May BUKAS pa or NOW na?

May BUKAS pa or NOW na?

Every Filipinos knew Santino. This child is always seen and viewed on the television ,giving his tele-viewers such heart melting drama scenes in his soap opera “ May Bukas Pa”. What is interesting to the series was its religious theme where Jesus named as “BRO” portrayed as a friend, a brother and a God who is close to the child making him a herald of hope and love to his people. Santino in his early age was an orphan. He experienced many hardships in life yet he had a firm faith and trust in God that he enables to radiate the light and love of God to those people he encounters. Perhaps we may say that Santino was a remarkable child but we can also say, maybe it is only in his portrayals. But do you know that there was once a child in history who was in his early childhood captivated by the love of Christ in the Eucharist? He was St. Peter Julian Eymard. He was not famous as Santino; he was only an ordinary child who by his love to Christ became a saint and apostle of the Eucharist. St. Eymard was born on February 4, 1811 at a small village in France. He grew up to be a very religious lad, faithful to his prayers and generous in his service as an altar server at his local parish. His great desire to be a priest, eminent even when he was very young, drove him to pursue the vocation, even in spite of poverty, poor health and the disapproval of his father. By his perseverance, humility and by the grace of God, Eymard was ordained to priesthood on July 20, 1824 and became parish priest to a couple of villages near his hometown. Eymard became well-loved by his parishioners. He was generous to the poor, patient with the penitents and is very devoted to the catechism of his first communicants, both adults and children alike. He was most remembered for his prayerfulness and for his deep devotion to the Blessed Sacrament.
St. Eymard died on August 1, 1868. He left us a unique spirituality centered on the Blessed Sacrament so relevant and refreshing, even to the modern times, that when he was canonized as saint on December 9, 1962, Pope John XXIII declared him the “Apostle of the Eucharist.”
Today, his spiritual legacy continues to live within the communities of the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament (SSS) around the world. Here in the Philippines, there are already nine SSS communities in various parishes around the country, and three formation houses for seminarians. These communities, through the support and encouragements of some devotees to the Holy Eucharist, aim to further spread the Eucharistic spirituality of St. Eymard to the Filipinos.
If Santino would say “May Bukas Pa” (There will be tomorrow), St. Eymard will say “Tomorrow will be Too Late” ( Hindi pwedeng ipagpa- bukas pa, that means NOW na!)। Let us now respond to God’s call to be promoters and adorers of his divine love, the Eucharist। Like St Peter Julian Eymard, let our hearts be captivated by this love. by ALLEN IÑIGO, SSS