Mga INC™ 'Defenders' Gustong Mamagitan si Pangulong Duterte sa Gusot ng Iglesia Ni Cristo® ayon sa ABS-CBN

Henni Espinosa, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau
Posted at Jul 28 2016 06:38 PM

REDWOOD CITY, California - A video recently surfaced that reportedly showed residents of No. 36 Tandang Sora Avenue in Quezon City, Philippines pleading for help.

In the disputed property, expelled members of the influential Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC), including Lottie and Angel, siblings of INC Executive Minister Eduardo Manalo, are reportedly living in deplorable conditions.

Rolando Dizon, former INC pastor said, "When you cut off the supply of food and water and medicine, you only have several days to live especially given their condition. There's no generator that produce electricity. You can only imagine how hot it is inside and so we're very concerned. Time is of the essence."

Dizon and Louie Cayabyab are among the so-called US-based "defenders" – former INC pastors and members who are speaking up against alleged abuses within the INC leadership.

They asked that their location be not identified.

They are calling on the INC to leave the residents of No. 36 Tandang Sora alone, which they said include children, the elderly and the sick.

The property is reportedly surrounded by masked guards who allegedly attacked the lawyer for Angel and Lottie, when she and her companions tried to help those inside the house recently.

"We are supposed to be the church of Christ but we are not following our lord Jesus Christ anymore," said cayabyab.

Last month, a Manila court has ordered the Manalo siblings to leave the compound and give up the property to the INC. They’ve sought refuge there since being expelled from the church last year.

Still, defenders said these former members should not be harassed and denied of basic needs.

Dizon expressed, "Even if they are not members of the church of Christ anymore because they were expelled by the leadership, they're still human beings."

They are now appealing to the new Philippine President Rodrigo Durterte to step in and do something because they said lives are at stake.

"Our brethren there are helpless and if something happens to them, that might also be not good for your image and for your administration," pleaded Cayabyab.

Balitang America tried to reach out to the INC leadership in North America but they have yet to respond to the latest conflict.

Lokal na Iglesia ni Cristo sa Mongolia, Magkakaroon na ng Kauna-unahang Pari

Ito ang totoong LOKAL na tinatawag. Sapagkat isang LOKAL na PARI ang mamamahala na sa tunay na Iglesia ni Cristo sa Mongolia. Tunay nga na ang Iglesia ni Cristo ay lumalago at buhay na buhay sa mga lugar na hindi pa nakakarinig ng Mabuting Balita.

For Mongolian Catholics, a first native priest is a source of joy and pride

The country’s Catholic community is the world's youngest. On 28 August, it will celebrate the ordination of Deacon Joseph Enkhee-Baatar. “One of us has it made! And if he did it, others will follow his example. We are sure that there will be many after him." An indigenous Catholic minister will be able to “connect our faith with what our” traditions.

Ulaanbaatar (AsiaNews) – On 28 August of this year, Mongolia’s tiny Catholic community will welcome its first native priest, Joseph Enkhee-Baatar, at a service in Ulaanbaatar’s Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral led by Mgr Wenceslao Padilla, apostolic prefect of Mongolia.

In December 2014, the future priest was ordained deacon by Mgr Lazzaro You Heung-sik, bishop of Daejeon. Fr Giorgio Marengo, a Consolata missionary present in the country since 2003, sent AsiaNews the following piece in which he describes the reaction of his community of faithful to the news.

The small Catholic community in Arvaiheer (21 people) joyfully welcomed the news that on 28 August Enkhee-Joseph will be ordained as the first native priest of ‘Outer’ Mongolia. In Chinese-controlled Inner Mongolia, there have been priests in the past century, but none in independent Mongolia. Enkhee will be the first.

Sitting around the table, sipping some suutei-tsai (a salty tea with milk) after Sunday Mass, parishioners expressed their views about the news. Obviously, they are happy about it.

For some, "Enkhee has shown that he is very patient and disciplined if he has managed to train for so long and in a foreign country." In fact, Enkhee spent many years at seminary in Daejeon, South Korea, the guest of the local diocese.

The faithful know that becoming a priest is a demanding process, especially in terms of self-discipline. Some actually can hardly believe it. Still "One of us has it made! And if he did it, others will follow his example. We are sure that there will be many after him."

In reality, no one knows him personally. When they were baptised, he was already in Korea to study. Of course, they their love and prayer went along with him to the faraway place.

"For us it is very important that the new priest be Mongolian because he will speak our language like one of our children or one of our siblings. More importantly, he will be able to link the faith to our traditions."