Sharing in God’s mission has always been the vital lifeblood of every missionary congregation. It is the core of our religious identity, a divine calling through which God sustains us and gives profound meaning to our lives.
For years, St. Alphonsus Theological and Mission Institute (SATMI) has remained faithful to this mandate by continuously upholding its missionary identity through its annual mission immersions.
A true missionary spirit requires stepping outside the four corners of a formal academic setting to be shaped by the realities of the world. While our institution’s broader missionary priorities include engaging with marginalized sectors and Indigenous Peoples, we are ultimately called to embrace whatever realities we encounter. In this mission, it was through sharing the everyday lives of a coastal fisherfolk community that our zeal was deeply ignited and sustained.
Such was the case at the San Ignacio de Loyola Parish in Brgy. Luzon, Governor Generoso, Davao Oriental, where the students and staff of SATMI held their annual mission immersion for nine days, from March 9 to 18, 2026.
The nine-day immersion was a moment of grace and encounter. To share diverse experiences, students were spread across nine zones and barangays under the parish care. They are immersed in locals’ lives, engaging with their fishing livelihood. Because the big, relentless waves of the season kept smaller boats ashore, students also joined some families as they shifted their hard work inland to make copra. While staying rooted in these daily realities, the immersion also provided opportunities to give catechisms, pray the Way of the Cross, and conduct a medical mission. Ultimately, whether at sea or on land, these experiences aimed to foster pastoral values and create genuine opportunities for faith-sharing.
None of this would have been possible without the warm support of the San Ignacio de Loyola Parish community, the hardworking locals who opened their homes, and the ever-supportive formators and staff of SATMI, who intentionally organized this experience to bridge the classroom and the peripheries.
As the students gathered afterward to process their journey, the fruits of the immersion were clear: deeper personal self-awareness, a strengthened sense of purpose and motivation in their religious life, and profound growth for their future ministries. It is our pride and joy that as we go forth to minister to the people of God, the resilient people of Governor Generoso have, in turn, ministered to us, profoundly shaping the future missionaries of the Church.
Bro. Mark Ryan J. Accad, CSsR
4th Year Theology Student
The photos in this post are courtesy of SATMI. For more images from the mission, please visit the SATMI Facebook page at this link: https://www.facebook.com/share/18Zsvi8WXb/
