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Apostles in Action
by Audrey Tan Zubiri
The year 2020 started just like any other for most members of the Regnum Christi community. There were elements of excitement and anticipation for the numerous apostolates and plans being put into place. It was the New Year after all, and everyone had high hopes for the possibilities that the year had in store for all of us. There were whispers of a dreaded illness quietly spreading but nobody could have imagined the effects it would have at that point. Until it made its way to our shores and rudely interrupted life as we knew it.
Almost immediately, establishments and schools were closed and all classes were moved online. This seemed like cause for concern considering the fact that the headquarters of Regnum Christi Philippines is housed in the Everest Academy campus, as well as many apostolates and projects. Another worrying point was the upcoming missions which were usually held in populous neighborhoods. How could we continue given the circumstances? But just as Mary and Joseph were called by the Lord to put their faith in Him and enter into a new world with the baby Emmanuel, so were we invited to jump into the unknown. Without fear, as God showed us, over and over again, that He is truly with us.
The lockdown and pandemic became a unique invitation and opportunity for the community to reach out and serve our neighbors albeit in a different way. Soon enough, the first calls were made by Fr. Luis Felipe Villalobos, LC, the school chaplain of Everest Academy. “The Philippines suffered in particular in 2020, beginning with the Taal Volcano incidents in January, followed by COVID and the typhoons. I felt it was even more important for the whole community to come together during these hard times to meet the necessities of our kababayan, knowing they were really suffering.”
While the RC Family Missions could no longer be physically present in the communities and go from house to house, it was not about to abandon the mission sites and its local communities, that had grown in faith from years of missions. Forced into lockdown and with their only sources of income cut, many of the families were struggling with unemployment and food security.
With just one call, the food donations began arriving. It started as a trickle but soon donations were pouring in. Not just from the members of the Family Missions team but from the entire Regnum Christi community. Fr. Luis Felipe was soon heading out week after week to deliver food to five different sites that were already familiar to RC: Barangay Pineda in Pasig, the Mano Amiga community in Parañaque, the mission communities in Santa Rosa, Laguna, the Pasig Diocese and Tondo. Soon, he extended the help to the neighboring parish of St. Michael in Taguig in order to also help provide to the immediate neighbors of the RC in Taguig.
As the quarantine continued, grocery bags were continuously being sent to the communities. And when calamity after calamity struck in the form of Typhoons Rolly and Ulysses, hearts opened even wider and assistance was sent to Marikina and Catanduanes. Apart from these, an additional 25 tonnes of rice, basic food and relief goods were sent to Cagayan province in cooperation with the Philippine Coast Guard. These were done under direct on-site supervision of Fr. Luis Felipe and Edgar and Cheryl Gatchalian, who even personally flew to Cagayan. “I am grateful to serve as an intrument of God’s love to all the families we were able to reach out to”, shares Cheryl of her decade long experience in organizing outreach and relief programs.
Meanwhile, Fr. Luis Felipe, tireless in his efforts, credits his inspired drive to his love for and commitment to the Filipino people. This is “a love that comes from the conviction that God truly makes His dwelling place in every heart, especially those more afflicted and rejected.”
“The best gift one can give another is the gift of faith,” says Cheryl Gatchalian. For this reason, the Pilgrim Queen of the Family has also been moving in tandem with these operations. From only 15 teams with 150 families, there was an almost 300% jump in the through the efforts of the team to increase reach and devotion to the Blessed Mother and the rosary; there are now 40 teams with 400 member families!
Through the leadership of Cheryl, the apostolate also launched a holiday sale of religious items which sold almost 4,000 pieces. This sale has enabled the Pilgrim Queen team to send over 1,000 rosaries and tilmas together with the Family Missions Christmas packs for undernourished and indigent families. All these efforts were meant to promote the devotion to the most holy rosary. After all, it is not just the body we need to nourish but the spirit as well and Cheryl hopes that “the tilmas of Our Lady of Guadalupe will bless all the families that receive her this Christmas.”
If there is one thing 2020 and the Covid pandemic has done, it is to push us all to make our faith not just a story of an intimate relationship with Christ, but a concrete course of action and witnessing to Christ’s love. Life as we know it may have changed, but our call to faith and service is constant and our response, always a resounding, “Thy Kingdom Come!”
About the AuthorAudrey Tan Zubiri is businesswoman, writer, advocate for children’s health and education and an RC member since 2018 but her most cherished role is being a loving wife and mother of three.
