Fr. David Buenaventura, SDB, shares in this piece many interesting insights and uplifting moments as he looks back on his 50 years in religious life. This piece was originally published in St. John Bosco Today, The Salesian Family Magazine, December 2018-January 2019 issue.
A YOUNG man talks much about the future. An old man has little to see in the future, and so he looks
back and talks more about the past. Thus, the looking back that my companions and I did on May 24, 2018, as we celebrated our golden anniversary as Salesians of Don Bosco.
Looking back at the past, I see clearly the hand of God in all the important events in my life, telling me that I belong to him. My response to this special predilection of the Lord is one of deep humility and gratitude. My name is David. My mom told me that she named me after a popular radio announcer with a golden voice, Ben David. But now, I know better. David in Hebrew means the “Beloved of God,” a fitting name for one destined to become a priest of the Lord. My surname is “Buenaventura,” or “good fortune.”
I come from a big family of eight boys and one girl. I never thought I would be entering a congregation whose specialization is the education of the young, most especially, boys. In elementary, we were only two boys in the class; all the rest were girls. I made the girls in my class cry. A meaningless experience, till I worked in Japan and found myself the only man in the midst of women. This time, they made me cry because of their problems in life as entertainers. Thrice, I thought of leaving the priesthood. But each time, I experienced the hand of God, telling me I was meant to be his disciple.
When I entered our seminary in Pampanga, my best friend and I were tagged as “Moros,” because we came from Mindanao. During those years in the seminary, my conduct grade never rose higher than 95 percent. No one who had such conduct grade was accepted the following year. I do not know what my superiors saw in me, but after my fourth year, I was invited to apply for the novitiate.
My Waterloo had always been Mathematics. When Modern Math was first introduced in college, I told our Rector that I would be leaving the seminary because I failed the subject. The Rector was surprised that Math could be modern. He told the Dean of the College to remove the subject from the curriculum. According to him, what seminarians needed was basic Math and not modern Math. “When did Math become modern?”
At the start of my fourth year, I was sure that I would fail my Physics subject. But the Lord was again on my side. He sent us a German professor to handle the subject. For him, procedures were more important that the answers themselves. Most of my answers in our exams were wrong, but I passed them because my steps to reach the wrong answers were correct. He considered me a very careless student and advised me to study well my multiplication tables.
When my father died, I decided to leave the seminary and help my mother in our business. We had a family gathering. Each of us was given an opportunity to express what we planned to do at the demise of our dad. When my turn came, I told my mom that I would leave the seminary to help her in the business. She replied: “But, when you entered the seminary, I already crossed out your name in the family roster. We do not need you. But if you are leaving the seminary because you believe you have no vocation, then I would put back your name in the roster. I give you six months to decide.” Words of wisdom coming from the Lord spoken by my mom.
The rest is history. I am now a priest, and a Salesian religious for 50 years. At this stage in my life, I am going back to the basics of my Christian life. Christianity for me is life. Life is all about relationships. Relationships grow and glow if at the heart of it is the love taught to us by the Master. Love is our distinguishing mark. Every religious symbol we wear and every religious activity we do is meaningful and fruitful, only if it is powered by love. Christian love for me is beautifully expressed by Saint Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians, 13:4-7.
Hence, I can say that love is the summary of all the good habits and virtues we have acquired and will continue to acquire till death. Growing in virtues is my way of answering the call of Jesus to be “holy as our heavenly Father is holy.” I am truly humbled by the special predilection of God for me all through these years. I am a sinner with many shortcomings and human weaknesses. In spite of these, the Lord continues to show me that indeed I am David, his beloved son. Lord, thank You for Your care, Your guidance, and most especially, Your great love!
May I continue to live my motto: “Love truly. Live fully!”