"Jim"

By Adam Easton
The Guardian

Born into a wealthy provincial family of Chinese parents in New Washington, in the Philippine province of Aklan, Jaime, or "Jim" as he was known, was his mother's pet. The 14th of 16 children, he was a painfully thin, asthmatic child, who often used to cuddle up between his parents to sleep at night. When he asked his nurse why his mother lavished such attention on him, he was told it was because he was the weakest and ugliest of the brood.

From an early age, encouraged by his devout mother, Sin would play at being a priest, giving mock sermons from the living-room table. His mother's last wish was that his siblings look after him, by which time the 12-year-old had already enrolled in the local seminary, St Vincent's.

An ordinary student, Sin's poor health almost prevented him from fulfilling his calling. Laid up in a hospital bed in 1954, he made a pact with himself that if he suffered another asthma attack before the next feast day, he would take it as a sign that God did not require his services. Six months later, aged 25, he was ordained; he never suffered another attack.