Thursday, July 24, 2008 Velarde to rally El Shaddai followers vs RH bill
CHARISMATIC leader Bro. Mike Velarde of El Shaddai said he is willing to mobilize his followers to help the Catholic Church in its fight against the possible enactment of the reproductive health (RH) bill in Congress.
"We will (mobilize them) so that the people will realize that we are being deceived by these people who are pushing for it (anti-life bill)," Velarde said.
El Shaddai, a Catholic charismatic renewal organization, has about eight million members worldwide.
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has been very vocal in its opposition to the bill saying it is a measure that seeks to curb promotion of life.
Instead of pushing for an "anti-life" bill that promotes the use of artificial birth control methods, Velarde said it would be better if the lawmakers would educate the public on the proper use of resources and family planning.
He said the decision on how to plan their family life is also best left to the decision of the people actually involved, and not by the government.
Moreover, Velarde noted that the money being used to fund the said bill is also the money that the public pays in the form of taxes.
He also echoed the bishops' claim that the provision where those who have committed abortion will be assisted is already one act of being an accomplice to abortion.
"They really encourage the abortion rather than penalize these abortionists, which is illegal," he said.
Abortion, under the church laws, is a mortal sin and could be a ground for excommunication from the religion.
On Friday, the CBCP, together with El Shaddai, will hold a prayer rally at the University of Sto. Tomas to call for the immediate scrapping of the RH bill sponsored and co-authored by Albay Representative Edcel Lagman.
The church hoped that hundreds of its supporters and students from Catholic schools will join the rally. (MSN/Sunnex)
