Thursday, June 30, 2005
A son has returned home
By Danilo V. Adorador, III
THE story about the return of a prodigal son keeps coming back to mind every time we hear an act of contrition. Of late vintage is the President, only that her case was not a homecoming after a wayward fancy, but a coming into her own senses.
But here is a friend who is finally returning back to his home, the Eco Church Parish, after a brief hiatus, albeit a long journey to life.
Father Jose Daniel Coronel happily sent me an SMS over this weekend to inform me that he has finally been reinstated in his home parish. And he is back with a vengeance...against his own demons, against the intrinsic human frailties that almost had his faith and self-esteem shaken.
The extraordinary act of owning guilt in public. The uninhibited, no-second-thought expression of deep remorse. The lonely days of ponderance. The anger management workshop and all.
Such selflessness worthy of emulation has finally paid off. For Father Daniel, God really forgives the repentant. And He does it with rewards.
What can be remembered now is not the infraction that this young priest had done and properly acknowledged, but the enormity of the message he has sacrificially etched on every one of us.
Laying a hand on someone out of sheer anger and desperation may appear plain and unexceptional to human experience, and as such is obliterated in memories by time. What is elusive to oblivion are the noble acts of men. Good deeds, after all, are a lasting legacy rather than building pyramids.
Did his friends shun him in the darkness of hours? A few, yes and he understood.
"I will have to face this alone if I have to. This is now between me and my Savior," he says during my first conversation with him.
But God gave him almost all of his friends...not without a reason. For they were there when he needed them most. For one, his Angel whom he delights calling "My Muse," a lady parishioner who stayed with him through thick and thin, was there all the way.
If Saint Joan of Arc was enamoredly called "The Maid," this lady has the same toughness and grace, helping Father Dan rally the last two minutes of his vulnerability.
The Archbishop himself was there. His gentle voice and sound advice constantly reminded him that he is mortal and that above him is the ever-flowing mercy of the Immortal One.
Father Dan's parishioners, even from those as distant as Camiguin whom he previously served were there to reassure him and express their support. Their letters, notes, cell phone messages reached him like manna from heaven. His joy abounds whenever he receives comforting words.
This is a letter from a couple in Sagay, a remote town in Camiguin, one of his previous assignments:
"Father Dan, the people of Sagay, I tell you, are always praising you--that you're good in dealing with us. You are a diligent priest and good in Personal Relations. I'm telling the truth and nothing but the truth. The convent was always lively (when you were here), and many people came there because you entertained them all. We thank you for the services you rendered here in our town."
Simple yet sincere, this correspondence is enough to arch a smile within Father Dan's face.
This one from another couple, Elmer and Lilia Gacus, offered a view where one can look into an attribute Father Dan is often misinterpreted, providing answers of his unique persona:
"We admire your being frank and disciplinarian yet loving and forgiving. Your commitment and dedication to your mission is commendable. Like any other priest, you can't afford to lose a single soul that's why you always find effective means to attract churchgoers. We never had a dull moment with you. You are one among the best priests we have known."
An excellent exponent of humility, Father Dan is, indeed, one of the best priests I have personally known.
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (June 30, 2005 issue)
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