Inspiration: IN POPE Francis’ latest encyclical Laudato Si’, he reminds the faithful that humanity’s common home is “like a sister with whom we share our life and a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us.” He also quoted from St. Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of Creatures: “Praise be to you, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruit with colored flowers and herbs.”
Continue reading
Your Eminence/Beatitude/Grace/Excellency/Rev. Fathers/ Rev. Sisters/Rev. Brothers
Greetings from OHD/CCD !
In a word, it is not only the cause of migrants that is at stake; it is not just about them, but about all of us, and about the present and future of the human family. Migrants, especially those who are most vulnerable, help us to read the “signs of the times”. Through them, the Lord is calling us to conversion, to be set free from exclusivity, indifference and the throw-away culture. Through them, the Lord invites us to embrace fully our Christian life and to contribute, each according to his or her Proper Vocation, to the building up of a world that is more and more in accord with God’s plan: Excerpts from the MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS, FOR THE 105th WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES 2019 [29 September 2019]
The World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2019 (WDMR) will be celebrated on Sunday 29th September and the theme is ‘It’s Not Just About Migrants; It Is About All of Us’.
Given below is list of resource materials attached here with, Please feel free to use and circulate it to all your networks, communities and individuals who can use it further for celebrating the day.
May God bless our work and efforts in reaching out to our Migrant Brothers and Sisters and May Mary our Mother guide us constantly.
Fr. Joseph Gonsalves
Executive Secretary
OHD Office of Human Development/
CCD: Climate Change Desk of FABC: Federation of Asian Bishops Conference
St Pius College, Aarey Rd,
Mumbai-400 063
Maharashtra, India
The Holy See
Message of His Holiness Pope Francis for the 105th World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2019
[29 September 2019]
“It is not just about migrants”
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Faith assures us that in a mysterious way the Kingdom of God is already present here on earth (cf. Gaudium et spes, 39). Yet in our own time, we are saddened to see the obstacles and opposition it encounters. Violent conflicts and all-out wars continue to tear humanity apart; injustices and discrimination follow one upon the other; economic and social imbalances on a local or global scale prove difficult to overcome. And above all it is the poorest of the poor and the most disadvantaged who pay the price.
The most economically advanced societies are witnessing a growing trend towards extreme individualism which, combined with a utilitarian mentality and reinforced by the media, is producing a “globalization of indifference”. In this scenario, migrants, refugees, displaced persons and victims of trafficking have become emblems of exclusion. In addition to the hardships that their condition entails, they are often looked down upon and considered the source of all society’s ills. That attitude is an alarm bell warning of the moral decline we will face if we continue to give ground to the throw-away culture. In fact, if it continues, anyone who does not fall within the accepted norms of physical, mental and social well-being is at risk of marginalization and exclusion.
For this reason, the presence of migrants and refugees – and of vulnerable people in general – is an invitation to recover some of those essential dimensions of our Christian existence and our humanity that risk being overlooked in a prosperous society. That is why it is not just about migrants. When we show concern for them, we also show concern for ourselves, for everyone; in taking care of them, we all grow; in listening to them, we also give voice to a part of ourselves that we may keep hidden because it is not well regarded nowadays.
“Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid!” (Mt 14:27). It is not just about migrants: it is also about our fears. The signs of meanness we see around us heighten “our fear of ‘the other’, the unknown, the marginalized, the foreigner… We see this today in particular, faced with the arrival of migrants and refugees knocking on our door in search of protection, security and a better future. To some extent, the fear is legitimate, also because the preparation for this encounter is lacking” (Homily in Sacrofano, 15 February 2019). But the problem is not that we have doubts and fears. The problem is when they condition our way of thinking and acting to the point of making us intolerant, closed and perhaps even – without realizing it – racist. In this way, fear deprives us of the desire and the ability to encounter the other, the person different from myself; it deprives me of an opportunity to encounter the Lord (cf. Homily at Mass for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, 14 January 2018).
Continue reading
Day of Mourning and Solidarity with the People of Negros
August 20, 2019
Dear Friends,
Greetings of peace and justice!
In response to the alarming surge of killings in Negros Island, which has already claimed the lives of 87 unarmed civilians in the last two years, we would like to invite you to a solidarity action for peace and justice on August 20, from 3:30-6pm at the Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila.
We are expecting a range of participants from the religious sector, youth and students, farmers groups, human rights advocates and other concerned citizens. The program will include speeches, cultural performances and other expressions of solidarity for the people of Negros, especially the victims’ families and communities.
Prior to the solidarity action, you may also attend a Holy Mass for the intention of the victims of human rights violations in Negros at the Sta. Cruz Church in Manila from 2-3pm. This will be followed by a short march to Liwasang Bonifacio.
For inquiries and to confirm your attendance, please contact Ms. Gel Marcelino at 09475891578
Thank you very much.
August 6, 2019
To: ALL LAIKO AFFILIATE ARCH/DIOCESAN COUNCILS OF THE LAITY AND NATIONAL LAY ORGANIZATIONS
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The peace and love of the Lord be with you!
For our 21st National Biennial Convention on October 25-27, 2019, we are pleased to inform you that we will be having a Souvenir Program. Its content will include the profile of all Affiliated National Lay Organizations and Arch/Diocesan Councils of the Laity.
In line with this, we are requesting each affiliate organization to have your write-up printed in one (1) page (letter size -8 1⁄2 x 11). For this we are requesting for a contribution of Two Thousand Pesos (P2, 000) to support the printing of the souvenir program. The deadline for the submission of the foregoing is on or before September 20, 2019.
We are also appealing to everyone to help us in securing advertisers and sponsors.
We look forward to your favorable response.
Sincerely in the service of the Lord,
Movement Against Tyranny
08 August 2019
Dear friends in the Movement Against Tyranny:
On July 11, 2019, the United Nations Human Rights Council 41st Session in Geneva passed the Iceland-initiated Resolution on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in the Philippines. This was truly welcome news, as the Resolution urges the Philippine government to take measures to prevent extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances, carry out investigations, and to hold perpetrators accountable.
Now, we have a lot of work to do.
The Ecumenical Voice for Human Rights and Peace in the Philippines (Ecuvoice) through the Philippine UPR Watch and in cooperation with Karapatan, the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers(NUPL) and Rise Up for Life and for Rights invites you to a public forum:
A Walk-Through of the Iceland-initiated Resolution on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in the Philippines
9am-noon, Friday, Aug 16, 2019
College of Mass Communication Auditorium, UP Diliman, Quezon City
August 13, 2019
Dear friends,
Greetings of Peace!
The University Student Council (USC) stands as the highest representative institution of students of the University of the Philippines Diliman. The USC represents the students within and outside the university and has a proud and historic tradition of active involvement in the struggle to defend the rights and interests of the students and the Filipino people.
With the increasing number of deaths in Negros Island due to political killings and economic crises, several mass demonstrations and movements are now launched within the country to face the threat of absolute martial rule in the region. Our history has shown us the horrors and atrocities brought up by the rule of authoritarian regimes and we cannot let this happen again.
In pursuit of launching awareness campaigns in surfacing social realities, the UP Diliman University Student Council, in partnership with Defend Negros Network and Anakbayan UP Diliman, will be holding a forum showcasing the stories of rampant political extrajudicial killings and conditions in Negros Island on August 16, 1:00 – 5 :00 PM at the Melchor Hall Theatre, College of Engineering. Families of the victims along with representatives from different organizations will be sharing their experiences. Moreover, student reactors are invited to the event in order to express solidarity with the campaign. With this, we are inviting you to join the forum to be one with the people of Negros in these darkening times and call for the halt on the killings.
We are looking forward to your response as we continue to spread awareness and mobilize for this cause. Should you have any questions or negotiations with regards to the packages, you may contact us at 0935 301 1419 / 0998 468 1974 or email us at peopstrug.updusc1920@gmail.com. Thank you so much.
August 7, 2019
Dear Editor:
Last July, we listened to this year’s State of the Nation Address (SONA). We, the Missionary Benedictine Sisters of the Manila Priory and the Academic Community of St. Scholastica’s College declare our great concern about the things happening in our society that are not mentioned in the SONA.
We are concerned at the continuous killings in relation to the Drug war which recently took the life of an innocent child.
We are concerned about the harassments, arrests, detention and killing of people suspected (not convicted) of being communist supporters.
We are concerned about the sedition cases filed against the most credible of the critics of this administration including the Vice President, Bishops, Priests and a Christian Brother on the testimony of the most non-credible person who goes from one side to the other without principle or shame.
We are concerned about the plight of our fisherfolk who had been attacked and who are in danger of losing their livelihood because of the President’s incredible subservience to China. We are especially scandalized at his referring to our Philippine Constitution as “toilet paper”.
We are dismayed at the continuous persecution of the LUMADS whose 55 schools have been suspended without investigation and due process.
We are dismayed at the consolidation of power, which erases the autonomy of the three branches of the government, taking away the guarantee of checks and balances. This has been recently manifested when the Speaker of the House was virtually appointed by the President even if there was a questionable election process that happened. This smacks of an undeclared dictatorship.
We do not understand how the President can sign the anti-sexual harassment law, the provisions of which he has repeatedly violated in the past and actually repeatedly violated again in his SONA speech.
We foresee with trepidation the passing of questionable laws such as the death penalty, the lowering of the age of criminality of children, the expansion of the Anti-Terrorism Act which will make all dissent terrorist acts.
AND MANY MORE . . .
We are in favor of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights conducting investigations of the many violations of human rights presented to them.
We join the efforts and struggles of Filipinos who love their country and continue to voice out their protest against all these threats to our democratic society in spite of danger to their lives and freedom.
