After 21 years, is there anything left to do?
For the Ateneo College Ministry Group, or ACMG, there is always something left to do, always something more to give. As an organization that began with a small group of friends who wanted to assist the priest during the Mass, it has since evolved to 150 individuals dedicated to bringing the Atenean closer to God.
Now on its 21st year, the ACMG holds a special project close to its heart: bringing the Mass outside of the Ateneo. Working with Kaingin, the organization plans to hold masses in the area of Kaingin Dos, as well as train the children who want to become sacristans. As Cesca Dalida, head of the Sacristy-Special Events Committee says, “In bringing the Mass to the residents of the area, they take a step closer to developing a fuller spiritual life. Nakakataba ng puso to know that we were able to help them in that way.”
The Eucharist has always been the organization’s apostolate, and its members are committed to serve in one of the daily Masses every week. Aside from carrying out tasks that range from acting as altar servers to simply collecting the baskets, they are also in charge of preparing the altar before the celebration and cleaning it afterwards. But as Mia Santiago, Eucharist Coordinator of ACMG puts it, “The things we do are not simply tasks: they are service for Christ and for others.”
The ACMG is composed of five committees –Choir; Publications, Decorations and Documentations; Public Relations; Sacristy-Special Events; and Spiritual Formation—each with its own form of service. From making music for the Lord, to organizing prayer sessions that can quench one’s spiritual thirst, to simply providing decorations for every event the organization has, the organization succeeds in drawing the Atenean closer to Him by simply magnifying whatever talent and contribution each individual may have.
And that is what the organization is all about anyway: serving the Lord by serving others. In 21 more years, the ACMG life will still boil down to a life of service. As Paolo Ramirez, President of the organization, envisions, “Each member should strive to be MAGIS: Men and women of ACMG Giving the I in Serving the Lord.”
Here’s to twenty-one more years of serving the Lord, twenty-one more years of ACMG.