MANILA, Philippines – Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle urged Catholics to join a procession on Good Friday, April 14, to stress the value of life, at a time of rampant killings.

“I am inviting all of you to join the Way of the Cross which for this year will be called Penitential Walk for Life,” Tagle said in a circular.

“Let us join Jesus who walked humbly, justly, and lovingly. Every step we take is a commitment to the value of life that Jesus offers to all, especially the poor and neglected,” the cardinal added.

Tagle said the Walk for Life will begin at 4:30 am at the National Shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in Baclaran, Parañaque City.

This is the same shrine that showed images of extrajudicial killings last Christmas. (READ: The Church of the Resistance)

The procession ends at the Manila Cathedral in Intramuros, Manila.

A day before the Walk for Life, Tagle is also scheduled to wash the feet of former drug addicts and policemen, among others, in a Holy Thursday ritual remembering the sacrifice of Christ.

Earlier, a Walk for Life was already held on February 18, drawing a crowd of at least 10,000 Catholics. There, Tagle called for “active non-violence” in the face of recent killings in the Philippines. 

More than 7,000 people have died in the war on drugs waged by the Duterte administration. – Rappler.com