by Santosh Digal

In his New Year message, the archbishop of Manila said debates and competition were not the way to break the chains of poverty. He called for prayer, necessary for peace.

Manila (AsiaNews) –Make sacrifices and follow a path of discipline to be united once again and to achieve attainment of lasting peace.

 

This invitation was made to the Filipino people by the archbishop of Manila, Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales, in his message for the new year.

 

In the message published yesterday, Cardinal Rosales said the nation “must look ahead, to the new year, as a challenge and not as a comparison with the past as a score of events, mostly sad and bad."

Each new year “is made up of opportunities wherein we can start anew, wherein we can come together in a common desire — shared by both rich and poor — in order to arrive at a better and united community of citizens and believers of any faith.”

 

Echoing his Christmas message, the archbishop invited the population to pray for peace and unity in the country in these days of protest, saying that the only way to reach a goal is by sharing it with others.

National progress, he continued, “is not a matter of debate or competition. Nations that have broken the barriers of impoverishment show us that the price for unity and progress is discipline and sacrifice."

• PHILIPPINES
• manila
• church
• catholic
• cardinal
• rosales
• message
• new
• year
• christmas
• peace
• unity
• discipline
• poverty
• protests