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PPICommunityPressAwards
•Best EditedWeekly 2003 & 2007•Best in Photojournalism1998, 2005 & 2008
Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
ISSN–1655-3853 • OKT. 30 - NOB. 5, 2009 • VOL. 30, NO. 44 • 8 PAHINA • P10.00
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Bulakenyo sabik bumoto
ulakenyosabikbumotoulakenyosabikbumoto
sa unang automated polls
BAGO AT LUMA
—
Ang pakikilahok sa makasaysayang2010 automated elections na makikita sa mga larawan saitaas ay ang pagkakataong hindi mararanasan ng mga bagoat dating botanteng hindi nakahabol sa katatapos na pag-paparehistro. Nasa dulong kaliwa, itaas ang larawan ng sampleballot ng balotang gagamitin sa makasaysayang halalan sasusunod na taon; kasunod ang pagkukulay sa mga bilog naparihaba sa tapat ng pangalan ng kandidato sa balota at pag-papasok nito sa Precinct Count Optical Scanner (PCOS) ma-chine. Ang paggamit ng makinang ito ay ipinakita sa mgamamamahayag na dumalo sa pagsasanay ng Philippine PressInstitute sa Cagayan De Oro City noong Oktubre 20. Sa mgalarawang nasa ibaba, makikita sa kaliwa ang mga botantenoong 2007 barangay elections habang hinahanap angkanilang pangalan sa certified list of voters; kasunod angkanilang pagpirma matapos abutan ng balota; ang pagsusulatng mga pangalan ng mga kandidatong kanilang ibinoto; atang paghuhulog ng balota sa ballot box. Nasa dulong kananang kuko ng hintuturo na pinatakan ng indelible ink mataposang pagboto ng botante.
—
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UHA
 
NINA
J
OEY 
A
GUILAR
 
NG
 
P
UNTO
C
EN
-
TRAL
L
UZON
 
AT
D
INO
B
ALABO
Tanggapan ng Comelec umapaw sa dami ng nais magparehistro
Phil-Rice website photo
Super rice variety ng Phil-Rice/IRRI tugon sa climate change
N
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INO
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ALABO
MALOLOS—Maypananabik na makaboto sa 2010 ang mga Bulakenyokaya halos umapaw ang tanggapan ng Commissionon Elections (Comelec) sa bawat bayan at lungsod sa lalawigan sa huling linggong Oktubre upang mag-parehistro, ngunit hindilahat ay nairehistro. Ayon sa mga bagong botante, nasasabik silang bumoto sa susunod na ta-on, dahil ito ang unang pagkakataon nilang maisa-gawa ang karapatan, at ang halalan sa May 10, 2010ang unang pagkakataon na isasagawa ang automatedelections sa bansa.Ngunit ang kanilang pagpaparehistro ay isa lamang sa maraming hak-bang na pagdadaanan ng mga bago at dating botanteupang makaboto sa da-rating na 2010 automatedelections na mas naiiba kumpara sa mga nagdaang halalan. Ang pagpaparehistro ng mga bagong botante aynagsimula noong Disyem-bre ng nagdaang taon.“Hanggang November 3ay may nagparehistro pa,pero iilan na lang. Iyon ay’yung mga nagpatala sa log book bago matapos ang deadline noong gabi ng Oc-tober 31,” ani Joselito Mac-lang, ang election officer ng bayan ng San Ildefonso.Katulad ng pahayag ng ibang opisyal ng Comelec,sinabi ni Maclang na ang pagpaparehistro ng mga botante sa huling mga a-raw ng rehistrasyon ay i-sang palatandaan ng 
“ma-ñana habit”
, o ang ugaling Pilipino na gawin ang isang bagay sa huling oras.Ngunit para sa ilang botanteng naghabol na makapagparehistro ang 
sundan sa pahina 5
L
UNGSOD NG
M
 ALOLOS
— Pinapara-mi na at nakahandang ipamahagi sa susunod na taon ang mga “super ricevariety” na nilikha bilang tugon sa cli-mate change o pagbabago ng timpla ng panahon.Bukod dito, sinimulan na rin ang paggamit ng mga makabagong tekno-lohiya kabilang ang Information Com-munication Technology (ICT) para sa mas mataas na produksyon ng palaykaugnay ng pagdiriwang ng ika-limang taunang “National Rice AwarenessMonth” sa buwan ng Nobyembre. Ang mga super rice variety aymaaaring mamunga sa panahon ng tagtuyot o kaya’y kahit lumubog ng 10araw sa baha, at maging sa tubig maalat. Ang mga natatanging binhi ng palayna ito ay nalikha sa pamamagitan ng magkatulong na pananaliksik ng Phil-ippine Rice Research Institute (Phil-Rice) na nakahimpil sa Lungsod ng Muñoz, Nueva Ecija at InternationalRice Research Institute (IRRI) na naka-himpil sa Los Baños, Laguna. Ayon kay Jun Espiritu, tagapag-salita ng tanggapan ng Department of  Agriculture (D.A.) sa Gitnang Luzon,ang mga super rice variety ay nakatak-dang ipamahagi para sa malawakang 
sundan sa pahina 4
 
2
Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
OKTUBRE 30 - NOBYEMBRE 5, 2009
EDITORIAL
Alfredo M. Roxas, Jose Romulo Q. Pavia, JoseGerardo Q. Pavia, Joey N. Pavia , Jose VisitacionQ. Pavia, Carminia L. Pavia, Perfecto RaymundoJr., Dino Balabo
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CIRCULATION
Robert T. Raymundo, Armando M. Arellano,Rhoderick T. RaymundoThe
Mabuhay
is published weekly by theMABUHAY COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES
—
DTI Permit No. 00075266, March 6, 2006 toMarch 6, 2011, Malolos, Bulacan.The
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is entered as Second Class MailMatter at the San Fernando, Pampanga PostOffice on April 30, 1987 under Permit No. 490;and as Third Class Mail Matter at the ManilaCentral Post Office under permit No. 1281-99-NCR dated Nov. 15, 1999. ISSN 1655-3853Principal Office: 626 San Pascual, Obando,Bulacan
 
 
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Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
Jose L. Pavia
Publisher/Editor
Perfecto V. Raymundo
 Associate Editor
 Anthony L. Pavia
Managing Editore-mail
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EDITORYAL
Pinsala
NAKAKALULA ang pinsalang hatid ng magkasunod nabagyong Ondoy at Pepeng sa buhay, imprastraktura at sa-kahan sa Gitnang Luzon, ang dating dating kinikilalang “ricegranary” ng bansa dahil sa mataas na produksyon ng palay.Batay sa tala ng Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) saGitnang Luzon, umabot sa 881,579 katao sa 562 barangaysa rehiyon ang naapektuhan ng dalawang bagyo kung saanay 56 ang nasawi.Umabot ng P1.833-bilyon ang pinsala sa mgaimprastraktura; P2.413-bilyon sa sakahan kung saan ayumabot sa 236,743 ektarya ng bukirin ang napinsala at83,374 na magsasaka ang nasalanta. Bukod pa rito ang367 bahay na nawasak at 574 pang nasira.Upang makabangon ang mga nasalanta, gumugol ngkabuuang P59.638-M ang mga pamahalaang lokal at nas-yunal sa pamamagitan ng mga ipinamahaging relief goods.Alam natin na hindi ito sapat. Ang tulong ng pa-mahalaan ay isang kolerete lamang sa sugat na sanhi ngkalamidad. Maibabalik nito ang ilang imprastrakturangnasira, maging ang pananim na nasalanta ay maaaringpalitan.Ngunit hindi na maibabalik ang produktibong oras ngmga manggagawa at bawat isa na kasamang naglaho ngkalamidad. Hindi na rin maibabalik ang mga buhay nanasawi maging ang pangarap at pag-asa ng bawat isa.Walang sinuman sa atin, maging ang pinakamauunladna bansa sa mundo ang makakapigil sa katulad nakalamidad ng mga bagyong Ondoy at Pepeng. Ngunit maytsansa tayo na makaiwas sa trahedyang hatid nito, kungdiman ay mapaliit natin ang pinsalang hatid nito sa buhay ngtao, industriya at mga imprastraktura.Sa diwang ito, naniniwala ang bumubuo ng pa-hayagang
Mabuhay
na gaano man kalaki ang halaganggugugulin ng pamahalaan sa rehabilitasyon sa mganapinsala ng kalamidad, dapat bigyan ng mataas napagpapahalaga ang panganib na hatid ng hagupit ngkalikasan.Nararapat ding higit na palawakin ang paghahatid ngimpormasyon sa taumbayan upang sila ay magkaroon ngkakayahan na maging handa sa pagtugon sa mgakalamidad na paparating.Ang tunay na trahedyang naghahatid ng higit na pinsalasa tao ay ang kawalan ng kakayahan sanhi ng kakulanganng pag-unawa sa impormasyon.Huwag nating ipagkait sa kanila ang kakayahan namaging handa sa mga kalamidad. Pagyamanin natin angkanilang kaisipan, ibigay ang tamang impormasyon athuwag itago dahil sa pangambang hindi maibotong muli.
Promdi
D
INO
B
 ALABO
Pagbalik sa Bulacan
MAKABULUHAN at masaya ang tatlong araw kong pananatili sa Lungsod ng Cagayan De Oro sa Misamis Oriental kung saan aykabilang ako sa mga kalahok sa pagsasanay ng mga mamama-hayag sa darating na halalan na pinangunahan ng PhilippinePress Institute (PPI) at TheCoca-Cola Export Corporation of the Philippines (TCCECP).Masasalamin sa bawat isang kalahok ang pananabik sa na-sabing pagsasanay. Para kasiitong isang reunion o muling pagkikita... Marami kasi sa aminay nagkita at nagkakilala sa mga nagdaang kumbensyon at work-shop na isinagawang PPI atTCCECP.Kaya naman nang muli ka-ming magkikita-kita bago si-mulan ang unang sesyon ng aming pagsasanay noong Ok-tubre 19 ay kanya-kanyang ba-tian at kuwentuhan.Siyempre, marami ring ba-gong kalahok, kaya’t ang mga ‘beteranong’ tulad ng 
Promdi
ayipinakilala. May isang kapansin-pansin sa mga kalahok at ito ayinilarawan sa kanyang talumpatini Isagani Yambot, ang publisherng 
Philippine Daily Inquirer
,at kasalukuyang tagapangulo ng PPI.“Mataas ang BQ ngayon,” ani Yambot kung saan ang “BQ” aynangangahulugan ng “beautyquotient”. Mas marami raw ma-gagandang dumalo sa pagsa-sanay. Siyempre, palakpakankami.Ngunit hindi lang “BQ” ang mataas sa mga kalahok. Maging “IQ” o intelligence quotient.Ito ay napatunayan sa palitanng mainit na tanong at sagot sa pagitan ng mga kalahok at mga piling tagapagsalita, partikularna sa hanay ng kinatawan ng Commission on Elections(Comelec) at Smartmatic-TotalInformation Management.Isa pang patunay ay ang ma-habang pila ng mga kalahok sa mikropono. Hindi upang sila aykumanta, sa halip ay upang magtanong sa mga kinatawan ng Comelec at Smartmatic-TIMmatapos ang kanilang presen-tasyon.Tatlo sa kanila ay tunay na mainit ang pagtatanong. Ang isa ay nagbanta pa na idedemanda ang Comelec at Smartmatic-TIM.Gayunpaman, napawi ang init ng pagtatanong dahil na rin sa mahusay na pagpapadaloy ng programa ng seminar director na si Yvonne Chua ng Vera Files,isang grupo ng mga mamama-hayag na nagsasagawa ng inves-tigative journalism.
sundan sa pahina 6
Buntot Pagé
P
ERFECTO
V. R
 AYMUNDO
Negatibong ugaling Pinoy
NAGKUKUMAHOG na namanang ating mga kababayan sa pagpaparehistro sa mga tangga-pan ng Commission on Elections(Comelec) para makaboto sa halalan sa Mayo 10, 2010.Nagkakaubusan na ng mga ‘registration forms” sa ilang tanggapan nito, dahilan para gumamit na lang ng “photoco-pies” ang mga nagpaparehistro.Nobyembre pa lamang noong nakaraang taon ay simula na ng pagpaparehistro subalit hang-gang sa ngayon ay mahaba pa rinang pila ng mga nagpaparehistro.Kaya minabuti ng Comelec na habaan pa ang oras ng pagpapa-tala na umaabot ng gabi hang-gang katapusan ng Oktubre.Kailan kaya mawawala sa a-ting mga Pilipino ang ganitong klase ng pag-uugali, na kung kai-lan malapit na ang deadline aysaka magmamadali.Sa Comelec, maliit na kahi-lingan lamang po. Baka po pwe-deng maglagay kayo ng salamin(mirror) malapit sa lugar ng re-histruhan nang sa gayon ay ma-ging kaaya-aya ang kalalabasansa “computer” ng mga taong ku-kunan ninyo ng litrato dahil ma-kapag-aayos sila ng kanilang itsu-ra, kahit makapagsuklay man la-mang ng buhok.Mahirap kasi sa isang mara-lita ang magkaroon ng “valid ID”at ang makatanggap ng “votersID” na magagamit nila pang-habambuhay ay napakalaking bagay na magagamit nila pang-matagalan ay napakalaking ba-gay na sa kanila lalo na’t maayosang itsurang makikita nila rito.
Sa mga sinalanta ni Ondoy
SA kasalakuyan ay may ilan na-ting mga kababayan lalo na sa mga sinalanta ng nagdaang bag- yong Ondoy ang kasalakuyan pa ring nagdurusa dahil sa sinapitnila dulot sa nasabing bagyo.Hanggang sa kasalakuyan aylubog pa rin ang ilang bayan sa lalawigan ng Rizal na nasa tabing Laguna Lake dahil hindi pa rin bumababa ang tubig-baha na dala ng bagyong Ondoy. Walang magawang solusyonang ating pamahalaan maliban sa bigyan sila ng relief goods na ma-aari lamang tumagal ng dala-wang araw.Nais man nilang maghanap-buhay ay hindi nila magawa, da-hil nga sa lubog pa sa tubig ang kanilang lugar.
Sa pagsapit ng Pasko
DAMANG-DAMA na ang nala-lapit na araw ng Kapaskuhan. Ang pag-ihip ng hanging amihanang naghuhudyat na malapit na ang Pasko.Sana sa pagsapit ng Araw ng Pagsilang ng Ating Dakilang Ma-nunubos ay maisa-puso ng ating mga pinuno ang kapakanan ng nakararami nating kababayan.Kahit ngayon man lamang Kapaskuhan ay mabigyan nila ng kaligayahan ang ating naghihi-kahos na mga mamamayan.Isaisip nila sa sabsaban isini-lang ang Dakilang Manunubos na siyang tumubos sa ating mga orihinal na kasalanan.Tigilan na nila ang pagwaldassa kabang yaman ng ating bansa.
Kastigo
B
IENVENIDO
A. R
 AMOS
Liwanag laban sa kadiliman
SA pagsusuri ko, ang isyu nga- yon, maging sa halalan, ay Ka-liwanagan kontra Kadiliman,Kabutihan laban sa Kasamaan. Ang Liwanag ay ang katoto-hanan, ang paghahari ng tunayna katarungan, ang katapatan, atpagpapairal ng batas sa ilalim ng demokrasya, na ayon kay Lincolnay, “pamahalaan ng taumbayan,pinagagalaw ng taumbayan, atpara sa kapakanan ng taum-bayan.” Ang Kadiliman ay ang pagha-hari ng kasamaan, kasakiman sa  yaman at kapangyarihan, pagsi-sinungaling, pagbaluktot sa mga batas at sa Konstitusyon, pag-aabuso o pagkukulang sa sinum-paang tungkulin, pagpapairal ng nepotismo at paboritismo, attuwiran at di-tuwirang ‘pagta-taksil’ sa bayan at sa pang-esta-dong soberanya.Ito ay inihahayag ng sinabi ng naging Presidente ng Senado Jose Avelino: “What are we inpower for?”Ito ay sinambit ni RomuloNeri: “Moderate your greed.”Sinabi ni Mayor Arsenio Lac-son: “Too young yet too corrupt.”
Mga maskara ng panlilinlang
SA kasalukuyang panahon, wala  yatang pulitikong di nagsabing ang ginagawa niya ay “para sa bayan, para sa mahihirap.”Ginagaya si Robin Hood, na ninanakawan ang mayayaman—para ipamigay ang ninakaw sa mahihirap?Ito ang mabisang pambitag ng ilang pulitiko, na agad namang sinasagpang ng masa ng ma-mamayan, lalo na sa panahong ito ng matinding paghihirap,kagutuman, at kalamidad na likas at gawang-tao na bumu-bugbog sa kawawang bansa.Kung hindi mga tanga aymadaling makalimot ang mga Pilipino, madaling magpata-wad—lalo’t hindi naman sila obiktima ng kabuktutan, tiwaling gawa ng umano’y mga lider. At sa karaniwang mahihirap,sapat na sa kanila ang nakara-raos araw-araw, hindi apektadong baha o ng 
leptospirosis
o
den- gue fever
, at basta artista, iniidolonila, kahit nahatulan na sa salang pandarambong, ay iboboto pa rinnila? Hindi mahalaga kung ang “kinatawan” ng kanilang distritoay kasama sa tumanggap ng mga suhol mula kay GMA (kabilang ang mula sa P728-milyon Fertil-izer Fund Scam). Basta nakapag-pagawa ng waiting shed, ng kalsada, okey na sa kanila.Sa ibang salita, kung walang 
delicadeza
ang nakararaming pulitiko ngayon, wala na ring 
delicadeza
ang taumbayan.Kaya hindi na nakapagtataka na mahalal ang isang drug lord,isang mamamatay-tao, nahatu-lang rapist, o kilalang sugarol, ba-baero, lasenggo—basta “maka-mahirap, nagtagumpay mula sa kahirapan—pero galante, ma-galing mambola, at may gina-gastang limpak (na mula sa ilegal), ay malamang na manalosa halalan.Kaya hindi na totoo ngayonang dictum, na 
“vox populi, vox Dei”
o ang “tinig ng bayan aytinig ng Diyos.”Dahil nadadaya na ngayonang halalan, nabibili na ang Comelec, ang mga huwes; nama-manipula na kahit ang computer.Kung hindi magiging ma-talino, matatag at matapang ang mamamayan sa wastong pag-gamit ng kanilang karapatang bumoto ng lalong karapat-dapatmamuno sa bansa, hindi na nakapagtatakang mamayani na naman ang Kadiliman sa da-rating na halalan.Huwag na tayong magpilit na humarap ng “gloria” sa lupa.
 
OKTUBRE 30 - NOBYEMBRE 5, 2009
Mabuhay
LINGGUHANG PILIPINO MULA PA NOONG 1980
3
Regarding Henry
H
ENRYLITO
D. T
 ACIO
Mysterious Agusan Marsh
IT was all over the radio, televi-sion, and newspapers. Rowena Romano and her cousin JenniferDaga-as were rowing theirwooden
banca
home in LakeMihaba, Barangay San Marcos,Bunawan, Agusan del Sur whena saltwater crocodile suddenlyattacked them.For the information of theuninformed, saltwater crocodilesare considered the largest living crocodilians and reptiles onEarth. Its average size is 17 feet. According to reports, thecrocodile bumped the
banca
,causing it to capsize, and caughtthe 12-year-old Romano by thehead, before bringing her downinto the water. A fisherman, whowas following the two young girls,rescued the other girl.“When I was a kid accompa-nying my parents, the crocodilesthen were even scared by themere sound of human voice andengines of motorboats,” 57-year-old Manobo tribal leader BaeLigaya Daga-as told newsmenwho visited the area. “Now, theyare not afraid anymore.”So when Sonny Dizon askedme if I wanted to join the groupin a nature trip going to AgusanMarsh — of which Lake Mihaba is a — I had second thoughts. Butthen, he is the man behind theDavao Crocodile Park and thosethrill adventures like wild waterrafting, zip line, and the giantwater slide in Samal, so I decidedto come along. After more than four hours of travel from Davao City to Agusandel Sur, we finally arrived at thetown of Bunawan, the starting point of our trip to AgusanMarsh. Rey O. Calderon, presi-dent of the people’s organizationthat monitors some parts of themarsh, welcomed us and providedus some necessary information.“There are several lakes foundin Agusan Marsh,” Calderon toldus. “But we will be going to thenearest lake — Lake Mihaba.”Hearing those words made myspine tingle.
What if the killer crocodile attacks us?
 When I counted the peoplewho were going, I found therewere 13 of us. I am not suffering from triskaidekaphobia but thenumber is a bad omen. Remem-ber Jesus Christ and the 12 dis-ciples? Judas committed suicidewhile Jesus was crucified. Willthe same fate happen to us? Butbefore we boarded Sonny said ourdriver will be staying to watchover our things. I was relieved!The perilous boat trip follow-ing the chocolate-laden CebulaoRiver (which seems not flowing at all) to Agusan Marsh took usabout one hour and 45 minutes.To some, the voyage may be bor-ing but I tried to open my eyesand marvel at the floating housesalong the riverbanks and alluvial junctions. It was also along thistrip that I got the first hoard of exotic and migratory birds grace-fully flapping their wings as theytransferred from one tree to an-other in search of food.Before we knew it, we arrivedat Lake Mihaba, one of the 56lakes found in Agusan Marsh.The marshland, which is said tobe similar to the Everglades of Florida, “acts like a sponge,” toquote the words of 106 scientistswho attended a consultativemeeting held in Butuan City. Itbuffers “downstream towns andcities from devastating floods.”This wetland soaks up excesswater from a yearly rainfall of four meters plus nine rivers thatslice through the provinces of  Agusan del Sur, Agusan del Norteand Compostela Valley.The marshland, which coversan area of 14,835,989 hectares,was declared as a protected area by former President Fidel V.Ramos. The area harbors uniqueand pristine habitats like the
 sago
and “peat swamp forest”. Inthe very heart of the marsh is a semi-permanent lake wheremany square kilometers of lily
continued on page 6
IT is not in my place to say thatelectronic cheating in the 2010elections. What is in my place isto say that the system is vulner-able to cheating, if there arepeople with evil plans to cheat,in whatever way possible. For therecord, COMELEC Chairman Jose Melo has already declaredthat the system is not hack-able.Technically speaking, he could bewrong, because all systems arepotentially hack-able. When I was head of the com-puter and communications officeof the Department of Foreign Af-fairs (DFA), I was visited by an American security expert whodeclared straight to my face thathe could hack my systems if hewants to. At first, I felt insultedby what he said, but I eventuallyrealized that he was correct.The economics of hacking isvery simple. All systems are po-tentially hack-able, but hackerswill only challenge a system if itis worth hacking, either for brag-ging rights, or for financial gain.To the hackers, it is not worthspending time or money to hacka system if the value of the data to be obtained is lesser than whatit would cost to crack it. The otherfactor is time, because it is notworth hacking a system if the
Fair & Square
I
KE
S
EÑERES
data to be obtained is alreadystale or useless by the time thecodes are cracked.To their credit, many com-puter experts have told me thatthe threat in the coming electionis really not hacking from theoutside. The threat they say ishacking from the inside, which isactually an oxymoron technicallyspeaking. By definition, hacking means any unauthorized ma-nipulation of a system. This is thereason why hacking from the in-side is an oxymoron, because if the manipulation is authorizedby an insider, it could no longerbe considered as hacking.Referring now to an actualexample, we could say that thestorage of ballot boxes inside theHouse of Representatives ishighly secure, meaning that itcould not be broken into by out-side elements. As we have seen ithappen, the ballot boxes were sto-len, probably because somebodyfrom the outside had the keys tothe padlocks. Either that orsomebody from the storage roomopened the locks from the inside. An inside job that was what hap-pened.In reality therefore, anylocked door is secure, it could be
continued on page 6
Cebu Calling
F
R
. R
OY 
C
IMAGALA
Person over ideas
IN our dealings with others, a daily, constant affair, we shouldpay a lot of attention to the con-crete circumstances and condi-tions of the persons rather than just pursuing the abstract mer-its and demerits of our ideas,views and opinions. We need to be personal ratherthan just go ideological, simplybecause in the end it’s not ideaswe are actually interested in butrather the persons themselves.The ideas are hollow without thepersons who are their subjects ortargets, their sources and goals,their beginning and end.Not that the ideas are unim-portant. They are indispensable.But we need to hew them accord-ing to our actual grip of the whoand how the persons we are deal-ing with are. We should not allow our ideasto have a life by themselves. Theyhave to be made fit to all the per-sons involved—us, others andultimately and constantly God.This is not just a theory. This is
Forward to Basics
F
R
. F
RANCIS
B. O
NGKINGCO
‘Capitalists Saints’
simply how things ought to be! Without this conscious effortto adapt ideas to the circum-stances of persons, they can gowild and extreme, absolutizing what is relative and vice-versa,and easily deteriorating into bi-ases, rash judgments, and otherforms of lack of charity.That’s why our Christian faithalways admonishes us to putcharity and truth together, aswell as mercy and justice. Truthand justice get spoiled once theyget detached from charity andmercy. These latter virtues pre-cisely lead us to treat others theway they should be treated—aspersons and ultimately as chil-dren of God.In Pope Benedicts’s third en-cyclical, Caritas in veritate (Char-ity in the truth), the same pointis reiterated when he said: “Todefend the truth, to articulate itwith humility and conviction, andto bear witness to it in life aretherefore exacting and indispens-able forms of charity.” (1)He also said that it’s whencharity and truth are put to-gether when meaningful and sub-stantial dialogue among differentand even conflicting parties aswell as genuine integral humandevelopment can take place.This, of course, will be a verydynamic affair, for which a lot of patience is needed, a lot of adjust-ments and adaptations made, anabiding monitoring of personaland other circumstances done.Of course, this presumes thefundamental virtue of humility,since it’s only when one humbleshimself—that self-denial thatChrist told us—can we be patientand progress in our task of blend-ing charity and truth together. We need to develop the neces-sary attitudes and the appropri-ate skills to comply with this hu-man requirement, because ourtendency to go impersonal and tobe led simply by ideas is strong and sadly quite inherent in us. We need to go through a per-
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Towards the end of his life —filled with unceasing dedicationto hearing confessions andpreaching — the Holy Curé of  Ars, St. John Mary Vianney wasasked by another priest, “Father,if God gave you the choice be-tween going to Heaven at onceand go on working as you are forthe conversion of sinners, whichwould you choose?”“I’d stay, my dear fellow,” wasthe saint’s reply.“But in Heaven the saints areso happy. No more troubles, nomore temptations,” the other ar-gued.“Yes, the saints are happyenough,” the Curé answered,“but they’re capitalists. They’veworked well, of course, becauseGod punishes idleness and onlyrewards hard work, but theycan’t win souls for God by theirlabors and their sufferings as wecan.”“If God were to leave you herebelow till the end of the world, you’d have all the time youwanted in front of you. Tell me,would you still get up so early?”the priest inquired further.“Yes, my dear fellow, I shallalways get up at midnight. I’mnot afraid of a little tiredness, Ishould be the happiest of priestif it weren’t for the thought thatI shall have to appear as a priestbefore the judgment seat of God,” John Vianney said as tears rolleddown his cheeks.
(The Curé d’Ars, A Shorter Biography, by FrancisTrochu)
* * *
I was truly struck by St. John’s phrase “capitalistssaints”. One can only imaginehow well this holy priest hadgrasped what striving for holi-ness is and gave a vivid descrip-tion of how saints invest theirentire life for what is truly worthliving for:
holiness
.This is why I found the expres-sion used by the Holy Curé to beso timely. Our concept of a capi-talist is someone who is passion-ately driven to invest his time andresources on worldly ventures inorder to make more money. God’scapitalists here on earth are thesaints, because they are also pas-sionately in love with the world,but they do not become worldly,but they strive to convert allearthly realities into an encoun-ter with God.St. Josemaría Escrivá, thefounder of Opus Dei, best de-scribes this in
 Furrow
, “
Theworld awaits us. Yes, we love theworld passionately because Godhas taught us to: God so loved theworld…. And we love it becauseit is there that we fight our battlesin a most beautiful war of char-ity, so that everyone may find the peace that Christ has come to es-tablish
. (no. 290)”Moreover, on another occasionhe says, “
The true Christian, whoacts according to his faith, alwayshas his sights set on God. His outlook is supernatural. He worksin this world of ours, which heloves passionately; he is involved
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Depthnews
J
UAN
L. M
ERCADO
Historic window
THE Catholic Church, whichtriggered “People Power” thattoppled corrupt dictatorships,confronts today a historic windowof opportunity: a surge of “people’s organizations bentto dismantle “unequal powerrelations”.It could work fully with themto curb festering poverty,writes theologian Fr. AloysiusCartagenas. Or it could “growsecure in its alliance with an elitefew and in privileges offered bydominant power structures”. Thecost would be prohibitive. Thechurch would “lose it’s credibil-ity as sign and sacrament of God’s special predilection for thepoor.”“Aspiration to equality andparticipation is a concrete exer-cise of human freedom and a pathto development,” the Second Ple-nary Council of the Philippinesstressed in 1991. “Translating that moral agenda into effectivenationwide pastoral strategy isanother story,” adds this SanCarlos Major Seminary professor.His analysis is sketched out ina paper titled: “Limitations andProspects of the Roman CatholicChurch for the Democratizationof the Filipino Polity.” Excerptsfrom this study:The landless and powerlesshave “the single most urgentclaim on the nation’s conscience,”the bishops asserted. Theybacked the agrarian reform law.Four administrations have comeand gone since. But “no propheticcritique from the hierarchy” ex-pressed solidarity with the peas-ants, as exemptions to favor thelanded, and lack of political will,gutted reform.Nor did Church leaders re-ex-amine “historical ties with theurban and rural landed class.(There) is no collective willing-ness to renounce privileges thisarrangement offers ... (Thus)a church for the poor has not yetbecome a church of the poor.”The Church harnesses institu-tional and human resources forclean polls. And Church leadersblast corrupt officials forbeggaring the nation. Histori-cally, church moral interventionsswirl around the axis of thesevalid concerns.This is fixation over process.It glosses over the need to un-mask “viciousness of a politicalstructure that promotes a preda-tory oligarchy, a patrimonialstate, and weakly institutional-ized political parties.”Nor does it address how elitesmanipulate state apparatus topromote their class interests. “Itis a serious failure not to advo-cate for birth of genuine politicalparties of the poor or partiesbased on policies that representthem.”The Philippine hierarchy isnot as homogeneous as it istouted to be. Church “witness-ing” can waffle and sow confu-sion.Two issues reflect this fact.One was clashes over whetherex-President Joseph Estrada should be granted presidentialpardon from conviction for plun-der. The second dealt with“sealed envelopes” stuffed withcash, ladled by the Arroyo regime“without strings”, during the sec-ond impeachment.“Many (bishops) returned to
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Insider hacking
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