In Memoriam

On top of Mt. Samat in Bataan, looms a large, steel cross measuring 92 meters high. Known as the Shrine of Valor, it is visible even from afar.  It serves as a memorial of the heroic struggle and sacrifices of Filipino and American soldiers who fought and died during the Battle of Bataan in1942. On the two lateral walls of the colonnade is the narrative of the “Battle of Bataan” etched in marble. It ends with the phrase: “Our Mission is to Remember.”

Bataan was the site of the vicious battle against the invading Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. The Filipino and American soldiers retreated to the Bataan Peninsula for a last valiant but futile stand. Sick, starving, exhausted and short in ammunition after three months of fighting, Major General Edward King surrendered to the Japanese on April 9, 1942. This led to the Bataan Death March with about 80,000 soldiers forcibly made to walk 130 km for five days under the heat of the sun, without food or water.

It was my first time to visit its museum underneath and read war stories that recount the courage and bravery of our soldiers. I was touched by their memory whose blood soaked every stone and pavement of the mountain. Pictures of brave war heroes embellish its corridors whose names today are just for history books. I realize they were flesh and blood people whose honors deserve to be enshrined and remembered. In my heart, I felt the tag to tell and re-tell their stories.

We need to recognize our great past. Telling their stories is for connection. Not so much for them but for us and the generation after us. I wonder when our young people hear names such as Leon Kilat, Natalio Bacalso, Florencio Llamas or Tres de Abril? Will it ring a bell in their heart? Maybe they will recognize these names simply as streets of our metropolis. Like many of our heroic stories, they have slipped out of memory. Without this connection with our past, we contribute to their historical poverty. So become a people without a historical sense.

November is a month of remembrance. We are invited to remember our saints and the souls of the faithful departed. The souls of the faithful departed deserve our memory because they are part of our family. Our connection with them does not end in death. We treasure their memory because we love them. We appreciate their legacy because honoring them with flowers and candles express our gratitude. But most of all, our love for them is made concrete through our prayers especially offering the Eucharist for them.

The saints deserve our focus because they are our heroes of the faith. While the souls of the faithful departed are still purified and prepared for eternity, the saints have reached the heavenly Jerusalem. The book of Revelation speaks of a great multitude that no one can count wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hand. We realize that in our journey of life, we are not alone. So many friends are cheering for us and praying for us. We are always in communion with them.

One of the newest saints we have is the 15-year old martyr Jose Sanchez del Rio. Pope Francis canonized him on October 16, 2016. He joined the Mexican freedom fighters known as the “Cristero” that fought against the Maxist government. Though his mother refused his entry because he was too young, he reasoned: “Mama, do not let me loose the opportunity to gain heaven so easily and so soon.” Captured during a fight, he was imprisoned and tortured brutally. He found strength in praying the rosary daily. In prison, he wrote an emotional letter to his mother declaring that he was ready to fulfill the will of God.

Finally, on the day of his death on February 10, 1928, the soldiers cut the soles of his feet and forced him to walk to the cemetery. They enticed him: “If you shout ‘Death to Christ the King’, we will spare your life. All the more Jose would shout: “Viva Cristo Rey!” When he reached the place of execution, his captors stabbed him with bayonets. Then the commander pulled out his pistol and shot him in the head. As he was dying, he drew a cross in the dirt and kissed it with fervor.”

Stories like this bring out the desire for greatness. Their examples inspire us to be steadfast in the faith. We realize we have a great tradition of holiness. Hence, it is our duty to remember.

                     (Appeared in the Faith Section of Cebu Daily News, November 06, 2016)

Throw-away Culture

Candles burn night and day outside the gate of the Ibona residence. Just a week ago, in broad daylight, brothers Ramonito and Cesario were shot dead right at their home. Until now the perpetrators are still unknown. A 16-year old female victim was part of the collateral damage. Though innocent, she just happened to be in a wrong place and in a wrong time. The killing toll continues to rise. We no longer know whether the operation is legitimate or not. It might just be personal vendetta to stump rivalry.

I feel sad for them because they were my parishioners. According to the Philippine Barangay Population 2015, Punta Princesa - Cebu City has a population of 22,369. Their demise has now lessened my flock by three. I may not have known them personally but they are not just mere statistics. They are more than nameless numbers. They were fathers, brothers or friends; they have families whom they were responsible for. Each was a person with basic goodness at heart. Each of them was loved by God.

These deaths reinforce what Pope Francis has brilliantly defined as the “throw-away mentality.” In this culture of accumulation, we amass so much that we throw-away what we do not really need as excess. As we throw-away food and things, we now throw-away lives. We see them as problems to be avoided and burdens to be eliminated. It takes great love to see them as persons with dignity and worth. Only by love that we see our lives and that of others as gifts.

In today’s pragmatic lifestyle, one name towers above all of us: Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Recently Pope Francis declared her a saint. This means that she was a true follower of Jesus who witnessed to him in her daily life. In fact, she is described as “the icon of mercy.” She spread the love of God radically to the poorest of the poor that even those who have no faith would see compassion concretely in more than words. She was heroic in her sacrifice and self-forgetfulness.

Mother Teresa was a prophetic voice who championed the cause of the least and the last. It all began with an inspiration; seeing Christ in the poor. It seemed a lost advocacy with nothing and no one to help her. But her faith was as great as her dreams. Her heart was big enough to embrace a dying stranger, a malnourished child or an illiterate youngster. She believed in Divine Providence and the basic generosity of people. Amazingly her work caught the imagination of the world. She became an international star. People started to call her a “living saint.” Among the honors she received were the Ramon Magsaysay Peace Prize in 1962 and the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize in 1979.

In 1950, She founded the Missionaries of Charity with over 4,500 Sisters imbued by her spirit of compassion active in 133 countries. Here in Cebu, the Missionaries of Charity run two institutions, “Gasa sa Gugma Home for the Dying Destitutes” is located at Cabantan, Mabolo and an Orphanage right at the very heart of the slum district of Barangay Pasil. The former is a place called home by the aged, dying and abandoned people. The latter is a hospice for the sick and malnourished children. The primary task of the Missionaries of Charity is to love and care for these people nobody of us is prepared to look after.

I remember a testimony by Fr. Julius Sanchez, Rector of Don Bosco Borongan, Eastern Samar. When typhoon Yolanda struck Samar, all communications were cut. There was no way to contact them; they had no electricity and food. Three days later, the Missionaries of Charity arrived with their collaborators in a convoy of three vehicles bringing food and supplies. Though they themselves depend on the charity of others, they go out of their way to be missionaries of compassion for those who are in greater need.

More than ever, we shall need the heart of a Mother Teresa to inspire us to swim against the current of a disposable culture. In this Sunday’s  Gospel (Lk 16:1-13), Jesus teaches us that we become shrewd servants if we use the goods of this world to help others. Such a mentality fosters a culture of communion. For Jesus everyone is included, each one is a gift.  

(This article also appears in CDN Faith Section's Sharing the Word, September 18, 2016)