Nuncio: Pope Francis has deep, abiding love for Filipino people mb.com.ph - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from mb.com.ph Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Pope Francis
(VATICAN MEDIA VIA CBCP / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
The church, he said, must be open “to fresh ways of bearing witness to the joy of the Gospel and forming vital communities of missionary disciples.”
“In this way, they will be renewed in their love of Christ and in fidelity to their proper charism,” CBCP News quoted the pontiff.
The Pope made the statement during this year’s virtual convention of the Association of Major Religious Superiors of the Philippines (AMRSP).
His message was relayed by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State, and was read to the participants by Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles Brown on April 28.
(Juan Carlo de Vela / MANILA BULLETIN)
The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) unveiled markers declaring them as National Cultural Treasures. The declaration coincided with the commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the first baptism in the country.
“As our contribution in the commemoration, the cultural agencies of our country have decided to declare the Basilica of the Sto. Niño de Cebu as a National Cultural Treasure, one of the highest recognitions the State can give to a particular built heritage,” said Dr. Rene Escalante Escalante, chairperson of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP).
Aside from Escalante, the unveiling of the markers was also graced by Papal Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles Brown, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Secretary Michael Lloyd Dino, and friars from the Order of Saint Augustine (OSA), who run the Basilica.
(Quiapo Church / Facebook / FILE PHOTO)
This was the message of Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles Brown during Wednesday’s Pontifical Mass celebrating the first baptism that took place in the country.
“So the faith of Christianity was transported in this part of Asia by Europeans and now it is being re-transported to Europe and other places around the world by Filipinos. What do we see in this? We see the universality of the Catholic faith,” said Brown.
Brown said Filipinos have kept the Catholic faith alive even in foreign places.
“What we celebrate with hearts with joy is the fact that in these five centuries, the Catholic faith has entered deeply into the Filipino culture and has produced a distinctively Filipino expression of the unchanging and universal truth of Catholic faith,” Brown said.
SunStar 7 children baptized during First Baptism commemoration
CEBU. Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles Brown baptized children during a Mass at the Magellan s Cross, Plaza Sugbo, Cebu City Wednesday, April 14, 2021. (Amper Campaña)
+ April 14, 2021 CEBU celebrated the 500th anniversary of the First Catholic baptism in the country by doing the same sacrament of baptism on Wednesday, April 14, 2021, at the grounds of Plaza Sugbo in Cebu City.
Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Charles Brown officiated the Pontifical Mass to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the first baptism and led the welcoming of the seven children, namely: David Villagracia, John Michael Dragon, Milby Illocendo, April Suan, Billy Connie Pal, French Cedric Sison and Jolito Abaquita Jr. to the Catholic Christian community.