As we continue sharing stories during East & Southeast Asian (ESEA) Heritage Month, we hear from Revd Fr. Herbert Jr F Fadriquela as he reflects upon the lived experience of the Filipino Chaplaincy in the Diocese of Leicester.
A Eucharistic Pilgrimage of Faith, Hope, and Solidarity
A biblical and theological perspective on the pilgrim character of the church begins with the Hebrew creed: “My father was a wandering Aramean” (Deuteronomy 26:5).
From the start, God’s people were migrants, and Christians inherit this pilgrim identity. As the Letter to the Hebrews reminds us, “here we have no lasting city” (Hebrews 13:14). This shapes our vocation to "philoxenia" (love of the stranger) as a mark of baptismal life.
For many Filipinos, migration arises not from choice but necessity. Families are driven abroad by wages that cannot sustain life, by typhoons and disasters that strip away livelihoods, and by social and political systems that concentrate wealth and opportunity.
Yet, migrants do not arrive empty-handed. They bring with them faith received from elders, the spirit of “bayanihan” (cooperation), and stories of hardship and hope. These gifts travel with them and enrich the life of the church wherever they go.
In Leicester, the Filipino Chaplaincy embodies this pilgrimage. Scattered across the county yet gathered around Word and Table at St Aidan’s, New Parks, we are being knit by the Spirit into communion. This is a community that remembers and laments but also resists and rejoices. Our identity is deeply Eucharistic: as bread is broken and shared, so too are we called to be broken and shared in service to the world.
Growth in Discipleship
Discipleship within the chaplaincy is evident both in depth and in numbers. Depth is seen in the solidarity and care extended to those in need through prayer, or presence. Numbers are reflected not only in the increasing attendance at the Filipino Mass but also in the expanding range of activities and ministries that draw in more participants. Growth, then, is both interior and communal rooted in following Christ together.
The Gospel Gifts of Migration
Migration, while often painful, is also a gift, a "locus theologicus", a place where God reveals new dimensions of the Gospel. The Filipino Chaplaincy bears witness to several such gifts:
A Welcoming Community - Newcomers find prayer, pastoral care, and guidance for navigating legal, safeguarding, and practical concerns.
Intercultural Witness - Songs carry memory and identity, food creates fellowship, and stories testify to God’s action in diverse contexts. Together, these practices embody hospitality where strangers are received as friends.
Transnational Love - Remittances become remedies, supporting education, livelihoods, advocacy, and disaster resilience in the Philippines.
Advocacy and Partnership - From Leicester, the chaplaincy amplifies marginalized voices back home while working with UK charities on climate justice, fair migration policies, and the dignity of labour.
Theological Imperative
The dignity of every human being, created in God’s image, calls us to labour for just and fair conditions, particularly for migrants who leave home in search of work and who now find a new home in the United Kingdom. For the Filipino Chaplaincy, resilience is not mere survival but Eucharistic pilgrimage, remembering wounds, celebrating gifts, and offering life in solidarity with the poor, in hope of God’s kingdom of justice and peace.
