FILIPINOS marched to Quirino Grandstand at Rizal Park on Saturday to promote the dignity of all forms of life amid “crooked and bloody roads.”
Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle urged the faithful to walk as a family for the protection of life threatened by increasing violence, during the annual “Walk for Life.”
“Marami pa pong ibang lugar na naglalakad para sa buhay pero ang kanilang tinatapakan ay nabahiran na ng dugo. [Ang] pinaglalakbayan [nila] ay punung-puno ng mga bakas ng karahasan at pagbaliwala sa buhay. Hindi kayo nag-iisang naglalakad. Tayo’y isang pamilya na sama-samang naglalakad kahit na baku-bako ang mga landas,” Tagle said in his homily during the Eucharistic celebration.
Tagle particularly lamented the lack of respect for the lives of one’s enemies.
“’Pag [ang] usapin ay buhay, huwag mong titingnan [kung] kaaway o kaibigan ba ‘yan. Kaya ang walk for life ‘di lang walk [para sa] ilang buhay. Ang test ng commitment [ay] pati ba ang buhay ng hindi ko kasundo ay aking igagalang?” Tagle said.
The cardinal called for a “reoriented mentality centered on the appreciation of life as God’s gift,” against a “functional, pragmatic and materialistic” world that treats people as a commodity.
“[Ang regalo ay] bunga ng pagmamahal ng nagbigay, hindi inaalipusta. Hindi kami gamit, hindi kami bagay. Kami’y tao, may buhay at kahit warak, sugatan, marupok, regalo ng Diyos. At ang regalo, hindi sinasayang, hindi itinatapon,” Tagle said.
The “Walk for Life” was in response to the persecution of Christians, extrajudicial killings, abortion and the proposed revival of the death penalty. It was also a protest against the destruction of the environment, threats to the lives of indigenous peoples, human trafficking and the lack of decent housing for the urban poor.
Caloocan Bishop Pablo David and Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo concelebrated the Mass with Tagle.
The Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas, the umbrella organization of national Catholic lay organizations and archdiocesan and diocesan councils of the laity, spearheaded the event.
Simultaneous Walks for Life were also held in Tarlac, San Pablo, Cebu and Cagayan de Oro.
