The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) on Sunday urged the country not to lose hope amid financial crisis, conflict and increasing poverty.
In his Easter message, Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, CBCP president, said many things can be accomplished by Filipinos if they act in “authentic unity.”
“Let us do all we can all the time and we can build a better nation, but no one can build it alone,” said Lagdameo.
He urged the Filipinos to move toward a common goal and avoid disunity among the various sectors of the society as much as possible.
The CBCP head pointed out that it is impossible to move the country ahead if every sector shifts in different directions.
“No one group can build a better Philippines in contraposition with other groups. All sectors need to affirm and confirm the potential of one another,” Lagdameo said.
“Like Jesus Christ,” he added, “the nation must rise from its grave, then face and live a new life.”
The heart of change is the change of heart for the common good, he said.
Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz also said that Easter is equivalent to hope. Thus, he said, “while life in the country is hard and even becoming worse because of the global financial crisis, we should not lose hope.”
Sacrifice
Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, for his part, said daily self-sacrifice in imitation of Christ was the key to the Christian life.
“To aspire for development without sacrifice, to enjoy progress without discipline or to seek redemption from evil without dying to sin, is akin to looking for Jesus where He could never be found,” Rosales said.
For Davao Archbishop Fernando Capalla, following in a personal way the pattern of Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection may guide Christians towards moral transformation. He said, however, that self-control attained through voluntary self sacrifice can change in attitude and relationship towards God and other people.
It is also through sacrifice, the former CBCP president said, that can make the long and much-desired national transformation attainable and achievable.
“We only need leaders with authentic Easter experience who will inspire and bring about collectively a national mobilization and coordination of these transformed individual towards a common cause and welfare,” Capalla said.
With reports from ABS-CBN News Online
