Some of the clergy are working with communists and leftist militants to oust President Rodrigo Duterte. This was according to Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque days before Malacañang officials and leaders of the Catholic and Christian groups set to hold a dialogue to thresh out differences between Church and State.
What is give-‘em-hell Harry up to? Clearly his statement during a press briefing in Leyte burns bridges instead of building them. These words were uttered prior to the dialogue to be held between Palace officials and leaders of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines. Roque can well be considered one of the better spokesmen of the President. Being an articulate lawyer, however, he cannot seem to desist from making controversial remarks. This makes him attract criticism more than the man he is supposed to defend.
Roque loves the sound of his own voice. Observers have come to see him competing with his own boss, the President. Is Roque’s constant mouthful mode laying the groundwork for his seeking a Senate seat in the 2019 mid-term elections? After the Senate, maybe he wants to be president, too.
The dialogue between Church and Palace officials is still pushing through despite diatribes from Duterte’s spokesman. Malacañang was the one who proposed the dialogue after a backlash from the Church and Christian groups for the President “stupid god” blasphemy. Expletives against God, the Church, Pope Francis, as well as the deportation of Australian missionary Sister Patricia Fox, have added to Mr. Duterte’s sins.
The verbal attacks of the Dutertes and the Roques of this world are really nothing new. They and others in power before them often see shadows where there are none. Historically, Christian missionaries were vilified and some even burned at the stakes when spreading the word of God. This was seen in Latin America and Africa.
The missionary work by priests in developing and third-world countries became known as liberation theology. Because exponents of liberation theology were making conversion to Christianity difficult, the Vatican admonished the missionaries to lessen their zeal in other countries because of the misconception about their spiritual and humanitarian work.
And so it was in the case of Sister Fox, who was accused by the administration of engaging in partisan politics. Like other persons of the cloth, missionaries undertake work not to topple a president or ruler of a nation. Liberation theology, carried out by the clergy, is not to ignite a revolution but to liberate people from poverty, hunger and injustice. Yes, sometimes the consequence is the departure of an unjust ruler who does not take care of his own people. But then, if and when a despot is toppled, it can only be of his own making.
The memory of an outstanding missionary comes to mind. His name is Fr. Luis Halasz. a Hungarian priest who did missionary work in the hinterlands of Mindoro. I was then the Philippine ambassador to Hungary but did not know of his missionary work in Mindoro until members of the small Filipino community in Budapest told me about it.
Fr. Halasz celebrated Mass for us at the Philippine embassy and sometimes at a small chapel in a home for the elderly run by Hungarian nuns. Fr. Halasz who passed away several years ago was well-loved by the Filipino community in Budapest for his compassion and dedication to his work even when he was already in his eighties. Imagine, he commuted by train from his parish so many miles from the capital to celebrate Mass at the Embassy. I sent the Embassy van to pick him at the Nyugati train station.
In Mindoro where he learned to speak Tagalog and even the Mangyan tribe dialect, Fr. Halasz with his own hands helped build small classrooms and health clinics. In appreciation of his humanitarian work, Fr. Halasz was given award by the Philippine government during the time of then-President Joseph Estrada. He must have said a prayer for Erap that made him survive a plunder conviction and even win the Manila mayoralty.