ANNOUNCEMENTS
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Dear brothers & sisters,
Peace to all of you!
On behalf of the OLC, may I enjoin everyone to heed the invitation by our mother Church to participate in the forthcoming November 5, 3PM mass at the EDSA Shrine. The intention for this mass is for the end of the killings that is predominant in our country today. Once again, this event provides a great opportunity for us in Ligaya ng Panginoon Community to stand side by side with other Catholic Christians to plead with our God to bring justice and peace and healing to our land.
Attached here is the invitation to all National Lay Organizations, Archdiocesan/Diocesan Councils of the Laity to include our community to come and join the mass at the EDSA Shrine after which a procession to the People Power Monument will follow for the prayer rally.
“DO NOT HOLD BACK…” this is who we are, a people called to be God’s instruments to spread love and peace and justice to all.
God bless,
Dennis Castillo
For the OLC
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October 23, 2017
o: All LAIKO Members: NATIONAL LAY ORGANIZATIONS &
ARCH/DIOCESAN COUNCILS OF THE LAITY
Dear Brothers & Sisters!
The peace and love of the Lord!
His Excellency, Most Rev. Socrates B. Villegas, CBCP President has appealed to all the faithful in behalf of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines to continue praying to “Stop the Killings” that has become very “common” in our country particularly from November 5 up to December 8, 2017, the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.
To launch this period of prayer, we are pleased to invite you to join the Mass at the EDSA Shrine on November 5, 2017 at 3:00 P.M., the hour of Divine Mercy. Our local Church has set aside November 5 as the “Lord Heal our Land Sunday”. After the Mass, a procession will follow from EDSA Shrine to the People Power Monument.
We encourage all organizations to please actively participate in this very important event by sending sizeable delegations. Once again let us all at once pray together for justice, enlightenment and peace in our land.
Attached is the invitation from Archbishop Soc Villegas.
Sincerely yours in the service of the Lord,
ZENAIDA F. CAPISTRANO
National President
Noted by:
X MOST REV. BRODERICK S. PABILLO, D.D.
Chairman CBCP Episcopal Commission on the Laity
Dear brothers and sisters,
Please see attached invitation from the President of LAIKO with the endorsement of Bishop Pabillo, Chairman CBCP Episcopal Commission on the Laity.
May I encourage everyone whose belief aligns with the bigger church to come and join the celebration of the Holy Eucharist in the Parish of the Holy Sacrifice, UP Diliman on Thursday, September 21, 2017.
Let’s stay vigilant.
God bless,
Dennis Castillo
Chief of Staff
Happy 42nd Anniversary, brothers and sisters!
In July 1975, God said...
KAYO ANG AKING LIGAYA
Thus, our name...
ANG LIGAYA NG PANGINOON
This July 16, 2017
as one people, let us exclaim...
LIGAYA KO ANG PANGINOON!
for indeed He is the source of our all!
AN APPEAL FOR PRAYERS & VIGILANCE
Dear brothers and sisters,
By this time, we are all aware of the situation in Marawi City and I am sure many among us have responded to the crises through prayers and intercessions. And in the midst of our various personal, family and community concerns, we also want to maintain and sustain a heightened awareness of the goings-on in the lives of our fellow Filipinos and our nation as a whole.
I am re-posting here a statement of the Catholic Bishops of Mindanao which calls for prayers and vigilance during this time of trouble in Marawi. I hope that you will find the time to read this and bring these concerns in your individual and communal prayers. This goes without saying that as Ligaya, we share the same posture as our Church leaders in this unfolding event.
May the good Lord look kindly on the innocent victims of the terrorist atrocities in Marawi City and may our civil and military leaders have the wisdom to address this difficult situation in restoring true and lasting peace in Mindanao.
God bless our people and our nation.
On behalf of the OLC,
Dennis Castillo
COS
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STATEMENT OF MINDANAO BISHOP QUEVEDO
Pursue What Leads to Peace
To All People of Good Will:
We, Catholic Bishops of Mindanao, address this Statement to every Mindanawon. We originally intended to respond to the requests of our Catholic faithful who asked for pastoral guidance on the issue of Martial Law.
We pray for all the murdered innocent victims in Marawi and ask the Lord to protect all the families that have fled to safety.
We condemn the terrorist acts that have caused the loss of many innocent lives, the burning of homes, public buildings, including a Protestant school dormitory and a Catholic Cathedral.
We condemn the unconscionable kidnapping of teachers and church personnel.
We pray for the safety of all the kidnapped, of Fr. Teresito Suganob and his companions. We appeal to the hostage takers to release all of them unharmed. The victims fear death but they also have the courage to give ultimate witness to Christ.
In the strongest terms we condemn terrorism in its various forms. It is an ideology that is totally against the tenets of any religion of peace. Especially so when terrorism is perpetrated while our Muslim brothers and sisters are preparing for the holy month of Ramadhan. Terrorism distorts and falsifies the true meaning of any religion. It destroys harmonious relationships among peoples of different faiths. It creates a world of suspicion and prejudice, of hatred and hostility.
The President of the Philippines has responded to the Marawi crisis by declaring Martial Law in the entire Mindanao. Many criticise the decision as reminiscent of the horrors of a past dictatorship. Others support the decision as justified.
We are aware that the problems of peace and order, of the continuing disruptive activities of other rebel groups, the problems of criminality and drugs, of corruption and underdevelopment are in every nook and corner of Mindanao. Mindanao problems go beyond the city limits of Marawi.
Our Catholic faithful have asked for pastoral guidance regarding Martial Law. We are guided by the Sacred Scriptures and by the social teachings of the Church. St. Paul exhorts us to “pursue what leads to peace” (Rom. 14: 19).
Martial Law is a means of last resort. Are moral principles fulfilled? Were other means to resolve the deep and wide serious problems of Mindanao impractical and ineffective? Will the positive effects of Martial Law outweigh the negative effects? Will there be probability of success? Will it bring about a culture of accountability and end a culture of impunity? Will Martial Law increase human rights violations? Will Martial Law be abused for evil purposes?
The answers to many questions are speculative. We have many fears. But at present we simply do not have solid and sufficient facts to absolutely reject the declaration of Martial Law as morally reprehensible. But we are certainly agreed that Martial Law must be temporary.
We shall condemn any abuse of Martial Law and as in the past will condemn it outright if it goes in the way of evil. Let us be vigilant.
We exhort everyone to be calm in the face of Martial Law, to be obedient to the just commands of lawful authority, and not to provoke violent reaction. We urge the government to remove the causes of terrorism, such as poverty and injustice, through just and accountable governance focused solely on the common good.
The focus of every religion is peace on earth, peace in heaven. Let us pursue together what leads to peace. Let all religious teachers and leaders quell the tendencies towards the terrorist ideology. Together let us pursue what leads to peace. Let us pray for peace and work for peace.
God bless the people of Marawi. God bless all Mindanawons.
With the approval of the Bishops of Mindanao,
+Orlando B. Cardinal Quevedo, O.M.I.
Archbishop of Cotabato
26 May 2017
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May 11, 2017
To: All Laiko Member National Lay Organizations and
Archdiocesan Councils of the Laity
Re: Lakbay Buhay, May 21 event
My dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ,
The peace and love of the Lord!
I am pleased to inform you that the Lakbay Buhay which started last May 4 at Cagayan de Oro is now heading towards Bicol area after a succesful march-caravan at Mindanao and Visayas Region. Next week it will arrive at NCR.
To show our all-out support to the Lakbay Buhay here in Metro Manila, we would like to invite all organizations to actively participate and send sizeable delegations to the May 21 event at the University of Santo Tomas Grounds, Espana, Manila. Program will start at 4:00 p.m. to be followed by a Holy Mass at 5:00p.m. We will pray together and show to our senators our collective opposition to the re-imposition of the death penalty in our country.
In the spirit of the Gospel, in solidarity with our fellow Filipinos, I pray that all organizations will support once again, with utmost concern this initiative for the protection of the sanctity of life.
Your shepherd in Christ,
+MOST REV. BRODERICK S. PABILLO, D.D.
Chairman
CBCP Episcopal Commission on the Laity
