Around 7,000 people of different faiths and social status staged
a "National Day of Prayer for Peace" last Friday, January 31,2003 at
the historic Plaza Miranda in Manila. Christians, Muslims, Buddhists
answered the call of Philippine Vice-President Teofisto Guingona
to "Stand for Peace, and to Stand against the Warmongers of the
World." Also present were Iraqi families who represented Iraq's
Charges d' Affaire in the country.

In this largest gathering so far of people of different faiths,
Philippine religious leaders made known its stand against the United
States' war on Iraq, against Bush's "borderless war on terrorism,"
and against various forms of state terrorism and Philippine President
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's all-out war campaign against the Filipino
people.

Saying that the world's peace is under siege, especially with the
imminent offensive against Iraq, those gathered at the Peace Rally
confirmed that the "biggest threat in the world today is not the
terrorism that the US govt. and its allies are pretending to address
but the current warmongering by the No.1 terrorist in the world,
George W. Bush."

Furthermore, the assembly also called on President Arroyo to exercise
restraint as she is putting the hundreds of thousands of Filipino
migrant workers in the Middle East especially at risk in her all-out
support for the US' borderless war.

If any, the Interfaith Rally for Peace proves the ability of people
to transcend their differences and work together for peace. Unmindful
of the sweltering heat of the afternoon sun, those gathered at the
Peace Rallywere one in saying that people the world over must all
stand for peace.. and let it reign with the advent of justice!

p.s. I will try to upload some very photos taken during the Peace
Rally sometime soon. You should all see how colorful and festive the
prayerful atmosphere was. The program started at 2 p.m. and people
stayed on until well past 6 p.m. when we lighted the torches to
symbolize our call for peace in the world.

I'd also like to share with you excerpts of the Prayer for Peace made
the Vice-President of the Philippines:

Dear God in Heaven,

I am a Filipino. Most of my brother and sister Filipinos are poor.
They have rich lands of 7,000 islands. Marine resource, fertile soil
yet they remain depressed, depreived in many cases of the opportunity
to grow. Filipinos have warm hearts, are hospitable, and dedicated.
They smile and laugh, even as they struggle everyday for better life
beyond just survival.

Today we gather for a day of Prayer for Peace at Plaza MIranda.
Filipinos of all faiths, Christians and Muslims and Lumad to ask your
Divine Intervention. In the wake of preparations for a great armada
in the Middle East - war seems imminent. Yet prayer and Your Divine
Rasponse can soften hearts, enlighten minds, and open windows of
change. Help us. Guide us. Strengthen our quest for truth, justice
and PEACE.