SOME churchgoers at the National Shrine of St. Joseph in Mandaue City admitted they were afraid to go to church after the Jolo, Sulu cathedral bombings on Sunday, Jan. 27.
As of press time, 21 had died and 111 were injured when two bombs were detonated at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Jolo Sulu.
But for 75-year-old Lucresia Seno of Barangay Alang-Alang, who vowed many years ago that she would go to church every day, her faith overcame her anxiety.
“I admit I'm afraid. But since I'm 75 now, I can say that if God wills it (that we die), even if we try to evade it, it will come for us one way or another. Let us trust in God,” she said in Cebuano.
Manolito Silva, 54, shared her sentiment.
A member of a Catholic charismatic community, Silva said he had been going to church four to five times a week for almost four years.
Bombing threats would not deter him from attending mass, he said.
He also trusted police to do their job in securing places of worship.
Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) Director Julian Entoma said he tasked police chiefs to deploy some of their personnel in churches within their jurisdiction.
The move was in line with the Philippine National Police's heightened alert status nationwide following the Jolo bombings.
Aside from deployment of personnel in churches, Entoma also ordered police chiefs to organize foot patrols to promote police visibility.
Entoma also plans to meet with parish priests in Mandaue City and ministers of other faiths to coordinate with them on how to secure their places of worship.
On Monday, Jan. 28, President Rodrigo Duterte visited the blast site. His outrage over the bombings, which were blamed on the Abu Sayyaf, prompted him to order the military to beef up its operations against the terrorist group.
"I ordered you to destroy the organization. I'm ordering you now, pulpugin ninyo ang (crush) Abu Sayyaf by whatever means," Duterte said. (From FMD of SuperBalita Cebu, JKV)