NOVENA OF SELF-OBLATION,
through the intercession of Bro. Richie Fernando, SJ
- By Mervyn L. Perez 10/08/13 and the Friends of Bro. Richie R. Fernando, SJ
NOTE: THIS IS FOR PRIVATE DEVOTION ONLY
Flow of Prayer:
I- Prayer for Generosity by St. Ignatius of Loyola
Lord, teach me to be generous.
Teach me to serve you as you deserve;
to give and not to count the cost,
to fight and not to heed the wounds,
to toil and not to seek for rest,
to labor and not to ask for reward,
save that of knowing that I do your will.
Amen.
II- Daily Meditation on the Life of Bro. Richie
III- The prayer of One Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory be, in thanksgiving to God for the graces
given to Bro. Richie
IV- The Prayer of Intercession to Bro. Richie Fernando, SJ: God, our loving Father, you have called
Richie to follow Christ in self-sacrifice to save others from the danger of death. Hear our petition
(mention your request) so that he may be proclaimed among the blessed martyrs in his concern
for the poor and desire to lead young people along the path of peace. We ask you this through
Jesus Christ together with the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.
1 to have a Heart for the Poor
GOSPEL: Matthew 5: 1-10
When Jesus saw the crowds, *he went up the mountain, and after he had sat
down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
*
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,*
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,*
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of
evil against you [falsely] because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will
be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- “When Richie was in his second year in Management Engineering, he planned to leave the
course and shift to BS Development Studies. He was becoming restless, bored with M.Eng’g, and
feeling no sense of direction. He no longer aspired for glamorous office work. He said, “I will be
serving the poor directly when I graduate… Anyway I only want a simple life. I want to be of
service to the poor.” Despite the sadness that his family felt with this decision, he continued to
follow this call from Jesus.
Richie’s mother would sometimes remind him that as a Jesuit, he must always be presentable.
He always wears t-shirts, sandals and torn pants. He said, “How can I convince the poor people
if I am wearing good clothes? How can I relate to them if I look different from them? How can
they approach me if I look unapproachable? It is by mingling with them , and, by becoming one
of them that I can win them over to the Lord.”
2. Hearing the Call of the Good Shepherd
Gospel: John 15: 15-17
Jesus said “I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his
master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I
have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you
and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask
the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another.
- While the call within his heart is getting more intense, he resolved to continue on charitable works and
intensify his prayer. In 1987, he wrote in his diary that this was “the Year of the First Yes”. He
recounted that he was attending the yearly Ignatius Mass in the Ateneo. During the Consecration, he
experienced “a highly intense calling, which he called an EXPLOSION- the highest high, calling me
through affirmation.” At last, he felt that the Lord Himself has affirmed him that he was called.
Thereafter, he approached his father, and said, “Daddy, am I the most good looking among your
children? Daddy do you consider me the most intelligent… am I your Number One?” His daddy said yes.
Richie continued, “Daddy, if you are making an offering to God, would you not give the best and your
number one? Daddy I want to be a priest. I now know that you will allow me to join the Jesuits since you
told me that you only give the BEST and your NUMBER ONE to GOD!”
When Fr. Blanco, the Novice Master, interviewed Richie, he asked, “Why are you on in a hurry?” Richie
said, “Father, I am not in a hurry- God is the One who is in a hurry for me.”
3. Living a Life of Generosity
GOSPEL: Luke 6: 36-38
Jesus said to his disciples, “Be merciful, just as [also] your Father is merciful.
Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be
condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and gifts will be given to you; a
good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured
into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured
out to you.”
- Richie’s brother in law, Chito, remembers their mountain climbing in Batangas. During the hike, Richie
moved so fast… it seems that he wanted to be alone… to commune with nature and with God. He
befriended people along the way. He met an old woman with a cigarette whose lighted edge was inside
her mouth. Richie too imitated the woman. This was a gesture of becoming a gift for others.
On August 19, 1988, the birthday of his first spiritual guide, Fr. Manny Flores, he wrote this prayer:
A Prayer of Thanksgiving
Lord, thank you very much for all the graces you have given me. The grace of prayer, the invitation to
love, to return to Your fold, to follow You, to have enthusiasm in all my tasks.
Thank you for the friends You have given me, for my brothers who accompany me in this journey. Thank
you for the grace of the community, of country, and for the Calling.
I would like to make an Offering. I would like to love. I am offering everything to You, my God!
Thank you San Ignacio, Mama Mary… Happy Birthday Fr. Manny Flores, SJ!”
4. A Vocation journey with Mary
GOSPEL: Luke 1: 39-48
During those days Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town
of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When
Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth,
filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you
among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen
to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the
sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be
fulfilled.”
And Mary said:*
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid’s
lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed.
- During the Novitiate, Fr. Jose Blanco, SJ, the Novice Master, sent Bro. Richie and his Partner, Bro. Totet,
to go on Pilgrimage on Foot. Their destination was Nuestra Senora de Aranzazu in San Mateo, Rizal. This
was in imitation of what their Great Founder, Saint Ignatius, when he visited different Marian Shrines in
Europe. The journey was set on October 14, 1990. After a heavy breakfast, they left Sacred Heart
Novitiate without any food. Walking past Lagro and they arrived at Mary the Queen Parish (Richie’s
Home Parish) where the 6 AM Mass was said. They arrived while the GLORIA was sung. They entrusted
themselves to the protection of Mama Mary, asking her to place them with her Son. They continued on
their way. Surprisingly, at every chapel or parish they pass by and pray to, they chance to arrive as the
GLORIA is intoned.They felt the plight o the different communities they pass by, their sufferings and
struggles, yet their cheerfulness and generosity was evident, as these people helped the two pilgrims.
They arrived in Aranzazu Church at 2:40 PM. Richie said, “I think God willed for us to take the long and
unknown route so that we may experience all the marvels and graces we have received so far in this
pilgrimage. This is too much… it’s just wonderful! I am here in front, venerating our Blessed Mother!” He
fingered the Glorious Mysteries in reverent prayer, since he forgot his beads. On the 5 th Mystery, he said
he saw the image of the Blessed Mother, crowned as Queen of Heaven, interceding for them, the Jesuits
and for them. He couldn’t forget the smiles of San Ignacio and San Francisco Javier. His happiness
renewed his strength, peace of mind and heart.
5. The Trials that Conform me to Christ
Reading: Galatians 4: 12-20
I implore you, brothers, be as I am, because I have also become as you are. You did me no
wrong; you know that it was because of a physical illness that I originally preached the gospel to
you, and you did not show disdain or contempt because of the trial caused you by my physical
condition, but rather you received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus.Where now is that
blessedness of yours?* Indeed, I can testify to you that, if it had been possible, you would have
torn out your eyes and given them to me. So now have I become your enemy by telling you the
truth? They show interest in you, but not in a good way; they want to isolate you,* so that you
may show interest in them.j Now it is good to be shown interest for good reason at all times, and
not only when I am with you. My children, for whom I am again in labor until Christ be formed
in you! I would like to be with you now and to change my tone, for I am perplexed because of
you.
- During the Novitiate, Bro. Richie was subjected to different trials in the mission fields, hospital, factory
and others. These are some of his thoughts:
Hospital Trials: “I did feel a great sense of mission, a sense of being sent by the masters, by the Society
of Jesus, by Christ Himself. I was sent to the community of patients and aides at the mental Hospital. My
way of relating would be that of Christ: choosing poverty, insults and humility for God’s greater service
and praise. “
Urban Poor trials: “I also felt pity, compassion and a desire to be of service to the people by helping
them realize that they do have a choice and they can be free. However, during the trials, I knew that I
could only do this from the vantage point of being a weak and broken person. I reached out to people
from a point of weakness and poverty, and not from a point of power and riches. And this is the perfect
example of following Christ: in poverty, insults and humility. Witnessing the Gospel and serving the
people became more effective.”
6. Living the Way of Chastity and greater charity
GOSPEL: Matthew 4: 1-10
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. He
fasted for forty days and forty nights,* and afterwards he was hungry. The
tempter approached and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that
these stones become loaves of bread.” He said in reply, “It is written:
‘One does not live by bread alone,but by every word that comes forth from the
mouth of God.’”
*
Then the devil took him to the holy city, and made him stand on the parapet of
the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For
it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you’ and ‘with their hands
they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’”
Jesus answered him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the
test.’” Then the devil took him up to a very high mountain, and showed him all the
kingdoms of the world in their magnificence, and he said to him, “All these I shall give to
you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.”* At this, Jesus said to him, “Get
away, Satan! It is written:
‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship
and him alone shall you serve.’” Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came
and ministered to him.
- During his 30 day retreat, Richie experienced the workings of the devil which attacked his weaknesses:
his extravagant tendencies, his desires of the flesh, his being a pest at times with his colleagues. Yet he
was filled with a deep sense of trust in God’s mercy, God’s saving power, God’s choice of him, a sinner,
to be a companion of Jesus.
Later, during his Urban Poor Trials in Taguig, he experienced a lot of self-denial moments. He was
harshly treated by the store owners when he volunteered as a cargador ng retazos”… to let go of my
needs of affiliation when I declined offers for drinking sessions. At one time, I was offered sex. Of course,
I said ‘No.’
7. The Mission ‘Ad Gentes’- “As the Father has sent Me, so I send you”
GOSPEL: John 20: 19-23
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where
the disciples* were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and
said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his
hands and his side.* The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. [Jesus] said to
them again,l “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And
when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy
Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are
retained.”
- According to Oral Traditon, Bro. Richie attended the Tenth World Youth Day in Manila, Philippines,
together with Bro. Totet and the Cambodian Pilgrims. He must have heard the challenge of the Great
Saint, John Paul II, during the homily, “Dear People of God in the Philippines, go forth in the
power of the Holy Spirit to renew the face of the earth – your own world first, your
families, your communities and the nation to which you belong and which you love;
and the wider world of Asia, towards which the Church in the Philippines has a
special responsibility before the Lord; you Filipino young people have a special
responsibility before the Lord for Asia. And all of you, not only the Filipino people
(Mubuhay!), have the same responsibility before the Lord and the world beyond,
working through faith for the renewal of God’s whole creation. That is your
responsibility, your calling, everywhere, in Europe, in Africa, in both Americas, in
Australia, everywhere!”
The Holy Father’s words and the challenge of the World Youth Day, moved Richie to
go on the Missionary Work to Cambodia. His regency was aimed at making a
personal integration of the spiritual life, community life and apostolic life and to be
gradually exposed to and integrated into the Apostolic Body of the Society of Jesus.
After the Sending-off Mass in San Carlos Seminary, February 27, 1995, he felt
overjoyed. It was his birthday and this was also the day when he is sent for the
Cambodia Mission. At the end of the day, he said, “There is nothing missing. Almost
everything, God gave me. A life. A calling. Friends. The Mission. There’s nothing else
for me but to give myself to God and the mission!”
8. Cambodia
EPISTLE: 2 Cor. 4: 1-12
Therefore, since we have this ministry through the mercy shown us, we are not
discouraged. Rather, we have renounced shameful, hidden things; not acting
deceitfully or falsifying the word of God, but by the open declaration of the truth
we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even
though our gospel is veiled,* it is veiled for those who are perishing,in whose case
the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, so that they may
not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For
we do not preach ourselves* but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your
slaves for the sake of Jesus. For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”
has shone in our hearts to bring to light the knowledge of the glory of God on the
face of [Jesus] Christ.
But we hold this treasure* in earthen vessels, that the surpassing power may be of
God and not from us. We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained;
perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck
down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so
that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body. For we who live are
constantly being given up to death for the sake of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus
may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you.
- he was learning Khmer 3 hours a day, 5 days a week. Loneliness and homesickness
crept in… but the joy of the Mission remains in his heart. He was such a friendly
person around the Jesuit Mission.
To Richie, the Cambodia Mission was rich in experience. Although they wanted to
give great service to the nation, the people and the Church there, Richie said, “We
have been learning, receiving much in return… I feel closer to God… my character
more formed/molded… and I am slowly coming to terms with my state of life, as a
Jesuit, as a man in a mission.”
9. To lay down his life for his friends
Gospel: John 15: 9-14
Jesus said to his disciples, “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in
my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I
have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.
“I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.
This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love
than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.14You are my friends if you do
what I command you.”
- days before he died, he wrote Bro. Totet: I know where my heart is… it is with Jesus
Christ… Jesus who gave His all for the poor, the sick, the orphans, etc. I feel as if I am
beginning to understand more when I say, I want to be like Christ, I will follow Jesus.
I am Jesus’ friend and companion. I am a Jesuit. I know where my heart is… My heart
is with the poor, our students. Even if my ritual for spiritual life is a zero, I feel I am
very close to Jesus. I am very happy.”
One can sense that it was his desire to offer his life for his Cambodian friends, when
he wrote again to Bro. Totet: “I remember you shared before that ‘I can die for
Cambodia’. Now I understand you. I honestly believe that to die for our poor friends
here will be the greatest gift that God can give to us, and I continually pray for that
grace everyday.”
This grace was given him on October 17, 1996. He offered his life to save his students
from a grenade explosion, even Sarom, who brought the grenade.
