Individual members of the religious order known as Carmelites, or Carmel, in the Philippines have expressed support for the candidacies of Vice President Leni Robredo and Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan for this year’s national elections.
In a “declaration” released on Saturday, March 12, men and women religious belonging to the order said they made the decision “after deep discernment” and prayer.
They said Robredo and Pangilinan “have laudable backgrounds and track records, clear directions and platforms of governance, and most of all, the commendable personal character and integrity that support their competence to lead our nation in the next six years.”
“Similarly, we also express our support for the senatorial candidates under the banner of Leni and Kiko whom we believe will cooperate fully with their vision and initiatives for the nation, especially for the poor and marginalized,” read the “declaration of support.”
The religious said that they “have been carefully reading the ‘signs of our times’ in the light of the Gospel and of our Carmelite tradition” in the past months.
“Discernment has been taking place in our present historical context as Filipinos, both as individuals and as a nation,” read the statement released.
“Like our Holy Father Elijah, the great Prophet of Truth, we are listening to the ‘murmuring sound of the gentle breeze’ — not on top of Mount Horeb, but in our day to day encounters and meetings with people in and from our various pastoral ministries,” it added.
They said that as Carmelites and as “contemplatives,” they are always on a journey, “seeking the face of God in the lives of the people, in the hearts of those who hunger and thirst for the Lord.”
“We are immersed in the situations of the ‘anawim of God’— the poor of Yahweh, the remnants of Israel, the victims, the unfree and oppressed, the deprived and marginalized,” read the declaration.
“We are prophets. We zealously stand before the God of Hosts (cf 1 Kings 19:10) and have promised to follow in allegiance to Jesus Christ, who had called us to be His disciples and builders of the Kingdom,” said the religious men and women.
“We stand for truth, not lies. We stand for justice, not manipulation. We espouse good governance which is honest, transparent, competent, and just,” read the statement.
“We are committed in establishing a new order and system in the economic, civil and political, and socio-cultural spheres of Philippine society and similarly, in the building of a true Church of the Poor,” added the group.
They said that, as Carmelites “have diligently done our research and have studied the different backgrounds, qualifications, track records, program priorities, platforms, and characters of the different candidates who are presenting themselves to us and soliciting our votes for the highest national positions.”
“Like the Prophet Elijah who countered all the lies, disinformation, malicious fabrications, revisionism and distortions in all forms during his time, and who fought against the false prophets of Baal, we, too, uphold this task by taking Elijah’s sword of truth, as well as the mighty pen of our modern-day martyr, Blessed Titus Brandsma, who was martyred in defense of press freedom, to extinguish the venom of disinformation spread by the powers that be and the peddlers of lies,” read the statement.
