by: THE COLOSSEO
FAR FROM the Holy See, the Philippines has been blessed for being a venue of three historic papal visits in Asia since 1970.
As Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle counts the days of papal visits in the Philippines, including the upcoming apostolic visit of Pope Francis, the Filipinos also reminisce the stories of their encounter with Pope Paul VI in 1970 and Saint Pope John Paul II in 1981 and 1995.
In an interview, Fr. Franklin Beltran, O.P., parish priest of the Santissimo Rosario Parish in UST, said the University of Santo Tomas (UST), the only pontifical institution in the Philippines, is blessed to be one of the visit of the first Pope who landed a foot in the Philippines— Paul VI.
“We are blessed to be called a Pontifical University. Kaya lahat ng tatlong apostolic visits sa Philippines, dinadaanan ang UST,” Fr. Franklin.
FAR FROM the Holy See, the Philippines has been blessed for being a venue of three historic papal visits in Asia since 1970.
As Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle counts the days of papal visits in the Philippines, including the upcoming apostolic visit of Pope Francis, the Filipinos also reminisce the stories of their encounter with Pope Paul VI in 1970 and Saint Pope John Paul II in 1981 and 1995.
In an interview, Fr. Franklin Beltran, O.P., parish priest of the Santissimo Rosario Parish in UST, said the University of Santo Tomas (UST), the only pontifical institution in the Philippines, is blessed to be one of the visit of the first Pope who landed a foot in the Philippines— Paul VI.
“We are blessed to be called a Pontifical University. Kaya lahat ng tatlong apostolic visits sa Philippines, dinadaanan ang UST,” Fr. Franklin.
Upon the arrival of Paul VI, who will be beatified tomorrow, Benjamin Mendoza, a Bolivian painter attempted to stab the pontiff. Fr. Franklin said the suspect was able to come closer to Paul VI because he disguised himself as a priest and hid the knife inside his tuxedo’s sleeve. The attempted murder was prevented when Paul VI’s secretary pinned Mendoza to the ground.
Beltran also called his personal encounter with the late pontiff. “Second year theology student pa lang ako noon. Ang unang lumabas sa bibig ko noong dumaan siya ay ‘Wow! This is a Saint!”
He also said that he felt grateful when he knew that Paul VI will be beatified on October 19 as bishops around the world gather for the Synod of Bishops. Cardinal Tagle will be one of the three bishops selected by Pope Francis to preside the gathering.
‘Viva el Papa!’
“Andoon din ako noon!”
This was Fr. Franklin’s reaction when asked if he witnessed the first visit of John Paul II in 1981 during the beatification of Lorenzo Ruiz, who became the first Filipino saint.
Fr. Franklin was probably the smartest seminarian during that time.
“We were not allowed to enter the sacristy. Pero bumitin ako sa mga pader para makarating doon. Hindi naman nasayang dahil napansin ako ng secretary niya,” Fr. Franklin recalled. “Tinawag niya ako at sabi niya ‘Can you get the Pope some drinks?’ Tumakbo ako noon, ang dami kong nabangga na tao maikuha siya ng tubig. At pagbalik ko, hinayaan na ako ng secretary na mag-serve sa kanya.”
Fr. Franklin was probably not just the smartest, he also considered himself as the “luckiest” because was able to see the naked back of Pope. “At hinawakan pa nga niya ang kamay ko. Ang lambot.”
Anita Garcia, a professor in UST, remembered the time when she was behind John Paul II in the UST Grandstand.
“I was at the back of the Pope at the same simple stage at the UST Grandstand. [The] crowd [was] shouting ‘Viva el Papa.’ [It was] reverberating in my ears,” Anita said through a text message.
John Paul II visited the Philippines again after 14 years for the celebration of World Youth Day in 1995, the largest crowd during his papacy. Last April 27, he was canonized with his predecessor Saint Pope John XXIII.
‘Spiritual Typhoon’
Exactly 20 years after the closing mass of World Youth Day in 1995, another Pope will visit the Philippine archipelago.
Last July, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) announced that Pope Francis will hold his first apostolic visit in the Philippines on January 15 to 19. The CBCP have yet to announce the full details of the trip, but assured the Filipinos that “they will release [the details] by the end of the year.”
Pope Francis expressed his intention to visit the Philippines to be one with the victims of Typhoon “Yolanda” in a press conference aboard a flight.
According to media reports, Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto, apostolic nuncio to the Philippines, assured that Pope Francis’ visit will be a “spiritual typhoon.”
“The world will be focused on the Pope's visit so in a way, the world will also be focused on us. Hopefully, the world will be made more aware of the situation in those places and rehabilitation efforts will grow more.” With reports from Couleen Conche and Ana Guillen of The Clipboard
Beltran also called his personal encounter with the late pontiff. “Second year theology student pa lang ako noon. Ang unang lumabas sa bibig ko noong dumaan siya ay ‘Wow! This is a Saint!”
He also said that he felt grateful when he knew that Paul VI will be beatified on October 19 as bishops around the world gather for the Synod of Bishops. Cardinal Tagle will be one of the three bishops selected by Pope Francis to preside the gathering.
‘Viva el Papa!’
“Andoon din ako noon!”
This was Fr. Franklin’s reaction when asked if he witnessed the first visit of John Paul II in 1981 during the beatification of Lorenzo Ruiz, who became the first Filipino saint.
Fr. Franklin was probably the smartest seminarian during that time.
“We were not allowed to enter the sacristy. Pero bumitin ako sa mga pader para makarating doon. Hindi naman nasayang dahil napansin ako ng secretary niya,” Fr. Franklin recalled. “Tinawag niya ako at sabi niya ‘Can you get the Pope some drinks?’ Tumakbo ako noon, ang dami kong nabangga na tao maikuha siya ng tubig. At pagbalik ko, hinayaan na ako ng secretary na mag-serve sa kanya.”
Fr. Franklin was probably not just the smartest, he also considered himself as the “luckiest” because was able to see the naked back of Pope. “At hinawakan pa nga niya ang kamay ko. Ang lambot.”
Anita Garcia, a professor in UST, remembered the time when she was behind John Paul II in the UST Grandstand.
“I was at the back of the Pope at the same simple stage at the UST Grandstand. [The] crowd [was] shouting ‘Viva el Papa.’ [It was] reverberating in my ears,” Anita said through a text message.
John Paul II visited the Philippines again after 14 years for the celebration of World Youth Day in 1995, the largest crowd during his papacy. Last April 27, he was canonized with his predecessor Saint Pope John XXIII.
‘Spiritual Typhoon’
Exactly 20 years after the closing mass of World Youth Day in 1995, another Pope will visit the Philippine archipelago.
Last July, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) announced that Pope Francis will hold his first apostolic visit in the Philippines on January 15 to 19. The CBCP have yet to announce the full details of the trip, but assured the Filipinos that “they will release [the details] by the end of the year.”
Pope Francis expressed his intention to visit the Philippines to be one with the victims of Typhoon “Yolanda” in a press conference aboard a flight.
According to media reports, Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto, apostolic nuncio to the Philippines, assured that Pope Francis’ visit will be a “spiritual typhoon.”
“The world will be focused on the Pope's visit so in a way, the world will also be focused on us. Hopefully, the world will be made more aware of the situation in those places and rehabilitation efforts will grow more.” With reports from Couleen Conche and Ana Guillen of The Clipboard