June 15, 2020
To: All Diocesan Councils of the Laity
National Lay Organizations and
Lay Institutions and Groups
A warm “Laudato Si’” greeting to all of you!
The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development has embarked and announced a Special Laudato Si’ Anniversary Year from 24th May 2020 – 24th May 2021. It hopes that this anniversary year and the ensuing decade will indeed be a time of grace and “Jubilee for the Earth”, for humanity, and for all God’s creatures. The anniversary year which began with the Laudato Si’ Week 2020 last May 16 to 24, is now proceeding with several initiatives focusing on the preparation and celebration of the Season of Creation on September 1 to October 4, 2020.
This year of celebrations and actions for the Season of Creation align squarely with the CBCP Pastoral Letter entitled “AN URGENT CALL FOR ECOLOGICAL CONVERSION, HOPE IN THE FACE OF CLIMATE EMERGENCY”, which reiterated its appeal made in 2003, stating:
“In 2003, we issued Celebrating Creation Day and Creation Time to introduce the celebration of Creation Day on September 1st of every year and the observance of Creation Time between September 1 and October 4.”
The pastoral letter also echoed Pope Francis’ call by declaring that:
“As your pastors, we call for a continuing ecological conversion in all our Metropolitan Provinces, Dioceses, Parishes and Basic Ecclesial Communities — to discern the issues and actively care for the earth in personal, communitarian and institutional levels.”
Therefore, the CBCP- Episcopal Commission on Lay Apostolate (CBCP-ECLA, Laiko) endorses to you the Season of Creation 2020 and encourages the different Diocesan Councils of the Laity, National Lay Organizations and other Lay Institutions to promote and celebrate this in your different Dioceses, Parishes and Organizations.
A more detailed program of activities and liturgical resources will be proposed and circulated soon by the GCCM-Pilipinas and Partner Organizations for our common use, which may also be properly contextualized in your respective localities.
We thank in advance the Global Catholic Climate Movement-Pilipinas and Partner Organizations for their dedication in calling everyone to a collective response to care for our common home.
Sincerely yours,
+ MOST REV. BRODERICK S. PABILLO, SDB, D.D.
Chairman
CBCP-Episcopal Commission on the Laity
