Nestled atop a green hill overlooking the grayish lahar fields in Palan, San Marcelino in Zambales, some 13 kilometers away from the volcano, stands the Mt. Pinatubo Hidden Temple Shrine that holds the bigger-than-life statues of Our Lord of Love and Redemption and of our Praying Blessed Mother. Whether it is against the backdrop of a clear blue sky on a summer day or on a dark stormy weather, these impressive statues have been silently calling on the Filipino people from the 60-foot high hill shrine since 1992, not to lose hope as the country continues to be embattled annually with calamities, disasters, and scandals in government; and to look within them to find the spark that will ignite the flames of spiritual energy needed for the healing of the spirit of our nation.
The Palan shrine is meant to inspire the nation in her brokenness.
‘This magnificent sanctuary watches beyond the country across much more land . . .’
Our Lord of Love and Redemption is 13-feet high and weighs six tons. His smiling and be-dimpled face is framed by golden yellow hair with eyes that are purple blue. His lavender robe and golden cape are in big folds, and widely blowing in the wind, The Star of David covers the knot of the sash tied around his waist. His right hand is raised in a blessing while His left hand is raised higher holding a golden cross.
The title of Our Lord of Love and Redemption echoes the papal encyclical letter of Pope John Paul II, “Redemptor Hominis”, the Mystery of Redemption and the Dignity of Man: “The Cross symbolizes the Son of the Living God. It is His life that speaks, His humanity, His fidelity to the truth, His all-embracing love. His death on the Cross speaks —that is to say the inscrutable depth of His suffering and abandonment. The Church never ceases to relive His death on the Cross and His Resurrection, which constitute the content of the Church’s daily life.”
In front of the statue of Our Lord is that of the Praying Blessed Mother. She stands nine-feet tall and weighs three tons. She is wearing a floor-length gold cape over a tallow-blue gown. A galactic golden belt around her waist symbolizes her being the Queen of the Universe. Her smiling pinkish face has a long dimple on her left cheek and a cleft chin. Her eyes are closed in prayer. Her arms are outstretched. Her right hand holds the blue candle with an orange flame, while her left hand holds a golden chalice with the purple Star of David. The chalice symbolizes the Filipino’s need to unite, while the candle symbolizes the perpetual life of our Lord to raise high the people’s hopes.
Years before the 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, a young housewife in the isolated village of Palan would often dream of Our Blessed Mother standing on the same hill of the shrine watching over the small village. At times, she would see Our Lord join His Mother. He would appear from the hills behind. And it has been proven prophetic in 1992 when the bigger than life statues of the Praying Blessed Mother and Our Lord of Love and Redemption were brought to the Palan hill between December 1991 and Easter Sunday 1992, when we helped the mystic Punay Kabayao Fernandez fulfill the request of Blessed Mother. Mother Mary even guided us to look for the psychic-artist, sculptor Pempe Floriano who faithfully executed her detailed guidance.
The care of Our Lord through the Christmas mission at Palan
It has become a tradition of a hundred O.B. Montessori Center employees and guests to make a day visit to San Marcelino, Zambales a few weeks before the holiday break for our annual Palan Christmas Mission. These visiting employees and guests become the living arms and legs of Our Lord of Love and Redemption to share His care and blessings to the Aeta communities living around the shrine.
An invigorating morning trek up the 101 steps to the Mt. Pinatubo Hidden Temple Shrine is taken. There on the “altar of the nation” an ecumenical thanksgiving mass is celebrated, followed by the re-enactment of the Nativity and then the sharing of food and gifts. Some time is also spent by the O.B. Montessori Child and Community staff, who have established 156 Pagsasarili Preschools all over Luzon the past 30 years led by Mrs. Beverly Ciencia on teaching the Montessori Practical Life to the Aetas or Zambal “kulot” parents and children, who number around a thousand at every visit.
In every visit since 1992, there is no doubt that those who came have been blessed, for in helping the least of our brothers they have pleased God. The shrine is ecumenical and has been visited by groups of various faiths throughout the year.
In one such occasion, Fr. Gary Thurman of the Cathedral of the King under the International Communion of the Charismatic Episcopal Churches, gave an insightful homily on Christmas sprinkled with Tagalog in all-American accent, thus eliciting smiles and giggles among the volunteers and Aetas.
Homily for Palan
The frenzy is in full swing. As the “Longest Christmas Season in the World” rounds the far turn and heads down the home stretch, as attested to by the start of Misa de Galo, the Big Day looms ever closer. Even though this year’s festivities seem tempered somewhat, and rightfully so, by the memory of Yolanda’s recent ravages, the Yuletide season is still unmistakably obvious. But once in a while, especially this year, we should stop and ask ourselves the question, “Ano ang Pasko?” And perhaps more relevant, “Bakit Pasko?”
Is it the flashing lights everywhere, from within parols and trees and homes? Is it the avalanche of gifts to be received, given, and most of all, bought, at the massive proliferation of sales at malls, bazaars, and tiangges in every corner? Or is it the food? The puting puto, suman, bibingka, hamon, queso de bola, tupig, and chokolate?
Maybe it is the songs particular to the season. What other time of the year has its own playlist? “Last Christmas I Gave You My Heart,” “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” and the ultra-spiritual “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” (I never looked at Santa, or my mom, in the same way again after hearing that song as a kid) seem dangerously close to edging aside the classic carols, but they are all still very much in evidence these days. Or maybe, it’s what is for many people, the most meaningful Christmas song of all, “Give Love on Christmas Day.” Now we’re getting somewhere! Surely this is what Christmas is all about! It’s love, love, love, di ba?
Well, kulang pa. Although many people, even preachers, would be content to stop here and say, “Tama na `yun. Christmas is about love,” I beg to differ. Love in itself answers neither the “what” nor the “why.” It is not “pag-ibig lang.” Christmas is “tunay na Pag-ibig ng Diyos !“
Christmas had its origins when God our Father looked out at mankind’s hurt and pain and said, “I don’t like that.” Christmas had its origins when God our Father looked out at mankind’s sadness and said, “I don’t like that.” Christmas had its origins when God our Father looked out at mankind’s sin and said, “I don’t like that.” Christmas had its origins when God our Father looked out and saw mankind far, far, from Him, separated from Him by so many things, and said, “I don’t like that. I love My children so much, I want us to be near to each other.”
Christmas began when God looked in love, spoke in love, and acted in love. He acted by coming in the flesh via His only begotten Son, Immanuel, God with us. We call Him Jesus. He is the greatest mystery, this God in the flesh, Son of God, God with us, Savior of the world. But don’t be confused or intimidated by all the theological muscle-flexing in these titles. Just know that when you see Jesus, you see God. Just know that when you see Jesus, you see love, a love that abides with us, sees us, and never leaves us. He was there in the Baguio quake in ‘90. He was there when Pinatubo erupted in ‘91. He was there at Ondoy in ‘09, and the Bohol earthquake in 2013. And yes, he was very much present in the Visayas last year. Oh my, yes. And He’s still there. Ang pag-ibig ng Diyos never abandons the suffering and struggling. Never. He sees, He knows, He loves at all times.
So we see that we cannot answer the questions with a simple, “Love.” Kulang pa. The answer must be, “Ang Pagmamahal ng Diyos sa ating lahat. Yun lang.”
Lady mystic from Sta Barbara California extends the message of the Mt. Pinatubo Hidden Shrine
In 1992 both Punay and I were in the United States, although I was in California while she was in New York. Both of us had put together a 28-page story of the “Trinity of Shrines” mystically requested by the holy ones for the three major disasters of the country: the first in Hacienda Faraon, Negros Oriental during martial law, the second at the O.B. Montessori headquarters in Greenhills during the EDSA Revolution, and the third was the Palan shrine facing the Mt. Pinatubo volcano in Zambales. The constant message of the holy ones from all three shrines is FILIPINOS MUST PRAY, FOR INNER TRANSFORMATION AND UNITY. We had to reprint another set, which included the following message of the Praying Blessed Mother for this author and spoken through mystic Elizabeth Huffer:
All the way from Sta. Barbara California, the Praying Blessed Mother of Mt. Pinatubo spoke these words to Preciosa Soliven, Philippine STAR columnist last May, 1992:
“It is with much pleasure that we come to your land. It is a sanctuary in the visible, but a magnificent sanctuary in the spiritual. It covers much, much ground than what shows in the physical.
As you add to this each day with who you are and what you pray, this extends very far out spreading across even much more land.
There will be a day when another sphere of activity takes place for the earth will turn on its side but never fear, that land will hold the light and all that you hold dear will rise again.”
(For feedback email at precious.soliven@yahoo.com)