By: Fr. Neil Badillo, OFM, S.Th.D | SATMI Director
Cultural Night and Dinner for a Cause
Madayaw Satmi! Madayaw sa tanan!
At the beginning of the Gospel of John, we read, “The Word became flesh.” Flesh here does not only mean ‘physical being’ but fundamentally, he became a ‘cultural being’ “and he made his dwelling among us.” Jesus is so immersed in the richness and beauty of our human culture. That is why, St. John Paul II always insisted that faith must be enculturated because our culture needs faith. The relationship between faith and culture is reciprocal and circular.
Tonight, we celebrate our culture. Here at SATMI, we are so blessed with the diversity, richness, and beauty of different cultures: Filipino, Thai, Indian, Vietnamese, Irish, Tagalog, Bisaya, Ilonggo, Mindanawon, and Lumad, and we are very proud of that. But tonight, we also celebrate our Christian faith, for this very faith is embedded in the plurality of our cultures. As we visualize, savor, sing, and dance with our culture, may the Holy Spirit transform us to become genuine missionaries of faith that is cultural.
In the meantime, sit back and relax; enjoy and be present at this moment. May you feel the Spirit moving in us and within us, among us, renewing us within our marvelous and amazing culture!
Bros. Tyrone S. & Richard R.