HONG KONG (SE): “I want to thank you for the joy you bring to the whole world and to our Christian communities,” Pope Francis told Filipinos as he marked 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines during a morning Mass concelebrated at the Chapel of the Chair in the apse of St. Peter’s Basilica with Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle of the Philippines, the prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples and former archbishop of Manila, and Angelo Cardinal De Donatis, the pope’s vicar for Rome.
Around 100 members of the Filipino community in Rome attended the socially distanced service in Pilipino, English and Italian. Many more joined via television and online.
In his homily, Pope Francis remarked that Filipinos received the joy of the gospel half a millennia ago, “and this joy is evident in your people.”
He said, “We see it in your eyes, on your faces, in your songs and in your prayers,” he said, while also acknowledging the faith witness offered through their “discreet and hardworking presence”
The pope remarked, “I have often said that here in Rome Filipino women are ‘smugglers’ of faith! Because wherever they go to work, they sow the faith. ”
The pope urged them to “persevere in the work of evangelisation.”
The pope exhorted, “Never be afraid to proclaim the gospel, to serve and to love,” adding, “With your joy, you will help people to say of the Church too: ‘she so loved the world’!”
‘Never be afraid to proclaim the gospel, to serve and to love … With your joy, you will help people to say of the Church too: ‘she so loved the world’!’
Pope Francis
In his own message to the pope towards the conclusion of the service, a visibly moved Cardinal Tagle, expressed gratitude. He noted that more than 10 million Filipinos living and working in 100 countries around the world, were united in that morning’s celebration.
The cardinal called the coming of Christianity to the Philippines a gift from God, noting that the country has the third largest number of Catholics in the world. “We attribute the enduring faith of the Filipino people only to God’s love, mercy and fidelity, not to any merit of our own,” he said.
“By God’s grace, the Filipino Christians have continued to receive the faith, one of the sources of hope in facing poverty, economic inequality, political upheavals, typhoons, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and even the current pandemic,” the cardinal told Pope Francis.
‘Here in Rome, when we miss our grandfathers, we know we have a Lolo Kiko (Pope Francis). Thank you very much, Holy Father’
Cardinal Tagle
“We also recognise the great contribution of the Christian faith in shaping the Filipino culture and the Filipino nation,” he said, while admitting that the living out of the faith has not always been consistent.
Cardinal Tagle observed, “The gift must continue being a gift. It must be shared,”
“We have left our families, not to abandon them, but to care for them and their future. For love of them, we endure the sorrow of separation. When lonely moments come, Filipino migrants find strength in Jesus who journeys with us, the Jesus who became a Child (Santo Niño) and known as the Nazarene (Jesus Nazareno), bore the cross for us. We are assured of the embrace of our Mother Mary and the protection of the saints.”
The cardinal continued with emotion in his voice, “When we miss our families, we turn to the parish, our second home,” adding, “When there is no one to talk with, we pour our hearts to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and ponder his word.”
As we celebrate the 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines. The Chaplaincy to Filipino Migrants organises an on-line talk every Tuesday at 9.00pm. You can join us at:
https://www.Facebook.com/CFM-Gifted-to-give-101039001847033
Cardinal Tagle said, “We take care of the children under our charge as our own children, and the elderly as our own parents. We sing, we smile, we laugh, we cry, and we eat. We pray that through our Filipino migrants, the name of Jesus, the beauty of the Church, and the justice, mercy and joy of God may reach the ends of the earth.”
The cardinal concluded, “Here in Rome, when we miss our grandfathers, we know we have a Lolo Kiko (Pope Francis). Thank you very much, Holy Father.”
The year-long celebration of the quincentennial of the arrival of Christianity in the Philippines will begin on April 17, Easter Sunday, commemorating the first Easter Sunday Mass held on Limasawa Island in southern Leyte, on 31 March 1521. It will conclude in April 2022.
