MANILA, Philippines — The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) urged the Catholic faithful to start caring for the environment, amid the recent calamities in the country and as part of the observance of the “Season of Creation” of the Catholic Church.
CBCP president and Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David said that people should draw inspiration from the words of Dr. Rachel Walsh, provincial canon for the environment in the Angelican Church of South Africa, “to listen to creation so that we can move from a theology of plunder back to a theology of wonder.”
“We join our fellow Christians around the world, as well as communities of faith and people of goodwill in the spirit of ecumenism and dialogue, as we celebrate the Season of Creation this year 2022 and reflect on the theme ‘Listen to the voice of creation,’” David said.
Tagbilaran Bishop Alberto Uy also urged the public to start making a move and start caring for the environment, in compliance with the call of Pope Francis in this Season of Creation to pray and to come up with concrete measures for the earth.
Uy said that people can express their care and love for the environment by initiating tree planting activities to sustain a healthy environment for future generations.
“Let’s take action and think about future generations. Let’s take care of our environment, plant trees, take care of and grow forests,” Uy said in Filipino in an interview over Church-run Radyo Veritas.
As part of its efforts to help protect the environment, Uy said that the Diocese of Tagbilaran will launch today a tree planting activity through the Saint Peter the Apostle Parish-Diocesan Shrine of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe de Extremadura in Loboc, Bohol.