Living in peace amid an impending war
March 16, 2003 | 12:00am
The lenten season began last week with the traditional Ash Wednesday ritual of putting ashes on the foreheads of the Christian faithful in many churches around the world. It was surprising to see hundreds of people attend the mid-morning Mass in our local Catholic church that day. With the world going topsy-turvy these days, it’s a timely reminder that we are "dust and unto dust, we shall return." Indeed, the season of Lent helps people like me deepen our spirituality. To be spiritual doesn’t necessarily mean being religious as there are many religious people who are not spiritual human beings. The season of Lent helps people like me deepen our spirituality.
I remember reading a book entitled How to Live Free in an Unfree World written by a certain Robert Browne two decades ago and I can’t help but wonder how people could live happily and free these days with the disheartening news coming from all corners of the world. The impending war in Iraq, the threat of North Korea upon her neighbors, the turning of Mindanao into an Israel- or Palestine-like place where suicide bombers are daily threats to peace. How can someone maintain his or her sanity and still live in peace?
To paraphrase Mark Twain, it’s the worst of times. And in such times, we should be grateful there is a church where we can seek refuge and be with fellow believers. Although our planet is becoming a more dangerous world, it’s important to remember that this is just a temporary abode and we’re merely passing through. True peace is living out one’s faith and abiding in the True Vine – Christ. Our faith is anchored in the belief that there is life after death and that our purpose on earth is to serve and love the Lord as well as our neighbors. Serving the least of our brothers and sisters is one way of serving Him.
For the next 40 days, Christians all over the world have the opportunity to rekindle their faith and collectively contribute to world peace. And peace should start with ourselves. There will never be lasting peace if social injustice prevails. The natural law of cause and effect still applies as it did in the beginning of time. Human acts of wanton greed and selfishness have dramatically resulted in the unjust chasm between the rich and the poor, between nations and among peoples of the world. During Lent, the faithful are admonished to do penance, do some fasting and abstinence. They are also encouraged to render random acts of kindness and have a closer personal relationship with the Lord.
Clearly, our faith is being put to the test. To put everything in perspective, here’s an inspiring poem entitled "Anyway" by Kent M. Keith which was made popular by the late Mother Teresa of Calcutta:
The Paradoxical Commandments ( Finding personal meaning in a crazy world ) By Kent M. Keith |
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot
down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.
People favor the underdogs but follow only the topdogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.
What you spend years building can be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People really need help but people may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you will be kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway!
In the final analysis, it is not really what’s between you and your fellowmen, but rather, what’s between you and your God that matters! Right?
• Volunteer some time or contribute your talents to any cause. The best way to beat depression or stress is to help someone (millions are less fortunate than you are!). Feed the homeless, visit an orphanage or a nursing home, read to young children in the library, etc. There are many non-profit groups like the Habitat for Humanity, Audubon Society, Rotary Club, Kiwanis, Lions Club whose main mission is to share and help others, need a lot of volunteers. In the Philippines, this need is even more profound.
• Visit the library or a bookstore. Reading germinates seeds to critical thinking that leads to a more successful life. Do it once a week and it becomes a habit, and you’ll discover a new world without ever flying to another country.
• Go to church. Praying alone in church is a more profound experience than being surrounded by countless of people during Sunday Mass. It is always a humbling experience to see the tombstones of the departed in the cemetery next to St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Huntington Beach. To see this well-manicured resting place of the dead with manicured-grass and flowers always reminds me of the last line of Dr. Jose Rizal’s immortal poem, "Mi Ultimo Adios" (My Last Farewell), "Morir es descansar" (To die is to rest).
• Play and/or interact with young children. Every month, I look forward to our Rotary Club’s interview of Middle School students (these are the 7th and 8th graders) of the ABC School District. They are Rotary Club’s semi-finalists for "Student of the Month Program" competition that began three years ago. Their optimism is indeed refreshing and contagious. Sometimes it seems that it’s the adults who have made the world more dangerous and serious for everyone. Along the way, adults have lost their child-like innocence, positive attitude and youthful optimism and have replaced them with a baggage of prejudice, envy and laziness.
• Gardening. It is a priceless yet very inexpensive way to relieve stress. My own backyard – planted with numerous fruit-bearing trees and flowering plants – is an oasis where I can readily escape from the maddening crowd who, driving around in their cars or SUVs, clog the streets and freeways even on a weekend. Gardening slows you down and forces you to be closer to earth like the Native Indians thousands of years ago.
• Walking or biking in solitude. I believe many things in life are still free. Walking barefoot along the beach is quite therapeutic and the accumulated pounds of anxieties and worries in life can be blown away by the wind. Biking is another hobby where one can relive the joys and carefree world of childhood.
• Bird watching or people watching. This is another enjoyable pastime. Try observing the flights of migratory birds like the geese. They always fly in formation with the rest of the flock following a leader. When one leader gets tired, another one replaces it. People watching? Just observe people during rush hours or during the so-called "happy hours" in hotels or restaurants. People pretend to be happy while drinking and talking aimlessly hoping to drown their miseries in life. Unknowingly, however, they are just watering down their worries while depleting their wallets.
Try a combination of the inexpensive hobbies mentioned above as part of your acts of "fasting and abstinence" during Lent and notice the changes in your life!
This early, we can already see the visible signs of economic repercussions such as the increase in gasoline prices from $1.25 for regular unleaded last year to over $2.20 per gallon. Hotels are half-filled, and a trip to the airport takes twice or thrice longer as a result of 9-11. Layoffs and unemployment still continue to rise. Many of these "victims" of company downsizing are those in the lower ranks, including Filipinos, because they are dispensable in the company’s operations.
When people lose their jobs, small businesses typically owned by mom and pop or small entrepreneurs suffer too. Its effect is already being felt across the country. These prolonged grave economic dislocations worry me most as it will become much worse before it becomes better. If the economy further sours till next year, Bush would have a difficult time getting reelected in 2004 like his father years ago who was defeated by an unknown Democrat Arkansas governor named Bill Clinton.
Despite all this sad news, Filipinos in America will survive (Sanay naman ang Pilipino sa hirap!). They can easily live together in one house – with grandparents and grandchildren, if necessary. This is one great advantage of the Filipino culture that is alien to Americans. However, this economic decline will result in fewer remittances and balikbayan boxes for Pinoy relatives back home. So, kababayans in the Philippines, please understand that if your allowances (a.k.a. dole outs) decrease soon, blame it on the war on terrorism and the US-Iraq conflict!
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