Repair of Church Bodega Begins

With the onset of the rainy season and in response to the rising incidence of theft in the parish, especially of things stored in the bodega behind the church, the PPC has taken upon itself to rehabilitate the bodega.

Its dilapidated state has also resulted in a number of things getting damaged from the elements. As Father Luke emphasized in his catechism on stewardship, it is the parish leaders who must take responsibility over the care and protection of these communal property.

Thus toward the end of June, the PPC started a fund-raising campaign and with the generous contributions of well-meaning and benevolent parishioners, the project has gotten underway.

As of the last week of July 2011, total donations amounted to P99,964 while total expenses totalled P44,546 and outstanding payables totalled P47,756.00 for a net cash position of P7,662.00. In the forthcoming issues, we shall a running tally of the funds coming in vis-à-vis the expenses until the ongoing project is completed.

Solemn Gala Procession Begins Fiesta Activities

Every year, for the past several years, on the occasion of the patron saint’s feast day, the image of San Lorenzo Ruiz is brought to all areas of the parish in a grand festive procession.

This year differs from the rest in that the parish also held a solemn gala candlelight procession last July 23 to kick off the nine-week novena for our beloved saint’s feast day on September 28. It was participated in by the different ministries and organizations in the parish with their members dressed in their gala uniforms. They were also joined by other parishioners and devotees of San Lorenzo.

The procession is a way for our patron saint to invite all his constituents to join in the preparation and celebration of the 24th founding anniversary of the parish this coming September.

CFC Conducts Christian Life Seminar in Parish

Couples for Christ - Foundation for Family & Life (CFC-FFL) is a Catholic movement intended for the renewal and strengthening of Christian family life. CFC-FFL works with Christian couples and establishes families committed to the work of evangelization and other community services. It grows mainly through localized units in different parishes.

The Christian Life Seminar (CLS) is the initiation course leading into a life in the Holy Spirit. More specifically, it is the entry point into CFC-FFL. It is an integrated course intended to lead seminar participants into a renewed understanding of God’s call to them as Christians and their commitment to Christian family life.

The CFC-FFL Chapter of San Lorenzo Ruiz Parish, under the servant leadership of Bro. Reggie Mercado, is conducting a Christian Life Seminar (CLS) which started last Saturday, July 16, 2011 at the SLRP Multi-Purpose Hall from 7:30-10:30pm. It will run for a total of 9 separate sessions held once a week every Saturday until September 10. The seminar is open to all Christian married couples of any age.

The CLS commenced with the CFC-FFL members and service team, led by Team Leader, Bro. Jules Siguenza, welcoming all the participants who came not only from surrounding areas under San Lorenzo Ruiz parish but from other parishes as well. Formal sessions started with a group prayer with everyone joining later on for a short but lively singing of worship songs. Then the first talk was given by Bro. Paul Price which was all about God’s Love. A third vital component of the CLS, the discussion groups, were formed and handled by different members of the chapter. Afterwards, everyone shared some snacks and time for fellowship.

It is God’s plan that the family be the basic unit of society. However, there are many forces in the world today that try to destroy that foundation. CFC-FFL’s mission is to rise in defense of the family and to strengthen it , through doing God’s works.


With it, we are inviting all couples to join the Christian Life Seminar (CLS). Help us continue to intensify the foundation of every family in our community. Not only does each couple develop a special relationship with God, they also will learn ways to nurture that relationship with abundant love and at the same time guide their children towards a better Christian life.

In CFC-FFL, a couple gains a new family of brothers and sisters and a strong environment of support for their needs in the nurturing the family. Journeying with us will allow God’s blessing to come their way as they begin to experience a better life.

Come and participate in the renewal and discover the power of the Holy Spirit’s work in your family.

PPC Buckles Down To Work For Fiesta 2011

Last July 9, in its regular monthly meeting, the PPC began serious preparations for this year’s fiesta acitvities. With the heads of the different ministries in participation, the PPC divided itself into three committees: Liturgical Committee, which will handle all worship related activities, Non-Liturgical Committee, which will handle all social, cultural, sports, recreational and fellowship activities, and the Finance Committee, which will handle all fund-raising needs of the fiesta.

These committees are headed by:

Liturgical Committee—Father Luke and Ate Aida Arines, head of the Worship Committee

Non-Liturgical Committee—Kuya Cesar Tiongson, PPC Coordinator and Ate Josie Cruz, Asst. PPC Coordinator

Finance Committee—Ate Tess Virata PPC Treasurer and Ate Mayette Tiongson

These different committees worked on their plans and activities. They will be responsible for ensuring the coordination and participation of all ministries and organizations in the activities lined up for the fiesta celebrations and the success of the events.

PREX Resumes with Seminar #92

In May 2011, Fr. Bienvenido Luke Dobles, SLRP Parish Priest and PREX Spiritual Director gave his blessing to resume the PREX (Parish Renewal Experience) after a 1-year hiatus. Changes were incorporated to accommodate the new parish realities. The process of choosing the couples to make up the new PREX Secretariat was arrived at after intense prayer and much reflection. It took another month of prayer and reflection before these couples were finally confirmed. The Secretariat is made up of couples who are not new to parish work. In fact they already serve in different organizations in the parish in varying capacities. They have vowed to God to work as a team to commit to undertake the task of steering the PREX movement in SLRP in the direction set by Fr. Luke. The Secretariat is made up of Kuya Ed/Ate Bel Geronimo as Asst Chair-couple, Kuya Ed/Ate Hermie Chua as Treasurer, Kuya Peter/Ate LinaTamayo as Auditor and Head of the Food Ministry respectively, Kuya Joi/Ate Cecile Lumba as head of the Music Ministry and yours truly as Chair-couple.

Immediately after the confirmation of the new Secretariat, the group, with Father, met every Wednesday for the next 5 weeks to prepare for PREX 92 which was slated for the first weekend of July. Each meeting began with faith sharing, an innovation introduced by Fr. Luke. Each team member was given a specific task to perform even as the team worked in unity and harmony to ensure the success of the seminar.

The Secretariat adopted the practices that were effective in the past seminars and made adjustments in the schedule of the talks and activities to make each participant seriously go through the logical process of self-examination, understanding and cleansing and to become better Catholics. All the speakers and sharers were tapped from our parish. Valuable inputs, insights, experiences and support from previous PREX secretariats, from the immediate past Chair-couple Kuya Buddy/Ate Bing Lising and Ate Lulu Visaya helped make the transition smooth. All throughout, the Secretariat was guided by God’s love and the belief that the PREX is really a process of evangelization through a series of inter-related talks and sharing. As a result of the changes, fewer servants were needed during the 3-day seminar. The PPC, through its members, also assisted. The AP, BRC and LOM organizations led the prayer brigades while many other generous people contributed their time, talent and treasure. At the end of 3 days, Batch 92 produced 19 new graduates.

The question now for the graduates is “What’s next after graduation?” We are happy to note that to-date most of the graduates are present in the weekly meetings as they prepare for the next seminar, PREX 93. They are now in the process of discerning where and how to best serve as active members of the SLRP community.

With this, we are encouraging all our parishioners who have not experienced this seminar to come and join us and see God’s showering of love through the PREX. Our next seminar, PREX 93 will be on September 2-4, 2011.