CHetton i gurupon Neo gi i GimaYuos Katoliku gi iya Guhan!

Peter R. Onedera, Guam Pacific Daily News November 16, 2015!

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Translation:!
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The Neo group is fully entrenched in Guams Catholic Church !
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Being away from Guam sort of gives me the opportunity to look in from the outside and see
things in a different light, as well as feeling that it is best to sometimes remove oneself from a
given situation.!

I bring this up not just because Im Catholic but also because I have joined the parish of St. Pius
X here in Chula Vista where I attend mass every Sunday, go to confession, and get involved in
some parish activities. I often feel as if I never left Guam, as the atmosphere at my new parish is
similar to what it was like at Saint Jude parish in my home village of Sinajana.!

There are Knights of Columbus. There is a rosary and prayer group whose devotions are
phenomenal. There is a chapel that is available for just personal reflection and prayer during the
week, a priest who is very friendly and has a wonderful sense of humor.!

Often, his homily catches my attention as it is always so full of Gods message and the gospels
always hit close to home as he connects everyday situations to the message that we get from
the readings at Mass.!

I got into a conversation with a couple of parishioners whose acquaintance and eventual
friendship I made at one particular parish program. I outrightly asked them if there is a
Neocatechumenal Way in the parish or anything remotely familiar about the movement that
seems to have completely taken over many of the parishes on Guam.!

They had never heard of it. Both have lifelong connections to the Catholic church and the
community here, so they have no idea what I was talking about. Instead, I encouraged them to
access Jungle Watch and to read the goings on that Tim Rohr and many others have posted
quite often and they were shocked about some of the things they learned about what was
happening on Guam.!

It wasnt long when others whom Id meet either at Walmart, Costco or Ralphs and Vons would
come up to me and mention that they have logged on to Jungle Watch and have been reading
up on the latest, especially with our archbishop.!

As a matter of fact, a lot of the CHamorus who live here in San Diego have no knowledge of
what the Neocatechumenal Way is all about and the effect that it is having on a once vibrant
population that was largely Catholic on the island.!

At the Sons and Daughters of Guam Club of San Diego, rosaries for many patron saints are a
regular thing and, most recently, Ple Eric Forbes was here celebrating the liturgy that included
his jubilee as a priest and a moment devoted to Padre Pio, one great saint of this past century.
Many CHamorus seriously take their Catholicity to heart and are very devoted to their adopted
parishes much like how I am now to St. Pius X Catholic Church.!

Ive been getting the PDN on a daily basis as well as the Guam Daily Post and I read all that
have been brought up about the Neos. I thought from the last time I wrote about it in my column
that things have subsided or that Monsignor James Benavente and Father Paul Gofigan have
been reinstated and forgiven but apparently its turning out to be a lost cause.!

Prayers and protests have been waged against what is happening to the Catholic Church on
Guam. One longtime friend of mine who now lives here, too, contributed a comment that made
me stop and think and my heart kind of raced a little. He said that he predicts that whatever is
happening on Guam now, give it perhaps up till 2030 or upwards to 2050, many churches will
close on the island because of non-support or non-attendance of parishioners. Apparently, hes
heard that many parishioners are now leaving their own village parish churches and attending
Mass where the presiding priest is not a practicing Neo.!

Ive asked some relatives through email what and where they stood on this whole issue
especially with the leadership that seems to be fostering discord and dissension among many
whom Ive always thought were good, practicing Catholics. A number of them have said that
they stopped attending Mass and are staying away because what they are seeing is so
disheartening and not worth their time and attention. Two of my distant cousins have decided to
check out a Christian church and are now attending their services.!

I was dismayed. I pleaded to a few not to give up and to please keep their faith strong. Prayers
do work and I, for one, look to divine Providence for a solution to what someone said has
already a nightmare on the island.!

Email Peter R. Onedera at peteronedera@gmail.com.