Priest dares St. Peter: I demand a miracle

IT WAS his first visit to Rome that April of 1998, and Fr. Ramil R. Marcos was inordinately excited as Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin, to whom he was assistant secretary, had promised him a visit with Pope John Paul II. His mother was even more excited, asking him to bring home a picture with the Pope.

Father Ramil is a much-loved and articulate priest. His homilies are posted in the social media by parishioners who are touched by his words. He was ordained by Cardinal Sin on July 31, 1996. He is now parish priest of Santo Tomas de Villanueva in Santolan in the Diocese of Pasig.

We sought him out upon being told by a friend that he had a very interesting encounter with the late Pontiff, who is due for beatification in Rome on May 1.

Father Ramil told us how he had been praying to be able to meet the Pope after he and fellow seminarians at the San Carlos Seminary saw him from a distance when he visited the seminary in 1995. He told himself that one day he would be able to meet the Pope up close. When he was made assistant secretary to Cardinal Sin, he felt the opportunity would soon come.

In 1998, Cardinal Sin told him he would be going with him to Rome for the Synod of Bishops and Cardinals in Asia scheduled for April 19 to May 14, 1998. The Cardinal asked him to write a letter requesting a papal audience. An invitation for a luncheon with the Pope did not include Father Ramil, however. Cardinal Sin told him not to give up hope and to pray.

Last chance

The following day, Father Ramil took Cardinal Sin to the Vatican for his luncheon. He escorted him to the papal apartment. He felt very sad. Afterwalking around the parking lot and chatting with the Swiss Guards, he felt he had to do something. He had to see the Pope. This might be his last chance to do so and he couldn’t pass it up.

Father Ramil remembers facing St. Peter’s Basilica and praying hard. Then he recalls speaking directly to St. Peter and challenging him, saying, ‘‘St. Peter, I came all theway from the Philippines just to see the Pope. If you are really powerful, if you are really the First Pope, you have to prove it to me. Before I leave Rome, I have to see the Pope. I am demanding amiracle.”

After the lunch, Father Ramil waited at the door for the Cardinal.

Answered prayers

In the car, Cardinal Sin told him he had good news for him. According to the Cardinal, when the Pope saw him, he said: ‘‘This is strange, you are alone. Don’t you have a secretary?”

Sin said he explained that his secretary wasn’t included in the invitation and that he was very, very sad. He told the Pope of Father Ramil’s promise to his mother to bring home pictures of him with the Pontiff.

“Tell him not to be sad. Tomorrow during my coffee break I want to see your secretary,” the Pope told the Cardinal.

“My prayers were answered!” Father Ramil said.

We don’t know if Cardinal Sin knew about the priest’s challenge to St. Peter to perform a miracle. He told Father Ramil to prepare well.

“Tomorrow take your shower very early, confess all your sins so you will be very pure, wear your black soutana and meet me during break time,” the Cardinal instructed him.

Very touching

Father Ramil was very happy as he waited outside the closeddoor meeting of bishops and cardinals. During the coffee break, a Filipino priest working as transcriber for themeeting asked him to enter the hall, and then took him upstairs where the Pope was to take his break. They were met there by the Cardinal, accompanied by his private nurse.

Tongue-tied, blissful

Soon, they saw the Pope coming down the narrow corridor, a little bent and leaning on his cane. When he saw Cardinal Sin, he started swinging his cane and shouting, “James! James!” (for Jaime Cardinal Sin), and the Cardinal was also shouting, “Holy Father! Holy Father!” They rushed towards each other like children, so happy to be meeting for the first time in private. That, to Father Ramil, was a very touching part of his visit.

The two friends entered the room saying they would meet in private for a few minutes. While waiting, Father Ramil briefed the nurse on what she should do. “I told her, she should take the Pope’s hand, kiss his ring, and kneel using the left leg.” They rehearsed the sequence of events. When the door opened, Father Ramil reminded the nurse again of the instructions. They were now in front of the Pope—the Cardinal, the nurse, the transcriber, and Father Ramil.

“When I saw him, I grabbed his hand, forgot to kiss his hand, forgot to kneel, forgot everything we had rehearsed. I was tonguetied,” recalled Father Ramil. “What’s your name?” the Pope asked. The Cardinal answered for him, “Fr. Ramil Marcos.”

“The Pope grabbed my right arm, moving it up and down, playing with my arm,” Father Ramil said. The Pope asked, “Are you happy?” Cardinal Sin replied, of course he is very happy, again answering for Father Ramil who couldn’t talk.

“Holy Father, he is very happy and is crying,” Cardinal Sin was saying. Father Ramil just remembers feeling totally blissful. The Cardinal reminded Pope John Paul about the pictures promised for Father Ramil’s mother. And the Holy Father had the pictures taken, and started giving out rosaries. Then it was time for everyone to leave the room.

Meanwhile, Father Ramil found himself alone with the Pope. “I was looking for his cane and couldn’t find it. He was smiling and Iwas smiling,” he said.

“Holy Father,” Father Ramil finally found his voice. “In the Philippines, we love you so much. And I love you so much.”

Special blessing

“And he said, ‘I love you so much too. I will give a special blessing for your mother.’ So I bowed my head, he blessed me and released my arm and I left the room.”

Cardinal Sin was already by the elevator, asking what took Father Ramil so long. He told him about looking for the Pope’s cane. The Cardinal chided him for making excuses and wanting to stay longer.

Father Ramil returned to Rome later that year to pursue a two-year Licentiate in Theology. But nothing could ever beat that last encounter with Pope John Paul II.

Father Ramil said he had heard Archbishop Soc Villegas once explaining that there’s a certain aura of holiness that envelops the Pope. This is the grace one experiences in the presence of someone holy, he said, and makes one do inexplicable things.

We remember that Joel Punsalang, a pilot with Philippine Airlines wept when he saw Pope John Paul II at the airport in 1995, but couldn’t explain his actions. This is also what caused the normally loquacious priest to be tongue-tied and unable to speak.

Those who have had significant encounters with Pope John Paul II, please e-mail the author at bibsycarballo@yahoo.com

https://www.pressreader.com/philippines/philippine-daily-inquirer-1109/20110306/page/1