A Catholic bishop and a noted film actress have called on the Filipinos to mark Christmas with simplicity and a deeper appreciation of our common responsibility to conserve and protect Earth. Caloocan Bishop Deogracias I?iguez and Chin-Chin Gutierrez, in a pre-Christmas statement released by the EcoWaste Coalition, called for a personal renewal of our duty to live in harmony with nature and to defend Earth against greed and wastefulness. “As we celebrate Christmas, let us rejoice in simplicity and not allow ourselves to be drowned by crass consumerism that only overstates the gap between the ‘haves' and ‘have-nots' in our society, and increases demand for non-essential goods that deplete our diminishing natural resources and warm the climate,” said I?iguez. “Amid the growing waste and climate crisis, let us be reminded that the first Christmas was beautifully celebrated with profound simplicity in a manger. The real essence of Christmas lies not in lavish consumption that eats up lots of resources and generates tons of waste, but on good deeds that we do for our fellow beings and the environment,” stated I?iguez who also heads the Public Affairs Committee of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines. Chin-Chin Gutierrez of Alaga Lahat and the EcoWaste Coalition echoed what the Caloocan bishop said with her own call for lifestyle reforms, ecological responsibility and simplicity. “We have contaminated our world, our climate and even the food we eat. We cannot continue believing our throw-away society has nothing to do with causing Ondoy. Neither should we think it will not happen again without a change in our wasteful attitude,” emphasized Gutierrez who has been cited by Time Magazine as one of Asia's heroes.
