“This
year, the holy month of Ramadan and the Lenten season (with Ash Wednesday) bega
n together on February 18. This shared beginning is a grace. It invites us to
slow down, to return to God, and to walk together in faith,” says Bishop Colin
C. Bagaforo, Bishop of Kidapawan and president of the Philippine Bishops’
Commission for Interreligious Dialogue, in a message addressed to believers of
both communities, Christian and Muslim. Both communities are present in the
Philippines, a country of 100 million inhabitants, with a predominantly
Catholic population (90%), where there is also a Muslim community of almost
seven million people, concentrated mainly on the island of Mindanao, in the
southern part of the archipelago.
The
bishop explained to Fides, illustrating his message: “It can be said that there
is a spirit of tolerance between Christians and Muslims in the Philippines. And
when episodes of conflict occur, sometimes marked by violence, they tend to be
more political in nature or related to land disputes.” The Bishop did not
underestimate the challenges, however: “Due to some cultural differences, there
is still a narrow mentality that hinders coexistence in certain communities.
Sometimes, Christians do not feel comfortable living alongside Muslims, and
vice versa. But in the last 20 years, much progress has been made, and both
sides have tried to build a harmonious relationship between the two
communities.” In his message, the bishop emphasized that during Ramadan and
Lent, “Muslims and Christians enter a time of prayer, fasting, repentance, and
generosity.” This encourages them to “learn to see each other as brothers and
sisters.” “Our sacred texts call us to peace: ‘Blessed are the peacemakers’ (Mt
5:9) and ‘God invites everyone to the House of Peace’ (Quran 10:25). In a world
marked by violence and division, this moment calls us not only to pray for
peace, but to live it and commit ourselves to it. Ramadan and Lent remind us
that faith must transform our hearts and shape our actions. Fasting opens our
eyes to suffering and increases our compassion. God’s love is manifested in
love of neighbor, especially the poor and the forgotten.”
Peace,
the bishop reminds us, “is more than the absence of war; it is a just
relationship: with God, with others, and with creation.” “We were created to
live together, not against one another. This vision of fraternity resonates
deeply in both Ramadan and Lent. Peace flourishes where mutual respect is
practiced, where dialogue replaces suspicion, and where solidarity becomes a
way of life.”…
Article
from FIDES missionary news service of the Pontifical Mission Societies.
