Most Rev. Samuel Naceno Agcaracar, SVD (Bishop of San Jose, Nueva Ecija) in his homily during the Thanksgiving Mass of 131st Plenary Assembly of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (22 January 2026)
“The unborn children — they are victims of mishandled desire for intimacy. They are the smallest and most vulnerable members of our human family. They cannot speak for themselves. Yet, they are fully known and deeply loved by God.
To defend life is not only to speak about loss or principles. It is a pastoral commitment. It means walking with mothers and families, listening without judgment, and offering support where fear, loneliness, and uncertainty are present.
Protecting life, above all, means healing relationship.
Many women, facing crisis, pregnancies, feel alone and overwhelmed. What they need most is not condemnation but presence, not rejection, but accompaniment.
Our prayers today become a gentle, but powerful reminder that no life is a burden, and no situation beyond God’s mercy.
This Eucharist invites us to be a Church that defends life with compassion, heals the wound of fear, restores intimacy, and helps our people rediscover meaning in genuine human and divine relationships.”