Philippines

Population growth has put pressure on the school system. The Department of Education plans to spend almost US$ 80 million to create new teaching positions. However, according to official statistics, 11 per cent of children and young people up to the age of 14 do not go to school due to household poverty. At present, 60 per cent of the 77.3 million Filipinos of working age are employed.

The priest is one of the few who knows the Filipino Sign Language. His choice goes back to a meeting with a group of deaf people during the papal visit in 2015. Ministering the sacraments, starting with confession, represents a challenge. Working with Setsunan University in Osaka has been a success.

Almost 70 million voters cast their ballot in midterm elections for Congress and local government. The outgoing majority in Congress should consolidate its hold. Local elections are a mixed bag with differences and divisions, with local coalition building the name of the game.

The religious family to which the new pontiff belonged, and which he led as Prior General for 12 years, has a long history of missionary presence on the Asian continent, beginning with the Basilica of Santo Niño in Cebu. Fellow Augustinians in India and Indonesia describe him as "a deeply spiritual man, capable of truly listening." His coat of arms features a phrase from Augustine and the order's emblem: a burning heart pierced by an arrow above a book.

Since December, Sister Liza Ruedas, a nun of the Daughters of Charity, has launched an awareness campaign ahead of the midterm elections scheduled for May 12. The goal is to increase “awareness and participation in political change.” The Catholic Church of the Philippines has consecrated itself to Divine Mercy in the face of the "serious challenges" facing both the country and the world.

Francis picked the archbishop emeritus of Manila as pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelisation. The 67-year-old Philippine cardinal has been one of the foremost figures of Asian Catholicism for more than 20 years. A brilliant preacher for years, he has commented on the Gospel every week in a very popular TV programme. For him, “The Church is renewed in her identity when she is missionary, that is, when she bears witness to the Kingdom of God in dialogue with cultures, religions”.

Archbishop of Manila since 2021, Card José Fuerte Advincula is one of the main supporters of a missionary magisterium. At 73, he is in line with the synodal vision of Pope Francis. A strong promoter of inclusion, of listening to varied groups like women, LGBTQ+ people and workers, he supports education as a way to social redemption. He is open to the pastoral challenges of the present, such as the proposed divorce law in the Philippines.

The Philippine Islamic Burial Law fills a regulatory gap that has been a source of tensions with Christians. In compliance with Islamic religious precepts, burial can take place within 24 hours, while violations will be sanctioned with jail time or fines. This success for the Muslim religious minority has sparked reactions among some Catholics.

The 65-year-old bishop of Kalookan is one of three Filipino cardinals in the conclave. As a priest, bishop, and then cardinal he always showed a missionary attention for the downtrodden. He was the strongest voice against former President Duterte's "war on drugs" and promoted rehabilitation programmes for drug addicts. He warns against looking at the conclave as a horse race, highlighting the sacredness of the election of a pontiff.

The Philippines Church and its people pay homage to Pope Francis. Cardinal David remembers him as a pastor among the faithful who chose “the dusty roads to the peripheries." Cardinal Advincula remembers his 2015 visit as a "moment of grace". President Marcos declared three days of national mourning. In offering its condolences, Silsilah, the movement for Islamic-Christian dialogue in Mindanao, says that we must “build together a human fraternity as Pope Francis reminds us to do”.

In Malaysia, the "journey of the Cross" has begun, set to end next year at the Pastoral Convention. In Negombo, young people and children put on a play centred on the Lamentations with local traditions and customs. Tens of thousands take part in a pilgrimage in Zamboanga to remember the sufferings of Jesus. In Labuan Bajo, the bishop brought the Way of the Cross among inmates.

In the diocese of Dipolog, in the south of the country, Chrisma Bangaoil and a group of volunteers have already built 12 small churches in the most isolated mountain areas. ‘We are not just building buildings; we are building faith in these outlying areas’.