CEBU, Philippines - A youth representative in Barangay Pasil, Cebu City yesterday sought the intercession of the Papal envoy to help pray for the solution of the growing drug problem in the community.
Korina Tabay, 17, raised her concern to Papal Legate Charles Cardinal Bo when the latter visited the barangay yesterday afternoon.
“We ask you, your eminence to pray for us, for peace and unity of our fami-lies, communities, and our country. For us here in Pasil, life is hard and difficult, we have lesser opportunities compared to other young people,” Tabay said.
“For some of us, we are bound with the influence of drugs, others lived in a very broken family, most of us lived in poverty. Please pray for us that we may overcome all our struggles and difficulties in life,” she added.
Cardinal Bo is the representative of Pope Francis to the 51st International Eucharistic Congress.
“For us Filipinos, when a priest visits our homes it is a sign of God’s blessing, how much more when a bishop at the same time a cardinal and most importantly a representative of the Pope would visit us. Indeed, our community of Suba and Pasil is blessed,” Tabay said.
Tabay said she was doubly blessed by the visit of Cardinal Bo because she was able to kiss the hands of the official representative of the Holy Father.
“Dili gyod ko makalimot arong adlawa. Na-inspire ko’g maayo,” she added.
Fr. Jene Llenos, youth in-charge of Don Bosco Youth Center, said the visit of Cardinal Bo has a great impact on the community where social injustice is prevalent.
“One of the impacts sa pag-visit niya kay ma-inspire mi kay usa siya sa ilado sa Myanmar nga mo-fight gyod sa social justice especially sa mga under privileged didto,” Llenos said.
“Mao na ang usa sa makahatag og inspiration namo kay diri sa Pasil man gud daghan man kaayo ang mga under privileged diri especially kato sang mga batan-on nga na-influence sa drugas, mga broken families. Mao na ang mohatag namo og kusog nga mopadayon sa among mga trabaho,” he added.
Cardinal Bo, in his speech, made the Cebuanos grateful for trying to speak in vernacular.
“Dako ang akong kalipay nga makaabot dinhi sa Sugbu. Ang atong Santo Padre gihigugma kamong tanan. Gihigugma kamo sa atong Ginoo,” he told the crowd.
He said that Don Bosco also wants the people to be happy.
“It is because if you are not happy, devil can influence you and destroy your soul easily. That is the reason that he wished you happiness. The happiness which Don Bosco desire for you and is not just in this world but also in the next,” Cardinal Bo said.
He said the shortest way to happiness is to avoid committing sins.
Like Don Bosco, he said, death is better than committing sin.
“In death, we can be with God and be happy but in sin, there is no way of God approaching us and we cannot approach him too,” he said.
The cardinal urged the people not to blame anyone for being poor.
“You can become priests, sisters, brothers, bishops. You can become prime ministers, president, doctors, engineers. But ne-ver blame yourself on a situation. Because I am poor, I can do nothing. Because my parents are poor, I can do nothing,” Bo said.
“Don’t blame your parents that you are poor, don’t blame yourself, don’t blame anyone at all. You must work hard to become the grace of others,” he added.
He thanked the youths and students for their presentation yesterday, saying he was attracted by the smiles of the dancers.
“I am so glad to stand on this ground which is the pride of my Confreres, my Salesians brothers. It is so encouraging to see that our Salesian Charisma is still very much alive and vibrant on this part of the planet,” he said.
After his speech, he was given a Barong Tagalog by the Don Bosco Youth Center as a token of gratitude for choosing the area to visit in the weeklong IEC activity.
The cardinal also granted the request of the residents for him to dance in the Sinulog beat. (FREEMAN)