Celdran to fellow RH advocates: Brace for a long fight

Famed tour guide Carlos Celdran, who shot to greater fame last week after staging a theatrical protest on the Catholic Church's stand against the reproductive health (RH) issue, said on Monday his fellow RH advocates should brace themselves for a long fight. In an interview on Unang Balita, Celdran said: "If you're going to be speaking your own mind or trying to express something that you know people are going to be against, it's not going to be easy. Be prepared to have some confrontations." Asked if he regrets his actions, Celdran said although he did not really consider the consequences, he stands by his protest, including the method he used. "I'm standing by having to stay by the altar and put it directly to their face because they needed to have it told directly to their face...why would anybody want to regret something that they believe in?" he said. Disrupting a prayer service According to the website of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), Celdran held a protest on Thursday inside the Manila Cathedral while an interfaith prayer service was going on. Celdran, dressed as the Filipino national hero Jose Rizal, shouted inside the cathedral that the Catholic Church should stop meddling in government affairs, especially in its birth control programs. Celdran held a sign that read "Damaso," referring to Padre Damaso, the antagonist priest in Rizal's novel Noli Me Tangere.

After yelling "stop getting involved in politics," he was taken away by Manila police for allegedly violating Article 133 of the Revised Penal Code, which prohibits "offending religious feelings." Article 133 says "the penalty of arresto mayor in its maximum period to prision correccional in its minimum period shall be imposed upon anyone who, in a place devoted to religious worship or during the celebration of any religious ceremony, shall perform acts notoriously offensive to the feelings of the faithful." Celdran is a known advocate of the controversial RH bill and is usually seen distributing condoms to residents of Intramuros in Manila. The Manila Cathedral is also in the Intramuros district. The CBCP filed charges against Celdran for violation of Article 133 of the Revised Penal Code, which prohibits "offending religious feelings." Sanction Celdran The Archdiocese of Manila, which has some 238 priests in its jurisdiction, asked the government-run Intramuros Administration to sanction Celdran for disrupting a prayer service at the Cathedral. "I don't think that the Intamuros administration will be banning me because the Catholic Church has had no control over Intramuros I think since the turn of the 20th century. And I don't think Director Jun Capistrano would be willing to do that," Celdran said in an interview on Unang Balita Monday. "Truth be told I did not think about the consequences, because if I thought about the consequences, I probably would not have done it," said Celdran who walked free on Friday after his family posted a P6,000 bail. Since Thursday, Celdran's unusual protest has attracted widespread attention, both positive and negative. Several groups have expressed support both in real life and via the internet, while others have reacted violently. "I wasn't expecting the reaction to be this explosive. but I really thought that i had to make a statement that was much stronger than what we've done before,' he said. No word from archdiocese Celdran said he received a death threat via SMS yesterday. However, he has not heard from the Manila Archdiocese personally. "Nobody's called me, I doubt they're going to call me and I'm sure we'll probably have to wait until the trial," said Celdran, who heard he had received some low blows during Sunday's Mass services. "I'm a born Catholic and it hasn't been taken away from me yet...I'm going to try and practice the Catholic trait of turning the other cheek," said Celdran. –VVP/RSJ, GMANews.TV