FINDING ANSWERS
As the nation marked yesterday the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Ninoy Aquino, President Marcos Jr. called on Filipinos to “set aside political differences and unite for the country’s welfare and progress.”
Referring to love of country as the “compass” that will help foster harmony among us, the President said: “Let us allow this compelling force to promote collaboration, celebrate diversity, and create a society that is teeming with vitality and inspiration.”
In his message commemorating Ninoy Aquino Day, President Marcos Jr. also pointed out: “In our purposive quest for a more united and prosperous Philippines, let us transcend political barriers that hamper us from securing the comprehensive welfare and advancement of our beloved people.”
There’s no dispute that love of country ought to propel us in our pursuit of a prosperous Philippines. And transcending political barriers is key to achieving and sustain significant development and making greater strides in the march toward progress.
But along with transcending political barriers, I strongly believe that transcending beyond our self-interests and aligning our individual aspirations to be in tune with the collective needs of the nation would really bring about a prosperous Philippines.
With about 95 percent of more than 110 million Filipinos professing to be Christians, our religious piety is deemed exemplary. It should not be difficult for us to truly believe that God is really with us, and He has a wonderful plan for our country.
With God’s promise — “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord”— displayed in our money, our country ought to be truly blessed. “Pinagpala ang Bayan na ang Diyos ay ang Panginoon” is the local translation of the Holy Bible’s Psalm 33, Verse 12, printed in Philippine currency notes since 2010.
But if God is with us, how come dark forces seem to be working against us and hindering our progress as a nation? How come our country is continually beset with the same old problems of poverty, rampant corruption, criminality and injustice, and a host of other ills afflicting our society?
It is lamentable that our nation’s problems — for which I’ve fought for solutions while a student activist starting at age 17 who almost died as bullets killed a man beside me during a violent rally in the 70’s — remain virtually unchanged for decades.
The statistics are still glaring. We all know how many Filipinos go hungry every day. We all know how many Filipinos just die without getting medication or even seeing a doctor, how many Filipino children are so severely affected by malnutrition, undernutrition, wasting and stunting.
We learn that the severe effects of malnutrition and widespread hunger lead to the untimely deaths of 95 Filipino children daily, that 27 out of every 1,000 kids don’t get past their fifth birthday, that one of every three children are suffering from stunting that can be permanent, irreversible and even fatal after age two.
Due to severe lack of high-paying jobs and livelihood opportunities here, many of us just want to go abroad and find nice-paying jobs not only to be able to afford basic necessities amid high inflation, but merely to get relief from the traffic mess.
The Philippines is reportedly the sixth most corrupt nation in the Asia Pacific region, losing around P700 billion yearly to widespread corruption. Such staggering amount could be used to fight malnutrition or create much-needed jobs, yet it seems many of us have come to accept corruption as quite normal.
While our religious piety is our moral compass to guide us in our daily lives, sociologists wonder how is it possible for our religious piety to blend with a seeming tolerance for so much greed and corruption – the primary cause of poverty and desolation especially in the countryside as public funds intended to uplift the plight of the poor are stolen.
The challenge, therefore, is to utilize our being deeply religious to battle the evils plaguing our society, and seek blessings for the entire nation, and not merely for our personal salvation.
Our deep faith in God must be accompanied with action — particularly the corporal works of mercy like feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, sheltering the homeless, etc.
Former Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle was exactly right when he once said in a homily: “Let us show our love and devotion to the Black Nazarene by praying to God and not forgetting to help our fellowmen, following Christ’s teachings as guiding principles of our lives, and glorifying God’s greatness and love for mankind through our good deeds.” ([email protected])