When tropical storm Paeng rained down on us in October, St. Scholastica Spirituality Center (SSCS) lived under a cloud of fog for days. The grounds were littered with broken branches, twigs and leaves and roofs leaked where the winds had torn down gutters and windows. However, the skies lifted up on All Saints and All Souls and we could clean the debris away. Then the November courses gained momentum.
The November month was a like a preview of good days ahead, so to say, with a full occupancy of the Center. The visitors consisted of roughly four different retreatant groups. First, the big group of 92 clergy with their bishop from the Maasin Diocese came for their regular yearly retreat after the confining years of the pandemic. The priests turned their retreat into a combination of prayer, bonding and relaxation. Their rigid schedule included a two-hour recreation daily which afforded some younger priests time to play basketball and badminton on the seminary grounds of the Tahanan ng Mabuting Pastol.
Then there were two big groups of Marriage Encounter couples who came for their own weekend programs of talks, liturgy and musical ministry to renew their marriage bonds. Also, the overnight stints of our college students from Manila and the high school students from Westgrove occupied the Center with their recollections under the guidance of their CMO sisters.
Lastly, there were new clientele, such as the Sisters and employees of SSC Westgrove, the Servants of the Lord’s Vineyard (SOLV), the Paco Church lay ministers, the Light of Christ Healing Ministry, and the Resurrection Parish lay group, mostly on weekends.
These guests and visitors were invariably delighted with the hospitality and services they found in SSCS and ever grateful for the church services, the delicious meals, and the neat rooms and grounds. They requested for reservations in advance for 2023 so as to secure a slot in the Center.
