The Philippines is gearing up to celebrate National Bible Week (NBW) on January 23-29. This year’s theme is "God’s Word-Power for National Renewal". Every year, the National Bible Week is celebrated nation-wide by virtue of the Philippines Presidential Proclamations 44 and 1067, which emphasize the importance of the Holy Scriptures in the life of a nation.
The week-long National Bible Week is sponsored by Philippine Bible Society (PBS), the Episcopal Commission for the Biblical Apostolate of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, the National Council of Churches in the Philippines, the Philippines Council of Evangelical Churches, and the Philippines for Jesus Movement. Its prime focus is to stress the importance of the Word of God in national renewal and people's lives.
For Fr Patric Guru, a student at the University of San Thomas, the event should help people love the Word of God, read, meditate, reflect and live a life according to its teachings.
Parishes, convents, Protestant leaders as well as educational and other institutes across the country are making all possible attempts to publicise National Bible Week, urging the faithful "to celebrate it in a fitting manner so as to benefit from it".
Mrs Nora Lucero, General Secretary of the Philippine Bible Society declared: "We can not ignore the sad state of our country as we are faced with alarming issues that create factions in our leadership and divide us as a people. Majority of our people suffers because of unstable economy matched with undeterred corruption in government. The need for individual and national renewal can not be denied. If we are serious in using God's Word as foundation for change - change in ourselves, change in our families, in our communities, in our nation - we will see a growing, blessed and transformed nation."
The Philippines has the highest proportion of Catholics in Asia (if we exclude East Timor) and the fourth in the world. Out of 89 million people, Catholics constitute 83 per cent of the population. Protestants are 9 per cent and Muslims are 5 per cent.
