DNL’s Speech during the Testimonial Dinner for Fr. Ernesto
Lagura, SVD, newly-installed President of the Holy Name University, at
the Bohol Tropics Resort Grand Ballroom on July 19, 2005.
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| ``Fine Wine Comes From Fine Vine`` |
Nearly everybody who is somebody in our community is with us tonight. That
makes it more convenient for me because I won’t have to acknowledge everyone
who is present.
The presence of everybody can only mean one thing: Fr. Erning Lagura whom we
are honoring tonight is indeed well loved. As the saying goes, success is
relative – the more success, the more relatives.
You won’t be hearing the story of Fr. Erning’s life from me. I have not
recalled receiving any appointment to be his biographer.
Allow me however to highlight significant events that to me are worth looking
into to appreciate the man’s humble yet unmistakable role in the lord’s
vineyard.
Fine grapevines produce the finest grapes. It does not come as a surprise that
the late Simeon and Catalina Lagura, who were both fine teachers in their
time, would produce fine students including Fr. Erning. A dutiful student of
life, Fr. Erning has spent a great deal of his life to the cause of education.
Though he has a variety of titles to choose from, father, attorney and
father-president, he will always be regarded as an educator in the real sense
of the word.
There is an anecdote about Fr. Erning that I would like to share with you
because it has helped me understand what the priesthood means to him. Let me
apologize however for sharing it publicly without the prior permission of our
honoree tonight.
I learned that Fr. Ernie is the only son in a brood of six children. A very
intelligent student, he graduated valedictorian in both elementary and high
school. His grandfather had wanted him to be a physician, so his parents sent
him to the University of Santo Tomas, for a long time the premiere institution
of learning in the medical field.
By that time however, Fr. Ernie had started hearing the still small voice that
called him to a life in the lord’s vineyard. And so when the late Fr. Alphonse
Lesage knew about it, he sent Fr. Joseph Bates to ask for the permission of
Fr. Erning’s parents.
They say it is easy to bear another person’s headache and so it would be easy
for us to miss the dilemma faced by Fr. Erning’s parents when they first knew
that their only son wanted to be a priest.
Then and now, the priesthood requires a life of sacrifice. Out of their great
love for their only son, it must have pained them to imagine him deprived of
the comfort and the ease they would gladly provide for him if given the
privilege.
As Fr. Bates was searching for the right words to say to Fr. Erning’s parents,
God intervened. Earlier on that fateful day, a promising doctor asked for the
hand of Fr. Erning’s sister, Virgie. Fr. bates had the analogy he needed to
make his proposition easier for Fr. Erning’s parents.
In so many words, Fr. bates issued the call to them: if you could entrust the
hand of your daughter to a man you know only faintly, how could you not
entrust the life of your son to the God you worship faithfully?
Fr. bates got the approval he came for and Fr. Erning the vocation he prayed
for. In that fateful moment, obedience to god prevailed over human concern.
This incident helped me appreciate not only Fr. Erning’s determination to be a
priest but also the greatness of his parents’ love for him. Like Abraham who
was prepared to offer his son Isaac, Fr. Erning’s parents were willing to
offer their only son to the God they worship.
For one ordained in the priesthood in Illinois, Fr. Erning could have taken
the easy way. Instead, he chose to return to the Philippines after working
sometime in the US. His first assignment was Mindoro, first as assistant
parish priest of Calapan and then to San Jose where he would eventually serve
as high school principal.
Many people have not gone to Mindoro, but it is definitely an assignment that
military officers would not consider a part of the “Marlboro Club”, so called
because they referred to the choice assignments when Marlboro was the leading
cigarette brand in the country.
For one who is true to his vows, Fr. Erning knew that it is the humble people,
the simple farmers, the Mangyans and ethnic groups and all those that society
consider least that are greatest in the sight of God. Unlike others who cannot
stand the sight of impoverished surroundings and seek comfort and affluence
elsewhere, Fr. Erning was in his element.
Like a choice pearl that will eventually be plucked out no matter how deep it
is hidden and brought to light, Fr. Erning would slowly make a tour of the
SVD’s version of the Marlboro Club. He would serve as president of the Divine
Word College in San Jose, then the Divine Word University in Tacloban and then
the University of San Carlos in Cebu City.
While most men would equate greatness with the positions they occupy, Fr.
Erning remained a humble and dutiful worker in the vineyard, accepting the
position of vice-president for academic affairs even after he was through
serving as president.
In their twilight years, Fr. Erning’s parents desired to see their only son
serve on Boholano soil. And while Fr. Erning made himself available for any
such posting, his parents’ wish remained elusive until today.
Like many dedicated parents, it was their dream to see their only son not only
follow in their footsteps as an educator but also to work as a servant among
his people.
I would like to believe that while Fr. Erning wanted this assignment in
deference to the wishes of his parents, he also genuinely wanted to make a
difference among his kind.
As SVD insiders say, an assignment to work with one’s own people is the
greatest compliment that the society can confer to one of its own. In a way,
this is what we call an assignment that everybody wanted.
Forgive me if I may venture to say that perhaps the reason why Fr. Erning’s
life truly appeals to me is because of several striking similarities.
Like Fr. Lagura, I wanted to serve in Tagbilaran in deference to the wishes of
my parents. To the younger generation, let me share with you that my father
remains on record as the only independent councilor ever to serve in the city
while my mother won as vice mayor in 1992 on her very first candidacy for a
public office.
Like Fr. Erning who shunned the wide road that leads to the asphalt jungle in
the metropolis, I have insisted to take the beaten path back to the land of my
roots.
Like Fr. Erning who could have followed the course set by sisters who are all
successful professionals in their respective fields, I could have been like my
sister who runs the P100-million Bohol Tropics Resort.
Like Fr. Erning who was not granted this assignment when he first wanted it, I
was not given the chance to serve the city in my previous bids.
And yet, there is more to life than simply taking the easy road. The beaten
path may be too familiar to be boring. The road less taken is more exciting
and more rewarding.
The vine is an interesting plant. It cannot stand on its own. Its stems
require support if it intends to grow vertically otherwise it will just have
to creep along the ground.
Since olden times, grapes and raisins that yield the finest wine are produced
by vines. Little wonder that winemaking was known and understood by most
people during the time of Jesus. This was the reason why the grapevine is
mentioned often in the Bible - because the people knew exactly what Jesus
talked about in His parables.
Like the vine that needs help to be able to rise vertically, I am sure Fr.
Erning will agree with me that God’s reassuring presence has never failed to
prop him up every time.
It has been said that the life of the vine is “not of pleasure nor of ease”.
Almost before the flower fades the fruit begins to grow, but instead of being
allowed to grow where it will, it is immediately tied to a stake, forced to
draw out its nourishment from the hard earth.
When the fair shoot starts to grow, the gardener comes with the pruning shears
and strips it bare of all its initial progress. And when the vine gets to bear
fruit and bends low with the weight of the grapes, the gardener comes to strip
it of every fruit until it is barely recognizable. Finally, it is cut into
pieces and planted elsewhere to start a whole new process.
I’m sure many people recognize the vine’s travails in their lives. So many
times, it seems we start off on the wrong foot. Just when we thought we are
off to a good start, something comes to strip us of all our initial gains.
The role of the vine in life is not to wilt with its fruits unharvested. If it
does, it has not served its purpose. The measure of the vine is in the joy of
all the people who eat and drink of its fruit.
The measure of life is not so much the wealth that we surround ourselves with
or the titles that we attach to our names. It is in the positive change we
make in the lives of people we meet and serve.
What makes it interesting is that just as the vine gathers renewed interest to
grow and bloom after it is cut to pieces and planted in a new vineyard, those
who have experienced the joy of making a difference in other people’s lives
don’t get tired doing so. As the saying goes, there is no better exercise for
the heart than bending down and lifting people up.
This may be an entirely new experience for Fr. Erning considering that this
will be his first assignment at the Holy Name University. And yet, it is not
entirely new in the sense that he has made service a life-long vocation both
as a priest and as an educator.
He has shown us that he is one vine that blooms where he is planted. Long
after he became a priest, he studied and became a lawyer, proving that there
is no limit to learning as long as you are eager to learn.
I am sure that on his new assignment, all the wisdom and knowledge that he has
richly accumulated through the years will come in handy to meet the new
challenges of a new vineyard.
When the gardener comes with his pruning shears to strip the young shoots, I
am sure Fr. Erning will not be alone to face his challenges. I won’t speak for
all of us who are here but I can assure Fr. Erning of a listening ear from one
who is also new on the job.
I am sure that Holy Name University can look forward to more golden harvests
in the years to come not only because it remains committed to academic
excellence, research and community extension, not only because the man at the
helm is a dedicated branch in the Lord’s vineyard but because God is the true
vine. Notwithstanding the pessimism around us, this is still God’s world.
Thank you and good evening. |
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