10 Filipina Good Shepherd Sisters celebrate Golden Jubilee on April 24

Submitted by regina on Tue, 04/20/2010 - 16:24


Ten Filipina Good Shepherd Sisters who will celebrate their Golden Jubilee on April 24 are in Maryridge, Tagaytay City for a retreat facilitated by Bishop Luis Antonio "Chito" Tagle of the Diocese of Imus.

The
Golden Jubilarians, eight apostolic sisters and two contemplatives include: Sr. M. Zita Alcazar CGS, Sr. M. Stephen Betia,
Sr. M. Vincent Borromeo, Sr. M. Carmela Cruz, Sr. M. Socorro Galvez CGS, Sr.
Mary Assumpta Lim, Sr. M. Fe Mendoza, Sr. M, Soledad Perpinan, Sr. M. Frances Therese Sunga and Sr. M. Aida Violago.

The retreat began on April 14 and will conclude on April 22.

The group will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Entrance into Religious Life during a Mass at the Good Shepherd Convent in Quezon City on April 24 at 8:30 a.m. His Eminence Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, archbishop of Manila, will preside the concelebrated Mass. Fr. Ramon L. Bautista SJ will be the homilist.

April 24 is celebrated as the feast  of St. Mary Euphrasia, foundress of the Good Shepherd Sisters.

The nine Golden Jubilarians had their ceremony of Clothing on April 24, 1960 at the Good Shepherd Convent in Los Angeles, California while one, Sr. Carmela Cruz, had hers on September 8, 1960. At that time the Philippines was under the Los Angeles province, and postulancy and novitiate were held in the United States.

It was on December 3, 1960 that the Philippines was created a province.

 

Novices, Directress and Postulants (seated) in Los Angeles. The postulants are this year's Golden Jubilarians.



Into a great tree





It was December 3rd 1960, feast of St. Francis Xavier,
Patron of the Missions. In the community room of our Quezon City convent, the
sisters listened in hushed expectancy as our dear Mother Provincial, Mother
Mary of St. John of the Cross, began to make an announcement. Then the words
were out, greeted with jubilation by everyone present: “The Philippines has
been made a province and Quezon City, is the Provincial House. We are going to
have a Novitiate here.”

It was indeed wonderful news to the Sisters, some of
whom had been in this faraway Philippine mission since its earlier days. For
thirty three years, the only two houses in the country, that of Batangas
founded in 1912, and that of Manila, founded in 1921, were directly under the Motherhouse.
Then in 1945, Los Angeles, California, was crated a mission province and the
Philippines and Shanghai were placed under its jurisdiction.

There was a babble of happy voices as questions poured
out after Mother Provincial’s announcement. But foremost of course was, “What
about Los Angeles? A sigh of relief escaped from everyone at Mother’s assurance
that Los Angeles would remain in the province, and that its novitiate would
continue to be a training ground for foreign mission vocations. For a double
bond of deep affection and great gratitude has existed between the former
Provincial House and all the Houses in the Philippines and Hong Kong since
1945.

Now fifteen years later, as a new provincial house is
born, the rapid growth and development of Good Shepherd work in the Philippines
reminds us forcefully of Our Lord’s parable about the “great tree, sheltering
many birds in its branches” that had sprung from a little mustard seed.

(Taken from “Into a Great Tree” article published in
“The Good Shepherd of Angers” Quarterly Bulletin No. 1- 1962. 66th Year.)