Eucharistic and Marian Year begin on Sunday
Manila (AsiaNews) - Starting August 15, the Archdiocese of Manila will embark on the "Eucharistic and Marian Year". It is scheduled to come to an end on December 8, 2005.
The 16-month long event will begin on August 14 with the recitation of the Holy Rosary and an audio-visual presentation by Father Reggie Malicdem on the significance of the Eucharistic and Marian Year followed by a vigil mass for the "Solemnity of Our Lady's Assumption" at the Nuestra Señora de Guia Parish church in Ermita, Manila, under the stewardship of Teodoro Bacani, Auxiliary Bishop of Manila.
Ermita Parish is home to the icon of Nuestra Señora de Guia, the oldest miraculous Marian icon in the country. Starting on September 8, the icon will travel to all the parishes of the Archdiocese.
The day of the Feast of the Assumption will also give the Filipino Church the opportunity to pray for "Peace, National Unity and Renewal". "May this be the beginning of a culture and lifestyle of peace, unity and renewal," said Msgr. Fernando Capalla, President of the Philippines Bishops' Conference.
A special prayer will also be said on August 15 before the Eucharist in all of Manila's churches, asking Jesus Christ to help the Filipinos "work together as a people so that in every home, village, town and city, all may live in a culture of peace, unity and renewal."
The Bishops urged the faithful to pray to Mary that she may "accompany us as we journey together in this year of grace toward national healing and reconciliation."
Among the most fervent backers of the Marian Year, Msgr. Florentino Cinense, Bishop of Tarlac, told AsiaNews that "this year will deepen our love for the Virgin Mary and our appreciation for the Holy Rosary. More so, since the most recent encyclical of the Holy Father, Ecclesia de Eucharistia, gives us the Marian dimension of the Holy Eucharist." (S.E.)
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14/08/2004
