05/10/2026
Happy World Teachersโ Day, MapCS Teachers! ๐โจ
Thank you for being our inspiration and for making learning more meaningful and fun! ๐ฅฐ Thank you for your love, patience, and dedication, dear Teachers! ๐
Semper Excelsius! โจ
YOU ARE A CATHOLIC SCHOOL TEACHER
โNo disciple is above his teacher, no slave above his master. It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, for the slave that he become like his masterโ (Mt 10:24-25 NABRE).
1. ASPIRE FOR GREATNESS
Jesus is our Divine Master; we are called to be like him. In a world that measures greatness by comparison with others in terms of likes, followers, shares, and revenue, our celebration of World Teachersโ Day gives us pause and makes us look back to why we wanted to become teachers in the first place.
It was only thirty (30) years ago, in August 1996, when the first Licensure Examination for Teachers (LET) was administered by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). I interpret this to mean that for the longest timeโprior to that first examโteaching was seen not as a profession, but as a vocation! Confucius did not brandish any license. Socrates did not pass any board exam. Jesus was not a professional. You once dreamed of being a teacher. You have earned your bachelorโs degree. Now, you are teaching! As a Catholic School Teacher, allow yourself to be drawn to Jesus and be like Him. He is the only measure of greatness!
2. BE THE TEACHER YOU WANTED YOUR TEACHERS TO BE
Having come from a family of teachers myself, my image of a teacher is one characterized by passion, sacrifice, and warmth. I never look back to any of my most influential teachers and wonder whether they were LET-passers, Teacher I, Master Teacher III, Principal IV, or Doctors of Education. Of course, there is a special place in our hearts for our teachers and their quirks. However, the teachers whom we fondly remember are the ones who were strict because they demanded nothing but greatness, the teachers who allowed us to express our thoughts beyond the confines of the textbook, and the teachers who saw potential in us that we did not see ourselves.
3. CONVICTION, DIGNITY, AND INTEGRITY
As it so happened, the Gospel reading today is about the Two (2) Greatest Commandments, supplemented by the Parable of the Good Samaritan. The term โGood Samaritanโ is an oxymoronโtwo contradictory words put together to create a new meaning. (Examples of oxymorons include, โdeafening silence,โ โbittersweet,โ โopen secret,โ โsweet sorrow,โ โwise fool,โ โliving dead,โ โoriginal copy,โ and โalone togetherโ.) โGood Samaritanโ is precisely an oxymoron because for the scholar of the law (a Juris Doctor!) nothing good was expected of a Samaritan since he was the enemy, and he was not a legitimate child of God.
New meaning is derived not from the Samaritans birth or circumstance, but by his actions as neighbor, and by his conviction as a God-fearing person. He not only helped the robbersโ victim at that moment, but he took time and effort to see to it that the victim was certainly on his way to becoming better. That, perhaps, too, is the measure of goodness for us teachersโseeing to it that our students (our anaks!) become better than when we found them, and be the best they can be as human beings, first of all. That is our conviction. Like the Good Samaritan, we do it not out of the expectation of recompense, but from the goodness of our hearts. That is our dignity. And when faced with similar situations time and again in the future, we will conduct ourselves in the same way that meets the standards of our Catholic faith. That is our integrity. Kabutihang loob ang sukat ng isang taong may pinag-aralan.
From my humble opinion as a teacher for twenty-one years, if you live by our Catholic standards, I guarantee that you will be happy; and in your exercise of your teaching ministry, you will be blessed. Happy World Teachersโ Day, Mapandan Catholic School teachers! Semper excelsius!
5 October 2026
