LETTER OF THE APOSTOLIC ADMINISTRATOR TO AVC CLERICS AMID PROTRACTED COVID-19 PANDEMIC

 

LETTER OF THE APOSTOLIC ADMINISTRATOR 
TO AVC CLERICS AMID PROTRACTED COVID-19 PANDEMIC

“Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, 

as indeed you are doing.” (1 Thes 5:11)

 

Dearly Beloved Brother-Clerics,

 

On this feast day of St. Joseph, patron of the Universal Church, I was inspired to write this letter ex corde to all of you, my brother priests, you who have immersed zealously in the daily life of parish communities, who have served passionately in the trenches bearing the burden and the scorching heat of the day, who have defied bravely the frenzied situations, all because of your sincere effort to care for and accompany God’s people.  

 

In these times of COVID-19 turbulence, I want to say a word to each of you who, without fanfare and personal cost, carry out your mission of service to God and to His people.  I acknowledge and appreciate you for taking the initiatives and getting them done amid aging, infirmity, weariness and sorrow.  Thank you for all your efforts and dedication.  Your sincere service needs all my encouragement and appreciation.  Thank you for being so committed in your priesthood.  

 

Despite the hardships of your present extraordinary journey, that is, going beyond what is usual, regular or customary, exceptional to a very marked extent indeed, it is all about getting yourselves into the situations and turning them into “amazing grace” experiences.   You are writing the finest pages of your priestly life.  And with Mary, may you keep all these things and ponder them in your heart (cf. Lk. 2:19).

 

At these times, it is important – I would even say crucial – to cherish the memory of the Lord’s presence in your lives and his merciful gaze, which inspired you to put your lives on the line for Him and for His People.  And to find the strength to persevere and, with Mary, to raise your own song of praise, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in the Lord, my Savior” (Lk. 1:46).

 

Dear brothers, once more, “I do not cease to give thanks for you” (Eph 1:16), for your commitment and your ministry.

 

May you allow my gratitude to awaken praise and renewed enthusiasm for your ministry of anointing our brothers and sisters with Great Hope.  May you be men of God whose lives bear witness to the compassion and mercy that Jesus alone can bestow on you.

 

May the Lord Jesus bless you and the Blessed Virgin watch over you.  And please, I ask you not to forget to pray for me and for one another.

 

Fraternally yours,

 

(sgd.) MANONG NES

 

Calapan City, Bishop’s Residence, 19 March 2020, 

Feast of St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church