Ang Sayaw ng Mandaragat: Glimpses of Coach Boyet Tordecilla’s Faith Journey
“I think that grace and love always rattle people.”
-Rob Bell
It was almost 8 in the morning when we arrived at Kaylabne Beach Resort in Cavite. The shore was calm reflecting the blue skies that greeted us that day.
While others started to unload boxes of fishing implements, Coach Boyet stood still in front of the shore as if looking for something beneath the waters.
He got a handful of shrimps we brought as baits and cast them onto the waters.
The surface remained calm. Nothing happened. The pieces sank slowly to the bottom as if the meat had no appeal to the fishes living in the waters of the beach resort.
Then he took a loaf of bread, tear it into small pieces and threw some to the shore in front of him. There was rumbling on the surface. And immediately the pieces of bread disappeared. A throng of hungry fish devoured the second bait.
“Alam ko na ang ang gagamitin nating palutang (floater) at gagamit tayo ng tinapay na pa-in (bait),” Coach Boyet exclaimed.
That day, he was the only person able to fill the ice chest with fish enough for everyone to share during lunch.
It has been years since he last went fishing in French Riviera but he still has it. He still knew how to fish like a pro. It was one of my vivid memories of him during his last visit in the Philippines last December 2021.
Indeed he was a true fisher of men. But how did he get into the business of fishing for men? In the eyes of his two sons, Coach Kevin, and Gab, we tried to capture glimpses of his journey that paved the way for Bread of Life Europe more than two decades ago.
Tale of a Gangster
Born and raised in the province of Batangas, Raoul “Boyet” Tordecilla became a notorious drug user and gangster in his town in the mid-80s. Admittedly in one of his sharings he narrated: “Ako yung nagdala sa barrio namin ng shabu (meth) bago pa man mauso yan sa marami.”
Not a day would pass that he was not high on drugs, intoxicated with alcohol or involved in altercations. His siblings would beg him to get his life in order but to no avail.
With this kind of lifestyle, Boyet became one of the police’s most wanted. Fearing for his life, Boyet’s older brother knew that he should flee abroad to escape. The easiest way he could think of to do this is to get a penpal and get married.
Through the help of siblings and friends, he was able to have Gina, cousin of Boyet’s sister-in-law, as penpal. They barely knew each other back in the Philippines. It was just through a series of letters that they had sort of “ligawan”.
In June 1992 Boyet flew to Paris, met Gina in person and got married in the Philippine Consulate. They also had their wedding blessed in a Paris-based Filipino Christian church in the same year.
Marriage on the Rocks
It was a rough start for Boyet and Gina. With just a handful of letters as basis for their marriage, lots of challenges greeted the newly-wed couple. Getting along with each other was hard, clashes of personalities would often bring the two to fight.
On one ocassion, Boyet hit Gina so hard that she got a black eye. This became an issue in the church they were attending to the point that they were expelled for not being “good examples” to the community. Boyet felt that God shut His door on them.
The storm did not end there.
Gina got pregnant within the first year of their marriage while working for a Moroccan employer. Not wanting a pregnant employee, Gina tried to hide her pregnancy but the employer discovered it. Again, they were asked to leave. It was winter. They had no where to go. Gina lost the baby.
So, yung time na yon, syempre hindi na matago ni Mama na buntis siya, pinalayas sila, e winter yun, dun nalaglag yung baby. Tapos, I don't know, but there was a Filipino family that helped Mama and Papa that time, hindi ko lang maalala but I think, 1993 yon. Dun nalaglag ang first baby nila Mama at Papa. So yun, I think from 1992 hanggang 1997, 1998, ang gulo. Sobrang gulo. Tas dumating na ako, sobrang gulo din,” Coach Kevin, the oldest son of Boyet and Gina told us in the interview
Macarena and the Dance of God
In 1995, Kevin was born to the couple. This would have been a turning point but Boyet and Gina would still fight often.
There was another instance where Boyet hit Gina again, but this time, she left the apartment with the young Kevin.
It was Boyet’s lowest point. He felt everything was in shambles. Hopelessness was all over him.
He decided to end his life, but for one reason or another, he felt that he has to listen one last time to a cassette tape recording of Brother Butch (aka BLC), the founding pastor of Bread of Life Ministries. He got the tapes of preachings through his sister.
As he pressed the play button, it was the song Macarena that he heard. Suddenly he remembered Kevin, his son, who would dance whenever he heard the song being played. It was as if God was speaking to him, telling him of His love and faithfulness in spite of the darkness that he was going through.
As the author Richard Rohr would put it: It was “the God who dances” that made Boyet realize to continue in the dance of life. In the middle of life’s downpour he was invited to dance– to dance with abandon.
Boyet knew he has to put his house in order. He has to man up.
“I think that was Papa's strength, yung vulnerability niya kase he knows kelangan niya ayusin yung sarili niya kase lumabas na ako e, pagiging asawa, pagiging ama. He doesn't know how to but with the preachings (from Crossroad), nakatulong,” Kevin said during the interview.
He made it up with Gina and Kevin and started anew. At this point, Boyet began to gather people who are going through difficult situations. He started with small groups of mostly couples working as domestics and in the service sector.
“Tapos when he would see mag-aasawa din na may problema, parang he would foster them, ‘Alam ko yan kasi kami rin.’ Kaya, he was able to gather people not because may inaral, may pinag-aralan siya but because, ‘Hindi, I feel you, I know you. But ito kase yun. Ito ang ginawa ko. Ito ang nakatulong sakin.’ Kaya, dun na nagsimula. That's why he started a church not because pastor siya, marami akong alam makinig kayo sa akin but nanggagaling siya sa ‘Hindi, dinaanan namin yan, it's only by God's grace na bakit kami naayos kase’," Kevin recalled.
A Church for the Dias-Pinoys
The small group eventually grew in numbers as Boyet reached out to more and more people. Without any formal training, Boyet started to shepherd Pinoys in Europe.
“Si Mama would be the usher, from the metro ihahatid sa mga bahay-bahay, para mag-Bible study, mga ganun na kwento talaga,” Kevin told us.
The couple who were shunned by the leaders of their former church, opened a church where hurting and broken people like them can be taken care of.
In the beginning days of the work in Europe, Boyet had a day job which he juggled with his time for the newly-formed church. Amidst this busy schedule, attendees were continuously increasing, and this called for the presence of a full-time worker in order to address the growing needs of the church.
With this, Boyet decided to go back to the Philippines to meet with BLC with the intention of asking for a full-time pastor to be sent to Europe to take care of the church.
When BLC visited Europe for a month to see the work, they went around to immerse themselves with the members. Sometimes Boyet would bring BLC to his work as a domestic, cleaning villas in Paris to fully embody him to the experience of most members in Europe.
When BLC was about to go back to Manila, Boyet asked who is the pastor that will be sent to Europe.To his surprise, BLC said: “Ikaw!”
Kevin narrated that: “1999 nag-start ang Paris, tapos 2000 nagstart na ang Amsterdam. From 1999 to 2007, hindi pa full-time si Papa nun sa ministry. They still had part-time. Yun yung mga times na Sunday, Paris siya tapos magte-train siya pa-Amsterdam tapos he would take the last flight ng Amsterdam to go back sa Paris, susunduin kami para maglinis ng clinic. So, we did that for seven years, o six years. 2007 lang talagang naging full time siya sa ministry.”
Other life coaches on rotation were also sent to Europe to help out in the ministry. By the grace of God, the work expanded from Paris to Amsterdam, Barcelona, French Riviera and Parma. The work has become one of the largest congregations of Filipinos in Europe, ministering to the mind, body and spirit of our kababayans and their loved ones.
The Mandaragat Magic
What caused the work in Europe to progress?
It was not the spectacular church program nor the eloquent preachings, but a heart that connects to the plight of the Filipinos abroad.
“He's a pastor na parang, he would not preach to you but would walk with you. Yun ang nakita ko kay Papa. Parang he'll walk with you, he'll be patient with you, which is yun din natutunan ko rin sa hiking, when you hike with the group of people, you can't expect people to walk at your own pace e, you have to learn to adjust, at their pace first and then, yun si Papa,”
Not only did he touch the lives of Filipinos in Europe, he also became a father to a class of French school kids; a son to a French widow whom he was serving as an employer, and a brother to an Arab who just got out of prison.
Gab, the youngest of the two sons of Boyet shared how his father made friends to Garem, the Arab who just got out of prison in French Riviera (FR).
It was the early years of the work in FR and Boyet and a team of workers would frequent the beach for fishing. “Yung team po niya nagpupunta sa dagat nagpi-fishing. Isang araw, may isang Arabo pong nagpunta, kakalabas lang po niya ng prison, so parang nakasalubong po ni Papa. Nung una hindi po niya pinapansin kase syempre parang medyo ano po, pero nung nag-usap na po sila, I saw the magic of Papa.”
Despite of the language barrier Boyet and Garem were able to start a conversation and eventually became friends.
“Nagkwekwento na siya kay Papa pero hindi niya po naiintindihan so parang yung Arabo nagtatanong ng 20 or 30 euro para kumain. So what he (Papa) did, he just give it po, nagkwentuhan po sila. And the next day po, yung Arabo po pumunta sa spot ni Papa, may dalang beer at pagkain po. Si Papa yun nga, parang tinuro niya kung paano mag-fishing, dun ko siya naka-bonding, “ continued Gab.
So everytime I go there po, may bitbit siya na 20 euro and beer and pagkain lang po para magbigay lang po siya para sa kanya (Garem). So I saw that everytime po nagpi-fishing, so that's where I saw na hindi lang Pinoy yung nata-touch, yun nga. Yung kaibigan niya, didn't know that Papa was a pastor I think hanggang ngayon hindi niya alam na pastor si Papa e,” Gab ended.
Boyet was able to bridge language and cultural barriers. That made him the mandaragat that he was, not only to Filipinos but to other race as well.
“Alam nyang katulong siya, but he was able to change the game. He would be a son to a widow employer, or a brother to another. Parang he would know how to, not just adjust but fill that void,” curated Kevin.
Boyet was an embodiment of Maya Angelou’s wisdom: "It's not what you say, it's not what you do but it's what you make people feel."
The Perfect Time
For 23 years, God has been faithful in the journey of the churches in Europe. It was the blood sweat and tears of the brethren that God honored.
Like the Apostle Paul, Boyet knew how it is to be crushed, but never felt abandoned, struck down but not destroyed. With all the challenges and tribulations in the ministry, he was immovable and persistent to his call as shepherd.
Kevin witnessed this part of his father’s life. “So, kahit six years niyang kelangang magtrabaho, tapos kelangan niya magturo, or kelangan niyang iano yung ministry, he would do, no complaints. Wala akong narinig na "Ayoko na, pagod na ako." Yung parang ano yun, Sunday morning, naalala ko yun, after service takbo yan sa guard, just to keep the train, hahabulin niya ang service tas balik tas maglilinis kami ng clinic.”
There is so much work to do and so much dream to pursue for the Dias-Pinoys in Europe. Boyet would envision expanding the work in Milan, Greece, Genoa and Switzerland. But as the book of Proverbs would remind “Man proposes, but God disposes”
On May 3, while preaching in French Riviera Boyet collapsed in the pulpit and was rushed to the hospital. Days later God took him home.
Was it a loss for the work of God in Europe?
It was a resounding no!
It was the total opposite.
Boyet is that kernel of wheat that fell on the ground, dying but bearing much fruits, much harvest of more fishers of men, more souls who will dance with reckless abandon for God’s kingdom.
