Bisikleta Iglesia 2017 Connects the Body and the Spirit

“To connect the bisikleta (bicycle) and the iglesia (church). To connect the body and the spirit.”

This was the goal of Bisikleta Iglesia 2017 according to Father Robert Reyes, the special guest invited to lead the annual pilgrimage of cyclists in Batangas organized by Lima Park Hotel.

It was the first time Father Reyes, who is known as the priest who runs for socio-political and environmental causes, to join the Bisikleta Iglesia that took place on April 8 to usher the arrival of Holy Week in the country.

Father Robert Reyes blesses the Bisikleta Iglesia cyclists
before their pilgrimage on wheels

Inspired by the Visita Iglesia tradition, Bisikleta Iglesia gathered about 200 cyclists who pedaled to seven churches in Batangas covering a distance of 52 kilometers. These were the Sto. Niño Parish Church, Sacred Heart Chapel in Marian Orchard, Divino Amor Chapel-Redemptorist, Parish of Mary, Mediatrix of All Grace, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Monastery, Metropolitan Cathedral of San Sebastian, and the Parish Church of St. Therese of the Child Jesus.

But more than just visiting these churches, which are mostly pilgrimage sites in Lipa City, Father Reyes made sure that cyclists were able to connect their bicycles and the churches, thus connect their bodies with the spirit. They did so by reflecting the passions of the Jesus Christ through the 14 Stations of the Cross.

To connect their bicycles with the churches, the cyclists also prayed and reflected

“Although it took more time, I invited cyclists inside the chruch to pray. I really made it a point that when I said the prayer at the beginning, people geneflected and stayed with one knee on the ground—even just for a few seconds—to enter into the atmosphere,” explained Father Reyes in an interview with reporters and bloggers after the event.

The athlete-cum-activist priest also shared in one of his “sermons” that Bisikleta Iglesia participants should look at their bicycles as the cross that Jesus Christ carried and the suffering he endured. Whenever the path is difficult, then the bike becomes the cross. They should embrace this suffering for Holy Week.

Father Reyes also lamented that while more people gravitate towards sports like biking, they, however, tend to forget their faith. He expressed, “A lot of people wouldn’t go to church in the weekend but they would ride their bikes go to Tagaytay, to Antipolo, to various destinations. But they would not go inside the churches, just outside to be able to say ‘I biked to Antipolo Church.’ It’s just a destination now.”

The "Running Priest" during one of the 14 Stations of the Cross that the cyclists remembered

 As such, he said he was happy that efforts like Bisikleta Iglesia exists.

For their part, Rose Landicho, Marketing and Corporate Communications director of Lima Park Hotel, shared that Father Reyes was the ideal pilgrimage leader as he was known for using sports to express his faith and advocacies.

“We are blessed because for the first time we are having a priest join our Bisikleta Iglesia. The participation of Fr. Robert Reyes no doubt makes this year’s edition more meaningful and inspiring,” she said Landicho.

The pilgrimage on wheels welcomed an interesting mix of locals, domestic tourists and foreigners who were professional, non-pro bikers and enthusiasts alike

Bisikleta Iglesia was started in 2014 by Lima Park Hotel Resident Manager Bong Evangelsita Jr., a cyclist himself, as a way of promoting fitness and ecotourism.

On its fourth year this 2017, the pilgrimage on wheels welcomed an interesting mix of locals, domestic tourists and foreigners who were professional, non-pro bikers and enthusiasts alike. And of all ages too: the youngest was aged 11 while the oldest was 65.

The family that bikes together, stays togeher

For more information, call Lima Park Hotel at (043) 981- 1555 or 0917-5042385 and 0925-5042385. Follow it on Facebook.

(TEXT AND PHOTOS ©EUDENVALDEZ)