PAGADIAN CITY, Nov 25 (PIA) - Peace is not just the absence of war in society, but peace includes human well-being, livelihood, educational opportunities, and environmental care.
Most Rev. Ronald Lunas, Bishop of the Diocese of Pagadian disclosed this during the press conference in conjunction with the celebration of the Mindanao Week of Peace (MWP), with the local media here, recently.
Lunas said that peace includes taking care of the environment because the environment that surrounds us is not only our home but everything that makes us alive. "From the food we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe, etc., help us survive."
Lunas added that we are currently experiencing not only an ecological crisis, but we are also experiencing an ecological emergency.
"Taking care of the environment is the great challenge for us to have complete peace. Our efforts are futile if our environment is destroyed," explained Lunas.
He added that the Inter-Faith Forum for Peace and Solidarity (IFPS) urged the people to take care of the environment because it is not only ourselves who benefit from it but also our future generations.
Meanwhile, Rev. Lorecel Bahia, the conference minister of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) said that in our area in Mindanao, the peace we are experiencing is the result of our love, understanding and cooperation.
"Peace is what we can have through unity-- unity is like a social glue that connects us together and encourages us to eliminate our differences. Even though we have different groups, cultures and beliefs, if we have love and understanding then we will achieve lasting peace," said Bahia.
"We are only as strong as we are united and as weak as we are divided," concluded Bahia.
In celebration of this year's MWP, the IFPS organized the following activities: Nov. 21- press conference, Nov. 24- Launching/ A day of prayer, Nov. 26- Visual Arts Workshop, Nov. 28-Film festival, Nov. 30-Annual Assembly, and Dec. 10- Universal Declaration of Human Rights. (RVC/GCC/PIA-Zamboanga del Sur)
