On the occasion of the Second National gathering of the partners of the World Interfaith Harmony Week in Harmony Village, Zamboanga City, the participants decided to launch a new partners week called DIALOGUE WITH CREATION PARTNERS WEEK to be celebrated by those who are sensitive to CREATION and MOTHER EARTH in the spirit of unity without barriers of cultures and religions.
A good number of the UNI Harmony Partners Zamboanga attended to the second national gathering with the participants who came from the Manila area and different parts of Mindanao. It was a big delegation from the Santo Tomas University and De La Salle University in Manila, together with the delegates from different parts of Mindanao, most of them are Silsilah Forum Coordinators. The participants have shared together the ongoing programs of the World Interfaith Harmony Week from different religions, as well as from different sectors of society. It was a great sign in this world that is becoming more conflictual, often using religions as a way to divide peoples.
The WIHW was promoted by the United Nations in 2010 focusing on the love of God, the love of neighbor and the love of common good.
We in Silsilah starting from Zamboanga City have introduced this initiative in Mindanao and other areas, including Manila, forming groups of partners that move in their own way and style, using the same logo and theme for the first week of February.
During the second national gathering in Zamboanga City, in April 28, together we decided to commit ourselves as UNI HARMONY PARTNERS to launch the DIALOGUE WITH CREATION PARTNERS WEEK, choosing the first week in October as the week of the celebration. The choice of this week is connected to the fact that this week is already far enough for the WIHW in February and it is a week during school time and , by coincidence, coincide also with the time when we celebrate the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, an icon of Dialogue with creation with his famous Canticle of Creation “LAUDATO SI.”
The spirit of this special week is to invite all who believe in the importance of DIALOGUE WITH CREATION and move as partner for one week celebration. Today, there are many initiatives on the local, national and international level that, in many ways and forms, promote dialogue with creation with different initiatives, like those who promote the “Season of Creation,” the ‘Laudato Si’ program, etc.
The DIALOGUE WITH CREATION PARTNERS WEEK does not directly join to any of the initiatives, but encourage partners to be active in any group that each one or group feel that better answer to the DIALOGUE WITH CREATION mission. These guidelines help all of us to continue to involve ourselves to any group which promote love for “Mother Earth” and join together with other partners for one week celebration , from October 1-7.
For sure this special week will create a lot of challenges to do more and better in every place we are to continue to promote ” dialogue with Creation”. Based on this reflection the members of the WIHW together decided to:
The partners promoting world interfaith harmony week will celebrate the Dialogue with Creation Week every first week in October. The celebration highlights the need of dialogue with creation as an essential aspect of interreligious dialogue. The care for our common home is our shared goal and common responsibility. During this week, the interfaith community will organize series of activities/programs to celebrate the beauty of mother earth and the need to protect and care for our common home through the dynamics of dialogue with creation.
Objectives:
For the Interfaith community,
- To raise awareness about the emergency condition of mother earth.
- To organize activities as expressions of solidarity and dialogue with creation.
- To foster friendship and advance common action between and among the interfaith communities for the care of our common home.
For this year 2023 during the first week in October we will launch the partnership program identifying partners and together reflect and plan in order to start officially the celebrations of the DIALOGUE WITH CREATION PARTNERS WEEK the first week in October 2024.
In presenting this new initiative on behalf of the delegates, Prof. Bong Baybado, Jr. from the University of Santo Thomas, said that we have to have the ability to “DREAM.” Dreaming, he said, is a form of prophetic attitude that we have to acquire and learn from those among us who are moving with this attitude of dreaming, to make this new dream of the DIALOGUE WITH CREATION PARTNERS WEEK a reality. Thus, we are called to “DREAM TOGETHER.”