By Jire Carreon
PHILIPPINES — Members of the Conference of Major Superiors in the Philippines (CMSP), along with clergy, lay partners, and the faithful, held the 2025 Confessio Peccati and Penitential Walk on April 4, marking the start of CMSP’s 70th anniversary as an association of religious congregations.
The Lenten event began at St. Joseph Parish on Aurora Boulevard and concluded at the Real Monasterio de Sta. Clara de Manila in Quezon City.
Along the route, participants paused at each Station of the Cross to reflect and pray over the country’s pressing issues, including poverty, injustice, and environmental destruction.
The Confessio Peccati tradition is inspired by St. Pope John Paul II’s act of repentance in the Jubilee Year 2000.
This year’s observance emphasized the need for personal and institutional conversion, especially in light of social and ecclesial failures affecting the poor and the marginalized.
“Today, division, hatred, hopelessness, apathy, and greed dominate both our personal and public lives,” CMSP said.
Participants prayed for courage and hope amid what CMSP called a “desert of despair” brought about by systemic injustices. They also recalled the enduring witness of the poor, whom the group described as “the building blocks of a Church of the Poor.”
“Their courage and determination to overcome hardships, challenge those in power, build faith communities, and spread the Gospel continue to animate our mission,” CMSP said. “It is from them and with them that we encounter the face of Jesus.”
Echoing the Jubilee Year 2025 theme, “Pilgrims of Hope,” the walk served as a spiritual act of solidarity and a call to action. “Rejoice! There is Hope!” the group declared, aligning its message with historical struggles for justice and freedom.
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