Chapter 31 – First Year Ministry of Pastor Rudy Bernal at Cawayan Baptist Church, Carles, Iloilo
After my arrest by the military at the College of Theology mid- 1971, I went home to Carles. I want to breath fresh air from the sea and walked on the seashores. I want to relax. I need to refresh my mind and spirit.
It was not easy feelings to be arrested. To be arrested when you are crossing a street, was sometimes natural. But to be arrested by some 20 police and constabulary officers, ordered by their commander, armed with powerful armalites in the Dean’s Office of the College of Theology, seemed hard for the mind carry .
One week, after my arrest at the College of Theology in mid- 1971, I went home to Carles. When Mayor Alfredo Alava of Carles learned I was home, he sent me a message. He asked me to see him. Mayor Alava was a close friend of my father. And I am close to him. He said: “Rudy, do you want to work as Sanitary Inspector of our town? We need you here. You can helped our people. And you can helped our town.” That time, there was only one doctor and 1 Sanitary Inspector in Carles.
I told Mayor Alava, I will try. I will apply. It was also a way to gauge the political situations and how I stand with the military. Mayor Alava, told me to go to Camp Delgado and get employment clearance. He gave me the officer’s name I will see. He gave me a letter, introducing me to the camp officer.
The following morning, I went to the Philippine Constabulary office at Camp Delgado. The officer, led me to the NISA office and introduced me to General Flores, Regional NISA Officer. He told General Flores, I was recommend by Mayor Alava. General Flores asked me to set in front of him.
After some short conversations, General Flores went inside another room. When he returned, he has a big folder with files. He read the files. He shook his head. He asked me a lot of questions. “Why were you in the village in Dingle? What did you do there? Who were your companions?” He also asked me why I was in a village in Pavia. Why I was in a village in Leganes. And why I went to a village in San Dionisio village?”
I told General Flores: “I am Chairman of the Education Committee of the PANELFU, a labor Union. I was in those places doing education and organzing seminars for farmers in different towns in Iloilo and Panay. PANELFU was a labor organization registered with the Department of Labor.”
General Flores told me, they have a big dossier on me. He told me: “Mayor Alfredo Alava recommended you to me. The mayor has high trust on you.” Then, General Flores asked me. “Tell me why were you arrested a week ago at CPU?” Only then, I realized fully, NISA powers. There intelegence networks reached out to different communities, including an ordinary man like me.
It seems he knew most happenings in Iloilo. Then, he said, “I cannot give you a clearance. There were lots dossiers on you. But Mayor Alava trusted you. He want you to help him in Carles. I will try to help you. But you must accept as true all these things written on your dossiers. Then, you must asked for pardon. You must asked for forgiveness. And you must sign an affidavit.”
That was quite hard. I thanked General Flores. I will return, after thinking on his proposal. But I lost my interest on the possible job. I went to Atty. Alfredo Banares and Atty. Edgar Villalubos office. They were my lawyer friends. I told them what General Flores asked me to do. Atty Banares said: “Rudy, you must not sign any affidavit accepting what were written on your dossiers. When you do that, you will tie a strong cord on your neck. You’ll be ready for hanging.”
I went home to Carles. I decided to keep cool. Meantime, I will lessen my involvement in labor organising works.
In Carles, I helped my father and younger brother in the farm. We planted corn and vegetables. Some kind of realization on my life came. It touched me. I tried to re-think my life. I tried to look into the future. I looked back at my little involvements in organizing works. Labor organizing was a legal work. But it was now considered by the military as dangerous. Some labor leaders were accused as subversive. That night, I asked God for guidance. I knelt in prayer. I said: “ Lord, I am committed to continue the struggle for equality, freedom and justice. But meantime, I will take a rest. I will try to parry the hot political situations.”
To soften suspicions on me, I must lessen my involvement on labor education and organizing. I told the Lord. “Lord, I will lessen my labor organzing works. I will go teaching, if possible also preaching. I will go to a new ministry. But how? Quite impossible. I have finished only One Year and 1 semester of the 4 years Theological Studies. How could I be a pastor or a preacher?”
That night, I asked God: “ Lord, I will do whatever you want me to do. I will go wherever you want me to go. Please open my way. I am ready to go anywhere you will send me. I will go to the mountain church. Or in an island church. Or, in a church in the slums. Please let me know, what course I will take. Just make it clear, that is your will for me.” I layed on my bed that night. Easily, I fall aslept. It was a long and peaceful slept. I woke up that morning with a peaceful heart.
I went on with my gardening. The following Sunday, I went to church. This was our home church. I attended Sunday School that morning. I shared my thoughts. And we have a lively sharing and discussions. We went on to our worship service. Pastor Glory Forro Bullo preached. She gave an inspiring message. It was my first worship in church for about a year. The following Sunday, I went again to Sunday School and joined the worship service. We have a good sharing and Sunday School time.
On the 3rd Sunday, Pastor Glory Bullo, asked me to lead the Sunday School the following Sunday. And also the next Sunday. I continued as Sunday School teacher. A few weeks later, Pastor Glory Bullo, who was teaching in Carles High School, asked me to preach on worship the following Sunday.
Few weeks later, she asked me to serve as Assistant Pastor of Cawayan Baptist Church. She said: “Rudy I am very busy in school. I need your help. I asked the church to call you as Assistant Pastor. Please accept the church request.” I told Passtor Glory Bullo, I will accept the church request. A day or two, I was given a call. I was called as Assistant Pastor of Cawayan Baptist Church.
I began visiting and sharing with the adults. I organize them to join me in visiting and calling on other church members and the community. We visited potential Baptists. We use this visits as a time for sharing. For reading short verses for the Scripture. And for prayer. On Wednesdays, we have prayer meetings. And Saturdays, often we go to some community where we have a preaching or home Bible Study meetings.
After visiting church members at their homes, I found many families has chickens. The chickens were just roaming around. In nearby village, we heard many chickens have died. They were hit hard with Avian Pests, a deadly disease we call “aratay”. When Avian Pest hit the village, a few chicken, two or three survived.
We called the Baptist Men for a meeting. We must work to help ourselves against “aratay” chicken disease. We discussed what we will do. They said: “We will immunized all the chickens of our church members . Then we will immunize the chickens of the community.” They church gave me my expenses for Iloilo City.
I went to the Department of Agriculture’s Animal section in Iloilo City. I requested Avian Pest Vaccine. They provided me free vaccines for all chickens we need. They told me to put the vaccine vials inside a cup with cover and put inside a plastic bag with ice. When I arrived in Carles, I will look for rotten banana trunks and put the vaccine vials in the rotten bananas. The coolness will preserved the vaccine for days. Then I took a bus for Carles, 148 kms away.
When I arrived in Carles I looked for an old and rotten banana trunks and buried the Avian Pest Vials inside the rooten banana trunks. There was no refrigerator in Cawayan, Carles that time.
The following day, all the church officers and deacons met. We have a training on the technics of chicken immunisation. For small chicks we put 1 drop of vaccine on the nasals or eyes. For chickens more than a month old and up, we will put 2 drops of vaccine on their puets. For adult chickens and roasters, we will inject it with 1 drop of vaccine on their bodies.
We immunized all the chickens of our church members. Then we immunized the chickens of the village people.
In 3 days we have immunized all the chickens of the village against Avian Pests or Aratay. After we have finished our immunizations, we came together to share our experiences with some members of the community. We have our snacks. Then we closed our affair with a Bible reflections and prayers.
We also tried to reach out to the Elementary school teachers.There were 8 teachers in Elementary school. Two were married, Mr. and Mrs. Romeo Bellosillo, the head teacher..
We invited the teachers to join us visit places in the village. We asked them to join us “pangolabo”, going to homes visiting friends. When we were closer, we invited them for swimming. Dayhagan, Carles has one of the beautiful beaches. We went there swimming Saturday morning. We prepared our snacks. Then, we gather on a shady part near the beach and have some singings and Gospel reflections. Then we have prayers. We requested one to pray for us. We have our snacks. Then we went home. The friendship and relationship has strengthened.
There were also times, when we went night swimming. It was our way for fellowhip and sharing. Night swimming with young people, young adults and some Elementary school teachers. When I invited them, they agreed. Night swimming was a new experience for most. These simple things played a role in strengthening our relationship and our ministry in the church.
The young people and young adults prepared for this activity. They prepared snacks. The bought some home made drinks. They have their Swim Suites. Some have their Patadyong. Then we went swimming. We just made sure that we do not go to deep part of the beach.
While on the beach we saw big tree trunk carried by waves to the beach. We carried it to the deeper waters. We rode the big tree flooting on the sea water. We have some short conversations. As we looked at the beautiful twilights under the covers of the red horizon.
Two elementary teachers, hold on the tree trunks, as we allow the gentle currents to carry us, drifting for some times, under soft coolness of the moonlight. All the teachers were now close friends. But I cannot remember their names now, except two, Miss Racimo and Miss Erlida Gonzaga.
Then, around the flames of the burning woods, we have short reflections on life and God’s purpose for living. It was a simple sharing. But it touched our hearts and minds. Then we go home, reminded of God’s grace along our way.
These was how God helped me start my ministry at Cawayan Baptist Church, a small village church in mid-1971. It’s a ministry that continued for 43 years, until today, 2017.
On Septenber 21, 1972, President Marcos declared Martial Law. In the whole country. A new chapter in the life of the Filipinos came under his regime. And a new ministry has opened for me, our Baptist ministers and our churches. The ministry of helping in our small way, resist martial rule, helped fight human rights violations and helped exposed the evils of the deadly regimes.
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