Recoletos de Urbiztondo's Parish Church blessed, welcomes newly ordained OAR priests

Urbiztondo, PANGASINAN—“Let us allow the manger to speak for us. Be empty, do not be afraid to let go. Be strong, take courage and stand up for the Lord. As you are strong, be soft inside. Be still and do not get engrossed in too much work. Last of all, be ready and obey all the time.” These were the challenges that were mentioned by Most Rev. Socrates Villegas, DD, Archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan, to the newly ordained Augustinian Recollect priests during their Thanksgiving Mass in the Parish of Our Lady of Visitation—Pasibi East, Urbiztondo, Pangasinan last December 11, 2019.

The newly ordained priests who celebrated their Thanksgiving Mass were: Fray Jorr Rabacal, OAR, Fray Jovy Gallego, OAR, Fray Andrie Pugate, OAR, Fray Tomokatsu Yamaguchi, OAR, and Fray Jessriel Marcha, OAR. Fray Benjamine Monday Edobor, OAR and Fray Maximillian Omem, OAR, were not present during the Thanksgiving Mass because they brought their parents to the airport whose flight back to Nigeria was scheduled on that day.

Being the homilist, Archbishop Villegas, DD, encouraged them to emulate “the manger of Christ” as part of their priestly ministry for the people of God and the Mother Church. He also led the blessing of the newly renovated parish which was attended by several OAR Communities in Luzon, civil officials of Urbiztondo, lay parishioners in the local community, Parish Pastoral Council and all the members of the parish organizations. Indeed, the re-opening of the Parish was a successful event for the local community as well as for the Province of St. Ezekiel Moreno.   

Through the efforts of Architect Dennis Bugarin and all his collaborators, the renovation was completed in just one (1) month. They dedicated most of their time for the beautification of the said parish to meet the cut-off date for the renovation. Architect Dennis and his collaborators’ contribution to the refurbishment of the infrastructure was highly appreciated by the Parish Priest, Fray Joseph Cyprian Panaligan, OAR and the Local Prior of the community, Fray Samson Silloriquez, OAR.     

At this very moment, the Our Lady of Visitation Parish can already hold various sacraments like daily masses, baptism, confession, and scheduled weddings as a venue for these various celebrations. Truly, this sacred place will be the house of prayer not only for the neighboring localities but also for those who are wishing to visit it. In his gratitude message, Fray Samson Silloriquez, OAR emphasized to the people the sanctity of the church by paying respect towards the presence of the Blessed Sacrament in the altar. He even encouraged the people to visit the church and attend the daily masses regularly.   

These two events, the blessing of the parish and the thanksgiving mass of the newly ordained priests, were memorable for the local community of Pasibi East.  These events will always be one of those contributions by the Augustinian Recollects for the local community of Urbiztondo and for the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan. Such events are worthy to be remembered and treasured upon.