LUCEAT LUX

20 Questions:  Fr. Santos Mena, Author of "Luceat Lux"
Mr. Robin Tong, Batch ’72

Posted Friday, 02-Dec-2005 11:13 AM

     You can’t miss Fr. Santos Mena as he saunters down Xavier’s corridors flashing that toothy smile of his, reminiscent of Fred MacMurray in “My Three Sons.”

      While Fr. Mena was one of those recognizable faces around Xavier, older alumni couldn’t quite figure out where it was that they saw him. During his latter years, he has been quite involved with Xavier alumni activities. Now, he chronicles Xavier’s early history, thereby earning his own place in Xavier history, as its official historian.

      His book, “Luceat Lux,” was launched on the eve of Xavier’s Golden Jubilee, and has met much critical claim, gathering positive feedbacks (if not high praise) from all who have read it, including I might add, many who have confessed to buying books but never really giving them a second thought after. This book, they said, was very different--they had a hard time putting it down, and did so only after devouring its contents.

      If you’re thinking of what Christmas gift you can give a friend, look no further. Grab a copy of “Luceat Lux”! It’s truly one of those gifts "which keeps on giving." At five hundred pesos, it’s the best-kept secret in town!

The Interview

      1. Congratulations on your latest bestseller! When did you first think of
writing this book? Did you volunteer or were you assigned to do it?

      It was my idea. No one suggested to me to write it. The idea came to me when I heard Fr. Des (Xavier School founder Fr. Jean Desautels) telling all these wonderful stories during a videotaped interview for the School’s 40th anniversary. I found the stories so fascinating that I thought it would be a pity if these stories would be forever lost, especially once Fr. Des was no
longer with us.

     2. Thank you also for finally clarifying the mystery that is Chabanel Hall, as well as "Kuang Chi" (whom many thought was Chinese for "Luceat Lux"!) Why didn't you write this book earlier?

      Maybe I was not ready for it. I have written several books, mostly short stories and even novels on the Gospel and other things where the imagination is the main actor.

      History is a bit different. You have to do research, be faithful to the documents, and be prudent about your judgments. You can’t let your imagination run wild.

      3. What gave you the impetus to do it this time?

      Maybe I had arrived. I felt I could take the subject on.

     4. How many years was this book "in the making"?

      Ten years. Since the 40th anniversary. Of course, the writing was on and off. In between, I still had time to publish other minor works.

     5. Did anyone help you with the book? Who? How?

      Not really, not in the writing. But all these years, I had Fr. Des as my traveling companion. He helped through the many and juicy documents he left--it was all there. All it took was someone to organize it a bit and to put it all together.

     6. Who proofread the book for you?

      I did the proofreading. I don’t believe in letting others do it for me; I believe that’s one of the author’s duties.

      In fact, to tell you frankly, most chapters I have read, re-read, and corrected as many as 25 to 30 times! And I’m sure that if I read them again, I would introduce some corrections again. English not being my (first) language, it’s not always easy for me to come up with right phrase, or the right adjective, for what I want to say.

     7. What was the hardest part about doing the book? The easiest?

      The easiest was the researching and reading of the material I had at hand: it was a joy to discover things about Xavier I never knew they were there! The hardest part was to have to sacrifice some chapters after I wrote them--it's like losing a limb or something, a self-inflicted amputation at that!

     8. How do you feel with all the positive feedbacks from alumni readers? Is it the kind of response you expected?

      Yes, I kind of expected something like this. During the book launching, I quoted an old Latin writer--Pliny the Younger--who said that if you want people to remember you after you die, you have to do something in your life worth writing about, or at least write something worth reading about.

      I’m aware that in my life I never did anything worth writing about. But, modesty aside, I think this time I have written something worth reading. Not so much because of the merits of my writing, mind you, but because of the topic

      It's addressed to a very concrete readership--the Xavier Family--a captive readership, if you will. Of course, there are many people out there that would be very interested in the topic because not much is known about Xavier's early days, the struggles and so on. And I would like to thank everyone for the interest and the support they have shown.

     9. How much of the book had been written prior to your departure for Spain to treat your illness?

      Most of the book was already written before I left for Europe. When I came back, all I had to do was introduce a few modifications and make the alphabetical index, which was quite laborious.

     10. How do you feel now, physically?

      So-so. As you know, “once a cancer patient, always a cancer patient” . . . until the thing takes you away. I still have a few aftereffects of the therapy. There are days that I feel well enough, and there are days I feel absolutely miserable!

     11. Many readers are eagerly awaiting Part II! When will you start work on it?

      Volume 2? Not me! Not now, at least. For one thing, these events are still a bit too recent to write about. To write about history, you need a bit of perspective, a bit of distance. The materials are very scattered. I’m making overtures to Fr. Ari Dy to undertake it. He started his writing career very early. I’m sure he is most qualified to do it.

     12. You spent many years in Sacred Heart Cebu. In what capacity? How many years were you there for, and how many years were you in Kuang
Chi? In Xavier?

      I spent 10 years in Cebu--as Prefect of Discipline, Student Counselor, Treasurer. And of course, always, as moderator of the Boy Scouts, a program that was exceptionally successful in my time. Then, for 7 years, I was assigned to the East Asian Pastoral Institute in the Ateneo. Finally I am on my 25th year at Xavier. I will be a 25th year awardee come March 2006.

     13. What do you handle now in Xavier? The Archives? What are your other responsibilities?

      I have now a job fit for a senior citizen in Xavier. I’m trying to organize the Archives. It’s the ideal job: no stress, no deadlines, no targets. For other activities, specially evening activities, I am practically out of circulation.

     14. When did you take up writing? How is the feeling/experience different between writing this and writing your other books? Your first book?

      Although I’ve always liked writing, would you believe that I didn’t write
my first book until I was 60? It was the three-volume “Gospel According
to the Extras.” After that, I simply couldn’t stop. A few other books
followed.

     15. What has helped you the most in writing about Xavier's rich, colorful
history?

      The abundant material that Fr. Des left for history on what it took to found Xavier. He left behind a Journal that he kept for 11 years; then there were copies of his hundreds of letters written to many people, high and low; then more than a hundred minutes of the monthly meetings he held with his
council; and finally, about one hundred pages of notes on the history of
Xavier. It was all there, all ready. All the historian had to do was go through
it, organize it and publish it.

     16. You were quite close to Fr. Cortina. Did you enter the Society of Jesus at the same time, or did you know each other back in Spain?

      Fr. Cortina was three years ahead of me in the Society of Jesus. We never knew each other in Spain, as we belonged to different provinces. We first met on our trip to Manila in 1952. We met in Marseilles where we boarded the boat that took us here, after 20 days of sailing!

     17. What do you remember most about him?

      His ability to reach the boys. Just as I am a passable writer but an awful speaker, he was a passable writer, but a fantastic speaker. He could hold the boys spellbound with his stories and his frank talk. That is something I was always very "jealous" about--I couldn’t forgive him for being so good at it, while I struggled and never got from the boys the response he got.

     18. What did you learn from him?

      To laugh. To activate my sense of humor. To roll with the punches.

     19. What do you miss most about him?

      His companionship. He was like a brother for me. To some extent, when he died, I knew my solitude had begun.

     20. What message do you have for Xavier alumni?

      Fr. Cortina used to tell a story of a student who was being sent out from Xavier, and who, leaving his office, shouted: “You can take me out of Xavier, but you can never take Xavier out of me!”

      I’ve always loved that anecdote. Xavier, the values we learned in it, the sweet-sour memories of our stay in Xavier, will never leave us. We love Xavier--warts and all--and we’re sure that Xavier loves us back in the same manner.

      Luceat Lux! May Xavier’s light burn brightly in our hearts to guide us through life. Thank you very much.

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