BALANGA CITY – The Diocese of Balanga in coordination with the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines on the First Sunday of Lent hosted the celebration of the 27th National Migrants’ Sunday to show its concern for overseas Filipino workers and their families left behind.
The Migrants’ Desk of the Diocesan Commission on Family &Life of the Diocese of Balanga and CBCP’s Episcopal Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (ECMI) are the principal church agencies for this year’s national celebration.
The day’s affair started with a long procession held at the compound of the provincial Capitol participated in by families of OFWs, church people and guests not only from Bataan but from the dioceses of Caloocan City, Antipolo City, San Fernando, Pampanga and San Fernando, La Union.
Bataan Bishop Ruperto Santos officiated in the Mass held at the Bataan People’s Center in Balanga City.
“Mapalad ang Balanga at isang karangalan na ito ang napiling venue ng mahalagang pagdiriwang,” he said.
“Sa pagdiriwang na ito, kinikilala ng Inang Simbahan sa Pilipinas ang sakripisyo ng mga nangibang-bansa kaya tatlong bagay ang ibinibigay sa kanila: pagkilala, pasasalamat at panalangin,” Santos said.
The bishop said that while he was in Italy as director of the Italian Conference on Philippine Migrants, he often heard of the good remarks of foreign employers about Filipino workers that penetrated deep in his heart.
“In the hands of Filipinos, our children are safe and secured,” he quoted Italians as saying.
It brought tears to many when the bishop read a letter of a teenaged daughter to his mother working as domestic helper abroad. The daughter he said took for granted the mother leaving them and even told herself that she would then be free on whatever she wanted to do.
“Subalit ngayon sa tuwing uuwi ako buhat sa school, gusto kong ikaw ang abutan ko sa bahay, at pag-umalis ako at dumating ay magtanong sa akin kung kumain na ba ako. Hindi ko nasabi sa iyo noong narito ka na mahal kita ngunit ngayon kung narito ka lamang ay uulit-ulitin kong sabihin sa iyong mahal na mahal kita,” Santos read of the portion of the girl’s letter.
Rev. Fr. Edwin Corros, CBCP-ECMI executive secretary, said the Migrants’ Sunday is held yearly in the Philippines to go on with the mission of the Church and remind every one of the reality of migration.
