MANILA, June 10, 2011—The head of Manila’s Roman Catholic Church has been recognized for his commitment to the poor with a festschrift made in honor of him.
In a ceremony at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City Thursday, Rosales got a round of applause as the book, titled “Katesismo ng Pondo ng Pinoy†was formally launched.
The 103-page festschrift features scholarly writings from 29 experts in Church teachings and theology.
The launching was one the highlights of the 7th anniversary of Pondo ng Pinoy, a poverty-alleviation program started by Rosales in 2004.
The principle behind Pondo ng Pinoy is “small acts of goodness done frequently, regularly and consistently will lead the person doing it to heaven.â€
The emphasis is on acts of goodness and the 25 cents that are put in a bottle each day is the symbol of these small acts and when pooled together becomes an instrument for helping the poor.
In June last year the total collection of Pondo ng Pinoy already exceeded 200 million pesos. The amount funded a total of 1,081 projects as of June 2010 in health, education, micro-finance, micro-enterprise and housing.
In his homily during the Mass, Rosales noted how the program brought about not only the development of the people, especially the poor, but also transformation of their lives.
He also told the around 6,000 crowd how the program started and how some people doubted the concept of the program.
“It was a suspicious idea. Some reluctantly believe that wealth can be collected from as little as twenty-five centavo coins. Probably it was from the simplicity of the scheme that doubts arose,†said the 78-year old prelate.
“But it took only three years to prove to many Doubting Thomases that with the Blessings of the Providence the movement of Pondo ng Pinoy was not only real and genuine, but also credible.â€
“Little acts of kindness if sustained by similar constant little acts can grow into great expressions of daily charity and compassion,†Rosales said. (CBCPNews)
