Letter from Father Ghysebrechts, of Bontoc, to the pupils of the Tondo orphanage

Title

Language

English

Year

1924

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

108 lieve than the thousands of lights and the hundreds of wreaths which adorn the place of sorrow and death. The most hearty congratulations of the "Little Apostle" go to )Iiss )lathilde Alvarez, the captain of the Little Tonda-orphanage children. Her two most active lieutenants were the ,llary anll ,Sih-iu ,lfuylulm1g sisters )Tary and Sylvia Maglalang: together they collected nearly P: rno. "Where there is a will there is a way". What, if rich children had that will of the slaglalangs? Rich children, do you wish to know some more poor children of Tondo orphanage to be admired in the campaign for the chapel at Canew? The,v are the lit tie Misses Simeona Reyes, Dolores de Jesi.:s, Luz Espana, Natividad Fernand€Z: in fine, uarly all of the 5CO pupils of the Tonda Orphanage deserve the admiration of the Filipino Chri!<tians for their true Christian activity and charity whose efforts stand now as a monument at Canew: house Mis1 ~I. Aln;rez for God. And how could it be otherwise? E\·ery day they are witnesses and the object of the endless activity and unlimited charity of the Sisters of Tonda Orphanage. May the activity and charity of the orphans and pupils of the Tonda Orphanage find worth:· imitators among other Filpino children. Letter from father <ihysebrechts, of Hontoc, to the pupils of the Tondo Orphanage. Dear Children. Enclosed is the picture of one of the nicest chapels which was ever built in the Mountain Province: this chapel is yours. May God reward you and bestow His choicest blessings upon you and your worthy teachers, the Sisters. The chapel is built at Canew. Come and let us visit it in spirit. We shall leave Bontoc, cross the river (if it does not rain, for then the current would be too swift and we might be drowned), then climb a mountain towards the East. Steadily, steadily, children as you tread the grass aud the rocks. Let us take the least steep slope. Y 011 see there is no path. Slowly: you would soon be exhausted. Take a rest now and then under the pines. Now that we are on the top, do not try to run down. Should you take one false step, you might fall never to rise again. Let us take the gentlest slope ! Once down the mountain, in the small valley, let us use our feet and hands to creep over the narrow stone walls which divide the ricefields. Do not fall, for you would come out of the sticky mud with great difficulty. Here we are at Canew. It took us o!lly three hours. You are good Alpinists. You see Canew is only a small village lost in the mountains. Father Billiet was the first Missionary in 1922 to visit this spot. And why is this village smaller than others in the district? Let us ask the Igorotes from other villages and they will tell us that Canew is and will always remain a small hamlet, unable to raise rice enough for its subsistence, because its inhabitants have killed the Son of God. I told them it was all a lie. they had not killed the Son of God, but that on the contrary the Son of God loves the people of Canew and that He would visit them, nay. even live among them. I told them [ would build a house for Him. That was your house, which you see here now in the center. It was blessed on the 9th of September this year, on the feast of St. Peter Claver: all the inhabitants were present; but one of them, Pedro; is the oaly Catholic. He has lived a long time with the Fathers at Bontoc. I baptized nine 109 children on that day. The Pagans made a real feast for the occasion. For three days they beat the gongs day and night. I celebrated Mass for them for the first time in your chapel. Father Jose from Bontoc nearly risked his life, fording the Bontoc river to attend the feast. During Mass the Catechist, Juan Manzano, recited the prayers with the people who said them very respectfully. After Mass we gave them a banquet with plenty of rice and meat, which. of course. they liked more than the religious ceremonies: they understood the banquet better ihan the ceremonies, although I had given them a long instruction. Nevertheless, in the evening a good many gave in their names as catechumens: a good beginning, thanks to you, dear children. I thank all of you who have contributed towards implanting the reign of Christ in Canew; also the Rev. Father Faniel, who spoke to you about the chapel, and the Rev. Sisters of the Tondo Orphanage, who animated you by their own example of restless activity and christian charity; the ninety little orpha:1s a:id tbe other four hundred p:ipils of the Orphai:age. May God bless you all. Your charity and example will excite the charity of other benefactors whom I shall not forget in my prayers. Your grateful missionary Marcel Ghysebrechts.

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