DeLaSalleUniversityManila

2401TaftAvenue
1004Manila,Philippines

TREDFORFinalPaper

Presentedtothe

TheologyDepartment

DeLaSalleUniversity

Inpartialfulfillment

ofthecourserequirements

inTREDFOR

Salamat,JoannahMarieV.
Tulfo,RamonEnrique
August22,2016

1. What are the implicationof Tredfor class in your life asastudentinDLSU?(In

bulletform,Writeasmanyasyoucan.

TREDFOR made us understand that the Kingdom ofGodisnotadestinationwe

may only arrive at at the end ofourlives it isthrough the waywe live our lives
through Gods teachings. Asastudent in DLSU,wecanachievethisbyapplying
thefoundationalprinciplesofLasallianFormationinoureverydaylives.

GiventhefewstudentswhoareatheistsinDLSU,TREDFORtaughtusthatthey,
too, can experience the Kingdom of Godifthey offer unconditional lifeand love
tosomethingorsomeone.

TREDFORslectureonselfawarenessisausefultoolinDLSU.Itisinevitablefor
usnot toworkingroupseveryterm.Throughselfawareness,wecanworkbetter
with otherpeople. Thiswillhelpustobemorepatient,kind,andunderstanding
allusefulvaluesinorderforagrouptoproduceagreatoutput.

Thelectureon selfawareness will help us indealingwithpersonalrelationships.

Conflicts will be avoided as long as we are aware of who we are and how we
want to be treated. Being selfaware encourages empathy, which is in
accordancewith GodsGoldenRule:Dountoothersasyouwouldhave themdo
untoyou.

ThelessononVocationwillguideusin choosing thepaththat wewanttotake

in the future. It will help us determine whether wecanfully commitourselves to
whichever path we take. Most importantly, whatever career we may enter into,
the valuablelessonthatithastaughtus,whichistouseourskillsandknowledge
 forthegreatergood ofall, willhelpusbecomebetterpeopleandbetterfollowers
ofChrist.

Ourpassion,hunger,anddrivetosucceedmayleadustocommitsomethingthat
iscontrary tothe teachings ofthe Bible. TREDFOR has encouragedustomake
conscious decisionswhenwearepresentedwithtoughsituationswhere wehave
to make a choice. The value of selflessness is vital in order for usto enterthe
Kingdom ofGod,therefore,allchoicesthatwemakemust beinaccordancewith
Histeachings.

Beingacollegestudentdoesnotautomaticallymeanwearecertainwiththepath
we want totake. TREDFORhas eased thispressure by explainingthatnotallof
us find our calling early onin life it maytake years anddifferentexperiences
thatwillhelp us decide andfully committowhatitiswewanttodofortherestof
ourlives.

Most graduates do not land a job immediately after graduation. Most of us are
stilllost,andsome,doubtthedegreethat theymajorin.TREDFORhastaughtus
what to do and where to look ifever we getin this type ofsituation by Praying,
Listening,andActingonthesignalsGodwillgiveus.

TREDFOR allowedus torememberthat just becausesomeonehas stumbled in

his or her own journey that does not mean that he or she is doomed to fail
forever rather this course gave us a perspective on Gods forgiveness and it is
nevertoolatetorepentononesmistakesandsins.

 TREDFOR paved the way for us to students to clear the confusion that the
Church does not condemn theLGBTQcommunity rather it supports that aunity
between thegaypeoplebutthedifferencewiththeunionandmarriageisthatthe
marriage is a ritual sacred for the man and woman as written in the scriptures
however the gay people can still be united and of course they are still allowed
insidethekingdomofGodaslongastheypracticethemoralvalueswrittenin the
ten commandments similar to how other people will be judged accordingly and
equallyregardlessoftheirgender.

2.IsitreallyimportanttoateenagerlikeyoutotakeTREDFORclass?Why?

In our opinion, it is important for us teenagers to take TREDFOR class or any

theology class for that matter because nowadays some teenagers have forgotten the
messagethatGodwanted toimpart on his children. In theadventwhereineveryone is
alwaysbusyeitherwithschoolwork,extracurricularactivities,recreationalactivities,and
other commitments there are times in which we forget to spend our hours with our
families and evenwith God.Forexample,somepeopleactually prefertogotothemall
onaSunday insteadofpraying tothe churchhencetheneedforconstructingchurches
inside the shopping malls. When circumstances like these happen thepeoplehave to
be reminded particularly the teenagers because they are part of the youth and God
treasuresthem dearly. Therefore, weneed to thetake the TREDFORand that is tobe
thankful of the blessings of God and at the same time reaching our own potentials,
dreams, and vocation under his guidance. Moreover, we need to be reminded of our
responsibilities as teenagers in which we should be ready to spread love to our
neighbors and take part in helpingour communitiesAlso, as teenagers sometimeswe
canbeeasily swayedwhenitcomestocertaintemptationssuchasdrugsandgambling
and with times like this we need to rethink our lifestyles and remember that we can
alwaysaskfor forgiveness throughGod. Inaddition,TREDFORcaneducateandatthe
same time serve as an inspiration for teenagers to reevaluate their foreseen possible
vocationsandatthesametimeremembertheteachingsimposedbyGodtomankind.

Consequently, taking TREDFOR isimperativefor teenagers because it allows us tobe

open to the beliefs of others regardless of what their religion is. After all, in the
contemporary world today there are countless conflicts in religion because of other
people not being open to the beliefs and faith of other people. Hence, by taking the
TREDFOR classthe students willbemore openonunderstandingthebeliefsofothers.
Lastly, as one of the issues that involves teenagers is early pregnancy the theology
class can help in enlightening the students thathavingachildis not an easy duty with
the numerous lectures about how one should be financially, emotionally, spiritually,
physically, and mentally stable before engaging in marriage and having a child with
another person. Since in this fastpaced worldwe sometimes forget thesacredness of
marriage andasearly as nowtheteenagersshouldbeinformedonhowtobeprepared
as these years of their lives will determine how they will turn out in the future and by
takingTREDFORtheycanhaveaheadstartandguidanceonwhattodo.

3. How do you see yourself, 10 yrs. from now? Why? (as partner your answer
heremustbeseparated)

Joannah Salamat: Ten years from now, I will be thirty years old. I have successfully
survived three decades of the world withallitscruelty, challenges, and contradictions.
After graduation, I plan to go to law school, so, at thirty,itwould be my 4thyearasa
certified attorney. I am ambitious by nature, and at this age, while my peers would
probably be starting a family, I would be completely immersed in my job. WhenI was
younger, I made a timeline for myself and the things I would want to achieve once I
reach a certain age, and by thirty five, I want to headmy very ownlawfirm Iwould
usemylatetwentiesandearlythirtiestobuildenoughcredibilitytoachievethis.


As a woman in our culture and society, it would be quite unusual not to be

married atthis age.As early asour earlytwenties,our older relatives startbombarding
us with questionsregarding marriageand family. However, it wouldbeunfairto start a
family if I will notbe ableto fullycommit myselvesto them. Successfully achievingmy
dreams would make me feel whole, and in return I can wholly dedicate myself to
another.

Ramon Enrique Tulfo: Ten years from now I have reached the age of twentyeight
years old and by that time hopefully I have become a successfullawyer. Inaddition, I
have participated in numerous organizations that aims to help the less fortunate and
those who arein need. Since as a LaSallianI knowthat it ismy duty tolend ahelping
hand to the people who are in need. Moreover, I have aimed in starting my own
business andI do hopethat Iam successfulin this field orifnotthe backup plan isto
be a corporate lawyerin abig company.Also, Iwant tomakesure thatI haveenough
finances to donate assistance to churches and public schools because these are
important thresholds of education and enlightenment which everyone should have an
accessto.

Although, I am notsureifI will be married ornotbecause mymain priority isto

help my family especially my sister in her schooling. As of the moment, Im leaning
towards the singleblessednesslifesinceoneofmy maingoalsistofurtherdiscoverthe
potential that I have while at the same timeprovidingaid forother people andnot just
my own family. In addition, I hopeafterten years from now I havetraveledin different
countries to learn about the culture of other people specifically in Japan and Rome.
Overall, the greatest achievement that I could have doneis to be ofhelpto myfamily
andotherpeople.

4. What are the different issues of teenagers which shouldbe addressed by the
TREDFORsubject?Why?

TREDFOR should address the confusion of teenagers in regards to theirbelief

and faith. As teenagers, we know that thereareanumberof our peers whogo
through phases where theydoubttheirfaith.Webelieve this an importantissue
to be addressed in order for the younger people to find their way back to the
armsofGod,orifthey truly choosenot to believe,thenTredmaygivethemthe
assurance that this does not mean they are condemned. This was briefly
discussed during the course of the term, however, we believe that this could
havebeenexploredfurther.

TREDFOR should have addressed other issues that have been thrown at the
Catholic Church, such as homosexual relationships. During the discussion of
Marriage,Tred shouldhave addressed thechurchspositionregardingsamesex
marriage. Teenagers are more accepting and liberal, and the Churchs
nonacceptance of same sex marriages is one of the reasons why teenagers
have a negative perception about the Catholic Church.TREDFOR should have
addressed the Churchs current stance regarding this issue by discussing why
the Church is generally againstthis(through theBible), andtriedto find asilver
lining by exploring the different ways the Church has tried to progress in their
thinkingregardingthisissue.

Contraception and Premarital sex should have also been addressed by the
subject. In the heated debacle regarding the controversial RH Bill and the
CatholicChurch,the subjectcould haveexplained thoroughly why theChurchis
still againstthesegiven the current times.This issue isaninterestingtopicsince
 mostteenagersseetheChurchs stanceregardingthesetwoissuesasaformof
backwardthinking.

TREDFOR should have addressed the fact that some challenges in our lives
cannot be solved by faith alone. Take mental illness as an example, there are
religious fanatics who believe that faith can control clinical depression, bipolar
disorder, etc. The subject should address the danger that this religious
delusionmentmayleadtoseriousconsequences.

5. Among the three state of life (Married life, Single Blessedness, Religious life)
whatisthemoststriking/appealingwayoflife?Why?

Among the three different states of life we think that religious life is the most
appealing for a multitude of reasons. (1) Firstly, because it takes a strong sense of
dedication andcommitmentto enterthereligious lifebecauseitisdifficultespeciallyfor
usFilipinosto leave our familiesand join the religious life sincewehaveastrongneed
to be withourfamilies alwayssinceithaslongbeenpartofourculture.(2)Secondly,to
accept andlivethe religiouslife isauniquecallingnowadaysbecauseweheardbefore
from one of our theology professors that for example every year there are lesser
participants in the seminary for young boys. Thirdly, (3) to accept the religious life
means that you have to persevere in proving that you are worthy to serve and be a
servant ofGod andthisis no easytask.(4) Fourthly, one of thespeakersfromthelast
dayof the TREDFORclass mentionedthatittakesastrongwilltoserveinthereligious
life and therewillbedoubtsalongthe way if this is the rightvocationfora personbutit
is ok to have questions as long as one does not give up in pursuing this religious
vocation. Lastly, (5)we think thatthe religiouslife holds a strongerconnection withthe
kingdom ofgod even though of course everyone isstill equal inhis eyesbut thereis a
sense of fulfilment of being close to God whenone takesthereligious life. Since,one
gets tohelpdifferentkinds of peoplethroughcommunityservice,prayovers,blessings,
andcan even serve as an inspiration formanytofollowtherightpathtothekingdomof
Godifheorsheislivingthereligiouslife.

Subsequently, it takesalongtime forone tobepartofthereligiouslifeusuallyit

takes 1015 years tobe a priest.Hence,theamount oftimeis actuallyfor the purpose
of letting the person toreflect andthinkifthis isthelifethatheorshewants. Moreover,
to live the religious life is a calling that comes with selflessness andwith the greatest
loveforGodandonesownneighbours.