CEBU Archbishop Jose Palma called on the Catholic faithful to “emulate Mary” as the CatholicChurch celebrated the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel yesterday.
The 65-year-old prelate presided over the 10 a.m. Pontifical Mass at the chapel of the Carmelite Monastery in Mabolo, Cebu City.
From sunrise to sunset, hundreds of people trooped to the prominent monastery and chapel to take part in the Eucharistic celebrations and pay homage to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
A solemn procession of the image of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel was held in the afternoon, after the Mass officiated by Archbishop Emeritus of Cebu Ricardo Cardinal Vidal.
Also taken out for the procession were the image of the Sto. Niño, St. Joseph, Prophet Elijah, and the popular Carmelite saints like Santa Teresa de Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Simon Stock, and St. Therese of the Child Jesus.
Contemplate
In his homily during the morning Mass, Archbishop Palma urged the faithful to never lose contact with Mary.
Palma said the throngs of people who flocked to the Carmelite Monastery yesterday is evidence that the Philippines is indeed “Pueblo Amante de Maria (People in love with Mary).”
“We should remember Jesus with Mary. We should learn about Christ with Mary, and let us preach Jesus with Mary,” he said.
As Cebu City hosts the 51st International Eucharistic Congress from January 24 to 31, 2016, Palma encouraged the people to contemplate about the Eucharist with Mary.
“When Jesus said ‘This is my body,’ ‘This is my blood,’ remember that this body and blood came from Mary. God is a spirit. He has no body. But Jesus became flesh in Mary,” he told the gathered devotees.