Laity Week 2025 — Living the Vision of PCP II

As we joyfully commemorate Laity Week in the Philippines from September 22-28, 2025, our hearts turn to the wisdom of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II). This celebration is not only a tradition, but a living reminder of the lay faithful’s irreplaceable mission in building a truly Filipino Church.

PCP-II envisioned our Church as a “Community of Disciples” and a “Church of the Poor,” a vision entrusted to every baptized person. The Council reminds us: “Filipino Catholics—bishops, pastors, religious, seminarians, laity, youth—will find much helpful material to guide them as active participants in the ‘ecclesiogenesis’ of the local Church.” The call is clear: every layperson is summoned to be a “worker of renewal,” making Christ present not just in pulpits, but in homes, offices, schools, and public life.

This mission is ever more urgent as we celebrate the Great Jubilee Year 2025—a time for hope and renewed evangelization. Laity Week 2025 invites us to deepen our prayer, foster unity, and embrace our vocation as agents of transformation. PCP-II calls the laity to “participate actively, exercising their baptismal dignity and mission,” especially in witnessing the gospel values within society.

Celebrating this week, let us draw inspiration from San Lorenzo Ruiz, the first Filipino saint and a layman, and from countless men and women whose quiet fidelity brings the Gospel alive. May every layperson find courage and joy in their sacred calling, answering anew the challenge of PCP II: to become true “disciples in mission” serving God and nation.