Rosales calls for hope, prayers for New Year

Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales called for hope, trust and prayer to usher in the New Year, which he said are crucial in the coming May elections.

In his first New Year message to the public at the helm of the Manila Archdiocese, the 71-year-old archbishop said this year marks the formal beginning of our journey together as shepherd and flock.

"We have just began!" he said.

Rosales had refrained from making political statements since assuming leadership of the country’s premier archdiocese last Nov. 21 but said he will come out with a criteria in choosing the country’s next president this coming Holy Week.

Rosales had also indicated that the candidate should have moral integrity, presumably based on Catholic Church policies and principles.

The Manila archbishop said that with the anxiety and uncertainty that come whenever a new year and a new beginning are at hand, we can only hope and trust in God.

Rosales, though, did not give additional comment on the coming elections in his message.

"More than the parties, more than the fireworks, more than the food and new clothes, let us welcome the new year with a prayer," he said.

In his prayer, Rosales invoked God’s help for all the victims of "senseless aggression or justice, society’s misplaced values, and our own poor judgments."

Rosales prayed for courage "to live gracefully amid uncertainties, the courage to let go and live."