CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

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Time magazine says pro-life advocates are winning

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Blessed are the peacemakers

Ugnayan

The News Supplement of Couples for Christ

PNoy urged to expedite CARP implementation THE Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines – National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace (CBCP-NASSA) called on the Aquino Administration to fulfill its promise to complete the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) and to remove all the obstacles that delay and hinder its implementation. NASSA, in a statement has expressed its deep concern on the situation of 56 farmers who are on hunger strike in front of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) since

Vol. 17 No. 01

January 7 - 20, 2013

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Pope: True peacemakers are those who respect life By Pinky B. Barrientos, FSP

Peace can only be attained by respecting “human life in all its many aspects, beginning with its conception, through its development and up to its natural end,” the pope said in a New Year message titled “Blessed are the Peacemakers”. Read January 1 during the celebration of the 46th World Day of Peace, the pope’s message dwelt on wide-ranging topics essential in the achievement of true and lasting peace in the world. In a section that considers the value of human life, he said “peacemakers are those who love, defend and promote life in its fullness.” “Life in its fullness is the height of peace,” he said. “Anyone who loves peace cannot tolerate attacks and crimes against life.” He said it is a pursuit of false peace when life is devalued, such as in support for the liberalization of abortion. “The flight from responsibility, which Pope / A6

© Roy Lagarde / CBCP Media

OPENING the New Year on a theme of peace, Pope Benedict XVI called on the faithful to defend life in all its aspects, calling those who do so as “true peacemakers.”

Around 9 million Catholics join this year’s procession to honor the 406 year-old image of the Black Nazarene in Manila on Jan. 9, 2013. Devotees endure being stepped and hurt by fellow devotees during the country’s largest procession from Quirino Grandstand to the Quiapo Church just to touch the revered image, the carriage or the rope in hope for some kind of luck or miracle. Citing superstition in the devotion, Quiapo Church parish priest Msgr. Jose Clemente Ignacio said the parish is doing everything to address these concerns: “There are things that still need to be purified in our expressions. Human as they are, our expressions need to achieve their perfection.”

‘Pablo’ victims welcome 2013 with emotional first aid

Cardinal Tagle cites attacks on the family at Nazareno feast tees at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila. According to him, it is important in these modern days to show value for life amid numerous incidents of killings, shootouts, and death. “Also, the money that can be used to feed the people and build houses and schools are being spent to kill.” The Manila archbishop then called on the Filipino devotees to witness the hope of the Gospel in their daily lives as the Catholic Church observes the Year of Faith.

“Real devotees of the Black Nazarene can be determined through the deepness of his faith,” Cardinal Tagle said. “The real devotees will fight falsities which destroy not only the people and community, but the son of God. That should not happen!” he added. Right after his homily, several devotees jostled each other to get on or near the carriage, bearing the 406-year old image of a darkskinned Jesus Christ enshrined behind the altar. These forced the security personnel, including members of

the police and the “mamamasans” (those who tend to the procession of the image), to take their positions earlier than expected. Quiapo Church rector Msgr. Jose Clemente Ignacio and Caritas Manila executive director Fr. Anton Pascual, subsequently, faced the crowd, which eventually calmed down as the Mass continued. The crowd was not expected to get near the carriage until after the liturgical celebration, which was set to be followed by the

Philippine Army, 10th Infantry

THE head of Manila’s Roman Catholic Church took swipe against issues that flouts lack of respect for human person created in God’s image. As he officiated Mass during the Feast of the Black Nazarene on Jan. 9, Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle highlighted his hopes and concerns regarding violence and attacks on the family. “There are many reports about killing. Life is sacred… it should be respected,” said Tagle in Filipino in his homily before hundreds of thousands of devo-

Nazarene / A6

YOUTH leaders from dioceses under the National Capital Region gathered recently at the Opispado de Cubao Building in Quezon City for a half-day meeting with the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) to tackle youth involvement in the upcoming May 2013 elections. NCR dioceses youth coordinators and PPCRV chairman Henrietta de Villa brainstormed on how to involve the youth in the coming elections and to intensify voter’s education among the young in the dioceses, including in- and out-of-school youth. Forging an alliance with PPCRV were some 30 leaders who promised to provide volunteers for the National Headquarters to do encoding for parallel counting and man the call center during election period. “Other than volunteering at the National Headquarters, there would also be series of

voter’s education for the youth in order to intensify their involvement in this coming election,” NCR youth coordinator Peter Pardo, said. “Also as an off shoot to recent events in the country, we the NCR youth leaders too would like to ensure that the youth will take an active role in educating our voters especially the young who, some are first time voters,” Pardo added. Meanwhile, a series of voter’s education in campuses and parishes will commence on February to be facilitated by NCR youth leaders in coordination with the PPCRV National Office. Aside from the physical approach, the group will also maximize the use of social media in educating voters. This initiative are being coordinated by Manila Archdiocesan and Parochial Schools

CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Youth leaders, PPCRV form alliance for May elections

Diocesan youth leaders from the National Capital Region (NCR) pledge to take an active role in the upcoming May elections through intensified voter’s education and poll watching.

Association (MAPSA) and the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) for the schools and NCR youth region for parishes and dioceses. (Jandel Posion/CBCPNews)

Illustration by Bladimer Usi

Proper marriage preparation—not divorce, a real need WHILE pop culture has played up the notion of dream weddings and socalled “matches made in heaven”, then later the breakup of marriages, hardly does it focus on one essential factor in marriage that is vital to the happiness of married couples—adequate preparation. Rosie Luistro, married for 35 years this month, believes that one reason

that marriages fail to work is the lack of preparation. “Most couples whose marriages ‘failed’ entered into it impulsively or for the wrong reasons (e.g., a teenage girl who got pregnant marries the boy—both unprepared, of course—or a hasty decision based on physical attraction, which means not much time to know each other before marriage). This is precisely

why it is imperative that children be constantly taught about the importance of being faithful in marriage,” she explained. One thing that sets today’s society apart from that of decades ago is the astounding number of people filing for annulments, and Luistro attributed this partly to the fact that “there is now a greater awareness of the Preparation / A6

Displaced residents take shelter in an evacuation center in Davao Oriental provincial covered court as Typhoon “Pablo” triggered floods and landslides in large parts of Visayas and Mindanao, Dec. 7, 2012.

RESIDENTS of Compostela Valley and other areas affected by the recent super storm ‘Pablo’ were given a new way to start afresh for 2013 with a series of trainings on emotional first aid, especially for those severely traumatized by the disaster. Christmas, saddest time Dr. Leo Deux Fils Dela Cruz, a

clinical psychologist who headed the activities, explained the timing of the trainings, “Christmas day usually becomes the saddest time of the year among survivors of disasters and calamities.” From December 24, 2012 to January 1, 2013, some 601 locals from Moncayo, Compostela Valley, Baganga, Baculin, Victims / A6

Former PNoy supporter vows to vote for pro-life candidates come election A BUSINESSWOMAN expressed her regret over voting for Benigno Aquino III in the 2010 elections and for trusting he would make morally upright decisions, thereby sealing her convictions to support only pro-life candidates this time around. “I look for someone nowadays who has fear and love of God. We need them more than ever because their conscience can be guided. I voted for Noynoy and I am regretting it,” said entrepreneur Anna Villahermosa. “I thought that his non-prolife stance could be overcome. But it’s clear now he does not

have the same moral compass as his mother. People should say this—he is not the same as Cory Aquino.” The way the legislation of “reproductive health” was pursued, including the apparent meddling of Malacañang on the weeks leading up to the bill’s passage, made the so-called “Daang matuwid”— Pnoy’s campaign message—a glaring inconsistency in his administration. When the bill was passed on second reading and eventually signed into law, Villahermosa was one of many who lamented the outcome. Pro-life/ A6

World News

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BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Jan. 4, 2013—An Argentinean archbishop invited the people of his country to cultivate an authentic Christian hope in order to face the daily trials of life and work for a better country. Christian hope can strengthen the people of Argentina to confront “the concrete difficulties of temporal life with a Archbishop Hector Aguer different frame of mind, a different spirit,” said Archbishop eternal life and entrust ourselves to it,” he said. Hector Aguer of La Plata. Every Argentinean should contribDuring a Dec. 29 program titled “Keys to a Better World,” the arch- ute to building a better country, the bishop noted that the resolutions archbishop explained, with those who made by many people each New Year bear greater responsibilities striving to are rooted in hope, “which can be excel at their work and “to overcome understood in a very human, natural the interests of private individuals, groups or certain sectors in order to and immediate sense.” “But it is good to remember that serve the interests of the nation.” In the case of Catholics, “(t)he Chrisin a strictly Christian sense, hope is a theological virtue,” he said. “That tian grace of hope helps us and enmeans it is a gift from God that is courages us to take on everything that related to grace, in the same way as corresponds to our vocation, to our responsibility, to our role in society, faith and love.” The theological virtue of hope is “a so that things will be better,” he said. Archbishop Aguer stressed that grace that God communicates to us and that has eternal life as its goal,” prayer is the means for understanding the grace of hope. he explained. “Whatever is the legitimate object of Archbishop Aguer observed that according to St. Augustine, the object hope should become the object of our prayer,” he said, encouraging prayer of our hope is God. “Yes, Christian hope is a gift from for our own improvement, “so that, God, a grace that in some way puts us obedient to the will of God, we can be on God’s level so that we might desire better.” (CNA)

Faisalabad: 25 years of Parish of the Assumption, built thanks to Muslims PAKISTAN, Jan. 5, 2013—A parish founded thanks to the will— and funding—of Christians and Muslims in Pakistan, is celebrating 25 years since its foundation. To commemorate the event, the faithful have contributed to the construction of a small grotto in which to meet and pray. It is the story of Arooj-eMariam (Our Lady of the Assumption, ed), parish church in Chak district 7 in Faisalabad, Punjab province, where there is a greatest presence of Christians in the country. And as pointed out by its first priest, present at the celebrations, it contains "precious memories" to be delivered to future generations. Interviewed by AsiaNews, Fr. Barnard, the first pastor of Arooj-e-Mariam remembers drawing up "the gorund plans for this church with a lot of passion," and the building was made possible thanks "to the financial support of the Christian and Muslim communities." He speaks of "many wonderful memories" related to the years in the parish and does not hide his "great happiness for the celebrations for its 25th anniversary." Happiness and satisfaction are also expressed by Msgr. Rufin Anhtony,

bishop of Islamabad / Rawalpindi and apostolic administrator of Faisalabad, about the time "of the true faith," despite "the great difficulty" facing the country these days. The prelate said that "Jesus is among us, so we should not be afraid." Finally, the call to "build more churches" and to pray to the Virgin Mary, who played a "leading role" in the history of salvation. Fr. Nisar Barkat, current pastor, speaks of his profound "spiritual joy" and thanks "almighty God and all the people" who "helped me to make this parish so beautiful" and "build the grotto in the Church." On 21 December, the eve of Christmas, a solemn mass was held at the opening ceremony of the grotto, which was attended by hundreds of faithful. Leading the celebrations there was the bishop of Islamabad / Rawalpindi, joined by priests, nuns and press who widely reported on the anniversary. The church was decorated with flowers, garlands, banners and balloons. During Mass, enhanced by the local choir, Msgr. Rufin Anthony also bestowed the sacrament of Confirmation on a group of parishioners. (AsiaNews)

Vatican Briefing Pope names special envoy for jubilee year celeb in Lyon

In a statement released Jan. 3, by the Holy See Press Office, Pope Benedict XVI nominated Cardinal Paul Poupard, president emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Culture, as his special envoy at the concluding celebrations of the Jubilee Year dedicated to the Venerable Servant of God Pauline Jaricot. The celebrations will coincide with the 150th anniversary of her death and the 50th anniversary of the decree of her heroic virtues. The event will be held in Lyon on January 9, 2013. Cardinal Poupard will be accompanied by Msgr. Francois Duthel, postulator of the cause of beatification of Venerable Jaricot and Fr. Daniel Carnot, ex-superior general of the Society of African Missions. (Zenit) Pope appoints 2 bishops for Atlanta and Vancouver

Pope Benedict XVI has named Msgr. David P. Talley, 62, a priest of the Archdiocese of Atlanta, as auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese. The appointment was publicized in Washington, January 3, by Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, apostolic nuncio to the United States. Bishop-elect Talley has been pastor of St. Brigid Church, in Johns Creek, Georgia, since 2011. The pope also appointed Msgr. Stephen Jensen, vicar general of the Archdiocese of Vancouver, as bishop of Prince George, Canada. The bishop-elect was born in North Vancouver, Canada in 1954 and ordained a priest in 1980. He was named prelate of honor in 1996 and since 2009 has been vicar general, dean of the Presbyteral Council and diocesan consultor for the archdiocese. (Zenit) Pope appoints Boston priest as Vatican’s abuse investigator

Pope Benedict XVI has named Boston priest Father Robert W. Oliver as the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith’s promoter of justice, the “chief prosecutor” at the office responsible for promoting and safeguarding Catholic doctrine and morals. Fr. Oliver has served the Archdiocese of Boston as Assistant to the Moderator of the Curia for Canonical Affairs. He is a visiting professor of canon law at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. In his new position he will investigate serious violations of Church law, including desecration of the Blessed Sacrament, violations of the seal of confession and the sexual abuse of minors by clergy. (CNA/ EWTN News) ‘Humanae Vitae’ author moves toward sainthood

Pope Benedict XVI authorized an investigation on Dec. 20 which could result in proclaiming the late pontiff, Paul VI, a saint. The Pope formally allowed the move as the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints wrote a decree stating that Paul VI had “heroic virtue,” the first step necessary in the canonization process. The pontiff met with congregation head cardinal Angelo Amato on Dec. 20 to let him begin the review of the “Humanae Vitae” author. Paul VI also concluded the Second Vatican Council in 1965, the largest revision of the Church’s Liturgy and the first major revision since the Council of Trent, held 400 years earlier. (CNA/EWTN News)

January 7 - 20, 2013

Time magazine says pro-life advocates are winning NEW YORK City, N.Y., Jan. 5, 2013—A new Time magazine cover story contends that pro-life advocates have been “winning the abortion war” through legislative successes, changes in public opinion and new ultrasound technology that shows the unborn baby. “Pro-choice activists have been outflanked by their prolife counterparts, who have successfully lobbied for state-based regulations that limit access,” writer Katie Pickert said on the Time website Jan. 3. “The prolife cause has been winning the abortion war, in part, because it has pursued an organized and well-executed strategy. But public opinion is also increasingly on their side.”

Pickert made her case in the Jan. 14 Time cover story “What Choice?” The magazine cover says: “40 years ago, abortion rights activists wan an epic victory with Roe v. Wade. They’ve been losing ever since.” “In many parts of the country today, obtaining an abortion is more difficult than at any point since the 1970s,” Pickert said. Fewer doctors are willing to perform abortions and the number of abortion clinics has declined from 2,908 in 1982 to 1,793 in 2008. The venue for abortions has shifted from hospitals to specialized clinics, which are easier targets for pro-life advocates and legislators. In Pickert’s reckoning, prolife legislative successes in-

clude various requirements including mandatory counseling, ultrasounds and waiting periods for women considering abortion; parental notification requirements for minors; and new regulations on what clinics and abortionists may perform abortions. In 2011, a record 92 bills that regulate abortions passed in 24 state legislatures. Pickert cited surveys that report about 75 percent of Americans believe abortion should be legal in some or all cases, but most Americans also support state regulations and only 41 percent of Americans self-identify as “pro-choice.” “In a dynamic democracy like America, defending the status quo is always harder than fighting to change it,” she said.

She said there is a “generational divide” with young pro-abortion rights feminists not joining the feminist organizations that advanced legal abortion. However, she said these activists have an advantage over their elders in being more adept at internet activism and being more relatable because of their age. Pickert’s article said that pro-abortion activists are expanding their work beyond the term “pro-choice,” which some of them say is limited and outdated. They are now joining legal abortion to a broader agenda that includes child care, alth insurance and economic opportunity, as well as contraception access and homosexual rights. (CNA)

Bishop Fellay: Jews, Masons, and Modernists are 'enemies of the Church' NEW HAMBURG, Canada, Jan. 4, 2013—Bishop Bernard Fellay, the head of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X, mentioned Jews as “enemies of the Church” in a recent address reviewing the situation of the group as it considered full communion with Rome this past year. “Who, during that time, was the most opposed that the Church would recognize the Society? The enemies of the Church. The Jews, the Masons, the Modernists,” Bishop Fellay, superior general of the society, said during a talk Dec. 28 at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Chapel in New Hamburg, Ontario. The comment was made in passing during the wide-ranging address, which lasted one hour and 40 minutes. The Society of St. Pius X was founded by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1970 as a response to what he described as errors that had crept into the Church following the Second Vatican Council. Its relations with the Vatican became strained in 1988 when Archbishop Lefebvre consecrated four bishops without the permission of Pope John Paul II. Since Benedict XVI became the Pope, talks to reconcile the society with the

Bishop Bernard Fellay

Church have intensified, with a particular increase in 2012. However, the discussions seem to have broken down over the summer. Speaking about this impasse, Bishop Fellay said that groups “outside the Church, who were clearly during centuries, were enemies of the Church,” expressed opposition to the reconciliation of the traditionalist society with the Catholic Church. His reference to “groups” seems to have been a reference his earlier mention of “the Jews, the Masons, the Modernists.”

The bishop said that 2012 saw trials “extended to almost the whole Society,” an experience he worried could mean “some people have then lost the trust in the authority.” Bishop Fellay said that the society has received mixed signals from Rome, and that talks eventually broke down with accusations of the Pius X Society being “Protestants,” and of Roman Catholics being “Modernists.” The group’s position, according to Bishop Fellay, is that the portions of the Second Vatican Council “opposed to what the Church has always taught” must be rejected. He said that Pope Benedict’s “hermeneutic of continuity” is untenable because the council documents are in places “contrary” or “opposed to Tradition.” But Bishop Fellay said that he remains hopeful for the situation in the longterm, even if reconciliation will not be possible in the near future. “The situation is not desperate, no. It’s not worse than before ... there’s some hope. I don’t think for right for now, but for us, we just continue.” We must “continue to pray to the Blessed Virgin Mary, pray the Rosary,” Bishop Fellay concluded. (CNA)

Catholic churches set ablaze in Austria and France VIENNA, Austria, Jan. 4, 2013—Several Catholic churches in Europe were reportedly set on fire in the days before Christmas, raising concerns of vandalism motivated by an opposition to Christianity. The Observatory on the Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe reported that three churches

were burned in Austria on Dec. 23, while a Nativity scene was burned at a church in France on December 18. In the small Austrian town of Amstetten, three churches were set aflame, with one being severely damaged. The alleged suspect—a young man—was interrogated by police, but appeared to be confused and did not provide a motive.

Anti-Christian sentiments have not been ruled out as a possible motive for the arson, since only churches in the area were set on fire. In France, a Nativity scene at the Church of Barby in Savoy was set on fire between 7 and 8 p.m. on the night of Dec.18. There were no indications that the fire was accidental.

The parish sacristan told reporters it was not the first time the church has been attacked. In previous years the church’s door was damaged, stained glass windows were broken and numerous books were burned. Parents and children of the parish set up a new Nativity scene to replace the one that was destroyed. (CNA)

Chicago bishops: 'gay marriage' will have consequences for Illinois CHICAGO, Ill., Jan. 3, 2013—Cardinal Francis George and the six auxiliary bishops of Chicago have warned that a proposal to recognize “gay marriage” in Illinois is against the common good and will force Illinoisans to “pretend to accept something that is contrary to the common sense of the human race.” “Civil laws that establish ‘same-sex marriage’ create a legal fiction. The state has no power to create something that nature itself tells us is impossible,” the bishops said in a Jan. 1 letter. Cardinal George has sent the letter to every priest in the Archdiocese of Chicago, asking that the letter be distributed in parish bulletins this weekend. Illinois State Sen. Heather Steans and State Rep. Greg Harris, both Chicago Democrats, have said they will introduce the legislation before the Jan. 9 end of the legislative session. The bill, called “The Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act,” would change the definition of marriage under Illinois law from “between a man and a woman” to “between two persons.” Cardinal George, in a Jan. 6 column for the Catholic New World, said the mention of religious freedom in the proposed bill is “ironic if not disingenuous.” “Those who know that marriage is a union between a man and a woman for the sake of family will carry a social opprobrium that will make them unwelcome on most university faculties and on the editorial boards of major newspapers,” the cardinal said. “They will be excluded from the entertainment industry. Their children and grandchildren will be taught in the government schools that their parents are unenlightened, the equivalent of misguided racists.” “Laws teach; they express accepted social values and most people go along

with societal trends, even when majority opinion espouses immoral causes,” Cardinal George noted. The Chicago bishops’ letter denied that “gay marriage” is truly marriage. They said it is “physically impossible” for two men or two women to consummate a marriage “even when they share a deep friendship or love.” Cardinal George pointed out that the lack of consummation is grounds for annulment under civil law. The bishops explained in their letter that this lack of consummation does not mean that nature is unfair or that God is cruel. Rather, it means that marriage is “what nature tells us” and that the state “cannot change natural marriage.” The Chicago bishops also underscored the complementary nature of the sexes and the way marriage creates “not only a place of love for two adults but also a home for loving and raising their children.” Countering claims that the Catholic Church is “anti-gay,” the bishops said that the Church “welcomes everyone” and gives them “the spiritual means necessary to convert to God’s ways and maintain friendship with Christ.” They pointed to the Chicago archdiocese’s work through Courage groups and its ministry AGLO. “People live out their sexual identity in different ways, but the Church offers the means to live chastely in all circumstances, as the love of God both obliges and makes possible,” the cardinal said. The bishops also made a point of saying the Church condemns all violence and hatred towards those with a homosexual orientation. Looking at the “long term consequences” of redefining marriage, the bishops said that the law will regard those who distinguish between a “genuine marital union” and same-sex unions

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Cardinal Francis George at the Oct. 2012 Centennial Symposium.

as “discriminatory” and “the equivalent of bigots.” “When the ways of nature and nature’s God conflict with civil law, society is in danger. It is to that danger that we direct your attention,” they stated. Illinois’ recognition of non-marital unions has already had consequences for Catholics and others in the state. In 2010 the Illinois legislature passed a law recognizing same-sex and opposite-sex civil unions, which was sponsored by Rep. Harris. Although the legislation claimed to protect religious freedom, state officials used the law to end foster care and adoption placement service contracts with Catholic Charities throughout the state because the agencies would not place children with unmarried or homosexual couples. The Catholic agencies had helped serve children for decades. The state contracts totaled over $30 million annually and helped care for about 2,000 foster children. State officials said the agencies’ policy of placing children only with married couples was discriminatory. The Chicago bishops’ letter encouraged Illinois residents to visit the Illinois Catholic Conference website at www. ilcatholic.org to learn more about the effort to redefine marriage. (CNA)

News Features

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 01 January 7 - 20, 2013

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MANILA, Jan. 2, 2013—In a globalized world marked by contrasting viewpoints, tension and conflicts, the peacemaking efforts done by many is a proof to humanity’s inherent vocation to peace, according to Pope Benedict XVI. In a message marking the 46thWorld Day of Peace on January 1, the Holy Father said the desire for peace “is an essential aspiration” for every person “which coincides in a certain way with the desire for a full, happy and successful human life.” Titled “Blessed are the Peacemakers”, the papal message reflected on various aspects affecting human existence such as integral human development, religious freedom, respect for life and family, people’s right to work and food security for all. “Our times,” he said, “marked by globalization with its positive and negative aspects, as well as the continuation of violent conflicts and threats of war, demand a new, shared commitment in pursuit of the common good and the development of all men, and of the whole man.” He noted the gaping inequality between the rich and the poor, selfish and individualistic mindset among capitalists, terrorism and religious fundamentalism, as some causes of conflicts in the world. But the pope also acknowledged the various peacemaking efforts being done worldwide by many people, in the name of peace.

He said “the desire for peace corresponds to a fundamental moral principle, namely, the duty and right to an integral social and communitarian development, which is part of God’s plan for mankind.” “Man is made for the peace which is God’s gift,” the pope said. Although the “attainment of peace depends above all on recognizing that we are, in God, one human family.” “Peace is not a dream or something utopian; it is possible. Our gaze needs to go deeper, beneath superficial appearances and phenomena, to discern a positive reality which exists in human hearts, since every man and woman has been created in the image of God and is called to grow and contribute to the building of a new world,” he said. The pope furthers, “the peacemaker, according to Jesus’ beatitude, is the one who seeks the good of the other, the fullness of good in body and soul, today and tomorrow.” Defend life in its fullness Peacemakers are also defender of life in all its stages, as anyone who loves peace cannot allow crimes be committed against life, said the pontiff. He said no one can propose peace or bring about the integral development of people and environment “without defending the life of those who are weakest, beginning with the unborn.” “Every offence against life, especially at its beginning, inevitably causes irreparable damage to development, peace and the

environment,” he said. The Holy Father also pointed out that recognizing the right of people “to invoke the principle of conscientious objection in the face of laws or government measures that offend against human dignity, such as abortion and euthanasia,” is another way of attaining peace. New model The pope also called for a new model of development in economy where people are given more importance over profit. “The predominant model of recent decades called for seeking maximum profit and consumption, on the basis of an individualistic and selfish mindset, aimed at considering individuals solely in terms of their ability to meet the demands of competitiveness,” he said. But the pope stated that “true and lasting success is attained through the gift of ourselves, our intellectual abilities and our entrepreneurial skills, since a ‘liveable’ or truly human economic development requires the principle of gratuitousness as an expression of fraternity and the logic of gift.” “Concretely, in economic activity, peacemakers are those who establish bonds of fairness and reciprocity with their colleagues, workers, clients and consumers. They engage in economic activity for the sake of the common good and they experience this commitment as something transcending their self-interest, for the benefit of present and future generations. Thus they work not only for

themselves, but also to ensure for others a future and a dignified employment,” he furthered. Citing the problem of food scarcity, Pope Benedict said it is also one concern that peacemakers must focus on. He said the issue of food security, which is again part of the international political agenda, has come about because of interrelated problems, “including sudden shifts in the price of basic foodstuffs, irresponsible behaviour by some economic actors and insufficient control on the part of governments and the international community.” “To face this crisis, peacemakers are called to work together in a spirit of solidarity, from the local to the international level, with the aim of enabling farmers, especially in small rural holdings, to carry out their activity in a dignified and sustainable way from the social, environmental and economic points of view, “ he said. Promoting family, social justice and education Peacemakers are also called to promote the good of the family, to work for social justice and commit themselves to effective social education, said the pope. The Holy Father stressed the decisive role of the family in all aspects of societal life. He cited its “natural vocation to promote life: it accompanies individuals as they mature and it encourages mutual growth and enrichment through caring and sharing.” The pope said parents possess the right and the primary role of

Silence and song: Youths make ecumenical New Year's pilgrimage to Rome

Ateneo professor resigns; decries Ateneans’ support for RH MANILA, Dec. 29, 2012–An Ateneo de Manila theology professor has resigned, realizing that he could “no longer share the path” taken by the Jesuit-led university community that went allout for the passage of the reproductive health (RH) law despite opposition from the Catholic Church. Prof. Rafael Dy-Liacco, in a resignation letter, decried the “failure” of Ateneans to reject what he said was an alliance with a “spirit of disdain for the Church” that had worked for the RH bill’s passage. “That spirit repudiates the Church’s holiness and, at the same time, attempts to assume it for itself (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:4). It has manifested at an unusually high level of ferocity, even hatred. It has manifested in the wholesale denigration of the Church—of her teachings, of her bishops, of her catechists, and of her common lay faithful,” said the letter, addressed to the chair of the Ateneo’s theology department and the dean of

humanities. “Whatever material good Ateneans believe they have accomplished by supporting the passage of the Bill, their failure to reject alliance with that spirit, to truly seek counsel with the Church, and to make amends for and to repair whatever harm that their alliance with that spirit is doing and will do to the faith of believers in the Philippines, has not been right,” Dy-Liacco added. The letter was written on Dec. 28, Feast of the Holy Innocents, the day on which the Church commemorates the massacre of children under King Herod and which resonates today amid the grim reality of abortion. It was on Dec. 28 that news first spread of the clandestine signing of the RH bill last Dec. 21 by President Benigno S. Aquino III, an Ateneo alumnus. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines had warned that a “contraceptive mentality” to be promoted by an RH law would lead to an “abortion mentality,” as what has happened

in countries that had passed laws making contraception widespread. In August this year, 192 Ateneo professors signed a statement of support for the RH bill, in open defiance of the shepherds of the Church and lay leaders. Ateneo professors, in a 2008 statement, had claimed Catholics could support the RH bill “in good conscience,” contradicting the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae which reiterated the Church’s ban on contraception. The move by the 192 professors prompted the Ateneo president, Fr. Jett Villarin, SJ, to release a statement saying that Ateneo was officially against the bill. Villarin’s statement, however, was largely ignored as professors and students continued to call for the passage of the controversial measure, which calls for billions in taxpayers’ money for contraceptives and sterilization. Dy-Liacco and two other Ateneo theology professors released a statement on Aug. 28 calling out their colleagues

educating their children in the area of morality and religion, and such must be protected. “It is in the family that peacemakers, tomorrow’s promoters of a culture of life and love, are born and nurtured,” he said. The pontiff also cited the role of the religious communities in the mission of education for peace. He also mentioned cultural institutions, schools and universities as being called to contribute in the formation of new generation of leaders and the renewal of public institutions, both national and international. The pope likewise stated the need to promote a pedagogy for peace. “Acts of peacemaking converge for the achievement of

the common good; they create interest in peace and cultivate peace. Thoughts, words and gestures of peace create a mentality and a culture of peace, and a respectful, honest and cordial atmosphere,” he said. The pontiff said “there is a need, then, to teach people to love one another, to cultivate peace and to live with good will rather than mere tolerance.” A fundamental encouragement to this is “to say no to revenge, to recognize injustices, to accept apologies without looking for them, and finally, to forgive”, in such a way that mistakes and offences can be acknowledged in truth, so as to move forward together towards reconciliation, he said. (CBCPNews)

VATICAN City, Jan. 2, 2013—The birth of Jesus causes joy because it gives us the certainty that God “works wonders in weakness,” Pope Benedict XVI said Jan. 2. “The Nativity of the Lord once again illuminates the darkness that often surrounds our world A ‘live’ Belen created on Christmas Eve by the Youth and our hearts with his Ministry of the Immaculate Conception Parish in Naga City. light, bringing hope and joy,” he said during his weekly general human history would not have come audience in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall. to its end.” Mary's acceptance of God into her The pontiff opened and closed his remarks with Pilate's question to Christ life is an example for us when we are at his trial: “Where do you come from?” discouraged, he told his listeners. Pope Benedict answered that the When we feel inadequate, we can look Gospels show Christ's “true origin” is to the humble maid of Nazareth and from God the Father, and that he “comes take heart. “God chose a humble woman, in an entirely from him.” That Christ “by the Holy Spirit was unknown village, in one of the most incarnate of the Virgin Mary,” is a mys- distant provinces of the great Roman tery “central to our profession of faith,” Empire. Always, even in the midst of the most difficult problems to face, we he stated. “At this phrase we kneel because the must trust in God, renewing faith in His veil which hid God is, so to speak, lifted presence and action in our history, like and his unfathomable and inaccessible in that of Mary.” With God, the Pope affirmed, our mystery touches us directly,” the Pope lives are built on solid ground and we reflected. He said that sacred music composed can be “open to a future of firm hope.” He said that the Holy Spirit “overby the “great masters … lingers especially on this phrase, as if to try to shadowing” Mary as she conceived express in the universal language of Christ is an image of the creation of the music what words cannot: the great world and of the cloud which led the Ismystery of God who becomes Incarnate, raelites through the exodus from Egypt. The gift of faith given in baptism, becomes man.” The Pope mentioned in particular Pope Benedict recalled, allows believers Mozart's Coronation Mass as an ex- to share in Christ's relationship with ample of the beautiful expression of the God the Father. “Only if we open ourselves to God … Incarnation in sacred music. He also reflected on how the Creed our life takes on a new meaning and a gives particular importance to Mary, new face: that of the children of a Father who loves us and never abandons us.” the Mother of God. “Without her, the entry of God into (CNA/EWTN News)

Natalie Hazel Quimlat

On their knees, the young people gathered around a large cross, advancing slowly to take the place of their peers who adored the cross by placing their forehead on it. Although as 10 p.m. came and went, ushers at St. Mary Major would not let anyone else into the basilica, no one hurried those still praying inside. White-robed brothers Thousands of young people from all over Europe and beyond of the Taize commu- gather at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome for the Taize nity stayed kneeling pilgrimage, December 28- January 2, 2013. at the foot of the cross while a choir and mini-orchestra continued the accompanying Orthodox and Protplaying the Taize hymns in Latin, French, estant pastors—at the end of the Dec. 29 prayer service at the Vatican, Pope English, Spanish, Polish or Russian. “Many young people say they Benedict emphasized the Taize comhave a hard time praying, but look munity’s ecumenical character and its around the cross—they’ve been promotion of Christian unity through here two hours,” said Jesuit Father shared prayer. And Pope Benedict told the young Vlastimil Dufka, a campus minister and professor of liturgy and litur- people that the deepest meaning of their gical music at Trnava University lives would be found in believing in and in Slovakia. He played the oboe in following Christ. “Sometimes evil and the suffering of one of the volunteer music groups that led the Taize pilgrimage prayer the innocent create doubts and trouble you, and saying ‘yes’ to Christ becomes services in Rome. The community’s base in Taize, difficult,” he said. “But this doubt does not make you France, is home to about 100 monks— about half Catholic and half Anglican or unbelievers,” he told the young people, Protestant. Founded in 1940 by Brother most of whom were 16-35 years old. Roger, a Swiss Protestant, as a place of Christ comes to the aid of those seeking reconciliation and peace, the commu- deeper faith, he said, and Christ gives nity attracts thousands of young people his church to believers to support them in their journey and spread the faith to from all over the world each year. Addressing the pilgrims—as well as others. (CNS)

Pope Benedict XVI

Jesus’ birth should deepen trust in God, Pope teaches

www.taize.fr

VATICAN City, Jan. 2, 2013—Even with 45,000 people—mostly young adults— gathered in St. Peter’s Square, one could hear the sound of splashing water from the square’s two decorative fountains. The hush was part of the ebb and flow of silence and song that marked the Taize ecumenical community’s pilgrimage to Rome Dec. 28-Jan. 2, bringing young adults together for quiet prayer, the singing of Taize chants and reflections on Scripture. The format used for evening prayer service hosted by Pope Benedict XVI Dec. 29 in St. Peter’s Square was repeated twice each day in seven Rome basilicas, where the young adults sat on thin mats or on their coats on the cold marble floor for midday and evening prayer. “Along with silence, song occupies an important place in your communal prayers,” the music-loving Pope Benedict told the young people. “Song is a support for and an unequaled expression of prayer.” The prayer services were not exuberant, chatty gatherings. For example, although more than 4,000 young people scrunched together on the floor of the Basilica of St. Mary Major Jan. 1, the chants, low lighting and hundreds of flickering candles left a stillness in the church that continued more than two hours after the formal service ended. Jennifer Pang, a 30-year-old Catholic pilgrim from Toronto, told Catholic News Service, “The music plays a role. It’s a good way to get you into a prayer mode. The candles, the icons, the music — the whole environment makes it easier.”

www.catholicnewsagency.com

Promoting peace is everyone’s vocation, pope says

for distorting the Church’s teachings on conscience. In his resignation letter, Dy-Liacco said the “procreative love” between husband and wife as well as the bond between the mother and child from the point at which life begins in the womb are “spiritual realities.” He said: “One does not need infallible pronouncements from the Magisterium in order to willingly assent to their truth, and to their implications for any path towards genuine human fulfillment.” The theology professor, who has a Master of Arts in Religion from Yale Divinity School, said the teachings of the Church indeed “clash with the ideologies that rule this age, while her ministers and her teachers are all too human.” “Often times it seems easier to give up believing that the Church is the Holy Spirit’s work. But the gospels tells us that believing in the Son of God when He became incarnate was not easy either (cf. John 1:11).” (Dominic Francisco)

Catholic lawyers file first petition vs. RH law MANILA, Jan. 3, 2012—Less than two weeks after President Benigno Aquino III affixed his signature on the reproductive health (RH) bill, now Republic Act (RA) 10354, lawyers James and Lovely-Ann Imbong filed a petition with the Supreme Court to declare the measure null and void. The couple, who filed the petition on behalf of their minor children and joined by Catholic school Magnificat Child Development Center Inc., cited Article 12, Sec. 2 of the Constitution, which recognizes the State’s duty to protect the family, the life of mothers and their unborn children, and to support the primary right of parents in rearing their children. According to the Constitution, “The State recognizes the sanctity of family life and shall protect and strengthen the family as a basic autonomous social institution. It shall equally protect the life of the mother and the life of the unborn from conception. The natural and primary right and duty of parents in the rearing of the youth for civic efficiency and the development of

moral character shall receive the support of the government.” “The Act introduces policies that negate and frustrate the foundational ideals and aspirations of the sovereign Filipino people as enshrined in the Constitution. “This case will present the illegality of the Act as it mocks the nation’s Filipino culture–noble and lofty in its values and holdings on life, motherhood and family life–now the fragile lifeblood of a treasured culture that today stands solitary but proud in contrast to other nations,” the petition stated. Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, Local Government Secretary Manuel Roxas II, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, Health Secretary Enrique Ona, and Education Secretary Armin Luistro were named respondents in the 27-page petition. The petition embodies an effort to “reclaim our moral culture–a culture that all other countries have begun to lose way ahead of us. And anybody can join us in this new battle,” Atty. James Imbong said after filing the petition Wednesday. (CBCP for Life)

Opinion

A4

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 01

January 7 - 20, 2013

EDITORIAL

Just a matter of catechesis WHEREAS the year 2012 for the Catholic Church in the Philippines has been star-studded with choicest blessings the likes of a 2nd saint, a 7th cardinal, the Year of Faith and the New Evangelization, among many others, it has also been the year of so many onslaughts against the family and life capped with the passage of the Reproductive Health Law. The best and the worst of times, indeed. Or so it seemed. After that monumental RH defeat, a chorus of columnists and one or two international news agencies outrightly jumped into their conclusions that the Catholic church do not anymore enjoy its glory days and command of its faithful followers (as if it were the agenda of the Church, in the first place); but without citing the news lead of catholic media that there was in fact so much pressure and pork applied to the legislature by the Palace. The words of the chair of the Episcopal Commission on Family and Life, Bishop Gabriel Reyes, capture it well: “It’s already like dictatorship because the executive already controls the Congress and the Judiciary…Forcing a congressman to change his principle and conscience for pork barrel, government projects, political favors…it’s also as if you are bribing the congressman. Isn’t that corruption?”

A recent interview with a young professional who was mesmerized with the “teachings” of the pro-RH advocates revealed that she did not know or was not taught about the teachings of the Catholic Church about life and the family. That maybe said, too, with other teachings of the Church. Listening to some legislators justify their votes on the RH Bill was like looking at a barometer of how Christianity—or mere religiosity—has taken root or otherwise in the hearts of Filipinos. Really, the number of baptized Catholics does not easily translate into the equation of catechized Catholics. And there is another rub. This has floated lately in an article of a columnist, known for being a Palace apologist, who accused the bishops for raising lately the issue on the alleged irregularities of the PCOS machines during the last elections as “a conspiracy to cast doubts on the validity of the 2010 elections” and, consequently, to spite President Aquino for pushing and signing into law the RH bill. This certainly is not in the least of intentions among the bishops. But Palace spin doctors will henceforth use this gambit whenever the Catholic Church becomes critical with this administration. But, of course, the bishops know better.

New Evangelization for the Church in the Philippines CONCERN with the New Evangelization has been the overall theme of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP-II) in 1991, of the National Mission Congress for the New Millennium (NMC) held in Cebu in September/October 2000, and of the National Pastoral Consultation on Church Renewal (NPCCR) which the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) sponsored in Manila in 2001. Especially since PCP-II a great number of synods and pastoral assemblies have been established and carried to term in various dioceses. These synods and assemblies called for extensive surveys and studies on “Faith and Church situations” in many sectors of the country. They involved much serious discussions among members, ordained and lay, in Catholic communities on different levels. Reports, summaries of the deliberations and conclusions of these assemblies were sent to the Holy See for review. Religious orders and congregations, and a good number of lay institutes and organizations have also held, on the national level, analogous conferences since PCP-II. Thus we in the Church in the Philippines come to this program of the “New Evangelization” already with considerable prior extensive and intensive study, reflection, deliberation and resolution. In truth we have been trying to earnestly pursue “renewed evangelization” especially in the last twenty-five years. This task of New Evangelization calls us to continue more earnestly the initiatives and projects which have been ongoing under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We are called to examine more deeply the pastoral situation that we all face together as Church in the Philippines. We are asked to explore and discover “the new methods and means for transmitting the Good News” more effectively to our people, always under the guidance of the Spirit. Above all, we are challenged anew to foster in the Church in our country a renewed commitment and enthusiasm in living out the Gospel in all the diverse areas of our lives, in “real-life practice”, challenged anew to become more and more authentic witnesses of our faith, especially to our Asian neighbors! — Live Christ, Share Christ, Pastoral Exhortation on the Era of the New Evangelization, 2012

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Of course, it was all about money and political power. It never was about values and principles—or faith, if you may. That is why the cursory analysis of the secular media that the Catholic Church has lost its grip on its followers is not really so plausible affront. The closest that it can get is the reality that the Church needs to sincerely admit and do a “mea maxima culpa” that it has been too complacent with its serious task of doing catechesis. Ironically, catechetical or integral formation has been the pastoral priority of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines and its succeeding recalls, but it never landed on good soil.

The Filipino family LAST 30th December, Sunday, the Catholic Church in the four corners of the globe celebrated the “Feast of the Holy Family” which is the central content and spirit of the world famous “Belen”, viz., the Nativity scene. There are some important truths and relevant realities that come to mind and that can serve as reminders and/or guidelines for Filipino families—long since being subjected to unethical teaching and amoral practices— especially during these uncertain times and troublesome national and world events. First is the fact that the future of humanity by and large depends on the plight of families—be these strengthened or weakened, ethically formed or morally deformed, made self-sufficient or impoverished. As the base of the human pyramid, the more solid families are, the more steady its humanity.

Living Mission

“Year of Faith” Reflections people of our time.” The pope envisions this conversion as opening the “door of faith” (Acts 14:27). As Catholics, the door of faith was opened at our baptism; now we are called to open it again, walk through it, and rediscover and renew our relationship with Christ and the Church. During this “Year of Faith” each Catholic is asked to study and reflect upon the sixteen documents of Vatican II as well as to explore the Catechism of the Catholic Church, so as to deepen one’s knowledge and commitment to live the faith. In Porta Fidei 5 (Door of Faith), Benedict XVI’s apostolic letter, the pope, quoting John Paul II, asserts that the texts of Vatican II “have lost nothing of their value or brilliance…. I feel more

The epiphany must go on WE have just celebrated the solemnity of the epiphany of the Lord, otherwise known as the feast of the 3 Kings or the 3 Magi. With this celebration we are reminded that at the “fullness of time” when the son of God was born of a woman, this God-made-man was meant not only for the Jews but all of us. There must be a lot of drama behind this episode of the visit of these 3 magi that is largely ignored by us. That’s why it’s good that from time to time, we take the effort to study the fine print, perhaps read a good book pertinent to the matter, or consult some experts. What can be said is that in the sweep of all the interesting and intriguing stories compiled in the Old Testament of the Bible, there must have been some people who seriously took the word of God as it was revealed in the beginning of the creation and tried to followed its indications as the signs became evident. This was the case of the 3 magi who traveled from distant lands to find and pay homage to the King of the Jews. We don’t have the space here to trace the twists and turns of this event, but suffice it to say that this episode recovers the forgotten truth that the Messiah was meant for all, and not just for a few. That is the meaning of epiphany. It’s Christ’s manifestation to all people, not only to the Jews but also to the Gentiles which was the collective name to refer to all people who were not Jews, who were the chosen people.

Views and Points

Second is the consequent imperative of protecting the family from secular manipulative ventures in business and politics, especially from errant ideologies. It is not only disgraceful but also disgusting when families are destroyed because of greed for money and power. Third is the empirical truth that the family is the first recipient of the blessing or the curse of society. Whenever the matter of public welfare or common good is at stake, it is the family—that domestic community—that is blessed by its reality or debased by its illusion. Fourth is that the Filipino family is resilient but not immune to anti-family forces. Contrary to its common perception, the phenomenon of globalization is not simply about business and industry. It is also about the invasion of the materialistic and hedonistic values primarily from First World Countries.

Fr. James H. Kroeger, MM

THE “Year of Faith” that Pope Benedict XVI announced in 2011 has already begun. It runs from October 11, 2012 (fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council) until November 24, 2013 (Solemnity of Christ the King). The pope has clearly outlined the purpose of this special year; it is “to give fresh impetus to the mission of the whole Church to lead human beings out of the wilderness in which they often find themselves to the place of life, friendship with Christ that gives us life in fullness.” Benedict XVI added that the year would be “a moment of grace and commitment to a more complete conversion to God, to strengthen our faith in Him and proclaim Him with joy to the

Oscar. V. Cruz, DD

Fifth is that the Philippines can be readily considered as the model and inspiration for other countries on what is the family, why is it there, what is it for. But this is true only in the rural areas. The families in the urban centers are already impacted by foreign and anti-family values/practices. The non-news in the country is that the present administration—after but some two years in its six-year term—has already managed to inspire, legitimize and fund population control. It is also a non-news that in due time, the same administration will move for the legalization of divorce. What’s next? Who knows? One thing is certain though: There are marked indications that Malacañang can and will be anything but a promoter of ethical norms and moral values in favor of families. Sad but true.

Journeying into the ‘Year of Faith’ than ever duty bound to point to the Council as the great grace bestowed on the Church in the twentieth century: there we find a sure compass by which to take our bearings in the century now beginning.” Vatican II “can become increasingly powerful for the ever necessary renewal of the Church.” The thought of Benedict XVI himself on the topic of faith is extremely rich. For example, in Deus Caritas Est (39), he writes: “Faith tells us that God has given his Son for our sakes and gives us the victorious certainty that it is really true: God is love! It thus transforms our impatience and our doubts into the sure hope that God holds the world in his hands.” For Pope Benedict in Spe Salvi

(7) “Faith is not merely a personal reaching out towards things to come that are still totally absent: it gives us something…. Faith draws the future into the present….” We already share in the promised gifts and new life of God! In a homily for the close of the Year for Priests (June 11, 2010), the pope called Mary the “great woman of faith and love who has become in every generation a wellspring of faith, love and life.” Benedict echoes the words of Elizabeth to Mary: “Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled” (Luke 1:45). Open wide the door of your faith during this special “Year of Faith.” Welcome anew the person and promises of Christ.

Fr. Roy Cimagala

We need to bring our understanding of epiphany to another level to refer to the fact that the Son of God who became man is not only supposed to manifest himself to all people, but also to all things and events. In other words, we are supposed to recognize the presence of our divine redeemer, the one who saves and perfects us in our humanity and in our dignity as children of God, not only in other people, but also in things and events. This is where we are most negligent. While we are still way far from the ideal of recognizing Christ in every person, we can say that it is even worse when we talk about recognizing Christ in everything. The epiphany of Christ has to go on. His manifestation to us through people and things has to continue. This time, we need to step up our attitude and skills to capture this reality. That’s why we need to pray, to study well the doctrine of our faith which while formulated by us, men, and therefore can contain some limitations and impurities, is in substance the living and eternal word of God that never fails to bring Christ to us anytime, anywhere. We need to develop the appropriate skills of recollection, meditation and contemplation, and extricate ourselves from the web of a purely sense-based approach to knowing things, let alone, to knowing and loving God. God is the very foundation of our life and of

Candidly Speaking the whole universe of existing things. We need to be able to capture this reality not only in the abstract and theoretical way, but down to the sensible and material, such that we can truly feel the presence of God and can actively cooperate in his providence. Of course, this ideal can only be reached through stages and through an effort that is abiding. At the moment, we need to overcome certain strong and deep-seated biases and erroneous thinking that stop us from pursuing this goal. Thus, we need to be patient, humble, simple, and at the same time, hard-working and persevering, since we need to submit ourselves to the discipline of studying, reflecting, developing the appropriate norms of piety that assures the vitality of our spirit more than our body. We need to develop a lifestyle that gives due attention to this aspect of our life. So far, we have been negligent in this area as we tend to indulge in the sensible and material aspects of our life as well as the merely human, as in getting entangled in the technical, social, economic, political dimensions, etc. In this present age which is marked by tremendous advances in technologies and knowledge of the sciences, it’s kind of anomalous to realize that insofar as our spiritual life is concerned, insofar as our relation with God is concerned, we are still in the primitive or at least kindergarten stage.

Opinion

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 01 January 7 - 20, 2013

Atty. Aurora A. Santiago

Duc in Altum TAGBILARAN, Bohol. December 12, 2012, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a very momentous event in Philippine history unfolded. At a very short notice, all lay faithful and believers of family and life went to St. Peter’s Church at Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon City for the Concelebrated Mass led by Most Rev. Gabriel “Gabby” Reyes, Bishop of Antipolo and Chairman of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Family and Life, together with several archbishops, bishops and priests. It was really a very touching scene to observe the anti-RH lawmakers, in the midst of the sea of priests, seminarians and lay faithful all wearing red, walked from St. Peter’s Church to Batasan. Even senior citizens and persons with disabilities joined them. It was really courageous on their part to stand firm in their fight for the non-passage of RH Bill, despite the pressures from the powers that be. We really admire and appreciate their show of unity and solidarity in rejecting the culture of death that RH Bill brings to the Filipinos. Like what happened during the Prayer Vigil against RH Bill last August 04, 2012, Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas (Laiko) again mobilized its members by issuing circular to all its members – composed of 51 Councils of the Laity from different Archdioceses and Dioceses and 50 national organizations – in support

of the call of Bishop Gabby for their presence in the Eucharistic Celebration and prayer vigil at Batasan on the scheduled voting on second reading of the infamous RH Bill. The pro-RH lawmakers in the House of Representatives attempted to vote viva voce – voting by shouting altogether either “aye” or “nay”. By voting viva voce, the people will not know who voted in favor or against RH Bill, indeed a very cunning and scheming strategy. They wanted to vote yes to RH Bill but they do not want their vote recorded, hoping that the people will not know how they voted – why? Are they afraid that when they voted for RH Bill, the pro-lifers will definitely not vote them come May elections? It is a matter of having their cake and eat it too, tsk tsk tsk. Thanks to the motion of Hon. Toby Tiangco, our Congressman from the Lone District of Navotas City, that nominal voting was adopted. By nominal voting, each and every members of the House had to state his “yes” or “no” vote, giving reasons for his vote. The reasons given by the anti-RH lawmakers for their “No” vote were very surprising; they are scientific, supported by documents and statistics, practical, and down-to-earth. The “Yes” vote of the lawmakers appeared to be given under pressure, which majority of politicians succumbed to — the pressure of the promise power-

The ‘how’ of it NOW that we have RA 10354, Filipinos should not forget HOW it became that from being RH Bill 4244. We may think we know what it’s all about—what “RH” is, who voted for or against it, when and where it happened—but unless we look deeply into the how of things we will continue to walk blindfolded into the hell hole that the Aquino administration tells us is the gateway to paradise. Palace intervention in the RH issue eerily seems like a replay of the Corona case when 188 congressmen were herded (into a Japanese restaurant) to approve the impeachment complaint. It is not clear whether the lawmakers were “DUI”—Deciding Under the Influence (of saki and sashimi this time)—but it was reported that even without reading the complaint, the congressmen signed it, otherwise they’d reportedly be deprived of their bowl of “adobong baboy”, a.k.a. pork barrel which on record goes as Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF). It seemed adobong baboy was again used as bait in the case of the RH Bill. The President hosted a whirlwind lunch for the congressmen just two days after the August 4 anti-RH rally on EDSA, where contraception was equated with corruption and the anti-RH camp repeated its claim of having

ful position in the government for those who are 3rd termer and cannot run for re-election anymore; the pressure of the pork barrel being dangled right at their very nose and could be pulled away once they did not toe the line; the session being watched and observed with the personal presence of cabinet members DILG Secretary Mar Roxas, Budget Secretary Butch Abad, Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda and Comunications guy Ricky Carandang. It was a very long session ending at past 2 a.m. the following day – with the result: Yes – 113, No – 104, a difference of only 9 votes; 50 lawmakers were absent. Before the voting on 3rd reading was made, more pressures came; Malacaňang certified RH Bill as urgent; the rest is history. December 17 was a Day of Betrayal, RH Bill was passed by both the Lower House and the Senate. The story does not end here. Christmas had come and gone. The tri-media reported that the President will sign RH Bill into law before the year ends. Then Lo and Behold! On the Feast of the Holy Innocents (December 28), when the Church commemorates the massacre of children under King Herod, news spread about the secret signing of RH Bill into law on December 21, days before Christmas. Wow, what is the mystery in the secret signing? It reminds me of the secret signing of Martial Law

By the Roadside ally stepped on the dog manure, he stopped and looked down and I knew he was looking at me. Then he said, “Totoo man ngay-an ni botoy (Gosh, this boy is telling the truth)!” Faith is having the right focus. It was not Mano Enzo’s fault that he had an eye defect that made it difficult for him to focus on the road or on anything at all. But it is often our fault when, while, on the one hand we say we are certified Catholics, our eyes, on the other hand, are fixed mostly on other things, such as trying to put down perceived enemies, making so much money no one will ignore us anymore, being so popular even celebrities are in awe, having all the pleasure we forget to look for real happiness, being so powerful we think we can play God or defy his will. Indeed, we think our eyes have covered all the bases, the RH Law, the pending Divorce Bill etc. But do we have the right focus? Are we not afflicted with spiritual strabismus? The right focus of the eyes of faith is Jesus Christ and his Paschal Mystery. Take it from the Holy Father: “During this time we will need to keep our gaze fixed upon Jesus Christ, the ‘pioneer and perfecter of our faith’ (Heb

and its announcement several days after it was signed! History repeating itself? As of press time, Attys. James and Lovely-Ann Imbong filed a taxpayers’ class suit docketed as Case No. 204819 vs. The Executive Secretary, The Secretary of DOH, DBM, Department of Education, and DILG questioning the constitutionality of RH Law, with a prayer for temporary restraining order. May our Lord Almighty save the Philippines and the Filipinos! With all these lessons learned, let us reject all pro-RH candidates this coming May 2013 elections. It is our constitutional right to vote candidates who value life and reject those who promote the culture of death. *** We thank the Lord for the gift of life and family. At age 95, my mother Gloria AngelesSantiago can still hurdle the long flight from Los Angeles, California to Manila. Except for my brother Roy, my other siblings Vicky, Bobby, Nito and wife Nisa, and my nephew Glenn Rosales, all flew to the Philippines for a Christmas family reunion. *** Happy Birthday to Monsignor Alex V. Amandy, Vicar General of Kalookan Diocese; also to Jun Hio and Gigi de Lara of Hello Father 911 Saturday Edition, and Marlon Lacquio of Kalookan Chancery. Praying for a very Happy, Healthy and Prosperous 2013 to you and your family!

Teresa R. Tunay, OCDS

…and that’s the truth

140 congressmen on its side. The Aug. 6 blitzkrieg lunch by the Palace resulted in the post-lunch viva voce vote ending the period of interpellations in Congress, a day ahead of schedule. (Huh? Isn’t Congress supposed to be independent of the Palace?) Then again, during the voting on RH bill’s second and third readings, Noynoy henchmen were in the Batasan lounge, advising anti-RH party members to “go home” if they were just going to vote NO. We heard that from some congressmen themselves as we covered the proceedings then. What’s alarming is that the Executive Branch is doing its meddling so brazenly; what do they take the Filipinos for? These episodes were reported by media but the protests against Palace intervention were feeble and mostly drowned out by the mediasupported barrage of clichés, arguments and downright lies that have served as pro-RH camp’s staples since Day One: RH is the solution to poverty; the Church is indifferent to the needs of the poor; 11 mothers die daily; RH is for informed choice; the Church is in the dark ages; HIV-AIDS cases rise in RP; ad infinitum. When the 104 anti-RH votes on the second reading dwindled down to 79 on the third, it seemed most people saw it as the end of the fight between pro-RH and anti-RH,

Rev. Eutiquio ‘Euly’ B. Belizar, Jr., SThD

ONE of the most distinctive memories of my childhood was getting to know Mano Enzo in my mother’s hometown. He was, as they say, a ‘regular neighbor’ no one would give a second look at. I would often see him walking on the street where I used to play with friends. I don’t recall if he had a family, a work or a profession. All I remember was that he had an eye defect that my elder siblings told me was ‘strabismus’ (which they explained more colorfully in the vernacular) that made him look like he was staring at you and also looking into the road in front of him. So one day when I caught him watching us kids play but walking on rather carelessly, I decided to test my personal theories on the true condition of his eyes. It happened that I saw a dog manure in his direction. So I warned him, “Mano Enzo, kulaw hin maupay, may tae! (Mano Enzo, watch out, there’s manure coming your way!)” Mano Enzo, a kind but sometimes stubborn man, thinking that I was making fun of his eye defect as many kids did, dismissed my warning with, “May di man la nimo nga bata ka! (You are just making up things, kid!)” But when he actu-

Lessons learned during RH Bill deliberations

and accepted without question that it is how things are done in Philippine politics: whoever is in power and has control of the moneybag gets his way—how he does it is entirely up to him. Jubilant over the RH “win”, a lady senator now hails the President as a “hero” who has finally “put an end to the divisive issue so that the nation, united, may move on”. Say that again—a nation united? Another lie. As we may have known, a lie repeated often enough eventually becomes accepted as truth. Meanwhile, are we to forget how the RH victory was won, how the lawmakers yielded to executive pressure? Do our congressmen serve the people’s best interests or only their own agenda? Is the Philippines already a democracy—really? Can we as ordinary citizens do some “damage control” before this Pied Piper administration lures more innocents (and rats) to perdition? One battle won does not mean the war is over. More lies will be spread around in order to destroy the forces valiantly standing up for justice, truth, and life. Let not the Filipinos be known as a people of mediocrity. Keep watch—evil prevails when good people stop being vigilant. And that’s the truth.

Right focus 12:2): in him, all the anguish and all the longing of the human heart finds fulfillment. The joy of love, the answer to the drama of suffering and pain, the power of forgiveness in the face of an offence received and the victory of life over the emptiness of death: all this finds fulfillment in the mystery of his Incarnation, in his becoming man, in his sharing our human weakness so as to transform it by the power of his resurrection. In him who died and rose again for our salvation, the examples of faith that have marked these two thousand years of our salvation are brought into fullness of light [italics mine]” (Porta Fidei, n. 13). Of course, having the wrong focus among believers is not new. David once thought that he had the right focus when he expressed his desire to build a house for God, as told to us by the second book of Samuel. But through the prophet Nathan God corrected him. We realize as we watch the event from our time and place that something was not right with David’s vision. He was focused on what he wanted. Through Nathan he was told to focus on God’s plan which was not

only grander but also better in achieving the greatest good for all because it included the coming of the Savior: “Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me; your throne shall stand firm forever” (2 Sam 7:16). David’s nobility lay in his humility to accept God’s correction even if that meant turning back on his own ideas and plans. In this he set an example for you and me. We must constantly change our focus in life in order to adjust it to God’s plan and not the other way around. My professor in Christology once put it succinctly: “What is wrong with us is that we often pray for God to be converted to our plans rather than we to his.” I once witnessed on TV a lady senator blaming God for the death of her son. “If he is really a God of love,” she said before the cameras, “how could he have allowed this?” She reminds me of another woman who asked: “Where was God when my son died?” The answer came: “Right where he is when his own Son died too.” There is no greater mystery than God seeing his own Son die on the cross. Yet we know now how that death has brought us God’s

A5 Fr. Francis Ongkingco

Whatever ‘The unChallenge of Faith’ THE children in the playground were challenging one another about what they could do. “Bet you can’t do this!” one of them stuck out his tongue and rolled it into a tube. “Bet you I can!” the other said imitating the challenger with his own perfect tongue tube. “Okay! How ‘bout this!” the boy concentrated, stiffened his face and then crossed his eyes and stuck his tongue out. “You win! I won’t do that, ‘coz mom sez it’s bad for your eyes!” “My mommy doesn’t say so.” “But mom said it might stay that way forever,” he warned his friend. “Okay, but I still win!” the other cheered. *** Hearing and watching kids challenging one another is always amusing. It naturally comes of age as they become more confident with what they know and learn. It is one way they learn to carve out for themselves who they are and what they want to be. With the faith, however, it is rather different. When God reveals something to man it appears to be a challenge because it seems to surpass his reason or physical capacity. But when God extends the ‘faith’ to man, He isn’t giving him something to ‘intellectually conquer’ or ‘physically control’. God isn’t challenging man to something but He is inviting man to Himself. In Scripture, we have numerous occasions where our Lord confronts His own disciples and the Jewish people. Many of the Master’s teachings caught the people’s attention because He spoke as ‘one with authority’ and ‘such teaching has never been heard before’. Whenever someone was before our Lord, he or she encountered His compassion, forgiveness, and healing powers but never any form of ‘challenge’. When Jesus asked his Apostles to look for food to feed the five thousand people, to ‘cast the net for a catch’, ‘to go out and evangelize, etc. He wasn’t posing a trifling challenge. It was a divine ‘demand’ revealing how much God believes in man. It was not in what man could do, but whether he was willing to have the faith to trust in what God could do through man. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, quoting St. Thomas Aquinas, says: “In faith, the human intellect and will cooperate with divine grace: ‘Believing is an act of the intellect assenting to the divine truth by command of the will moved by God through grace.’(No. 155)” This ‘assent’ or surrender that man makes to God’s invitation cannot be understood as some kind of a defeat on man’s part. The words ‘surrender’, ‘submit’ or ‘abandon’ certainly convey something negative that man’s inborn autonomy tends to either reject or shun. But truth has it that man on his own cannot save himself nor find any fulfilling rational answer to his brief earthly existence without God. It would be false, therefore, to describe the act of faith as a fearful and blind leap into some dark cold void. I would rather think that more than emptiness there is a person. The leap of faith that man makes—as a child would—is into the God’s loving fatherly arms. Thus, faith is not a challenge but a demand for man to strive more towards trust and love. Our Lord never challenges us. It is more proper to say that He demands of us. To engage man in a challenge would be waiting to see ‘what he can do on his own’. To demand, however, is revealing to man that by himself he really isn’t capable of anything except to humbly show his trust in God. God’s demand is a way of leading us towards Himself whereas a challenge somewhat sets man apart God. These days, for example, we are witnessing recent issues –and many more that will ensue– threatening the dignity of the person and the family. These seem to pose an apparent challenge to be more faithful to and defend ‘the teachings Christ has entrusted to His Church’. Although this is true, we cannot simply reduce living our faith when it is, so to speak, challenged intellectually or by craftily constructed relativistic moral and social arguments (i.e. aimed at deforming the true nature of the family, marriage, human sexuality, etc.). The more radical stance of living our faith lies in what Pope Benedict XVI says: “one aspect of becoming a Christian is having to leave behind what everyone else thinks and wants, the prevailing standards, in order to enter the light of the truth of our being, and aided by that light to find the right path. (Jesus of Nazareth Book III)” This stance, however, is not limited to only facing attacks against Christ’s teachings and His Church. It lies more in our constancy and perseverance in the most menial spiritual and human engagements: punctuality to Sunday Mass or at the office, the struggle to live temperance in the use of material goods, the constant fight against laziness or impatience, and our efforts to avoid judging or condemning our neighbors, etc. It is for this reason that those who ‘are faithful to the end’ are received by our Lord with these consoling words: ‘good and faithful servant, because you have been faithful in the little things, enter into the joy of your Lord.’ And such a welcoming greeting does not convey any form of challenge. What Jesus seems to say is, ‘I knew you would make it because you trusted in me.’

life. In a word, God always sees better than we do. Wisdom lies in surrendering to his way of seeing. Another example was Zechariah. He once entertained doubts regarding his sterile wife conceiving a son even as the Lord’s angel announced it. His tongue was silenced until he, learning his lesson, insisted on God’s plan to name his son Yohanan or John instead of the popular ‘Zechariah’ insisted on by family, friends and relatives. The key factor in his transformation is expressed in the gospel of Luke: the action of the Spirit. “Zechariah, the father of John, filled with the Holy Spirit, uttered this prophecy… (Lk 1:67).” His change of focus becomes clear in the last part of the prophecy: “All this is the work of the kindness of our God; he, the Dayspring, shall visit us in his mercy to shine

on those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Lk 1:79). It is as if Zechariah saw the “Light of the World” about to free us sinners from “the shadow of death” and lead us to ‘shalom’ or the ‘peace’ of salvation accomplished by the Paschal Mystery, namely, [the Incarnation, Suffering,] the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ the Savior. Sometimes when I think of Mano Enzo, I thank him for teaching me that having the wrong focus in life can lead to dire consequences. To us Christians, however, Zechariah teaches that seeing from God’s eyes by fixing ours on the “Dayspring”—who is Jesus Christ—not only defines faith. It also never goes wrong, especially in the Year of Faith and beyond.

Local News

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“Evangelizing the political system” He explained the need for Catholics to “evangelize the political system” because, according to him, those in power only have vested interests in mind. Castro also noted how a good number of Lower House Representatives who voted for the RH Bill, talked a lot about being a “devout Catholic”, while going head to head with what the Church advocates. He said this would not have been the case if real Catholics who understood and hold on to Church doctrine were elected. Environment, divorce, etc. “If they are in power, they can

© Roy Lagarde / CBCP Media

Fr. Melvin Castro

bring their faith into the public forum. They won’t be ashamed of it, but will advance the Gospel values,” Castro added. Castro, who celebrated an impromptu mass outside the north gate of Congress last December 12 together with some 200 anti-RH supporters, explained how consistency is key in politics, something Catholics could contribute to the political process. He said voters could count on the consistent stand of true-blue Catholic politicians on key issues like protection of the environment, divorce, gambling, etc. (Nirva’ana Ella Delacruz)

FILIPINO overseas workers are worth everyone’s admiration and appreciation not only for the remittances they send back home but for their outstanding contributions in building countries around the world. This was how International Labor Organization Director General Guy Ryder looks at some ten million Filipinos spread across the globe, from seafarers to land-based workers. In an exclusive interview at the sidelines of his separate meetings with government representatives, employers and trade union leaders at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel recently, Ryder said he looks at the Philippines as one of the most important countries to his Organization because of its history of tripartism, sound labor market policies and the strong presence of ten million Filipinos in various economies. “Filipinos around the world, and I’ve said it to Filipino government representatives, employers and workers I met today, I think that the Philippines can be proud of the contributions its citizens make in building countries around the world,” Ryder further said.

January 7 - 20, 2013

Quoting President Benigno Aquino III who said migration should not be an obligation but an option, Ryder expressed confidence to working closely with the Philippine government to provide and develop decent work within the country. He said while business process outsourcing (BPOs) provides employment, conditions that prevail in the work place should promote social, health and safety issues. “Outsourcing is part of the modern economy,” he said as he called on everyone to make the conditions acceptable. Ryder said he will convey to President Aquino the ILO’s sincere appreciation for the Philippines’ taking the lead in some labor standards. “This is important because the Philippines has a strong tradition of tripartism and I will assure him of solidarity not just in words but in action― with the tragedy in Mindanao― with our goal to create more jobs,” he added. The International Labor Organization said it will provide immediate

assistance to typhoon victims in Davao Oriental and its environs as they have done two years ago with Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City residents, Ryder said. “Our contribution is to get people into jobs through immediate cash-forwork, building infrastructure because we want to be on the ground on the side of the victims,” he said. Asked of his views on the killing and repression of trade union activities, Ryder said the ILO send a high level mission in 2009 in response to allegations of a number of violations committed by some people in government. He said the team came up with recommendations which raised awareness and provided training for judicial authorities and members of the armed forces. Ryder reiterated his earlier statement that the country’s big asset is its people. “With all its assets, the [country] can look forward to a better 2013,” he said. He reminded Filipinos that “the future has to be built as it does not happen automatically.” (Melo M. Acuna)

Preparation / A1

Pro-life/ A1

“I have been talking to fellow pro-lifers and we can’t feel gloomy and defeated. We have to realize that this is the start of the battle. It’s only begun for us here,” the Cebu-based businesswoman pointed out. The call for the election of pro-life candidates into public office intensified especially after the RH bill became Republic Act (RA) 10354, prompting some to scoff at the notion of candidates’ stand on culture-of-life issues as “narrow-minded.” Villahermosa mused that she believes integrity and authentic life-affirming values are the most vital in evaluating people aiming for a post in public office. What’s narrow-minded is to vote for Catholic candidates who are “sarado Katoliko” in a different way—those who are scrupulous… the left hand doesn’t look what the right hand is doing.” “However, if the candidate says he is pro-life, I better take notice because being pro-life entails respect for the most basic of values to practice,” she continued. “And if your candidate is sensitive to this, well and good because he is expected to practice public service with integrity.” Anti-RH conviction top factor come voting time Other life advocates who look

forward to casting their ballots on May 13 have made the RH issue a defining factor. Aaron Ching, for one, has stricken out pro-RH politicians from his list. “The RH law is not a narrow issue. It has wide implications that will affect Philippine society as a whole. It affects religious liberties, sanctity of life especially of the unborn, government spending, and moral stability of the nation,” the young engineer explained. Ching said the most vital consideration for him in voting for a candidate is that he/she “should be a true pro-lifer.” Since without the right to be born no other human rights will be relevant, he said, “this factor is the very first on my list.” “We need a statesman who would respect life from conception to natural death,” said sales executive Francis Bautista. “Since we live in a capitalistic society, we must vote for people who would promote economic liberalization. Let’s face it, competition breeds innovation,” he said, adding that this would also lead to the creation of more jobs for Filipinos. Corruption was likewise a concern for Bautista and factored it in his decision-making not just for this year’s elections, but beyond 2013. “Eventually, we need to vote

for someone who would make a way to eradicate political dynasties which breed corruption in our very society,” he said.

Processing the experience Since the seminars, three newly-trained groups have since debriefed direct victims of ‘Pablo’ in Moncayo, New Bataan and Davao City. After giving EFA to other victims, these groups also underwent a process called “Debriefing the Debriefers” to help them, in a sense, process their own experience of processing others. These were done at the St. Ignatius de Loyola Parish in Moncayo last December 27; at a CFC member’s home in New Bataan last December 31; and in a coffee shop in Davao City last January 1.

by the public for debriefing sessions or trainings, especially in the light of the great number devastated by the loss of loved ones, property and livelihood. Emotional first aid consists of asking a victim a series of questions that are meant to draw out powerful personal insights and learnings, forging the stage for recovery and growth after the trauma. The death toll for ‘Pablo’ may reach 1,500, according to several estimates. Over-all, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council estimates ‘Pablo’ damage to reach at least P36 billion—more than the combined devastation of tropical storms ‘Pedring’ and ‘Sendong’. (Nirva'ana Ella Delacruz)

‘Seeks God’s heart before personal ambition’ “I would definitely consider how our congressmen/senators voted for the RH bill. Those who don’t value life, commitment or responsibility are crossed out— [Senator] Miriam [DefensorSantiago], [Congressman] Edcel [Lagman], [Congresswoman Janette] Garin, [Senator Pia] Cayetano, [Risa] Hontiveros, etc.,” wedding photographer Dominic Barrios specified. “Those who profess that they are Catholics but do not submit to the church are also marked,” he said, adding he doesn’t believe that those who voted against the bill get a “free pass” to be automatically voted. They are being considered, though, Barrios said, with their track records likewise being a crucial factor. Asked for other traits he looks for in his analysis of each contender for public positions, the photographer said, “I’m looking for a God-fearing candidate – a Catholic, as much as possible, who is practicing his/her faith. I believe that the best man who can lead the country is someone who seeks God’s heart first rather than his ambitions.” (CBCP for Life)

Victims / A1

New Bataan, Licud, Andap and Davao city participated in a series of emotional first aid (EFA) trainings, that not only debriefed or ‘processed’ their personal experience of ‘Pablo’, but enabled them to do the same to other victims. Most of the attendees lost homes during the heavy rains and winds of ‘Pablo’, while several also lost loved ones and family members. Dr. Dela Cruz, who is also a Couples for Christ (CFC) leader from Antipolo City, coordinated with the local CFC and its Family Ministries, Handmaids of the Lord, Servants of the Lord, Singles for Christ and Youth for Christ for the trainings, many of which were held in parishes.

Emotional first aid coordinators Several CFC members have stepped up to become EFA coordinators, who can be contacted

Pope / A1

degrades human persons, and even more so the killing of a defenseless and innocent being, will never be able to produce happiness or peace,” he said. “Indeed how could one claim to bring about peace, the integral development of peoples or even the protection of the environment without defending the life of those who are weakest, beginning with the unborn,” the pope further said. He noted that “every offence against life, especially at its beginning, inevitably causes irreparable damage to development, peace and the environment.” The pontiff also lamented that some laws are being crafted covertly including “false rights and freedoms” using euphemisms to promote “a supposed right to abortion and

Vol. 17 No. 01

ILO lauds Filipino workforce

‘Real Catholics should run for public office’ FOR Catholics, the passing of the severely divisive RH Bill in both Houses of Congress last month means only one thing – more “real” Catholics should run for public office. “Let’s encourage the Catholic lay faithful with formed consciences to get into politics,” Fr. Melvin Castro, executive secretary of the Episcopal Commission on Family and Life, said in an interview after Congress voted to pass the RH Bill on third reading.

CBCP Monitor

euthanasia, [which] pose a threat to the fundamental right to life.” Sanctity of marriage The threat on the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman in the growing clamor from various countries to legalize same sex unions did not lose on the Holy Father, either. He said the attempts by many to legalize same sex unions may destroy the very essence of marriage itself, “obscuring its specific nature and its indispensable role in society.” “These principles are not truths of faith, nor are they simply a corollary of the right to religious freedom. They are inscribed in human nature itself, accessible to reason and thus common to all humanity,” the pope said. The Holy Father said

it is essential to promote these principles to all regardless of religious affiliation, the more these are denied and misunderstood, “since this constitute an offence against the truth of the human person, with serious harm to justice and peace.” Another path to building peace, he said, is for legal systems to acknowledge the right of people “to invoke the principle of conscientious objection in the face of laws or government measures that offend against human dignity, such as abortion and euthanasia.” Role of family The pope also singled out the role of the family in promoting life, saying it has “a natural vocation to promote life” as it “accompanies individuals as they mature and it encourages mutual growth and en-

richment through caring and sharing.” “The Christian family in particular serves as a seedbed for personal maturation according to the standards of divine love,” he said. “The family is one of the indispensable social subjects for the achievement of a culture of peace.” He also pointed out the rights of parents and their primary role in educating their children in the areas of morality and religion. “It is in the family that peacemakers, tomorrow’s promoters of a culture of life and love, are born and nurtured,” he said. The pope also touched on other issues essential in the attainment of peace, like integral human development, religious freedom, people’s right to work and food security for all.

procedure [to pursue the annulment].” Coupled with this empowerment with information on annulment procedures is the massive bombardment of society by media with misleading messages about love and marriage. No such thing as perfect marriage “There is no perfect marriage as there is no perfect love in this world,” said the mother of two and grandmother of two. “Marriage and love have to be worked on and developed in time, using whatever problems and difficulties the couple may meet, to learn virtues and thus strengthen their love.” Luistro, who is a past president of Alliance for the Family Foundation Inc. (ALFI), talked of exclusivity, commitment and going into it fully prepared for whatever challenges will come the couple’s way. “Couples must know before marriage that it is a life-long commitment of mutual, exclusive, total, irrevocable and sincere self-giving and sacrifice. It is entered into with open eyes, by a lot of thinking, a lot of maturity, a lot of preparation knowing the other person extremely well and not just based on mere passion or convenience. Marital union between a man and a woman is

part of God’s plan,” she explained. Anita Alisaca, marking her 23rd wedding anniversary this year, also attributed spousal discontent and eventual separation to a lack of pre-wedding discernment and, in some cases, venturing into sexual intimacy when such rightly belongs in the area of conjugal relations. “It is my opinion that extremely difficult situations arise only if the period of discernment is ‘short-circuited’ by sex before matrimony, she said, explaining that by “discernment” she referred to “if one is meant for the married state or not, and if that or this person is the right one, or if this or that time is the right time.” The mother of four pointed out that contraception and the push to make it so easily available even to the youth and unmarried persons should be an issue of concern since this adversely affects the decision-making of young people and the stability of relationships heading for marriage. “Contraception [and its availability] would make sex before marriage so easy and convenient without the accompanying discernment process,” Alisaca lamented. Even unmarried and level-headed young people are apparently aware of the indispens-

able part that preparation plays in the success of marital unions. Aaron Ching, an engineer who is engaged to be married, is aware that tying the knot has been jokingly referred to as ‘life imprisonment’ but easily brushes it off. “I just shake my head and say that it is a prison for people who didn’t prepare well for their married life and for those people who are afraid of responsibilities,” he said. “If you love someone then being with that person and sharing your whole self with that someone is the most liberating thing.” Ching said he made the decision to get married fully aware of the hardships that lay ahead – as hardships are part of life, no matter the civil status. “Married people have to face problems unique to their marital status as well as those who are single. Based on this, I can say that I am fully aware of the difficulties that I will be facing,” he said. ‘Divorce should never be an option’ House Bill 1799, casually referred to as the divorce bill and introduced by Gabriela Representatives Luzviminda Ilagan and Emerenciana de Jesus, seeks to amend the Family Code to include a provision on divorce as a solution to marriages

experiencing such difficulties. “Divorce should never be an option. There is no difficult situation that cannot be addressed in an adequate way,” said Luistro, adding that in cases in which the spouses living together becomes impossible, “there is a final recourse – Legal Separation. It may be the only recourse to ensure the legal rights and care of the children.” Alisaca quietly stated that there is no situation that warrants a permission to be granted a divorce if married sacramentally. “There’s [declaration of nullity] if the marriage is void from the beginning and there are criteria to satisfy, if such is the case,” she emphasized. When news of the resurfacing of the divorce bill in Congress was publicized barely a week after word of the RH bill’s signing got out, family and life advocates were quick to voice out their protests, citing the irreparable damage on society that would result from such assaults on the family. “Divorce damages the most enduring human institution—honored and encouraged in all cultures and by every religious faith,” Luistro said. “If divorce is allowed, it becomes a valid option every time a marriage is threatened. Divorce divides. Divorce destroys the family.” (CBCP for Life)

Nazarene / A1

traditional procession. But officials of the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene immediately shrugged off the incident saying the crowd remained under control. Ignacio added that the organizers are well prepared with the security details as shown by the presence of security marshals in the immediate perimeter of the grandstand. The priest said one has to understand that devotees have dif-

ferent ways of expressing their devotion to the Black Nazarene image. Among them, he noted, were from simple praying, kissing the image, serving the church, and attending the Mass during the January 9 Feast Day. He said the “more quiet” faithful can be found in the Quiapo Church, where hourly Masses were held on the same day. Many devotees believe that

the image, which was sculptured in Mexico and said to have darkened in a fire, is miraculous so they strive to kiss or wipe their handkerchiefs and towels on the image. As to the crowd estimate, he said the police would be the more competent authority but believes that it could be more than the eight million last year, including those who joined the procession and attending Masses in the church. (CBCPNews)

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December 17. “We are deeply concerned about the situation. By the end of the third day, December 19, a total of 28 hunger strikers were reported to have collapsed and were rushed to the hospital. The number increased to 33 at the start of fourth day,” said Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo. The bishop also appealed to President Aquino to listen to the farmers’ request before the number of hunger strikers will increase. “What the farmers are fighting for are the land reform and land distribution under the CARP—very important social justice issue for which they are willing to sacrifice every-

thing, and we support the farmers’ struggle towards it,” Pabillo added. Pabillo, who is NASSA’s national director, also urged the faithful to pray for the farmers and for Aquino to take responsibility for the CARP completion. Meanwhile, in support of the hunger strikers, other farmer members of Task Force Mapalad (TFM) staged a die-in in front of the building on December 18. “We ask the President to save the lives of hunger strikers by ousting Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Secretary De los Reyes immediately and by taking charge of the completion of CARP,” TFM-Negros president

Alberto Jayme said. Jayme added that the hunger strikers remain steadfast in their demand and are seeking audience with President Aquino to ask him to remove all the impediments to the commitments he had made in his meeting with the same group of farmers in Malacañang on June 14. “We are waiting for the President Aquino to respond to our appeal that De los Reyes be replaced f or being a weak and inefficient leader at DAR,” Jayme furthered. Moreover, 76 provincial presidents of the Department of Agrarian Reform Employees Association (DAREA) signed a statement of support of the fasting

farmers. DAREA has been calling for the resignation of De los Reyes, whom they accused of masterminding the abolition of DAR and the termination of thousands of the department’s employees nationwide. De los Reyes has also been accused of failing to execute Aquino’s order to speed up the land acquisition and distribution (LAD) component of CARP, issue notices of coverage (NOCs) over private agricultural lands (PALs) 25 hectares and bigger and hasten the release of Certificates of Land Ownership Awards (CLOAs) for landless farmers. (SocialActionNews)

Diocesan News

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 01 January 7 - 20, 2013

Vigan Benedictine nuns, biogas pioneers Biogas-run abbey “Using biogas for cooking and power generation in our abbey has greatly helped us save our budget so that we can use it in other financial needs of the abbey,” stressed Mo. Mary Cielo Cortez, OSB, abbess of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Abbey (IHMA), mother congregation of the three other independent monasteries of Benedictine Nuns of the Eucharistic King (BNEK). The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom-Philippine Office recognized the nuns’ “Biogas for Cooking and Power Generation” project as a runner-up for the Freedom Project Award, which highlights programs of civil society organizations, national and local government and that allow communities

to experience the benefits of freedom, last December 4 at the Hotel H2O, Manila. The Department of Energy (DOE) and the Mariano Marcos State University – Affiliated Renewable Energy Center (MMSUAREC) assists the abbey to run its 232 cubic meter-capacity biogas digester, that supplies energy, not only for cooking and power generation for the abbey itself, but also for its piggery. 2009 partnership Inside the five-hectare land of the IHMA of the BNEK, is a poultry and piggery farm that supplies raw materials needed for biogas production. A partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Mariano Marcos State University – Affiliated Renewable Energy Center (MMSU-AREC) paved the way for the project in 2009, providing the congregation with a 5KV generator. According to Mo. Mary Cielo, the abbey had been using biogas for a long time, even be-

Malolos diocese gears for Synod

www.osb-ek.webs.com

VIGAN City— With the rising cost of LPG and electricity, Benedictine nuns are practical pioneers with an ongoing biogas project that provides their abbey with cooking gas and power.

The monastery chapel of the Benedictine Nuns of the Eucharistic King in Vigan.

fore she had entered the order, but it was only in 2009 that the technology was considerably improved. DOE explained that “the project addresses the problem of increasing/fluctuating price of fuel for cooking, particularly liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), denudation of forests for fuel

wood, and the government’s call to utilize renewable energy resource.” The Benedictines of the Eucharistic King (BEK) was founded by a German nun Mo. Edeltraud Danner OSB in 1931, which was eventually split into BNEK and BSEK in 1986. (Mark Vertido/ Nirva'ana Ella Delacruz)

Bong D. Fabe

Ban-ao folks begin 2013 with renewed hope BAN-AO, Banganga, Davao Oriental—With the blaring sound of the car stereo playing “Four Strong Winds” as background, the cacophony of the various construction, rehabilitation and recovery activities spearheaded by a non-government organization spelled the beginning of a new life for the Pablo-devastated people in this village. While the song played on largely unnoticed by the volunteers busy with helping the Ban-aowons get back on their feet, one teacher-volunteer from Xavier UniversityAteneo de Cagayan flashed a very big but sad smile as she sang along with Neil Young. “Four strong winds that blow lonely, seven seas that run high; all these things that don’t change, come what may. But our good times are all gone, and I’m bound for moving on…’ I very much like this song. And it is very apt in this situation, knowing from the people’s story that it was really Pablo’s strong winds that destroyed their homes and killed their loved ones,” she said as she prepared her materials for the psycho-social activities she and her co-volunteers from XU will be conducting for the children in this village. Thanks in part to the children, whose resiliency shone to the fore to teach the adults to take everything in stride, Ban-ao is little by little getting back on its feet after Pablo almost totally erased it from the map of Davao Oriental. “We lost everything. Our houses, our livelihood and our friends; some even lost their relatives. Nothing is left here,” Banao Barangay Chairperson Mera Adlawan Ching said. One resident said that she will never fully recover from the traumatic experience of losing her two small children to Pablo’s winds. “We took cover under a bridge. I was holding tightly my infant son while my two small children were holding my skirt. A few seconds later, I no longer saw my other two children as the strong winds literally flew them away,” she narrated. A 10-year-old girl said she saw how the strong winds literally swept her grandmother a few feet up in the air and smashed her on the concrete road, instantly killing her. Laurencio Batang, 59, said that villagers

Disaster Aid International’s (DAI) humanitarian and disaster response expert Ed Cox teaches and leads locals in setting up tents in a cleared area of the Ban-ao Elementary School compound in Barangay Ban-ao, Baganga, Davao Oriental.

out in the open have to literally “hugged” the earth to counter the pull of Pablo’s strong winds. “We have no recourse but to cling to the earth, just grasping the grass, so that we will not be carried by the strong winds,” he said. He, along with Lilita Cabrera (52), Armando Escamillian (53), Renato Dacuycuy (55), Nenen Go (63) and other older residents said, Pablo was the first typhoon to leave so much destruction and deaths behind in a hundred years in Ban-ao. “I remembered my grandfather told of a story of a very strong typhoon to hit the barangay in 1912. It was much stronger than Pablo,” Escamillian said. While all of Baganga and other municipalities of Davao Oriental facing the mighty Pacific Ocean were flattened to the ground by Pablo’s strong winds, Barangay Ban-ao was the hardest-hit with 17 people dead and more than 90 percent of its 520 families rendered homeless. Left with nothing—no food, no water, no houses, etc.—Ban-aowons were saved by Barangay Councilor Ignacio Cabrera, who gave the residents one hour to “loot” his store for food items and whatever they can get. Led by Ching, the residents started organizing themselves and salvaged still useful housing materials to repair what they can

of their destroyed dwellings to shelter them from the constant rains and winds due to the Amihan (North wind) and the searing heat of the sun. Exactly five days after Pablo’s wrath was unleashed in Ban-ao, the first semblance of Ban-ao’s reconstruction, rehabilitation and recovery operations arrived in the form of the Cagayan de Oro City-based Balay Mindanaw Group of NGOs (BMG) and the UK-based Disaster Aid International (DAI). Less than three weeks in the area, BMG leaders decided to adopt Ban-ao and pour whatever resources the group can gather into its effort to bring back the village from the clutches of death. “We are bringing not just tents and water here but the complete package. Our strategy, helping re-build resilient communities through barangay-based and barangayfocused disaster response work in Davao Oriental,” said Charlito “Kaloy” Manlupig, BMG head. Manlupig said that the first key intervention is helping the survivors set up a tent community as temporary emergency shelter while they reconstruct or repair their damaged houses. “This community will be the focus of our delivery of relief, rehabilitation, psychosocial and other assistance,” he said. He explained the reason why BMG adopted Ban-ao. “The main idea is to focus our resources on one barangay at a time instead of spreading them all to the 42 barangays of the three hardest-hit municipalities at the same time. After all, barangay-based and barangay-focused development, disaster response and peacebuilding work is one of our key strengths. Instead of treating the survivors as mere recipients of aid, they are considered as the key stakeholders in the difficult task of community re-building. The intervention will try to cover the whole range of community needs, from organizing to provision of basic needs of food, water, medicines, etc.” As of Dec. 30, 2012, BMG and DAI had set-up hundred of tents here, with DAI’s expert disaster response leader Ed Cox leading the residents in pitching the tents. (Bong D. Fabe)

Naval diocese continues fight against RH NAVAL, Biliran—Despite the approval of the reproductive health bill by both Houses of Congress, the clergy of Naval diocese remain committed to continue their fight for life and boost their stand against the measure. Naval diocese chancellor Msgr. Hipolito Remandaban III, in an interview has emphasized that the Church needs to move on and bring the fight not anymore in the Congress or Senate but to the people. “Even if we lost in both houses [House of Represen-

tatives and the Senate], the most important thing is for the people to decide from their own hearts and conscience on how to deal with the measure when it becomes a law. But the Church will and shall remain in its stand against it,” he said. He also said that the Church still continue the fight by educating the people about the measure. “The role of the Church also is to bring or to unite the people in making the right decisions,” Remandaban stressed.

For Naval Bishop Filomeno Bactol the fight will not end even when the bill turns into law. (The RH bill was quietly signed into law last December 21, 2012—eds). “Here in the diocese we are still fighting. We are not just talking about morality here; we are talking about the life that we treasure and the future of the young people. When it turns into law, it will corrupt the mind of the youth,” Bactol said. The bishop added that it is not the lawmakers of

today that will be affected but the young people who will become future leaders and members of the society. Bactol admitted that when he deliver his homilies and insert some insights about the bill, he noticed that some people become irked about it. However, he continues to talk about it during Mass saying it is necessary, so people would know and understand the measure, and the Church‘s stand on the issue. (Jandel Posion)

Fire razes 400-year old church QUEZON City—A 400 year-old church was gutted by a fire early dawn Dec. 26, in a remote village in Camarines Norte, police reports said. Reports at the PNP operations center in Camp Crame said the church destroyed by the fire was the St. Peter the Apostle located at Brgy. Dos, Vinzons town in Camarines

Norte. The reports also said that the fire, which has reached third-alarm and started at around 1:30 a.m. has completely destroyed the church. Destroyed also were several antique equipments, religious icons and sculptures. Cost of damage by the fire was placed be-

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tween P8 to P10 million, the reports said. The St. Peter the Apostle Church is regarded as one of the oldest churches in the country. It was built by the Franciscan Friars in 1611 after establishing Tacboan town in 1581. An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the fire. (AV/CBCPNews)

MALOLOS City—The Diocese of Malolos Jubilee preparatory Committee is gearing up for a second diocesan synod on February 2013. The upcoming diocesan synod is one of the activities of the diocese as it marks its 50th jubilee year. The Diocese of Malolos celebrates Jubilee Year on March 2012-2013 with the theme “Malolos: Biyaya at Pananampalataya; 50 Years of Transforming Grace and Unwavering Faith”. Fr. Manny Cruz, Theologian of the Synod, and Fr. Winnie Naboya, Judicial Vicar of the Diocese in a preparatory meeting have presented to the body headed by Bishop Jose Oliveros the progress of the preparations being done for the Synod. The lineamenta and the survey from the different parishes and sectors of the diocese are almost done and already in the final stage of evaluation and interpretation. Part of the said lineamenta are nine (9) pastoral priorities of the Diocese namely; 1) Integral Faith Formation; 2) Empowerment of the Laity towards Social Transformation; 3) Active Presence and Participation of the Poor in the Church; 4) The Family as the Focal Point of Evan-

gelization; 5) Building and Strengthening of Participatory Communities that Make Up the Parish as a Community of Communities; 6) Integral Renewal of the Clergy and the Religious; 7) Journeying with the Youth; Ecumenisms and Interreligious Dialogues; and 9) Animation and Formation for Mission. Fr. Willie Naboya presented the Norms for the Synod and explained the different roles of those who were appointed by the bishop to attend the Synod based on the Canon Law. The procedural norms of the Synod were also discussed during the meeting. Most Rev. Jose F. Oliveros made a move to increase the number of lay participants for the Second Synod of Malolos. “There should be a larger number of lay participants because the laity composed the majority of the Diocese,” he said. He also stressed out the importance of lay empowerment. With the final meeting for the Synod scheduled on January, everyone are encouraged to pray for the success of the Synod, which is to set the Diocese’s policies and programs after the Jubilee Year. (Arvin Ray Jimenez/ CBCPNews)

Briefing Aspiring seminarians gather for annual admission days

DAVAO City— More than a hundred seminarians from different archdioceses and dioceses in Mindanao gathered last December 15-18 at the St. Francis Xavier Regional Major Seminary to attend their annual Admission Days. The gathering aimed to assist aspirants and returning seminarians who want to proceed and to study theology in the regional seminary. During the event, seminarians had undergone interviews from priest-formators of the regional seminary which are composed of two panels with three priests per panel. Admission results will be sent to the respective rector or vocation director and the bishop of the diocese, middle of January 2013. Accepted seminarians will start their PreTheology course in academic year 2013-2014. (Sem. Ritzchild John Cariaga/CBCPNews) Gov’t urged to mobilize resources in Pablo-devastated areas

CAGAYAN DE ORO City—A peace and development nongovernment organization which was among the first to conduct relief operations in Davao Oriental after its devastation by Typhoon Pablo is urgently urging the national government to mobilize its resources to help in the reconstruction, rehabilitation and recovery of the province. “The massive devastation requires immediate well-coordinated response from government (particularly the National Government) and all sectors. While there has been tremendous outpouring of goodwill and generosity, much is still desired more than two weeks after the disaster,” Charlito Manlupig, BMFI founder and chairman of the Board, said in an open letter. (Bong D. Fabe) Bacolod creates new chaplaincy

BACOLOD City— A new chaplaincy has been created by the Diocese of Bacolod to serve more efficiently the Catholic population of Grandville Subdivision in Bacolod City. Bishop Vicente Navarra has issued a decree creating the Chaplaincy of Our Lady of Perpetual Help covering the areas of Terra Nova 1 and 2, La Salle Ville, Grandville 1, 2, and 3, Forest Hills and Arceo located in Grandville Subdivision, Brgy. Mansilingan, Bacolod City. The decree was issued upon the petition of the faithful and the Presbyteral Council, the Parish Priests of the Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal in Mansilingan, and St. Jude Thaddeus in Alijis. As a new chaplaincy, the Our Lady of Perpetual Help is given all the rights according to the Code of Canon Law, Diocesan Statutes and approved customs, and that the seat of the chaplaincy shall keep habitually the Blessed Sacrament in its Church under the usual conditions, possess the baptismal font, administer all the sacraments, and keep all the canonical books. (ADSUM) Iba youth day highlights community involvement

IBA, Zambales—The Diocese of Iba marked the 25th anniversary of the creation of the Commission on Youth Apostolate with a Diocesan Youth Day focusing on community involvement and personal growth. Held from November 30 to December 1, the gathering was attended by around 400 young people from the diocese together with campus ministers, youth organizations and young people from the Indigenous People (IP) community. The participants were housed with foster families. Themed “Rejoice in the Lord always” (Philippians 4:4), the DYD included activities like group sharing, plenary sessions, praise fest, sky lantern parade, and presentations. (Jandel Posion) 1st Catholic Social Media Summit held in Iloilo

ILOILO City— The Jaro Archdiocesan Youth Commission (JAYA) has organized the 1st Catholic Social Media Summit in the Western Visayas region on December 1 and 2 in Iloilo Grand Hotel, Iloilo City. Titled “Generation F: Opening the Door of Faith through Social Media” the summit focused on how Filipinos, particularly the youth, utilize media for social transformation. Fr. Rafael Luis Clavel, Director of the Jaro Archdiocesan Youth Commission, said the summit aimed to help delegates become aware of the realities on the use of social media; know and understand the use of social media in a Catholic way; utilize new media in the propagation of faith and mission; and to understand the RA 10175 (Cybercrime Law) and its impact on the lives of the youth. Among the speakers was San Fernando Auxiliary Bishop Pablo David, who gave the keynote speech on “Godiquette versus Netiquette”. (Fr. Mickey Cardenas/Joy Badayos)

People, Facts & Places

© Pinky Barrientos, FSP

Steen Choir, Koro Ilustrado, Philippine Allstars, The Angelos, and Whiplash Dance Company, who treated the audience with a repertoire of dance and music. The musical event also had the Cardinal performing two numbers, one solo and another backed up by the Bukas Palad Ministry Choral group, to the delight of the audience. In his short speech during the concert, Tagle explained how Christian art has become not merely an aesthetic but also an spiritual experience for the faithful. Two great Filipino artists were also honored with a lifetime achievement award, prima ballerina Lisa Macuja-Elizalde and the late film maker Marilou Diaz-Abaya. Organized by JesCom Communications, the “Patron of the Arts” is set to be a yearly tradition not

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle belts out a song during a concert at the Meralco Theatre performed by the country’s top artists to raise funds for the restoration of the Manila Cathedral.

only to showcase the best of Filipino talents but also to benefit the various ministries and projects of Manila archdiocese. The musical event also coin-

cided with the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and the first year anniversary of Tagle’s installation as Archbishop of Manila. (CBCPNews)

with very Filipino features in the retablo, garbed in the traditional baro’t saya. The Pampanga ecclesiastical artist said he felt the desire to donate the retablo as a way to give back to the Church for patronizing his works, more than earning the prestige from the project. Layug is reportedly making another basrelief sculpture of St. Pedro, which will most likely be given to the Holy Father as a gift. (KB/CBCPNews)

A bas relief of San Pedro Calungsod sculpted by Willy Layug, a Pampanga ecclesiastical artist.

compound last January, according to the PCF Twitter post. The PCF also posted a photo of the new retablo of its Chapel via Twitter. The retablo was also a work of Layug as a donation to the PCF and was installed last October 22 in a liturgical celebration presided over by Ricardo Cardinal Vidal. The retablo depicts the martyrdom of Filipino saints Lorenzo Ruiz of Manila and Calungsod of Cebu.

The “new retablo awes cardinals, bishops, priests, nuns, and lay; (a) Philippine religious art showcase in Europe,” the PCF said. In an earlier interview with CBCPNews, Layug said he wanted the retablo to be a visual feast of uniquely Filipino elements and materials like bamboo, pinewood and gold leaf. “Even the angels wear Filipino costumes,” Layug said, describing an angel

Pontificio Collegio Filippino via Twitter @pcfroma

Pampanga artist’s sculpture earns Pope’s blessing THE Pope has blessed a wooden sculpture of St. Pedro Calungsod made by Presidential Merit Awardee Willy Layug of Pampanga in Rome recently. The Pontificio Collegio Filippino (PCF) said the Holy Father conferred the blessing last November 26 as it posted a photo of the bas relief sculpture via its Twitter account @ pcfroma. The image of the second Filipino saint was carved in a pinewood that fell within the PCF

January 7 - 20, 2013

Lay groups band together to form Catholic Vote Phils

Cardinal highlights arts’ role in evangelization MANILA Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle highlighted the role of the arts in evangelization at a concert held December 12 to benefit the restoration of the Manila Metropolitan Cathedral. Called “Patron of the Arts”, the concert also stressed the Church’s patronage of the arts throughout history— be it in music, literature, architecture or sculpture. Tagle said acknowledging the Christian values that are implied in the artist’s magnum opus is a proclamation of the Gospel and a form of service to God. The evening concert at the Meralco theater assembled award-winning performing artists, the likes of Noel Cabangon, Isay Alvarez, Robert Sena, 92 AD, Bukas Palad Music Ministry, Hangad Music Ministry, John van De

Vol. 17 No. 01

CBCP for Life

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CBCP Monitor

Organizers of Catholic Vote Philippines, an alliance of lay Catholic groups that have vowed to oust pro-reproductive health (RH) bill politicians in the 2013 elections, lock arms after a press conference at the Makati Sports Club on12 December 2012.

THERE is a Catholic Vote in the Philippines. At least there will be, from the May 2013 elections and onwards. Catholic lay organizations have banded together to ensure a formidable voter base in the May 2013 congressional elections and subsequent local and national elections. The group calling itself Catholic Vote Philippines launched the movement at the Makati Sports Club on December 12. The movement would basically undertake voter education programs for their respective members and other parishioners. Among the signatories are the Couples for Christ, Knights of Columbus, Catholic Women’s League—all are long-time Catholic Church-based institutions with officers and members nationwide. Organizers said the movement was prompted by the government’s apparent resolve to pass “anti-family” laws in Congress, foremost of which is the RH bill. The movement said it would strongly fight against all proposed laws that have to do with population control, divorce and same sex marriage. The movement is also the group’s response to statements made by proponents of the RH

bill that there is no such thing as a Catholic vote, and therefore legislators need not be afraid. “There will be a Catholic vote in 2013,” said Dr. Ricardo Boncan, one of the group’s spokespersons. “We will deliver it through our memberships and from among our fellow parishioners.” Among the organizations that are part of Catholic Vote Philippines are Knights of Columbus, Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas, Dominican Network, Institute of Preaching Lay Missionaries, Federation of National Youth Organizations, Youth Pinoy, National Youth Ministry, St. Thomas More Association, Couples For Christ, Educhild Philippines, Families Against RH Bill, Filipinos for Life, Doctors for Life, Alliance for the Family Inc., Pro-Life Philippines, Jericho Community, and Defensores Fidei Foundation. In a manifesto read by Catholic Vote Philippines’ other spokesperson Anna Cosio, the group said it would conduct voter education programs and spell out criteria for electing national and local officials. These include high Christian moral standards, sound judgment, integrity, honor, dignity and independence. (CBCP for Life)

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

Pastoral Concerns

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Blessed are the peacemakers

© Alan Holdren/CNA

Message of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI for the celebration of the 46th World Day of Peace; January 1, 2013

1. EACH NEW YEAR brings the expectation of a better world. In light of this, I ask God, the Father of humanity, to grant us concord and peace, so that the aspirations of all for a happy and prosperous life may be achieved. Fifty years after the beginning of the Second Vatican Council, which helped to strengthen the Church’s mission in the world, it is heartening to realize that Christians, as the People of God in fellowship with him and sojourning among mankind, are committed within history to sharing humanity’s joys and hopes, grief and anguish, [1] as they proclaim the salvation of Christ and promote peace for all. In effect, our times, marked by globalization with its positive and negative aspects, as well as the continuation of violent conflicts and threats of war, demand a new, shared commitment in pursuit of the common good and the development of all men, and of the whole man. It is alarming to see hotbeds of tension and conflict caused by growing instances of inequality between rich and poor, by the prevalence of a selfish and individualistic mindset which also finds expression in an unregulated financial capitalism. In addition to the varied forms of terrorism and international crime, peace is also endangered by those forms of fundamentalism and fanaticism which distort the true nature of religion, which is called to foster fellowship and reconciliation among people. All the same, the many different efforts at peacemaking which abound in our world testify to mankind’s innate vocation to peace. In every person the desire for peace is an essential aspiration which coincides in a certain way with the desire for a full, happy and successful human life. In other words, the desire for peace corresponds to a fundamental moral principle, namely, the duty and right to an integral social and communitarian development, which is part of God’s plan for mankind. Man is made for the peace which is God’s gift. All of this led me to draw

inspiration for this Message from the words of Jesus Christ: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Mt 5:9). Gospel beatitude 2. The beatitudes which Jesus proclaimed (cf. Mt  5:3-12 and  Lk  6:20-23) are promises. In the biblical tradition, the beatitude is a literary genre which always involves some good news, a “gospel”, which culminates in a promise. Therefore, the beatitudes are not only moral exhortations whose observance foresees in due time—ordinarily in the next life—a reward or a situation of future happiness. Rather, the blessedness of which the beatitudes speak consists in the fulfilment of a promise made to all those who allow themselves to be guided by the requirements of truth, justice and love. In the eyes of the world, those who trust in God and his promises often appear naïve or far from reality. Yet Jesus tells them that not only in the next life, but already in this life, they will discover that they are children of God, and that God has always been, and ever will be, completely on their side. They will understand that they are not alone, because he is on the side of those committed to truth, justice and love. Jesus, the revelation of the Father’s love, does not hesitate to offer himself in self-sacrifice. Once we accept Jesus Christ, God and man, we have the joyful experience of an immense gift: the sharing of God’s own life, the life of grace, the pledge of a fully blessed existence. Jesus Christ, in particular, grants us true peace, which is born of the trusting encounter of man with God. Jesus’ beatitude tells us that peace is both a messianic gift and the fruit of human effort. In effect, peace presupposes a humanism open to transcendence. It is the fruit of the reciprocal gift, of a mutual enrichment, thanks to the gift which has its source in God and enables us to live with others and for others. The ethics of peace is an ethics of fellowship and sharing. It is indispensable, then, that the various cultures

in our day overcome forms of anthropology and ethics based on technical and practical suppositions which are merely subjectivistic and pragmatic, in virtue of which relationships of coexistence are inspired by criteria of power or profit, means become ends and vice versa, and culture and education are centred on instruments, t e c h n i q u e a n d e ff i c i e n c y alone. The precondition for peace is the dismantling of the dictatorship of relativism and of the supposition of a completely autonomous morality which precludes acknowledgment of the ineluctable natural moral law inscribed by God upon the conscience of every man and woman. Peace is the building up of coexistence in rational and moral terms, based on a foundation whose measure is not created by man, but rather by God. As Psalm 29 puts it: “May the Lord give strength to his people; may the Lord bless his people with peace” (v. 11). Peace: God’s gift and the fruit of human effort 3. Peace concerns the human person as a whole, and it involves complete commitment. It is peace with God through a life lived according to his will. It is interior peace with oneself, and exterior peace with our neighbours and all creation. Above all, as Blessed  John XXIII wrote in his Encyclical Pacem  in Terris, whose fiftieth anniversary will fall in a few months, it entails the building up of a coexistence based on truth, freedom, love and justice.[2] The denial of what makes up the true nature of human beings in its essential dimensions, its intrinsic capacity to know the true and the good and, ultimately, to know God himself, jeopardizes peacemaking. Without the truth about man inscribed by the Creator in the human heart, freedom and love become debased, and justice loses the ground of its exercise. To b e c o m e a u t h e n t i c peacemakers, it is fundamental to keep in mind our transcendent dimension and to enter into constant dialogue with God, the

Father of mercy, whereby we implore the redemption achieved for us by his only-begotten Son. In this way mankind can overcome that progressive dimming and rejection of peace which is sin in all its forms: selfishness and violence, greed and the will to power and dominion, intolerance, hatred and unjust structures. The attainment of peace depends above all on recognizing that we are, in God, one human family. This family is structured, as the Encyclical Pacem in Terris taught, by interpersonal relations and institutions supported and animated by a communitarian “we”, which entails an internal and external moral order in which, in accordance with truth and justice, reciprocal rights and mutual duties are sincerely recognized. Peace is an order enlivened and integrated by love, in such a way that we feel the needs of others as our own, share our goods with others and work throughout the world for greater communion in spiritual values. It is an order achieved in freedom, that is, in a way consistent with the dignity of persons who, by their very nature as rational beings, take responsibility for their own actions.[3] Peace is not a dream or something utopian; it is possible. Our gaze needs to go deeper, beneath superficial appearances and phenomena, to discern a positive reality which exists in human hearts, since every man and woman has been created in the image of God and is called to grow and contribute to the building of a new world. God himself, through the incarnation of his Son and his work of redemption, has entered into history and has brought about a new creation and a new covenant between God and man (cf.  Jer  31:31-34), thus enabling us to have a “new heart” and a “new spirit” (cf. Ez 36:26). For this very reason the Church is convinced of the urgency of a new proclamation of Jesus Christ, the first and fundamental factor of the integral development of peoples and also of peace.

Jesus is indeed our peace, our justice and our reconciliation (cf.  Eph  2:14;  2 Cor 5:18). The peacemaker, according to Jesus’ beatitude, is the one who seeks the good of the other, the fullness of good in body and soul, today and tomorrow. From this teaching one can infer that each person and every community, whether religious, civil, educational or cultural, is called to work for peace. Peace is principally the attainment of the common good in society at its different levels, primary and intermediary, national, international and global. Precisely for this reason it can be said that the paths which lead to the attainment of the common good are also the paths that must be followed in the pursuit of peace. Peacemakers are those who love, defend and promote  life in its fullness 4. The path to the attainment of the common good and to peace is above all that of respect for human life in all its many aspects, beginning with its conception, through its development and up to its natural end. True peacemakers, then, are those who love, defend and promote human life in all its dimensions, personal, communitarian and transcendent. Life in its fullness is the height of peace. Anyone who loves peace cannot tolerate attacks and crimes against life. Those who insufficiently value human life and, in consequence, support among other things the liberalization of abortion, perhaps do not realize that in this way they are proposing the pursuit of a false peace. The flight from responsibility, which degrades human persons, and even more so the killing of a defenceless and innocent being, will never be able to produce happiness or peace. Indeed how could one claim to bring about peace, the integral development of peoples or even the protection of the environment without defending the life of those who are weakest, beginning with the unborn. Every offence against life, especially at its beginning, inevitably causes irreparable

damage to development, peace and the environment. Neither is it just to introduce surreptitiously into legislation false rights or freedoms which, on the basis of a reductive and relativistic view of human beings and the clever use of ambiguous expressions aimed at promoting a supposed right to abortion and euthanasia, pose a threat to the fundamental right to life. There is also a need to acknowledge and promote the natural structure of marriage as the union of a man and a woman in the face of attempts to make it juridically equivalent to radically different types of union; such attempts actually harm and help to destabilize marriage, obscuring its specific nature and its indispensable role in society. These principles are not truths of faith, nor are they simply a corollary of the right to religious freedom. They are inscribed in human nature itself, accessible to reason and thus common to all humanity. The Church’s efforts to promote them are not therefore confessional in character, but addressed to all people, whatever their religious affiliation. Efforts of this kind are all the more necessary the more these principles are denied or misunderstood, since this constitutes an offence against the truth of the human person, with serious harm to justice and peace. C o n s e q u e n t l y, a n o t h e r important way of helping to build peace is for legal systems and the administration of justice to recognize the right to invoke the principle of conscientious objection in the face of laws or government measures that offend against human dignity, such as abortion and euthanasia. One of the fundamental human rights, also with reference to international peace, is the right of individuals and communities to religious freedom. At this stage in history, it is becoming increasingly important to promote this right not only from the negative point of view, as  freedom from—for example, obligations or limitations involving the freedom to choose one’s religion—but also from Peacemakers / B2

Updates

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CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

File photo

The Magisterium of the CBCP

By Jaime B. Achacoso, J.C.D.

Hand sanitizer at communion time

With regularity, reports appear in the mass media of certain declarations attributed to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), quite often making these appear as official positions of the Catholic Church. Only on closer reading does it become clear that in fact the position is only that of a particular bishop, or of an official of one of the several standing commissions (like departments or offices) working within the CBCP. Can you please clarify the authority of the CBCP to issue doctrinal statements, and the binding (or non-binding) nature of such doctrinal statements on the Catholic faithful.

(Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum university, answers the following query:) Q: After the swine flu epidemic last year, it became the practice in many of our diocesan parishes to use hand sanitizer before the extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion distribute Communion. In one parish the presiding priest is even given a squirt of the sanitizer prior to his distribution of Communion as well. Am I being overly concerned or is this a strange practice? It is very distracting. — C.M., Springfield, Massachusetts A: I do not think there is necessarily a right or wrong answer to such a question. Health situations and concrete possible dangers change from year to year, and the pastoral response must change according to the situations. I would agree that a severe situation in one year should not be an avenue for the introduction of emergency practices on a permanent basis, as this is likely to lead to distractions for the faithful. In periods of severe danger of contagion a bishop could even go so far as to exempt his flock from the Sunday obligation and even order the cancellation of public Masses. In recent years, and for different classes of infection, such situations have arisen in Ireland and Mexico.

© Noli Yamsuan/RCAM

IN order to understand this issue, we need to understand the nature of the teaching office of the Church—what is technically known as the magisterium.

In less severe situations lesser precautions may be taken, such as discouraging handshakes during the sign of peace, or a prudent and discreet use of disinfectant such as that described by our reader. If the use of a hand sanitizer is deemed necessary, then it would be better for the extraordinary ministers to use it in the sacristy before beginning their services. In the case of the priest, unless he has some cold symptoms himself, it is probably enough for him to use the sanitizer immediately before beginning Mass. It is unlikely for him to become contagious during the celebration itself, and this gesture is likely to make people more, rather than less, wary at the moment of receiving Communion. For example, in my own experience, many long-term care centers for the elderly require visitors to sanitize only on entering the premises even though they might be spending some time in contact with the residents. In spite of this, however, such means could be used immediately before communion if the situation warranted it. If the diocese has not issued particular norms, then the parish priest could ask for medical opinion with respect to taking reasonable precautions. The faithful should also be aware that suffering from severe cold or flu is a sufficient justification for not attending Mass. In more acute cases refraining from attending a crowded Mass could even be considered an obligation of charity, by not placing others at risk. Finally, we must remember that, while prudence is necessary, most people who catch colds and flu don’t do so at Mass but rather at home, at work and at school where they spend most of their time and in close contact with others.

Notion and Mission of the Magisterium The term Magisterium comes from the Latin magister, meaning “master”, “director” or “teacher”. In Church parlance, Magisterium came to refer to the teaching authority, finally narrowing specifically to the pastoral teaching office of bishops—i.e., the teaching function of the hierarchy. In other words, it refers to the exercise of the munus docendi (teaching office) taken in its strict sense. Christ, sent by the Father to be a witness of the truth (cf. Jn 18,37), entrusted to his Church his word and gave the hierarchy the power to teach with authority. The imperativity of the word of God in itself acts in the internal forum. However, man needs—and the word likewise demands it—an authoritative voice that can bind him in a palpable manner to the truth of the word. Thus, Christ established this authority in his Apostles and in their successors the Bishops (cf. Mt 16,19; 18,18). Types of Magisterium and their Subjects 1) According to the grade of authoritativeness that the teaching office assumes in its teaching, there can be two types: a) Authentic Magisterium: The Church Magisterium is called authentic because it proceeds from the authentic Teacher, Christ, and is exercised by those who have been given his authority (cf. Lumen Gentium, 25). The Code of Canon Law stipulates: A religious respect of intellect and will, even if not the assent of faith, is to be paid to the teaching which the Supreme Pontiff or the college of bishops enunciate on faith or morals when they exercise the authentic magisterium even if they do not intend to proclaim it with a definitive act; therefore

the Christian faithful are to take care to avoid whatever is not in harmony with that teaching (c.752). b) Infallible Authentic Magisterium: The authentic Magisterium enjoys the note of infallibility in its entirety, and also when in specific formulations the teaching office puts its authority in the highest degree and declares a doctrine with the intention of defining it as belonging to the faith. However, the Code is quick to point out: No doctrine is understood to be infallibly defined unless it is clearly established as such (c.749, §3). 2) According to the form or manner of exercising it, there can be two types: a) Extraordinary—when it is carried out through a solemn form or manner. Examples are the so-called ex cathedra teachings of the Roman Pontiff and that of the Council. b) Ordinary—when the habitual form or means are used. This in turn can be (1) universal— when it is addressed to the whole Church; or (2) particular—when it is addressed to a specific segment of the Church (e.g., a diocese or an episcopal conference). 3) According to the content, the magisterium can refer to (1) faith—also called dogmas of the faith, which define the truths of the faith; (2) morals—which in turn can be customs that must be followed; exhortations regarding Christian life; or moral judgments on temporal questions. Active Subjects of the Magisterium 1) The active subjects of infallible authentic magisterium are: 1° The Roman Pontiff— when, as supreme pastor and teacher of all the faithful, whose task is to confirm his fellow believers in the faith, he proclaims with a definitive act that a doctrine of faith or morals is to be held as such (c.749, §1). 2 ° T h e C o l l e g e o f Bishops—also possess infallible teaching authority when the bishops exercise their teaching office gathered together in an ecumenical council when, as teachers and judges of faith and morals, they declare that for the universal Church a doctrine of faith or morals must be definitively held (c.749, §2). They also exercise it scattered throughout the world but united in a bond of communion among themselves and with the successor of Peter, when together with that same Roman Pontiff in their capacity as authentic teachers of faith and morals, they agree on an opinion to be held as definitive. 2) The active subjects of authentic magisterium are firstly the Roman Pontiff and the College of Bishops, for the Universal

Church (c.752); and secondly the individual bishops, Episcopal Conferences and Particular Councils, for the faithful entrusted to them. In the latter case, the Code of Canon Law provides: Although they do not enjoy infallible teaching authority, the bishops in communion with the head and members of the college, whether as individuals or gathered in conferences of bishops or in particular councils, are authentic teachers and instructors of the faith for the faithful entrusted to their care; the faithful must adhere to the authentic teaching of their own bishops with a sense of religious respect (c.753). Although c.753 lumps them together, we have to clarify that the three are not on equal footing as far as the exercise of authentic magisterium is concerned. The diocesan bishops (and their equivalents) exercise a primary and direct authentic magisterium over their respective proper flocks, while the Episcopal Conferences and Particular Councils only exercise a secondary and indirect role—i.e., only to the extent that the individual bishops or the Pope empowers them. The Magisterium of the CBCP The competence of Episcopal Conferences as regards the authentic magisterium was neatly delimited by the Motu Proprio Apostolos suos (21.V.1998), and more practically regulated in a Letter (13.V.1999) prepared by the Congregation for Bishops in collaboration with the Secretariat of State, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Congregation for the Oriental Churches and the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of Legislative Texts and sent to the Presidents of the Episcopal Conferences. After stating a general principle that “the joint exercise of the episcopal ministry [by the Episcopal Conference] also involves the teaching office” (n.21), the Motu Proprio lays down the following norms limiting this exercise. 1) A stricter norm for episcopal collegiality. The document lays down the following: In order that the doctrinal declarations of the Conference of Bishops referred to in No.22 of the present Letter may constitute authentic magisterium and be published in the name of the Conference itself, they must be unanimously approved by the Bishops who are members, or receive the recognitio of the Apostolic See if approved in plenary assembly by at least two thirds of the Bishops belonging to the Conference and having a deliberative vote (Art.1). In effect, this norm guarantees that a certain doctrine is really an expression of the communio of the episcopal college in a given territory. Otherwise, such lack of

unanimity needs to be offset by an explicit recognitio by the Holy See. 2) Exclusion of Inferior Bodies from usurping the teaching office of Bishops. The document continues, laying down the following two norms: Art. 2. – No body of the Episcopal Conference, outside of the plenary assembly, has the power to carry out acts of authentic magisterium. The Episcopal Conference cannot grant such power to its Commissions or other bodies set up by it. Art. 3. – For statements of a different kind, different from those mentioned in article 2, the Doctrinal Commission of the Conference of Bishops must be authorized explicitly by the Permanent Council of the Conference. These norms effectively limit the tendency—unfortunately not uncommon especially in more developed countries—for standing commissions and other such bodies to usurp the teaching office of the bishops. Summary We can summarize all the aforementioned, relating them to the original issues raised, as follows: Doctrinal declarations can only be issued in the name of the CBCP when such have been approved unanimously by the bishop members of the CBCP. Such statements would then constitute authentic magisterium of the bishops, to which the Catholic faithful are obliged to adhere with a sense of religious respect. However, if such unanimity is lacking, a majority alone of the bishops of the CBCP—much less a few only—cannot issue a declaration as authentic teaching of the Conference, unless such statement obtains the recognitio of the Apostolic See, which on the other hand will not give it if the majority of bishops requesting it is not substantial. In this case, all the Catholic faithful in the Philippines (the territory of the Conference) are obliged to adhere to such teaching with a sense of religious respect. With more reason, a statement by a bishop alone—even as Chairman of an Episcopal Commission— should never be presented by the mass media as authentic magisterium of the CBCP. With even more reason, a statement of an official of an Episcopal Commission should never be taken as authentic magisterium of the CBCP. All these are very clear to the bishops and officials of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. What is lamentable is the way the mass media quite often takes them out of context, confusing the Catholic faithful in the process.

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the positive point of view, in its various expressions, as freedom  for— for example, bearing witness to one’s religion, making its teachings known, engaging in activities in the educational, benevolent and charitable fields which permit the practice of religious precepts, and existing and acting as social bodies structured in accordance with the proper doctrinal principles and institutional ends of each. Sadly, even in countries of long-standing Christian tradition, instances of religious intolerance are becoming more numerous, especially in relation to Christianity and those who simply wear identifying signs of their religion. Peacemakers must also bear in mind that, in growing sectors of public opinion, the ideologies of radical liberalism and technocracy are spreading the conviction that

economic growth should be pursued even to the detriment of the state’s social responsibilities and civil society’s networks of solidarity, together with social rights and duties. It should be remembered that these rights and duties are fundamental for the full realization of other rights and duties, starting with those which are civil and political. One of the social rights and duties most under threat today is the right to work. The reason for this is that labour and the rightful recognition of workers’ juridical status are increasingly undervalued, since economic development is thought to depend principally on completely free markets. Labour is thus regarded as a variable dependent on economic and financial mechanisms. In this regard, I would reaffirm that human dignity and economic, social and political factors, demand that we continue “to

prioritize the goal of access to steady employment for everyone.”[4] If this ambitious goal is to be realized, one prior condition is a fresh outlook on work, based on ethical principles and spiritual values that reinforce the notion of work as a fundamental good for the individual, for the family and for society. Corresponding to this good are a duty and a right that demand courageous new policies of universal employment. Building the good of peace through a new model of  development and economics 5. In many quarters it is now recognized that a new model of development is needed, as well as a new approach to the economy. Both integral, sustainable development in solidarity and the common good require a correct scale of goods and values

which can be structured with God as the ultimate point of reference. It is not enough to have many different means and choices at one’s disposal, however good these may be. Both the wide variety of goods fostering development and the presence of a wide range of choices must be employed against the horizon of a good life, an upright conduct that acknowledges the primacy of the spiritual and the call to work for the common good. Otherwise they lose their real value, and end up becoming new idols. In order to emerge from the present financial and economic crisis—which has engendered ever greater inequalities— we need people, groups and institutions which will promote life by fostering human creativity, in order to draw from the crisis itself an opportunity for discernment and for a new economic

model. The predominant model of recent decades called for seeking maximum profit and consumption, on the basis of an individualistic and selfish mindset, aimed at considering individuals solely in terms of their ability to meet the demands of competitiveness. Yet, from another standpoint, true and lasting success is attained through the gift of ourselves, our intellectual abilities and our entrepreneurial skills, since a “liveable” or truly human economic development requires the principle of gratuitousness as an expression of fraternity and the logic of gift. [5] Concretely, in economic activity, peacemakers are those who establish bonds of fairness and reciprocity with their colleagues, workers, clients and consumers. They engage in economic activity for the sake of the common good Peacemakers / B4

Features

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

take care. Their time in the Los Baños concentration camp was obviously miserable. “The real suffering was hunger,” he writes in a letter, “we were getting two ounces of rice in the morning and two ounces in the afternoon. That was all.” The visions he had were all of breakfast, lunch and dinner. But his accounts of life in Los Baños are full of optimism and humor and not a little apocrypha as Fr. Bernas s h a r e d last night. Looking back

and this encourages the enemy to try again next year. This season for instance we have already won 6 out of 8. We beat the University of the Philippines on both sides of the same question, but lost a real stinko decision to the Philippine Military Academy and a very close decision to our own Law School.” 3. “Dramatics. We tried ‘Who ride on white horses’ again this year and as a play it was good, but we lost money. . . . Next year we’ll also run a series on radio and also on television.” 4. “Glee Club. This takes time, but we are the only male club in the country and so we are relatively famous. . . . We have our own concert each year and sing in most of the girls’ colleges. And we travel.” 5. “Teaching. Only 3 religion classes a week. I have been more or less fired from the classroom to specialize in odds and ends.” Finally: “On most days I get up at four and run from 4

to 5 . . . because this is the best time for exercise, which I dearly need, so as not to get irritable.” But as we see from the many tributes from his former players, debaters, actors and actresses and stagehands, glee club, this flurry of energy and activities was simply his use of his inexhaustible energy and many gifts to bring God to people and people to God. In the end, it was about all these young men and women in

A homily delivered by Fr. Bienvenido F. Nebres, S.J. at the Funeral Mass of Fr. James B. Reuter, S.J., at the Ateneo Church of the Gesu, January 5, 2013 Loyola House in the early 1980s. The radio network of the Federation of Catholic Broadcasters of the Philippines remained the one independent source of news during the years of media control under martial law. His biography on the Ramon Magsaysay website writes: “The federation’s members, along with Radio Veritas and five college radio stations, were linked to each other and to

media activities of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. He tells the story of the Federation of Catholic Broadcasters of the Philippines: “Our Catholic radio stations grew, in a strange way – totally unlike the commercial networks . . . Many bishops in the Philippines have dioceses that stretch into mountainous areas, which the priests can only reach once or twice a year. With an AM radio

Photo: Fr. Leonido Dolor

on that year of hunger and deprivation, he later wrote of “feeling sorry” for brother Jesuits not appreciating breakfast, dinner or supper – because they were never hungry. “And then I realized: the blessing is not having a lot to eat . . . The blessing is hunger! When you are hungry, everything tastes beautiful!” Under-neath the humor and lighthear-tedness we see his faith and courage coming from the Lord: “When they bring you to trial and deliver you up, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say; ... for it is not you who speak but the Holy Spirit” (Mark 13: 11) For the Ateneo de Naga and the Ateneo de Manila, 1948-60 were the golden Reuter years. The sparse Jesuit curriculum vitae simply says that he was a Moderator of drama, athletics and debate in college and taught rhetoric, Latin and English and religion. But he brought all the energy and talent from his own schooldays to the Ateneos. A letter he wrote to his mother on January 4, 1959, gives a flavor of those years: “Dere everloving mudder, Happy New Year! 1956-19571958-1959. I’m catching up on my back mail. . . . My jobs this year are all odds and ends: 1. Moderator of varsity athletics. The national game is basketball and the biggest league in the country is the NCAA. We’ve done well in this so far—I’ve been in for two years and we won the championships both times. “ Among the legends are how Fr. Jim would lead his players every morning in a run several times around the campus and end in the Blue Eagle gym running up and down the bleachers—till all the players would drop, except Fr. Jim. They were not the most

Father James B. Reuter, SJ

Fr. Reuter was interred at the Sacred Heart Novitiate in Novaliches, Quezon City after the funeral Mass at the Ateneo’s Church of the Gesu, January 5, 2013.

a commitment and friendship that would be, for very many, a lifelong one. In a sort of farewell, entitled “The Pre-Departure Area” (Philippine Star, May 31, 2008), written four years ago when he was 92, he says: “My ancient, medieval original Ateneo Glee Club has been singing with me since 1952 — 56 years! And, so help me, they are singing better now than they did 50 years ago. . (His Glee Club is here singing for Fr. Jim and for

station, the bishop could reach his people everyday. So we have grown to 48 Catholic radio stations and four small tv channels. We are where the people are, but where money is not. “ In this apostolate of media he reached thousands, millions more, and developed new deep friendships in the Lord. Ihavesaidthatatthefoundations of Fr. Jim’s inexhaustible energy and optimism was a deep and simple faith, simple in the sense of the beatitude: “Blessed are the

Photo: Fr. Leonido Dolor

bring to his mission in the Philippines. He was profoundly inspired by the young Jesuits at St. Peter’s, in particular, Ernest J. Hartnett, who seemed to do everything at St. Peter’s and who became Fr. Jim’s model. He entered the Jesuit novitiate in Wernersville, Pennsylvania on September 7, 1934, did his two-year Juniorate there as well and then came to the Philippines in 1938 to do philosophy, first at Novaliches and then in Baguio. With him were Fr. Horacio de la Costa, Fr. Edgar Martin, and Fr. Jim McCann, novice master to myself and a generation of Jesuits. In Baguio he became assistant basketball coach at St. Louis University and two of the players eventually joined the Jesuits, Fr. Jose Blanco and Bro. Luis Batin. In late May 1941 he came to the Ateneo de Manila to do his regency and here the war caught him. His group continued their studies of theology through the war, including their period of internment in Los Baños. After they were liberated in early 1945, he returned to finish theology at Woodstock College in the U.S. and was ordained priest on March 24, 1946. After tertianship and special studies in radio and television broadcasting at Fordham University, he returned in 1948 to the Philippines, where he would spend the rest of his life. I first met Fr. Jim at Sacred Heart Novitiate, where I entered as a novice after high school in 1956. He was making his retreat and I watched him doing laps in the 25-meter pool of the novitiate. What I cannot forget was when he started swimming slow laps underwater – going to one end and coming back without surfacing, then he would surface, take a deep breath and repeat, over and over again. I thought: Amazing! Later in early 1958, I was with the first group of novices to spend a month in Culion leprosarium and Bro. Batin told us how Fr. Jim would swim from one island to another. They sent a boat to follow him to make sure he was safe. Fr. Jim, Sr. Sarah says, did not know that those were shark-infested waters. But I am afraid the sharks were more Fr. Jim’s flair for the dramatic, as neither then nor in my other visits to Culion, did I see or hear any mention of sharks. That was when he was in the prime of life, but 30 years later when I was Provincial and lived with him in Xavier House, he still had the same amazing energy. I would see him most mornings walking to St. Paul’s Herran in his white sotana to say mass. When we had Province meetings in Angono retreat house, he would walk from there to Meralco theater for play rehearsals. He jogged regularly around Sta. Ana racetrack at 3 or 4 a.m. and one time he came home with a big gash on his forehead and blood all over his track suit. He had run into a tricycle in the dark. “I’m ok”, he said, so we asked, “Yes, but how is the tricycle?” Underlying this energy and drive was always faith, a faith that was at once very deep and simple in its unwavering assurance that God will always be there and will

Sr. Sarah Manapol, SPC, Fr. Reuter’s trusted assistant and friend, sings his favorite Marian song during the funeral Mass.

talented team, but, in those years before professional conditioning, they simply outstamina-ed the other teams. He goes on: 2. “Debating. We started this about three years ago and it is on the rise. . . . We mix our weak speakers with the strong ones, so that we win often, but not always,

these new “Reuter babies”. There were finally the dramatic 18 hours of Radyo Bandido and June Keithley in the secret location right in the middle of the city and the exhilaration of the victory of EDSA 1. In all this, Fr. Jim “describes his role as accidental. He had mobilized his team for an election, not a revolution. But, he says, when the crisis came, “The system worked.” I said that in all of this work and activity, in the end Fr. Jim’s one desire was to bring people to God and God to people. Less talked about is how he has brought his friends and many others to where God has chosen most to be found, among the poor. He wrote plays about the poor and abused children of Manila. He writes in the preface to one of his plays: “STOP (Stop trafficking of Pilipinas) asked me to write a play on child prostitution in Manila. I read all that has been written on it. I went to the places where they lived and work. I talked to the children... I got physically sick and then I wrote: JENINA.” Together with Sr. Eva Maamo,

theater group arriving in Toledo, Cebu after a storm had ripped the dock and the only way to cross, theater props and all, was on a single wooden plank. Ignoring the dire warnings of the stevedores and with a prayer to the saints, especially St. Jude, Fr. Jim led them in the crossing to the shore on that single plank, women and children first, and finally all their equipment. To the wonder of the stevedores who said, “Grabe si Pader Kano, walay kahadlok, murag superman!” It is to this same reckless faith, together with his foresight in building the Federation of Catholic Broadcasters of the Philippines, that we owe much of the dominant communications role of the Church in the snap elections and in the success of the EDSA revolution. Earlier throughout martial law Fr. Jim helped keep the fire burning through his writings in The Communicator, beautiful and powerful articles against martial law – examples of elegant and effective communication which I gave to our Jesuit scholastics to emulate when I was Rector of

them in the hospital, heard their last confessions, anointed them, and then said Mass for them, when they had gone home to God.” We do not see much about his retreats in his curriculum vitae nor in the write-ups about him, but so many remember him as retreat master in their student days and he remembers them: “And the retreats! I receive such touching letters! I am humiliated by these letters, because the one who makes the impact on their lives is never the priest — it is Christ Our Lord. Whenever I hear confessions, I know that the one who is confessing is reaching out to God. The priest is only the bridge. . . . But it is consoling to know that you can be a bridge between a soul and God . . . . . Every day I pray to be worthy of the good people whom God sends to me.” He was ahead of his time in understanding the role and power of mass media and so from 1960 on his main apostolate was in media: print, radio, television. He became Director of the National Office of Mass Media, coordinating the

© Roy Lagarde / CBCP Media

FATHER James B. Reuter was born on May 21, 1916 in Elizabeth, New Jersey to German-Irish parents, James Reuter and Marguerite Hangarter. He was the eldest of six children, two boys and four girls, one of whom died as a baby. He went to the Jesuit high school, St. Peter’s Prep, where he attended on a scholarship and graduated valedictorian. He was on the school magazine, was into dramatics and excelled in the school’s debating team which went undefeated for three years. He also played football and basketball. All this talent and background he would

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us.) And those who have acted with me in their youth remember their adventures on stage as one of the happiest periods in their lives. The athletes that I have coached in basketball, when they were students, call me when they are sick. I have visited so many of

pure of heart, for they shall see God.” The pure of heart are those who can be single-minded for God, who put their hand to the plow and never look back. For Fr. Jim this could lead sometimes to what would seem to be reckless faith. As in the story told by James Bernas in the Philippine Star article other day – of their

four mobile units by shortwave radio and computers. As the elections approached, Reuter’s team trained intensively with the new equipment so that they could relay ‘swift, honest reports on the results.’” “During the elections, Reuter’s studios at Xavier House coordinated the flow of news to and from member stations, the colleges and the mobile units that were placed strategically around Manila and operated by teams of ‘Reuter babies’.” The whole of Xavier House became part of the Reuter operation. My Provincial’s conference room became the computer and data processing center – manned by a new generation of computer-savvy “Reuter babies”. We had put up a very high antenna above the Provincial House. Fortunately we had a guard who was clueless about the whole thing, so when a military car stopped and asked him, he said: “Oh, that has been there for 20 years!” I keep vivid memories of the night, described by James Bernas, when I was awakened around 3 or 4 a.m. to tell me that we would be raided. I went immediately to my office and searched for any papers that may incriminate people or groups, tore them to pieces and tried to throw them into the Pasig – only to have them drift in the wind into our lawn. So I had to go down, pick them up one by one and throw them again. The other vivid memory is of the young people telling us, “We have sent off all the computer memory disks to a safe place. But we will not dismantle the equipment. It will be too difficult to put them together again. We will stay with them and be arrested if necessary. “Fr. Jim’s reckless faith and courage had rubbed off deeply on

he has worked through our Lady of Peace Foundation to provide care for many poor and malnourished children of Manila with a particular concern for abused children. With the support of many friends and benefactors they have put up the Our Lady of Peace Hospital, which provides free medical care for many indigent patients. Fittingly he spent his failing years since 2009 in this hospital under the care of Sr. Eva Maamo and Sr. Arlinda Pacina, to whom we all owe a very deep debt of gratitude. In his 2008 “the pre-departure area” article, he said he hoped to live till 104, like his friend, Fr. James Martin, one of the founders of the NCAA in the Philippines, whom I visited at the Georgetown infirmary six months before he passed away. H o w e v e r, l a s t S u n d a y, December 30, Fr. Provincial, Jojo Magadia, visited him and told him that he had permission to go — to what Fr. Jim called his last great adventure. From then on, Sr. Sarah says, he began to weaken and we received the news that he might go December 31 or January 1. He finally went to the Lord on his last great adventure at noon of New Year’s Eve, while Sr. Sarah was singing one of his favorites, “I am Mary’s child forever”, to him. I think it is only fitting to give the last word (or song) to Sr. Sarah, his trusted assistant and friend through so many years. I would like to ask Sr. Sarah to come up and sing that song for us. [Sr. Sarah comes up to sing the song.] There is a post-script, a last farewell of Fr. Jim. I asked Sr. Sarah to write it down for us: “On January 2, I overslept. I had a late, late breakfast, what I would normally call ‘brunch’. I was on my second teaspoonful of rice and chorizo, when out of the blue I got dazzled with a vision, a scene – whatever. The scene was so beautifully bright, all white clouds and sun streaks streaming through them. I tried to close my eyes . . . but the vision would not disappear: it was Papa Bear running up a silvery ladder in his flowing white sotana, and he was handsomely and happily smiling at a group who kept cheering: ‘C’mon Jim, C’mon Jim, c’mon Jim.’ I saw Dad Jim, mom Marguerite, his youngest brother Ken, my own papa and mama, his sister Rita, a little (baby) girl and a young boy. They were all cheering, egging him to run up the ladder faster! I tried to close my eyes again, but the scene ‘refused’ to disappear; so I finally dropped my teaspoonful of rice and chorizo and ‘relished’ the scene for about a minute. After it was gone I turned around, I looked at my watch and it was 12 noon of January 2nd.” So there you have it, Fr. Jim, priest of Jesus Christ, companion of Jesus, hero, father and friend to so many, jogging up Jacob’s or Nathanael’s ladder with an enthusiastic cheering squad – dramatic to the end. Good bye Fr. Jim, we pray you will be there to cheer us on when our own time comes.

Features

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CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

By Archbishop Fernando R. Capalla THE moral and legal issues arising from the controversial RH Bill and Framework Agreement and rape of the land are really very important and urgent. Their mutually acceptable resolution would, as some already claimed, help promote unity, harmony, integrity of creation and peace. There are others who disagree or at least doubt. To be sure, it is everyone’s duty to know and understand the issues, support and defend its correct interpretation, and contribute courageously in its free and effective implementation. But would this effective implementation, as some sectors claim, or their defeat, as some others assert, really help promote eventual progress, unity, and peace? This is doubtful. The Pros and Cons supporters of RH Bill and Framework would not be easily satisfied with success or accept failure of their respective plan and project. The basic differences are deep and the present situation does not yet allow a respectful, multicultural and religious coexistence in this country. This coexistence when well harmonized within society by government could lead to progress and prosperity. Hence, the doubt. The reason for this is the SYSTEM that allows these issues to happen, that keep this situation to prevail and to divide the people. This refers to the way our democratic form of government is followed, to its institutions and structures, and most of all, to the Constitution, the basic law of the land that gives them all legitimacy and validity. But vested interests in cahoots with government leaders together with several morally bereft legislators and

officials had taken advantage of the weakness of certain wrongly interpreted laws as well as some vague provisions of the Constitution to achieve their agenda. The result is the dysfunctional democratic institutions which are seen as instruments of corruption. So, if this System is the root cause of these divisive issues, it has to be uprooted, changed. Is this possible? Two national events heavily influenced by some Church and military leaders (EDSA I & II), the interim revolutionary government, the new basic law (1987 Constitution), and several national and local elections had tried to effect the change. As history shows there was no real systemic change. There was only a change of leaders who in connivance with Comelec manipulated the electoral process. They hold power and control of the present flawed system with financial help of multinational corporations. How then should a real change of system be achieved? In late 1960’s, the early post Vatican II period, consciousness of systemic change was an essential goal of the diverse movements for change worldwide. In our country before and after Martial Law, this goal was foremost in the so-called conscientization process in which we as young clergy were actively involved. For this we were inspired by the gospel beatitudes, Vatican II documents, papal and CBCP exhortations. This prepared us for the historic peaceful EDSA revolution. This is the answer to the above question: Is system change possible? What is a conscientization process? Conscientization is an essential element of social transformation generally based on the cycle of 1) analysis of society, 2) prayerful reflection, and 3) concrete action. Unlike the pre-martial law and pre-

© Roy Lagarde / CBCP Media

Beyond RH Bill, Framework Agreement and Environmental Destruction

On 12 December 2012, bishops, priests, seminarians and religious led over five thousand lay faithful in procession to the House of Representative while praying the rosary for wisdom and enlightenment of legislators who were to vote on the controversial Reproductive Health Bill.

EDSA I movements which did not effect systemic change because the Faith Communities were not involved, the present situation demands a well planned conscientization undertakings with the faith communities actively and interactively involved: Catholics of basic ecclesial and transparochial communities, Protestants of diverse churches and denominations, Islamic mosques, madrasahs and groups, Chinese buddhists, Indigenous peoples federations.

From these communities who are the taproot of true democracy will hopefully emerge the future leaders, young and not so young of the country, who do not belong to the oligarchy and the dynasty-conscious. These are the peoples that deserve the active support of and collaboration by the Armed Forces and business groups. They are also the tax-payers and the consumers of social goods. From this community of believers come the OFWs whose dollar remittances keep our economy afloat.

The three major issues, RH Bill, FA and land degradations, and their related issues and problems are really serious and urgent concerns. But more serious and urgent is the System and its web of influences that create the issues and problems. This is the concern of every Filipino who must act now before it is too late. The facebooks, twitters, emails, media editorials, and informal sessions are bursting with rumors that somehow action in this direction has begun!

Letter of Resignation from ADMU Theology Professor I HAVE taught theology at ADMU since 2002, and have been tenured there since 2005. Because of my interest in the Biblical past, since 2011 I have been on study leave, pursuing my research in affiliation with the Archaeological Studies Program at UP, my ADMU tenure being secure for five years. Throughout my years teaching theology at ADMU, the Bible had increasingly become my primary teaching resource. I had found that the religious virtues, spiritual ideals, and array of theological perspectives on the human condition that are conveyed in the full range of Biblical narratives, from Genesis to Revelation, filled a lacuna that I had noticed in ADMU theology. It was a lacuna in the formation of character and conscience. I wish I had been a better teacher. I wish I had learned more quickly about hewing closely to the truth (cf. 2 Timothy 2:15). I wish I had

learned sooner about not putting my own thoughts ahead of God’s teachings (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:20–25). I wish I had understood more deeply about avoiding selfpromotion and not seeking praise (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:5). I know that I shall be held accountable for my students’ grasp of the truth (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:10–15). On all these things the Church depends: “Each believer is a link in the great chain of believers. I cannot believe without being carried by the faith of others, and by my faith I help support others in the faith” (CCC 166). In the ministry of catechesis, I have learned that every gospel description of the life of faith is true, as is every claim and warning in the New Testament about the catechist’s vocation. According to Fr. Malachi Martin, exorcists whom he has interviewed have profoundly come to understand by way of their ministry that the procreative love between man and woman is in the very image of God, and is humanity’s taste in this world of God’s eternity (Martin, 1992:

cf. the chapter “The Virgin and the Girl-Fixer”). Also, there is no shared life on earth or between earth and heaven that is more intimate than that between child and mother, from its very beginning in the womb (Martin, 1992: cf. the chapter “Father Bones and Mister Natch”). One easily finds that these points are held in our sacred scriptures and traditions. Indeed, there we easily find that marriage between man and woman is the one God-given blessing that humanity has retained after the loss of Eden. These are spiritual realities. Any human person can begin to see them. One does not need infallible pronouncements from the Magisterium in order to willingly assent to their truth, and to their implications for any path towards genuine human fulfillment. Thus love for the Church and her Tradition brings us to Christ in faith (cf. Luke 10:16). At the same time, our saintly traditions testify that love for the Christ of faith increases our love for the

mystery of the Church (cf. CCC 766, 772). But in this increasingly secular and materialist age, when relativism makes claim to be the ruling norm, that love is not always easy. The teachings of the Church clash with the ideologies that rule this age, while her ministers and her teachers are all too human. Often times it seems easier to give up believing that the Church is the Holy Spirit’s work. But the gospels tells us that believing in the Son of God when He became incarnate was not easy either (cf. John 1:11). The bishops have pointed out the spiritual and ethical consequences of the RH Bill (cf. e.g., Odchimar, 2011; Villegas, 2012). Here I point out the spirit that has allied itself to its passage. It is clear that however wellmeaning support for the Bill has been, it has received—whether sought after or not—alliance with a spirit of disdain for the Church. That spirit repudiates the Church’s holiness and, at the same time, attempts to assume it for itself (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:4).

It has manifested at an unusually high level of ferocity, even hatred. It has manifested in the wholesale denigration of the Church – of her teachings, of her bishops, of her catechists, and of her common lay faithful. Whatever material good Ateneans believe they have accomplished by supporting the passage of the Bill, their failure to reject alliance with that spirit, to truly seek counsel with the Church, and to make amends for and to repair whatever harm that their alliance with that spirit is doing and will do to the faith of believers in the Philippines, has not been right. For believers, there can never be compromise with that spirit, much less collusion with it (cf. Revelation 18:4). The Holy Spirit’s will and that spirit’s will are never the same (cf. CCC 676). It rejects God’s truth (cf. John 8:45). Moreover, when one becomes allied to it, one becomes like it (cf. John 8:44). Thus here the saying also holds: “No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted

to one and despise the other” (Matthew 6:24). Because of these realities, I believe that my service to the Church and my service to ADMU no longer coincide, and I believe that I can no longer share the path that ADMU has taken. Therefore I hereby resign both my teaching position and my tenure at ADMU Theology. RAFAEL DY-LIACCO ADMU Theology Department, on study leave December 28, 2012, Feast of the Holy Innocents References Catechism of the Catholic Church [CCC]. The Holy See. 1993. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Martin, Malachi. 1992. Hostage to the Devil: The Possession and Exorcism of Five Refe Odchimar, Nereo P. 2011. Pastoral Letter: Choosing Life, Rejecting the RH Bill. Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. Villegas, Socrates B. 2012. Letter: Let us move on. Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lingayen Dagupan.

Peacemakers / B2

and they experience this commitment as something transcending their selfinterest, for the benefit of present and future generations. Thus they work not only for themselves, but also to ensure for others a future and a dignified employment. In the economic sector, states in particular need to articulate policies of industrial and agricultural development concerned with social progress and the growth everywhere of constitutional and democratic states. The creation of ethical structures for currency, financial and commercial markets is also fundamental and indispensable; these must be stabilized and better coordinated and controlled so as not to prove harmful to the very poor. With greater resolve than has hitherto been the case, the concern of peacemakers must also focus upon the food crisis, which is graver than the financial crisis. The issue of food security is once more central to the international political agenda, as a result of interrelated crises, including sudden shifts in the price of basic foodstuffs, irresponsible behaviour by some economic actors and insufficient control on the part of governments and the international community. To face this crisis, peacemakers are called to work together in a spirit of solidarity, from the local to the international level, with the aim of enabling farmers, especially in small rural holdings, to carry out their activity in a dignified and sustainable way from the social, environmental and economic points of view. Education for a culture of peace: the role of the family and institutions

6. I wish to reaffirm forcefully that the various peacemakers are called to cultivate a passion for the common good of the family and for social justice, and a commitment to effective social education. Nooneshouldignoreorunderestimate the decisive role of the family, which is the basic cell of society from the demographic, ethical, pedagogical, economic and political standpoints. The family has a natural vocation to promote life: it accompanies individuals as they mature and it encourages mutual growth and enrichment through caring and sharing. The Christian family in particular serves as a seedbed for personal maturation according to the standards of divine love. The family is one of the indispensable social subjects for the achievement of a culture of peace. The rights of parents and their primary role in the education of their children in the area of morality and religion must be safeguarded. It is in the family that peacemakers, tomorrow’s promoters of a culture of life and love, are born and nurtured.[6] Religious communities are involved in a special way in this immense task of education for peace. The Church believes that she shares in this great responsibility as part of the new evangelization, which is centred on conversion to the truth and love of Christ and, consequently, the spiritual and moral rebirth of individuals and societies. Encountering Jesus Christ shapes peacemakers, committing them to fellowship and to overcoming injustice. Cultural institutions, schools and

universities have a special mission of peace. They are called to make a notable contribution not only to the formation of new generations of leaders, but also to the renewal of public institutions, both national and international. They can also contribute to a scientific reflection which will ground economic and financial activities on a solid anthropological and ethical basis. Today’s world, especially the world of politics, needs to be sustained by fresh thinking and a new cultural synthesis so as to overcome purely technical approaches and to harmonize the various political currents with a view to the common good. The latter, seen as an ensemble of positive interpersonal and institutional relationships at the service of the integral growth of individuals and groups, is at the basis of all true education for peace. A pedagogy for peacemakers 7. In the end, we see clearly the need to propose and promote a pedagogy of peace. This calls for a rich interior life, clear and valid moral points of reference, and appropriate attitudes and lifestyles. Acts of peacemaking converge for the achievement of the common good; they create interest in peace and cultivate peace. Thoughts, words and gestures of peace create a mentality and a culture of peace, and a respectful, honest and cordial atmosphere. There is a need, then, to teach people to love one another, to cultivate peace and to live with good will rather than mere tolerance. A fundamental encouragement to this is “to say no to revenge, to recognize

injustices, to accept apologies without looking for them, and finally, to forgive”,[7] in such a way that mistakes and offences can be acknowledged in truth, so as to move forward together towards reconciliation. This requires the growth of a pedagogy of pardon. Evil is in fact overcome by good, and justice is to be sought in imitating God the Father who loves all his children (cf. Mt 5:21-48). This is a slow process, for it presupposes a spiritual evolution, an education in lofty values, a new vision of human history. There is a need to renounce that false peace promised by the idols of this world along with the dangers which accompany it, that false peace which dulls consciences, which leads to self-absorption, to a withered existence lived in indifference. The pedagogy of peace, on the other hand, implies activity, compassion, solidarity, courage and perseverance. Jesus embodied all these attitudes in his own life, even to the complete gift of himself, even to “losing his life” (cf.  Mt  10:39;  Lk  17:33;  Jn  12:25). He promises his disciples that sooner or later they will make the extraordinary discovery to which I originally alluded, namely that God is in the world, the God of Jesus, fully on the side of man. Here I would recall the prayer asking God to make us instruments of his peace, to be able to bring his love wherever there is hatred, his mercy wherever there is hurt, and true faith wherever there is doubt. For our part, let us join Blessed John XXIII in asking God to enlighten all leaders so that, besides caring for the proper material

welfare of their peoples, they may secure for them the precious gift of peace, break down the walls which divide them, strengthen the bonds of mutual love, grow in understanding, and pardon those who have done them wrong; in this way, by his power and inspiration all the peoples of the earth will experience fraternity, and the peace for which they long will ever flourish and reign among them.[8] With this prayer I express my hope that all will be true peacemakers, so that the city of man may grow in fraternal harmony, prosperity and peace. From the Vatican, 8 December 2012    BENEDICTUS PP XVI [1] Cf. SECOND VATICAN ECUMENICAL COUNCIL, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, Gaudium et Spes, 1. [2] Cf. Encyclical Letter Pacem in Terris (11 April 1963): AAS 55 (1963), 265-266. [3] Cf. ibid.: AAS 55 (1963), 266.  [4] BENEDICT XVI, Encyclical Letter Caritas in Veritate  (29 June 2009), 32: AAS  101 (2009), 666-667. [5] Cf. ibid, 34 and 36: AAS 101 (2009), 668-670 and 671-672. [6] Cf. JOHN PAUL II, Message for the 1994 World Day of Peace (8 December 1993): AAS86 (1994), 156-162. [7] BENEDICT XVI, Address at the Meeting with Members of the Government, Institutions of the Republic, the Diplomatic Corps, Religious Leaders and Representatives of the World of Culture, BaabdaLebanon (15 September 2012): L’Osservatore Romano, 16 September 2012, p. 7. [8] Cf. Encyclical Letter Pacem in Terris (11 April 1963): AAS 55 (1963), 304. 

Statements

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

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© Pinky Barrientos, FSP / CBCP Media

New Year Message 2013 WE thank the God of history for leading us to 2013. It may not be known by many that the beginning of a new civil year is also the celebration of the World Day of Peace. The New Year is an appropriate time to reawaken our desire for a better future, for new beginnings, and for a world that could afford us the achievement of our dreams. But all this could be fulfilled only in peace and through peace. For us Christians, peace is primarily God’s gift. God created everything in love and willed that diverse creatures live in harmony with one another. When sin disrupted the concord enjoyed by human beings with God, with each other and with creation, God relentlessly pursued His design for universal peace, culminating in the birth of Jesus, the Prince of Peace. “He is our peace, he who… broke down the dividing wall of enmity through his flesh” (Eph. 2:14). Through the Holy Spirit, we are constantly recreated in Christ’s peace.

‘We must obey God rather than men’ (Acts 5:29)

We thank God for opening for us the door to peace. But we have the responsibility to enter that door. God’s is the gift, ours is the mission of building peace. I share the dream of all Filipinos for peace and harmony in all aspects of our lives. We know, however, that peace can only be promoted by peacemakers, by people whose minds, consciences, attitudes and styles of life are devoid of self-interest. Peacemakers seek the common good. Peacemakers spread honesty, respect and friendship. I repeat the invitation of Pope Benedict XVI, “to say no to revenge, to recognize injustices, to accept apologies without looking for them, and finally to forgive.” Let us all pray for the peace that only God can give. And let us live as true peacemakers. Then 2013 will be a peaceful year.

IN view of the recent occurrences leading to the passage of the RH bill on third reading both in Congress and the Senate, I am issuing this Statement in my capacity as Bishop of Bacolod and therefore this Statement is mainly for and in behalf of the Diocese of Bacolod. Consequently my Statement does not necessarily reflect the official statement of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), nor of any particular group of Bishops in the Conference and I am ready to abide with the official stand of the CBCP. I believe I have to speak out for and in behalf of the Catholic faithful, as well as of all the people of good will, in the diocese, who are expecting some guidance and support for their faith and conduct in life, considering the very fast development vis-à-vis the results of how the House of Representatives and the Senate dealt with the controversial Reproductive Health Bill (RH Bill). As I said, the developments came so fast, and as expected, so it seems, the voting both in the House of Representatives and in the Senate turned out in favor of the RH Bill, and therefore the official stand of the Catholic Church that rejects the Bill is likewise turned down. The fast tracking of its passage as it appears, is largely due to the drive to put to rest, once and for all, the issue that has divided the nation. But will the eventual passage into LAW of the RH bill really silence the authentic voice of truth? Will this Reproductive Health Policy bridge the divide? I say, NO! The DIVISION will NEVER pass away, for it has become clear as daylight that: “… FROM NOW ON THE HOUSEHOLD SHALL BE DIVIDED. Fathers will be against theirs sons, and sons against their fathers; mothers will be against their daughters and daughters against their mothers…” (c.f. Lk. 12:49-53). TRUTH distinguishes. TRUTH will create a divide between those who stand beneath its light and those blinded by the darkness of deceit and falsity! As Bishop of my flock, I am dismayed by the unscrupulous results of the said voting, and therefore I condemn it as a blatant insult against the Omnipotent God and a grave insult to the sanctity of human life, especially of the unborn. I believe there are further steps to be observed antecedent to the final approval of the Bill. But, whatever these steps are, they can still be subject to human manipulation in order to achieve the evil schemes of those who are pushing for its approval. At this point, may I remind the faithful of Bacolod of the many initiatives we have made to express our strongest protest against the RH Bill, because of the spiritual, moral, and socio– physico–medical ill-effects it can create among our people. We have held a Negros Island-wide protest-caravan; we never tire of calling for and organizing prayer rallies; we have held symposia and conferences and have invited credible speakers to talk in these fora sponsored by the diocese, our schools and even civic groups. I can say, we have never been wanting until now, and I exhort all of you to persevere in this venture. I am referring to the prayers we have offered in public and in private coupled with our acts of penance so that our people will be preserved from the malignant effects of the culture of DEATH (Divorce, Euthanasia, Abortion, Total Population Control and Homosexual Union) to which RH bill will only open the floodgates that will bring untold disasters rendering the Filipino Nation vulnerable to DEATH’s stranglehold. And yet, as shown by the recent voting in Congress, majority of our Representatives and Senators and with the full support of the Office of the President, it looks as if, ours is a losing battle. But shall we stop our struggle, because of sheer discouragement, and allow the moral evil to spread and to create havoc in the church, in our society and nation starting from our families? NO! As a diocese, let us continue with our prayers coupled with our acts of penance, as we go on with our campaign and inform our people “in season and out of season” (II Timothy 4:2), as we offer our prayers and earnest endeavors, asking the Lord and Giver of Life to save our country, to save our unborn from the clutches of the Culture of Death. Let us join the ranks of our courageous Congressmen/women and Senators who have become staunch witnesses and evangelizers for God and for human life, as they stood-up for the side of Truth and of their Faith in their consistent vote of “NO” to the RH Bill. Let us also direct our prayers coupled with our acts of penance in behalf of our legislators who voted “YES”. May the Spirit of Awe and Reverence for the Presence of God haunt their Consciences and make them realize the grave moral and social consequences of their “YES” vote. Like Mary, our heavenly Mother, let us continue searching for Jesus, her Son, incarnate among us despite the ills and corruption of human society, by injecting in it our ever vibrant faith and lively hope, that even in the midst of the evil and ignominious torture and death of the cross, her Son still reigns triumphant as Lord of heaven and earth! Again, with my prayers and pastoral blessing this Christmas and New Year!

+ LUIS ANTONIO G. CARDINAL TAGLE Archbishop of Manila

MY brothers and sisters in Christ: A s y o u r e s u m e y o u r deliberations on the Reproductive Health Bill, I pray that through the gracious intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, whose feast day we celebrate today, you may be bountifully guided by the Holy Spirit. Recalling Our Lady’s words when she first spoke to the Indian peasant St. Juan Diego on that cold December day on Tepeyac hill in Mexico 481 years ago, I am confident she will grant us the fruit of her affection and protection if we ask for it. In these difficult and trying days, we humbly ask for it. Our society needs law to unite rather than divide. We need law to affirm and protect the truth about the dignity of the human person, who has been created in the very image of God; the sanctity of the family, the basic social unit which even our Constitution recognizes as the foundation of the nation; and the inviolability of the social institution of marriage, which the Constitution likewise recognizes as the foundation of the family.

© Roy Lagarde / CBCPMedia

A Message to The Honorable Members of Congress

As politics allows free men and women to participate in the divine governance of the universe, governments must enact laws whose reason and justice emanate from God. As Pope Benedict XVI reminds us, “it is the specific task of politics to subordinate power to the criterion of law, thereby regulating the meaningful use of power. It is not the law of the strongest that must prevail, but rather the strength of the law…

“This makes it vital for every society to remove everything that could cast suspicion on the law and its ordinances, because it is only in this way that arbitrary conduct on the part of the state can be eliminated and freedom can be experienced as something genuinely shared by all…The law will come under suspicion, and people will revolt against the law, whenever it is perceived, no longer as the expression of a justice that is at the service of

all, but rather as a product of despotism, of an arrogance that is clothed in the garments of a law by those who have the power to do so.” Because of the enormous challenges facing you and the rest of the nation on the RH bill, I wish to commend to you these words of the Holy Father as my own, especially when he speaks of how parliamentary majorities should act on certain important questions. “Let us suppose,” the Pope writes, “that an overwhelming majority oppresses a religious or ethnic minority by means of harsh legislation—would we then speak of ‘justice’ or even ‘the rule of law’? The majority principle always leaves open the question of the ethical foundation of law: Are there some things that can never be legalized, some things that always remain wrong? On the other hand, are there some things that absolutely always remain legally binding, things that precede every majority decision, things that majority decisions Congress / B7

Statement for the International Human Rights Day and 64th year of UDHR “This pastoral commitment develops in a twofold direction: in the proclamation of the Christian foundations of human rights and the denunciation of the violations of these rights…” [Compendium of the Social Teachings of the Church 159] THE Church is one with the nation and the world in marking the 64th anniversary of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR). The theme of this year’s Human Rights Day is on fighting impunity towards a human rights-based governance. Human Rights-based governance means applying national and international human rights standards and norms into governance: decision-making, policy formulation, legislation, development, and fiscal planning. It recognizes people’s entitlement of rights, and the duty of state and non-state actors to respect, protect and fulfil these rights, which is based on the inherent dignity that belongs to each human person, its ultimate source being in God. Impunity means exemption from punishment or consequences. It is a failure to bring perpetrators of human rights violations to justice, and sends a wrong message that it is possible for violators to escape from the established laws. It allows the continuation

www.arkibongbayan.org

+MOST REV. VICENTE M. NAVARRA, DD Bishop of Bacolod

Human Rights / B7

My dear people of God in the Church in Lingayen Dagupan: C onscience attempted to speak but it has been stifled! The Reproductive Health Bill has been passed by the Senate and Congress through a majority vote. They might have won through the tyranny of numbers but it does not mean that they are right. It is only a matter of time and then we will see more violations of “Thou shall not kill” and “Thou shall not commit adultery” among our families, our youth and children. If the President will sign this into law, he will give us a moral time bomb wrapped as a gift to celebrate Christmas. This law will open more doors to abortion and more crimes against women. In the Archdiocese of Lingayen

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Let us move on! Dagupan, let us intensify the moral spiritual education of our youth and children so that they can stand strong against the threats to their moral fibre. Let us use all the means within our reach to safeguard the health of expectant mothers in our communities. Let us make available the sacrament of matrimony to our poor couples so that they may be guided in the right path in living out their duties as husbands and wives and as Catholic parents. Let us disseminate through organized pre-wedding seminars the teachings of the Church on natural family planning at the same time warning our people about the hazardous effects of contraceptive pills on the health of women. Let us conduct our own sex education of our children

insuring that sex is always understood as a gift of God. Sex must never be taught separate from God and isolated from marriage. This is also a time for soul searching and prayers. This is a time for peacemaking. We might not see eye to eye but we can work hand in hand for the real progress that your people so richly deserve. It is a progress with God, in God and through God. Daang matuwid without God is a dead end street. Only with God can we see real progress of peoples. From the Cathedral of Saint John the Evangelist, Dagupan City, December 18, 2012 +SOCRATES B. VILLEGAS, DD Arch b i sh op o f Ling a y enDagupan

Statement on the Fire in Parroquia de San Pedro Apostol Vinzons, Camarines Norte IN the early hours of the morning of 26th December, 2012, fire broke out in the Parroquia de San Pedro Apostol in Vinzons, Camarines Norte that gutted down the Parish Church and the Old Parish Convent. This incident brought great sadness into our hearts because we lost the 400 year-old Church which served as a silent witness to the faith of so many generations. We may have lost this beautiful and antique edifice but the words of St. Paul in verse 16 of his Second Letter to the Corinthians remind us “For we are the temple of the Living God. As God has said, I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God and they will be my people”. We may have lost a place of worship but the presence of God remains with us for He is EMMANUEL—God with us. As members of the local Church of the Diocese of Daet, I invite everyone to imitate and draw inspiration during these trying times from the Acts of the Apostles when the Early Christian Community “joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the Mother of Jesus and with His brethren (Acts 1:14).” Let us pray for one another especially for the Parish Community of San Pedro Apostol and look at this event as “a testing of faith that produces perseverance (James 1:3).” As we enter the threshold of the Diocesan Celebration of the Year of Faith, we humbly kneel and pray before the Lord in the same way that St. Peter and the rest of the Apostles implored Jesus “to increase our Faith (Luke 17:5)” due to the fact that faith helps us understand and accept the will of God in all the circumstances of our individual and community life. May the Good Lord help us in all our needs. +GILBERT A. GARCERA, DD Bishop of Daet December 27, 2012

Ref lections

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CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

The Lord’s Baptism: Continuing the mission The Baptism of the Lord, Year C, Lk 3:15-16, 21-22; January 13, 2013

The revelation of the significance and purpose of the incarnation WE say that people make a “prophetic gesture” when they do something striking that is also a sign of greater things to come. Those gestures reveal the depth of their passion or commitment; they are meant to shake people and somehow force them to make a choice, either for or against certain vital issues. In his lifetime, Jesus made many “prophetic gestures,” such as driving the traders out of the Temple, the healing of the paralytic, and many other miracles he performed. All those gestures were “spectacular” in their own way. They attracted the attention of the crowds, which wondered what their “meaning” could be. There was, in the life of Jesus, a “gesture” which was not spectacular at all and which went unnoticed by almost everybody, except his cousin John: his baptism in the River Jordan. That gesture was absolutely “common” and “ordinary” for it was something that almost everybody was doing in those days, in response to the exhortation of John the Baptist. But Jesus’ baptism at the Jordan, lost in the crowd of sinners who were seeking forgiveness, had a depth of meaning that made it one of his most dramatic “prophetic gestures.” It was his baptism, in fact, which

revealed the essence of Jesus’ mission and became the occasion for the revelation of his concealed divine identity. The “prophetic dimension” of Jesus’ action was not so much in his entering the waters of the Jordan, as his immersing himself in the crowd of sinners. That was something unthinkable and unbelievable. Only God’s incredible love for every human being and all mankind could have conceived suchan“immersion”whichwassocomplete and involving as to be a total “identification.” That was the reason why the eternal and all-holy Son of God had come down from heaven and had undergone the fullest “immersion” in the ocean of misery of mankind and human history. Jesus’ baptism was a further manifestation of the meaning and purpose of the Incarnation. Through that “immersion/identification,” the totally sinless Jesus became a part not only of the relatively small group of sinners gathered by the banks of the Jordan, but also of the immense crowd of sinners that is the wholeofhumankind.Andjustashispresence inthewaterssanctifiedthem,sodidhispresence among the crowd of sinners bring them the possibility of receiving purification from sin. That was exactly Jesus’ mission. Isaiah the prophet had already foreseen this when he announced that the mission of the “Servant of the Lord” was to bring “justice” (that is, holiness) to the nations. Of him the Lord God

said, “I formed you and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon those who live in darkness.” (See today’s First Reading.) In his life, Jesus “actualized” such a liberating and sanctifying “immersion” by associating with sinners and even seeking their company – something that shocked the “holy” people of his time. His association with “public sinners” was bound to tarnish his reputation as his opponents pointed out on several occasions. Jesus did not mind that criticism and continued like before, for—as he said—it is sick people who need a doctor. (See Mt 9:12.) But his immersing himself in the crowd of sinful mankind cost him much more—it cost him his very life, for he was put to death to atone for the sins of all! Jesus’ vicarious self-offering was so powerful in its effect because of who he was— God’s beloved Son, on whom the Father’s favor rested! Such a solemn proclamation of Jesus’ divine identity soon after his baptism balanced, so to speak, his hiding himself amongthecrowdofsinnersattheJordanRiver. It also completed the “prophetic nature” of what happened on that day—God’s very Son comingtosaveallmankindbysharingfullyits predicament of misery, in order to transform it from within, through the superabundant holiness that only God is.

Mission of the Jesus Christ in His Spirit, His Holy Spirit. We are determined to complete the work of the Master. We do this through our vocations to the married life, to parenthood, to the priesthood, to religious life, or to the life of the committed Catholic single. When we love others, we are continuing His Mission, for He is the Tremendous Lover. When we develop and use the particular gifts He has given to each of us to make the world beautiful for others, we are continuing His Mission. When those of you who are married put your spouse before yourselves, you are continuing His Mission to make love the motivation of life. When those of you who have children empty yourselves so your children can grow into the reflections of God He created them to be, you are continuing His Mission. When we strive to be the best at whatever it is that He calls us to do in our careers, we are continuing His Mission. When we say “No!” to sin and “Yes” to care for all who are hurting, we are continuing Baptism / B7

The challenge to grow in wisdom and grace

The Baptism of the Lord; January 13, 2013

By Fr. Sal Putzu, SDB

most famous works. His final work was the opera, Turandot. He knew he was dying when he started writing Turandot and almost completed it, but he passed away before he finished the final act. Puccini had many students and associated who gathered around his deathbed. They made up their minds that they would complete Turandot as an expression of their esteem for the great composer. It didn’t happen all at once, it took a number of years, but finally they finished the task. The opera debuted at one of the most famous theaters in the world, La Scala in Milan. It was conducted by the former pupil of Puccini, Arturo Toscanini. The music was beautiful and the audience was spellbound. Then in the middle of the Third Act, after the great aria, Nessun Dormo, Toscanini laid down his baton, turned to the people and announced, “It is at this point that the Master died.” You could have heard a pin drop. Then Toscanini looked at the audience and said, “But his disciples continued his work in his Spirit.” Toscanini turned back to the stage and completed the opera to the thunderous applause of all at La Scala. We are called to continue the

The Feast of the Sto. Niño January 20, 2013 By Fr. Sal Putzu, SDB THE news must have spread like fire in a forest of pine trees: there was in the Temple a wonder boy who kept amazing the teachers of the Law not only with his answers, but also with his questions. The audience of “experts” had been increasing steadily. By the third day, it had swollen to a sizable crowd of Scripture scholars all wondering at what the boy from Nazareth was saying and the questions he was asking. No doubt, the child knew the Scriptures in all their details and nuances. He knew more than what the text said. He knew its “message,” the “substance” of it all. His words were deep insights into events and statements, presented with mastery and authority. And he was just a child of twelve, coming from a remote village in the countryside! The learned teachers just did not know what to make of it . . . . But Jesus was not just a “wonder boy.” He was, above all, a “wonder-faithful,” and an exemplary one at that. Having gone to Jerusalem with Mary and Joseph for the Passover pilgrimage and the

Photo: flikcr.com/san_juan

WE end the Christmas Season and begin the Season of Ordinary Time with the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord by John the Baptist. Why was Jesus baptized by John? Certainly, He was not a sinner who needed to repent like so many of the others whom John baptized. The Fourth Eucharistic Prayer reminds us that Jesus shared our human nature in all things but sin. John himself said that Jesus should be baptizing him, not he baptizing Jesus. So, why did Jesus go into the River Jordan and let John baptize him? Perhaps the question can be answered by asking, “Why did people respond to John’s invitation to be baptized?” They wanted the presence of God to be restored to the world and they knew that first it had to be restored in them. They wanted evil to be defeated and knew that first they had to defeat evil within themselves. They wanted the Kingdom of God to begin, and they were baptized to proclaim this Kingdom with their lives. Jesus joined them in their desires for the Kingdom of God. He saw the pain that godlessness

brought to mankind, and wanted to be united to all who sought God. He saw the results of sin in the world and wanted to be united to all who would fight sin. He knew that the Kingdom of God was beginning and sought union with all were willing to make a commitment to the Kingdom. And John pointed to Jesus and said, “Look, there is the Lamb of God.” There is the one who will take the horrors of the world upon Himself, and die for God’s people. When Jesus was baptized He accepted the Mission that was the whole reason why He became a man. He began His public ministry which would end in the destruction of sin and hate with obedience to the Father and love for His people. Jesus embraced His Mission, defeated the devil, established the Kingdom of God, and then called on each of us to continue His ministry, more than that, to complete His ministry. This reminds me of the famous story about the completion of Giacomo Puccini’s opera, Turandot. Puccini was one of the greatest composers of opera of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. La Boehme, Tosca and Madame Butterfly are just a few of his

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Fr. Joseph Pellegrino

fulfillment of all other duties connected with that feast, he showed that he appreciated and was actively involved in keeping the religious traditions and observances of his people, just as he was at home with the Scriptures. He had been taught to value those traditions, and felt that they were part of his life. One often wonders whether our children and our youth could not be more like Jesus as he progressed in knowledge and maturity with the passing of the years. Jesus had grown in his appreciation of the precious traditions of his people. He knew

Sto. Niño / B7

Bo Sanchez Bishop Pat Alo

ENCOUNTERS

God’s providence IN His permanent legacy to us, as recorded in the Holy Bible, God has assured us of His love and care for us (see Mt. 6:25-34). Naturally that does not mean we have no part to play or do. As human intelligent beings we are expected to do the duties that are expected of us, duties towards God, ourselves and our neighbor. Such is the reason we were given the intelligence and other faculties of soul and body, because naturally we are to do our part in the duties of our world and our building a better society. Precisely that’s what the above text refers to. “Look at the birds in the sky. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they are? Can any of you, for all his worrying, add one single cubit to his span of life? And why worry about clothing? Think of the flowers growing in the fields; they never have to work or spin; yet I assure you that not even Solomon in all his regalia was robed like one of these. Now if that is how God clothes the grass in the field which is there today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, will he not much more look after you, you men of little faith? So do not worry; do not say, “What are we to eat? What are we to drink? How are we to be clothed?” It is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things. Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Mt. 6:26-34). Yes, my friend, rest assured, God cares for you and loves you. He doesn’t want you to become a ‘nervous wreck’ because of too much useless worrying. His point is that we trust in God’s Almighty hand and constant loving care.

SOULFOOD Nothing just happens I HEARD this message from T.D. Jakes, and I loved it so much, I’d like to share it with you. Let me start with a beautiful Bible story. One day, a married couple named Elimelech and Naomi were living in Bethlehem. And they were blessed with two sons.  But when famine struck the land, they had to migrate. Just like Filipinos today, Naomi and Elimelech went abroad to look for a better life.  But in that land, tragedy happened. First, Naomi’s husband Elimelech died. Her two sons married Moabite women, Ruth and Orpah. And just in case you’re asking, no, Orpah didn’t have an ancient TV show… And then tragedy struck again because Naomi’s two sons also died. So Naomi was left with her two daughter-in-laws, Ruth and Orpah.  In ancient times, a widow doesn’t inherit a single cent from her dead husband. So Naomi, Ruth, and Orpah became dirt poor. What can be worse than three widows living together in poverty? That was when Naomi decided to go back to Bethlehem and become a Balikbayan. But a very poor, destitute, impoverished Balikbayan. And she told Ruth and Orpah to leave her and go back to their families—because they had

no hope with her. The three of them cried together—and after much tears, Orpah decided to walk away. But Ruth decided to stay with Naomi. And she said, “Wherever you go, I shall go; Where you die, I shall die; Your people will be my people; And your God will be my God too.” She commits herself to care for her mother-in-law. And so both of them went back to Bethlehem. In Bethlehem, Ruth looks for food.  Out of the many lands there, she chooses to “glean” from the land of a certain Boaz, a relative of Naomi’s husband. (Gleaning was a charitable practice in ancient Israel where landowners didn’t harvest everything from their land, but left some leftovers, so that the poor people can gather these leftovers for themselves.)        And this is where the miracle happens… And as it happened, she found herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz, the relative of her father-in-law, Elimelech. Then Boaz asked his foreman, “Who is that young woman over there? Who does she belong to?” (Ruth 2:3, 5) It says that Ruth “just happened” to be gleaning on the land of Boaz. Like it was a stroke of luck. A happy coincidence. A random chance. An unplanned accident.

But did this really “just happen”? If you read until the end of the story, it says that the Boaz marries Ruth! And Ruth the Beggar becomes Ruth the Owner. Here’s the truth: Nothing Just Happens. Because God had something to do with it. This was Divine Orchestration.  The Heavenly Conductor arranged, maneuvered, and engineered various circumstances to position Ruth to harvest in this specific plot of land, which was her place of destiny. I believe God is doing the exact same thing in your life.  Say it after me, “Nothing just happens.” When you feel discouraged by your current situation, when you feel that things aren’t going your way, when you find yourself caught in a quagmire of opposition, and people reject you, declare that “Nothing Just Happens!”  God determines your steps The Bible says, We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps. (Proverbs 16:9).  She was begging in the land of Boaz. This was her place of poverty. But God saw the future and knew that this place of poverty was actually her place of destiny. Ruth the Beggar

became Ruth the Owner! Ruth, the mendicant, became Ruth, the millionaire. Right now, you may be in a place of poverty. I declare it now to be your place of prosperity. You may be in a place of anguish. I declare it now to be your place of abundance. You may be in a place of defeat. I now declare it as your place of destiny. Your physical surroundings may be ordinary to your eyes, but behind the curtains of the physical realm, God is doing something extraordinary in your favor. Declare that God is bringing you to your place of destiny because “Nothing Just Happens”. Think of the most painful experience in your life and shout, Nothing just happens! Think of the people that have abandoned you and shout, Nothing just happens! Think of the anguish that you went through and shout, Nothing just happens!”  When the winds are strong, the clouds are dark, the waves are high, shout, Nothing just happens!  When there’s no food on your table, no money in your pocket, no friends on your side, shout, nothing just happens! When your prayers aren’t answered, when your dreams aren’t happening, and when your miracles aren’t flowing—Nothing just happens!

Social Concerns

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

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Led to the squatters to be free MY one year of experience among the squatters which ended last November 11, 2012 seems to be God’s pamasko (Christmas gift) to me and I would like to share it with you as it might give life to you too as it has given me a lot of life and joy in helping build the “new earth”. Such an experience is affirmed by the recently concluded Synod of Bishops: “12. Contemplating the mystery and being at the side of the poor The other symbol of authenticity of the new evangelization has the face of the poor. Placing ourselves side by side with those who are wounded by life is not only a social exercise, but above all a spiritual act because it is Christ’s face that shines in the face of the poor: “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40). “We must recognize the privileged place of the poor in our communities, a place that does not exclude anyone, but wants to reflect how Jesus bound himself to them. The presence of the poor in our communities is mysteriously powerful: it changes persons more than a discourse does, it teaches fidelity, it makes us understand the fragility of life, it asks for prayer: in short, it brings us to Christ.” (Bold letters provided) The Lord through the poor squatters gave me a gift of deep conversion experience, a metanoia. St. Francis would tell us: “And the Lord Himself led me among them (the lepers) and I had mercy on them. And when I left them, what had seemed bitter to me was turned into sweetness of soul and body… I left the world.” “The death of my ego—doing what I do not want to do and not doing what I want to do.” (John of the Cross). I find my ego now to be much more at the disposal of the Spirit but it is not totally dead. That would only happen when I would have embraced Sister Death. Right at the beginning of my stay there I felt that process of conversion starting when I was “led” to sweep the street in front of my house. Inside me I struggled because I found it below my dignity as a priest. On the other hand I saw some neighbors sweep the street in front of their houses. Strengthened by the humility of Francis, I forced myself to sweep the street. It did not take long before I would even smile at the people watching me. Traumatic fear During the surprise illegal demolitions in my neighborhood last November 14 and 26, 2012 the squatters were paralyzed by fear. They just watched their house being demolished. In my 18 years of involvement with the Agtas, I too saw that kind of fear of the lowlanders. Even if they were the ones robbed, they were afraid to demand restitution. In processing where such fear came from, they would recall how their parents would threaten to give them to the lowlanders when they were children. Hence fear of lowlanders

FILE PHOTO

By Pete Montallana, OFM

Demolition crews destroy houses of urban poor in San Juan City during a series of demolitions in 2012 being implemented by various municipalities in Metro Manila.

has sunk deep in their psyche – fruit of their ancestors’ experience of oppression from the lowlanders and the colonizers. For lack of a better term I would call this “traumatic fear”. When I knew there was demolition in my neighborhood, I was angry but, I must confess, that I was afraid too despite the fact that I am a Franciscan priest for 35 years now and immersed daily in the Word of God and the Eucharist. My mind would tell me I should not be afraid but my hands and feet were cold. I realized that I too carry in myself the traumatic fear of the Agtas and the squatters. I went back to my own history. My father who was a fearful man would always refer to the rich and powerful in our town as “darakula” (Bicol word for big people) and that we are “saraday” (small people). The “saraday” should stay on the sidelines. This traumatic fear linked me back to the Filipino people which were subjected to fear for five hundred years.. Paolo Freire would call it in his Pedagogy of the Oppressed the “culture of silence”. I really thought that I was already freed from that culture of silence. I now understand that I was covering up my fears with “holy” rationalizations: “the Church is only for spiritual matters”, “the poor are lazy” etc. Accepting my own fears was an important step to gradually free myself from the traumatic fear through the anapanasati or awareness of breathing from the Buddhists in Thailand. In Gethsemane Jesus had to face his own fear until he was totally free. As a Church leader I am aware of that fearful and submissive attitude to Church and government leaders. This is

Human Rights / B5

of the violation by letting the violators go free to further harm more victims. The culture of impunity encourages others to violate the rights of others since public officials are either unable or unwilling to bring people to justice. Impunity has no place in rights-based governance and should be challenged, fought and stopped. In order to promote a culture of human rights and mutual respect, it is important to work towards a true rights-based governance, where eliminating impunity is a necessary element. Sadly, we see incidences of impunity close to us: extrajudicial killings by the military, such as the recent massacre of indigenous B’laan family in Tampakan; and lack of justice to victims of violence and killings, such as the slow and ineffective investigation of the case of the killing of Fr. Pops Tentorio and other environmental and human rights advocates and journalists vocal against mining and other exploitative activities. We are also far from the goal of rights-based governance: on-going are the violation of the right to adequate standard of living of farmers, Indigenous Peoples and urban poor claiming rights to land, relocation and opportunity for livelihood; intensification of workers struggle for job security due to the normalization of contractual work system; continuation of extractive activities by mining companies in spite of violation of environmental standards and ecological degradation; lack of equal opportunity and access to information in participation in policy formulation, election, and current policies that affect the basic sectors, due to lack of relevant policies and legal guarantees. Apart from the lack of efficiency and unclear accountability of various

government agencies responsible for these issues, the culture of non-action and impunity on the violators such as influential landowners and corporations, state actors and agencies, only perpetuates the situation further from good governance. As our country is a state party to more than 20 international human rights instruments, it is the obligation of the Philippine government to apply these to the national and local legislations and ensure their implementation. We therefore call upon our government to exercise leadership and political will to ensure: 1) the effective implementation of the existing laws, such as the asset reform laws for agrarian reform (CARP) and for Indigenous Peoples (IPRA), to give back the rights due to farmers, IPs and other basic sectors; 2) the prompt enactment of legal guarantees on good governance such as the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and the Alternative Minerals Management Bill (AMMB), which various groups have been calling for a long time; and 3) that perpetrators of human rights violations are put to justice with due compensation to the victims. As good governance is a shared responsibility, we also appeal to each citizen to be concerned for each other in this journey towards true human rightsbased governance, by promoting other’s rights and challenging violations. We are all made in the image of God and each person, with her/his unique worth is loved by God. Let us respect the inherent right and dignity of each other in the spirit of God’s love! + BRODERICK S. PABILLO, DD National Director 7 December 2012

not obedience. On the other side of the coin Paolo Freire would also point out that having been a victim of oppression, I could internalize the oppressor image and become an oppressor like the detested frayle imposing ecclesiastical power on submissive people. This is what I have to be aware of too. The liberating power of poverty When God liberated Francis through the lepers, he showed to the Church the power of poverty. The same Agtas and squatters paralyzed by fear led me to discover the liberating power of poverty. There is nothing to lose so why be afraid of confronting the shadows in the Church and in society. Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle listened intently to the grievances of the Agtas, the farmers and fisher folks who marched from Aurora to Manila to stop the unjust APECO law of the Angaras. He thanked them for their story and encouraged them to tell the whole country about their situation. He would help them with what he can do, he said, but reiterated that the Church has no power – many times she is also disregarded. But as a parting powerful word he said that if nobody listens, the One who is above is listening. It was my daily contact with the poor that was drawing out from my heart that emotion that is also very much in God— mercy—“the Lord is kind and merciful”. Francis expressed it: “and I had mercy on them”. My rationalized insensitivity surrendered to mercy through that experience with that woman carrying a child who came to me at 4:00 o’clock one afternoon: “Father, may I borrow P50 pesos. My children and myself have not

eaten lunch yet. My husband who went to work has not come back yet.” That incident touched me or — in the world of Paquiao — scored a knock-out on my ego. This was to me the poor Mary and Jesus. Instead of judgment I began to relate with mercy to my neighbors who live under the bridge, to the scavengers, the contractualized workers, the unemployed who keep on asking me for work and most recently those sleeping in the streets now because their houses were illegally demolished. “Am I the Good News of Jesus who proclaimed we are brothers and sisters belonging to only one Father/Mother?” This is the question that continues to set me free. The gift of prayer The Lord fortified me with his gift of prayer. I held on daily to the breviary and to the Eucharist. My one hour contemplative prayer morning and evening was a time for recharging my heart which gets unsettled with the many contradictions in myself, in the Church and in society. The mantra that I used was: “Lord Jesus, Son of the Living God, transfigure me. I am part of your Body.” Many times the Spirit brought in consoling realization that God who owns everything is indeed in charge. He would provide for what is needed through unexpected offers of help. I was surprised too when, towards the end of my stay, 26 youth (estambay who stayed late at night in the street) joined a recollection in OLAS and now they do bible sharing weekly. With poverty we have everything. Recapture our zeal to be radical God gave us the charism of countless

saints like Francis and Clare and recently Mother Teresa. During the Synod of Bishops last October 9, 2012 Archbishop Soc Villegas made an intervention: “the Gospel can be preached to empty stomachs but only if the stomach of the preacher is as empty as his parishioners”. The Synod highlighted the need of the baptized to be re-evangelized and for us in Asia to focus on the concerns of “the countless poor.” We can become catalysers in building the Church of the Poor in the Philippines which after 20 years by and large has not been taken seriously the building of the Basic Ecclesial Communities which is very important in empowering the people. We recognize that we have a lot of historical baggage as a colonized nation and have been being under a theology of power but we too have models that can inspire us to strive more. The pain experienced by the poor daily can be an inspiration on the urgency of the Good News. Our nationalism should fire us up so that the majority who are poor and to which most of us came from would finally be liberated. The inequality started when the colonial masters grabbed the lands and natural resources of the Third World 500 years ago. With their loot they industrialized and created bombs to continually control the world in connivance with the local elite. They perpetuate the unjust structures through political dynasty, slowness of genuine land reform, neocolonial policies like oil deregulation, contractualization, plunder of our forests and minerals etc. There are vast human resources in our Catholic population majority of which still trust us until now. This trust is eroding fast with the onslaught from the Western media. We have to let go of the theology insisting on simply sacramentalizing the people and focusing on dole outs, and instead push for the new model of Church that prepares for the “new earth”. With a systematic and comprehensive pastoral program we can unleash that transforming power of the people to work for justice which is “a constitutive dimension of the preaching of the Gospel” (Synod of Bishop 1971). Through intelligent planning and patience but much more through discernment on the Spirit’s will, we follow him who knows everything and who gives us the necessary wisdom to implement his plans. With the gift of metanoia it becomes easy for us to consider our employees or household helps as partners in evangelization. We assume the lifestyle of the poor — witnessing to simple living so that we can provide family wage for our employees and give back to the poor what belongs to them. The heavenly Father can provide for all our needs. In our simple celebrations we can become witnesses of Jesus who told us to invite the poor. We can just imagine the impact of such witnessing when all would open their doors to poor too. Imagine the joy it will spread. May we announce the fulfillment of Mary’s Magnificat: “He has done great things for me…filled the hungry with good things!”

Congress / B5

Sto. Niño / B6

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must respect?” (Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Values In A Time Of Upheaval, Ignatius Press, San Francisco, 2006) These involve such things as the right to life, the right of married couples to found a family according to their religious beliefs and moral convictions, and to be the primary educators of their children. Here as elsewhere, the truth must be the basis of the law, rather than the result of legislation. Amidst the many voices trying to influence the outcome of your deliberations, I call upon you in the words our Lord first said to Abraham, “Do not be afraid!” Listen to what God is saying; “obey God rather than men” (cf Ac 5:29). For “unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain” (Ps 127), and the Lord himself has assured us, “I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Mt 28:20). Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us! St. Thomas More, pray for us! San Pedro Calungsod, pray for us!

them thoroughly, and lived them out with the enthusiasm that characterizes this age. This is what our children and pre-adolescents would need to have and which many lack . . . Most of our youths are bright. Some are exceptionally bright. They are very familiar with the names and characteristics of movie and TV personalities, sports champions, war heroes.... Yet, when it comes to religious knowledge, many hardly know more than what they learned when they were in kinder and grade school.... When it comes to our religious traditions, many show coldness and boredom. When it comes to making some commitment in their parish or religious association, they become over-cautious and unreliable.... The feast of the Sto. Niño should offer them an opportunity to reflect on why things are so. Many parents and educators, likewise, should ask themselves at what point they went wrong and how the situation can be remedied in order to see our youth “progress steadily in wisdom and grace, before God and men” (Lk 2:52), as Jesus did. The observance of the “Year of Faith,” with the invitation to discover (or re-discover) the beauty of our faith and its content, can be a wonderful opportunity to bring this about.

His Mission. When we make time to be kind to those whom our society hates, the downtrodden, the socially unacceptable, the butt of jokes at school, at work, in the community, we are continuing His Mission. When we respond to the Grace to do something for someone else, we are continuing His Mission. When we realize with our lives that we are not the center of the universe, but that Jesus is the Center, and our center, we are continuing His Mission. “You are my Beloved Son. With you I am well pleased.” This was the voice of the Father over the Son after Jesus was baptized by John. The Father was pleased that Jesus embraced His Mission. He is pleased when we continue Christ’s Mission. What a gift we have been given in Jesus Christ. Some people think that life is meaningless, without purpose. But we Christians know why we were created and how we can live meaningful lives. We can make a difference in the world by uniting ourselves to the One who changed the world with His Life. We can continue the Mission of Jesus Christ.

+JOSE S. PALMA, DD Archbishop of Cebu President, Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines 12 December 2012

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Entertainment

CBCP Monitor

Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

Moral Assessment

 Abhorrent  Disturbing  Acceptable  Wholesome  Exemplary

Si Grace (Angel Locsin) ay isang dalagang ina na gagawin ang lahat para sa ikakagaling ng nag-iisang anak na si Botchok (Miguel Vergara) na may malubhang karamdaman sa dugo. Isang paraan lamang ang maari pang magsalba sa buhay ng bata—bone marrow transplant, isang proseso na mangangailangan ng tugmang donor na kadalasa’y ama o kapatid lamang. Hindi ito magiging madali dahil simula’t sapul ay wala nang ugnayan si Grace sa ama ng kanyang anak, si Edward (Dingdong Dantes). Ngunit dahil ito na lamang ang paraan, hahanapin niya si Edward, ibabalita niya ang tungkol sa kanilang anak at sa kalagayan nito at ang tulong na kailangan niya sa ama tungo sa ikagagaling ng bata. Ngunit si Edward ay kasal na kay Jacq (Angelica Panganiban), masaya silang nagsasama bagama’t wala silang anak. Papayag si Jacq na tulungan ang bata; susubukan mag-anak ni Grace at ni Edward sa pamamagitan ng makabagong teknolohiya (in vitro fertilization) ngunit hindi ito magiging matagumpay. Isa na lamang ang natitirang paraan—si Grace at Edward ay kailangang magtalik muli upang magkaroon ng anak. Paano ito mangyayari kung kasal si Edward at si Grace ay may kasintahan din na si Tristan (Zanjoe Marudo)? Hanggang saan ang kaya nilang ibigay at subukan sa ikagagaling ng isang bata at sa ngalan ng pagmamahal? Mahusay ang pagkakatagni ng One More Try sa kabuuan. Kuha nito ang atensiyon ng mga manonood sa kakaiba at sanga-sangang kuwento na naka-sentro sa matinding problema ng mga magulang na nagnanais sagipin mula sa matinding karamdaman ang anak. Hindi man masasabing orihinal ang kwento at halaw lamang sa isang pelikulang Tsino na In Love We Trust ang One More Try, nagsubok pa rin itong maghatid ng kuwentong aakma sa panlasa ng mga Pilipino. Sa kabila ng ilang katanungan tulad ng, “Paano magiging solusyon ang pagkakaroon ng kapatid sa ikagagaling ng bata kung ang isang sanggol ay hindi naman maaring isaalang-alang sa medical operation hanggang ito ay wala pang dalawangtaong gulang? Paano rin naging sobrasobra ang yaman nila Jacq kung sila ay mga empleyado lamang, walang sariling negosyo at nanggaling sa hirap?” kapani-paniwala pa rin naman ang kuwento sa kabuuan. Nailabas ng mga tauhan ang kani-kanilang husay sa mapaghamong iskrip at malulutong na dayalogo. Maaring naging pawang teleserye ang dating ng One More Try ngunit nag-iwan pa rin ito ng tatak sa mga manonood hindi lamang dahil sa natatanging kahusayang ipinamalas ditto, kundi pati na ang dipangkaraniwang tema nito. Matindi ang problemang moral na ibinato ng One More Try sa mga tauhan nito at maging sa mga manonood. Magkakabarkada sila Lizzie, Danielle, Margaux at Claudia, pawang mga socialites—“sosi” o “sosyal” at mestisahing mga dalaga. Dahil mga may kaya ang kani-kaniyang pamilya, magagara ang kanilang mga tirahan, mamahalin ang mga kotse, kaya nilang maging mga “fashionista”, palagi silang mapera at mababango—sa madaling salita, wala silang mga problema. Pero teka, meron din pala, mga problemang lumulutang sa kani-kanilang mga pangaraw-araw na buhay: ano ang kanilang oorderin sa restaurant para hindi sila

TITLE: Sosy problems LEAD CAST: Heart Evangelista, Rhian Ramos, Solenn Heussaff, Bianca King, Benjamin Alves, Mikael Daez, Aljur Abrenica DIRECTOR: Andoy Ranay PRODUCER: GMA Films GENRE: Comedy RUNNING TIME: 110 minutes LOCATION: Manila, Philippines Technical Assessment: ½ Moral Assessment:  ½ CINEMA rating: R 14

tumaba; ano ang mga pinakahuling modang isosoot para hindi sila maunahan ng ibang “sosi”; sinong lalaki ang pinakadapat na siluin; at iba pa. Ngunit darating sa bawa’t isa sa kanila ang pagkakataong makapagbabago ng takbo ng kanilang “sosyal” na buhay; paano nila ito sasagupain? Habang pinapanood namin ang Sosy Problems, sulpot nang sulpot sa isip namin ang mga katanungang sumusunod: Ano ba ang gustong tumbukin ng pelikulang ito? Bakit kaya pinagpagurang gawin ito, kung pinagpaguran man? Nagtataka lang kami dahil sa hinabahaba ng pakikinig at panonood namin sa mga “problema” na bumabagabag

Title: One more try Cast: Angel Locsin, Angelica Panganiban, Dingdong Dantes, Zanjoe Marudo, Miguel Vergara, Gina Pareno, Agot Isidro Director: Ruel S. Bayani Producer: Star Cinema Running Time: 110 minutes; Genre: Drama Location: Manila and Baguio, Philippines Technical Assessment: ½ Moral Assessment:  CINEMA Rating: For viewers 18 years old and above

Magiging katanggap-tanggap ba na ang isang ina ay makikipagtalik sa asawa ng iba para iligtas ang buhay ng anak? Kapag ang lahat ng paraan ay nasubukan na at tanging iyon na lamang ang solusyon, sapat bang dahilan ang nakatayang buhay ng isang bata para isuko ng isang babae ang kanyang dignidad? Hanggang saan din magbibigay, magpaparaya at magtitiis ang mga taong masasaktan alang-alang sa pagliligtas ng isang buhay? Ito nga ba ay sukatan ng pagmamahal o sukatan ng paninindigan o sukatan ng pananampalataya? Nakababahalang tila pinaboran ng pelikula ang pagko-kompromiso ni Grace sa kanyang moral para lamang iligtas ang kanyang anak. Hindi bale nang magkasala kung para sa kapakanan ito ng naghihingalong anak samantalang binigyan din naman siya mga pagpipilian? Hindi ninanais ng CINEMA na husgahan ang naging paninindigan ni Grace, ngunit malinaw ang nakasaad sa pagpapahalagang moral: anumang maling gawain ay hindi maitatama ng layunin. Maaring maging maunawain ang simbahan sa kalagayan ni Grace, ngunit hindi nito maaring kunsintihan ang anumang gawaing mali. Hindi rin tamang palabasin na ang mga tauhan sa pelikula ay wala nang pagpipilian. Laging mayroong pagpipilian sa pagitan ng tama at mali. Ganyan kung lumapit ang tukso— pinapaniwala kang wala ka nang pagpipilian. Higit na nakababahala na pawang pinag-isipan at pinagplanuhan ni Grace na akitin si Edward para lamang maisagawa ang kanyang layunin. Bagamat ipinakita rin sa pelikula na may kaparusahan ang bawat kasalanan, nakalalamang ang mga imaheng ginagawang romantiko at kaakit-akit ang pakikiapid, pagbabaluktot ng katwiran at pagsusuko ng moralidad. Para sa ano? Sa ngalan ng “habag” sa isang paslit na may sakit? (Noong manood ang CINEMA ng One More Try, nakaka-bawas-tensiyon na marinig naming kinukutya ng ilang manonood si sa mga socialites na ito ay hindi man lamang naantig ang aming isipan o damdamin para makiramay sa kanila. Naisip din namin, Ano ang pakay nila at ginusto nilang ilaban ito sa Manila Film Festival? Ang istorya, walang katoryatorya. Ang mga papel, walang hamong inihahain sa mga gaganap, kaya’t ang pag-arte nila ay hindi maituring na arte. Para lamang silang… wala lang, mga sarili lang nilang sosing barkadahan na nasumpungang “magpakodak” ng mga kababawan nila. Sasang-ayon na kami na may maganda rin sigurong hangarin ang Sosy P ro b l e m s ; marahil gusto nitong mangaral tungkol sa kawalangkatuturan ng mga “sosyal” na hilig ng tao, o imulat ang mga mata ng mga manonood sa kahalagahan ng pagkakaroon ng matayog na mithiin, ngunit nabigo ito. Nananaig sa kabuuan ng pelikula ang kabanidosahan ng mga pangunahing tauhan, ang kababawang nasasalamin sa mga maburirit nilang usapan at pataasan ng ihi. Dahil salat sa lalim ang characterization, nagmistulang isang fashion show lamang halos ang kalakhan ng pelikula, kaya’t hindi tumiim ang mensahe. Kung may transformation o pagbabago man sa katauhan ng mga sosing dalaga sa bandang dulo, ito ay matabang at walang pinaggalingan, pagkat hindi ito na-develop nang kapani-paniwala sa istorya kundi idiniin lamang sa isang talumpati. Walang mawawala sa inyo kung hindi man ninyo mapanood ito; ikain nyo na lang ang pambili ng tiket.

Grace sa mga intimate scenes nila ni Edward: “Iyan lang naman ang gusto mo, gagamitin mo pang dahilang ang anak mo, mahiya ka!”) To t o o n g mapanganib sa mga murang isipan na maaaring padala sa taliwas na katuwiran ni Grace na bingi sa katuwiran at bukas sa kunsintihan. Naroon ang ina ni Grace (Gina Pareno) na buong bangis na pumipigil sa balak niyang “hiramin” si Edward “kahit isang gabi lang”, at naroon din naman ang

MAC en COLET

doktora ni Grace (Carmina Villaroel) na nagsusulsol sa kanya, “It’s only sex”, kung gustong iligtas ang anak, go for it! Malalim na isipin ang hinihingi ng tema ng pelikulang ito. Ang One More Try ay isang happily-ever-after movie; sa tunay na buhay, hindi nagwawakas sa isang masayang party lamang ang ganoong mga masalimuot at sangasangang relasyon. Marami pa silang sasapiting pagsubok at pasakit, sapagkat ang isang anak ay laman ng dalawang magulang, at kung ang bawat magulang may sariling asawa, gugulo ang buhay pagkat hindi madaling bunutin ang ugat ng panibugho sa puso. Hindi rin madaling kitlin ang tawag ng laman at pakikiapid lalo na’t iisiping “alang alang sa mga bata…” Papaano na kung ang ikalawang anak ni Grace at Edward ay magkoroon din ng karamdamang tulad ng sa panganay? Is pa bang anak ulit ang solusyon? Paano na kung si Jacq at si Tristan, gawa ng pagkasawi o panibugho ay magkaroon din ng relasyon? May karapatan pa ba silang pigilan nila

Technical Assessment

 Poor  Below average  Average  Above average  E xcellent

Grace at Edward? At kung magbunga din ang relasyon nila, hindi ba magiging kaawa-awa ang mga bata, ang mga bata na ginagawa nilang dahilan upang pagtakpan ang kani-kanilang kahinaan? Napapanahong pagnilayan ang tema ng One More Try ngayo’t nakataya ang kinabukasan ng pamilya at ng kabataang Pilipino gawa ng pinaiiral na contraceptive mentality ng pamunuang Aquino. Ang tinig ng Simbahan para sa mga kabataan: masdan ninyo ang ibinubunga ng pre-marital sex, ng pagtatalik sa labas ng pag-aasawa. Pahalagahan ang inyong katawan at damdamin; sa pamamagitan ng inyong katawan, dumadaloy ang buhay, kinakasangkapan kayo ng Panginoon upang lumalang ng mga bagong kaluluwang magpapatuloy ng lahi. Sa tindi ng tensiyong moral ng pelikula at sa tema at mga eksena nitong sekswal, minamarapat ng CINEMA na ang One More Try ay para lamang sa manonood na nasa hustong gulang na 18 pataas.

Ni Bladimer Usi

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CBCP Monitor

A Special Issue on the Elevation of His Eminence Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle to the Sacred College of Cardinals

Vol. 17 No. 01

January 7 - 20, 2013

(Though written in time for the installation of Cardinal Tagle as new archbishop of the Archdiocese of Manila in December 2011, we are reprinting this to give our readers another perspective on the life and ministry of the country’s new Cardinal—Eds)

‘How fortunate the Philippine Church is!’ By Rev. Fr. Catalino G. Arevalo, S.J.

LET me begin by quoting some lines from the “graduate studies and thesis mentor/director” of Archbishop Luis Antonio Tagle at the Catholic University of America (Washington, D.C.). When Fr. Joseph A. Komonchak—regarded in theological circles as perhaps the top ecclesiologist (specialist on the theological understanding of the Church) in the English-speaking Roman Catholic theologians’ community—heard of Archbishop Tagle’s appointment by the Holy Father to head the Archdiocese of Manila, he quickly sent the following lines to the Commonweal magazine blog on the internet: “… I simply want to share my joy at the appointment of Bishop Luis Antonio Tagle to be Archbishop of Manila. “Chito,” as he is everywhere known, was my student at Catholic University and completed his dissertation under my direction. He was one of the best students I had in over forty years of teaching, but as intelligent and diligent as he was, he was perhaps better known and loved by his professors and by his fellow students for the simplicity and holiness of his life. “He could have become the best theologian in the Philippines, or even in all of Asia, if he had been given the opportunity, but in his country the demands for the kind of teaching and preaching that he can offer are so many, that a man of his talents will never have much time for reading and writing. And then he was made a bishop, something he never sought, and had to be persuaded was a call from the Church that he really should not refuse. When that happened, I thought to myself, ‘Well, perhaps, some day he may be moved to Manila.’ “He became more widely known because of the catechesis on the Eucharist that he offered at the Eucharistic Congress [in Quebec] in 2009. . . . And he has been making use of YouTube to spread the Word. ...God bless

him. The Church in the Philippines is very fortunate!” The way Fr. Komonchak speaks of Archbishop “Chito” here gives us as good a “thumbnail portrait” of his person as we can readily find: the quality and potential of his mind as scholar and theologian, his dedication to the craft assigned to him, how his teachers and peers regarded him. Fr Komonchak speaks of Fr. Tagle’s “simplicity and holiness of life” and the hope and expectation of those who knew him that he would eventually be given the responsibility in the Church in our country which Pope Benedict has now placed on his shoulders. There are two gifts which mark Archbishop Tagle’s heart and spirit which have not been (at least not explicitly) touched on by Fr. Komonchak, but which are singularly present in him. The first, learned surely at home, fostered perhaps by some Ignatian influence in his formation, the generosity with which he so readily gives of his time, of his energies—so readily gives of himself. We must mention this, I believe, because we must ask people to have concern for his health and well-being—which he does not seem to pay due attention to. (Give him time for needed rest!) And the second gift? The gift of lightheartedness and humor, which has brought him so close to his people and the multitude of his friends, and which keeps the light of joy shining wherever he is. Our new Archbishop brings with him to his “shepherding” of the Lord’s flock in Manila, his growing-up years in the heart of an authentically and devoutly Catholic Filipino family in Imus. He is perhaps the first Manila Archbishop who comes to its See with both parents still living and still “quite strong”: Mr. Manuel Tagle and Mila Gokim Tagle, both professionals, and a younger brother who lives in Maryland (USA). Regarding his studies, from St. Andrew’s excellent CICM-run parish school in Parañaque, through eight years at the Jesuit Ateneo de Manila University (San Jose Seminary and Loyola School of Theology), completed by his topquality work for the doctorate in Systematic Theology at the

Catholic University of America (Washington DC) are detailed elsewhere in this booklet. (His academic record, uniformly marked by superior achievement, needs no spelling-out at this point.) Sometime after his recent appointment to Manila by Pope Benedict XVI, Bishop Tagle remarked to some friends, giving reasons for the “trepidation” with which he accepted his new post in the Church: “The only task for which I was duly prepared for, is the teaching of theology.” Meaning, we suppose, that all the rest he has had to be and do as Bishop, he had to learn “caminando”, through “real life practice”. But as to the “teaching—and practicing!—of theology, perhaps it is not without significance that at the present time, the supreme pontiff of the Catholic Church is “perhaps the most thoroughly and profoundly developed intellectual to hold the See of Rome since Pope Innocent III in the 12th century, and arguably the best 20th century theologian of the Catholic Church of the past fifty years,” a claim made by some scholars of unquestioned competence— one of them a much-honored professor of history and culture at Princeton University, a JewishAmerican savant. Too, the present Archbishop of Canterbury, head Bishop of the Anglican Church, Rowan Williams, is also a truly outstanding theologian and preacher. Should we not ask, is the Holy Spirit not somehow “involved” in these choices? We are living at a time of change, unparalleled in breadth, radicality and rapidity; we are living in a world involved in massive cultural mutations and developments, an ongoing situation which the Christian Faith-and-Life (and all religious faith-and-life, for that matter!) is challenged to encounter, engage with, and (tasks of tasks for the Church) truly proclaim the Gospel to! This labor the Church is called on to undertake with an understanding and creativity that would “make near impossible demands even on the Holy Spirit!” (as a church historian recently remarked, not entirely humorously). This (once again) Fortunate / C2

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A Special Issue on the Elevation of His Eminence Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle to the Sacred College of Cardinals

Bio-data of His Eminence Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle

PERSONAL Birthday - 21 June 1957 Birthplace - Manila Father - Manuel Topacio Tagle, Sr. Mother - Milagros Gokim Tagle Brother - Manuel Gokim Tagle, Jr. EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND • Grade School, St. Andrew’s School, Parañaque City, 1969 • High School, St. Andrew’s School, Parañaque City, 1973 • College, A.B. Philosophy, Ateneo de Manila University and San Jose Seminary, 1973 • Graduate Studies: M.A. Theology, Candidate, Loyola School of Theology and San Jose Seminary, 1982 • Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.), The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C., 1987 • Doctorate in Sacred Theology (S.T.D.), The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C., 1991 ORDINATION • Diaconal Ordination, 18 July 1981, San Jose Seminary • Presbyteral Ordination, 27 February 1982, Imus Cathedral • Nomination as Bishop of Imus, 22 October 2001 • Episcopal Ordination, 12 December 2001, Imus Cathedral

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“massive transition”—in meanings and values, in lifestyle and behavior—is now moving in our own country with increasing force and in swiftly widening extent—especially among the young people in our cities. We need a leadership (for sure, first of all) in the Catholic Church which can grasp the change and changes taking place (again, especially among the young) and discern the shape and moves of the “new evangelization” which must be undertaken in our time (again, especially for the young). Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI have been increasingly calling attention to the urgency of this “new evangelization”—especially for the West, true, but also—with some differences, in other regions of the world. Pope Benedict has created a new “dicastery” (cabinet rank council) precisely to study, understand and spell out what this new endeavor calls for. Surely, in Pope Benedict’s choice of Archbishop Tagle—regarded as one of the “foremost theologians” in the hierarchy in Asia [cf. Fr Komonchak’s remarks, above]—this concern for the Church vis-à-vis “the emerging new world” in our land and in Asia, played a not-insignificant role. A new generation of bishops in the Philippines and in Asia has, increasingly, to see this new imperative—under the guidance of the Spirit—as its foremost challenge. What this “the new evangelization” will demand the Church and the local churches in Asia to labor at, in the decades ahead, these bishops—they themselves, in communion with Rome and their own church-communities— must patiently and wisely discern and work out in their own contexts—surely not an easy task, one which the Churches in our part of the world will find as an unaccustomed assignment, “something quite new and difficult”! But this is not the time and place for going into all this. No, now we celebrate the

truly hope-filled and joy-filled moment which this year’s fiesta of Our Lady of Guadalupe (12 December) is, for all of us. Archbishop Tagle thanks the One Good Shepherd for the ten years completed, as Bishop of Imus. We will remember that he was ordained Bishop on 12 December 2001. Ten years have swiftly gone by, ten years of so much blessing for the Imus Catholic community, of such fruitful learning and growing together, of so much building up and “outreaching” and compassion, of so much care and concern for the poor, of so much mutual sharing of life and love. For the ten great years, Deo gratias! Now the new Archbishop, the clergy and laity of Manila, begin a new chapter in their common life as Body of Christ and People of God in this part of our country. Invoking the supplication of Mary Mother of the Lord, they earnestly beg the light and power, the strength and courage (courage, yes!) that only the Spirit of Jesus can give them, today and through the years ahead. Manila, like it or not, is (even if “unofficially”) looked to as “primatial” in the Church in our country; it is expected to lead us all in many ways. Thus we all pray that, with Archbishop Tagle now in their midst, with the Lord graciously showing the way ahead, the Catholic community of Manila may help lead all Filipino Christians to ever fuller and more committed, ever more operative lives of faith, hope and love in our troubled time; that it may help build up everywhere in our land that “civilization of justice and love”—foreshadowing of the Kingdom of God—which the Gospel of Jesus calls for, making us more and more truly a renewed Church and nation “at once more human and more divine.” (Lifted from the Souvenir Program on the occasion of the installation of the new archbishop of Manila on December 12, 2011; taken from www.rcam.org)

• Nomination as Archbishop of Manila, 13 October 2011 • Installation as Archbishop of Manila, 12 December 2011 • Elevation to Cardinal, 24 November 2012 • Appointment as Cardinal-priest of San Felice da Cantalice a Centocelle, 24 November 2012 MINISTRY • Associate Pastor, St. Augustine Parish, Mendez, Cavite, 1982 – 1984 • Spiritual Director, Tahanan ng Mabuting Pastol, Tagaytay City, 1982 – 1983 • Acting Rector, Tahanan ng Mabuting Pastol, Tagaytay City, 1983 – 1984 • Rector, Tahanan ng Mabuting Pastol, Tagaytay City, 1984 – 1985; 1992-2011 • Member, Board of Consultors and Presbyteral Council of the Diocese of Imus, 1993 – 2000 • Episcopal Vicar for Religious, 1993 – 2000 • Member, Diocesan Commission on the Clergy, 1993 – 1995 • Parish Priest, Our Lady of the Pillar Cathedral, Imus, Cavite, 1998 – 2001 • Rector, Our Lady of the Pillar Seminary, Imus, Cavite, 2002 - 2011 OTHER MINISTRIES • Instructor of Theology, San Carlos Seminary (Manila), Loyola School of Theology (Quezon City), Divine Word Seminary (Tagaytay),

1982 – 1985 • Instructor of Theology: Loyola School of Theology (Quezon City), Divine Word Seminary (Tagaytay), 1992 – 2011 • Instructor of Theology: Maryhill School of Theology (Quezon City), 1992 – 1995 • Facilitator, CBCP National Ongoing Formation of Priests, 1994 – 2001 • Consultant, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), Commission on Doctrine of the Faith, Commission on Seminaries, 1995 – 2001 • M e m b e r, E d i t o r i a l Board, Storia del Concilia Vaticano II, Instituto per le scienze religiose, Bologna, Italy, 1995 – 2001 • Presenter and Member of the Drafting Committee, VI and VII Plenary Assemblies of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC), 1995, 2000 • Member, International Theological Commission, Vatican City, 1997 – 2002 • Expert, Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops for Asia, Vatican City, 1998 • Member, Ordinary Council of the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops, Vatican City, 2000 • Member, Office of Theological Concerns, FABC, 2003-present • Chairperson, Episcopal Commission on the Doctrine of the Faith, CBCP, 2003-present • Delegate of the Philip-

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January 7 - 20, 2013

pines, VIII Plenary Assembly of the FABC, Daejeon, South Korea, 2004 • Elected Delegate of the Philippines, XI General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, Vatican, 2005 • Board of Director, Pondo ng Pinoy Community Foundation and Chair of the Programs Committee, 2005-2011 • Elected Member of the Council of the Synod of Bishops, Vatican, 20052008 • Presentor, Asian Mission Congress, Chiang Mai, Thailand, 19-22 October, 2006 • Elected Bishop Chair of the Office of Theological Concerns, FABC, 2007 • Elected Delegate of the Philippines to the XII General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, Vatican, October 2008 • Elected Member of the Council of the Synod of Bishops, Vatican, 2008-present • Head of Drafting Committee, X Plenary Assembly of FABC, Manila, August 2009. • Appointed Apostolic Visitator of Seminaries i n Pa p u a N e w G u i n e a a n d S o l o m o n I s l a n d s, 2010 • Chairman, Pondo ng Pinoy Community Foundation, 2012 (Sources: www.cbcponline.net; www.rcam.org; www.catholic-hierarchy.org)

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 01 January 7 - 20, 2013

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A Special Issue on the Elevation of His Eminence Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle to the Sacred College of Cardinals

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CBCP Monitor

A Special Issue on the Elevation of His Eminence Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle to the Sacred College of Cardinals

Vol. 17 No. 01

January 7 - 20, 2013

CBCP Monitor

D1

Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

The News Supplement of Couples for Christ

Magnificat in the Holy Land By Joe Yamamoto NOVEMBER 27, Tuesday - The Holy Land pilgrims all converged at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport filled with excitement and anticipation at what would be in store for everyone during the pilgrimage. The excitement built up from the very inspiring and spiritfilled Pearlgrimage to the Holy Land last year and the Marian pilgrimage in October. November 28, Wed.- After a short stopover at the Dubai airport, the group arrived at Amman airport and linked up with CFC USA National Director Eric Villanueva and his wife, Pat, who had arrived a few hours earlier from the US mainland. From the airport, the pilgrims proceeded to St. Georges church in Madaba, one of the earliest Christian settlements in Jordan. An important stopover for the day was Mount Nebo, the mountain from which Moses caught a glimpse of the Promised Land, unable to cross because of an earlier incident of disobedience to the Lord. It was left to Joshua to lead the Israelites into Canaan, 40 years after wandering in the desert. Mass was celebrated for the pilgrims in the church in Mount Nebo. November 29, Thursday- The group set out almost at dawn from the hotel and then had to go through the formalities of a border crossing from Jordan into Israel. The early afternoon was spent travelling to Galilee, passing that part of Nazareth where in a long-gone synanogue, Jesus read the scroll from Isaiah 61, i.e. the passage about ‘bringing glad tidings to the poor’. Mount Precipice loomed prominently in the skyline, as this was the brow of the hill from which the indignant townmates of Jesus tried to throw him down after reading Isaiah. The pilgrims then proceeded

to the Church of Annunciation and then to the Church of St. Joseph, where the remains of the house of the Holy Family can still be seen. The day was capped by Holy Mass and renewal of marriage vows at the Church of Cana in Galilee before a well-deserved rest at the hotel. November 30, Friday- By 7:30 am, the pilgrims were in Golan Heights, for the trip to Banias (Cesaria Philippi). Banias is the present day name for Cesaria Philippi, one of the ten Gentile towns mentioned in the New Testament (Decapolis). It was in Banias where Peter responded to the question of Jesus- “Who do people say that I am?” It was also there that Jesus appointed Peter as head of the Church: “Upon this rock I will build my church.’ (Matt.16) and where he delivered the Bread of Life discourse (John 6). From Banias, the tour took the eastern side of the Lake going to Tiberias. From there the group visited the Church at Tabgha, then the Church of Primacy of St. Peter and then Capharnaum.  An interesting detour was dining in the restaurant by the lake, Ein Gev, a kibbutz, where we ate fried tilapia (also known

as St. Peter’s fish). Then it was on to Mt. Tabor for Mass at the Church of the Transfiguration (Mat.26:26). December 1, Saturday- The tour had a very early start for the boat ride at Lake Galilee, a  45-minute travel and reflection time, and then Mass at the Church of St. Peter at Tiberias. Our next stop was Haifa, the Bahai gardens and from there, it was on to Mt. Carmel to visit the Church of the Stella Maris. Under the altar, now dedicated to Mary, is the cave where Elijah waited for God. Our next stop was Cesaria Maritima, the Roman Amphitheater, to view the ruins of the Palace of Herod and the Temple erected by Pontius Pilate. Cesaria is  important because after the conversion of Cornelius (from Joppa), the rest of Cesaria was Christianized. Cesaria is also the site of the three-year imprisonment of Paul prior to being transferred to Rome for trial. The group passed by Tel Aviv, the city established in 1909 and now the business center of the country. Then the group travelled to Jaffa, a place notable for three reasons -- in Biblical times, the place from which Jonah traveled

to Nineveh (where he was eventually swallowed and released by a whale), in ancient times, for the mythology of Andromeda and Perseus, and finally, in the New Testament, the place where Peter brought back to life Tabitha (Dorcas). The vision of  the table cloth with unclean animals, and the conversion of Cornelius happened in Joppa. Peter stayed in the house of Simon the Tanner during those important events. December 2, Sunday – After an uneventful crossing of the border, the group proceeded to Bethlehem where we were met by our guide Khaled Issa. After a short bus ride, we arrived at the Church of the Nativity and the nearby churches. Fr. Max celebrated the First Advent Sunday Mass at the Church of St. Catherine (Santa Helena chapel). We then proceeded to the Church of the Nativity and finally, the Shepherds’ Field in nearby Beit Sahor. The Shepherd’s Field commemorates the angelic announcement of the birth of Christ to the shepherds tending their flocks on the night

of the first Christmas. In the afternoon, the group proceeded to the Yad Vashem (Memorial and Name), the museum specifically dedicated to the 6 million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. It was a particularly moving experience, especially when we viewed the Children’s Museum. The bus took the pilgrims around the city and particularly around the Old City and its gates. December 3, Monday- By 7:30 we were in the Temple Mount after which we proceeded to the Pool of Bethesda, then the Basilica of St. Anne, the Via Dolorosa, Holy Sepulcher, and the Crucifixion site. After this moving experience, we proceeded to the Cenaculum (Last Supper venue) in Mt. Zion, the Tomb of King David, Dormition Abbey (commemorating the sleeping of Mary, i.e. her subsequent assumption to heaven) and the Church of St. Peter in Galicantu, the place where Peter denied Jesus three times. The church is located in the site of the ruins of the house of Caiaphas, the high

priest who tried Jesus after the Gethsemane arrest. After lunch, we proceeded to the Mount of Olives, where our first stop was in Pater Noster (the church marking the place where Jesus taught his disciples the Our Father). Next stop was the Church of Dominus Flevit (the church marking the place where Jesus wept for the coming destruction of Jerusalem) and finally we visited the Garden of Gethsemane. Mass was held in the Church of All Nations, inside of which is the stone of the Agony of Christ December 4, Tuesday- The day started with a short trip to Bethany (Azaryah) and Mass at the Church of St. Lazarus. Then we went on an hour and a half trip down to Masada where we all had a great experience and reflection time. Then it was on to Qumran, where in 1947 Bedouins recovered the Dead Sea scrolls, and to the Dead Sea with a stopover at Jericho, the Mountain of Temptation. The Dead Sea is the lowest level on earth, being 430 meters below sea level. Jerusalem is 800 meters above. December 5- Our first stop was the Qaser Al Yahud, the Jordan River site of the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist. The site is located at the border with Jordan, close to Jericho. Mass was celebrated by Fr. Max, and interestingly enough, the gospel was taken from Matt. 15, the multiplication of loaves and fishes. We were all subdued as once again, we crossed the border for the travel back to Amman, the Queen Alla International Airport, for the return trip to Manila. By 9 PM, we were in Dubai. December 6, Thursday- The pilgrims returned safely to Manila, filled with the sights, signs and wonders of their Holy Land experience.

“A community so blessed!” CFC Gains Foothold in Ilocos Sur

By Arnel Santos “A community so blessed!” This was how IC member Joe Yamamoto described Couples for Christ during its first Mission Core Gathering (MCG) on January 6, 2013 at the Ateneo Grade School, Loyola Heights, Quezon City. Joe was moved to utter this remark after the Mass celebrated by Fr. Benedicto Lagarde, a member and co-founder of the Missionary of Jesus. I n h i s h o m i l y, F r. L a garde   emphasized that the Feast of Epiphany is a grand feast of mission. “For those engaged in mission, celebrate Epiphany! I am glad to be with you (CFC) because I know exactly that we are missionaries on the same path.” Fr. Lagarde explained that “once we have experienced

an encounter with Jesus, we are transformed, renewed, impelled and inspired to a new direction: a new Pathway to Mission. Like the magi, we must be overjoyed. However, like Herod, we will be troubled when we are not doing our part in mission.” He further expounded that Jesus as a gift to humanity cannot be for a single race ( I s r a e l ) o r re l i g i o n ( J u d a ism).The Word who became flesh is for all, and Gentiles are co-heirs to the kingdom. “God is not only for CFC.” He thus posed a challenge: ”Go home today, greatly troubled indeed, if you are not doing your mission.” At the start of the mass, Fr. Lagarde  was led to give tremendous emphasis on CFC and its leadership. “We pray specifically for CFC and the

communities where you journey and serve. To the leadership, may they exercise the gift of office, wisdom and most of all, the gift of listening, obeying and doing Your will.” He concluded, through his R e v i e w o f M i s s i o l o g y, b y saying that as missionaries: (1) We are not the bearers of God. God was there in that place even before we came. Our task is to recognize His presence before other men; (2) We must know their language; and (3) We must love everyone we serve. After the Mass and during the MCG  worship, a brother rose up and  was led to direct the CFC leaders (the IC) to “fall in line”, be prayed over by the congregation, and thereafter  to pray over (even touch) everyone. “Today, the Lord will bless and anoint and empower and use each one of us.” Indeed, the entire MCG proceedings was another affirmation of the CFC theme for 2013: “Obey and Witness!” As is traditional with the first MCG of each year, the First Fruits Offering was observed, with each one prayerfully offering to the Lord an envelope containing his or her symbolic offering of self and treasure. The First Fruits Offering will be used to fund CFC’s mission work, particularly in areas where CFC is still not self-sufficient.

By Tony dela Cruz

COUPLES for Christ made a significant breakthrough in Ilocos Sur with the completion of the first Christian Life Program(CLP) held at the Arzobispado for the Vicariate of Vigan, and initiated by the Most Reverend Archbishop Ernesto Salgado of the Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia. The CLP graduates were composed of Pastoral Council leaders coming from the nine (9) parishes in the Vicariate who were invited by the Archbishop himself through the endorsement of the parish priests in the area. Twenty couples finished the program last December 15, 2012 and will be initially pastored by mission volunteers from the West C Sector in Manila who were also part of the CLP Service Team. With these seed couples, CFC is expected to spread its work of family renewal beyond the Vicariate and on to the other towns of Ilocos Sur. The CLP was a result of a very productive courtesy call we made with the Archbishop on September 7, 2012. Our purpose was simply to update the archbishop of CFC’s plans in the four towns where CFC is present. But the Lord has greater plans for CFC in the province. The Archbishop disclosed that while he was praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament early that day, he had an inspiration of expanding the work of CFC in Ilocos Sur! He asked for details on how to start a CLP. He then urged that we should immediately meet with the Ilocos Sur clergy and present the CFC in their next assembly scheduled in a couple of weeks. Excited at this major development, CFC Executive Director and Head of Philippine Missions, Melo Villaroman and wife Nini, led the team to Vigan on September 18, accompanied by Jun Simon, my wife, Liza, and myself. Archbishop Salgado, Auxillary Bishop William David Antonio and over 50 members of the Ilocos Sur clergy coming from 32 towns and 2 cities in the province warmly received us. The team explained to the clergy what CFC is, its vision and mission and how it can help in the evangelization of families in the province. The discussion also touched on how

Archbishop Salgado and some of the members of the service team and participants

CFC compares and can help in the Basic Ecclesial Community program that the parishes have been espousing for some time. After the talks, some of the priests already asked that we start conducting CLPs in their parishes! We are truly grateful to Archbishop Salgado for his encouragement and help in making this CLP in Vigan Vicariate a success, including hosting the service team in the Pastoral Center. The Archbishop did not just welcome the CLP participants, he even patiently translated the CLP Talk 1, “God’s Love,” outline in Ilocano and prepared a powerpoint presentation in the vernacular. He also sat in for most of the talks, and even gave up his afternoon naps. Save for the last 3 talks which he missed as he had urgent matters to attend to in Manila, he could have finished the CLP. Meanwhile, another CLP was completed in Santiago town last December 2012, at the invitation of its parish priest, Fr. Rex Pira, who had his own Pastoral Council members as attendees. The CLP graduated 17 couples and 3 Servants of the Lord. We have also set other CLPs in early 2013, in response to the requests of several parishes. Truly, Ilocos Sur is on fire! Dios ti angina, Apo Archbishop Salgado!

D2 Ricky Cuenca

Ugnayan

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

Joe Yamamoto

Mary and the pilgrims CFC: ‘Obey and witness’ THE year 2012 of the Magnificat has been a blessed year for CFC! We praise God for being faithful to CFC and for giving us the grace to lead according to His plan for CFC. It has been an awesome year! The International Council has completed 2012 with concrete accomplishments that have been a result of team effort and a community engagement with each holding on to his specific role and accountability according to God’s mission for CFC. Every member of the IC, the Board of Elders and CFC household leaders across the country and globally has been planted by God, according to His plan for CFC at this period of history. This anointment and appointment of succession leaders continues in CFC through the ranks. In the year that transpired, new generation leaders have served, ablaze with ON FIRE EVANGELIZATION. We focused on our specific tasks according to our capacities and God-given talents and worked as a team. This I think is a great milestone in CFC where leaders at all levels took ownership of their role as leaders with boldness, acted as team players and were truly passionate servant leaders. As a result of our leadership development and formation process, purpose driven leaders in the Philippines and globally acted as shepherds following their beliefs and CFC core values in oneness with the Catholic Church. Following the principles of Pope Benedict XVI, we evolved into a strong movement of servant evangelizers away from a personality driven leadership. Together as one body in Christ, we set our four priority thrusts: 1)Building the church of the Home- On Fire Evangelization 2) Growing in Holiness - Purposeful Pastoral Care and Formation and 3)Building the Church of the Poor in ANCOP, CORNERSTONE and the Social Development Programs. Leaders implemented 4) Effective Governance, delivered in policy development of financial systems, monitoring and evaluation system, human resource development, communications plan, travel policies and the implementation of the CFC ROADMAP. Our membership and leadership responded with enthusiasm to the four priority thrusts and the CFC Roadmap. The alignment and adherence to the Road Map, passion for the mission and On Fire Evangelization continue to create ripple effect in the CFC communities. Our clear road map defined our Vision of Families in the Holy Spirit Renewing the Face of the Earth, and our Mission of Building the Church of the Home and the Church of the Poor. We executed our plans and programs in the practice of the Sacraments, household meetings, general assemblies, CLP’s and pastoral formation as our way of life. We practiced faith in action by engaging in the fullness of the Mission in building the church of the home and the poor. We intensified ON FIRE Evangelization and Retention Programs, established Reunions and Gateway Events, worked with the Migrant workers and families, defended the Gift of Life, implemented Cornerstone, Social Development Programs and ANCOP Programs in Child Sponsorship Program, Shelter, Health, Community Development and Livelihood and institutionalized policies and guidelines in Effective Governance and Stewardship applying discipline in payables/receivables, generous giving and tithing and breakthrough mission fund generation. We purchased a new home for CFC, a two- storey building in 20th Avenue Cubao, thanks to the generous giving of our members and patrons. In our work with the poor, our shift in direction and focus on the welfare of the child and the youth created greater resolve among members to support the education, health, shelter and livelihood for the less privileged with the child and the youth as the center of development efforts. Building the child, the parents and the home in Christian Life Programs built stronger sustainable communities of love and caring. We declared 2012 the Magnificat year to proclaim the greatness of the Lord inspired by our Mama Mary. The year 2013 with our theme, “Obey and Witness” keeps us close under the guidance and inspiration of our dear Mother who instructed the servants at the wedding in Cana, “Do whatever He tells you”. Our practice of gentle, joyful and humble obedience to the Lord and witnessing the love of Christ are called to action in the year 2013. We pray that once again throughout our one year journey in 2013, we will serve the Lord with all our heart, our mind and spirit and that the Holy Spirit will continue to ignite our hearts and passion for an ever stronger ON FIRE evangelization, nurturing pastoral care and formation and effective governance in teamwork. We see our evangelization work resulting in stronger families with renewed relationship with God and love for our country. Over the one and a half years as Chair of CFC, I saw the growth in membership and the emergence of new leaders with inspired and united passion for evangelization in the Philippines and globally. I see a robust, vibrant and dynamic CFC renewing couples, singles, youth, kids, HOLD, SOLD, bonding families and bringing people to God in the whole of the Philippines and country missions abroad. I see healing relationships in the home and communities, with restored faith and renewed family life. I see CFC members with zealous faith and firm foundation influencing children and youth in finding God and experiencing the love of Christ. I see CFC with urgent, bold leaders and membership standing for their faith in the coming election, advocating for Justice, Peace and Equality, sustaining and promoting Life, working with the poor in solidarity and compassion and truly following God’s plan as Families in the Holy Spirit renewing the face of the earth. The highlights of our 2012-2013 mission journey points to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. The intercession of Mother Mary weaves the community during threats of disunity and disenchantment towards ONENESS, HUMILITY, OBEDIENCE, JOY and GRATITUDE. We see stronger Global EVANGELIZATION, with our members and leaders certainly ON FIRE, blazing the trail and sustaining regions of influence. There are many more territories to conquer for the Lord, particularly nonevangelized areas and I am sure CFC will fly high, glowing in the leadership of the Holy Spirit. As we journey in 2013, our spirits soar high, OBEYING and WITNESSING with Christ, in Christ and for Christ.

WHEN the community announced that the theme for 2012 was the Magnificat, everyone rejoiced. The theme Magnificat was an affirmation to many in the community who are devotees of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The celebration was likewise the impetus for the CFC pilgrims to follow the path of countless believers who sought out the places and churches that are associated with Marian apparitions. During the Rosary month of October, 72 CFC pilgrims and friends did an eight-country, 6,000 kilometer land trip to experience being in the places that are dear and important to Catholics all over the globe. In the process, they had their own personally unique way of being drawn closer to Mary, the first and foremost disciple of our Lord. Banneux, Belgium -Virgin Of The Poor The pilgrimage started in the Netherlands with the tour proceeding on the same day of arrival to Banneux, Belgium. This was a relatively quiet, insignificant town in the Ardennes region of Belgium, until the Virgin Mary appeared in 1933 (between January 15 to March 2, 1933) to a young Belgian girl, Mariette Beco. The series of appearances of the ‘Lady in white’ finally led to Mary declaring herself to be the “Virgin of the Poor”. In one of the apparitions, Mariette said that the Lady asked her to drink from a small spring, telling her the spring was for healing and “for all nations”. Today that spring continues to yield 2,000 gallons daily of sweet tasting and pure water. A chapel has been built on the exact apparition site. After an official investigation, the apparitions were approved by the Holy See in 1947 and declared definite in 1949. For CFC, Our Lady of Banneux, as the Virgin of the Poor is also known, became the patroness of our work with the poor on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, 2009. Rue Du Bac - Our Lady Of The Miraculous Medal Continuing on, the two buses of pilgrims travelled to Paris, to a narrow Parisian street called the 140 Rue du Bac, the site of the Apparition of our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. On the eve of the feast of St. Vincent in 1830, Catherine Laboure woke up after hearing the voice of a child calling her to the chapel. It was there that she heard Mary say to her, “God wishes to charge you with a mission. You will be contradicted, but do not fear; you will have the grace to do what is necessary.” She was told to relate the incident to her spiritual director. Later in the year (November 30, 1830), the Blessed Mother reappeared to Catherine during the evening meditations. Mary displayed herself inside an oval frame, standing on a globe, wearing many rings of different colors, most of which shone rays of light over the globe. Around the margin of the frame appeared the words “ O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.” (O Marie concue sans peche priez pour nous qui avons recours a vous). Catherine was asked to bring these images to her confessor, and to tell him that they should be put on medallions. “All who wear them will receive great graces”. After two years, the design of the medallion was approved and its use promoted. Acceptance of the medallion was readily favorable and became widespread. It would be good for Catholics to be reminded that at the time of the apparitions, the dogma of the Immaculate Conception had not yet been promulgated (1854). Lourdes The pilgrimage proceeded next to the picturesque town of Lourdes. It was in 1858 that the quiet peacefulness of the then remote village in the foothills of the Pyrenees was changed forever by the reported appearance of a “small young lady” to Mary Bernard

Soubirous. Bernadette, as she was more commonly known, was the eldest of five children of hard-working parents who had fallen on hard times. Throughout her young life, she was sickly, suffering from recurrent bouts of severe asthma. The first of the series of apparitions occurred on February 11, when 14-year old Bernadette was with her younger sister (Marie) and a friend (Jeanne), while gathering firewood in the vicinity of a grotto of Massabielle, near the River Gave. As Bernadette recounted later, while the other girls crossed the little stream in front of the grotto and walked on, she stayed behind, looking for a place to cross where her stockinged feet would not get wet. While in the process of removing her shoes and stockings, she heard the sound of rushing wind with nothing moving except for a wild rose in the natural crevice in the grotto. To her amazement, she saw a figure in that crevice - a lady of small stature and incomparable beauty. The Lady was surrounded by light, and on her right arm was a rosary with large beads on a golden chain. Bernadette’s initial fright was replaced by fascination and attraction. Quite naturally, she took out her rosary and started to recite the prayers. The beautiful Lady smiled and began to pray along silently with the girl. The vision lasted for about a quarter of an hour and just as suddenly disappeared soon after the rosary prayer recitation. This became the first of the 18 apparitions of what Bernadette referred to as Aquero (Gascon Occitan patois for ‘that one’). On February 18, she said that the ‘vision’ asked her to return to the grotto every day for a forthnight. She faithfully complied with this request. Mary appeared to the young girl wearing a white veil, a blue girdle , and a yellow rose on each foot, and in all of the instances of the vision, Bernadette was told to focus on the simple messages on the need for prayer and penance. The 16th apparition on March 25 went on for an hour and in this occasion Bernadette was holding a lit candle which burned down during the course of the vision. The flame was said to be in direct contact with her skin for 15 minutes, with no sign of any burn. This event was confirmed by the town physician. According to Bernadette’s account, during that same visitation, after previously having asked the Lady her name, she finally heard the lady say, in the Gascon Occitan dialect, “ I am the Immaculate Conception” (Que soi era immaculada concepcion). The parish priest was dumbfounded because it was only four years earlier (in 1854) that Pope Pius IX had defined the dogma of the Immaculate Conception; such knowledge or information would have been unknown to the unschooled Bernadette. The appearances were eventually officially accepted after a canonical investigation and a church was built as instructed by the Blessed Virgin Mary. Bernadette became a nun at age 22 and lived a quiet life thereafter among the Sisters of Charity in Nevers. After a long illness, Bernadette died quietly at age 35. On December 8,1933, she was canonized as a saint. In the 150 years since the spring was dug up, 67 miraculous cures have been ascribed to Our Lady of Lourdes. Every single year, about 5-6 million pilgrims visit Lourdes to bathe in and drink the spring water that Bernadette dug, carrying their hopes and prayers of finding healing for body, mind and soul. Fatima Leaving France, the CFC pilgrims reboarded their assigned buses for the long trip to Fatima in Portugal (1,100 kms). In 1917, the First World War was on its third destructive year with much of Europe heavily afflicted. It was on May 13 of that year that the three shepherd children from Fatima, Portugal reported seeing the first of six apparitions of what later came to be known as the manifes-

tations of Our Lady of Fatima. Ten year old Lucia dos Santos and her cousins Jacinta and Francisco Marto were herding sheep at a place called Cova da Iria near their home village of Fatima. Lucia described seeing a woman “brighter than the sun, shedding rays of light clearer and stronger than a crystal ball filled with the most sparkling water and pierced by the burning rays of the sun.” There were further appearances on the 13th of June and July. In every instance, the Lady exhorted the children to do penance and acts of reparation for the conversion of sinners. According to Lucia’s account, the Lady confided to the children in the course of the apparitions the so-called Secrets of Fatima. All the apparitions occurred in Cova da Iria, except the one in August 15, when the children saw the Virgin Mary on the feast of the Assumption in nearby Valinhos. On her last apparition on October 13, the Virgin Mary’s promised miracle came about as the Miracle of the Sun. Approximately 70,000 crowded at Cova da Iria, where it rained heavily on the day of the vision. The rain finally stopped and a thin layer of clouds cloaked the silver disc of the sun. Lucia called out to the crowd to look at the sun and witnesses reported that they indeed could look at the sun directly without hurting their eyes. The sun appeared to change colors and rotate like a wheel. In addition to the Miracle of the Sun, the young seers indicated that the Lady prophesied a great sign in the night sky that would precede a second great war (World War II). On January 25 , 1938, bright lights (aurora borealis) appeared all over the night sky of the northern hemisphere, extending as far south as North Africa, Bermuda and California. Lucia later confirmed the sign as the one foretold to be the harbinger for the next global conflict. The three visionaries of Fatima have been beatified after their deaths. Lucia died on February 13, 2005 at age 97. Today, millions from all over the world visit Fatima. As in Lourdes, daily night processions are held on the grounds of Cova da Iria. The Pilgrims In Other Paths There were additional sites that were visited by the CFC pilgrims, foremost of which are the Sacre Couer Basilica in Montmartre and the impressive Notre Dame Cathedral that was built in the 12th century. A memorable journey was to the town of Loiola (Loyola) where the pilgrims had a first Sunday Mass in the massive house of the family of St. Ignatius, a side trip to Burgos, Spain to visit the place of El Cid, the Spanish Campeador, and to Zaragoza to celebrate the feast day of Our Lady of the Pillar. Other highlights in Spain were visiting the birthplace of St. Teresa of Avila, and in Barcelona, a visit to the mountaintop Basilica of Our Lady of Monserrat. Of course, on the way to Rome, there were stopovers in Pisa to appreciate the famous Leaning Tower and Assissi, the birthplace of St. Francis and St. Clare. A very special event was the attendance of all the pilgrims at the general papal audience that is held on Wednesday mornings. Theafter, there were the much anticipated visits to the Sistine Chapel and the four major basilicas of Rome - the Basilica of St. Peter, the Santa Maria Majore, St.John Lateran and St. Paul outside the Walls. Postscript The story of the Redemption of man is completed by the fiat of the lowly maid of Nazareth; Mary’s yes opened the doors of heaven to those who longed, loved and followed her son. Her Magnificat is the supreme proclamation of the greatness of the Lord and in the limitless rejoicing for being in God our savior. In 2012 it was Magnificat. This year heralds an exciting leap for the New Evangelization. Let us “Obey and Witness”.

CFC Celebrates Life and Love via Mass Wedding in Montreal By Charlie and Malou Hael COUPLES for Christ Montreal sponsored a mass wedding in recently at Jesus, Light of the World Parish, Pierrefonds, Quebec. The ceremony was officiated by Father Francis Mckee, Pastor, and was endorsed by two other parishes, St. David Church and Mary Queen of Peace Church. The idea of conducting a group wedding started in 2010 when Fr. John Lyng, Pastor of St. Kevin Parish, approached CFC for help in facilitating the pre-nuptial seminar for couples applying for marriage. We took this opportunity to introduce the Christian Life Program (CLP) and handed him a copy of our CLP manual.  His reply caught us by surprise: “If they complete this CLP, they won’t need to attend the marriage preparation course. All they need to do is have a short dialogue with me.”   With  an initial three couples

Saying ‘I do!’ at a ceremony celebrated by Father Francis Mckee last Oct. 27,2012. From far left: Manuel/Mila Carbon, Willy/ Marissa Yumul, Richard/Divina Dayrit, Patrick/Mariquit Jadornio, Boyet/Gloria Baratang, John Ryan/Ghia Aquino, Alex/ Myriam Telan, Tony/Yan-yan Brewer.

in 2010, this Spirit-led initiative has evolved into an annual event with two other couples wed in 2011. This year we were blessed to have eight couple participants. Even Fr. Mckee was excited as he has never celebrated a wedding this big as a pastor.

  God is really good because we are now receiving couples endorsed by the pastors to attend our CLP prior to their wedding. Eventually, the same couples join our community after experiencing the love and support of one another in CFC.

 True to our vision of being one with the Catholic Church, our community worked together to bring these new couples into the sacrament of Holy Matrimony. In the end, there was great joy in our community knowing that we have brought couples to a life more intimate with God.

Ugnayan

CBCP Monitor Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

Joe Tale

D3 MC Teaching Night

The Spirituality Of Waiting

The Catholic Vote IS there a Catholic vote? This question has been a recent topic of interest. Several politicians, particularly in reference to the RH bill, that has just been signed into law, have belittled the idea, insisting there is none, or if at all, dismissing it as a negligible factor that will not make any difference in the coming 2013 elections. On the other hand, some Catholic bishops believe there is, and have encouraged the lay faithful to express this in the coming elections. In the recent US elections, there was an organized Catholic Vote that came out with their own political ads and endorsed the Romney-Ryan tandem for President and Vice-President. The Romney-Ryan team lost, but at least in the US, the Catholics have served notice that they will be active participants in the electoral process. A good number now actually believe that the Catholic Vote is an idea whose time has come to the Philippines. Not because we are simply copycats of what goes on abroad, particularly in the US, but because of its intrinsic merit, fueled by a convergence of events specific to our time and place. It is common knowledge that many of us loathe the kind of politics we have in this country, with its dirty tricks, rampant cheating, no-holds barred personal demolition among candidates, widespread vote-buying, etc.. There are exceptions, of course, but they are few and far between. The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), in its pastoral exhortation in 1997, or 15 years ago, expressed what most of us know: “Philippine politics – the way it is practiced- has been most hurtful to us as a people. It is possibly the biggest bane in our life as a nation and the most pernicious obstacle to our achieving full human development.” Archbishop Oscar Cruz, in his book Churchmen and Politicians, articulates a familiar anguished cry from the depths of the hearts of many well meaning Filipinos: “Can nothing but a downright miracle ever change such a desperate and depressing socio-political scenario in the country? ... Are the churchmen in the Philippines really inutile after all in fulfilling their fundamental mission

of promoting what is good and doing away with what is evil in the secular society, in inculcating virtues and thus eradicating vices in the world of politics …?” Many have pointed with accusing fingers to the Catholic Church, and of late, even to Catholic schools, for the failure to form the moral fiber of our people sufficiently enough to stand firm against the evil ways of politics as practiced in our country. The truth is, the responsibility is upon all of us. The Church has not been lacking in its directions and pronouncements. We can quote volumes here, but in the interest of space, we will refer only to a few. In the pontifical encyclical “Gaudium et Spes”, the Catholic lay are instructed: “The Church praises and esteems those who devote themselves to the good for the service of all, and take upon themselves the burdens of public office… those with talents for the difficult and noble art of politics, or whose talents in this matter can be developed, should prepare themselves for it, and forgetting their own convenience and material interests, they should engage in political activity.” (No. 75) The local church has been as expressive as well. In the 2nd Plenary Council of the Philippines held more than 20 years ago, we recall a familiar direction: “In the Philippines today, given the general perception that politics has become an obstacle to integral development, the urgent necessity is for the lay faithful to participate more actively, with singular competence and integrity, in political affairs… and work to explicitly promote the election of leaders of true integrity to public office.” (No. 348, Art.8) Notwithstanding these pronouncements, the Catholic lay, by and large, has remained lukewarm in getting into the fray of politics. True, most of the politicians are Catholics, the Philippines being about 80% Catholic to start with. However, many of them, with exceptions of course, are what might be termed nominal Catholics. On the other hand, those who have actively responded to the call of the church have mostly limited their participation to membership in election watchdogs groups, such as NAMFREL and PPCRV.

What might be the reasons for the past hesitancy of the Catholic lay, and especially lay groups, in being more active in politics? One obvious reason is the dirtiness of it all, which makes it extremely difficult to convince someone to leave his or her comfort zone and run for public office. It is not just worth all the sacrifice. Another reason, more applicable to Catholic lay groups, might be a common but wrong notion of the principle of separation of church and state. True, it is enshrined in our Constitution that “The separation of Church and State shall be inviolable.” (Article II, Sec. 6). But does this mean that Catholic lay groups who actively participate in elections violate this principle? Certainly not. Largely drawing from the works of Fr. Joaquin Bernas, SJ, a noted priest constitutionalist, this principle of separation of church and state really refers to two main concepts as provided for in Article III, Sec. 5 of the same Constitution: -the non- establishment clause, which prohibits the state from establishing a religion or aiding a religion -the free exercise clause, which obligates the state to guarantee the free exercise of religion. Hence, this principle is really addressed to, and is more the responsibility of, the state, rather than an obligation being imposed on the church. (I hasten to issue a caveat though, that there are some nuances and exceptions to the whole subject of the principle of separation of church and state, which, because this is not a legal treatise, will not be taken up in this column.) Be that as it may, it should be clear that active participation by Catholic lay groups (and other religions for that matter) in politics does not violate the constitutional principle of the separation of church and state. That said, there is now a growing desire among the lay, although mostly silent as yet, to finally heed the call of the Catholic hierarchy for the lay to engage more actively in politics. One spark that is making this happen is precisely the RH bill issue. While rallies and marches, as well as public statements, will continue to be necessary to defend life and other moral issues, many now see that the

An Advent Reflection by Mgsr. Allen Aganon By Raymond V. Bucu

long term solution to what is seen as a protracted battle on such issues is to elect a greater number of renewed Catholics in Congress. This will necessitate the evolution and organization of a Catholic Vote. Several big Catholic lay groups are now actually meeting and organizing to precisely start the move towards making the Catholic Vote a reality. There will be no big hoopla, no shrill shouting, but surely, the Catholic Vote will become manifest, beginning with the 2013 elections, and getting stronger in the next elections to come. There are no formal talks, no coordination meetings, but while some Catholic groups are filling up the Congress bleachers, others are moving on the ground. Each one has a role to play, guided by a hidden Hand that makes all things possible, in His time. The various Catholic groups need to see this and appreciate the different roles that different groups will play, in this one big fight for Life. The Catholic Vote is not a political party. It will scan the horizon among all the parties and support candidates who carry Catholic values in their word and action, in their public as well as private life, regardless of political party, and yes, if called for, regardless of religion. There are no illusions among the convenors. The road ahead will be rough and tough. Politics being what it is in our country, there will be attempts to divide, and disunite. But the seed is being sown. It will be watered. And the sun will shine upon it, and make it grow. Perhaps the miracle that Archbishop Oscar Cruz has longed for in anguish in his book, will begin to unfold. After all, after someone offered his five loaves and two fish, a multitude was fed, with plenty of leftovers. After all, after the workers in a wedding obeyed the instructions of Jesus to fill the empty jars with water, the miracle of the transformation of water into wine happened. It is beginning to appear that, since it is now a prayer in many Filipino hearts, the Catholic Vote is an idea whose time has come to our beloved motherland. This article first appeared in the Philippine Star issue of Sunday, December 9, 2012.

CFC Responds to Havoc Caused by Pablo By Aaron Lu AFTER the unexpected devastation caused by typhoon Pablo, the CFC global family responded immediately to the needs of our fellowmen in Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental by sending relief

Operation Pablo, top: Dr. Joe Yamamoto working with Davao City-based health professional volunteers; left: Dr. Bernie Cueto doing minor surgery.

goods, foods, medicines, and Lifesaver emergency water filtration jerrycans. On December 15, 2012, a medical emergency response team was sent by CFC Ancop Health to Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental. Two GKare board members Dr. Bernie Cueto (surgeon) and Dr. Elmer Garcia (pulmonologist) joined Dr. Joe Yamamoto (cardiothoracic surgeon) with Dr. Kirstin Yap (cardiology fellow from UST hospital) in providing medical care, sponsored by CFC ANCOP. The CFC doctors from Manila were joined by CFC doctors Mike and Dana Calimbas of Davao City, together with SFC doctors, nurses and health professionals. A total of 400 patients were treated during the medical mission.

Central B Sings ‘Hosanna!’ By Mao Olalia-Tolentino WHILE everybody was excited for the fast approaching 2013, CFC Central B was very excited about December 30, 2012, the second to the last day of the year. On that day, Central B had its first ever praise concert titled Hosanna. Inspired by Mark 11:9, Hosanna was staged at the Tanghalan ng Pasigueño. The concert was a huge success, overwhelmingly supported by the sector’s leaders and members. The energy level of all the performers was amazing as they gave their all in prais-

ing God for blessing the Sector with nearly 3,000 new members since 2007, as Sector Head Omy Santos announced. The Hosanna Praise concert was organized as a fund-raising event for the sector ’s Cornerstone Program. The concert showcased the performances of the ministries through interpretative dancing of Bible stories. It served as a celebration of thanksgiving as well as for years of love and friendship the members experience within the community. At the end of the day, all apprehensions prior to the event

“IN this season of Advent, Holy Church teaches that the faithful beholds the coming of Jesus in three ways; first, that Jesus comes in memory, second, that Jesus comes in mystery, and third, that Jesus will come in majesty”. This was the message of Msgr. Allen Aganon during the CFC Mission Core Group Teaching Night held last December 10, 2012, at the Christ the King Parish, Greenmeadows, Quezon City. Msgr. Aganon premised his teaching on the Gospel of Luke 21:25-28, 34-36, which described the unfolding events preceding the coming of the Son of Man in all His glory. He reflected that while everything in this earth shall pass away, only God will remain. While Scripture’s description may seem fearsome, the prophetic allusion to the coming of the Son of Man brings only promises of salvation. The monsignor further reflected that this was especially relevant in the Advent season, when the nation was reeling from the effects of Typhoon Pablo, the most devastating storm this year, as well as the divisive effects of the congressional debate on the RH bill. Msgr. Aganon said that Jesus comes to the faithful in memory upon remembrance of the unique circumstances of His birth and the attendant fulfillment of the promises of God’s mercy to His people. The ensuing salvation of mankind promised by God in the proto-evangelium in Genesis narrates the eventual redemption of man from the consequences of the fall from grace by Adam and Eve and the struggle between the offspring of the woman and of the serpent, ending in the head of the serpent being crushed in defeat. This makes God’s love manifest even at the very beginning of salvation history. The remembrance of these events and the fulfillment of God’s promises of redemption allow us to constantly experience the coming of Christ in our lives, and to celebrate the faithfulness of God. God also comes to His people in mystery as the faithful experience the delights of God’s surprises, particularly in the manner of His arrival to each person. Msgr. Aganon elaborated that as mysteries go, real mysteries are not the things that we do not know, but rather things that we simply do not understand yet. The mystery is slowly revealed to His people who wait in faith and patience. The last way that God reveals Himself is when He comes in majesty. Msgr. Aganon reflected that as God is beheld in His glory, we would finally see the entire big picture instead of merely seeing bits and pieces and small parts. It is in the fullness of time that God will reveal the role of each person to one another, each incident, each random event finally revealing how each gave color and depth to the whole picture of each one’s lives. In the context of Advent, Msgr. Aganon also urged the body to pause and to reflect on the spirituality of waiting. He explained that throughout salvation history, God has always encouraged His people to pause and to wait patiently for His responses to the challenging questions of the time. He added that Scriptures tell us how the Israelites waited forty years, wandering around the desert. This was God’s way of purifying His people prior to their entry to the Promised Land. Msgr. Aganon also narrated how the Lord gave such wonderful promises of greatness to Joseph the dreamer, who first had to be subjected to harrowing experiences - from being sold by his brothers to slavery, then being falsely accused and imprisoned despite his innocence. Eventually, Joseph was redeemed and went on to perform his great task of saving not only his own clan but also Egypt. The monsignor reflected that all these things had to happen first to the Israelites and to Joseph so that God can expand His people’s hearts and therefore be able to receive more of His grace that will enable them to fulfill their mission. The lesson lay in the process when they learned to be patient in awaiting the response of God to the pressing questions of their time. The first chapter of the Gospel of St. Luke offers to us examples of people who were blessed because they waited; Zechariah, the Virgin Mary, Simeon and Anna. Msgr. Aganon reflected that these people chose to wait because they were aware of God’s promises. Zechariah had waited long for God to bless him with a child while Mary had become the perfect disciple while waiting patiently for the Lord’s birth, pondering patiently upon His words, and later His passion, death and resurrection. Simeon and the prophetess Anna both had been waiting for the child that will be the cause of consolation to Israel and both were blessed by seeing with their own eyes the fulfillment of God’s promise of redemption. Msgr. Aganon opined that for us, waiting is like a dry desert between where we are and where we want to be. In this present age of digital technology, people expect things to come instantaneously and that people are entitled to instant gratification and immediate access. The downside is that this capability comes to a people who are full of fear. Msgr. Aganon said that where there is fear, the desire to escape is great and that fearful people have a hard time waiting. Advent is asking people to wait. For God’s people, waiting must become prayer in itself even when it may often appear that not much may be happening on the surface. The important thing is that in waiting, one must learn to contemplate the present, the moment and not to dwell on the past or the future. Msgr. Aganon concluded that as we wait for God, God is also waiting for our own response to His call. Msgr. Allen Aganon has served as missionary priest to various parts of the world and is now serving as the Spiritual Director of the Couples for Christ International Council.

The News Supplement of Couples for Christ The Ugnayan News Supplement is published by the Couples for Christ Global Mission Foundation, Inc., with editorial offices at 156 20th Avenue, 1109 Cubao, Quezon City. Editorial trunk line: (+63 2) 709-4868 local 23 l Direct line : (+63 2) 709-4856

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seemed unfounded because indeed, nothing is impossible with the Lord. Everyone went home blessed and filled with

joy. Now Central B’s dream of having its own Cornerstone Program will finally become a reality.

Marivie Dalman Managing Editor

Vangie Mecedilla Circulation Staff www.couplesforchristglobal.org [email protected]

CBCP Monitor

Ugnayan

D4

Vol. 17 No. 1

January 7 - 20, 2013

CFC Basilan Turns Sweet Sixteen Vamos Todos a Belen

By Lito Araneta – PAD Basilan CFC Basilan celebrated its 16 th anniversary last December 8, 2012 with the theme: Proclaim the Greatness of the Lord, taken from Luke 1:46. The anniversary celebration coincided with the feast of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Mother Mary. This coincidence was a timely reminder for all that it was her obedience to the will

of the Father that ensured for us our salvation. The community celebrated the many miracles they experienced and witnessed during 2012. Mannix Ocampo, International Council member, reinforced the community’s joy and awe at these miracles by his inspirational talk that focused on “CFC as a missionary community.” New Provincial Area Head Vic Lauro emphasized in his short mes-

sage that our life as member of CFC can be likened to the Bible that we read everyday and which we try to witness in our daily lives. Three parish priests attended the CFC anniversary, one in joy and love with CFC – Rev. Fr. Arnel Lagman of San Antonio de Padua Parish, Rev. Fr. Jong Benitez, formerly a member of Singles for Christ, of St. Peter Parish of Lamitan, and Msgr. Valeriano Cabalog from the host parish, Sto. Rosario Parish. Msgr. Cabalog presided at the thanksgiving Mass, together with Fr. Jong. Basilan experienced challenges in the peace and order situation in 2012, but we remained victorious in proclaiming God’s greatness. During the year, we completed six CLPs (4 CFC and 2 HOLD) and four Youth for Christ camps. The province also successfully participated in the ANCOP Global Walk 2012, enabling the province to sponsor two scholars who are now enrolled in college in Basilan. The anniversary was one avenue for the IC to interact with the local clergy with regard to the relationship of CFC with the local Church and the Bangsa Moro entity. The anniversary was also a celebration of thanksgiving to the Lord for giving the community the courage and wisdom to truly proclaim His greatness to others.

Passion for Music, Passion for God By Raymond Bucu WHAT an awesome weekend!!! Thus gushed one of the participants in the first ever CFC Music Ministry Camp held last November 24-25, 2012 at Leticia’s Garden, in Pulilan, Bulacan. The Music Camp was conducted as an initiative of the CFC Music Ministry Core Group chaired by Joe Tale, who is also a member of the CFC International Council. The camp which was attended by members of the twelve CFC sector music ministries and a contingent from the provincial music ministry of CFC Laguna, was intended to encourage among the participants deep bonds of friendship, brotherhood and faith so that the music ministry teams can stand strong even in times of difficulties and relationship challenges. Kirby Llaban, a member of the Music Ministry Core Group, notes that “service in the music ministry in Couples For Christ is prone to disagreements among its members due to its artistic nature, individual preferences in music and the requirement for discipline and commitment.” He adds that “being a team is essential to the growth and strengthening of the Music Ministry in any given area.” The activities of the first day began with a powerful worship led by Tito Cayamanda, followed by an inspirational talk from Joe Tale, who emphasized that service in the music ministry can be likened to a vessel that is propelled by the winds of passion, but propelling the vessel without direction can be danger-



By Siony Gonzales CFC Zamboanga City glorified Jesus in a well-attended Christmas Festival with the theme: Vamos Todos a Belen last December 16, 2012, at the St. Joseph High School Gymnasium. CFC International Council member Mannix Ocampo was the guest of honor. The celebration began with the entrance of the eight “sikad-sikad” (pedicab) fully decorated with recycled and indigenous materials. A couple playing Mr and Mrs Santa were on board each sikad-sikad throwing candies and goodies to the appreciative audience who cheered the entrance of the grand parade. All the “sikad-sikad” were displayed inside the gym for the final judging of the winner of the best decoration. Rev. Fr. Joey Rapadas, Director of St. Joseph Seminary, celebrated the Mass, after which “El Parada de Lechon” marched in, just in time for the community lunch. In the afternoon, the celebration resumed with the presentation of Christmas Carols by chapter. The audience was further cheered by the drawing of lots for the distribution of gifts containing grocery items mainly for the poor members of the community especially those coming from far flung places. The raffle draw and distribution of prizes came last. The whole festivity concluded on a high note with the praise fest.

Catholic Youth Conference in Arabia (ACYC): All Things are Possible By Samantha Manuel

ous and, at times, even disastrous. Thus, Joe added, we need a pilot that will put direction in our vessel of service, and that pilot is God Himself. Joe also stated that passion can be defined as “doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way, with love” and that “serving in the music ministry must not be limited to our love for music. We are not ordinary musicians, we are God’s musicians and everything we do is for the glory of God.” Joe concluded that as music ministers, we must be a team, or T.E.A.M. which stands for, “Totally Empowered and Ablaze Musicians, combining our talents and skills, training others, even duplicating ourselves if necessary, and remind-

ing ourselves always that the harvest is plenty but the workers are few.” The participants later formed three teams; the Yellow, Blue and Red teams, and went through various team-building exercises such as cheer singing and making their team flags. The participants later created their own brand of music utilizing ordinary items such as softdrink bottles, water jugs and spoons, to the tune of assorted Glory songs. As midday approached, the participants had what was called the “Jesus Lunch,” which was done in absolute silence and with the participants making sure that no one will eat until everyone had been served. Later, the participants were led to compose an entirely new song, in an exercise facilitated by Tito Cayamanda. The highlight of the Music Camp was the next day when each group presented songs that they themselves composed. A few of the participants and even the service team shed tears as each group’s musical composition was played and heard. Each song was finely crafted and arranged, mirroring the deep spiritual experience of each participant. It was a testament to the devotion that each one had, not only for music itself, but also and more importantly for their passion in service for the Lord. The camp ended with a Holy Mass and with a resounding praisefest offered by God’s musicians for His praise and glory.

CFC New York Holds Christmas Party For Priests

Couples for Christ in New York, led by Jojo Reandelar, came up with the idea of hosting a Christmas party for certain New York Catholic priests who are supporting CFC in the boroughs of Bronx and Queens. On December 10, 2012, the party was held in Ascension Church in Elmhurst, New York. The church leaders present were: Rev. Fathers Ray Nacino, Alex Ramos, Kyrian Echekwn, John Francis, Anthony Chenen, Jose Cadusale, Jovi Carangay, Patrick Long a long, Joseph Hugo and A. Camora. Some CFC ANCOP leaders from the neighboring State of New Jersey, led by Roger and Josie Santos, also attended and joined in the celebration. It was an evening of prayers, laughter, dances, songs and Christmas presents. The emcee, Dr. Romeo Pastor, never ran out of funny anecdotes throughout the evening. The idea to give the church leaders a break from their church activities was hatched because of the close relationship between CFC and the Catholic church.

UNDER the auspices of H.E. Bishop Camillo Ballin and H.E. Bishop Paul Hinder, the Vicariates of Northern and Southern Arabia held the 2nd Catholic Youth Conference in Arabia (ACYC) in Abu Dhabi, UAE last November 15th to 17th, 2012. Catholic youth and young adults from the Middle East aged 15 to 35 were invited to be part of this event to celebrate and discover more about their faith. The theme for this year’s ACYC 2012 is from Mark 9:23 - “All things are possible for one who believes”. Youth for Christ and Singles for Christ Middle East members joined

the desire to be crazy about Him. And what is more amazing was that in this part of the world, we have a great God who never asked us to prove ourselves to Him because in the first place we are loved by Him! In fact, young and old present in that room can truly say that with the way we live here in the desert land, Jesus remains the oasis, the source of everything.” Spearheaded by the bishops of the Vicariates of Northern and Southern Arabia, the Catholic Youth Conference in Arabia 2012 (ACYC 2012) was indeed an event that re-ignited one’s pride in being a Catholic. Sparing no opportunity to provide nothing less than a spiritual experience, the line-up of the speakers was enough to encourage any individual to attend, whether it be someone whose faith was wavering or someone whose heart was hungering to be deeply submerged into what it meant to be a Catholic. Father Stan Fortuna, also known as the ‘rapping priest’, rapped out his message and his words, although spoken in rapid fashion, struck the heart of every listener. Delegates were breathless as they strove to follow his rhythm and momentum as he passionately shared about living one’s faith in an unfaithful world. Matt Fradd, who refers to himself as “as Australian by birth and a Catholic by choice”, was an living example that living the Church’s teachings on chastity does not mean that you have to live a sheltered boring life, but rather, you would truly be able to live your life to the fullest. Apple Fuentes, SFC Dubai, UAE, was particularly impressed by George Gabriel, a preacher from the Philippines. “He spoke with simple passion, a living

over 1700 other youth from all over the region to represent the CFC community in this empowering event: ACYC 2012 started off with a bang! The music, the enthusiasm, the planning, the speakers, the breakout sessions, the entire Harvest Village theme, the Prayer Wall, the unfaltering smiles on the face of every dedicated team member, the boundless energy to keep going—no matter what—was immensely contagious. According to Ineke D-Souza, SFC Dubai, “You wanted it to consume you. You wanted to let go. And let God!” The 3-day Arabian Catholic Youth Conference was indeed another Jesusexperience! Maru Santos, SFC Sharjah, UAE, shared: “There was a stellar moment in that weekend where I found myself standing in the midst of more than a thousand delegates—in awe of what God was presenting to me—His greatness! God’s presence seen and experienced through His anointed religious brought so much joy in my heart. And although I was surrounded with the wild, vibrant and Bishop Paul Hinder (left) of the Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia youthful expression which is based in the UAE, and Bishop Camillo Ballin of the Bahrain-based of faith, there’s this Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia inexplicable calmness happening inside witness that God’s blessings cannot be me. Could be my unspoken expectation limited, and because of this, we cannot and eager anticipation of what the Lord but give back to Him all the worship that He is due.” will tell me through .” The ACYC truly manifested God’s Vergel Suaybaguio, SFC Al Ain, UAE, had this to say: “With almost 1700 youth greatness. Indeed He is at work in of Arabia gathered for three days, the the lives of many young people in the weekend gave me so much joy and Middle East.