Pinoys in Italy join prayers for murdered missionaries

Philippine officials in Italy took part in a recent memorial prayer vigil for missionaries killed while serving abroad.   The memorial prayer vigil was held at the Parrocchia San Benedetto in Milan, according to a news release of the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).   "(Philippine) Consul General Lourdes Tabamo thanked the Italian community for remembering the missionaries and for paying homage to Father Fausto Tentorio," the DFA said.   The prayer vigil had included a video featuring the life and works of Tentorio, a Pontificio Istituto Missioni Estere (PIME) priest killed in Mindanao in October last year. A lone gunman shot him inside the compound of the Mother of Perpetual Help parish church in Arakan at around 7:30 a.m. on October 17, 2011. Tentorio was the third priest in their congregation who was murdered in the Philippines.   On February 25 this year, Filipinos in Italy gathered for a Mass held in memory of Tentorio, at the Santo Stefano Church.   Three Filipino and four Italian priests celebrated the Mass, with two of Tentorio's PIME colleagues as main celebrant and homily speaker.   Among those present at the February Mass were Tentorio's brother Felice and his wife, sister Mariella, and other relatives.   Felice thanked those who attended the Mass and recounted what he witnessed during the funeral and the "outpouring of love that he felt from the people for his brother." - VVP, GMA News