October 18, 2012. (ROMEREPORTS.com) What do Saint Sebastian, the Apostle Saint Peter and a young Filipino all have in common? They were persecuted for refusing to deny their Catholic faith. The life of Blessed Pedro Calungsod was short but intense. He was a catechist, and as a teen, accompanied Jesuit missionaries to the Marian Islands.

It was there that many were converted thanks to his work. One time he helped baptize the daughter of a tribal chief with the consent of the girl’s mother. That cost him his life: Pedro was executed by the angry father of the girl. He was only 18.

MERCEDES A. TUASON
Philippine Ambassador to the Holy See
“He was martyred and in Guam..when the priest was martyred before him, because of the hatred of the faith, he did not run away. He stayed and he was also martyred, he was also killed and thrown.”

To prepare for the canonization, Filipinos have organized a Triduum of prayer in some of the most important churches in Rome such as the “Gesù” and “Saint Mary Major”. Their  ambassador to the Vatican says Filipinos are excited.

MERCEDES A. TUASON
Philippine Ambassador to the Holy See
“This is our second saint to be canonized and of course we are all very excited. The best thing is that it´s for the Filipino youth. I think there are 10,000 Filipinos coming from the Philippines to witness this canonization, aside from all the other Filipinos from the other countries”

The canonization of Pedro Calungsod also has  a digital dimension. That’s because this future Saint has a very active presence on Twitter and Facebook, where you can find all the materials on the life and message of this second Filipino Saint.


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