Come and See...

The facilitator can start a sharing of experiences with

the audience with the following questions.

Catechetical Office of the Archdiocese of

Tuguegarao (COAT)
Module-Group 1 Series
1______________________________2014

THE CAGAYANO CATHOLIC.

At the
heart of the Cagayano Catholic identity is the
deep devotion to the Our Lady of Piat. How can
this devotion to Mary strengthen the Cagayano
Catholic faith? We look up to Mary as the perfect
disciple; we live by her example.

Objectives
Doctrine:
To know Mary as the perfect
disciple of Jesus
Moral:
To follow her example as the
perfect disciple of
Jesus
Worship: To develop a deeper love and
devotion for Mary

Do you know the name of the mother of Jesus?

Why do we call her Mama Mary?
Why do we ask her help/intercession?
What are the things we do to show our love and
devotion
to her? (You may include praying the rosary and
novena/ lubena/pasiyam to her, putting a rosary
around the hand of a dead member of the
family, etc.)

We, Cagayanos, call the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady

of Piat, Yena tam Ngamin, Apo Baket.
She is also known to us as Our Lady of the Visitation.
We remember her story in the Bible when she travelled
a long distance to visit her cousin Elizabeth after the
Annunciation and stayed with her to help because she
was old and pregnant.
The Blessed Virgin Mary is known by many different
titles or names: Our Lady of Lourdes, Our Lady of

Fatima, Our Mother of Perpetual Help, Our Lady of the

Visitation, etc. In Fatima and, also, in Lourdes, she
appeared to some children; people go to her and ask
her help because she is close to Jesus. But there is
only one Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of
Jesus.

Every day many devotees go to visit Our Lady of

Piat; they line up to touch the Ladys feet and
seek her intercession. On her
fiesta, at least 100,000 pilgrims go to visit her.
This number will continue to grow as in previous
years.
The devotion to Our Lady of Piat dates back to the
16th century. From Macau and then Manila, she
was brought to the Cagayan Valley by the
Dominican Friars (religious priests and brothers) to
help bring the Catholic faith to the Itawes region.

Further exchange of personal experiences can be

made here.

Was there a time in your life when you had

experienced the help/intercession of the Blessed
Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Piat?

What are some of the stories you hear/have

heard about her?

Do you talk/discuss about Our Lady of Piat in

your home? How often? What do you usually
talk about her?

Many miracles have been attributed to the

intercession of Our Lady of Piat, including:

the healing of many sick persons;

the recovery of an insane boy after he fell
from the convent roof (account of Fr. Benito
Gomez);
the cure of a leper-child (Fr. Rojano);
the release of a native from the grip of a
crocodile (1739) (Fr. Rojano);
the rescue of a boatload of people travelling
from Pamplona to Aparri when they met a
fierce storm (June 2, 1738);
the end of a severe drought which
threatened the region after their priests

preached on the need for the people to pray

to Our Lady and to go to Confession (1624);
and
the sparing of the church from a serious
flooding.
A recent case (1993) is that of an old
woman who was cured of lung cancer after
she prayed the novena to Our Lady of Piat.

Recognizing the growing devotion to her, the

Church officially crowned her as the Patroness of
the Cagayan Valley on June 20, 1954 and on June
22, 1999 her shrine was designated as Basilica
Minore Nuestra Senora de Piat.
For us, Cagayanos, the Blessed Virgin Mary under
the title of Our Lady of Piat, is a loving Mother
whom we have come to trust and to run to,
especially in times of crises.

Lyrics: Most Rev. Diosdado Talamaayan, D.D.

Music: Sr. Ma. Anunciata Sta. Ana, SPC
Refrain:

Cagayanos, we truly are blest,

Piats Queen draws us into her arms to

rest.
Since our fathers days, she has among
us sown
the love for Jesus, her own dearest Son.
1.

Behold her with the infant babe,

the Son of God, her loving child,
from whom all favors she obtains
for all who come and seek her aid.

2. Behold her with the Rosary,

she bids us pray from day to day,
that by the faith we have from God,
from His own path we might not stray.
3. Behold her with her mantle blue,
who to her Son remained so true,
help us we pray in Cagayan,
to live in peace, in this land.
4. Virgin of Piat, Lady of the vale,
through highways, rivers, barrio trails,
this Marian year we come to you,
in your Sons love our hearts renew.

Teach your audience the....

Hymn to Our Lady of Piat

As devotees of Mary, Our Lady of Piat, we ask

ourselves: How should we live our devotion to
her? As her children, how can we be
pleasing to her?

In another instance...someone exclaims:

Blessed is the womb that bore you and the
breasts that you sucked. To this Jesus
replies: Still happier are those who hear
the word of God and keep it. (Lk 11: 27-28)
In John 8:31. Jesus says: If you make my
word your home, you will indeed be my
disciple.

Learn from me...We

honor Mary as the

mother of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. She is our
intercessor with Jesus who is the mediator
between God and man. So we continue to present
our needs to her and she, in turn, will present
them to Jesus.

Jesus defines his disciple (follower) not

in terms of blood relations nor in terms of
his small group of friends but in terms of
the bigger circle of those who do the
will of God. Discipleship is about
hearing the word of God and acting on
it. It is not a one-shot deal; it is a reorientation of ones life; it is a way of life.

As devotees and children of Mary, we must

live by her example. Mary showed us how to
be the perfect disciple of Jesus [i.e., wholly
united with her Son (Lumen Gentium 57,58).

Jesus asks: Who is my mother and who are

my brothers?
He answers his question: ...whoever does
the will of my Father in heaven is my
brother, sister, mother (Mt: 46-50).
...whoever
does
the
will
of
God
is my brother, sister and mother. (Mk 3:
31-35). My mother and my brothers are
those who hear the word of God and do it.
(Lk 8: 19-21)

This attitude can very well be seen in Mary.

At the Annunciation, replying to Gods
messenger: Be it done to me according to
your word. (Lk 1:38). This is very much the
same as doing the will of God.
At the Visitation, as witnessed by Elizabeth:
Blessed is she who believed that what was
spoken to her by the Lord will be fulfilled.
(Lk 1:45). This is the same as allowing
Gods will be done.

At the birth of Jesus: ...Mary kept all these

things in heart (Lk 2:19). On finding the
boy Jesus in the temple after losing him:
...and his mother kept all these things in
her heart. (Lk 2: 19). Mary heard the word
of God, was open to it, embraced it and
lived it.
Clearly we see in Marys life her whole
attitude and disposition of hearing the word
of God and making this part of her life. Her
whole life was a total self-giving response to
Gods word, living Gods will.
At the foot of the Cross, we see the climax
of Marys discipleship; Mary identifies
herself more and more with Jesus mission.
At Calvary, Jesus gave her to us as our
Mother signalling her role among his
disciples.
At Pentecost, Mary and the community of
disciples received the Holy Spirit in the form
of tongues of fire to strengthen the newlyfound Church.
Marys discipleship was not static but
grew in maturity...from her obedience to
Gods
word at the
Annunciation

becoming connected with Jesus mission,

climaxing at the foot of the Cross.

Remain in me...We

believe that now in

Heaven Mary continues to be the mother of the
family of her Son. She continues to be the
intercessor to Jesus Christ, the one Mediator
between God and man.

Mary, Our Lady of Piat, was brought from Macau

and Manila to bring the Catholic faith to her
children here in the Cagayan Valley. Her intention
is to bring her Son to us.
Her message to us remains the same as what she
told the servants at the wedding at Cana: DO
WHATEVER MY SON TELLS YOU. And this is
what true discipleship is all about... hearing
the word of God and doing it.
They say: : Like mother, like children. If we are
indeed true children of Mary, we must live
by her example... hearing the word of God
and doing it.

Home and Family.

Mary is the Mother of all disciples. Jesus, our

brother, gave her to us as our Mother; we
are her children. In Heaven, she continues
to be a mother to us all.

We read from Lk 2: 51-52: And Jesus went

down with Mary and Joseph and came to
Nazareth, and was obedient to them...And
Jesus increased in wisdom and in age, and
in favor with God and man.

Our Lady of Piat has for her other title Our

Lady of the Visitation. She is the concerned
cousin who visited Elizabeth who in her old
age was heavy with child; she stayed with
her to help for three months.

Like the Holy Family of Nazareth, the

Cagayano family must be a disciplefamily, hearing the word of God and
putting this into action...living the word of
God. This is the only sure way to strengthen
the Cagayano family as it is threatened by
individualism (kanya-kanyahan, mapangsarili), materialism (pera at

It is said that before Mary was assumed into

Heaven, she visited all the Eleven who by
then were scattered unto the ends of the
earth. Indeed, she is a concerned mother.
She echoes to us her Sons commandment
of love: Love one another as I have loved
you. (Jn 15:12) Just as Jesus has a special
place in his heart for children and orphans,
widows and prisoners, the poor and the
hungry, the oppressed and those losing
hope, so does Mary. She further echoes to
us: Whatever you do to the least of my
children, you do it unto my Son.

materiyal na bagay ay siyang mahalaga

lamang) and relativism (ang tama ay ayon
sa aking interest).
Let the Cagayano family bring back its longcherished tradition of family prayer (The
family that prays together, stays together.)
and family meal so as to strengthen the
weakening family ties.

Community Life

Parish and Church Life

Mary is the Mother of the Church. She is the
first evangelizer; at the Visitation, she

brought the Good News, whom she bore in

her womb, to Elizabeth, her cousin.
Elizabeth exclaimed: ...when the voice of
your greeting came to my ears, the babe in
my womb leaped for joy. (Lk 1:44)

Exhortation for the 2014 Year of the Laity:

Filipino Catholic Laity: Called to be
Saints...Sent
Forth
as
Heroes!
on
www.cbcpnews.com/cbcpnews/?p=27171.]

Mary, too, is the great evangelizer to the

Cagayanos. She was brought here to bring
the Good News to us. Because of this, we,
too, leap for joy; we share in Elizabeths joy.
And this joy we must continue to share with
all Cagayanos and beyond Cagayan.

We, Cagayanos, are called to joyfully share

in the life and mission of the Church...like
Mary.

But that joy must first be lived before it is

shared. This is the theme of the Philippine
Churchs
celebration towards its 500 th
year of faith:
LIVE CHRIST, SHARE
CHRIST*. This tells us that our witnessing
(living the Gospel values taught by Jesus
every day) is the most effective way of
bringing Jesus to others.
* [For reference, please see CBCP Pastoral
Letter on the Era of New Evangelization:
LIVE CHRIST, SHARE CHRIST (Looking
Forward to our 500th Year of Christianity) on
cbcponline.net/v2/?p=4013; theme
song
on
www.youtube.com/watch?
V=7Tbiai_oV64; see also: CBCP Pastoral

Reflection Points...

Will you be like Mary who is willing to travel

long distance (to make a sacrifice) to help her
cousin Eizabeth? Who are those Elizabeths in
your life now?

Are you willing to leave the comforts you

enjoy and serve your needy neighbours,
without expecting any reward?

Follow-up Activities

Pray the Holy Rosary as a family every day.

Make a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady
of Piat

PILGRIMS PRAYER AT THE SHRINE OF OUR

LADY OF PIAT
Hail, Mother of the Visitation, full of grace,
most blessed among women, we, your
children, join all generations that have
called you blessed, for in our behalf, you
gave the Heavenly Father a response of
faith, a profession of undivided love: Let it
be done according to your word.
We come to you, wounded by life; our faith
has grown cold, our hope has waned, and
our love has faltered. Once you asked of
Your Son a favor and he turned water into
wine. Do so for us now, O Mother, that all
that is lifeless and insipid in us may brim
over with the Spirit. When lifes trials
should take us to the summit of Calvary,
stand by our crosses, we pray, as you stood
by the Cross of Your Son, and comfort us
with the faith that He gave us to you as our
Mother whose own heart was pierced by a