“God will send people to make your life beautiful. They will guide you to paths of peace and make this peace your call.”
My love for Music helps me to develop a “listening heart” and to be able reconnect to people and put them together in harmony. The first time I knew about the Silsilah Dialogue Movement was when I joined the first 3- Day Life-In-Dialogue Youth Camp facilitated by the Silsilah Forum Davao Coordinators last October 11, 2011 in Davao City.
In that camp, I learned to respect more the commonalities and differences of different faith traditions after the sessions and group dynamics that we went through. But one of the most unforgettable experiences was the last dawn of it. A night before, we were instructed to bring our rosaries, tashbihs, Holy Bibles and Noble Qur’ans because we would use those during our prayer. All of us were so excited to go out to pray together. Then we went to a very huge and silent place where we formed a big circle. Outside the circle were our facilitators and religious leaders from different faith traditions instructing us to pray for peace in Mindanao.
I was amazed by that experience because it was a very heart-warming scenery that I witnessed: young people from different religious traditions having in their minds and hearts prayers for peace in Mindanao. I consider this image as the time when Interreligious Dialogue (IRD) was planted within my heart and innermost self. After the camp we also went to our individual endeavors and stayed in contact with each other on social media.
Witnessing different activities really amazed me, seeing different religions talking to each other, praying together and especially sharing their life’s challenges and triumphs made me feel and reflect that hope for peace is possible.
While working in San Pedro College as one of the campus ministers, I also studied in Ignatian Institute of Religious Education Foundation (IIREF) at Holy Cross of Davao College (HCDC) where I met Ate Fe Banua and Sir Francis Demol. Every Saturday noon, between the years 2016-2018, I had the chance to accompany the liturgical music of the Mass in that college. Every noon mass I always saw Ate Fe, smiling at me sharing the gestures of peace all the time before singing the Agnus Dei (Lamb of God). It usually happened every Saturday for almost two years without knowing each other’s name.
One day in 2018, someone contacted me on messenger asking if I was free to accompany her for a prayer service for the dead—without asking who she was, I immediately said yes to her.
When we entered the funeral room where the wake was, I saw a big man on the corner, and thought for a while as we went near, that he was quite familiar to me and I was very sure that we had met somewhere. It was then that I realized that it was sir Francis Demol, who was one of my classmates in IIREF.
So, I held his hand and tapped his back expressing my condolences after knowing that was the wake of his father. After that short conversation, Ate Fe started the prayer and I also accompanied the singing with the family, relatives and friends who were there.
He mentioned familiar persons, he also shared the topics and subjects they discussed during the classes and one of the best parts for him was the immersion with the Muslim families. I then shared my stories with them, Ate Fe and Sir Francis, because they were the ones who introduced me, and were very instrumental in making me part of the Emmaus Dialogue Movement (EDM) Family. Members of this movement are Catholics promoting peace and living the spirituality of life-in-dialogue in the light of Vatican II.
After knowing EDM, without second thoughts, I said to myself: I need to go to that place and be part of this movement. So I asked sir Francis how to be part of this movement and he introduced me to Ate Nelly, one of the formators of EDM and in-charge of the Summer Course 2018.
It was (March 30, 2018) Good Friday in the morning our plane landed in Zamboanga Peninsula. “Bienvenidos” and Welcome to “The Only Latin City in Asia”, these are the (big) words I saw on their airport welcoming the passengers and yet I also felt welcomed with the good vibe I sensed inside me.
Kuya Lorenzo fetched me from the airport to Harmony Village, met Ate Ronela “Nelly” Mocoy and some people in the community and I was introduced to Fr. Sebastiano “Seb” D’Ambra, PIME and Ate Aminda “Minda” Saño, EDC.
Before, I just used to listen to the beautiful stories of these people but during that time I was so happy seeing and conversing with them in person and yet it was a great opportunity to see living heroes and saints. After that meeting, I also met my classmates for the summer courses both Muslims and Christians whose hearts are for dialogue and peace.
For over two months I was in Harmony Village and I learned so many things that was very helpful in living life. In our room both Muslims and Christians stayed together, that’s why I also knew so many things about their own cultures and traditions. I loved our schedule, I loved our discussions and it amazed me every early morning when we prepare ourselves for our prayer.
As far as I could remember, I lived with four Muslim families during the immersion. All of my experiences were beautiful and worthy to tell and retell to others.
My first foster family was in Lower Calarian. Since it was my first time, I felt fear inside me, because there were already negative things being injected in my mind in the past and that’s the reality of the world today and because I also had inside me my own biases.
But when I entered inside the house of my foster family, I was so touched because my foster mother (I called her Ina) hugged me so tightly and it reminded me that for almost two months I was away with my mother and I missed her. I was also astounded every time I shook the hands of the elders in the community; they kissed their hands and put it on their heart. For me it was a very respectful gesture, and I felt welcomed by the community.
The last foster family that I stayed with was in Upper Calarian. Everyday we sold fish and then after all our fish were sold we usually went home to Upper Calarian. During this time, I was very involved with the family: I also sold fish, cooked and took care of my two foster little sisters. Our bonding moment was playing my flute recorder while they sang songs. But another unforgettable moment was again the hug of my foster mother. My “Ina” was very religious with their salah (five times prayer) and she did her salah inside her room. The moment she entered her room for salah, I also silently went inside my room and pray the rosary.
Every time, she finished her “salah”, or salat meaning “prayer”, “supplication”, “blessing” and “commendation”: the second of the five pillars in the Islamic faith as daily obligatory standardized prayers, she then hugged everyone who were present. I was the very last person to be hugged because she just waited for me to go out from my room. Every time she hugged me it lessened the feeling of missing my real mother.
After the courses, the Silsilah and Emmaus Dialogue appointed me as link person in Emmaus Dialogue Movement Davao to start and organize a group of Catholics following the spirituality of life-in-dialogue where Music is part of the ministry. I also became a member of EDC-Volunteer and am happy to tell you that we are growing in Davao City following the same spirit.
These stories of mine are still very fresh in my memory. This once in a lifetime experience became the foundation of respect, love, reconciliation and hope for peace here on earth. It also made us believe that we are all brothers and sisters in this one human family, God as our father of all. I also believe that God will send people to make your life beautiful. They will guide you to paths of peace and make this peace as your call.
Emerson “E-Ar” Calumpang , EC
Coordinator, Emmaus for Dialogue and Peace-Davao
Core group member, Silsilah Forum Davao