MANILA, Philippines – Filipino priests stationed in Italy led by Caritas Internationalis president, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, on Thursday offered a Mass for Marawi City residents amid the continuing violence in the Lanao del Sur capital.
The Pontificio Collegio Filipino in Rome prayed for the safety of the victims including those still held captive by the Islamic State-aligned Maute Group and thousands who fled the city as the terror group began to seize large parts of Marawi, torch buildings, and take Christians as hostage prompting President Rodrigo Duterte to declare martial law in the whole of Mindanao last Wednesday.
“Pinagdadasal namin at kaninang umaga din dito [oras sa Roma] nag-misa dito si Cardinal Chito Tagle at sabi niya nga, ayan si Father Chito at ngayon din ay fiesta [sa Marawi] at nakakaantig kung iisipin natin mga [inosente] do’n wala namang ginagawa, nagdadasal pa nga,” Fr. Greg Gaston, college rector told Radyo Veritas.
[We are praying for them and this morning in Rome, Cardinal Chito Tagle held a Mass here. It’s fiesta now in Marawi and it is heart-wrenching if we think the victims were innocent and were in fact praying.]
Fr. Gaston said Pope Francis had repeatedly stressed that differences in religion and faith should not endanger the safety of each person because the God that we love and worship won’t think of killing His creations.
“Hindi naman ibig sabihin na iba ang pag-unawa natin sa Panginoon, magpapatayan na tayo [Our different understanding of God should not be a reason for us to kill each other],” he added.
In a statement issued Thursday afternoon, Tagle told the people of Marawi that the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila “is one with” them and “is grieving for them.”
“Hindi namin alam kung ano ang sasabihin sa inyo. Walang salita ang makapagpapa-abot ng aming pagkabigla, pagkalito, at kalungkutan sa nangyari nitong nakaraang araw,” he said.
[We don’t know what to tell you. No words can relay our shock, confusion, and sadness over what happened in the past day.]
“Tinatanong namin, ‘Bakit nagagawang saktan ng tao ang kanyang kapwa?’ Tumatangis kami para sa inyo, para sa lahat ng Pilipino, at lahat ng tao sa mundo na nasisira ang buhay dahil sa karahasan.”
[We are asking, ‘Why people are able to hurt their fellowmen. We grieve for you, for all Filipinos, and for all the people in the world whose lives are destroyed by violence.]
Here is his complete message to the people in Marawi.
On Thursday, May 25, government troops began clearing Marawi City. Majul Gandamra said some rebels from Maute, were still holed up in buildings and sporadic gunfire could be heard.
He said troops had isolated the guerrillas but were not engaging them, and that the rebels were posting images on social media to make known their sustained presence in Marawi.
“They are still there, surrounded by our military,” Gandamra told DZBB radio.
“They are not shooting at anybody specifically.”
Islamic State claimed responsibility for the rampage, which flared on Tuesday afternoon, via its Amaq news agency.
The battle started with a failed attempt by security forces to arrest some Maute fighters. Seven government troops and 13 militants had been killed since Tuesday, according to the Philippine Army.
Details from authorities were sketchy and the status of the hostages taken by the Maute was unclear. It was also not known whether civilians had been killed or wounded, or how many rebels remained and how many had retreated.
