Sr. M. Gwendolyn O. Condor, MCSH

THE GUIDING HANDS

It was in 1985, when a certain girl, a fourth year high school student, studying at Central Visayan Institute (presently Central Visayan Institute Foundation CVIF) felt a special call from God to follow His footpaths as a religious.  It started when a certain group of seminarians from the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary of Tagbilaran City had a vocation campaign at CVI. She was inspired by these seminarians to serve God as a religious sister.  The question was, where and to what congregation will she enter?

She did not know where to go, so she decided to focus on her studies until college.  When she was still studying in college, taking Bachelor in Elementary Education, at Bohol Institute of Technology-Jagna, her mother who was a catechist in the parish told her to join in catechizing the children in the public schools.  She answered, “NO!” Her mother asked, “Why? Teaching catechism is in line with your course?” “I’m ashamed in doing that”, she answered.  The mother never bothered her again about teaching catechism.

When it was near for her to graduate in college, her mother asked her again to join the Sacred Heart of Jesus Devotion in their parish.  She joined on the said church activity and was faithful in doing their devotional activities with her mother.

She graduated college on March 18, 1990 with the course of BEED at BIT-Jagna.  To keep her busy during summer, she decided to join the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (CCD) as parish catechist, as what her mother wanted her to be when she was still in college.  She, together with her friends, Alfreda, Elba and Lita were assigned to teach catechism at Faraon National High School.  She really enjoyed in teaching catechism to the first year students.  They did it from June 1990 to February 1991.

It was Summer 1991 when she together with Alfreda were sent to the Institute of Catechetics at Sta. Isabel College, Taft Avenue, Manila for further studies in Teaching Catechism and be called professional catechists.  They were sent as scholars of the Diocese of Talibon, Bohol.  There, they met nuns from different congregations.  After finishing the summer course, they served in the Diocese of Talibon as DCA (Diocesan Catechetical Apostolate) Staff members.  They went to the parishes to give Initial Formation Seminars and Updating Seminars for parish catechists with the guidance and company of the DCA Director, Rev. Fr. Felix D. Tabigue and DCA Coordinator, Sr. Ma. Rosalina Macasaet, MCSH.  A year later, Sr. M. Julie S. Micosa, MCSH replaced Sr. Rosalina as DCA coordinator.

One day, her mother teased her saying, “you said last time that you were ashamed to teach catechism, look , what are you doing now? Do you feel the same?”  She just answered with a smile.  Then she realized how God showed His guiding hands in her life.

After two years of service in the Diocese of Talibon as catechist, she decided to enter the religious life in the congregation of the Missionary Catechists of the Sacred Heart in Lipa City, Batangas on April 7, 1993.  She was accepted as Postulant on April 11, 1993, as novice on April 11, 1994, and as temporary professed sister on June 1, 1996.  She had her perpetual profession last June 27, 2003.  She is presently called, SR. GWEN.