The Feast Day Celebration of Saint Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila

– The First Filipino Saint

September 28, 2008

The Ministry to the Filipinos invited the Community to share the celebration of the Feast Day of Saint Lorenzo Ruiz on September 28th at the St. Joseph Catholic Church.

The Ministry to the Filipinos consists of Filipino Priests that are from
the Central Florida Catholic Parishes. Their mission is to preserve and
promote religious Filipino tradition, culture, and values in liturgy and prayer.

Who is Lorenzo Ruiz? Lorenzo Ruiz was beatifi ed by Pope John Paul II in Manila on February 18, 1981. San Lorenzo Ruiz was elevated to Sainthood and canonized by Pope John Paul II in the Vatican
City, Rome on October 18, 1987. Ruiz’s beatifi cation was the first to be held outside of the Vatican.
San Lorenzo Ruiz is the first Filipino saint and martyr.

What did he do to become a Saint? San Lorenzo Ruiz was with a group of Dominican priests that was persecuted based on their Christian religion in Japan. They were tortured through hanging upside
down while being submerged in water until near death. Other torture methods were by needles inserted between their fi nger nails and skin. They were also beaten until unconscious. This was done to
make them renounce their faith. But San Lorenzo Ruiz never lost his faith.

On September 27, 1637, Ruiz and his companions were taken to the “Mountain of Martyrs”, where they were hung upside down into a pit known as horca y hoya. During this time, this mode of torture was
considered the most painful way to die because it involved the use of rocks to add weight to the
person being punished. The individual being tortured suffocated quickly while being crushed
by his weight. San Lorenzo Ruiz died two days after.

What does San Lorenzo Ruiz mean to the Filipino people? While I was growing up, my grandmother
would tell me that when she would face diffi culty or a decision that was not easy to make,
she would pray to San Lorenzo Ruiz for clarity and courage. To my grandmother and
many of the Filipino people, San Lorenzo Ruiz was a man of courage and conviction.

Today, over 700 Filipino Catholics participated in the celebration of San Lorenzo Ruiz in Central Florida with the help of the Ministry to the Filipinos, Saint Joseph Catholic Church, and the Fil-Am club of
St. Joseph. Together we celebrated a man whose faith and conviction has become an inspiration
for all Filipinos to be courageous and strong in faith.

To learn more about the Ministry to the Filipinos you can visit their website on
http://www.ministrytofi lipinos.com.

 By Victor Alzona
Photo by Victor Alzona