MANILA — A member of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines-Episcopal Commission on Prison Pastoral Care (CBCP-CPPC) urged priests to also serve in prison ministry.
Military Bishop Oscar Florencio said the number of priests serving in the ministry is not sufficient.
“Ngayon konti lang kami. Mga pari ko doon around eight doon (Now we are just a few. My priests there [Bureau of Jail Management and Penology] are only around eight),” he said in an interview on Monday after the mass in Manila at the start of the Prisons Awareness Week.
“Sabi kanina, there are around 180,000 prisoners so ang ano ko doon really is to tap the Diocesan priests (It was mentioned that there are around 180,000 prisoners so my suggestion is to tap the Diocesan priests),” the bishop added.
He noted that he has asked the other bishops to do the same during their plenary assembly early this year.
“Some already responded. Paunti-unti and they were asking me paano...just identify who are these priests na may puso sa prison ministry (Little by little, they were asking me how, so I tell them to just identify who are these priests who have a heart for prison ministry),” Florencio said.
“Some have responded already and I’m trying to wait until the next plenary assembly and will have to ask them again,” he added.
The Prisons Awareness Week is celebrated every October where organizers prepared several activities.
Among them is the exposure of people such as students, laymen, and women from different groups and organizations, and other partners in public and private organizations in New Bilibid Prison particularly in the various camps and distribution of basic personal necessities to the inmates.