More than a thousand pilgrims have signed up for various package tours organized to coincide with the canonization rites that will make Blessed Pedro Calungsod a saint. The special event happens in Rome on Oct. 21 with open-air ceremonies in the square fronting St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican City, presided by Pope Benedict XVI.
Blessed Pedro Calungsod was a teenage catechist who joined Spanish missionary Diego de
San Vitores in the 17th century to spread the gospel in Guam. At the time the island was under the Diocese of Cebu. They were both martyred by the natives who beheaded them and threw their bodies to the sea.
Blessed Pedro Calungsod will become the second Filipino saint, after St. Lorenzo Ruiz who was martyred in Japan. He is the first saint from Cebu and the Visayas region.
After the Oct. 21 rites in Rome, the Archdiocese of Cebu will have a National Mass of Thanksgiving on Nov. 30 with delegations coming from all over the Philippines. Site of the observance is a temple at Cebu City’s South Road Properties.
At the helm of both the Rome and Cebu celebrations are Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, archbishop emeritus of Cebu, and his successor, Archbishop José Palma.
Fund-raising
The Rome and Cebu events involve great funding. To help in the endeavor, a group of volunteers formed the Special Events Committee. In it are Marlinda Angbetic Tan, chair; Carmel de Pio Salvador, vice chair; Marissa Fernan, consultant; Gino Salvador and Robby Alugar, members.
They have been appointed and duly charged with their duties by Cebu Archdiocese’s Committee on Finance headed by Msgr. Roberto “Boy” Alesna of Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral.
In it are Mariquita Salimbangon Yeung and Edna Diago Lhuillier, wife of the former Philippine ambassador to Rome, Philippe Lhuillier. Add to them Ambassador Francisco Benedicto and Amado Go.
The Special Events Committee formulated a process whereby donors may help in the fund-raising efforts. Donors will be acknowledged with a numbered Certificate of Donation, of which only 1,200 will be issued.
Cobonpue work
Donations of P25,000 or more entitle the donor to a limited-edition commemorative artwork signed by Kenneth Cobonpue, the internationally famed Cebuano designer.
The artwork is a wire sculpture depicting the martyrdom of Blessed Pedro Calungsod.
Aside from the artwork, donors may also participate in a chance to win two BMW cars (3 series and 1 series) or a Kia Sorento.
For more information, visit www.pedrocalungsodlimited.com or call the Cebu Archdiocese secretariat at (032) 5207625.