Sara Duterte trial: What was prosecutor Divinagracia holding while examining witness?

This composite photo shows a comfort cross and private prosecutor Mae Divinagracia.

Senate, Rappler screenshots

The private prosecutor says the wooden cross calms her down

AT A GLANCE

• Private prosecutor Mae Divinagracia interrogates a hostile witness at the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, marking her debut in court.
• During the trial, she was seen holding a 'comfort cross,' which she claims brings her confidence and clarity of mind.
• Divinagracia, a law graduate from Ateneo de Manila and managing partner at CNDLAW, emphasizes that her efforts are focused on seeking justice rather than personal recognition.

This is AI-generated. Read the article for full context. Report any errors.

It’s private prosecutor Mae Divinagracia’s time to shine as she takes the driver’s seat to interrogate another hostile witness at the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

As she makes her impeachment court debut, eagle-eyed spectators were quick to notice the wooden object tucked between her fingers while conducting a direct examination of Duterte’s assistant chief of staff Lemuel Ortonio.

What was it?

“It’s a comfort cross,” Divinagracia told the media after the trial on Tuesday, August 25, adding that she always carries it with her when she faces court proceedings.

“It brings me confidence, it brings me clarity of mind, that’s how I feel when I’m holding it,” she added in a separate ambush interview.

The US-based Catholic private communications company Diocesan says comfort crosses “are often made in the Holy Land or other pilgrimage sites and get their name from their smoothness in the palm of one’s hand.”

“A few of us have started to jokingly call them ‘ergonomic crosses,’ as even the idea of a ‘comfort cross’ is incredibly ironic. Nonetheless, this harmless irony points to the desire that we all have: to avoid discomfort and suffering,” a 2018 article from the website reads.

The holding cross on Divinagracia’s palm bears the image of Padre Pio, an Italian friar and Catholic priest ordained in 1910 and became renowned for his ministry of confession. He was canonized by Pope John Paul II in 2002.

“Padre Pio da Pietrelcina placed at the centre of his life and apostolic work the Cross of his Lord as his strength, his wisdom and his glory,” an article from the Vatican website reads.

Divinagracia completed her law studies at the Ateneo de Manila in 2007, and is currently a managing partner at CNDLAW. Her specialization includes commercial, civil, and criminal litigation, arbitration, product liability, corporate rehabilitation, intra-corporate controversies, labor, and family law.

She previously worked as a lawyer for the late public works undersecretary Cathy Cabral.  

Divinagracia, of course, has the support of pro-impeachment advocates, but she tells the media, “This is not about me, but my quest for justice.” – Rappler.com