EDITORIAL - Prayer is still better

Cebu archbishop and Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines president Jose Palma is right in advising all Catholics against engaging in physical manifestations of penitence, such as crucifying or flogging themselves.

There is really nothing to show that engaging in such activities will earn anyone the pardon of God for sins committed. According to Palma, nothing beats prayer in seeking forgiveness from God.

Prayer, after all, is the best form of communicating with God. Prayer can even be done through “divine agents” such as the saints and angels, and of course through the most beloved of all intercessors — the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Prayer, therefore, should be first and foremost among all activities Christians may wish to engage, whether at this time of Lent, or throughout their lives. Prayer should be a lifelong commitment in fact by everyone, not just Christians.

That everybody prays regardless of religious persuasion should prove that it is the most widely accept form of communication with God or some other deity. And it is used for a variety of purposes, to ask for forgiveness, to ask for blessings and grace, to say thanks.

Physical pain, on the other hand, is not only unclear as to benefits, it is also very dangerous. That is perhaps only very few ever engage in it. And what can often be said about those who engage in them is that they are more of a spectacle than a religious rite.

Self-crucifixion and self-flogging have earned some following among the superstitious and the curious. They have been featured in television shows and documentaries and have reached global audiences.

Yet there is still no showing that those who engaged in them, whether as actual participants or plain observers, have derived the kind of grace that would have been expected from such extreme displays of physical endurance. Come to think of it, prayer is indeed better.