Statement on the Killing of Bp. Alberto Ramento
BY THE IGLESIA
FILIPINA INDEPENDIENTE
Posted by Bulatlat
“I KNOW THEY ARE GOING
TO KILL ME NEXT BUT NEVER WILL I ABANDON MY DUTY TO GOD AND MY MINISTRY TO
THE PEOPLE”
-- A statement of Bp. Alberto B. Ramento to his family
The Iglesia Filipina
Independiente (IFI) has once again made a precious offering in the
continuing task of proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the brutal
killing of the Most Reverend Alberto B. Ramento, the 9th Obispo Maximo of
the church.
The good bishop was slain by faceless assassins who broke through the
rectory where he was staying at around four o’clock in the morning of
October 03, 2006 in the Parish of San Sebastian, Tarlac City. He was
awakened in his sleep when the assassins had entered his room and stabbed
him seven times to death. We denounce in the strongest possible terms this
barbaric and dastardly act against a man of the cloth within the premises
of his own church.
Initial police investigation reports point to the incident as a mere case
of robbery with homicide. However, the Ramento family, the clergy and the
faithful of the Diocese of Tarlac believe that the motive is much deeper
than what has come out from the spot investigation. There are glaring
indications that Bishop Ramento’s murder was thoroughly planned and
politically motivated. We believe that the brutal killing was the
inevitable consequence of his principled engagement with the people and
their struggle for the fullness of life.
Bishop Ramento, aside from being a well-loved pastor by his clergy and
faithful, has earned the reputation as a social prophet, and an icon in
the nationalist struggle of the Filipino masses with his uncompromising
stand for national sovereignty and patrimony. He was a true advocate of
just peace. As a matter of fact, Bishop Ramento is part of the monitoring
group in the peace talks between the Government of the Republic of the
Philippines (GRP) and the National Democratic Front Philippines (NDFP).
He was a known figure in the ecumenical movement in and outside the
country. Bishop Ramento has served as the chairperson of the National
Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP). He was also a
co-chairperson of the Ecumenical Bishops Forum (EBF) which is composed of
bishops from the various churches in the Philippines.
Bishop Ramento, as the Chairman of the IFI Supreme Council of Bishops (SCB),
has strongly condemned the state of political repression and grave
situation of human rights violation in the country. He has particularly
denounced the unabated extra-judicial killings of militant leaders, social
activists, lawyers, journalists, church people and innocent civilians
under the watch of the current administration. As an outspoken critic of
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he has consistently questioned the
legitimacy of her presidency, and urged her to step down from office. In
the last pastoral letter he signed as Supreme Council of Bishops chairman,
Bishop Ramento had urged the faithful “to find courage and confront the
darkness that is engulfing the very soul of the nation and continue to
thread the path towards the establishment of a just society under a
government that genuinely serves the interest and welfare of the
Filipinos.”
Honored as the “Bishop of the Poor Peasants and Workers,” Bishop Ramento
has earned the love and respect of the farm workers at Hacienda Luisita, a
vast sugar plantation in Tarlac, as he rallied support to their cause and
advocated for their struggle.
The people behind his death might think that they have silenced him and
maimed the prophetic voice of the church. They are mistaken. His death has
become like a candle in a burning incense, sparking more fire, enflaming
the hearts of the clergy and faithful of the IFI to remain faithful to her
pro-people and pro-labor heritage. Indeed, we grieved over his death, yet
we celebrate his life.
They may have taken his life by opening his body with wounds – but these
wounds have become the doorway from which Bishop Ramento’s valiant spirit
has been poured out and shared to many.
Truly, the death of Bp. Alberto B. Ramento is a great loss not only for
the IFI but also for the ecumenical movement and peoples’ organizations.
The IFI strongly urges the authorities to immediately conduct a thorough
and impartial investigation on the murder of Bishop Ramento and bring the
perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice.
We ask the prayers of the faithful for Bp. Alberto B. Ramento, a fatherly
pastor, a social prophet, an uncompromising nationalist, a peacemaker, and
a champion of the people's cause, who now joins his Creator. As we mourn
the death of a beloved member of the IFI family, may we find inspiration
from his life and death even as we commit to stand firmly for what he
believed in and fought for. Let his death find meaning in our continuing
resolve to live-out the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ upon which
Bishop Ramento dedicated his life.
Pro Deo et Patria,
† THE MOST REVEREND GODOFREDO J. DAVID
11th Obispo Maximo
04th October 2006
Obispado Maximo
City of Manila
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