LRMS PRIESTS MEET AT THE MINOR BASILICA OF SAN LORENZO RUIZ IN BINONDO

On June 16, 2026 the LRMS priests gather at the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of San Lorenzo Ruiz in Binondo for bonding and community mass and prayers. Msgr. Esteban Lo, LRMS, the current parish priest of the Basilica congregated the LRMS priests assigned in the various parishes and schools in Metro Manila for common prayers and meal. This is one of the routines that the Society does in order develop a sense of community and presbyterium among the members. It is important that priests gather to exercise and foster the sense of communion among priests in order to develop more the vocation of pastoral charity. Pastores Dabo Vobis no. 74 mentioned: "This sacramental origin is reflected and continued in the sphere of priestly ministry: from mysterium to ministerium. "Unity among the priests with the bishop and among themselves is not something added from the outside to the nature of their service, but expresses its essence inasmuch as it is the care of Christ the priest for the people gathered in the unity of the Blessed Trinity." This unity among priests, lived in a spirit of pastoral charity, makes priests witnesses of Jesus Christ, who prayed to the Father" that they may all be one" (Jn. 17:21). There were 17 members who were present in the gathering. They had their evening prayer together, dinner together, and a few minutes of meeting and updating for the activities of LRMS that lie ahead.

EVENTS

PCP-II and the LRMS

The relevance of the Lorenzo Ruiz Mission Society as a missionary community had been described and encapsulated in the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines. The initiative of Jaime Cardinal Sin in 1989 gained more direction and animus as the entire local church through PCP-II saw and envisioned as well the importance of evangelizing the ethnic Chinese present in the Philippines. The Lorenzo Ruiz Mission Society would be suitable for this mission. There are 7 elements in PCP-II no. 109 that would be important to the Society as it exists with an auspicious pastoral capacity to address the need of the local Chinese in the Philippines.

1) Filipino-Chinese Apostolate- The thrust of evangelization towards the local Chinese and ethnic Chinese in the Philippines was begun by Bishop Domingo de Salazar in the 16th century. It was a mission that anticipated the dawn of a new concern of mission both in the Philippines and abroad. The Lorenzo Ruiz Mission Society exists to continue the legacy of the bishop as well as to intensify what was begun by the Chinese priests especially those who were seminarians from China after the political problems in 1950 and were ordained in the Philippines and pioneered in finding ways to improved the Filipino-Chinese apostolate in the Philippines. The existence of the Filipino-Chinese Apostolate provided more reason for the emergence of a new seminary and Society in the local church in the Philippines.

2) Filipino-Chinese Culture- Culture is always called the locus theologicus and locus missionis. The Filipino-Chinese and Chinese-Filipino culture are important locus missionis of the evangelizing mission of the local church in the Philippines. The Second Plenary Council of the Philippines acknowledges the presence of the ethnic Chinese in the Philippines. An apostolate like the Filipino-Chinese would be the raison d'etre because of the Filipino-Chinese culture and its ramifications.

3) Urgency of Evangelization- The urgency of the Filipino-Chinese Apostolate is linked with the pastoral needs of the ethnic Chinese in the Philippines. The Second Plenary Council observes that "Less than 20% of the Chinese in the Philippines have had some effective evangelization." The mission of evangelization is vital to the local church's mission among its people. The local church exists for the evangelization of its local cultures. True evangelization happens when the local church knows and lives with its people. Paul VI already mentioned that the local church exists because "what matters is to evangelize man's culture and cultures (not in a purely decorative way, as it were, by applying a thin veneer, but in a vital way, in depth and right to their very roots)."

4) Continuity and Transmission- The spirit of continuity and the mission of transmission are pivotal characteristics for the Filipino-Chinese apostolate in order to exist and be relevant in the various contexts and epochs of the ethnic Chinese existence in the Philippines. The Second Plenary Council of the Philippines urges the local church to know and learn from what the apostolate had already begun. The local church has to listen to the "signs of the times" as it seeks to address the needs of the Filipino-Chinese. The Council says: "The progress made in evangelizing through the educational and pastoral work of the Filipino-Chinese apostolate is a great encouragement." Therefore, moving forward to provide for the needs of the Filipino-Chinese culture as well as adapting to the contemporary contexts should require looking back what had been achieved by the Apostolate and to move forward with strategic missionary action that would fit for current Filipino-Chinese situations.

5) Inculturation- Inculturation is a crucial method of the local church towards evangelizing local cultures. To recognize an existing local culture or sub culture with their own specific pastoral needs is doing inculturation. By the fact that there exists a Filipino-Chinese Apostolate, the local church in the Philippines is already having an on-going inculturation process. Inculturation also involves specific formation of priests needed for the Apostolate as well as special missionary direction and attention to be applied among the ethnic Chinese in order to bring the local church closer to the Filipino-Chinese culture. The Second Plenary Council expresses its support and its concern for the Apostolate. It exhorts the local church that "we should intensify this."

6) Bridging Dialogue- A bridging dialogue is an important gesture that the local church could do to intensify the Filipino-Chinese Apostolate. Since the Chinese Apostolate began in the 16th century, the idea of bridging the Catholic Church in the Philippines with Mainland China was already conceived in the mind of Bishop Domingo de Salazar. It was to foster a dialogue with cultures, dialogue with popular religions of China, dialogue with the poor and the dialogue with members of the imperial court. Similar vision was seen by the Second Plenary Council that: "we must look beyond our shores and take note of the missionary opportunities opened by the contacts that our Filipino-Chinese brothers and sisters have with East Asian Chinese communities, including the People's Republic of China whose openness to religion remains fluid." This constitutes the same vision that the first bishop of Manila pursued during his time. The learning of the Chinese language was of paramount importance in order for the missionaries to enter into the Chinese culture.

7) Updated Formation- A separate and pertinent formation is needed for a Society like the Lorenzo Ruiz Mission Society that fosters mission towards the Filipino-Chinese which includes study of language, culture, and methods of mission. The Second Plenary Council says: "We need to provide encouragement, support, and personnel to this important mission." To provide suited personnel for the Filipino-Chinese Apostolate became the vision of Jaime Cardinal Sin in establishing the Lorenzo Ruiz Mission Society and the Lorenzo Mission Institute as the home of formation for seminarians on their journey towards the priesthood.