THE Catholic Church in the Philippines will continue to be vigilant against potential abuses and violations being committed by the government even as it assured that it is not an enemy of the State.In his speech during the national convention between the Church and the State held in Manila earlier in the week, Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines-Episcopal Commission on Public Affairs (CBCP-ECPA) Chairman Bishop Reynaldo Evangelista said they will not falter in their mission to ensure that the government is acting in accordance with Christian values.“Tensions only arise when we do not fulfill what we ought to do according to God’s will, such as when we do not respect human life, violate human rights, and greedily think of personal convenience instead of seeking for the common good,” Evangelista said.“We will remain vigilant and critical to all forms of corruption, mishandling of public funds, and violations of human rights,” he furthered.Despite this, CBCP-ECPA Executive Secretary Fr. Jerome Secillano assured the Marcos administration that the Church should not be considered as an enemy of the State.“It is far from what critics always accuse the Church of, that She is anti-government and anti-politician or worse, an enemy of the State,” Secillano said.Proof of this, Evangelista said, is the willingness of the CBCP to have “conscientious engagement” with the government.This, he said, is as long as such programs are anchored on Christian values of “truth, peace, and love”.”The doors of our hearts are constantly open for dialogue because the secret to building a strong society and a better future for a nation is dialogue carried out in the spirit of discernment and humility,” said the prelate.”It is hoped that the Church’s noble objective of evangelizing the public sphere would bring great strides in making our country great again,” Evangelista added. (HDT/SunStar Philippines)