ISA Holds Spirituality Forum on Youth

In his welcome address Fr. Artemio Jusayan, O.Carm., the Prior Provincial of the Order of Carmelites-Philippine Province and the Chair of the ISA Board of Trustees, explained the theme of the forum.

He said, “Together with young people, we can look through their stories and see the spiritual processes that actually take place in the very fiber of their experiences. As we listen to them, we will discern how to lead the young. Or perhaps, it is they who will lead us to the in the unknown world of the future.”    

The 18th Spirituality Forum was the first time for ISA to have youth as a majority of the speakers; to have an intern become one such speaker; to have mentors as co-speakers; and to have speakers based abroad.

Specifically, in the morning of Day 1 which carried the forum theme itself as its theme, ISA teamed up Mark Conrad Ravanzo, co-founder/chief executive officer of I Am MAD (Making a Difference) with Fr. Art Borja, SJ, clinical psychologist, spiritual director and chaplain of Xavier School in Greenhills.

In addition, ISA asked its first-ever intern from abroad, Bonnie Williams – a junior year student of Furman University, South Carolina majoring in Philosophy and Religion – to speak on “The Sacred in the Secular Space of the Youth.”

ISA matched Williams with Anne-Marie Bos, O.Carm, Ph.D., an academic researcher at the Titus Brandsma Institute in Nijmegen, Netherlands and a member of the International Academic Advisory Board (IAAB) of ISA, on the last morning of the forum.

And in line with its mandate as an institute based in Asia, ISA invited Maria Regina Tijumena, deputy coordinator of the National Youth Catholic Charismatic Renewal Movement, to speak on “Dialogue within a Dialogue: Youth in a Pluralistic Society” on Day 2.

For reactors ISA had an all-Indonesian team, including a graduate of its Masteral and Doctoral degree programs on Transformative Spirituality, Fr. Yohanis Masneno, SVD   (executive secretary of Jacob’s Well Spiritual Center and director of Eco-Spiritual Transformative Sumur Yacob for Youth); another member of ISA’s BOT, Fr. Albertus Herwanta, O.Carm; and Fr. Chris Purba, SJ. who is in charge of the Catholic Charismatic  Renewal and the Marriage Encounter Movements in Jakarta.

Lawyer Maria Caterina Cristina Lopa spoke in the afternoon of Day 1 with Coach Noli Ayo of the Jesuit-run Ateneo de Davao as the reactor to her paper “Spiritual Encounters in Youth Sports”.  

Ms. Lopa was an outstanding member of the women’s basketball team of the Ateneo de Manila University. She founded with her batch mates, now all professionals like her, Girls Got Games Philippines, which she manages.  

She and Mr. Ayo were joined at the last minute by her fellow Atenean Sabrina Ongkiko, Science and English teacher in a public school which has pulled up its scores in national achievement tests, and by lawyer Renato Saguisag, Jr., volleyball coach of Ms. Lopa in high school and now the Executive Director of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP).

Their presence and that of film and television star-youth ambassador Dingdong Dantes on Day 1 came by God’s grace, explained by Fr. Sheldon Tabile, O. Carm  ISA Academic/Research and Publications Director.

He said, “The speakers not in the souvenir program were fruits of listening and discerning. As we listened and discerned with what we could do with what little we had, we offered it to God. Five days before the forum `Teacher Sabs’  sent her confirmation. The day before the forum, Dingdong called to assure us of his participation. And on Day 1 itself, Atty. `Revo’ confirmed.

“We could have had them the next time. But that would not be listening and discerning. Instead, we opened the spirituality forum in a space where God can guide us and bring us into fulfillment with the little that we have.”

The last set of speakers discussed “Media Education as Spiritual Formation” in the morning of Day 2.

Journalist, ABS-CBN Corporation news anchor and assistant professor Christian Esguerra was joined by Ma. Angela Ureta, a.O.Carm., a former executive producer at ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs and now a consultant on communication and strategic planning to The Eon Group.

In the afternoon of Day 3 ISA invited the members of its International Academic Advisory Board to give reflections on the five papers and the discussions raised.

Dr. Alfredo Co, the Philippines’ foremost Sinologist, spoke on the heroism and steadfastness shown by girl-warrior Mulan against the foes of the Chinese Empire.

Sr. Anne Marie Bos, O.Carm, Ph.D. presented the views on love (“not to be mistaken as weakness when dealing with the youth”) held by Blessed Titus Brandsma, O. Carm., modern-day martyr for press freedom and patron of the Philippine Province of the Carmelites.

He is soon to be canonized, for which reason ISA prepared red-colored icons of his likeness for the speakers, paper reactors and IAAB members, as well as the customary certificates of appreciation.   

For her part Sr. Ma. Anicia Co, RVM, Ph.D. expounded on dialogue, and upheld Jesus Christ as the model for reaching out to and helping the youth discern.

Fr. Eliseo Mercado, Jr. OMI. Ph.D. offered a Powerpoint presentation on the images shared by the speakers, including a broken umbrella transformed into a Christmas tree and a tree set ablaze by fireflies as `Teacher Sabs’ despaired over the little she could do for ‘my kids’.

Lastly, Fr. Daniel Franklin Pilario, CM, Ph.D who heads Saint Vincent School of Theology but makes time for an urban poor parish near a dumpsite in Quezon City, took note of what ISA Executive Director Fr. Rico Ponce, O. Carm. had pointed out in his message: the 15th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops set for October 2018 or three months after the 18th Spirituality Forum of ISA.  

The synod will discuss “Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment”, for which a Preparatory Document was made and presented by Pope Francis to young people with these words:  “I wanted you to be the center of attention because you are in my heart.”   

And so, Fr. Pilario asked at the forum of ISA, “Will the youth be able to speak at the synod, or will it be the bishops doing so?”

The 18th Spirituality Forum gathered together more than 200  participants who came from key cities in the Philippines as well as from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Myanmar, Dubai, the Netherlands and the United States.

Participants including novices and student friars of the Carmelites and of the St. Joseph  Formation House of the Prelature of Infanta as well as members of Young Carmel Philippines, religious congregations and lay associates of the Carmelites.

Also in the audience were youth formators and teachers like Kevin Rey Caballeda,  who studied AB Sociology at  Mount Carmel College of Escalante and who now handles Social Sciences in this school pioneered by O. Carm. priests.

For the closing remarks ISA Director for Administration and Finance Fr. Perfecto Adeva, Jr. O. Carm, pointed out how ISA is a key ministry of the O. Carm. order for studies which are scientific, relevant, integrative and transformative.    

“May God’s blessings be on the Institute and on you, our partners and collaborators. We are grateful.”  

The 18th Spirituality Forum again called on Fr. Mercado for a briefing on the law signed by President Rodrigo Duterte on the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.   ISA also offered space where its indigenous peoples could sell their handmade bracelets, anklets, earrings, combs, hairpins and necklaces.

The Forum again featured books by Claretian Publications, the Society of Divine Word, Jesuit Communication, Rex Bookstore and ISA publications.

A partnership with Emodo allowed online and on-site comments which could be flashed on-screen instantaneously.  #         

Perla Aragon-Choudhury