Keep God in the life of the Philippines, says Pope

“Above all, keep God at the centre of life” of the Filipino people, Pope Benedict XVI told bishops Friday morning as he received the second batch of Church leaders from Asia’a most populous Catholic nation. Led by Archbishop Palma of Cebu, the bishops were eager to hear the Pope’s words, as they look for inspiration to “face the many concerns that confront us in the Church”.

Speaking in English the Holy Father replied “While the Philippines continues to face many challenges in the area of economic development, we must recognize that these obstacles to a life of happiness and fulfilment are not the only stumbling blocks that must be addressed by the Church. Filipino culture is also confronted with the more subtle questions inherent to the secularism, materialism, and consumerism of our times. When self-sufficiency and freedom are severed from their dependence upon and completion in God, the human person creates for himself a false destiny and loses sight of the eternal joy for which he has been made. The path to rediscovering humanity’s true destiny can only be found in the re-establishment of the priority of God in the heart and mind of every person”.
Pope Benedict continued that “keeping God at the centre of the life of the faithful” is the great task of evangelization in across the Philippines. In this light he mentioned the basic ecclesial communities which “have had such a positive impact throughout the country”, urging the bishops “to take special care in shepherding such groups, so that the primacy of God may remain in the forefront”. This primacy , he said “is of particular importance when it comes to the evangelization of youth”, noting that “only true friendship with God will break the bonds of loneliness from which our fragile humanity suffers and will establish a true and lasting communion with others”.

Pope Benedict also praised the growth in vocations to the priesthood and religious life, particularly among young people, as well as the vocation to Christian marriage. However he underscored that in many dioceses the number of priests and the corresponding number of parishes is “not yet sufficient to meet the spiritual needs of the large and growing Catholic population”.

Finally, addressing the Pope Archbishop Palma spoke of the upcoming 5th Centenary of the evangelization of the Philippines, and on behalf of his people and brother bishops invited the Pope to visit his “sons and daughters in our country and in our continent”.

The third group of bishops from the Philippines is due to begin the Ad Limina visit Monday February 21^st.