Families urged: Speak out vs. dissolution of marriage bill
Posted by Nirva’ana Ella Delacruz | Aug 18, 2017 | Filipino families are urged to make their stand against House Bill 6027 public by contacting their congress men and women.RAYMOND BANDRIL MANILA – With the formal filing of House Bill 6027 legalizing the dissolution of marriages, families and couples are urged to be quick on the draw by speaking out on the issue in the public sphere. “Family and life groups, that is, married couples especially, should let their voice heard. Let their congress people know what they [couples] think about this issue… in the strongest possible way! …But without…
Drug war risks more minors getting killed, bishop warns
MANILA— More people, including the youth, could get killed if the government won’t change its hardline approach to stamping out illegal drugs in the country, a Catholic bishop has warned. Reacting to the killing of another teenager, Bishop Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan said more people could be killed because the government’s violent drug war is “naïve, seriously flawed, and needs serious evaluation and rethinking”. He said the killings of 19-year old Carlo Angelo Arnaiz, including that of 17-year old Kian Loyd delos Santos, are not isolated cases as claimed by police authorities. “If they don’t stop the killing, we’ll…
Faithful warned about ‘satanic’ rosaries
(L) Actual photo of the rosary confiscated during a recent infestation case of Libera Nox. Unknown to the trained eye, this is actually a Satanic rosary. (R) When the photo’s levels are adjusted to make it dimmer using an image editor, the Iluminati insignia of the sun with its rays and the snake at the back of the Crucified Christ becomes visible to the naked eye. Novaliches chief exorcist Fr. Ambrosio Nonato Legaspi warned the faithful about such Satanic rosaries that are now in circulation the country, during the Aug. 7 spiritual warfare episode of Radio Veritas Hello Father 911….
Bishop urges gov’t: Don’t disregard lives of Maute hostages
Posted by CBCP News | Sep 4, 2017 MANILA— A Catholic bishop appealed to the government to give greater weight the safety of hostages still held by the Maute group as security forces continue their final assault on the bandits. Bishop Edwin Dela Peña of Marawi said the government must carefully consider its military options in order to recover all hostages alive. The prelate said “collateral damage” in war is completely unacceptable in all circumstances. “If they do the final assault, the lives of the hostages could just be sacrificed and be considered as collateral damage… that is not…
Summary killings cannot be justified—Archbishop
Various lay groups stage “Walk for Life” along streets of Navotas City to condemn the extrajudicial killings of suspected drug pushers and users, July 2, 2017. ROY LAGARDE MANILA— Summary killings can never be justified as a drug control measure, a Catholic archbishop said. Jesuit Archbishop Antonio Ledesma of Cagayan De Oro, in a pastoral letter, said the wave of extrajudicial killings that have claimed even young lives and many others without due process is a cause for alarm. “These summary killings and violations of human rights cannot be justified by invoking the greater common good – which our recent…
Bishop asks Duterte to ‘reconfigure’ drug war
A Catholic bishop is hoping that President Rodrigo Duterte would “reconfigure” his war on the illegal drugs that has already claimed thousands of lives. Bishop Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan diocese said another key thing for Duterte is to learn by listening to drug experts. “Allow experts in various fields to take part in coming up with an in-depth study of the root causes of the illegal drug problem in the country,” he said. While authorities strengthen its intelligence work against drug lords and scalawags in the police, he said the government must also strongly support community-based drug rehabilitation programs….
Marawi bishop opposes martial law extension
MANILA— The Catholic prelate of war-torn Marawi is opposing the government’s plan to extend the martial law in Mindanao. Bishop Edwin de la Peña of Marawi favored the 60-day military rule in the region but said that extending it is no longer necessary. After all, he said, the government can already deal with the situation in Marawi even without martial law. “I am against martial law extension,” de la Peña said. “The first martial law declaration was fine but if they are going to use Marawi again to justify its extension, I don’t think it’s right.” As the military continue…
Newly elected heads of the CBCP Commissions, Committees and Offices
Catholic bishops gather for their 115th plenary assembly at Pope Pius XII Center in Manila, July 7, 2017. ROY LAGARDE The term of the newly-elected chairmen of the CBCP Episcopal Commissions, Committees and Offices will be from December 1, 2017 to November 30, 2019. Episcopal Committee on Basic Ecclesial Communities Bp. Jose A. Cabantan Episcopal Commission on Biblical Apostolate Bp. Sofronio…
Condemning killings is not enough— Cardinal Tagle
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle speaks during a press conference on the upcoming Philippine Conference on New Evangelization in Manila, July 4, 2017. ROY LAGARDE The head of Manila’s Roman Catholic Church said the flurry of attacks against the spate of drug-related killings has to stop and not just with mere words. Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle said that to save more lives and address social problems like drug addiction, condemnation alone is not enough. He said the Church must be more “proactive” in dealing with the problem by coming up with concrete actions to protect life. “As we say do not…
Bishop slams modern day ‘Judases’ behind summary killings
MANILA— As a wave of drug-related killings continues in the country, a Catholic bishop condemned those who sow violence the same way some once supported Judas against Jesus. In a strongly-worded homily during a Mass after a “Walk for Life” in Navotas City on Sunday, Bishop Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan said that behind the violence are “Judases” who are in cahoots with the killers. He said if some people consider the suspected drug personalities as “termites of society,” so are those behind the extrajudicial killings. “They are the new ‘Makapili’ during the Japanese’ time who would betray their fellowmen and…
