other CCCs in the Philippines made up of educational institutions, seminaries and Diocesan centers, XU aims to serve as an avenue for discussions where faith and culture could meet. But more than this, Guitarte believes that being a Catholic Cultural Center encourages the XU community to go back to the basics of their Atenean identity — to be true to the university’s mission of serving the church, the global community and the Filipino people.

“This is really an affirmation of our mission as a Catholic, Jesuit and Filipino university. It’s really going back to the basics of our faith, of our identity,” said Guitarte, adding that this kind of endeavor has always been part of XU’s character formation.

“This is what we teach here at Xavier: formation not only of the head but also of the heart, the hands and the soul.”