Catholic priest urges colleagues to inspect structural integrity of Churches

Quiapo Church. H. Abanil / Wikipedia

MANILA — An official of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines-Permanent Committee on Public Affairs (CBCP-PCPA) urged members of clergy to inspect the structural integrity of their churches.

Fr. Jerome Secillano, Executive Secretary of the CBCP-PCPA said that although some parishes have conducted their own inspections, there were some that had yet to take action.

“I enjoin all pastors to look into this matter also in the interest of precaution and safety,” he said.

Secilano noted that priest should ensure that house of worship safe since the place was chosen by the people as sanctuary.

“We have to remember that churches are most often the sanctuary, both physically and spiritually, of people who may be affected by calamities or crisis,” he added.

On the other hand, Secillano lauded the effort of the government in informing the public about the areas in Metro Manila and nearby province that are situated in the 100-kilometer West Valley Fault.

“It’s better for the government to inform the people about such fault line than for the latter to be ignorant of their situation,” he said.

The Catholic priest noted that the challenge for the government was on how to respond in case a cataclysmic event happens in our country.

“It would help us greatly if the government already has effective strategies that will mitigate damages and help people survive once a calamity much like the Nepal incident happens in our country,” he said.

Secillano added, “Hearing such news about fault lines should not create panic but rather people should prudently think of what best to do when also confronted by destructive natural calamities.”

On Monday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said that the active fault line may generate up to 7.2 magnitude earthquake.

The fault line traverses parts of Metro Manila and the adjoining provinces of Bulacan, Laguna, Rizal and Cavite.