Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula on Saturday described Easter as a “nonviolent battle against hatred and hostility,” echoing Pope Leo XIV’s appeal for “an end to this senseless war that has brought nothing but suffering and destruction.”
“Christ is risen, alleluia! We celebrate Easter this year in a time of war… While drones and missiles continue to shake the ground of their targets, there is another earth-shaking event that has occurred today – the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead. This historical event, which has opened our earthly life to the eternal, is the Good News that our world so desperately needs,” Cardinal Advincula said.
He stressed that Easter is a “summons to all peoples to reject the ‘globalization of indifference’ and the normalization of genocide,” urging Filipinos to embrace the Resurrection as “the most subversive and revolutionary message of Christianity.”
“Let us not diminish the Resurrection of the Lord to mere sentimentality and routine greetings… It is a call to resistance – to push back against the forces that ruthlessly seek to bury our joy and our future,” he said.
Cardinal Advincula added that an “authentic” celebration of Easter “calls us to rise to a new life, with renewed fervor to remain awake and vigilant.”
“Let us not waste the sacrifice and offering of Jesus on the cross… May our celebration of this Easter Season be an opportune time for all of us to roll away the stones that have long oppressed us and to welcome the new day of hope that the Lord has created for us,” he said.
“Maligayang Pasko ng Muling Pagkabuhay ng Panginoon sa ating lahat! Alleluia!” Cardinal Advincula concluded.