St. Vincent Parish in Buraburan, Buhi gears up for BEC

Standing sturdily on a high ground in Barangay Buraburan, the dainty Church of the Parish of St. Vincent Ferrer, regularly welcomes its parishioners to Sunday Masses, other liturgical and formation activities The Parish community, composed of 11 barangays and 2 sitios, was established in 1990 with Barangay Buraburan of Buhi as its seat. The Parish is presently under the pastoral care of Fr. Neil Bengosta who was assigned to the area last October 2012. The Parochial territory lies at the boundaries of the Archdiocese of Caceres in the Rinconada area; part of its border is shared by the town of Polangui, Albay. Its patron is St. Vincent Ferrer. Fr. Bengosta saw the Silver Jubilee celebration of the Parish two years ago. Asked about the thrusts of the parish, he gave three: 1. Formation of the Parish Leaders, in view of establishing the Basic Ecclesial Communities (BEC) 2. Strengthening of the Social Services of the Parish as the majority of the population is poor 3. Improvement of the physical structures in the Parish particularly the Parish Church Last April 29, 2018 the Parish organized two events: Environmental Scanning (ES) and Operation Tuli. The former is part of the preparation for establishing Basic Ecclesial Communities. The ES Team was headed by Dr. Emelita Menes and Fr. Erwin Obias. The scanning aimed to know the situation, the needs and strengths of the Parish in view of reviewing its vision-mission as well as to determine its priorities. Officers of the Parish and Barangay Councils, and the religious organizations and movements participated in the one-day event. On the same day, 26 young boys from the Parish benefited from a free Operation Tuli sponsored by the Tomasinong Bikolano, Camarines Sur Chapter. The group of the University of Sto. Tomas (UST) alumni was headed by Dr. Marimil Bombase and Dr. Che Castro. Fr. Bengosta considers the free circumcision a big help to the families of the boys who were spared from spending for the procedure which may cost up to two thousand pesos. Among the physical improvements Fr. Bengosta undertook were the extension of the facade of the church, provision of a ramp for vehicles, the completion of the ceiling, and the repair of the convent which was damaged by a recent typhoon. Fr. Neil, as he is called by his parishioners, is happy to describe his parishioners as generally participative and supportive; although he said that there are those who still need to be encouraged to take part in the life of the Parish. Fr. Neil is the community’s fifth Parish Priest. Former Parish Priests were Fr. Godofredo Rueda, Fr. Senen Tijam, Fr. Rico Eclar, and Fr. Larry de los Santos. The 27 years of existence and ministry of the parish prove to be a blessing to the place. In addition, according to Fr. Neil, the events last Sunday gave him the sense of fulfillment and satsisfaction of a Parish Priest who constantly finds ways to tend to his flock.