From February 5 to 12, a group of Senior High School students had the wonderful opportunity of doing a retreat-pilgrimage in the Holy Land. They were accompanied by Father Roque Reyes, their Theology Teacher and School Chaplain. According to Father Reyes, he initiated and organized the trip because “I wanted my students to see where Jesus lived; and walk where He walked in order to know and love Him better. It was only for a little over a week, but it was a life changing experience for all of us. Seeing the place where God who became man lived and walked left an indelible mark in our Christian life and changed forever the way we look at life.”
The group was also joined by some parents, alumnae, faculty and staff. Among them was Chiqui Agoncillo, Woodrose Class of 2012, whose daily reflections we share here.
06 February 2018 (Day 1)
07 February 2018 (Day 2)
08 February 2018
We welcomed the day with a visit to the otherworldly Church of the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor. We all had the same reaction as did St. Peter when he, James, and John witnessed Jesus transfigure two millennia ago: no one wanted to leave! Here, Murad reminded us of the Lord’s reassurance despite/throughout impending or existing suffering, anxiety, or doubt. We also learned about Jesus’ special and irreplaceable role in the completion of divine revelation and human salvation, necessarily preceded by and through Moses (representing the law) and Elijah (representing the prophets). We were blessed to have our meditation here, during which Father Reyes drew a beautiful comparison between Jesus’ fondness for retreating to mountains to pray, and how prayer can elevate one high above the here and now in order to achieve a better perspective.
If Mount Tabor seemed the closest thing to Heaven on Earth, our next stop was the opposite – Megiddo (yes, that’s Armageddon in Greek) is where the last battle between the forces of good and the forces of evil is said to take place according to the Book of Revelation. We learned much about the historical and archaeological significance of the tel, not to mention the Old Testament, thanks to Murad.
The Stella Maris Carmelite Monastery in Haifa, Israel’s third-largest city, was next on our itinerary. During meditation there, Father Reyes distinguished what it means to be a drifter as opposed to a pilgrim. Drifters, he said, go wherever their whims may take them; pilgrims on the other hand have a specific destination or goal to reach or to which to aspire. Christian life is a pilgrimage, a quest to fill a vacuum that only God can fill. Finally, Father Reyes also drew a distinction between divine and human love, and the limitations of the latter.
