Papal nuncio Archbishop Charles Brown made a low-key visit to the Prelature of Marawi on Friday, bringing hope to a local church still unable to return home nine years after the siege destroyed its cathedral and forced its clergy into exile.
Brown was joined by Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David in visiting the ruins of the Cathedral of Mary Help of Christians, where Catholic students from Mindanao State University welcomed them by singing the hymn “Be Not Afraid.”
“Surrounded by the remains of what had been destroyed, we heard words that proclaimed hope rather than despair,” David said. “It was as if the Gospel itself was being sung to us.”
The visit came on the final day of the bishops’ 132nd plenary assembly in nearby Misamis Occidental, underscoring continued solidarity with the prelature, which remains canonically based in Marawi despite losing its cathedral, chancery and bishop’s residence during the 2017 siege.
David praised the vision of the late Bishop Bienvenido Tudtud, who shaped the prelature’s identity around dialogue with the Muslim community rather than institutional influence or prominence.
He said that mission continues under Bishop Edwin de la Peña, who has led the prelature from its pro-cathedral in nearby Balo-i since the displacement caused by the siege.
“Their steadfast presence is a quiet but eloquent witness that the Church has not abandoned the people she was sent to serve,” David said of de la Peña and his priests.
During Mass at the pro-cathedral, David said the day’s Scripture reflected Marawi’s journey from destruction toward healing, emphasizing that reconciliation must come before rebuilding communities and structures.
“There are wounds that concrete cannot repair, and memories that no reconstruction project can erase,” he said. “Yet the Lord tells us today that his first work is not reconstruction but healing.”
Marking the 20th anniversary of his episcopal ordination, David reflected on what de la Peña has called the “Bakwit Church,” saying years of displacement revealed the church’s deepest strength and resilience.
“The cathedral may have been destroyed, the chancery displaced, and the bishop’s residence lost, but the Church herself was not defeated,” he said. “She simply became, in a very real sense, a pilgrim Church.”
Addressing de la Peña directly, David thanked him for remaining with his flock through years of uncertainty, hardship and displacement despite the continuing challenges facing the prelature.
“Mission is not measured by success, but by steadfast presence,” he said. “Thank you for teaching us what it means to remain with a people, even in exile.”
The five-month Marawi siege began in May 2017 when Islamic State-linked militants seized the city, triggering a massive military offensive.
The fighting devastated the city center, including the Catholic cathedral, and killed more than 100 soldiers and police officers, over 900 militants and scores of civilians.
