MANILA (UCAN): Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle of Manila, the Philippines, called on Catholics to be “people of hope” in his New Year message on January 1.
The cardinal, who will soon leave for the Vatican to head up the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, reminded Filipinos that “there will be no peace if we do not hope.”
Results of a survey conducted by pollster Social Weather Stations from December 13 to 16, showed that at least nine out of 10 Filipinos had a positive outlook about 2020 and the new decade.
The survey revealed that 96 per cent of Filipinos were entering the new decade with hope, while four per cent were fearful.
Many of those were from the southern region of Mindanao, which has been under martial law since the start of a five-month siege to eradicate Muslim militants who attacked the city of Marawi in May 2017.
In his message, Cardinal Tagle said “only people of hope will work for peace.”
He said, “If you are without hope, you will be violent,” adding that Catholics should also be a people of dialogue.
“When we dialogue, we listen, we understand, we get reconciled, we forgive, and we don’t destroy each other, we don’t destroy society, we don’t destroy the earth,” Cardinal Tagle said.
He reminded people how Mary and the Holy Spirit became a very good dialogue partner of God.
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“In that dialogue was born the Prince of Peace (Jesus). A dialogue of prayer, a dialogue of mission, a dialogue of faith and hope then the Prince of Peace comes in the flesh,” said the cardinal.
“I hope like the dialogue of God and Mary we will also speak of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation,” he said.
December the Philippine government announced that it was considering starting another round of peace talks with communist rebels. The president, Rodrigo Duterte, said he wanted to talk face to face with exiled communist leader, Jose Maria Sison.
“We are trying to have a talk, but what I want, and I’ve said this to Sison, you come home and we will talk alone, just the two of us,” Duterte said.
The government previously held peace talks with the rebels from 2016 to 2017 in Norway. The negotiations broke down when Duterte accused the communists of violating a ceasefire.
In December 2018, he ordered the creation of a task force to end the armed conflict through “localised peace talks.”
