PEACE AT LAST

A VALENTINE’S DAY treat to all those

 who believe in  FOREVER.

 

                                                                

PEACE  AT  LAST

by mimi illenberger mapa

 “Sometime around the year 278A.D  a holy priest by the name of Valentine was executed by Emperor Claudius . for defying the royal  ban on marriage. Under the rule of Claudius the Cruel, Rome was involved in many unpopular and bloody campaigns. The emperor had to maintain a strong army, but was having a difficult time getting soldiers to join his military leagues. Claudius believed that Roman men were unwilling to join the army because of their strong attachment to their wives and families. To get rid of the problem, Claudius banned all marriages and engagements in Rome. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death. Valentine was arrested and dragged before the Prefect of Rome, who condemned him to be beaten to death with clubs and to have his head cut off. The sentence was carried out on February 14, 278 A.D.”

           It is ironic that the Day of Hearts which is celebrated by lovers the world over  falls on the death anniversary of a holy priest – St. Valentine- who was clubbed to death and beheaded because he defied the cruel decree that banned all engagements and marriages in  Rome during the time of Emperor  Claudius the Cruel. Despite threats on his life, he continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When he was discovered, he was arrested and sentenced to death on Feruary 14, 278  A.D. – a  martyr for love and romance.            

            Over the centuries much have been written about St. Valentine and couples in love.  Our story for this day of hearts is about a young priest  who could not rest on the other side of the veil until he knew his sweetheart had forgiven him. Records show that yes, priests, monsignors and even archbishops do return when their thoughts and consciousness remain with those of this world.

          The story teller tells us that during the time of Jose Rizal, there were many foreigners   who were sympathetic to the cause of the Filipinos against Spain. These “insurrectos” -as they were commonly called - were mostly Spaniards who were born and bred in the Philippines and who loved their country of birth more than their parents’ peninsular roots. One such family ( husband and wife) became a victim of  Spain’s political reprisal and were thrown in jail to languish and await their sentence.

         Don Ramon dela Montana, fearing for the safety of his brother’s only son, Rafael Bautista,18 yrs. old , was summoned by guardian-uncle to leave Manila and set sail immediately for Madrid. The young man had no choice but to hastily leave behind two younger sisters and a childhood sweetheart – a cousin by second degree.

          The sweethearts, Rafael and Marietta,  knowing they would soon be separated asked the help of his loyal servant  to hide them somewhere in the vast hilly portion of the Bautista hacienda where they could be together even for only a few days.  In a tiny hut hidden from sight by a giant Balete tree, the sweethearts spent  three deliriously happy  days. Here the sweethearts vowed fidelity and reunion to each other. Raphael swore only death can prevent him for returning and marrying the girl he loved.

          Raphael departed  without his knowing he had gotten Marietta pregnant. When Marietta tearfully confessed to Anselmo, Raphael’s childhood friend  her predicament, the young man immediately urged her to marry him. He had secretly been in love with her all those years and besides,  Anselmo wanted to protect everyone from the terrible scandal that may ensue.

          And so they were wed with the entire clan thinking it was Anselmo’s child she was carrying.

          News reached Raphael of his sweetheart’s pregnancy and marriage to Anselmo the week after Marietta delivered their child – a beautiful baby girl. It his regret, the distraught young man entered the seminary. He blamed himself for what he imagined was a “ terrible, terrible misfortune” that he had brought upon the only girl he ever loved. In his despair he turned to the cloisters.

          The years flew by.  Before he was ordained a Dominican priest, Rafael sent Marietta a package containing a short letter asking for forgiveness for his failure to stand by his promise and a rosary made up of black crystal gems and a silver cross where his initials had been etched. He begged her to keep the beads as a token of her pardon. He also suggested that perhaps one day this heirloom might be passed on to their child.

         To my readers, please remember during those times, communication was tedious and difficult. After all those years with hardly any word from Raphael, the package came as a big surprise. Marietta was now happily married to  a man she had learned to love and for a while this request bothered her. But her husband magnanimously asked her to keep the beads. But before Marietta had a chance to answer , Raphael was killed. He had been assigned as a chaplain to a military outfit and became one of the casualties in a skirmish.   

          The years rolled by. Anselmo, Marietta’s Filipino husband, proved to be a loving and responsible spouse. He bought several acres of agricultural land in Batangas and planted it with citrus trees. In the middle of this lush plantation, he built his young family a large, stone house. It was here they took up residence and prospered over the years. Marietta, however, made it a point to spend some time with her clansmen in Manila and this was usually during certain times of the year like those days preceding Christmas or during semana santa.

          Like most devout Catholics of her time, she made it a point to do her visita iglesia or church hopping  where she would enter as many churches as she could in one day, praying the Stations of the Cross and paying a visit to tombstones of loved ones buried in church yards. Marietta never failed to visit the graves of Raphael’s parents- who were also relatives - in the Paco Cemetery. She would light votive candles, offer flowers and pray for their souls using Raphael’s rosary.

          On this particular Holy Week, it was her 10 year old son Carlitos  who was her companion in the Visita. The sun was almost setting and it had begun to drizzle  and so Marietta decided to discontinue the rosario and hurriedly departed

          She discovered the loss of her precious beads when she was already outside the Paco Cemetry gate. Believing it must have fallen on the grassy mound in their haste to leave the place. Carlitos  offered to retrieve them and ran back to the graveyard, much ahead of his mother.

          A short distance from the tombs, Carlitos  perceived a young Spanish priest dressed in black habit bending to pick up from the grass his mother’s black beads and scrutinize its silver cross. When he heard him approach, he turned to look at him , the sparkling black beads dangling from his hands. There was an ecstatic look in his face which was beaming with joy.

          ” Father, that rosary belongs to my mother, Marietta Marquez. May I have it?” the boy called out, extending his hand.

          “ Of course, hijo. I know it belongs to her, “ he answered, handing him  the beads. “ You look just like your father, Anselmo.”

          The priest bent low to meet Carlitos  eyes and smiled sweetly at him. They stared at each other for an eternity of 60 seconds.

          “ Hijo,” he asked the child, “please tell your mother that Tito Raphael will now sleep well knowing she has kept the rosary. Will you do that for me?”

          Carlitos  nodded and turned to look back to see if his  had followed. He saw Marietta coming with an umbrella at distance.

          “ There she is… don’t you want to speak to her yourself?” Carlitos  excitedly exclaimed, pointing to his mother.  But the priest had disappeared. Young as he was, he knew it was unnatural for someone to vanish just like that. Frightened, he ran to meet her mother and recounted her conversation with the stranger who seemed to know both his parents.

           Rafael had been killed before she could answer his plea for forgiveness.. ”keep the rosary as a token of your forgiveness”  Now  Father Rafael  knew for that for sure that he had been forgiven by the only girl he had ever loved.