Read CBCP statement with ‘thoughtfulness,’ priests told

Read it and be guided accordingly.

Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales yesterday issued a circular to all priests in the archdiocese, telling them to read with "thoughtfulness" the recent pastoral statement of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) regarding calls for the resignation of President Arroyo.

"The (CBCP) statement was written as a pastoral guidance for the faithful in the midst of a political turmoil while struggling still for development and longing to be a united people," said Rosales in a circular he addressed to all the monsignors and priests of the Archdiocese of Manila.

The Archdiocese of Manila covers parishes in the cities of Manila, Makati, Pasay and Mandaluyong and the town of San Juan.

Rosales reminded his priests that, although the heart of the pastoral statement focuses on moral accountability that calls for radical reforms, personal integrity and competence were also mentioned qualities needed by a leader who "in her heart is asked to make the necessary decision for the sake of the country."

The prelate of Manila also reminded his priests that the CBCP pastoral statement must be viewed as a source of guidance — not as an apologia for the President, as is alleged by some sectors.

"The pastoral statement was written by your pastors and must be read with thoughtfulness because the guidance it provided was never meant to be an apologia for the President as some would like to claim," Rosales said. "It is, in fact, a decisive moral challenge to the highest leadership in the land."

The CBCP in its statement titled "Restoring Trust: A Plea for Moral Values in Philippine Politics," which was issued by the CBCP on June 10 at the end of its 19th plenary assembly at the Pope Pius Center in Manila, said that it is not demanding the President’s resignation.

However, the CBCP warned the President not to dismiss non-violent measures such as calls for her resignation, the creation of a "truth commission" and the filing of an impeachment case against her because these are not against the Gospel.

"President Arroyo has admitted and apologized for a ‘lapse in judgment’ for calling a Comelec (Commission on Elections) official," Rosales said in his pastoral letter. "The admission further eroded the people’s trust (in) the already (suspect) electoral system and raised serious questions on the integrity of the elections. Beyond apology is accountability. Indeed, with forgiveness is justice."