Calungsod beatified

Almost 328 years after he was brutally murdered by Chamorro tribesmen in the Mariana islands for his faith, Filipino catechist Pedro Calungsod was beatified by the Catholic Church in Rome yesterday.

Churches in the Philippines rang their bells and held thanksgiving Masses to celebrate the beatification of Calungsod, the second Filipino martyr to be elevated to a step short of sainthood. The first -- Lorenzo Ruiz, a catechist murdered in Japan who is now a saint -- was beatified more than a decade ago.

The beatification, aired live from St. Peter's Square in Rome, was led by Pope John Paul II and was attended by some 70,000 people, including hundreds of bishops, priests and nuns from various countries.

Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal led the Philippine delegation of about 10 bishops and 32 priests to the rites, which were also attended by First Lady Luisa Ejercito and a group of 25 that included her daughter Jackie, son-in-law Beaver Lopez and Senators Francisco Tatad and John Osmeña.

Ambassador to the Vatican Henrietta de Villa said about 10,000 Filipinos, nearly half of them working in Italy, were also present at the rites. They waved small Philippine flags to celebrate the occasion.

In Manila, Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin said he hoped Calungsod's life will serve as an inspiration to all Filipinos, regardless of religion. Sin said the catechist possessed several virtues -- fortitude, courage and perseverance in teaching the Christian faith -- which must be cultivated by today's youth.

"Our young people need to have a strong and courageous faith. Like Pedro, we need Christians who are able to withstand the lures of this world, who are not afraid to lose favors of men for the sake of the Kingdom," Sin said.

Sin failed to join the Phi-lippine delegation to Rome due to health problems. But he was able to celebrate Mass at the Church for the Youth at the reclamation area in Pasay City for the beatified martyr.

He stressed that Calungsod serves as a challenge to Filipinos.

"He possessed spiritual poverty, chastity, prayerfulness, strong devotion to the Eucharist, faith, hope and charity," Sin said. "We need martyrs like him who bravely uphold what is right, good and just even if the world rejects and disdains them."

Calungsod was beatified along with 29 other martyrs of the Church which included a priest killed by the Nazis during World War II.

Beatification is the last formal step before a person can be declared a saint.

Calungsod's beginnings remain a mystery to many Filipinos, however. At least six towns in the Visayas -- Ginatilan and Tuburan in Cebu; Loboc in Bohol; and Oton, Tigbuan and Leon in Iloilo -- are laying claim to be his probable birthplace.

According to Jesuit priest Catalino Arevalo, Spanish documents identified Calungsod as Pedro Calongsor or Calonsor. Some papers even identified him as Pedro Calangsor.

Arevalo said that since there was no real evidence that could specifically pinpoint Calungsod's place of birth, it would be safe to say that he simply came from the Visayas.

"Although Cebu and Bohol are the more probable places, still it is possible that he may have come from Samar or Panay where the Jesuits had mission stations," Arevalo said.

He noted that the town of Oton might be the "right place."

The Jesuits founded in Tigbauan town in Iloilo in the 1600s a school for Visayan boys whom they taught not only cathechism but also reading, writing in Spanish and composing liturgical music.

Tibauan is more than 10 kilometers from Arevalo district in Iloilo and between them is Oton.

Calungsod was one of those Visayan boys educated under the Jesuits. He was 14 years old when he started studying cathechism. He learned to read, write and deliver discourses in the Visayan, Spanish and Chamorro languages and was able to master the Church's teachings in a very short time. He also learned to write music, draw, paint, do carpentry work and even act on stage.

Calungsod was 17 when he joined a mission to the Marianas, then known as the Ladrones islands which at the time was covered by the archdiocese of Cebu. There, he served under a Spanish priest, Fr. Diego Luis de San Vitores, rector of the mission.

On April 2, 1672, while trying to recover a runaway servant, Calungsod and San Vitores were stopped by Chamorro tribesmen under chieftain Matapang. The tribesmen were furious since they found out that San Vitores had baptized Matapang's daughter without his knowledge.

San Vitores was first to be attacked but Calungsod, who was ever faithful, stood to defend him. The young cathechist was hit with a spear in the chest, and although he could still run to save his life, he stayed on to protect San Vitores. He was then hacked to death by the Chamorros.

San Vitores, on the other hand, tried to scare off the attackers by raising a crucifix. He failed. He was also struck with a spear in the chest and with a machete in the head. The crucifix he held was crushed to bits.

After killing Calungsod and San Vitores, the tribesmen bound the bodies and tied a large rock to their feet before throwing them into the sea.

For his martyrdom, San Vitores was beatified in October 1985.

But how does Calungsod look like?

To create an image of the martyr, Jesuit priest Catalino Arevalo launched a search several years ago and a Visayan basketball player was chosen.

Ronald Tubid, an 18-year-old Business Administration student of the University of the East (UE) and a player of Ana Water Dispenser team in the Philippine Basketball League, was picked by Arevalo to be a model for a portrait done by artist Rafael del Casal.

The portrait was unveiled yesterday in Rome during the beatification rites.

Arevalo said he first saw Tubid in a televised basketball game of UE in 1998. While about to shoot a freethrow, the camera focused on Tubid's face and Arevalo said that the moment he saw that innocent, yet determined look in the cager's eyes, he knew that Tubid was "the one."

"No one has any idea how Calungsod really looked like. But I believe Ronald could best represent him," he said.

Arevalo then checked Tubid's background and found him to be a respected young man in his hometown of Oton in Iloilo. His father just died of heart attack last January, and Tubid had promised him that he would finish his studies and be a role model to the youth.

Tubid had met with relatives of Calungsod in Oton who held a reunion to mark the beatification.

The cager, however, said he is now being teased at school by his classmates who now call him "Pedro" and pose to kneel before him.

Tubid believes he has an enormous duty to perform since all Filipinos are now looking at him as an image of a holy man.

"I was very happy that I was chosen. I know it's a big responsibility but I am ready," he said.