On Almsgiving

(excerpts from Catholic Encyclopedia – Alms and Almsgiving)

ALMSGIVING - Any material favour done to assist the needy, and prompted by charity.

- Charity demands that the vital interests of an indigent neighbour should supersede personal advantages of a much lower order. To a neighbour in serious or pressing indigence, alms must be given by using such commodities as are superfluous in relation to present social advantages. This does not imply an obligation of answering every call, but rather a readiness, to give alms according to the dictates of well-regulated charity.

- No one, however wealthy, is obliged to take extraordinary measures to assist a neighbour even in direful straits. There is never any obligation of using the necessaries of life for almsgiving, because well-regulated charity ordinarily obliges everyone to prefer his own vital interests to those of his neighbour.

- Almsgiving should be discreet, so as to reach deserving individuals or families: prompt, secret, humble and cheerful.

"Blessed is he that considers the needy and the poor". (Psalm 40:2)

“You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God”. (2 Cor 9:11)

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” (Mat 25:35).

(all emphasis mine)

On increasing poverty and car sales

Poverty worsens…

Poverty worsened from 2003 to 2006, and the Arroyo administration will almost definitely not achieve its poverty reduction target under its medium-term development plan.

as car sales increase.

Meanwhile, local car manufacturers last year had their best year in over a decade, with sales of more than 118,000 units, marking the first time the industry breached the 100,000-unit sales mark since 1996.

Hmm…our society seems to be doing a Robin Hood in reverse.

'Queen' enthroned for helping Maranao poor

The inquirer report details the story of this Muslim lady who devotes her life to looking after thousands of poor in Lanao, and the victims of war that flared up in the region and other neighboring provinces eight years ago. Now she is being honored by those she has helped by being “queened” in her province.

36-year-old Baicon Macaraya set aside the glitter of the law profession in favor of a life of service to her war-weary province in Mindanao. She became the founding chair of the youth organization, Bangsamoro Youth-Ranao Center for Peace and Development. She oversaw the daily needs of thousands of evacuees staying in schools. Her group handled the reconstruction of about 500 houses, six mosques and five schools destroyed by the fighting in Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur. She helped launch the advocacy group, Mothers for Peace, to push for an end to the conflict in Mindanao because women and children are the greatest casualties of war. Macaraya is now involved with the United Nations World Food Program, touring schools to distribute rice, to make sure children stay in school and to address the food security needs of people living in conflict-affected areas.

Towards the end of the story we get a glimpse of how this remarkable lady developed a golden heart for the poor and oppressed. She simply learned from her parents the value of charity and compassion. She vividly recalls an incident when one night her father returned home from work with a bag of rotten tomatoes he had bought from an old vendor. "I asked him why he did not buy the good ones. He told me that if he did not buy them, the old man would have stayed longer out on the streets selling tomatoes," she said. Her mother, on the other hand, believes in simple acts of charity. Her mother would always cook extra food for unexpected visitors. "She would also always eat last to make sure everybody has enough. Those simple things really instilled in us the value of helping others," she said.

This is a refreshing story amidst all the depressing news nowadays. Today’s Filipino Christians should learn a thing or two here, most especially the lasting mark of parents - the very thing that struck me most in this moving story.

On Conservatives and the QC Reproductive Health Ordinance

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. announced Monday that he has approved a controversial ordinance that sets the city’s population and reproductive health policy. Among others, the ordinance seeks to promote artificial birth control methods and “reproductive health” education and training. The bill was passed in spite of vigorous objections from religious groups, but not without the removal of punitive provisions which were initially included in the initial versions of the ordinance. Despite the passage, the removal of the punitive provisions is seen as a concession towards active lobbying against the ordinance.

Meanwhile, Michael Tan in his latest column takes umbrage at religious “conservatives” who lobbied against the passage of the ordinance. Tan takes the tired Malthusian population bomb-scare theme in heavily criticizing the Catholic/religious “conservatives” who opposed the ordinance, even while he praises the “growing number of responsible and courageous local government officials” for passing the measure. This is not the first time I have heard of “conservatism” in a religious context, and more often than not, it is used in a negative connotation, as opposed to say, progressive or liberal. Tan repeats the term “Catholic/ Religious conservatives” numerous times in a derisive manner all throughout his article, and one gets the idea that Catholic “conservatism” is something dreadfully evil, grossly irresponsible, and woefully bereft of decent reasoning – even from a supposedly “Catholic” standpoint.

Anyway, is there really such a thing as Catholic “conservatism”? Or even Catholic “liberalism” for that matter? Or maybe even Catholic “in-between” perhaps? There is NO such thing. Authentic Catholic teaching is ALWAYS consistent with the Church’s Magisterial teaching, and when we pare it down to conservatism, liberalism, whatever – it simply doesn’t make sense – it is either Catholic or it is not, period. One cannot pick cafeteria-style from authentic Catholic teachings based only on private preferences, home-made opinions, or relativist postures and still claim oneself to be a faithful Catholic. Not all Catholic teachings are easy and convenient to abide by, in much the same way that ALL rules by any given authority for that matter are easy and convenient to abide by. With respect to artificial birth control, the Catholic Church has been consistent all throughout its history. The papal encyclicals Casti Connubii, Humanae Vitae, down to today’s Catechism of the Catholic Church, affirm the intrinsic immorality of artificial birth control and its harmful consequences to society. Thus, labeling Catholic opposition to artificial birth control as “conservative” amounts to either ignorance or plain defiance of the Church Magisterium. This brings to mind my earlier post on Conscience and the Denial of Sin.

Being a faithful Catholic is never intended to be easy and convenient, in much the same way that it is never easy and convenient to love one’s enemy, care for the poor, or turn the other cheek. But that’s the way a Catholic “conservative” goes.

EO 464 Revoked

EO 464 is finally revoked by PGMA.

As I noted in a previous post, the strong recommendation pertaining to the abolition of EO 464 was the most significant item in the CBCP’s Pastoral letter, and now we see the President taking heed just eight days after the Pastoral letter was released. This development comes at a time when the Supreme Court and the Senate are to the point of ironing out a compromise arrangement as to the parameters of invoking Executive Privilege at the Senate hearings.

Meanwhile,

- NSCB reports more Filipino families getting poorer
- Five people hurt in violent MMDA demolition, 50 stalls razed
- RP Stocks fall on high inflation, Wall st
- Philippines largest lake under threat

Altogether, things should get more interesting at the Senate hearings.
This one should be eagerly followed - again.

Fine.

But who’s been minding the store?

Moses high on drugs?

Thus claims this Israeli “researcher” who claims that Moses was on psychedelic drugs when he heard God deliver the Ten Commandments. The Agence France-Presse report says that Benny Shanon, a professor of cognitive psychology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, writes in the Time and Mind journal of philosophy that “such mind-altering substances formed an integral part of the religious rites of Israelites in biblical times”.

“The Bible says people see sounds, and that is a classic phenomenon,” Shanon said, citing the example of religious ceremonies in the Amazon in which drugs are used that induce people to “see music.” Moses was probably also on drugs when he saw the "burning bush", he added.

He mentioned his own experience when he used ayahuasca, a powerful psychotropic plant, during a religious ceremony in Brazil's Amazon forest in 1991. “I experienced visions that had spiritual-religious connotations”.

Wow. This ayahuasca drug must be really, really powerful. If his claims are true, it is most likely that Moses has likewise “induced” himself as well as hordes of Israelites and Egyptians to imagine the parting of the Red Sea. Come to think of it, probably it is not only Moses for that matter, but ALL biblical personages who had “spiritual-religious visions” probably took this drug or some form of it. Maybe that is why Marx said religion is the opium of the masses? Now we are not sure whether this Israeli “researcher” intends to discredit Moses, religion in general, or whether he simply wants to expose the ill-effects of dangerous mind-altering drugs. What we do know as a fact in this day and age, is that dangerous drugs definitely cause wild hallucinations. Shanon himself affirms so, having admitted taking the ayahuasca drug way back in 1991.

It is also a fact that dangerous drugs cause permanent brain damage.

Of Salt, Light, and Pulse Asia’s NBN survey

Pulse Asia’s recent survey reports that 16% of Metro folk are willing to join rallies vs the NBN deal.
Of the respondents, 84 percent of Metro Manila adults are not willing to attend mass actions, whether they support the reasons behind these (53 percent) or not (31 percent).

This Pulse Asia survey reminds me of the story of the pollster conducting this house-to-house survey on the nation’s problems. As the story goes, a pollster walked up to a house, rang the doorbell, and was greeted by a man with a drink in one hand and a television blaring in the background. After introducing himself, the pollster asked this question: "What is the biggest problem in our nation today: ignorance or apathy?" Just before he slammed the door on the pollster, the man answered, "I don't know and I don't care!"

The preceding anecdote rings with the reality of the times.

The top reasons given by those who said they would not join rallies, according to the same Pulse Asia survey, is that: "There are more important things to do" (26 percent) and "there's really no change whoever leads the government" (26 percent). A sizable number of the total, twenty-one percent, said the need to earn money for daily expenses further prevented them from attending rallies. The majority of the people seem not compelled enough to take action. Indifference, lack of information, daily pressures of livelihood, – many factors conspire against the majority to become more actively involved in influencing the political process.

Is there even a need for Christians to be involved?

Let us look at some biblical accounts when God’s people did involve themselves.

Joseph rose to a position of great power in Egypt, and God used him to save many lives during a severe famine (Gen. 50:20). Samuel, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah and other prophets made sure that political leaders heard clearly what God had to say about justice, the right way to rule, caring for the widowed, the orphaned, the poor, and the lame. Amos spoke out during a time of judicial corruption (5:7), immorality (2:6-8), and oppression of the poor (4:1). Esther carefully used her position of influence to protect exiled Jews in Persia. Daniel was not afraid to speak out on God's behalf (Dan. 4:27). John the Baptist spoke out against the immorality of king Herod and was imprisoned and beheaded (Mt. 14:1-12). In response to influential leaders who were trying to get Peter to stop speaking publicly about Christ, the apostle Peter said, "We must obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29).

Finally, Jesus said to His followers, "You are the salt of the earth..You are the light of the world.. nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house." (Mt. 5:13-15). Salt serves as a preservative and light drives away the darkness. For believers in Christ to serve as salt and light, it means that by words and actions we are to uphold and promote God's standards and help people to see the truth about life and God. As salt and light, our lives are to make a difference in preventing the decay of our society and promote the true worship of God. Yes, Christians should be involved in the political process, while we affirm that any evil should not be used to justify a good. Separation of church and state should not mean separation of state and morality. We must be careful though, that we do not short-circuit the political system, nor promote anarchy or violence. We should not lose sight that the real battle boils down to a spiritual battle, where we need the weapons and armor that only God's grace can provide (Eph 6:10-18). What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, then who can be against us? (Rom 8:31).