Catholic priests will hold a “penitential walk” in Manila on Thursday, February 17, to pray for people’s discernment for the May national elections.
“We particularly pray for our people as we choose our next leaders this coming May,” read a statement from the clergy of the Archdiocese of Manila.
“We ask our fellow Filipinos to be “maka-Diyos kaya makabayan,” to discern their choice well and prefer leaders who embody and promote the values of the Kingdom of God,” it added.
The activity, which marks the 150th anniversary of the martyrdom of three Filipino Catholics priests during the Spanish occupation, will start with a Mass at the Manila Cathedral.
Filipino Catholic priests Mariano Gomez, José Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora, were executed on February 17, 1872, in Bagumbayan, now Rizal Park, by Spanish colonial authorities on charges of subversion arising from the 1872 Cavite mutiny.
“The execution awakened the nationalistic ideals and aspirations of the Ilustrados (Filipino students studying in Europe) and the Katipuneros (Manila-based revolutionaries led by Andres Bonifacio),” read the statement by the clergy of Manila.
“It may be argued that if there was no [Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora], perhaps there is also no independent Philippines,” they said.
“The sacrifice of these three diocesan priests of Manila birthed a nation,” added the priests.
After the Mass on Thursday, the penitential walk will follow from the cathedral to the memorial marker at the Rizal Park, and then to the Shrine of Nuestra Señora de Guia in Ermita, Manila.
The event will be a “liturgical and devotional activity” and “an act of public worship and piety,” said the clergy of Manila.
It will take a form of what Filipinos describe as “alay-lakad” according to the pious Filipino sense of “penitensya.”
“For us Filipinos, doing acts of “penitensya” or sacrifice is never just for oneself, but always intercessory, that is, in behalf of others and in solidarity with others,” said the priests.
“As a clergy, we shall make this act of sacrifice not only for our personal piety but also for the sake of our people and in communion with our people,” added their statement.
“Indeed, when we were ordained, we promised to pray unceasingly in order to implore God’s mercy upon the people entrusted to our care,” they said.
