Let’s always be merciful

CHRIST has told us clearly: “Be merciful, just as your

Father is merciful.” (Lk 6,36) There are no ifs and buts in these

words. In fact, Christ continued to say: “Do not judge, and you will

not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive,

and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you…For with

the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (37-38)

            We need to etch these words deeply in our mind and heart

and start to develop the relevant attitude, skills and lifestyle. We

have to remember that if we truly have to be ‘another Christ’ as we

ought to be, we have to know how to be merciful the way Christ, the

fullness of God’s revelation to us, was and continues to be merciful

to all of us.

            And how was Christ merciful to all of us? First of all,

being the son of God, he emptied himself to become man. That way, he

already adapted himself to our wounded, sinful condition. He

identified himself with us so that we would have a way to identify

ourselves with him. He preached the truth about God and about

ourselves.

            He gave preferential attention to the sick, that is, the

sinners. He was always ready to forgive, his mercy and compassion

having no limits—“not only seven times, but seventy times seven

times.” (Mt 18,22) He taught about loving the enemy and lived it. He

did not mind all the insults and mockeries that were poured on him

just to accomplish his mission of saving us.

            And in the end, he assumed all our sins without committing

sin by dying on the cross. In that way, he dealt death to all our

sins, and with his resurrection he offered us a way for our own

salvation and reconciliation with our Father God. He was thoroughly

magnanimous.

            This is the ideal we should try our best, with God’s

grace, to aim at. This, of course, will be a lifelong, let alone

overwhelming, effort and process. But it can be done. And it would be

good if we can start it as soon as we can. God waits for us to learn

this virtue. And to be sure, he provides us with all that is needed in

this regard.

            On our part, we have to exert the effort to widen our

heart so as to resemble it with the merciful heart of Christ.

Everyday, we have to practice to detach our heart from the clutches of

our own likes and dislikes, the very earth-and-flesh-bound condition

of our physical, emotional and intellectual dynamics, so that it can

conform itself to the universal heart of Christ, full of mercy and

compassion.

            We should be eager to forgive, facilitating things so that

mercy can be given. One concrete way of learning to be merciful always

is to be understanding of everyone the way one is while always

thinking of how everyone should be. In this, we need to acquire the

mind and heart, the attitude and skills of a mediator who, like

Christ, is the bridge between God and man.

            Definitely, to be merciful one needs to learn the art of

patience and suffering, which in their turn will require a deep sense

of humility and simplicity. Without the latter virtues, it would just

be impossible for us to be merciful and compassionate.

            This means that just like what St. Paul once said, we have

to learn to be “all things to all men.” (1 Cor 9,22) Indeed, we simply

have to forget ourselves so that this ability to be flexible and ready

to serve and help everyone as he is, can be developed.

            We have to learn to serve and help people who are either

simple or complicated, of the intellectual or the manual or

blue-collar type, rich or poor, young or old, etc.

Over all, through all, in all

THESE are words used by St. Paul to describe our relation

with God. It is in his Letter to the Ephesians where he says: “One God

and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” (4,6)

            If would be good if we can spend a few moments meditating

on these words which actually should be very meaningful to us, and

which should fill us with joy and a deep sense of confidence and

security, especially amid the drama of our life which can have its

turbulent moments.

            God is our Father, and as such he is over us in the sense

that he takes care of us always and oversees all our affairs. He is

the one from whom we come and to whom we belong. We are supposed to be

like him, to be always together with him. We cannot be without him.

            We need to strengthen our belief in these details of our

relation with him who as a father is over us.  We should try to avoid

what was expressed in the Book of Deuteronomy: “You have forgotten God

who fathered you.” (32,18) We need to look for him, and we should have

the constant sensation that whatever we are doing, it is like we are

moving toward him.

            Also, God as our Father is always with us through all our

life. While he is over us, he is never distant from us. He accompanies

us all the time. That is why we have no reason to feel as if we are

simply on our own, and feeling alone and abandoned especially in our

difficult moments.

            He is our constant guide who not only gives us directions

but also tells us or shows us the meaning of every event in our life,

whether that event is good or bad. He will always reassure us that he

will always be there for us and that he will always defend us. We have

no reason to feel dejected at all even in our worst situation.

            In fact, he will make use of every moment in our life to

draw us to him, even if we are not quite aware of it or even if we

seem to be going against him. That is why St. Paul said in his Letter

to the Romans that “all things work together for good to them that

love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.” (8,28)

            If our belief that God always accompanies in our journey

in life will help us to be serene and confident whatever the

situation, as well as to be more focused on what we are supposed to do

at any given moment, rather than getting entangled and stranded due to

some predicaments.

            That God is in all means that at any given moment, God

will always be with us. His accompaniment in our life is not something

superficial or just external. He is at the core of our being. That is

why we have no reason at all to wonder where we can find him. He is

right inside us.

            Let’s hope that we can echo the same relevant sentiments

of St. Augustine. “Late have I loved you, beauty so old and so new.

Late have I loved you. And see, you were within and I was in the

external world and sought you there, and in my unlovely state I

plunged into those lovely created things which you made. You were with

me, and I was not with you.” (Confessions)

            Let us make sure that God should always occupy the most

prominent place in our mind and heart. We have to give him our all.

Such total self-giving, to be sure, will never mean annihilating

ourselves, but rather the contrary. It will fill us with what is most

proper to us—to be like God, to be one with him since that is how he

wants us to be.

Profiling good and bad

THE word, “profiling,” has a bad connotation in the US

that is severely torn by conflicts due to issues of race, gender,

reproductive rights, politics, ideology, etc.

            There in that supposed bastion of freedom and democracy,

profiling has meant that a person or a sector of people is stereotyped

and labeled, put in a box or straitjacketed. It simply means that

people are not respected for who and how they are.

            Of course, if profiling only means that, it should be

considered as something bad. It is completely discriminatory and goes

against the basic tenets of our human, let alone Christian, belief

that in spite of all our differences, we are all equal because we are

all brothers and sisters and form just one family of humanity. We are

meant to love one another. We are supposed to be responsible for the

others.

            But there is a good profiling also. And it is the kind

that we do when we want to understand better a person or a certain

group of people who share the similar qualities, like sex, religion,

age, generation, political affiliation, economic class, culture,

lifestyle, preferences, etc.

            If profiling is used as a tool to understand a certain

group of people, then it is good. It does not mean that everyone in

that group or sector is the same in every categorization we may make.

It acknowledges individual and personal differences while recognizing

that everyone shares a certain quality. It knows that equality among

ourselves does not mean uniformity.

            For me, this good profiling is useful especially when

giving a means of formation or when I preach. When I get confident

that I have a good profile of the people I will address in some

activity, then I feel that I can be more specific and proper in the

things that I need to say. As much as possible, I like to stay away

from simply mouthing mother statements and generic platitudes.

            We cannot deny that there are very observable differences

among the different generations. The baby boomers, for example, are

different from Generation X who are also different form Generation Y

and Z, the so-called millennials. It would be good if we take note of

these differences and act accordingly.

            As long as profiling is simply used as some guide without

stereotyping people, then it is good. That is why, it is advisable

always to take note of the more or less distinctive characteristics of

the different groups, sectors and categories of people, without

indiscriminatingly assuming these characteristics when dealing with

these classes of people. We should also be attentive to individual and

personal differences.

            Of course, life is a dynamic process, and we should not

think that our profiling work is a static affair. It will always be an

ongoing affair, and will always need some updating, modification and

revision, some deepening and widening, etc.

            What is important is that we sharpen our skill of

observation, taking note as promptly as possible of the new

developments. The motive of all this should be to help people, and not

for purposes of gossiping and fault finding.

            Yes, we have to be clear about our motives for profiling.

We even have to be more specific about the motive of helping people,

because there are many ways of helping people. And our idea of helping

people may not be altogether good or right, because it can be tainted

with self-interest.

            To truly help people is to help them get closer to God.

Short of this motive, we can suspect that our motivation is not pure.

When the motive is pure, no difficulty can stop our effort to help.

And our effort at profiling would be exempted of self-serving motives.

From different angles

WE have to see to it that in considering a particular

issue or an opinion or position expressed by some people, we should

look first into the different angles from which these things spring

and we listen to all sides.

            That way, we can be more assured of getting a better and

fairer picture of things. We should be wary of making judgments, no

matter how tentative, and worse when they are made quite final, before

we consider those angles.

            We need to know where those issues and the people

expressing their opinions are coming from. We have to consider the

context and the perspectives within which people’s views and position

are made.

            We cannot deny that a certain convergence of circumstances

can produce issues, and the way people are somehow determines the kind

of views and opinions that they have. We always have our preferences

and biases, not to mention that we are always subjected to many

conditionings in our life.

            We have different temperaments and backgrounds—cultural,

historical, social, professional, etc.—and these certainly are factors

that get involved into the making of our views and opinions.

            To be able to consider the different angles and to have a

more or less stable standard for judging issues and opinions, we have

to realize that it is our union with God that would constitute as our

fundamental guide.

            And since this union is at best tenuous, considering our

human condition, we have to realize that our judgments can only be

tentative at best. To counter that condition, we really need to spend

time praying, getting in touch with God and trying to be knowledgeable

about all his teachings, and spiritually united with him especially in

the recourse to the sacraments, so we can approximate the way God

would consider those issues and opinions.

            If need be, we may have to consult another person whom we

can trust and who we think has the competence to guide us in a

particular issue. This is part of prudence which should mark our

judgments.

            Let’s remember that that only when we are with God, that

is, when we are spiritual and supernatural in our outlook, can we

judge things properly.  St. Paul said something relevant in this

regard:

            “The spiritual man judges all things, but is himself to be

judged by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord so as to

instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Cor 2,15-16)

            Having the “mind of Christ” is, of course, possible if we

also do our part. That means we have to study his life and teachings

for, after all, he is the “way, the truth and the life” for us.

            We should refrain from making judgments of such

absoluteness and definitiveness that they cannot stand any more

modification and enrichment, revision or even rejection. Such

judgments can only bring us unnecessary troubles.

            There has to be a certain openness in our judgments. In

this, it would help if we practice some degree of restraint and

moderation in our judgments, a certain detachment from our own

personal views.

            Especially these days when we are bombarded with many

issues and the possibilities of having differences and conflicts with

others are multiplying, we need to be most aware of the need for

restraint and moderation.

            Let’s remember that in our discourse, we are not only

dealing with ideas and arguments. We are dealing, first of all, with

persons who have to be understood and loved no matter how wrong he may

be in a certain issue. The value and the virtue that has to be given

priority is charity, and not who is right and who is wrong.

            Let’s do everything to promote the practice of considering

the different angles before making any pronouncements and judgments

over an issue or an opinion.

Variety, diversity and tolerance

THIS issue of variety and tolerance is most relevant

nowadays because we cannot deny that we are experiencing today a

growing variety and diversity of mentalities, cultures, lifestyles,

ideologies, beliefs, etc. There is now a great need to have a handle

on this complex issue so that we can also develop the proper attitude

and skill of approval and disapproval, tolerance and intolerance

toward it.

  

            For one we need to know what good and bad variety is. This

is already a very complicated exercise which should not daunt us. More

than that, we need to discern the fine nuances among the differences

we can observe in the variety and plurality of things so that we can

tackle them with great prudence.

  

            In theory, a good variety and diversity is one which stems

from a living spirit, and preserves it, defends and protects it. It is

not divisive and destructive. Its differences work in the dynamic of

complementation. There is a certain order involved, a system that is

driven by the principles of the common good, solidarity and

subsidiarity.

  

            A bad variety is the opposite. It stems from a lying

spirit. And even if it may show some signs of vitality, it actually

undermines the organism involved in it. The order that it shows is at

best only apparent. In the end it is divisive and destructive.

  

            A sample of a good variety is illustrated in the words of

St. Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians when he explained the

unity and diversity of the different parts of the body of Christ to

which we are supposed to be incorporated. (cfr 12,12-30) In fact, this

is the ideal way of understanding the variety that we can expect in

our life and the pertinent sense of tolerance and intolerance that we

need to practice.

   

            “Just as a body, though one, has many parts,” says St.

Paul, “but all its parts form one body, so it is with Christ...If the

foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the

body,’ it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And

if the ear should say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to

the body,’ it would not for that reason stop being part of the body.

  

            “If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of

hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of

smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one

of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part,

where would the body be? As it is there are many parts, but one body.”

  

            These words clearly tell us that the good variety is one

that is willed and designed by God, our Creator. It is not just our

own making. We need to acknowledge this basic truth about ourselves so

that we would know how to handle the unavoidable variety and

differences among ourselves.

   

            St. Paul continues: “The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I

don’t need you!’ And the head cannot say to the feet, ‘I don’t need

you!’ On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker

are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honourable we

treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are

treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no

special treatment.”

  

            With these words, St. Paul just laid down for us the kind

of attitude we ought to have to the different parts of a variety of

things that we have to deal in our life. We need to care for one

another. And we have to understand that those ‘less honourable’ and

‘unpresentable’ parts of the body can refer to those elements in a

society, for example, who are sick or in a state of sin. We have to

treat them with ‘special honor’ and ‘special modesty.’

The inclusivity of charity

TO pursue this ideal will always be a work in progress

requiring a lot of patience and prudence. Obviously, before anything

else, it will require that we be more and more Christ-like because

only then can we really have this inclusivity of charity. Let’s hope

that we be game with that.

  

            The inclusivity of charity for sure is not an

anything-goes matter. The truth cannot be compromised, but we have to

understand the truth not as a fixed, frozen thing that can be fully

captured by our articulated doctrines, laws and principles. The truth

is a living thing, as living as God himself who is precisely the

absolute truth. As such, it is dynamic and wrapped many times in

mysteries and spiritual and supernatural realities.

  

            It’s not that our doctrines, laws and principles serve for

nothing. They are necessary, but as a guide to the truth, and not as

truth itself. They will always need to be read, understood and

followed with the proper spirit that can only come from God. They need

to be continually updated, deepened, polished.

   

            It is with these parameters that we have to approach

issues like whether we should be dealing with people who are

non-believers, public sinners, those in what we call are in irregular

situations, and even those who are open enemies to the Christian

faith.

  

            If we would just stick to the literal sense of our

doctrines, laws and principles, we most likely will miss their proper

spirit, the spirit behind Christ’s teaching about loving the enemies,

looking for the lost sheep, welcoming the prodigal son, giving more

attention to the sick, weak, etc.

              If we would just stick to the literal sense of our

doctrines, laws and principles, we might end up like the Pharisees and

scribes of old, who gave Christ a big problem. They were sticklers to

the law and the tradition, but missed the real thing. Remember Christ

telling them that they strain the gnat but swallow a camel. (cfr Mt

23,24)

  

            In fact, in another instance Christ clearly told them,

“You neatly set aside the commandment of God to maintain your own

tradition.” (Mk 7,9) We have to be most careful with this tendency of

ours.

  

            Sad to say we can see in our midst today many of these

so-called pious and church-going people who are acting like the

Pharisees and scribes of old. They immediately get uneasy when there

is a move to reach out to people who are in some irregular situations,

like the divorced and remarried, the gays, etc.

  

            The inclusivity of charity is never a matter of

compromising the truth. It is more of maintaining good relation with

everybody, including those who clearly are in error. It makes one

willing to undertake a continuing dialogue with those who are opposed

to faith, done always in a friendly atmosphere. It makes one willing

to go to the gates of hell if only to save those who are entering it.

   

            Hopefully, such openness will lead to discovering those

nuances where the ray of the hope of clarification, if not of

conversion and change of lifestyle, can spring. It will occasion a

deepening of our faith, a more prompt and faithful correspondence to

the prompting of the Holy Spirit. It will take us away from our

tendency to build our own ivory towers and our walls of exclusive

elitism.

  

            Of course, in this we should ready to get dirty, and even

to be persecuted. But alas, that is how a true Christian should be. We

should live out what Christ said as one of the beatitudes: “Blessed

are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all

kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because

great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted

the prophets who were before you.” (Mt 5,11-12)

Let’s always honor our parents

LET’S never forget the fourth commandment. In fact, with

the current temper of the times, we have to reintensify our observance

of this commandment that seems to be taken for granted nowadays for a

number of reasons.

             For one, there seems to be a generalized weakening of

family life in the world today. More parents are getting alienated

from their children and vice-versa due to some developments whose

impact on family life is not well considered.

  

            There are some laws that actually undermine family life,

such as the law on abortion, etc. And there are now many aspects of

our social and professional life that contribute to this weakening of

family life.

             We have to remind everyone that the honor, respect,

obedience we owe to our parents is due first of all by the fact that

they are our first connection with God. It was through them that God

put us into existence.

  

            We have to remember that we all come from God, and not

only from our parents. When we see our parents, we have to learn to

see God immediately behind them. They are the first representative of

God to us.

  

            Yes, they all have their share of weaknesses, mistakes and

sins, some of them grave, but all these do not and cannot detract from

the fact that they are our procreators who cooperated with the Creator

in bringing us to life.

             They may even beget children through the commission of a

crime, like rape. But that again does not take away the truth that

they have been an instrument of God in putting a person into

existence.

  

            A child is not only a biological being. He has a spiritual

soul even while he is still at the first stage of fertilization and

gestation. That is why a fertilized human egg is not just a matter of

cells. He is already a person with a human spiritual soul.

  

            Parents, of course, should try their best to realize

deeply the dignity and the serious responsibility they have. They

should not play around with their status as parents.

  

            But as far as the children are concerned, they are

duty-bound to honor and love their parents. St. Paul already spoke

clearly about this duty: “Children, obey your parents because you

belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do.” (Eph 6,1) And,

“Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing

unto the Lord.” (Col 3,20)

  

            Children should try their best to make their parents happy

all the time. They should avoid as much as possible to give them

problems, especially the unnecessary ones. They should be quick to

lend a hand in the house chores. They should prepare themselves for

the time when they will have to take care of their parents in their

old age.

             Inculcating this duty in the mind and heart of the

children is crucial because this is the first step that everyone

learns how to obey other legitimate authorities. Let’s remember that

we as social beings, let alone political ones also, always have to be

subject to some authority, and it is important that we know how to be

subject to authority.

  

            Everyone should be reminded that any legitimate authority

we have in this life is always a participation in the authority of

God. Consider the following words of St. Paul:

             “Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all

authority comes from God and those in positions of authority have been

placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is

rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished…”

(Rom 13,1-2)

            So, it’s clear that the commandment of honoring our

parents, our first authority on earth, paves the way to our proper

submission to the other authorities in our life.

Tolerance and intolerance

NOW that Pope Francis has reacted to this latest clerical

sexual scandal that erupted in the US recently, let us see how those

beautiful intentions and words in his letter can be translated into

action.

            “Looking ahead to the future,” he said in that letter, “no

effort must be spared to create a culture able to prevent such

situations from happening, but also to prevent the possibility of

their being covered up and perpetuated.”

  

            These are strong words. But then again, if there are no

implementing orders, systems and processes installed to put them into

deeds, then they would just be hot air! The way things are now, we

have basis to presume, even if based mostly on hearsays, that there

must be also local cases involved. Let’s not be coy.

   

            Let’s see if we can be up front also and get to see names

and faces of priests and bishops involved in these scandals. The time

of hiding, pretension and hypocrisy is over. It should be history

already.

  

            This does not mean that we can be indiscriminate and

reckless in sorting out the details of these cases. To be sure, they

have to be handled with utmost delicacy. It would be totally inhuman

and unchristian if we would just go through this process without

charity, compassion, mercy.

   

            There has to be patience, restraint, moderation, respect

for the name of people, and some degree of tolerance. There has to be

the proper use of what is known as silence of office, the proper

keeping of secrets that need not be divulged to the public.

  

            Yes, as the Pope quoted in his letter, “If one member

suffers, all suffer together with it.” (1 Cor 12,26) We should not be

surprised if we are made to suffer together with that one member who

suffers because of a weakness, an offense, a sin. In fact, we should

be ready and willing to go through it. We have to understand that it’s

part of our human condition here on earth.

  

            But there should also be some kind of intolerance

according to the spirit spelled out in that gospel message when Christ

said: “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it

away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your

whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you

sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one

part of your body than for your body to depart into hell.” (Mt

5,29-30)

  

            These words of Christ just cannot be applied only to our

individual bodies. They can be applied also to the Church which is

also a body—in fact, it is the mystical body of Christ with Christ as

its head and we as its members. That is why, in that letter of the

Pope, he invites all the members not only to suffer with the one who

suffers but also to actively participate in the effort to help that

member and to heal the whole body, the Church.

  

            In a sense, while all of us are involved in the problem,

all of us should also be involved in finding the solution to the

problem. Let us not waste time wallowing in the mud of depression and

lamentation, simply pointing the blame on the others. Let us all find

ways to solve the problem.

  

            But let us never forget that while we should do our best

to solve the problems, we can never reach that point when we can say

that we won’t have any problem at all. While here, we and the whole

Church will always be a work in progress. We are on a pilgrimage whose

destination, where there will be no more tears and pain, no more

problems and scandals, can only be in heaven, not here.

Humanizing and Christianizing technology

THIS is always a challenge for me as it should be for

everybody else. Technology, especially at the rate that it is

developing nowadays, is slowly but surely charming us into our own

dehumanization, let alone, our dechristianization.

            And the main reason is that it tends to remove us from the

foundation of our humanity who is God. It tends to sweep our feet off

because of the many practical conveniences and advantages it gives.

            And the most dangerous part of this whole phenomenon is

that the new technologies now appear to be our new idols, our new gods

that seem to speak and interact with us.

            Whereas before, the idols were “silver and gold, made by

the hands of men, who have mouths but cannot speak, eyes but cannot

see, ears but cannot hear, noses but cannot smell...” (Ps 115,4-6),

now the new technologies as our new idols appear to have mouth that

seem to speak, eyes that seem to see, ears that seem to hear, noses

that seem to smell.

            Our new technologies indeed are very tantalizing, since

they seem to be interactive. But it is an interactivity that only

feeds our egoistic interests. If one is not solidly grounded on his

Christian faith and is simply or mainly dependent on his senses,

feelings and understanding of things, then there is no way but to be

swept away. He will be at the mercy of the dynamics of worldly values.

            And whatever prudence he may exercise in the use of the

technologies would be the prudence of the world and of the flesh, not

the prudence of the spirit, the prudence that comes from God, the

prudence that is proper to us as persons and children of God.

            Now is the time to face the challenge squarely before we

lose our human and Christian soul. And that is why as early as

possible we should train everyone about how to relate our technologies

to God, to his will, to his providence. Otherwise, there is no other

way but to be destroyed by them. Our technologies can be our modern

Trojan horse, a sweet but deadly poison that we gladly take.

            We have to learn to see God and souls in the mesmerizing

world of the new technologies. Otherwise, they will imprison us in our

own world. We have to learn to develop and grow in love while using

the technologies, adoring, praising and thanking God and reaching out

and serving others through them. Remember that it is love that should

drive us in life, love as shown by Christ.

            Thus, the ethical and moral standard in the use of the

technologies should have as parameters love for God and love for

everybody else. Short of that, we would be misusing these technologies

even if we are fascinated by them. We would be exposing ourselves to a

lot of dangers.

            Right from the bosom of the family, this ethical and moral

standard in the use of the technologies should already be imparted.

And it should be consistently reinforced in the schools and the other

higher levels of social life.

            As St. Paul said: “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever

you do, do it to the glory of God.” (1 Cor 10,31) And we have to

remember also that loving and glorifying God always brings with it

loving and serving others. In the end, we have to do everything such

that we follow what Christ himself said as a new commandment for us:

“To love one another as I (Christ) have loved you.” (Jn 13,34)

            It is only in this way that we can keep ourselves masters,

not slaves, of the technologies. It is only in this way that our human

and Christian dignity is preserved and enhanced.

Developing an operative faith

WE should be concerned about this matter. Our faith should

not remain only in the theoretical, intellectual level. It has to be a

functioning one, giving shape and direction in our thoughts and

intentions, our words and deeds. In fact, it should shape our whole

life.

  

            The ideal is that we feel it immediately. Indeed, it

should be like an instinct such that whatever we think, say or do, or

whenever we have to react to something, it is our faith that should

guide us.

  

            We have to understand that it is our faith that gives us

the global picture of things, since it is God’s gift to us, a

gratuitous sharing of what God knows about himself and about the whole

of creation. It is meant for our own good, for us to live out our true

dignity as children of God.

  

            It is a kind of knowledge that will lead us to our eternal

life. It will make us relate everything in our earthly life, both the

good and the bad, to this ultimate goal in life which is to be in

heaven with God, a state that is supernatural. But it is a divine gift

that we need to take care of. It is like a seed that has to grow until

it becomes a big tree and bears fruit.

  

            For this, we really need to have a living contact with

Christ who is the fullness of God’s revelation to us. He is the

substance, the content and the spirit of our faith. So, the first

thing that we have to do is to look for him always in whatever thing

we are thinking, saying or doing.

  

            We need to check our attitudes and dispositions. Do we

really look for him, in the manner spelled out by Christ himself, that

is, with constancy and determination? Christ said: “Ask, and it shall

be given you. Seek, and you shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened

unto you.” (Mt 7,7)

   

            What obviously would help is the habit of reading and

meditating on the gospel, at least for a few minutes everyday. In that

way, we get to know Christ better, and to familiarize ourselves with

his words, deeds and reactions to the different situations he

encountered. Let’s remember that since he is “the way, the truth and

the life,” everything in him will always be a guide to us.

  

            Besides, Christ himself wants to identify himself

completely with us by becoming and offering the “Bread of Life” to us.

Do we realize that we have to avail ourselves of the Holy Eucharist as

the prime source of our duty to identify ourselves also with him, he

who is actually the pattern of our humanity and the savior of our

damaged humanity?

   

            We have to realize more deeply that Christ and each of us

are supposed to be one. Our radical identity is actually that of

Christ, before we assume other qualifications and descriptions of our

identity. And as such, our mission and purpose of life cannot be any

other than that of Christ.

  

            We have to realize that the ideal bearing and outlook we

ought to have is something spiritual and supernatural. We have to be

wary of getting stuck in the level of our senses and emotions, in the

level of our physical and material world, or in the level of our

intellectual world, of our sciences, ideologies and technologies that

are not yet inspired by faith.

   

            We have to make many acts of faith during the day, so that

our faith would really become operative. We should devise some plan to

accommodate the requirements in developing a living faith. Our

lifestyle should be eminently marked by our faith.

Let’s acknowledge our sins

AT the beginning of every Holy Mass that we celebrate, we

are asked to acknowledge our sins “to prepare ourselves to celebrate

the sacred mysteries.” I have always found this part of the Mass very

meaningful, since I believe it is a necessity that we do so.

   

            Without it, we would miss the true significance of the

redemptive Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ, which the Mass

sacramentalizes. We would not be properly disposed to enter into the

happy mystery of our salvation.

  

            Actually, I consider that part a good reminder about the

reality of our sinfulness and at the same time, the happy reality of

the constant love of God for us, he who will do everything to bring us

back to him.

  

            Yes, it is a part that reminds us of our proneness to sin

because we can get so easily intoxicated by the many good things God

endows and blesses us with that we can dare to do things without him.

This has happened with our first parents, and continues to happen in

the life of each one of us. That is the naked truth about ourselves.

  

            Yet not everything is lost. On the contrary, such

misfortune has also brought about a greater blessing from above. “O

happy fault,” we sing in the Easter Vigil hymn of the Exsultet, and

that is because our sinfulness has brought about a greater blessing

from God. Due to our sin, God became man and gave us a way of how to

handle the consequences of our sins.

   

            In this regard, we can cite St. Paul’s words as being very

relevant. “Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.” (Rom 5,20)

And we can also relish these beautiful words from the Book of Ezekiel:

“Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?, declares the Lord

God. Would I not prefer he turn from his ways and live?” (18,23)

  

            Our sins and everything related to them should not

separate us from God. If ever, they should make us all the more eager

to go to God, always convinced that forgiveness will always be given

as long as we have the proper disposition. God never tires in

forgiving us. His love for us is much greater than the gravest offense

we can make against him.

  

            Let us always remember that it is definitely a sign of the

devil’s wiles and lies when we feel that we should be run away,

ashamed and afraid, from God after falling into some sin. When we sin,

the first thing to do is to go immediately to God to ask for

forgiveness.

  

            Just the same, we have to realize the gravity of our sin

and do something about our vulnerability to it. We have to learn how

to avoid the occasion of sin, temptations and sin itself. We have to

learn how to wage spiritual combat against the enemies of God and of

our soul.

  

            But we should try to avoid abusing the goodness and mercy

of God. In this regard, we have to form our conscience well so that we

would know how to protect and defend ourselves from sin and

temptations, how to know and judge our moral acts properly, etc.

   

            Sad to say, we can suspect that there are already quite a

number of people and even large portions of societies all the over the

world that seem to have lost the sense of sin. And as a consequence,

many cases of depression and suicides are now reported. Temptations

and sin can only give, at best, temporary and fake pleasures, but they

wreck great havoc in the lives of people.

  

            When we are asked to acknowledge our sins at the beginning

of the Mass, let us review the whole drama of our sinfulness and the

assured mercy of God.

Treasure in vessels of clay

THE expression comes from St Paul’s second letter to the

Corinthians (4,7). It is meant to remind us that all of us, and

particularly those who have been gifted with special graces and

charism, have a God-given treasure that is kept in delicate

containers, that is, ourselves in all our weak and fragile condition.

  

            Therefore we need to be most careful about this

predicament in our life. This means that we always have to be with God

who gives us all the strength that we need to be faithful and generous

with his gift to us. On our own, this gift would just go to waste. We

have to struggle always to be with him, since we tend to separate

ourselves from him. And with him, in spite of all the trials, we can

manage to survive.

  

            The complete passage goes this way: “We have this treasure

in vessels of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God

and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed;

perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck

down, but not destroyed.” (7-9)

  

            These words of St. Paul acquire current relevance these

days as we hear about that sad piece of news that in the US, an

estimated 300 Catholic priests in Pennsylvania molested more than 1000

children since the 1940s, according to a grand jury report that

accused senior church officials of systematically covering up

complaints.

  

            We need to realize that the higher or the greater or the

more special the gift of God is given to us, the more responsible, the

more watchful, the more prudent we ought to be in keeping it.

            We really have to remind ourselves constantly that no

matter how confident we are of our strength, physical, moral or

spiritual, we still have feet of clay.

  

            In the Book of Daniel, we are told of a statue whose head

was made of fine gold, its breast and arms of silver, its belly and

thighs of brass, its legs of iron. All impressive! But its feet were,

sadly, part iron and part clay. (cfr 2,32-33)

  

            It took only one small stone that struck it at its feet to

bring the whole statue crumbling down. It’s an image of how we are—we

can be majestic in many aspects, but we’ll always have these feet of

clay, our Achilles’ heel.

  

            We should always be on guard, distancing ourselves from

temptations and occasions of sins, purifying our intentions always so

as to ward off unwelcome thoughts and desires, ever developing an

authentic spirit of penance to cleanse and strengthen ourselves as we

go through the adventure of life.

  

            We need to realize that the higher or greater or more

special the gift of God is given to us, the more attractive we would

be to the enemies of God. We would become a favorite target of the

many demons around. They will do everything to bring us down.

  

            We need to remember that the only way to handle this

predicament is to be vitally with Christ. This means that like Christ

and with Christ, we should be willing to suffer and to die, that is,

to die to our sins and weaknesses so that we can also resurrect with

him, so that we can have the final victory.

  

            St. Paul explains it this way: “We always carry around in

our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be

revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over

to the death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in

our mortal body.” (2 Cor 4,10-11)

   

            We all need to understand these words well, internalizing

and assimilating them into our system!

Nothing should compete with heaven

IT’S good if we can often revisit these words of St. Paul:

“It is written, ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered

into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who

love Him.’” (1 Cor 2,9)

             It is a good reminder and antidote to our strong tendency

to be stranded and trapped in our own human and worldly ideas of

heaven and everything that we can expect in heaven—endless bliss, joy,

peace, ultimate self-fulfilment and perfection when we see God face to

face, as mentioned in St. John’s first letter: “We know that when

Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.”

(3,2)

  

            We need to often remind ourselves of these words of St.

Paul and St. John. We are now in a world where heaven is either

completely ignored or is replaced by our own idea of what it is or

what it is supposed to be.

              The other day, when I was in a two-hour boat trip, I

cannot help but observe many people in all stages and forms of

boredom, either struggling against it or simply succumbing to it. What

could have been a wonderful moment to meditate on heaven and other

truths of our faith was simply overtaken by ennui and efforts to deal

with it.

   

            There were those who tried to sleep. But since they could

not sleep because of the noise, they tried to fight sleepiness by

watching a movie on their gadget or on the screen on board. I noticed

that the movie on the screen was all action-packed with a plot that

was completely ridiculous. But the movie caught their attention, at

least for a while.

  

            I felt that the movie was entirely calculated to tease and

grab the sensual and emotional attention of the people. I felt that it

was meant to keep the passengers in that level of life. That was when

I thought that what was shown was meant to compete with heaven, or

with some spiritual considerations which could have been done at that

moment when hardly anything else could be done.

  

            Of course, the problem, I imagine, is that people are not

trained to pray, to meditate or to reflect on spiritual and religious

matters. When they are separated from their usual work and routine, as

when they are forced to sit out a two-hour boat trip, they become

likely victims of boredom.

   

            A saving feature was that I saw some old women holding on

to their rosary beads, clearly praying and making signs of the cross.

Bless them. We are not entirely a hopeless case yet. And yes, before

the trip, some prayers were made in the public system, though it

sounded more formalistic than real. Still, the fact remains that many

do not know how to pray, or to make good use of their time.

  

            We can argue, of course, that a boat trip is not a good

occasion to do prayer. There is a lot of noise, a lot of movement, a

lot of distractions. But these are challenges we have to learn to

tackle. Truth is prayer should be a constant thing with us, whether we

are in a very solemn, sacred place or in the hustle and bustle of our

daily life.

  

            And we should know what should attract us most. It should

be heaven. It should be God and how we can be with him. But, as it is,

God and heaven are not the priority at all. God is only considered in

some special or extraordinary moments, like when there is some danger

of death or some calamity, etc.

  

            We should try our best that nothing should compete with

God and with heaven at all times!

On priestly conduct

AM happy to know that the committee on the ongoing

formation of the Archdiocese of Cebu is organizing a conference on

priestly conduct as part of the celebration of 2018 as the Year of the

Clergy and Consecrated Persons. I believe it is part of an effort to

establish some code of ethics for priests.

  

            This is a very important aspect of priestly life and

ministry. Let us hope that a lot of good can be drawn from this event

which will gather priests not only from Cebu but also from the

neighboring provinces of Bohol, Leyte and Negros Occidental. Let us

pray that we can see a tangible transformation in the lives of priests

after this conference.

   

            Some preliminary or working paper has been circulated

around to prepare the participants. In it a lot of ideas and

suggestions are already made, making an extensive coverage of relevant

issues, and all a result of individual and collective experiences,

study and consultation.

  

            I find all these proposed ideas wonderful and we just have

to pray that these points get really internalized and assimilated

organically in the lives of priests. They should not just be rules to

be followed, but rather a natural expression of how priests ought to

behave, given their dignity.

  

            We cannot deny that priests play a very crucial role in

the Church, let alone, in the world. As sacramentally configured to

Christ, head of the Church, they carry out the functions of teaching,

sanctifying and governing the People of God in a leading and directing

way.

   

            If I may, my two-cents’ worth of ideas and suggestions to

the working paper would be the following:

   

            We have to highlight the priority of a healthy spiritual

life before we talk about how priestly conduct should be. And this

means that priests should always be aware of who they are and what

they are supposed to do.

  

            This also means that they have to wage a daily spiritual

struggle because this will insure that their spiritual life is vibrant

and healthy. Let’s remember that there will always be challenges to

face, issues to resolve, enemies to contend with, etc., and we just

have to wage a constant battle to be consistent to our identity and

dedication to our ministry.

  

            Priests have to realize that priesthood gives them a

permanent character in their life, such that their priesthood is not

something that they can put on and take off in certain moments. They

are priests all the time, and should be priests through and through,

and not just priestly bureaucrats, actors, performers and businessmen.

  

            In this regard, I would give due importance also to the

wearing of priestly attire all the time, except in those moments where

prudence and common sense would dictate otherwise. This may not be the

most important part of priestly dignity, but it somehow properly

packages everything that a priest is. Sad to say, this priestly attire

is not very much appreciated by many priests.

              We need to remember that the priests should be immediately

identifiable wherever they are. I am sure that people would be happy

to see a priest in their midst. And the priestly attire would also

help the priests themselves to be more consistent with their true

identity and mission even while roaming around. It helps as a kind of

protection against their weaknesses and the many temptations around.

  

            And given the conditions in the Church and the world

today, priests should keep abreast with the rapid developments taking

place, and know how to act with decorum at all times. Priests should

be wary of being dragged to places where they should not be or to ways

and lifestyles that are not proper to priestly dignity.

  

            Priests should only talk about God, about spiritual and

supernatural realities, about the redemption of man. They should be

able to relate everything in this life to these ends, and to avoid

getting entangled while evangelizing the worldly and temporal affairs.

Laws are just guides

LAWS, of course, are very important. Imagine a society

without laws. Chaos can only be expected. But laws should be

understood simply as guides and not as the ultimate end itself.

  

            And especially in the case of human laws, we can find many

exceptions to them because of their inability to capture all the

possible situations that man can get into. That’s the reason why many

of them become obsolete, or are even outrightly rescinded, or at least

updated, modified, fine-tuned, etc.

            Even the sacred laws can suffer changes as situations

demand. Take the example of the Sabbath law of the Jews as dramatized

in Matthew 12,1-8. Some Pharisees faulted Christ’s disciples for

picking and eating grain on a Sabbath. But Christ immediately

corrected them.

  

            He explained that exceptions can be made. “Have you not

read what David did when he and his companions were hungry,” he said,

“when he and his companions were hungry, how he went into the house of

God and ate the bread of offering, which neither he nor his companions

but only the priests could lawfully eat?”

  

            Still more: “Or have you not read in the law that on the

Sabbath the priests serving in the temple violate the Sabbath and are

innocent?”

  

            Then he explained why such exceptions can be made. “I say

to you, something greater than the temple is here. If you knew what

this meant, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have

condemned these innocent men. For the Son of Man is Lord of the

Sabbath.”

  

            It is quite clear that laws are made to serve our ultimate

end, and that can only be that we be led to God, our original source

and ultimate end. Our laws should be such that they should not negate

nor even undermine the achievement of this fundamental purpose of the

laws. Even our traffic laws, so insignificant if impacted with our

ultimate end, should respect this fundamental purpose.

  

            But what do we have? We sometimes absolutize our laws as

if they are the ultimate purpose in our life. They can be so rigidly

and indiscriminatingly applied to all cases when there can be

exceptions or even exemptions that can be made. We fall into some kind

of legalism.

   

            And nowadays, there are even laws that undermine the

ultimate purpose of our life, that is, our proper relation with God.

Christ himself complained about this. “You have let go of the commands

of God and are holding on to human traditions.” (Mk 7,8) We are now

making ourselves as the ultimate lawgiver, as if we are the creator of

the universe.

  

            Even worse, we can directly contradict God’s law, as

illustrated in Psalm 94,20: “They do injustice under cover of law.” We

just do not tolerate injustice and outright sins, but we now sanction

them. That is why we now have such laws that legalize abortion,

euthanasia, same-sex unions, etc.

  

            We need to recover our proper bearing with respect to our

understanding and attitude toward our laws. I am afraid this will need

a tremendous effort, because the current mainstream attitude is that

we ourselves are the ultimate lawgivers. We just depend on our

consensus.

   

            Of course, some will say that there should be separation

of Church and state, and respect for religious freedom and freedom of

conscience as bases for such attitude. But they have twisted these

concepts to accommodate their bias of removing God and his laws from

our life.

  

            With God removed, we are left with our own devices that

unavoidably can lead us sooner or later to some forms of injustice,

since we cannot avoid our differences and conflicts. The strong will

always take advantage of the weak, the rich of the poor, etc.