The Credit Union of the Christian Community in Balete

(The following article was originally written for the local ordinary way back in 2004. I am posting it here to remind us of the path we have had trodden and now seem to forget. For as Soren Kierkegaard avers, life is best understood in retrospect.)

The Bueoligan sa Katilingban ni San Rafael evolved out of a Parish-based credit union to become a people’s organization that extends financial (loan) assistance to its members vis-à-vis their understanding that they form a brotherhood in Christ. It takes up cooperativism as its approach to rally its members in working together to realize a common vision of a “New Heave and a New Earth” just as it values transparency and accountability to build up peace based on justice in the community.

The credit union was initiated by the Rev. Fr. Tito S. Gelito, Parish Priest of St. Rafael the Archangel Parish, Balete, Aklan from December 6, 1986 to August 8, 1997 to form part of his pastoral program in response to the signs of the time and the challenge of the Second Vatican Council and the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II) to make the church truly the Church of the Poor.  It was adopted and sustained by the Rev. Msgr. Pedro C. Frac when he replaced Fr. Gelito as Parish Priest of Balete in 1997. The monsignor was pastor of Balete for a period of almost seven years (August 9, 1997-July 31, 2004). Through it all, the Bueoligan grew under the stewardship of the Parish Priest and through the patronage of its members regularly gathered during the annual general assembly and whose chapel presidents and finance officers conduct regular monthly meeting.

The Bueoligan was separated from the parish in September of 2004, however, when the current Parish Priest presented a contrary pastoral orientation. The separation almost led to the collapse of the credit union if not for the intervention of a number of clergy and laity who showed concern for the welfare of its members. A special assembly was called for in November of 2004 for the members to decide whether they wanted or not to continue with the credit union in view of the fact that it is no longer a parish-based organization. Majority of those who attended the assembly gave their affirmative vote while those who voted negatively decided to withdraw their membership and fixed deposits from the union with the promise that they would settle their obligations. Several issues and concerns such as the financial status of the Bueoligan, the acquisition of a juridical personality, its constitution and by laws, were addressed during the said assembly. Fr. Gelito was named by the assembly as its manager and Mrs. Alma Fulgencio as its Treasurer/Clerk while an election for its Board of Directors was scheduled later.  In as much as Bueoligan’s organizational structure is based on a Basic Ecclesial Community (BEC) model, the members of the Board of Directors to be elected are representatives of cluster communities/chapels of every Barangay within the jurisdiction of the Parish of St. Rafael. 


Today, the Bueoligan is dormant, much like a seed buried deep in the cold, dark ground waiting for the warm sun to awaken it and beckon it to sprout out and show itself in the light. It hopes for the day when the prophet echoes the call of Isaiah: "Come out...be free! Come out in the light! And along the roads and even on barren heights, be nourished!" (Isaiah 49:9)