Arrupe International Residence

After the excitement of Fr. General’s visit and the festivities in conjunction with the Feast of St Ignatius, August seemed a quieter month. The sad demise of Mrs Corazon Aquino on August 1 brought an end to a chapter in the history of the Philippines. Her funeral on August 5 saw a number of Arrupeans taking part in the day’s event, having been given the honour, together with scholastics of the Philippine Province, to be marshals at the Manila Memorial Park in Paranãque City, where Mrs Aquino was laid to rest in the family mausoleum, next to Ninoy Aquino. It was raining for most of the week, a poignant reflection of the people’s sentiments at the passing of a heroine of our times.

The month of December was a month of celebrations, having parties with friends, sharing gifts and joys with others, especially with the poor and needy. It was a month of enormous blessings for each one of us.

On December 3 some scholastics went to St. Francis Xavier School together with Fr Bill Currie (JPN) to celebrate the feast of Francis Xavier.

The month of November has been a month of blessings for the Arrupe International Residence Community in many ways.

In the first week of the month the Rector, Fr Matsumoto (JPN), and Fr Jimmy Meehan (PHI) made their annual retreat. In the absence of Fr. Matsumoto, Fr Bill Currie (JPN) led the community as an acting rector.

On November 12 we started our classes and life began to move as usual.