Carlos Celdran distributes pro-RH stickers in Quiapo

Two days after President Benigno Simeon Aquino III said he was willing to risk excommunication for pushing for the responsible parenthood (RP) bill, controversial reproductive health (RH) advocate Carlos Celdran on Holy Tuesday distributed pro-RH stickers in Manila's Quiapo district. According to radio dzBB's Carlo Mateo, Celdran distributed stickers to motorists passing near the Quiapo Church. "RH (Reproductive Health bill) Now!" read some of the stickers Celdran was distributing in the area, the report said. It was not immediately clear how officials at of the Catholic Church in Quiapo reacted to Celdran's latest pro-RH move. Risking excommunication Only Sunday, Aquino revived RH debates when he told graduating University of the Philippines students he was willing to risk excommunication to push for the "RP" bill. Aquino said he had to follow his conscience in addressing problems related to runaway population growth and poverty. Catholic Church officials had opposed the RH and Responsible Parenthood bills for allowing artificial contraception. The Catholic Church favors only natural means of family planning. Celdran's protest On September 30 last year, Celdran made headlines for disrupting a prayer service at the Manila Cathedral by posing as national hero Dr. Jose Rizal and referring to bishops opposing the RH bill as "Damaso" - a reference to a priest in Rizal's novel who fathered a child. The Church has opposed the RH bill, which seeks to promote the use of contraceptives in family planning. According to the CBCP, Celdran issued a statement on March 10 this year admitting that he handled the situation poorly when he staged a protest inside the Manila Cathedral in September last year while a prayer service was going on. The CBCP said Celdran posted a message on his Facebook account that he sent a “letter of reconciliation" to the Catholic Church through a Manila court. The Church official who filed a complaint against Celdran, Manila Cathedral rector Msgr. Nestor Cerbo, said “normally, the Church is always open to apology." Celdran is on trial for violating a law which prohibits “offending religious feelings," an offense punishable by imprisonment. Article 133 of the Revised Penal Code 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 stood in front of Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, Papal nuncio Archbishop Edward Joseph Adams and other prelates while shouting “Stop involving yourselves in politics!" The Manila police arrested Celdran and detained him for a few hours. He is out on bail after paying a P6,000 bail. — LBG/VVP, GMA News