MANILA, Philippines – Cardinal Jose Advincula, the archbishop of Manila, appealed to members of Philippine Congress to ensure that “every law is a prayer before God,” as he led a special Mass for lawmakers at the Manila Cathedral.

Advincula delivered this message on Sunday as he presided over a thanksgiving Mass to mark the opening of the 20th Philippine Congress.

“My dear friends in the legislative service, may you always remember that you are not only representatives of the Filipino people in the halls of government. More loftily than this, you are also representatives of the Filipino people before God,” the Manila archbishop said in his homily.

“Therefore, may you ensure that every law that you create and every resolution that you pass is a prayer before God, an expression of the Filipino people’s aspirations and values, an expression of the people’s faith in God’s providence, an expression of the people’s desire to approximate their lives to God’s will,” he added.

The Mass was attended by House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, a cousin of Marcos, and Representative Ferdinand Alexander Marcos, the President’s eldest son, who also occupies a key position at the House. Both had a brief chat with Advincula, as shown in photos released by the Manila Cathedral.

Other lawmakers at the Mass include Representative Leila de Lima, a once-detained critic of former president Rodrigo Duterte.

De Lima was one of those who read the prayers of the faithful during the Mass, praying “for all who work in Congress… that they may carry out their duties with integrity, diligence, and a sincere desire to serve the people with humility and respect.”

The Mass took place a day before the opening of the 20th Congress, with the President delivering his fourth State of the Nation Address at the House of Representatives.

It was a unique display of relations between church and state in the Philippines, a Spanish colony from 1565 to 1898, where Catholicism was once the religion of the state and is still the religion of the majority.

Manila was the seat of the Spanish colonial government, and the archbishop of Manila held tremendous power for centuries.

Even after Spanish colonization ended in 1898, the Manila archbishop still wielded huge influence over the affairs of the state. In 1986, a Manila archbishop — Cardinal Jaime Sin — was even instrumental in toppling the dictatorship of Ferdinand E. Marcos, the father of the incumbent president.

Advincula, who succeeded Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle as Manila archbishop, is low-profile compared to his predecessors, but has also spoken up on key national issues especially when they involve the plight of the poor.

During the Mass on Sunday, the cardinal called on the lawmakers to be “closely intimate with God” and “in close solidarity with God’s people.”

Nearly 80 percent of the Filipino people — or 85.65 million citizens — belong to the Roman Catholic Church, making the Philippines the most populous Catholic-majority country in Asia.

“Our country needs lawmakers who always come close to God and always come close to people. They feel the hopes of the poor, and they feel the mercy of God. They feel the loneliness of overseas Filipino workers, and they feel that God journeys with them. They feel the tiredness of laborers, and they feel the guidance of God,” Advincula said in the vernacular.

“My dear friends in Congress, we pray that your legislative work be an expression of your intercession on behalf of God’s people before God,” he said.

The Manila archbishop mentioned no specific legislative measure, but issued a general reminder that their service to the nation should “become a sign and reflection of God’s presence to his people.”

Philippine Congress, in recent years, has debated a number of laws that drew staunch opposition from religious groups. One of these is the proposal to legalize divorce in the Philippines, the only country aside from the Vatican where divorce is illegal. Another is a bill to outlaw discrimination against the LGBTQIA+ community.

“May the laws you pass reflect God’s guidance upon our nation,” Advincula told the lawmakers. “May the policies you craft reveal God’s protection for the oppressed.  May the budget you design signify God’s providence for the poor.”

“We pray that your legislative work may truly become a sign of God’s presence,” the cardinal said.