THIS may sound a bit childish, but it’s true—scouting is
still most
relevant today. Its motto of “Be prepared” is an ideal that has to be
pursued by everyone. Not only the small boys and girls, but also and
especially the old ones, harried already by life’s many trials and
challenges, should be most concerned to live by it.
Its call for us to be “physically strong, mentally awake, and morally
straight” continues to ring with urgency. That’s because many now are
the factors and conditions that tend to make us physically soft and
weak, mentally asleep or lethargic, and morally askew.
Many of us now lead a sedentary life. Even the young ones, who are
supposed to be out there doing all sorts of things, are becoming couch
potatoes, hooked to TV and the internet, and hardening in their
self-absorption.
With such predicament, it’s not hard to imagine the kind of
consequences that can follow. Idleness and self-centeredness lead to
moral aberrations, starting with the hidden and personal ones, and
later on, becoming more visible and social and even cultural.
Learning from the parable of the ten virgins, five of whom were
foolish and the five sensible (cfr Mt 25,1-13), we need to put a stop
to this, and be quick to recognize the many signs that point to this
danger.
Reading the signs of the times is, in fact, now an indispensable
component in our abiding duty to be watchful and prudent in life. It
makes us see things behind the appearances, trying to figure out the
causes and conditions that bring about certain situations.
It also gives us an idea of the direction and trend these situations
are heading. We should not just be reactive, but also proactive. We
should not just blindly flow with the tide, but rather be discerning,
anticipative and capable of directing the course of events.
For this, we can always rely on our common sense and the rich and
growing contributions from the ever-evolving human sciences and arts.
Thanks to God, with our modern technologies, these scientific and
artistic inputs are now very accessible to us.
But we need to realize that the ultimate guide for us to read the
signs of the times properly is our Christian faith. Coming from God,
revealed in full in Christ and now authoritatively and vitally
articulated and taught in the Church, our faith holds the final say on
what is right and wrong in things, what is good and evil.
Our faith is the ultimate oil that keeps the light we need in our
earthly journey toward our definitive destination beyond death. It is
what gives the proper meaning, value and place to everything that we
have to deal with in this life. It is what brings us to heaven.
It is the faith that gives us a sense of transcendence, reminding us
that our life is not just earthly but also has a celestial end, not
just material and temporal but also spiritual and eternal, not just
mundane but also sacred, not just natural but also supernatural. Too
often, our problem is that our vision is life is narrow, shallow and
short-sighted.
The prudential act of the five sensible virgins of bringing oil for
their journey to meet the groom can be understood as our duty to study
the doctrine of our faith thoroughly, making it flesh of our flesh,
and the criteria by which we see and assess persons and events in our
life.
It’s a pity that many of us still take our Christian faith very
lightly. Some have even gone to the extent of rejecting it,
considering it as irrelevant, impractical or impracticable. Others are
ashamed to show and much less defend their faith in public.
We need to correct this anomaly. It is not, of course, a matter of
being triumphalistic about our faith. If we have to follow Christ, we
would know how to live it also with naturalness, without behaving is a
strange way.
But, yes, we have to be thoroughly consistent with it, whether in
season or out of season. Like the five sensible virgins, they just
brought oil even if in the end it may not be needed.
This is what the scouting motto of “Be prepared” is all about. It’s
about being ready for any eventuality, looking ahead and equipping
ourselves accordingly.
May this skill and art of reading the signs of the times be an
integral part of our life of preparedness. It is most needed these
days and. in fact, always.
relevant today. Its motto of “Be prepared” is an ideal that has to be
pursued by everyone. Not only the small boys and girls, but also and
especially the old ones, harried already by life’s many trials and
challenges, should be most concerned to live by it.
Its call for us to be “physically strong, mentally awake, and morally
straight” continues to ring with urgency. That’s because many now are
the factors and conditions that tend to make us physically soft and
weak, mentally asleep or lethargic, and morally askew.
Many of us now lead a sedentary life. Even the young ones, who are
supposed to be out there doing all sorts of things, are becoming couch
potatoes, hooked to TV and the internet, and hardening in their
self-absorption.
With such predicament, it’s not hard to imagine the kind of
consequences that can follow. Idleness and self-centeredness lead to
moral aberrations, starting with the hidden and personal ones, and
later on, becoming more visible and social and even cultural.
Learning from the parable of the ten virgins, five of whom were
foolish and the five sensible (cfr Mt 25,1-13), we need to put a stop
to this, and be quick to recognize the many signs that point to this
danger.
Reading the signs of the times is, in fact, now an indispensable
component in our abiding duty to be watchful and prudent in life. It
makes us see things behind the appearances, trying to figure out the
causes and conditions that bring about certain situations.
It also gives us an idea of the direction and trend these situations
are heading. We should not just be reactive, but also proactive. We
should not just blindly flow with the tide, but rather be discerning,
anticipative and capable of directing the course of events.
For this, we can always rely on our common sense and the rich and
growing contributions from the ever-evolving human sciences and arts.
Thanks to God, with our modern technologies, these scientific and
artistic inputs are now very accessible to us.
But we need to realize that the ultimate guide for us to read the
signs of the times properly is our Christian faith. Coming from God,
revealed in full in Christ and now authoritatively and vitally
articulated and taught in the Church, our faith holds the final say on
what is right and wrong in things, what is good and evil.
Our faith is the ultimate oil that keeps the light we need in our
earthly journey toward our definitive destination beyond death. It is
what gives the proper meaning, value and place to everything that we
have to deal with in this life. It is what brings us to heaven.
It is the faith that gives us a sense of transcendence, reminding us
that our life is not just earthly but also has a celestial end, not
just material and temporal but also spiritual and eternal, not just
mundane but also sacred, not just natural but also supernatural. Too
often, our problem is that our vision is life is narrow, shallow and
short-sighted.
The prudential act of the five sensible virgins of bringing oil for
their journey to meet the groom can be understood as our duty to study
the doctrine of our faith thoroughly, making it flesh of our flesh,
and the criteria by which we see and assess persons and events in our
life.
It’s a pity that many of us still take our Christian faith very
lightly. Some have even gone to the extent of rejecting it,
considering it as irrelevant, impractical or impracticable. Others are
ashamed to show and much less defend their faith in public.
We need to correct this anomaly. It is not, of course, a matter of
being triumphalistic about our faith. If we have to follow Christ, we
would know how to live it also with naturalness, without behaving is a
strange way.
But, yes, we have to be thoroughly consistent with it, whether in
season or out of season. Like the five sensible virgins, they just
brought oil even if in the end it may not be needed.
This is what the scouting motto of “Be prepared” is all about. It’s
about being ready for any eventuality, looking ahead and equipping
ourselves accordingly.
May this skill and art of reading the signs of the times be an
integral part of our life of preparedness. It is most needed these
days and. in fact, always.
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