Story & Photos By Georgene Quilaton-Tambiga
“Ni Hao! This means hello.”
The Holy Mass in Honor of St. Thomas of Villanova also marked the first meeting and sharing of Rev. Fr. Joel Dequilla, OAR with his new Thomasian Community.
Fr. Dequilla, who is the vice-president for finance and administration, immediately taught the Thomasians the primary greeting of the Augustinian Recollect missionaries and the Taiwanese community in Kaohsiung where he worked for the past 17 years.
The Thomasians, who all tried to seek cover after a warm and gentle shower poured, responded enthusiastically and repeated after the instruction of the newly-arrived missionary.
As he gave a brief background of St. Thomas, the Patron of Studies of the Order of Augustinian Recollects, Fr. Dequilla also echoed the synod by promising Thomasians that: “We journey with you…for you to become ethical, moral and spiritual [members] of the society.”
At least 1,200 Thomasians were in attendance at the CST-R Quadrangle and together with the sections in the Basic Education Department were their respective class advisers and subject teachers. College students were also in attendance.
CST-R President Rev. Fr. Cristopher Maspara, OAR formally introduced Fr. Dequilla to the Thomasian community while Rev. Fr. Monday Benjamine Edobor, OAR, VP for Identify, Formation & Mission, and Rev. Fr. Enrico Peter Silab, OAR, former CST-R Director, concelebrated.
