Mon Carmelo comes from a Catholic family of four brothers who always attended Mass, prayed the rosary and celebrated the Word every Sunday. He entered the minor seminary out of "curiosity" when he was 12 years old. "I didn't know it was a seminary until I heard an announcement from my parish priest saying there was an exam for those who wanted to enter the minor seminary. So, I asked my parents if I could take the exam to enter. It was a surprise for them," he explains.
Mon Carmelo confesses that he entered the seminary without having clear ideas. And although some things were difficult for him, he says that he looks back with joy on those four years in the minor seminary: "I learned many things and there I discovered my vocation to the priesthood. I discovered that God was calling me to be priest".
At that time he was 15 years old and very afraid, although he had great trust in the Lord. Confused, in his prayer he asked Him: "Make all this clear to me, Lord, make all this clear to me. I am very young, I don't know what to do. But I felt your call and I ask you to help me answer it".
For those who think he entered the seminary too young, he has an answer: "As I say, I entered without any plan of wanting to become a priest. But I have to say that my years studying philosophy were some of the best of my life. My vocation to the priesthood was beginning to grow. I was beginning to understand the Lord's call".
Because Mon understood the need for priests in your diocese, the thirst of the people for the sacraments and at that moment, "I knew and felt that the Lord was asking me to be a priest. That is why I said YES. Who am I to say no to his call to be his instrument? Undoubtedly, it was a YES with great confidence in the mercy and grace of God".
He remembers perfectly the day he said "Yes" to the Lord. "One summer, my rector sent me to a village on a very remote island, with no electricity, no nothing. It was very hard because I am from a big city and I was not used to living without means. The rector sent me there to teach people to pray, to accompany them, to teach catechesis, to give catechism classes for young and old and, above all, to help celebrate Holy Mass because in that town the Eucharist is only celebrated once every two months. On that island, I said Yes to the Lord".
"Almost every day I have baptisms. In the first three weeks as a deacon in the Philippines, I baptized more than 50 children."
Subsequently, his bishop sent him to study in the Bidasoa International Seminar where he has remained for four years.
"It has been a wonderful few years and I have had a great time. I loved the family atmosphere, the affection of the formators, the fraternal love shared among the seminarians, the academic level, which was brutal. It has been a spectacular experience. I have returned to my diocese of Masbate prepared for anything thanks to the formation I received. I am very grateful for all the help I have received at the Bidasoa Seminary," he says.
When he is ordained a priest, his bishop will send him to a parish. "Young people love young, new priests. They want to see priests who are very animated, who have a big heart for them. For me, you have to always be upbeat, smile a lot, and be with them always. Smiling and always being present when you are needed are the two most important things in youth evangelization." states.
He also believes that young people must feel that the Church loves them and needs them. "Our great challenge is to make them part of the larger faith community of a parish. It is not easy. But with the power of a smile and prayer, God works miracles because we can easily strike up a conversation with them if they see you always cheerful and happy," he says.
Many claim that the Philippines is the country with the most Catholics in Asia, the bastion of Catholicism in the continent. But secularism is also influencing that country. "More than two years of pandemic have been very hard for the province of Masbate. Now we are recovering both economically and culturally. In the last few years, young people have drifted away from the Church".
To curb this trend among the youth, his parish has prepared an evangelization program to go to the islands, towns and neighborhoods to accompany and give Catholic formation to young people. "It is a great apostolic need. Therefore, we don't mind going to remote places and climbing mountains to give catechesis to young people," he says.
Another concern of his diocese is the need for priests. "There are many places where people are very thirsty for the sacraments, but because of the small number of priests, they can only visit them once a month. I feel very sorry for so many people who only receive the Lord in communion once a month because we have no priests. That hurts me a lot.
Being a deacon in the Philippines involves Mon preparing extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion to assist them in administering the Eucharist in these remote and lost mountain villages.
In addition to all this pastoral work, Mon has also prepared to teach a Latin course at the seminary of his diocese and teaches Spanish at a Catholic university in his diocese.
And something that fills him with satisfaction since he has been ordained a deacon in the Philippines: "Almost every day I have baptism. In the first three weeks as a deacon, I baptized more than 50 children".
Marta Santín
Journalist specializing in religious information.
