Provincial and Delegation Councils meet in Taiwan

The Provincial Council and the Taiwan Delegation Council convened at St. Mary’s Hospital, Luodong, Taiwan on February 2 and 7 to deliberate on the pressing local concerns of the Taiwan Delegation, particularly the situation of St. Mary’s Hospital, St. Mary’s Nursing and Medicine Management College and the 2008 financial reports on the Philippine communities and Taiwan institutions.

Fr. Ivo Anselmi, the Provincial Superior convoked the meeting with his Provincial Council members. Present during the meeting were the Delegation Councillors:  Fr. Mateo Kao, Br. Paolo Han and Fr. Jacob Wong with the Delegate Superior, Fr. Giuseppe Didone.

Fr. Giuseppe Didone, the Taiwan Delegate-Superior presided over the first portion of the meeting.  He explicated to the Provincial Council members the Delegation profile and dynamics of their ministry and mission in Taiwan.  In his presentation, Fr. Didone gave an account of the ministry of the Delegation and the length of service our religious have spent in the different centers.

On the second day of the meeting, Dr. Hung-Chi Lue, the Director of St. Mary’s Hospital (SMH), briefed the Council about the management process of the hospital which included the occupancy rate statistics in medical, surgical, emergency and in-patient departments.  He provided the Provincial Council with data regarding the analysis of National Insurance Payments for 2006 to 2008.  He further reported that to boost the performance of hospital services, SMH organized specialty teams this year, which include the following: Cardiac Rescue team, Cerebral Vascular Accident team, Multiple Trauma team, and Oncology Center team.

The last day of the meeting zeroed in on the financial reports of the communities and institutions of the Philippine Province.  Presiding over the meeting, Fr. Ivo Anselmi considered the status of the finances of the Delegation in relation to the adjustments of the subsidy and the other ramifications of the budget cut.  During the deliberation, Fr. Jacob Wong, the Delegation Procurator, reiterated that the decline in fund raising and stringent government laws generated the difficulty in the budget allocation for our subsidized communities.

At the last portion of the meeting, the Provincial fraternally expressed his joy and appreciation to the members of the Delegation.  He encouraged them to uphold the bond of community life and their earnestness in carrying out their ministry.

A Day of Renewal

The Delegation of Taiwan organized a Renewal Day for the confreres on February 6 at the St. Mary’s Hospital in Luodong.  The renewal program enabled the religious of the Delegation to take a day off from their ministry.  In the morning, Fr. Ivo Anselmi presided over the mass where he shared about the importance of renewal and reflection in the life of the community.

The 12 participants divided themselves into two groups after the two sessions in the morning to share about the inputs on Spirituality and the Evangelical Counsels.  Fr. Marcelo Pamintuan and Fr. Rey Sentillas assisted in the facilitation of the morning sessions.  In the afternoon, they gathered again in small groups after the talks on Community Life and Lay Collaboration given by Fr. Evan Villanueva and Fr. Rolly Fernandez, respectively.  The small group discussions gave the confreres an opportunity to share their insights on community life and ministry.

The program elicited positive comments. Fr. Giovanni Rizzi, an 82-year old confrere, expressed that seeing his young confreres share something about religious life delighted him.  It showed that the fruits of the mission are being felt in the Province.  Other confreres suggested that a similar session be held again in the future with the discussion focused on the Constitution of the Order.  “It would be good if in the future we can reflect together on how far we have shared our life in the spirit of the Constitution,” Fr. Celestino added.  At the end of the program, Fr. Ivo expressed his felicitations and gratitude to all the religious and reminded them to pray for our sick confreres.

There are 15 religious in the Delegation of Taiwan.  Three could not join the renewal program due to old age and sickness.  Being together in the presence of each other gave great significance to the Renewal day.  Beyond the talks and lectures, the reflection and sharing made the day a great moment of renewal of friendship with one another and with the Lord!

Mass for the Sick

In anticipation of the World Day of the Sick, a Mass for the sick was celebrated at the St. Camillus Handicapped Center in Luodong on February 7.  Fr. Mateo Kao, MI presided over the Eucharist with Fr. Giuseppe Didone, Fr. Antonio Didone and the Provincial Councilors concelebrating.  The sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick was administered on the handicapped children and those sick from outside the Center.  Volunteers, benefactors, employees and staff shared the prayerful moment with the sick.  Br. Paolo Han, the Director of the Handicapped Center disclosed that such a spiritual gathering gives much encouragement to the children.  “It is one way of sharing our love with them in a very Camillian way,” he said.