Robin hopes church wedding with Mariel will dissolve religious boundaries

source: mb.com.ph

MANILA, Philippines – Action star Robin Padilla is not only keen on marrying Mariel Rodriguez in church, he's also hoping to foster unity among various beliefs by doing so.

The 41-year-old actor, who exchanged vows with Rodriguez at the Taj Mahal in India last year, told DZMM in a recent interview, “Sana kami ang gamitin ng mga simbahan na example sa mga tao… na wala tayong division sa religion.”

Padilla’s statement comes on the heels of the recent declaration of retired Lingayen Archbishop Oscar Cruz that their June wedding would not be allowed by the Catholic Church because of the doctrinal differences between Islam and Catholicism.

In an interview with “Showbiz News Ngayon,” the archbishop said, “Hindi sa ayaw mong ikasal eh. Kundi ang isang babaeng Katolika na ang kanyang paniniwala ay isang babae at isang lalaki, kapag siya ay ikinasal sa isang lalaki na ang paniwala ay dalawa, tatlo o apat [na babae], walang bisa ang kasal na iyon sapagkat iyon ay salungat na salungat sa banal na kasulatan at ng simbahan na isang babae, isang lalaki."

“Hindi puwede sa kanya iyong isang lalaki equals apat na babae. Ang mga Muslim, mayroon silang paniniwalang ganyan,” Cruz added.

Padilla’s earlier marriage to Liezl Sicangco must also be considered, Cruz said.

“Ang una niyang kasal, ano ba iyon? Iyon ba ay may bisa o walang bisa? Kung may bisa, hindi na puwedeng ikasal [uli]. Kung walang bisa, puwede siyang ikasal sa Katolika,” said he.

Meanwhile, Padilla appealed to Cruz to reconsider his stand on the matter.

“Sa panahon po ngayon kasi ay dapat tignan na natin ang wisdom, hindi na rule ng bawat religion. Kasi kapag doon na naman tayo tumayo, division na naman,” said he.

He added: “Sana in our own little way mapakita natin na may unity among religions, lalo na sa usapin ng pagpapakasal. Sa Diyos naman po ‘yan.”

The matter can’t be resolved with an appeal, however, as Cruz said in an article on abs-cbnNEWS.com.

“Hindi naman cardinal ang may gawa ng batas dahil… batas iyan ng kalikasan, ng katuwiran, at ng simbahan sa buong mundo,” he said.

Despite the issue, Padilla is apparently not giving up. He revealed that he has been consulting various priests over the matter.

“‘Yong ibang pari ang sinasabi okay pero hindi maaring i-rehistro, ay magulo naman ‘yon sa aming kasal,” said he on DZMM.

He admitted that Rodriguez got emotional over the archbishop’s pronouncements.

“Medyo naiyak nga nang matindi si Mariel diyan... Linggo-linggo nagdadasal ‘yan, nagpupunta sa simbahan. Ngayon kung kailan siya bumabalik, ngayon naman siya nagkaroon ng ganyang pagsubok,” said Padilla.

The TV host-actress cooed in a separate interview posted on abs-cbnNEWS.com that she embraces everything about her husband, including his family, his faith, and his foundation.

“Okay lang sa akin ang lahat pero ako gusto ko ako lang. Ang he agrees,” said the 26-year-old Rodriguez.

Rodriguez also clarified that Padilla is already legally separated from Sicangco. “So Archbishop, wala tayong magiging problema,” she directed to Cruz.

source: mb.com.ph