Of Knights and Crosses - My High School Alma Mater


The young children of Pasig Parochial School 1935

The photo highlights my high school Alma Mater-- Pasig Catholic College (1935). Back then, PCC was known as just a small parochial school offering primary to secondary education. There are a couple of interesting things to see in the photo. First, there's the banner in the background featuring a cross. To be more specific, it is a "Maltese Cross," characterized by its eight pointed edges. This banner symbolizes the medieval Catholic order known as the Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, or simply "The Knights Hospitaller," founded in Jerusalem during the turbulent years of the Crusades.

During our student days at PCC, we often wondered why the Belgian fathers (CICM) used such symbols as Templar Knights, medieval crosses, and the Crusades. Are they somehow connected to the legend that Catholic military orders, such as the Knights Templar and the Knights Hospitaller, still exist secretly? When the film Indiana Jones hit the movie cinemas in the 1980s, some of us who were interested in the history of the Crusades went berserk, hahaha! We believed!
Upon inquiring about the photo and the label, I found out that it was actually the launch of a program at the school itself. A group of faculty members established a group known as "The Knights of the Holy Cross" under the guidance of the then school head, Fr. Urbain Timmermans (Fr. Urbano). It was the school's version of the Red Cross. All of its programs were designed for the safety and physical health of the students. No fancy stories, no dark secrets. It was also the day the delegates of the Philippine National Red Cross visited the school.
Indeed, the medieval Knights Hospitaller were actually a quasi-non-combatant order of knights. They were tasked with guarding the hospitals where wounded knights and soldiers were brought. If the hospital was attacked, that would be the time the Hospitallers would fight—to protect the wounded.
Finally, another amusing subject in the photo is the children or the students themselves. They looked simple and modest in their bearing, with some of them not even wearing shoes. This Catholic school in Pasig was founded to serve the poor children and provide them with an education.
Times have indeed changed.

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