Where am I last Summer?

I took a leave of absence for three consecutive days from my work at Export Bank just to attend the three (3) day Conference on Catechetics & Youth Ministry at Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati dubbed as the 4th JPII Catechetics-Youth Ministry Conference organized by the Salesians of Don Bosco.  I went there with five of our Parish Catechists who were sent by our Parish thru the Invitation I received from the Salesian Youth Ministry.  The said conference reminded me of my Youth Ministry days in our Parish & Diocese way back 1995-2003. . . .I went there still as a Youth Minister although I’m not connected anymore with Parish Youth Ministry (PYM) simply because of substantial presence of young people in my group at the Parish particularly the Ushers & Collectors Ministry (UCM).   I also attended the conference in view of my current apostolate for some of the less fourtunate children at Brgy, Platero still here in Binan, Laguna. . .

Back to the conference, I enrolled in three (3) different sessions namely:

Media Effects (under the New Media Ministry) on young people which was ably discussed and presented by Sr. Debbie Ponsaran, FMA.  The session led us to an awareness of the effects of media particularly on values and behavior with special focus on the more popular media forms such as television, internet, mobile phones, video games and music video.

Youth Culture which was presented by Rev. Fr. Marty Macasaet, SDB, the Director of the Salesians on Youth Ministry.  The session provided us with an awareness of the world of the young, along with the two related issues of Generation Theory and Postmodernism. His discussions were filled with many examples taken from the culture of present – day Filipino youth, and also from experiences in youth ministry.  An actual immersion and exposure (particularly through hands – on exercises) was also part of this workshop.  Part of this session was the film showing wherein Fr. Marty showed to us the film entitled "THE DEBUT" produced by Fil-Ams and featured also some of our great actors like Eddie Garcia, TirsoCruz III and Gina Alajar including some of the Fil-Am actors like Dante Basco and Bernadette Balagtas.  I will also a lot another article here in my blog for the said movie.  The movie really moved me and helped me to reflect on some issues and concerns in my life now.

Let’s Talk Holy (How to talk about sex on Youth) which was presented by Tito Ed Sorreta of Pro-Life Philippines. In this session, Tito shared his experiences in helping the youth deal with a very sensitive and relevant issue for youth: sexuality. 

The said sessions were actually the deepenings of the three Conferences on the said event that were presented by some of the "Salesians Par Excellance" that I’ve met like Fr. Marty Macasaet (he inspired me to consider enrolling at Don Bosco Paranaque for a Masteral on Youth Ministry) and Fr. Armand Robleza (whom i previously met thru my boss AAG) and Bishop Pablo David, D.D. of Pampanga. Their respective presentations are all equally informative and entertaining. . .Details are as follows: 

“The Blessed Trinity dwells in your soul in grace”

The Most Holy Trinity has crowned Our Mother. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, will ask us to render an account of every idle word. That is another reason for asking Holy Mary to teach us always to speak in the presence of the Lord. (Furrow, 926)

The Most Holy Trinity grants you grace and expects you to make use of it responsibly. Given such an endowment, there is no place for your adopting easy, slow, lazy attitudes, because, apart from everything else, souls await you. (Furrow, 957)

God is with you. The Blessed Trinity dwells in your soul in grace. That is why, in spite of your wretchedness, you can and should keep up a continuous conversation with the Lord. (The Forge, 261)

Learn to praise the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Learn to have a special devotion to the Blessed Trinity: I believe in God the Father, I believe in God the Son, I believe in God the Holy Spirit; I hope in God the Father, I hope in God the Son, I hope in God the Holy Spirit; I love God the Father, I love God the Son, I love God the Holy Spirit. I believe, I hope and I love the most Holy Trinity. This devotion is much needed as a supernatural exercise for the soul, expressed by the movement of the heart, although not always in words. (The Forge, 296)