National Shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help
Shrine of Devotion, Shrine of Mission
Redemptorist
Baclaran, Philippines
Urban Mission | Mission
Mission in the City
The original purpose of the Redemptorist in settling down in Baclaran is to do mission. Even when the novena became the main attraction of Baclaran, the Redemptorist never abandoned their parish missions. Throughout these years the shrine have been going around the parishes of the local Diocese doing parish missions, assisting them in Christian community building in line with the thrust of the Philippine Church and our local church.
In recent years, the shrine’s urban mission has focused on assisting and supporting parishes in their efforts towards Basic Ecclesial Community (BEC) building. The urban mission team of the shrine implements this through immersion, evangelization, ongoing formation and education of BEC leaders, liturgical and sacramental celebrations in BEC’s and social services for BEC.
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Objectives and Strategies of Urban Mission
- Popular and prophetic preaching rooted in the Word of God – To denounce sinful issues, socio-political-economic issues but also values, moral, etc. and to announce to the people the good news of Jesus who offers counter values, counter culture, counter symbol, new set of attitudes and perspectives.
- Prophets of HOPE – To awaken in them a sense of hope in the midst of their situation; that by listening to one another and to God in their lives and meditating and reflecting on their situation they become aware of their potentials and role as Christians.
- Prayer/Liturgy/Celebration/Fellowship – To provide venue for the people to gather together in prayer, liturgy, celebration and fellowship that would strengthen their faith and bonding with one another especially of neighborhood communities.
- Commitment and Service – To train, form and strengthen commitment and skills of potential leaders who would lead the people in building BEC
- Witnessing, Immersion, Dialogue of life, fellowship with people – To live close to the people, to listen and share with the people their joys and sorrows, and to witness to the people by our simple lifestyle and caring for one another.
The primary focus of the mission is popular prophetic preaching. The organizing, structural, and organizational component is the responsibility of the parish. The urban mission team, stay and live in the area for at least 3 months. After a year, the mission can follow up the three areas. The secondary focus of the mission is the on-going formation and evangelization of community leaders.
Urban Mission Program
Strategies of Urban Mission
- Popular and prophetic preaching rooted in the word of God
- Social Investigation in order that their own situation could be an input into the evangelization
- Use of Christian signs, symbols and rituals
- Use of cultural forms – musical, concert, play, drama
- Liturgical/Sacraments/Sacramentals, e.g., Eucharist, reconciliation, blessing, procession at the beginning and end of mission
- Social Services: Medical Mission/Feeding Program
- Recollections: Youth Day, Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, Children’s Day
- Use of multi-media for documentation/research/community reflection
Baclaran Pilgrimage-Mission Program
In observance of the celebration of the 150th Jubilee of the entrusting of the Icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help to the Redemptorist, the Redemptorist Community of Baclaran brought the Icon on a pilgrimage to some parishes in the Philippines, especially those parishes under the patronage of Our Mother of Perpetual Help.
The mission-pilgrimage last one week and ideally runs from Monday to Sunday. The objectives of the mission-pilgrimage are:
1. To introduce the meaning of the Icon.
2. To celebrate the 150th Jubilee.
3. To deepen the devotion of the people to Our Mother of Perpetual Help.
4. To strengthen their community through the novena and liturgy.
5. To arouse the missionary spirit of the people as a fruit of their devotion.
The proposed schedule of activities for each day of the seven days mission-pilgrimage are:
5:30 pm – Call to Mission/Assembly
6:00 pm - Novena
6:20 pm – Writing of Thanksgiving/Petition Letters
6:30 pm – Preaching/Evangelization
7:30pm – Eucharist
Daily themes of preached mission are the following:
1st Day: What is an Icon?
2nd Day: Introducing the Icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help – Parts of the Icon
3rd Day: History of the Icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help (through a play by the youth)
4th Day: Icon and Prayer: How to pray with the Icon
5th Day: The Icon and Bible
6th Day: Renewal of Devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help
7th Day: De(bo)Misyon: Devotion as Missional, Mission as Devotional
There was an arrival ceremony-liturgy for the first day of the mission-pilgrimage and a departure ceremony-liturgy for the last day of the mission-pilgrimage. Mission booklets, Icon (original size), novena to Our Mother of Perpetual were sold or given freely to the people (as jubilee gift).
National Shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help
Redemptorist Road,
Baclaran, Parañaque City 1700
Redemptorist Baclaran, 2017
C
Tel: +63 2 8321150
Fax: +63 2 551175
Email: baclaranrector@yahoo.com