June 6, 2025 — On this day marked with prayer, promise, and purpose, the graduating class of La Consolacion College Bacolod gathered beneath the grand arches of the San Sebastian Cathedral for their Baccalaureate Mass—an enduring tradition of thanksgiving and consecration. Presided by the Most Rev. Patricio Buzon, D.D., Bishop of Bacolod, the celebration was a moment not only to look back on years of struggle and triumph but also to look ahead with courage, humility, and conviction.
Rooted in the Gospel of John (21:15–19), the Bishop reflected on the tender and challenging conversation between Jesus and Peter. “Do you love me?” Jesus asked—not once, but three times. It was more than a question; it was a commissioning. Feed my lambs. Tend my sheep. Follow me. These words, the Bishop said, echo today for every young person called to make a difference in the world—not by power or prestige, but by love and service.
“You are just as a child of God as Jesus Christ,” Bishop Buzon reminded the graduates. “May who you are become what we see. The world doesn’t need more noise—it needs authenticity.”
He affirmed the theme that carried this year’s graduates: “Enduring Quality Catholic Education: Transforming Lives, Defining Dreams.” With quiet compassion and the strength of years in ministry, the Bishop honored the silent battles fought by students—early mornings, late-night study sessions, balancing work and school, struggling through pandemics and personal loss. Your sacrifices, he said, have transformed you.
In a particularly poignant moment, Bishop Buzon shared his experience in Assisi during the funeral of Pope Francis. Waiting in the Piazza, he spoke with a colleague who shared a surprising truth: social media, often demonized, has been the space where many young people have discovered faith, with thousands choosing baptism and re-entering the Church. The message was clear: even in the digital world, grace finds a way.
“We cannot give up hope on the young,” he declared. “The future belongs to them.”
In that spirit, the Mass became not an end, but a beginning. A sacred “sending forth” into a world that longs for the light only the young can bring. A world that needs shepherds—not of status, but of service.
As the Mass concluded and the final hymn echoed through the Cathedral, one quote lingered in the hearts of all:
“Be who you are meant to be, and you will set the world ablaze.”
To the graduates of 2025: May your love for God and humanity fuel your purpose. Tend to the world with mercy. Feed it with truth. And never stop following the call that echoes in your soul: Do you love me? Then, feed my sheep.