Jaro Archdiocese starts obligatory prayer vs El Niño
If all else fails, there’s prayer.
The Archdiocese of Jaro recently called on its parishioners to say Oratio Imperata Ad Petendam Pluviam (Obligatory Prayer to Request for Rain) and Intercessory Prayers for Rain to be prayed in masses as Western Visayas faces the effects of the El Niño phenomenon.
The Oratio Imperata must be prayed after Communion before the Post Communion Prayer.
“I would like to encourage our people to join us in praying for rain in our rice fields so that our farmers will be able to start planting,” said Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo over ABS-CBN.
The Archbishop added that no one could be more powerful that God.
“We should be strengthening our faith because we are not powerful, we are not really in direct control of the weather,” he added.
According to the Catholic dictionary, an oratio imperata is “an ordered prayer for a special intention besides the ones prescribed by ritual that the Pope or the bishop of a diocese may require to be said at Mass.”
Lately, the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Region VI pegged the El Niño damage to rice lands at P761.2 million and some 43,187 are considered affected.
Last February 1, DA records showed that 32,300.76 hectares of planted crops have been affected in Region VI.
But before the end of the month, data from the DA’s Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) revealed that the dry spell affected 46,407.70 hectares of rice lands in Western Visayas.
Of the said number, 13,905.82 are totally damaged while 32,501.88 hectares have partial damage.
The province of Iloilo felt the heaviest impact with affected areas at 31,058 hectares – 10,763 hectares are totally damaged and 20,295.69 hectares are partially damaged.
Further, Capiz – 13,352 hectares; Negros Occidental – 434.57 hectares of rice lands; and Guimaras — 393.5 hectares.