I'd like to share the story of our dear friend, Bryan Paler. I've often mentioned him in posts, as he is a big part of our lives here, but its high time that he were properly introduced.
Bryan was once a youth leader in the Communist Party of the Philippines and, feeling that violence was not an effective response to injustice, he left the party and became active in a large church. After getting involved in his church, he became concerned that their programs did not address the needs of the surrounding community where unemployment, malnutrition, drugs and gang violence were rampant. As a leader in a mega-church in Manila, Bryan proposed a plan to help out-of-school youth in the community. When the church rejected his proposal, he became even more determined to serve the populate he deeply felt needed to know Jesus. He began getting to know the gang leaders and youth on the streets. He welcomed them into community.
Around this time he was also studying at Asian Theological Seminary and took a course with Jack Suderman, former Mennonite Church Canada General Secretary. The Anabaptist, Christ-centered, faith in action Jack spoke of deeply attracted Bryan. He had always known that the Good News of Jesus was bigger than only “saving souls,” and hearing an articulation of this holistic, all-transforming Gospel excited him.
With Bryan’s deepening relationships with gang leaders and out of school youth, he decided to start a church community and also an NGO, Evangelical Youth for Social Action. Through Jack, Bryan was introduced to Dann Pantoja (Mennonite Church Canada worker in Davao, Philippines) and later Dann, with Peacebuilders Community, trained Bryan's volunteer youth.
Bryan became a vocal and active advocate for peace and he quickly began intriguing people around him with his radical love for all. He had gang leaders and drug dealers joining his church community, many of whom had been ostracized from other churches. Several leaders in Bryan’s church are gang leaders who turned to Jesus’ way of peace and are now building peace in their neighbourhoods.
When Dann Pantoja told Bryan that we would be arriving in Manila soon to help start a Peace Church, he was instantly committed to this vision. He had been waiting for more people, like Jack, who expressed Jesus' teachings on peace and reaching out to the poor and oppressed. When we arrived in Manila, Bryan was there, ready to be our best friend and partner in ministry. And over the last months, that is exactly what he has become. We daily have meaningful discussions on faith and how to be an active follower of Jesus. Bryan endlessly and tirelessly teaches us about the Filipino culture, the politics, the struggles and their worldview. We learn from each other and are constantly encouraged by one another as we seek to gain a closer relationship with Jesus and a deeper understanding of how He is calling us to live out our faith.
We cannot imagine where we’d be without our trusting friend and partner and we are so thankful for how God is using him to spread His message of peace.
