TREDFOR V24 August 4, 2014

CADSAWAN, Lore-Anne A.

Candlelights


Summary

Candlelights was about a man named Kari Rivera, a young guy who decided to enter a Trappist
monastery located in Guimaras. This choice of his, together with his decision of dropping out of law
school, shocked his parents greatly since he was already in his third year. Despite their attempts of
convincing Kari to postpone his plans, his mind was already made up, even if being inside a monastery
also meant isolation. Kari thought that it is right for him and that it was his calling since he is not able to
show his true rebellious self in school. At first, he was not a firm believer of God but because of his
girlfriend, Claire, he was brought closer to the Lord, making him a much more open, serious, considerate,
and critical person.
Kari flew to Guimaras, and on his first night, he felt the terror of being alone. He was unable to
sleep, which is why he decided to return to his home in Surigao. Not for long, Kari found the Candlelights
Institute, which was near his workplace. He talked to the vocation director of Candlelights and spent two
nights with them. During his stay, he did not feel any terror at all, resulting to his decision of joining the
Candlelights. His schedule for his first few months in the institute was feeding and cleaning the pigs,
preparing for their physical recreation, their evening meals, followed by a short recreation, and finally
their last liturgy hours. Despite his enthusiasm inside, some of his colleagues, specifically Aldrin, were
getting sad because they were away from their families. Aldrin also consulted Fr. Anthony, since he feels
like he is losing his mind. After listening to the young boy, Fr. Anthony told him to pray and wait for
Gods time. On another occasion, Methodius went down with fever. During this experience did Kari
realize how inappropriate Fr. Papa could be, since he advised them to postpone sending Methodius to the
hospital, even if the poor guy was already vomiting blood. Another incident happened when Vanny was
also coughing up blood inside the chapel, and Fr. Papa also denied their request of bringing Vanny to the
hospital. Thankfully, Fr. Greg was there to help. Six months after, Vanny was asked to leave because he
was unsuitable to the Candlelights life.
The postulates, together with Kari, were promoted to novitiate, and they were also accepted for
the profession of vows. The institute celebrated this and invited a lot of people, including a woman who
was given six months to live because of her malignant brain tumour but was miraculously healed. After a
year of being novices, they transferred to Manila to commence their philosophical and theological studies.
There, they were invited by a couple, Sr. Barbie and Bro. Rex, to their extravagant home, which were
adorned by expensive paintings. After their visit, which included a luxurious set of meals, Kari and his
friends suffered from stomach pain, which they said was caused by the mussels they ate. Nonetheless, the
group still enjoyed that day very much. With Karis exposure to the lifestyle of the rich, he was also
exposed to the poor since they had to create choir groups. This is when he also realized that only some of
the people in their Congregation were actively participating in events that cater to the needy. By
conducting talks, as well as counselling sessions with the less fortunate, he was able to understand that
despite their lack of wealth, they still believe in God. A short time has passed until both Bro. Rev and
Bro. Ralph were ordained, thus, choirs were needed for the celebration. However, the two suggested that
two separate choir groups should be used for their ordination since one group is supposedly composed of
those having good ears while the other have acquired bad ears. During the ordination of Bro. Rev and
Bro. Ralph, a lot of food was brought and prepared by the people. The visitors luxuriously indulged while
children outside were starving. This is the reason why Kari and his friends decided to steal some food and
bring it to the homes of the poor families. With this, everyone will be able to enjoy the celebration of the
newly-ordained Fathers.
Various tragic incidents started happening inside the Institute since Fr. OBrien was found drunk
and sleeping on his own pile of vomit. The existence of gay professors and priests came into play, starting
with their Italian professor who specialized in sexual ethics. Students describe him as the quiet type or
paminta. This incident was just a mild one compared to what many seminarians, including Kari,
experienced with Fr. Andrew. One time, Kari needed some funds for his choir group so he went to the Fr.
Andrew. After obtaining what he needed, the Fathers hands went to his butt, surprising him. Karis
friend, Bro. Tom, also experienced Fr. Andrews extreme actions. He went inside the sacristy after
attending Fr. Andrews mass, and there he was kissed on the lips by the said Father. Finally, Mulong
experienced Fr. Andrews wrath during a counselling session. Inside the vacant room, he got molested by
the Father. Many people were disturbed by the emergence of homosexuals in the congregation,
specifically Tony who suggested that they should be considerate of others so that they can attain peace of
mind. Because of this, Kari wondered about the things that Fr. Andrew do to maintain his vice of bringing
boys inside the cinemas to get some action. Surprisingly, Kari saw that he snatched wads of bills from the
donation bag, and pocketed it inside his soutana. When Fr. Andrew saw Kari was watching him, he even
invited him to join the looting. Being the good boy that Kari was, he declined but also speculated how
much money was being stolen during the collection of money from the mass.
After three long years of staying in Manila, Fr. Greg decided to move to Surigao and be part of
the Surigao Secretariat for Social Action. There he worked for almost a year but one day, he decided to be
relocated once more to Manila. His co-workers were surprised by his decision but accepted it. Four more
months have passed until Fr. Gregs mother died. At that time did Fr. Greg also decide to take a break
from the Candlelights, but after three weeks he died because of a motorcycle accident. Because of Fr.
Gregs passing, who Kari considers as his inspiration and the reason why he has stayed for so long in the
Congregation, he and his friends decided to leave the Institute after schooling. Time passed slowly but it
was almost time for Karis graduation. A storm visited the city and devastated thousands of homes, which
is why Kari decided to help out those who are in need. After a long day of service, Kari looked forward to
some sleep when he heard Fr. Rev and Fr. Ralph fighting. Curiously, he listened to their conversation and
discovered that Ralph and Rev were fighting over a security guard. At the same time, he also realized that
Ralph and Bro. Pixie also had a relationship, until Rev stole him from Ralph. Then and there, they heard
punches and screams until it stopped. Kari checked it out and saw Fr. Rev lying on the floor, unconscious.
Fortunately, he survived the tragedy that occurred but the Candlelights Institute preferred not to release
any statements about this incident.
By the end of Karis final year, he realized some important points about his life as a seminarian.
By being poor, chaste, and obedient will he be able to share, be available, and be open to insights and to
other people as well. After graduation, Kari had a relationship with Jackie, and decided to leave and
return to Surigao. He also enrolled in a School of Music, where he chose to specialize in Liturgical Music.
During his stay in Surigao, he found out that Fr. Gregs death was not an accident. It was a deliberate plan
by the husband of Tintin, which happened to be Claires sister, as well as Fr. Gregs supposedly short-
lived lover. According to gossip, Tintins husband, which was part of the NPAs, ambushed Fr. Greg
because Tintin is pregnant with their lovechild. To confirm this rumour, Kari met with Claire, who he
discovers to be single and pressured since she is the eldest child in the family. He also lets Claire know
that he already has a girlfriend and that he has already probably moved on. He, finally, suggests that
Claire should have a boyfriend because he thinks that it is the only thing that is lacking in her life. The
two part ways, and as soon as Kari arrives home, he tells his parents that he wants to get married with
Jackie in Manila, and move to Europe to pursue the scholarship grant given to him, making them elated.
In the end, Jackie and Kari got married and had their children in Europe, where Kari took up his Ph.D.
with a double degree in psychoanalysis and theology.









Reflection
With the help of this reading, I was able to know the pain and suffering seminarians had to go
through when they entered a seminary. Before, I always thought that being a seminarian was just easy and
fun because they get to be far away from responsibilities, and at the same time live without incurring
additional costs. However, living far away from your family was something that was very hard to cope
with. Even I cannot imagine what would happen if I lived far away from my parents. Also, the realization
of leaving your loved one behind, like what happened to Kari since he had to leave Claire, who was his
girlfriend at that time, was heartbreaking. I also found out about the existence of discrimination within the
walls of the Candlelights institute. As brothers who directly practice the teachings of the Lord, I did not
expect them to categorize people as rich or poor. I was very disheartened at one point, when Kari saw
children outside who were starving, while they were having a feast inside their house. One of the brothers
even said something like, Sige bigyan mo sila ng pagkain! Magkakaaway kayo ni Rev niyan. I was also
able to confirm my doubts that gay priests exist in society. Its not that I am judging them already but it
was really bad because one of them had to French kiss one innocent seminarian! And that seminarian
thought that it was a fatherly gesture! And thats just the tip of the iceberg, since Fr. Andrew even looted
money from the donation bag so that he can get funds for his vice. That just shows how cruel and greedy
people are, even if they are considered as the ones who are propagating the good news of the Lord.
Moreover, I realized that even seminarians, and brothers, were not perfect, and that they were also unable
to resist temptations. From what I remember, they take the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience,
which means that they should be able to share their resources to others, be available to people that are in
need of them, and be able to be more open to the ideas of others. Instead, the priests disregarded their
vows by eating luxuriously and stealing from their mass collections, not paying attention to the poor
residing near their Institute, and having a relationship with somebody, may it be with a man or a woman.
Finally, I knew that Kari was a really good person since he was able to be of service to those who are in
need, despite experiencing the prosperous life inside the walls of the Candlelights Institution. Thanks to
his experiences in life, his personality was moulded to become one who was a strong believer in himself
and in God. The story, overall, was a great read. The plot was very interesting because I was also curious
about the life of a seminarian. The characters were very lively as well, although I wanted to see more
interaction between Claire and Kari, and Fr. Greg and Kari. Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading the book,
especially towards the end because thats where things got exciting.