Archbishop Jose Palma of Cebu called on the faithful to prepare for the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the arrival of Christianity in the country this year.
In his New Year homily, the prelate said the celebration will take place even with the coronavirus pandemic in the country.
“It’s good to talk about the wonderful reality that the first baptism, a gift, took place in Cebu,” said Archbishop Palma.
“Within our hearts, despite the adversities and trials, we can still claim that we still have the reason to be thankful to God because we are still alive,” he said.
“We are here for a reason and this is because we have a mission,” said the archbishop who remembered health frontliners for their sacrifices during the pandemic.
He reminded Cebuanos of their devotion to the Child Jesus, or the Señor Sto. Niño.
“We know that in His hand is the world. We do not know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future,” said the archbishop.
Archbishop Palma urged the faithful to continue praying for the healing of the world and of the Philippines from the coronavirus disease.
“With the Sto. Niño, we can survive and thrive with the year ahead because we know He is God’s love,” he said.
The Cebu prelate has earlier urged the faithful to continue praying and to remain steadfast in their faith despite the challenges.
“[The new COVID-19 strain] is scary but that is why we never stop praying,” he said, adding that people should not be scared of the virus and they should not let the situation paralyze their daily activities.
