JOLO/MANILA, MAY 5 (ZENIT.org).- Claretian Filipino priest Rhoel Gallardo was one of four persons killed by the radical Islamic Abu Sayyaf ("Sword of God") group, after being kidnapped, along with a number of teachers and children, from a school in the Philippines. According to the AP agency, the priest who died during the Army's violent rescue attempt had previously been tortured and then executed by the said Muslim group that split from the Moorish Islamic Liberation Front, which supports the independence of 4 Philippine provinces.

The same sources disclose that that Defense Minister Orlando Mercado said that Fr. Gallardo's hands had been tied before he was shot in the head on Wednesday by the kidnappers of the Abu Sayyaf rebel group, while fleeing from the military offensive. The other three persons who died were teachers, who were also shot in the head, according to Fr. Martin Jumoad who viewed the bodies. At least two women were knifed on their bodies and arms, the priest said.

The Vatican agency "Fides" reported that the killing of the 4 persons was in reprisal for an attack by the Philippine army, which attempted to free the hostages after receiving approval from the Crisis Commission, one of whose members was Bishop Romulo de la Cruz of Isabela. The Bishop is overwhelmed because "in a certain sense, he feels responsible for the hostages, as he was a member of the body that authorized the operation." The armed intervention was agreed after more than a month of fruitless negotiations.

Nine children and 6 teachers were rescued by soldiers who attacked the Abu Sayyaf group and their hostages who were fleeing from the army. After crossing a river, both sides opened fire. Several hostages said Fr. Gallardo was constantly knocked by the Muslim guerrillas. Bishop Romulo de la Cruz of Basilan said that forensic tests revealed that the guerillas had torn off the nails of Fr. Gallardo's two big toes. Today the victims' families attended funeral services in the Basilan Cathedral.

Fr. Gallardo, 34, was parish priest and director of Claret's School in Tuahubong, Basilan, the school attacked by the Islamic guerrillas. "After working 25 years for peace and dialogue between Christians and Muslims in the Philippines, this episode forces me to a painful moment of reflection, Fr. Angelo Calvo said, upon hearing the news. Fr. Calvo is the Provincial Superior of the Claretians in the Philippines.

"Perhaps, as always in history, it is these martyrs who give us an example and show us a way for the purification of the faith and work of peace," the religious reflected.

For his part, the Claretians' Superior General said that Fr. Rhoel Gallardo's death has special meaning. In a letter addressed to the murdered priest's parents, to the families of the other three victims, and to all Claretian missionaries, published in "Vidimus Dominum," Fr. Aquilino Bocos says that the missionary's brutal death and that of his companions recalls the Crucifixion. Fr. Bocos, who traveled to Manila immediately, wrote the letter at dawn, shortly after hearing the news. Along with his sorrow for the loss of the young Filipino priest, he expresses gratitude for the grace of martyrdom given to this brother of the Congregation on the 50th anniversary of the canonization of the founder, St. Anthony Mary Claret.

The Claretians' Superior made a theological reading of Fr. Gallardo's death and invited his own brothers to be strengthened by it for the future of their mission in situations of risk when announcing the Gospel. Fr. Gallardo's was not an adventure with a tragic end, but a conscious choice to work in a dangerous setting, giving witness to the Gospel. "Father Rhoel becomes part of the crown of martyrs that has adorned the Congregation in its 150 years of service to the Gospel," the Superior General said. And he added: "Claretian missionaries, let us accept this death as a call to the risky mission for the Kingdom. With his death, Rhoel reminds us that the Kingdom of God suffers violence, and only those who have courage can cooperate in its growth."

Finally, the Superior General reiterated his gratitude to the young, martyred, Filipino missionary, "for being close to the people, those who suffer, the persecuted and for having taught us to defend the weak."

Sent by Fr. Adrian Magnait

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