José Miguel was born in China "in a very difficult time" when the government of the Asian giant still applied the 100% one-child policy. However, "I am the second", so "my mother was forced to abort me in the hospital". Only a miracle could save José Miguel and so it happened " When my mother was already waiting" for the intervention, "she started to pray and offered me to God to do his will in the future" Then, "an unknown doctor appeared and helped my mother to give birth to me".
In time, God and sowed his offering In José Miguel's heart the seed of a priestly vocation was planted. "At first, my mother was reluctant for me to become a priest, but she never forgot her promise made on the day of my birth and let me enter the seminary." He did so when he was 14 years old and is currently continuing his priestly formation at the Bidasoa International Ecclesiastical College thanks to the support of the Centro Academico Romano Foundation (CARF). Testimony shared by José Miguel on the day of the seminar
There he shares studies with Masahiro Yukia seminarian in the Japanese diocese of Oita and the only Catholic member of a non-believing family. In his case, he came to faith through history while still a teenager. "At 17, I was very interested in the history of the Catholic Church, which was still standing after thousands of years despite all the crises and attacks."
But school books failed to satisfy Yuki's intellectual restlessness and he went to Oita Cathedral. "They were celebrating Mass and, when it was over, I met a priest - a former student of Bidasoa - who invited me to a talk, a catechesis, to learn more about the Church and its history."
There he learned two things mainly: "that the Church is not only a human institution but has a supernatural dimension. It was founded by Christ. The next thing that interested me was Christian charity. In other groups they also do acts of charity, but I had never seen anything like Christian charity done out of love for one's neighbor. It was like a bombshell for me.
On the day of the seminary, Masahiro recounted how that inner earthquake, together with a year of catechesis, led him to ask for baptism. Subsequently, after several years of maturation and accompaniment by that former student of Bidasoa, Masahiro Yuki felt called to the priesthood.
The two seminarians offered their testimonies during the webinar day in the seminars Bidasoa (Pamplona) and Sede Sapientiae (Rome), organized this Sunday by the Roman Academic Center Foundation (CARF) through Zoom, Facebook and YouTube. Together with José Miguel and Masahiro, seminarians from Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Japan, Mexico or Tanzania also gave their testimony, as well as the rectors of both seminaries.
On the day of the Seminar, the rector of CEI Bidasoa, Juan Alonso García, assured that "God continues to call young men to the priesthood." and also "continues to call people, such as benefactors, who make it possible for these vocations to go forward".
In addition, paraphrasing Pope Francis, the Rector explained that "four approaches are expected of a priest: he is expected to be close to God, that is, to be a man of prayer; to be close to his bishop and live communion; close to his brother priests; and, of course, close to the faithful, where the priest has to be father and shepherd".
For his part, Javier Canosa, rector of CEI Sede Sapientiae -located in Rome-, highlighted the opportunity for the seminarians to "have that closeness with the Pope, to listen to his words, but also to accompany him more closely and bring him the affection, affection and union of their dioceses of origin".
Canosa also stressed "the universal sense that the seminarians acquire" by studying in an international center like Sede Sapientiae. "The initial idea that they may have, shared with young people from so many different countries, is greatly expanded, it gives them a new perspective that will accompany them throughout their lives. This seems to me fundamental for a future priest: not to apply a recipe automatically, but to have the ability to understand a larger, broader context".
The Seminary Day, celebrated during the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, was the starting signal for a new CARF campaign, which seeks to support vocations in countries where candidates cannot afford the costs of an adequate formation and dioceses have scarce resources.
The campaign, which has the slogan No vocation is lost, will be active until September and can be accessed through the website: #queningunavocacionsepierda.org
With the collaboration of:
José Calderero de Aldecoa - Journalist
