Christmas Messageand Cardinal Quevedo prays for peace, religious harmony

COTABATO CITY - His Eminence Orlando Cardinal Quevedo, OMI, DD, archbishop of the Archdiocese of Cotabato, prays for lasting peace in Mindanao, against floods, harmony among difference tribal groups this Christmas.In his Christmas message, Cardinal Quevedo is praying peace will finally reign in Mindanao by 2015.Below is the complete message of Cardinal Quevedo. Greetings
of Peace and Joy to all people of goodwill! For Christians the event of Christmas
is a time of great rejoicing, of giving thanks to God and of sharing gifts with
one another.

At Christmas,
I pray for the following urgent concernsand

1. That a just
and lasting peace in Mindanao is established in 2015 2. That with
the cooperation of the citizenry, our government officials and peace and order
officers may at last put an end to criminality and terrorist threats in our
city 3. That all
priority projects of the Master Plan for the Rehabilitation and Development of
the Mindanao River Basin, such as Quirino Bridge, Tunggol Bridge, Dredging of
the Rio Grande de Mindanao, Simuay Cut-off Channel and Long Term Measures for
flood control, be initiated, resumed or accelerated as the case may be 4. That peace
and harmony among members of various religious and ethnic groups may be firmly
established and mutual biases and prejudices eradicated 5. And that
fidelity to the moral principles of integrity and accountability may be
demonstrated in business and politics for the common good of all, especially of
the poor and the marginalized.

I place this prayer in the hands of
the Child Jesus, Lord and Saviour, and ask the intercession of the Blessed
Virgin Mary, his mother, a woman honoured in both the Qur’an and Christian
Scriptures.