By Willy E. Arcilla, Contributor
INQUIRER.net
THE AWARENESS and popularity of Canadian-based Fr. Fernando Suarez has been soaring in recent weeks as increasingly more Filipino faithful and Christians worldwide attend and bear witness to his healing ministry at which the disabled walk, the visually-impaired see, the deaf hear and the mute speak. There are patients with cancer and other diseases who are cured. Yet, despite a cult following that seems to rival local celebrities, Father Suarez remains admirably humble, insisting that “I am not a healer” amid persistent labels as the “healing priest” or “miracle priest.” Raising his voice somewhat to emphasize the point and ensure that all can hear clearly, “it is not me who heals, but our Lord Jesus Christ, and He uses me merely as an instrument for His grace.” He draws an analogy to Christ’s healing power with “water passing through one’s hands.”
During a healing mass held recently at SM Megamall’s Trade Hall, Father Suarez repeatedly said in his homily, “I feel so embarrassed whenever people reach out to touch my robes,” again emphasizing it is God’s omnipotence that heals both the body and spirit. But despite this self-effacing attitude, he urged all the faithful present “not to feel embarrassed in praying for compassion and healing” for all afflictions — physical or spiritual — for nothing is impossible with God. He explains that the miracles people see or personally experience are demonstrations of God’s love that serve to help strengthen the people’s faith. If the source of all evil in this world is pride, manifested in being self-centered and an egoistic “ownership” of one’s accomplishments, he says the source of all good must lie in being “Christ-centered” and complete abandonment and surrender to God. “If we rely on Jesus, we will not be disappointed based on His promise that He will not fail us if we trust in Him.” However, while he urged all brethren to implore good health and a fullness of life with total confidence as children of God, he also admonished that God wants “holistic healing,” and not just “partial healing,” including the healing of one’s heart and conversion of one’s soul. He went on to pray for the moral illnesses and social injustices that bedevil the country, specifically the graft and corruption plaguing government and the wrenching poverty oppressing millions; for the deepest divisions to be healed and discrimination of all forms banished. In offering a reason for why God does not seem to answer all our supplications, he said perhaps “sometimes, what we ask for may not be good for us.”
In an interview prior to the mass, this writer asked Father Suarez if he can share what God tells him in his personal conversations during private moments of prayer, to which he replied, “God says He loves me, and He is happy with what I do in sharing the gift of healing with all the faithful.” This writer later learned that Father Suarez interacts, touches and prays over each and every person in all of his healing services — regardless of how long it takes or how exhausting it can get.
Before an audience consisting of the sick and the curious, the faithful and the skeptics, captured on digital cameras and video recorders, shown live on closed-circuit TV and later on nationwide TV, Father Suarez performed his individualized healing ministry on thousands, moving constantly and laying his hands on the old and the young, many of whom rose from wheelchairs and spontaneously shared poignant stories, testifying to God’s goodness through Father Suarez.
When this writer asked Father Suarez what he would like to tell the millions of Filipinos who may have desperately wished to attend his healing sessions, but cannot because they are preoccupied with earning a living or do not possess the means, he says reassuringly, “God heals in different ways, so we must all believe in his goodness. While it is God who heals, it is faith that saves.” Fittingly, Father Suarez reminds us of the gospel passages when Jesus brings back to life a grief-stricken father’s only daughter, and a woman suffering from years of debilitating illness touches the hem of His cloak, in which He says “Take courage… your faith has made you well.”
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February 5th, 2008 at 8:48 am
Is Father Suarez soliticing payment for his healing? Is he promoting his “gift” to gain wealth, power? He does not seem to be harming people, so why are we so hard on him.
I myself know someone who was cured from praying with Fr Suarez. This person is not even a devout Christian, was gravely ill with doctors’ tests to prove it (in black and white). He said that for months he was sick and now he’s well- and he can’t explain it. All he knows is that he prayed with Fr. Suarez as a last ditch effort, thinking “it couldn’t hurt”.
My point- Until we experience a “miracle” ourselves, we’ve got no cause to judge that other people’s experiences are invalid and impossible.
February 5th, 2008 at 3:33 am
‘Go And Tell Others’
Monday,February 4
.Go home to your family and announce to them all that the Lord in his pity has done for you.Mark 5:19
sa aming globalsite ng aking mga kababayan e,i share daily reading and sometimes also the reflection or a homily from a sharer i read,from Living Faith,and most of the time talaga e sumasagot sa mga kasalukuyang tanong ng marami pati na ako at sabi nga ng ilang guro at Pari at mga manunulat e kalimitan e yun nga,ibinibigay lagi ang kasagutan sa iyo,o parang yun na ring sabi ni sa ‘tamang panahon’bibigyan ka ng iyong dapat isagot o ng iyong sasabihin.
so eto siguro e isa nga, ‘go and tell others’ so here it is from Heather Wilson,at naisulat niya ito,pero kalimitan e ganito rin naman talaga ang karanasan natin at kung minsan e maganda ring i-share ito at baka mas lalong basahin at paniwalaan,kaysa kung ang aking karanasan ang isulat ko,though alam ko naman na marami-rami na rin (he-he) na ring nagbabasa at naniniwala
Laiko rin siguro,at ako e laiko rin,so,siguro dapat nga lang sigurong magpa-lakas tayong mga laiko…matapos tayong sumangguni at magkumpisal at tanggapin ang mga Sakramento,e ipagdasal natin na matamo ang biyaya na maharap natin at magampanan ang tungkulin nating mga laiko.Politics…y-not? kung sa laiko dapat yan…let’s do it…simulan sa PTA,o sa mga NGO at sa Barangay,Bayan at Kongreso o ha,ha(reminder sa akin ng isang elder e,ok lang yun ‘boy,…but make sure you are always grounded,e hindi ko naintindihan agad what he meant,sabi ko e,eeee grounded na naman,e yun ang sabi sa mga bata rito pag-me-s o maling nagawa,…yun pala e, i have to maintain my spiritual nourishments,…so alam ko mahirap,e lagi namang me ganyan,so tama yun at talaga namang doon ka lang aasa ng iyong lakas,kahit pa nga sa aking Mrs,ha,ha o sa mga isyu ng mga anak.so siguro ganito muna,habang tuloy ang diskusyon dito,at mag-bantay at mag-obserba at mag-aral,mag discern ng mahigpit,kung sino ang mga tao o grupo na tapat sa ARAL)
so eto po…
Freed from his demons,this grateful man wants to go along with Jesus.(parang yung maraming gustong sumama sa mga healing Mass at services,matapos ma-heal from Jesus,sa pamamagitan ni Fr.Fernando so siguro at sa ibang mga services o sa mga communities,pero siguro yun nga pamilya muna,lalo’t me mga dapat pang-gawin para sa pamilya dahil kailangan talaga,yan ang isang hadlang sa mga laiko,pamilya,dapat lamang na ang pamilya e handa rin,at magastos po sumama sa mga misyon,e kkb talaga yan,kaya hindi rin ako makasama lalo na’t sa ibang mga bansa at lugar na,ha,ha,at mahirap pong maging taga-salo o catcher-lalo na’t libo-libo na,alam ng mga tumutulong yan at alam ng mga Pari yan,so alam syempre Ng Panginoong Jesus) But Jesus sends him back to his family in what is really an amazing vocation story.
Many of us have experienced being “freed”- o healed din yan di po baga? - by God- perhaps from anxiety,from fear,from hatred,from timidity,from isolation.(pag nasa o OFW ka e lagi yan,at lalo na’t napaka-lamig o napaka-init,galing na rin ako sa Saudi sand storm naman,at wala kang mapuntahan o magagawa) To express our gratitude,we want to walk more closely with God.So we try to discern what that may mean for us. We may decide that it’s just something between God and us,but then God says,”No,I want you to go and tell others,”
I don’t know about you,but evangelizing comes very hard to me. I’m tempted to say, “Dear God anything but that!” But Jesus gives the man he healed a gentle push: “Tell your family. Tell the people you love what God has done for you.” (sa aking karanasan e ganito talaga ang nangyari,and it takes time talaga naman,nag-ME,formation,nagkasakit,so tyempo o blessing talaga,so tuloy ang pagdalo g Praying meetings,teachings,ministry work,at na train to be a sharer,sa LSS,sacristan sa mga healing Mass,sa other activities ng community,intercessor o sa service,at katulong sa mga fund raising drives,at mga outreaches/mission.At yun nga pala,’you are telling others already what the Lord in his pity has done for me’, (parang madali ko na lang sabihin,sanay na po ah!,tulad din ng mga lagi ng kasama sa mga healing services,pero alam namin naman na parang kayo si Nathanael,nakatingin at nagmamasid di,kita kayo,ha,ha)
so,here’s the author’s prayer…maki-dasal na rin po tayo,…ng taimtim.
“Lord,help us believe that you will give us the right words!”
(laging sinasabi e magaling at relihiyoso tayong mga Pinoy,maaari nga po,…pero marami rin at inspirasyon na rin namin ang mga tagarito,taga-ibang nasyon na aming nakakasalamuha rito pati na mga Pari,Deacon at mga Madre,at marami pa rin ang hindi pa nakaka-alam ng mga gawaing ito,at nalalaman lang nila nga kung medyo namomoblema na,at kailangan na ang tulong,…at hindi kilala si Fr.Fernando?…busy siguro sa ibang…,kaya hindi siya kilala,at marami pa nga rin.At tutuo yan,pag-nalamang ikaw e Pari,hindi ka na titigilan ng ating mga kababayan.’Fr.punta kayo sa amin,Fr.me sakit po yung,…ha,ha,…masaya rin kami,at tutuo sari-sari ang kwento at kasaysayan,at kahit me mga isyu o debate o talo talo sa huntahan,pag-nag-usap e naliliwanagan at me natutunan at kung seryoso na e,tulong-tulong din at yun nga lang mahirap din talaga yung walang spirituality,mahirap mong kausapin,at kawa-awa rin,so dasal na lang po…(patuloy din ang pag-tulong sa nahihirapan pa ring kababayan na mga bagong dating,marami rin ang nagsarang kompanya at walang trabaho,hindi alam kung saan hihingi ng tulong o o kung me matatakbuhan,me,mga bills at mortgage na binabayaran.me nasa college at ‘lalong higit ang mga uma-asa sa padala diyan sa atin. pero,nakaka-survive ano po?(itutuloy) salamat po muli.(for Jesus)
February 4th, 2008 at 9:25 pm
For the greater Glory of God!!
“Signs shall follow him who believe…”
This is what I think everytime news of healing resounds through Mass Media.
I believe that God works through His servants and Handmaids so that we may give glory to Him — just like in the time of Jesus; they were amazed of His power to heal and gave glory to God.
Instead of doubting, let us give glory to God for these marvelous things.
God Bless!!
February 4th, 2008 at 11:24 am
LOL, sorry but its a load of crock. The blind can see, the deaf can hear, yada yada… give me a break. I have witnessed many of these so called healers and all they give people is blind hope. I’m not going to debate this with a bunch of religious loonies, its like arguing to a block wall.
February 3rd, 2008 at 1:13 pm
A lot of Faith Healers had come and gone in my time, and none of them were for real. There were also those Psychic Healers who operate on unsuspecting people without the use of a scalpel of knife. Turn out they were all bogus.
I have not witness any healing session of Father Suarez, nor have I attended any Healing Mass. For all I know, He must have been ordained by the Almighty to do the work for the Sick and the Poor.
At this stage however, and with all the hoopla surrounding Fr. Suarez mission, and with due respect to Fr. Suarez, I am still a “doubting Thomas.” It does not mean that I do not believe. I am just in doubt, as I have seen so many “False Healers” in the past.
Alain