Membership in the Order is a calling, a vocation, enlisted by the Lord Himself
We have come to believe in God’s love: in these words the Christian can express the fundamental decision of his life. Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.
Pope Benedict XVI
Encyclical Letter
Deus Caritas Est
Membership in the Order is a calling, a vocation, enlisted by the Lord Himself
The Order of Malta Philippines held its regular monthly Spiritual Formation on September 11, 2019 at the residence of Amb. Mercedes A. Tuason with Amb. Odelia Arroyo as host. A well-attended gathering, the Holy Eucharist was celebrated by Msgr. Esteban “Bong” Lo, Conventual Chaplain ad honorem of the Order of Malta Philippines.
Father Bong revitalized the module on spiritual formations used by the Order about ten years ago which was based on the Prayer of the Order. He first reflected on the meaning of opening line of the Prayer, ”Lord Jesus, Thou hast seen fit to enlist me for Thy service among the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem.” He reminded those present that “membership in the Order is a calling, a vocation, enlisted by the Lord Himself, and entrusting everything in God’s hand.”
The Order’s charism, Tuitio Fidei et Obsequium Pauperum — defense of faith and service to our Lords, the sick and the poor, requires members to be active participants in the calling, but first and foremost, he said “we are called to be loved”. We are called to recognize and appreciate God’s love.
“Only in the context of being loved by God that the defense of the faith and the service of the sick and the poor becomes meaningful and ultimately not tiresome, ultimately sustainable, ultimately exciting with the passing of days, because it is but a response. Defending the faith and
serving the sick is but a response, “a grateful response to God’s love,” Father Bong explained.
Quoting Cardinal John Henry Newman, “God has created me to do Him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I will never know it in this life, but I shall be told of it in the next, therefore I will trust Him. If I am in sickness, my sickness will serve Him. In perplexity, my perplexity may serve Him. If I am in sorrow, my sorrow may serve Him. He does nothing in vain. He may prolong my life, He may shorten it. He knows what He is about.” Members were reminded, that as enlisted persons to the Order, everything should be entrusted to God.
Father Bong further contemplated on God’s love as stated on Ephesians 2:4, but God being rich in faithful love. “Through the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead with our sins, brought us to life in Christ. He gave us His mother to be our mother. He gave us a guardian angel to protect us. This historical manifestation of God’s love towards us shows the excellence of a spiritual life as well as the grandeur.”
God’s love is also manifested through baptism, so we can be anointed, transfigured and transformed according to the image of the Son, Jesus Christ and live as one with God.
Considered the most powerful prayer of all is Jesus’ prayer — Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me, a sinner. Members were reminded that even in prayer, God’s love is experienced because it gives us the courage and confidence to approach the throne of mercy.
