ASIA / PHILIPPINES – Living and promoting the spirituality of life in dialogue: a new College in Mindanao
Zamboanga (Agenzia Fides) – “The Emmaus Theological College, with specialization on interreligious dialogue, built in the city of Zamboanga, welcomes 40 young men and women, who, inspired by the spirituality of life in dialogue, will be able to undertake a path of formation and serve the Church and society with the spirit of human fraternity “: this is how the missionary of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) Father Sebastiano D’Ambra, for 45 years in the South of the Philippines, presents to Agenzia Fides the new initiative launched in the field of the Catholic movement “Emmaus”, born as an association of faithful recognized by the Archdiocese of Zamboanga, a city on the Philippine island of Mindanao.
The Institute, recognized by the Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines and by the Ministry of Education, issues the title of “baccalaureate”, but offers a path that is not just one of study. “The initiative of the College – explains Fr D’Ambra, who is its Director – offers a complete formation and an educational program to young Catholics, accompanying them to cultivate, on an intellectual but also spiritual level, their vocation in the spirit of dialogue with people of all cultures and religions. Young people are oriented and guided to share their love and service especially to the poor and the less privileged, ready to carry out pastoral service in their parishes and communities of origin “, explains the missionary.
The goal is “to introduce students to the spiritual journey of Emmaus, develop in them the human and community spirit of the ‘culture of dialogue’ and move with open eyes and a burning heart, as disciples of Jesus, in their lives among people of different cultures and different religions, here in Mindanao, in the southern Philippines “, where there is a large community of Muslim faithful (overall over 6 million people).
In this part of the southern Philippines there are radical Islamic groups that oppose any dialogue initiative and encourage forms of violence. To this end, explains Fr. D’Ambra, “the path of pastoral formation aims to harmonize the needs of academic study with a program supported by prayer and spiritual life. We accompany students to grow as faithful Catholics and as members of society, to develop their talents, to to cultivate their vocation as ‘living stones’ in the Church and in society. In particular, we guide them to approach people of different cultures and religions with a spirit of welcome and fraternity, with particular attention to the poor and those who have lost faith in themselves and in others “.
During this journey of formation, practicing the spirituality of the “Emmaus” Movement for Dialogue, says Fr. D’Ambra, “they will be able to discover their vocation in the various ministries of the Church, as lay people, as consecrated, married, priests”.
“The key word of this experience – he says – is taken from the Gospel story of Emmaus and is: Stay with us, Lord. It is a prayer that Jesus may stay to give his peace and his joy, in the spirit of the Beatitudes”. The Gospel passage of the Beatitudes, he explains, “is the magna carta and the source of inspiration for the life of the members of the Emmaus Movement”.
Father d’Ambra, now 80, was also the initiator of another significant experience in the Southern Philippines, that of the Islamic-Christian movement “Silsilah” (“Chain”), formed by Christian and Muslim believers who give a testimony of peaceful coexistence in the Village of Harmony, on the outskirts of Zamboanga. In the same village stands the Emmaus College which, in the next few years, he notes, “will be able to accommodate up to 80 young people, ready to deepen the culture of dialogue as a way to peace”.
Welcoming the initiative, announced in 2020, then stopped by the pandemic and now concretely begun, the Auxiliary Bishop of Zamboanga, Msgr. Moises Cueva wrote to the institute: “As a Catholic community, we are doing our best to promote dialogue with all the groups and realities present in the territory of the archdiocese. We are confident that the Emmaus College will make a great contribution to the spiritual flowering. , cultural and communal for the journey and work of dialogue of us believers in this land, characterized by the pluralism of religions and ethnic groups, for mutual respect and for the common good “,
(PA) (Agenzia Fides 28/10/2022)
Share: