Below is an extract from a letter sent by Fr Vincent Busch to the Columbans in Britain. Fr Vincent works with the Subanen community in the Philippines and supports the Subanen Crafts ministry, which he has done now for 20 years.
The Subanen crafters celebrate at their Christmas party. Photo: Fr Vincent Busch
The crafters and I are safe. We have survived a province-wide flood event that began on Christmas day. All 15 towns and cities on our 100-kilometre coastline are under mud and water due to incessant monsoon rains that cascaded down Mt Malindang from 25th – 28th December 2022. Farm animals, bridges, roads, and houses have been washed away, and electricity was out in many places. We had electricity here in Ozamiz, although there were frequent outages. I even managed to watch the TV where the international news stations simultaneously showed a paralyzing blizzard in my home locale near Buffalo, New York, USA. There have been many deaths in both of these places. I hope 2023 is kinder to them in the USA and to us here in the Philippines.
Flooding in Misamis Occidental, Philippines. Photo: Virgenia O. Vidad.
After a two-year pause because of the Covid epidemic, the Subanen Crafters resumed our yearly Christmas reunion. We met on 21st December in a local high school gym. We had the usual good food and lots of games. One of the activities was a spoof on the beauty pageant craze that possesses the Filipino psyche. In our spoof, five crafters dressed in pageant ‘gowns’ using toilet paper! There was no winner or loser, but the whole mock contest provoked gales of laughter!
18-year-old Marcelita with Fr. Vinnie on the left and with her daughter at the party. Photo: Fr Vincent Busch
Marcelita now 39 years old, attended the reunion with her daughter Helen. Marcelita has been a Subanen crafter for many years but recently has had serious family problems and has become depressed and disoriented. We recently arranged for her to have a medical check-up and found that she now has Tuberculosis. The crafters ensure that she takes her pills and vitamins and has healthy food. We will do our best to make her troubled life more livable.
Along with the Subanen crafters, I will begin the New Year as always, hoping to find better ways to build mutually enhancing relationships with the Subanen People, our Earthly habitat, our Columban Mission offices and staff, as well as with our Columban donors. We do this in concert with the Subanen Ministry of Columban Sisters.
The Subanen crafters are already making cards for Christmas 2024! As usual, we have put a lot of thought into our designs. The cards will highlight how Mary and Joseph took care of each other during their desert journey to escape Herod’s soldiers.
One of the Christmas card designs for 2024. Photo: Fr Vincent Busch
In this particular design, they are seen hiking to that green oasis in the distance where they will shelter for the night. Joseph is carrying their belongings in a Subanen-style basket while Mary carries Jesus in a sling, just like a Subanen mother would. We clothed them in stars and placed them within our Solar System to see them and ourselves as fellow travellers on the Earthly oasis we all share. In a gentle way, the cards point to the Mission of Jesus, which is the whole meaning of Christmas, whose life, death and resurrection is how the Spirit guides us all to care for each other and the community of all Creation.
I wish to take this opportunity to thank all those who have supported the Subanen crafters ministry by purchasing Christmas cards. We look forward to sharing more of our card designs for Christmas 2024.
Be well and be safe,
Columban Fr Vincent Busch lives and works in the Philippines.
Related links
- Read more from the current Columban eBulletin
- Shop Sun Catchers & Subanen Crafts
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