Fr. John Joseph “Jack” Phelan, S.J.
(Fr. Joel E. Tabora’s Foreword in the book:
From the Bronx to Bikol)

During the last war he was a captain in the US military. But he has since walked in the footsteps of the soldier-saint, Ignatius of Loyola. As a Jesuit, he was assigned 43 years ago to the Ateneo de Naga. Since then, he has never been assigned elsewhere.

He is a living icon of the Ateneo de Naga. He has labored here as a teacher, a counselor, an administrator, a confessor, a friend. He is known for his selflessness, his kindness, his concrete responsiveness to the needs of others, especially to the poor.

To those who have “walked through the Four Pillars” of what is now the Ateneo de Naga University, Fr. Jack has been a living legend of dedicated service at Naga, a symbol of the education, formation and “cura personalis” – personal care – Jesuits have provided in Naga since 1940. When they recall Ateneo de Naga, they recall Fr. Jack. Phelan Hall, the science building, is named after him, but he has hardly noticed. He is a model of humility, gentleness and self-deprecating humor. Even as he is keenly interested in all the new developments of the University, he enjoys telling stories of the past. Even as he must now battle illness for life in faith, he still walks tall around campus, greeting teachers and students with his familiar smile, and attending to the needs of alumni/ae.

Old soldiers never die. The good that Fr. Jack has done for countless people shall never die. In this light, the Ateneo de Naga University is very privileged to publish Joanna Selina Llorin’s biography of Fr. Jack entitled, From the Bronx to Bikol, on his 80th birthday. It is a story of an ordinary young man from the Bronx who touched by grace, has touched the lives of countless people in Bikol. It is a story that is told ad majorem Dei gloriam. It is a story that will touch you.

“From the Bronx to Bicol: The Presence of Fr. Jack Phelan, S.J.” by Joanna Selina N. Llorin is published and available at the Ateneo de Naga University. For Inquiries please call: Mr. Bernie Jereza, Presidents office, ADNU 054-472-2368 Loc. 2123 or email him at this address: bernie@adnu.edu.ph