Transfer to war-torn diocese opened eyes of new Philippine cardinal

Published: 2006-03-22

MANILA, Philippines (CNS) -- An appointment to a war-torn area of the Philippines opened the eyes of Philippine Cardinal-designate Gaudencio Rosales. In 1982, after serving as Manila auxiliary bishop since 1974, the cardinal-designate was appointed to war-torn Malaybalay, Philippines. "I heard charges of cannibalism, rape and armed religious fanaticism. ... Sometimes I couldn't believe I was really there; it seemed like some kind of nightmare," he said about the region in a 1985 interview with UCA News, an Asian church news agency based in Thailand. "It was, to say the least, a big change from the seminary." Since then, the 73-year-old cardinal-designate has become a champion for those marginalized by economic and political instability, though he claims that he is not a politician. In December, he told UCA News he does not like making political statements, but, in his role as a religious leader, he will repeat what God teaches "whenever there are immoralities or gross offenses."

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