Cardinal Jose Advincula of Manila will lead the opening of the “Season of Creation” with the celebration of the Holy Mass at the Manila Cathedral on Wednesday, September 1.
The start of the season will coincide with the observance of the “World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation” that was earlier declared by Pope Francis.
This year’s “Season of Creation” carries the theme “A Home for All? Renewing the Oikos of God.”
In a pastoral message released on August 23, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines asked the faithful to support calls for the establishment of meaningful agreements to protect the earth.
“Our common home is on the brink of catastrophe. Urgent actions are needed,” said Archbishop Romulo Valles of Davao, the conference’s president.
“We hope that this Season of Creation would lead us to renew our commitment to action to ensure that all creation will have a safe and healthy home to flourish and participate in renewing the Oikos of God,” he added.
The annual observance of the “Season of Creation” will start on September 1 and ends on October 4, Feast of St. Francis, the patron saint of ecology.
In the Philippines, the Church has extended its Season of Creation by a week to October 10, Indigenous Peoples Sunday.
