The 34th Anniversary of Silsilah this year in Zamboanga City was a new occasion of gathering of members and friends with the Muslim and Christian coordinators of the Silsilah Forum areas. They are those who spread the spirit of dialogue and peace on behalf of the Movement on the national level, especially in Mindanao.
This year, the gathering was also blessed by the presence of Fr. Chito Suganob from Marawi prelature, who survived the siege of Marawi. He has been always an active member of Silsilah Forum Marawi and he came to share his painful experience that became for him a spiritual journey.
The gathering was also an occasion to listen to the spiritual journey of the Silsilah Forum coordinators and other delegates coming to Zamboanga City for the first national gathering of the World Interfaith Harmony Week (WIHW), an initiative promoted by the United Nations that Silsilah is spreading around the country because it invites all to promote the Love of God, the Love of Neighbor and the Love of the Common Good, the same vision that Silsilah is spreading since its beginning in Zamboanga City in 1984, when Fr. Sebastiano D’Ambra, PIME started the Silsilah Dialogue Movement with a group of Christian and Muslim friends.
Among the many good stories, we present here the sharing of Satra, the Muslim coordinator of the Silsilah Forum Siasi, an isolated area in the Sulu Sea. This is what she shared last May 9, 2018 during the 34th anniversary of Silsilah:
Fourteen years ago, indeed, it’s Allah SWT call for me; I had set my feet in this Oasis, a humble abode of spirituality where I discovered the essence of dialogue and also the importance of my existence. It was then, Mrs. Ma. Gloria Ringor, who invited and convinced me to attend the Basic Summer Course in Silsilah. After so many attempts, I decided to give a try attending the said Summer Course. Although then, I had an inhibition of conversion since it was run and managed by a Christian priest. However, a month after my stay in Silsilah, that perception of conversion proved to be wrong, because Silsilah is discovered as a beautiful haven of earth where everyone can walk and live peacefully. It was really a blessing for me to be a part of this movement. This is an ideal place to live and strengthen our spirituality.
As a Tausug, I may say the movement has moved and transformed me personally and socially. I was struck and deeply inspired with the love and openness planted in this area. So when Fr. Seb asked me to be the Muslim Coordinator of the Silsilah Forum Siasi, right there and then, without hesitation, I accepted the offer for I knew it would be the way to reach out with other races, cultures and religions. A way of promoting dialogue in my own little way to my fellow beings (fellow Tausugs’) as well as to my Christian brothers and sisters. I wholeheartedly accepted the task and gave my commitment to extend my service voluntarily despite hectic schedules and demands of my work as a public school teacher. It is a great happiness to be a servant of peace and dialogue to everyone regardless of religious affiliations, ethnicity and of culture.
As a Muslim coordinator of Silsilah Forum Siasi, we’ve been working hard, hand in hand along with Ma’am Glo, the Christian coordinator in the promotion of peace and dialogue in our locality, bringing out the mission-vision of Silsilah as far as Siasi. Enriching the power of love to the Siasians and building friendship with various people of other living faiths.
The encouraging spirit within us guides me sustaining my faith to work for peace and life in dialogue without reservations. Promoting it untiringly is the greatest accomplishment of my journey for in dialogue faith blossoms amidst contradictions, rejections and inhibitions amongst religious and other people. Along the signs of time, divisions and conflicts clash among families anywhere in the country most particularly in Mindanao. So as a coordinator, it will be a great challenge to expand my spiritual chain in the form of a dialogical approach in order to reach out to those who are really in need of inspiration and transformation.
Furthermore, in this special day of the Silsilah Dialogue Movement, it is indeed a joyful moment to celebrate for this period when the 1st National Gathering of the World Interfaith Harmony Week Partner’s Delegates is held. Hence, I am so thankful to Fr. Seb and Ma’am Minda, the president for entrusting me such a challenging yet great responsibility. Immeasurable support and countless guidance are always there from them. Hence, in return, my commitment to the movement will always remain, especially now. I can assure to bring back Silsilah to Siasi as a sign of hope.