MANILA — Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) president Archbishop Romulo Valles urged Filipino faithful to offer prayers for their prelates who will be holding their 116th Plenary Assembly next week.
The Davao Archbishop said the bishops need prayers as they prepare to attend the biannual gathering that will be held in Cebu City on January 22-29.
“We need your prayers so that we will really be enlightened and we would be fruitful in our discussions regarding what we would do as we move forward as church leaders in the Philippines,” he said in an interview over Church-run Radio Veritas.
Valles disclosed that the first part of the assembly will be the discussions on the new guidelines on priestly formation from Rome considering that the year’s theme is for the Clergy and Consecrated Person.
The second part of the plenary meet will circle in discussions on their plans for the 500th anniversary celebration of Christianity in the Philippines in 2021.
This month’s gathering will mark the first assembly under the presidency of Valles.
A total of 81 active bishops, five administrators and 43 retired bishops are set to attend the CBCP plenary assembly, which is the highest decision-making body of the Conference.
The meeting is being held twice a year, in January and in July.