Martyr's welcome awaits slain priest in Zambales

CASTILLEJOS, Zambales - A martyr's welcome awaits Fr. Rhoel Gallardo's remains here tomorrow afternoon.

People here consider the Catholic priest, who was tortured and killed by the terrorist Abu Sayyaf, to be a martyr who died for his faith.

"In the wide scope of the meaning of martyrdom, he was indeed a martyr," Heny de la Paz, secretary of the chancery at the bishop's palace in Iba, Zambales told The STAR. "It was obvious that the Abu Sayyaf killed him because he was a Catholic priest."

De la Paz said Zambales Bishop Deogracias Yñiguez is set to celebrate Mass for Fr. Rhoel when the Castillejos-born priest's remains arrive here tomorrow.

"The church in Iba is proud of him," De la Paz said. "He was committed to his faith."

Yñiguez said Castillejos residents thought it appropriate to welcome Fr. Rhoel's remains as that of a martyr's but that they would need permission from the Vatican to do so.

"They are expressing their gratitude (to Fr. Rhoel), especially those whose lives Fr. Rhoel touched from the days of his youth in this small town up to the time he was ordained as priest," he said.

Kagawad Aurelio Fastidio is sponsoring a resolution at the Sangguniang Bayan to change the name of Del Pilar Elementary School In Barangay Del Pilar to Fr. Rhoel Gallardo Elementary School.

The Sangguniang Bayan has passed a resolution honoring the slain priest's martyrdom and expressing the people's condolences to his bereaved family, Fastidio said.

The Castillejos Parish Pastoral Council under Monsignor Crisostomo Cacho, along with the Sangguniang Bayan, will hold a series of activities during Fr. Rhoel's wake.

A marker will also be placed at the San Nicolas Church in honor of the slain priest.

Gallardo's father, Domingo, 61, said his son's funeral has been arranged by authorities of the Claretian religious order to which Fr. Rhoel belonged.

"I initially suggested that the remains be buried in our local cemetery, but I was told that Claretians have their own space at the Himlayang Pilipino in Quezon City," he said.

He also condemned the Abu Sayyaf for torturing and mercilessly killing his son.

"May this serve as a lesson to all and make us see the kind of atrocity these rebels could commit," he said.

On the other hand, Fr. Rhoel's mother, Raquel, 64, said she does not feel any hatred toward the Abu Sayyaf although she had heard in the news that the terrorists beat her son everyday and pulled the nails of his index fingers and toes.

"I just pray for their enlightenment and for the release of their (remaining) victims," she said. "Now we are resigned to his (Fr. Rhoel's) fate. He is now at peace."

She said her initial reaction to Fr. Rhoel's kidnapping was not as calm as she now feels.

"I was then in my sister's house in Cavite when I heard about the kidnapping from television news," she recalled. "I remember shouting in shock."

After the mass, Fr. Rhoel's remains will be taken to the Gallardo residence in Barangay Del Pilar where it will lie in state until Tuesday morning. --