Kilalanin Natin

Fr. Adriand: isang paring taga-Paltok
ni Leslie E. Mendezabal

Si Jose Adriand Emmanuel L. Layug ay isa
sa mga paring madalas nating makita at makasama
dito sa ating parokya. Nakatira siya sa kalye ng
Zamora, dito sa ating barangay mula pa noong 1982
hanggang sa kasalukuyan. Ipinanganak noong 7
Enero 1976 dito sa Quezon City, bunso siya sa tatlong
anak nina Jovita Libunao at Conrado Layug (†).
Si Fr. Adriand ay nag-aral ng Elementarya sa St.
Paul College sa San Miguel Bulacan, nagpatuloy ng
pag-aaral sa Immaculate Concepcion Minor Seminary
sa Guiguinto Bulacan at kumuha ng Philosophy at
Theology sa Immaculate Concepcion Major Seminary
sa nasabi ring lugar. Naordinahan siya bilang pari
noong 19 May 2001 sa Malolos Cathedral. Naglingkod
siya nang dalawang buwang sa Nuestra Señora de
Salambao, Obando noong siya ay diakono pa lamang at inilipat sa Our Lady of Assumption Parish kung saan
siya ang tumayong pangalawang lingkod na kura sa
loob ng dalawang taon. Naging Formator din siya sa
Immaculate Concepcion Major Seminary. Nagsimula
ang kanyang paglilingkod dito sa ating parokya
noong 9 Agosto, sa kahilingan na rin ng ating kura
paroko. Siya ay nagmimisa tuwing karaniwang araw
dito sa simbahan at namumuno rin sa mga misa sa
kawan. Ngunit kapag weekend naman naglilingkod
siya sa parokya ng San Jose Esposo de Maria sa San
Miguel Bulacan.
Si Fr. Adriand ay simple at masayahing pari,
mahilig magbasa ng kahit anong libro. Mahilig din
siyang kumain at makipagkwentuhan sa kanyang
mga kaibigan. Nang tanungin kung bakit niya
pinili ang bokasyon ng pagpapari, tinugon niya, “Kapag ikaw ay tinawag ng Diyos, hindi mo Siya
mapahihindian”.
Hangad ni Fr. Adriand na palakasin pa ang Munting
Simbahang Kapitbahayan dito sa ating parokya
sapagkat naniniwala siya na ito ang magiging daan
upang mas lumalim pa ang pananampalataya ng
mga tao at lalo pang mapalapit sila sa Panginoon sa
pamamagitan ng banal na Eukaristiya na naka-ugat
sa Salita ng Diyos.

The Ministry of Greeters and Collectors: ROLP’s ‘Pink Marshalls’
by Angelli F. Tugado

Already by the doorstep
of a nearly-filled ROLP
church just in time for Mass
but too shy to approach a
seat beside a family of four?
Afraid to distract someone
kneeling in prayer beside
the only remaining space in
the middle of a pew? Already
5 minutes late but not sure
whether you can still enter
the Church? No problem,
just let yourself be led by the
ladies in pink blouses and
black skirts waiting by the
church’s entrance. Always
ready to welcome you with a
smile, these “pink marshalls”
are members of a three-yearold
parish organization called
the Ministry of Greeters and
Collectors (MGC). They
usher parishioners into the
house of God here in Paltok
where they can feel right at
home.
Members of the Ministry of
Greeters and Collectors also
take charge of collecting the
“Love Offering,” an important
task that they took over from
the Apostleship of Prayer.
According to the group’s
Primer, the MGC was first
instituted by the Archdiocese
of Manila, then appropriated
by the Diocese of Cubao.

Here in ROLP, it was initiated
and given formal structure
by our current parish priest,
Fr. Ronald Macale, in August
2006. Starting with only 24
members under the helm of
Sis. Sally Chua, the MGC’s
first coordinator, it now has
38 members headed by Sis.
June Bergman, its present
Coordinator.
To ensure that the liturgy of
the Eucharist runs smoothly
and solemnly in all ROLP
church and street masses,
weekdays and Sundays,
MGC members carry out
specific tasks which Fr.
Macale sums up as follows:
“... in the different liturgical
celebrations, you will always
be the first to arrive, the
first to welcome, the first to
guide, the first to assist, the
first to answer, the first to
introduce, and of course, the
first to smile….You can make
the difference in someone’s
decision to come back
regularly to church” (from
the MGC Primer).
Serving each mass are six
greeters and collectors, one
of whom acts as group leader.
Expected to be at the church
at least 15 to 30 minutes
before the Mass starts, they usher massgoers, brief and
cue offerors for the offertory
procession. Then they collect
the love offering from the
congregation, keep the lines
orderly during the receiving
of Communion, and warmly
see the parishioners off at
the end of mass. They must
be gentle yet firm with
parishioners in marshalling
the lines and processions
during mass.
Their tasks, not as simple as
they appear to be, require
training and ongoing
formation (OGF), offered
by the Diocesan Ministry
before they are comissioned
and renewed. At the OGF
they hone their skills and
deepen their commitment
to the ministry. For always
there will be challenges and
difficulties. Some members
I interviewed during the
MGC’s monthly meeting held
on a second Sunday say that
the biggest challenges are
keeping the noise level down
during mass and having
people stay in line when
they receive Communion.
Parishioners are guided to
the communion lines row by
row. But some rush, push and
shove or insist on lining up for the priest rather than the
lay minister when the lines
are already uneven. In such
situations MGC members do
the best they can to remind
the massgoers to wait for
their turn in as gracious
yet assertive a manner as
possible. This is why I like to
call them “pink marshalls.”
Among the queries from
parishioners that the MGC
servers are happy to help
with are how to have masses
offered, where to place their
donations, where to have
religious items or statues
blessed, or how they might
join the MGC itself.
With the other-centered
grace and self-discipline
that their tasks entail, these
ladies in pink do much
to give the congregation
a sense of belonging to
their church. MGC servers
are themselves inspired
when they see positive change not only within
the church but also within
themselves. Some members
point out that since joining
the ministry they have
become more patient, more
prayerful, have received
more blessings in their lives,
and have better appreciated
the significance of the
liturgy of the mass. Thanks
to their dedicated service,
more and more parishioners
fill up the church each week
and offer their treasure.
Wearing a smile, they
welcome us into church, a
space they help keep sacred,
free of distractions, where
we can offer our prayers
and sacrifice more soulfully
and wholeheartedly. We
parishioners can do justice to
and salute their work simply
by following their “lead,” and
responding to their gentle
proddings, also with a smile
in our hearts.