‘A great day of spiritual joy, national pride’

MANILA, Philippines - Today’s canonization of Blessed Pedro Calungsod “is a day of great spiritual joy and national pride” for all Filipinos, Malacañang yesterday said as it joins the whole Catholic faith in celebrating the proclamation of the young Visayan missionary as the second Filipino saint.

“We join the Catholic world on this day of solemn commemoration and celebration,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte yesterday said in a statement.

Calungsod is to be proclaimed as the second Filipino saint – after Lorenzo Ruiz in the 1980s – by Pope Benedict XVI in rites at the Vatican.

Valte said the joy and pride was not only for Filipino Catholics, but for all those who call the Philippines their home, “especially our countrymen in the Visayas and Mindanao.”

A delegation led by Vice President Jejomar Binay and Energy Secretary Rene Almendras, along with senior prelates of the Philippine Catholic hierarchy, will be at St. Peter’s Square in Rome today to witness the canonization of Calungsod, who has been described as a “protomartyr.”

“Filipino Catholics well recall that it was under the reign of Pope John Paul II – a pontiff who held Filipinos very dear to his heart – and upon the initiation of His Eminence Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, that the beatification for Calungsod was initiated in 1994, and culminated to his beatification in 2000,” Valte said.

“In 12 short years, the requirements for his canonization have been fulfilled,” she added.

Meanwhile, former Philippine ambassador to Rome Henrietta de Villa, the secretary-general of the National Commission for Blessed Pedro Calungsod (NCBPC), said this is a joyous occasion not only for the Catholics but also for all Filipinos.

“We should be proud because this is an honor for the whole country. To have a saint is like having a hero. His (Calungsod’s) life was extraordinary and admirable. All Filipinos should be happy whether they may be Catholics or not. This is why President Aquino declared a National Day of Celebration in honor of St. Pedro Calungsod,” De Villa said.

Born in the Visayas in 1654, Calungsod (also known as Calongsor) was a young migrant, sacristan and missionary catechist, who along with Blessed Diego Luis de San Vitores, suffered religious persecution and martyrdom in Guam on April 2, 1672.

While in Guam, the young Calungsod and Fr. San Vitores preached Christianity to the natives called Chamorros, and they also baptized infants, children and even adults, a mission which eventually led to their persecution and death. Through their missionary efforts, many Chamorros converted to Catholicism.

Calungsod was beatified on March 5, 2000 by Pope John Paul II. Last Feb. 18, Pope Benedict XVI officially announced Calungsod’s canonization in October.

Calungsod’s canonization comes 340 years after his death. He is one of the seven who would be proclaimed saint by Pope Benedict today.

While the canonization is taking place in the Vatican, thousands of Filipino Catholics are expected to flock this afternoon to four designated areas in Metro Manila to celebrate Calungsod’s proclamation as the second Filipino saint.

Activities will be held at the San Juan Arena in San Juan City where at least 5,000 devotees are expected to gather, Sto. Niño de Tondo Parish in Manila, Diocese of Novaliches in Quezon City, and at the Federation of National Youth Organization in Makati City.

At 1 p.m. the San Juan crowd will pray the rosary followed by a Mass to be officiated by Manila Auxiliary Bishop Bernardino Cortez, chairman of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines-Episcopal Commission on Social Communications and Mass Media.

A program filled with songs, praises and performances would be hosted by Mike Enriquez and Christine Jacob. A live feed of Calungsod’s canonization in Rome via EWTN will be shown while Pampanga Auxiliary Bishop Pablo Virgilio David and Bishop Fr. Francis Lucas would give commentaries.

De Villa said the event is open to everybody. “In fact, we wanted the youth and the poor to come,” she said.

As of yesterday, they already ran out of free tickets, issued for security reasons.

More than 1,000 youths from the Archdiocese of Manila are expected to gather at the Sto. Niño de Tondo Parish while some 600 will participate in the Calungsod Youth Day at the Diocese of Novaliches.

In Makati City, the Federation of National Youth Organization (FNYO) will also celebrate their FNYO Day titled “Pedro at Ako.” The event will be held at the Savio Dome of Don Bosco Technical Institute from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Activities are also slated all over Cebu today. In Ginatilan town where Calungsod reportedly grew up, a high Mass will take place at the Saint Gregory the Great Parish. A festive barrio fiesta will also happen at 4 p.m. in time for the live coverage of Calungsod’s canonization at the Vatican.

The Blessed Pedro Calungsod Parish in Barangay Cantabaco, Toledo City, which is the first parish named after the second Visayan saint-to-be, will also have simultaneous activities today.

For those in Cebu City, the Metropolitan Cathedral will have a pontifical Mass at 5:30 p.m. The Archdiocesan Shrine of Blessed Pedro Calungsod at the Archbishop’s Palace will also have a Mass at 1:30 p.m., followed by a film showing on Calungsod’s life at 2:45 p.m.

Moderate to heavy rains in Visayas

If rains are blessings from heaven, then the Visayans could expect a downpour of graces today.

As Calungsod’s canonization takes place, the Visayas is expected to experience moderate to heavy rains due to a low-pressure area (LPA).

Weather forecaster Jun Galang, of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, said yesterday the Visayas should expect continued moderate to heavy rainfall.

The LPA was spotted in the vicinity of Surigao del Norte and would bring continued moderate to heavy rains in the area.

The Visayas and Mindanao will be cloudy with moderate to heavy rain showers and thunderstorms that might trigger flashfloods and landslides.

Several religious activities are expected to take place in Cebu and other provinces in the Visayas in celebration of Calungsod’s canonization.

“If they would be holding outdoor activities or if they would be leaving their homes to go to these activities then we advise them to bring the proper rain gear such as umbrellas, boots and raincoats,” Galang said.

The Bicol region and Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) region will have occasional light to moderate rains or thunderstorms. Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon would have partly cloudy with brief rain showers or thunderstorms.

As of yesterday afternoon, Galang said there was little chance that the LPA would escalate into a tropical depression.

However, its strong winds would bring in big waves that would make the seaboards of Visayas rough to very rough. – With Evelyn Macairan, AJ de la Torre/Freeman