Monitor

CBCP

APRIL 29 - MAY 12, 2019, VOL 23, NO. 09 CBCPMONITOR@AREOPAGUSCOMMUNICATIONS.COM

PROTAGONIST OF TRUTH, PROMOTER OF PEACE

Nuncio tells
youth to be
instruments
of mercy,
peace at
end of NYD
By Roy Lagarde
THE papal nuncio to the
Philippines encouraged
young people “to be
the light” of the world
especially to those who
suffer and are longing for
love and peace.
Addressing a huge crowd at
the closing Mass of the National
Youth Day in Cebu City on April
28, Archbishop Gabriele Caccia
urged them to never get tired of
being instruments of hope among
their peers.
“This is our vocation,” Caccia said
in his homily. “The world needs
light and each one of you is this
small light but together it’s more
than enough to give hope, love
and life”.
As the Church prepares for the
500 years of Christianity in the
Philippines in 2021, he urged the
youth to be active and spread the
faith by being witness to Jesus.
“We want to go far. We receive
this gift of faith through the
witnesses of so many generations
but we want this faith continue to
shine,” he said.
“So my wish today is that the
Risen Christ may give all of you
His peace and make you all an
instrument of His love, mercy and
peace,” Caccia added.
Organizers said the Mass drew
20,000 pilgrims from across the
country that attended the five-
day gathering of prayer, music,
catechism and community service.
The turnout is said to be the
biggest in NYD’s history since it
started in 1986.
Also present were about a
hundred priests, nuns and bishops
led by Archbishop Romulo Valles,
president of the Catholic Bishops’
Conference of the Philippines.
Imitate Mary’s example
Earlier, Archbishop Jose Palma
of Cebu urged the pilgrims to be
servants to one another.
Speaking at the NYD opening
ceremony at the city’ sports complex
on April 24, he highlighted the way
Mary was always open to the Lord’s
will, describing her as a role model
to be followed.
“We know that like her (Mary),
we are beloved, gifted and
empowered,” Palma told the more
than 15,000 pilgrims from across
the country.
“As you come we repeat over and
over again like what Mary did, ‘I am
the servant of the Lord,’” he said. Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, the Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, visits Cebu’s renowned historical landmark, Magellan’s Cross, after the closing Mass
NYD / A7 of the National Youth Day, April 28. SAMMY NAVAJA

Negros bishop pays tribute Voters warned vs bets who allowed killings, corruption
to farmers on Labor Day A CATHOLIC archbishop
warned the faithful against
voting for candidates who
may have contributed to
the continued killings and
corruption in the country.
Archbishop Socrates
Villegas of Lingayen-
Dagupan took the Divine
Mercy Sunday Mass to
call on voters to be more
discerning in the coming May
13 midterm polls.
In a pastoral message
read at the St. John the
Evangelist Cathedral in
Dagupan City, he cited the
“6Ks” or kamatayan (death),
kabastusan ( vulgarity),
korapsyon (corruption),
kahirapan (poverty),
kasarinlan (independence),
and kasinungalingan (lies)
as among the problems the
country is facing today.
“Have they given the orders
to kill? Have they protected
liars? Truth is not a political
issue; it is a moral issue.
Human dignity goes beyond
political coalitions. It is a
godly concern,” said Villegas.
“Have they contributed to
the current problem of 6Ks?
Have they actively cheered
and encouraged, enabled and
supported the purveyors of
the 6Ks?” he furthered.
“Have they been quiet
fence sitters who just allowed
the 6Ks to turn from bad to
worse? Silence in the face of
evil is itself evil,” he aded.
“Have they chosen to stay
safe rather than stand up
for truth, sovereignty, and
human dignity?”
Once again he noted how
the continued killings does
not solve problems on drugs
and criminality.
Also, he noted that vulgarity
“is not Filipino” who loves
God, and that “there’s no
place in heaven for liars”.
Villegas stressed that liar
candidates should not be
voted as they “will be the
future corrupt officials”.
Warned / A7

Bishop Gerardo Alminaza of San Carlos

IN his Labor Day message,
a Catholic bishop in Negros
Occidental paid tribute to the
province’s farmers who fell
victims to violence in their
struggle for their rights.
Bishop Gerardo Alminaza
of San Carlos particularly
remembered the nine sugar
farmers killed at a hacienda
in Sagay City in 2018 that are
still awaiting justice.
“The impunity in senseless
killings resulting from
the landlessness of our
agricultural and farm workers
are sad manifestations of
where we are in our journey
towards God’s kingdom of
love, justice and peace,” he
said.
As a Christian response,
Alminaza called on the Basic
Ecclesial Communities
to have a “pastoral
accompaniment” among the
Sagay massacre survivors
and families of those killed.
Contractualization exploits workers ‘to Malaysian deacon: PH has ‘special
The land issue, he said,
must be part of reflections highest level’ — Church labor group role’ to play in Asia
among the BEC cluster
groups “so that our poor
farmers may not feel alone
in their plight”.
“Communal action on day-
today economic life must be
discerned in BEC meetings
and activities,” Alminaza
said.
The bishop also called on
leaders of peasants’ groups
to make paramount the
well-being of their fellow
farmers “rather than resort
to adventurist steps”.
Addressing the land
Deacon Adrian Ng (rightmost) shares some fun with young people from Catholic
owners, the prelate urged Militant groups hold protest in Manila on Labor Day, May 1, 2019. VINCENT GO Christian Outreach. CATHOLIC CHRISTIAN OUTREACH
them to prioritize the
interest of common good and THE lack of government’s said that workers’ rights THE Philippines is the only region.
denounce violence and greed. will to end contractualization continue to suffer with the other majority Christian “It’s very, very actually
Bishop Alminaza also has allowed workers to be continued practice of labor- country in Asia, aside from crucial [that the Philippines]
reiterated his call for justice for exploited ‘to the maximum only contracting. East Timor. And this is truly becomes the light
the Sagay 9 massacre victims level’, an ecumenical church- “We have witnessed how precisely the reason why a in Asia. She is the bright
and for the government to labor group said. contractualization and Malaysian deacon believes … first daughter of the
address land reform disputes. The Church People- other forms of flexible work the country has to step up Church in Asia. She needs
(CBCPNews) Workers Solidarity (CWS) Contractualization / A7 to play a special role in the Deacon / A6
A2 WORLD NEWS April 29 - May 12, 2019, Vol 23, No. 09 CBCP Monitor

Religion ‘less important’ to most people Vatican Briefing

than 20 years ago, surveys find
Word of God must be ‘beating heart’ of church, pope says
Reading the Bible and praying with it is “the best vaccine”
against Catholic communities closing in on themselves or
focusing only on self-preservation, Pope Francis said. God
wants “a church that does not speak from itself or about
itself but has in its heart and on its lips the Lord and draws
daily from his word,” the pope told members of the Catholic
Biblical Federation. Greeting 200 federation members from
68 countries April 26, Pope Francis said that when Christians
basically proclaim themselves instead of Jesus, they transmit
nothing to the world. (Cindy Wooden/CNS)

Being a Christian has always been challenging, Pope

tells youth
Pope Francis said April 25 that although today has its
challenges, especially with the sexual abuse crisis, it is not more
difficult to be a Christian now than in other periods over the last
2,000 years. “The current context is not easy, also because of the
painful and complex issue of abuses committed by members of
the Church,” the pope said April 25. “However, I would like to
repeat to you that today it is no more difficult than in other eras
of the Church: it is only different.” Speaking to a group of young
people from France, the pope underlined the beauty of their effort
to strengthen their faith through a pilgrimage to Rome “with the
apostles Peter and Paul and all those witnesses, including some
young people, who suffered martyrdom for choosing to remain
faithful to Jesus Christ.” (Hannah Brockhaus/CNA)

Jesus replaced law of revenge with law of love, pope says

DENVER, Colo.— Participants in a
study spanning 27 countries say that
religion plays a less important role in
public life than it once did, though in
many parts of the world, participants
said that religion’s importance is on
the rise, or that they would like to
see an increased role for religion in
society.
In the study, conducted by the Pew
Research Center, 37% of respondents
say religion plays a “less important
role” in their countries than it did 20
years ago, while 27% say it plays a
more important role.
Nearly 40% of respondents said
they favor an increased role for
religion in society.
In addition, Pew studies suggest
that although fewer people in the
US and Canada believe that religion
plays an “important role,” a majority
of respondents in several Asian
and African countries say religion’s
role in their lives has become more
important in recent years.
Fifty-eight percent of Americans
surveyed and 64% of Canadians
say religion has a “less important
role” than 20 years ago, Pew says.
Roughly half of Europeans said the
same thing, and 1 in 5 Europeans
said there has been no change in
the role of religion over the past
20 years.
By contrast, more than half in
Indonesia (83%), the Philippines
(58%) and India (54%) believe that
religion has a bigger impact on their
country today than it did 20 years
ago, Pew says.
In the Philippines, young adults are
15% more likely to favor an increased
role for religion than older people.
Sixty-five and sixty percent,
respectively, of people in Nigeria and
Kenya favor a greater role for religion
in society. In addition, 96% and 93%
respectively in those countries said
religion is “very important” in their
lives.
In contrast, people tended to say
religion has become less important
or there has been no change in South
Korea, Japan and Australia.
In Nigeria, where Christians and
Muslims have clashed in recent years, a
The scales of justice cannot solve everything, especially
majority of Nigerian Muslims— 88%—
when it comes to stopping a cycle of evil vengeance, Pope
are in favor of a more important role
Francis said. “Evil knows revenge and if it is not halted, it
for religion, while a smaller majority
risks spreading, suffocating the whole world,” he said April 24
of Christians— 61%—say the same,
during his weekly general audience. Christians must forgive
Pew says. However, more Christians
and love others even beyond what is due to stop the cycle of
than Muslims are inclined to say there
evil and to start things anew, he told thousands of people
has been no change in the relative
gathered in St. Peter’s Square, which was still decorated with
importance of religion in Nigeria.
bright yellow, red and other colorful flowers from his Easter
The Pew authors noted that some
celebrations. (Carol Glatz/CNS)
countries have a large majority of
respondents “concentrated at one
Church needs joyful disciples, pope tells young
end of the question of how important
people, deaf association
religion is to them,” which makes
In back-to-back audiences with a group of French young
a reliable analysis of the question
people and an Italian association for deaf people, Pope Francis
difficult.
cited personal example and witness as a vital piece in the
“For example, so many survey
church’s evangelization mission. Meeting with young people
takers in Indonesia, Kenya, Tunisia
from the Diocese of Aire et Dax in southwestern France April
and Nigeria say religion is very
25, the pope encouraged them to remain united with Christ
important to them that there is a
through the sacraments and the example of the saints so that
lack of respondents who say religion
they can spread the message that “God wants to give to the
is ‘somewhat’ or not too important,”
world through your lives.” “Yes, let yourselves be transformed
the authors wrote.
and renewed by the Holy Spirit to bring Christ to every
“The reverse is true in countries
environment and give witness to the joy and youthfulness of
with less religious publics. An
the Gospel,” he said. (Junno Arocho Esteves/CNS)
overwhelming majority of Swedish
and Japanese respondents say religion
Pope to hairdressers: Cut the gossip, highlight politeness
is less important to them.” (CNA)
Christian hairdressers, beauticians and barbers can live

Rwandan bishops apologize for letter urging pardon
for genocide perpetrators
KIGALI, Rwanda— The
Catholic bishops of Rwanda
have apologized for calling
for the release of old and
ill prisoners convicted
for crimes committed
during the country’s 1994
genocide.
“We wrote to Christians,
encouraging them to
continue promoting unity
and reconciliation, while
also seeking forgiveness,”
the bishops said in an
April 7 statement signed by
Bishop Phillippe Rukamba
of Butare, the president
of the Rwandan bishops’
conference.
“This letter caused a lot
of hurt, especially for what
we requested on behalf
of the elderly and sickest
who are still in prison for
the crime of genocide. We
are saddened it offended
people – this was not what
we intended,” the bishops
said.
The bishops had issued
a pastoral letter March
25 commemorating the
victims of the genocide,
urging reconciliation and
forgiveness in the face of
violence, but including a
sentence exhorting those
responsible for older or sick
perpetrators to “examine
whether their sentences can
be reduced.”
Twenty-five years ago
this month, ethnic tensions
in Rwanda boiled over as
members of the Hutu ethnic
majority took up machetes
and turned on their minority
Tutsi neighbors, friends,
and colleagues, killing them
based on the color of their
skin and the width of their
nose.
In the 100-day genocide
that followed, it is estimated
that 1 million people were
slaughtered.
Rwandans marked the
anniversary of the tragedy
April 7 at the Genocide
Memorial Center in the
capital city of Kigali.
President Paul Kagame
and leaders from Africa and
the European Union were
in attendance, the Catholic
Information Service for
Africa reported.
The bishops apologized
for issuing the pastoral
letter during the period of
commemoration.
“After this tragedy of
genocide against the
Tutsis, the light of the
Lord’s resurrection was
not quenched –asking
and giving forgiveness can
become a means of building
a tomorrow for everyone,”
the bishops said.
In the 1994 genocide,
clergy members were
included in the ranks of
both perpetrators and
victims. In some cases,
Hutu priests, bishops. and
religious helped to hide
and protect Tutsis. In other
cases, they took up arms
against them, ushering
them into church buildings
with false promises of
security and then trapping
and betraying them,
facilitating their massacre.
The Church has since
played a large role in helping
to promote reconciliation
and forgiveness. More than
half of Rwanda’s population
is Catholic.
The country’s bishops
in November 2016 issued
an official apology for
Christians’ role in the
genocide.
“We apologize for all
the wrongs the Church
committed. We apologize
on behalf of all Christians
for all forms of wrongs we
committed. We regret that
church members violated
(their) oath of allegiance
to God’s commandments,”
they wrote. (CNA)
their faith by being kind and courteous to their clients and
cutting out the gossip and petty chitchat, Pope Francis said.
“May you always act with integrity, thereby making a positive
contribution to the common good,” he told cosmetologists
who belong to an Italian Catholic association dedicated to
St. Martin de Porres. Speaking April 29 to members of the
association, who were on pilgrimage to Rome, the pope asked
that their patron saint help them live out their Christian
values in the workplace. “May he inspire you, above all, to
carry out your profession in a Christian way, treating clients
with kindness and courtesy, always offering them a kind and
encouraging word, avoiding the temptation of gossip that
easily finds its way in your workplace, too. Everyone knows
this,” he said. (Carol Glatz/CNS)
In about-face, Peruvian archbishop withdraws suit
against journalists
After a court ruled in his favor, Peruvian Archbishop Jose
Eguren Anselmi of Piura unexpectedly withdrew his defamation
suit against two journalists who accused him of knowing about
abuses that occurred within an influential Catholic movement.
Winning the initial suit against Pedro Salinas, the archbishop
said, “gave rise to a series of unjustified reactions, including
within the church,” so for “a greater good, which is the unity
of the mystical body of Christ,” he was withdrawing his claim,
said a statement released by the Archdiocese of Piura April
24. The following day, the archbishop released a statement
saying that he would “renounce my right to defend my honor”
and also withdraw a separate lawsuit against journalist Paola
Ugaz. (Junno Arocho Esteves/CNS)
Pope Francis gives $500,000 to support migrants in
Mexico
Peter’s Pence, a global charitable fund overseen by Pope
Francis, will support migrants in limbo in Mexico, the charity

Sri Lankan police chief resigns over bombings
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka— The Sri Lanka
chief of police resigned this week after
bombings left dead more than 200
Christians on Easter morning. An
official at the defense ministry has
also stepped down.
Pujith Jayasundara stepped down
April 25, and the announcement was
made the following day.
Earlier this week, the country’s
president, Maithripala Sirisena, had
requested Jayasundara’s resignation,
citing mishandled information related
to the bombings.
According to CNN, in weeks prior
to the attack, Indian intelligence
agencies had shared relevant
information with Sri Lanka. The data
had been extracted from a member of
the Islamic State with connections to
Zahran Hashim, who is believed to be
one of the people behind the attack.
Jayasundra had issued a memo
of caution April 11, but government
officials said neither the prime
minister nor other top administrators
were made privy to the information.
“It was a major lapse in the sharing
of information,” said Deputy Defense
Minister Ruwan Wijewardene,
according to the Journal.
Cardinal Malcom Ranjith of
Colombo said that the Church had
also not been given this information,
Reuters reported.
“We didn’t know anything. It came
as a thunderbolt for us,” he said.
Before 9 am, suicide bombers attacked
during Easter Mass at St. Anthony’s
Shrine in Colombo and St. Sebastian’s
in Negombo. Another attack occurred at
an evangelical Zion Church in Batticaloa
at the same time. Later in the afternoon,
a zoo, private resident, and three luxury
hotels were also bombed.
Previously, figures stated that 359
people were killed by the attacks,
but the number is now considered
to be wrong due to distortions of
the mangled bodies causing an
inaccurate calculation. A correction
has been issued and the death toll is
an estimated 253.
Funeral Masses were held for the
victims of the churches in Negombo
and Colombo April 23.
Shortly after the attack, the
authorities blamed National
Thowheed Jamath, a local Islamist
group, but Islamic State issued a video
Tuesday taking responsibility for the
attack. No proof has been provided
that the group is behind the attack.
In the video, Hashim is seen at the
center of seven masked men, who
are allegedly the suicide bombers.
Reportedly, he has posted numerous
radical teachings online.
More than70 people have been
arrested in correlation to the attack
and thousands of soldiers have
been deployed for security purposes
throughout the island. Nightly curfews
and other safety measures have also
been put in place. (CNA)
has announced. “Men and women, often with young children,
flee poverty and violence, hoping for a better future in the United
States,” said the Peter’s Pence website. “However, the U.S. border
remains closed to them.” “All these people were stranded, unable
to enter the United States, without a home or livelihood,” the
announcement continued. “The Catholic Church hosts thousands
of them in the hotels within dioceses or religious congregations,
providing basic necessities, from housing to clothing.” A
$500,000 allocation will go to 27 projects in 16 dioceses and
religious congregations who are seeking to provide housing, food
and basic necessities to the migrants. (CNA)
Pope sends message of peace to the Korean peninsula
Pope Francis sent a video message Saturday to the leaders
of South and North Korea expressing his hope for a future of
peace and unity for the peninsula on the anniversary of the inter-
Korean summit. “I pray that this anniversary of the Panmunjom
Declaration may bring about a new era of peace for all Koreans,”
Pope Francis said in his video message released April 27. “May
this celebration offer hope to all that a future based on unity,
dialogue and fraternal solidarity is indeed possible,” he said.
With the Panmunjun Declaration—a peace agreement signed
by North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un and South Korean
President Moon Jae-In on April 27, 2018—the two leaders
established a common goal of complete denuclearization of the
Korean peninsula. (Courtney Grogan/CNA)
CBCP Monitor April 29 - May 12, 2019, Vol 23, No. 09 NEWS FEATURES A3

Philippine church gets its very own ‘Sistine Chapel’

CEBU— On the island of Bantayan
in the central Philippines, artists
were working on the finishing
touches to a mural on the ceiling of
the island’s old church days before
Holy Week.
The church’s priest, Joselito
Enriquez Danao, said the idea
of God is so “profound” that he
thought of using visuals for people
to “comprehend and understand the
love and the forgiveness of God.”
So in 2016, when he was assigned
to the Saints Peter and Paul Parish
on the island, Father Danao started
the concept of “dibuho kisame,”
which literally means “ceiling
painting.”
It was also when the government’s
National Heritage Commission was
in the process of restoring the old
church and convent that date back
to the 18th century.
“While I was watching the
restoration, I noticed that the
ceiling was bare and plain,” said
the priest.
He started doing research and
even asked long-time residents on
the island what the ceiling looked
like in the past, but came up blank.
He then sought permission from
the Commission on the Cultural
Heritage of the Church and its
government counterpart to paint
the ceiling.
After permission was granted,
the priest scoured for artists. He
found one from a mural in a local
bar.
“When I looked at [the mural], it
was really impressive. The people
had realistic eyes,” said Father
Danao about the artwork of Aris
Avelino Pastor.
When told about the project,
Pastor said “the hair all over my
body stood on end.”
Part of the mural painted on the ceiling of the Saints Peter and Paul Parish Church on Bantayan Island in the central Philippines. CHARLIE SACEDA/UCAN
An artist’s childhood dream
Pastor said it was his dream
since childhood to paint murals on
a church “like what Michelangelo
did with the Sistine Chapel ceiling.”
“When I was a kid, my mother
often bought us children’s books
with drawings of Jesus’ life and the
lives of the saints.”
When he was informed of the
Bantayan church project, the artist
said he was “eager to do it no matter
at what cost.”
Pastor, a native of Palompon, a
town in nearby Leyte province, led
a team of 12 other artists to do the
giant mural that measures 1,130
square meters.
“I didn’t even think how hard the
task was, but I really wanted to do
it,” he said.
Painting the mural was literally
a “neck-breaking task.” The artists
had to climb scaffolding and had to
be looking up the whole day.
“It was dangerous for us climbing
the scaffolding because we didn’t
have any experience doing it,
but we had to trust that the Lord
would take care of us,” said Chino
Encarnacion, one of the other
artists.
Ana Nikolai Mendoza, the only
woman in the group, said she was
scared but had to conquer her fear
to do the work.
“I feel blessed. It was the
opportunity of a lifetime,” she said.
“I am happy I am leaving a legacy
to the people of Bantayan.”
Pastor said the mural is divided
into sections, starting with the story
of the arrival of Christianity 500
years ago to the islands that later
became known as the Philippines,
the foundation of the parish,
the arrival of the missionaries,
raids conducted by pirates, and
other historical events that would
remind people of the history of
their church.
Visual catechism
An image of Jesus and scenes
from the lives of Saints Peter and
Paul will also catch the attention of
anyone entering the church.
The last panels of the mural
leading up above the church’s altar
depict scenes from the life of Jesus
from his birth to his Passion and
Death on the cross.
“The concept is visual catechism,”
said Father Danao. He expressed
hope that people will be reminded
of the Holy Scriptures when they
visit the church and see the mural.
“I hope the visuals, the mural,
will touch something in the lives of
people and give them hope,” said
the priest.
Established in 1580 as the
“Convento de la Asuncio de
Nuestra Senora” or the “Our Lady
of Assumption,” the parish on
Bantayan Island was the first
parish to be established in the
southern part of the Philippines.
The old church, which is under
the care of the National Heritage
Commission, was built 1839 and
was completed in 1863.
The painting of the church’s
ceiling was made possible from
donations given by the people.
Father Danao said a local resident
initially donated about US$9,500.
When the first panels were
completed and people saw them,
other donors came forward
and even beefed up the funds
by setting up social media
accounts.
“We want people to be really
involved so that they will own the
project,” said Father Danao. “When
they look up, they can say they were
a part of it,” he added.
“It wasn’t only the project of the
priest, but the project of the entire
community,” he said. (Charlie
Saceda/UCAN)

Religious liberty report highlights
China’s repression of Muslims,
Christians
WASHINGTON D.C.— The
majority of the world’s
worst violators of religious
freedom are found in the
Middle East, Asia, and Africa,
according to a report from the
United States Commission
on International Religious
Freedom released Monday.
The report’s introduction
focused on abuses against
China’s Uyghur Muslims.
USCIRF released April
29 its 20th annual report
documenting the world’s
worst violators of religious
freedom. With the exception
of Cuba—the only majority
Chirstian country listed,
other than Russia— all the
countries identified as the
worst offenders are located
in the eastern hemisphere.
“Our goal is not only to
call out the offenders, but to
provide concrete actions for
the U.S. government to take in
working with these countries
to get off our lists,” USCIRF
Chair Tenzin Dorjee said in
a release accompanying the
report.
Each year the group
identifies “countries of
particular concern” using
the criteria of “systematic,
ongoing, egregious violations”
of religious freedom.
Non-state actors are given
the designation “entities of
particular concern” using
similar criteria.
Some of these violations
include torture or cruel,
inhuman, or degrading
treatment or punishment;
prolonged detention
without charges; causing the
disappearance of persons by
the abduction or clandestine
detention of those persons;
or other flagrant denial of
the right to life, liberty, or
the security of persons, the
report says.
Among the 16 countries
designated as CPCs for 2019
are ten flagged by the state
department in November
2018: Myanmar, China,
Eritrea, Iran, North Korea,
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia,
Sudan, Tajikistan, and
Turkmenistan. The list also
includes six other countries:
Central African Republic,
Nigeria, Russia, Syria,
Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
In addition the group
identified 12 countries that
meet either one or two
of the three criteria for a
CPC, placing them on the
“Tier 2” list. These include
Afghanistan, Azerbaijan,
Bahrain, Cuba, Egypt, India,
Indonesia, Iraq, Kazakhstan,
Laos, Malaysia, and Turkey.
Among the non-state
entities of concern this
year, USCIRF identified the
Islamic State, the Taliban in
Afghanistan, al-Shabaab in
Somalia, and, making their
first appearance on the list
this year, the Houthis in
Yemen and Hayat Tahrir al-
Sham, an Islamist militant
group in Syria.
The Houthis are a Shiite
Muslim tribe that took
control of a key territory and
chased the president from
the capital city in 2015, and
Saudi Arabia and some Arab
allies intervened on behalf
of the opposing faction.
Iran continues to back the
Houthis, who are battling the
Saudi-led coalition for control
of the country, especially the
strategically important port
city of Hodeidah.
The resulting three-year
long Yemeni civil war has left
between 13,500 and 80,000
people dead and millions
displaced, with an estimated
14 million or so people facing
pre-famine conditions.
The report particularly
highlights the plight of the
Uyghur Muslim minority
in China. To date, between
800,000 to 2 million
Uighurs—or about 10%
of their population—have
been detained and sent to
“re-education camps” to
be subjected to abuse and
political indoctrination.
The report calls on the
US government to sanction
those in the Chinese
government responsible for
the detention of the Uyghurs.
It also recommends the
appointment of a special
advisor to the president
on international religious
freedom.
Christians / A6
Churches have been targets of attack in South Asia
BANGKOK— Several experts
believe the threat to churches
in South and Southeast Asia
has increased following the
Easter bomb attacks that
killed more than 250 people
and injured 500.
Churches in those
regions -- which have 150
million Catholics and other
Christians -- have been the
focus of attacks in a growing
number of countries in recent
years, including fatal bomb
attacks on churches in the
Philippines and Indonesia by
Islamic radicals in the past 12
months.
Authorities in Sri Lanka
and Australia have confirmed
the Sri Lanka attackers had
links to Islamic State, which
claimed credit for the attack.
Militant preacher Zahran
Hashim, who authorities
believe died as one of the
suicide attackers at the
Shangri-La Hotel, has been
named the founder and leader
of the now banned National
Thowheeth Jama’ath group
responsible. DNA tests are
being undertaken to confirm
this.
“Radical Islamic groups,
some affiliated with larger
extremist networks, have been
quietly gaining influence in
an arc of countries extending
from the Maldives to the
Philippines archipelago,
and the threat they pose
can no longer be ignored,”
Brahma Chellaney, professor
of strategic studies at the
New Delhi-based Centre for
Policy Research, wrote for
his widely distributed Project
Syndicate column.
“In fact, the grisly Sri
Lankan bombings are a
reminder that Asia -- not the
Middle East -- is the region
most afflicted by terrorist
violence.”
The prognosis comes as
the so-called Islamic State
has splintered and gone back
underground following the
defeat of its caliphates in
Iraq and Syria as well as the
continued operation of other
terrorist groups linked to al-
Qaida in the region.
“In the wake of the Sri Lanka
attacks, Indonesia needs to
be particularly alert to the
increased role of pro-ISIS
women; possibly enhanced
attraction of churches as
An explosion rocked St. Sebastian’s Church in Negombo, Sri Lanka, on Easter Sunday, April 21. COURTESY OF ST. SEBASTIAN CHURCH
targets; and the possibility of
someone with international
jihad experience entering the
country,” said Sidney Jones,
director of the Jakarta-based
Institute for Policy Analysis
and Conflict. The group
published a report on the
Ongoing Problem of pro-ISIS
cells in Indonesia April 29.
Jones said that while
authorities in Indonesia,
the world’s most populous
Muslim country, appeared
to have the terrorist threat
reasonably under control,
it was possible for some
groups to slip through the
cracks as they had done in
the May 2018 deadly church
bombings at Surabaya.
But she added that it
was “hard to think of any
government in the region
that would be as lax as Sri
Lanka. Southeast Asian
governments with large
Muslim populations are
particularly vigilant; China,
of course, is turning Xinjiang
into a technological state-of-
the-art detention center for
Uighurs.”
Jones told Catholic News
Service she believed that
“the added significance of
churches is just for pro-
ISIS groups, not al-Qaida.
They’ve been recirculating
the ideological justification
that appeared in a number
of IS magazines in recent
years.”
Church services were
canceled across Sri Lanka
the weekend of April 28
and churches were closed
indefinitely as a precautionary
measure. On April 26,
Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith of
Colombo told reporters that
church officials had seen a
leaked security document
describing Roman Catholic
and other churches as major
targets.
“We don’t want repetitions,”
Cardinal Ranjith said.
But on April 28, people
in Colombo prayed outside
St. Anthony’s Shrine, one
of the attacked churches
that suffered significant
damaged. Authorities also
tried to persuade Muslims
to refrain from traditional
Friday prayer services on
April 26, but some were open
and, like all religious sites in
Sri Lanka, are now subject to
heavy security.
On April 29, the Sri
Lankan authorities banned
the burqa, a Muslim female
face covering, a move it
has been mulling since the
attacks. Such a move has not
prevented ongoing attacks in
other nations, such as France
and Canada, where it has
been instituted.
“We now have info that
there are about 140 people
in Sri Lanka linked to the
Islamic State. We can and we
will eradicate all of them very
soon,” President Maithripala
Sirisena said.
Chellaney noted that
Muslim militants who had
returned from fighting for
Islamic State and other
groups in Syria and other part
of the Middle East are present
in a range of Asian counties
“from the Philippines and
Indonesia to the Maldives
and Uzbekistan.”
He likened the current
situation to that of three
decades ago when Osama
bin Laden and other al-
Qaida leaders emerged after
cutting their teeth in the U.S.-
backed war against the Soviet
occupation of Afghanistan.
“This new generation of
jihadi veterans could haunt
the security of Asia, the
Middle East and the West
for years to come,” he said.
Still, Jones said that while
she could not “speculate
on the role of returnees, in
Indonesia, the biggest danger
is from those who never left,
not those coming back.”
She believes the biggest
danger will come, like
in Sri Lanka, from small
groups. “These groups by
and large come together
with little vetting, training,
indoctrination, weapons or
experience. What they have
in unlimited quantities is zeal
and a desire for recognition.”
(Michael Sainsbury/
CNS)
A4 OPINION April 29 - May 12, 2019, Vol 23, No. 09 CBCP Monitor

EDITORIAL

Labor and Capital

IN any business there are two components that are needed:
labor and capital. No business venture can take off the ground
if there is no capital. There should be raw materials, land,
machinery, technology and money to start a business. At
the same time labor is needed to process the materials, to
run the machines, to apply the technology. This labor is in
turn paid by capital. There are some currents of thought, like
communism, that view these two components as adversarial.
They take advantage of one another so they necessarily clash
against each other. But this need not be so because they need
one another. No matter how much money one has, no business
venture can get off the ground without laborers. No matter
how many and skilled the laborers are, they will not be able to
work without someone who can put up the capital to run the
business and to pay them. The two components are needed
and are important.
But which of the two is more important? From the humane
point of view, labor has priority over capital. Why? Because

ILLUSTRATION BY BLADIMER USI

labor is people while capital is money and things. People
are more important than money. Because in any business
venture the laborers are more than those who provide the
capital, so the needs and the welfare of the many should get
more consideration than those of the few. Because usually
the laborers are poorer than those who provide the capital.
Therefore, more consideration and protection are to be given
to labor.
Is this happening now in the present dominant economic Choosing Demands Living Mission
system in the country and in much of the world? No! The
government gives more concessions to draw in capital, Firm Commitment Fr. James H. Kroeger, MM
especially foreign capital (the so-called Foreign Direct
Investment), to set up businesses in the country, and many
times at the expense of the local laborers. Thus, to entice
capitalists, the wages are kept low, the rights of workers to IN preparation for the Synod on the challenge for all of us! Witnessing to the Choice to Love.
self-organize are curtailed, humane conditions of work are Youth, Pope Francis held a personal Taking a Risk on Love. The In several of the questions posed to Pope
weakly enforced, and the security of tenure of workers are dialogue with the youth, including a conversation between Pope Francis and Francis by the youth, the word “why”
denied them. The reason why millions of workers are not question-and-answer exchange. During the youth also explored the meaning of emerged rather frequently. Francis
regularized in their work is that the capitalists do not want this lively session, the Pope shared authentic love. Francis asked: “Is it a openly admitted: “Not all ‘whys’ have
to give the benefits due to regular workers such as sick leave, his reflections on the life choices that little dangerous to speak to young people an answer.” Sometimes we only find a
vacation leave, eventual retirement pension and the like. young people are asked to make. He about love?” He answered his own response by “looking to Christ crucified
But more especially, they do not like the workers to organize noted: “Choosing, being able to decide question, saying: “It is not dangerous, and his Mother. There, we will find a
themselves into labor unions for mutual protection and to for yourself, seems to be the highest because young people know very well path to feel something in our hearts that
demand what is due to them. This present system of favoring expression of freedom…. And, in a when there is true love…. And, for this may be an answer.”
the rich over the poor, the few over the many, and often, certain sense it is. But, the idea of reason, we have the courage to speak A concrete and positive answer to the
Editorial / A6 choice that is often expressed today is about love.” many “whys” of life emerges when a
an idea of unfettered freedom, without “Love is life” for Pope Francis. “Love Christian accompanies another, listens
When the legitimate commitments, and always with an is not a profession…. In life we must carefully, and bears witness. “If we
becomes immoral escape route.” Can a person make a always put love in first place, but real Christians do not learn to listen to the
WE have to be careful with this possibility that, sad to say, has lifetime choice of love? love…. Love’s greatest enemy is the suffering, to listen to problems, to be
become rampant nowadays. It cannot be denied that we are For Pope Francis, the words “I choose, double life…. Love does not allow for silent and let others speak and listen,
aware of the many blessings we have, and the many rights of but” actually “take away our freedom.” half measures: all or nothing…. Love we will never be able to give a positive
our human condition. We have all kinds of talents, we have Indeed, “freedom [and choice] does not must be sincere, open and brave…. Jesus response. And, many times, positive
intelligence and freedom, and varying degrees of wealth, allow for half measures.” It is important speaks of a man who sold everything answers cannot be given in words.
resources, power. We have the right for rest and comfort and that young people realize that “the he owned in order to buy a precious They must be given by risking oneself in
some amount of bodily pleasure. freedom of each of us is a great gift, a pearl of great value. This is love: to sell bearing witness.” “I invite all of you …
We obviously can use and enjoy them. We just have to make gift that has been given to you and that everything…. Selling everything for to come out of oneself, to bear witness.”
sure that these legitimate things do not become immoral as you must safeguard in order to make it one thing alone. Think carefully about Conclusion. Finally, Pope Francis
when we allow them to lead us to sheer self-indulgence, with grow, to make freedom grow, to make it love. Think about it seriously. Do not ended his lengthy sharing: “Dear young
God completely out of the picture. That’s when what is good develop.” True freedom means making be afraid to think about love, but about people … without witness [in life and
can become bad. This danger is always present in our life and clear—and permanent—choices based the love that takes risks, faithful love…. deeds], the Church, Jesus’ message, is
we should do something about it. We should not allow God’s on authentic love. Indeed, Pope Francis’ Think about fruitful love…. Take a risk just smoke.” How true are Pope Francis’
blessings and the rights we have to simply be spoiled and to advice is not only for the youth; it is a on love!” straightforward words!
spoil us because we feel they have nothing to do with God.
No, sir! God is and should be the beginning, the center and
end of all these blessings and rights. They are supposed to lead Faith and Culture Beauty: A gift of the
us to God, to give glory to him, and not just for us to wallow in
our shameless pleasure. We should not forget that these things Cristina Montes Catholic Church to the
are God-given. They are not simply and exclusively our own.
We have to remember that without God in their use and
world (Part II)
enjoyment, there is no other alternative but to fall into sin,
into some self-entrapment that alienates us from God and IN my last column, I wrote Saved the Faith” by Elizabeth if there is anything worthy construction as architects; the
others. We would soon lose the sense of balance, restraint and about how, by inspiring art, Lev. She teaches readers, of praise, think about these moneyed nobles contributed
moderation, prudence and propriety, and start our wayward the Catholic Church gives in a beginner-friendly way, things”. (Philippians 4:6). their wealth; the artisans such
ways. We would just feed our bodily and worldly pleasures the world the precious gift of how to look at Counter- 2. Keep churches beautiful. as stonecutters, carpenters,
while starving the soul. The animal in us dominates. beauty. I concluded stressing Reformation paintings. This must be kept in mind in masons, quarrymen, glass
Without God, we would easily fall into some form of that the Catholic Church There are many experts on building new churches and makers, painters, and
addiction and many other anomalies, like pride, vanity, greed, should continue doing so. visual arts, music, literature, in maintaining existing ones. sculptors contributed their
self-righteousness, rash judgments, etc. We should be quick The question arises: how? and other arts eager to Churches are repositories of work.
to feel something is wrong when we realize we are enjoying Catholics—both priests and share their knowledge. art and must be kept that 3. Reach out to artists.
things without God and simply by our own selves. We should laity—can do many things. Organizations such as youth way. Not all artists fit the
correct that predicament just as quickly. The following are just a groups can, for example, Parish priests have a big stereotype of a regular
In other words, just like in anything else we do, we should few: invite these experts to give responsibility for this, but churchgoer. Caravaggio,
have rectitude of intention when exercising our rights and 1. Educate ourselves to talks as part of a cultural they cannot carry out this for example, committed
enjoying our endowments. To be sure, such practice does appreciate art. We cannot enrichment program for responsibility without the murder. Michelangelo had
not undermine the enjoyment of what is legitimate in our help the cause of beauty if members. laity’s help. Building and issues with sexuality. These
condition. On the contrary, it would enhance such enjoyment, we cannot recognize beauty By “art” I refer to both maintaining a beautiful did not stop both men from
purifying it and elevating it to the supernatural order which when we see it. Fortunately, sacred art and clean secular church needs the laity’s producing great sacred art.
is proper to us as children of God. It would affirm the dignity art appreciation can be art. For as St. Paul wrote, expertise, manpower, Artists, just like all other
proper to us as persons and children of God. learned, and there are many “whatever is true, whatever funds, and other similar human beings, yearn for God
With God, we would know how to use and enjoy them with resources available, such is honorable, whatever is just, contributions. The great deep inside them. They need
measure, with self-discipline and control. We would avoid as books and websites. For whatever is pure, whatever is cathedrals of Europe spiritual fathers and mothers
being fully at the mercy of our worldly curiosities and other example, I highly recommend lovely, whatever is gracious, were community projects: to nurture their souls and
bodily impulses and urges. Again, let us spread this caveat the book “How Catholic Art if there is any excellence, the clergy oversaw the Faith and Culture / A6
around. More than that, let us teach everybody the ways and
means of how to rectify our intentions when exercising our
rights and enjoying the blessings God has given us.
The Easter joy Candidly Speaking

Monitor
Fr. Roy Cimagala
CBCP

THE Easter joy, which is earned for unworthy we feel we are in our relation ourselves with Christ, then like him we
PROTAGONIST OF TRUTH, PROMOTER OF PEACE us by Christ, should go way beyond with Christ, let’s not hesitate to identify would try always to be humble, to be
feelings. It should enter deep into ourselves with him as completely as willing to serve everyone, to suffer, to
Pedro Quitorio our soul, transforming us into Easter possible, just as Christ identifies himself love all, even our enemies. Like Christ,
Editor-in-Chief persons, completely identified with the with each one of us all the way. we would try our best to do nothing
risen Christ who identifies himself with It’s not presumptuous of us to assume other than the will of God.
Nirva’ana E. Delacruz Ron Ramos, Sky Ortigas us all the way to offering his life for us, the identity of Christ even if such identity Joy, a deep sense of confidence and
Associate Editor Design Artists and conquering sin and death for us with is still in the process of completion while security, the conviction that everything
his resurrection. we are still here on earth. We just have to will always work out for the good even
Roy Lagarde Mercedita Juanite Yes, we will still have our weaknesses, try our best. Christ will always be around if we commit mistakes, should always
News Editor Circulation Manager
we will always be hounded by to help us. We should not be held captive be with us, because Christ takes care
temptations, we will fall into sin. But by feelings of unworthiness, shame and of everything. Ours is simply to try
Christine Paguirigan Marcelita Dominguez
Managing Editor Comptroller let’s never forget that Christ has taken fear. These are tricks of the devil to keep our best in doing good, even if our best
care of all of these for us, offering us us away from Christ. efforts will never be enough according
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CBCP Monitor April 29 - May 12, 2019, Vol 23, No. 09 OPINION A5

A National Youth
Spaces of Hope Day experience Life Matters
Fr. Carmelo O. Diola Carlos Palad

SINULOG is the only time

during the year that I dance.
The opportunity comes to all
the priests who concelebrate
the Mass that climaxes the
Saturday procession. After
the Mass, one after the other,
priests carry the figure of
the Sto. Niño and do the
prayer-dance to the shouts
of “Pit Senyor”. Prior to each
acclamation, a petition is
made by a prayer leader
through the PA system.
One does not have any
control over the sequence
of priests dancing. Nor does
one dictate the petition. For
several years now, I have
accepted the petition that
falls upon me as a direction
from the Lord. This provides
material for my yearly
discernment.
During the last Sinulog
prayer-dance, the petitions
were three: “sa ulitawo kini”
(“for young men”), “sa dalaga
kini” (“for young women”),
and “sa huyang kini”) (“for
those who are soft”), the
last petition evoking some
good-humored laughter from
pilgrims.
These petitions seemed
to coincide with the soft
launch two weeks before this
year’s Sinulog of the activity
center for street children, the
“Abtanan sa Kaluoy” (roughly
“Oasis of Mercy”) or ASK. My
prayers were just centered on
the fruitfulness of the coming
National Youth Day (NYD)
and the thousands of young
people it would involve. God
apparently wanted more.
About a month before the
NYD, our ASK team received a
letter from Archbishop Jose S.
Palma of Cebu asking that the
activity center accommodate
some delegates. Eventually,
all in all, the pilgrims
numbered 200. They came
Saving life,
from the local churches of
Tawi-Tawi, Basilan, Daet,
Maasin, Butuan, and Tagum.
The youngest delegate was
16-years old while the oldest
– a woman truly young at
heart – was 61-years old.
This was a joyful
opportunity to contribute
something concrete to the
NYD. It also gave us a chance
to get a “taste” of the building
ourselves and to test its
facilities as we prepared for
office operations on the third
week of May. Meanwhile, the
center’s is scheduled to be
fully operational by June.
***
People were very generous
in providing hospitality to the
delegates. Through donors,
we were able to obtain good-
quality sleeping mats and
pillows. They also took care of
the meals at the center for the
guests. About 15 individuals
volunteered to stay at the
center for the duration of
the NYD.
The usual daily routine
was a 4:30 a.m. wake-up
call, then a limited time at
the showers and restrooms,
followed by morning prayer
using the Liturgy of the
Hours, breakfast, and then
departure to the IEC pavilion
festival site or host parish
by 7 a.m. Enthusiasm and
youthful energy more than
made up for the lack of sleep.
After morning prayer on
the second day, we reviewed
the highlights of the first day.
One man in his 20s stood
up and articulated his deep
appreciation for the morning
prayer. This was his first
exposure to it, and it made
quite a joyful impression
on him. I had given a brief
orientation on the prayer,
stressing that it was the
prayer of the Church and so
was “guaranteed” to reach
God’s ears and consequently,
one is never alone when
praying it. The delegates were
also taught how to do the
profound bow upon mention
of the persons of the Triune
God.
Yet, I have a sense that
one of the things that really
attracted the youth to the
morning prayers were the
traditional liturgical songs
which I am blessed to know
and to sing by heart. Using a
projector connected to tablet,
the group was learning the
singable songs as we went
along and soon confident,
resounding voices praised
God in unison. Only God
knows how He was touching
them from within.
Friday, the third day, gave
delegates a chance to have a
parish exposure. The Cebu
Metropolitan Cathedral
featured our “Sakyanan sa
Kaluoy” (“Vehicle of Mercy”).
About 40 delegates from
Basilan, Bohol, and Baguio
had a hands-on experience
helping 75 street children take
a shower, groom themselves,
and have a meal. They also
companioned the children as
they watched a video.
After the encounter, a
prayerful assessment was
made with the volunteers
using the acronym, GCL
(“God’s Cool Love” or “What
am I most Grateful for?”;
“What was my Contribution?”;
and “What are the Lessons
learned?”). One delegate
realized she needed to be
more appreciative of what
she had and to complain
less. Most delegates wished
something similar to be
replicated in their local
churches, something more
holistic that went beyond
feeding.
Why not?
***
A collage of larger-than-
life portraits of young saints
greeted delegates and other
visitors to the final Mass
of the NYD at the Abellana
Cebu City Sports Center on
Sunday, May 28. I think I
made out St. Dominic Savio,
St. Therese of Lisieux, St.
Catherine of Siena, St. Lucia,
St. Cecilia, etc. I would have
wanted to see any seer,
either St. Francisco or St.
Jacinta Martos, the sibling-
visionaries in Fatima, who
would have represented
children in the streets.
Pope Francis in his apostolic
exhortation, Christus Vivit
writes: “Christ is alive! He is
our hope, and in a wonderful
way he brings youth to our
world, and everything he
touches becomes young, new,
full of life. The very first
words, then, that I would
like to say to every young
Christian are these: Christ
is alive and he wants you to
be alive!”
As the delegates went
home to their respective
local churches, my mind goes
back to Saturday morning
when we squeezed in time
for our guests to plant some
Bougainvillea, that common
hardy and flowery plant,
around our perimeter fence. I
can still see the large, Hobbit-
like foot of one male delegate,
a farmer from Tagum, as he
assisted us in this activity.
His connection to the earth
reminds me of the life Pope
Francis writes about.
They have since gone
home, but their plants will
remind them and us of those
beautiful days we spent
together for NYD 2018.
The pro-life vote
(First of two parts)
ON April 25, the Board of
the Sangguniang Laiko ng
Pilipinas came out with a
statement urging “Lay Groups
and Christian Organizations”
to lay aside non-partisanship
in the coming senatorial
elections. Invoking “the
sovereignty of our country,
the lives of our people, and
the honor of the Philippines”,
the letter urges the faithful to
vote for 10 candidates in the
coming senatorial elections.
These 10 candidates—the
“Otso Diretso” of the Liberal
Party (Alejano, Aquino,
Diokno, Gutoc, Hilbay,
Macalintal, Roxas, Tañada)
plus Colmenares and Poe
– were specifically the ones
endorsed by the “People’s
Choice Movement” back in
March.
The PCM vote and the
letter of the Sangguniang
Laiko has occasioned lively
discussions among Filipino
Catholic pro-lifers. Although
all 10 are opposed (at
least for now) to the death
penalty, the majority of
these candidates support
either (or both) divorce and
same sex “marriage”. Some
also strongly supported
the Reproductive Health
(RH) Bill during the Noynoy
Aquino administration.
Coming right after a Congress
that nearly made divorce the
law of the land, and in a social
climate rapidly becoming
more supportive not just of
divorce but also of same-
sex relationships and the
loosening of restrictions
on abortion, the election of
such men and women to the
Senate can have devastating
effects for the defense of the
Philippines’ existing pro-life
and pro-family laws. (As
far as I could tell from their
Emeritus Benedict XVI) in
a letter to the then-Cardinal
Theodore McCarrick, a letter
subsequently publicized by
the American Catholic media:
“A Catholic would be guilty
of formal cooperation in evil,
and so unworthy to present
himself for Holy Communion,
if he were to deliberately vote
for a candidate precisely
because of the candidate’s
permissive stand on abortion
and/or euthanasia. When
a Catholic does not share a
candidate’s stand in favor of
abortion and/or euthanasia,
but votes for that candidate
for other reasons, it is
considered remote material
cooperation, which can be
permitted in the presence
of proportionate reasons.”
Although then-Cardinal
Ratzinger touched only on
abortion and euthanasia in
this specific letter, it would
seem that his reasoning can
also be extended to voting for
pro-same sex “marriage” and
pro-death penalty candidates,
since same-sex “marriage”
and the death penalty fall
alongside abortion within
the ambit of the “principles
which are not negotiable”
as enunciated by the same
cardinal when he became
Pope. In a speech to members
of the European People’s
Party on March 30, 2016,
Pope Benedict XVI made this
important declaration:
As far as the Catholic Church
is concerned, the principal
focus of her interventions
in the public arena is the
protection and promotion of
the dignity of the person, and
she is thereby consciously
drawing particular attention
to principles which are not
negotiable. Among these
the following emerge clearly

saving heritage Duc in Altum public record and expressed

I DISCUSSED in my last column
the importance of preserving and
conserving the national heritage,
especially the churches in the
Philippines. As Bishop Pablo Virgilio
David of Kalookan Diocese said, the
heritage of the Church is the heritage
of the country.
On April 22, 6.1 magnitude
earthquake hit Central Luzon and
claimed at least 16 lives and 26 missing,
mostly residents of Porac. There were
damaged propertie, old and historical
churches, commercial establishments
and residential houses not only in
Pampanga but also in other provinces.
Surprisingly, the century old La Loma
Catholic Chapel in Caloocan was still
intact.
The Archdiocese of Pampanga
suffered the most casualties and
property damage; at least 24 heritage
churches will be closed to give way to
inspections on the structural integrity
of the churches, seminaries, convents,
schools in the archdiocese until their
safety is assured. The parish churches
in Lubao and Porac suffered major
Atty. Aurora A. Santiago
damages. Churches in Angeles, Sta.
Rita, Guagua, and Betis sustained some
cracks.
Bishop Pablo Virgilio “Ambo” David
of Kalookan Diocese instructed all
parish priests to conduct a thorough
inspection of all churches especially
the old ones to ensure the safety of
the parishioners during liturgical
celebrations. He also instructed all
school directors to make sure that
schools and other buildings within their
jurisdiction are safe for the use of the
students and parishioners. Structural
Engineers must be consulted.
Then, the following day, a 6.5
magnitude earthquake was experienced
in Eastern Samar and Leyte, Cebu and
some parts of the Bicol region. On
April 23, two earthquakes struck the
waters of Davao Oriental and Davao
Occidental provinces minutes apart.
***
Earthquake and fire drills should
always be done. As searched in the
internet, here are the things to do
During an Earthquake: Wherever
you are when an earthquake starts,
immediately take cover. Stay there until
the shaking stops. If you are indoors:
Stay inside. Drop under heavy furniture
such as a table, desk, bed or any solid
furniture. Cover your head and torso
to prevent being hit by falling objects.
Hold onto the object that you are under
so that you remain covered. If you
cannot get under something strong, or
if you are in a hallway, flatten yourself
or crouch against an interior wall. If
you are in a shopping mall, go into the
nearest store. Stay away from windows,
and shelves with heavy objects. If you
are at school, get under a desk or table
and hold on. Face away from windows.
If you are in a wheelchair, lock the
wheels and protect the back of your
head and neck. If you are outdoors: Stay
outside. Go to an open area away from
buildings. If you are in a crowded public
place, take cover where you would not
be trampled. If you are in a vehicle: Pull
over to a safe place where you are not
blocking the road. Keep roads clear for
rescue and emergency vehicles.
Duc in Altum / A7
positions, only two of the ten
are firmly and consistently
against divorce, same-sex
marriage, and the death
penalty, namely, Alejano
and Macalintal. The latter
also publicly opposed the
RH Bill.) We should note
that the “Reproductive
Health Law”, by its language
and the values it promotes,
also opens the door to the
eventual normalization and
legalization of abortion. As
such, the fact that certain
candidates had been strongly
pro-“RH” is a matter of
serious concern, even if,
legislatively speaking, that
law has become “water under
the bridge”.
Pro-lifers are rightly
concerned about the morality
of voting for candidates who
are committed to legislative
platforms detrimental to
traditional values, not least
because doing so is itself a
moral choice with serious
consequences. As stated in
July 2004 with regards to
abortion by then-Cardinal
Joseph Ratzinger (now Pope
today:
• protection of life in
all its stages, from the first
moment of conception until
natural death;
• recognition and
promotion of the natural
structure of the family - as
a union between a man
and a woman based on
marriage - and its defence
from attempts to make it
juridically equivalent to
radically different forms
of union which in reality
harm it and contribute to its
destabilization, obscuring its
particular character and its
irreplaceable social role;
• the protection of the
right of parents to educate
their children
We may then define the
matter of controversy at hand
as this: do proportionate
reasons exist, such that
Filipino Catholics can vote
with a clear conscience for
candidates who ostensibly
favor positions that go against
the non-negotiable principles
on which the Church stands?
More specifically for this
Life Matters / A6

Pitik-Bulag Blame ourselves

Fr. Wilfredo Samson, SJ

A FEW weeks from now, all
legitimate voters will troop to
the polling precincts to elect a
new set of public servants or re-
elect the incumbents. We expect
a tight race between President
Duterte’s powerful allies against the
underdogs. The days of discernment
of choosing the right leaders are
almost over. The fate of our country
lies now in our hands. Choose the
right leaders, and we shall move
one step towards progress. Choose
the wrong guy, and we remain in
our misery.
While praying hard for a
clean and honest election, the
importance of choosing the right
leaders dawned on me on. Sad
to say, many of our country’s
torments are caused by our own
failure to choose the right leaders
to govern us. Unfortunately, until
now, many Filipinos will not even
bother to seriously discern on
whom to vote. Many will simply
vote for their favorite candidates or
the candidates whose names they
remembered. Our vote is not based
on the qualifications and qualities
of the candidates, but simply on
whether or not we like or know
the candidates. Some may even
come to precincts undecided about
whom to vote, they will simply rely
on popularity, name recall, and
guesswork. Thus, many candidates
have utilized popular personalities
like actors and actresses and good
advertising schemes to win the
hearts of the voters. Nowadays,
few candidates will take the time
to announce their programs and
platforms.
Let’s pause for a while. Ask
ourselves. How do you choose
your candidates? Is it a result of
discernment based on hard facts
and data? To help us choose the
right candidate, here are some
points for consideration:
1. BE AWARE OF OUR
EMOTIONS AND BIASES. Your
choice should not be influenced
by your emotions and biases. Vote
for the right person. Consider
the candidates’ qualities, values,
and achievements. A personal
handshake from the candidates or
personal appearances should not
influence our choice.
2. LOOK FOR PATTERNS.
Take time to study candidates’
achievements. Are they consistent
in fulfilling their promises? Learn
from the past. Don’t vote candidates
who are consistently involved in any
form of graft and corruption. Vote
for those who are consistent in good
governance.
3. DISCERN WELL. In some
cases, we don’t have good candidates
to choose from. Sometimes, all the
candidates are allegedly involved in
some form of graft and corruption.
In this case, choose the lesser
evil. Don’t be discouraged. Vote.
Our failure to vote may allow the
candidate we least like to win.
4. THINK OF YOUR DEEPER
MOTIVATION. In choosing, be
aware of your innermost motivation.
Are you thinking of the common
good? Or are you trying to preserve
some personal interest?
5. PRAY. Don’t stop praying for all
legitimate voters. Pray for a clean,
honest, and well-discerned election.
The future of our country lies in our
ability to discern well and choose
the right leaders.
Don’t blame our government for
all the woes of our country, let’s
blame ourselves for not choosing
the legitimate leaders.
A6 LOCAL NEWS April 29 - May 12, 2019, Vol 23, No. 09 CBCP Monitor

Bishop to young voters: Amidst digital world, Cardinal Tagle

The power is in your hands
pushes for ‘true communication’

Bishop Gerardo Alminaza celebrates Mass for National Youth Day pilgrims at San Carlos Seminary in
Cebu City April 26. MICHAEL DALOGDOG

A CATHOLIC bishop on April 26 gathering will leave the pilgrims

called on young people to participate with “a sense of passion and urgency
in politics and governance by casting to make a difference”.
their vote with an informed opinion. “We need to undo, in as much as
Speaking at the National Youth Day we can still undo it, whatever we
(NYD), Bishop Gerardo Alminaza have allowed to wreak havoc in our
of San Carlos said that the youth universe,” Alminaza said.
have the power to make meaningful “We have to do something and we
change to happen. have the opportunity to do it. I hope
Urging the youth to turn up you will rise up to the occasion,”
at polling centers on May 13, he he said. Cardinal Chales Maung Bo of Yangon, president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences, presides over a Mass to mark the 50th anniversary of Radio
stressed on issues such as climate The prelate on April 22, which Veritas Asia in Quezon City April 11. CBCP NEWS
change and tackling coal-fired is also the Earth Day, led some
power plants and other polluters. 7,000 church people and the IN a world of tweets, The cardinal said The celebration was only continental Catholic
According to him, the country’s youth in forming a “human chain” facebook, and instant nowhere is the impact highlighted with a radio service broadcasted
young voters have the number, to push for a coal-free Negros messaging, a Catholic of the changing media Mass presided over by via shortwave technology
power, health and energy than most Island. official reminded an Asian and technology more Myanmar’s Cardinal in 22 languages of Asia for
adults. The human chain stretched for church-run radio station noticeable than on Charles Maung Bo. the past 50 years.
“You can sway the votes if you 229 kilometers from Manapla in of their mission to create community relationships. Church officials In 2018, RVA stopped
want to, if you get organized and be Negros Occidental to La Libertad “true communication”. “There is a real also unveiled the its shortwave broadcast
clear about your stand,” Alminaza in Negros Oriental, or the parishes Speaking at the golden breakdown in family 50th anniversary and upgraded to online
said in his homily during Mass at under the San Carlos diocese. years celebration of communication, societal commemorative marker and social media to
San Carlos Seminary. “I hope we will leave this NYD Radio Veritas Asia communication,” he at the RVA compound. connect to more people,
Around 12,000 pilgrims are with a sense of passion and urgency Thursday, Cardinal Luis lamented. Other activities included especially the youth.
gathered in Cebu for this year’s to make a difference, to change Antonio Tagle said that To address the the inauguration of the “It was a very
NYD, the largest gathering of young the world around us and start to the Church’s mission challenges, he stressed RVA Museum and the challenging task to
Catholics in the country. care for the mother earth,” he said. to spread “the truth of the need to learn how to awarding of 50 individuals transform shortwave
The bishop hoped that the (CBCPNews) Jesus” remains. communicate effectively and institutions who have radio into online radio,”
“No matter what the and by going back to supported RVA and Radio said Cardinal Bo, who also
Faith and Culture / A4 means, our mission the basics —“human Veritas 846. heads Federation of Asian
is to promote true encounter”. In his homily, the Bishops’ Conferences
guide them along the right path. These are just a few ways by which communication that “We may have the most Yangon’s archbishop (FABC).
Catholics – both clergy and laity – Catholics can help the Church offer creates a society that is sophisticated things assured that RVA will “RVA has put the Asian
must reach out to artists and open the world more beauty. The Church based on truth, justice but we don’t deal with remain true to its mission church with the Gospel
to them new avenues in their search has done it in the past, and there is and love,” he said. each other in a humane to be “the voice of the message into this new
for inspiration. We must show them no reason the Church cannot do it “And the means manner,” Tagle said. voiceless”. challenging area,” he said.
that God gave them their talents again today. There is no reason why themselves cannot More than a hundred “RVA will be the He said that RVA will
because they have a special mission it is impossible for another Notre promote that,” said Tagle, Asian bishops, the voice for the poor, the exert all efforts to be an
in the Church and in the world. Dame cathedral to be built. who is also the chairman religious and lay people forgotten, the least, the effective instrument in the
of the Philippine gathered at the RVA last and the people in the evangelization of Asians
Christians / A1
Radio Educational and station in Quezon City to peripheries,” Cardinal all over the globe through
The commission noted that albeit inadvertently—by providing Information Center mark another milestone Bo said. modern technology.
while the Vatican reached a China license to viciously crack (PREIC). of the station’s history. Since it birth in 1969, the (CBCPNews)
provisional agreement with China down on Christian communities
on the appointment of bishops (as cited in this report), and by Candidly Speaking / A4
in September, “nevertheless, providing the Chinese government
repression of the underground further cover to continue its idea is simply to do our best. If we have to make some qualifications about ourselves.
Catholic Church increased during incomprehensible, inexcusable fail in something, let’s be quick to to that declaration, as we start Such consciousness will surely
the latter half of the year.” and inhumane abuses of Muslim rise, asking forgiveness and then considering the implications of give us joy and confidence no matter
Among the report’s inclusion of citizens in the western part of the move on. Let’s not waste time ruing such declaration, but it should be what happens to us here on earth.
commissioners’ “individual views” country.” and brooding over our mistakes professed first of all. It would be an indestructible joy,
were those of Johnnie Moore, who “While I am entirely for direct which can give us precious lessons. We should try our best that the joy and confidence of a son who
called the Vatican-China deal “one engagement on these issues, These mistakes and failures should such constant reminder becomes completely trusts his father.
of the most alarming incidents as it including with the most severe not keep us from God. Rather, they a streaming consciousness of our Let us spread this Easter joy,
relates to religious freedom in the violators in the world, that should spur us to go to God. own selves. Again that is not evangelizing as many people as we
entire year.” engagement must not result in these In practical terms, it may be a presumption, simply because our can so we can take them out of the
“Within days of the Vatican types of unintended consequences, good idea that we always remind true identity is that Christ has taken ignorance and unbelief of a very
negotiating its deal, the Chinese as has been the case in China. The ourselves that “I am Christ.” No the initiative to identify himself important truth about ourselves.
used it as cover to embark upon Vatican made a terrible mistake, matter what situations we find with us. We just have to learn to More than evangelizing, let us be
the closure of several of the nation’s which it must take seriously. This ourselves, we just have to say to correspond to that reality and to models and active endorsers of this
largest and most prominent debacle must be dealt with urgently ourselves, “I am Christ.” We may start feeling at home with such truth Easter joy!
unregistered church communities,” and seriously.”
Moore wrote. USCIRF is a bipartisan Deacon / A1
He believes the Vatican “now commission that advises the to actually rise up to that for an avenue for top of Philippine Catholic you got that part. And if
bears a significant moral and legal President, Congress, and the role,” Deacon Adrian church leaders in the culture online. we brought this together
responsibility to help solve the Secretary of State on international Ng, former Campus region to gather and He stressed: “[I then the Body of Christ
problem which it helped created— religious freedom issues. (CNA) Ministry Office Director “challenge each other to suggest] getting more of … can be stronger,” he
Life Matters / A5
of the Malacca – Johore rise higher.” those cutting-edge stuff explained.
Diocese, told CBCP News from the Philippines out According to him, the
(2019) election, do the dangers other over it. in an exclusive interview. Evangelizing nominal there into the media. … growth and impact of the
faced by the country under the What is essential, however, is that According to the Catholics Inspire the rest of us with Church in the Philippines
current administration, constitute the teachings of Pope Benedict XVI former campus chaplain, The other unique what’s happening [in is limited because of such
“proportionate reasons” for voting on the non-negotiable principles not Asian countries “have position the Philippines the Philippines]. I think “walls of division.”
for these candidates? be ignored, or set aside, or treated a right to know Jesus has, he added, is being there are a lot of good “We won’t go far
I am only a simple layman, I am as if they do not exist. These should through Philippines.” a majority Catholic things, but you all need because the devil has
not a theologian with a mandatum, be an integral part of the decision- country where the main to recognize all those got us actually. We got
and therefore I will not try to set making on who to vote for, these ‘Elder brother’ role work is evangelizing good things and put that divisions,” added Ng.
forth an “authoritative opinion” should be carefully weighed in one’s Concretely, Ng said nominal Catholics. He out [online],” According to the CIA
regarding this question. I know conscience, even if in the end there the Philippines can noted how the sharing Factbook and the Pew
good and fervent Catholics who might be ‘proportionate reasons’ carry out this role in of best practices with ‘Walls of division’ Research Center, the
hold that the need to oppose the that justify voting for candidates Asia by being an “elder this particular type of Long recognized as Philippines is one of the
plans of the current administration whose political positions are not brother” to convene the proclaiming the Gospel one of the most vibrant top five countries in the
is a strong enough reason, a aligned with these principles. In other, younger Catholic can benefit many other churches in the world, world with the greatest
proportionate reason, for voting practical terms: I hope that the churches in Asia. countries that are the Church in the number of Catholics,
in favor of Otso Diretso and the PCM and Catholic supporters of He added: “Philippines, historically Christian. Philippines, Ng said, has along with Mexico, the
two other candidates endorsed by Otso Diretso, Colmenares and Poe I think needs to see “…If Philippines can to address the lack of United States, and Italy.
PCM; and that not doing so will will at least make the effort to reach herself as calling the solve this problem a united effort among The Philippine
only expose the Philippines to even out to their candidates in order to key players, Indonesia, [of] evangelizing a different religious groups population is around
greater ruin. I also know good and witness to the Catholic position on Malaysia, Singapore to country that’s majority and personalities, 81.4% Catholic, but
fervent Catholics who hold that divorce and same-sex “marriage”. come, [and say] ‘Let’s Catholic, you will solve “Your challenge also recent statistics from
it is better in the long run to vote After all, if these candidates really meet together. Let’s the problem for many, is working in silos. That the Catholic Bishops’
only for pro-life and pro-family want our votes, should they not take talk about what you’ve many countries in the means like we have all Conference of the
candidates, in order to build up into account our core principles? Or been doing. What have world like Brazil, and these movements and Philippines reports
a solid and principled pro-life do they see us only as useful idiots you learned? What has American countries,” Ng great things happening that the number of
“Catholic vote” especially for the to be discarded or even treated as inspired you? What have explained. in Philippines, but regular Sunday Mass-
future; anything else would be mere opponents after the election? been your challenges?’” Concretely, the everyone is doing their going Catholics is going
compromise. This is a very difficult (Please send your reactions and Ng said that while permanent deacon own little thing and … down. (Nirva’ana
issue and I hope that Catholics will comments to: caloyantoniopalad@ grassroots programs are suggested the need for there’s no one saying, Ella Delacruz /
not begin “excommunicating” each gmail.com) good, there is a need a more visible presence ‘Ok, you got this part, and CBCPNews)
CBCP Monitor April 29 - May 12, 2019, Vol 23, No. 09 DIOCESAN NEWS A7

Bishop condemns another murder Bishops warn against scams

targeting Filipino Catholics
of rights worker in Negros
SAN CARLOS City— A According to him, Patigas
Catholic bishop has appealed “selflessly” gave his life
for an end to killings in serving the oppressed and
Negros Oriental province exploited sugarcane workers
following another murder of of the Negros island.
a human rights advocate. “With his untiring
Bishop Gerardo Alminaza commitment to the cause
of San Carlos said these of the poor, he received
“barbaric and calculated numerous death threats and
assassinations must end”. harassment,” said Alminaza.
“We should not tolerate The bishop called on
this kind of crime,” Alminaza government to investigate
said. seriously the killing of Patigas A screenshot of a warning posted by Manila Cathedral about an online scam.
Bernardino Patigas Sr., and other cases of violence in
CHURCH leaders have He warned people not to
a reelectionist councilor of the province.
Bishop Gerardo Alminaza of San Carlos. FILE PHOTO warned against the rush in sending donations
Escalante City who worked “It is my ardent prayer
proliferation of online scams if one is not sure where the
with human rights groups, in the same province. Carmelites in Escalante City. that instead of perpetrating
that have recently targeted money will go.
was shot dead on April 22. Aside from his human rights “He tirelessly worked violence, they may open their
unsuspecting Catholics. Bishop Honesto Ongtioco
His killing came three work, Patigas was a president for the Basic Ecclesial eyes to the reality of truth -that
Manila Cathedral issued of Cubao also warned against
weeks after masked of the Parish Pastoral Council Communities (BEC) program life is precious, that it is a sin to
a call last week against a a message claiming to have
policemen killed 14 farmers and a mission partner of the of the parish,” Alminaza said. kill,” he said. (CBCP News)
social media account selling come from his diocese
“miraculous medals” and soliciting money supposedly
Malolos diocese clarifies: ‘Lourdes grotto’ not Catholic pilgrimage site claiming to be connected with to go towards “triple bypass
the Church. surgery” for him.
MALOLOS City— Despite looking like that these priests performing these rites of the Lourdes Grotto with the eventual The bogus Facebook Archbishop Emeritus
an exact replica of the Lourdes Basilica are suspended Catholic priests,” adds assignment of Catholic priest-chaplains account “Youth for Manila Orlando Cardinal Quevedo
in France, the so-called Lourdes Grotto the letter. to the site. Cathedral” claimed religious of Cotabato has also had his
in Brgy. Tungkong Mangga in the city The Diocese has been explaining However, as the private owner’s items it was selling had been name used in “text scam”
of San Jose del Monte is not a Catholic the said issue to the faithful for years, intentions of not donating the property blessed by Vatican priests asking for funds supposedly
pilgrimage site. especially during Masses. for valid religious services became clear, and bishops. for a medical procedure and
The Diocese of Malolos recently re- It added that, “We acknowledge the diocese stopped assigning Catholic It further said proceeds medication for him.
circulated an official letter issued March the private entity’s right to open their priests to the site, hence the arrival of from sales would be donated “There is no truth in this,”
22, 2004 by the late Malolos Bishop Jose facilities to the public. However, non-Catholic ministers. to the cathedral for its read a statement from the
F. Oliveros clarifying the said grotto’s it behooves us, by virtue of our Though the church’s unofficial status renovation. diocese.
status. ecclesiastical and moral obligation, to is noted, efforts for reconciliation have The management of Manila It advised Catholics to
“It has been a custom of some people inform the people of such sorry state not ceased. The Diocese of Malolos Cathedral, however, said the refrain from giving any
to visit the so-called ‘Grotto in San of abuse.” remains hopeful that the Lourdes Grotto social media account was money if they receive such
Jose del Monte City’ whenever they The diocese recently posted its official be recognized as an official pilgrimage fake. a request.
come to our diocese this time of the stance on the Lourdes Grotto on its site upon its proper turn-over to the “There is no such group, The diocese said it is
year. We wish to inform you that it is website and Facebook Page Sandigan – diocese. ‘Youth for Manila Cathedral’, already trying to trace the
private property and not owned and Diocese of Malolos to prevent confusion, A similar case happened with the that will donate proceeds source of the message with
recognized as a Catholic pilgrim site,” especially among Catholics about the Santissima Trinidad Chapel in Barihan, for the renovation of the the help of experts and the
reads the document written by Oliveros, true nature of the site. Malolos City, once separated from the cathedral,” read a statement authorities.
who was then the diocese’s Apostolic For years, Catholics and non-Catholic diocese in 2001 due to disputes and issued by the management. Bohol Bishop Alberto Uy
Administrator. Christians such as Aglipyans, among confusion between local elders and the “There are no such things of Tagbilaran, meanwhile,
others, have visited the Lourdes Grotto diocese’s plans to elevate it to a parish. as medals blessed by bishops, said a “solicitation letter”
Avoiding confusion as a local pilgrimage site. It was eventually returned to the priests, or the pope for sale. using his name has also been
“Recently it has reached out attention Catholic Church on October 27, 2016 and This is a sin called Simony,” circulating on social media,
that Eucharist celebrations and other Efforts for reconciliation is now currently a chapel of Santissima it added. supposedly asking for money
sacrament are performed at the site. Previously, the Diocese of Malolos had Trinidad Parish. (Kendrick Ivan In the central Philippines, for a girl in Sierra Leone.
We have verified through their bishops indeed formed relations with the owners Panganiban/CBCP News) Archbishop Jose Palma of “May I respectfully inform
Cebu reminded Catholics and warn you against this
Duc in Altum / A5 to exercise caution when it deception which seeks to
comes to the use of social swindle church institutions
Avoid bridges, overpasses, meters away to avoid injury. Use a flashlight to check secondary effects can
media. by fraudulently using the
underpasses, buildings or Earthquakes can trigger utilities and do not shut them also be very destructive.
“Be extra careful and name of church authorities to
anything that could collapse. tsunamis. off unless damaged. Leaking These include landslides,
don’t be gullible and believe solicit funds,” added Bishop
Stop the car and stay inside. After an earthquake. gas will smell. If tap water is saturated sandy soils
everything that is posted Uy.
Listen to your car radio for Stay calm. Be prepared still available immediately becoming soft and unstable,
online but rather, always He said the official email
instructions from emergency for aftershocks. Listen after the earthquake, fill flooding of low-lying areas
double check,” said the address of Tagbilaran Diocese
officials. Do not attempt to to the radio or television containers in case the supply and tsunamis.
prelate. has been hacked. (UCAN)
get out of your car if downed for information from gets cut off. Do not flush Finally, lead the
power lines are across it. authorities. Follow their toilets if you suspect sewer community in prayer. Prayer Warned / A1
Wait to be rescued. Place a instructions. Only make lines are broken. has a calming effect in times
HELP sign in your window calls if requiring emergency Carefully clean up of emergency. Always keep Voters, the archbishop dreams and hopes of the
if you need assistance. If services. Put on sturdy shoes any spilled hazardous on praying. Remember, God said, should instead look for people who voted for
you are on a bus, stay in and protective clothing to materials. Wear proper is always with us, ready to candidates who have clear them. It can also show our
your seat until the bus stops. help prevent injury from hand and eye protection. protect us. and realistic program for backward moving society,”
Take cover in a protected debris, especially broken Check on your neighbors the poor, the sick and those he said.
place. If you cannot take glass. Check your home after looking after members *** with disabilities, and for the “Be careful. Be critical.
cover, sit in a crouched for structural damage and of your own household. Sto. Niño de Pasion Quasi jobless. Be courageous. How would
position and protect your other hazards. If you suspect Organize rescue measures Parish was canonically “The kind of leaders we Christ vote? Vote like Christ.
head from falling debris. your home is unsafe, do if people are trapped or call elevated as a Parish. Its elect reveals the kind of Do not leave God at the altar.
AVOID the following in not re-enter. If you have to for emergency assistance jurisdiction covers Daanghari people we are. The winners Bring your Christian faith
an earthquake: Doorways. leave your home, take your if you cannot safely help St. in the North, Pascual St. in elections are mirrors of when you vote,” said Villegas.
Doors may slam shut and emergency kit and other them. If you have pets, try in the South, Manila Bay the values and aspirations, (CBCPNews)
cause injuries. Windows, essential items with you. to find and comfort them. If in the West and Navotas-
bookcases, tall furniture Post a message in clear view, you have to evacuate, take Malabon River in the East. Editorial / A4
and light fixtures. You could indicating where you can be them to a pre-identified The first parish priest is Fr.
the foreigners over the local against themselves. Because
be hurt by shattered glass found. Do not waste food pet-friendly shelter. Place a James Anthony del Rosario.
people, is unjust and not they own the business, they
or heavy objects. If you are or water as supplies may HELP sign in your window Its mother parish is San
humane. It will not bring do their work well; any profit
in an elevator during an be interrupted. Do not light if you need assistance. Jose de Navotas. It is the
about peace and well-being from the business comes
earthquake, hit the button matches or turn on light Beware of secondary 29th parish in the Diocese
in the country. back to them. They make
for every floor and get out switches until you are sure effects. Although ground of Kalookan, the 3rd to be
In a way, however, there themselves grow with the
as soon as you can. Downed there are no gas leaks or shaking is the major source established during the term
is reason why the capitalists growth of their business.
power lines—stay at least 10 flammable liquids spilled. of earthquake damage, of Bishop Ambo David.
distrust labor unions. There This way of doing business—
are also abuses on the part of the worker cooperative
Contractualization / A1
labor union leaders who are way—is yet in its fledging
arrangements exploited the workers to of workers, the CWS said that it is Union Confederation in 2018, noted led by the ideology of class and struggling stage in the
the maximum level and extract huge “alarming” that the government instead the Philippines as among the top 10 struggle. They believe that Philippines. The government
profits from the sweat and blood of the use “brute force”. worst countries in terms of repressing laborers necessarily should does not understand it and
workers,” the CWS said in a statement The Center for Trade Union and workers’ rights. struggle against the capitalists has weak laws to support and
for Labor Day. Human Rights documented around Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick and eventually supplant encourage it. Many workers
Employers use contractualization to 16,000 workers whose rights were Pabillo said that this situation of workers them. With this ideology, are not able to grasp the
cut labor costs by not hiring regular violated as regards to freedom runs against the principles of the church the laborers are incited to idea that they can also be
workers, thus giving them no security of association and collective regarding social justice. go against the capitalists owner workers. Their frame
of tenure. bargaining. “The workers have long been and at times unreasonable of mind is that they are just
According to Ibon Foundation, 90 The CTUHR also recorded at least demanding for security of tenure. End demands to the current state plain workers. The labor
percent of the Filipino workforce are 109 cases of civil and political rights contractualization!” Pabillo said. of the business venture are union leaders do not like this
contractual which also means that the violations affecting 7,000 workers from Created in 2011, the CWS is an being asked for. Eventually because many of them are
wages are pressed down to the lowest 2016 to 2018. interfaith body composed of bishops, the business closes down programed by the ideology
level. While the Global Workers’ Rights clergy, nuns, lay leaders and workers and the workers are out of of class struggle and they
But instead of listening to the voices Index, a report of the International trade organizations. (CBCPNews) work. Poor workers! They are cannot apply class struggle
not only being used by the in worker cooperatives since
NYD / A1 capitalists but also by their the idea of one class against
labor leaders. another disappears; the
From the sports complex, He urged them not to Translate into service “That joy should translate There should be another worker class is at the same
the pilgrims walked in flee from the resurrection The Catholic Bishops’ into service of love and option of doing business. This time the capitalist class. The
procession to the Basilica of Jesus, and not to give Conference of the Philippines compassion, especially to is the worker cooperative. capitalists do not like worker
Minore del Sto. Niño de Cebu up to temptation against (CBCP) also urged the the youth and other people The workers themselves put cooperatives. They see them
for a Mass presided over by holiness. pilgrims to spread the Easter in the community,” he said. up the capital and run the as rivals to their businesses
Palma. “The church reminds us joy to someone else in their The hosting of Cebu— business. They themselves and to their need of workers.
In his homily, the that Jesus who is Risen lives. considered the cradle of provide the labor in the The worker cooperatives
archbishop said that the from the dead walks “May you radiate the Easter Christianity in Asia—was same business that they own. have yet a long way to go but
church need young people with us in the journey,” joy to other young people also part of the Church’s They do not need unions it is a viable way to reconcile
who are not cowed in the face Palma said. “Whether we and to the community that preparations for the fifth because they are already self- labor and capital.
of difficulties, “dashed hopes recognize it or not, Jesus you serve and live in,” said centenary of the arrival of organized and the business is (Guest editorial by Bishop
and broken dreams”. walks with us.” Archbishop Valles. Christianity in the Philippines. theirs. They cannot struggle Broderick Pabillo)
 A8 PEOPLE, FACTS, AND PLACES April 29 - May 12, 2019, Vol 23, No. 09 CBCP Monitor

Naga City to host Pope to new nat’l shrine:

‘Be center of missionary
NYD 2021 outreach’

The San Antonio de Padua Church in the heritage town of Pila, Laguna was declared a national shrine
during a Mass on April 23. ROY LAGARDE

POPE Francis has greeted the last January.

The National Youth Day Cross has been formally turned over to the Archdiocese of Caceres as the host for NYD 2021. COURTESY OF NYD 2019 - CEBU
THE Archdiocese of Caceres has
been selected to host the next
National Youth day (NYD), which
is slated to take place in 2021.
The announcement of Naga as the
NYD host city was made at the end
of this year’s gathering in Cebu City
on Sunday.
This will be the first time the
Caceres archdiocese will host the
event, Archbishop Rolando Tria
Tirona said.
When Tirona was still the Malolos
bishop, the diocese hosted the first
NYD at a national level in 1998.
It was in 1986 when the Catholic
Bishops’ Conference of the
Philippines declared every December
16 as National Youth Day.
From 1987, NYD celebrations
at the national level were held in
Manila. From 1991 to 1997, the
events were held locally in the
dioceses and parishes.
Since 1998, there have been
national celebrations of NYD every
two or three years.
The NYD has had the following
national venues: Balanga, Lipa,
Palo, Bacolod, Davao, Manila,
Tuguegarao, and Zamboanga.
The NYD 2021 will take place
as the Church marks the 500th
anniversary of the arrival of
Christianity in the Philippines.
(CBCP News)
parishioners of the new National
Shrine of San Antonio de Padua,
and hoped that it will continue to
be ‘a center of constant missionary
outreach’.
As the San Pablo diocese
welcomed its first national shrine,
the pope said that he is praying
that devotees “may all be renewed
in your love of Christ”.
“May the shrine truly be a
sanctuary where the thirsty come
to drink in the midst of their
journey and the center of constant
missionary outreach,” Pope Francis
said.
His message was read by Papal
Nuncio Archbishop Gabriele Caccia
during the Mass for the declaration
of the National Shrine of San
Antonio de Padua in the heritage
town of Pila, Laguna on April 23.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference
of the Philippines has approved
The declaration came 17 years
after Asia’s first Antonine church
was declared a diocesan shrine in
2002.
Archbishop Romulo Valles of
Davao, who led the Mass, said
that he joined the event not just as
CBCP head but also because of the
diocese’s “little connection” to his
priesthood.
In 1976, Valles was ordained
priest by American Bishop Joseph
William Regan, the then bishop of
Tagum in Davao del Norte.
From New York, Regan led the
first 11 Maryknoll priests on a
mission to the Philippines in 1951.
For eight years, he served in the
Laguna towns of Pakil and Paete
before moving to Davao where
eventually he became a bishop.
“So more than being the CBCP
President, that bond of faith and
service was in my heart coming

Caramoan’s St. Michael the Archangel

the petition to elevate the church’s here,” Valles said, drawing applause
status during its plenary assembly from the crowd. (CBCP News)

Church marks 400 years Join the Father Michael

McGivney Guild for free!
TRADITIONAL dances and songs
mingled with Catholic rituals on
April 30 as Caramoan islanders THE Knights of
marked the 400th anniversary St.
Michael the Archangel Church.
Columbus established
Archbishop Rolando Tria Tirona the Father McGivney
of Caceres celebrated the milestone Guild to promote the
with a Mass, along with native Cause for canonization of
Caramoanon Bishop Manolo de los our founder, Venerable
Santos of Virac and several other Michael J. McGivney
priests. (1852-1890). The goal of
In his homily, Tirona emphasized
the Guild is to spread
the importance of remembering the
“gift of faith” and celebrating it with the good word about
gratitude. his holiness of life, to
He also urged the parishioners encourage devotion to his
to look forward with greater hope memory, and to seek his
and commitment for a stronger intercession before the
Catholic faith. throne of God. The Guild
The archdiocese said on its serves as a clearinghouse
Facebook page that a friar named
for information about Guild is open to anyone
Francisco dela Cruz initiated the
St. Michael the Archangel Parish Church celebrates 400 years of history on April 30. PHOTO FROM ARCHDIOCESE Father McGivney, his who wishes to share in
mission in Caramoan Peninsula in OF CACERES FACEBOOK PAGE
Camarines Sur in 1969 by exploring life and works, and any this mission of making
a forested land and establishing several priests. Anthony of Padua in Bikal. favors attributed to his known the life and work
community in a place called Known for its centuries-old red Before the Mass ended, intercession. Father of Father McGivney and
“Baluarte”. bricks, the church is now a mother Archbishop Tirona left the parish McGivney is a unique of encouraging devotion
Today, the church community parish of four parishes: Sacred his gifts of four Balayong trees, model today for both to his memory. To join,
has become one of the nation’s Heart Parish in Garchitorena, which closely resemble the cherry Catholic laymen and fill out the attached
old active parishes, producing St. Dominic of Guzman Parish in blossoms, as a symbol of flourishing
two prelates, including Bishop
priests because of his application and mail it to
Tabgon, Our Lady of Peace and faith with emphasis on the care for
Rex Andrew Alarcon of Daet, and Good Voyage in Guijalo, and St. creation. (CBCP News) attention to the social ills the address given. There
and injustices of his day is no charge to enroll,
and his collaboration with and you need not be a
the people of his parish. member of the Knights
He was zealous for the of Columbus.
life of union with God The Guild is anxious to
through prayer and the receive reports of favors
sacraments, and would received through Father
have been right at home McGivney’s intercession.
in today’s world. He was It is not only miracles
then and would be today that are required to move
an eager apostle for the the cause forward, but
Gospel of life, and active witnesses to the power
in building a civilization of the servant of God’s
of love. prayers before the throne
Membership in the of God.

Name/s:

Complete Mailing Address:

City/Province:

Country & Zip Code:

CBCP Monitor April 29 - May 12 , 2019 Vol. 23 No. 9
Why do you seek the living
among the dead?
Pope Francis celebrates the Easter Vigil in St. Peter’s Basilica
at the Vatican April 20, 2019. PAUL HARING/CNS
1. THE women bring spices to the tomb, but
they fear that their journey is in vain, since a
large stone bars the entrance to the sepulcher.
The journey of those women is also our own
journey; it resembles the journey of salvation
that we have made this evening. At times,
it seems that everything comes up against
a stone: the beauty of creation against the
tragedy of sin; liberation from slavery against
infidelity to the covenant; the promises of the
prophets against the listless indifference of
the people. So too, in the history of the Church
and in our own personal history. It seems that
the steps we take never take us to the goal. We
can be tempted to think that dashed hope is
the bleak law of life.
Today however we see that our journey
is not in vain; it does not come up against
a tombstone. A single phrase astounds the
woman and changes history: “Why do you seek
the living among the dead?” (Lk 24:5). Why do
you think that everything is hopeless, that no
one can take away your own tombstones? Why
do you give into resignation or failure? Easter,
brothers and sisters, is the feast of tombstones
taken away, rocks rolled aside. God takes
away even the hardest stones against which
our hopes and expectations crash: death,
sin, fear, worldliness. Human history does
not end before a tombstone, because today it
encounters the “living stone” (cf. 1 Pet 2:4),
the risen Jesus. We, as Church, are built on
him, and, even when we grow disheartened
and tempted to judge everything in the light of
our failures, he comes to make all things new,
to overturn our every disappointment. Each of
us is called tonight to rediscover in the Risen
Christ the one who rolls back from our heart
the heaviest of stones. So let us first ask: What
is the stone that I need to remove, what is the
name of this stone?
Often what blocks hope is the stone of
discouragement. Once we start thinking that
everything is going badly and that things can’t
get worse, we lose heart and come to believe
that death is stronger than life. We become
cynical, negative and despondent. Stone upon
stone, we build within ourselves a monument
to our own dissatisfaction: the sepulcher of
hope. Life becomes a succession of complaints
and we grow sick in spirit. A kind of tomb
psychology takes over: everything ends there,
with no hope of emerging alive. But at that
moment, we hear once more the insistent
question of Easter: Why do you seek the living
among the dead? The Lord is not to be found
in resignation. He is risen; he is not there.
Don’t seek him where you will never find him:
he is not the God of the dead but of the living
(cf. Mk 22:32). Do not bury hope!
There is another stone that often seals the
heart shut: the stone of sin. Sin seduces; it
Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis at the Easter Vigil in the Holy Night of Easter,
Vatican Basilica, 20 April 2019
Pope Francis holds a candle as he celebrates the Easter Vigil in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican April 20, 2019. PAUL HARING/CNS
promises things easy and quick, prosperity
and success, but then leaves behind only
solitude and death. Sin is looking for life
among the dead, for the meaning of life in
things that pass away. Why do you seek the
living among the dead? Why not make up
your mind to abandon that sin which, like a
stone before the entrance to your heart, keeps
God’s light from entering in? Why not prefer
Jesus, the true light (cf. Jn 1:9), to the glitter
of wealth, career, pride and pleasure? Why not
tell the empty things of this world that you no
longer live for them, but for the Lord of life?
2. Let us return to the women who went
to Jesus’ tomb. They halted in amazement
before the stone that was taken away. Seeing
the angels, they stood there, the Gospel tells
us, “frightened, and bowed their faces to the
ground” (Lk  24:5). They did not have the
courage to look up. And how often do we do
the same thing? We prefer to remain huddled
within our shortcomings, cowering in our
fears. It is odd, but why do we do this? Not
infrequently because, glum and closed up
within ourselves, we feel in control, for it is
easier to remain alone in the darkness of our
heart than to open ourselves to the Lord. Yet
only he can raise us up. A poet once wrote:
“We never know how high we are. Till we are
called to rise” (E. Dickinson). The Lord calls
us to get up, to rise at his word, to look up and
to realize that we were made for heaven, not
for earth, for the heights of life and not for the
depths of death: Why do you seek the living
among the dead?
God asks us to view life as he views it,
for in each of us he never ceases to see an
irrepressible kernel of beauty. In sin, he
sees sons and daughters to be restored; in
death, brothers and sisters to be reborn; in
desolation, hearts to be revived. Do not fear,
then: the Lord loves your life, even when you
are afraid to look at it and take it in hand. In
Easter he shows you how much he loves that
life: even to the point of living it completely,
experiencing anguish, abandonment, death
and hell, in order to emerge triumphant to
tell you: “You are not alone; put your trust
in me!”.
Jesus is a specialist at turning our deaths into
life, our mourning into dancing (cf. Ps 30:11).
With him, we too can experience a Pasch,
that is, a Passover – from self-centredness to
communion, from desolation to consolation,
from fear to confidence. Let us not keep our
faces bowed to the ground in fear, but raise
our eyes to the risen Jesus. His gaze fills us
with hope, for it tells us that we are loved
unfailingly, and that however much we make
a mess of things, his love remains unchanged.
This is the one, non-negotiable certitude we
have in life: his love does not change. Let
us ask ourselves: In my life, where am I
looking? Am I gazing at graveyards, or looking
for the Living One?
3. Why do you seek the living among the
dead?  The women hear the words of the
angels, who go on to say: “Remember what he
told you while he was still in Galilee” (Lk 24:6).
Those woman had lost hope, because they
could not recall the words of Jesus, his call
that took place in Galilee. Having lost the
living memory of Jesus, they kept looking at
the tomb. Faith always needs to go back to
PASTORAL CONCERNS B1
Galilee, to reawaken its first love for Jesus
and his call: to remember him, to turn back
to him with all our mind and all our heart. To
return to a lively love of the Lord is essential.
Otherwise, ours is a “museum” faith, not an
Easter faith. Jesus is not a personage from the
past; he is a person living today. We do not
know him from history books; we encounter
him in life. Today, let us remember how Jesus
first called us, how he overcame our darkness,
our resistance, our sins, and how he touched
our hearts with his word.
Brothers and sisters, let us return to Galilee.
The women, remembering Jesus, left
the tomb. Easter teaches us that believers
do not linger at graveyards, for they are
called to go forth to meet the Living One.
Let us ask ourselves: In my life, where am I
going? Sometimes we go only in the direction
of our problems, of which there are plenty,
and go to the Lord only for help. But then,
it is our own needs, not Jesus, to guide our
steps. We keep seeking the Living One among
the dead. Or again, how many times, once we
have encountered the Lord, do we return to
the dead, digging up regrets, reproaches, hurts
and dissatisfactions, without letting the Risen
One change us?
Dear brothers and sisters: let us put the
Living One at the center of our lives. Let us ask
for the grace not to be carried by the current,
the sea of our problems; the grace not to run
aground on the shoals of sin or crash on the
reefs of discouragement and fear. Let us seek
him, let us allow ourselves to be sought out by
him, let us seek him in all things and above all
things. And with him, we will rise again.
B2 FEATURE
By Fr. Jaime B. Achacoso, J.C.D.
TIME and again, Bishops, Judicial
Vicars and canon lawyers have
asked for clarification regarding
the so-called delicta graviora
(“more serious crimes”) that were
first enunciated as such by St.John
Paul II in 2001 in his Motu Proprio
Sacramentorum sanctitatis
tutela. The more serious crimes
to which the document referred
concerned vital aspects of the
life of the Church: (1) doctrinal
orthodoxy and ecclesial unity,
(2) the sacrament of the Holy
Eucharist, (3) the sacrament of
Penance and (4) sexual abuse of
minors by a cleric. Unfortunately,
only the fourth class of more serious
crimes has caught the attention of
the mass media and the general
public. What makes this class of
crimes special is that the Holy See
has reserved the adjudication of
such cases to the Congregation for
the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF),
establishing specific norms to assure
that allegations of such crimes are
addressed with utmost urgency and
thoroughness. This matter had been
dealt with lengthily in this column
in the past.
Recently, Pope Francis convened
a special meeting of prelates in the
Vatican to urgently address this issue
once and for all, at the face of continuing
revelations—veritable public scandals—
of such sexual misconducts by clerics at
all levels, committed decades ago for
the most part.
Thankfully, the Church in the
Philippines has been spared of such
scandals. Nevertheless, despite the
lack of notoriety, such cases do occur
and the Pastors are often at a loss
on how to proceed: to prosecute the
erring cleric (as a matter of penal
justice) or to try to rehabilitate him
in the ministry (with the attendant
risk of provoking a possible scandal
in the future, should the victims
come out openly)?
The question bears a closer look,
as it opens both theologico-pastoral
and canonical issues.
The ius poenandi as an ultima
ratio
An interesting discussion in Penal
Law is the rationale behind the
ius poenandi (the right to punish)
in the Church. In effect, in the
Mystical Body of Christ—composed
of subjects who are supposed to be
united by bonds of charity—there
seems to be no place for punishment,
Empty chalice at consecration time
(Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy and dean of theology at the Regina Apostolorum university, answers the following query: )
Q: A few years ago I attended Mass
(did not concelebrate) where it
became obvious that the chalice
had nothing in it. This was obvious
when the priest lifted the chalice to
drink from it, looked around, and
handed it to the server. I asked in
the sacristy afterward, and indeed
it had been empty. I actually was at
another Mass a year or so after that
one, different city, where the same
thing happened. In both cases, it
was clearly the compos mentis of the
priest, not heresy or malevolence, or
any such thing. Is the host validly
consecrated in such a circumstance?
Can Communion be distributed
to the faithful? – J.M., St. John’s,
Newfoundland and Labrador
A: After so many years receiving
liturgical questions I thought I
was past being surprised. But I
must admit that I was somewhat
nonplussed by this situation. I find it
difficult to grasp why a priest would
undertake what would appear to be
a subterfuge that would lead most
of the faithful to believe the chalice
was being consecrated.
The case described is different from
a distracted priest who forgets to
consecrate one of the species or
the case of finding at the time of
communion that there was only
water in the chalice or the wine had
turned to vinegar. Both cases can
be remedied by discreetly saying
the form of consecration, with new
wine if necessary, before distributing
Communion.
If celebrating with an empty chalice
were done deliberately and in full
possession of his faculties, then
the priest has acted in such a way
as to gravely violate canon law,
Sexual misconduct of some priests:
Revisiting a nagging issue
considered as a form of the lex
talionis of the Mosaic Law (“an eye
for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”).
Leaving a deeper discussion of this
question for another time, suffice it
to affirm at this point that it arrives
at basically three conclusions: (1) the
ius poenandi is indeed demanded
by the juridic order, in order to
restore what has been injured by
the criminal act; (2) part of that
restoration is the rehabilitation of
the offender himself, aside from
the satisfaction of the victim; (3)
the ius poenandi is an ultima ratio
(last resort).
Applying these conclusions to
the case of sexual misbehavior of
clerics—and more specifically to
the case of homosexuality (which
is the majority of cases of sexual
abuse of minors and even of
consensual sex with adults) and
sexual addiction—we can make the
following conclusions:
1st The restoration of the injured
common good of the Church is
hardly accomplished by a scandalous
process of bringing the erring cleric
to justice—much less if he is pilloried
in the court of the mass media. More
could be accomplished by first of
all focusing on helping the victims,
in great part through a pastoral
approach of healing their wounded
self-esteem by fostering mercy and
forgiveness, rather than fomenting
hatred and vengeance.
2 nd On the other hand, the
underlying problems of the erring
cleric—in this case homosexuality
or sexual addiction—should be
addressed. It is arguable if this
can be addressed in his present
status of cleric—i.e., by putting him
through the usual programs for
so-called “wounded clergy” (e.g.,
Galilee Program of the CBCP or the
Nazareth Program of Bob Garon).
3 rd Subjecting the erring cleric
to a penal process should be the
last resort, not only because of the
scandal that this inevitably brings
about, but most of all because of the
doubtful benefit it can do towards
the rehabilitation of the erring cleric
or the victims.
Identifying the root of the
problem
A step back from the problem
usually helps in appreciating it
better, given the better view. In
effect, to my mind the root of the
problem is the ordination of men
NANCY WIECHEC/CNS
particularly Canon 927:
“It is absolutely forbidden, (nefas est)
even in extreme urgent necessity,
to consecrate one matter without
the other or even both outside the
Eucharistic celebration.”
The Paulist Press commentary on
this canon states the following:
“Theological opinion has not been
in agreement on whether the
consecration of only one of the
elements suffices for the validity of
the Mass. Neither the 1917 code (CIC
817) nor the revised code resolves
Clerical sex abuse survivors and their supporters rally outside Castel Sant’Angelo in Rome Feb. 21, 2019. PAUL HARING/CNS
with psychological issues either
on same sex attraction (SSA) or
unresolved adolescent problems
of chastity. Again this is not the
time to delve deeper into this issue,
but for now we can just say that
this was part of the post-Conciliar
crisis of doctrine and discipline
that resulted in allowing candidates
without the necessary qualities for
the priesthood not only to enter
the seminary but, worse, ordaining
them to the priesthood.
In brief, the argument was
not to discriminate against men
with SSA or unresolved sexual
problems. What the proponents of
that great blunder forgot was that
every profession—and the sacred
ministry is more than that—has
its own requirements. Requiring
20:20 eyesight for candidates for
pilot school is not a discrimination
against those with poorer eyesight,
but rather just a recognition of
the need for perfect vision for that
particular job, for the safety of
everyone. The same can be said
of the grade requirements in the
university, height requirements in
the armed forces, etc. The Catholic
priesthood has fundamental
requirements as well, and one of
them is that the candidate must
be an integral man (vir compos),
without the baggage of gender issues
and unresolved adolescent chastity
issues. In other words, the sacred
the issue of validity, but instead,
both use the authority of the Church
to forbid absolutely the consecration
of only one element in or outside
of Mass, or the consecration of
even both elements apart from the
Eucharistic celebration. The phrase
‘it is absolutely forbidden’ (nefas est)
most strongly conveys the Church’s
desire to maintain the integrity of
the Eucharistic celebration and
the two signs of bread and wine.
Excluded are even cases of extreme
necessity, such as lack of time to
April 29 - May 12 , 2019 Vol. 23 No. 9
ministry requires such a complete
self-giving so as to preclude added
complications of sexuality and
gender: if sacred ministers are barred
from the complications of political
involvement, business activity and
raising a family, what more as
regards such personal problems as
SSA and sexual addiction?
A radical solution: Declaration
of nullity of ordination
If the root of the problem is the
ordination of men who were not
qualified for the priesthood, then
the radical solution is to “undo”
that wrong move. Certainly, a valid
ordination cannot be invalidated:
once a priest, always a priest. Even
more than the irrevocable nature of
a valid matrimonial consent, a valid
ordination imprints an indelible
character that makes the ordained
a priest forever. But what if the
ordination was invalid?
In more than one occasion,
confronted with these problems,
I have heard people say—bishops
and priests included—that perhaps
the erring cleric should never have
been ordained. And that is the point:
if they should never have been
ordained, then juridically it can be
proven that they were not validly
ordained. That is the process of
the declaration of nullity of sacred
ordination. It is something similar
to the declaration of nullity of
celebrate an entire Eucharist in the
case of a person in danger of death
or lack of bread or wine due to war
or persecution.”
It should be noted that the expression
“nefas est” is very strong and is used
very rarely in canon law. Practically
its only other appearance is in
Canon 983 §1 regarding the absolute
prohibition to reveal what is heard
in confession.
In the 1983 edition of the Code of
Canon Law, the strong language
was not accompanied by any specific
penalty for violations. However,
on April 30, 2001, Pope St. John
Paul II promulgated a letter Motu
propio “Sacramentorum Sanctitatis
Tutela” which, along with other
changes above all geared toward the
protection of minors, added Canon
927 to the delicts reserved to the
Congregation for the Doctrine of
the Faith.
The specific norms regarding
this canon were updated by Pope
Benedict in 2010 and now read:
“Art. 3 §2. Also reserved to the
Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith is the delict which
consists in the consecration for a
sacrilegious purpose of one matter
without the other or even of both,
either within or outside of the
Eucharistic celebration. One who
has perpetrated this delict is to be
punished according to the gravity of
the crime, not excluding dismissal or
deposition.”
Although this crime is specifically
reserved to the Congregation for
the Doctrine of the Faith when it
is committed for a sacrilegious
purpose, it remains a canonical
crime or delict in all cases.
If the element of inducing the
CBCP Monitor
marriage: it is not a breaking of the
bond (tantamount to divorce), which
goes against the indissolubility of
the marriage covenant. Rather, it is a
declaration—after judicial process—
that the ordination never validly
took place; therefore, the cleric is
not such after all.
There is a Spanish proverb that
says: muerto el perro, se acabó
la rabia. “With the dog dead,
there goes the rabies.” In effect, by
declaring the nullity of ordination of
the erring cleric, the following ends
are accomplished:
1st He is taken out of circulation
from the sacred ministry, thereby
removing any possible harm that he
can further inflict by being there. In
a certain way, this could even bring
a better closure for the victims,
who—if they had been dealt with
pastorally—would normally not be
vindictive, but rather just concerned
for the common good.
2nd This clears the way for the
rehabilitation of the erring person,
who could now address his issues
without the burden of the priesthood.
3rd All these, without the character
of being a punishment for the erring
person, which would be the case if
a penal process were initiated and a
sanction meted on him. In short, the
juridic pretension of taking him out
of the clerical state is accomplished,
without it being a sanction. (To
be continued.)
faithful into believing that a proper
Mass has been celebrated is added,
then the crime of simulation of a
sacrament (Canon 1379) may also
be present.
What causes perplexity is why
a priest should recur to such a
measure as “celebrating” with an
empty chalice.
Although, as our reader says, heresy
or malevolence may not be present,
ignorance of the gravity of this
act should not be presumed since
priests are supposed to know canon
law.
Psychological barriers would require
special treatment, but the priest
would not be able to celebrate until
he can do so according to the mind
of the Church.
There should not be obstacles of
a physical nature as the Church is
generous in assisting priests who
have special needs.
A priest who suffers from alcoholism
is permitted to validly celebrate
using mustum, which does not
contain alcohol.
Even should a priest suffer from
a rare intolerance to all fruits of
the vine, he could be permitted to
concelebrate and receive only under
the species of bread.
However, except for these special
concessions, in all Masses, it is
necessary that both species be
consecrated and consumed by
a priest. Thus the instruction
Redemptionis Sacramentum:
“97. A Priest must communicate at
the altar at the moment laid down by
the Missal each time he celebrates
Holy Mass, and the concelebrants
must communicate before they
proceed with the distribution of Holy
Chalice / B7
CBCP Monitor April 29 - May 12 , 2019 Vol. 23 No. 9 FEATURE B3

Circles of political discernment

An election guide for Basic Ecclesial Communities
“Politics, according to the  Social
Doctrine of the Church, is one of the
highest forms of charity, because
it serves the common good.” (Pope
Francis)

“A good Catholic meddles in politics.”

(Pope Francis)

“We encourage voters to be very

discerning in their votes. Let the
lay groups engage in discernment
circles to help one another know
the candidates well and choose
the candidates with the common
good of the whole country in
mind and not according to what
the candidates promise, much
less according to what voters have
received from these candidates.
Participation in politics for
Christian lay people is not just
to be limited to non-partisan
involvement. Christians are
also encouraged to engage in
principled partisan politics. This
means that they can campaign for
good candidates as an exercise of
their Christian faith.” (CBCP, Seek
the Common Good, 28 January
2019).
THIS guide for political
discernment process can be used
by BECs, parish groups and other
grassroots communities in order to
help them in their act of choosing
candidates in the upcoming
e lection. The facilitators can
revise, add or subtract elements
from this suggested process so as
to fit the needs of their individual
groups.
1. Preliminaries
a. Opening Song: (An appropriate
song that everybody knows shall be
chosen before the meeting.)
b. Gospel Reading: (Assign
someone to read one appropriate
Scripture passage: e.g. Deut. 30: 13-
20; Isaiah 1: 16-17; Luke 4: 16-20;
Acts 1: 15-26, and others)
c. Opening Prayer: (The assigned
prayer leader shall ask for the grace
of enlightenment, openness of spirit
and critical sensitivity to the signs
of the times.)
2. The objectives of the circles
of political discernment
The facilitator explains the
objectives of political discernment
process:
a. To guide Christians in grassroots
communities to choose through a
common process of discernment
whom to vote for during the next
election.
b. To level off on the criteria of our
choice according to the principles of
the gospel and the Catholic Social
Teachings.
c. To get to know the candidates
better and the crucial issues related
to the election. beliefs of all peoples in the
BEC meeting in Iguig, Cagayan. FILE PHOTO
The facilitator shall open the
floor to clarifications and questions
on the objectives. He/she shall
accommodate the proposals on the
objectives, if any.
3. Discussion on the criteria
for choosing candidates
The facilitator shall enumerate
and explain some basic criteria
from the Catholic Social Teaching
that can guide the choice of
candidates. There are many other
principles but we keep it to the most
fundamental so that it would be
accessible to all, even to those who
do not share the same Christian or
Catholic beliefs.
a. Respect for life, human rights
and human dignity
• The candidate values human
life and does not approve
of the pervasive culture of
intimidation, harassment
and killing of the poor, local
politicians, the so-called
communists, lumad, etc.
• He/she defends the human
rights of women, children,
LGBTQ, and respects the
dignity of each person
regardless of gender, political
affiliation, religion or socio-
economic standing.
b. Respect for people’s faith and
religious beliefs
• The candidate respects the
country.
• He/she honestly practices her
own belief and convictions in
his/her life.
• He/she does not hinder the
practice of all religious faiths
as the Constitution provides.
c. Efficiency and accountability in
public service
• He/she has does not have
cases of crime, graft and
corruption, and unexplained
wealth.
• He/she has leadership skills
and background experience
for the desired position
• He/she presents a realistic
and clear platform of
governance and does not
evade full accountability for
one’s performance.
d. Care for environment and
defense of territory
• Climate change and protection
of natural resources should be
in his/her political agenda.
• He/she defends our territorial
integrity as the Constitution
demands, and must have a
clear foreign policy.
e. Preferential option for the poor
• H e / s h e h a s r e a l i s t i c
programs for the upliftment
of marginalized sectors, and
vows to oppose any law that
has a strong impact against
the lives of the poor.
• He/she does not use
marginalized sectors for
personal political interests.
After the short explanation,
the facilitator opens the floor for
clarification and comments on
the above principles. With valid
reasons, the participants can
add or subtract from the criteria
mentioned. The community is
enjoined to reach a consensus
on the criteria for choosing
candidates. Extra care shall be
taken not to make too many
criteria which make it impossible
for candidates to qualify.
The facilitator is also open to
discuss some current and relevant
issues on the present election.
He/she must be prepared to
explain issues on extra-judicial
killings, red-tagging, graft and
corruption, political dynasty,
honesty in public service, drug
war, relationship with China,
TRAIN law—in connection with
the above criteria.
4. Confronting actual
candidates with the criteria
This guide can be used for local
and national candidates. A different
process shall be done for different
sets of candidates.
The participants shall be given
the names of candidates and will be
asked individually to evaluate the
candidates vis-à-vis our established
criteria. They can discuss together
the merits and demerits of the
candidates. Those candidates that
do not fit the criteria shall be
eliminated until such time that the
desired number is reached.
5. Mock election
A mock election can be
done among the participants.
The facilitator shall prepare a
tabulation process. The results shall
be announced after the counting.
6. Communal discernment
toward consensus-making
While the personal judgement
of each person shall be respected
to the end, the community may
also decide to endorse a group of
candidates who passed the criteria
in an outstanding manner among
the participants.
When consensus has been reached
on who are these candidates, the
community can campaign for these
candidates to other groups.
7. Concluding rites
The community may end with the
singing of the Our Father and other
concluding song.
Prepared by:
Fr. Daniel Franklin E. Pilario, C.M.
St. Vincent School of Theology
Adamson University
danielfranklinpilario@yahoo.com

The missing link is agriculture

By Bernardo M. Villegas
ONE of the weakest planks of Philippine
economic policy, the missing link in the
economic development of the Philippines,
is found in the agricultural sector. The
otherwise sound foundation of Philippine
economic development over the next decade
or so, that could lead to sustained annual
growth of GDP of 6.5 percent, still suffers
from the absence of a coherent plan to raise
the country’s low agricultural output and
productivity. This handicap from which
the Duterte Administration continues to
suffer was made plainly clear by the recent
World Bank Report entitled “Growth and
Productivity in the Philippines”. In great
contrast with its ASEAN peers, especially
Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam, the
Philippines has failed miserably to increase
its exports of agricultural products, not to
mention to feed its own population. In fact,
the recent bout with high rates of inflation
was just a symptom of this failure to increase
agricultural productivity on many fronts.
The irony of it all is that a root problem
of this decades-long failure is the very
unenlightened effort to attain food security
by focusing almost exclusively on rice
self-sufficiency. This not only created
the monster that the National Food
Authority (NFA) became, mismanaging
the importation of rice, but prevented the
country from diversifying away from crops
such as rice and corn into higher value
crops like coffee, cacao, palm oil, rubber,
fruits and vegetables which even late comer
Vietnam has been able to do with such
admirable efficiency. As the World Bank
report accurately observed, despite the
government’s inordinate support to rice
producers, agricultural production only
increased from 16 percent in 1991 of GDP
to 22 percent in 2013. During this same
period, its ASEAN peers diversified to and
increased the production of higher-value
crops, resulting in higher agricultural output
and productivity.
Another major reason for the failure
in improving agricultural productivity
was the country’s lengthy and costly
agrarian reform program that brought
uncertainty to beneficiaries and undermined
investment in agribusiness. The motivation
of land reform, which started in 1988, was
justifiable. It was meant to promote social
justice by distributing large landed estates
to small farmers. It was aimed at regulating
tenancy, establishing a maximum limit on
farm sizes, and supporting family farms.
Some 7 million hectares of farm lands
were distributed to small-scale farmers,
and about 50 percent of the beneficiaries
received assistance to improve farm
productivity. But there was an utter failure
to provide the farm beneficiaries with such
indispensable support as farm-to-market
roads, irrigation facilities, post-harvest and
other services. The farmers ended poorer
than before, especially in coconut regions,
as they lacked access to credit and expertise,
and there was less incentive for large farms
to invest due to uncertainties. In fact,
despite a law requiring banks to invest part
of their portfolio in what were called “agri-
agra” projects, most banks preferred to pay
penalties of hundreds of millions of pesos
because of these uncertainties.
Although the Comprehensive Agrarian
Reform Program (CARP) Law expired in
2014, there has been no clearcut policy to
take its place. The uncertainties remain,
especially in the lack of clarity about how
small farms can be reconsolidated into
bigger units to attain economies of scale,
following such successful models as the
nucleus farms of palm oil plantations in
Malaysia or cooperative farming in Thailand
or Vietnam. Hopefully, recent attempts of
the Land Bank to adopt the “corporative”
model can be given a chance to work in
the planting of high-value crops, including
coconuts. This model involves a large
corporation working in tandem with small
farmers who are helped by the bigger firm
to organize themselves as cooperatives,
including as workers cooperatives.
The problem of raising agricultural
productivity is aggravated by the high
vulnerability of the Philippines to natural
disasters. For example, the El Nino weather
phenomenon contributed to an agricultural
output loss of 6.8 percent in 1998 and 0.4
percent in 2009-10. To make matters even
worse, there has been an increase in the
severity and intensity of tropical cyclones
in recent years. Because poverty incidence
in the rural areas is very high, farmers do
not have the wherewithals to make the
investments to mitigate the harmful effects
of natural disasters. Compounding their
problem even more, small farmers are caught
in the cross fire of conflicting groups in the
countryside. Because of these conflicts,
farmers have little incentive to invest in
new technology or new crops, or even just
to expand their current production. A great
deal of resources are redirected towards
rebuilding or rehabilitating the areas that
suffer destruction because of these conflicts.
Of course, the long-term solution is a more
determined effort to reduce the poverty
incidence in these areas because conflicts
are just symptoms of dehumanizing poverty
in these rural areas.
Finally, the World Bank Report rightly
points out to the need to improve the
coordination of the departments and
agencies that implement agricultural
policies and programs. It may be easier
said than done but it is imperative that
something drastic be done with the existing
fragmented institutional setup in the
agricultural sector. This fragmentation
results in weak coordination, increases
the risk of corruption, reduces the clarity
of policy direction and agency roles, and
restricts the reach and depth of support
provided to the sector. We can only hope
that in the second half of the term of
President Duterte, the highest priority is
assigned to addressing these problems of
policy formulation and implementation in
the agricultural sector, the most neglected
in Philippine economic policy making.
President Duterte can start by appointing
an agricultural tzar as competent, honest,
and decisive as the economic managers on
whom he relies to maintain macroeconomic
stability. (For comments, my email address
is bernardo.villegas@uap.asia)
B4 FEATURE April 29 - May 12 , 2019 Vol. 23 No. 9 CBCP Monitor

Communis Vita
Apostolic Letter issued Motu Proprio by the Supreme Pontiff Francis which provides for the
modification of several norms of the Code of Canon Law
LIFE in community is an essential
element of religious life, and
“religious are to live in their own
religious house and are not to be
absent from it except with the
permission of their superior” (Can.
665 §1 CIC). The experience of recent
years has, however, demonstrated
that situations occur that are related
to illegitimate absences from the
religious house, during which
religious distance themselves from
the jurisdiction of the legitimate
Superior and at times cannot be
located.
The Code of Canon Law requires
the Superior to seek out the
illegitimately absent religious in
order to help him or her to return
and persevere in his or her vocation
(cf. can. 665 §2 CIC). Quite often,
however, it may happen that the
Superior is unable to locate the
absent religious. Pursuant to the
Code of Canon Law, after at least
six months of illegitimate absence
(cf. can. 696 CIC), it is possible
to begin the process of dismissal
by the institute, according to the
established procedure (cf. can. 697
CIC). However, when the religious’
place of residence is unknown, it
becomes difficult to accord juridical
certainty to the de facto situation.
Therefore, notwithstanding what
is established by the law on dismissal
following six months of illegitimate
absence, in order to help institutes
apply the necessary discipline and
be able to proceed to the dismissal
Pope Francis makes a private visit to a community of cloistered Poor Clare nuns Jan. 11, 2019. The Vatican press office said he visited the monastery of Santa Maria di Vallegloria in Spello, about 100 miles north
of the illegitimately absent religious, of Rome, to encourage the sisters and to share prayer, the Eucharist and a meal with them. VATICAN MEDIA
especially in cases in which his or
her location is unknown, I have a modification of can. 729 with from the religious house, pursuant confirmation rests with the Bishop Letter issued Motu Proprio,
decided to add to can. 694 §1 CIC, regard to secular institutes, for which to can. 665 §2, for 12 consecutive of the principal See. I dispose that it take firm and
among the reasons for dismissal ipso the application of discretionary months, taking into account that Art. 2. Can. 729 CIC is entirely permanent effect, despite any
facto from the institute, also a dismissal for illegitimate absence is the location of the religious himself replaced by the following text: matters to the contrary even if
prolonged illegitimate absence from not provided. or herself may be unknown. Dismissal of a member of the worthy of special mention, and that
the religious house lasting at least Considering the foregoing, I now §2. In such cases the Major institute proceeds pursuant to it be promulgated by publication
12 consecutive months, with the dispose as follows: Superior, with his or her Council cann. 694 §1, 1 and 2; and 695. The in L’Osservatore Romano, entering
same procedure described in can. Art. 1. Can. 694 CIC is entirely and without hesitation, having constitutions may also define other into force on 10 April 2019, and
694 §2 CIC. In order to produce replaced by the following text: gathered the evidence, must issue causes for dismissal, provided that thereafter be published in the official
juridical effects, the statement of §1. A religious must be held the statement of the case so that they be commensurately serious, commentary Acta Apostolicae Sedis.
the case by the Major Superior as dismissed ipso facto from an the dismissal may be juridically external, attributable and juridically Given in Rome at Saint Peter’s
must be confirmed by the Holy See; institute who: constituted. proven, and that the procedure on 19 March 2019 Solemnity of
for institutes of diocesan right, the 1) has defected notoriously from §3. In the case envisaged by established in cann. 697-700 also Saint Joseph seventh year of my
confirmation rests with the Bishop the Catholic faith; §1 n. 3, in order to be juridically be observed. The provisions of can. Pontificate.
of the principal See. 2) has contracted marriage or constituted, this statement must 701 are applicable to the dismissed
The introduction of this new article attempted it, even only civilly; be confirmed by the Holy See; for member.
to §1 of can. 694 requires, moreover, 3) has been illegitimately absent institutes of diocesan right the As deliberated with this Apostolic FRANCIS

Women, peace and security: Sexual violence in conflict

Statement by H.E. Archbishop Bernardito Auza
Apostolic Nuncio, Permanent Observer of the Holy See
Security Council, Open Debate on Women, peace and security: Sexual Violence in Conflict
MY Delegation would like to thank the German
Presidency for convening today’s Open Debate
to consider Sexual Violence in Conflict.
Mr. President,
This topic is sadly all too familiar to
the Members of this Council. Reports of
the Secretary General, informing of crisis
situations, refer regularly to crimes of sexual
violence. Used as a weapon of war to subjugate
and humiliate victims and cause them
physical, emotional and psychological harm,
sexual violence also has profoundly negative
impacts on the communities to which victims
belong and from which, sometimes, they find
themselves ostracized. Far too often rape,
gang rape and other forms of sexual violence,
including unspeakable crimes committed
against children and infants, happen when
the rule of law is weak or non-existent and
when there is no respect for principles of
humanitarian law. What is more, impunity is
often the norm and consequently victims are
often afraid to speak out. The silence must
be broken. We cannot remain indifferent
when such widespread cruelty is inflicted
on the innocent. Impunity must give way to
accountability, so that there can be justice
and reparation.
The landmark Resolution 1325 demands
that parties in armed conflict take special
measures to protect women and girls from
violence, particularly from rape and other
forms of sexual abuse. It also calls for the
participation and full involvement of women
in all efforts to maintain and promote peace
and security. One way indeed in which women
and girls can help lay the foundations for
durable peace and justice is when their own
voices are heard. In particular, survivors of
conflict-related sexual violence should be
considered experts; their pain should be
acknowledged, their strength recognized and
their wisdom harnessed.
In today’s world where conflicts are protracted
and complex, terrorist organizations and other
non-State actors, including criminal gangs,
New York, 23 April 2019
have committed crimes of sexual violence on
a massive scale. We know, however, that these
are regrettably not the only perpetrators of
such crimes. Members of armed forces and
even some of those who serve under the UN
flag, sent to serve the noble cause of peace and
security, have, in some instances, added to the
misery and suffering of the most vulnerable
and fragile populations. My Delegation notes
with appreciation the initiatives to prevent
and combat sexual abuse in UN Peacekeeping
operations, including through specialized
training of personnel with the specific aim
to reduce risks in host countries through
campaigns to enhance sensitivity, promote
respect for the dignity of others and encourage
populations to speak up.
Mr. President,
Those who have suffered conflict-related
sexual violence are victims at multiple
levels. They are burdened by war and then
condemned to carry the marks of this trauma
in their own person. Their educational,
developmental and other basic needs are often
not being met. Among the victims are also men
and boys; a reality so taboo in some cultures
and contexts that it is hidden, shrouded in
even greater silence. To add insult to injury,
in many cases, victims are afraid to speak
out for fear of being shunned by their own
communities, making their plight even more
desperate.
Discussion on this delicate topic
inevitably raises the equally sensitive
question of children conceived and born Archbishop Bernardito Auza, the Vatican’s permanent observer to the United Nations. GREGORY A. SHEMITZ/CNS
as a result of sexual violence in conflict.
The human rights of these children need and be born. The fate of these children needs war or considered its spoils.
to be respected and even guaranteed, specific attention and programs should be put Our hope is that today’s Open Debate and
as for any other child. It is the view of into place that guarantee their protection, as the attention it brings to the subject will give
the Holy See that these young, innocent well as foster healing, reconciliation and full more space to survivors and victims to come
lives should be welcomed, cherished and integration. forward to find healing and hope through the
given the means necessary to flourish and Mr. President, recognition of their personal dignity, and to
reach their full human potential; these Sexual violence in conflict, be it against see established more robust mechanisms to
children need to be supported and loved, women or men, girls or boys, is unacceptable. bring those who have committed violations
not shamed, stigmatized or banished — or Parties to conflict should be made aware that against them to justice.
worse still denied the most basic right to exist such egregious acts can never be weapons of I thank you, Mr. President.
CBCP Monitor April 29 - May 12 , 2019 Vol. 23 No. 9 FEATURE B5

TODAY, May 1, the Diocese of San

Labor Day 2019 Message
Carlos celebrates with the world,
the dignity of human work on this
Feast of St. Joseph The Worker and
International Labor Day.
We especially remember our
departed sugar workers, the Sagay 9,
who were massacred last October 20,
2018 but whose murder is not given
justice until today. The impunity in
senseless killings resulting from the
landlessness of our agricultural and
farm workers are sad manifestations
of where we are in our journey
towards God’s kingdom of love,
justice and peace.
Our Holy Father Pope Francis, in
his Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii
Gaudium (EG) said that we must
help “the poor who are living in
the barrios and the countryside –
landless, homeless, lacking food
and health care…Knowing their
sufferings, we are scandalized
because we know that there is
enough food for everyone and
that hunger is the result of a poor
distribution of goods and income”
(cf. EG, 191).
The 1991 Second Plenary Council
of the Philippines (PCP 2) also
exhorted the Faithful: “If indeed we
are serious about…our preferential
love for the poor, the beginnings of
real reformation in our pattern of
use and ownership of land should
be easily made, the beginnings too
of the solution to the scandalous
problem of rural poverty” (PCP 2,
391).
Bishop Gerardo Alminaza of San Carlos
Moreover, Church social doctrines
say that “…to protect the common
good, the lawful public authority
must exercise the right and the duty
to inflict punishments according
to the seriousness of the crimes
committed” (Compendium of the
Social Doctrine of the Church, 402).
Prompted by the Church’s
preferential option for the poor
and due to moral and social
justice considerations, and as
recommendations based from the
results of the Fact-finding mission
conducted by the Diocese of San
Carlos and Commission on Human
Rights (CHR) last October 2018, we
call on the Faithful and the different
sectors:
1) For our Basic Ecclesial
Communities (BEC’s) to have
pastoral accompaniment among
the Sagay massacre survivors and
families of the Sagay 9. The land
issue as a very important economic
aspect in the lives of our farmers
must be part of reflections among
our BEC cluster groups, so that our
poor farmers may not feel alone
in their plight. Communal action
on day-today economic life must
be discerned in BEC meetings and
activities;
2) For leaders of farmers’ groups
to always make paramount the well-
being of their fellow poor farmers,
thus seeking to broaden support of
their demands and course of action;
rather than resort to adventurist
steps that have not yet gathered
public support;
3) For our Catholic landowners
to set an example in living out
the Catholic social teaching of the
“universal destination of goods”, to
prioritize the interest of the common
good and denounce violence and
greed;
4) For pertinent government
agencies (e.g., AFP/PNPDAR/
LGU) to facilitate speedy justice to
the senseless killing of the Sagay 9;
address the centuries-old problem
of landlessness; and protect the lives
of defenseless civilians whom they
have sworn to defend and protect.
We call on the evaluation of the
AFP-led and LGU-funded Special
Civilian Active Auxiliary (SCAA) if
their existence is still warranted and
how its abuses can be prevented.
May everyone in our community
have compassion for our poor
brothers and sisters as we bear
in mind that the situation of the
smallest and weakest among
us would show how we are as a
community.
We trust that Jesus the Worker
and St. Joseph the Worker are
always with us in our journey
with our brothers and sisters, the
workers.
+MOST REV. GERARDO A.
ALMINAZA, DD
Bishop of San Carlos
May 1, 2019

Don’t leave God when you vote

Pastoral Message in the Archdiocese of Lingayen Dagupan for the 2019 Mid Term Elections
Archbishop Socrates Villegas of Lingayen-Dagupan
BROTHERS and sisters in Christ in
Lingayen Dagupan:
All elections are important. Each vote
is the power of the people to choose
their leaders. It is the backbone of
democracy. The candidates are job
applicants for vacant positions.
They must present their credentials
humbly and honestly. We have the
duty to assess them diligently and,
freed from pressure, check if they
meet our standards. We decide; not
the candidates.
Be critical voters. Be Godly voters.
Bring your faith as you choose. Do
not leave God when you vote.
Church Teachings
Pope Benedict XVI called the
proper exercise of democracy as
the most effective way of ensuring a
future for the welfare of humanity.
This right to vote is not absolute.
It has limits. The power to vote
must be based on truth. The right
to vote must be based on the right
understanding of human dignity.
The kind of leaders we elect reveals
the kind of people we are. The
winners in elections are mirrors of
the values and aspirations, dreams
and hopes of the people who voted
for them. It can also show our
backward moving society.
In the exercise of the right to
vote, as recent history shows,
values and convictions can be easily
manipulated by people who seek
brute power.
Democracy without values can
easily turn into a thinly disguised
totalitarianism said Saint John
Paul II.
When we vote as if God did not
exist, the nation suffers. Democracy
is at risk.
When we demand that religion be
purely a private matter that it should
not touch political choices, society
suffers. Democracy is hurt.
And if we continue to keep ethics
out of public service, democracy will
be killed quietly unnoticed. And we
die deprived of our freedoms.
When religion is removed from the
political arena, public life is sapped
of its motivation and politics takes
on a domineering and aggressive
character warned Pope Benedict
XVI.
Our situation: The 6Ks
How are we? Where are we? What
is working and what needs change?
We have five primary concerns.
Some of you might want to add or
remove. Consider KAMATAYAN,
KABASTUSAN, KORAPSYON,
KAHIRAPAN, KASARINLAN and
KASINUNGALINGAN.
Killing criminals does not solve
problems; it has not solved the drug
problem. We need to ask why did
they become drug addicts? Where
do the drugs come from? Who or
where is the source?
Paraphrasing Dom Helder
Camara, if we support the anti-
drug campaign they say we are
good Catholics. But if we ask who
is supplying the drugs, they say we
are obstructing progress. They only
want us to pray for the dead but if
we ask why are they dead, they get
angry at us.
Vulgarity is not Filipino. The
Filipino loves God. Return to the
True Decalogue of our hero
Apolinario Mabini. That is the true
Filipino. It shows the true Filipino
soul.
Honesty is still the best policy; it
should be; it will always be. There
is no place in heaven for liars. Lying
candidates should receive no vote.
Liar candidates will be the future
corrupt officials. Fake news is the
mother of corruption. Corruption
thrives in the plastic garden of fake
news. Ang sinungaling ay kapatid
ng magnanakaw.
A clear and realistic program for
the poor, for the homeless and the
sick, for those with disabilities and
for the jobless must go beyond sweet
promises of candidates. Self-serving
moves to amend the Constitution
and the prevalence of political
dynasties will hurt the poor even
more. If we do not vote well, more of
our freedoms will be lost to political
dynasties.
The steady intrusion of China
into our territorial waters and the
tightening grip of China on us due to
Chinese loans put our sovereignty at
risk. We are an independent nation
recognized by the family of nations.
To joke about being a province of
China is not funny; it is painful. It
is wrong.
Who then
If you agree that the six primary
concerns need our attention, look at
the candidates and ask:
Have they given the orders to
kill? Have they protected liars?
Truth is not a political issue; it is
a moral issue. Human dignity goes
beyond political coalitions. It is a
godly concern. Sila ba ang TAGA-
UTOS?
Have they contributed to the
current problem of 5 Ks? Have they
actively cheered and encouraged,
enabled and supported the
purveyors of the 6 Ks? Sila ba ang
TAGA-SULSOL?
Have they been quiet fence sitters
who just allowed the 5 Ks to turn from
bad to worse? Silence in the face of
evil is itself evil (Bonhoeffer). Sila ba
yong mababait pero TAHIMIK sa
masama? Walang paninindigan?
Have they chosen to stay safe rather
than stand up for truth, sovereignty
and human dignity?
Taga-utos? Taga-sulsol?
Tahimik?
God will judge us for the way we
vote. Our children will judge us for
the way we vote. This election is
important for them. Think of them.
Be careful. Be critical. Be
courageous. How would Christ vote?
Vote like Christ. Do not leave God at
the altar. Bring your Christian faith
when you vote.
May Our Lady who appeared to
the three children at Fatima guide
us and show us the face of her loving
Son.
From the Cathedral of Saint John
the Evangelist, Dagupan City, April
28, 2019 Divine Mercy Sunday
+SOCRATES B. VILLEGAS
Archbishop of Lingayen Dagupan
April 27, 2019

‘Stop the killings! Defend life and rights!’

On the violent death of Hon. Bernardino ‘Toto’ Patigas, Sr.
IN the name of the Church community of
the Diocese of San Carlos, allow me to offer
our sincerest condolences to the family of
Bernardino ‘Toto’ Patigas, Sr., a martyr of
the sugarworkers’ struggles in the island of
Negros. He died violently from the assassin’s
bullets last Easter Monday, April 22, 2019
in Escalante City, Negros
Occidental, just a few weeks since the
killing of Negros 14.
In sadness, we all are crying out: End
the Killings! These barbaric and calculated
assassinations must end! We should not
tolerate this kind of crime.
Tay Toto was a dedicated human rights
worker who himself became a victim by
these uncontrolled killings of Filipinos.
He was a devoted church worker. He
was a mission partner of the Carmelites in
Escalante City and a Parish Pastoral Council
(PPC) President of St. Francis of Assisi
Parish in Old Escalante. He tirelessly worked
for the Basic Ecclesial Communities (BEC)
program of the parish.
His faith moved him to serve his poor
brothers and sisters and was admired by the
locals because of his humility and simplicity.
He was a veteran grassroots activist, an
active campaigner against coal in Northern
Negros, and it was ironical that he was
mercilessly killed on Earth Day!
He was a survivor of the 1985 Escalante
Massacre perpetrated by the Marcos regime.
His harrowing experience of the massacre
emboldened him to work more for the cause
of the workers.
His dedication to social justice is highly
commendable, as he selflessly gave his
life serving the oppressed and exploited
sugarcane workers of the Negros island.
With his untiring commitment to the cause
of the poor, he received numerous death
threats and harassment.
Recognizing his wholehearted service to
the masses, the locals elected him as city
councilor of Escalante. As city councilor,
he amplified the voices of the toiling
sugarcane workers, fisherfolks and urban
poor; and organized mass actions, such
as the annual commemoration of the
Escalante Massacre.
Tay Toto helped form the dedication of our
present grassroots leaders and activists. He
showed us the way to care for the oppressed.
The life of Tay Toto is telling us not to forget
our sugarcane workers but to continue
working with them.
Tay Toto has joined the death list of the
lurking evil in our midst, though often
admired among our fellow Filipinos.
May the growing death list disturb the
consciences of the murderers. It is my
ardent prayer that instead of perpetrating
violence, they may open their eyes to the
reality of truth—that life is precious, thatit
is a sin to kill.
Our Catholic community calls for justice
for the death of Bernardino ‘Toto’ Patigas,
Sr. We all pray for the soul of Tay Toto and
for the end of killings.
+MOST REV. GERARDO A. ALMINAZA,
DD
Bishop of San Carlos
April 25, 2019
B6 REFLECTIONS
How can we ever believe that Shepherds, strong in
Jesus is the Messiah? faith and full of love
4th Sunday of Easter, Year C, John 10: 27-30
May 12, 2019
By Msgr. Lope C. Robredillo, SThD
DOES GOD EXIST? Surfing the
internet on the subject, I came
across yesterday an interesting
letter that partly reads: “On whose
order is the sun rising everyday in
the east? What was there before
the Big Bang? Till date, can anyone
stop birth, death, disease and old
age? Science can create atom bombs
but can it ever produce an ant in
the laboratory? Our senses are
imperfect, our eyes cannot see
beyond a certain distance; we have
our own cheating propensities (to
fulfill our selfish desires); thus, the
absolute truth which is completely
spiritual can never ever be estimated
by our tiny senses. God is infinite
and we are infinitesimal. Can a
fish in a well ever imagine how big
Atlantic Ocean is?” To which, a self-
proclaimed atheist retorted: “On
whose order the 3,000 innocents
were murdered in the Twin Tower
of New York? Did a god order to do
the crime?” But I like the concluding
argument of the believer: “Our
eyes are so powerless that it cannot
even see in darkness. We need the
mercy of the “Sun” (God) to see
everything…” This makes it clear
that to believe in him, God has to
touch us first with his mercy, with
his grace.
From the reading of the
Gospel, something similar may be
noted. What will convince us that
The love commandment in Jesus’ vision
for the Church
5th Sunday of Easter, Year C, John 13:31-35
May 19, 2019
By Msgr. Lope C. Robredillo, SThD
WE OFTEN say that Jesus came
to establish a new order: the
Kingdom of God. But what is
to regulate this order? In his
farewell discourse at the Last
Supper, the Johannine Jesus gave
his disciples a “new” commandment
to govern the relationships among
Christians: “Love one another”
(John 13:34). This injunction
is one of the mysteries that the
Church liturgy celebrates on Holy
Thursday. In fact, the first word
in “Maundy Thursday” derives
from the Latin term, mandatum,
which is rendered “command” in
English. Surprisingly, though, the
injunction of love is rather ancient:
“You shall love your neighbor
as yourself” (Lev 19:18). In the
synoptic gospels (Mark 12:28),
Jesus is depicted as combining it
with the Shemma (Deut 6:4) to
specify the greatest commandment.
But what is new in that law? Other
interpreters and preachers argue
that the commandment of love
is new because, unlike the Old
Testament injunction in which the
standard of loving is the self (“as
Jesus is the Messiah? In Matthew,
when the disciples of John asked
Jesus if he was the Messiah, Jesus
said in reply: “Go back and report
to John what you hear and see: the
blind recover their sight, cripples
walk, lepers are cured, the deaf
hear, dead men are raised to life…”
(Matt 11:4-5). Jesus appealed to
his works. In the Gospel of John,
Jesus similarly pointed to his works
as bearing witness that he was from
God. And the greatest of his works
was the resurrection. More than
anything else, it was the resurrection
that unveiled the identity of Jesus
to the early Christian communities:
he is the Messiah of God. Yet, some
questions remain a puzzle. If Jesus
is God’s Anointed, how come, during
his public ministry, the Jewish
leaders did not believe in him? Why
was his messiahship obscure to
them? Why did they persecute him
instead? Why is it that despite the
claims he made (John 8:58; Luke
22:67-70), and for all the signs he
performed (John 3:2; 5:36; 10:25),
the Jews rejected him?
The unbelief of the Jews,
despite Jesus’ revelation and works,
was obviously troubling to John’s
community as it is probably to us.
The present reading (John 10:27-
30) provides us John’s answer to the
problem. If the Jewish leaders did
not believe in Jesus’ messiahship,
you love yourself”), in the New
Testament, the norm of loving is
the way Jesus loved (“as I have
loved you”). Its newness flows from
the way Jesus loved on the basis of
which our love must be compared.
Nothing, however, is farther from
the truth.
To be sure, it may be well to
recall that in the Old Testament,
God established a covenant with
Israel. The covenant entered into
by the people of Israel with him may
be summed up in the formula: “I
will be your God and you shall be
my people” (Jer 7:23b). In their
response to that covenant through
which they were constituted as his
own people, redeemed from the
slavery of Egypt, God gave them the
law to observe. Now, by his whole
life, but specially his passion, death
and resurrection, Jesus initiated a
new order. By his self-giving and
rising to new life, he established
the era of the new covenant. This
teaching forms an integral part of
the Last Supper tradition that finds
a very explicit statement in Luke:
“This cup is the new covenant
the reason for this is not that it
lacked witnesses, but that the Father
did not entrust them to him. “No one
can come to me, unless the Father
who sent me draws him” (6:44).
“The works that I do in my Father’s
name give witness in my favor, but
you refuse to believe because you
are not my sheep” (10:25b-26a). In
contrast, the disciples listened to
him precisely because the Father
gave them to him. Only the one
who belongs to the Father listens
to Jesus: “Whoever is of God hears
every word God speaks. The reason
you do not hear is that you are not of
God” (8:44). Because they belonged
to God the Father, they were on the
side of the truth: “The reason why
I came into the world is to testify
to the truth. Anyone committed to
the truth hears my voice” (18:37).
The disciples followed him (10:14),
and they knew him (10:4). It was
the Father who established the
relationship between Jesus and the
disciples, his sheep. If, on the other
hand, the Jews could not accept
him, that owed to their spiritual
blindness (9:3)—a characteristic of
people who are outside God’s flock
and who are of this world (8:23,47).
Anyone who does not belong to God
and is not committed to the truth
cannot hear his voice or recognize
his messiahship.
Messiah / B7
in my blood, which will be shed
for you” (Luke 22:20b). Which
brings to mind Moses’ words in
the ratification of the old covenant:
“This is the blood of the covenant
which the Lord has made with you
in accordance with these words of
his” (Exod 24:8). And what is the
place of the new commandment
of love in this new covenant? Just
as the Torah or the law served
as the response of the people of
Israel to the old covenant, so the
commandment of love embodies
the new response of the renewed
community of God—the Church—
to his redemptive offer of the new
covenant in Jesus.
In effect, if the 613
commandments—not just 10, by
the way—of God regulated the
life of God’s people under the
old covenant, so the command
of brotherly love is the rule of
life of the community of brothers
and sisters in Jesus. It regulates
the relationship among those
who were born from the side of
Jesus’ resurrection. In John, the
Church / B7
April 29 - May 12 , 2019 Vol. 23 No. 9
4th Sunday of Easter, Year C, John 10: 27-30
Good Shepherd Sunday, May 12, 2019
By Fr. Sal Putzu, SDB
BEING mostly a shepherding
people, the Israelites/Jews enjoyed
thinking of the Lord as their divine
“Shepherd.” They expressed their
faith and trust in God’s provident
care and protection by singing:
“The Lord is my shepherd, there
is nothing I shall want . . .
I fear no evil!” (Ps 23:1.4)
And the Lord did take care of
his “flock” in all circumstances. In
most cases, however, He entrusted
the ordinary care of Israel to
“human shepherds”: the political
and religious leaders of His people.
These were expected to be the
symbols and instruments of the
fatherly concern which the Divine
Shepherd showed for his people at
all times.
Often, however, the leaders turned
into “bad shepherds” who pastured
themselves, while treating the sheep
harshly. (See Ez 34:3-6.) The Lord
threatened to dismiss those bad
shepherds, and promised to take
care of his own flock personally.
(See Ez 34:11-16.)
Such a promise was fulfilled
eminently in Jesus Christ, the
Son of God- made-man. In his
short earthly existence, through his
teaching, his miracles, and his loving
kindness, Jesus showed himself
in innumerable instances that he
was, indeed, the good shepherd
who really cared for his “flock.”
Eventually, he went to the extent of
laying down his life for his sheep,
thus living up to the definition of
“good shepherd” which he himself
God’s partners in creating
a love-driven world
5th Sunday of Easter, Year C, John 13:31-35
May 19, 2019
By Fr. Sal Putzu, SDB
WE Christians have something
wonderful to look forward to: a
totally “new world.” This will consist
in a condition of perfect happiness,
characterized by the absence of any
form of suffering and by the deepest
experience of God’s saving presence.
(See today’s Second Reading,
especially vv. 3-4.)
Such a world, so different
from the present one, will not be
the product of man’s ingenuity,
planning, or efforts. By ourselves,
we are incapable of creating our
own heaven. We are even unable
to conceive it in our imagination,
for we do not know what is really
fulfilling for us.
The “new world” we eagerly
await is the creation of God’s love
for us. He alone knows what can
make us really happy forever. He
alone can make this plan a reality.
Ye t , s u c h a n e w w o r l d a n d
new Jerusalem will not simply
be a priceless gift distributed
indiscriminately to all men,
including those who persistently
reject it. God treats us as adults.
He respects our freedom and
values our cooperation. He
actually solicits it, gently and
constantly. He wants us to be the
ones who supply the labor, while
He supplies the planning, the
bricks, the mortar and the stones
needed to build the “world” in
which alone we will feel at home.
In this way, the world without tears,
CBCP Monitor
had given. (See Jn 10:11.)
After his resurrection, Jesus
did not forget his “little flock” of
frightened disciples. First of all, he
reawakened in them their faith in
him, which had been badly shaken
by the events of his Passion and
Death on the Cross. Knowing that he
would not be visibly present among
them any longer, he entrusted them
all to the care of Peter, the chief
“deputy shepherd” (see Jn 21:15-17),
and of all the other apostles (see Mt
28:19-20), and their successors.
They were to watch over the whole
flock which the Holy Spirit had
entrusted to their care. That meant
they were to shepherd “the Church
of God, which Christ has acquired
at the price of his own blood” (Acts
20:28).
These human shepherds are the
ones who, all through the centuries,
and in all communities, have been
given the task of strengthening the
faith of the other believers and of
making visible the caring presence
of the eternal Shepherd, through
their dedication, their patience, their
concern, their selflessness. These are
the people called to be “sacraments”
of Christ’s shepherding love. We
need many of these lamb-shepherds,
for our needs are plenty. But
especially we need to see that their
faith is strong and that they are
holy—that they resemble him, the
Holy Lamb and Shepherd, as far as
their human frailty allows. For this
intention, we are invited to pray
today in a special manner.
death, mourning . . . will be not only
a gift from God, but also the fruit of
our cooperation.
In practice, then, the “new world”
will be the result of two loves: God’s
love for us, and our love for Him
and our neighbor. This is quite an
uneven partnership, for there is no
comparison between God’s role and
ours. Yet, it is God Himself who has
chosen us as His “partners.” Such has
been His will and pleasure. It is His
love which transforms our suffering
and feeble efforts into a humble
contribution to the building of the
“house of love” that we call “heaven.”
That final result will be like a
splendid flower blossoming out of a
dark, small, unattractive seed – the
seed of our life on earth . . . . The vital
force that makes our poor efforts
produce such a disproportioned
result is our Christ-like love, the self-
sacrificing love of God and neighbor
which Jesus taught his disciples with
his example, even more than with
his words.
A love patterned after that of
Jesus for his disciples is the only
valid passport that will enable us
to enter the “heavenly Jerusalem,”
our true homeland. Without a
Christ-like love, we would feel total
strangers and out of place in God’s
Kingdom. With it, we shall feel
perfectly at home, and enjoy the fruit
of even the tiniest acts of brotherly/
sisterly love done in imitation of
Jesus, “the Teacher of love.”
CBCP Monitor April 29 - May 12 , 2019 Vol. 23 No. 9
Selling children to the sex trade
By Fr. Shay Cullen
HUMAN trafficking is the most
widespread crime against persons
and is the third biggest earning
business in the world after drug
trafficking and arms smuggling.
The earnings are estimated to be 32
billion US dollars a year, according
to a UN report.
Human trafficking is, according to
the United Nations, the “recruitment,
transportation, transfer, harboring,
or receipt of persons, by means of
threat or use of force or coercion .
. . for the purpose of exploitation.”
So bringing anyone to a place
where they are exploited by being
made to work for very low wages
under the control of their boss is
human trafficking. Having brought
a child from one place to a secluded
place and being alone with that child
and not being a close relative of the
child is a crime under the Philippine
child protection law otherwise known
as Republic Act 7610.
The trafficker and the receiver of
the person being exploited are guilty
of violating the law. An estimated 1.4
million persons in India are victims
of human trafficking and forced
labor. They are trapped in bonded
labor usually to pay off a debt. The
very poor have to borrow to buy food
to live and survive for just a few more
days and then they can’t find work
and are forced to pay off the debt by
working for no wages.
In other developing countries,
young women are lured and trafficked
into the sex industry after they or
their parents have accumulated
debts. At times, the money is given
by the traffickers to the parents of
these young women and they are
told their salary will be sent to the
parents. But most of it never gets
there. It is stolen and the children
and parents are always in debt. The
powerful debt bondage destroys lives
and turns the poor into the slaves of
the capitalist trafficker or the owners
of the hotel or sex bar where they are
sold to work and earn for the owner.
This is the debt trap, a way to get
control, power, and ascendency over
another person or even a nation.
The serious social inequality and
the absence of social justice in many
nations is the root of poverty and
the cause of why so many people are
falling victim to human traffickers.
The economies are in the hands of
just one percent of the population.
In the Philippines, it could be
.0001 percent of the population
that owns 70 percent of the wealth
and the means of production and
distribution.
Chalice / B2
Communion. The Priest celebrant
or a concelebrant is never to wait
until the people’s Communion
is concluded before receiving
Communion himself.
“98. The Communion of Priest
concelebrants should proceed
according to the norms prescribed
in the liturgical books, always using
hosts consecrated at the same Mass
and always with Communion under
both kinds being received by all of
the concelebrants. It is to be noted
that if the Priest or Deacon hands
the sacred host or chalice to the
concelebrants, he says nothing; that
is to say, he does not pronounce the
words ‘The Body of Christ’ or ‘The
Blood of Christ.’”
Although, as mentioned in the
commentary cited above:
“Theological opinion has not been
in agreement on whether the
consecration of only one of the
elements suffices for the validity of
the Mass,” I personally believe that
the arguments and practice tend
toward a negative response to the
question. That is, the consecration
of the bread brings about the Real
Presence of Christ, but the sacrifice
of the Mass is not validly celebrated
because of the lack of both species.
For example, moral theology
books from the early 20th century
Church / B6
most decisive, distinctive mark
of Christian discipleship, which
sets Christianity from other world
religions or humanisms, is not so
much doctrinal characteristics as
fraternal love. “This is how all will
know you for my disciples: your love
for one another” (John 13:35). It is
also the Christian epiphany to the
world. Christ is no longer physically
In France, the billionaires have
donated hundreds of millions
overnight to the rebuilding of Notre
Dame Cathedral, evidence that
they have the money and will get
big tax relief for their so-called
“donations”. The poor are critical of
that system where so much is given
to a rebuilding fund when thousands
live in French poverty in a broken
corrupt society.
The poor are gullible, unreflecting
and react to the latest exciting news
be it fake or otherwise. They believe
it and act on it in an emotional
response. Not a reflective one. Then
there are these criminals that stalk
the land preying on the vulnerable
and the needy. The promises sound
so plausible and the poor fall for
the lies and deceitful sales talk.
They unknowingly sign up to a
non-existing job and end up in the
human slave market of an insidious
dark secret world where the tyrants
are gang-masters. It’s like falling
into a deep well with no way out.
sometimes addressed the question
of how to proceed if a priest got sick
immediately after consecrating the
hosts. The common response was
that another priest could take up the
Mass from that point on.
If this were not immediately
possible, then the books indicated
that all consecrated hosts and the
unconsecrated chalice were to be
placed in the tabernacle until a
priest could come and finish the
Mass. The hosts were not to be
distributed to the faithful until
the sacrifice was completed by
the other priest consuming both
species.
Although at least as far as I know,
such detailed casuistry has not been
addressed in recent documents,
the above procedure would still
be the most theologically sound
solution in such a case.
The point is not the particular case,
however, but the fact that such
reasoning points to the importance
given to the consecration and
consumption of both species for
the integrity of the sacrifice of the
Mass.
Because of the grave nature of
this question, the diocesan bishop
and/or religious superior should
be informed in all cases so that
he can engage in an appropriate
present among us, but the evidence
that he is alive is the love that
fills up the Christian community.
(Infrastructural projects are not an
evidence of Christ’s presence in the
parish.) And as such, the brotherly
love injunction ceases to be a
commandment. It really becomes
a way of life that characterizes
the community of disciples. It
In the Philippines 60,000 women
and minors are estimated by UNICEF
to be victims of human trafficking
into sex trade. Other sources say
as many as 100,000 are victims
if not many more. Worldwide,
as many as 42 million people are
victims of human trafficking and
most of them are women and 33
percent are children. It is a secret
dark business run by criminals
and so true statistics are hard to
come by. Accurate government
figures are rare and Philippine
police numbers are very low since
few investigations are carried out.
The rate of convictions is minimal
and so the victims, many of them
children, go unnoticed or even
ignored. International figures are
just as elusive.
The traffickers are men and
women who can recruit minors even
children into begging syndicates or
to cyber-sex operators with ease
or bring them to sex tourists to be
abused. Then it’s all about money,
investigation and, if possible, help
the priest return to sound practice.
Thus Redemptionis Sacramentum:
“178. Hence whenever a local
Ordinary or the Ordinary of a
religious Institute or of a Society
of apostolic life receives at least a
plausible notice of a delict or abuse
concerning the Most Holy Eucharist,
let him carefully investigate, either
personally or by means of another
worthy cleric, concerning the facts
and the circumstances as well as the
imputability.
“179. Delicts against the faith as well
as graviora delicta committed in the
celebration of the Eucharist and the
other Sacraments are to be referred
without delay to the Congregation
for the Doctrine of the Faith, which
‘examines [them] and, if necessary,
proceeds to the declaration or
imposition of canonical sanctions
according to the norm of common
or proper law.’
“180. Otherwise the Ordinary should
proceed according to the norms
of the sacred canons, imposing
canonical penalties if necessary,
and bearing in mind in particular
that which is laid down by canon
1326. If the matter is serious, let him
inform the Congregation for Divine
Worship and the Discipline of the
Sacraments.”
pervades the community, formed
by individuals of new heart and new
spirit, in fulfillment of Jeremiah’s
prophecy: “But this is the covenant
which I will make with the house
of Israel after those days, says the
Lord. I will place my law within
them, and write it upon their hearts;
I will be their God and they shall be
my people” (Jer 31:33).
power, domination and control by
the male sex-starved tourist. The
cyber-sex customer is remote in
another country watching a child
being abused online and pays by
courier.
It is a horrible crime. Both
traffickers and the child sex
customers are without moral values
or conscience and the traffickers
and recruiters make a lot of money
by tricking, cheating, and luring
these young people away from their
homes or wherever they live into
situations where they are trapped,
abused, and exploited.
The human traffickers are
sometimes members of a national
or an international syndicate or
network. The leaders order the
trafficking of vulnerable desperate
people for cheap or slave labor and
then smuggle them across borders
into other countries where they
work in slave-like conditions. That
is the plight of those in refugee
camps and cannot find work to earn
Messiah / B6
Though the Jewish leaders
rejected him, Jesus remains the
true Messiah. John adduces
three arguments. First, Jesus
cares for his sheep: he knows
them (vv14,27), he is united with
them, lays down his life for them
(v11), and gives them eternal life
(vv10,28). Jesus stands in contrast
with the messianic pretenders—
the false messiahs of Jesus’ time,
insurrectionaries, and probably
even the Teacher of Righteousness
at Qumran--who were actually
thieves and robbers; they came
to steal, slaughter and destroy
(v10). John’s portrait of Jesus as
the Messiah who gives his life for
his sheep is akin to the Markan
Messiah—the Crucified Messiah-
-who came not to be served but
to serve and to give his life as
a ransom for all (Mark 10:45).
Second, even if attacked, the
believers cannot be torn because
Jesus is the model shepherd who
cares for them, and the Father
protects them. It is for the Father
that Jesus acts. Because the Father
is powerful, none of them will be
snatched away from God, none
will be lost. One is reminded of
the sapiential claim: “The souls of
the just are in the hands of God,
and no torment shall touch them”
(Wisd 3:1). The Father and Jesus
are one in protecting them, and
their protection is very strong,
because they are one is power and
operation (John 10:30). Finally, by
way of implication, the prophecy
that God will become the shepherd
of his people finds fulfillment in
Jesus. It may be recalled that in
the history of Israel, kings who
were impious were denounced as
wicked shepherds (see Jer 10:21;
23:1; Ezek 34:5-6; 1 Kgs 22:17).
SOCIAL CONCERNS B7
and pay back the debt. Debt is a
crushing force that squeezes the life
out of millions of people in an unjust
and unequal world dominated by
criminals in government and outside
of it. Many officials are in collusion
with the human traffickers and
people smugglers. The people have
nothing to sell but their bodies
and the bodies of their children.
The dirty business becomes sex
trafficking and slavery.
So long as there is man-made
poverty, injustice oppression and
corruption there will be human
traffickers and people traders.
Many people cry for justice, reform,
positive change on a variety of
important issues but slavery and
human trafficking has to be the
top priority. When we do all we
can to advocate and act to protect
the children and the poor, we
become more human, people of
principles and values and we can
bring freedom and justice for many
victims.
But Ezekiel foresaw a time when
God himself would shepherd his
flock: “I myself will look after and
tend my sheep… You, my sheep, you
are the sheep of my pasture and I am
your God, says the Lord God” (Ezek
34:11.31).
In effect, the recognition that Jesus
is the Messiah does not depend on
our own knowledge from textbooks,
from our own search, or from
documentary evidence. If people
do not accept Jesus, his teaching
and works, it is because they have
not been given over by the Father
to Jesus. The acknowledgement
is a gift from the Father. It is he
who makes the initiative in giving
us the faculty to see it—the eyes
of faith. Those who are given
this gift find it easy to see in this
human Jesus, in this crucified
“criminal”, the Messiah of God.
No wonder, in Matthew’s account
on the question of Messiahship,
we are told that when Peter said
to Jesus that you are the Messiah,
the Son of the living God, Jesus
quickly added that the Father gave
Peter the insight as to who He
was (Matt 16:16-18). If we have
this faith, we can easily recognize
his voice. We do not even need
empirical evidence. And once we
are in him, we are assured that
nothing can separate us from him,
though pernicious evils may come:
“Who will separate us from the
love of Christ? Trial or distress
or persecution or the sword?…
Neither life or death, neither
angels nor principalities, neither
the present nor the future nor
powers, neither height nor depth,
nor any other creature will be able
to separate us form the love of God
that comes to us in Christ Jesus our
Lord” (Rom 8:38-39).
B8 ENTERTAINMENT
Shazam
Director: David F. Sandberg
Lead Cast: Zachary Levi, Asher
Angel, Mark Strong, Jack Dylan
Grazer
Screenwriter: Henry Gayden
Producers: Peter Safran, David
Witz Editor: Michel Aller
Musical Director: Benjamin
Wallfisch
Cinematographer: Maxime
Alexandre
Genre: Fantasy, Super Heroes
Distributor: Warner Bros.
Location: Pennsylvania, USA;
Ontario, Canada
Running Time: 2 hr 11 min
Technical assessment: 3.5
Moral assessment: 3.5
CINEMA rating: V13
MTRCB rating: PG13
Two young boys lead
parallel lives. Billy (Asher
Angel) wanders away from
his mother in an amusement
park and gets lost. He ends
up in one orphanage, then
another, and another, in
a constant search for his
mother. Eventually he finds
out that she turned around
when she saw him with the
the cops that day at the
park, because she —  a single
mother  —   c ouldn’t take the
responsibility of raising
him. Billy realizes his only
family now, the one that
genuinely embraces him, is
not his blood relative but his
foster family. The other boy,
Thaddeus (Ethan Pugiotto),
is slammed by his father
and bullied by his brother
for being a weakling. Fate
takes him to a temple where
he is put to test: can he be
guardian of an all-powerful
staff and supernatural
sphere that restrains the
Seven Deadly Sins? He fails.
Billy ends up in the same
temple. The dying wizard,
running out of options,
impels Billy to take the job.
Billy becomes the accidental
superhero Shazam (Zachary
Levi). Thaddeus becomes
the evil Dr. Sivana (Mark
Strong) who wants to seize
power and rule the world.
Shazam’s absurdities make
us laugh, helplessly in some
scenes. And they should be
appreciated as that: absurd.
Because when we give them
further thought, we suck the
fun out of them. There’s a
disconnect between the young
Billy who is secretive and
cautious and the flippant
almost irresponsible Shazam
that he becomes. What
accounts for that change, the
Breakthrough
DIRECTOR: Roxann Dawson
CAST: Chrissy Metz, Josh Lucas, Topher Grace, Mike Colter,
Marcel Ruiz, Sam Trammel, Dennis Haysbert
SCREENPLAY BY: Grant Nieporte
BASED ON: The Impossible by Joyce Smith with Ginger Kolbaba
PRODUCER: DeVon Franklin
GENRE: Biography, Drama EDITED BY: Maysie Hoy
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Zoran Popovic MUSIC BY: Marcelo Zarvos
PRODUCTION COMPANIES: 20th Century Fox, Fox 2000
Pictures, Franklin Entertainment Unanimous Media
DISTRIBUTED BY: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
COUNTRIES: United States
RUNNING TIME: 1 hour 50 minutes
Technical assessment: 3 Moral assessment: 4
CINEMA Rating: V-14 MTCRB Rating: PG
On Martin Luther King, Jr.
Day, 14-year-old high school
athlete John Smith (Marcel
Ruiz) goofs around with two
buddies — just for kicks — on
April 29 - May 12 , 2019 Vol. 23 No. 9 CBCP Monitor
Buhay San Miguel Brothers Matias
TERIBOL OG Bladimer Usi
story does not say. Nor does it
explain why Thaddeus’ father
Buhay Parokya
is so cruel to him. We watched
Levi and Strong in other FIND 3 MISSING THINGS:
movies, and they deliver. In 1. ST. PETER’S BASILICA
Shazam, however, their acting 2. ST. JOHN PAUL II
is contrived. What we bleat 3. HOLY MARY
about the most is this: Shazam
has the power to generate
lightning, but the screen does
not show that blinding flash
of electricity. The movie has a
shortage of lighting. CGI also
is a bit crude, the monsters
look straight out of a horror
theme park.
So what’s the value in
watching Shazam? For one,
it shows that the ability
to give parental love and
nurture is not exclusive to
biological parents  —   f oster
parents can, too. Shazam
plays up the role of family
in cultivating character
and interdependence. It
demonstrates how family can
shape children into the kind
of adults they will become by
portraying two parallel lives of
the boys who are both rejected
and abandoned. Billy finds
love and belonging not with
his mother, but in his foster
family, and once he realized
that, he “shazammed” into a
superhero with a big heart.
Thaddeus, so wanting of the
family that nurtures and
protects, grew up greedy,
envious and hateful. Shazam
also subtly warns about power
coming too fast too soon in the
hands of youngsters without
benefit of direction from
elders. Now be warned that
the opening scene showing
Thaddeus being castigated
and insulted by his father
and the ensuing car accident
is most dreadful. It plays
up the guilt that may be
magnified in the mind of some
children.
the two, but John is not to be Breakthrough is based struggling underwater. But break from horror movies,
found until after 15 minutes on the Christian novel “The the pulse of the story beats rom coms and superheroes.
later — when without a pulse Impossible” written by to the rhythm of the real life The movie’s trailer would
and apparently lifeless, he Joyce Smith herself with medical record which reads: keep skeptics, atheists, and
is rushed to the hospital. Ginger Kolbaba. The movie’s “Patient dead, mother prayed, nonbelievers away, but the
The ER staff tries to revive spine is Metz’ impassioned patient came back to life.” movie could act as a spur
him but to no avail —  s till performance as a mother Although the movie does to those facing seemingly
“no pulse” despite their best on the brink of hysteria not intend to be a science insurmountable problems.
effort. The doctors stop their pleading for the resurrection vs. religion thing, it makes Producer De Von Franklin
resuscitation attempts only of a son who did not even no attempt at intellectually says of the movie’s good
when the boy’s mother Joyce come from her womb. Maybe satisfying the audience, but intentions, “I believe it will
(Chrissy Metz) arrives; they Metz owes her fire partly rather seems quite content remind people that miracles
LANGUAGE: English allow her in the room “to say to Roxann Dawson who in being part of a trend of the are still happening. It will
goodbye”. Joyce’s forceful accepted the director’s job increasing popularity of faith- remind us of the power of
nature would not allow her as she resonates with Joyce based movies. prayer.” CINEMA throws
to accept her son’s demise so Smith’s experience — herself A positive response to in a gentle reminder, lest
easily. With the energy and having adopted a child from Breakthrough could be due this miracle story mislead
frozen Lake St. Louis, ignoring determination of a charging China who had to be rescued to its timely release — just the greenhorns: prayer is not
the warnings of a nearby bull she grabs her son’s feet from sure destruction. weekend before Holy Week. simply asking God for
adult. Soon enough the ice and storms the heavens to Some footage could be It is billed as the story of the miracles, thus one’s faith
cracks, swallowing the trio. bring him back to life. Then, breathtaking, like that of the power of a mother’s love and should not hinge on the
Rescuers come and retrieve John’s pulse returns. ice cracking and the boys’ prayer, certainly a welcome granting of favors.
 Ugnayan
THE NEWS SUPPLEMENT OF COUPLES FOR CHRIST
CBCP Monitor. Vol. 23 No. 09 April 29 - May 12, 2019 C1

CFC HOLD: Sparkling, Shining, Radiant!

By Alma Alvarez
The radiance of the Son
Over the darkness won
Jesus, Light of the world
Shine in our hearts
Look up to Him in praise
And be radiant
Lift up your hands in praise
Let us shine like the Son
These are the lyrics of the CFC
Handmaids of the Lord Interna-
tional Conference theme song,
which resonated in the hearts
of all the participants on the
weekend of April 26 to 28. The
5,500 HOLD delegates indeed lit
up the Alonte Stadium in Binan,
Laguna all through the activi-
ties, beginning with the HOLD
International Missions Summit
on the morning of April 26, to
the Friday fellowship and the
conference proper on Saturday
and Sunday.
Sparkling
During the International Missions
Summit on April 26, CFC President Mi-
chael Ariola welcomed the delegates on
behalf of the CFC International Council.
In his welcome address, Ariola reminded
the HOLD international delegates to
expose themselves to the Son for healing
and strength and to one another in order
to radiate the aroma of Jesus.
Ruel Aguirre gave a overview on
inculturation, emphasizing the need
for CFC to use symbols and familiar
images familiar to people that will
allow them to share the Catholic faith
and accept the CFC culture. This is
very much how Jesus Himself shared
His radical principles to fishermen,
farmers, Samaritans, and sinners dur-
ing His day.
The summit ended with a round
table discussion on the importance
of inculturation in the mission of
CFC HOLD.
Radiant like the Son
During the conference proper, the
speakers reflected on the darkness sur-
rounding the world, and on how the
light of Christ may dispel this darkness.
In Session 1, Jean de Paz of HOLD
USA spoke about the beginning of light,
and how the glory of God manifests His
nature of being light. The relationship
between God the Father and Jesus, the
Son, is likewise likened to the relation-
ship between light and radiance.
The radiance of God’s love is mani-
fest in many ways—in the radiance
of His creation, the radiance of His
Word, the radiance of the Holy Eu-
charist, and the radiance of the Cross.
Darkness may seem to prevail, but
the faithful should look forward with
faith to God’s eternal Kingdom, that
“did not need sun or the moon for
light, since it is lit by the radiant glory
of God…, the lamb a lighted torch for
it.” (Revelations 21:23-24)
Deana Griño, in Session 2, spoke
about a world plunged in darkness as
a consequence of the original sin of
Adam and Eve. Their downfall caused
paradise to be lost, man to lose his radi-
ance and darkness to fall into the world.
Deana spoke of the darkness of the
heart, spiritual darkness, the darkness
CFC HOLD—always shining, sparkling, radiant, clockwise from top left: HOLD delegates hold out their candles for the world to see; Bishop Broderick Pabillo
of heavy afflictions, and also darkness celebrating the Sunday Mass; the Ruby Reunion of Session 3; putting on the radiance shawl; HOLD International Missions leaders during worship; the HOLD
in the Church and society as a whole. International Core; Bishop Buenaventura Famadico of the Diocese of San Pablo celebrating the Friday Mass; the HOLD ICON team singing for the delegates.
But Griño emphasized that in darkness,
As they reminisce their younger days, reminds the class of the only true way Mendoza shared, “God did not pick
the greatness of God is manifest and they discover that each one struggles out of darkness—Jesus. As the evening to shine only in Paul’s heart, but also
magnified, as mentioned in Isaiah 9:2:
with darkness—the wife whose hus- deepens, the classmates are left with in ours. Let us respond in the same way
“The people who walked in darkness band has been keeping a mistress, the memories of the times when life was as Paul did, to cross the from darkness
have seen a great light; those who dwelt
separated woman, the (still) single simpler, and recognizing that faith in to light, to be in the Lord.”
in a land of deep darkness, on them has woman, the solo parent. God can lead them out of the darkness In Session 5, HOLD International
light shined.”
To cope with these heartaches, the into a life of renewed hope. Coordinator Edythe Avendaño re-
Session 3, titled “Hearts in the Dark” classmates joined the New Age move- In Session 4, Nenette Mendoza of minded the Handmaids that becom-
was presented by way of a musical, the
ment, jumped from one relationship HOLD Switzerland reminded the ing light means sharing Jesus’ light to
plot revolving around characters play- to another, partied with the girls and delegates to allow the light of Christ others everywhere, not hiding the light
ing high school classmates going to
hang out with the boys… to once again radiate, and to live as under a bushel.
the ruby reunion of an all-girl school. However, their old class adviser children of light. “As women, Hand-
HOLD ICON, p4

National Youth Day 2019: Be like Mary

TO IMITATE Mother Mary's obe-
dience to God's will—this was
the avowed goal and spirit of the
six-day pilgrimage of participants
at the National Youth conference
held in Cebu City from April 23-
28. Among the 20,000 pilgrims
from all over the country were 54
members of Youth for Christ.
The pilgrimage had as theme
“Servants of the Lord,” anchored
on Luke 1:38, when Mary, respond-
ing to the angel Gabriel’s news of
her being chosen to be the mother
of the Savior, replied: “Behold, I
am the servant of the Lord; let it
be done to me according to your
word.” The pilgrims were reminded,
at every stage of their pilgrim
journey, to be like Mary, obedient
always to the will of God.
Onward to Holiness
His Excellency Most Rev. Jose S.
Palma, D.D., reminded the pilgrims
to "to rekindle the desire in their
hearts to be holy and serve God's
people" and to "continue to be bear-
ers of faith and true Christians."
Called to say yes
The National Youth Day featured
a forum where the participants were
enabled to realize the purpose of
their lives. The forum reminded
everyone not to be afraid to say yes
to God because saying yes to God
means a more joyful life.
Using Biblical verses, saying yes
to God means:
• We let go of our fears and trust
in His plans. (Joshua 1:9)
• We acknowledge that He works
in us and it doesn't matter who
we are. (John 15:16)
• We allow His mercy and love
to transform us and make us
worthy to do His work. (Ephe-
sians 2:4-5)
The conference underscored five
things that the youth can do so that
they can indeed find the courage to
say Yes to the Lord:
First, the youth need to learn
more about God by reading the
Bible, studying their faith and at-
tending recollections and retreats.
Second, they need to nourish their
prayer life by scheduling prayer
time, praying the Rosary, starting
a prayer group and praying for
others. Third, they need to speak
about God by becoming a catechist
in their area, using social media and
modern tech to spread the Good
News and by defending their faith
when necessary. Another approach
is to serve and volunteer, using
their talents and skills to serve the
Church, pursuing their passion
and interests in helping others
and encouraging others to step
up as well. The fifth is to consider
their vocation NYD 2019 p2

MC TEACHING NIGHT
THE DIVINITY & HUMANITY OF CHRIST
Bishop Pablo Virgilio David
THE METRO Manila Mission Core gath-
ered for the monthly Teaching Night last
April 19 at the Bishop Rooker Auditorium
of St. Paul College, Pasig City. It was a
meaningful Holy Tuesday activity.
The Most Reverend Pablo Virgilio
“Ambo” David, Bishop of the Diocese of
Kalookan and Vice President if the Catho-
lic Bishops Conference of the Philippines
(CBCP), gave a talk on “The Divinity and
Humanity of Christ”.
Bishop Ambo’s teaching began with a
provocative video of random people an-
swering the question “Sino ang Diyos sa
buhay mo? Para sa iyo, sino si Hesukristo?”
(“Who is God to you? Who is Jesus Christ
for you?”)
Bishop Ambo continued, as an answer
to the question in the video, by reading
from the Letter of Paul to the Colossians
1:15-20:
He is the image of the invisible God, the
firstborn of all creation. For in Him were
created all things in heaven and on earth,
things visible and the invisible, whether
thrones or dominions or principalities or
powers; all things were created through
Jesus and for Jesus. He is in all things, and
CFC SOLD—The Kota Kinabalu Adventure
Christ into their homes and to
the world.
Bishop Pabillo spoke about
“Mary, the First Disciple.” He
in Him all things hold together. He is the emphasized that men should
head of the body, the church. He is the look to Mary the Mother of Jesus
beginning, the firstborn from the dead, and be inspired by her life story
that in all things He Himself might be in answering God’s call.
preeminent. For in Him all the fullness The conference encountered
was pleased to dwell, and through Him to lots of oppression -- change
reconcile all things for Him, making peace of venue after the release of
by the blood of His cross [through Him], the first memo, red eye flight
whether those on earth or those in heaven. schedules, issues on customs,
WHEN we think of Kota tend the 18th CFC International sudden unavailability of rooms,
Jesus—the bridge between divinity and Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia what Catholic Men’s Conference, held transport, late delivery of food
humanity is the first thing that comes to at Sabah Oriental Hotel with its and more. However, all these
The bishop recounted that recently, our mind? Some will remember theme “Be the Light”. did not dampen the spirit of
Pope Francis did something that stunned that Sabah is the territory that The conference was opened the delegates. Despite the in-
many. Towards the end of the retreat for is still being claimed by the Sul- by Holy Mass concelebrated by conveniences, the service team
warring Sudanese leaders, the Holy Father tanate of Sulu. Mountaineers His Grace Most Reverend Datuk did not hear any voice raised in
stooped low and kissed the feet of both will think of Mt. Kinabalu, the John Wong P.G.D.K., D.D. Arch- complaint. The delegates may
parties in a gesture of peace. Pope Francis, tallest mountain in Southeast bishop of Sabah, Malaysia and have had little sleep due to the
through his actions, was being consistent Asia, the peak of which can His Lordship Bishop Broderick inconveniences but when they
with his role as pontifex maximus, the su- only be reached after a two- Pabillo, Auxillary Bishop of entered the conference venue,
preme bridge builder. What Pope Francis day trek and hike into jungles, Manila and CFC Spiritual Di- the hassles the went through
did was a symbolism of the mission to with spitting cobras and giant rector. Acrhbishop Datuk John were nothing compared to the
unify the whole Church. anacondas lying around. Now Wong welcomed the delegates messages they received.
“The Christian is supposed to be an that’s a scary adventure! to Sabah, expressing his surprise The session titles were cre-
expert in destroying walls and building But what happened last March and delight at seeing, for the first atively taken from Bee Gees songs
bridges,” the bishop said. He added, “This 29 – 31, 2019 in Kota Kinabalu time, more men than women like; “I started a Joke”, “Words”,
action includes dialogue, understanding, was a different kind of adventure. attending a religious gathering. “How do You Mend a Broken
and reconcilia- MCT, p2 About 650 people from all over He opined that men should be Heart”, More than a Woman” and
the world came to this city to at- empowered to bring the light of “To Love SOLD ICON, p4
C2
FROM A PASTORAL PERSPECTIVE
Rouquel Ponte
GROWING IN DISCIPLESHIP
EASTER Monday’s Gospel
was from Matthew 28:8-15.
In verse 10, Jesus said to the
women of Jerusalem, “Do not
be afraid. Go tell my brothers
to go to Galilee, and there
they will see me.” This post-
resurrection account relates
to the beginning of John’s
Gospel which we quoted
last month where Jesus in-
vited his first two disciples,
“Come, and you will see.” (v.
39) Galilee was the place of
Jesus’ initial encounter with
His disciples and last Easter
Monday’s liturgy brings
them back to Galilee as a
point of encounter after His
passion, death and resur-
rection. In between, the dis-
ciples enjoyed three years
of growing intimacy and
friendship with Jesus.
How does this relate to us,
His modern-day disciples?
First of all, we are called to
welcome an encounter with
Jesus who makes Himself
available every day and at
all times. He is always wait-
ing to meet us and we are
so privileged for the many
opportunities he initiates to
invite us into His presence.
Jesus does not remain as a
nice memory for us to re-
member every now and then
but He becomes a constant
companion in our journey of
life. We welcome Him as the
Lord of life and He becomes
the source and center of ev-
erything. With Jesus, we find
the courage to face life’s chal-
lenges and to remain firm in
our commitment to imitate
and follow Him. Disciple-
ship entails a willingness
and readiness to choose what
Jesus chooses – a life of sac-
rifice, simplicity, obedience
to God’s will and foregoing
of the pleasures of life.
It is important to return
to the source – to relive in
our mind the decisive mo-
ments of encounter with
Him, to renew our first love
and to savor those moments
of great intimacy. And it
is good to call to mind our
original meeting with the
Lord so we may realize that
this encounter is not some-
thing private between us and
God – it always leads to being
part of the people of God. We
need to allow this to enhance
our life within the Church
and community, that we all
journey together to growing
in discipleship. It matures
when the young and the el-
derly walk together – when
the young rediscover their
roots and the elderly wel-
come those fruits. When we
walk alone, however, when
we remain fixated with the
past or jump ahead trying to
survive, then our faith stag-
nates. In this Easter Season,
let us rediscover the living
Lord amid a believing people
and to allow the charism we
have received to encounter
His daily dose of grace.
This encounter between
God and His people has both
a starting point and destina-
tion point. It begins with an
invitation and a call; in the
end, it arrives at a vision
and a mission. But let us also
emphasize how this call and
mission can be empowered
by the fire of the Holy Spirit.
This is well illustrated by the
NYD 2019, p1
by discerning whether they are
for the religious life, for mar-
riage or for single blessedness,
by being true to themselves and
following their dreams.
Catholic Worship: LIVELOUD
One of the highlights of the
National Youth Day confer-
ence, held on the fifth day,
was the Catholic Praise and
Worship Concert: Liveloud.
The concert is a CFC annual
activity spearheaded by Youth
for Christ.
Keith Janohan, YFC Inter-
national Core member, in-
troduced Liveloud by exhort-
ing everyone to worship God
through Catholic Music. Bodit
Enon, YFC fulltime pastoral
worker, led the 20,000 pilgrims
into worship, challenging them
to be bold in saying yes and to
story of the presentation of
the Child Jesus in the temple.
It is a call that is two-fold: first
is according to the law (Luke
2:22). It is a call of Joseph and
Mary to go to the temple to
fulfill what the law prescribes
– they go in response to God’s
call. But there is a second and
more important call – accord-
ing to the Holy Spirit. It is
the call to Simeon and Anna
which refers to the promptings
of the Holy Spirit to Simeon
and concludes with Anna the
prophetess, who was inspired
to give thanks to God. A young
family (the Holy Family) go-
ing to the temple, called by the
law; two elderly people moved
by the Holy Spirit. What does
this two-fold call, by the law
and the Spirit, mean for our
spiritual life? It means that
we are called to a two-fold
obedience to the law, which
gives order to our lives – and
to the Spirit, who does new and
great things.
And so the first encounter
with the Lord is born. The
Holy Spirit reveals the pres-
ence of God but to welcome
the Lord, we need to perse-
vere daily. Even the best of
charisms, if lacking in an
ordered life, cannot bear fruit.
On the other hand, even the
best rules are not sufficient
without the freshness of the
Spirit. The law and the Spirit
go together.
Our call to grow in disci-
pleship is further deepened
at the start of the public
ministry of Jesus, at Cana
where He transforms water
into wine. There was also
a call to obedience, with
Mama Mary, who says: “Do
whatever He tells you.”
(John 2:5) Jesus asks for
something concrete, he
does not produce the need-
ed wine out of nothing.
He could have done so but
instead he asked for water.
He then asked the servers
to fill six great stone water
jars for the ritual purifica-
tion which recalls the law.
That meant putting around
six hundred liters of water
from the well; time and
effort which may seem
pointless because what was
missing was not water but
wine. And yet, precisely
from those jars filled to the
brim, Jesus draws forth new
wine. And so it is for us:
God calls us to encounter
him through faithfulness to
concrete things – encoun-
ters that draw us to greater
intimacy and friendship
with Him – in silent prayer,
in the Eucharist and Con-
fession, in His Word and
in the people we share life
with especially our loved
ones and the poor. The call
to obedience is also to our
leaders in the Church and
in community.
If we put this obedience
into practice with love, then
the Holy Spirit will come and
bring God’s surprises into our
lives. In practical ways, when
we strive to grow in disciple-
ship, the following happens:
1. The ordinary water of
daily life will be trans-
formed into the wine of
newness and freshness in
our encounter with the
Lord and the people we
go out of their comfort zones to
share Christ to others.
Meeting new families
All the delegates were host-
ed by families in Cebu City,
allowing them to build new
friendships and new memories
not just with fellow pilgrims
from other organizations and
dioceses but with their foster
families. The foster families
that opened their homes and
hearts to the participants were
simple reminders of God’ kind-
ness and generosity.
Fruits of Silence
On the last day of the Na-
tional Youth Day, the con-
cluding Mass was celebrated
by Archbishop Gabriele Gior-
dano Caccia, Apostolic Nuncio
to the Philippines.
meet daily. “In Christ we
become a new creation,
the old has passed away;
behold, new things have
come.” (2 Cor. 5:17) In
God we find the ultimate
meaning and purpose of
our life.
2. God will be enough for
us. We need not look
for anything else – not
asking for more and de-
siring to replace God
with the false idols of
money, power, fame and
position.
3. This will give us a good
vision in life – a simple
lifestyle, keeping the
Lord constantly before
our eyes to see clearly, be-
tween our hands to serve
others more faithfully
and give all the glory due
Him. He is our life and
He is our all!
4. Finally, there is hope for
the future because we see
God present in the world
and when our eyes are
fixed on Him, we will be
empowered to: … deny
ourselves, take up our
cross daily and follow
Him. (cf. Luke 9:23)
When we allow ourselves to
be filled with the Spirit of obe-
dience in our walk with God,
our growth in discipleship
makes a great leap forward.
It will give us the strength
and commitment to counter
mediocrity and devaluation
in our spiritual life; to coun-
ter the temptation to reduce
God’s importance; to counter
a quest for a comfortable and
worldly life; to counter com-
plaints, dissatisfaction and
self-pity; to counter the need
to always do things according
to our will.
To conclude, it is good to
remember:
1. Our life ought to be char-
acterized by a living en-
counter with the Lord
and His people.
2. We are called to faithful
obedience in daily life
and to savor the unex-
pected surprises from the
Holy Spirit.
3. Let us constantly seek
the vision of what to
embrace in order to ex-
perience true joy: JESUS,
the RISEN LORD!
Suggested Prayer Format:
1. Slowly recite the Joyful Mys-
teries of the Holy Rosary.
2. Pause and meditate on
each mystery: The An-
nunciation (Luke 1:26-
38); The Visitation (1:39-
45); The Birth of Christ
(2:1-7); The Presentation
of Jesus in the Temple
(2:22-38); The Finding
of Jesus in the Temple
(2:41-52)
3. Let the Holy Spirit lead
you to focus on one mys-
tery and point you to
a word or phrase that
touches you. Let it be
your Word of Life for
the day, the week or
even for the whole Eas-
ter season.
4. Commit to pray the ro-
sary daily and entreat
Our Blessed Mother to
accompany us towards
her Son Jesus and the new
life we so desire.
In his homily, the nuncio
encouraged everyone to be
not afraid of silence because
spending some time alone and
in silence allows one to enter
into prayer.
He said, "The fruit of silence
is prayer. The fruit of prayer
is faith. It is being in constant
communication with the Fa-
ther, confident that the Father
loves us and never abandons
us. The fruit of faith is love.
The fruit of love is service.
The fruit of service is peace."
He noted that young people
nowadays are afraid of silence
because they are all caught up
with technology.
Archbishop Caccia high-
lighted that the youth should
be more open to silence so that
they will hear the Lord even
more. (Andelene Veloso)
April 29 - May 12, 2018 Vol. 23 No. 09
AQUILA AND PRISCILLA
Why Good Friday is good
IT IS Good Friday and we are alone in our
home. Our children and grandchildren are in
Tagaytay for the Holy Week, and our driver
and housemaids are on vacation. This gives us
ample opportunities for prayer and reflection,
to go to confession, to participate in the Holy
Thursday vigil before the Blessed Sacrament,
and to attend all the Church’s Lenten services,
including reading and reflecting on the Gospels’
passion narratives.
The passion narrative is evidently different
from the narrative of Jesus’ public ministry.
While the ministry narrative basically comprises
a series of vignettes, the passion narrative is a
long (in fact the longest in all the four Gospels)
description of the consecutive actions of Jesus
starting from his prayer at the Garden of Geth-
semane to his crucifixion at the place of Golgotha
and his burial at a nearby garden.
The Gospels are not history. They are distilla-
tions of earlier Christian preaching and teaching
about Jesus. The four evangelists organized mate-
rials from oral tradition in order to communicate
to their different communities an interpretation
of Jesus that would nourish faith and life. All four
Gospels report that Jesus was subjected to a Jewish
legal inquiry after he was arrested and before he
was given over to Roman authority. They also
all agree that a Sanhedrin was involved in Jesus’
death, even though in the Gospel of John this
event happens many days before he was arrested.
If we read the Gospels carefully, we will note
that many events are reported to occur in threes.
The most well-known event reported in all four
Gospels is Peter’s denial of Jesus three times. In
the Synoptic Gospels (Mark, Matthew and Luke),
Jesus is mocked three times as he hangs on the
cross. In the Gospels of Mark and Matthew, at
Gethsemane, Jesus first comes with his disciples
and speaks to them; second, he takes along Peter,
James and John and speaks to them; and third, he
goes off by himself and speaks to God in prayer.
After he has prayed, Jesus returns three times to
find the disciples sleeping. In the Gospel of Mark,
the crucifixion scene covers three time intervals:
the third, sixth and ninth hours. In the Gospel
of John, the inscription “Jesus the Nazorean, the
King of the Jews” are written in three languages,
Hebrew, Latin and Greek.
When we reflect on the Gospel narratives of
the passion of Christ, we detect three basically
different versions: Mark and Matthew, Luke,
and John. While the passion narratives of Mark
and Matthew are for the most part similar, that
of Luke and John are distinctly different. For
example, Mark/Matthew, Luke and John report
three different sayings as Jesus’ last words from
the cross – in Mark/Matthew: “My God, my God,
why have you forsaken me”; in Luke: “Father,
into your hands I commend my spirit”; and in
John: “It is finished”.
Let us ponder on the passion narratives of
Mark and Matthew. Both Gospels speak of a Jew-
ish trial of Jesus and a Roman trial. The passion
narratives in both Gospels are framed by two
prayers. One end of the frame is when Jesus prays
in Gethsemane to his Father to let this cup pass
from him (Mk 14:36, Mt 26:39). The other end
of the frame is when Jesus prays a second time
in Golgotha, “My God, my God, why have you
forsaken me?” (Mk 15:34, Mt 27:46).
The passion narratives of Mark and Matthew
MCT, p1
tion in a world that is so full of conflict, divi-
sion and violence.”
Bishop David warned, “This chasm, like
the one between the rich man and Lazarus,
will be carried over to the next life if we will
not do anything but to add to the widening
of this divide.”
The mission of Jesus, then, is to bridge the
gap, to reconnect heaven and earth, to reunite
humankind with God. Bishop David invited
the Mission Core to meditate on sin and the
restoration of original blessing in Christ; and
on humanity growing in the image of divinity
through communion with Jesus Christ.
Sin and the restoration of original blessing
in Christ
“Sin was a latecomer in the Garden of Eden.
The original intention of God is for this world
to be paradise, not a valley of tears!” Bishop
Ambo explained. He added, “God walked and
talked with humankind; we were family! We
were special to God, as we were created in
His image and likeness!” Simply put, God in-
tended for humanity to share in His divinity.
However, mankind chose the wrong tree in
the Garden. Between the Tree of Life and the
Tree of ‘Death’ or the Tree of the knowledge of
good and evil, man chose the latter, separat-
ing humanity from the God of Life.
What was the effect of this sin? Humankind
was alienated from God, earth was alienated
from heaven. This curse remains until man
learns how to deal with his ‘earthenness’.
Growing in the image of divinity through
communion in Jesus
“Jesus reveals to us the mystery of divin-
ity—that there is one God, existing not in
isolation, but a communion of Persons—the
God who creates (the Father), the God who
redeems (the Son), and the God who sustains
(the Spirit),” Bishop David said. He added,
“We are called to reflect this one God of three
Persons, by being ourselves creative and never
destructive, bringing about order from chaos,
not vice versa.”
Man is created to be a co-creator, endowed
with intelligence and imagination, enabling
him not just to see things in their actuality,
but also in their potentialities. Only love
can make humanity creative. Sin and self-
CBCP Monitor
emphasize how difficult it is for Jesus to go
through his crucifixion. The humanity of Jesus
is underlined. And the failure of the disciples is
underscored. A central message of the Gospels
of Mark and Matthew is that if Jesus found it
difficult to accept the cross, and if the disciples
who were with him for three years and witnessed
his miracles all failed to follow Jesus in bearing
the cross, then we too will find it difficult and,
like the disciples, will flee. Yet we are given the
assurance that the Father who vindicated Jesus
will also be our vindicator when our final hour
has come and our Golgotha looms before us, if
like Jesus we get up and have the courage to say
“Let us go” (Mk 14:42).
The passion narrative in the Gospel of Luke has
significant differences from the narrative in the
Gospels of Mark and Matthew. In the Garden of
Gethsemane, Luke has Jesus come back only once
to find the disciples sleeping, and Luke does not
report a scourging of Jesus by the Roman soldiers.
The Lucan passion narrative reports about the
appearance of Jesus before Herod (Lk 23:6-11),
the women who were mourning and lamenting
on Jesus’ way to Golgotha (Lk 23:27-31), and
the conversation of Jesus on the cross with the
repentant criminal (Lk 23:39-43). These are not
reported in the Gospel of Mark.
The Gospel of Luke begins with praise of
God in the Jerusalem Temple (Lk 1:5-23) and
ends with “they were continually in the temple
praising God” (Lk 24:53). Luke’s passion narra-
tive portrays Jesus as prophet and martyr who
heals and forgives. As Jesus has healed many
during his public ministry, he also heals the
ear wound of the high priest’s servant who has
come to arrest him. And as Jesus has forgiven
the sins of many during his ministry, he also
forgives those who crucify him since they know
not what they do.
The passion narrative in the Gospel of John
is significantly different from the narratives of
Mark/Matthew and of Luke. While the Jesus of
Mark/Matthew is mocked on the cross and the
Jesus of Luke is forgiving, the Jesus of John is
triumphant. Unlike in the Synoptic Gospels, the
Jesus of John does not die alone. Near the cross
are his followers including his mother and the
beloved disciple. On the cross the Johannine Jesus
is aware that he has completed what Scriptures
have foretold. He knows that he has fulfilled all
that the Father has given him to do. Thus before
giving over his spirit, he says, “It is finished.”
He lays down his life of his own accord. Finally,
while in the Synoptic Gospels Jesus is buried in
seeming haste, in the Gospel of John he is buried
in a manner worthy of a king.
In the passion narrative of Mark, Jesus appears
to be a victor only in the eyes of God. In the
narrative of Luke, he seems to be a victor only
in the eyes of his believing followers. But in the
Gospel of John, Jesus is clearly a victor for all of
mankind to see.
Jesus victory over sin and death is the narra-
tive that tells us the identity of Jesus. Being truly
human we can relate to him. Being truly divine,
we can go to him for help. It is the narrative that
gives courage to all those who are persecuted or
abused by the rich and the powerful. It is the nar-
rative that gives hope to the poor, the marginal-
ized, and those who live in the fringes of society.
It is the narrative that makes Good Friday good.
ishness will, on the other hand, make man
destructive.
Likewise, man is called to reflect the re-
demptive God, with a mission to carry out
the fullness of salvation through Christ’s
mission of redemption, hating the sin, loving
the sinner and desiring the salvation of all.
Bishop Ambo shared, “For man to reflect
the redemptive God, he must realize that the
real enemies are not fellow human beings, but
the battles we fight are spiritual.”
“It is easier to save those who are good,
more difficult to save the sinners. There is a
price to pay, and that price is Jesus’ own life,
His own blood,” the bishop added.
The cross then becomes mankind’s key
to heaven. It is the Tree of Life. It is the
antidote to the poison of sin and death.
Romans 5:8 says so: “God proved his love
for us in that while we were yet sinners, he
died for us.”
Lastly, humanity is called to image the sus-
taining God by becoming himself sustaining.
By the power of the Holy Spirit, the Church
of saints and sinners alike remains to do the
Father’s creative work and the Son’s redemp-
tive work, until Kingdom come, until the
fullness of salvation.
“When we profess the four actions of
the Spirit, namely, believing in the Holy
Catholic Church, the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins and the body and
life everlasting, we proclaim the sustaining
actions of the creation and redemption. We
proclaim the Jesus is alive in you and me!”
Bishop Ambo shared.
In conclusion, Bishop David challenged
the Mission Core: “This Easter Season, I en-
courage you to meditate on 1 Corinthians
15, on the meaning of the resurrection of
Jesus. Why? Because the resurrection is the
proclamation of our faith, that death cannot
have the last say on the disciple of Christ any-
more… Because you proclaim that the Lord
is risen, death has no power over the body
of Christ. “In him all things were created in
heaven and on earth, visible and invisible….
In him all things hold together. (Colossians
1:16-17) Through him all things are recon-
ciled, making peace by the blood of his cross…
whether those on earth or in heaven. (Colos-
sians 1:20)” (Alma Alvarez)
CBCP Monitor April 29 - May 12, 2018 Vol. 23 No. 09 C3

BRIDGING THE GAP

Joe Tale

Holy Week in a Foreign Land

OUR schedule in Rome has been full,
thankfully. After coming back to
Rome in February and readjusting,
especially to the winter weather, we
proceeded to resume the mission. We
gave CLP talks, went on two mission
trips to Switzerland to give a leader's
retreat and speak in their National
Conference, spoke in a similar confer-
ence in Italy, went on a mission trip
to Greece, and welcomed guests from
the Philippines, USA, and Canada in
our CFC Vatican office/residence.
And on Holy Week., it was a time to
be quiet, to be more reflective of God's
words and leading, for self, family,
CFC, and country.
We attended Palm Sunday Mass in
St Peter's Square, with Pope Francis
presiding. While there were a few
palm leaves, most of the crowd, in-
cluding us, waved olive branches and
leaves, for that is what abounds here
more than palm trees.
I quote here part of Pope Francis'
Palm Sunday message, in the English
translation:
"By His entrance into Jerusalem, He
shows us the way. For in that event, the
evil one, the prince of this world, had
a card up his sleeve: the card of trium-
phalism. Yet, the Lord responded by
holding fast to His own way, the way
of humility...(Jesus) knows that true
triumph involves making room for
God and that the only way to do that is
by stripping oneself, by self emptying."
"One subtle form of triumphalism is
spiritual worldliness, which represents
the greatest danger, the most treach-
erous temptation threatening the
Church" (quoting from French Cardi-
nal and theologian Henri de Lubac).
Chrism Mass, Maundy Thursday
We thought we would just spend
Maundy Thursday mostly reflecting
at home, but with the tickets provided
us by Ambassador Grace Princesa, we
were able to join the faithful inside St
Peter's Basilica for the Chrism Mass
presided by Pope Francis.
Babylou and I were joined by Julie
Poyaoan, wife of Alex, our CFC Italy
Country Head.
It is always inspiring to see the
Pope, and we saw him rather up close,
as he was marching to the altar in
the processional. The Chrism Mass
was solemn, and long, as expected.
It was also in a language we did not
understand, and yet, there was a uni-
versal language of faith that united
us all inside that basilica. It was the
presence of the Holy Spirit speak-
ing to our hearts. In fact, I thought I
recognized some familiar words and
phrases from the Pope's homily.
No wonder, as I later got a copy of
the English translation, the Pope used
as basic verse for his homily, the pas-
sage from Luke 4:16, where Jesus read
from the prophet Isaiah, "The spirit
of the Lord is upon me, because he
has chosen me to bring good news to
the poor...". This is the very first bible
verse we share with the participants
in a CLP, in the Orientation Talk!
The Pope talked about "four large
groups who are the preferred benefi-
ciaries of the Lord's anointing: the
poor, the blind, the oppressed, and
captives." Pope Francis was giving the
congregation the Orientation Talk in
our CLP!
Visita Iglesia, Maundy Thursday
Part of our Holy Week tradition in
the Philippines is to go on a Visita Igle-
sia on Maundy Thursday, that is, to visit
seven churches. This tradition, we were
advised, takes off from the request of Je-
sus for the apostles to stand watch while
he went off to pray by himself. The
apostles, however, fail to keep awake
and fall asleep. The visita is a gesture to
accompany Jesus in prayer and not fall
asleep. This is done in seven churches
because there were seven places the
Jews and the Romans brought Jesus to
during this rush of events that led to
his passion and death.
Our small group included Alex
and Julie Poyaoan, two Handmaids,
Marina and Merlene, and Babylou
and me. We started out in Basilica di
Santa Pudenziana, also the center of
the Filipino Chaplaincy in Rome. It
is one of the oldest churches in Rome,
built above the ruins of what used to
be the residence of the Roman Sena-
tor Pudenze. Legend has it that the
Senator was befriended and eventually
converted to Christianity by St Peter
who used to stay in his house. Senator
Pudenze had two daughters, Puden-
ziana and Prassedes, who both became
saints and who each had churches
named in their respective honor.
We then prayed at the Church of
Bambino Gesu, or of the Child Jesus. It
is a small church, just obliquely across
the street from Santa Pudenziana.
Our third church was the Basilica di
Santa Maria Maggiore, a well known
landmark, and the fourth biggest
church in Rome. The parish priest of
this church is Cardinal Rylko, who
used to to be the head of the Pontifical
Council of the Laity.
We then walked to and prayed in
our fourth church, the old church of
San Vito, another small church, tucked
into one of the side streets of Rome.
The fifth church we visited and
prayed in was the Church of San
Marcello e Pietro. We then drove to
St John Latteran, the center of the
papacy before St Peter's Basilica was
built. It is the third largest church
in Rome, next to St Peter's, and St
Paul's Basilica outside the walls. It
is a majestic church which hosts the
relic of the table used by Jesus during
the Last Supper.
To cap our Visita, we walked across
the street from John Latteran to the
church of the Scala Santa, the Sacred
Steps. The Scala Santa refers to the
marble steps in the palace of Pontius
Pilate that Jesus walked on as he was
being led to meet Pilate. The steps
have thus become sacred. These Scala
Santa, the table of the last supper, and
a few other relics, were transported
from the Holy Land to Rome upon
the direction of St Helena, mother
of the Roman Emperor Constantine,
who was converted to Christianity,
and thus made Rome the governance
center of the Faith.
Good Friday
Ambassador Grace Princesa got
us tickets and access to St Peter's
Basilica, to attend the Liturgy of the
Passion of the Lord, the Adoration
of the Cross, and the Communion
Rite, all presided by Pope Francis.
Ambassador Grace so arranged it
that Babylou and I got in through
the special entrance reserved for
diplomats and other special guests.
We sat on the seats to the left side of
the main altar, reserved for special
guests. That in itself was a blessing,
and so we sat contentedly at the back
part of the area. Just then, one of the
ushers came to where we were seated
and asked us to transfer to the front
seats. Of course we did not complain,
and so we ended up seated closest to
and with an unobstructed view of the
main altar where most of the rites
were done. Another blessing to be
thankful for.
What was a bit of a surprise, though,
was that the homily was not delivered by
the Pope, but by Fr Rainerio Cantalam-
essa, Capuchin, Preacher to the Pontifical
Household. It was a moving homily.
Taking off from Isaiah 53:3, where
it was prophesied that the Messiah
was despised and rejected by men,
he went on to say that Jesus was
the "prototype and representative
of all the rejected, the disinherited,
and the discarded of the earth". He
emphasized that this description
did not just begin at Jesus' passion.
Throughout his life, from his birth, he
had been part of this group. "Through
the manner of his incarnation, he
made himself one of the poor and
rejected, and embraced their cause."
And after he was brought to Pontius
Pilate, and experienced scourging at
the pillar, he also became "the proto-
type of handcuffed people, alone, at
the mercy of soldiers and thugs who
take out the rage and cruelty... on the
unfortunate poor." When Jesus hang
on the cross, he became "the symbol
of "the humiliated and insulted".
But the Gospel does not end there.
It goes on to say that "the Crucified
one is risen. In Him a total reversal of
roles has taken place: the vanquished
has become the victor; the one judged
has become the judge... The final word
is not and never will be injustice and
oppression. Jesus not only restored
dignity to the disinherited of the
world; he also gave them hope!”
Fr Cantalamessa concluded that
from these, the Church has two his-
torical tasks:
1. To stand with the poor and the
weak, to be the voice for those
who have no voice.
2. Not to remain silent in the face
of the situation that is there for
everyone to see.
I cannot help as I read this homily,
but to think of the situation at home,
in the Philippines.
How is the Philippine Church
standing up to these two tasks? How
is every Filipino Christian, lay or
clergy, who carries the name of Christ,
measuring up to these two tasks?
Easter Vigil
This is the highlight of Holy Week,
but we missed attending the actual
Easter Vigil rites in St Peter's Basilica.
This was held at 8:30 pm, and would
end up too late in the night to be
walking along the streets of Rome. As
with the Via Crucis the night before,
we followed the tested old reminder,
"prudence is the better part of valor".
We did the next best thing, though,
follow the event via EWTN TV live.
We have to concede, doing the
Easter rites at night produces a more
dramatic effect. The contrast of dark-
ness into light, which Easter is vs. the
gloom of Good Friday, the transition
from the tomb-like quiet of Saturday
evening bursting into the exultative
Hallelujah greeting to the Risen Lord,
is better experienced than just read
and heard.
The homily of Pope Francis did
not disappoint. Reading the English
translation later, we found it a most
moving discourse.
Easter Sunday, Urbi et Orbi
We now come to the HOLY WEEK, p4

CFC – OSM Conducts CLP at PMA
SIXTY-ONE graduating Catho-
lic cadets composed of 38 males
and 23 females completed the
Second Christian Life Program
(CLP) on 28 April 2019 at the
Philippine Military Academy
(PMA) in Baguio City.
The conduct of the CLP was
initiated by the Couples for
Christ – Order of St. Michael
(CFC- OSM) in close coordina-
tion with the PMA Command
Chaplains, LTC (Rev. Fr.) Carl
Buslon for Sessions 1 to 4 and
LTC (Rev. Fr) Jose Luis (Non-
ong) Ricafort for Sessions 5 to
9. All the participants had at-
tended the Character Enhance-
ment Module 1: Only for The
Brave (CEM 1) also conducted
by CFC – OSM in 2015.
To support OSM for this
CLP, CFC mobilized its Metro
Manila Sectors under the lead-
ership of Mike Bukuhan. They
were joined by the SFC team
led by Jerel Superable, SFC
ANCOP Program Coordina-
tor; CFC/SFC Benguet through
Provincial Area Director Ed
Aratas and PMA OSM Coor-
dinator, Jun Unson. CFC/SFC
Pampanga also assisted in
several sessions.
The first session entitled,
God‘s Love Revealed through
Jesus, was conducted last 23
September 2018 with South B
as service team. Session 2 on
Establishing a Strong Relation-
ship with God: Repentance,
Faith, Forgiveness and Healing
was held on 28 October 2018
with Central A as service team
while Session 3 on The Chris-
tian Ideal: Loving God and Lov-
ing Your Neighbor was done on
25 November 2018 with West
B assisting. Session 4: The
Christian Family was given on
24 February 2019 with Central
B as the support group.
Sessions 5 to 9 were con-
ducted the whole day of 28
April 2019. The OSM Core
Team, led by its Program Head,
Col. (Ret.) Art Alabanza; Vice
Program Head and Service
Head for Army, Air Force, NBI
& AFPRESCOM, MGEN (Ret.)
Willy Ona; and Service Head
for Navy and Marines, VADM
(Ret.) Jess Millan together with
CFC/SFC Benguet, CFC / SFC
South A, West B and East A,
came to serve in these remain-
ing CLP sessions.
1CL Jerivan Cambangay
expressed that they would be
leaving that very night for
their on-the-job training (OJT)
and the CLP was God’s way
to make them feel that they
would be safe. PMA CLP, p4
ON THE RISE: GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY
HELD FOR ANCOP-SMDC SALCEDOVILLE
SALCEDO, Eastern Samar —
The much awaited ground-
breaking ceremony for ANCOP-
SMDC Salcedoville community
finally happened on March 21,
2019. This is a major housing
project by SM Development
Corporation (SMDC) and CFC
ANCOP Global Foundation
together with the Municipal-
ity of Salcedo, Eastern Samar,
SM Foundation Inc. (SMFI),
Board of Investments (BOI),
Don Bosco ONE TVET Philip-
pines, and Couples for Christ
Eastern Samar.
The socialized housing proj-
ect site is a two-hectare land
situated at Brgy. Tagbacan for
300 families; all victims of su-
per typhoon Yolanda in 2013.
The event started with a
ribbon-cutting ceremony fol-
lowed by Holy Mass presided
by Msgr. Alfredo Amistoso
from the Diocese of Borongan.
He affirmed that day’s Gospel
about Lazarus and the Rich
Man. He said, “This is just
one of the instruments of the
church, this pabahay to bring
people closer to God.” He also
commended CFC ANCOP’s
noteworthy effort to transform
the home partners’ lives with
their Christian Life Program.
Mayor Melchor Mergal ex-
plained that he has been pray-
ing that he would be able to
build and restore the broken
hopes and dignity of the people
in his municipality, noting that
his own family had survived a
typhoon in his younger days.
For him, Salcedoville is a
dream come true not just for
the beneficiaries, but also for
the entire municipality of
Salcedo.
Looking at the happy faces of
all present in the momentous
event, BOI Gov. Samaniego
affirmed BOI’s objective to
include mass housing in their
investment priority plan.
Fr. Dindo Vitug, Executive
Director of Don Bosco ONE
TVET Philippines, also ex-
pressed his gratitude in being
able to partner with the com-
munity by providing Techni-
cal and Vocational Education
Training to the home partners.
“We know that in TVET, this
is where we can really help the
poor and the marginalized.”
However, since there are still
more poor people out there who
cannot afford to go to their wide
network of centers SMDC, p4
Phil. Army Chief Chaplain honors OSM
THE Character Enhancement
Module 1 conducted on April
11 for the enlisted personnel of
the Philippine Army Headquar-
ters was another success story.
Upon the invitation of Major
Fr. Art Llaso, the Order of St.
Michael conducted CEM 1 for
60 HPA personnel, 41 of whom
were men and 19 women. Of
these, 45 are Catholics and 15
are non-Catholics.
Col. Raul S. Cino, the Philip-
pine Army Chief Chaplain, in
a message read by LTC Ruel
Tungol, CHS (GSC) PA, exhorted
the participants and affirmed
the contribution of CFC in the
ongoing program of the Philip-
pine Army to sustain their Army
Transformation Roadmap. Some
excerpts from the message:
“For almost five (5) years , the
OACCS sustain the implementa-
tion of PACEP to HPA and Philip-
pine Army Major Units (PAMU’s)
for the personnel and wives.
It affirms that Army Transfor-
mation depends not only on the
modernization of weapons, war ma-
chines and equipments but equally
important is the transformation of
people behind the machines.
Thus , the program is assessed
to be a huge contributory factor
to the attainment of the Army’s
overall mission given that the
participants are those actually
executing the operational and
tactical tasks.
The conduct of the program is
in partnership with our religious
support stakeholders, the Couples
for Christ (CFC) in the local, pro-
vincial and regional level.
With this, OACCS (Office of the
Army Chief Chaplain Service) in
partnership with the ever sup-
portive stakeholder CFC-OSM
will ensure that this program
will establish a long term and
sustainable platform for continu-
ing Character Enhancement and
spiritual wellness to PA Personnel
and their dependents.”
Since 2014, the Order of St. Mi-
chael has conducted the module
for 36,248 Philippine Army per-
sonnel, including their spouses.
The one-day activity has made
a big impact on the attitude and
disposition of the participants
by motivating them to build a
personal relationship with God
and God-centered families, by
developing the value of forgive-
ness, and ensuring loyalty to the
Philippine Army organization
where they belong.
One participant, Sgt. Mae Ann
G. Pao, shared, “Marami pong
salamat sa lahat ng bumubuo
ng CFC OSM, sa lahat ng mga fa-
cilitators. Tunay po na malaki ang
maitutulong nito lalo na sa aming
mga trabaho bilang mga sundalo.
Marami kaming nararanasan
na mga pressures lalo na sa mga
seniors namin, pero kailangan
may patience tayo at marunong
umunawa sa bawat isa. Mahalaga
po ito para lalong mag-improve
ang aming character at sana po
maranasan din ito ng ibang mga
kasama namin at ibang ahensya
ng gobyerno. Kailangan din po na-
tin na magdasal sa lahat ng ating
gagawin. Maraming salamat po.”

CFC Signs Agreement with DENR to plant 1M Trees

Ugnayan
THE NEWS SUPPLEMENT OF COUPLES FOR CHRIST
THE Department of Natural Resources and
Environment (DENR) and Couples for Christ
Aside from planting one million trees, CFC
is likewise expected to maintain and protect
signed an agreement with Couples for Christ to the planted seedlings during that period. On
Michael C. Ariola plant one million trees from 2019 to 2021. The the part of DENR, the agency is tasked to iden-
IC Oversight
partnership, signed on April 24, is under the tify the forestlands where the seedlings will
Zenaida A. Gimenez Alma M. Alvarez Expanded National Greening Program (ENGP), be planted and which tree species should be
Editor-in-Chief Associate Editor
embodied in Executive Order No. 193 of 2015. planted. (CFC Global Comm)
Then President Benigno Aquino III signed the
Deomar P. Oliveria Evangeline C. Mecedilla Executive Order creating the EGNP, that aims to
Layout Artist Circulation Staff reforest “all remaining unproductive, denuded,
The Ugnayan News Supplement is published by the Couples for Christ Global Mission Foundation, Inc., with editorial offices at
and degraded forestlands” from 2016 to 2028.
156 20th Avenue, 1109 Cubao, Quezon City. Editorial trunk line: (+63 2) 709-4868 local 31 Direct line : (+63 2) 709-4856 CFC President Michael Ariola and Social
www.couplesforchristglobal.org globalcommunications@couplesforchristglobal.org Development Programs Head Ramon de Leon
signed the agreement on behalf of CFC.
C4 April 29 - May 12, 2018 Vol. 23 No. 09 CBCP Monitor

MEETING CHRIST IN CHIAPAS

CHIAPAS may be the poorest state in
Mexico, but its people hardly manifest the
character of poverty. They warmly greet
you the moment they see you. They are
hard working, as shown by the bountiful
produce of their land. They have a high
percentage of attendance in Catholic gath-
erings. Also, most of them do not spend
their idle time in vices such as gambling.
If ever the men drink, they rarely cause
trouble nor exhibit violence.
Mayans display decency, not taking
food even if available unless it is handed to
them. They are also an appreciative people,
welcoming CFC and acknowledging CFC’s
goal to help and serve them. It was a
complete surprise to us when they cooked
and served balut, malunggay, talong,
ampalaya and puso ng saging to us even if
they themselves don’t eat them. They are
most persevering, waking as early as 4 AM
and walking one to three hours, without
breakfast, to be present at the CFC events.
Their simplicity and purity truly reflect the
image of our Lord Jesus Christ, allowing us
missionaries to meet Christ through them
during our Holy Week mission.
On April 16 to 19, 52 volunteers from
CFC USA, mostly mission volunteers and
medical missionaries, chose to spend Holy
Week in Chiapas, Mexico for an evangeli-
zation and medical mission—the first of
its kind. Six towns in Chiapas were served
in the medical mission, with mission vol-
unteers simultaneously conducting the
Programa Vida de Cristiana (Christian Life
Program), the Junior Kids Day and Senior
Kids Camp for CFC-PPC Niños para Cristo
in Salto de Agua.
PPC-ANCOP Centro-America also
visited the 17 Educational Sponsorship
Program (ESP) college scholars and the five
5 SVD seminarians who are also scholars
under this program.
A total of 3,000 patients were treated
during the medical mission, while 2,000
individuals completed the Mega-CLP.
These are broken down to 501 couples, 175
Singles for Christ, 104 Youth for Christ,
321 Handmaids of the Lord, 161 Servants
of the Lord, and 177 Kids for Christ.
After the mission, volunteer Marie Per-
domo shared, “We thought we knew what
to do when we got there—helping and
giving our time. But the mission taught us
so much more! The stories of the wonderful
people of Chiapas, their ability to give from
their want and not from their excess, being
able to cry and laugh with them… we wish
more people will experience the same!”
For Christine Cerrado, it was a mission of
life lessons and of gratitude. “Our patients,
the people of Chiapas, taught me humility,
contentment and true joy that this world
cannot give.”
Cerrado addressed these words to Sr.
Daryl, a Franciscan missionary nun
whose mission is to walk by the railroad
tracks to assist and care for the migrants
that may have fallen off the cargo train
that runs all the way up north to the
US—“Your humility in helping us to
translate, while quietly serving water to
the patients, was such an example of what
Mama Mary would have been like. You
are an unsung hero, showing me what
Catholicism is all about—responding to
the needs of the people.”
She also expressed admiration for Fr. Jef-
frey, an SVD priest serving Chiapas for 12
years now, who selflessly gives of himself,
pastoring 15 small communities as well as
heading the migrant house to safely care
for the injured.
“This has been truly an experience of a
lifetime and I am humbled by being part
of this great work of ANCOP of answering
the cry of the poor,” Cerrado wrote.
Sustainability has always been part of
the mission of ANCOP USA. For Chiapas,
the mission volunteers organized the com-
munity of 3,000 into two clusters, with
Cluster A having four chapters covering
Centro, San Mateo, and San Pedro, plus 1
YFC chapter. Cluster B, on the other hand,
will have three chapters covering San Lu-
cas, San Juan and San Pablo. Thirty-five
unit heads and seven chapter heads were
installed and trained.
Three local fulltime workers were also
interviewed, in preparation for hiring
them to oversee the community in Chi-
apas. Among the future plans are the pas-
toral visits of sector leaders this month, a
Covenant Orientation in July, an Elders
Retreat and another CLP in January
2020, the first mission of Chiapas lead-
ers to the adjacent state of Oaxaca (CLP’s
and two medical missions) in May 2020,
and three CLP’s and medical missions in
Chiapas (Centro, Poblacion Hospital and
San Pablo) and finally, the inauguration
of CFC – ANCOP Centro America Mexico
Mission Center.
Plans to launch the SVD/PPC-ANCOP
Centro America-Mexico Radio Station in
Salto De Agua are also in the works for
July 2019. The radio station will transmit
Catholic teachings by SVD and Couples
for Christ (PPC) Chiapas Mexcio, hoping
to reach the three towns in and around
Salto Agua de Agua.
The events of Holy Week in Chiapasa
were truly a Christ-encounter, for both
volunteers/ missionaries and the benefi-
ciaries. (Roger Santos)

CFC joins other ministries in Diocesan Family Apostolate HOLD Canada Visits ANCOP Cavinti Site after HOLD ICON
they overcame all these with
the help of the Holy Spirit and
their community.
Day 3 ended with a High
Mass presided by Bishop John
Ryan and the announcement
of Family Apostolate officers,
with CFC's very own Ezekiel
Nyirenda and wife Mary being
elected as the Secretary for the
Family Apostolate for a term of
three years. Ezekiel also serves HANDMAIDS of the Lord (HOLD) leaders from Canada had a lot of energy to spare after the HOLD International Conference, so they
as CFC Malawi Country Head. decided to visit the ANCOP community in Cavinti, Laguna that ANCOP Canada is sponsoring.
After the conference, and as HOLD Canada, led by Ludy Buencamino, spent the afternoon getting to know the prospective home partners, many of whom are new
part of the diocese’s long term graduates of the Handmaids of the Lord Christian Life Program.
EVEN in the far areas of Africa, to Fr. Raymond Mwale of the plans, the diocese arranged a Buencamino gave words of encouragement to the future residents of the site, expressing the group’s joy at seeing the community
almost complete. The homes are scheduled to be turned over in July 2019. (A. Alvarez)
CFC shines! Family and Life Apostolate that national meeting of leaders
Mzuzu is the capital of the CFC has started a movement of the family movements. The PMA CLP, C3
northern region of Malawi in called Family is a Gift and ex- three-day activity must have
Africa. It only has 271,400 plained its dynamics. This led been a huge success, leading to This activity is a reminder for them to always who earlier left for their OJT. He has realized
residents and yet it is the third Fr. Mwale to adopt Family is a the plan to mount a bigger FIG pray and stay close to Him. According to 1CL that his role in life is not just about being a
largest city, in terms of popula- Gift as the conference title. conference next year in Lilon- Kenny Dacuba, the CLP would help to spiritu- soldier but spreading the love of God through
tion, in Malawi. CFC already The weekend activity began gwe, hopefully back-to-back ally prepare them for whatever would happen his service. 1CL Lovely Carolasan thanked the
has a foothold in this city. on the afternoon of Friday, with the Clergy - Lay congress. in their 28-day OJT. 1CL Rhea Dawn Granada entire CLP Service Team for their time, wisdom
The Mzuzu Diocesan Fam- April 26 with Holy Mass and Our mission agenda here thanked the SFC, especially Richie Garcia who and sharings which would help them to be kept
ily Apostolate recently initi- the orientation session. The in Malawi did not at all list has been providing spiritual guidance to them inspired. She requested the CFC family to help
ated the gathering of married following day, the participants CFC’s participating, and even since the time that they were in Fourth Class them through prayers in their military journey
couples from all the 18 parishes listened to four talks – Talk I spearheading, such a wonder- until now that they would be graduating. particularly where they would be deployed.
of the Diocese in collabora- (the Canon on Marriage) given ful gateway activity. But God’s 1CL John Leden Tubongbanua stated that Art Alabanza has designated Bro Jerel as the
tion with four different family by the judicial vicar; Talk 2 grace cannot be outdone. It what he liked about the CLP was that the par- PMA SFC Coordinator and Willy Ona as the
movements namely; Teams of (Raising a Holy Family), one happened, and because the ticipants are given an opportunity to express PMA OSM coordinator to see to it that the 61
Our Lady (TOL), Christian Fam- of the talks in CFC’s Disciples participants from all over the their thoughts and feelings, and be heard. cadets are integrated into various households
ily Movement (CFM), Marriage Weekend, which was of course diocese are looking forward for 1CL Raymond Casibang disclosed that prior wherever they are assigned. OSM will also cre-
Encounter (ME), and, of course! given by CFC; Talk 3 (Manag- more interactions, it will propel to the CLP, his mindset was already on their ate a viber group for PMA graduates that have
Couples for Christ. ing Finances in the Family) further CFC involvement in the departure for OJT, but he was fortunate that he finished CLP together with the CFC OSM leaders.
While the diocese was pre- given by ME and Talk 4 was a parish, and hopefully in other participated in this CLP because it reinforced Before leaving for Manila the next day, Art
paring for this activity, CFC couple from CFM sharing their parishes in this country. (Rico mentally, physically and spiritually what he Alabanza, Jun Unson, Ed Aratas and Fr. Non-
leaders in Mzuzu mentioned family’s life struggles and how Gamogamo) learned during the last four years. 1CL Josellie ong Ricafort met with BGen Bartolome Vicente
Gloriani said that she was glad to express what Bacarro, PMA ‘88, PMA Commandant of Cadets
HOLY WEEK, C3 before prevented her from sharing. Accord- ,and his staff. Art presented the proposed CFC
apex, the finale, the crowning glory of our com- Nigeria, Cameroon, Sudan, South Sudan, Ukraine, ing to 1CL Kate Oresco, prior to CLP, she was OSM Full Spectrum CEP program covering all
memoration of Holy Week - the Resurrection of Venezuela and Nicaragua. He appealed to the Is- looking for an excuse not to participate. She cadet classes with a proposed CLP for the first
our Lord Jesus Christ! raelis and Palestinians to pursue a future of peace was thankful that she attended because she year cadets. The Commandant and his staff
The Easter Sunday mass was celebrated in St and stability. He also expressed his sorrow to those learned a lot. 1CL Maeverick Sacay opined liked the program and promised that they will
Peter's Square, at 10:00 am Sunday morning. who were killed and injured due to bombings in that it was only the Army Group that was able try their best to find a time slot in the currently
Babylou and I jostled our way to receive holy Sri Lanka just a few hours before. to participate in the CLP and urged everyone very busy schedule of cadets where they can fit
communion, and welcome Jesus in our hearts. Once more, my thoughts drifted to our coun- to pray for the Navy and the Air Force Groups the CEP. (Malu Enriquez)
We listened to our leader in the faith as he de- try. While we are grateful we are not in the list
livered his Urbi et Orbi, a message "to the City (of of those severely suffering, we have our own seri- HOLD ICON, p1
Rome) and to the World" carrying with it a special ous problems, and we should all pray and work
apostolic blessing given on this Easter Sunday. It to ensure that we do not deteriorate and be like
is a message to the whole of Christendom, but also those in the list of the Pope. We pray that our
to the whole of humankind. Today, Pope Francis elections in the next few weeks will bring out the
chose to ask all to pray for the many people who good that is in the Filipino.
are undergoing untold suffering due to wars, It is my prayer that we all have been blessed,
conflicts of all kinds, violence, injustice, difficult that we all come out better persons as a result. It
political and economic situation. The list is long is time to translate all our reflections into action.
- Syria, Yemen, Libya, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, For the greater glory of God. Amen.
SMDC, C3
across the country, he announced making the pilot project pos- cilla Padrilan, one of the home
that Don Bosco and CFC ANCOP sible. He encouraged the home partners and a member of CFC
have joined hands to pilot the partners to always have faith Eastern Samar, said, “masayang-
Mobile Training Center (MTC) so and hope in the Lord, as they masaya ako kasi magkakaroon
that the training can be brought are dearly loved by Him. He an- na kami ng sarili naming bahay
to the people. This was piloted nounced that the construction at lupa. Para po sa lahat ng tumu-
last September in Salcedo, Eastern of the houses and sponsorship long, sa Salcedo LGU, sa SMDC, sa
Samar. He also expressed high for 40 scholars under ANCOP ANCOP, sa lahat ng bumubuo na
hopes that MTC would continue Educational Sponsorship Pro- tumutulong sa'min, maraming
to expand and help more poor gram will start immediately. salamat po! Kami po ay magka-
people in the peripheries. Cong. Evardone requested the karoon ng magandang bahay at
Rudy Gaspillo, CFC ANCOP home partners to take care of magandang buhay.” (I am truly
President, thanked everyone the community as an act of their joyful because we finally got our
for moving out of their comfort gratitude to God and to their own house and lot. To all who
zones and extending their reach donors. He assured them that the helped, the Salcedo LGU, SMDC,
to the peripheries, as what Pope government would provide them ANCOP, and for others who are
Francis extols, especially the access to electricity and water. helping us, thank you very much!
partner donors and CFC Eastern The beneficiaries also ex- Because of you, we will have a
Samar for their wholehearted pressed their gratitude to God good home and a good life.) Photos courtesy of Cristy Querido & Joey Tomas
support and cooperation in and to all the partner donors. Pre- (ANCOP Communications) maids of the Lord are called to strong, a good homemaker, and ness. We are to be light-bear-
be the light of the home, a light diligent. ers by fulfilling our ministry
SOLD ICON, p1 to the nations, and a light to As a light to the nations, so we can project the Lord’s
somebody.” The fellowship night was themed “Sat- on as CFC fulltime worker for Luzon. the world,” Avendaño said. She HOLD must take to heart the radiance in every situation,”
urday Night Fever” and got everybody in a dancing After the event, awards were given, including explained, “As the light of the mission to be proclaimers of the Avendaño said.
mode with the CFC Sabah Malaysia leaders. Arnel Biggest Delegation (CFC MM North A Sector) and home, her first duty is to take Good News of salvation to all. She added, “Let the light that
Santos’s household and CFC Agusan del Norte pre- Most Inspiring (CFC Pampanga). care not only of the temporal As light to the world, a Hand- we carry be always rekindled so
sented highly entertaining performances. The weekend may have ended but the take home needs of her family, but more so maid must be ever ready to be we can help others find their
The highly successful conference closed with a insight, expressed by Fr. Dale Ko, Dean of the The- their spiritual needs.” She cited beacon of light to the least, the way out of darkness, into the
praisefest led by Lawrence Quintero and the an- ology Seminar of Lipa, will remain with every one Proverbs 31:10-31 specifically last and the lost, to answer the glorious, radiant light of Christ!
nouncement that the new CFC Servants of the Lord who experienced the Kota Kinabalu experience— to illustrate that the light of the cry of the poor by responding Let us hold our lampstand high
International Coordinator was Willie Padida. Wil- “To be the Light… you have to be a real man, and a home must be godly, must be to the call to serve in ANCOP. and let us light up every corner
lie replaced Joemar Salumbides who has served in real man is someone who has Mary, the mother of the heart of the family, finan- “As light in the Lord, we are of the world and every heart
the ministry for nine years and who will be moving Christ.” (Joemar Salumbides) cially savvy, serves with a smile, mandated to conquer dark- that seeks the Lord!”