Tagle, papal nuncio to faithful: Join ‘Walk for Life’

MANILA, Philippines — Former Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle and Papal Nuncio Archbishop Charles John Brown urged the Catholic faithful to join the “Walk for Life” of the Catholic Church at 4 a.m. today.

In an interview yesterday with Church-run Radyo Veritas, Tagle said the Walk for Life is not just a simple parade of the Catholic faithful, but a journey of Catholic devotees and a journey of people who believe in and respect the sanctity of life.

“This is not just a walk but a journey through life, a valuable gift from God and hopefully in this journey we will not waste this gift but always protect it,” Tagle, of the Dicastery for Evangelization of the Vatican, said in Filipino.

For his part, Brown said the Catholic faithful should view the religious gathering as an opportunity for them to show their conviction about the sacredness of human life and that challenges to the right to life should be resisted.

“This very important gathering is an opportunity for you personally to show your conviction that human life is sacred and the threats to the right to life of all human beings from the moment of conception until natural death should be resisted,” Brown said.

The Walk for Life is an annual religious event of the Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas.

The parade will begin at the Welcome Rotonda, border of Quezon City and Manila, and proceed to the University of Santo Tomas grandstand where a program and mass will be held with the theme “SANAOL (Synodality, Accompaniment and Nearness) Let’s All Walk Together for Life,” derived from Pope Francis’ call for synodality.