'Faith is that wonderful gift'
Between our complete confidence in God and general trust in Him—even though we haven’t seen the face of God—is faith.
To have faith is to receive a gift. And the faithful of Gulod, my barrio in Cabuyao that is sandwiched by a lake on the east and a rice field on the west, received an everlasting gift during the night Mass last Saturday, Oct. 24. That evening, the ultimate dream of many residents came true when this sleepy barangay was officially declared as St. Raphael the Archangel Parish.
Yes, from a chapel to quasi-parish, Gulod is now a full-fledged parish.
“Every time we declare and erect a new parish, it’s a sign of the maturity of the church. It is also a sign of the maturity of the people’s faith,” Most Rev. Marcelino Antonio Maralit Jr., D.D., the bishop of the Diocese of San Pablo, whose jurisdiction covers the entire province of Laguna, told this writer.
CONTINUE READING BELOW
That night was also an investiture of the charismatic Fr. Amadeo Alveyra Jr. as parish priest of the church in Gulod. He has been the administrator of the church since June 2025.
What does it mean to Fr. Amadeo that the St. Raphael church is now a parish?
“It is an achievement for God and an achievement for the people of the parish,” said the 39-year-old parish priest, who, according to Bishop Maralit, was pursigido to have the former quasi-parish be a parish already.
“It is an achievement for us at the parish to accomplish this stature for our church, but I don’t claim sole credit for this achievement. Many other priests before me—Fr. Dennis Estrella, Fr. Dale Dakila, Fr. Jonathan Haniel—were also responsible for this. Even Fr. Gomer Torres, parish priest of San Vicente Ferrer in Mamatid (a barangay in Cabuyao, Laguna), where our St. Raphael used to belong, helped a lot in our petition to have our own parish,” said Fr. Amadeo, a native of San Pedro, Laguna and former student of BS Electrical Engineering at the University of the Philippines in Diliman before he answered “God’s very strong calling” and entered St. Peter’s College Seminary in San Pablo City in 2006 to study Philosophy. He studied Theology for another five years at the Divine Word Seminary in Tagaytay. He was ordained a priest in 2018.
In matters of faith, Gulod and St. Raphael the Archangel have gone a long way. Fr. Amadeo, quoting the elders of Gulod that he interviewed, said that according to oral tradition, the 200-year-old image of St. Raphael was found by the fishermen of Gulod floating in Laguna Lake, specifically on top of a submerged lamesang bato or a slab of rock. The image was brought to the friars in St. Polycarp Parish in the town of Cabuyao, and it was identified as St. Raphael the Archangel.
The image was brought home to Gulod, where people built a tuklong, a makeshift chapel made of nipa. From a tuklong, a concrete chapel was made. Then later on, on the same spot that faces the lake, an ornate church was dedicated to St. Raphael the Archangel, the patron saint of the people of Gulod. (The parish now includes the neighboring coastal barangay of Marinig.)
The barrio tradition of pagoda, where the image of St. Raphael is loaded in a banca and accompanied by the faithful (in life vests and joined by the Coast Guard) to reminisce about how the image was found floating in the lake 200 years ago, was recently revived as part of the parish’s three-day celebration.
St. Raphael, said Fr. Amadeo, is the patron saint of travelers and those who are sick, particularly those who have eye problems. Every Tuesday at 5 p.m. is the day of devotion for St. Raphael, with a Mass at 6 p.m.
Fr. Amadeo never lost faith that Gulod would become St. Raphael the Archangel Parish in time. His faith was at a fever pitch, and he coupled it with hope, determination, and diligence. Last Saturday, at his investiture as the first parish priest of St. Raphael the Archangel Parish, Fr. Amadeo became emotional.
“It is also a challenge that we are now a parish. The mission of being a church for God is a challenge. But I am guided by the three elements Bishop Maralit mentioned in his homily to make a parish faithful to the teachings of God: communion, participation, mission,” he said.
The parish priest recognizes that the faith of the parishioners is growing. “Growth in faith should have direction. As a community, that direction will remind us of our purpose, which is to bear witness to Christ by living up to the gospel.”
He added, “As we experience growth, we also experience God’s manifestation. Personally, I see God in people, on the faces of those who attend the Mass and on the people who approach me after the Mass to say their gratitude. I feel God in children who hug me after the Mass. I am always grateful for these gestures of gratitude.”
“We are happy and grateful to God for granting our prayers to be a parish,” said Aning Naval, an active and benevolent supporter of the church.
“This is a dedicated work of the people in the community. We are grateful to many people who helped us become a parish, especially to Gulod residents like Dr. Jun Santiago, Rosie Paguio, Titay Edeza, Elvie Lapidario and Fely Lazanas,” added Naval.
Faith was intrinsic in making Gulod a parish.
“Faith is that wonderful gift. It is that wonderful gift of seeing God in all people and things around us; finding Him in every moment and experience; and trusting Him who loves us,” Fr. Amadeo concluded.
God resides in Gulod. Truth is, God is everywhere. With the newly installed St. Raphael the Archangel Parish, God even lives in the dreams of the faithful of Gulod.
WATCH: Save for retirement or enjoy life now? (Generations Ep. 21)
September 16, 2026
WATCH: How to experience Bangkok and Kanchanaburi in one trip
October 21, 2026
WATCH: LGBTQIA+ people with unlikely professions
June 28, 2026