Rosales: Pray for unity, peace

Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales has called on Filipinos to include in their prayers and wishes for the Christmas season unity and peace in the country.

"This Christmas, let our national prayer be that we can still make our way in the direction of unity so that the common march can at last begin towards national peace," the cardinal said in his Christmas message.

The cardinal issued the message a day after President Arroyo approved a four-day unilateral ceasefire — Dec. 24, 25 and 31 and Jan. 1 — with communist rebels in the spirit of the holiday season.

Rosales believes that genuine peace or even understanding the real value of tranquillity has remained "a very elusive virtue in our community."

"Peace is not gained through the cessation of a battle. Conflict continues even in the time of peace," he said. "But the struggle is waged against the violence of the unjust and the proud, not using sword, rifle or arms. People desiring peace must wage war against greed and ambition."

The archbishop explained that humility and selflessness are necessary before peace is achieved.

"Peace cannot be obtained on earth unless the welfare of man is safeguarded and people freely and trustingly share with one another the riches of their minds and their talents. A firm determination to respect the dignity of other men and other peoples along with the deliberate practice of fraternal love are absolutely necessary for the achievement of peace," he added, quoting Vatican’s Decree on the Church in the Modern World.

Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, president of Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), has agreed with the cardinal’s appeal for humility among leaders, but added that such virtue should be paired with action.

"May friendship and unity be restored where hostility and division reign. May everyone correct his or her mistakes or sins with sincere humility and sense of humor. May everyone outdo each other in generosity and understanding," he said.