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Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Legaspi: Gloria in excelsis deo?
By Carlo Legaspi, Jr.
Questions That Matters
GLORY to God in the Highest and peace to all people of Goodwill... Oppps. This is not what I was supposed to write. I have to write a long overdue topic on death penalty in the Philippines. Why then did I have to entitle this article with "Gloria in Excelsis Deo"?
Our President GMA is now having her European tour. Just a few days before her "trade relation trip" to Europe, The big three companies of the Oil industry imposed another increase in their petroleum prices.
The Filipino will all the more feel the effect of massive poverty in the country. While Gloria enjoys her trip, we suffer. We are left with a national administrator.
Anyway, part of the trip of our president was to meet Pope Benedict XVI. A picture in a national daily got the momentous event of GMA kissing the hand of the Pope. I jokingly said that it should bear the caption: "Chihuahua bows down before the German Shepherd."
A few weeks ago, GMA and her allies moved to slash the Death penalty in the country. It was a sort of courting the highly influential Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).
The administration was under fire when some influential members of the CBCP issued a strong statement against the immoral act of approving the Charter-Change. The act of abolishing the Death penalty was also a part of the sinister plan before GMA would see the strong Pope of the Catholic Church.
I would presume that the Pope had congratulated the Arroyo regime for their political will of upholding the Doctrine of the Catholic Church on the right to life. Likewise, I would play with the idea that GMA would be like a sobering daughter telling the Pope of the behavior of some of his Bishops in the country.
So, Gloria to GMA, she has already told the "big brother" to be on her side.
However, knowing the Pope to be strong and firm on his stand on the role of the church in social transformation, I guess the Pope would advise Gloria to thank God for the presence of the Bishops to be in critical collaboration with her den of men.
On the issue of Charter change, I hope the sentiment of the Papal Nuncio would be that of the Holy Father.
In the early days of the nuntiature, The Nuncio told media that the Pope was overwhelmed by the acts of the bishops on the country in the issue of charter change.
I remembered Pope John Paul II once advised then Bishop Fortich to continue the work of the local church for the poor. He praised Bishop Fortich for his preferential option for the poor and transforming the decrees of the 2nd Vatican council into reality. It was a great confirmation that the Catholic Church in Negros was on the right track.
Back to our president, she had the correct timing in abolishing the death penalty for it is a great slap on our faces to claim that our country is the only catholic Christian nation in Asia, yet death penalty is legal. The Catholic Church in the Philippines is slapped too much by the carelessness of those who proposed to legalize death penalty in the country.
I would picture out how an angry pope will Benedict be upon seeing a nominal catholic in front of him in the person of her excellency Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. I would picture out the Pope hitting the Chihuahua with his Papal Staff.
In related matters, the masses in the countryside are now tightening their belts because of the economic impact of the oil price hikes. The urban people are also tightening their belts for the sky-high prices.
All these are happening while an entourage of Malacañang officials are running here and there in Europe, buying this and that and dining in expensive places at the expense of the peoples' money.
So, shall we just continue singing "Gloria" or shall we do something about the stupidity of the administration?
St. Ezekiel Moreno and Pope John Paul II, pray for us. For comments and reactions, send email to
ecaloy@yahoo.com.sg
(June 28, 2006 issue)
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