Ama

"You should see Fr Ric Torrefiel!", an elderly colleague in the Apostleship of Prayer (AP) in St Joseph de Gagalangin Parish told me.  The priest, during that time, was the Archdiocesan Spiritual Director of the Apostleship of Prayer-Youth. I bore that in mind and looked forward to see him. Every last Sunday of the month, AP-Youth presidents/representatives from the Archdiocese of Manila meet at the Pope Pius XII Catholic Center. In the first few meetings I attended, there was no sign of Fr Ric. Until one meeting came and he showed up! Wearing a cassock and a pair of sandals, he walked around the room to greet us.

Fr Ric, for me, was a cool priest. We felt at ease with him. In one meeting, he asked us what the Gospel was all about. I volunteered to give a precis of Matthew 16:12-23. After I have finished, he jokingly said "At ikaw pala si San Pietro!" (And you are St Peter!). 

He was not so much particular with us doing the various activities expected of an AP member such as Holy Hour, First Friday communion, Enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. He was more particular with forming us first as young members of such a big Catholic association.

I remember those weekends in 1989 (Saturdays and Sundays) when we would gather at the Center for Peace Asia (along Shaw Blvd in Mandaluyong City) for a whole day to be taught by Fr Ric. The day was spent in prayer (sometimes in front of the Blessed Sacrament), songs, activities, and talk. Fr Ric  used to joke that the name for a talk after lunch is antok (drowsiness), which was why activities were done after lunch to keep us awake and engaged. The experience was great. New friends were met, group spirit was formed. We may be drained physically, but spiritually we were enriched! The traffic back then was not that bad, but I felt for Fr Ric as he has to drive back to his parish in Las Pinas to say Mass. 

In one of those gatherings, I cannot forget his homily on the ten lepers healed by Jesus (Luke 10:11-19). Fr Ric noted Jesus comment when one of those He healed came back: “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?”. Fr Ric used those lines to challenge us: Do no rest on your laurels; persuade more people to go back to the Lord.

Persuading people can be a tall order. Parents, teachers, priests, and yes even youth leaders would often face difficulties in doing so, but with the gift of faith from above, we can continue to inspire in the hope that those under our care will follow in our footsteps.

Fr Ric was called Ama by one of our fellow AP-Youth members then. Quite appropriate, because that's what he was to us: a father who nurtured us with God's Word and Sacrament, a father who challenged us in our apostolate, a father who spent a light moment with us, a father who was simply there for us.

May you now rest in the Father's presence, Ama! Salamat po.