The word SAMBAYAN is a fusion of two Filipino words: SAMBA (worship, adoration) and BAYAN (nation, people). Thus Sambayan means worshipping people. The SAMBAYAN is a publication of the Filipino community based in the Netherlands.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
THE PEN
by Maryjane Streefland
Greetings from Lekkerkerk! My name is Maryjane Streefland-Osigan.I'm originally from Butuan City and I came here as a bride in 1996.
I come from a religious family.I was always involved in the Church.During my high school years,I was president of the youth organization and attended Mass almost every day.
Then I started college as an Education student.Because money was tight,I was a working student.Between work,my studies and my other activities,I became very tired.I decided that I would give up my church activities and concentrate on my studies and work.
One day I crossed the road to try to get a ride home in an already-full tricycle.I did not see the other one coming.I ended up ten hours in a coma-the time limit,doctors told me later,after which they would give up on a patient.
But God did not give up on me.The nuns and the priests who knew me from my church activities prayed for me,and they also started a fund-raising drive to pay for my hospital stay(I was in hospital for a month).
I survived.It was a miracle,many said.The mayor even came to visit.
Before blacking out and going into a coma,I remember telling the Lord,"What ever is your will,Lord,may it be done,but you know that I am the oldest."
Since the accident,my mental capacity has somewhat diminished.When I had to think too long or study too long,I'd get a horrible headache.I decided to shift to Agriculture,which is more practicum-oriented compared to Education with all those theories to be learned.
When I finished my studies,I needed to do an apprenticeship.I was permitted to work at an American company which was involved with agricultural entrepreneurship programs.There was a hotel nearby, and I was often called to act as a translator for the guests, or as a tour guide.
I met my husband Martin who was a guest at that hotel. God works in mysterious ways.If I did not have the accident,I would not have shifted to agriculture and I would not have met my husband, and I would not have come here.I would not have been able to work and make some money to send my younger sisters and brothers to school.
I learned about the FCC through Nene Kribbers.I used to go to Mass in Rotterdam and then also in Gouda.Since the last two years,I have been going only to Gouda. I have a lot to be thankful for.Despite my husband being a non-practicing Protestant,he has been supportive of my going to church and he also helps out in the kitchen,making sure that the coffee is set and tea is made and pouring these for those who attended the Mass.
Although I got sick not so long ago and needed major operation,again I survived and am now taking things easier.I still worry that I wo'nt be able to put my four younger siblings through college, but I know that if I leave my worries with God,I get peace of mind,well, a little bit.
I pass the pen to Amor van Os.
JOINT LENTEN CAMPAIGN 2005
by Rick Heikoop
It is again Lent.From way back it is a period of reflection on life & lifestyle.A time to make a difference,difference in one's own life and in the life of the less gifted.The Lenten Campaign lets oneself be inspired by fellow human beings in the less developed South.
The Steiger parish and the Filipino Parish in Rotterdam have decided to organize this year a joint Lenten Campaign.Last February 13,Sunday morning,a board member of the Filipino parish told something about the joint Lenten campaign during the service at the Steiger.On the afternoon,someone from the Steiger came to do the same during the mass of the Filipino Parish.
Joint Lenten meals
The Steiger and the Filipino parish will organize together five meals on Wednesday evening of the Lenten season between 17:30 and 19:30 hrs.The meals will take place in the Steiger Parish,Hang 8,Rotterdam.It would be nice if everyone could join also these Lenten meals.
Youth
The Steiger and the Filipino parish have expressed the wish to organize joint activities for the youth.In the Steiger,it is the custom there for the "Kinderwoorddienstgroep" (children Bible group) to prepare in the period before Easter the Paschal celebration.On Palm Sunday this is concluded with a procession with palm branches.This year the Steiger and the Filipino parish make with the youth palm branches in the Filipino way and prepare together the celebration.This will take place during a children's workshop and after the celebration on March 13.On March 20, a joint Palm Sunday celebration will be held in Steiger parish church.
The contact persons for this activity are Daisy Megraso from the side of the Filipino parish and Hannet de Nooij from the side of the Steiger.
The Lenten Project
Lent offers us a unique opportunity to support our partners in the Third World in their struggle/fight for a future of independence and self-reliance.Lent is a unique oppotunity to examine this and to support our fellowmen in the South.You choose to be in solidarity with them.
Worrisome situation of old people in the big cities of the Philippines.
Everyone has the right to a human existence but the situation of the elderly in the urban areas of the Philippines is worrisome. With the moving away of the youth,the increasing individualism and the falling away of the traditional support structures in the Filipino families,many elderly are abandoned to their lot.Life in Manila is for most of the poor inhabitants of this city of millions(15 to 18 million inhabitants) who have to lead dangerous and unhealthy lives in one of the many squatter areas.
Still there are some elderly people from Manila and the surrounding areas who did not give up,aware that they and many other elderly people can still mean a lot to society.These elderly people got in touch with the organization Coalition of Services for the Elderly (COSE).With the assistance of the COSE the elderly have formed themselves into 33 area organizations with a total of 2205 members.All the area organizations have a purpose in mind,namely the improvement of the quality of life of the elderly especially in the areas of healthcare,rights to housing,income security and a say over their own interests.
The Steiger and the Filipino parishes want to support this project with the proceeds of the Lenten Campaign.The support of this project goes via Cordaid with the CBF quality mark.
In the name of the Filipino parish, the Steiger and the Filipino elderly I would like to thank you all for your contribution and effort to help for the Lenten meals and the Lenten project a success.
WHAT THE JANUARY 9 INDUCTION MEANT TO ME
by Rick Heikoop
The installation as board member in a Church community and the pronouncement of a vow to God is not something that one takes lightly. It is a choice behind which one stands, in which one believes, which brings along responsibilities and to which one devotes time. You have given me and the other members of the board the trust to fulfill this function. I will carry out this function as best as possible!!
It was actually not an easy decision to put myself up as candidate for a function in the board of the Filipino Catholic community in Rotterdam. I became a candidate because in this way, as a believer, I expect to make my own active contribution to a better, peaceful and tolerant world. Board membership will make me actively involved with the church and bring me closer to God.
Next to that I expect that my participation in the board will contribute to my little daughter Isabel’s becoming aware of her Filipino cultural identity. She has no Filipino relatives in the Netherlands. I hope therefore that she will feel at home in the Filipino community and will become acquainted with Filipino norms and values.
I hope that we will be a transparent and open board and I would like to thank all board members for their effort and contribution. I hope that we will become a real team and that together we can contribute to a flourishing Filipino community in Rotterdam. With the support of the Filipino community we will certainly succeed.!!!
