Madre Laura Mendoza: Lipa's Catechist par excellence

Madre Laura Latorre Mendoza 
(1877 - 1969)

Madre Laura Mendoza collaborated with the Servant of God Bishop Alfredo Verzosa and the Venerable Alfredo Maria Aranda Obviar in the work of catechesis in the old Diocese of Lipa where she helped supervise and form catechists to the barrios in the first half of the twentienth century.  She co-founded with Bishop Alfredo Verzosa what is now known as the Missionary Catechists of the Sacred Heart, the first Filipino religious congregation to be founded in the 20th century and by a bishop.

Early Years

Laura Latorre Mendoza was born on August 17, 1877 in the barrio of La Paz, in the town of Lipa. She was the third child of Pantaleon Mendoza and Maria Latorre. As what was customary, she received the sacrament of baptism on the following day, August 18, administered by Fr. Pablo Adoptante in the parish church of St. Sebastian. A certain Doña Celestina Malabanan acted as her baptismal sponsor.

Laura had three siblings, Macaria or Yayang, the eldest, Lutgarda or Lulay, the second child, and Edilberto or Bitong, the youngest. Their father died on the seventh month of their mother's pregnancy of Bitong. Left without a father, Laura developed a strong affection toward her mother whose presence made the young orphan feel safe and free from any harm.

Laura's parents owned vast tracts of land in the barrios of Latag, Balete and Sapac (now San Isidro) all in the town of Lipa and in the nearby town of Rosario. Though blessed with material possession and considered wealthy in those days, the couple was very kind and treated their workers fairly. Devout Catholics as they were, they encouraged their workers to attend mass every Sunday and nobody was allowed to miss going to church except for very valid reasons.

As as an adolescent, she would join the members of the Sacred Heart and the Lourdes Associations organized by the pious Vicenta “Ka Tikang” Bautista from Sta. Ana, Manila which meet every day in the parish church. She would pray with them and do meditations before mass and after communion. In the afternoon, they would visit the Blessed Sacrament, make the Stations of the Cross, pray the rosary and visit the sick (Monsignor Alejandro Olalia, bishop of Lipa attempted to open the cause of her beatification in 1965 but it did not progressed for an unknown reason). 

Later on, like many other affluent young ladies of Lipa, she was sent as an intern at the Colegio de la Inmaculada Concepcion Concordia in Manila run by the Hijas de Caridad (more popularly known today as the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul). While with the Hijas de Caridad, she felt attracted to the religious life. But circumstances related to her health prevented her entry. 

Back in Lipa, she was very active in the parish's catechetical ministry. Obeying the wishes of her relatives, and upon the advice of Fr. Angel Ylagan, Lipa’s parish priest then, she married Rufino Marave who was also very much involved in the catechetical apostolate.

The Community of Sisters in Bauan with their Augustinian Formators

Being childless and free from any maternal obligations, Doña Laura continued her work of catechizing in the parish. In 1919, Rufino died of cancer leaving the childless widow a good amount of material fortune. 

Called for a Mission

Not long after the death of her husband, in the year 1920, Bishop Verzosa encouraged Laura to go to Bauan to run a school there and to start a religious congregation of sisters. Laura, together with 5 other pious ladies from Lipa heeded the Bishop's invitation and set for Bauan to start the Colegio de Sta. Teresa de Jesus. 

The teachers lived in community and followed a regular schedule and Laura, who from then on had started to be addressed as Madre Laura, directed the "sisters" in their activities. 

On May 1, 1923, after being able to secure permission from the Holy See, Bishop Verzosa promulgated the decree canonically erecting the "Congregacion de Maria de la Ensenanza Cristiana" as a religious institute for women of diocesan right whose chief purpose is for the Christian instruction of the youth and the teaching of catechesis in distant barrios. In the same year, Bishop Verzosa invited the Augustinian sisters to provide formal religious formation to the newly established community.

First Profession of Vows, Misioneras de Catequistas, 1947

The congregation which Madre Laura co-founded with Bishop Alfredo F. Verzosa, can probably lay claim to the distinction of being the first congregation of sisters to be founded in the 20th century and by a Filipino prelate, and the first congregation of sisters whose main charism is catechism. 

In 1925, Madre Laura got sick and was advised to return to Lipa. Without a leader, the sisters in Bauan was later on dispersed. Earier, there was an attempt by Bishop Verzosa to fuse together the sisters with the Franciscan Oblates of Mary but the plan did not materialize since the Philippines is not considered a mission territory authorized to accept oblates, the Franciscan authorities decided to dissolve the Oblates and incorporate it to the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary. Some sisters joined the Franciscans and the others the Augustinians. 

Misioneras Catequistas (de Lipa)

In Lipa, Madre Laura again involved herself in catechizing and in helping the Franciscan sisters at St. Agnes Academy. In 1927, she moved to an old "kamalig" (warehouse) where she took care of young orphans. She named the house Asilo de Sagrado Corazon de Jesus. Later on, three young catechists from barrio Lodlod were attracted to her work and volunteered to assist her in her mission of catechesis.

Pioneer sisters. All but one persevered until death

Encouraged by the support and friendship of the bishop, many others joined the group. The small group, which remained nameless until 1945, gradually increased in size and took various kinds of work entrusted to them in the parish. The members cleaned the church and performed the duty of keeping it well and orderly. They helped in the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, sang during Holy Mass, collected alms and later, gave retreats to women workers and older girls.

With the direction of Monsignor Verzosa and the constant guidance of Monsignor Obviar, who by then has become Vicar General of the Diocese, this little band of catechists of Madre Laura continued in catechizing and in living a life of common even during the Japanese occupation. 

On January 18, 1945, through the determined effort of Bishop Verzosa in seeking permission for the restoration of the former institute, the diocesan approbation given to the Congregaciòn de Maria de la Enseñanza Cristiana on May 1, 1923 was re-applied to the new group of catechists that by chance started in 1927. The Most Rev. Monsignor Guillermo Piani, Apostolic Delegate to the Philippines, authorized such restoration. But the sisters are now to be known as Misioneras Catequistas (de Lipa) to distinguish them from the already existing Religious of the Virgin Mary.

St. Therese Dormitory, UPLB, 1955

Bishop Verzosa summoned Monsignor Obviar to relate to the sisters the Reglamento (Rule of Life) and Constituciòn (Constitution) of the institute drafted by Fr. Indalecio Alejo, OP, a Dominican canon lawyer.

On October 7, 1947, feast of the Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, the pioneering sisters made their first religious profession of vows before Bishop Verzosa, some priests in the diocese and lay people who stood as sponsors. The ceremony was held at the St. Sebastian Cathedral. 

The sisters who made their first profession were: Madre Laura Mendoza, Sor Teodora Baronia, Sor Felicidad Maralit, Sor Maria Remedios Lumbera, Sor Gerarda Honrade, Sor Jacinta Malicat, Sor Pilar Malicat and Sor Florentina Cay.

Beset with Trials

In 1950, Bishop Verzosa was forced to retire. He went home to Vigan, Ilocos Sur, his home town. The same fate of forceful removal was meted out to another friend and benefactor of the congregation – Monsignor Alfredo Obviar, who by then had become the Auxiliary Bishop to Monsignor Versoza. He was sent on a new assignment – to be Apostolic Administrator of the newly established Lucena Diocese. The congregation lost its founder and protectors.

Monsignor Rufino Santos was appointed Apostolic Administrator of Lipa in 1950. The congregation which has grown into a community of 8 professed sisters, 7 novices and 8 postulants was beset with trial – Bishop Santos wanted to disband the congregation. Madre Laura, an unassuming and obedient daughter of the Church, kept silent and accepted Monsignor Santos' verdict with humility and resignation. This provided an opportunity to Monsignor Obviar to invite the sisters to transfer to his newly established diocese. He had a house prepared in Lucena for the sisters' occupancy should they so decide to go with him and continue the work of catechesis they had begun in Lipa. Madre Laura, not wanting to offend the authority of the Lipa Administrator, humbly turned down Bishop Obviar's invitation. Madre Laura prayed for guidance and surrendered to the will of God through her bishop.

Most Rev. Alejandro Olalia, First
Archbishop of Lipa

Meanwhile, Monsignor Santos observed the reaction of Madre Laura. He became convinced that Madre Laura was a holy woman, a humble servant, as he would later on share with the sisters and some parishioners. It was Monsignor Santos who allowed them to occupy a bigger and more dignified house in Sabang (this was the house formerly occupied by the St. Agnes Academy) left vacant by the seminarians who earlier transferred to a newly constructed building, the present St. Francis de Sales Major Seminary in Marauoy. He was the one who appended del Sagrado Corazon de Jesus to the name Misioneras Catequistas – his lasting imprint on the congregation.

In 1953, another bishop came in the person of Monsignor Alejandro Olalia, who later in 1972 became the first Metropolitan Archbishop of Lipa. The congregation was again threatened by disbandment. The bishop advised Madre Laura to send the younger sisters home to enable them to finish their studies, while the older ones who did not finish schooling should be sent home permanently. Monsignor Olalia claimed that the sisters were just a group of pious women preparing for a happy death. This made Madre Laura cry but she still managed to remain calm.

For her, if this was really the will of God, she had to submit no matter how painful it was. Meanwhile, she prayed for guidance. God has always assured the congregation of His protection in the face of hardships and trials. Heaven's most needed aid came through the intervention of Fr. De Ramos, the bishop's secretary. He told the bishop that the sisters had been living together and had been doing their apostolate for more than twenty years and the sending of the old sisters home might be misinterpreted by the populace and communicate a very negative impression to the faithful of Lipa.

Mo. Augustine Schmidt and Sr. Veronica Mondonedo

Through Fr. De Ramos' intervention and upon seeing the dedication and the perseverance of the sisters, Monsignor Olalia changed his mind and concerned himself with the promotion of intellectual training of the community by requiring higher educational attainment for the candidates (at least two years of college studies). Some sisters were sent to obtain their college education and catechetical training. 

Period of Renewal and Intensification

With the guidance and assistance of Bishop Olalia, the sisters were able to open their first community outisde Lipa in 1955 - a dormitory for girls in Los Baños, Laguna where there was a state university. Some sisters were also asked to teach at the Our Lady of the Rosary Academy in Lipa City, run by the Maryknoll sisters.

To attain His Excellency's aim of providing better formation to the sisters, he asked the help of two Good Shepherd sisters in the persons of Mo. Mary Augustine Schmidt from St. Paul, Minnesota and Sr. Veronica Mondoñedo. They arrived on October 22, 1957 and gave intensive religious formation to the sisters. It was during this period that the institute was called “Sisters of the Sacred Heart.” The sisters did not engage in any active apostolate and the acceptance of candidates was also temporarily halted while some sisters were sent home upon the discretion of Mo. Mary Augustine. Only in 1962 did the congregation again begin to accept new members. The Good Shepherd Sisters stayed with the community and acted as Mistresses until 1960.

First General Chapter of the Congregation

After Mo. Mary Augustine left, Bishop Olalia called the sisters for a meeting and informed them that Madre Laura will again assume the position of superior of the community. But Madre Laura knew, as she had observed from the faces of some sisters, that they did not like her. This pained Madre Laura the most.

Madre Laura's Funeral Mass, Lipa Cathedral, 1969

The first General Chapter was convened in 1960. Madre Laura's central role in the congregation was confirmed when she was elected first Superior General; a responsibility she held until 1963. Aged, poor in health, and half-blinded, she was soon confined to her bed. Mo. Ma. Socorro Lazaro succeeded her as Superior General.

Bishop Olalia, who at first wanted to disband the congregation, contributed so much for the furtherance of the sisters' mission by providing them the opportunity to establish communities in Batangas, Laguna and Cavite and by intensifying their formation in the religious life. 

On July 6, 1969, after almost 46 years of fruitful labor and struggle in the religious life, at five o'clock in the morning, Madre Laura passed away at the age of 91. She left behind a religious congregation numbering 37 sisters (24 professed, 8 novices and 5 postulants). Deep in the memories of the sisters were her great compassion for the poor and her great zeal for catechizing. She nurtured a great devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and set the pattern for a strong trust in His most compassionate heart. 

The Community of Sisters Madre Laura left behind in 1969

References:

Pena, Eldrick S. "Take and Receive: The Life and Legacy of Made Laura Mendoza, Lipa's Gift to the Church (2008), Missionary Catechists of the Sacred Heart, Lipa City.

"Our Founders" retrieved from https://mcsh.webnode.com/our-founders/ on May 5, 2020.