Fr. Ruben, Fr. Joseph and Bon are not kissing the fog of Baguio. But they are not desperate to kiss the smog of Cogeo (that’s crazy!). At any rate, they have some misty mornings here that are equally spirit-lifting. After all, good things are also happening in Barangay Inarawan.

Due to a strong recommendation from the General Consulta during its pastoral visit last March, the St. Camillus Novitiate was temporarily transferred from the mountain of Baguio City (about 250 km away from Manila) to the mountain of Antipolo City (approximately 26 km east of Manila). The Novitiate officially opened last May.

Fr. Ruben J. Mandin, Novice Master, agrees to the practicality of the decision considering the fact that the Order has only two Novices this year – the Chinese Fr. Joseph Yang from Xian, China and the Filipino Bon L. Arimbuyutan from Taguig City.  The new set-up offers cost-cutting advantages. For one thing, Fr. Ruben explained that “it’s easier to find resources here like speakers who can give inputs to the Novices. “It’s also quite near the other Camillian formation houses so the communication is faster. I can easily ask for help from Fr. Rey (immediate past Novice Master),” Fr. Ruben further said.

“And who cares about Cogeo, anyway?” remarked Fr. Ruben referring to another advantage of having the Novitiate in Barangay Inarawan. He claimed the idea as his very personal opinion or would even consider it a “selfish” motivation.  He explained that “Baguio is a very attractive place, so many visitors usually go there. The novices get disturbed.”  For Fr. Ruben, Cogeo offers more privacy which is favorable to the novitiate.  He wants the novitiate, which is only a one year period, to become an intensive year for the novices, during which they could really have a feel of being separated from the mainstream. He wants them to be focused and be enriched in the formation.

But finding himself in this new territory is never a walk in a cloud. As first timer in the task of forming novices vis-à-vis its structure and location, Fr. Ruben was groping in his first three months “most especially in making the module for the inputs that I’m going to give them.”

Yet amidst the challenges, he certainly feels joy in his heart. “The spirit of community here is back,” he gladly shared. Being nestled in the same building with the Blessed Luigi Tezza Community, he is able to constantly get in touch with its members, confreres Fr. Gabby and Fr. Meng, even if they all have different schedules in their respective distinct ministries.

As for the novices themselves, Bon shares, “I already accepted the reality that I’m not having my Novitiate in Baguio.”  “I understand that it’s really practical to spend it here,” he continued. And despite the initial frustration of not being able to live for one full year in Baguio, which is for him a truly rejuvenating place, he finds rejuvenation in responding to the challenge to nurture his vocation “especially now that I’m the only one left in my batch.”