“Keep the doors of the GRP-NDFP Peace Talks open”

A Statement of the Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform on the GRP-NDFP peace talks termination
November 24, 2017

The Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform (PEPP) is saddened over the government’s “cancellation of all planned meetings” and its pronouncement that “there will be no peace negotiations” with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP). The official statement by Sec. Jesus Dureza of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) states that the decision was “in line with President Duterte’s directive that there will be no more peace talks with them”. The reason stated for the cancellation was due to “…recent tragic and violent incidents” committed by the rebels. The PEPP believes that this cancellation of peace negotiations is equally tragic, if not more.

As church people, we find nothing more tragic than the refusal of warring parties to continue to open the doors for dialogue that can result to further escalation of violence. President Rodrigo Duterte stated that he does not want talk to the NDFP especially after an ambush by the New People’s Army (NPA) has resulted in the death of an infant. The NDFP on the other hand have accused the military of attacking communities suspected of supporting the NPA. The war is intensifying, and it can only get worse.

We have always maintained that outstanding and delicate issues should be resolved through principled dialogue over the negotiating table. Both the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the NDFP have made pronouncements that great strides towards peace have been made in the several formal rounds of talks between the two parties under the Duterte Administration and facilitated by the Royal Norwegian Government (RNG). These positive results from the talks should be pursued and not abandoned. The roots of the armed conflict should be addressed and this could be achieved through the negotiations.

Furthermore, both parties have already signed agreements that will address incidents of violence. The Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) and the supplementary agreement to revive and strengthen the Joint Monitoring Committee (JMC) is a feasible instrument to use in times like these. Both parties have also shown a sincere willingness to resolve this conflict that has been ongoing for close to 50 years through peace talks. There were already advances in the negotiations for the Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms (CASER) and a possible bilateral ceasefire agreement.

We call on both the GRP and the NDFP to stay the course and resume the peace talks, for a better “...future awaits those who seek peace” (Psalms 37:37). It is in this spirit that we also appeal to the government to reconsider its plan to categorize the NPA as a terrorist organization as this will incite more violence and virtually close the door to the peace talks.

We enjoin all peace-loving Filipinos to continually pray and tirelessly work for peace. May the blessing of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, who came into the world as a vulnerable child, remind us that our calling as Christians is to pursue peace both in our individual lives and in the life of the nation.

His totalitarian rule

By LANCE PATRICK ENAD*
November 24, 2017

It is a sad reality that the world is undergoing a very quick moral decadence. The loss of the sense of sin is probably one of the worst calamities that have befallen mankind. Urged by some force, man seems eager to return to the chaos of paganism that was miraculously conquered by Christ.

Somehow connected to this loss of the sense of sin, there seems to be a popular belief – whether silently practiced or explicitly professed- that demands God not to be mentioned, invoked, or remembered, in any place apart from churches. This aggressive hostility towards God is sadly accommodated by many baptized catholics. Secularism has been adapted by numerous Christians who attend mass on Sundays and who seem to forget the words of the Divine Redeemer, “Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels ( Lk IX, 26).”

This dictatorship of the enemies of Christ seems to laughably forget that the infinity of God cannot be confined in the church yard.

There is no human action from which God can exclude himself. Whether we believe it, like it or not, God is present in all things; the reign of God encompasses all things, all of man’s actions.

In this sense, the reign of Christ our king should dominate all aspects of human life, human actions- from the greatest of our endeavors, to the slightest use of a toothpick. The reign of Christ then is totalitarian- not the totalitarianism of tyranny but the totalitarianism of Love, Justice, and Mercy. This totalitarian reign does not violently impose itself; it lovingly invites all men to be subjected to it.

Men who have the privilege of receiving the sacraments are rightly privileged to be subjected to the gentle rule of Christ. It is therefore unbecoming of catholics, soldiers of the Lord of the universe, to think that the name of their king, Jesus Christ, can only be mentioned in the Church, to think that God has no place beyond the parish parking lot, that God cannot be remembered, mentioned, invoked in other areas of human life. It is then unbecoming for the soldiers of Christ to laugh at, accommodate, or tolerate blasphemies against their Lord in any form. It is unacceptable for the sons of God, soldiers of Christ to be the source of blasphemies, be they blunt or discreet. It is unthinkable for a Christian to concede to secularism or to anything that ignores or his hostile to Christ.

Christ cannot be king only in our hearts- the world is enormous and we only give him this handful of flesh?!- He has to be king in all aspects of our lives. All human actions should be undertaken in his honor. All our endeavors should contribute to the greater glory of God in the salvation of souls.

Sons of the Church, soldiers of Christ must then oppose, by all means, secularism. The sons of Holy Mother Church must then vanquish this weapon, this tool of the perfidious enemies of Christ who labor to return the world to the chaos of paganism, to the chaos of sin. “The manifold evils in the world were due to the fact that the majority of men had thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law out of their lives; that these had no place either in private affairs or in politics… and as long as individuals and states refuse to submit to the rule of our Savior, there would be no really hopeful prospect of a lasting peace among nations (Quas Primas, Pius XI, 1925).” Secularism will bring nothing but confusion and discord. Men of God must oppose this notion even to the shedding of their blood – as a witness to Christ their King.

The World, all things, all men must be subjected to the kingship of our Lord and savior for true order, peace and justice to remain. Christ must reign not only in our hearts; “He must reign in our minds, which should assent with perfect submission and firm belief to revealed truths and to the doctrines of Christ. He must reign in our wills, which should obey the laws and precepts of God. He must reign in our hearts, which should spurn natural desires and love God above all things, and cleave to him alone. He must reign in our bodies and in our members,which should serve as instruments for the interior sanctification of our souls, or to use the words of the Apostle Paul, as instruments of justice unto God (Quas Primas, Pius XI, 1925)”

The malice of the enemy, of the devil could never be extinguished until the glorious coming. The sons of the Church must then struggle against them, as long as the Church stands- she will stand until the end of time-, as long as the Judge of mankind has not returned to purge this world of evil. Blessed then are these men for God shall reward them for their unwavering resolve, they “shall flourish like the palm tree,shall grow like a cedar of Lebanon” (Ps XCII, 13).

Arise, therefore, men of God, Sons of the Church! Soldiers of Christ-whose reign will not end, cuius regni non erit finis-, to arms in the name of your king! Crush by the power of God, the enemies of Christ who labor to bring these world to the chaos of sin. Bring this world into the loving empire of Christ. Let Christ your king conquer, reign, and command- Christus vincit, Christus regnat, Christus imperat!

*Lance Patrick Enad y Caballero (lance.enaf@gmail.com), 18 is a Grade XII seminarian in Pope John XXIII Seminary of the Archdiocese of Cebu.

The purpose of the cross

By Fr. ROY CIMAGALA, roycimagala@gmail.com
November 21, 2017

WE really have to know why the cross is essential and indispensable in our life. And by knowing the purpose of the cross, we mean that we need to refer everything in our life to the passion, death and resurrection of Christ where the cross plays a crucial role.

Yes, that’s right. We need to refer everything to the cross because that is how everything in our life, whether good or bad, big or small, spiritual or material, would find its true and ultimate meaning and purpose.

We need to know the purpose of the cross because in the first place Christ himself said that to follow him, we need not only to deny ourselves but also to carry the cross daily. (cfr Lk 9,23)

Christ, who as the Son of God and the perfect image that God has of himself, is the pattern of our humanity since God created us in his image and likeness. As the Son of God who became man, he is the redeemer and restorer of our damaged humanity. That’s why he described himself as the way, the truth and the life for us. (cfr Jn 14,6)

We need to know the purpose of the cross because the cross, through Christ’s passion, death and resurrection, is where everything in our life is resolved. Christ’s passion, death and resurrection is the culmination of Christ’s redemptive mission on earth.

Yes, Christ preached. He performed miracles. But in the end, he had to offer his life on the cross because no matter what he did, our sins are such that they simply cannot be undone and forgiven through the preaching of the truths of our faith and the tremendous effects of the miracles. Christ has to offer his life on the cross!

We might ask, if Christ is God, why did he have to go through all that suffering and death? Why not just say, “Everything is now all right, guys.” As God, nothing is impossible with him. With the movement of his will, with a flick of his hand, everything would be as it should be.

I must say, it is a good question to ask. Indeed, nothing is impossible with God. He does not have to do anything spectacular to repair what was damaged. A word from him, and everything would be as he wants it to be.

Be that as it may, the fact is that Christ chose the way the Father wanted it. “Not my will, but yours be done,” Christ said. (Lk 22,42) And I imagine the reason behind this is because God respects our human nature as it is, as it has been created by him, capable of loving and hating, and also capable of being faithful and unfaithful and faithful again after some conversion.

The return to fidelity, given our nature, will unavoidably involve suffering and death which Christ took to himself shows us the way of how to go about these consequences of our sins.

That is why, it’s always recommendable to meditate often on the passion, death and resurrection of Christ, so we would learn to have some healthy abhorrence against sin and temptations, as well as to develop the capacity to suffer calmly with Christ to make up for our unavoidable sins.

This is the purpose of the cross in our life. It is to instill in us the proper attitude and virtues with respect to our sin, before it is committed and also after it is committed.

Brainwashed or truth-fed?

By Fr. ROY CIMAGALA, roycimagala@gmail.com
November 17, 2017

WE need to learn to distinguish between the two and to make the proper choice. Nowadays, with all the noise and constant barrage of ideas, words, views, opinions, doctrines, etc., we get the impression that we do not know anymore whether we are being brainwashed or are really fed and nourished by the truth, and everything that truth brings with it – charity, fairness, justice, peace, joy, order…

In the social media that includes not only written words but also videos, we get to see fierce exchanges from different parties with all sorts of ideologies and cultures and religions. Of course, we strive to live in a democratic world where tolerance and diversity are fostered, but we can wonder if we are actually fed by the truth or are simply indoctrinated, conditioned and mind-controlled.

I am reminded of what St. Paul once said. “For the time will come,” he said, “when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.” (2 Tim 4,3)

In other words, many people nowadays are not anymore interested in really knowing and, much less, living the objective universal truth about the world and us. They are more interested in pursuing what they want to the extent that they now try to impose their ideas and biases on others. There seems to be a systematic way of brainwashing people.

That is why there is so much nitpicking and fault-finding, so much casuistic and polemical argumentation in the discussions. A toxic atmosphere of contentiousness is generated where intrigues, discord and division are sowed.

This is not anymore happening solely in the world of politics and business where a certain diversity of positions and opinions is legitimate. It is now also happening in the world of faith and beliefs where truths that are supposed to be objective and universal are meant to keep us in unity, though not necessarily in uniformity.

The secret of knowing how to distinguish and of properly choosing between being brainwashed and being truth-fed is simply by being truly with God. After all, God is the Creator of the whole universe. He is the author of reality in all its aspects, material spiritual, natural and supernatural, temporal and eternal, etc.

With him we can discern the truth that always goes together with charity and all its complementary virtues. Let’s remember that charity is the mother virtue, the one that gives all the other virtues their true character as virtues.

The truth in charity is also the one that will last forever, that will bring us to our eternal destination with God in heaven. It is what fully satisfies our dignity as image and likeness of God, children of his.

We need to be in vital union with God, something that is always possible since God always makes himself available to us, in order to be in the truth that goes together with charity. Otherwise, there is no other way but to be brainwashed by certain false ideologies and unsound doctrine.

As St. Paul would put it, with God “we may be no longer children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, in craftiness, after the wiles of error...” (Eph 4,14) We need to dominate the world of public opinion, not dominated by it. We need to be its master, not its slave.

Inclusive development and synergy

By Fr. ROY CIMAGALA, roycimagala@gmail.com
November 13, 2017

IT’S, of course, good that our political leaders are talking about inclusive development and growth. Let’s hope the interest in genuine and is sustained to its last consequences. We just have to clarify what “inclusive development” really means, see what ways we can achieve it and what things it requires.

Inclusive development is when such development and growth is a product of the work or due contribution of all the components of a given society. It also means that the fruits of development are equitably distributed and enjoyed by all.

This is the ideal. The reality is, of course, always a work in progress with all kinds of hurdles to overcome. But one thing is clear. All efforts to pursue this ideal simply cannot be based on some economic, social or political maneuverings alone, much less, on some systems and structures only.

The first requirement is that all efforts in this regard, be they economic, social or political in character, should be an offshoot of a genuine spirit of a universal and inclusive love and concern for the integral development of everyone.

Without this spirit clearly motivating all these efforts, things just cannot prosper and are doomed to collapse sooner or later. There might be some temporary advantages and benefits, but for sure these cannot last long and may even be a sweet poison.

And this spirit is none other than the spirit of Christ who is the pattern of our humanity in all its aspects, and the redeemer of our damaged human condition here on earth. This spirit of Christ continues to intervene in our life, shaping and directing it to its proper end. We need to correspond to this reality as fully as possible.

When we have this spirit of Christ, we will realize that inclusive development is a matter of truly loving everyone as he or she is, and also as he or she ought to be. It does not treat everyone in the same way, since not everyone is the same. The distinctions and differences are acknowledged and are acted upon accordingly.

It’s an ever-dynamic process, guided by some rules that in themselves also have to be dynamic, never frozen and static and simply applied blindly or indiscriminately. These laws and rules have to continually evolve and refine themselves to better adapt to the conditions on the ground.

Of course, these laws have to be clear about what are of absolute value that should not changed, and what are of relative value that can change and sometimes, should change.

With this Christian spirit, inclusive development is a matter of creating a synergistic mechanism where all the components and sectors of a given society mutually help each other.

This Christian view of inclusive development is not blind to the fact that there are people and sectors that can be considered as weak, helpless and unproductive like children, the old people, those with disabilities of all kinds – physical, mental, emotional and even moral.

The quality of inclusive development can somehow be gauged by its efforts to look after the weak sectors of our society. In other words, more than just economic, social or political measures, it is the kind of charity that is involved that would determine the kind of inclusive development we are pursuing.

This Christian view of inclusive development certainly requires that each one of us truly care for one another. Our concern for the others should go all the way to their spiritual and moral needs, not just their economic needs, etc.

Eternal Heavenly Boredom

By LANCE PATRICK C. ENAD*
November 4, 2017

“If you go to hell, you’ll be so busy shaking hands with people you know”- so says a satirical post in social media. This implies that in eternal damnation, one’s thoughts and perception will be overwhelmed by the multitudes of acquaintances that ended up in the same fate. Most of the people one knows would probably end up in hell as much as you would and that would make hell more comfortable and more enjoyable.

Forget about God then I wouldn’t exchange hell for anything else! If this were true, then the suffrage for souls in purgatory we have offered during All Souls’ Day would prove to be mistaken and futile as we wouldn’t let the souls of our loved ones go to such a boring place… although it would be nice to think that our enemies would be eternally bored- for nothing maddens man more than boredom.

One saint, one who I couldn’t remember, however, would disagree with this delightful idea – that hell is enjoyable. He/ she would however agree that the pains of hell would be overwhelmed by something… something much more worth lamenting.

This saint who had the privilege (as if it was something enjoyable) of having a vision of hell had the chance to ask a soul in eternal damnation. The question he/ she asked the soul was what their greatest suffering was. The soul replied that their greatest suffering was the never-to-be quenched thirst for God. Man, from his creation, was embedded with a deep nostalgia for God, so says Salvatore Canals in his book ‘Jesus as Friend’.

This nostalgia for God is not something emerging from a collective human subconscious, as Carl Jung would argue, but truly from the depths of our hearts. As children yearn for their parents, so does our hearts long for God. The ultimate end of man would yield our often ignored nostalgia for God hence hell would be so horrible because those in it would be unable to satisfy their natural cravings for God.

It is important, however, to note that heaven and hell are not physical places but are states. These supernatural places are last states of being, for man, that is. This means that heaven wouldn’t be a night club with a bouncer preventing selected people from admission or that hell would be a barangay party that’s open to all, general admission. This would mean that heaven and hell are states of a person and that a person’s soul would be carrying heaven or hell in them as turtles carry their shell.

It is also important to note that God does not send anyone to hell. Souls who deliberately refuse to be united with God in His divine life hurl themselves to hell. Although this pains God so much, God respects man’s freedom and is therefore respectfully withdraws himself from souls who refuse to be with Him out of His Love.

Given the thought that hell would be the least comfy place, it is important to ask about heaven. We hear of heaven in the soap operas as a really beautiful mountain paradise in which everyone would be smiling and wherein lovers separated by death would live their happy ever after.

Reading the life of saints, we read that it is a place wherein we worship God endlessly; that we meet God face to face. This would seem like heaven is a boring place. Everyone will be singing twenty-four seven. And we’ll only see the face of God. It would be like an endless church service. How boring and predictable would heaven be! Everyone’s vocal chords would be inflamed due to the unending singing and praising. Better stay away from heaven… how unfortunate would death be.

This would be what follows if eternity was, as we perceive it, an endless succession of time. But such is not a case. Perhaps, God in his eternal wisdom has saved us too from eternal boredom. However, eternity is not an endless succession of time; it is an endless and everlasting today.

Hell would be a never-ending moment of pain and would be terribly inescapable. Heaven would be a never-ending moment of glory, a never ending moment of love. Heaven would be the best and most noble moment of our lives-prolonged but without the influence of face and time. Boredom wouldn’t be something conceivable in a place uninfluenced by space and time.

The beatific vision of heaven would be something inconceivable. Heaven would be a longed for thing. Given this idea of heaven, what beauty awaits those in purgatory! How little are our sacrifices to attain Eternal Life! How little have we done to inherit “What eye has not seen, nor ear has heard what God prepares for those who serve Him! (1 Corinthians 2:9)”

*Lance Patrick Enad y Caballero is a grade XII Seminarian from Pope John XXIII Seminary of the Archdiocese of Cebu. He will turn eighteen on the fourteenth of November.

Ghosts? Spirits? Demons

By LANCE PATRICK ENAD*
October 31, 2017

Amidst the prevailing existentialist view of life and the moral-therapeutic deist views of religion, which even those who go to church every Sunday are guilty of, it is good to note that there are those who experience phenomena that are seemingly unexplainable by science.

These experiences could be beautiful, indifferent, and several times fearsome. This write-up does not intend to scientifically disprove the existence of what we call “demonic forces” (for he would most likely flunk science subjects) or to philosophically prove the existence of these forces (as the author has not yet attained sufficient philosophical awesomeness to do so). This write-up intends to spill some useful knowledge about such fearsome phenomena and perhaps to give practical guidelines on how to deal with them, well, if you must know, some catholic guidelines on how to deal with these.

Whether we believe it or neglect it, evil does exist. This could be interpreted to morally evil things, figurative evil, or the existence of demonic forces that influence our world (I hope I don’t sound like a character from the Harry Potter franchise) in the most discreet to the most unexplainable ways. I would limit myself to the topic of demonic forces.

It is important to distinguish that unexplainable occurrences can be classified into two: supernatural, those things or happenings that are beyond the laws of nature, and preternatural, those that are beyond what is normal (not necessarily the laws of nature). Supernatural would be those things we consider as miracles and are coming from forces that are not within the bracket of natural law and preternatural would be those things that are seemingly not normal but are not necessarily outside natural law.

Filipino tradition would tell us that there are spirits that reside in nature or in houses or in regular things. These spirits, could be good, could be evil, or could be temperamental. There are also beliefs that these spirits are the souls of our loved ones or are “earth-bound spirits.”

While the author does not wish to impose catholic doctrine, as a reference, the Catholic Church teaches that the souls of the dead, after death, proceed immediately to judgment and to heaven or hell (or purgatory for those who have a little bit of prelude before heaven) and cannot remain here on earth. The spirits, therefore, that are considered “earthbound souls” or the spirits of the dead are not what we believe them to be.

Furthermore, there are spirits that are invisible to us, namely, the angels. These Angels, like us have free will, however, they have no physical bodies. These heavenly spirits have greater knowledge and intelligence compared to us. They were created to minister to God and to carry out the orders of God.

On account of their great knowledge and intelligence, they cannot afford repentance after they have committed even a single sin. If they have committed a sin, they are expelled from heaven and are therefore fallen angels, angels that are eternally damned. Fallen Angels, although, good in their former state, because of their incapability of repentance after sin, are no longer capable of doing good. Hence, those seemingly good or temperamental spirits that reside in nature or in our homes or in our neighbors are not what they are believed to be. To put it bluntly, are fallen angels, demons.

It could be asked why is it that demons are in our world when they are in hell. Well, heaven and hell are states and supernatural places not physical places. It is a state of the being. The demons then are carrying hell with themselves as the turtle carries its shell.

In this sense, the spirits then that could be residing in our neighbor’s house, in our backyard tree, or in our basements, the “nuno sa punso”, or the “white lady” next door, are no other than the demonic spirits that are hostile and are bent on harming us, whether spiritually, mentally, or even physically.

These demonic spirits influence men from the smallest temptation to the most fearsome manifestation. These at first could appear indifferent or even good but in truth, these spirits are really laboring to make men share in the sufferings they share in hell and they cannot withstand, out of selfishness, the thought that man is capable of enjoying the beatific vision of heaven, the heaven that they once enjoyed.

These thoughts should not contribute to the greater fear of demons, shrieking at the slightest sound we hear at night, but should exhort us to love God more solidly. The only way to battle with these evil spirits is by building a solid relationship with God, who loves us infinitely. Practical ways of building a relationship with God is by spending times of prayer each day, reading the word of God, devotion to our guardian angels and to the Mother of God, making sacrifices.

In conclusion, in our efforts to Love God and to build a solid spiritual life, it is important to remember that the Devil does not appear in a red cape with a pitchfork; he appears, many times, in the smallest of our selfish desires. This should lead us to follow our Lord Jesus Christ more genuinely by denying ourselves and taking up our crosses everyday.

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