Marcos urges Filipinos to reflect on nation-building this Eid'l Adha

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. urged Filipinos Friday to reflect on what kind of offering truly strengthens a nation as he joined the Muslim communities observe Eid'l Adha or the Feast of Sacrifice.

In a message, Marcos said it is not in how much is given but in what is restored "the dignity where there was dismissal, fairness where there was neglect, and compassion where there was indifference."

He said Eid'l Adha calls on Filipinos to remember that devotion reveals itself when they are asked to release what they once believe they could not give just like what Prophet Ibrahim did.

"The story of Prophet Ibrahim endures because it leads us to the edge, to that thin border between obedience and resistance, where the soul must decide what truly matters. What stays in us is not the moment of sacrifice, but the silence that came before it. In that hush, we recognize something achingly familiar: the private reckonings, the sleepless discernments, and the places where we are caught in between," he said.

Marcos said that what people brings closest to the Almighty is the giving up of certainty and letting go of pride.

"Eid'l Adha invites us to embark on a more difficult journey—not towards a place, but towards a state of heart," he added.

He further said when the people fully lay down their temporal concerns, they leave a special place for the Divine to take root "in our hearts and in our nation, where truth becomes a force that can shape the public good."

"May the spirit of this sacred remembrance inspire Filipinos of all faiths to respond to what our times ask of us, and to leave behind not only victory but renewal. In doing so, we affirm that sacrifice, at its best, does not vanish but uplifts, and leaves something stronger," said Marcos.—AOL, GMA Integrated News