AS FILIPINOS struggle with man-made and natural disasters, a prelate called on the persons involved in corruption-tainted flood control projects to return to the Lord and give back the public’s money.
In his homily during the mass in honor of the Our Lady of La Naval at the Santo Domingo Church, Cubao Bishop Elias Ayuban Jr. said true devotees of the Virgin Mary do not stay silent in the face of wrongdoing.
“A true child of Mary does not remain silent in the face of evil. But instead of judging, I invite all those involved in corruption to repent and return the stolen money from the people,” Ayuban said on Sunday, Oct. 12
The prelate likened the Filipinos’ struggles with recent natural and man-made calamities and the public works corruption fiasco with the battles of Lepanto and La Naval in Manila, where Christians faced stronger and numerically superior enemies at sea.
“Brothers and sisters, there are so many challenges in our lives, especially in the past few days,” Ayuban said.
“These may not be battles like those at Lepanto and Manila Bay, but they are still difficult… Natural calamities like earthquakes and typhoons, and man-made calamities like widespread corruption,” he added.
According to Ayuban, praying the rosary is a preparation for the devotees’ mission to serve others, to bring hope to those in despair and seek truth where there is misinformation and falsehoods.
“To truly pray the rosary, we cannot be indifferent to the pain, injustice and corruption around us. because its mystery reminds us that God became man, suffered and rose again to redeem everything, including our nation, including our nations, our institutions, our hearts,” the bishop said.
Ayuban urged Catholics to return to the tradition of praying the rosary, as he recalled seeing children recite it during the magnitude 7.4 earthquake in Mindanao on Friday, Oct. 9.
Dispelling beliefs that the rosary is a “repetitive prayer,” the bishop said it is a “summary of the gospel,” as it weaves the words of God into the lives of devotees. He added that the rosary’s beads represent the mysteries of Jesus’s life, and should be touched with contemplation, rather than being used merely as decoration.
The Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of La Naval de Manila is also the patroness of Quezon City. F
