Choose reliable leaders to lead the country, CBCP chief urges voters

UNDERSCORING the need for institutional change to effect good governance in the country, the head of the Catholic hierarchy urged the people to exercise their right of suffrage intelligently in the coming elections.

President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and Tandag Bishop Nereo Odchimar, in a New Year’s message said, the upcoming 2010 election is an opportunity for Filipinos “to put into office reliable leaders who would guide our nation in the coming years.”

“2010 in our political life is an election year; people through the exercise of their right of suffrage, will effect a power shift in the executive and legislative branches of our civil government,” Odchimar said.

“We must retain what is good, promote what still needs improvement and discard what is base and corrupt,” he stressed.

But the prelate admitted that patronage politics are still the call of the day with many electorates still beholden to politicians who dole out money and favors in exchange for their votes.

“A number of us have remained myopic by focusing our attention only to the satisfaction of the moment, swayed by the glitter of money and promises of patronage, and do not raise our eyes beyond election time to the resultant situation created by our indiscretion,” he lamented.

“Those who have allowed, much worse abetted, corruption to thrive in our midst, do not have the right to complain,” Odchimar further said.

But he said as every voter holds the key to a better future for the country, there is a need for electorates to be informed through voters’ education.

He also urged citizens to be vigilant and resist any attempts by ruthless politicians and their minions to thwart the genuine will of the people.

“If we were a part of the problem yesterday, we can also be a part of the solution today. We hold the key to a better tomorrow,” the CBCP president stressed.

The poor constitute the greater part of the country’s population. They are often wooed by politicians during campaign period with promises of “poverty alleviation, “more jobs” and a better future—pledges that often dissolve in thin air once leaders are elected into office.

Odchimar said the economic situation of the people would have been far better than it was generations back had leaders only shown some political will in exercising their leadership.

He said there is a need for social transformation; but it can only happen if it starts with oneself.

“Election is an opportunity we cannot afford to miss. Over and above the factors beyond our capacity, with our great faith in God and in ourselves, we can still make our wish for a happy new year a reality,” he said.

“…Its realization is within reach. Now, more than ever, we hold the promise of a happier Philippines, despite the tragedies that happened in the preceding year,” said the prelate.

Citing the Catholic Church as example, Odchimar said there’s need for institutions to change if it is to go forward.

“No less than the late Holy Father, Pope John XXIII of holy memory, said when he convoked the Second Vatican Council: ‘Ecclesia semper reformanda est.’ (The Church must always be in the process of reform).”

Christians, Muslims youth meet to celebrate God’s gift of creation

SOME 600 Christian and Muslim youth representing various schools, communities, youth groups and organizations gathered in an annual assembly of young people to celebrate God’s gift of creation.

The annual youth gathering dubbed Harmony Youth Day was held on December 19, 2009 at the Hadji Nuño and Fr. Di Guardo Auditorium, Harmony Village, at Pitogo, Sinunuc, Zamboanga City.

Themed “Youth In journey: Explore, Rediscover and Experience God’s Gift of Creation”, the assembly was organized by Silpeace youth program of the Silsilah Dialogue Movement.

Youth participants who came from Zamboanga City and as far as Jolo, Sulu showed their gratitude to God for his gift of creation in the form of songs, dances and theatrical presentations.

The youth day began with a motorcade from the city center to the assembly site. SilPeace Performing Arts opened the whole day affair with a playlet on loving and nurturing God’s creation.

Prior to the assembly, a poster making contest was organized that was joined by the different schools, colleges and communities in the city. The creative activity allowed the participants to express their hopes and aspirations for dialogue and peace. Winners were awarded during the event and their works displayed in the site.

The recently concluded Harmony Youth Day served as the final activity in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Movement and the ten years existence of Silpeace in sharing the spirituality of dialogue. Silpeace was formally launched in 1999.

Young people who have participated in various activities spearheaded by Silpeace program such as youth camps, culture of dialogue orientation seminars, symposia, regular formations and other activities conducted throughout the year are gathered annually for the Harmony Youth Day.

Former youth coordinators Ahmad Alawaddin and Norbert Solina each encouraged the youth to cherish and share the values they have learned from the movement to other members of their respective communities.

Likewise, link moderators and mentors from different schools and communities gave their words of encouragement and their unending support to the youth program.

The participating schools, communities and youth groups include AGAPE Human Development Foundation, Ateneo de Zamboanga University-High School Dept., Ayala National High School, Badjao Community, Baluno National High School, Cawit Community, Campo Islam Community, HMIJ Philippine Islamic Coolege, Inc., Kalinaw Youth, La Paz Community, Pilar College-High School Dept., Regional Science High School, SilPeace-Jolo, SilPeace-Zamboanga, Sinunuc Community, Sinunuc National High School, Southcom National High School, Sta. Catalina Community, Sta. Cruz Island Community, Universidad de Zamboanga, Western Mindanao State University-Integrated Laboratory High School, Zamboanga City High School-Main, Zamboanga State College of Marine Science and Technology-College and High School and Zone IV Youth.

The Silsilah Youth Program aims to promote the Culture of Dialogue, Path to Peace among the youth - Muslims, Christians and other living faiths - to sustain peaceful and harmonious relationships among them even as they belong to diverse religious beliefs and cultural backgrounds.

2010 crucial year for RP, says Cardinal

A high-ranking Church official said 2010 is a crucial year for the nation as people will choose leaders who will govern the country in the upcoming elections.

In a Christmas Message, Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales said the real solution to election problems does not depend on automation but on the electorates’ responsible and much prayed for choice of candidates.

“The coming year 2010 is the nation’s year of choice for honest, selfless and God-fearing leaders who will serve with honesty, simplicity and humility,” he declared.

Rosales said the people had enough of “arrogant leaders” who think of themselves as the solution to the country’s woes.

These politicians who “thought that the nation could not go forward without them, had always been failures; and they had, unfortunately, brought the country down with them”, he added.

Highlighting the significance of peace in his Christmas message, the Cardinal said it is a consequence of a good choice, “whether the choice is to have enough to eat or to select a man who will honestly lead others to progress.”

“Any person, who performs real good, no matter how imperceptible that good act is, will inevitably bring in peace,” he added.

But he admitted that with the current practice in Philippine politics, what he said seemed too difficult to achieve.

“This is the reason why we need the reminders of the Lord, who came teaching people the need for discipline and sacrifice (under the expression of the cross) in order to attain the path to peace and success,” he said.

But peace cannot be attained even with all the best efforts of government to stop wars and violence, if the action is obscured by “greed and dishonest behavior”.

“When someone desires what is good for everyone including self, peace can become an accepted reality,” the Cardinal said, adding: “Peace is not within the grasp of a person whose only interest is self.”

“To make His disciples men of peace, the Lord Jesus trained them to love beyond selfish interest, even to the point of offering the sacrifice of one’s life,” he continued.

The world’s path to peace has remained elusive even after two thousand years since Jesus came to earth as the Prince of peace.

This is so because “people had put their selfish ambitions and greed first before the possession of the common good of all”, the Cardinal said.

“If we survey our surroundings and see the poverty around us—the selfish ambitions and the pride, including the degenerate ways of governance bereft of inspiration and good example from leaders, the inhumanity in today’s crimes and the shamelessness in many a crime among irresponsible leaders—the question remains the same as before, “Is peace a possibility?” he said.

But peace becomes an option, he said, when people have “a sufficiency to own and consume what a noble life needs and what human dignity requires”.

CBCP head: Change has to start with oneself

SAYING that the message of peace is as relevant and urgent today as it was two thousand years ago, the president of the Catholic hierarchy urged Catholics to work for social transformation beginning “within ourselves” for peace to become a reality in the country.

“Let us ask Christ, the Prince of Peace, to heal our troubled land wounded by fraternal strife, and to touch our hearts to be open to love, justice and Christian faith,” said CBCP president and Tandag Bishop Nereo Odchimar, in a Christmas message.

The head of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines said social change can only be possible if it starts within oneself.

“[Then] we can be at peace with ourselves, with others and with God,” he said.

The bishop said “Prince of Peace” was how the Prophet Isaiah called Christ who was to come to save the world. And the angels sung “On earth peace to men of good will,” when they announced the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, he added.


Protracted war

The country which has a protracted war against insurgency in Muslim Mindanao, has recently witnessed the gruesome murder of 31 journalists and 26 supporters of a political candidate in the nation’s worst election-related violence.

Because of it, Odchimar said, “some children became orphans; a number of husbands turned into widowers while some wives became widows; and grieving parents were deprived of their children.”

State of unpeace

But the prelate was quick to add that peace is not just the “absence of war or physical violence” since various factors can contribute to a state of unpeace.

Citing a number of instances that reflect the country current state of affairs, the bishop said greed and lust for power can bring the nation in a situation of unpeace.

“Greed for wealth and material possession could drive people to engage in shady transactions, into the degradation of our forests and environment, and into the use of public funds to finance private undertakings,” he said.

He also said some people’s desire for power can lead them “to resort to the use of money, guns and goons,” especially during elections to prevent voters to elect worthy candidates into office.

“These in turn would breed situations for poor governance when officials are put into power through dubious machinations, seek replenishment of their funds unlawfully spent,” the prelate said.

Despite these gloomy realities in the social structures, Odchimar said “our faith gives us a glimmer of hope, as the bible in number of places has assured and exhorted us, and which the present Holy Father articulated in his encyclical letter “Spe Salvi Facti Sumus” (In hope we were saved).”

Young people of Asia: Agents of renewal and transformation

THE young face of the Asian Church shone brightly in a faith-gathering of close to 2,000 young people coming from all over Asia and the Philippines at the recently-concluded 5th Asian Youth Day (AYD5) hosted by the Diocese of Imus, in Cavite.

Nourished by the Word and the Eucharist, participants to the 5th Asian Youth Day ended their five-day gathering with a statement containing their commitment to deepen their love for the Word of God and the Eucharist despite the many challenges they experience along the way.

The Asian youth assembly which carried the theme “Young Asians: Come Together, Share the Word, Live the Eucharist” aimed to inspire the young faithful to live more profoundly their Catholic faith.

Youth participants came from across Asia, representing China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Macau, Taiwan, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Timor Leste, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, Kyrjyzstan, Mongolia, Siberia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and other Asian delegations from Australia, Germany, France and the Netherlands.

The regional counterpart of the World Youth Day, the Asian Youth Day is usually held on years when there are no World Youth Day celebrations. It was initiated by the youth desk under the Office of the Laity of the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences (FABC) to help the Asian youth deepen their spirituality and become effective witnesses of Christ’s love to one another. The first AYD celebration began in Thailand in 1999, followed by Taiwan in 2001, India in 2003, and Hong Kong in 2006.

YAsia Fiesta!

The AYD5 slogan YAsia Fiesta aptly conveys a joyful atmosphere which truly characterized the youth event. But in the words of Bishop Joel Baylon, Chairman of the Episcopal Commission on Youth of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, the gathering was not merely a festivity devoid of spirituality, instead it was a faith-filled encounter manifested in joyful celebrations.

“Festive dancing and singing during fiesta are what we Filipinos are known for. This typical expression of faith is something unique that we can offer our delegates,” Bishop Baylon said.

The five-day event was preceded by a three-day immersion in parishes called “Days in the Diocese” where delegates stayed with different host families and experienced the realities of Philippine life.

Many of the foster families who had given accommodation to the delegates had been devastated by the recent typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng which inundated a greater part of Metro Manila and environs. But despite their sufferings and want the foster families insisted on lodging the delegates in their homes.

The sense of volunteerism shown by foster families who adamantly took in the delegates assigned to them, and of the many youth who had made themselves available throughout the entire event really amazed Bishop Baylon. The prelate said that the situation of foster families can teach a lesson or two to AYD5 participants on the meaning of poverty and suffering.

“Hopefully, their days in the diocese will make them realize that in the midst of poverty, the Church is alive because of the faith and hope of the people, remain unwavering,” he said.

Indeed, the immersion program left quite an impression on the participants. For many who live in countries that restrict if not ban the public expression of the Catholic faith, the Filipinos’ exuberant demonstration of religiosity comes as truly invigorating.

One of the participants, Rosa Da Lima from Indonesia marveled at the way Filipinos celebrate the feast of Christ the King. She said the obvious devotion of the people to the Eucharist and the long procession that accompanied the Blessed Sacrament really touched her because it was something that she had not experienced in her country. Others, meanwhile, were awed by the generosity and cheerful attitude of Filipinos who remain joyful and faith-filled despite poverty and want.

Origin of AYD

Youth coordination in the Asian region took off after a historic meeting of Asian youth in the International Youth Forum during the World Youth Day held in Czestochowa, Poland in 1991. The delegates expressed to the Asian bishops their desire to develop a common Asian response in the area of youth evangelization. This was further taken up and discussed during a youth consultation meeting in Bangkok in 1993 which led to the creation of a Youth desk under the auspices of FABC’s Office of the Laity.

Since its inception in 1994, the FABC youth desk had organized various programs and activities for Asian youth involved in the ministry. In 1997, a seminar on the theme “Youth in the Socio-Economic Development of Asia: A Challenge to Integrate Faith in Youth Life and Work” was organized by the Bishops’ Institute for Lay Apostolate for Youth (BILA on Youth) in Tagaytay. In the same year, during the World Youth Day in France, the first Asian Youth gathering themed “We are the Church” was organized where Asian youth delegates met for an afternoon of cultural and spiritual activity. In every WYD celebration thereafter, Asian youth delegates come together for a cultural and spiritual encounter.

The first two events saw the beginning of a regular gathering for Asian youth dubbed Asian Youth Day which is held in different Asian countries every 2-3 years. In 1999, with the Church preparing to welcome the new millennium, the first Asian Youth Day was organized at Hua Hin, Thailand reflecting on the theme: “Asian Youth Journeying with Jesus Towards the Third Millennium.” The 2nd AYD was convoked in Taipei, Taiwan in 2001, themed “We are called to Sanctity and Solidarity”; in 2003, the gathering was held in Bangalore, India with the theme “Asian Youth for Peace”, and in 2006, the 4th AYD was held in Hong Kong.

Asian youth today

To reiterate the words of Bishop Cornelius Sim of Brunei, one of the plenary speakers during the AYD5 event, the youth of Asia today are facing enormous challenges in the face of “rapid modernization and globalization, diversity and plurality of cultures.” Their social status renders them “powerless” even as they try to compete in the vast exchange of diverging views and ideas around them.

The youth event then was a great opportunity for these young people to find their voice, to build their confidence and hone their skill to become effective evangelizers of their own fellow youth in a continuously changing world deeply mired in consumerism and materialism. Sharing among them the importance of the word and the Eucharist in their lives, they realized that living the word and the Eucharist means speaking out for the truth.

In 2008, the Youth desk of FABC Office of the Laity conducted a survey among the youth on the importance of the Eucharist in their lives. The study revealed that a certain percentage of Catholic Asian youth have little understanding of the Eucharist. The results of the survey were made public during the FABC regional conference in Manila in August 2009.

Infanta Bishop Rolando Tria Tirona, who currently chairs the FABC Office of the Laity that commissioned the poll, said the survey’s outcome presents a challenge to the Church, especially to Catholic leaders, who have greater responsibility in the formation of the faithful, particularly young people. He acknowledged the need for the Church to reach out to the youth sector to make them understand that the Eucharist is a “very powerful force” that can prod them to become “agents of transformation.” The study provided a situationer for the Asian youth assembly where the youth were challenged to live and love the Eucharist.

At the opening of the AYD5 in the Diocese of Imus on November 23, Bishop Tirona noted that the theme on the word of God afforded the youth participants a climate to share stories imbued with faith to one another.

“The challenge for the youth is to continue telling stories to one another which maybe sad stories, wonderful or triumphant stories, but are stories about themselves, and which are stories of God,” he said.

Hope of the Church and society

Tagged by United Nations as the most populous continent in the world with more than 3 billion population, Asia with its teeming young people must have been in Pope John Paul II’s mind when he said that the future of the world and the Church belongs to the younger generation.

“Christ expects great things from young people,” the pope said in his apostolic letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente. “If they succeed in following the road which he points out to them, they will have the joy of making their own contribution to his presence in the next century and in the centuries to come...”

Would the young people of Asia dare make a difference in the face of unjust societal structures that breeds poverty, corruption and unpeace?
Bishop Tirona believes so, affirming the great contribution the youth can give in the area of evangelization, of renewal and transformation.

Indeed, there are a lot of issues confronting the Church and society today where the youth can actively participate and bring about the needed changes we all desire. As they themselves acknowledged, they are sent to “live out God’s love” and called “to transform unjust structures and to respect the dignity of all men and women, to work for reconciliation, fight poverty and create a civilization of peace and harmony.”

Coincidentally, as the youth gathered and shared among them their potentials to make a difference, the world bestowed honor to Efren Peñaflorida, an Asian and a Cavite native. CNN named him “Hero of the Year” for his innovative work of teaching children using a “pushcart classroom”. Peñaflorida reached out to the young and made a difference in their lives by educating them, thus giving them hope and the chance to see the world beyond their poor social conditions.

Now that is what the youth are challenged to do. Where the adults have faltered and failed, the young can learn and succeed. The responsibility of guiding them lies in the families, communities and parishes where these young people belong.