More than ChaCha, moral regeneration
THEY have tried everything and are still trying, from the ridiculous to the ludicrous, to unseat the President. And they have failed.
I am referring to the opposition and "enemies of the state," critics and detractors of the President from the Left, Right and Center, who are turning blue in the face crying out "Gloria Resign."
From forming a "transition government" or council, to the "People’s Court" to try GMA, from marching in the guise of a procession to hearing masses beside Malacañang, from having a gimmick of a "BayWalk" in protest, to impeachment and even to the extent of mounting a coup, from calling a "snap election" to staging a nationwide "Gloria Resign" campaign even as Christendom marks the Holy Week, from going to the Internet to creating a "Wall of Fury" to vent their anger against GMA and bastardizing prayers and what-have-you-they have tried it all and failed.
For gimmickry and imagination, I must give it to the opposition and enemies of GMA. They won’t stop at anything, even to the extent of concocting charges and peddling hearsay and rumors. Name it and they have it. But GMA is still very much around. I say it’s not only luck, but Divine Providence.
There’s no better time than this week as Christendom and the Catholic Church go into mourning the Christ’s passion and death, awaiting His resurrection on Easter Sunday when we all, particularly our national leaders and politicians, should undergo self-examination and meditation on what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but suffers the loss of his soul.
Speaking of the times and all the political noise poisoning our environment, times are hard and talk is cheap. The dream of unifying those we put in government remains elusive. These are the difficulties we as a nation face today.
The more our leaders and politicians quarrel, the deeper they bury us in a quagmire. Ask around and people will tell you how desperate they have become. Putting decent food on the table is no longer a picnic. We’ve heard them time and again mouthing their winning slogan: "I serve no one but the Filipino people." But do the opposite instead. Can we blame some people for thinking so badly of them?
As we enter Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, I sincerely wish that we and our leaders reflect on what we have done and what should be done to uplift us from our present predicament.
I do not intend to give my readers a homily, but my advice to everyone is to think of the color purple and the number "40." Contemplate on the Great Flood which once destroyed the Earth brought about by 40 days and nights of rain; the 40 years that the Hebrews spent in the wilderness before reaching the Promised Land vowed to them by God and Moses, fasting for 40 days before receiving the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai. Jesus also fasted for 40 days before he began his public life.
Lent, after all, takes only 40 days beginning Ash Wednesday. It is the time when days become longer and when purple drapes adorn altar frontals. It is written that the sky turned purple when Jesus finally expired on the cross. Color purple, on one hand, has become associated with mourning, pain and suffering, and the Christ’s resurrection and sovereignty on the other.
What does Lent and the Holy Week tell us? It’s all suffering and sacrifice and love of fellowmen. How we suffered the wrath of God because of our intransigence, underwent pain and miseries before we set foot on the land promised to us, and how we held fast to our faith before Moses gave us the commandments which would forever rule our lives. Then, our salvation came from God’s only Son, Jesus, who endured pain and humiliation and gave up His life to save us from sin. We are also reminded by the resurrection of the Christ that all trials and tribulations are rewarded with God’s glory.
God, when He sent His only Son to save us, gave us everything and yet is not asking too much from us: Do what is right. We, too, have gone astray. I hate to pontificate but weren’t we responsible by allowing these politicians to bribe their way into public office? Weren’t we responsible when we neglect our children? Weren’t we responsible when we look the other way when tomfoolery is committed right in front of us? Some of us have chosen a Godless path and we are paying dearly for it.
A better world is built when we all chip in our resources no matter how meager. Let us make this year’s Lent like no other. Reflect, pray and sacrifice. Think of the lashes Jesus received from His tormentors, the blood which flowed down his face when a crown made of thorns was forced down onto His scalp. How many times He fell, rose and was beaten up. He has paved the right road for us and it is all for us to trek.
For our politicians, I’m not sure whether they’re still sensitive to the cries for help from the despondent. But I am hopeful that they’ll heed our calls. I only wish that the sacrifices of Jesus to rid the world of sin can somehow prick their consciences, and maybe, just maybe, hear our desperate voices.
More than Charter Change, the more critical and urgent need is a change in the moral values and priorities of people, most especially politicians, who are about to push this country over the edge.
Yes, there is need for Charter Change for a shift to a parliamentary system, considering the fact that the current presidential system we live in has become degenerative and exploitative. And the sooner we do it, the better if only to preempt a civil war which this country won’t be able to withstand.
But, as I said, more than Charter Change there must be moral regeneration, or a revolution of morals, attitudes and values. Just look at the newspapers and see how people spend so much money for the satisfaction of their senses. Would you believe that about P500 million are spent in advertising hair and body lotions and feminine wash alone? And go over the print ads of the latest luxury cars and places where to eat. Santa Banana, even the bikinis are getting shorter and skimpier this summer. I have never seen so much skin among women on television than now.
We are well on our way to imitate the American hedonistic society where the measure of success is how much money one has in the bank, how many cars he has inside his garage, what mansion he lives in, what beach resort he goes to, how many club shares he has and how many women go for him.
More than anything else, there must be a revolution of attitudes and character. If you get into the world of politics, it’s like seeing the world through a garbage can.
Perhaps this generation is lost. But start thinking of our children and our children’s children. They are our future, and unless the crisis of morality is addressed, we are lost as a nation.
There’s a small prayer I’d like to share with my readers this Holy Week. It’s called the Serenity Prayer, as follows:
"God, grant me the serenity/ to accept the things I cannot change/ courage to change the things I can/ and the wisdom to know the difference/ living one day at a time/ enjoying one moment at a time/ accepting hardship as the pathway to peace/ taking as He did this sinful world as it is/ not as I would have it/ trusting that He will make things right/ if I surrender to His will/ that I may be reasonably happy in this life/ and supremely happy with Him forever."
This Serenity Prayer was given to me by my late friend, Mike Recto, who accepted God’s will and was at peace until he died from a lingering ailment of cancer.
I have been reading The Likes and Dislikes of the Devil, translated from Italian by Fr. Adolf Faroni, a Salesian priest of Don Bosco parish. It’s a collection of experiences of Italian priest-exorcist Fr. Pellegrino Ernetti.
And would you believe that high on the list of the Devil are politicians who declare themselves Christians but manage to deceive people and continue to steal from them. They are hypocrites of the worst kind, and Satan has leagues of politician-followers.
Thus, as we approach Good Friday and look up to Easter Sunday, may this column about politicians change in a little way their character and values.
With this thought, remember, without a Good Friday, there would be no Easter Sunday. Happy Easter to my readers. God
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