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Fil-Canadians join advocacy to spread faith through music

Young Fil-Canadians join the first post-pandemic concert of an advocacy dedicated to drawing people back to church through their music.

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Rowena Papasin

TFC News

<div><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UuM0Q17Evag?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe> </div>The LiveLoud Canada concert is not one&#x27;s usual show where popular singers rock the stage with their hits to entertain adoring fans.Instead, it is a concert that only has the goal of sharing their gift of worship through songs. The melodies of the songs have a modern lilt and sound like any other modern pop music.&quot;Our main mission is to share the gift of worship and music,&quot; said Liveloud Canada&#x27;s OJ Rivera, &quot;and essentially declaring God&#x27;s word and declaring our faith through music written by people in the community.&quot;Rivera said LiveLoud started in the Philippines in 2009 as a group under the Couples for Christ, a global Catholic charismatic lay community.LiveLoud Canada was formed three years later, and they performed at the World Youth Day event in Portugal in 2023.They started planning for their first concert in Vancouver after the pandemic back in March and began rehearsals in June.Kay Estoque, head of the event, said the songs in their repertoire are inspiring and uplifting that many will be able to easily relate to.&quot;A lot of the writers are regular folks, not professional musicians,&quot; she said, &quot;but just really writing down their prayers that have become that and then added a tone to it and has become everyone&#x27;s prayer.&quot;Francis Manlunas, the band’s music director, said that even if he grew up as a Catholic, he was only inspired to learn more about his faith because of these worship songs.Similar to his experience, Manlunas is hopeful the LiveLoud concert can also become a gateway for others to become closer to the Church.&quot;I look at these songs as a form of prayer,&quot; he said. &quot;So, when we&#x27;re singing the songs, we&#x27;re actually also just using these as like our personal prayers to God.&quot;Manlunas also shared that listening to these songs has helped him face any difficulty.&quot;No matter what other challenges I&#x27;m going through, if I&#x27;m able to listen to a praise and worship song, it&#x27;s always that energy boost that can really just help me through the day,&quot; he added.For his part, Rivera hopes that their songs can also reach those who have not stepped inside a church for a long time.Supported by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vancouver, the LiveLoud Canada concert was well-received by the community and was attended by some 800 church members.

Young Fil-Canadians join the first post-pandemic concert of an advocacy dedicated to drawing people back to church through their music.