Some residents believe it was a sign that peace would finally reign in their war-torn communities, while others think it augurs more problems that would compound their present miseries.
Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, has appealed to Pikit’s Catholic community to pray for wisdom and discernment of the reported phenomenon, the first ever in Central Mindanao.
Oblate missionary Fr. Bert Layson, Pikit parish priest, said he himself saw the image of St. Therese, the patroness of missions, on top of the covered image of Jesus Christ inside their church on Good Friday.
For elderly parishioners, the apparition was meant to encourage them to continue working hard for the unity of Muslims and Christians in their hostile town.
"I was first informed about it by some parishioners who first thought it was a mounted photo perched on the covered icon of Jesus Christ. We took a video footage of it and, after a thorough examination, we reached a consensus that it was the image of St. Therese," Layson said.
In fact, the parish priest said it was a visiting Catholic photojournalist covering the plight of both Muslims and Christians in conflict-stricken communities in Pikit and surrounding towns, who first asserted that the image was St. Therese’s.
Layson said they are interpreting the apparition in the context of the fragile situation in Pikit, the recent deaths of more than a dozen children in evacuation sites and the hostilities in their communities.
"The apparition came at a time when we are experiencing all of these events. Maybe, it was a message for us to continue praying for peace and progress in Pikit," he said. — John Unson