MANILA, Philippines – On his way to typhoon-stricken Leyte, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle heard the same words from typhoon survivors, including the archbishop of Palo, Leyte who invited him: “Thank you, you will console us.”

It’s the other way around, Tagle said in his homily in Palo on Thursday, November 28.

“You think we are the ones stronger, more lucid, that we come to the rescue, with relief goods and with kind words to strengthen you,” Tagle said. “But I want to tell you, in your hidden silent ways, through your tears, and through the laughter and the jokes of the young people, you have inspired the whole nation, in fact the whole world.”

“You are inspiring the whole world, my dear brothers and sisters,” the cardinal said in the closing Mass for the Archdiocese of Palo’s 75th anniversary.

“And you have inspired us to rediscover what being human is all about,” Tagle added. “You have inspired us to rediscover what faith is all about. You have inspired us to love once again, to think of others, to be brave, to smile, and to hope. You have been witnesses to the courage of the human spirit and the resilience of people who follow Christ.”

In the roofless Palo Cathedral, Tagle said his first public Mass in Leyte, one of the provinces worst hit by Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan).

Yolanda killed the most number of people in Leyte. Latest government data show that 4,795 of the 5,632 casualties – or 85% – come from Leyte.

In the whole country, Yolanda affected nearly 11 million people.

‘We are Church’

Palo Archbishop John Du invited Tagle to lead the anniversary Mass before Yolanda struck. Tagle said in his homily, “Inspite of the loss, we have to celebrate our being Church.”

“I know I am exaggerating,” he said, “but maybe that is the only thing left for us to celebrate, that we are still gathered by the Holy Spirit, that the Word of God is still proclaimed in our midst, that the Eucharist still feeds us with the Word of God, with the Body and Blood of Christ, and with the Spirit that forms us as a body; and we still have our bishop, our clergy, our many lay people ministering. “

“Buildings may collapse, fields may be flattened, but the Church will continue thriving for as long as the Spirit calls us to be one people, and we proclaim and hear the word of God. We celebrate the Eucharist and serve one another,” Tagle said. “We are Church.”

Pope embraced ‘all Filipinos’

A week before he visited Palo, Tagle met with Pope Francis in Vatican City, and found himself in the pontiff’s embrace.

Francis hugged Tagle in solidarity with typhoon-stricken Philippines.

In his homily in Palo, a teary-eyed Tagle said he knew Francis “was not embracing an individual person.” “Niyayakap niya ang lahat ng Pilipino, buhay at yumao,” the cardinal said. (He was embracing all Filipinos, dead and alive.)

Tagle leads the Philippines’ most influential archdiocese at a time when back-to-back disasters have ravaged the country.

In an unprecedented Church conference in October, Tagle delivered a litany of problems that plagued the country recently – the conflict in Zamboanga City, the effects of the monsoon rain and typhoon Santi, and the pork barrel controversy.

Tagle made a resounding call: “Faith in the midst of ruin.” (READ: Tagle, faith, and ruins from the quake.)

He cited the example of Jesus, “whose daily life led to ruins, culminating on the Cross.”

“His love, which is greater than the sins of the world, prevented the total collapse and the ruin of humanity. Love brought a new hope, a new heaven, and a new earth,” Tagle said.

In the same event, Francis delivered a video message – his first in English – that fit well with the cardinal’s words. (Watch more in the video below.)

“Don’t get tired of bringing the mercy of the Father to the poor, the sick, the abandoned, the young people, and the family,” the Pope told the disaster-ravaged country. – with reports from Agence France-Presse/Rappler.com