date posted: 2009-06-16 15:03:43
Text and video by Paul Y. Daza (AB '90)

As a member of the Ateneo de Manila’s Documentation Team for the Grand Sesquicentennial Kick-Off held last Sunday, June 14, I had the unique opportunity to view the event from both the point of view of a spectator and that of an insider. Unlike most of the participants, I went to every venue on the journey, and got down at every stop, from the 7:00 a.m. Mass at the Manila Cathedral to the post-sunset fireworks at the Church of the Gesu.

Here are my 15 favorite moments from the unforgettable 15-hour day, in chronological order:

1. Seeing the majestic, blue and beautiful carpets, drop-down banners and photo murals that production designer (and Ateneo alumnus) Gino Gonzales expertly used to transform each of the seven stops (Manila Cathedral, San Ignacio Church ruins, Padre Faura, Ateneo Salcedo, Ateneo Rockwell, ASMPH in Pasig, Church of the Gesu in Loyola Heights) into a bold, blue-blooded design that does full justice to 150 Years of The Ateneo Way.

2. His Eminence, Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales, D.D., Archbishop of Manila, expressing his profound gratitude to the Jesuits for their contributions to education and the spreading of the Faith in the Philippines for more than a century. This message was delivered during his closing remarks at the Mass in the Manila Cathedral.

The rest of the article may be read here

June 24, 2009

TO: THE ATENEO DE MANILA GRADE SCHOOL COMMUNITY
RE: CANCELLATION OF CLASSES FROM 25-26 JUNE 2009
FROM: THE HEADMASTER

I wish to inform the community that classes for Primary School and Middle School are canceled on Thursday, June 25 and Friday, June 26. Classes will resume on Monday, June 29, 2009.

The rest of the memo may be read here

BIG DEAL
By Dan Mariano

Last Sunday, the Society of Jesus observed the 150th anniversary of its return to the Philippines.

Before 1859, the Jesuits had been away for nearly a century. They had been expelled from Spanish colonies—as well as those of France and Portugal—because, as one writer put it, “they actively educated and empowered the colonized people.”

But the trauma of their expulsion in 1768 did not, as it were, mellow down the Jesuits. Even after the Society was “rehabilitated,” a Jesuit education—based on Ratio Studiorum—remained a liberating process most especially for the indio that Leon Ma. Guerrero would later call “The First Filipino.”

Today, June 19, marks the 148th birth anniversary of Dr. Jose P. Rizal. While he was educated in several schools both here and abroad, it is with what in his time was called the Ateneo Municipal de Manila that the National Hero is most closely identified.

This bond between Rizal and the Jesuits is documented by the American professor Austin Craig in his book Lineage, Life and Labor of Jose Rizal, Philippine Patriot: A Study of the Growth of Free Ideas in the Trans Pacific American Territory. First published in 1913, Craig’s opus is still regarded as one of the most comprehensive biographies of Rizal.

The following excerpts from Craig’s book illustrate the seemingly umbilical attachment between Rizal and the Ateneo.

In Chapter 5, “Jagor’s Prophecy,” Craig wrote:

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The Ateneo Sesquicentennial Kick-Off
words & pix by rick olivares

Around 2:30pm, my headache kicked into high gear. The lack of sleep and going in and out of cold and hot confines was causing havoc with my health and we still had two stops to go… the Ateneo Medical School and the Loyola Heights campus.

But there’s something about the soothing and uplifting melodies of Himig Heswita that serves like a shot of adrenaline when the body and the spirit are weak.

It seemed odd at first, an electric guitar that kicked into an uptempo beat and as the voices of the Ateneo Medical School’s Choir filled the corridors, there was that familiar song that I loved so much when I was in high school -- “Bumaba Ka Sa Bundok” -- that had people clapping and snapping their fingers along.

Isn’t that the crux of our Jesuit education?

There were three speeches (aside from the Jesuit music from the Manila Cathedral and the Ateneo Medical School) that provided more than points to ponder for the occasion but are messages that will resonate long after the festivities are over.

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