Six people were baptized at St. Nicholas Parish in Manukan (Philippines)
On February 26, at the parish of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Manukan (Zamboanga del Norte Province, Davao Deanery), the rector of the parish, Priest Juventinus Bulakwenya, and Hieromonk John (Gondayao) baptized six people.
This was the first sacrament of Baptism that Father Juventinus performed. It was planned to immerse the children in the ocean, but due to a storm and large waves, it was decided to baptize them in the nearest river.
The newly baptized were prepared for six months.
St. Nicholas Parish is one of the most remote in the archipelago. It is located on the Zamboanga Peninsula in a troubled region.
On the eve of the christening, Hieromonk John, a graduate of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy and chairman of the diocesan Department of Religious Education and Catechesis, arrived here to talk with the believers.
Father John was convinced of the knowledge of the Orthodox faith and the firm desire of the catechumens to become children of the Orthodox Church, and also helped the rector perform the sacrament of Baptism.
