Praying for Marawi
“Iwill pray for you.” A very common assurance from one Catholic to another. I believe there are no boundaries when it comes to praying for a fellow human being. It does not matter what religion or chosen beliefs one has as long as he reaches out to a God, Allah, Buddha or Yahweh who he believes would help us in our predicament. Praying is inherent therefore with our faith.
Relatives prayed that they be reunited with the rest of the family members who got separated during the confusion of the initial siege in Marawi. Families of soldiers had a different prayer. They prayed for the safety of soldier relatives until after the battle to save Marawi is over. The families of fallen soldiers may have been brokenhearted but nevertheless prayed for the fallen heroes.
Some 22,000 students from Marawi must have prayed that they be able to go back to school. Those families who have decided to relocate to other areas in the country were able to continue with their schooling. However, majority of Maranao students have to wait for the restoration of the school buildings destroyed by air strikes.
Residents of nearby cities in close proximity to the embattled Marawi may be praying as well. Their prayer is for our troops to overrun the Maute group and for the war to end so that it does not spill over to their cities.
Prayer should not be the last resort. It is also important to be able to acknowledge that nothing is impossible with God. So, could we still be hopeful that Marawi will be restored and its residents who are in the different evacuation centers will be back in their beloved city? Restoration and rehabilitation may take some time considering the devastation. However, it will take longer for the healing from the traumatic experience.
War is costly but to recover from being desolate takes courage and faith. On top of other discomforts, the overcrowded evacuation centers are plagued with diseases like gastroenteritis, diarrhea and other ailments.
There were desperate calls for help to our president. When you vote for someone it is because you are hopeful for things to change for the better. These evacuees find their situation for the worse. No house, no clothing, no money, nothing at all except for the children they had to drag with them when they ran for their lives out of the war zone. Our government could only pray that those evacuees will regain their trust in the present administration.