Iligan bishop prays for victory of truth on feast of St. Michael

ILIGAN CITY—The Catholic prelate here has prayed for the victory of truth over lies as the faithful observe on Tuesday the feast of the city’s patron, St. Michael the Archangel.

Over 20,000 devotees, mostly carrying small statues of Saint Michael the Archangel, joined the morning procession around the city to pay homage to the revered image that is believed to have protected the city throughout its long history as a Catholic settlement.

The high Mass presided over by Bishop Jose Ramirez Rapadas III, along with the priests of the Diocese of Iligan, carried the theme, “St. Michael:  Protector of human dignity in this digital age.”

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READ: Devotee prays to St. Michael amid Iligan’s water, waste woes

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In his homily, Rapadas prayed and stressed that St. Michael will always be a symbol of the defender of the truth.

“Don’t allow yourselves to be an instrument of false information or fake news… by spreading unverified information,” Rapadas told the devotees. “

“Falsehood will not triumph over the truth,” Rapadas stressed.

Rapadas warned that the advent of artificial intelligence has given spreaders of falsehood “the power to harm online technology through troll farms to manipulate truth.”

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Amid these distractions online, Rapadas urged the faithful to “defend the human dignity” and value their “personal encounter” with other people.

Devotees who joined the procession said they are praying for peace, a safe environment, resilience from disaster, and hopes for economic recovery and good governance in the city and the country./coa