By Dr. Michael Campos, High School Religion, Theology and Spirituality Faculty
Seminar 3, Day 2: Becoming God’s Beloved
Maupay nga aga! Good morning!
Building on the concept of pilgrimage, Sr. Lydia invited us to regard spirituality as the work of “humanization.” In order to fully integrate fragmented selves, we engage in a process of critical repetition, where one revisits self-destructive patterns in ways that deepen awareness. More than merely repeating — and thus, reliving — trauma, one “returns” to the past in order to transform one’s relationship with suffering. Sr. Lydia drew on an old Filipino adage to describe this spiral trajectory of this process:
Madaling maging tao, mahirap magpakatao.
Being human is easy; be-coming human is a struggle.
To be-come human requires a constant return. With each “return,” one takes account of one’s stories, especially those that have been silenced by abuse, suffering and trauma. Rather than allow one’s self to be defined by the past, a reflexive critique deepens one’s capacity to choose. This strengthens personal “agency” (Lat. v., agere, “to act”). Being responsible for one’s stories reorients our encounter with loss, moving from fragmentation to moments of possibility.
Photos by Dr. Michael Campos, Religion, Theology & Spirituality, Faculty
Convent & Stuart Hall Travel 