A Kabaleyan’s Thoughts…
What’s in a name? Teofilo
By Erwin dela Rosa
Teofilo is such a loving name. Teo is a contraction from “theo”, which means God. Filo is from “philos” meaning love of God.
A couple of weeks ago, sis Melba, a blessed single from Bantog, Asingan, Pangasinan, who owns a prayer hut in a spacious backyard filled with fruit bearing trees beside her mansion, exhorted us on the changes a person undergoes during constant personal and group or corporate prayer, praise and worship.
She said that a sister in the faith wanted her name Narcisa changed after periods of prayer coupled with good works to spread love and the good news of hope to other people through personal and intimate relationship with the life changing Spirit of Christ.
She said the sis no longer wanted the name Narcisa, a name which means self-love from the myth of Narciso, a handsome fellow who looked onto his reflection in quiet water and fell in love with himself and jumped into the still water which runs deep. It is where the abnormal psychology term Narcissm was coined. Narcissm is a behavior characterized by too much admiration and adoration and love of oneself. It leads to selfishness and the psychological incapacity to love others.
Is it coincidental or a product of Dr. Jose Rizal¹s genius mind or plainly allegorical that he used the name Sisa in a character in the novel Noli Me Tangere? Sisa as we all know is the woman who lost her sanity in the Noli when her children Crispin and Basilio were detained by friars for petty offenses inside the “church”. Sisa is the distressed mother whom literary critics say represented mother Philippines during that time a mother anxious and worried over the future of her children like the Philippines anxious on the future of the Filipino youth of the land.
Thank God for mothers and woman. It is their nature to be so loving, caring, and nurturing. It reminds me of women who risk everything for the bright future of their children. They have been created to bring happiness in a lonely world of man and humankind. After all, without a woman and a mother, man would be lonely and there would be no children, respectively, which would complete happiness and joy in this world. They are God¹s gift to humanity. Sadly though, some men do not treasure such wonderful gift molded from them. Some men think that they are not gifts to treasure and cherish and love, care, and nurture in return in thanksgiving to God who created women, but rather, a weaker sex, which is bad; a sex object, worse; a slave, worst.
It¹s saddening, if not an abomination to hear about the sex scam of Hayden Kho and Katrina Halili. I heard about it and uninterested about it amid the media feeding frenzy for it is a gore, a crap, a cheapness to the highest level. I can’t help but tell friends “mukhang bastusin na nga, nagpabastos pa, binastos pa, bastos talaga”. They have taken crap to the highest level. Such sickness needs to be prayed for and its victims counseled and rehabilitated. They must be ignorant or have refused to accept the truth that there body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. There is really so much corruption in this country. The evil principality mentioned by the Word – lust, greed, lovers of themselves is really at work and is spread by media in the form of scam overkill reportage.
Some daring texters would spell Katrina with “Katre na”, meaning bed or its bed time.
What’s in a name?
I have a father in the faith whose name is Teofilo. He smiled on his deathbed. During his wake, people noticed the smile on his face as they peered into his coffin marked with the verse “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” [Holy Bible, 2 Timothy 4:7]
He once fought in the jungle when he was young. He was then an Army enlisted man. He got shot at the left shoulder, which permanently impaired his left arm. The experience made him leave the service to pursue a higher calling a higher form of service, if not the highest, as a pastor.
As a pastor, he is known as the wise and deep preacher.
I would never forget his illustration of an Alexandrian soldier who was caught by Alexander the Great off guard during duty. In his unforgettable sermon, which he would keep on repeating to exhort us, he said, “Alexander told the soldier, “if you are of Alexander, then be like Alexander.” He went on, “If you are of Alexander, then behave like Alexander.”
Then, his punch line is “if you are a Christian then be a Christian, if you are of Christ then be like Christ in human form.” Then he would expound with his signature shriek in Ilocano “aye alawen” and his expression “tapno” meaning “yes”, “by all means” and therefore, saying “Yes by all means if we are of Christ, therefore, let us be imitators of Christ.”
”If you are of Alexander the great, then be like Alexander the great; in the same way that if you are of Christ, then, be like Christ; if you are a Christian then be a Christian.”Teofilo Caalim, 193- 2009.
Pastor Teofilo finally rested with a smile on his face the same smile we always see even in his old age even when some lay members would hurl below the belt punches on his persona by calling him names such as retarded instead of retired because he kept on serving in spite of old age.
He finished the race with a rest and smile for he has kept the faith.
He died joking according to Tita Elvie, his daughter. He died when May Ann her granddaughter said amen after prayer. Such peaceful, calm, serene, tranquil death comes only to a person with so much love for God and so much love from God. Theo philos. God loves. God is love. Love of God. Love God.
What’s in a name?
He loved God and his family so much that on his death bed he was apologizing to his sons and daughters that he could have given them a materially rich life had he received the offer of then public servant leader Jacobo Clave. The offer was a government post since pastor Teofilo is an eligible civil servant after passing the civil service exam. However he chose his highest calling instead of the government post. He followed his heart. It hurts him to see his children giving him care and finances in his retirement as he was quoted saying “Mga anak, ako naman na ang binibigyan niyo. Dapat ako nagbibigay sa inyo. Ako dapat nagsisilbi sa inyo. Ako naman na pinagsisilbihan niyo. Hwag niyo na akong intindihin.”
Such a very kind, good and loving father is he.
He lost zest according to Tita Elvie when Mamang, his wife died two years earlier. Since then he just stayed home and never did the usual rounds of walk. Such a loving husband is he.
His name exemplified and his life exemplified love Teofilo love of God, loving God, which made him love his God-given life to use it in service, to love his wife, family, us his members/parishioners in the church, his community, and other communities he had served, and to love his calling “to make the world his parish [John Wesley paraphrasing Jesus” go and make disciples].
He had one wish when I visited him months ago. He said he wanted to visit the churches he had served unto then he can rest. I told him I will be back during the summer after my strategy paper. But May 12, 2009 during his birthday, he was in the hospital requesting that he be brought home because he already wanted to rest.
His children and grandchildren obliged. They said he waited for visitors of people from San Nicolas to bring the native cakes the tupig, latik, binal-lay, of his former UMYF who said during summer he would tour him on the van he was driving to the church in Rosales, Tayug, Alcala. But he waited in vain. But he managed to smile and joke.
I was in Cabanatuan attending a student ministry seminar when I received a text message that he had rested.
He was from Anda, he served in Eastern Pangasinan. He retired and lived in Lingayen near the capitol grounds and PSU Lingayen. He rested in Lingayen and finally laid to rest in the Catholic Cemetery near the Capitol Grounds. He fought the good fight once in the Army against Japanese invaders and rebels, but his real battle was against evil principalities through peaceful deep and wise Spirit-filled sermons he kept the faith.
He asked for prayer. He said “Magpray kayo kasi andyan na sundo ko.” “Si Mamang po ba, Papang?” his children asked.
”Hindi, mga angels ko,” Papang smiling.
May Ann started to pray. Papang closed his eyes. May Ann said “amen”. Papang smiled and rested.
Teofilo Caalim Sr.,May 12, 1931-May 19, 2009. A love life with and for God.
I never had a true nick name. But with the Name Above All Names Jesus giving every Christian victory, I used the nick name win in the student ministry forum in Wesleyan U in Cabanatuan. I believe in Jesus there is love and victory. I believe the Christian Pinoy wins. The Christian Pinoy will win over corruption and evil principalities and the Philippines will be prosperous.
What’s in your name? Who is in your life?
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