MANILA, August 30, 2012—The portrait of Blessed Pedro Calungsod that was used during his beatification in 2000 was based on the interpretation of the artist and not on actual person.
This according to Msgr. Ildebrando Leyson, a lead advocate for Calungsod’s sainthood, who said the image of Pedro Calungsod used as official portrait during his beatification in 2000 at the Vatican will be the same portrait that will be used at his canonization.
“We will still use the same portrait that was used during his beatification. We will not change the image,” Leyson said during a weekly forum in Intramuros on Tuesday.
When asked about if the image was drawn from a real person, Leyson explained that the painter?Rafael del Casal? said that he painted the image out of his own inspiration.
“When we asked del Casal about this, he reiterated that the painting was the product of his own inspiration but not based on face of professional Filipino basketball player Ronald Tubin. So we told him to declare that to the public through a letter so that they will know,” Leyson added.
Leyson suggested to media reporters to personally interview del Casal because since the year he painted the image, nobody from the media interviewed the painter to clarify the speculation on the image of Blessed Pedro Calungsod.
Calungsod was beatified in 2000 by the late Pope Blessed John Paul II. He will be canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on October 21, 2012.
He will be the 2nd Filipino to be declared saint following San Lorenzo Ruiz in 1987. (Jandel Posion)
