On July 31, 2021, the Xavier Ateneo community commemorates in a special way the celebration of the Feast of St Ignatius of Loyola through a unified “online” Eucharistic Celebration. The mass was presided by the University President, Fr Mars P Tan, SJ, concelebrated by the Loyola House Jesuits, and attended onsite by a few members of the XU community. Before the Mass, an “online” wreath-laying was held at the statue of St Ignatius on the Lucas Hall grounds with the Jesuits rendering the song “San Ignacio Kawal ni Kristo” to cap the event.
Fr Mars P. Tan SJ as Mass Presider, joined by Fr IJ Chan-Gonzaga SJ (left side) and Fr Arman Samonte SJ (right side)
Fr Arman B Samonte, SJ, incoming chaplain of Xavier University Grade School, in his homily, narrated the darkness in the life of St Ignatius which paved the way to his great conversion to become a true soldier of Christ. Fr Arman reminded everyone to find God in all things and be open to a new life in the service of Christ amidst the pandemic, “It is easy to abandon hope and become despondent during this pandemic but when we see everything new in Christ, we can go beyond the pain and suffering that we are experiencing now.” (Homily posted below)
The Jesuit community also celebrates the 75th year of Fr Jose Dacanay as a Jesuit. Fr Dacanay, at 96 years old, spent most of his life in the poor Jesuit missions. Fr Joe also graced the Eucharistic celebration with his presence and joined his fellow Jesuits for a pictorial for posterity.
This year marks the launching of the XU Ignatian Year in celebration of the 500th anniversary of St. Ignatius’ conversion. Fr Arthur William Nebrao, SJ, Planning Committee Chair presented the Ignatian Year programs and activities of the University (Find the list of activities below).
Fr Jose A. Dacanay SJ, now 96, celebrates his 75th year as a Jesuit this Ignatian year.
(From left to right) Fr Gabriel Gonzalez SJ University Chaplain; Bro Franz Docto SJ, regent at SHS; Fr Frank Savadera SJ Principal XUGS; Fr Arman Samonte SJ XUGS Chaplain; Fr Mars Tan SJ XU President; Fr Joe Dacanay SJ; Fr Ismael Jose Gonzaga SJ CM Director/ Rector Loyola House Jesuit community; Fr Errol Nebrao SJ XUJHS Chaplain; Bro Bien Cruz SJ, regent at JHS; and Fr Raymund Benedict Hizon SJ XUSHS Chaplain
Homily from St Ignatius Mass
Fr Arman Samonte, SJ
Perhaps most of you have heard the story of the farmer's chicken who proposed to the pig that they make the farmer breakfast. The pig happily responded: "I'm in! What will we give him?" The chicken replied, "I'll supply the eggs, and you supply the meat." The pig's expression dimmed as she realized the consequences of the initial invitation. She sadly replied to the chicken, "For you that's devotion, but for me it means total sacrifice." And she walked away.
In our gospel reading today, Luke’s Jesus calls people to a kind of discipleship that is not cheap and not without a cost. It is a kind of discipleship that is not to be entered into without thorough consideration of the consequences. Christian Discipleship requires a total sacrifice of every part of our being. At its very core is "a giving of ourselves away" in faith that God will place into our lives those that will prepare us for His Kingdom. It's similar to what Warren Buffett calls "putting our skin in the game," (think of the pig in our story earlier) and having faith that God will always be us. When we decide to follow Jesus, we are to surrender everything to him: our lives, our ambitions, our relationships, our talents, and even our weaknesses and brokenness. By doing so, we recognize that God is the true owner of all that we consider to be ours, and we commit it all to him and his purposes. By surrendering ourselves to God, we also choose life following what our First Reading tells us and we can do all things for the glory of God, as instructed in our Second Reading.
It was Five hundred years ago, or on May 20, 1521 to be exact, when a cannon ball broke one leg of, and wounded the other of Iñigo López de Loyola in a battle at the Spanish town of Pamplona. We all know how ambitious and captivated with military honor and gallantry Inigo was. The incident turned his life upside down and forced him into self-examination. Recovery was long and painful but it ultimately led him to an extended process of self-surrender. Inigo decided that he simply could not keep living as planned and so the soldier surrendered and recast himself as a different type of warrior - a soldier for Christ. Ignatius changed and placed God at the center of his life. What makes Ignatius’ story of conversion even more relevant for us today is that when confronted with a hopeless situation, Ignatius turned to God and created greater intimacy with Him.
The COVID 19 pandemic has affected our lives in more ways than we could ever imagine. The loss of lives and livelihood has resulted to a different feelings of anxiety, fear, anger, sorrow, confusion, and despair. The speed of transmission and the appearance of different strains or mutation of the virus make us worry even more. With the end nowhere in sight, even the most religious among us could not help but ask, Why does God allow this to happen? Where is God in all of this?”
The theologian N.T. Wright’s offers a remarkable answer to “Where is God in the pandemic?” His answer is this: “Out there on the front line, suffering and dying to bring healing and hope.” This is the healing presence of Jesus himself.
Dear friends, while the general theme of this jubilee year is conversion, the underlying invitation related to this conversion is to “See everything new in Christ.” (2 Cor 5:17). The 34th General Congregation of the Society of Jesus in 1995 declared that “without faith, without the eye of love, the human world seems too evil for God to be good, for a good God to exist. But faith recognizes that God is acting, through Christ’s love and the power of the Holy Spirit, to destroy the structures of sin which afflict the bodies and hearts of his children.”
It is easy to abandon hope and become despondent during this pandemic but when we see everything new in Christ, we can go beyond the pain and suffering that we are experiencing now. With the eyes of faith, we can be on the lookout for the unexpected ways God might be working in this crisis. It will not be easy. Father General Arturo Sosa, SJ, offers some words of encouragement for our journey together during this Ignatian Year and during this time of pandemic, “We need to put Christ in the center every time, again and again. This process is a pilgrimage along winding roads, up and down, sometimes having to retrace our steps, sometimes feeling lost. But we meet people along the road who indicate the way and reach out their hands to us.”
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Ignatius’ conversion did not end in Pamplona. With eyes of faith, what started as an agonizing experience gave birth to Ignatius the pilgrim in Loyola, Ignatius the mystic in Manresa, and Ignatius the apostle in La Storta. On this Feast Day of St Ignatius, and this Ignatian Year, we are all called to see new things in Christ. We are all called to find God in a new and profound way as we continue our battle against CoVid-19 and as we face the new normal. We are to find creative ways to show our concern and compassion, as members of one Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan family and as members of a greater family, the Church or the body of Christ. Let us pray, through the intercession of St. Ignatius of Loyola, that God may grant us the grace of conversion for us to put God at the center all the days of our lives, and that God may grant us new eyes of faith for us to see all things new in Christ. Amen. +
Ignatian Year Activities
Discerning your Authentic Self in the New Normal. A year of prayer, reflections, talks, outreach, an exposure for genuine conversion (May 20, 2021 to July 31, 2022).
- Ignatian Year Launching
- Consciousness Examen
- Ignatian Trivia and Reflection
- Ignatian Exposure
- Ignatian Circle
- Ignatian Leadership
- On-going Formation
- XU Community Pantry
- Closing of Ignatian Year
Please see poster of Ignatian Year Activities below for more information
