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IN what is perhaps their biggest

public appeal to date, 81 CatholicChurch leaders have resoundedtheir plea to the country’s chiefexecutive and to Congress to“give new life and glorious finish”to the 27-year-old Comprehen-sive Agrarian Reform Program(CARP) by passing the twinmeasures House Bill 4296 andHouse Bill 4375 for the sake ofFilipino farmers.

Immediate passageIn a recent two-page letter to

President Benigno S. AquinoIII (PNoy), the prelates led byCatholic Bishops’ Conference ofthe Philippines (CBCP) President

 Archbishop Socrates B. Villegasof Lingayen-Dagupan, call onmembers of Congress to “im-

mediately pass the two proposedlaws… which are in various stages

of consideration in the Senate and

the House of Representatives.”HB 4296 seeks to renew the

Department of Agrarian Reform(DAR)’s authority to issue noticesof coverage and provide adequatefunding for support services to ag-ricultural landholdings that havenot yet been placed under CARP,while HB 4375 aims to create anindependent Agrarian ReformCommission to review the actualaccomplishment of CARP andinvestigate circumventions andviolations of the CARP Law witha view to cause these landholdingsto be redistributed to qualifiedbeneficiaries.

Priority measureIn June 2014, President Aquino

certified as urgent the passage of

HB 4296. While the House has

MonitorVOLUME 19NUMBER 5PHP20.00

PROTAGONIST OF TRUTH, PROMOTER OF PEACE 

March 2 - 15, 2015 

CBCPMONITOR.COM CBCPMONITOR@CBCPWORLD.NET

CBCP

SUPPLEMENT ISSUE UGNAYAN: THE NEWS SUPPLEMENT OF COUPLES FOR CHRIST

81 bishops renew Church’scall for CARP

Nassa ‘Yolanda’ rehab gearsup for next phase 

 A leas t 1,790 new shelter s were con-structed and 205 houses were repairedas Caritas Philippines’ three-year masterplan to rebuild areas devastated by supertyphoon Yolanda plan is well underway,with phase one nearing completion thisMarch.

 Archbishop Rolando irona, CaritasPhilippines national director, said this is

 just the beginning of the three-year pro-gram, which started last April across ninedioceses severely affected by Yolanda.

Continuing commitment “Tis is the realization of our commit-

ment to rehabilitate the lives of the survi-vors after the typhoon’s devastation. Ourdream to rebuild resilient communities isslowly coming to life,” irona said.

Based on the third quarter report, watersystem and sanitation facilities, as well ashygiene promotion trainings were alsoprovided to 36,913 individuals.

Te agency, more locally known as theNational Secretariat for Social Action-

Bishop’s demand:Transparency,

accountability on

P87-M Tubbataha

repairs

BISHOP Pedro D. Arigo of thePrelature of of Puerto Princesaexpresses hope that transparencyand accountability will be exercisedwith regard to the Php 87-millionwhich the United States (US)government had paid in fine forthe damages its vessel, the USSGuardian, had caused the ubba-taha Reefs National Park in 2013.

Tubbataha watchTe prelate said given the culture

of corruption eating away at thecountry’s system, he cannot helpbut raise the alarm on how authori-

Negotiation is thesolution’—bishop

FOR head of Church’s liaison body, car-rying out peaceful dialogue remains thebest way to deal with the BangsamoroIslamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), fearingthat launching an all-out offensive againstrebel groups only spawns more problemsthan it solves.

In a recent interview, Manila AuxiliaryBishop Broderick S. Pabillo told Church-

run Radyo Veritas government officialsmust persuade BIFF members to sit downwith them at the negotiating table.

“Negotiation must seriously be con-sidered. Offensives are no good … If thegovernment is able to negotiate with MILF[Moro Islamic Liberation Front], why notwith BIFF?” he said.

CBCP body echoes call forOFWs’ homecoming from

countries of conflict 

HE Catholic Bishops’ Confer-ence of the Philippines (CBCP)’sEpiscopal Commission on Migrant

and Itinerant People (ECMIP)echoes the public appeal for the

repatriation of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs ) remaining inLibya, Syria, Yemen, and other for-

eign countries with reported cases

Tagle reminds faithful: Pray,

 fast, do acts of charity

MANILA Archbishop Luis Anto-nio Cardinal agle on Wednesdayreminded the Catholic faithful ofthree acts they must do in fittingobservance of the Lenten season—praying, fasting, and doing acts of

charity to the poor and needy.“his Lenten season, let us all

remember that God truly loves us.In response to this love, where dowe place ourselves? Is it in God orto other things that could lead usastray?” agle said in his homily dur-ing the Ash Wednesday Mass held at

the Arobispado de Manila chapel.

Transparency, A6

Negotiation, A5 Nassa, A6

Homecoming, A6 Bishops, A6 Remind, A6

Caritas Philippines constructed 1,790 new houses for typhoon Yolanda survivors and their families aspart of a three-year master plan for rehabilitation.

OFWs have their baby christened in war-torn Benghazi, Libya.

Pope puts family at the

center of social justice, A3

WHAT’S INSIDE

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople embrace during their meeting at the French School in ParañaqueCity on Feb. 27 2015. Patriarch Bartholomew was on a two-day visit to the country along with French President Francois Hollande to advocate against climate change aheadof a crucial summit of world leaders that France will host in December. They also met survivors of typhoon Yolanda in Guiuan, Eastern Samar seeking to sound the alarmon global warming.

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CBCP raises concerns on‘anti-discrimination’ billBy Roy Lagarde

THE Catholic hierar-chy has raised con-cerns over an “anti-dis-crimination” measure

which, according tothem, may affect theirrights to determinewho should be admit-ted to priestly forma-tion, among others.

 Archbis hop Socrates Villegas ,president of the Catholic Bishops’Conference of the Philippines,asserted matters such as whoshould be admitted to seminar-ies and ordained are within the“exclusive sphere of competence”of the Church.

“he Church asserts its exclu-sive right to determine its owncriteria and to exclude even onthe basis of sexual orientation andgender identity if it finds these tobe hindrances to the fidelity that

is expected or ordained or con-secrated persons,” Villegas said.He pointed out that the Con-

stitution guarantees such rightunder the “free exercise” clause ofthe fundamental law of the land.

Villegas said that same “liber-ty” to determine their own admis-sion and retention policies mustbe enjoyed by Catholic schoolson the basis of the constitutionalguarantee of academic freedom.

ColonizationIn his recent visit to the Philip-

pines, Pope Francis warned theFilipinos against the “ideologicalcolonization” of the family.

Concerns, A6

Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick S. Pabillo

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During Lent, pope offers

handy tips for preparing

 for confession, B1

 

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A2 CBCP MonitorMarch 2 - 15, 2015, Vol. 19. No. 5WORLD NEWS

Vatican Briefing

New statutes for economic reform are in effect at the VaticanStatutes of the Vatican Council for Economy, Secretariat for theEconomy, and General Auditor went into effect March 1, havingbeen signed Feb. 22 by Msgr. Bryan Wells, assessor of the Secretariatof State. Te text of the statutes have not been released by the HolySee Press Office, but can be seen in the Vatican’s Courtyard of SanDamaso, where they are displayed. Te statutes of the Secretariat forthe Economy stressed over which Vatican bodies the Secretariat ex-

ercises its functions of financial control and oversight, and clarifiedits relations with the Council of the Economy. Te statutes of theCouncil for the Economy clarify functions and competences of theCouncil. Cardinal Wilfrid Napier of Durban, one of the membersof the Council for the Economy, told CNA Feb. 13, “the Councilfor the Economy will be mostly entrusted with providing financialpolicies that the Secretariat for Economy will then foster.” (CNA)

 Turkish border closed as Christian hostages in Syria spike to 250Te number of ISIS hostages in Syria has increased to at least 250after continued attacks on Christian villages, and civilians fleeing tothe urkish border have been stranded when not allowed to cross.“Tere are 200 families who were running away and trying to escapeto urkey, but the border is closed for Syrians. No Syrian can crossinto urkey,” Archbishop Jacques Behnan Hindo told CNA Feb.26. Archbishop Hindo oversees the Syrian archdiocese of Hassake,which is located in the Al-Hasakah region of Syria. Te region sitsbetween the country’s borders with both urkey and Iraq. He spoketo CNA in French over the phone with a patchy connection fromhis diocese in Syria, where internet is currently down, saying that

ISIS has continued its assault in the area, raising the number ofhostages to more than 250 after an estimated 90 were kidnappedduring attacks earlier this week. (CNA)

Swiss Guard: We are ready to defend Pope from ISISTe commander of the Pontifical Swiss Guard says the group ofsoldiers charged with protecting the Pope is on high alert andready to act if any threat from ISIS materializes. “We are readyto intervene. Our job is security. and as gendarmes we are wellorganized. We are ready if anything happens,” said Cristoph Graf.

 At age 54, Graf is married with two children. Yet he and the othermembers of the Swiss Guard are willing to lay down their lives toprotect the Holy Father. In an interview with the Italian daily IlGiornale, published on Feb. 18, Graf responded to threats from ISISmilitants, who stated in a recent video, “We will conquer Rome.”“We have asked the guards to be on higher alert, to watch howpeople are moving. We can’t do more than that,” Graf said. (CNA)

If you are in organized crime, you are not a Christian, Pope says

 You cannot call yourself a true believer if you participate in orga-nized crime, Pope Francis told members of the Cassano all’Joniodiocese in Italy on Feb. 21. No one, the Pope said, can “callthemselves Christians and violate the dignity of the person; thosewho belong to the Christian community cannot program or carryout acts of violence against others and against the environment.”“Jesus never invited demons to lunch, no he chased them away,because they are evil,” he said, emphasizing that Christ and evilare incompatible. Mere external signs of devotion which are notcoupled with a true and “public” conversion “are not enough to beconsidered in communion with Christ and His Church,” Francisstressed. “External gestures of religiosity are not enough to creditas believers those who with the malice and arrogance typical ofcriminals, make lawlessness their lifestyle,” he said, calling those af-filiated with criminal organizations to a conversion of heart. (CNA) 

 Vatican condemns leak of documents on differences over economic reform As Pope Francis and Vatican officials try to completely revamp theVatican’s economic policies and the procedures at what is commonlycalled the Vatican bank, differences of opinion are normal, but leak-ing documents about those discussions is illegal, said the Vaticanspokesman. “Te fact that complex economic or legal issues are thesubject of discussion and diverse points of view should be considerednormal,” said Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the spokesman, in anote published late Feb. 27. Te spokesman’s comments came afterthe Italian magazine L’Espresso published three articles allegedly il-lustrating how “power struggles between the most important prelatesare placing the reforms of Pope Francis at risk.” Te articles particu-larly target Australian Cardinal George Pell, head of the Secretariatfor the Economy. Te leaked minutes of a meeting of cardinals, themagazine said, show top Vatican officials are concerned about a lackof checks and balances as the cardinal gains more power over Vaticanspending, hiring, income and revenues. (CNS)

Child protection expert named head of Malta archdiocese A month after naming him president of a Vatican board hearingappeals in clerical sex abuse cases, Pope Francis tapped AuxiliaryBishop Charles J. Scicluna of Malta to be the new head of thearchdiocese. At a news conference that began moments after hisappointment was announced Feb. 27, Archbishop Scicluna, 55,said that since hearing the news five days earlier, “I wouldn’t say I’vehad sleepless nights, but I’m not sleeping as peacefully as before.”He succeeds Archbishop Paul Cremona, who resigned for healthreasons in October at the age of 68. Te Archdiocese of Maltahas been operating at a deficit for years and Archbishop Sciclunasaid the first thing he will do is “listen to the people who alreadyhave done a lot of work” studying how chancery operations can berestructured to reduce the deficit and improve efficiency. (CNS)

Pope names St. Gregory of Narek a doctor of the church A 10th-century Armenian monk has been named among the doc-tors of the church. Pope Francis approved the designation for St.Gregory of Narek during a meeting Feb. 21 with Cardinal Angelo

 Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes. Te churchconfers this designation on saints whose writings are considered tooffer key theological insights for the faith. St. Gregory of Narek isconsidered one of the foremost figures of Armenian theology andthought, and many of his prayers are included in the ArmenianDivine Liturgy. He was born in 950 in the Armenian town of

 Andzevatsik, located in present-day urkey. He entered a mon-astery at a young age and was ordained a priest at 25. He lived at

the monastery at Narek his whole priestly life and taught at themonastic school. His best-known writings include a commentaryon the Song of Songs and his “Book of Lamentations,” more com-monly known as “Narek.” “Narek” is considered his masterpiece.St. Gregory died in Narek around 1005. St. Gregory brings thecurrent number of doctors of the church to 36. (CNS)

Ukrainian Catholic leader invites pope, says visit could bring peaceTe head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church invited Pope Francisto visit the war-torn nation, saying it would help bring peace. “Itwould be a prophetic gesture that would show the power of prayerand Christian solidarity, give us courage and hope and bui ld a betterfuture for everyone,” said Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, majorarchbishop of Kiev-Halych. On behalf of Catholics, Orthodox Chris-tians and “people of goodwill” in Ukraine, the archbishop personallyinvited the pope, telling journalists Feb. 23 that such a visit would“bring peace to that part of Eastern Europe soaked with the bloodof so many martyrs for the unity of the church.” Te archbishop wasin Rome following an “ad limina” visit Feb. 16-21 in which bishopsfrom Ukraine’s Eastern- and Latin-rite traditions reported to the pope

and the Vatican on the state of their dioceses. (CNS)

 African bishops aim for observerstatus at African Union

 ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, Feb 27,2015—Te African bishops tookthe first step on Monday towardhaving representation at the Afri-can Union, with the appointment

of a liaison between the AU andthe symposium of African bishopsconferences.

Bernhanu amene Woldeyo-hannes was on Feb. 23 appointedhead of the office for relationsbetween the Symposium of Epis-copal Conferences of Africa andMadagascar (SECAM) and the

 African Union. Woldeyaohannes’ Addis Ababa office “will facilitatethe signing of a memorandum ofunderstanding for SECAM ob-server status at the African Union,”the bishops announced. “Tis is inline with the goals of the CatholicChurch in Africa in contributingto the building of a unified, inte-grated, strong, democratic, wellgoverned, developed, prosperous,righteous, peaceful ,and respected

 Africa,” SECAM stated. SECAM

Bishops of SECAM meet with President Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic ofthe Congo, August 2013.

Paraguay archbishop to UN: stop pushingabortion, gay marriage 

 ASUNCIÓN, Paraguay, Feb 26,2015—Archbishop EdmundoValenzeula of Asuncion, Paraguayis demanding that U.N. SecretaryGeneral Ban Ki Moon—who isvisiting the country this week—en-sure that the United Nations doesnot promote abortion, euthanasiaand “gay marriage” in Paraguay.

In a statement posted on Face-book Feb. 25 to mark Ban’s arrival,

 Archbi shop Valenzuela said theParaguayan people wished to ex-tend hospitality to the U.N. leaderbut warned of concerns that theU.N. is putting pressure on Para-guay to accept things that violatethe country’s core values and be-liefs. “Mr. Ban Ki Moon, the secre-tary general of the United Nations,is visiting our country at the officialinvitation of the government,”

 Archbishop Valenzuela said. “Wewelcome him and we offer himthe hospitality of our people. We

hope that Mr. Ban Ki Moon’s staywill be cordial and lead to concreteresults that benefit Paraguayanfamilies, especially those most inneed.” However, he warned, “Wecannot deny our concern regardingthe pressures constantly exerted onthe Paraguayan state, which is freeand sovereign, by so-called ‘U.N.experts,’ many of whom adhere toobscure ideologies that openly con-

tradict our human and Christianvalues.” Tese pressures are relatedspecifically to “very sensitive issuessuch as the natural makeup of thefamily, contraception, abortionand the integral and total protec-tion of human life from conceptionto natural death.” “Faithful to itsfounding spirit, the U.N. needsto respect the cultural tradition ofpeoples, their core values and theirbeliefs, and recognize that the roleof moral and spiritual mentor-ing belongs to the family and to

religion,” the archbishop said. Hefurther stated, “Te moral strengthof a nation is found in its beliefsand values which, lived in accordwith a healthy integral educationthat takes into account all the di-mensions of the person, must notreject faith, which is a fundamentaldimension of the psycho-social andspiritual structure of the humanbeing.” “Unfortunately, various

recommendations from the U.N.on human rights for Paraguayand other countries include sup-posedly new rights such as thoseproclaimed by radical groups thatare dedicated to promoting thelegalization of abortion, euthana-sia, homosexual and other kindsof unions, with the possibilitythat these couples can adopt chil-dren.” Te role of the Church, heemphasized, is to be an advocate“for children, especially for thosewith some form of handicap and/

or who are still in their mother’swombs and run the serious risk ofbeing thrown out by society if thenew canons of the culture of death,promoted by international agentsat the global level, are accepted,and which legalize what is evilunder the auspices of the State.”“Te Church raises her voice inthe name of the families who arestill living in situations that are

structurally unjust and that mustbe overcome with serious andsustained public policies.” “Whilewe share some common goodobjectives proposed by the U.N.,and as the Church we work in sub-sidiary with the Paraguayan Stateto achieve them, we are nonethe-less vigilant in safeguarding thehuman and Christian values ofour people, so that developmentfocuses on and promotes a full anddignified life for all the inhabitantsof our homeland.” (CNA)

Turkish border closed as Christian hostages in Syria spike to 250ROME, Italy, Feb 26, 2015—Te numberof ISIS hostages in Syria has increased to atleast 250 after continued attacks on Christianvillages, and civilians fleeing to the urkishborder have been stranded when not allowedto cross.

“Tere are 200 families who were runningaway and trying to escape to urkey, butthe border is closed for Syrians. No Syriancan cross into urkey,” Archbishop JacquesBehnan Hindo told CNA Feb. 26. Archbish-op Hindo oversees the Syrian archdiocese ofHassake, which is located in the Al-Hasakahregion of Syria. Te region sits between thecountry’s borders with both urkey and Iraq.He spoke to CNA in French over the phonewith a patchy connection from his diocese inSyria, where internet is currently down, sayingthat ISIS has continued its assault in the area,raising the number of hostages to more than250 after an estimated 90 were kidnappedduring attacks earlier this week. British-basedSyrian Observatory for Human Rights said

uesday that at least 90 Assyrian Christianswere kidnapped by ISIS after militants seizedtwo villages near Al-Hasakah’s city of al-

amr. Te two villages attacked are inhabitedprimarily by the country’s ancient Christianminority. After uesday’s attacks, ISIS hasgone on to claim eight more such villagesover the past three days. Archbishop Hindosaid that today around 4 a.m. “(ISIS) attackedtwo villages, which are a Christian majority.Tey took families from both villages.” Entirefamilies were abducted, he noted, includingfathers, mothers, children and grandparents.He said that the militants took families fromone village, before moving to the second andabducting more from that one. ISIS then tookthe families back to their Syrian strongholdin the city of Sheddadi, which sits roughly 25miles south of Hassake. Archbishop Hindoexpressed his concern for fate of the ISIShostages, particularly the elderly, women andchildren, as well as that of the families whofled to the urkish border, which has beenclosed to all Syrians. So far the Syrian civil warhas forced 3 million Syrians, of all religions, tobecome refugees, with an additional 6.5 mil-

lion internally displaced. And in Iraq, sincethe rise of the Islamic State, there are morethan 1.8 million internally displaced persons.

Te number of displaced persons is expectedto rise after ISIS’s recent attacks in north-eastern Syria. Fighting between ISIS and theKurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) inSyria has intensified in recent weeks. Te YPGhas taken 24 villages as part of an initiativeto recapture the town of al Hamis, whichlies to the east of the two villages capturedby ISIS on uesday, Aljazeera agency reports.Since last month’s recapture of the town ofKobane, which borders urkey, YPG forceshave continued to advance, and have beenactive in Raqa, which neighbors Al-Hasakah.So far they have regained 19 villages in thearea. Although the U.S.-led internationalcoalition, which has backed Kurdish forcesagainst ISIS, carried out a series of attacksuesday near al Hamis that killed 14 ISISfighters, Archbishop Hindo said militaryinvention from the West over the last fewdays has been sparse. Te archbishop saidthat every night he can hear planes passingover their heads, but “without bombing or

doing anything…in the past four days airoperations have been suspended. I ask myselfwhy.” (CNA)

AIPEI, aiwan, Feb 26, 2015—he United Chinese CatholicBiblical Association held its tenth

 World Chinese Biblical Congresslast month in aiwan, drawingparticipants from 18 countries toreflect on Scripture and its place inthe new evangelization.

“Te congress was a very touch-ing experience of a new Pentecostwith the outpouring of gifts of theHoly Spirit in the company of theBlessed Mother … engendering

fresh new inspirations, hope, andvision for all concerned to marka new page in being biblical mis-sionary disciples in the Churchand in the world in creative ways,”said Cecilia Chui, secretary of theUCCBA. “Te UCCBA is com-memorating the 50th anniversaryof the promulgation of the Sec-ond Vatican Council documentDei Verbum and has resolved tomeaningfully live 2015 as a Bibli-cal pastoral ministry year and todedicate this project to respond tothe apostolic exhortations VerbumDomini and Evangelii Gaudiumas a humble gift for Pope Francison the second anniversary of hispontificate,” Chui told CNA Feb24. he biblical congress drewmore than 300 participants to

aipei, the capital of the Republicof China, Jan. 22-26 to reflect on

the theme “Bearing Witness to the Word for New Evangelization.” Inaddition to aiwan, participantscame from Hong Kong, Macau,Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Ja-pan, Indonesia, Myanmar, Viet-nam, the Philippines, Australia,New Zealand, Italy, Germany,England, and Canada. Most werelaity, though six bishops were pres-ent, including Cardinal JosephZen Ze-kiun, Bishop Emeritusof Hong Kong. Chui pointed out

that centering on the directives ofVerbum Domini and EvangeliiGaudium, the five-day congresswas designed to reflect on “howto make God’s Word ever morefully the heart of the Church’s lifeand mission in multi-perspectives,and how to discern the signs of thetimes,” through talks and witnessesby speakers and communities fromdifferent locales. Fr. Joseph Zhang,a Chinese biblical scholar, spoke on“Evangelization within the ChineseCommunity—How Does theBible Encounter Chinese People,”emphasizing the importance ofa deep reading of the Bible, theformation of Gospel-filled mis-sionary disciples, and offering theGospel that the Chinese need inview of their life situations. Arch-

bishop John Hung Shan-chuanof aipei spoke on “Te Word of

was designed during the SecondVatican Council as a mean for

 African bishops to speak with onevoice despite language, cultural,and historical differences, and

held its first meeting in 1969 dur-

ing Bl. Paul VI’s visit to Uganda;the African Union gathers all Af-rican States but Morocco and wasestablished in 2002. Te Holy Seeis a non-member state accredited

to the African Union, and the es-

tablishment of a SECAM observerat the union could enhance theHoly See’s participation in theorganization. Woldeyohanneswill likely collaborate justice and

peace and economic commis-sions, aiming to promote Africandevelopment in line with the AU’s“Agenda 2063”, intended to reig-nite a sense of unity, self-reliance,integration and solidarity thatmoved the African independencemovements of the 1960s. Hehas been head of the Ethiopianbishops’ justice and peace depart-ment, and work in their com-munity development program.

 Wolde yoh ann es’ app oin tme ntfollows declarations by CardinalBerhaneyesus Souraphiel, headof the Ethiopian Archeparchy of

 Addis Ababa , that he is commit-ted to SECAM, as well as the As-sociation of Members of Bishops’Conferences of East Africa, gain-ing observer status at the African

Union. (CNA)

God, Marriage, and the Family,”and Fr. Mark Fang, S.J., presentedan examination of Bl. Paul VI’sEvangelii Nuntiandi. Te climaxof the congress coincided withthe celebration of the feast of Bl.Gabriel Maria Allegra, referredas the St. Jerome of China. Dur-ing the Mass, Bishop Joseph HaChi-shing, auxiliary bishop ofHong Kong, preached on Bl. Al-legra’s ability to inspire the newevangelization. Participants alsoreceived Chinese translations ofEvangelii Gaudium and the New

estament, and instruction inlectio divina. Chui concluded

that “the tasks of overall planningand running of the meeting wereshouldered by lay people, and thatthe outcomes were thrilling andfruitful manifest clearly that it isthe ‘Age of the Word’ and the ‘Ageof the Laity’.” Te prefect and thesecretary of the Congregation forthe Evangelization of Peoples bothconveyed congratulatory messagesto the meeting, as well as a messagefrom Pope Francis and his apostolicblessing. Te UCCBA was foundedin 1990, and the next biblicalcongress is due to take place in

Hong Kong, the birthplace of theUCCBA. (CNA/EWTN News)

Chinese Bible association gathers to make Scripture the heart of Church’s life 

United Chinese Catholic Bible Association group photo at the 10th World Chinese BibleCongress in Taipei. 

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Pope puts family at thecenter of social justiceVAICAN City, Feb 28,2015—In an audience withthe Confederazione Coopera-tive Italiane (confederation ofItalian co-operatives) PopeFrancis called for the “global-ization of solidarity” whichplaces the dignity of personsand families at the center ofsocial justice.

“o globalize solidarity,”the Pope said during the Feb.28 gathering, “means think-ing about spiraling unem-ployment, the constant tearsof the poor,” and “the needfor real, integral progress forthe person,” not just in termsof income.

First founded in 1919,the Confederazione Coop-erative Italiane is a “businessincubator” which helps newand start-up companies getoff the ground by providingservices and resources. Sup-pressed under Italy’s FascistRegime, it was re-establishedin 1945.

Speaking to the 7,000 peo-ple gathered in the Vatican’sPaul VI during the audi-ence, comprised of men andwomen representing varioussectors of the work force,

Pope Francis offered a fewpoints of encouragement.

First, he spoke of the needto prioritize the creation of“new cooperative enterpris-es,” while developing thosethat already exist, therebycreating “new possibilitiesfor work” which are currentlyunavailable.

Pope Francis also addressedthe need for welfare reform,especially in the area ofhealthcare.

“I know what you havedone for years with heart andwith passion, in the peripher-ies of the city and our society,for families, children, theelderly, the sick and disad-vantaged,” he said. “Charityis a gift,” the Pope added,“without which one cannotenter into the house of onewho suffers.”

urning to the economy,the pontiff discussed “its re-lationship with social justice,”as well as the “dignity andvalue of the human person.”

Pope Francis spoke of a“certain liberalism” whichbelieves in the necessity to“produce wealth,” regardlessof how, in order to “promote

some political redistributionon the part of the State.”Such an approach runs therisk of focusing on marking,“without leaving the deadlycircuit of the pride of personsand companies who have themoney-god at the center,”he said.

Rather, in establishing “anew quality of economy,” hesaid, “one creates the abilityfor persons to grow in all oftheir potential.”

Te pontiff then turned tothe need for the cooperativeto offer support for families,emphasizing the need to“help women to realize fullytheir own vocation and toput into practice their owntalents.”

Pope Francis went on tosay that, notwithstanding,money is necessary for theseendeavors, and for this reasonhe urged members of thecooperative to invest well.He then stressed the impor-tance of organizing resourceswhereby workers can be paid

 just wages, thereby allowingfamilies to “live with dignityand calm.” (Ann Schneible/ CNA/EWTN News)

 A family waits outside the SM Mall of Asia for Pope Francis’ Encounter withthe Families, Jan. 16, 2015. RODERICK CRUZ 

Will there be anecology departmentat the Roman Curiaafter reform?VAICAN City, Feb 28,

2015—An upcoming presen-tation of a Vatican-sponsoredPan-Amazonia Network mayshed light on how a possiblecurial office for human ecol-ogy would work, if curialreform is shaped as it waspresented at the Feb. 12consistory.

Te Ecclesial Network ofthe Pan-Amazonia was es-tablished Sep. 9-12 in Brazilwith the aim of fostering anew approach to climate,and will be presented in theVatican March 2.

Te network involves thePontifical Council for Jus-tice and Peace, Caritas Pan-

 Amazonia, the Departmentof Social Justice of the Latin

 Americ an Bishops Confer-ences, the Bishops Commis-sion for Amazonia, as well asseveral other realities com-mitted to the preservation ofthe Amazon rainforest.

 Whi le the netw ork wasborn with a regional purpose,its aim is in fact global, andso observers from Europe,

 Asia, and Africa have beencalled to take part in thenetwork.

 A source who works in theVatican explained to CNAFeb. 27 that “real innovationis that the network wantsto involve more developedcountries not in order toprovide funds—as has beendone before—but in order to

pursue a real collaboration,and to make the developedcountries more aware of theissue of climate change.”

It is in the end “a global callfor global responsibility,” andthe network is an example of“how the Church works,” thesource maintained.

his kind of approachwill likely be fostered in anew department for HumanEcology that should be es-tablished within the Vaticanranks.

During the Feb. 12-13consistory, Bishop MarcelloSemeraro of Albano, coor-dinator of the Council ofCardinals, outlined a pos-sible curial reform throughthe establishment of twosuper-congregations: Char-ity, Justice and Peace; andLaity, Family and Life.

 At least six pontifical coun-cils would merge in the twosuper-congregations, andeach of them would be com-posed of five secretariats.One of the secretariats withinthe Congregation for Char-ity, Justice and Peace may bethat for “Human Ecology.”

Te director of the HolySee press office, Fr. FedericoLombardi, stressed in a me-dia briefing Feb. 13 that hu-

man ecology deals with the

idea that social and politicalenvironments can be deadlyfor the human person and forhuman dignity.

Te phrase ‘human ecol-ogy’ was coined by Benedict

 XVI, but the notion has beenpivotal in the last 50 years ofthe Church’s social teaching.

Bl. Paul VI, in his 1967 en-cyclical Populorum Progres-sio, linked heavy consump-tion to injustice, declaringthat “no one may appropriatesurplus goods solely for hisown private use when otherslacks the bare necessities oflife… Te earth belongs toeveryone, not the rich”.

St. John Paul II added aspiritual dimension in his

encyclical Centesimus An-nus, criticizing “a style oflife which is presumed tobe better when it is directedtowards having rather thanbeing”, and urged people to“create life-styles in whichthe quest for truth, beauty,goodness and communionwith others for the sake ofcommon growth are thefactors which we may useresponsibly to satisfy ourlegitimate needs, material orotherwise, while respectingthe intrinsic balance of thecreation.”

Benedict took over thisapproach, and indissolublylinked care for the creationto care for the human being,

so much that the theme ofhis 2010 World Day of Peacewas “If you want to cultivatepeace, protect creation.”

 Acco rd ing to a so ur cethat has advised in thedrafting of Pope Francis’encyclical on ecology, thisapproach has been alsotaken over the encyclical,and Pope Francis “was veryhappy with that.”

Pope Francis has said heintends to finalize his encycli-cal on ecology in March.

During an in-flight pressconference in January, PopeFrancis indicated the encyc-lical’s first draft had beenprepared by Cardinal Peterurkson, president of thePontifical Council for Jus-tice and Peace. he Popethen worked on it, and itwas sent to theologians, theSecretariat of State, and theCongregation for the Doc-trine of the Faith.

Te encyclical will likelyprovide a background to thenew department for humanecology, while its actions andgoals may be shaped on themodel of the Pan-AmazoniaNetwork that will be present-ed in the Vatican next week.(Andrea Gagliarducci /CNA/EWTN News)

Pro-life solons file bill vs RH,‘ideological colonization’ 

QUEZON City, Feb. 25, 2015—FollowingPope Francis’ fight against “ideological coloni-zation,” a group of lawmakers who have takenup the cause of life, filed House Bill 5373 ina bid to repeal Republic Act 10354, or “TeResponsible Parenthood and ReproductiveHealth Act of 2012″ (RH Law), and to “ad-dress positively the problem of severe povertyaffecting a great number of Filipino families.”

In a statement issued by the 16th Congress’spress office, Quezon Province 3rd district Rep.

 Aleta C. Suarez, one of the proponents of thebill, said the “RH Law Repeal Act” respondsto Pope Francis’ call to protect the family.

Ruin of family  According to her, the head of the Catholic

Church himself criticized rich countries andinternational organizations for what he calledthe “ideological colonization” that seeks theruin of traditional family values and to influ-ence lifestyles and morals of young peopleworldwide.

“No less than Pope Francis, has admonishedand reminded us during his recent visit toprotect our families,” she said.

Country’s greatest treasureSuarez stressed, citing His Holiness during

the “Meeting with the Families,” to see in thefamilies the “country’s greatest treasure.”

“Be sanctuaries of respect for life, proclaim-ing the sacredness of every human life fromconception to natural death,” she quoted thePope as saying.

Meanwhile, BUHAY Party-list Rep. Jose L. Atienza, principal author of the bill, believesthat rather than teach Filipino families to

use contraception, the government would bebetter reinforcing positive Filipino values toFilipino children.

Culture of life“Instead of teaching them to use contracep-

tives and to look at pregnancy as a disease anda burden, we should be promoting responsibleparenthood and the culture of life,” Atienza said.

Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez of the 1stDistrict of Leyte, another supporter, explained“giving the Filipino families massive doses ofanti-life programs would only destroy thecountry’s future.”

“Instead of allocating billions of pesos tobuy condoms and contraceptives in imple-menting the RH Law, these funds should beput to better use in providing genuine healthservices for the millions of poor families,”Romualdez said.

Total repealUnder House Bill 5373, all laws, decrees,

rules, regulations, executive orders, and otherinconsistent with the proposed Act are alsorepealed.

Te other authors are as follows: Jonathan A. Dela Cruz (Party List, ABAKADA), VictorC. Ortega (1st District, La Union), Philip A.Pichay (1st District, Surigao del Sur), Di-osdado Macapagal Arroyo (2nd District,Camarines Sur), and Lani Mercado-Revilla(2nd District, Cavite)Suarez explained thatRH Law advocates consider the growingpopulation as a burden and the cause of pov-erty in the country.(Raymond A. Sebastián/ CBCP News) A pro-lifer holds up an anti-abortion placard during an anti-RH law rally.

Tagle: Mary prays with usMANAOAG, Pangasinan, Feb.22, 2015—Lest it be forgotten,a member of the local Churchhierarchy has reminded the faithfulof a truth often taken for granted:“Mary prays with us .”

In the homily he deliveredbefore pilgrims, devotees, and fel-low clerics gathered to celebratethe solemn proclamation of theMinor Basilica of Our Lady of theRosary of Manaoag on Feb. 17,Manila Archbishop Luís AntonioG. Cardinal agle stressed, “We arenot praying alone,” saying, “Jesusprays with us. He taught us howto pray. And his mother prays withhis disciples. We don’t only pray toMary. We pray with Mary.”

Upper roomCiting the Book of Acts, the

prelate enjoined the faithful tosee how after the Ascension the

 Apostles heeded the Lord’s com-mand to return to Jerusalem,going to the upper room, to thecenacle, to pray with the otherdisciples, among whom was Mary,the mother of Jesus.

“[And] in that cenacle, in thatupper room, they prayed. heyspent time praying. Te discipleswere not praying alone, they werepraying with the Blessed Mother.Te Blessed Mother was with themin prayer,” he said.

 According to agle, this passage isan excellent reminder of somethingdeeply significant, given that duringtheir time, the Apostles did not even

have a basilica comparable to Manao-ag’s, but only a humble cenacle.

be with child.“When she was visited she

welcomed the gift of God, the Word of God … and the Wordbecame flesh in her. When theangel visited her, what was hecarrying? It’s no less than Jesus!”he said.

‘Self-focused’ prayers While there is nothing wrong

with entrusting one’s needs to God,agle warned against the danger ofone’s prayers becoming too “self-focused.”

 As soon as one’s petitions havebeen granted, the prelate pointedout it is only proper to take thecue from Mary in echoing, “My

soul proclaims the greatness ofthe Lord.”

Mary in our prayer,us in hers

“Many of us cometo Manaoag to prayto God and to theB l e s s e d V i r g i n .

 And th at is a ge s-ture worthy of com-mendation … Butvisit ing this placea l so te l l s us thatwe are with Maryin our prayer. hatshould console us,”he explained .

he cardinal re-called the angel Ga-briel’s visit to Mary,during which he an-nounced the Good

News, God’s Word,that the Virgin would

Magnificat More than an enumeration of

requests, agle stated praying is alsoan expression of gratitude.

 Alt hough pil gri ms flo ck toManaoag and other shrines to visitMary, the prelate noted in the Gos-pels, it is the Blessed Virgin herselfwho initiates the visiting, underscor-ing the importance of a pilgrimagenot becoming an end in itself.

Go forth, be like Mary “I’m not saying you should stop

flocking this shrine. All the moreyou should do so. But after visitingMary, imitate Mary. Go! Go! Visitthe ‘Anawim.’ Visit the poor. Visit

the needy like Elizabeth. It’s nogood visiting the Blessed Mother,

and doing as she had done,” hesaid, recalling that at the end ofeach Eucharistic celebration, thecongregation is told, “Go! heMass is ended. Go forth.”

“In this place where we en-counter God through the BlessedMother, let us experience our mo-ments of visitation. Whenever wevisit here, God will also visit us.Let’s listen to Him talk. He willgive each of us a mission,” he said

agle invited the faithful towelcome the visit of God in theirlives and to bring Jesus to others,making of the Manaoag basilicaa truly missionary place and itsdevotees truly missionaries of God. 

(Raymond A. Sebastián/CBCPNews)

Yolanda survivors’ ‘time

to help others’ PALO, Leyte, Feb. 19, 2015—One year and three monthsafter towns in Leyte provinceand acloban City were hardlyhit by super typhoon Yolanda,survivors, who benefited frommillions of pesos in aid fromgenerous donors, specificallyfrom the Caritas InternationalFund, are encouraged to helpothers through the Alay Kapwa(Lenten collection).

Palo Archbishop John For-rosuelo Du in a recent homilystressed the need to support theChurch-backed Caritas fund byraising money that will be usedfor future relief and rehabilita -

tion projects for those affectedby natural calamities.

Measly collectionDuring his Ash Wednesday

Mass at the Cathedral of OurLord’s ransfiguration, the prel-ate said the Palo Archdiocese’s

 Alay Kapwa collection since lastyear was so measly, despite Cari-tas International’s unwaveringassistance to the people of the

 Archdiocese during its ongoingrecovery efforts.

Du said this Lenten Season,the Archdiocese is intensifyingits Alay Kapwa collection drive,the proceeds of which will besent to the Vatican.

He conveyed his plan to builda dining hall in the Cathedral

grounds where people could

come and bring food to shareto indigent families throughthe regular Sunday “La Mesa niMartha”, which he initiated andlaunched late last year.

Du reminded the peopleabout the essence of fastingduring Lent season, saying it isnot for economic reasons, butto promote compassion andcharity to those in need, regard-less of religion.

 Acts of sacrificeTe amount saved from fasting

and abstinence could be chan-neled to those who are homeless,hungry, needing clothes to wear

and even in for the needs of thosein prison, he said.Te works of mercy are the

best ways one can more mean-ingfully observe the season ofLent, Du explained, by doingacts of sacrifice during the 40days of Lent. Doing humanitar-ian mission in the barangays isanother way he cited.

Fr. Wilson Chu, the Oecono-mus of the Archdiocese andnew co-pastor of the Sto. NiñoChurch in acloban, in his Ash

 Wednesday homi ly like wisechallenged the parishioners todo some form of sacrifice forGod each day of Lent, restingtheir faith in Him who con-stantly shows His love in everydetail of life. (Eileen Nazareno-

Ballesteros/CBCPNews)

The Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary of Manaoag was officially designated a Minor Basilica on Feb.

17, 2015. Cardinals Luis Antonio Tagle, Orlando Quevedo, and Gaudencio Rosales were present forthe proclamation of the Manaoag Shrine as a basilica.

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POPE Francis in his Evangelii Gaudium says,“Te Church urgently needs the deep breathof prayer.” Year 2015 marks 50 years of VaticanCouncil II and 500 years of the birth of St. e-resa of Avila, master of prayer and first womanDoctor of the Church. In cadence with the pa-pal thoughts and celebrating these twin jubilees,the National Commission for the Celebrationof the 5th Birth Centenary of St. eresa of Avilais holding a Congress on Prayer on March 15,2015. Here are the FAQs.

Q1. What is this Congress on Prayer allabout, and when and where will it take place?

 A: It is called “Prayer, A Dialogue of Love”,to be held from 8a.m. to 5p.m., on March15, 2015, that’s a Sunday, at the SM Mall of

 Asia Arena in Pasay. Now that the Church iscelebrating St. eresa’s 500th birth anniversary(she was born March 28, 1515), it’s the perfecttime to make her spirituality better known tothe Filipinos.

Q2. How relevant would St. Teresa of Avila’sspirituality be, after all—you know—she’sfive centuries old?

 A. It’s easy to see how the contribution of thisDoctor of the Church fits into our world. Ourworld today is pretty much like in St. eresa’stime, and as Pope Francis’ Evangelii Gaudium

says: “If something should rightly disturb usand trouble our consciences, it is the fact thatso many of our brothers and sisters are livingwithout the strength, light and consolation bornof friendship with Jesus Christ … Te Churchurgently needs the deep breath of prayer.”

Q3. How does St. Teresa’s teaching sync withthat quote?

 A. o help us re-evaluate human dignity,which is threatened by today’s culture, we haveSt. eresa’s vision of the human person as thedwelling place of God, open to communionwith Him as a friend. Continuing with Evan-gelii Gaudium, Pope Francis says: “I invite allChristians, everywhere, at this very moment, toa renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ,or at least an openness to letting Him encounterthem; I ask all of you to do this unfailingly eachday. No one should think that this invitationis not meant for him or her, since no one isexcluded from the joy brought by the Lord.”

Q4. What is the objective then of your Con-gress on Prayer, and is it open to everybody?

 A. Te central objective is O HERALDPRAYER AS AN EXPERIENCE OF FRIEND-SHIP AND A DEEPENING ENCOUNER

 WIH CHRIS. Tat’s why we’ve called it“Prayer: A Dialogue of Love”—focusing on a

relationship which is that personal. But muchas we wish to, we can’t make it a “General Pa-tronage” thing like in the movies where every-one aged 1-100 is welcome. Tis Congress onPrayer would be appreciated by—and thereforewelcomes—those aged sixteen (16) and above,

 AND (this is important) IS INERESEDO BEGIN AND MAURE in a life of prayer.

Q5. Hmmm, sounds like it’s only for nunsand priests…?

 A. Certa inly not, in fact , laype rson smight benefit most from it. Although it is aninitiative of the Order of Discalced Carmelites(friars, nuns and secular members), priests, nunsand seminarians of various Religious Orderswelcome it as a response to a great need in theChurch. Te Congress on Prayer is open tolaypeople like professionals and college students,lay associations, parish mandated organizations,parish pastoral council members and commis-sioned ministers, and transparochial communi-ties.

Q6. Wow, that’s a lot! What would it costsomeone? How much are the tickets, andwhere do we get them?

 A. Admission is free, as the Discalced Car-melites have organized the affair in a spirit of

 WE are once again in the season ofLent. It’s a period of preparation for

the greatest event in the history ofmankind—the passion, death andresurrection of Christ—whichwe will celebrate within the Holy

 Week, from the evening of HolyTursday to Easter Sunday.

It’s a period meant to purify our-selves, with the aim of s trengthen-ing us spiritually and morally, andwith the view of making ourselvesmore and more identified withChrist, who is the very pattern ofour life, “the Way, the ruth andthe Life” for us.

 We cannot deny that we needsome purification because in spiteof our best efforts, we cannot helpbut get dirtied somehow with themany and multiplying things wehave to handle in the world today.

here are many new things

coming up, and our curiosity getsaroused. We also know that our

learning process to grapple withthese new developments will always

involve some falls, some mistakeswhich can either be small or big.

 We need to pause and reflecton the significance of this pe-riod because with all the activities,concerns, not to mention thechallenges and trials of our life,we tend to take Lent for grantedand content ourselves with goingthrough the motions of some sac-rifices just to get by.

Lent is actually a very happyoccasion, because in spite of thefasting and abstinence asked of uson certain days and the proddingto be generous with all kinds ofself-denial and works of mercy,we are slowly being molded intoanother Christ, our sole Redeemer,with whom we also have to redeemourselves.

Let’s remember that each of usis expected to be a co-redeemer

with Christ. No matter how muchChrist wants to save us, even to the

extent of offering his life on theCross, if we do not correspond tohis redeeming will and ways, wewill not be saved.

St. Augustine once said: “Godmade us without us, but he can-not save us without us.” We haveto understand that Lent is a verygood occasion to go through an-other conversion, another renewal,another reaffirmation of our com-mitment to follow Christ faithfully,so that our redemption becomes a

 joint effort between Christ and usas it ought to be.

 We sho uld then rea liz e tha tall those fasting and abstinence,those acts of self-denial and worksof mercy, should leave us with agrowing sensation that we are be-coming more and more like Christ,

thinking, choosing, doing thingslike him and with him.

Otherwise, all these acts wouldlose their purpose. Tey would just

become mechanical, soulless acts,a routine just to pass the time. Wehave to make sure that with God’sgrace that would always require ofus humility and simplicity and allthe virtues, we get the sensationthat we are another Christ.

 And we should not be afraid tobe so. We should disabuse ourselvesfrom the fear that by aiming to beanother Christ, we would becomeproud and vain, feeling superiorover others, and falling into a psy-chological disorder called messianiccomplex.

Obviously, all these can happenif we are not careful. But if we makethe effort to correspond to God’sgrace always, then we can be andwe can do what Christ was anddid. He was humble and simple,

merciful and compassionate. He

EDITORIAL

EVANGELIZAION also involves the path of dialogue. For theChurch today, three areas of dialogue stand out where she needsto be present in order to promote full human development andto pursue the common good: dialogue with states, dialogue withsociety—including dialogue with cultures and the sciences—anddialogue with other believers who are not part of the CatholicChurch. In each case, “the Church speaks from the light whichfaith offers”, contributing her two thousand year experience andkeeping ever in mind the life and sufferings of human beings. Tislight transcends human reason, yet it can also prove meaningful

and enriching to those who are not believers and it stimulatesreason to broaden its perspectives.

Te Church proclaims “the Gospel of peace” (Eph 6:15) and shewishes to cooperate with all national and international authori tiesin safeguarding this immense universal good. By preaching JesusChrist, who is himself peace (cf. Eph 2:14), the new evangelizationcalls on every baptized person to be a peacemaker and a crediblewitness to a reconciled life. In a culture which privileges dialogueas a form of encounter, it is time to devise a means for buildingconsensus and agreement while seeking the goal of a just, responsiveand inclusive society. Te principal author, the historic subject ofthis process, is the people as a whole and their culture, and not asingle class, minority, group or elite. We do not need plans drawnup by a few for the few, or an enlightened or outspoken minoritywhich claims to speak for everyone. It is about agreeing to livetogether, a social and cultural pact.

It is the responsibility of the State to safeguard and promote thecommon good of society. Based on the principles of subsidiarity

and solidarity, and fully committed to political dialogue andconsensus building, it plays a fundamental role, one which cannotbe delegated, in working for the integral development of all. Tisrole, at present, calls for profound social humility.

In her dialogue with the State and with society, the Church doesnot have solutions for every particular issue. ogether with thevarious sectors of society, she supports those programmes whichbest respond to the dignity of each person and the common good.In doing this, she proposes in a clear way the fundamental valuesof human life and convictions which can then find expression inpolitical activity.

-- Evangelii Gaudium, #238-241, 2013

BEING immersed in the lives of the poor, continuing dialoguedespite adverse socio-political realities, and pursuing what PopeFrancis calls a “culture of encounter”, these, among others, bringabout the vision of the Second Vatican Council to the world today.

In an interesting interplay of concrete stories and profound theology,this was what Manila Archbishop, Luis Antonio Cardinal agle, told anaudience at Te Catholic University of America in Washington DC onMarch 2, 2015 where he was a speaker at the annual Cardinal DeardenLecture. He spoke on the 50th anniversary of Gaudium et Spes, thePastoral Constitution of the Church in the Modern World, which isone of the four main constitutions of the Second Vatican Council.

Cardinal agle is the best person to talk about this, on two counts.First, he was the one who wrote the 4th chapter of Volume 4 ofthe History of Vatican II (published in 2002 by Obis Books),about “Te ‘Black Week’ of Vatican II” (November 14-21, 1964)when Gaudium et Spes was undergoing its final touches. In a veryscholarly way, he discusses some very complex procedural problemsand maneuverings encountered by the Council fathers. But at theend he concludes: “Without the Black Week, Vatican II would nothave been the council it ended up being. From it sprang wonderfullessons, beautiful documents, exciting horizons, and painful woundsas well. Ultimately, the forces of renewal unleashed by Vatican IIwere so powerful that the incidents of the Black Week could nothinder them. Indeed, the Black Week was one of the wellspringsthat have made the Second Vatican Council a source of grace for

the Church and for the world.”Second, he knows immersion with the poor not by the book butby life. In this talk at Te Catholic University of America, where heis an alumnus for his licentiate and doctorate in theology, Cardinalagle mentioned that Pope Francis during his recent visit to thePhilippines demonstrated how Gaudium et Spes can be lived outthrough encounters with others when he blessed people, listened tothe stories of the survivors of super typhoon Yolanda, and visitedstreet children such as at those under the care of ulay ng Kabataan.“Te poor have wisdom unique to them,” he said, adding that if oneis humble he will listen and learn from the poor and the suffering.Sometimes, the Church does not have an answer for suffering, but hequoted Pope Francis, saying that sometimes tears are the only answer.

 What he said during his farewell message at the end of the Mass ofPope Francis at the Luneta Park in Manila was actually a humblepersonal testimony of how Gaudium et Spes is lived in context:“omorrow you will go. Every Filipino wants to go with you—notto Rome—but to the peripheries, to the shanties, to prison cells,to hospitals, to the world of politics, finance, arts, sciences, culture,education, and social communications. We will go to these worldsto bring the light of Jesus—Jesus who is the center of your pastoralvisit and the cornerstone of the Church.”

Social dialogue as a contribution to peace

Church to the world

Pope Francis: Keep YourFocus on Christ’s Poor

And That’s The Truth / A5

OPINION

Teresa R. Tunay, OCDS

And That’s The TruthThe deep breath

of prayer

Lent and its implications

 Fr. Roy Cimagala

Candidly Speaking

MonitorPROTAGONIST OF TRUTH, PROMOTER OF PEACE CBCP

Pedro C. QuitorioEditor-in-Chief 

Nirva’ana E. DelacruzAssociate Editor

Roy Q. LagardeNews Editor

Kris BayosFeatures Editor

The CBCP Monitor is published fortnightly by the Areopa-gus Social Media for Asia, Inc. with editorial and businessoffices at 3rd Flr. HHC Building, Victoria cor. Basco Sts.,Intramuros, Manila. Editorial: (632) 404-2182. Business:

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 Fr. James H. Kroeger, MM 

Living Mission

“Year of the Poor” Reections

Candidly Speaking / A5

 AS Pope Francis was traveling fromSri Lanka to the Philippines on

 January 15, 2015, he was asked byPia, a Filipina, as to what would behis central message for the people.

Pope Francis replied: “In answer-ing this, I run the risk of being toosimple, but I will say one thing. Tecenter, the core of the message, willbe the poor. Te poor who want to

move forward, the poor who suf-fered because of yphoon Yolandaand still suffer from its effects, thepoor who have faith and hope dur-ing this commemoration of thefifth centenary of the preaching ofthe Gospel in the Philippines, thePeople of God in the Philippines.”

“Te poor, including the poorwho are exploited, exploited bythose who perpetrate so manysocial, spiritual and existentialinjustices. I think of them. Aswe go to the Philippines, I think

of them … the poor…. Te corewill be this.”

Ten, when Pope Francis spokeat Malacañang Presidential Palaceon January 16, 2015, he noted thathis visit was meant “to express mycloseness to our dear brothers andsisters who endured the suffering,loss and devastation caused byyphoon Yolanda.”

 Asse rting the need for soci alreform to truly serve the poor,Pope Francis noted: “Reformingthe social structures that perpetuatepoverty and the exclusion of thepoor first requires a conversion ofmind and heart.”

Te Pope continued: “Te Bish-ops of the Philippines have asked thatthis year be set aside as the ‘Year ofthe Poor.’ I hope that this propheticsummons will challenge everyone,at all levels of society, to reject everyform of corruption which diverts

resources from the poor.”  A profound conversion is

needed, so that political leaderswill be able “to pass on to cominggenerations a society of authentic

 justice, solidarity and peace.”Later that same morning, while

addressing the leaders of the Phil-ippine Church at the ManilaCathedral, Pope Francis emphati-

cally stated: “Te poor are at thecenter of the Gospel, are at heartof the Gospel; if we take away thepoor from the Gospel we cannotunderstand the whole message of

 Jesus Christ.”he Pope’s message is clear:

“Only by becoming poor ourselves,by becoming poor ourselves, bystripping away our complacency,will we be able to identity with theleast of our brothers and sisters.

 We will see things in a new lightand thus respond with honesty

and integrity to the challenge ofproclaiming the radicalism ofthe Gospel in a society which hasgrown comfortable with socialexclusion, polarization and scan-dalous inequality.”

Pope Francis asserted that theGospel is “a summons to conver-sion, to an examination of ourconsciences, as individuals and as

a people.”“As the Bishops of the Philip-pines have rightly taught, theChurch in the Philippines is calledto acknowledge and combat thecauses of the deeply rooted inequal-ity and injustice which mar the faceof Filipino society, plainly contra-dicting the teaching of Christ.”

 While Pope Francis’ beautifulpastoral visit has many dimensions,his presence and message repeat-edly emphasized: KEEP YOURFOCUS ON CHRIS’S POOR.

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A beleaguered leadership

A crisis of truth puts

our nation in crisis

 Fr. Wilfredo Samson, SJ 

Pitik-Bulag

Into the Desert

 Atty. Aurora A. Santiago

Duc In Altum

 Rev. Eutiquio ‘Euly’B. Belizar, Jr., SThD

By The Roadside

The unconditional loveof a mother is eternal

 “The Presidency is not merely an administra-tive office. That’s the least of it. It is more thanan engineering job, efficient or inefficient. Itis pre-eminently a place of moral leadership.”(Franklin D. Roosevelt, New York Times

 Maga zine, Septe mber 11, 1932 )

FIRS, a preface to my views. Be ing a mem-ber of the clergy, be he a bishop, priest ordeacon, does not ter minate that person’s be-ing a Filipino and a citizen of the Republic.Like any other citizen, he has every right toform his ideas or opinions on the country’spolitical, economic and socio-cultural con-ditions. In addition, he has every right toexpress them as well. On the other hand,also like any other citizen, this gives him noright to violate any law.

No Filipino citizen today can ignore hiscountry’s over-all conditions and, in particu-lar, the way it is being run, and still maintainthat he/she loves the Philippines. It is hardto miss the many discordant winds aroundus. Latest economic forecasts boldly say thatthe country will be second only to China ineconomic growth, and this the president’ssupporters feel is enough reason to leave himalone and let him finish his term, at the least.

But, despite efforts, at times valiant andcreative, poverty is hardly dented. Growthhas been anything but inclusive. It is under-standable that the business sector and the up-per echelons of the economic-socio-politicalladder that benefit most from the economicgains insist on leaving things well enoughalone. hey believe that present indicatorsspeak much for the president’s excellence insteering us to unheard-of heights accordingto solid economic fundamentals.

 Alas, all this sounds hollow to the urbanand rural poor who constantly worry aboutnot having a roof over their heads, a meal ortwo to survive another day, a child or two be-ing unable to continue schooling because ofcontinuing military operations against rebel

groups or because they simply cannot affordthe costs of higher education or because twosuper typhoons and/or sporadic big fires incrowded places of residence have sapped thefamily’s resources. And their government,let alone their president, has seemed unableto truly help.

hen came the Mamasapano debacle.Forty-four valiant members of the nationalpolice Special Action Force, mostly membersof the underclass of Philippine society, suc-cessfully neutralized an international ter-rorist, only to be ruthlessly massacred whileattempting to exit the area by rebel groups.Seemingly to add salt to their family’swounds, the Chief Executive was nowherein sight when their bodies were brought backto Manila to waiting and wailing families.he reason? It was not on his schedule forthe day, said Malacañang. At the same time,the media found him gracing the inauguralceremonies of a Japanese car company opera-tions in Laguna.

his insensitivity, however unintendedand glossed over by official sources, stunned,shocked and drew the ire of many, especiallythe victims’ families. Even as I write, ripple sof the anger surface now and then. Not even

the long hours he spent talking to the fallenheroes’ families and relatives have dampenedthe clamor for him to come clean on thetruth of his role and responsibility or irre-sponsibility that might have contributed inone way or another to the eventual carnage.

 Allowing a suspende d PNP Chi ef ’s con tin-ued involvement in an operation so sensitiveand dangerous, while not informing his ownDILG Secretary and the acting PNP Chief,is not exactly an exercise of good judgmentand responsible leadership.

It is no secret that initially a good num berof the Church hierarchy welcomed Pnoy’spresidency. he thought that a son of theheroic couple Ninoy and Cory Aquinowould succeed the scam-ridden Arroyo ad-

ministration raised hopes for a governmentof high moral ascendancy. he anti-wang-wang drive, the ousting o f a Supreme CourtChief Justice, the unveiling of the PDAFand DAP scammers accompanied by the

 jaili ng of some prominen t poli tici ans andbusinessmen—to cite a few—have inspiredsome confidence. But once in a while wealso notice disappointing cracks. While thepresident has kept himself largely untainted,the same cannot be said of a few of thepeople he surrounds himself with. he waythe Reproductive Law was passed, what withgenerous DAP amounts being dangled beforelawmakers’ eyes and also being withdrawnfrom non-supporters, greatly disappointedbishops and priests. It did not take long forthem to realize that the president’s moralcompass was guided less by magisterial teach-ing than by what Pope Francis would laterterm as “ideological invasions” he and thepeople he listened to have already embraced.

 And which, as a priest friend of mine pointedout once, they are “hopelessly devoted to”.

Perhaps this is only one of the reasonsbehind calls from some prominent Shepherdsof the Church for the president to step down.I believe their views have to be respected. But

personally, I believe we need to take the biggerpicture. Our current president was elected onthe crest of a massive outpouring of sympathyfor his deceased mother, President Cory, aturn of events he himself did not anticipatenor initially wanted. If ever any blame gamehad to be pursued to its awkward roots, thefinal finger could point in our direction andin the direction of our voters.

o my mind I believe we must ad dress, asdecisively as we can, two urgent concerns.

One, in so many elections, we, the Churchhave done so much except educate voterseffectively.

wo, in so many elections, we Filipinocitizens have done so many things exceptvote wisely.

Collection Box Fr. Jerome Secillano, MPA

HIS is the statement which Idrafted for some church groupsand lay organizations that areconcerned about the develop-ments in our country relativeto the SAF operation in Mama-sapano, Maguindanao resultingin unwarranted loss of l ivesboth on the part of the Police-men, MILF and civilians. It isour hope that this will be readby many of our countrymen sothat we can jointly discern anddo what is best for our belovedcountry.

he Senate and Congres-

sional inquiry regarding theMamasapano tragedy is turningout to be a big disappointment.here is obviously a concertedeffort to conceal damaginginformation that would haveotherwise pointed to individu-als, institutions and other stake-holders (i.e. US) that should beheld accountable for the loss of

lives in the disastrous operationto arrest Zulkifli bin Hir aliasMarwan and Abdul Basit Us-man last January 25.

In solidarity with the familiesof victims of armed violence inMaguindanao, let us expressour indignation and condemnthe evident perversion of thetruth because it makes justiceall the more elusive for thosewho perished. Let us appeal toour Senators and Congressmeninvestigating the case, to askthe right and significant ques-tions and to be strict and firm

in seeking for truthful answers. We as k th e re so urce pe rs on sto be honest, transparent andtruthful without fear of reprisalor the possible loss of career.hey are, first and foremost,the protectors of our nationand her people, hence, theirloyalty must not be to one manor his project. hey should be

committed to the mandate re-quired by their office and not tothe dictates of a foreign powerwith the generous reward it hasdangled.

In this light, let us join thenation in the clamor for ruth,

 Just ice and Account abil ity. Weurge the formation of a “ruthCommission” that i s inde-pendent and is composed ofcourageous members who arealso known for their integrity,prudence, moral probity andindependence. his body shallalso determine the terms of ac-

countability and justice. heevident attempt to hide theruth under the guise of either“executive privileges” or “execu-tive sessions” and the suddenforgetfulness of some resourcepersons to recall vital infor-mation related to the botchedpolice operation necessitatethis call for the creation of this

Commission. ruth sometimeshurt, but the lies and cover-upbeing peddled more than kill thehope of the Filipino people that

 jus tice will fina lly be ser ved tothose who offered their lives inthe service of our nation. ruthshould not be hidden. Indeed,truth must be told no matterwhat the cost. If our leaderscannot anymore be trusted andour institutions cannot providethe right answers, this crisis oftruth puts our nation in cris is.

 We call on our peop le to exac thonesty and integrity from our

leaders. Let us demand account-ability for their decisions andactions. Let us not be cowed toask and seek for answers. Wemust resist being quiet or indif-ferent for our silence will burytruth and justice along withthe “Fallen 44”, the 18 MILFFighters and the 5 civilians thatincluded a little girl.

OUR Inay/Lola, Gloria Angeles Santiago,will be laid to rest at Himlayang Pilipino ,andang Sora, Quezon City on March03, 2015 after the 10:00 a.m. RequiemMass at Santuario de San Vicente de PaulParish and Shrine at St. Vincent Semin aryCompound, 221 andang Sora, QuezonCity. he main xelebrant is Most Rev.Deogracias Iñiguez, D.D., Bishop Emeri-tus of the Diocese of Kalookan, togetherwith the priests-friends of the family asconcelebrants.

 We appreciate the Requiem Mass offeredand celebrated for our Inay/Lola by Fr. AldenSison, Parish Pastor, at St. Genevieve CatholicChurch, 14061 Roscoe Boulevard, PanoramaCity, California. We are also grateful to Fr.Mike and Fr. Jose Embile,SJ who led theprayer and blessing during the 2 days viewingat Mission Hills Catholic Mortuary at 11160Stranwood Avenue, Mission Hills, California.Not to be forgotten are the relatives, friends,officemates of our siblings, especially theFatima Group of erra Bella St. Communityin Panorama City.

 We apprecia te a ll th e bi shops and pr iest swho celebrated Mass and offered bless-ing and prayers during the 4 days viewingfor Inay/Lola at St. Mark Room, St. PeterMemorial Chapel, Commonwealth Avenuecorner andang Sora, Barangay MatandangBalara, Quezon City. We are also gratefulto all the bishops and priests who includedInay/Lola in their respective Masses andprayers; to friends and neighbours whoprepared for the Liturgy; to those who camefrom far way places in the United States andtook time to be at the viewing and Requi emMass; to our friends, relatives, colleagues,and the pious readers, who offered Massesand prayers.

 We all know that Inay/Lola, who loved life,would be happy and smiling at us now. For allour prayers for Inay/Lola, she in return would

be also praying for us where she is now, inour Lord’s Kingdom in Heaven. “Eternal rest

grant unto Gloria Angeles Santiago, o Lord,and let Your perpetual light shine upon her.May she rest in peace, Amen.

***Please allow me to take this opportunity

to thank our Inay/Lola Gloria Angeles San-tiago. She was born i n Hagonoy, Bulacan onthe Feast of San Antonio de Padua, June 13,1917 to parents Antonino Sysioco Angelesand Dionisia Miguel Hernandez. On Janu-ary 28, 1943, in the midst of World WarII, she married Benito Espiritu Santiago ofSan Jose, Navotas, Rizal. Benito eventuallyserved during the war causing them a fewyears of separation. heir union was blessedwith 7 children: Violeta, CPA, marriedto Celestino Rosales (SLN); Atty. Aurora;Engr. Benito Jr., married to Nisa Quevada;Victoria, CPA; Flordeliza, CPA, married toRoberto Imperial; Dr. Andres, married to

 Jinky Reyes ; and Engr. Rob erto , marr ied t oMa. Loreto Gorobia.

 With f irm determination, entrepreneurialspirit, and hard work, Gloria and Benitowere able to send all their children to collegeand every one of them graduated and haveattained professional successes. As a World

 War II combatant, Beni to was injured duringthe war and received a small benefit from theU.S. Veterans Affairs. his helped to augmenttheir income.

Gloria devotedly took care of her husbanduntil he died on January 16, 1985. A loverof life and always ready for a new beginning,Gloria first came to the U.S. in 1994 to visither daughter Vicky and then came back in1996 as an immigrant. Although bedridden inthe last few months, Gloria regularly receivedthe Sacrament of the Eucharist and prayed,always trusting in our God. She was lovedunconditionally and cared for selflessly by herchildren and their families. Gloria joined h erCreator peacefully in her sleep in the morn-

ing of Friday, February 13, 2015 at the ageof 97. Gloria is survived by her 7 children

and 9 grandchildren: Glenn, Gretchen (andCharlie Castro), and Michael Rosales; Eric,Resi, and Lara Imperial; Pipao and RobbySantiago; and Rome Santiago; and greatgrandson, C2 Castro.

Inay/Lola, you are now with our Creator ac-companied by all angels and saints in heaven,you are also reunited with your beloved, ouratay/Lolo. We know that you are happy, nomore pains no more illness; you are now atpeace. We are very proud of both of you Inayand atay for bringing us up as we are now.

 We thank the Lord for giving us the gift ofMother, the gift of Father, the gift of parents.

 We praise and glo rify the Lord for giving usa long time to feel and experience the loveand care of Inay/Lola, joining our Creator atage 97, and for us to give in return the loveand care which Inay/Lola deserved. We loveyou, Inay/Lola and atay/Lolo. God blessand God speed.

***he media misquoted Pope Francis on what

he said about rabbits. For the record, PopeFrancis stated: “Some think that—excuse thelanguage—that in order to be good Catholics,we have to be like rabbits.” hat is very clear,he never mentioned “breed like rabbit.” PopeFrancis mentioned this to impress on theCatholics the importance of “ResponsibleParenthood.” hose parents must give theirchildren the standard of living that is expectedof them. Pope Francis stated the teaching ofSt. John Paul II and Pope Paul VI on Respon-sible Parenthood. He condemns the use ofartificial contraception and that it is a moralevil; he promotes Natural Family Planning.Pope Francis spoke about the importance oflarge families.

*** We wish Fr. Constantino Conti and Fr.

Nestor Fajardo a very Happy Birthday. Happy

Sacerdotal Anniversary to Fr. ConstantinoConti and Fr. Patrick Hiwatig.

ODAY is the first Sunday of lent. Our Gospel today gives us some basicorientation on how to meaningfully celebrate this season. Lent basicallymeans three things - intense prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Unfortunately,we are used to celebrate Lent in a skin deep manner. It is not a com -memoration that would seriously penetrate our souls and transform uscompletely. Could we aim for something deep and life-defining? Some-thing that will satisfy my soul? Can we challenge ourselves this year - tocommit ourselves to fully enter into the spirit of Lent?

oday, I commit myself to intense prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.First, can I COMMI MYSELF to forty days of INENSE PRAYER?

Te Gospel today suggests following Jesus into the desert or wilderness.Going to the desert means going to our prayer. Desert is an isolated placewhere the reality of nothingness abounds. When we isolate ourselves inintense prayer, we realize our own nothingness and finiteness in front ofGod. Nobody can survive the desert without water. And nobody couldsurvive this earth (a desert, too) without God. Sad to say, Satan and hiscohorts deceive us by tempting us to worship other gods—wealth, powerand honor. And we are easily deceived. For we are so weak and gulliblein front of comfort, quick fix, instants and short cuts. We don’t like painand suffering. Te earthly pleasure is too sweet and good for us to reject,and in the process, we reject God.

Tus, second, I COMMI MYSELF to forty days of GENUINEFASING AND SACRIFICE. Te challenge is to go beyond our skindeep fasting that we do every year - saying no to meals during Ash

 Wednesday and Good Friday. A mere token. It’s not a sacrifice. Goddeserves more than that. Te goal of fasting is not just to bring us tohunger by saying no to food. Te goal of fasting is to tame and cast outour selfish and human desires that control us. Without taming our desiresfor pleasure, wealth, honor and power, we cannot follow the will of God.Real fasting means SAYING NO O OUR INORDINAE AACH-MENS AND FAVOURIE SINS. Without taming that wild beast inour hearts, we cannot SAY YES O GOD’S WILL.

Tird, I COMMI MYSELF to forty days of REAL ALMSGIVING.Te challenge is give more of ourselves. Almsgiving is not just givingmoney to beggars, distributing old clothes to the poor and feeding oldpeople in the home for aged. Tey are good and amiable. We feel goodabout it. We are satisfied but not God. Tese skin deep alms giving arenot enough. God wants more from us. He does not like tokens. For givingis not giving until it hurts us. What God wants from us is our life—tofully commit to love and serve the poor, marginalized and oppressed.

Tis Lenten se ason, let’s do away with our skin-deep way of celebratingthe season. Let’s think of something that will penetrate our souls, disturbus from our comfort zones and lead us to the peripheries of our society.Something that will commit us to repent from our own selfish desiresand sinfulness, and be more decisive in joining the company of Jesus in

spreading the Good News.

lived the true spirit of poverty.He also said that his food was

to do the will of his Father, thathe came not to condemn but tosave the world. Tese would alsobe the mind that we would have ifwe grow to become another Christ.

Like Christ, we would not tobe afraid to suffer. We would bewilling to bear the burden of theothers. As commanded by Christand lived by him, we would knowhow to love everyone, includingthose who consider themselves asour enemies.

 We have to see to it that these

traits and qualities of Christ areslowly taking root in our lives. Weshould feel the need to pray, likewhat Christ did also, even wak-ing up early before sunrise to go acertain place to pray. We should beable to have intimate conversationswith our Father God.

Like Christ, we should do ourwork well to such an extent thatwe can gain that reputation thatChrist himself had: “bene omniafecit,” he did all things well.

 We have to understand Lent asa period of sculpting the image ofthe living Christ in us.

Candidly Speaking / A4

gratitude to God for this milestone,but Mall of Asia managementimposes a No-icket-No-Entrypolicy. Please get your tickets fromany of these S. PAULS outlets:SM North EDSA, 2/F West Mall;SM City Manila, Lower GroundFloor; SM City South Mall, LowerGround Floor; SM City Bacoor,Lower Ground Floor; SM CityDasmariñas, Lower Ground Floor;SM Megamall, 2/F West MallGround Floor, Bldg A; SM Mallof Asia, Lower Ground Floor 2/FEntertainment; SM City San Fer-nando, Ground Floor; GatewayMall, Lower Ground Floor Level3; and St. Paul’s Main store, LowerGround Floor St. Paul Road, San

 Antonio Village, Makati City. You may also try as walk-ins,

on the day of the congress itself, ifthere would still be available seats.For more information please call:Froilan orres or Joy apan at thesetelephone numbers: (02) 722-4667;(02) 721-4252; (02) 710-2641;0939-9207365; and 0906-5732305.

Q7. What does the programcontain more or less?

 A. he prayer ful nature ofthe Congress should facilitateencounter with Christ through aprogram that includes liturgicaland contemplative prayer throughthe Liturgy of the Hours; chants;silent prayer; and the speakers’presentations. Presider for the day’s

Eucharistic celebration is His Emi-nence Luis Antonio Cardinal agle.

Q8. Can ordinary people like usdigest that? May we know whothe speakers are?

 A. We assure you of very sub-stantial but highly digestible in-puts. We have as first speaker HisExcellency Bishop Mylo HubertC. Vergara, DD; Ms. Imelda D.Ramos, OCDS, President, SecularOrder of Discalced Carmelites inthe Philippines; Fr. Mariano AgrudaIII, OCD, Prior of Our Lady’s HillCenter for Spirituality; and Sr. MayCatherine Salvatierra, OCD, Presi-dent of the Association of DiscalcedCarmelite Nuns in the Philippines.

Tere will be a surprise number, too!

Q9. If the Congress on Prayeris to be summed up in 50 words,what would its essence be?

 A. Te Congress’ name, “Prayer: A Dialogue of Love” should giveyou a clue. St. eresa defines prayeras “Nothing else than an intimatesharing between friends; it meanstaking time frequently to be alonewith Him who we know lovesus.” Tat quote contains only 23words—but that should give you anidea what to expect on March 15,Mall of Asia Arena. See you there(For the more detailed version ofthis article, please visit www.tere-sa500philippines.com and www.cbcpnews.com)

And That’s The Truth / A4

he prelate, who chairs theCatholic Bishops’ Conference ofthe Philippines (CBCP)’s Perma-nent Committee on Public Affairs(PCPA), explained unsuspectingcivilians are always the first to sufferin almost all armed confrontations.

BIFF members are believed to beamong those allegedly responsiblefor the deaths of 44 commandosof the Philippine National Police(PNP)’s elite Special Action Force(SAF) in what has been dubbed the“Mamasapano Massacre” in Jan. 25.

Meanwhile, in an official state-ment dated Feb. 16, CBCP Presi-dent and Lingayen-Dagupan Arch-bishop Socrates B. Villegas pledgessupport for “lasting peace, a settle-

ment of differences that will allowthe people of Mindanao regardless

of religious affiliations to “live inpeace and as equals, citizens of oneRepublic, nationals of one country.”

“We hold it to be morally obliga-tory for the government and for therestive segments of Philippine societyto search for the paths of peace,” saysthe prelate, adding that “true peacecannot rest on deceit, the suppressionof truth, and subterfuge”, which onlyunderscore the “paramount impor-tance” of getting to the truth of theMamasapano tragedy.

 According to him, “the goal can-not be the cessation of hostilities atany cost, but a principled settlementof the dispute, and peace born outof truth, a commitment to social

 justice and adherence to the funda-

mental law of the land.” (Raymond A. Sebastián/CBCP News)

Negotiation, A1

8/9/2019 CBCP Monitor Vol. 19 No. 5

6/20

A6 CBCP MonitorMarch 2 - 15, 2015, Vol. 19. No. 5LOCAL NEWS

ties intend to use the huge amount,

and calls on the Filipino publicto closely monitor the programs,or the lack thereof, on which themoney will supposedly be spent .

“We know all too well the un-fortunate way with which fundsare handled in this country … Wereally do hope, however, that eachcentavo of the Php 87 million willbe duly accounted for and reallyused for repairing and conservingthe ubbataha Reef,” he explained.

In his recent interview overChurch-run Radyo Veritas, Arigoshared he had heard of existing tech-nology capable of quickly revivingthe damaged corals which ordinarilytake several generations to grow.

Church support he Puerto Princesa bishop

stressed the Catholic Church is onewith concerned anti-corruption

groups in ensuring that the money

will be expended accordingly.Moreover, Arigo has invited thelay faithful to get themselves in-volved in the Ugnayang Barangayat Simbahan (UBAS) which willgive them an opportunity to bepart of a team that monitors andcampaigns for government trans-parency and accountability.

 World Heritage SiteOn January 17, 2013, the US

Navy minesweeper USS Guard-ian reportedly ran aground atthe UNESCO-declared WorldHeritage Site, damaging an area of2,345.67 square meters (25,248.6sq ft).

Te incident sparked nationwideoutrage, prompting the US govern-ment to issue a public apology.

(Raymond A. Sebastián/CBCPNews)

Transparency, A1

 Justice and Peace (Nassa) said there were also54,810 beneficiaries of various livelihood as-sistance and trainings.

Funding support from Caritas Internationalisfor the first phase alone, which ends this com-ing March, amounts to 9.7 million euros oraround Php 580 million and has so far reachedmore than 101,000 survivors in Leyte, WesternSamar, Eastern Samar, Palawan, Aklan, Antique,Capiz, Iloilo and Cebu.

Of these, Php 364.9 million have already

been spent and accounted for as of December2014.

‘Poorest of the poor’ survivors“On the second year, we are hoping to

continue this worthwhile endeavour throughthe help of our partners and donors,” ironaadded.

Te #REACHPhilippines (Recovery Assis-tance to Vulnerable Communities Affected byyphoon Haiyan in the Philippines) is deemedas the most massive recovery program led bythe Church in the Yolanda-hit areas. Te ben-eficiaries were among the poorest of the poor

and the least served by government and othernon-government organizations.

Te Nassa said it was also the fastest emer-gency appeal responded to by more than 30Caritas Internationalis member organizations.

“We make sure that transparent and honestspending is being