Papal declarations and bishops' politics

There are millions of Filipino Catholics but they are so only in name. They have been born and baptized into it without ever understanding its teachings. That ignorance persists even when they have become adults and raise families of their own, creating ever more ignorant and mendacious Catholics.

Therefore it is hardly surprising that there is no Catholic vote. That does not discourage bishops or pseudo-religious versions like Mike Velarde from claiming that they have the power to call on Catholics when they want to assert political power. (It have never quite understood why a religious charlatan like him does not even get a slap on the wrist for his blatant use of Catholicism for money and power.) Probably the most effective Catholic leader to interfere in political affairs was the late Cardinal Sin.

As for the masa, their Catholicism is distinct from their politics. They go to Mass, have their children baptized and want a priest to administer last rites but they will not flock to Edsa or Makati on the say-so of a bishop or bishops and that has embarrassed them no end. They have not come up with crowds for regime change disappointing foreign sponsors.

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Bioethics. So much for the matter of political interference by church leaders. It is a pity that more important matters are not being debated upon because of churchmen’s preoccupation with politics. One of them is stem cell research. Are we informed enough on just what the Church’s position is on stem cell research?

Yet it is well known that Filipinos by and large have ignored the tough new Vatican document on bioethics. The document “Dignitas Personae” condemns embryonic stem cell research, in vitro fertilization, the “morning-after pill” and a host of other techniques in modern medicine because these are regarded as violations of human dignity.

 John Allen has written in his article “The Pope’s Real Message to Obama”: “In the United States, the tendency may be to see the document, titled “Dignitas Personae,” or “Dignity of the Person,” as a battle plan for resistance to the incoming Obama administration. In reality, that amounts to trying to shove a square peg into the round hole of American politics.

For one thing, the document has been in the works for years, so it is hardly a rapid response to the American elections. Moreover, the Vatican does not want to be at loggerheads with Barack Obama, because it sees a range of matters where it’s more in sync with him than it has been with President Bush.”

Population control. Perhaps the most sensitive and discussed issue in the Philippines as far as the church is concerned is population control. For the first time in many years, lawmakers have resisted attempts by churchmen to silence them in cobbling a state program to defend a more just program (equal access for the rich and the poor) for birth control. Long before the controversy on the reproductive bill, I had heard from legislators themselves that they were receiving threatening letters from their bishops even in the very first stage of discussions. They warned they will be denied the sacraments and make sure they are defeated at the polls. Had there been a more reasonable debate, a population control program would have been in place that is not necessarily against church teaching. Common ground would have been found.

It may be important for Filipinos to know that Mr. Obama won a majority among Catholics even if “the sharpest anti-Obama rhetoric came from some Catholic clergymen. John Allen cites a number of churchmen who used incendiary criticism. Among them were Bishop Robert Finn of Kansas City “who warned voters that their eternal salvation might be at stake if they supported Mr. Obama.” Other pro-life priests even suggested that “Catholics who voted for Mr. Obama should go to confession.” (Their bishops, it should be said, quickly rejected that idea.) He also writes on “Cardinal Francis Stafford, a former archbishop of Denver who today heads a Vatican court, described Mr. Obama’s rhetoric on abortion as “aggressive, disruptive and apocalyptic,” and compared the election results to the Garden of Gethsemane — the spot where, according to the Bible, Jesus agonized before his crucifixion.”

“In that context, “Dignitas Personae” risks being read as encouragement for the most ardent pro-life forces in America to let slip the dogs of war,” Allen warns.

Here in the Philippines, most Filipino Catholics would like to see a church that will look for balance and find some common ground between church and state on these matters instead of an absolute rejection — stem cell research and artificial birth control being crucial issues of life.

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If you have the time and the inclination read The Goldilocks Enigma by Paul Davies. His book will perhaps be more helpful in grappling with fundamental questions on who we are and why we are in this world more than papal declarations or bishops’ politics.

He delves into all the ‘big questions’ and the latest discoveries that have allowed scientists to piece together the story of the universe in unprecedented detail.

Davies explains why, despite all this, cosmologists are more divided than ever. “Why is everything just right for life on earth? And how have we tried to explain this? How has belief shaped the scientific debate? What do we really know about our place in the universe?”

It is a highly readable book. The author has worked hard to bring science to a popular audience. He decodes the real science and gets to the very heart of our understanding of the universe. He is the author of some 20 books, including Superforce, God and the New Physics, The Mind of God, The Last Three Minutes, Are We Alone? and How to Build a Time Machine.