MANILA Archbishop Jose F. Cardinal Advincula called on Catholics to have the courage to stand up and shout loud praises to God and not to worldly desires and material things as the country pauses to observe Holy Week.

'Today we begin Holy Week, the most important week for every Christian. Amid the meaningless noises around us, this week, let us shout out loud 'Hosanna to the son of David' so we can defeat those who shout: 'Crucify him.' Let us cry out to the whole world through our lips and lives that Jesus Christ is Lord and that he alone is the savior of the world,' Advincula said in his Palm Sunday homily, his first as the Archbishop of Manila.