Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila School
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| Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila School | |
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| File:Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila School logo.png | |
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| Information | |
| Type | Private |
| Motto | “To share, to give of oneself, serve without counting the cost.” |
| Established | June 13, 1990 |
| Founder | Mrs. Lydia Cuevas-Vicente |
| Website | www.lorenzoruiz.edu.ph |
Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila School (LRMS) is a private Catholic school for K-12 founded by Lydia C. Vicente[1] in June, 1990. LRMS offers preschool,[2] elementary,[3] and secondary education.[4] LRMS is currently under construction and is located in the Vista Verde Executive Village in Cainta, Philippines.
History
During the EDSA Revolution in 1986, activist Lydia C. Vicente witnessed the worsening of living conditions in her country and decided to take action. After attending a five-day retreat, she was inspired to create an educational institution to develop Christian leaders who would act as catalysts for social change. She founded the Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila School in 1990. Subsequently, the San Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila School (SLRMS) of Marikina City was founded in 2003.
Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila School offers Catholic education. On January 3, 2006, the Bishop of Antipolo, the Most Rev. Gabriel V. Reyes D.D., officially recognized the School as a member of the Diocese of Antipolo Catholic School Association (DACSA).
Patron Saint
Through investigation of the records that survived the Binondo fire of World War II, historians believe Lorenzo Ruiz was born between 1600 and 1610 A.D. and was baptized in the Dominican Church, the only church in Binondo at the time. His father was Chinese and his mother was native Tagalog.[5] According to Friar Diego Rodriguez, Lorenzo was an altar boy and sacristan at the Binondo convent during his youth. He was educated by the Dominican Fathers and was their escribano or calligrapher, because of his expert penmanship.
In 1636 Lorenzo Ruiz was falsely charged with homicide. With the help of the Dominican Fathers and Domingo Gonzales, Ruiz fled the Philippines on 10 June 1636. He went as a missionary to Japan where the Christian Church was failing. During this time the Japanese ruler, Tokugawa Ieyasu, began to persecute Christians, whom he viewed as a political threat. When it was discovered that Ruiz was Catholic, he was arrested in Nagasaki with four other priests and a layman. The group was forced to renounce their faith or face death. Lorenzo Ruiz's famous last words were, "That I will never do, because I am a Christian and I shall die for God, and for Him I will give many thousand lives if I had them. And so do (to) me as you please". He was taken with his companions to the "Mountain of Martyrs" on 27 September 1637. They were sentenced to death, suffering torture by water and by needles, and were hanged above a pit.
Over 350 years later, Fr. Domingo Gonzalez wrote a detailed narrative of Lorenzo Ruiz's martyrdom. Ruiz was beatified by Pope John Paul II, along with 15 other martyrs, during the Papal visit to Manila on 18 February 1981.[6] Lorenzo Ruiz was canonized on 18 October 1987 by John Paul II. St. Lorenzo has become the Filipino symbol of unwavering faith in God.
References
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ [2] Archived March 31, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ [3][dead link]
- ^ [4][dead link]
- ^ "St. Lorenzo Ruiz and Companions | Saint of the Day". AmericanCatholic.org. Retrieved 2013-10-21.
- ^ Catholic Online. "St. Lorenzo Ruiz - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online". Catholic.org. Retrieved 2013-10-21.