John Paul II Institute in Bacolod: One of Pope John Paul II's living legacies

BACOLOD CITY , Philippines —As the Christian world celebrates the beatification of Pope John Paul II today, the John Paul II National Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family-one of his living legacies that is based in Bacolod City-rejoices with the rest of the Catholic community.

Simply called the JP II Institute, it is not merely named after the beloved pope; it is, in fact, an institute the pope himself created, and the only school he had put up. The JP II Institute in Bacolod-the only one of its kind in the Philippines and perhaps, to some extent, in Asia-is part of the worldwide Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family.

The idea to create this kind of institute started in 1980, during the first General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in the Pontificate of John Paul II. It had for its theme the Church's responsibility toward families and family life. 

At the end of the Synod, the Pope issued the Apostolic Exhortiation, Familiaris Consortio. A personal favorite of the Pope in a pontificate replete with teaching documents, Familiaris Consortio links the contemporary problems and promise of family life to the true meaning of freedom.  

At its conclusion, the Synod Fathers called for the creation of theological centers devoted to the study of the Church's teachings on marriage and the family. Pope John Paul's response was to establish the Pontifical Council for the Family and the Pontifical Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family.

Pope John Paul II had always been fascinated by the human person. In his youth, he had written plays that wrestled with the meaning of human existence and the situation of fallen humanity confronted by God's redemptive love. Even when he became Pope John Paul II, he continued to focus on the human person as revealed in the light of Christ and this is the theme of his first encyclical Redemptor Hominis. (Grabowski, 1997)

The mission of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute begins with the Holy Father's conviction that love reveals the meaning of the person and through him, the whole of creation. 

It is thus devoted to the study of the human person in all its dimensions: theological, philosophical, anthropological and cosmo-scientific. The Institute centers its study of the person in the original cell of human society - marriage and family. He sees the role of the family in the new evangelization as decisive and irreplaceable, because in fact, "the future of the world and of the Church passes through the family." (FC, 75)

The importance of the Institute's work in the Church's mission explains its structure: A single Institute but with different campuses located on the five continents for the purpose of offering a reflection that would display the riches of the one truth in the plurality of cultures. Thus, at the turn of the century, six sessions had been set up worldwide: Rome, Washington DC, Spain, Mexico, India and Benin in Africa: a unity of vision in research and teaching but embracing the diversity of places and cultures.

In 1994, Bishop Jesus Y. Varela, chairman of the Episcopal Commission on Family Life, was tasked to look into the possibility of putting up the Philippine Session. As the largest Roman Catholic country in Asia, the idea of establishing a Philippine Session (or campus) to serve the vast Far East arena is both logical and opportune. 

After initial attempts to set up the session in Manila did not materialize, Varela looked to Bacolod as the future site of the Philippine session.

Why Bacolod? Varela himself wrote in 1999: In Bacolod, there is already a Diocesan Institute for the training of ministers for the family apostolate, with satisfactory results in terms of better delivery of family and life ministries. 

Founded by Msgr. Victorino Rivas, the Diocesan Institute gives a six-month pastoral training for potential Family Life Ministers. Bacolod is the scene of many family-oriented renewal movements. It will provide the proper environment for the proposed Institute. The diocesan bishop, Bishop Camilo Gregorio, is four-square behind the Institute. The Negrenses are noted for their over-flowing generosity, a fact that augurs well for the continuity of the project. 

Thus, at a luncheon meeting during the International Study Week in Rome in August 1999, the official approval to start a campus or session in the Philippines was given. Bishop Angelo Scola, president of the Institute there, then appointed Varela as vice-chancellor, Rivas as vice-president and Fr. Caindec as academic dean. 

Bacolod as the site of the Institute was also approved. The idea of establishing a Philippine Session or Campus was formally presented to the Holy Father who gave his blessing for the project.

In January 2000, during its annual assembly, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines fully recognized and endorsed the John Paul II National Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family.

In February 2000, Scola and Dr. Philip Milligan came to Bacolod, recognized the cooperation and support of the community, and confirmed that under a probationary arrangement and pending on-going evaluation by the Vatican, the John Paul II National Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family now serves as the initial step towards the establishment of the Philippine Session of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family.

Thus was how the Institute was born. From the very start, the John Paul II Institute was a journey in faith, a lesson in trust, a testimony to God's loving providence manifested in large part through the generosity of people. 

How the JP II operates

Rivas said they had encountered a lot of difficulties in the early years of its operations. They had no money to run the Institute and when they started in 2000, they were hosted by the seminary. But in 2001, Gloria Araneta-Esteban offered them free use of her building along Lacson Street.

So from 2001 to middle of 2008, the JP II Institute used the two rooms at the second floor and the groundfloor of the Esteban building as its classrooms, library and office, Rivas said.

In 2001, Rivas said he went to Bro. Rolly Dizon, then president of the University of Saint La Salle in Bacolod, and told him, “Why don't you grant a degree to our students so that when they finish the course, they can teach in schools?”

Dizon said, 'Why not?' After knowing what the JP II is all about, "Dizon got interested and called up Dr. Maya Ramos, dean of USLS Graduate School, to draft the consortium," Rivas said.

Ramos later presented the consortium papers to the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), which later approved the new course, with a degree of Master of Arts in Education on Marriage and Family.

In 2008, the JP II Institute presented to Bro. Ray Suplido, the USLS president at that time, its need for an academic campus. Suplido readily agreed that the Institute will be in USLS campus.

In 2010, USLS inaugurated a new building. In June last year, the Institute relocated to this new building its classrooms and office. Rivas said they are very thankful to La Salle for its generosity. To reciprocate, the Institute is helping in the orientation of USLS students on the appreciation of marriage and family.

This is embodied in a memorandum of agreement that the Institute signed with USLS, under then its president Bro. Gus Boquer, at the start of school year 2001-2002. USLS collects miscellaneous fees from our students, while the Institute collects the tuition. "We also report directly to Rome," Rivas said.

Meanwhile, as one of the requirements of the mother Institute in Rome, the Bacolod Institute sent two of their priests to study there, so that when they come back, they will teach the standard of the theology of Rome.

"So for a time we continued operating as an Institute, according to the educational curriculum in Rome. From the very basic like, Family Code of the Philippines, comparative studies of families in Asian countries. But otherwise, we teach what are also being taught in the mother Institute like anthropology, theology, and others," Rivas said.

Rivas said Pope John Paul II was known as an advocate of Pro-life, good governance, religious freedom, human rights, and personalism. "The pope advocated the enrichment of a person. He is not condemnatory, he may lose in the debate and legislation but the people still love him. Because of his teachings, many atheists believe in God. He was not contented with only reading the doctrines to the people," he said.

"In his Institute on Family and Marriage, the pope emphasized the importance of family and marriage. The pope said God created family and marriage so people will be happy," he said.

"Marriage is the most adequate analogy for God's love. That is, only a man and a wife in marriage, who love each other, can almost represent God's love. Pope John Paul II said, if you want to know God you only have to experience the love of your father and mother. That is his theology: Nothing comes closer to experiencing God's love than the love of your parents," Rivas said.

The graduates of the JPII Institute in Bacolod are either teaching in schools or work as guidance counselors. Others also do volunteer works in parishes.

Rivas said the JP II Institute is addressing a lot of problems of family and marriage, which are cultural, psychological and religious in nature. "Bad side of culture can be balanced. For people to be educated, they must understand human behavior and change the concept of anthropology," he said.

"In our marriages, most of the grounds for annulment are grave lack of due discretion. Couple got wed hastily, in short, lack of deliberation," he said. "What we do now is, before couples are wed, their parishes require them to undergo counseling and seminar on family and marriage. That's where the graduates of JP II Institute come in.

We allow the couple a certain period of time to prepare," he said. "The counseling process is now a requirement for our marriages. We have a parish-based ministry. The JP II Institute provides trained counselors- that's our graduates," Rivas said.

"In America, because of this new approach, there is now a tangible result. Marriages have become more stable, the divorce rate drops," he added.