Joining the call for accountability and good governance.
In a circular issued on Saturday, October 11, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) President and Bishop of Caloocan, Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, urged faithfuls to beg for the Lord’s mercy on people amid the consecutive calamities that struck the nation recently.
“For the past few days now we have been experiencing terrible calamities: typhoons, volcanic eruptions, fires, and earthquakes-one after another! Let us beg the Lord’s mercy on our people.“
He reiterated the Church’s invitation for people to “turn again to God with humble and contrite hearts.”
“Let us reiterate our recently released National Call to Prayer and Public Repentance, asking our people to observe it every Sunday-and, where possible, every day-until the Solemnity of Christ the King, with the tolling of bells,” Cardinal David continued.
He also shared a collective Miserere, which serves as a “plea for mercy and renewal as a nation.”
“Cleanse me with hyssop, that I may be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a steadfast spirit within me.”
Psalm 51:9, 12
Following the suggestion of Bishop Jimmy Afable, the CBCP President urged church members to wear white clothes every Sunday of October and November, and to display white ribbons in homes, churches, and public places.
According to him, these serve as the sign of the “collective desire for transparency, accountability, and good governance, and as a humble prayer that our nation may be washed clean and renewed in God’s mercy, and spared of further calamities.“
“Let our white garments be a symbol of the purity we seek for our land and our hearts. May this season of prayer and repentance lead us to hope, healing, and the restoration of our common life in truth and justice,” he added.
To end, Cardinal David encouraged: “Let us beg the Lord to renew our nation, and make us instruments of justice and peace.”