Let us start again: Philippine Bishops’ Peace Message
Manila, 31 December 2013: In his New Year message, the leader of Filipino Catholic
prelates prayed on Monday for peace in Syria, the end of kidnappings and violence,
and the “conversion of the corrupt.” Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas,
president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), also called
on Catholics to lead a life of conversion and abandon “old and evil ways” as they
welcome 2014 filled with faith and hope. Villegas’ message, “Let us start again,”
which was posted on the CBCP website, was punctuated with calls to stop violence and
corruption that perennially hound the country.
End terrorism, violence
“We pray for an end to kidnappings, we pray that violence stop. We beg for the
end of terrorism and the conversion of the corrupt,” Villegas said. “We pray for
peace in Syria, healing for every troubled heart. We pray for typhoon victims that
they can soon rise up and start,” he said.
Feast of peace “Today is
the feast of peace, that all may live as one. We pray that war may end and hunger
may be gone. We pray that the reign of terror and the power of each gun be melted
by the mercy of God and the Blood of His only Son,” he added. Villegas noted the
relevance of welcoming the new year with a positive disposition, saying that it is
important to grace new beginnings by looking back with gratitude and perceiving the
future filled with faith and hope.
Feast of Mary “Behold the Lord makes
all things new, God of new beginnings. We look at the year behind us with gratitude
for its blessings. We look at the new year eagerly, hoping for the best to come. We
believe in His tender love, secure in the embrace of His Son,” he said. Villegas
also urged the faithful to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose motherhood is being
celebrated in the special season of the birth of Christ. “Today is the Feast of
Mary, we celebrate her motherhood. The baby she conceived in her heart and carried
in her womb, that baby is truly God-man, we believe and we proclaim, He has made our
hearts His home; to obey His will is our aim,” Villegas said. In his own message,
Bishop Efraim Tendero, national director of the Philippine Council of Evangelical
Churches, urged Filipinos to welcome 2014 “expecting the best.” Confidence “[The
year] 2014 comes with challenges, uncertainties and difficulties, but we can face
them with confidence because of the faithful and abiding presence of God in all the
days ahead of us,” Tendero said.Source: CBCP