by Joel Vasquez Ocampo
On the Message of H.E. Most Rev. Charles John Brown, Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines,
on the 2022 Celebration of the Paschal Triduum (Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus)
Last April 15, 2022, a Good Friday Procession 2022 was held by the Saint Augustine Parish Baliwag, Bulacan. One of the special guests for the event was the Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, H.E. Most Rev. Charles John Brown, with Bishop Dennis Villarojo of the Diocese of Malolos.
In an interview he said, “For me as the Apostolic Nuncio, I’m really delighted to be here in Baliwag on this Good Friday evening to witness this incredible demonstration of popular piety. That means popular faith and devotion. The faith of the people here in the Diocese of Malolos, for me, is incredibly inspiring. It's also a motive for joy, because if I'm not mistaken, this is the first time in two years, that you've been able to have this magnificent procession.”
Video credit: Ang Batingaw - Saint Augustine Parish, Baliwag, Bulacan
CATHOLIC FAITH DEEPLY ROOTED IN FILIPINO CULTURE
Archbishop Brown highlighted the significance of the Good Friday Procession. He said, “What does this procession indicate to us? What it shows us is how deeply rooted in Filipino culture the Catholic faith is. We see thousands of people gathered in this town to relive in a very profound way the events of Jesus’ abandonment, His crucifixion, death, and of course, at Easter Sunday, His resurrection.”
Seeing the unique Filipino culture, Archbishop Brown continued, “For me, as the Apostolic Nuncio, I'm delighted to be here for my first time in Baliwag for this amazing celebration. I was completely unprepared for the beauty and the extent, the largeness of this amazing event; and it's great to see so many people participating -- young people, old people, families. For me it’s just a great source of edification, that means something that really builds us up in our Catholic faith. So, I say congratulations, everyone here in Baliwag who've been able to organize this and undertake this event after two years of not being able to do so.”
PASS ON THE FAITH
When asked for his message to the Filipino people this Holy Week, Archbishop Brown said, “My message would be the message of Pope Francis, who has a deep love for the Filipino people, and that message is, ‘With God, all things are possible.’ So, let’s keep our faith and let’s live our faith to the full. Let’s also realize that Catholics were called not simply to live the faith, we also have to pass the faith onto others. If we’re apparent to a family, that means principally, to evangelize our children by passing the faith on to them. This is a beautiful example of that because there's so many families that are here present this evening. So I’m just delighted and filled with joy to be with you. For this amazing occasion.”