CASTELO SAYS JOHN XXIII, JOHN PAUL II USHER MODERN-DAY PAPACY Rep. Winston “Winnie” Castelo (Liberal Party, 2nd District of Quezon City) today hailed Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II as modern-day pontiffs, who brought game-changing reforms to the Roman Catholic Church and bring it closer to the Filipino faithful. “Popes John XXIII and John Paul II had ushered modern-day papacy, when they brought Vatican to its flock worldwide, particularly those in developing countries,” Castelo said in a statement he issued on the eve of their April 27 canonization into sainthood in elaborate rites in Vatican. According to Castelo, the Vatican Two Council, which John XXIII initiated in the 1960s had brought fresh wind of changes in the exercise of Christian faith, leading to massive reforms that have made the Church more universal and identified with the poor. “The phrase ‘preferential option for the option,’ which the Vatican II had developed shortly after the John XXIII’s pontificate, has profound effects to the Church’s move to become the ‘Church of the poor,’” Castelo said. For his part, John Paul II applied the brakes, when the Church seemed to become unwieldy as a result of the advent of liberation theology in Latin America, Castelo said. John Paul II did not only bring sanity to an unruly Church, but also brought the papacy into the doors of most developing countries, as shown by his frequent overseas travels during his 27-year pontificate, Castelo said. “How could we forget his two visits to the Philippines, the first in 1981 and the second in 1995, and his exhortations to continue our exercise of Christian faith in the most profound and consistent manner?” Castelo said. “Until he gave his last breath, John Paul II loved the Filipinos because we never failed them when it comes to the exercise of our Christian faith,” Castelo said. Castelo remembered John Paul III indicating his fervent wish to visit the country for the third time but it did not materialize as he became sickly due to his Parkinson’s disease. “We welcome their canonization into sainthood. The Filipino people will always remember their good deeds to make the Roman Catholic Church as the universal Church of the poor and dispossessed,” Castelo said. #
Posted on: Sat, 26 Apr 2014 12:24:56 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015