Camille Naredo

Article (news)

Archbishop Socrates Villegas

Lyza Aquino

ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA -- In marking the 40th anniversary of the 1986 People Power Revolution, Archbishop Socrates Villegas delivered a searing and deeply personal homily during a high Mass at the EDSA Shrine on Wednesday evening, urging Filipinos to confront what he described as decades of moral decline, political betrayal, and historical revisionism.</p><p>Presiding over the commemorative Eucharistic celebration at the EDSA Shrine, Villegas reflected on his own association with the sacred ground where millions once gathered in prayer and protest to topple the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. </p><p>“For fifteen years as your rector, I walked these grounds, prayed amidst the echoes of rosaries, that halted tanks and shared the tears and joy of the people who toppled tyranny with faith alone,” he said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;WE DO NOT BASK IN NOSTALGIA&#x27;</strong></div><p>The 1986 uprising, known globally as the EDSA People Power Revolution, led to the ouster of Marcos and the installation of democracy under President Corazon Aquino.</p><div><a class="fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/2/25/edsa-40-begins-with-a-prayer-against-corruption-1358"><strong>EDSA 40 begins with a prayer against corruption</strong></a></div><p>But four decades later, Villegas warned against romanticizing the past.</p><p>“Today on the 40th anniversary of EDSA People Power revolution, we do not bask in nostalgia. We confront our betrayals, repent and rise,” he declared. </p><p>Using the biblical image of the wedding feast at Cana, the archbishop lamented what he described as the spiritual and moral depletion of the nation.</p><p>&quot;Our wine is running out. The yellow hope of 1986 has dimmed. But Christ commands, you are the Light of the world, let your light shine. Fill the jars of wine again — EDSA was gospel alive. Prayer, non-violence, unity for the common good. Our wine ran out slowly, we did not notice the spilling,&quot; he said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>A DECADE-BY-DECADE RECKONING </strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177203594047320260225-edsa-people-power-40-years-march-MT04.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Members of the Trillion Peso March Movement, alongside religious groups and political leaders, march from the EDSA Shrine to the People Power Monument today, February 25, 2026. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Members of the Trillion Peso March Movement, alongside religious groups and political leaders, march from the EDSA Shrine to the People Power Monument today, February 25, 2026. <em>Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News</em></span></span></span></strong></div><p>Villegas structured his homily as a moral examination of the four decades since 1986. </p><div><em>The First Decade: “Sweet and Bubbling”</em></div><p>He described the immediate post-revolution years as a time of “yellow hope,” referencing the color associated with the Aquino movement. </p><p>“Heroes like President Cory Aquino, and Cardinal Sin alive, fervor was very strong,” he said. “We were built on solidarity and subsidiarity, tasting democracy’s joy as the world marveled. We built the EDSA Shrine. We made a new constitution, our wine was sweet and bubbling.”</p><p>The 1987 Constitution, crafted after the fall of the dictatorship, restored democratic institutions and civil liberties dismantled during martial law. </p><div><em>The Second Decade: Spectacle Over Vigilance</em></div><p>Villegas then turned to what he described as a gradual moral drift.</p><p>“An EDSA hero President [Fidel] Ramos led us, yet show business and entertainment seduced us as the answer to poverty,” he said. He alluded to the presidency of Joseph Estrada,  who was ousted in the 2001 uprising known as &quot;EDSA Dos&quot;  following allegations of corruption linked to illegal gambling, or jueteng. </p><p>“Ousting one corrupt, drinking president, he was succeeded by another corrupt one. Both jailed, but later pardoned,” Villegas said, referencing Estrada and his successor Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo.</p><div><a class="fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/2/25/palace-people-power-cannot-be-erased-from-ph-history-1408"><strong>Palace: People Power cannot be erased from PH history</strong></a></div><p>“We prized spectacles over vigilance, ignoring warnings that without truth democracy crumbles. This was not EDSA. Our wine was running out.” </p><div><em>The Third Decade: Populism and “Charisma Eclipsed Conscience”</em></div><p>Villegas described the following years as marked by economic growth but growing disinformation and polarization. </p><p>He referenced the “Daang Matuwid” governance platform of Benigno Aquino III, whose administration was widely credited with improving economic indicators.</p><p>“We had clean government, but trolls poisoned our minds,” he said. “We mocked the honest president, even if he served us well. Yellow was mocked. Pink was jeered. Only black darkness was made to look beautiful.” </p><p>Without naming him directly at first, Villegas sharply criticized the brutal anti-drug campaign of Rodrigo Duterte, who is currently detained in The Hague in connection with investigations by the International Criminal Court.</p><p>“We knew that killing was sin. Insulting women, mocking God, death threats, law breaking, siding with foreigners against nation — this screamed evil, yet we justified addict murders, vulgar jokes, blasphemy was tolerable, due process was disposable,” he said. </p><p>“Charisma eclipsed conscience. Nakakahiya, nakakasuka, nakakapagtaka, bakit tayo nagkaganun?”</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/2/25/filipinos-who-justify-drug-war-deaths-need-self-examination-carpio-1609">Filipinos who justify drug war deaths &#x27;up to now&#x27; need &#x27;self-examination&#x27;—Carpio</a></div><p>The archbishop revealed he personally faced threats and ridicule for speaking against extrajudicial killings: “I was threatened, I was mocked, when I warned that murderers cannot be leaders. I was trying to live EDSA. This was not EDSA.”</p><div><em>The Fourth Decade: “This Is Not EDSA” </em></div><p>Villegas also criticized the return to power of the Marcos family, referring to the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos Jr.</p><p>“The dictator’s family returns, dazzled by trolls, algorithms, fake gold legends,” he said. “Corruption leaps hundredfold, poverty surges, crime explodes, traitors defend China over our seas, quiet while lowly fishermen are harassed. This is not EDSA.” </p><div><a class="fr-green" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/2/25/trillion-peso-march-participants-call-for-accountability-amid-corruption-scandal-2042"><strong>Trillion Peso March participants call for accountability amid corruption scandal</strong></a></div><div><br/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>A DIRECT APPEAL</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177203615726220260225-edsa-people-power-40-years-MT2.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Quezon City officials, representatives from the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, and the EDSA People Power Commission hold a wreath-laying ceremony at the EDSA People Power Monument in Quezon City on February 25, 2026, marking the 40th anniversary of the 1986 People Power Revolution. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Quezon City officials, representatives from the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, and the EDSA People Power Commission hold a wreath-laying ceremony at the EDSA People Power Monument in Quezon City on February 25, 2026, marking the 40th anniversary of the 1986 People Power Revolution. <em>Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News</em></span></span></span></strong></div><p>In an unusually pointed section of his homily, Villegas addressed various sectors of society one by one.</p><p>To the youth: “Matatanda na kaming tumindig dito sa EDSA. Puti na ang buhok ko, patay na yung iba sa amin, mga kabataan, kayo naman… Don’t chase viral posts like dumb goats. Think critically, question, discern, kill lies before sharing.” </p><p>To the poor: “Ang para sa pelikula ay hindi para sa senado at lalo na’t hindi para Malakanyang.”</p><p>To professionals and parents: “Live honestly, no tax cheats, no bribes… Integrity at home shapes politics.&quot; </p><p>To politicians: “Shun political dynasties and epal culture… Enter politics poor. Live poorer, but richer in virtue.”</p><p>To academics and journalists, he warned: “Tell EDSA’s full story. Prayer, people, peace, victory. Reject revisionism, only truth heals wounds.” </p><p>To the <a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/2/25/list-duterte-icc-pre-trial-day-2-highlights-1259" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">International Criminal Court</a>: “ICC, The Hague. Kayo naman. Bring to justice murderers of drug users, who also murdered our national virtues and values.”</p><p>And to corrupt officials: “Mga korap, at mga kasabwat ng korap, kayo naman, kayo naman ang dapat alisin sa gobyerno.” </p><p>Despite the stern tone, Villegas ended with hope. </p><p>“God’s EDSA miracle was grace undeserved. We squandered it. This is the time to repent and choose what is right,” he said. “May pag-asa pa. Nasa puso ang EDSA. Pakawalan natin sa puso ang EDSA. Nasa ating mga kamay ang pagkabuhay muli ng EDSA.”</p><p>As the Mass concluded, the archbishop called for prayer for national conversion: “Ipagdasal nating taitim ang bayan upang bumalik ang alak ng mahal na birhen ng Hesus.”</p>

<p>"Charisma eclipsed conscience. Nakakahiya, nakakasuka, nakakapagtaka, bakit tayo nagkaganun?"</p>

"Charisma eclipsed conscience. Nakakahiya, nakakasuka, nakakapagtaka, bakit tayo nagkaganun?"

'Nakakahiya, nakakasuka': Archbishop Villegas laments moral decline at EDSA 40 mass

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'Nakakahiya, nakakasuka': Archbishop Villegas laments moral decline at EDSA 40 mass

Lyza Aquino,

ABS-CBN News

Published February 26, 2026 12:43 AM PHT

Read More:

EDSA People Power

40th anniversary

Archbishop Socrates Villegas

EDSA Shrine

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