25/06/2025
PASTORAL ALERT:
A Time of Shaking, A Call to Shared Humanity
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
We are living in a time not merely of change—but of epochal change. Pope Francis foresaw it clearly:
“We are not living an era of change, but a change of era.”
And Pope Leo XIV, from his very first appearance on the Vatican balcony, has continued to echo this truth. With the courage of a true shepherd, he has called the Church and all humanity back to our deepest identity:
“We are one human family. War is never the answer.”
As violence escalates—from the Israel-Iran conflict now drawing in the United States, to the Russia–Ukraine war, and the protracted suffering in Palestine—we must ask:
What kind of world are we building? What are we really paying for?
The Immorality of War Spending
Every day this war continues, we are reminded of a stark reality:
$200 million a day is being spent on war—just in the Israel-Iran conflict alone.
That’s billions burned on missiles, destruction, and defense systems…
while children die of hunger, communities drown in floodwaters, and our youth lose hope.
Is this truly worth it?
“No one heals himself by wounding another.” — St. Ambrose
As people of faith, we must say it clearly:
This is not only unsustainable—it is unjust.
This is not simply a budgetary issue.
It is a moral failure—a betrayal of human dignity and God’s call to peace.
What These Wars Reveal
What are these conflicts showing us?
That we have lost something essential:
Our sense of shared humanity, our sacred interconnectedness—what many African traditions call Ubuntu:
“I am because we are.”
We are all children of God, and yet we live as strangers, rivals, enemies.
We are facing not just a geopolitical crisis, but a spiritual and systemic one.
Signs of Epochal Change
This is not merely a season of violence.
This is the shaking of an entire world order.
These are not passing storms.
These are structural shifts.
The world as we knew it is dissolving;
a new one is struggling to be born.
Among the clearest signs:
The rise of digital technology, reshaping how we live, relate, and believe.
Climate change, threatening Earth’s survival and displacing the poor.
The Anthropocene, a geological epoch marked by human domination of natural systems.
Radical interdependence, where war, tech, and disease spill instantly across borders.
The collapse of global power structures, revealing a vacuum of moral leadership.
As Pope Francis noted through the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences:
“Change is no longer linear. It is epochal.”
Our Vocation as People of Faith
This is not a time to remain on the sidelines.
Let us not be passive observers, but prophetic disciples— rooted in prayer, guided by conscience, and in solidarity with the poor and the planet.
Let us raise the questions the world avoids:
Are we forming communities that resist war and build peace?
Are we investing in education, health, and climate justice, instead of bombs and borders?
Are we drawing from the Gospel of Christ to offer hope in fear, and solidarity in division?
We must wake up to this moment.
As Scripture reminds us:
“See, I am doing something new! Now it springs forth—do you not perceive it?” (Isaiah 43:19)
A New Era Is Possible—If We Choose It
This is our time—
Not to despair, but to discern.
Not to retreat, but to respond.
Not to remain silent, but to speak truth in love.
Let us reclaim our shared humanity.
Let us sow the seeds of a new era—founded not on domination, but on justice, compassion, and peace.
Let us walk in step with:
Pope Leo XIV, who opens wide the doors of the Church for peace;
The crucified peoples of our world, from Gaza to Ukraine to displaced Indigenous communities;
And with Christ Himself, who calls us to be peacemakers.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)
In Christ our Peace,
(Sgd.) +Gerardo A. Alminaza
Bishop of San Carlos
Feast of St. John the Baptist
June 24, 2025
