ALONG with the outpouring of affection for Pope Francis came a flood of self-righteousness and hypocrisy. When the Pope called for a rejection of corruption in government and society, pretenders to moral ascendancy immediately began pointing fingers at others while implying that they themselves were above reproach.
Noynoy Aquino himself could not help positioning himself as the paragon of virtue at the expense of the clergy, forgetting that he was playing host to the leader of the objects of his scorn.
Said Aquino,“Many members of the Church, once advocates for the poor, the marginalized, and the helpless, suddenly became silent in the face of the previous administration’s abuses, which we are still trying to rectify to this very day. In these attempts at correcting the wrongs of the past, one would think that the Church would be our natural ally. In contrast to their previous silence, some members of the clergy now seem to think that the way to be true to the faith means finding something to criticize…”
This was, of course, not the first time that Aquino had gunned his mouth before his brain was in gear, but he could not have picked a worse time to display his hypocrisy – in the presence of a pontiff who has made no claims to sainthood and has often described himself as a sinner.
Aquino was – as he has always been – in denial, conveniently ignoring the fact that he himself has been “silent” in the face of the corruption among his allies and party mates.
How did the Pope, or at least his aides, regard Aquino’s display of impoliteness and imprudence? Said Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi, “I think the speech of the president was rather original because it’s not always that there is such speech during formal ceremonies of the reception of the pope.”
“Original” was obviously a euphemism. Translation: Aquino’s speech was “uncouth, uncalled for and out of place.”
And speaking of translations, in his remarks in Malacañang, Pope Francis zeroed in on corruption and poverty.
Said he: “The great biblical tradition enjoins on all peoples the duty to hear the voice of the poor. It bids us break the bonds of injustice and oppression which give rise to glaring, and indeed scandalous, social inequalities. Reforming the social structures which perpetuate poverty and the exclusion of the poor first requires a conversion of mind and heart.
“The Bishops of the Philippines have asked that this year be set aside as the ‘Year of the Poor.’ I hope that this prophetic summons will challenge everyone, at all levels of society, to reject every form of corruption which diverts resources from the poor, and to make concerted efforts to ensure the inclusion of every man and woman and child in the life of the community.”
What, in fact, was the message that Pope Francis wanted to convey? A dozen learned men going over his words will likely come up with a dozen different interpretations. But when you reduce the verbiage to its core, I think the Pope’s message echoed the exhortation of Jesus Christ to Peter after asking him three times, “Do you love me?”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.”
Indeed, in a nation of predominantly poor people, epitomized by the thousands of Yolanda victims whom the Pope chose to visit and dine with in Leyte, this is a message that should resonate.
For sure, the Aquino government, like past administrations, has attempted to address the problem of poverty, but there is a conflict between Church dogma and the need to keep a high population growth rate under control to be able to adequately “feed the sheep.”
There is also an inherent conflict between growing the economy and maximizing profits for business and industry, and the need to pay wages that will enable lowly workers to afford enough food, clothing, shelter, education and health care, as well as the need to provide social services for the poor and marginalized. And, finally, there is the plague of corruption that overlays Philippine society.
The easiest to put a finger on is corruption, which the Pope specifically cited. Quick to pounce on the apparent message of the Pope, people on social media singled out certain public officials as the obvious culprits, while ignoring others with equally dirty hands but who claim to be saintly and simon pure.
I, frankly, couldn’t help responding:
“I think the question that Pope Francis asked, between the lines, was, ‘How many of you have translated your claimed integrity, honesty and incorruptibility into actual benefits for the poor and the underprivileged?
“How many thousand young people have you sent to school? How many thousand sick people have you provided with health care? How many families have you provided housing and shelter? How many overseas workers have you protected? How many senior citizens and handicapped have you cared for?
“It’s easy enough to preach compassion and love for one’s fellow men but how many of you actually sit down at meal time with your maids and domestic helpers – or are you señores and señoritas who are served hand and foot and who leave the morsels for them to eat?
“Pope Francis will be dining with my fellow Leytenos – the victims of Yolanda. How many of the politicians who claim to care for the poor have actually deprived them of aid by allowing food to rot and keeping donated funds from them?
“As I said in an earlier posting, we should always be reminded of the story of the Pharisee and the Publican. It’s so easy to accuse others of being corrupt but how many of those accusers have actually descended from their castles to help the poor?
“When Pope Francis was interviewed upon assuming the papacy, he was asked to describe himself. His reply: ‘I am a sinner.’ Those of us who are quick to accuse others of being sinners should learn a lesson from the humility of this pope.”\
For those who may be unfamiliar with it, I think the parable of the Pharisee and the publican or tax collector is worth retelling:
“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’
“But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
Said the Lord Jesus Christ, “I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”
If there is a lesson that Pope Francis left with us in his brief pastoral visit, I think it is the need for introspection. The “conversion of mind and heart” that he called for should start, not with others, but with ourselves.
I think that like the publican, we all need to say: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.”
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