UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas (UST) Vice-Chancellor Very Rev. Fr. Napoleon Sipalay Jr., O.P. urged Thomasians on Ash Wednesday to let their journey and purpose in life lead them back to God.
“'[W]hy am I here? Where am I going?’ I hope that if this is the only one you learned in your theology, in your study of religion, that we come from God, we return to God. And God has a purpose for each one of us as we journey, we bring that to Him,” he said during the Mass held at the Plaza Mayor.
The Dominican prior provincial also emphasized the three pillars of Lent—fasting, abstinence, and almsgiving—that the Thomasian community must observe.
Sipalay reminded Thomasians to fast and abstain during the Lenten Season that will last for 40 days until Easter Sunday.
“We abstain today from meat as a sacrifice. When we say ‘fast’, not only to remember Christ, [but] to heighten our senses to be very aware,” he said.
Instead of on the forehead, ash was marked on the crown of the head as a precaution against the coronavirus disease 2019.
The Eucharistic Celebration was organized by the UST Campus Ministry to celebrate the start of the Lenten season. F
