MANILA (UCAN) -- Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales of Manila announced that an anti-poverty program he launched in April has raised 5 million pesos (about US$89,000) from donors who include young students.

"We estimate that there are about half a million people contributing 25 centavos" to Pondo ng Pinoy," (fund of the Filipino) he told UCA News Nov. 10.

"Tomorrow is our fifth month and we already have 5 million pesos," Archbishop Rosales said at a seminar for social communications workers organized by the bishops' National Office of Mass Media at a Catholic university near Manila. He said the expectation is "that we will hit our target of 10 million (pesos) by December."

Pondo ng Pinoy encourages parishioners to set aside small coins, "equivalent to crumbs," and to donate them as their share in the mission of the Church. Archbishop Rosales explained that setting aside a small amount daily helps form a new mental attitude and a habit inspired by Christian responsibility. The small amount, as little as 25 centavos and no more than one peso, or 100 centavos, allows "everyone" to participate.

"You can always give a glass of water to the thirsty or even half a glass of water, but this alone will not bring you to heaven," Archbishop Rosales told the Church workers. "Charity is supposed to be a way of life," he stressed.

The archbishop later told UCA News that there are "hundreds of thousands" of people who are regularly contributing money to Pondo ng Pinoy. Residents in Tondo, once Manila's largest slum area, bank the coins in empty drinking water bottles and little tubes used for photographic film. "One film canister can hold 10 pesos worth of coins," Archbishop Rosales said.

"Different households try to find various ways of raising funds," he continued, saying word of the initiative commonly spreads from individuals who learn about it and then talk about it in school, at home or among co-workers. Contributions have come in from corporate employees and banks as well as members of Catholic charismatic groups, he added.

In parishes, coins dropped in bottles marked Pondo ng Pinoy are not added to the parish funds but are brought to Caritas Manila, the archdiocese's social action office, and set aside for the fund, envisioned as a community foundation whose resources will support development and charitable programs for the poor and needy.

Anne Joanne Vallespin of St. Scholastica's Academy in Marikina, east of Manila, told UCA News the high-school section sends at least 12,000 pesos monthly from students and faculty members.

"Each time we gather the collections, they (donors) are so happy. It becomes a source of pride for our students," the physics teacher said.

Reports of graft and corruption in the government "scare people," she added, whereas "with the Church, we are confident that honest people are there, and we are hoping that these small acts of charity are transformed into concrete benefits for the needy."

Asked about Pondo ng Pinoy's significance amid the fiscal problems of a swelling national debt, Archbishop Rosales said, "We (Church) should not just criticize the government all the time." Instead, "we should do something" about so many people who remain "hungry and poor," he suggested.

The Manila Church leader said Pondo ng Pinoy assistance is available to "anyone who would need it," including dioceses outside Manila and the surrounding area. He pledged that the archdiocese will follow the example of Christ, who aided others as the need arose, and will continue encouraging donations "whether there is a crisis or not."

END