Rochester-area charismatic community builds disciples

Emmanuel Asis was a lukewarm Catholic until — at the urging of his wife, Zenny — he attended an encounter weekend for married couples in the early 1990s.

The weekend, which was offered by the Bukas Loob Sa Diyos Covenant Community of Toronto, sparked in Asis an eagerness to grow closer to God, and he soon began seeking out the community’s other offerings.

His participation in the Bukas Loob Sa Diyos (Open in Spirit to God) community eventually helped him discern a desire to bring others closer to Christ, leading to his 2007 ordination as a deacon of the Diocese of Rochester. And in the mid-1990s, he and Zenny Asis worked with three other couples to start a BLD community in Rochester.

“The Holy Spirit works in mysterious ways,” Zenny Asis recently remarked as she and Deacon Asis reflected on their decades-long involvement with the local BLD community.

Catholic lay movement focuses on building disciples

Bukas Loob Sa Diyos is a Catholic charismatic community and private lay association that began in the Philippines in 1985 and has grown into an international community with regional districts throughout the world. Although the international movement is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, the Rochester BLD community got its start a bit later. Inspired by their experiences in Toronto, the Asises and three other couples formed the BLD Rochester community in the mid-1990s with permission from then-Bishop Matthew H. Clark, according to Father Edison Tayag, the community’s spiritual director and pastor of St. Patrick Parish in Victor.

St. Patrick and St. Anne Parish in Rochester take turns hosting the BLD Rochester community’s events, including a monthly Healing Mass. BLD Rochester also includes a group of members who meet regularly in Elmira, Father Tayag said.

BLD Rochester strives to “build communities of disciples of Jesus Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit,” according to its mission statement. The community aims to evangelize families and offer formation on such topics as prayer, stewardship, pro-life values and Catholic social teachings. It also advocates for the poor, works to alleviate poverty, and encourages members to participate in the life and mission of the Catholic Church in accordance with their God-given gifts.

“It is almost a response to the question, ‘How does a Christian continue to grow the graces of baptism and confirmation?’ … It really is about forming disciples, so that’s the charism of the community,” Father Tayag explained. “This is a lay movement, very much like the Legion of Mary and Cursillo.”

BLD community offers a variety of encounters and opportunities

For many people, their first exposure to BLD comes through participation in one of its weekend encounters. The community currently offers encounter weekends for married couples and for parents who are raising their children alone due to divorce, separation or the death of a spouse. Father Tayag noted that larger BLD communities offer additional encounters for such groups as families, youths and singles.

Participants who find the encounters to be powerful and moving experiences may decide to participate in one of the community’s Life in the Spirit Seminars. These weekend experiences are a time for praise, witness talks, worship and reflection, leading to spiritually intense encounters with the Lord, he said.

“We really look at the topics of new life in Jesus Christ, new life in the Holy Spirit. We look at sin, all in the context of God’s love, and then start talking about … transformation as Christian disciples,” Father Tayag said, noting that anyone who wants to become a member of the BLD community must complete a Life in the Spirit Seminar.

BLD community members share their gifts in their parishes

After completing the seminar, participants may choose to embark on the three-year formation process required to become covenanted members, Father Tayag added. Members participate regularly in the community’s frequent prayer and worship opportunities, and they are encouraged to be actively involved in their home parishes, he said.

“We don’t want people to be active in just the (BLD) community. … They serve according to what they discern their gifts are, then eventually they themselves start making other disciples,” he added.

Deacon Asis and his wife are still actively involved in the BLD Rochester community, and Deacon Asis also serves as a deacon at St. Lawrence Parish in Greece. They encourage Catholics to try the community’s marriage or solo-parent weekends and are eager to talk about the ways their experiences with the community have changed their lives.

“I just felt like what the Lord gave me as a gift, I just want to give it back. Whatever I felt, I just want to give it away and share it with everyone I meet,” Deacon Asis said.