Month: February 2020

Quezon City – More than 250 civil society organizations composed of church-faith based groups, non-government organizations and people’s organization coming from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao gathered for the general assembly to push for radical and strong actions in view of a climate emergency and engage state agencies on what they believe as a shrinking democratic space in the Philippines.

At the start of the assembly, Bishop Gerry Alminaza of San Carlos Diocese, addressing the body during his Keynote Speech asked, “Can we still imagine and bear a world that is becoming uninhabitable for the next generation? We need to radically change our paradigm. Climate emergency according to world scientists is mainly driven by humans. A change in the way we relate with nature is needed. We need to recognize that all creation including humans are interconnected and interdependent.”

During the assembly, the need to secure our people in view of climate emergency was highlighted when the assembly gave the highest vote to the Climate Change Adaptation/Mitigation and Disaster Risk Reduction and Management resolution. The assembly challenges the government to make a comprehensive plan that would mitigate the impact of climate change to food security and displacement of people. The importance of developing adaptation and mitigation programs is needed given that drought is projected to hit us hard and sea level rise in the Philippines will be three times more than the world average.

Yolly Esguerra, National Coordinator of PMPI said, “One of our focus is to engage the government and policy makers. This is also the reason why good governance is also among the resolutions voted upon by the network.  We will challenge government to act now and declare climate emergency given that we only have less than 10 years to stop a climate catastrophe or face human extinction.”

PMPI Co-Convenor and Executive Secretary of NASSA/Caritas Philippines, Fr Edu Gariguez said that the network will firmly push for good governance by engaging not only on the issue of corruption but also in extracting accountability on human rights violations perpetuated by the government and its instrumentalities. Fr Edu said that the protection of the rights of people is paramount as we are currently in a situation where our institutions of justice and accountability are being eroded and undermined by the very administration mandated to strengthen them.”

Fr. Juderick Calumpiano of SAC Borongan and PMPI Chairperson highlighted the need for laws to protect the environment. He reiterated that the current Mining Act of 1995 is highly skewed to the interest of corporations. It destroys a whole ecosystem without much regard for the people in communities. Mining results to the further decline of carbon sink. He also reiterated that besides people, other species within the ecosystem should be given a voice and their rights upheld and recognized, thus, the call for the passage of the Rights of Nature bill. Simultaneous to the advocacy to pass the said bill is the network’s active push to hold private corporations accountable for their ecological sins.

The PMPI 6th General Assembly concluded with much resolved to uphold human dignity and recognize the rights of nature. It will move forward listening intently to the cry of the poor and the cry of the earth.

I Look Up to the Mountains

Dear People of God,

“I lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 121:1-2).     

It would be helpful to recall that the CBCP had been issuing pastoral letters on the environment, hoping that the local Churches would respond and act together. In 1988 your Bishops issued a historic pastoral letter –“What is Happening to our Beautiful Land?” Last year, a pastoral letter on the Climate Crisis was issued with the title, “An Urgent Call for Ecological Conversion, Hope in the Face of Climate Emergency”. In the local Church of the Prelature of Infanta, Bishop Bernardino C. Cortez issued on July 26, 2018 a pastoral letter related to the environment and indigenous peoples rights with the title “No to Kaliwa Dam, Yes to Alternative Sources of Water”.

The Church believes in Jesus who came that we may have life, and have it abundantly (cf. John 10:10). Because of this, the Church is not against development as long as it does not sacrifice the common good in the name of progress. The on-going Kaliwa Dam project of the government, in the guise of providing water to Metro Manila, is to our mind against inclusive development. Together with the majority of the Dumagat-Remontados indigenous communities of the Sierra Madre mountain range in the areas of Quezon and Rizal provinces, and the people of the towns of Real, Infanta, General Nakar and Tanay who will be affected by said project, we the Bishops of the Philippines join the Prelature of Infanta and the Diocese of Antipolo in opposing this project of Kaliwa Dam on the following grounds:

1.         Almost 300 hectares of forest eco-systems in the Sierra Madre will be submerged in water, endangering 126 endemic and endangered species of plants and wildlife, thus destroying the biodiversity of that mountain range. Furthermore, the area that is affected by the dam has been declared as protected biodiversity area under the National Integrated Protected Area System (NIPAS) Act of 1992 and extended NIPAS of 2018 within Kaliwa Watershed Forest Reserve (Proclamation No. 573, June 22, 1968) and portion of this watershed declared as National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary (Proclamation 1636, April 18, 1977).

2.         The peaceful Dumagat-Remontados indigenous peoples will be displaced by this project. Their way of life and culture are bound to the forests and rivers of the Sierra Madre. They are also the guardians of these mountains. They have a right to this forest as it is their ancestral domain as recognized by Indigenous People’s Rights Act (IPRA) since they have lived in this area for centuries. They should not be sacrificed on the altar of development aggression, which would just benefit big businesses and Chinese investors.

3.         The contract with the Chinese investors is onerous to the Filipino people because the contract is not transparent at all.  First, the project is debt-creating with a sovereign guarantee and the country’s territory and properties as collateral.  The loan from China for this project will be paid by all Filipinos, not only those living in Metro Manila. There is even a provision that should any disagreement happen between the Chinese investors and the Philippine government, the case shall be settled in Chinese courts applying Chinese laws.  Besides, the President had even publicly threatened judges who would issue any Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) on the project,  thus blurring the independence of the judiciary.

4.         Philippine laws are now being violated in the rush to start the project:

a.         The access road to the dam that is now being built has no Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC), no Free and Prior Informed Consent (FPIC), and no clearance from the Protected Area Management Bureau (PAMB) as required by Republic Act (RA) 11038, Section 11.

b.         The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) requirement is deficient and hence the issuance of the ECC from Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) is very suspect.

c.          FPIC procedures are highly irregular6. Sadly, the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP)-Provincial FPIC Team failed to protect and uphold the Human and Indigenous Rights of the Dumagat-Remontados.

Mark Saludes, Philippines 
February 27, 2020

Representatives of member organizations of the Philippine-Misereor Partnership Inc. attend their general assembly in Manila on Feb. 26. (Photo by Mark Saludes)

Misereor, the German Catholic bishops’ Organisation for Development Cooperation, has resigned as co-convenor of the Manila-based Philippine-Misereor Partnership Inc. (PMPI).

Steffen Ulrich, Misereor’s Philippine desk officer, made the announcement through a video conference during PMPI’s general assembly in Manila on Feb. 26.

Ulrich, however, made clear that the agency’s withdrawal from PMPI “does not affect its role as partner and donor.”

PMPI is an advocacy network of church-based organizations, civil society groups, and people’s movement.

In a letter to PMPI member organizations, Martin Brockelmann-Simon, Misereor managing director, said the initial reasons for Misereor to act as co-convenor of PMPI are “seen as rather obsolete.”

PMPI was established on Mar. 13, 2003, to convene church institutions and organizations in the Philippines that receive institutional funding from Misereor.

“Today, approximately half of PMPI member organizations do not partner with Misereor in terms of project funding,” noted Brockelmann-Simon.

 “Some of those ‘only’ maintain a regular or ‘when-needs-arise’ exchange; some even do not know Misereor at all,” he said.

“This membership basis acknowledges the fact that PMPI is not a network of Misereor partners anymore,” added Brockelmann-Simon.

PMPI has an institutional capacity of more than 250 member organizations of different types, mandates, and sectors, with active regional clusters across the country.

Brockelmann-Simon said he is “glad about the fact how the membership basis has been developed and about its standing today.”

“The strength of the network’s membership is its diversity and has been and continues to be an important driver for development and innovation,” he said.

Misereor also cited the “changing political and societal climate” for its withdrawal from the partnership with PMPI.

The agency’s said in a statement that “it has been asking itself if the visibility of Misereor as a legal stakeholder of a national organization should not be critically questioned.”

It noted that the inclusion of “Misereor” in PMPI’s name “might give the impression that Misereor, with its role as a donor, is the real power behind the network.”

The agency added that it might also be misinterpreted that Misereor is pushing “for its agenda and interests” in the organization.

Misereor said that such an impression “could make PMPI vulnerable and endanger its political work and agenda.”

“Misereor’s appearance and legal responsibility in the network could have the effect of hampering the work of the network,” added the agency.

Father Juderick Paul Calumpiano, president of PMPI, said the network “respects the decision of Misereor, which we believe underwent thorough deliberation.”

The priest said that “adjustments have to be made,” including the amendment in the registration of the network at the Philippines’ Securities and Exchange Commission.

He assured that the changes within the network “will not affect the amount and quality of services that we render to the communities and the people whom we serve.”

Yolanda Esguerra, PMPI’s national coordinator, said whatever the changes that will be implemented, the organization “will remain a faith-based network of organizations responding to urgent social issues.”

Marielle Lucenio, Philippines

February 25, 2020

Catholic nuns join a demonstration in Manila to mark the 34th anniversary of the 1986 “People Power Revolution” on Feb. 25. (Photo by Jimmy Domingo)

Meliton “Dodong” Oso was a 25-year-old newly-ordained deacon when the 1986 “People Power Revolution” erupted in the Philippines.

After 34 years, now a monsignor, the priest still vividly recalls the days and nights when he and his fellow candidates for the priesthood fought for God and country.

DIALOGUE TOWARDS HARMONY

Father, just as you are in me and I am in you; may they also be one in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. (John 17:21)

As our celebration of the 500 Years of Christianity in the country is fast approaching, we pay attention this year to ecumenism, interreligious dialogue and the indigenous peoples.  We draw inspiration from the recent Apostolic visit of Pope Francis to the Middle East, Thailand, and Japan, which promoted a culture of encounter and solidarity. We humbly acknowledge the challenges of living among different faiths and religions as we strive towards unity and harmony in community.   Our theme this year, Dialogue Towards Harmony, expresses well our Lord’s desire which we should appropriate for ourselves, “that all may be one” (John 17:21). An open, honest, respectful, loving dialogue of life, prayer and action, is the only way towards harmony in community.  At stake are the great values of peace and harmony particularly in areas of armed conflict, solidarity in the struggle for social change, unity in healing social ills, integrity and social justice in our land. 

Basis for Dialogue

As the church undertakes its evangelizing mission, the spirit of dialogue manifested as an attitude of respect and friendship should permeate all those activities constituting the evangelizing mission of the church (EA #9).  The Incarnation of our Lord Jesus is ultimately an image and example of dialogue.  God becoming man, sharing our human life and speaking in a human language to bring the Good News is an example of deep solidarity that moves the Church’s dialogue with peoples, cultures and religion.

Throughout history, there has been found among indigenous peoples a certain awareness of a hidden power, which lies behind the course of nature and the events of human life. At times there is present a latent recognition of a Supreme Being. This awareness and recognition results in a way of life that is imbued with a deep religious sense.  The Church, therefore, urges the faithful to enter with prudence and charity into discussions and collaborations with people of other religions and cultures. Let Christians, while witnessing to their own faith and way of life, acknowledge, preserve and encourage the spiritual and moral truths found among peoples of other faith and traditions, and also their social life and culture. 

Interreligious dialogue does not merely aim at mutual understanding and friendly relations.  It reaches a much deeper level, that of the spirit, where exchange and sharing consist in a mutual witness to one’s beliefs and a common exploration of one’s respective religious convictions.

Allow us to propose four forms of dialogue, without claiming to establish among them any order of priority:

a) The dialogue of life, where people strive to live in an open and neighborly spirit, sharing their joys and sorrows, their human problems and preoccupations

How good and how pleasant it is, when brothers dwell together as one! (Ps. 133:1 NAB)

God is good! Siyempre! All the time! Grabe!

We indeed experience the goodness of God these days of February 4 to 7, 2020, when we, 244 participants from 56 dioceses – bishops, priests, religious sisters and lay people – gather together in Hacienda Gracia Resort and Hotel in Lubao Pampanga for our 23rd National Bible Workshop. In spite of the threat of the spread of the Corona Virus, we are so kindly and generously hosted by the St. Pius X Regional Bible Center and the Archdiocese of San Fernando. The welcome is warm, sumptuous and well-prepared. The theme of our national workshop is THE WORD OF GOD. SANA ALL IN (INDIGENOUS, INTERFAITH, INTER-RELIGIOUS). We reflect over this theme through the keynote address, through the panel discussions, and through the reflections given by our bishops in the Eucharistic celebrations. These reflections are given flesh through the planning sessions done by regional centers. But more than the formal sessions, we value the moments that we have together to meet old friends from the Bible apostolate and make new ones from different parts of the country. The personal friendships forged and the sharing of experiences in this important work of the Church renew our commitment.

We all share the belief that the Bible Apostolate is not just one of the many apostolates in the Church, because, as Pope Benedict XVI wrote: “Since ‘ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ,’ making the Bible the inspiration of every ordinary and extraordinary pastoral outreach will lead to a greater awareness of the person of Christ, who reveals the Father and is the fullness of divine revelation.” (Verbum Domini #73) So we commit ourselves to strengthen the Bible apostolate in all our parishes by persistently

• setting up Bible animators in each parish in the country,

• offering trainings on the Scripture to all, and

• insisting that Bible funds from the mandatory yearly Bible collection be properly used and accounted for.

We commit ourselves to operationalize the regional plans we have made. This year we emphasize ecumenism, inter-religious dialogue and dialogue of cultures with the indigenous peoples. We in the Bible apostolate collaborate with the ministries engaged in these works in our dioceses. What we decide in our regions we will bring down to our dioceses for implementation.

On the national level, we decide to promote UNLAD, which stands for Uniform qualification and Nurture of the Bible ministers, Life-giving Bible Festival, Advance the Word in the digital continent, and Digital platform for sharing. Hence,

1. We will ask the bishops of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) to formally recognize the Extra-ordinary Ministers of the Word of God which the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II #430) had initiated. Let the Episcopal Commission on the Bible Apostolate (ECBA) propose the nature, the function, and the requirements for qualifying for this ministry. Thus our Bible ministers will have UNIFORM formation and NURTURE of the ministers for their work.
2. We will organize in close collaboration with other Christian groups a LIFE-GIVING national Festival of the Bible come January of 2021. It will serve as a fruit of the Year of Ecumenism, the Year of the Bible of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) and the Year of the Word of God of the Catholic Biblical Federation (CBF) that are all celebrated this year 2020. This Festival of the Bible will be a strong witness to the Bible, which is our common treasure as Christians.
3. We ADVANCE the Word of God in the digital continent by setting up, maintaining and promoting a digital forum in collaboration with the Social Media Commission of the CBCP and other Church media institutions through which we can spread the joyous message of salvation in the Bible. Its aim is to reach as many people as possible, especially the young, in the spirit of Missio Ad Gentes.
4. We ask ECBA to set up this year DIGITAL platforms to coordinate and share all the formation initiatives done in the biblical regional centers in the country. These will also serve as fora for Bible resources and for quick sharing of information among all those who are engaged in the Bible Apostolate.

The call to dialogue and mission with other faiths and other peoples and reaching out to them is not optional for us Christians. It is a mandate given to us who are called to a love that is unbounded (cf. Mt 5:44- 48 NJB). We work to continue the mission of Jesus our Good Shepherd who openly proclaimed:

I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one Shepherd. (Jn. 10:14-16 NAB)

Sana all in! May we all be one flock under the one shepherd! Talagang all-in!

MOST REV. SOFRONIO A. BANCUD, SSS, D.D.
Bishop of Cabanatuan
ECBA-CBCP Chairman
In the name of the participants