Papal Visit PH logo explained
• 02:57 AM Mon Sep 22, 2014
3,962
By:
Edwin O. Fernandez
(papalvisit.ph)
As Church leaders in
the Philippines are in the thick of preparations for Pope Francis visit on
January 15-19, 2015, a Papal Visit Logo has been launched following the
launching of official website for Pope Francis' visit to the Philippines and//www.papalvisit.ph www.papalvisit.ph .
Below is the
explanation of the Papal visit logo.
COLORS .
The colors of the
logo (blue, red, and yellow) are the colors of the Philippine flag. The colors
therefore represent the country and its people. It is in solidarity with the
victims of recent calamities that the Pope is coming to the Philippines.
CIRCLES.
The innermost circle
resembles a pearl, and again it symbolizes the Philippines, which is known as
the pearl of the orient seas. The white Cross symbolizes the Christian faith,
and our fervent prayer that the center of our country be our Lord Jesus Christ.
It serves as a reminder as well that more than a State Visit, the primary
objective of the Papal visit is a religious one. He comes to show and share the
Lord’s mercy and compassion with the Filipino people.
The red circle symbolizes Mercy , one of the themes of the Papal
visit. Red is the color of blood and recalls the sacrifice of our Lord on the
cross for our salvation, a holy sacrifice that manifests and exemplifies Divine
Mercy for sinful humanity.
The blue circle means Compassion , the other theme of the Papal visit. Blue is the color
of divine presence – it is the color of the sky and the sea that surround our
life, much like God’s presence, that is, God’s compassionate love that
permeates and sustains human existence.
The sequence of the
colors follows the order of the colors of the Philippine flagand Yellow at the
center, blue on top, and red at the bottom.
The red and blue circles appear like arms
embracing the yellow circle.
These are the merciful and compassionate arms of the Pope, the Vicar of Christ,
embracing the Philippines, the pearl of the orient seas. The current Pope is
well known for expressing his love and care for people by spontaneously hugging
and kissing them. The red and blue
circles or arms therefore symbolize the Pope’s Merciful and Compassionate
Embrace, and by extension, Christ’s loving embrace. The Pope now comes to the
Philippines to embrace us with his arms of love.
Finally the blue and red circles appear like
ripples, or waves emanating from the inner circle, from the Cross. We pray that the Papal visit will indeed
create ripples of compassion and mercy throughout the Filipino nation and
beyond January 2015.