Manila (AsiaNews) – The Vatican has invited the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) to offer special prayers for peace and unity in the Holy Land. In a letter sent and received today, the Apostolic Nuncio of the Philippines, Mgr Fernando Filoni, requested the President of the CBCP, Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, "to convey the message of the pope to all the bishops of the Philippines as quickly as possible."

"In front of the aggravating situation in the Middle East, the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI has invited, during the last Sunday 'Angelus', the particular Churches to offer special prayers for peace in the Holy Land as well as the entire Middle East," the letter stated. The Philippines has "a special duty to pray" not least because of the presence of many Filipino workers in the area, currently hosted by the Maronite church of Lebanon.

From his holiday in a retreat house in Bacolod City, Archbishop Lagdameo immediately sent a circular letter "to all his brothers in the episcopate" to convey the message of Benedict XVI.

The Pope, who mentioned the Holy Land after reciting the Angelus, recalled, as he had already done before saying the Marian prayer, that "today [16 July] is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, a mountain in the Holy Land which, just a few kilometres from Lebanon, dominates the Israeli city of Haifa, also recently attacked."

Benedict XVI added: "Let us pray to Mary Queen of Peace that she may implore from God the fundamental gift of harmony, bringing political leaders back to the way of reason and opening new possibilities of dialogue and understanding. In this perspective, I invite local churches to offer special prayers for peace in the Holy Land and in all the Middle East."