"Good morning to everyone! There are solemn moments in our lives when we find we are at a loss for words. Today is one of those moments for me. My heart’s gratitude to God and to all of you is beyond any words to express. So, let me simply say “Thank you!”.
I thank the Lord for granting me 25 blessed years of walking beside Him in faithfulness and love. I thank Him for the precious gift of my life, vocation and the challenging mission He has entrusted to me here in the Philippines. I thank the Lord for all the wonderful things He has done for me. Please pray for me that I may love Him, follow Him and serve Him faithfully all the days of my life. May He let me walk beside Him forever.
Twenty-five years seems but a short time compared to God’s eternal love for you and for me. God’s Will has unfolded in infinitely wonderful ways. His seed has borne much fruit. These past 15 years here in Cebu has truly been a marvelous adventure of faith and surrender, of courage, hope and love. We also experienced our fair share of crosses, trials, and challenges, but the light and strength, the grace and providence of God never failed. God has always taken care of us. Every day is a gift. Our communities have slowly grown, vocations continue to flourish. God has been so good to us. We are forever grateful to You, O Lord.
Mons. Carlito Puno (parrocco), Padre Dong (dei Verbiti)
e Padre Paschal (francescani dell'Immacolata)
To
dear St. Joseph, who has always been a special patron for me and our community,
I offer my gratitude for his loving providence and constant intercession.
I
deeply thank our beloved Institute, the Congregation of the Daughters of St.
Camillus, most especially our Very Reverend Mother General, Mother Laura
Biondo, for her maternal guidance and unfailing love for us.
My
deepest gratitude goes to our past Mother General, Mother Serafina dalla Porta.
She was the one accepted me into the Institute, accompanying and guiding me
throughout all these years of formation, apostolate and mission. Everything I
am, I owe in a great part for her love and inspiration. I thank also Superior
Ubertina e Sister Teresa for guiding me in a special way.
I
thank our dear Superiors and Sisters in Brazil who have donated us as a gift to
the Institute and to the mission.
I
wish to thank for Msgr. Carlito Pono presiding over this Eucharistic
celebration. Thank you for your availability and generous support to our
community.
Thank
you very much to all the priests who concelebrated this Holy Mass.
I also extend our
heartfelt gratitude to all the sisters of the different congregations who have
come today. We thank you for your presence and
especially for your prayers.
I
thank most deeply my parents and my entire family for their love and support,
especially their unceasing prayers for my perseverance, which has always been a
source of strength for me.
A
loving thanks to our dear Lolas for giving us the opportunity to serve Jesus in
them. And thank you to all our staff workers and personnel who help us in our
apostolate.
Thank
you also to the acolytes from our parish for their presence here.
I
especially thank our choir master, Mr. Reynante Redelosa and the members of our
DSC community for making this celebration solemn and beautiful with their
angelic voices.
For
all the sisters in our communities, a very special thank you! I stand before
you today as one who has simply put all her trust and hope in God. Thank you
for sharing every step of the way with me, for your constant prayers, your help
and encouragement. May God bless you and help you never lose the joy of loving
God alone as He desires and of dedicating the rest of your lives to His
service, in fidelity to the teachings of St. Camillus and our Blessed Founders.
For
my dear novices, postulants, aspirants
and young ones, thank you for letting me share in the joy and wonder of your
lives. It has been my great blessing and privilege to accompany you in your own
journey to God. Thank you for opening your hearts to me and inspiring me to
become better. I humbly place myself in the hands of God, asking Him to let me
be a little instrument to offer His love and mercy to each one of you.
To
all our dear benefactors, neighbors and friends, thank you for all your
prayers, help and support. These have always been a source of encouragement and
consolation for me. We are very much grateful for everything you have shared
with us. In the name of the Daughters of St. Camillus and all the members of
our community, I thank each one of you with all my heart.
And
for each one of you, I heartily thank you for being God’s gift to me. May the
Lord enfold you and your loved ones, your communities and families with His
love and grace. May His light and joy always shine forth in your lives. And may
you always be true lamps to illumine the way for others and lead them to God.
The
most important lesson of these many years of patiently striving to imitate our
Lord is that nothing grows without
having died first. I, too, am but clay in the hands of the Master whom we
all love and serve. Such has been my life, surrendered to the loving hands of
God. Everything He has done through me is all thanks to His grace and mercy.
Please
continue to pray for me. We can only accomplish what we ought to do for God’s
glory only by His grace. With your prayers, help me ask the Lord to grant me
the grace to always do His Divine Will. May He sustain me in His service that I
may continue to follow and serve Him with fidelity and love all my life.
Thank
you very much for sharing the joy of this special day with me. God bless you!
Prayer to St. Joseph
O St. Joseph,
whose protection is so great and so
strong before the Eternal God,
I place before you all my prayers and
desires.
Dear St. Joseph, assist us by your
powerful intercession
and obtain for us from your Divine Son
all spiritual blessings.
Heavenly Father,
Help us to be faithful to Your Word
and endure our exile bravely,
until we are called to the heavenly
marriage feast
to which the Virgin Mary, Exemplar of
Your Church, has preceded us. Amen.
Thank you and please join us in our
fraternal meal in the Novitiate House."
Sr. Eliani.
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