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Joseph Marello Youth

in the New Normal

Ms. Ermelita O. Kasilag

“The distractions of the world tend to neutralize in us the heavenly feeling of love.
They place in its stead the personal spirit based on the selfish instincts we inherit from nature.
Our ministry, on the contrary keeps constantly before our eyes the most splendid examples of self-
denial and love, beginning with the God-Man who sacrificed Himself as a victim of love,
down the unknown little woman who offers to God
her humble prayer of intercession for her sinful brethren.”
St. Joseph Marello

NE OF THE BEST THOUGHTS of our online programs, prayer, and online spiritual
Founder, St. Joseph Marello, which and liturgical activities. One of my best
Oinspires me to continue the mission realizations in this pandemic is to focus on the
entrusted to me even in the midst of the essential.
pandemic is that of self-denial and love. While
many of us are still holding on to the hope of After several months of lockdown, we realized
the normalization of everything back to the that we need a strategy to create new activities
situation we were into before the pandemic, that will help us reach the young ones who are
others are already adjusting and adapting to part of the vulnerable sectors. In this challenging
the new normal. Perhaps our reality before time, we opted to find new opportunities for
might not return anymore but the good thing evangelization, fellowship, communion and
is that we have resilience to overcome this formation.
situation. Our desire to serve must not be
extinguished just because the situations are Honestly, the initial planning stage was one of
altered. the hardest parts of the process before we had
our online activities. Gathering youth leaders
Before the advent of COVID-19, Joseph thru online meetings, preparation of proposals
Marello Youth Council (JMYC) successfully and good internet connections were the basic
held Kapatiran Kay Marello in Central and considerations. Added to these considerations
North Sectors. We were also in the process were stress, depression and lack of purpose
of preparing for Kapatiran kay Marello in the that some JMY leaders experienced along the
South Sector and Survival Youth Camp to be way. We were not spared even if we already
held in Iloilo City but all of these plans were belong to the ministry. But even if we are
dropped because of the lockdown. We have shaken and broken, God allows us to grow and
been on lockdown for several months, but this to be molded as persons with deep sense of
should not hinder our mission to serve Him. purpose and commitment.

We were not prepared for this kind of ordeal. We have carried out new activities that fulfill
Most of us just stayed at home and were not our purpose and mission such as the Seven Last
allowed to go out. We spent our time mostly Words JMY Edition, Virtual Rosary, Novena to
with our family in indoor sports and hobbies, St. Joseph Marello and a monthly meeting via